Regret? A Little too late

Chapter 2

Ivy's Pov

“Hello everyone, I apologize for the underreaction; I didn't realize it would have such a homecoming,” he jested, making some people laugh nervously.

I turned slowly, my eyes landing on the woman in his arms who held onto him like he was her last straw of oxygen.

“Umm, thank you all for coming, and I would like to take this opportunity to introduce my wife, Janey Woods, and as you can see, we are expecting our…” Caleb said but at this point I wasn't sure who the wife was or what he wanted to achieve but by destroying me.

He pulled the woman beside him closer, but before he could say another word, Grandma quickly took the microphone.

“Vivi? Vivi? Where are you? Come forward,” she called, her voice trying to conceal the shock of all that happened.

I took careful steps forward, trying to look normal but failed terribly.

Caleb's eyes avoided mine as his mother looked at me in disgust. As I walked on the platform, Grandma pulled me closer to her.

“Don't worry, dear; everything has an explanation. I'll fix this; don't be sad, especially for the baby,” she said, taking me off guard.

'When and how did she find out?' But I was worried about one thing, “fixing.” There was nothing worth fixing there. Caleb had clearly made his choice and publicly at that.

“Everyone, I would like to officially announce the Richards family is finally having an heir,” she announced, and everyone clapped.

The question that shone on everyone's face was, Who was carrying the heir?

“Caleb dear, come, your wife is having your baby; come celebrate this moment with her,” Grandmother called as she waved Caleb forward. His face was as white as paper from the shocking news. He looked at me in disgust as if I had deliberately done that.

Dragging himself unwillingly, he came forward and held my hand a bit too firmly. I could tell from his grip the anger that boiled inside him.

“Don't make a scene!” Grandma warned him sternly as she stepped off the stage.

We rejoined the guests, greeting them as everyone congratulated us half-heartedly. Questions were running in everyone's eyes as I smiled through the situation.

An unfamiliar set of eyes caught my attention as everything else felt a blur.

I had noticed him all evening, but he didn't dare approach me.

Strangely enough, Lena approached him as they chatted for a while as if they had met before.

After a few greetings Caleb pulled my hand harshly in the hallway away from everyone.

“You had everything planned out, huh?” He accused gripping onto my wrist that it began to sting.

I looked at the man I held in high regard as my husband in disbelief.

“You're hurting me, Caleb, please,” I said, tears stinging my eyes. It was so ironic how he turned this on me while he was the one who walked in with another woman in his hands.

“Hurting you? How dare you embarrass Janey!” He raised his voice as he gripped on my hand tighter, making me yelp in pain.

“You better get rid of that bastard. God knows where you got it from!” He blurted out in disgust as he pointed at my stomach.

“Caleb! How could you say that? This is our baby?” I yelled at him before I could stop myself.

“How dare this man accuse me of having an affair after all the procedures I had been through to give him an heir.”

Just the thought of that made my heart wring in pain.

“That bastard is no child of mine! Janey is the one carrying my son.” He cursed back as he ran his hand through his hair in frustration.

Before anything could clear from my head, my hand flew across his face, making it hurt more from the earlier assault on it.

He staggered back shocked as he looked at me in disbelief.

I could see strange emotions pass through his eyes, regret and shock, but they quickly disappeared. To think this is the man I had endured with for three years, I couldn't help but feel anger inside me.

“Another woman was being acknowledged for carrying his child. Just how long were they together?”

Every possibility that led to him getting another woman pregnant drove me insane.

Finally, all the business trips made sense. He would disappear for months; I had to use his samples that he had left in the hospital for IVF procedures.

Occasionally I had to go through the pain alone, and for whom? All for nothing! I always excused him as a busy man, but I never thought he hated me so much.“You know I only married you because of Grandma. God knows what you did to bewitch her into thinking you were an angel,” he accused, every word cutting like a sharp knife into my heart.

“What's happening here? How dare you use lies to ruin my son's evening?” Rahab's voice shrieked as she pushed me hard to the ground.

I fell on my butt hard, feeling a sharp pain run across my stomach.

Behind her, I could see Janey, or whatever her name was, grinning behind her lover, Caleb.

“Son, I have always told you to divorce the b***h but you never listen! Now that we have an heir, you need to throw her out!” Rahab cursed, looking at me as if I were the filthiest animal on the planet.

I opened my mouth to talk, but sharp pains attacked my back and stomach simultaneously. I shrieked in pain as the three watched in mockery.

“Oooh, stop it! Ivy, you are a viper; stop pretending you are in pain,” Rahab commented, landing a kick on my leg with her expensive heels.

“If such a tiny fall can hurt you, then you are too weak to even carry an heir for our family.” My husband's voice came full of mockery.

I coiled like a weak ball surrounded by the merciless trio. I felt my gown get wet as I looked down in horror…blood.

“No, no, no, this wasn't happening to me.” “I have tried so much to have a baby to lose it now.” Pain struck me on a whole new level, and I couldn't prevent the shriek that fell in the hallway.

The three watched in horror, realizing just how far they had gone.

“Ivy! I order you to get up from there! Rahab said her words meant to be demanding, but her voice was shaking in fear.

"Vivi?" A weak voice called, but I could tell who it was. Finally, my savior was here, Grandma. They all turned behind them as everyone shouted in horror.

“Grandma! Mother! Mrs. Richards!” They all shouted respectfully as they ran towards the direction. It was as if all hell broke loose as everything started spinning.

Grandma's heart was weak; it couldn't handle stress. They knew, and I knew too; we were always keeping her away from any stressful occurrences.

A dark figure towered above me. "Vivi?" A voice called; this time it was Lena, my best friend.

“Let's get them to the hospital right now.” An unfamiliar male voice ordered as he hoisted me up. My eyes cracked open gently as I locked my eyes on the familiar set of eyes from the evening.

I felt my body go under as I succumbed to the darkness that drew me into inner peace amidst the pain I felt.