Chapter 23 WILL SHE WAKE UP (Ethan’s POV)
I ran a hand through my hair, pulling at the strands, still in shock. This couldn’t be happening, not when I'm still Ethan. I wasn’t supposed to care for real. I wasn’t supposed to want to protect her, to put her first. I wasn’t supposed to feel anything at all, no form of emotion.
I turned back hesitatedly toward the bed. Demilia whimpered softly in her sleep, clutching her stomach.That single sound...It shattered me.I crossed the room in three long strides and knelt beside the bed, my breath unsteady. “Stop,” I whispered, though she couldn’t hear me. “Stop hurting. Stop fighting alone, let me in with you.”
My hands hovered over her, shaking with but with restraint “I won’t let anything happen to you,” I murmured. “Or to the baby.”The words came out before I could swallow them.
I froze, shocked at my own character, at how much I cared even without wanting to.
I hadn’t said it aloud before, not even to myself, nor to those around me. I stood abruptly, pacing the room like a caged animal. Try and ocus, be in control. She couldn’t know I was aware.
If she knew, she’d pull away, and maybe try to hide,bir even lie. And worst of all, she could disappear behind those walls she always built. And I needed her close enough, at least to monitor how she's doing. Where I could see her, protect her to the best of my ability, study her, and possess her.
A knock sounded on the door not long after that. I inhaled sharply, awaiting whomever it might be. “Enter.” My doctor came in with a small medical bag. He bowed his head. “Mr. Blackwell.”
I stepped aside, as he approached the bed carefully. “Will she wake?” he asked quietly.
“She’s exhausted. Work fast.” He inserted the IV needle gently into her arm.
Demilia groaned faintly but didn’t wake. I watched every movement like a hawk.
“Her pulse is weak,” the doctor murmured. “But the medication will strengthen both her body and the pregnancy.” I clenched my fists, praying silently that nothing happens to her.
The reality of the word hit me like a punch, making me so mad.
He handed me a small vial. “One dose every day. In her tea, juice, anything. But she must not know.” I nodded, slipping it into my pocket. “And the illness?” I asked.
“She may experience pain. Especially cramps, dizziness, emotional sensitivity.” He paused. “These can worsen.” I swallowed hard, putting on a strong exterior.
“She’ll need protection,” he continued. “Someone watching her constantly.”
Well, that someone would be me. I exhaled slowly. “Leave everything to me.”
He bowed again and left silently, without another word. I stood there for several moments, staring at the closed door, then at Demilia. She shifted again, a soft whimper escaping her lips.
I moved closer, very close to her. “Breathe,” I whispered. “Just breathe.”
I sat down in the armchair across from the bed, my eyes locked on her sleeping form. She didn’t know I knew. She didn’t know how close she was to losing everything.
She didn’t know how far I would go to keep her safe. She didn’t know she was already mine completely and dangerously, and of course Irreversibly.
And I would make sure she never found out...not until she was too deep to run.
I leaned forward, elbows on my knees, breathing harshly, because the truth I didn’t want to face..
the truth that terrified me...
the truth that made my chest hurt when I watched her sleep...was simple: I wasn’t afraid for the baby. I was only afraid for her. And for the first time in years…I wasn’t sure how to protect something without destroying it.
“You’re mine,” I whispered. “And I will not lose you.”
Demilia’s POV
The first thing I noticed when my eyes fluttered open was the silence that surrounded me.
Not the peaceful kind of silence, but the wrong kind. The kind that sits too still. The kind that feels watched.
My body felt… completely different.
Not perfect...no. But the sharp twisting pain in my stomach from yesterday had dulled into a weird, gentle throb, completely manageable. Almost… fading. My head wasn’t pounding as violently as it was before. My limbs didn’t feel as heavy as wet sandbags.
For the first time in days, I could breathe without clutching something for support.bBut something else hit me immediately. My food tray that was beside my bedside.
A bowl of soup on my bedside table, still warm. Its scent was familiar… and yet, not.
I frowned, leaning over slowly. My stomach still felt tender, but at least I wasn’t dying. I sniffed the soup again. The smell was off, so unfamiliar. Not wrong though, not bad at all, just that it changed.
Like something had been hidden beneath the normal ingredients. Something freshly added.
My pulse buzzed nervously. “Lena?” I called out, but the room swallowed my voice.
There was no answer. I sat up, wincing slightly. “Lena?” I tried again, louder.
Still nothing.
A cold sensation crawled over my skin. She never left without telling me. She never disappeared like this. Not when she knew I could barely stand yesterday.
Something wasn’t right from the moment I woke up. Before panic could fully bloom, I heard footsteps racing down the hallway, then my bedroom door swung open.
Lena barged in, breathing hard, her braid slightly messy...as if she’d run back from somewhere far. She shut the door behind her and pressed her back to it.
“Lena,” I breathed in relief. “Where were you? I’ve been calling you.”
She lifted her hand to her chest, catching her breath. “Demilia… I’m sorry. I...” Her voice breaking in the process, then she looked around, lowering it to a whisper. “Ethan chased me out of the mansion.”
My eyes widened. “What? Why?”
“I don’t know!” Lena whispered harshly. “I came back early in the morning because you weren't answering your phone. The guards said I wasn’t allowed to enter. Ethan looked… furious. He was talking with someone on the phone, yelling, and then when he saw me....he told me to leave and not step foot inside.”
My heart stalled that very moment.
Ethan? Chasing Lena away? At dawn?
“What did you do?” I whispered.