I Faked a Pregnancy, but My Husband Returned - Chapter 162
A few days earlier, Judith checked the dates and thought she might be pregnant.
However, she couldn’t bring herself to tell Ekian right away.
Because they had been waiting for a second child all this time, yet even now that Alex had grown quite a bit, there still hadn’t been any good news.
Especially when it came to Ekian, she felt the need to be even more careful.
Perhaps because he regretted not treating her well enough when she was pregnant with Alex, he repeatedly swore that during the next pregnancy, he would absolutely stay by her side from the very beginning and do his very best.
Judith was grateful for those feelings, but at the same time, they also burdened her.
Because if she turned out to be mistaken, it was obvious he would be disappointed.
“Ah, of all times… seriously, the timing….”
It hadn’t even been a month since the attending physician of the grand ducal estate went abroad, leaving everything to his assistant while saying he would search for new methods.
‘It may allow me to gain a new perspective different from Imperial medicine.’
Naturally, the attending physician’s assistant was talented enough to have graduated from the medical academy. However, because he still lacked practical experience, he was in a position similar to receiving apprenticeship training under the attending physician.
Of course, he was good at handling ordinary illnesses, but he didn’t sound confident when it came to pregnancy.
“Uh…. With my lacking knowledge, it does seem like pregnancy. But… um, I’ve actually never diagnosed a pregnancy before. To be honest, I do think it’s pregnancy, but not to the extent that I can stake my life on being certain….”
The assistant rambled nervously.
Judith hoped the pitiful assistant wouldn’t end up staking his life on it.
So she suggested bringing in another doctor with extensive experience.
“But I don’t want to tell Ekian about it…. At least not unless the pregnancy is certain. It’s not something that absolutely has to be hidden, but there’s no real reason to tell him yet either, right?”
The butler, who had been present at the time, also agreed.
“If that’s what you think, Madam.”
In truth, the butler agreed with every thought Judith had.
“Then I’ll invite an elderly lady who used to be a famous obstetrician in the capital and is now retired, living leisurely in the Grand Duchy.”
Judith nodded readily. “Ah, sounds good. Thank you. Ekian never leaves his office from 10 in the morning until lunchtime, so I’d like you to ask her to visit briefly during that time.”
Because Ekian always kept such a regular schedule, it was easy to make plans around it.
“If it really is a pregnancy, then I can tell him immediately on the spot.”
If she truly was pregnant with their second child, Judith wanted to tell him as quickly as possible. Last time, she found out far too late.
So she invited an outside doctor in a state that was secret, yet not exactly secret, and unexpectedly, Ekian suddenly showed up and heard the news.
***
“Ah….”
Ekian looked completely stunned.
The doctor who examined Judith smiled gently. “There’s nothing wrong at all, but it’s still early. It would be best for you to be careful in many ways.”
“Judith, instead of sitting here, you should lie down immediately….”
“Of course, I’m not saying you need to stay lying down all the time. Some people misunderstand that, but it’s enough to simply continue your normal daily life while being a little careful.”
The doctor immediately cut off Ekian’s fussing.
“You may experience morning sickness, and if it becomes too difficult, I’ll prescribe medicine for you.”
At those words, Judith shook her head. “No. My morning sickness wasn’t severe.”
In fact, when she was pregnant with Alex, she hadn’t particularly suffered from morning sickness. Every time she thought back on it, she remembered feeling relieved, thinking he was such a good baby.
She’d heard that some people with severe morning sickness could barely eat anything and even vomited until only clear water came up. If her morning sickness had been severe on top of the emotional hardship she’d gone through back then, it would’ve been even harder for Judith to endure.
“So I think I’ll be fine.”
The doctor raised her brows. “Hmm. The first and second pregnancies can be different.”
It was a meaningful statement born from long experience.
“If you need anything, please call for me anytime. Being able to share in the blessing of the Grand Duchy during my retirement is a tremendous honor and joy for me as well.”
Ekian slowly nodded. His heart swelled and fluttered as though a warm wave was rising within him.
He remembered when Alex was born.
That tiny child opening his eyes, babbling, taking his first steps….
Now he would be able to witness that process again, the memories of which had already begun to blur with time. Above all, with this child, he could be together from the very moment they were born.
He really wanted to do well this time.
With all the guilt he still carried toward Alex, who was already seven years old.
After the doctor left with a cheerful laugh, Judith smiled awkwardly.
“No, I did time it well, but… why did you suddenly come to the drawing room? If it hadn’t been a pregnancy, that could’ve been a problem. I was going to quietly get diagnosed by the doctor first and then tell you.”
“From my perspective, as someone who wants to share everything with you, that’s a rather disappointing thing to hear, but I’ll let it go. You and the baby matter more than my feelings.”
Holding Judith’s hand, Ekian added softly, “If I unintentionally pressured you, I’m sorry.”
Judith looked at Ekian before suddenly bursting into laughter.
It was because she remembered the past, when she’d left that man, who hated even the slightest distance between them, and disappeared into an unknown place.
Judith also hadn’t seen Ekian during that period herself. Even without seeing it, she could easily imagine him wandering the capital nearly half out of his mind. And on top of that, he’d heard news of a one-sided divorce.
“Let’s just think about being happy from now on.”
After leaving countless words unspoken, that was all she could say. Ekian also nodded and pulled Judith tightly into his arms.
“Alright. This time, I’ll really treat you well.”
“As for telling Alex and our parents… should we wait a little longer? Since it’s still early, I feel a bit cautious.”
Ekian nodded. “As you wish, Judith. If there’s anything you want to eat, tell me. Or anything you want to do. Ah, we should also buy lots of fairy tale books for prenatal education. We need to redecorate the baby’s room too….”
As he stroked Judith’s hair, he whispered as though making a vow to himself.
“I’ll do anything for you. I mean it.”
***
A few days later.
“Alex!”
“Uncle! You’re here!”
“I missed you, Alex. Wow, you’ve gotten even taller since last time.”
Karl came to visit the grand ducal estate. But this time, he brought a guest with him.
“Hello.”
She was a lively girl with slightly flushed cheeks.
“My name is Rose Aurora.”
Judith was quite surprised internally.
Rose Aurora was none other than the original story’s heroine. Three years ago, Karl had once taken Alex along to meet Rose, but this was my first time actually seeing her.
I didn’t know what had happened, but after that, Karl had never once taken Alex along when meeting Rose again.
“Ah, welcome, Miss Aurora.”
Ekian welcomed them first with a somewhat surprised expression.
Originally, Karl would often come visit alone without the Duke and Duchess, simply because he wanted to see Alex.
But this time, he asked whether it would be alright to bring along a friend, so they casually told him to go ahead without much thought. They never imagined that ‘friend’ would be a girl.
“Karl, you said you were bringing a friend….”
And since Aurora seemed to be a surname he’d never heard before, she likely wasn’t from a high-ranking noble family.
Even so, it sounded slightly familiar, so he searched through his memory and thought it might’ve been the surname of the people who once ran a flower shop in the alley near the Grey Information Guild.
Ekian forcefully organized his complicated thoughts before blurting out, “Um, do your parents know? That you came together with a girlfriend….”
The two teenagers’ faces instantly turned bright red at the same time Judith firmly stomped on Ekian’s foot.
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Fjiehd
Hahah 🎶 Carl got a girlfriend 🎶