Substitute Wife For The Blind CEO -
Chapter 55: He Deserves The Truth
Chapter 55: He Deserves The Truth
Tears welled in Ruby’s eyes, her hand flying to her mouth. The room seemed to blur, her mind spinning.
A baby. She tried not to think anything until they were done and back in the doctor’s office.
The silence in Doctor Sylvia’s office felt louder than ever as Ruby sat motionless, her trembling hands resting protectively over her lower abdomen.
Her thoughts were scattered, spiraling in all directions, but all she could feel—truly feel—was the thundering of her heartbeat in her ears.
She was pregnant. Pregnant with Stefan’s baby.
The words hadn’t fully sunk in. She had heard them, seen the tiny flickering heartbeat on the screen, but they still didn’t feel real. A child. A part of Stefan. A part of her. A living, growing symbol of everything she had come to cherish... and everything she’d hidden behind a lie.
Doctor Sylvia was kind, her voice gentle as she explained prenatal care, routine checkups, and diet changes, but Ruby could barely absorb any of it. Her eyes were on the scan photo clutched in her hand, but her mind was somewhere else entirely.
She couldn’t breathe under the weight of the secret pressing down on her.
"Thank you," she finally murmured as she stood to leave, the small photo tucked into her bag like a precious burden. "I... I’ll schedule the next appointment soon. But before then, you can send the test results over to the house when it’s out."
Sylvia offered a warm smile. "I’ll do just that. Take care of yourself, Ivy. And congratulations again."
Ruby only nodded before slipping out of the clinic. The sunshine felt too bright, the world too fast, as she walked slowly to the curb and leaned against a lamp post, her legs trembling beneath her.
She couldn’t go to the office. Not like this. Not with her thoughts in shambles and her heart carrying too much.
She needed to talk to someone and she needed to do that now before her heart stops beating from overworking itself.
With shaking fingers, she pulled out her phone and dialed the one person she knew she could completely be herself with—Rayna.
Rayna was the only person she could talk to about all that was going on in her head. The pregnancy, the lies, what she had to do— Rayna was the only one she could talk to.
Her mother wasn’t an option and neither was Stefan’s mother, Elizabeth. Though they’d said she should be Stefan’s wife in every word of it, she wasn’t sure how they’d take the news of her pregnancy if she were to mention it.
If she ever had to tell them, then it’d be after she told Stefan and that was where the problem was. She didn’t want to bring this child into this world of lies. If she’d tell Stefan about it, then she’d also have to tell him the truth—the truth that she was just a substitute wife.
Could she bear to do that? Maybe not but she also knew she didn’t want to abort this child. No. Never. She wasn’t going to kill the symbol of love between her and Stefan. Not now, not ever. She just needed to figure out what to do. She thought as she waited for Rayna to pick up.
It didn’t take long before Rayna picked up and Ruby’s heart beat increased, not knowing how to start the conversation.
"Hey babe! What’s up?" came her best friend’s cheerful voice. "I was just thinking about you," Rayna said, and Ruby swallowed the lump that had formed in her throat.
"Ray..." Ruby’s voice cracked, and instantly, the cheerfulness on the other end melted into concern.
"What’s wrong? Are you crying? Where are you?" Rayna asked in concern the moment she heard the tremble in Ruby’s voice.
"I’m okay, I just..." Ruby closed her eyes tightly.
"You can’t say you’re okay if you’re crying. What’s the problem, Rubes? Is Ivy back or did Stefan do something?"
"No, not Stefan. He can never hurt me, Ray—"
"Then what is it?" Rayna cut in impatiently and Ruby sighed.
"Today, I went to see the doctor because I’ve been feeling sick and tired and... Rayna, I wasn’t sick. I’m pregnant, Ray."
There was a pause, followed by a gasp.
"Oh my God, Ruby. Pregnant? With Stefan’s baby?" Rayna asked, unable to hide her shock.
Ruby choked on a laugh that was closer to a sob. "Yes. With his baby—our baby, Ray "
"I—wow. Okay. That’s huge. But are you... okay? Are you happy? It’s supposed to make you happy, right?"
"I don’t know," Ruby whispered. "I should be. I mean, Stefan’s been nothing but amazing to me, Rayna. He’s gentle, patient, so damn thoughtful. Sometimes I forget he’s blind because he sees me better than anyone ever has."
Rayna’s voice softened. "Then what’s making you cry, Ruby? Is it—"
"Yes, Ray. It is. I’m still lying to him." The words spilled out like venom. "Every day I wake up in his arms and pretend to be someone I’m not. Every night he kisses me and calls me Ivy, and I just... I let him and now I’m pregnant with his child in this lie."
Rayna was quiet for a beat. "Oh, God Rubes."
"What am I going to do, Ray?" Ruby whispered, her voice broken. "I’m not his wife. My name was never in the certificate so how am I his wife? I’m a fraud. Someone that deceived him and now I’m pregnant while living this lie. What am I going to do now? This baby deserves honesty. Stefan deserves honesty. But how do I even begin to tell him that the woman he’s fallen in love with isn’t his fiancée? That Ivy left him and I just took her place because his mother asked me to?"
Rayna sighed. "Ruby... you’ve been carrying this guilt for six months. And now, a baby’s involved. You can’t keep living like this. You have to tell him, Rubes."
Tears welled again, hot and unrelenting. "I’m so scared, Ray. What if he hates me? What if he pushes me away? What if.... what if he rejects the child out of pain?"
"You’re just worried about what if he does. But what if he doesn’t? Have you considered that at all?" Rayna countered gently. "What if he sees your heart? What if he remembers everything you’ve done, the way you’ve stood by him, loved him in a way Ivy never did? Stefan isn’t blind to love, Ruby. Even if he can’t see you, I’m sure he feels your heart and knows it’s somehow different from Ivy’s."
Hearing that broke something in Ruby. A dam, maybe. Or maybe it stitched something back together. Because for the first time in months, she didn’t feel like running from the truth.
She took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, feeling the weight of her decision settle inside her chest like a stone—heavy, but resolute.
"Yes, you’re right," she said softly. "I have to tell him. No more lies."
"Yes!" Rayna practically squealed. "Do it today. Don’t let fear hold you back. He deserves to know the real Ruby. He deserves to know so you both can raise your child in truth."
Ruby smiled faintly. "I’ll go home first. Clean up, clear my head. Then I’ll tell him everything when he returns to check on me."
"Call me after. I’ll be waiting."
"I will. Thanks, Rayna. I don’t know what I’d do without you," she said, feeling relieved and determined.
"Probably spiral into a puddle of dramatic guilt and pregnant hormones," Rayna joked.
Ruby laughed wetly. "Yeah. Probably."
They hung up, and Ruby stood there a moment longer, staring down at her phone with her heart pounding. She reached for her bag to pull out the scan photo again, tracing the small curve with her fingertips.
"You’re the reason I have to be brave," she whispered.
She finally hailed a cab, ready to head home and wait for Stefan so she could come clean. She’d tell him the whole truth, no matter the consequences. She owed him that much.
As the cab turned the corner and she stared out the window, her phone rang again. She glanced down, expecting it to be Rayna because she forgot to probably tell her something.
But then, her breath caught in her throat when she saw it wasn’t Rayna but Elizabeth. Does she know? Ruby wondered, her heart thudding fast against her rib cage.
Steeling herself, she picked it up, a frown tugging at her brows. "Elizabeth? Hello?"
There was panic on the other end and then Elizabeth’s voice trembled, sharp and breathless. "Ruby. It’s Stefan. He’s been in an accident. A car crash—just minutes ago. You need to get to Zeden General. Now."
Ruby felt the world spin beneath her and everywhere went dark for a split moment.
"What? No," she breathed, her heart dropping into her stomach. "No, no, no—what happened? Is he okay? Is he—"
"I don’t know the full details," Stefan’s mom interrupted, clearly trying to hold herself together. "But it’s serious. They’re running tests now. Just come. Please."
Ruby’s limbs went numb. The phone slipped from her hand onto her lap, and she sat frozen, staring out the window as the city blurred past her.
Her confession would have to wait. Her truth could crumble later. Right now... all she wanted—all she prayed for—was for Stefan to still be alive to hear the truth.
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