Forced To Marry My Cousin's Fiancé

Chapter 58: Chapter 58

"Lane, wake up."

Lane slowly opened her eyes to the sound of Ethan’s deep baritone. The first thing she saw was his handsome face.

He was sitting on the edge of the bed, watching her intently.

"Why?" she asked, her voice thick with sleep as she rubbed her eyes.

"Wake up. You have a checkup today, remember?"

"What time is it?" she asked. She didn’t wait for an answer, glancing at the alarm clock on the nightstand instead. "Ethan, it’s still early," she groaned. "It’s only seven. My appointment isn’t until nine."

"Oh, I thought it was at eight," he replied.

She gave a small shake of her head and let her eyes flutter shut again. "Can I sleep a bit longer?"

She was still exhausted. Even though Ethan made sure she went to bed early to keep her immune system up, her body felt heavy. He was terrified of her getting sick again.

A month had passed since Lane had been hospitalized, and during that stay, Ethan had been incredibly attentive. She’d assumed that level of care would fade once she was discharged, but she was wrong. Even now that she was fully recovered, he remained devoted.

Ethan never said he loved her. He wasn’t the type to put those feelings into words. But she felt it in everything he did.

She knew that saying "I love you" just wasn’t in his nature, and for her, his actions were enough.

Besides, she knew Ethan actually remembered exactly what time her appointment was. He had asked her several times the day before, including right before they fell asleep.

He was just restless. He was especially excited because today was the day they’d find out the gender of their baby.

A soft laugh escaped Ethan, and Lane found herself smiling. He used to be so stingy with his laughter, but lately, she heard it all the time. She never got tired of it. To her, it was the best music in the world.

"Fine. I’ll give you one more hour, then I’m coming back up here to get you moving," he said.

She nodded with her eyes still closed.

"Anyway, what do you want for breakfast?" he asked after a moment.

"Anything," she replied. Her pregnancy cravings had finally settled down, replaced by a constant, overwhelming need to sleep.

"Okay," Ethan said. She felt a surge of warmth in her chest as he gently stroked her hair. "Sleep tight, Lane."

She heard his footsteps retreat until he was out of the room. She drifted off almost instantly, only to be gently shaken awake later.

"Time’s up, Lane," he said. She opened her eyes to see his dark gaze fixed on her. As she started to sit up, he immediately moved to assist her. "I brought your breakfast up... warm milk."

"Have you eaten yet?" she asked.

He nodded. "Eat up, Lane."

She focused on the food while Ethan stayed by her side, watching her. At one point, she paused when she felt his fingers brush the corner of her mouth. She looked up and saw his serious expression as he wiped a stray crumb away.

"You had something on your face," he said, finally breaking eye contact.

Lane smiled and finished the meal. Once she was done, Ethan set the tray on the nightstand.

"I’m going to go take a bath," she said, starting to get ready. Ethan helped her walk to the bathroom. Even though she was only five months along, her belly was already quite large.

She expected him to leave, but instead, he started undressing.

"What are you doing, Ethan?"

"I’m taking a shower too," he replied, stripping down completely.

Her eyes widened. She hadn’t even processed the shock before he dropped his pajamas and briefs.

Lane swallowed hard, her gaze traveling over his impressive physique. She held her breath as he stepped closer, pressing his body against hers.

He leaned in, his breath warm against her ear. "You’ve seen me naked plenty of times, Lane," he whispered in a low, teasing voice.

"But your reaction is still priceless."

A small moan escaped her lips when he gently nibbled on her earlobe, and she quickly covered her mouth with her hand.

_____________

"What’s the gender, Doc?"

Lane hid a smile. Ethan hadn’t even given the doctor a chance to start the exam before asking.

The doctor laughed. "Patience, sir," he said. "We’ll find out in just a moment."

Lane took Ethan’s hand and squeezed. When their eyes met, she saw a flicker of raw emotion in his gaze.

They both turned toward the monitor as the ultrasound began.

"Oh," the doctor murmured.

"What is it? Do you see it?" Ethan asked.

"Yes," the doctor replied.

Ethan squeezed her hand back, his eyes bright with excitement. "So, what is it?"

"Do you want to know now, or are you doing a gender reveal party?" the doctor asked.

"Tell us now," Lane said.

They both waited, hearts racing in anticipation.

"It’s a boy," the doctor announced.

Lane bit her lip as tears of joy filled her eyes. She couldn’t stop them from spilling over.

"Oh, look, Mommy’s crying," the doctor said with a smile.

Ethan looked at her and reached out to brush a tear from her cheek.

"Tears of joy, Doc," she managed to say.

Ethan didn’t pull his hand away. He kept cradling her face, wiping the moisture from her skin himself.

She could see the pure pride in his eyes. He was thrilled that their firstborn would be a boy. He finally had his heir.

The drive home was quiet, but the happiness in the car was palpable. Lane sat in the passenger seat, caressing her stomach.

Ethan reached over and placed his hand over hers. Seeing him smile at her belly made her heart melt.

When they arrived at the mansion, Lane was surprised to find their parents waiting in the living room. Her mom and Aunt Catherine stood up immediately to greet them.

"What are you guys doing here?" Lane asked.

"Ethan mentioned your checkup was today," her mom replied. "We knew you were finding out the gender!"

"Is it a girl?" her mom asked.

"Or a boy?" Aunt Catherine chimed in.

Lane looked at Ethan, letting him have the moment.

"A boy," Ethan said, his voice ringing with pride.

She saw her dad and Uncle Victor exchange satisfied smiles. It looked like everyone had been hoping for a grandson.

"We’ll just have to try for a girl with the second one, Eleanor," Aunt Catherine said to Lane’s mom.

Lane blushed. Their first wasn’t even here yet and they were already planning the next.

She leaned back, smiling as she listened to them talk. She could already tell this child was going to be horribly spoiled by his grandparents.

Suddenly, her phone vibrated in her bag. She pulled it out and saw a text from an unknown number. She frowned, wondering if it was a scam, but something about the message made her open it.

Lane.

It didn’t look like a scam. They knew her name.

Who is this? she typed back.

A few seconds later, a reply flashed on the screen. The smile instantly vanished from Lane’s face.

It’s me, Olivia.

_________

"Lane."

Lane blinked, jolted back to reality by the sound of Ava’s voice and the firm touch on her arm. When she looked up, she saw Ava watching her with deep concern etched into her features.

"Are you okay? You’re totally spacing out," Ava said.

Lane took a heavy breath. Ava’s brow furrowed. "Is there a problem? Did Ethan hurt you?" she asked.

There was a sudden sharpness in Ava’s eyes, like she was ready to go pull up on Ethan right then and there. "I thought that jerk had finally changed."

"No. Ethan didn’t hurt me," Lane replied. It was the truth. He hadn’t hurt her emotionally in months.

The Ethan who used to constantly scowl at her, convinced she had some hidden agenda behind their forced marriage, was gone.

"Then why are you zoning out? I’ve been calling your name for a while, but you were light-years away," Ava said. "That was a pretty deep sigh too."

"I’m just worried, Ava," Lane admitted.

"Worried about what?"

"About Olivia," she answered softly.

Ava’s face went blank with shock for a second. Once she found her voice, she asked, "What about her, Lane?"

Lane hesitated. "Olivia contacted me."

Ava looked stunned. "What did she say?"

"Nothing. I didn’t reply." When the text had come in, Lane just froze.

She didn’t know what to say, mostly because she was terrified. She was scared that Olivia would come back and just take Ethan away. She feared he would choose his ex over her and their unborn child.

She couldn’t stop thinking about a conversation they had ages ago, back when Ethan said he’d only leave her if Olivia returned.

What if she actually came back? What if he dumped her the second Olivia showed up?

She had no real security. The only thing she had to hold onto was how Ethan acted and how he made her feel.

But he never put it into words. Ethan had never actually said he loved her. She felt it through his actions, but what if she was just seeing what she wanted to see?

The thought felt like a giant hand squeezing her heart, making it hard to catch her breath. Her vision blurred, and despite her best efforts to keep it together, tears began to stream down her face.

"Lane," Ava said, reaching out to steady her.

Lane wiped her eyes with the back of her hand.

"I’m scared, Ava," she admitted, her voice trembling. "I’m terrified of her coming back. What if Ethan leaves us? What if he chooses her?" She let out a shaky breath as the tears kept coming.

"I loved him before, but I love him so much more now." She covered her mouth to stifle a sob.

Back when she thought there was no hope, Lane had tried to kill her feelings and just focus on the baby. But just as she was giving up, Ethan started to change. He became a different person toward her.

Because of that, she had let herself hope again. She had started to believe he was actually falling for her.

During the days she spent with him, feeling his care and seeing the genuine concern in his eyes when she was sick, she had fallen deeper than ever.

Ava pulled her into a hug. "Shh, it’s okay," she comforted her. "Don’t cry. You don’t want to stress the baby."

Hearing that, Lane bit her lip and tried to rein in her emotions, terrified of how her breakdown might affect the pregnancy.

Once she calmed down, Ava pulled back and grabbed a tissue from the coffee table.

After Lane wiped her face, Ava made a suggestion.

"Why don’t you just ask him, Lane? Why don’t you just ask Ethan how he feels about you? That way you don’t have to keep guessing."

Lane bit her lip again. "What if he gives me the answer I’m afraid of?" she asked, her voice small. "What if he tells me he doesn’t love me? What if it’s still Olivia? What if she’s the one who still has his heart?"

Even without an answer, the mere thought of it was agonizing.

"If that’s the case, then you have to move on, Lane. You’ll have to let go for your own sake. You can’t just stay and get hurt, and you have to think about your kid too," Ava said firmly. When Lane’s eyes started to well up again, Ava softened.

"But if that really is his answer, don’t forget that Noah and I are here for you. We’ve got your back."

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