Blackmailing His Runaway Bride by Dance-is-me (carter reed .txt) 📗

 "What is?" he cautiously asked.

"Just barely a few days after your real father asked for a grandchild, Daphne shows up." Her head swung in his direction. The little arch of sadness on her lips made Charles feel terrible. He considered himself responsible for the heart-wrenching expression on his wife's face.

No doubt, he had to do something to fix the issue.

But, Isabella spoke again before Charles could do as he wished.

After a small exhale, she said, "It is very funny.

"Isabella... Daphne is a past fling. And I am very certain she is lying about the paternity of her child."

"What if she isn't lying?" The periodic wrinkling on the sides of her eyes was enough evidence that she was close to tears. After a deep swallow, some tenderness in her voice, Isabella asked, "What if the child is really yours? Won't you want the child? Your child, Charles... Won't you need to be around him or her? Uh?

Her questions greatly confused him.

"I..."

"Do you know what pains me the most in this situation?" Isabella gathered her knees to her chest. "It is not the woman who is trying to weasel her way into your life nor is it the child she claims to be yours. I am not even pained by the fact that you are most likely going to keep the child if it is yours."

Charles, with a pitiful look resting on his face and dejected exhales leaving his lips, pulled Isabella closer by snaking his arm around her shoulder. Then, with a strained voice, he said, "Isabella.." 

He hated that she was sad. He hated even more that he was the reason she was that way.

One of Isabella's hands fell on his and she caressed his skin as lovingly as she could, her eyes following the little motion she initiated. 

"The fact that I won't be able to give you a child..." Isabella looked up at Charles. "That makes me sad."

"What do you mean? What do you mean by not you won't able to give me a child?"

Taking a deep sigh first, Isabella had her eyes darting to the side again before she replied to him. "I should have told you this way earlier. But I was too scared."

"What is it?"

Charles followed the huge gulp that went down her throat with his eyes and he already suspected what she had to say would have something to do with Gabriel. 

"I suffered a miscarriage while I was married to Gabriel."

Charles felt like he had been kicked in the guts.Y… You miscarried? Wait… You were pregnant for that bastard?" he asked and it could not be denied that great fury was ingrained in his voice.

As her head came up again, Isabella's eyes were already filled with tears. She bit into her lower lip to hide its slight tremble and Charles felt a squeeze in his chest.

 "No Charles..." He felt the way her body jerked after she dragged a breath in and out of her lungs. " ... I was pregnant with your child."