CEO's Expectant Secretary(19)

She dried off and pulled a comfy cotton nightshirt over her head. She combed through her wet hair and slid her arms into a long terry-cloth robe that tied at her waist. Her stomach growled, surprising her. It was late and she needed to sleep. What had she read recently about foods one should eat at bedtime? A banana. She’d seen a bunch downstairs. She would eat half of one, she decided, and headed for the stairs.

She took the first step, then the next. Her foot caught in the hem of her robe and she grabbed at the banister but she was too late. She fell headfirst down the stairs and felt the impact of the wooden steps against her chest and belly. A scream escaped her. She grabbed and clutched for anything to stop her. She screamed again.

Anna and Roger appeared at the bottom of the steps, their faces filled with horror.

Elle closed her eyes at their expressions. Oh, god, help her. The baby. The baby.

Roger rushed to her side. “Miss, are you okay? Are you awake?”

Elle took a deep breath, trying to take stock of her body. She felt sore in places she couldn’t identify. “I’m conscious,” she said, opening her eyes again. “But I’m afraid,” she whispered. “I want to make sure the baby is okay.”

Roger’s eyebrows drew together. “We’ll take you to the hospital immediately,” he said.



Brock marched into the emergency room, his heart pounding against his chest. He stopped at the desk. “Brock Maddox. My wife is here,” he said in a curt voice.

The receptionist nodded. “Please come this way,” she said and led him down a hallway to a room. She opened the door and he spotted Elle reclining on a table with Anna and Roger by her side. The atmosphere in the room was grim.

All three of them looked at him.

“Mr. Maddox—” Roger and Anna said in unison.

Brock felt the twist in his gut tighten further. “Thank you for getting her here,” he said, then turned his attention to Elle. “How are you?”

She bit her lip. “Waiting on the ultrasound,” she said, her expression full of fear. “I wish I weren’t so clumsy,” she whispered, her eyes shiny with unshed tears.

Brock rushed to her side and took her hand in his. “I’ll make sure you’re okay,” he said.

“But what about the baby?” she asked, her voice breaking.

Roger cleared his throat. “We’ll be in the waiting room.”

“I feel so horrible,” Elle said. “What if my carelessness—”

He pressed his fingers over her lips. “You can’t think that,” he said.

A young woman dressed in white walked through the doorway. “Hello, I’m Dr. Shen.” She extended her hand to Elle and then to Brock. “I understand Mom took a tumble. Babies are amazingly resilient, so your little one is likely okay. Let’s check it out.”

The doctor squirted some gel on Elle’s belly and rubbed a device over her.

Brock watched as a jumble of a being appeared on the screen before them.

“Good, strong heartbeat right there,” Dr. Shen said, pointing to the flicker on the screen. She moved the device. “Everything looks good so far. Placenta’s intact.”

She removed the device and handed it to the nurse, then turned to Brock and Elle. “You might have some bruises tomorrow, but your baby is fine. Just be careful around stairs, okay?”

Elle gave a big nod of relief. “Very careful.”

The doctor scrawled her signature on the notebook screen. “You’re released. And we can give you a copy of the ultrasound video, if you’d like.”

“Thank you,” Elle said.

“Thanks,” Brock echoed. Elle looked at his face, which was full of wonder and awe. She understood. The heartbeat, the movement of the tiny legs and arms—it was overwhelming. And amazing.

The nurse wiped the gel off of Elle’s abdomen. “You can get dressed now,” she said.

Elle took an audible breath. “Sorry to bother you with this,” she murmured and moved to slide from the table.

Brock wrapped his arm around her shoulders. “You can’t be serious.”

Elle bit her lip. “I know you have other things to do.”

“There’s nothing more important,” he said. “Nothing.”

“It almost didn’t seem real before,” she said. “But it does now. We’re going to have a baby.”

He nodded and smiled. “Yes, we are.”



Two days later, Elle couldn’t stand her Brock-imposed exile from the outside world any longer. Now, she desperately needed to get out.

The housekeeper frowned as Elle put her hand on the doorknob of the front door. “You’re not going out, are you?” Anna said.