Private Marriage, Secret Love-Chapter 155: Going to Be a Father

Ethan Lancaster watched her walk into the kitchen. He wanted to explain, but he realized there was no way to make sense of it.

He didn’t bother her again, figuring he should give her some time first.

The next day, Raina Reddington went to work at the hospital as usual. Her heart felt empty, and only work could lift her spirits.

For several days in a row, she avoided eating dinner in the hospital cafeteria. After work, she passed by a supermarket and went in to buy some instant food. Pushing a cart past a row of shelves, Raina paused and reached out to grab a few packs of sanitary pads.

She did a quick calculation. Her period should have started yesterday.

A delay of a day or two was normal. Raina went to the checkout counter to pay. As she walked out carrying two large bags, she saw a pharmacy next door.

Raina didn’t think much of it at the time, but as if guided by some unseen force, she walked in and bought two early pregnancy test kits.

When she returned to The Verdant Garden, Ethan was home. Raina put the test kits in her nightstand drawer.

The next morning, Ethan had presumably gone to the office. Raina took a test kit and went into the bathroom. 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

As she took the test, she couldn’t hide the fear in her heart, terrified that there might have been an accident.

Raina took out the test strip to look at it. She saw one line and let out a huge sigh of relief.

A sound came from outside. Raina tossed the test strip into the trash can, walked out quickly, grabbed her bag, and prepared to leave for work without a word to Ethan.

Ethan had just been in the study making a phone call. He walked into the bathroom, squeezed toothpaste onto his brush, and his gaze inadvertently swept over the trash can.

The man’s hand paused. He bent down and pulled out the test strip. It clearly showed two lines.

Ethan did something incredibly foolish—he shook the test strip and looked again. Still two lines.

He knew exactly what this meant. Ethan quickly rinsed his mouth and hurried downstairs, but Raina had already driven off to work.

’She’s pregnant! I’m going to be a dad!’

Ethan was ecstatic, his face beaming with surprise. Seth Sinclair opened the door and saw him pacing restlessly in the living room. "Fourth Master."

Ethan beckoned to him. When Seth was close, he showed him the test strip. "Do you know what this means?"

"Congratulations, Fourth Master."

"Wouldn’t you say this is the best news ever?"

A slight smile touched Seth’s lips. "Of course. The Young Madam will be very happy when she finds out."

"Don’t tell her yet," Ethan said. He had just crossed paths with Raina, and she hadn’t breathed a word. "She’s already pregnant, so it doesn’t matter if I find out now or later. She might not be mentally prepared yet."

"Understood." It had been a long time since Seth had seen Ethan this happy. "Fourth Master, you should take it easy for a while. That’ll help the Young Madam relax a little."

"What do you mean, ’take it easy’?" Ethan blurted out, then immediately understood. "I won’t go see Gwen Sharp. I know it bothers her."

"Should we call Butler Cameron back?"

Ethan glanced at the test strip in his hand, the corners of his mouth lifting uncontrollably as he spoke. "Not yet. After she tells me the news herself, I’ll do whatever she says."

Seth’s face broke into a smile. "Yes, sir."

Ethan was on edge all day. The moment he found out about the pregnancy, he started wondering if it would be a boy or a girl.

’If it’s a boy, I’ll take him to play basketball, go skiing, do all kinds of extreme sports, and even try skydiving. If it’s a girl, I’ll brush her hair, carry her on my shoulders, and spoil her rotten—so rotten that no average punk would ever dare approach her.’

Seth saw that he was in no state to work, constantly spinning his pen and grinning to himself. He didn’t dare bring any important documents over for him to sign.

When Raina returned to The Verdant Garden after work, she felt something was strange as she walked into the courtyard. Looking up, she saw two lanterns hanging by the front door.

She got a huge shock. The lanterns were shaped like two dolls, one on the left and one on the right—a boy and a girl.

Luckily, it wasn’t late at night. Otherwise, set against the pitch-black sky, it would have been incredibly creepy.

Raina entered the house. Ethan was sitting at the dining table and shot to his feet. "You’re back."

She changed into her slippers and started to head upstairs. Ethan took a few steps toward her. "Time for dinner."

"I’m not hungry."

"You have to eat even if you’re not hungry." Ethan moved to take Raina’s hand, but she pulled her arm behind her back.

He didn’t force it, afraid that any pulling and shoving might hurt her. He raised his hands high in surrender. "Just a few bites."

"What are you trying to do?"

"What do you mean, what am I trying to do?" Ethan didn’t want to clash with her right now. "I just want you to eat something."

"I said I’m not hungry!" Raina started to walk away. The man blocked her path. She moved left, and he moved left with her.

"I won’t eat your food!"

"It’s not mine. It was delivered from a restaurant."

Raina glared at him, her brow furrowed. "I won’t eat anything you’ve touched. I won’t eat anything you’ve paid for. Ethan Lancaster, you don’t have to do this. The best thing for us would be to get a divorce. If we can’t, we can only drag this out. But don’t waste your energy on me. It’s pointless."

Ethan slowly lowered his raised hands. As Raina walked past him and went upstairs, his eyes couldn’t hide his disappointment.

He had been fantasizing all day, just waiting to hear Raina tell him with her own lips that she was pregnant.

When Raina got to her room, she saw a stack of books on the nightstand. She flipped through them—they were all about childcare.

The man followed her in. Raina looked around and saw several baby pictures taped to the walls. "Ethan Lancaster, what’s gotten into you?"

He leaned against the wall, not revealing the whole truth. "As the saying goes, what you wish for, you get. Maybe I’m about to become a dad."

Ethan’s gaze was locked on Raina, afraid of missing even the most subtle change in her expression. He had laid it all out for her; if Raina wanted to tell him, she would definitely say something now.

She swiped her hand, and the stack of books tumbled to the floor. Raina found them to be an absolute eyesore.

"You don’t have to tell me about things like this. You can go tell Gwen Sharp."

"Raina!" Ethan was furious. "It’s impossible for her and me to get to that point."

"Nothing’s impossible in this world. Oh—" Raina drew out the syllable mockingly. "The one thing that *is* impossible is me having a child with you."

"What did you say?" Ethan’s face turned cold. Seeing it, Raina found it genuinely laughable how his expression could change in a flash. "Do I need to repeat myself?"

He clenched his jaw. ’She really has no intention of telling me she’s pregnant.’

Ethan almost blurted it out, but he didn’t want their relationship to remain at this impasse. Miles Hawthorne had just left; she just hadn’t recovered from the pain yet.

Raina sat down on the edge of the bed. Ethan looked down at her, worried she would make herself sick with anger.

"Alright, I’ll stop. Don’t be angry."

As long as she was okay, he was willing to swallow his pride. Ethan would do it without complaint.

Raina saw the books by her feet. They were still an eyesore. She kicked them again.