GIANNA

~•~

I lied about visiting my parents.

I felt sick and was going to the hospital. I was still mad at Brandon so I didn't feel like telling him the truth. He would fuss over me and make me forget that I currently hated him for getting his best friend pregnant while we were married.

Brandon's family was very high profile so I had to wear a baseball cap and a pair of sunglasses to avert attention from me. It was very easy for them to make up a story when they saw me entering the hospital.

I pulled over at the parking lot and came down from the car, heading straight inside the building. I didn't have an appointment so I had to wait in line for the available doctor for diagnosis.

I spent almost an hour waiting and throughout then, I was wondering what my life would look like after I divorced Brandon. Definitely, the media would take the news but where would I go from there? I didn't have a job. I had only two friends who were busy with work. How would I even start over? Brandon and I got married immediately after I graduated college. I didn't know how to be a regular adult without him.

I couldn't deny that I still loved him, but he also knew that which was why he was taking advantage of it. In what world did he think it would be okay to get another woman pregnant and I wouldn't be furious? Even worse, it was the woman he kept telling me not to worry about.

I hated Bailey. I hated Brandon. I hated Bernice. I hated that their names all started with B. I felt like the odd one out. They had so many childhood memories together and always made me feel left out. Now I was going to erase myself from the equation completely. I was only twenty-four. I was still young. I could definitely get my life together.

When the person in front of me finally came out from the doctor's office, it was my turn to go in.

I recited all my symptoms to the doctor and the lady stared at me with thin lips.

"Is something very wrong with me?" I panicked when she didn't say anything else.

"When last did you get your period?"

I frowned and tried to think back. We were in the middle of May and I could only remember getting my period in the early days of April. I gasped as I realized I was late.

"Mmhmm," the doctor nodded. "But we have to do a scan to be certain if you're pregnant."

I couldn't be pregnant. Brandon and I weren't trying for a baby. I couldn't be pregnant when I just served him divorce papers. It was impossible!

"Are you sure, doctor? It's not just a fever?"

"We'll find out after the test."

I nodded, scared to do the test. If I was truly pregnant, I didn't know what to do or how to act. Would I tell Brandon even if we would get divorced anyway? Would he beg me to stay? Would he have to be a father to my and Bailey's children? Will my kid be a sibling to Bailey's?

As I contemplated all these and the doctor prepared for a scan, I got a call and was surprised to see that it was from Bernice. Why the hell was she calling me? Did she just find out about me and her brother? What did she have to say? I didn't even want to know. She was one of the primary causes of my problems with her brother. She knew what she was doing whenever she invited Bailey into Brandon's place. She was trying to get them closer. She tried her best to ruin our marriage. Was she calling to gloat?

I ignored the call and put my phone on silent. She called one more time before she resorted to texting.

[Bernice: It's me, Bernice. I'm calling because I know I've caused a strain on you and Brandon's relationship. I don't want to be the reason you leave my brother. Can we meet up?]

I couldn't stop myself from replying.

[Me: meet up for what?]

My words were harsh, but I didn't care. I wouldn't be part of her family anymore so I had no reason to be nice to her, especially when she was usually a bitch to me.

[Bernice: I want us to talk. I don't want you to misunderstand me. Brandon said you aren't home or I would have come over. I'm at the Liberty Hotel, we can meet in the dining area if you want]

I didn't want to go but I was curious to know what she wanted to say. My tongue poked the inside of my cheek as I contemplated my decision. It wouldn't be bad to give her a piece of my mind after all.

[Me: be there in an hour]

[Bernice: alright, I'll be waiting]

"Mrs. Baker, come lie on the bed."

I almost laughed at the name, Mrs. Baker. I'd be going back to Windsor in a few months. It was crazy how my life was about to change. Adding a baby to the mix would be insane.

I held my breath as she raised my top and applied gel to my stomach. The procedure didn't take long and in a few minutes, I was able to find out the results.

"Our suspicions are correct, Ma'am. You're five weeks pregnant."

I gasped even if I already expected that. Life was so fucking cruel! I had two whole years to get pregnant but I didn't. Now that I was about to get divorced... fuck, this was crazy.

I took my test results and left the hospital, going straight to the hotel. I didn't want to go back home. I didn't want to see Brandon. I didn't know how I would face him. I didn't intend to tell him about our child. I wanted him to focus on raising Bailey's child. He couldn't focus on two women at once, could he?

When I got to the dining area of The Liberty Hotel, I saw Bernice already sitting at a table. Clutching my bag that contained my test results, I went to the table.

Her lips quickly formed a smile when she saw me but I didn't bother to return it. "What did you want to talk about?"

"Can we get something to drink first? Is wine okay with you?"

I subconsciously touched my stomach. Even if I never planned for a child at the moment, I wasn't going to kill them with alcohol. Besides, alcohol was the same reason Brandon was going to be a dad to another woman's child. I was going to avoid that shit for the rest of my life. "Juice is fine."

She nodded. "I'll go get it."

I watched her as she went to the counter, ordered a jug of orange juice and two glasses, and set them in front of me. She poured the juice into both glasses and allowed me to take a sip before she started speaking.

"I know things have been weird between you and Brandon, especially after the bomb Bailey dropped."

I rolled my eyes. Was that what she called me to talk about?

"Hear me out, hear me out." She pleaded when she saw my expression. "Things have been weird between both of you and I've been adding to it. I wanted to apologize for that. I know you're insecure about Bailey but I still bring her around. I'm sorry."

Insecure? She was acting like I complained for nothing. I felt like blowing up on her but I didn't want to cause a scene so I just took a gulp of my juice to calm myself down. "What am I supposed to do with your apology? The deed has been done already."

"But that doesn't have to affect your marriage. A lot of women are single moms these days. There's no shame in that. I'm sure Bailey wouldn't mind being a single mom. Brandon can provide for the child but he'll still be with you."

I bit the inside of my cheek as I stared at her. I was already tired and I wanted to leave. "Did Brandon send you here?" He was reluctant to sign the papers so I wouldn't put it past him. Besides, Bernice wasn't the type to apologize without being pressured to do so.

"Of course not. He's mad at me at the moment, but I just thought of helping him by speaking with you."

I shook my head. There was no need to come here. It was a complete waste of time. "It's too late to help," I said as I stood up, feeling extremely tired all of a sudden. "Like I said, the damage has already been done."

I tried to walk away but my legs gave out beneath me and soon, I found myself falling over.

GIANNA

~•~

I woke up even more tired and when my eyes fluttered open, I realized I was in a strange place. It looked like a hotel room, which was weird.

Did I get drugged? But the last person I was with was Bernice. She had no reason to drug me, did she?

I quickly peeked under the covers to see that my clothes were still intact. The jeans I'd been wearing were tight and my top was still on my body. It meant nobody took advantage of me, so what was I doing here?

I looked around to find my phone sitting on one of the nightstands. When I turned it on, there were various phone calls from Brandon, my mother, my friends, and my sister. However, my eyes zeroed in on the time and date. It was eight am in the morning. I blinked in surprise. I had come to the hotel around noon yesterday. I remembered falling over when I tried to walk away but how could I sleep for over twenty hours?

The first person I called was my sister. Thankfully, she wasn't busy and answered almost immediately. "Gianna!" She exclaimed. "Where the hell have you been? Everyone is worried?"

"Everyone? What do you mean?"

"Brandon was worried you weren't home so he called Mom to check if you're with her since you said you'd be visiting us. You can understand what happened after that."

"Shit." I cursed, holding my head. I had lied to Brandon that I was visiting my parents. They must be worried as fuck. What could I even tell them? I didn't know exactly what happened to me. "I was with Bernice and passed out. I don't know what happened after."

"Bernice? What the hell were you doing alone with that bitch?"

Sheila hated Bernice even more than I did. Whenever I complained to her, she hated Bernice even more. "I don't know," I confessed, but I needed to find out what happened. Why did she leave me alone in the room? Or was she around somewhere? "I'll call you back later. I need to get back home. Just tell Mom and Dad I crashed at Emily's house."

Emily was one of the only two friends I had so that was believable.

"Well, mom called Emily and she covered for you already so don't worry about that."

I loved that girl. "Then I'll call you later. I need to call someone else."

"Alright then."

After I hung up, I called Bernice next. She was the only one who could give me the answers I was looking for.

As I waited for her to answer, I sat up on the bed and starched. My muscles were weak. Was it because I was pregnant? A lot of women complained about pregnancy but I didn't know it was that bad. It was crazy.

She didn't answer the first call but when I called her again, she picked up. "Hey, Gianna." Her voice was awfully cheery. "You're finally up!"

"Finally?" I was confused. "What happened? Why am I in a hotel room?"

"You remember passing out, right? It's probably from all the stress. I just checked you into the hotel there so you can have some rest."

It sounded fishy as fuck, but then again, this was Bernice we were talking about.

"And you just left me here?" I questioned.

"I waited with you for a few hours but there was no sign of waking up. You seemed really tired and I didn't want to disturb you."

"You could have taken me home instead."

"You're currently fighting with my brother. I didn't think you'd like that."

She made a good point there but I still couldn't shake off the feeling that something was wrong. If it wasn't already wrong, it was about to be. Emily was acting too nice and polite. It wasn't who she was.

Brandon had called me like five times. It meant he was worried. I would have preferred for her to take me home. I didn't want him to think I was hiding away or something even if he definitely deserved the silent treatment. The very least she could do was take me to the hospital, at least. What if something was wrong with me or my baby?

I sucked on my teeth, not knowing what to do. I slept for eight hours every day. I didn't do much housework. I didn't do any office work. Nothing was overworking me to cause me to sleep for more than twenty hours at a stretch. Maybe something was actually wrong and I needed to visit the hospital again.

That would have to be after I showed my face to Brandon though to let him know that I was alive and well.

"You've paid for the room, right?"

"Of course. It's the least I can do right now. I hope you had a good rest."

I didn't but I didn't let her know that. I just hung up and picked up my bag. I checked inside to make sure everything was intact. Thankfully, the brat didn't touch anything, and my test results were still folded neatly inside. I put my phone in, wore my shoes, and left the room:

I didn't even bother to tell the receptionist I was leaving. They would get the memo soon. I just went to the parking lot to get my car and started driving home.

I didn't know why my delusional ass still called Brandon's house my home. I had already made up my mind to divorce him and I kept reminding myself of that throughout the previous day. Why was I still acting like he had a right to know what was going on with me? I didn't have to go back there. I could pack my things and go back to my parent's place. Or better yet, I could rent my apartment and live by myself.

Even as I told myself all these, I still drove straight to what used to be my matrimonial home before Bailey ruined it for me. The men at the gate opened it when they saw my car and I was surprised to see that Brandon's car was still in front of the house.

He had several cars but he had a favorite and since he was outside, it meant he hadn't gone to work yet.

I parked the car, took a deep breath, and went inside the house.

As though he was waiting for me, Brandon was sitting inside the living room. He didn't acknowledge my presence when I went in but just as I was about to pass by him and go up the stairs, he extended a file to me.

The same file I had given to him yesterday before I left the house.

I eyed him warily as I took it from him and opened it to see that he had signed the divorce papers.

GIANNA

~•~

I couldn't stop myself from scoffing. "What are these?"

"You don't recognize the papers you gave me yesterday?"

My teeth automatically gritted at the attitude in his voice. What right did he have to speak to me in that tone? "What was with the drama yesterday about you not signing it? All I had to do was give you space for you to realize you actually want me out of your life?"

My voice was laced with pain and I didn't even care if he could detect it. I had complained when he had put up a fight yesterday, but that didn't mean I wanted him to give in so easily. Couldn't he try to fight for our marriage? Did I mean that little to him?

I couldn't deny that it stung realizing that he didn't care about me as a wife. He just didn't want to be the bad person which was why he resisted divorce and tried to apologize three weeks ago.

I had given him enough grace, hadn't I? I stayed with him after learning that he slept with Bailey twice. Couldn't he fight harder? Why was the pressure all on me to keep our marriage together when I wasn't even in the wrong?

I could feel tears start to gather in my eyes so I closed them briefly and forced the tears back. I didn't want to cry in front of him anymore.

Instead of answering, Jackson stood up, opened his phone, and showed the screen to me. I squinted my eyes to see that it was a picture of me entering the hotel where I met Bernice.

I looked up at him with a confused expression. "What are you showing me?"

I saw the outline of his tongue poking his cheek as he withdrew his hand, swiped something on his phone, and shoved it in my face again. This time, it was a picture of me... me and a man in bed together.

"What the fuck?" I snatched the phone from him. "Who sent you this? What is this?"

"Shouldn't I be the one asking that question?"

My top was peeking out of the covers and it was the one I was currently wearing. I gasped. Was this yesterday? Was this Bernice's doing? "I don't know who that is!"

"But somehow you're in bed with him and he's kissing you."

I reeled back at the accusation. To him, the evidence was clear that I was cheating on him, but I finally realized why I had a bad feeling all through my talk with Bernice. That bitch set me up on purpose. How the hell was I supposed to explain this? "I–"

He didn't let me speak. "If you're going to sleep with other men in a bid to get back at me, then divorce is the best option. It's better for us to separate than to ruin our reputations with the way the media is watching us."

I opened my mouth to speak but a bitter laugh left it instead. Was that all he cared about? How the media viewed us as a couple? "The media?" I echoed. "You didn't think about the media when you were fucking your childhood best friend? How do you think the media will take it when they find out she has a child for you, huh?"

"G–"

"Don't!" I stopped him before he could call me by my nickname. The nickname only he called me by. "You're so fucking hypocritical! Do you believe I'll make a cheap move like offering my body to a stranger just to get back at you? I'm not stupid! And even if I am, what position do you think you're in to judge me for it, Brandon? You fucked your best friend." He flinched at those words but I didn't mind repeating it for him. "Your childhood best friend. The same one you told me not to worry about. The same one you told me I was overthinking about. The same one you and your sister told me not to be insecure about! That's the same woman who's pregnant for you! You have no right to judge me."

"I'm not judging you." He tried to be calm but his voice rose with every word. "But do you think we should keep sleeping with others to get back at each other? Would that help in any way? Aside from the fact that we would just be punishing ourselves and will never get back to the way we were, we would be embarrassing our parents too who worked hard to solidify their reputation."

"Stop fucking speaking about their fucking reputations! I don't want to hear it!" It was the stupid reputation that made us get married in the first place. It was because of their so-called reputation that I was in a loveless marriage for two years. Fuck that reputation.

Brandon took a step back and breathed in deeply, trying to calm himself down. I couldn't even calm down if I tried. "There's no point in us arguing. I've signed the papers you served. All we have to do is file them and we'll be done with each other."

I scoffed. Done with each other. He had no right to be done with me. I was done with him, not the other way around. He should get his facts right.

"I'm going to stay at my parent's place for the day." I didn't even know why I was telling him about it but the asshole didn't appreciate it.

"Sure you are." His tone suggested that he didn't believe me and it irritated me.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"That's what you said yesterday yet your parents saw no sign of you and were even worried when I called them." His tone was accusing and even if I knew he wasn't at fault for that, I hated the arrogance that accompanied his words. "You were out doing who knows what."

"I'm not like you, Brandon." I gritted out. "I'm not cheap enough to be seduced by the opposite sex and fall into bed with them."

Brandon's eyes blazed at my words but he couldn't deny them. "Then how do you explain this picture?" He put his phone up in my face again.

I slapped it away. I didn't want to see that picture. I couldn't fathom the fact that his disgusting sister checked me into a room and brought a man in there while I was vulnerable. I didn't want to accept that fact. "Ask your sister. I'm sure she knows all about it."

After those words, I went upstairs to pack a bag. I hated that I had a screaming match with him so early in the morning. I doubted such stress was good for my baby. The baby. I wanted to tell him about the baby but after the attitude he displayed downstairs, I saw no reason to.

It was clear he wasn't going to believe a word I said anyway so there was no need explaining. He wouldn't believe it if I told him I was likely drugged and framed. Even I wouldn't believe it if someone else told me. Speaking of drugs, I needed to make a quick stop at the hospital to be sure nothing harmed my baby.

I took a shower first because I didn't bother to shower when I woke up in the hotel room. I was rushing to come home, not knowing I was going to get even more disrespected.

After showering, I got dressed and packed a bag. When I got downstairs, Brandon was still there.

"For your information," I couldn't hold myself back from speaking one last time. "I didn't cheat on you and if your sister claims she knows nothing about yesterday, then she's lying."

With that, I walked out the door, not bothering to hear if he had a response or not.