MR. MORENO'S SURROGATE ✔️

21 - Leilah

My life was ruined. Why did this happen? Why would he do this? I don't even know what to do now. What to think. But it's been a little over a week now, so I have no choice what happens. I've been tasting cakes and different foods for the wedding, and every time, I just picked something. Anything, just to get it out of the way. Just for this to be over already.

"Tomorrow, you will pick a dress and shoes with Mr. Moreno." Stacy says. Stacy is some assistant Elijah hired to help me get things crossed off the wedding agenda. She's been nice, and she's really the only person I can talk to anymore since Cayson doesn't any longer. Neither does Elijah himself. "Ms. Winters?"

"I'm listening." I say, giving her an apologetic smile. "Tomorrow, dress, shoes."

"Right. But for now, we have to get you back home to your husband. He's demanding you come back in time for your checkup." she says, hurrying to the car and hopping in.

I nearly gag at the word husband.

And I forgot to mention that he's also hired a midwife to come by the house and be my caretaker from now on. I hate that he's treating me like his prisoner, keeping me inside and taking my life away from me. I hate it. But, before I know it, we're back at the house. Just as I arrive, Elijah's walking to the car with a stupid grin on his face.

"I trust everything went well?" he asks.

I fucking hate it when he talks. I completely ignore him as I walk into the house. When I walk in, I go up to my room. A few minutes later, there's a knock at my door.

"Come in." I say, sitting on my bed.

"Hi, my name is Maria Knight. I'll be your midwife through the remainder of your pregnancy, how are you?"

"I'm fine." I say as she approaches me.

After a few minutes of conversation and talking, she puts gel on my stomach and begins moving around it. She turns up the sound on her monitor and I can hear the baby's heartbeat for the first time.

The sound of it beating is hypnotizing. A small smile appears on my face for the first time in a while and tears prick at my eyes. The thought of having a kid is running around in my mind and an overwhelming happiness comes over me. Now at this point, I forget who I'm carrying the baby for. For a moment, this baby is mine. Only mine. Then the moment ends and I don't even know that it's been about seven minutes. I look up and over to Elijah, and he's... on the fucking phone?!

Me and the midwife talk a bit more as she runs a few tests, then she's gone. I stand from my bed with my arms crossed as I look at Elijah scrolling through his phone.

"You could at least show some interest in your child." I say angrily.

"What are you talking about?" he asks.

I scoff. Is he serious? "You have got to be fucking kidding. What am I talking about? I'm talking about how we just sat there for thirty minutes listening to the baby's heartbeat and running tests, and all you could do was scroll through your phone."

"And?" he says, raising his hands in a shrugging manner.

"Are you just that selfish that you don't even care about this baby and whether or not it's okay? Because this whole pregnancy, all you've ever done is stress me the hell out, I'm surprised there's nothing fucking wrong with the baby now!"