Page 75 of Tempted

There was no time for a retort because the paramedics chose that moment to show up.

“No, I don’t want to go to the hospital. I’m fine. I just need to go home and rest,” Jasmine argued with one of the EMTs. The exchange went back and forth before one of the medics convinced Jasmine to go with them.

Madeline grasped his arm. “Victor you’re not going to let her leave like that are you? Go to her! She’s carrying my grandchild!”

He fixed his gaze on his mother. “What?” Victor could feel the color draining from his face. Her grandchild? “Jasmine is pregnant?” He didn’t notice her stomach because he’d been trying to get over how thin she’d become.

“I’m ninety-nine percent sure she is. She was throwing up in the bathroom, and despite all the weight she’s lost, her belly is very round.

“No, I didn’t realize. Are you certain?”

His mother glared at him tight-lipped. “I know what a pregnant woman looks like.”

“But…” He racked his fingers through his hair. Jasmine had told him she couldn’t get pregnant so he wasn’t sure how to process this news. On the one hand, the thought of her carrying his child made him happy. But on the other hand he needed to make sure the baby was his. She was after all, engaged to another man. “Is it my baby? That man claims to be engaged to her.”

“She might be engaged but I’m positive the baby is yours. When I asked her if she was carrying my grandchild, she didn’t deny it. Jasmine isn’t the type of woman to bed hop. Go after her. As a matter of fact, I’ll go with you.” She pushed him toward the door, nudging him into action. They made it outside just in time to see Jasmine getting into the ambulance.

Determined to follow, Victor ushered his mother to his vehicle.

They were at the hospital within twenty minutes and had to wait an hour before Victor could speak with the doctor attending Jasmine.

When Victor spottedJasmine’s doctor, he managed to corner him. “Doctor, how is Jasmine?” he asked anxiously.

The doctor gave him the once over before answering. “I’m not at liberty to discuss my patient’s condition because of HIPPA laws. What’s your relationship to the patient?”

“I’m the child’s father. Please, may I see her?”

The doctor raised both brows. “I thought—”

Madeline grasped the doctor’s wrist. “Doctor, please. Jasmine is family to us. May we please see her?”

“Well, I suppose it wouldn’t hurt for a few minutes, but we still have a few more tests we’d like to run so don’t be too long.”

“Thank you.” The words were hardly out of Victor’s mouth before he headed to Jasmine’s room with his mother at his side. When he walked in, he halted when he sawJasmine lying on the bed looking tired distressed. That man sat at her bedside, holding her hand.

Squaring his shoulders he walked further into the room.

A groan escaped Jasmine’s lips, when she saw him. “Please go away. I can’t take whatever it is you’ve come for today.”

Jason stood up in an aggressive stance. “You heard her, you’re not welcome here.”

Ignoring the other man, Victor directed his attention toward Jasmine. “Please, I need to speak with you. I promise I’m not here to cause trouble.”

“There’s nothing to talk about.”

Victor raised a brow. “We have the baby to discuss.”

Jasmine’s eyes widened as she moistened her lips with the tip of her tongue. “I can’t deal with this right now.”

“As you can see, Jasmine doesn’t want to talk to you,” Jason spoke up.

Madeline stepped forward with flared nostrils. “We have just as much right to be here as you, young man. That’s my grandchild she’s carrying. Isn’t it Jasmine?” Madeline glanced at Jasmine with that last sentence.

Jasmine averted her gaze. Her silence said it all.

“It is mine, isn’t it?” Victor asked with wonder. She was carrying his child. The doctor had said she was past her first trimester and his mother’s assertion that he was the father made it hard to argue he wasn’t. But her silence had confirmed it. Did she think he’d walk away now?

“This is ridiculous,” his mother strode to Jasmine’s bedside. “Jasmine, if nothing else, you and I were friends. You could have come to me. I know Victor acted like a fool and I’m not excusing him, but I don’t deserve to be treated this way.”

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