Sofia’s POV“Good morning, ma,” I smiled at my mum as she walked downstairs. “Did you sleep well?”“Good morning, dear. Yes, I did,” She replied, taking her seat beside me. “Where's Olivia? Has she had breakfast yet?”Stifling the urge to roll my eyes, I nodded in affirmation. “Yes, she has. She's upstairs doing some schoolwork.”Darting me a stern look, mum said. “Sofia, I don't like the way you treat your daughter at all. The poor child did nothing to you, her father did. So why must she suffer for his crime?”“Mum, you know I'm always busy with work and whatnot,” I fibbed. “The little time I have is what I spend with her. I'm not a bad mum, I promise. And she knows I love her even more than myself.”Mum gazed at me, eyes full of skepticism then shrugged. “Well, if you say so. I just want to implore you to spend a little more time with her. Don't make her feel unwanted, okay?”“Yes, ma. I won't.”Inwardly, I couldn't help but scoff as mum helped herself to generous servings of yello
Jocelyn’s POV Inhaling shakily, I clasped my hands together and stared into space, a whirlwind of emotions assailing me.Five hours had passed since I rushed Henry into the emergency room, and I was yet to receive a feedback from the doctors or nursesWhenever I stood up to ask them questions, they'd stylishly duck me and leave.“Stop thinking so much, Josie,” Nancy's voice came from beside me. “I can assure you that it's nothing serious.”“As much as I want to think like that, I just can't because something is obviously wrong, Nancy,” I whispered, tears clogging my throat. “I wish I were the one going through whatever pain my son is passing through right now.”Sighing heavily, Nancy pulled me into a warm hug. “Don't do that, babes. Please be hopeful. Nothing bad will happen to my nephew, alright?”Tears rolled down my cheeks as I nodded. “Okay.”A great wave of dread clenched my chest, nearly making it impossible for me to breathe as I thought of the worst scenario possible.If some
Jocelyn’s POV “Thanks,” I said to the cashier as she handed me my receipt and bagged groceries.I came to the grocery store to buy the foodstuffs that I intended on using to prepare some dishes.The result of the bone marrow test was going to be ready tomorrow, so I had decided to make myself busy by cooking various dishes.Cooking was one of the best ways I relieved stress, and in the past three days, I had been extremely stressed; from finding out that Sofia and Eduardo had a daughter, who had gotten into a fight with Henry, to discovering Henry's chronic ailment.I couldn't even bring myself to focus on anything, let alone go to work. And because of that, Amelia had temporarily taken over my duties.Truly, I had struck a goldmine with a diligent assistant like her.Making my way to the exit, I pushed the door open and headed outside to the parking lot. I had almost gotten to my car when a little girl bumped into me, causing me to drop my bag.“I'm sorry, ma'am,” Her tiny voice waf
Jocelyn’s POV “Mummy,” Henry called, as I cleaned his hands and feet with a towel and warm water.“Yes, baby.”“When am I leaving the hospital? I want to go to school, mummy. I don't like this place at all,” Henry rambled out, voice shaky and eyes misty with tears. “It makes my tummy hurt.”Repressing the urge to burst into a fit of sobbing, I managed a smile and smoothened his hair. “Very soon, baby. I'm working on it.”“Really?”“Yes, my love,” I said. “I don't want you staying here either.”“Okay, mummy,” He replied, yawning. “I feel sleepy, mummy.”Caressing his forehead, I said. “You can sleep, sweetie. Mummy will be right here when you wake up.”Last night, Henry regained consciousness and was transferred from the ICU to the pediatric ward.Per my request, he had been admitted into a private ward.He was still pallor and shrunken, but at least, he wasn't connected to various beeping machines anymore.The doctor was yet to give me feedback regarding the test results, and the tho
Eduardo’s POV As I reviewed the third quarter sales report, a knock came on the door.“Come in,” I said, flipping through the pile of paperwork.Rafael walked in, armed with his iPad. “Sir.”“Yes. Have you finally found something?” I asked, unable to conceal my curiosity and impatience.It had been three days since I told him to look into Henry.“I have, sir,” Rafael responded. “Henry is currently on admission at Sacred heart hospital for chronic lymphocytic leukemia. A trusted source of mine told me that he's not doing well at all, and that he needs a bone marrow transplant as soon as possible.”My heart scudded, as an overpowering wave of shock and dread filled me.Henry was seriously ill yet Jocelyn hadn't even bothered to inform me.I wasn't blaming her of course. I mean, she was Henry's sole guardian at the moment, but I was hurt that she had been withholding uch an important piece of information from me.“Is that all?”“Yes, sir.”“Alright then, thanks for the information. You
Jocelyn’s POV “Babes,” Nancy called, as I watched Henry sleep peacefully.“Yes?”“You haven't eaten the pasta I brought since morning,” She said. “You did the same thing with the cinammon rolls yesterday. Tell me, when last did you eat something?”“This morning,” I fibbed. “I ate some grilled corn at the canteen before you came.”As if to negate my lie, my stomach suddenly rumbled, causing Nancy to dart me a look of suspicion as she folded her arms across her chest.“You clearly haven't eaten in days, Josie, and that isn't good,” Nancy lectured.“How can I bring myself to eat when my son is becoming a shadow of his former self?” I spurted out, my throat lodged with bitter grief.Henry's appearance had now completely depleted, and now, he could barely have a conversation with me as he was always sleepy and tired.My son was now extremely skinny and bony. He also couldn't eat and had to be fed through a feeding tube.Today made it a week since he was diagnosed with chronic lymphocytic
Eduardo’s POV My lips twitched with a smile as I watched Henry sleep peacefully, completely oblivious to the outside world and what was going on in it.After a day of deliberation, I had decided to secretly help Henry by meeting up with his doctor to tell her that I was his father, and convincing her to act like I was a random donor.Initially, she had refused my idea and had told me that doing that would be utterly unprofessional of her.However, yesterday, I had been quite stunned when she called and agreed to my plan.Apparently, Henry's condition had worsened to the extent that he had a seizure that had nearly affected his organs.“Good afternoon, Mr Lopez,” Dr Simpson said, as the anesthesiologist inserted a syringe into my IV packet. “Thanks for standing up for Henry. The next time you wake up, the surgery would have ended.”As I nodded, I felt my brain become foggy and my vision blurry. Within seconds, I had dozed off.The next time I woke up, I was back in my hospital room, w
Jocelyn’s POV “Hi, baby,” I beamed at Henry as he slowly fluttered his eyes open, taking in his surroundings slowly.A day had passed since his surgery.“M-Mummy, am I still sick?” was the first thing he uttered, as his eyes rested on me.“No, baby. As a matter of fact, we are going home very soon.” I replied, immensely relieved that for the first time in a while, I wasn't lying to him about going home.“Okay, mummy.” He whispered.“Let me go get the doctor, alright?” In response, Henry nodded.Pressing a kiss to his forehead, I stroked his hair before making my way to the door. I was about leaving when the door creaked open from outside and Dr Simpson walked in.“You beat me to it,” I smiled. “I was about coming to your office to inform you that Henry has woken up.”“That's good then,” She smiled back before heading in. “Hey there, champ. How are we feeling today?”“My tummy doesn't hurt anymore and I feel hungry,” Henry replied weakly. “I also feel like eating ice cream with waffl
Jocelyn’s POV I woke up to the sound of machines beeping next to me.As I winked an eye open, a tangy antiseptic smell infiltrated my line of smell, causing me to scrunch my nose in distaste for a moment.After a while, I squeezed my eyes open and squinted instantly as sunlight diffracted through the window panes, into my eyes.Looking around, I realized that I was in a hospital room, and also experiencing numbness from my waist down which made me put two and two together as I stared at my moderately big stomach.Melon was out.I managed a weak smile as I clasped my hands together before something clicked in my head.My baby wasn't with me.As I made to rip the IV off my wrist and go in search of a doctor, the door opened and my obstetrician, Dr Wineheart, walked in, clad in grey scrubs.“You are finally awake,” He said. “Welcome back to life.”“Thanks,” I replied. “Where's my baby?”Sure, I had managed to get over the trauma of losing a child the first and second time, but I knew I
Jocelyn’s POV “I’m seeing someone,” Ivy uttered, as she took her seat beside me, a simmering cup of ginger tea in her hold. “He's also a doctor. He was recently transferred here from Norway.”“Finally,” I squeaked, clapping my hands together in excitement.“I have to get over Brian somehow, don't I?” She shrugged then took a sip of tea.“Hold on, you are using the new guy as a rebound?” I asked. “Really, Ivy?”“Don't judge me,” Ivy sighed, throwing her hands in surrender. “In all honesty, he's not a rebound because I kind of like him too. He's funny, tall, and handsome.”For peace to reign, I decided against pushing the subject further and instead remain on the current topic which was the new guy.“So how and when did he ask you out?”“Three days ago after we finished a surgery together,” Ivy chuckled. “A romantic to the core, isn't he?”“I guess he is in a way,” I replied.“He told me he got an epiphany during the surgery and realized that life was too short to keep one's feelings h
Jocelyn’s POV As I flipped through the pages of a maternity book, a knock came on the door of the bedroom before Eduardo let himself in, a smile playing on his handsome face.“Hi, baby. How are you?” He asked, walking over to press a kiss to my lips and forehead.“Good,” I replied, rubbing my gargantuan belly. “The baby is kicking gently today which is quite surprising. If I didn't have an experience with pregnancy, I would have asked you to drive me to the hospital, so we could get her checked.”I was currently in the seventh month and last trimester of my pregnancy, and as much as I loved my unborn baby girl, I couldn't wait for it to come out.Last week, I had found out that I was having a girl via the surprise baby shower Amelia and Ivy had thrown me and I was very excited to meet my little baby girl.However, being cooped up at home for the past three months could be sickening and frustrating because I was always alone in the house.Three months ago during an appointment with my
Eduardo’s POV Leaning against the doorway of our bedroom, I observed Jocelyn as she laid, cocooned in the blanket, face scrunched up in displeasure and possible ache, which she wouldn't admit.She had been like that for the past five hours and it was currently ten in the morning.I had come home last night to meet Ivy having dinner with the kids and Jocelyn copoed up in bed, burning hot with a temperature.All my efforts to get her to go to the hospital had been in vain, as she had vehemently stated she was fine and didn't need to be assessed by a doctor.Right now, as I looked at her, I mentally admonished myself for listening to her last night, instead of doing a better job of persuading her to see a doctor.“That does it, baby. We are going to the hospital,” I said, and watched her try but fail to sit up.I was instantly at her side, propping a pillow behind her and covering her with the blanket.“Thanks, Ed,” She said then sneezed into the handkerchief in her hand. “I don't need
Jocelyn’s POV I winced as the back of my head tightened with an excruciating ache, stifling the urge to groan in pain.“The sales memo and the quarterly report were thoroughly reviewed and evaluated by me yesterday, so everything should be perfect,” The team leader of sales department, Micheal Gould, said into the microphone, aggravating my migraine.“Okay, that's good.’ I forced myself to say, balling my hands into fists and placing it on my lap.I couldn't help but wonder why I had such a bad headache that afternoon, as the voices in the conference room blurred, and the sound of my heart thumping filled my ears.My mouth was hot, my lips numb, and my body warm as the ache intensified.I had woken up hale and hearty today, excited for the start of a new work week, and mine and Eduardo's impending dinner that was supposed to happen later today.But given how I seemed to have fallen ill all of a sudden, I knew the dinner would likely not happen anymore.The mere thought of it was beyo
Eduardo’s POV “It's been less than a year since I left yet it feels like a decade has passed,” Jocelyn said, one hand out of the window and her eyes squeezed shut as the wind tousled her long, auburn hair.Even though she couldn't see it, I darted her a smirk before turning my attention to the road.We were currently in Australia for the week, as Henry and Olivia were currently on summer break.Jocelyn and I had decided to take them to Australia, mainly because we wanted to expose Olivia to the country and stuff.Due to the sick plan Nancy had pulled, she had been unable to spend time in Australia with her mother and sibling.Although that was in the past now, I couldn't help but feel vitriolic anger toward both Nancy and Sofia whenever I thought about it.But as Jocelyn had told me the other day, focusing on the bad things that happened in the past instead of being pleased and grateful with one's current situation, wasn't the right thing to do.I had Jocelyn and my wonderful childre
Jocelyn’s POV I inhaled shakily as I stroked my fingers across the framed picture of Henry and Olivia on the nightstand.In a few hours time, my babies would turn six and ten years from now on, they would be in high school.Another two years later, they would be in college and before I knew it, they would have their respective families.Of course I knew a day like that was still several years away, I couldn't help but feel a sort of bittersweet emotion at the mere thought.To think about six years ago, they and their brother in heaven, had been in my belly, wrapped around each other, small, tiny, pink, and completely helpless was so heartbreaking yet heartwarming.“Come on, Josie. We promised to focus on the positive part, didn't we?” I chided myself, using the back of my hand to wipe off my tears.Just then, the bathroom door creaked and Eduardo walked out.“Babe, what time are we picking up the cake? Ivy s-” He began to say but stopped when he sighted me.Sighing, he closed the di
Jocelyn’s POV “Ivy, you know I will never judge you, right?” I asked her.“Yes, I know. Where's this coming from?” She replied with a question of her own which made me huff.“Cut it out, Ivy. It's been three weeks since you told me about whatever happened between you and Brian at the wedding,” I said, and she sighed. “Ever since then, you have been seemingly avoiding coming over to our place. What is going on, Ivy?”There was silence for a couple of moments that I almost thought Ivy had hung up on him.As I removed my phone to check if the call was still ongoing, she sighed again. “I will tell you everything in due time, Josie. It's kinda a serious matter.”“Are you pregnant and he's refusing to accept it?” I blurted out the first question that came to mind.“No, of course not,” She replied, sounding amused. “We had sex that night.”“Oh,” I said, suddenly at a loss for words.I mean, it was very evident, given the sexual tension between them that something like that may or may not ha
Jocelyn’s POV “Is everyone ready?” I asked Amelia as I swiped my lipgloss across my lower lip.“Yes, ma'am,” She replied. “Alright then. Let's be on our way,” I replied, stowing the lipgloss away into my drawer. “This meeting has to end in thirty minutes. Forty five max.”“Oh, are you going somewhere, Miss?”“Yes. Today is Sports day at the kindergarten and my children will not forgive me if I fail to show up,” I divulged. “I already missed their final practice last week because I had to close the Braxton deal.”“Perhaps we should just postpone today's meeting then.” Amelia suggested, and I shook my head in negation.“No, we can't do that. I have been postponing this meeting for three months now,” I replied. “I want to get it done and over with. Plus work starts at the sight in about a week from now.”The meeting was to discuss my latest area of investment; the wine industry.I had taken an interest in the industry after I mistakenly made a bottle of grape wine. On the day, Henry a