Winning Back His Ex's Wife's Broken Heart by Hayley

Richard

pov

The living room buzzed with life-laughter, the clinking of glasses, and warm chatter filled the air.

Guests had arrived, carrying brightly wrapped gifts and wide smiles. It should have been a joyful day, a celebration of new life.

But all I could feel was unease twisting in my gut like a knot that wouldn't come undone.

Martins nudged me as I stood by the window, eyes darting to the security guards stationed discreetly outside.

"Hey, CIA," he joked, his tone light. "You might wanna dial it down before Sarah figures out you've turned the baby shower into a covert operation."

I managed a thin smile. "Just being cautious."

Martins chuckled. "Yeah, cautious is your middle name. You're so tense, you might scare the baby into coming early."

His humor didn't land. I couldn't shake the image of Sarah falling down those stairs from my mind-a thought that had no basis but still felt like an omen.

Isabelle was out there. I didn't know where, and that made her a threat.

"Where's Sarah?" Martins asked, looking around. "She's still getting ready?"

"Yeah," I said, glancing at my watch. She'd been upstairs for a while now.

Martins grinned. "She's probably wrestling with her dress or trying to figure out how to make her swollen feet fit into shoes. Women in the eighth month-they're in a league of their own."

I nodded absently, my unease growing. The clock seemed louder than the chatter around me, each tick dragging her absence out longer.

Finally, I couldn't stand it anymore. "I'm going to check on her," I muttered, leaving Martins to hold down the fort.

"Don't tell her I said anything about her feet," he called after me.

I climbed the stairs two at a time, my pulse quickening. As I reached the landing, Zoe stepped out of Sarah's room, her face pale.

"Richard," she said, her voice shaking. "She's not in there."

"What do you mean she's not in there?" My stomach dropped.

words tumbling out in a rush. "When I came back, the room was empty. I thought maybe she went downstairs, but I checked, and she's not there either." Panic flared in my chest. "Did

said, her eyes

I pushed past her, calling Sarah's name as I opened doors and looked into every

My voice echoed down the

Zoe's scream from the staircase sent

standing at the top of the stairs, frozen in horror. My eyes followed hers to the bottom of the stairs, where Sarah

beneath her, its dark red hue a stark

shouted, racing

frantic. "Oh my God,

was ghostly white, her breathing shallow. My hands trembled as I pressed my fingers to her neck, searching for a pulse. It was faint, but it was there. Relief mingled with

911!" I barked at Zoe.

her hands

hair back from her face. "Baby, please

eyes fluttered open for a brief moment, dazed and unfocused. Her lips parted, and she muttered

clenched my jaw, fighting the tears threatening to blur my vision. "You're going to be okay, Sarah.

phone with the emergency dispatcher, her voice shaky but

on Sarah, willing her to stay

stairs as Martins appeared, his face etched with confusion

I snapped, my voice

demeanor replaced with grim determination.

streaming down her face as she

bleeding," Martins said, shrugging off his jacket

from the guests in the living room faded into a distant hum, replaced by the deafening

paramedics finally arrived, they worked quickly, assessing Sarah's condition and loading her onto a stretcher. I stayed close, gripping her hand

space to work," she replied

stepped forward, placing a hand on my arm. "We'll follow in my car," she

with Sarah and knowing Zoe was right. Finally, I nodded, watching helplessly as the

***

was a blur. Zoe was behind the wheel,

shoulder, grounding me when all I felt was

waiting area while

of antiseptic filled the air, and

in surgery. She's lost a significant amount of blood, and we're performing an emergency C-section to deliver the baby."

"The baby is in

to

"She's in good hands, Richard. They know