Chapter 5 The price of one night

Lena's pov

"You're pregnant, Miss Lena."

My mouth opened, but no words came out. My hands turned cold. I felt like the walls were closing in.

"Pregnant?" I asked again, just to make sure I heard right. "You mean... me?"

"Yes," the doctor said, a little more slowly. "You are about few weeks along."

I didn't hear the rest, my mind was already somewhere else.

I remembered all the times I cried after seeing negative test results. All the visits to the hospital. The medicines, the injections, the IVF. Nothing worked. Then, one day, the doctors told me the truth: I couldn't have children. I was infertile.

So how... how was this happening now?

I held onto the edge of the bed. My head was spinning, my heart was racing.

Was this really happening to me?

The doctor handed me a paper and left the room. I stared at it without reading. My brain couldn't focus.

When I finally left the hospital, everything outside looked the same but inside, I was not the same Lena anymore.

As I walked home, my mind was full of questions.

Could this baby be Adrian's? We tried for years, and it never worked. He left me, called me broken. He stopped loving me. So no, it couldn't be his.

Then it hit me. The night with Damian.

That one stupid, careless night. I never expected anything from it, I never thought I'd see him again.

And now...

Now I might be carrying his child.

I reached home and sat on the sofa like a statue. The house was quiet, Kate was at work.

Later, she came in with a smile and started cooking. But when she saw my face, her smile faded.

"Lena?" she asked, worried. "Are you okay? You look... not okay."

I looked up at her and whispered, "I'm pregnant."

She dropped the spoon. "What?!"

"I'm pregnant, Kate. I just found out."

Her eyes filled with tears. "Oh my God. You tried so hard, Lena. You wanted this so badly."

I nodded slowly. "But I don't know what to do."

"Is it Adrian's?"

"No. I think it's Damian's. It happened only once, but..."

I didn't finish. My throat tightened, and tears ran down my cheeks. Kate sat beside me and pulled me into a hug.

"It's okay," she said softly. "We'll figure this out."

"I'm scared," I whispered. "I don't have a job, I don't have support. I don't even know if I should tell him."

"You have to. He deserves to know."

"But Kate... after that night, he pushed me away. He threw me out like trash. He'll never believe me, he'll think I'm trying to trap him."

"You still have to try. For the baby," she said, wiping my tears.

That night, I barely slept.

The next morning, I put on the cleanest clothes I had and went to Blackwell Corporation. I sat in the waiting area, my hands shaking.

I waited, one hour passed. Then I saw him, Damian Blackwell. Tall, confident, perfect suit. He looked like a man who had the whole world in his hands.

I stood up quickly and walked toward him, but the guards blocked me.

"Please," I said, trying to see past them. "I just need to talk to him."

"Mr. Damian!" I shouted, loud enough for the whole office to hear but I didn't care.

He stopped walking. Slowly, he turned around and looked at me. Cold eyes, no smile.

"What do you want?" he asked sharply.

I swallowed hard. "Just one minute. Please."

He sighed, then told the guards to back off.

"Speak."

"I... I'm pregnant," I said.

He stared at me like I had just told a bad joke.

"What?"

"It's your child from that night," I said, my voice shaking.

Then he laughed. But it wasn't a happy laugh. It was loud and cruel.

"Of course," he said. "You sleep with a man once and then show up with this story. What are you hoping for, money? A house? My name on the birth certificate?"

"That's not true!" I said. "I just thought you should know-"

"Know what?" he cut me off. "That you're a liar? That you spread your legs for a stranger and now want something from him?"

My hand moved before I could think. I slapped him hard.

Then I froze.

His face turned red. His jaw clenched. "You dare hit me?" he shouted.

"I'm sorry," I said quickly. "I just-"

"Get out," he snapped. "Now, before I make the guards drag you out."

I ran.

I didn't stop until I got outside. I stood on the street, crying, shaking, wishing I could undo everything.

Why did I ever trust anyone? Why did I sleep with him?

I felt so small, so lost, so alone.

That night, I sat in my bed, hugging a pillow.

Days later, I was in the room thinking about my life and what next I should do, my phone rang.

Private number.

"Hello?" I said.

A deep voice answered. Cold and sharp.

"Be at my office at 10 a.m, tomorrow. Don't be late. We need to talk about the baby."

Then he hung up.

My heart pounded. I knew who it was, Damian.

The next morning, I was there by 10:00 sharp.

His secretary led me in. He sat behind his big desk, calm and serious.

He looked at me, then spoke.

"Sit down."

I sat.

"Let's make a deal," he said.

I blinked. "What kind of deal?"

He looked me straight in the eyes.

"You're going to marry me."