Pushing Through

Cara's POV

"I'm sorry for the discomfort, Mrs. Bernardi. The baby seems to be hiding away, and I can't seem to get a good position." The doctor said jokingly, moving the wand-like device all around my bump.

I just gave a small smile in reply, waiting patiently to hear the news. If anyone had asked me, this wasn't how I expected to find out the gender of my child.

I'd imagined my huge hulk by my side, nervously twitching his fingers every five minutes as he sat quietly for the reveal. There'll be that slight pull down of his brows that he thought no one noticed when he was anxious.

But as fate would have it, I was doing it alone.

It was better than doing it with an unconscious Adonis anyway.

I didn't feel motivated to find out the gender and wouldn't have decided to do so if it hadn't been for the unusually rapid growth of my bump. Just a month ago, it was barely there, and now, it had doubled in size. Then the severe discomfort began.

"My!" The doctor gasped, snapping me out of my thoughts. I looked to see her grinning from ear to ear.

"What is it? Is everything fine with the baby?"

Finally satisfied with her probing, the young doctor took a step back, taking away the transducer with her.

"Everything's fine, Mrs. Bernardi. Although, I'm afraid that 'baby' isn't quite the right word to use."

My heart skipped a beat.

I knew where this was heading, and if I was correct, I was going to be in for a long journey, seeing as I was the only active parent for now.

"Twins?" I called back tentatively with mixed emotions. I didn't know if I was to be happy or worried.

"Even better. Triplets. Congratulations, Mrs. Bernardi. You're expecting three healthy boys."

My eyes nearly bulged from their sockets.

Triplets? Shock number one.

All boys? Shock number two and the greatest of all.

Throw in a couple more, and my stomach would become a football field.

How was I to take care of three boys?

What do I say?

"I..." I stuttered. "I don't know what to say," I concluded, opting out for the truth, which described the exact way I was feeling as she cleaned off the gel on my stomach.

So I carried that same shock-ridden face all through the rest of my check-up. Even when one of my bodyguards pulled open the door to the car, I wordlessly entered.

The moment we arrived at my new home-well, not new since I had been living there for a month-the emotions I felt became clear.

Excitement. Worry. Fear. Longing.

"Master Miguel isn't in, ma'am. He said to inform you that he had an impromptu meeting and would be back later in the day." Another guard said to me as I walked into the cream-coloured building.

Living with my father had been everything and more.

For one, he was rich.

Yes, Adonis was also rich, but this was on another level.

After my call that day, he had sent an entourage to come pick me up from the Bernardi estate and since he was to return to Spain the next day, he wanted me to go with him, but I didn't think I could.

Leaving behind Adonis was hard but not impossible. Going to a different country where I couldn't be rest assured that he was just an hour or two away was completely impossible.

I wouldn't be able to forgive myself if a variable popped up and I was thousands of miles away from doing anything about it.

Surprisingly he didn't argue and suggested that we get a new home. Within a day of the suggestion, the home was bought.

To have such a connection, it was obvious how important the personality had to be.

The decor, the location, and the ambience were not just magnificent, but the fact that he made them child-friendly caused tears to form in my eyes.

He was trying his best to be there. It was like he wanted to make up for the years we lost.

The amount of guards I had assigned to me had doubled compared to that in the Bernardi mansion.

"Is it a travel?" I asked the back, and he shook his head in reply.

"Not this time. He's within the state."

Another thing that bothered me was the fact that he hadn't returned home since I moved him in with me.

He obviously didn't want to leave me by myself, but I didn't mind. And now that I have this big news to share, it'd be even harder to convince him that I was perfectly fine by myself.

With a small thank you, I continued my journey to my room.

This has been how I have lived for the past month.

On days when I didn't have a check-up, I stayed indoors all through, stuck in my room as I looked forward to the daily update from Dr. Bruno.

As if summoned by my thoughts, my phone beeped instantly, and a message popped up.

'He's improving. Should be up soon.' The text read.

My eyes flicked over the previous identical ones. Word for word. Like he just copied and pasted them.

Yet I knew Dr. Bruno. There was no way he'd do that. It just meant the situation was the same as always.

The news comforted me, but it also made me nervous.

No news is good news?

That, I didn't agree with. I've lived the past month with my heart in my mouth, expecting a change the next day, only to be disappointed each time.

Letting out a deep exhale, I tied the rope of the silk robe I had changed into together, heading to my bed to take a quick nap.

If there's something I've learnt these last few months, it's that a quick nap to reboot your brain when in distress goes a long way.

However, I guess someone had other plans, and my phone beeped once again, and a text popped up.

Beside the words, 'having the best time of my life,' was a picture of Cecelia in a bikini on the beach.

That was also a variable I never saw coming. As soon as I told her I was leaving the mansion for good, she didn't ask why, nor did she question my decision.

Instead, she walked into her room and packed her bags,

'I don't think I have any reason to remain here then.'

Her words and actions caused me to break down in tears. She was going through a lot, yet she found a way to be there for me.

For the first time in a while, I felt like I wasn't alone. I had underestimated how much I needed to hear those words of assurance.

She wanted to travel for a while-I knew it was an indirect way of saying she wanted to escape reality for a while.

I also wanted to.

It just wasn't feasible.

We parted ways with a hearty goodbye, promising to get together when she got back, and have been keeping updates on each other since then.

The regular pictures I got told me she was living it wild-trying too hard to forget.

She was hurting.

But it wasn't my place to burst the bubble she'd placed around herself. Cece would have to realise that herself.

I smiled, sending a quick heart and picture of my sonogram to her. I couldn't wait to hear or see her reaction to the news.

Done with my replies, I dropped the phone on the desk once again, getting comfortable as my eyes drifted close.

I could feel the sleep already pulling me in, and I willingly succumbed, but just before unconsciousness tipped the scale over,

My phone began to beep.

Not a text this time. An actual call.

"Ah!!!" I let out a frustrated growl, yanking it up to tell whoever was on the other side to f*ck off, yet the moment I received the call, the words got stuck.

He hadn't called in two weeks.

"Cara."

I steadily sat up.

"Luca?"

Why was he calling? Didn't he say it was risky and I needed to wait silently?

"Why are you calling? What's wrong?"

A knot twisted in my chest.

Was it Adonis?

But I dared not voice it out. Thoughts like that caused physical pain just by thinking about it; how much more pain would it cause when they were out in the open?

The sound of metal clanging loudly and his deep breathing filtered from the phone into my ears, adding to the tension.

"Adonis is awake. You need to get him out of here."