Loving Him

Chapter 18

Upon waking up, Levi noticed that her husband was no longer beside her. She got out of bed, feeling the pain in her entire body, and headed to the bathroom.

There, she soaked in the bathtub to relax her mind despite the pain she was feeling. After bathing, she quickly got dressed and went downstairs for breakfast.

She went to the kitchen and sat down on a chair, but winced at the smell of butter. She quickly stood up and went to the sink to vomit, holding onto her stomach as she realized her ulcer had acted up. She remembered that she hadn't eaten dinner the night before due to the argument she had with Mike.

Her attention was drawn to the sound of her cellphone ringing. She approached her bag, took out her cellphone, and answered the call.

"Hello," she said.

"Ma'am, we have flower deliveries today for a debut and a wedding. I just wanted to ask if you'll be joining us," Fely said on the other line.

"I won't be able to come with you, Fely. It looks like I'll be delayed because I woke up late. Just have them delivered, and it would be better if you could accompany them," she replied before hanging up.

Levi sighed and glanced at her arm, which was sore from a bruise. She intentionally wore a Tie Bow Neck Long Sleeve Button End Blouse Shirt to cover up her bruise and the hickey on her neck that her husband had left.

She sat down once again, wincing at the smell of butter. She quickly covered it up and moved it away from her. She took out a hand sanitizer from her bag and applied it to get rid of the smell of butter. She ran to the sink and vomited there. Only water came out since she hadn't eaten breakfast yet.

Levi finally stopped and held her small belly. She couldn't understand the feeling, she was so happy. It meant that her angel was inside her womb. However, that smile was quickly replaced with bitterness.

Mike had a child with Yuna, and it was impossible for him to pay attention to their poor baby. But she also thought, who was she to judge Mike?

Levi hurriedly went to her own car. She needed to make sure if she was pregnant or not. She quickly drove her car to the hospital. When she arrived, she immediately searched for an obstetrician.

She entered a room and consulted with a doctor. The doctor asked her some questions and then gave her five pregnancy tests. She followed the doctor's instructions and went to the small restroom. There, she almost didn't want to look at the results of her pregnancy tests. Until she returned to the room and gave the doctor the results of her PT.

"Looks like all the PTs are the same, Mrs. Montenegro. Congratulations! You are two weeks pregnant!" The doctor replied with a smile.

Levi felt mixed emotions at that moment. She was extremely happy but also felt sadness and worry for the child she was carrying.

The doctor gave her a prescription for the vitamins she needed to take. The doctor also advised her not to stay up too late and gave her vitamins because he noticed that she looked a little pale.

Afterwards, she said goodbye to the doctor. She noted the prenatal schedule for her baby. She touched her thin stomach and smiled. "I love you baby, Mama loves you so much, please don't give Mama a hard time," she said as she caressed her baby bump.

She arrived at the flower shop in the afternoon. Although she wanted to share the good news with Tessa, she didn't want to disturb her at work. And Mike might get angry.

She was currently arranging the flowers in the baskets when her cellphone rang. She answered the call.

"Levi," Tessa's voice was on the other line. She glanced at the clock. It was already three-thirty in the afternoon, which meant it was Tessa's break time.

"You called, how are you?" she enthusiastically asked her friend whom she hadn't seen for a long time because of their busy schedules.

"I'm fine, how about you?" her friend replied, with a hint of sadness in her voice.

"Do you have a problem? Your voice sounds different now," she asked her friend curiously.

"Levi...he..." her friend said. She furrowed her brow, wondering why her friend couldn't say it.

"He? What is it Tessa? Can you just tell me directly, who is it? Is it Mike?" she asked directly.

"I saw him kissing Trisha inside his office. I didn't expect that he was seeing both of you at the same time, and did you know that he and Trisha got back together?" her friend whispered on the other line.

It was like a bomb in her ears, her stomach suddenly aching. She held onto it. "Baby, hold on to Mama, please help me fight this," she thought.

"Levi, are you still there? I need to go, my break is over. Okay, bye."

"I am, okay, bye."

Levi was stunned, it felt like ten knives had stabbed her heart. She touched her stomach again, thankfully the pain had subsided.

Her attention was caught when one of her employees called her. "Ma'am, someone is looking for you, it's Sir Lim," the employee said to her.

Levi suddenly felt encouraged. She immediately went outside to see Royce. All of her female employees were swooning whenever Royce visited the flower shop. It was because he was very handsome, he looked like Lee Min Ho.

"I'm sorry about yesterday, I didn't expect that Mike would do that to you," she said apologetically to Royce.

"I understand him, he was jealous. And he can't deny that, based on his reactions, he really is," Royce replied simply. Levi furrowed her brow.

"That's impossible, Royce. He will never like me, and besides, I just found out from Tessa that he and Trisha got back together," she replied sadly.

Royce pulled her towards the swing in the flower shop. She flinched when he touched her arm with a bruise. Royce looked at her intently, wondering. He quickly examined her arm and saw a big bruise. His jaw clenched upon seeing it.

"Damn! Does he always hurt you?" Royce asked authoritatively.

"No, you're wrong. He just held my arm too tightly that's why I got a bruise."

"Really? And you're still covering up for your great husband, you wouldn't have a bruise if he didn't force you. Come on, Levi, this is not you, where's the brave woman that I used to know? Where is the strong woman that I know?" Royce replied angrily.

"People change, Royce. Love can change you, and that's just proof of what happened to me now. Because when you love someone, you can endure, you can handle everything for that person. And I could say that love is a powerful thing. But it still depends on the people who love. It depends on the situation, he's just my husband on paper."

Royce wanted to say more, but he didn't continue. It was like his world crumbled when the woman in front of him admitted that she already loved his stupid friend. He cursed several times when he saw Levi crying in front of him. The woman he loved since the beginning. He couldn't even get close to her before because he was forbidden by Mike.

He hugged Levi. At least, he could ease the burden that she was carrying at the moment.

Levi told everything to Royce, including her pregnancy. She begged him to keep everything a secret for now. Royce promised that he would keep everything a secret. What they didn't know was that there were angry eyes staring at them. It was Mike.

***

Levi looked at her wristwatch on her left arm. It was getting dark and Mike still hadn't arrived. She had texted him earlier to ask for a ride since her car had broken down.

The flower shop employees had already left earlier, and it was already eight o'clock, but Mike was still nowhere to be found.

Levi decided to walk around the corner, hoping to find a taxi that would stop by. She felt a bit dizzy, but she tried to keep herself composed. She took out her cellphone and called her husband again.

Finally, Mike answered her call, but she heard unusual moaning sounds from the other end of the line.

"Ohh... dāmn! F-ck! Faster... Ahh!"

"Mike please..... faster baby... Ohh... yeah..!"

Levi angrily pressed the end button on her cellphone. She tried to calm herself down.

"What now, Levi? How long will you play the martyr? The question is, do you have the right to be angry? Of course not. Your mistake was falling in love with your mortal enemy. And because of your stupidity, you even got pregnant," her mind said.

She had no choice but to call Royce. Luckily, he answered quickly. She sat on a bench and waited for him. When Royce arrived, he moved quickly and carefully assisted her into his car. His face showed deep concern for her.

Royce wanted to punch Mike repeatedly. He couldn't believe that he had abandoned his own wife. What would people say if they saw him with another woman? After all, Mike had always been known as a playboy. Women were always chasing after him, while his male friends were easily tempted.

When they arrived at Levi's house, she thanked him and said goodbye. If he could, he would have taken her away from his friend. And he was willing to be the father of her child.

As Levi entered the mansion gate, she noticed that the two guards looked pale.

"Guards, is there a problem?" she asked in surprise.

"Well, Ma'am Levi, Sir Mike came home drunk and very angry," one guard replied.

"Ma'am, it's better if you don't go inside yet. Sir might take his anger out on you. We're sorry, but we saw how he treated you. We feel sorry for you," the guard said with concern.

Levi was touched to hear this. She didn't expect that there were still people like them.

"Never mind, he's just drunk. He'll sleep it off," she said nonchalantly, patting one of the guards on the shoulder. But the truth was, Levi was scared. She took a deep breath and entered the living room.

The whole place was a mess, with broken bottles of alcohol scattered everywhere. She stepped back, feeling her heart pounding with fear. Why did the house look like this?

"Lea! Aling Marta!" she called out to the two maids. They quickly appeared before her, surprised to see her.

"Ma'am Levi! Ma'am, it's better if you don't go inside yet. It's best if you stay in the garden for a while. Lea, please accompany Ma'am Levi to the garden," Aling Marta said.

Levi was puzzled by the maids' behavior, which only made her more nervous. Why did they have to take her to the garden? Couldn't they just clean up the broken glass in the living room so she could go inside?

"Tell me the truth, Lea. What's really going on inside the house?" she asked sternly.

"W-well... Ma'am, s-sir... he's with another woman upstairs right now. The broken glass on the floor earlier was intentionally done by Sir so you wouldn't disturb them," Lea stammered, unable to look at her directly.

Levi didn't say a word. All she knew now was that she had to save herself. This was not right, and to think that Mike brought his mistress to their own home? That was crossing the line. This time, she couldn't let it slide. She was tired of crying, and she needed to fight. For the sake of the child she was carrying.