by Brandy Blake
Working with children all her life, Imani had always imagined how this special moment might turn out. Imani was scared, but she quickly realized the beauty in the situation. What if Petra and Stavros didn’t? What if they were mad, angry, horrified? Imani didn’t know if she’d be able to handle their reaction if it was anything but excited.
Imani knew that there was only one way out of the bathroom, and Stavros and Petra would find out eventually. Imani just had to rip the truth off like a band aid, walking confidently towards the door.
“I’m pregnant,” she told him once their eyes met. He didn’t say anything, and she looked at Petra, hoping for a reaction.
“This is great!” he said, Petra clapping.
“It is?” Imani asked confused. Petra was certainly happy about it, but Stavros just walked towards the back window.
He started to think about the first time that Iliana told him she was pregnant. It was the first time that he heard he was going to be a father.
What that meant was much different than the emotions that Imani felt once she realized she was going to become a mother. Stavros didn’t know how to react either time, finding out about the new baby just as shockingly as the first time. Darius was certainly a blessing, and he couldn’t imagine life without his son. At the same time, Darius was still a source of anxiety, worry, and stress.
He wanted them to have the best future possible, never having to struggle in his life. He wanted his son to have everything, something that wasn’t always promised for Stavros. He fought hard for him, always worrying that he wasn’t the greatest father he could be. He was going to have this panic all over again with the new baby, wondering if he’d be able to manage being a new father once again.
“I’m so excited to have another baby around!” Petra said. Imani gave her a hug, thrilled that she was just as excited. Imani suddenly realized she didn’t know if Petra had children. The more she thought about it, she realized she hardly knew anything about Petra at all.
“Stavros, don’t you think it’s wonderful?” Petra asked.
“Mhm,” was all he said as he looked out his bedroom window. There were certainly worse reactions, but for that being the first verbal affirmation since Imani told him she was carrying his child, she couldn’t help but still feel just a bit worried.
“I mean, I know it’s a stressful situation. But I’m going to be a mom!” Imani said, giving Petra a hug again.
“This is great,” Stavros said surprisingly, turning around with a devilish smile.
“Yes! Yes!” Petra said, waving him over for a hug. He placed his arms around the two women, and then pulled Imani in for a personal hug, giving her a kiss on the top of her head. Imani was surprised that he managed to turn around his opinion so much, wondering if this was a genuine reaction or just one to ease the tension.
“Pregnant and engaged. There’s no way that the court won’t believe I’ve changed. Ursa doesn’t stand a chance!” Stavros told her. It suddenly hit Imani why he was so excited about introducing a brand new little baby to the world.
She started to get worried all over again about what she was getting herself into. As if the situation they were already in wasn’t stressful enough, now she was adding another life into the mix. This was an innocent, tiny little life that didn’t have a say either way. Was she doing the right thing by deciding to keep the baby? Imani was starting to get a little unsure now.
“You’re right!” Petra said, now those two giving each other a hug.
“Hello?” Darius said, peeking his head in the room. “What’s going on?”
“Good morning, son!” Stavros said, running towards his little boy.
“Why are you all hugging?” Darius asked. Stavros looked at Imani. She had only found out moments ago, so she didn’t think this was the time to tell Darius just yet. It was a confusing situation that they would have to explain carefully.
“We’re all just so happy because daddy’s going to take a day off, so he can play with you all day,” Imani said, wanting to let Petra as well as Stavros know that she wasn’t ready to share the news about her unborn baby with its big brother.
“She’s exactly right!” Petra said. “So, go brush your teeth and get ready for breakfast!”
Petra led Darius out of the room, giving Imani and Stavros a chance to be alone once again.
“So, you’re really going to carry my baby?” Stavros asked Imani sweetly, still standing a bit away from her at this point.
“I can’t imagine doing anything else,” she explained to him.
“I didn’t know if I’d ever have more children,” Stavros told her.
“I didn’t know if I would have any at all,” Imani explained. They looked at each other for a moment, expecting parents not really knowing what to expect next. “I’m going to go get ready for breakfast, too.”
Imani started to feel like they were the ones doing something wrong. She walked out of Stavros’s room, wishing she could go home but realizing that this was her home. now that she was pregnant, was she going to be living there? She didn’t feel completely comfortable knowing that Stavros and Petra had such a strange reaction to the news. She didn’t want to see her baby as a beneficial tool to be used in a court case. She was growing beautiful life inside of her, not evidence for a custody war.
Could they be the villains in all of this? There were now two innocent children in this messed up scenario, and Imani was suddenly feeling overwhelmed with that responsibility. How was she supposed to know what was best for Darius, a child she didn’t know very long, and the baby growing in her body, a discovery she had just made? Imani just woke up, but she was already feeling like it was time to head back to bed.
Imani was happy that he was feeling positive about it, but she didn’t really think that he had grasped the seriousness of the situation. It would be her first child, and it might be the only one she would ever have. She was feeling every emotion possible, the long walk from Stavros’s room to her own enough time for her to clear a few things up in her conscious. There was still just one thought that didn’t seem to leave her mind, and she didn’t know if it ever would.
A human was being created. Was it being brought into the world for the right reasons?
Chapter8
“Don’t smile too much,” he told her. “We need to look like a serious family.”
Imani gave him a strange look. Petra had scheduled a photoshoot to be release on Stavros’s website announcing the pregnancy as well as the marriage of him and Imani. She wasn’t expecting something so official to happen, so she was certainly shocked when Petra told her to prepare for the photoshoot.
At first, Imani didn’t even want to do it, but Stavros reminded her that this would be a good way to make what’s going on between the two seem legit.
“I don’t like being told how to look,” she responded to him.
“I just have a certain way people perceive me,” Stavros said with a stern look. Imani could tell by his glare that he wasn’t in the mood to bicker with her. She was five months pregnant, a bump already showing on her thin body. They wouldn’t be announcing the pregnancy still for another month, giving them plenty of time before the court case, as it got pushed back yet again.
Imani looked into the camera, smiling firmly next to her husband, her stepson fussing in front of them. She held her stomach slightly, touching the bump and realizing how strange the situation she was in might look to outsiders. Would people believe this story? How fake was the marriage now?
These questions plagued Imani as she wandered around Stavros’s mansion lonely again for the months following their last steamy encounter. He hadn’t been around much, but that still gave Imani plenty of time to shop around the Mykonos island as well as heading over to Athens to bounce through different stores. She spent Christmas with her father, flying back and announcing her pregnancy to him on Christmas morning. The rest of the situation he didn’t take in as easily, but nonetheless, he was thrilled about meeting his
new grandchild.
Imani was sure that she was excited about becoming a mother, but there was still so much uncertainty left in other corners of her mind. Where was she going to live? Was she having a boy or girl? What would happen after she gave birth?
“Let’s try one where your wife is sitting,” the photographer told Stavros. Imani could tell by the way he fidgeted that he wasn’t quite used to hearing others refer to Imani as his wife.
The photographer was clearly getting the sense that they weren’t getting along the greatest as a family.
“Darius, don’t pull away,” Imani told him as she put her arm around her step-son. He wasn’t interested in showing much affection, just like his father. He had on a suit jacket and his thick curly hair was combed to the side, it rapidly growing and him refusing to cut it even though his school was getting strict about him maintaining a clean haircut.
He had started school at the beginning of the month, and even though it was only a week into the spring semester, he was doing decent. Petra, Stavros, and Imani all tried to cut his curly locks, but he refused, a differing style from his father’s recent buzz. In an attempt to look as professional and presentable as possible, Stavros made sure to keep his blonde dotted hair smooth to the side, Imani slicking her curls as well. They looked like the perfect business family, Stavros in his suit and Imani wearing a clean white dress with boxy shoulders. She certainly looked like a step-mother. She was starting to feel worried about the situation she had put herself and her child in.
“How about we try one a little more loving,” the photographer told him.
“These should do,” Stavros said, clearly wanting to end the shoot. They had set up in his office, the view from his balcony looking the greatest between the two bookshelves built into the wall.
“What about just a loving one where you two are looking at each other. Come on, we’re set up, at least do it for your own personal collection,” the photographer told Stavros.
“Fine,” he said, realizing just taking a few more pictures would end the shoot faster than arguing.
“Let’s step out on the balcony!” the photographer said, Darius getting excited and hopping through the doors, at least getting a change of scenery from the boring office.
Imani was hit with a cold breeze, the winter still bitter over the island. She grabbed her stomach, the white winter outfit feeling a bit out of place. With her hair slicked back, she was feeling like an ice princess.
“Are you OK?” Stavros asked. He was still sweet enough to her when he thought she was feeling ill, tired, or uncomfortable. Imani nodded.
“There, that’s perfect,” the photographer said, Imani and Stavros looking at each other while Darius looked over the edge of the balcony. “Now, give us a smile.”
Stavros smiled at Imani, and she realized it was genuine, a nice change from his cold demeanor back in the office.
“Perfect! Grab her hands!” The photographer told them as he took more shots. They were really looking like the perfect happy couple. “Give her a kiss!”
Stavros leaned down, hesitant to give Imani a small peck. He had been cold, distant, and barely around the last couple of months, Imani turned off by his closure but still missing the last time they shared a kiss.
Imani decided to take initiative, leaning up to give Stavros a big kiss. He pressed his face back into hers hard, grabbing her back. They kissed for a few more moments while the photographer took a few pictures, Imani suddenly forgetting where she was and all that surrounded her. Once again, she was lost inside Stavros, his palms tightly gripping her body.
“No, no, this is all wrong,” Stavros said, quickly pulling away from Imani and storming off the set. Darius looked at his dad and hopped back inside, Imani standing there speechless, not sure what just happened between the two.
“I think I got something,” the photographer told Imani as she wiped her mouth, still feeling Stavros’s lips against hers.
Imani woke up to texts and calls from friends the next day congratulating her. The photos weren’t supposed to be put on Stavros’s website for a few weeks, as Imani was feeling nervous about releasing too much information too early when it came to her pregnancy.
Somehow, though Imani knew exactly how, the photographs had leaked online, showing the two-kissing next to Darius. Imani didn’t have anyone important in her life that she still needed to tell, as her father was really the only person that she even cared to share this information with. Many people knew Imani still, following her on social media or saving her phone number from when they worked together or shared a class. All of a sudden, these people were quick to want to be Imani’s friend, knowing the person that she was hooked up to.
She didn’t really have anyone that she could call a best friend, but there were people coming out of the word work across her social media that suddenly acted like they had been friends all along. Imani quickly looked on several different websites, seeing that her information was being shared quickly and Imani was not expecting that. She was overwhelmed with all the warm wishes coming in, and knew that after that, there’d’ likely be hate.
Stavros was older than Imani, and he was known for being a bit of a bad boy. He had also lost his wife, so some would probably wonder if Stavros was still mourning the mother of his child, and even worse than that, compare the two.
Imani put her phone down, realizing she needed to just delete her accounts and ignore the texts coming in. She wanted to keep the pregnancy as private as possible to avoid potential stressors like this, but now the public knew what was going on between the two, Imani didn’t know what to expect.
She got out of bed and slipped into the shower, not wanting to deal with whatever might be coming in on her phone. She hadn’t been back in Stavros’s room since she found out she was pregnant, Stavros switching the professional dial way up now that she was carrying his child. she felt lonely indeed, even though her phone was blowing up with notifications.
When she returned to her phone, she saw an email between Petra and the photographer, as well as Stavros, that Imani had been added to. She read a few heated messages between them all, the photographer revealing that he had a few interns working at his office and suspected they leaked some of the photographs. Stavros and Imani weren’t the only ones that were hurt in the hack and release.
Stavros was an incredibly private person, so when information like this was released on the Greek billionaire, people were certainly interested. This was huge news, as most of the time, Stavros was just seen leaving the different bars and night clubs of Athens and Mykonos with different young woman. He was certainly an eligible bachelor, but at the same time, no one ever thought they could trap him down. When his first wife succeeded, it was insane news. Now that a second girl managed to get an eternal promise from Stavros, his name wasn’t safe from the papers for the next year.
The photoshoot did turn out good, and they looked like a real family. Imani knew she was a good-looking girl, but it wasn’t always easy to feel that way. she had been brainwashed, like many others, into believing that only European features were beautiful, and the interesting looks she got from her black ancestors were something to be ashamed of. There she was, dark skin and thick lips, next to one of the most powerful men in the country. Inside her body was a growing baby, and the designer dress hugging her baby bump made her glow.
Imani was surprised that part of her was sad they weren’t a legitimate family. everyone Imani knew had desires like hers to have a family such as the one in the photographs. She was actually the one in the picture, but the truth behind the situation couldn’t be more off. They hadn’t gotten married because they were in love, and they certainly weren’t expecting to grow their family. Imani had only flown there to be his teacher, someone that could help a troubled child get back on the right track.
She looked down at her stomach, stretching through her t-shirt and showing now more than ever. She was only going to get bigger, but Imani was loving every moment. She lov
ed feeling her body expand, the baby gets bigger, and seeing their little shape in ultrasound pictures. Stavros had a doctor set up equipment for check-ups in one of the guest bedrooms, not wanting Imani to have to travel too much while she was pregnant. She would have certainly enjoyed getting out of the mansion a little more often than what she was, but it was still nice to have a doctor take care of her in the comfort of her own home.
Everything was coming out good when they found more and more information on the baby, Imani wanting to keep the gender a secret until she gave birth. She was certainly hoping for a little girl, but she wondered if Stavros had more meant run in his family. He had only been to two appointments, not staying around for long after that. The photoshoot was the closest they had been in months. Imani certainly wanted more, but she was growing connections with Petra as well as Darius, so she couldn’t say she was completely alone. Besides, she always had her little baby moving around in her stomach, excited to get to meet the little bundle of joy that she already loved so much.
Imani might have had a few people claiming to be her friend now, but there was one person that she knew she could trust that she just met when she first made her way to Greece. Someone that she had managed to go out with a few times since Stavros was leaving her alone so often, but Imani wondered if it’s just because they knew she didn’t drink and wanted to use her as a DD.
She met Mateo at the same café that she went to when she first arrived, Funky Kitchen. It had become her favorite place, and the eclectic dishes quickly became pregnancy cravings, Imani unable to control her desire to overeat. She was certainly gaining weight in her hips and breasts as well,
