Page 45 of Pregnancy Clause in Their Paper Marriage

He’d stared at his sister blankly, and then it was as if he’d had an injection of adrenaline, of realisation. He had to get to Lana. He wouldn’t fail her any more than he already had. By the time he’d made it outside of the hotel, she’d already been on the way to the hospital.

What must she have thought, when she’d looked around in those frightening moments, and hadn’t seen him?

He’d known he would hate the fact that he’d disappointed her in those crucial moments, but he’d also known he had to look forward...for the sake of their marriage, their child. By the time he had arrived at the hospital with Sophia, having been told Lana was taken to a different one, she was already in the operating theatre, having an emergency C-section. Christos had been powerless to do anything but wait.

And then he’d received the news that Lana had had a little girl, a tiny baby girl who had been fighting for her life...as Lana had been fighting for her own. He’d stared at the surgeon in blank shock as he’d removed his surgical mask, looking weary and almost as hopeless as Christos had felt.

‘It was a placental abruption. These are very rare, happening in less than one per cent of all pregnancies, but when they do happen, they’re sudden and very dangerous.’

Christos had felt his stomach hollowing out while Sophia had stood next to him, a steadying presence. ‘What...?’ He’d had to make himself start again. ‘What are you saying?’

‘Your wife lost a lot of blood, Mr Diakos. Alotof blood. She’s being given a transfusion, but when a patient has lost as much blood as she has, it’s always a cause for concern. A grave cause for concern.’

‘Are you saying her life is in danger?’ Christos had demanded hoarsely.

The surgeon had nodded grimly. ‘That’s exactly what I’m saying.’

Christos’s reaction had been visceral and immediate. ‘Let me see her. I have to see her.’

‘I’m sorry, but that won’t be possible just now. When she’s more stable, yes. But until then...’

‘I have to see her,’ Christos had insisted, his voice rising, his fists clenching. ‘You don’t understand—’

‘Mr Diakos, I understand completely,’ the surgeon had replied wearily. ‘But until the transfusion is complete and we can be sure that her body has accepted the new blood, seeing her could put her in danger. I promise you, as soon as it is safe, you will see her.’

Safe had been an endless eighteen hours. He’d insisted Sophia go home; she’d promised to return in the morning. She’d been there for him in a way he hadn’t been for her, in the past, and he’d been painfully grateful for it. Meanwhile, Christos hadn’t slept, hadn’t eaten, hadn’t done anything but panic and pray. He’d also seen their daughter, their tiny baby girl, so perfect and pink and small, the most beautiful baby that had ever lived. If he’d been allowed, he could have held her in the palm of one hand. As it was, he’d had to make do with peering at her through the glass, his heart aching and aching. He could lose the two people he loved most in the world...and what he knew most of all was he was going to be there for them. This time, he was going to be there for both of them.

When they’d finally let him see Lana, she’d been unconscious, her beautiful face so very pale, her body so terribly still. He’d held her hand and talked to her, tried to make her laugh even though he’d known she couldn’t hear him.

‘That first time you sat next to me in that bar, Lana? I fell for you then.’ He’d almost been able to hear her scoff, and he’d continued as if they were actually having a conversation. ‘I’m serious. I didn’t realise it, of course. I’m not that sentimental. But I fell for you—for your strength and your spirit, but also because of the vulnerability I glimpsed underneath, although if someone had told me as much, I would have run a mile. You know I would have, don’t you? You always sensed that about me, even before I told you as much. But not now, Lana.’ His voice had choked, and he’d stroked her hand, trying to keep the tears at bay. ‘I’m not running now. I never will again.’

At other times, he’d spoken to her of their daughter. ‘She’s the most beautiful thing you’ve ever seen. Tiny but fierce. She certainly has your spirit, thank goodness. All the doctors and nurses say she’s a fighter. She’s going to fight for her life, Lana, and so are you.’ Again, his voice had broken and this time he’d had to pass a hand over his face, exhausted, overwhelmed,emotional. ‘You are,’ he’d insisted. ‘I know you are. You have to, Lana, for our baby girl, and—and for me. Because I love you. I should have said those words before, because heaven knows I’ve felt them for so long. But I love you.I love you.’

With every fibre of his being, he’d willed her to open her eyes, to hear him, but she’d slept on, as beautiful as an angel, as still as a statue. Then their baby girl had developed a fever, and for two days he’d gone between their bedsides, afraid for both of their lives, while Sophia had supplied him with takeaway meals and decent cups of coffee from a nearby café.

When their daughter was finally out of the danger zone—for now—he’d gone back to Lana, only to be told by this stony-faced nurse that his wife didn’t want to see him.

For a second, Christos hadn’t been able to process it, because he’d just been so glad that Lana was finally awake and able to speak. But what the hell did she mean, she didn’t want to see him?

And yet was he even surprised?

‘There must be a mistake,’ he insisted, trying his best to keep his voice level when in truth he felt like shouting, swearing, storming into Lana’s room, and yet at the same time weeping from his own guilt and grief. ‘My wife will want to see me,’ he said, wanting to believe it. ‘I know she will.’

‘She said she didn’t.’

‘Look,’ Christos said, and now his voice was wavering, trembling. ‘It’s been an incredibly intense week. Lana—my wife—was in danger of losing her life, and our baby girl was, as well. Whatever she’s saying...it might be she doesn’t realise what’s going on. What’s happened. I need to see her.’

The nurse’s expression softened briefly. ‘She did ask for you,’ she admitted. ‘And seemed disappointed when you weren’t there.’

Which was a knife to the heart if anything was. Christos practically staggered. So Lana knew he’d let her down. How could he possibly make it up to her? ‘Please let me see her,’ he said quietly, a plea, and thankfully,thankfully, the nurse finally nodded.

Seconds later he was opening the door to Lana’s room, holding his breath as he saw his wife half sitting up in bed, still looking so pale, her eyes closed. They opened when he closed the door, awareness flaring in their crystalline depths, and then, to his surprise, to his sorrow, Lana began to cry.

He’d never seen her cry before, not like this. Her expression seemed to collapse in on itself and her shoulders shook as she held her hands up to her face, as if to hide her tears, her pain.

‘Lana. Lana. My darling Lana.’

He went to the bed and took her gently in his arms, kissing her hair, her hands, and then her damp cheeks when she let him. He didn’t even hear what he was saying, over and over again, until Lana, through her tears, asked, ‘Do you really mean that?’