The Billionaire Unexpected Heir

chapter 4

Nicole's POV

Few days later.

I let a sigh as I stood up to go to the bathroom, the dizziness in my head only intensifying as I stepped into the cold tile. I splashed water on my face, trying to clear my thoughts.

Since I and Zane's last encounter I had not seen him though I knew quite well that he was avoiding me and I've been feeling sick so I didn't even bother confronting him about it.

I still hadn't gotten over how the last one ended.

While I gazed into the mirror, a wave of nausea suddenly hit me. It was unlike anything I had felt before-sudden, sharp, overwhelming.

I stumbled back, my stomach churning as I tried to steady myself. My breath caught in my throat. Something wasn’t right. I gripped the edge of the sink, trying to steady myself, when my eyes caught sight of the pregnancy test in the cabinet.

I didn’t even think about it as I grabbed it, ripping off the plastic wrapper. My hands were shaking as I followed the instructions, the seconds feeling like hours as I stared at the small stick in my hand.

The result was clear. Oh no.

I was pregnant.

My mind went blank as the weight of the discovery hit me like a freight train. I stumbled back, my pulse racing as I tried to process what this meant. The nausea surged again, but it was nothing compared to the fear, the panic rising in my chest.

What now?

***

The days after I found out I was pregnant felt like they dragged on forever. I kept replaying the moment in my head-how I’d woken up to the cold emptiness of the bed beside me, how everything had seemed so much simpler before I’d found out. I should have been excited, maybe even happy.

This was supposed to be a fresh start, but instead, I was more confused than ever. I had no idea what to do with this information.

How could I tell Zane? How could I tell him something that would change everything between us, especially when he hadn’t seemed to care about anything we shared?

I waited, hoping the right moment would come, but it never did. Every time I thought I was ready to face him, the words got stuck in my throat. It wasn’t like there was any warmth between us to cushion the blow.

I’d never seen Zane act like a husband, not really. He was more like a distant stranger-an authoritative figure who paid the bills and cleared the debts, but didn’t do much else.

But I couldn’t keep hiding this from him. I had to tell him.

Finally, one evening, after we’d barely exchanged a word all day, I found myself standing in front of him in his office. He was sitting behind his desk, engrossed in some report or another, his gaze focused on the screen, his jaw tense. I watched him for a moment, my heart racing in my chest.

“Zane,” I said softly, my voice catching.

He didn’t look up. “What is it, Nicole?” His tone was sharp, businesslike.

I took a deep breath and stepped closer to the desk. “I… I have something to tell you.”

That got his attention. He finally looked up, his dark eyes narrowing as if he could sense something was wrong. “What is it?”

My hands were shaking as I held them in front of me. “I’m pregnant.” The words spilled out before I could second-guess them, and I immediately regretted it.

There was a long, heavy pause, and then Zane’s face remained impassive. He didn’t smile, didn’t react in any way that I could read. It was like he hadn’t even heard me.

“Pregnant?” he repeated, his voice neutral.

I nodded. “Yes.”

His eyes flickered with something unreadable, but his expression quickly returned to its usual coolness. “I see,” he said, his gaze drifting back to the papers in front of him. “Well, this changes nothing. We’ll just have to keep up appearances for the sake of the child. That’s all.”

His words hit me like a slap in the face. Keep up appearances? That’s all this was to him? A public image to maintain? A contract to uphold?

“Is that it?” I whispered, my voice breaking despite myself. “No congratulations? No… nothing?”

Zane sighed, clearly irritated by my outburst. “Nicole, this is a business arrangement. We both know that. A child doesn’t change that. The sooner you accept that, the easier this will be for both of us.”

I felt my chest tighten, the sting of his indifference cutting deeper than I expected. “I didn’t ask for this, Zane. I didn’t ask for any of it.”

“You didn’t have a choice.” His words were blunt, almost cruel.

I turned away from him, fighting the overwhelming urge to scream. “No, I didn’t,” I murmured. “But you don’t have to be so heartless about it.”

“I’m not being heartless, Nicole,” he snapped, his voice rising for the first time. “I’m being practical. And you should be, too. The last thing we need is for you to get emotional over something that doesn’t change anything.”

I was about to fire back when something in his office caught my eye-a letter. It was tucked inside an old file on his desk, the envelope slightly yellowed with age.

There was something oddly personal about it, something that didn’t belong amidst the sleek, impersonal documents that filled the rest of the room.

I felt a sudden urge to pick it up. Without thinking, I walked over, my fingers trembling slightly as I reached for the letter. It was sealed, but the name written on the front sent a chill down my spine.

To Zane Blackwood, from Richard Blackwood.

Zane’s father. I had heard little about him-only that he was a ruthless businessman, a man who’d built an empire and had very little regard for family.

Zane had never spoken much about him. But from the way Zane had built his empire, I knew that family wasn’t exactly his priority. I had to know what was inside.

I ripped open the envelope, the sound sharp in the quiet room. Inside was a single sheet of paper, the handwriting neat and formal, but the words on the page made my breath catch.

"Zane, my son," the letter began. "You’ve always been my greatest disappointment. You lack the strength I tried to teach you, and that will be your undoing. You cannot rely on anyone. Trust no one. Not even those closest to you. You’ll find that love is a weakness-an illusion. People will use you, and in the end, it will be your undoing. If you want to survive, you must sever ties with your emotions, just as I have."

The letter went on, but I could barely read anymore. I felt a knot tighten in my stomach. This was the man who had raised Zane? No wonder he was so cold, so emotionally distant.

His father had poisoned his mind, made him believe that love was a weakness and trust a liability.

I looked up at Zane, my heart racing. He was watching me, his eyes guarded, but there was a flicker of something there-something raw. He knew what I’d found.

I held the letter in my hand, my voice barely above a whisper. “Is this why you can’t love?” I asked, my throat tightening. “Is this why you shut everyone out?”

Zane froze, his face paling as he stared at me, the walls he had so carefully built around himself cracking for just a moment.

But in that moment, I saw it-the pain, the fear that he had buried so deep, I wondered if he even realized it was there.

He didn’t say anything at first, but his silence spoke volumes. The truth hung between us, a heavy weight neither of us could ignore.

Would Zane ever be able to break free from the legacy of his father’s cruelty? Would he ever allow himself to feel anything real?