Chapter Eighty five

Third Person's POV;

Aleena was drowning in jealousy even as she stalked their pages. A luxury car for a Christmas present? Let's not forget the surprise birthday party and exotic honeymoon all for that wretch. And, what's more annoying than the fact that her insider who let her in on what she needed to know from Damien's villa had been fired.

Tracy and her had not talked ever since the contract fiasco and her so called friend whom she found out was pregnant had not even bothered to reach out to her.

Damien. Oh her Damien had not even reached out ever since their night of passion in London few months back. It was sad that that wife of his was getting in the way of their love story but it was only a matter of time until she dropped her Trump card.

She may have made the mistake of drugging him back in London when her informant had told her of his presence there. She had followed him all through his stay up until he went to the club. There, she had bribed a bartender and had him spike Damien's drink when him and his guards weren't looking.

It was a smooth ride thereafter. All she did was follow him to the hotel and considering the fact that his guards were familiar with her, they let her through and soon she was face to face with his subliminal self.

It all went downhill from there and she had a sextape to show for it. One she would use in getting him to choose her.

She stared at herself in her vanity mirror. She had been sick during the last few days and was hesitant to visit the doctor for reasons unknown to her.

It wasn't until the end of the first month of the year that she realized that she had bitten off more than she could chew.

"Pregnant?! No it can't be!" She screamed while in the doctor's office. She was nearly three months gone and had no idea about it until now.

How would she know about pregnancies and their symptoms when all she had was an absentee mother who only wanted her to bring money home right from her teenage years.

She wouldn't be where she was without Damien's help and now that she was carrying his child much to her dismay, she still hoped that it would turn out good in the end.

She did not know how to break the news to him or anyone for that matter. This baby was most definitely going to get in the way of her career, something she wanted to get Damien to improve with his influence.

She just had to salvage the situation somehow. She did not have a choice cause there was no aborting the near fetus at this point.

"What do I do?" She groaned out loud as suddenly noticed her the unusual firmness of her abdomen.

"I'm really pregnant, aren't I?" She said to her little canine friend who simply moped at its owner.

Her lower lip jutted out even as she wallowed in self pity, suddenly afraid of her actions consequences. But, she couldn't raise this child all alone. She had to tell him but she was terrified of how he would react. She would just have to put him in a tight position where he would not be capable of rejecting her.

Yes! She knew exactly what she was going to do.

****

Ariana's POV;

My neck ached due to the fact that I had slept in an uncomfortable position for over four hours. The steady beeping sound of the heart monitor was all the noise that could be heard in the otherwise silent room.

The first few weeks of my stay in New York were alright but by the middle of January, dad's health had greatly deteriorated and we basically lived in the intensive care unit of the hospital but in a VIP room, Damien had made sure was arranged for us.

He called every now and then even when I kept giving him cold responses. He was away in Italy and had been working non stop since the year began.

He even asked me to come for the grand opening but I gave no sure response not knowing when I was going to leave New York. It was exhausting to think about.

His family had been really supportive and were always calling to check in on dad and I. I appreciated all of that.

Tracy's baby bump was really showing and from what I saw, she was all loved up with Aiden. How cute! They had finally put their differences aside and were exploring their budding love story. I was happy for both of them.

Fiona was nearly done with high school and Jesse was really busy setting up his studio.

It seemed I was the only person in a fix but I was happy for each and everyone of them.

Bringing myself back to reality, I checked the time and saw that it was past four in the morning. It was the beginning of a new month. The countdown to the six month mark for Damien and I had begun.

I sighed heavily and trailed my gaze over to my father who was sleeping. Soundly, I hoped.

It all went downhill when one day I found him laying unconscious on his bedroom floor after I came back from the grocery store. I was so terrified, I don't even know how I managed to get the driver to help me get him into the vehicle so we could rush him to the hospital.

Damien called in no distant time because apparently the bodyguard he assigned to me had informed him of what happened. He then made arrangements for us to move to a VIP room which obviously was more comfortable.

Since then, it had been a series of ups and downs with several fluctuations with dad's health. Just when we thought we were making progress, one issue or the other popped up and dampened our hopes. I was physically, mentally and emotionally exhausted.

I moved closer to him and placed my palm in his, even as I laid my head next to him and wept like I always did whenever he was unconscious. I couldn't let him see my tears so I always hid them whenever he was awake.

I prayed so many times for his life to be spared and as the days went by, my anxiety grew even more.

"Papá eres todo lo que tengo." I whispered every time I cried like this. A small part of me wanted his subconscious to register what I said so maybe he could have pity on my frail self and not leave me in this cold world. (Dad, you're all I have.)

I had no other relatives I could pin point. He lost touch with my maternal family after my mother's gruesome death and no one ever seemed to care about her only child. I do not even have a sibling. So where am I going to start from? Just where?

I cried myself to sleep once again and woke up when I heard the disturbing coughs that erupted from my father's lungs.

I rushed to his side in reflex. But then it had stopped and he laid back and tried to catch his breath before staring up at me.

My worried eyes met his calm ones and he smiled.

"You worry too much, my dear." He said with a sigh.

"I can't help it. It's past four weeks already." I said quietly.

"You do know most of these predictions aren't exactly accurate." He reasoned.

"Yeah. Most of the time their predictions come through much earlier than expected." I uttered with a sigh.

"And sometimes later. I guess that's where we're on." He mused.

"I guess." I concurred, trying to contain the sadness that welled up inside of me every single time we talked about this.

"Forgive him, will you?"

"Who?" I asked feigning obliviousness.

"Damien, of course."

"Not again dad." I rolled my eyes irritatedly.

We had been going back and forth on this issue for over a month and it was seriously grating on my nerves.

"I really want you two to be together." He said.

"And why is that?"

"Well, for one, he takes care of you. He's very protective and he tries his best to make you happy." I listened to dad as he enunciated all of Damien's supposedly good qualities.

"Money and luxury isn't everything, dad." I deadpanned.

"Who said anything about that?"

"Damien 'takes care of me' materially." I said making air quotes as I spoke.

"I don't want all of that. I need to be with someone that truly gets me. The glitz and glamour only get in the way of what I really want for myself."

"You're right. But you could still give him a chance." He suggested.

"Did he put you up to this?" I questioned suspiciously.

"Not at all. Ariana just give him a chance." He pressed further.

"I've given so many." I countered.

"I'm asking this from you. Another chance please." He practically pleaded.

I was tongue tied and stuck in a maze but reluctantly agreed just for dad's sake. At least he would get off my case.

"No promises but I'll try." I muttered begrudgingly.

He gave me a small smile before slipping into unconsciousness again due to weakness.