Seven Months Pregnant—My Stepsister Called My Baby a Bastard Chapter 02

Seven Months Pregnant—My Stepsister Called My Baby a Bastard Chapter 02

Graham frowned at me, then bent down to wipe sauce from Talia’s leg first.

Only afterward did he pull me into our bedroom.

“Who upset you this time? What are you throwing a fit about?”

“I heated dinner the moment you got home, and Talia stayed here to keep you company. What more do you want?”

I shook off his hand and sat on the bed, breathing until the tightness in my stomach eased.

I truly did not want to fight.

Everyone said a mother’s stress affected her baby.

But I had swallowed my anger for too long.

One question kept screaming inside me.

Why?

Why did Talia always come first?

Why did every feeling and need I had have to make room for hers?

One pout from her had turned our date into a three-person outing.

One tear from her had turned the walk-in closet I wanted into a princess-themed guest room she could occupy whenever she pleased.

What kind of stepsiblings behaved like this?

Once the dragging pressure in my stomach passed, the words came through clenched teeth.

“Who the hell asked to hear her complain about nothing?”

I did not want to hear how much fun they had enjoyed at home while I had nearly cried alone in the hospital.

Graham raised his voice without warning.

“Talia was trying to be nice. Stop twisting everything she does.”

“Graham!”

I pointed at my stomach and shouted even louder.

“This is your child too!”

“Since I came home, have you asked once whether the appointment went well? Did you know I haven’t even had a glass of water?”

“If the building superintendent hadn’t helped me from the entrance, do you think I’d still be standing here?”

Graham faltered and rubbed his forehead.

“I got distracted. I’ll go get you…”

Before he finished, the bedroom door slammed open.

The crash left my ears ringing.

“Here!”

Talia thrust a full glass toward my face.

Nearly half the water splashed over me.

“Maren, I’ve put up with you long enough!”

Graham tried to stop her, but she jerked away so violently that her arm nearly struck my stomach.

“Maren Ellis, you’ve been acting unhinged lately. Every time Graham talks to me, you sit there looking miserable.”

“He’s my stepbrother. Why are you treating me like some romantic rival?”

“If you hadn’t been my friend, he never would’ve looked at you twice!”

Water ran slowly down my cheeks.

I dug my nails into my palm, felt my daughter kicking rapidly, and forced myself to breathe.

Again and again, I reminded myself of one thing.

Anger was bad for the baby. I had to let it go.

I had already survived the rest of this miserable day.

Then Talia stared at me and smiled before delivering the one blow she knew would hurt most.

“Maren, blame your mother’s bad luck. She was the one who got cancer and died.”

“We aren’t her, and we don’t have to coddle you.”

Blood rushed to my head, and my ears filled with a sharp hum.

We had known each other for eight years.

I had taken her to the ER after midnight, and she had once shared my bed while listening to my most private crushes.

She knew exactly where to cut me deepest.

When I came back to myself, my palm stung, and Talia’s face had snapped to one side.

She stood stunned for a moment, then grabbed a framed photo and raised it high.

Flying glass cut Graham’s cheek.

He stepped in front of me and caught Talia by the wrist.

“Enough, Talia. Stop.”

“She’s pregnant. Don’t take this any further.”

Talia’s eyes reddened instantly.

“You’re defending her?”

“So pregnancy makes her untouchable? Graham, did you forget that I…”

“Talia!”

It was the first time I had ever heard Graham yell at her.

No one spoke. The silence turned suffocating.

Talia stared at him, wiped her tears, and stormed out.

Thunder exploded outside at that exact moment.

Lightning split the sky, and rain poured down in sheets.

Graham silently cleaned the water and glass from my clothes.

Even with him beside me, I could feel his attention following her.

The sixth time he checked his phone, I spoke calmly.

“Go find her.”

“The rain is dangerous. She shouldn’t be alone.”

Relief passed over Graham’s face.

He gave my forehead a distracted kiss and tried to soothe me.

“I’ll be back soon, Maren.”

Without even searching for an umbrella, he ran into the storm in house slippers.

I lay still on the bed.

The instant the door closed, my calf seized painfully.

I was trapped on my back like an overturned turtle, able only to reach down and massage it.

I kept rubbing, but the pain intensified instead of fading.

The tears I had held back all day finally spilled.

“Graham… I’m hurting too.”

Salty tears reached my lips as I cried through them.

“It hurts so much, Mom.”

Only the rain answered me.

It sounded as if my mother were crying for me from heaven.

After I had cried myself empty and gone still, I opened my phone.

I sent a message to the divorce attorney whose number I had saved.

[What do I need to file for divorce while pregnant?]