THE WOMAN WHO WASN'T SUPPOSED TO KNOW
1226 Words
Three days after the procedure, Jelina sat at the kitchen table staring at the small calendar beside her coffee.
The date of the pregnancy test had been circled in red.Two weeks.Fourteen days.
It suddenly felt like the longest wait of her life.
Kevin walked into the kitchen, fastening his watch.
“You're thinking about it again.”
Jelina looked up.“Maybe.”
He smiled faintly.“You need to stop counting.”
“Easy for you to say.”
He pulled out a chair and sat opposite her.“I've been thinking too.”
“About what?”
“The baby.”
Her expression softened.“What about the baby?”
“What if it's a boy?”
Jelina smiled.“Then he'll be spoiled.”
“By you?”
“By both of us.”
“And if it's a girl?”
“She'll have you wrapped around her finger.”
Kevin laughed.
For a few minutes, everything felt normal.
Then his phone rang.
His smile disappeared when he saw the screen.
“It's a client.”
He stood and walked toward the hallway.
Jelina watched him answer.
His voice became tense almost immediately.
“I already told you I'll finish the work.”
A pause.
“You can't keep changing the agreement.”
Another pause.
“Fine. Forget it.”He ended the call and shoved the phone into his pocket.
“Problem?” Jelina asked.
“Nothing.”
“You're upset.”
“I said it's nothing.”His tone made her fall silent.
A moment later, he picked up his jacket.
“I'll be back later.”
“Kevin.”
He stopped.
“I'm sorry.”
“For what?”
“I know you're under pressure.”
He looked at her.Something softened in his face.“I'm fine.”Then he left.
Jelina remained at the table, wondering how long she could keep pretending everything was fine.
That afternoon, she went to the pastry shop.Business had been slow, but she didn't complain. The shop was hers. It was the one part of her life that still felt completely under her control.
She was arranging pastries in the display case when Eliana walked in.
“You didn't tell me you were working today.”
Jelina smiled.“I always work.”
Eliana removed her coat.“You're going to exhaust yourself.”
“I need the distraction.”
Eliana studied her.“Still thinking about the IVF?”
Jelina nodded.“I can't help it.”
“Jelina, you need to breathe.”
“I know.”
Eliana leaned against the counter.“Kenji called this morning.”
Jelina smiled.
“How is he?”
“Busy. He says everything is ready for me.”
“When are you leaving?”
“Soon.”
The smile on Jelina's face faded slightly.“I'm going to miss you.”
“I'll call every day.”
“It won't be the same.”
“No,” Eliana admitted. “It won't.”She reached across the counter and squeezed her sister's hand.
“But I'm not disappearing.”
Jelina smiled.“I know.”
Neither woman noticed the black SUV that slowed briefly outside the shop before continuing down the street.
Inside it sat Adriel Matthias.
He had been on his way to a meeting when his driver mentioned the area.
Adriel barely paid attention.
His mind was elsewhere.
The fertility clinic had sent confirmation that his sample had been stored successfully.
Everything had gone according to plan.
He had no reason to think about it again.
Yet, for reasons he couldn't explain, he remembered the sterile room, the forms, and the director's assurance that everything was secure.
He trusted very few people.
That was why he had chosen the clinic so carefully.
His phone rang.
“Mr. Matthias.”
It was his attorney.
“Yes?”
“We've received the final documentation from the clinic.”
“Good.”
“There is one matter you should be aware of.”
Adriel's expression changed.“What matter?”
“I'd rather discuss it in person.”
“Then come to my office.”
“I'm on my way.”
The call ended.
Adriel stared through the window.
Something about his attorney's tone bothered him.He disliked surprises.
Especially when they involved his future.
Meanwhile, at the clinic, the technician who had discovered the error had barely slept.
Her name was Chloe Bunnett.
For three days, she had debated whether to report what happened.
The mistake had been serious.She knew that.But she also knew what exposing it could mean for her career.
Still, she couldn't forget the file.
Adriel Matthias.
Jelina Mayfair.
Two patients.One sample.
One devastating error.
Chloe finally walked into her supervisor's office.
“We need to talk.”
Her supervisor looked up.“About what?”
Chloe closed the door.
“There was a problem with the Mayfair procedure.”
The woman's expression changed.
“What kind of problem?”
Chloe placed the file on the desk.
“The donor sample.”
“What about it?”
“It wasn't the anonymous donor.”
Silence.
Her supervisor slowly stood.“Then whose was it?”
Chloe swallowed.
“Adriel Matthias.”
The room went completely still.
“Are you certain?”
“Yes.”
“Does anyone else know?”
“Not yet.”
The supervisor stared at the file.
Adriel Matthias wasn't an ordinary patient.
His name alone could bring lawyers, investigators and the media crashing through the clinic's doors.
“We need to verify everything,” she said.
“I already did.”
“And the patient?”
“Mrs. Mayfair was told the procedure was successful.”
Her supervisor closed her eyes briefly.
“Then we have a very serious problem.”
Chloe nodded.
“What do we do?”
“We tell the director.”
“And then?”
“I don't know.”
Because there was no easy solution.
They couldn't simply undo the procedure.
They couldn't erase what had happened.
And they couldn't tell Jelina she was carrying another man's child without also exposing the clinic to a devastating scandal.
At that exact moment, the director's assistant entered.
“Mr. Matthias's attorney is here.”
Both women froze.
Chloe looked at her supervisor.
“He's already here?”
“Yes.”
The assistant stepped aside.
A sharply dressed man entered the room carrying a leather briefcase.
“I'm here on behalf of Mr. Adriel Matthias.”
Chloe’s stomach dropped.
The attorney placed a document on the desk.
“We need confirmation that Mr. Matthias's stored samples remain secure.”
The supervisor stared at the paper.
Then at Chloe.
Neither woman spoke.
The attorney frowned.“Is there a problem?”
Chloe looked at the file on the desk.
For three days, they had been hoping the mistake would somehow disappear.
Now Adriel Matthias's legal representative was standing in front of them.
And the truth could no longer remain hidden for long.
Because somewhere across the city, Jelina Mayfair was counting down the days until she could discover whether she was pregnant.
She had no idea that her pregnancy had already become the biggest secret inside one of New York's most exclusive fertility clinics.
And soon, the man whose child she was carrying would come looking for answers.
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