Selene's POV
The clinic doors slid shut behind us,sealing away the sterile smell of antiseptic and the echo of the doctor's careful words.
"You might still get pregnant but the embryo is implanted high, there is a risk of placenta previa, pre-delivery bleeding,possible preterm labor and a higher chance of C-section."
She'd prescribed some drugs that I had to take everyday just to be able to carry a monster's baby,a baby I wasn't sure was going to survive or whether I would survive delivering it.
The ultrasound printout was still clutched in Carlos's hand like a grenade he didn't know whether to throw or defuse.His face was stern almost as if he was patiently waiting for someone to unleash his anger on.I walked beside him quietly to the car,my legs were shaky with each step. Every step sent a dull ache through my lower abdomen.
The black SUV waited at the curb with the driver already holding the back door open. Carlos didn't speak. He just slid in first and I followed him like the puppet he had turned me to.
The engine purred to life and we pulled away from the curb.
I stared out the window at the passing palm trees and billboards, but I wasn't seeing them,all I saw was seeing that tiny flickering sac on the screen.
Seeing myself in a hospital bed months from now, bleeding and terrified or even maybe dying from birthing a child I never wanted to have.
My mind wandered to Carlo's face when the doctor said "fifty-fifty." He hadn't flinched. All he managed to ask was "What are the odds?" like he was pricing a business deal.
I couldn't hold it in anymore.
"Carlos."
He didn't look at me.
"Carlos, talk to me."
His jaw clenched. "There's nothing to talk about."
"There's everything to talk about." My voice cracked. "The doctor just said I could bleed out and that I could lose the baby or even die. And you're sitting there like it's a weather report."
He finally turned his head. His eyes were dark, hard. "What do you want me to say, Selene? That I'm scared? That I'm sorry? That this wasn't supposed to happen this way?"
"Yes," I whispered. "Any of that or all of it, something to take my mind off this."
He laughed . "You want comfort? From me?"
"I want something to hold onto.You can't just—"
"I can't do what?" His voice rose in anger. "I can't pretend this is normal? I can't pretend I'm not furious? You think I wanted this? You think I wanted a scared little girl carrying my heir, crying in my car because she suddenly realized the contract has teeth?"
The words hit like slaps causing me to recoil.
He kept going,each word was venomous and it stung deep into chest.
"You signed the paper, Selene. You spread your legs,took the money and now you're shocked that the baby might kill you? That's rich coming from a slut who sold her womb for cash."
My breath stopped but he didn't.
"A cheap whore who eats babies for breakfast and then cries about it. You knew what you were signing and the risks that came with it. Don't act like the victim now."
The car felt so small that the air became too thick.
I stared at him, tears burning my eyes but I refused to let them fall.
"Stop the car," I said to the driver.
The driver's eyes flicked to the rearview mirror, uncertain.
Carlos snapped, "Keep driving."
"Stop the car," I repeated, louder.
The driver hesitated.
Carlos's voice turned lethal. "If you touch that brake, you're fired. Keep going."
The driver swallowed and the car kept moving.
I reached for the door handle.
Carlos's hand shot out, clamping around my wrist "Don't."
I yanked my arm free. "Don't touch me."
He let go.
The car was doing sixty on the freeway now. My chest was so tight I could barely breathe,I was at the verge of collapsing.
I looked at him ,his face was pale with glassy eyes and his hands were shaking where they rested on his thighs.
He looked terrified but he'd rather tear me apart than admit it.
I turned to the window again,tears slipped down my cheeks despite my efforts to hold it back.
Minutes passed or maybe even hours.
The car slowed as we approached the traffic stop.
I didn't wait for the driver to stop fully,I opened the door and jumped out.
The momentum threw me forward ,my knees hit the asphalt hard and the pain shot up immediately to my legs. I stumbled, caught myself on my palms, scraping skin.
Behind me, tires screeched,Carlos's door flew open,he came out yelling my name "Selene!"
I didn't look back. I pushed to my feet and started walking , limping away from him and the prying eyes of those who stood at the traffic stop.
Cameras flashed and voices erupted in the crowd that had gathered.
"Mr. Rodriguez! Is that your fiancée?"
"Selene! Over here!"
"What's going on,did he just push his wife out of the car?"
From nowhere ,reporters and paparazzi stormed the area.At least a dozen of them, all trying to get me to talk but I paid no heed to them as I continued to push my way through the crowd.
Carlos was out of the car now and striding toward me, face thunder-dark.
The cameras turned on him.
"Carlos! There are rumors of an engagement,is it real? Is that your fiancee?
"Did you two have a fight?"
He ignored them all.
He reached me in seconds and grabbed my arm. His grip was gentle this time as pulled me against his chest.
I fought"Let go."but he didn't.
"The lady said you should let her go"
I turned to see the familiar voice that echoed at my back,and there he stood. Alejandro Rodriguez.