At twenty-eight weeks, everything changed again.
Peace, I was learning, came with a price.
The exhaustion came back with a vengeance. My feet swelled. My back ached constantly. And Lily sweet, active Lily seemed determined to use my bladder as a trampoline.
"I have to pee again," I announced, struggling out of bed for the fourth time that night.
Adrian sat up immediately. "Need help?"
"I can still walk to the bathroom, Adrian."
"I know, but.."
"I'm fine. Go back to sleep."
But when I tried to stand, my back seized. I gasped, grabbing the nightstand.
Adrian was beside me in seconds. "What's wrong?"
"Back spasm. It's fine. Just give me a second."
He helped me straighten slowly, hands gentle on my lower back. "We're calling Dr. Martinez tomorrow."
"It's normal third trimester stuff."
"We're calling anyway."
I was too tired to argue.
Dr. Martinez confirmed what I already knew: welcome to the third trimester.
"Everything is normal," she assured us. "Baby's measuring right on track. But yes, you're going to be uncomfortable. That's part of the deal."
"How uncomfortable?" Adrian asked, taking notes like always.
"Back pain, frequent urination, swelling, heartburn, insomnia basically, pregnancy stops being fun around now."
"Fantastic," I muttered.
"The good news is, you're almost there. Ten more weeks."
Ten weeks felt like forever.
"I want you to start cutting back at work," Dr. Martinez continued. "No more full days. Listen to your body. Rest when you need to."
"I have a major project launching next month."
"Sophia." She gave me a look. "Your body is working overtime to grow a human. That takes priority over work projects."
"But.."
"No buts. You want a healthy baby? You need to slow down."
Adrian's expression said he agreed completely.
I sighed. "Fine. I'll cut back."
Cutting back proved harder than I'd anticipated.
The Harrison account was at a critical phase. We were launching their new product line, and I'd been managing it from the beginning. The idea of handing it off made me anxious.
"You don't have to hand it off completely," Lucas said when I broached the subject. "Just delegate some of the day-to-day. Keep oversight but let your team handle the grunt work."
"My team is already stretched thin."
"Then we hire more people. Sophia, you're seven months pregnant. No one expects you to work sixty-hour weeks."
"I don't work sixty hours.."
"You worked fifty-three hours last week. I checked."
Damn. "That's not that much."
"It is when you're growing a human." He softened. "Look, I get it. You want to prove you can do it all. But you don't have to. We've got your back."
"Adrian sent you to talk to me, didn't he?"
"He's worried. So am I. So is everyone who cares about you." Lucas leaned forward. "Take the maternity leave seriously. Let us handle things for a few months. The company will survive."
"I know it will. I just.." I struggled to articulate it. "I spent so long fighting to be taken seriously. Fighting to prove I'm not just Adrian's wife. If I slow down now."
"You're not slowing down. You're prioritizing. There's a difference."
He was right. I knew he was right.
"Okay," I agreed. "I'll delegate more. Cut back to part-time. But I'm keeping the Harrison account until launch."
"Deal."
Elena's baby shower was that weekend.
I was thirty weeks by then, moving slowly, but determined not to miss it. Elena was thirty-two weeks with twins, looking ready to pop any day.
"How are you feeling?" I asked, settling carefully into a chair at her beautifully decorated living room.
"Like I'm smuggling watermelons. Plural." She shifted uncomfortably. "These boys are huge. And they won't stop kicking each other. I swear they're already fighting."
"Lucas must be freaking out."
"He's bought every baby book in existence. And he's baby-proofed the house three times." She laughed. "It's adorable and annoying in equal measure."
"Adrian's the same. He installed extra locks on all the windows because he read something about baby safety."
"They're going to be those dads, aren't they? The overprotective, paranoid ones."
"Absolutely."
The shower was lovely all the traditional games, which I found alternately amusing and horrifying. Guessing baby food flavors was particularly traumatic.
"How can sweet potatoes and beef taste identical?" I complained.
"Wait until you're actually feeding it to a baby," one of Elena's coworkers said. "Then it's much worse."
Comforting.
When it came time for gifts, Elena opened everything from diapers to matching twin outfits that made everyone coo.
"These are from Sophia and Adrian," she announced, holding up a card.
I'd agonized over what to get. Finally settled on two things: matching quilts with the babies' names embroidered, and a gift certificate for a night nanny service.
"Oh my God," Elena teared up at the quilts. "These are beautiful. Look, Lucas their names!"
"And the night nanny," Lucas read the certificate. "Three nights a week for the first month. Sophia, this is too much.."
"No, it's not. You're going to need sleep. Trust me on this."
Elena hugged me tight or as tight as possible with two giant bellies between us. "Thank you. You're the best friend ever."
"Right back at you."
My own baby shower was the following week, hosted by Margaret and James at the mansion.
I'd wanted something small, but apparently everyone had other ideas. The guest list included family, friends, Adrian's business associates, and what felt like half of high society.
"This is not small," I hissed to Adrian as we greeted guests.
"Grandfather insisted. And Margaret was excited. Let them celebrate."
"I'm enormous and my feet hurt."
"You're beautiful and glowing." He kissed my temple. "Just sit down when you need to. No one expects you to stand the whole time."
The afternoon was a blur of gift-opening, well-wishes, and unsolicited advice about childbirth that ranged from helpful to horrifying.
"The pain is like nothing you've imagined," one woman told me cheerfully. "But then you forget it the moment you hold the baby."
"Epidurals are a godsend," another added. "Don't let anyone shame you for wanting one."
"I pushed for four hours with my first," a third chimed in.
I was starting to panic when Elena rescued me.
"Okay, that's enough horror stories. Sophia doesn't need to hear about your fourteen-hour labor right now." She pulled me aside. "You okay?"
"Define okay."
"Fair point." She handed me a glass of water. "For what it's worth, every pregnancy is different. Don't let them scare you."
"Too late."
"Hey." She squeezed my hand. "You survived assassins. You can survive childbirth."
"Those are not comparable."
"Sure they are. Both involve pain, fear, and coming out stronger on the other side."
Despite everything, I laughed.
At thirty-two weeks, I made a mistake.
The Harrison account launch was scheduled for the next day. Everything was ready except one final presentation that needed to be perfect. I'd promised to review it, make final edits.
"I'll work from home," I told Adrian that morning. "Just a few hours."
"A few hours," he repeated skeptically.
"I promise."
Those few hours turned into six. I got absorbed in the work, fixing slides, tweaking copy, perfecting every detail.
By the time I looked up, it was dark outside. And I hadn't eaten lunch. Or taken my prenatal vitamins. Or rested.
I stood up to stretch and the room tilted.
I grabbed the desk, but my legs gave out. I hit the floor hard, pain shooting through my hip.
"Adrian!" I tried to call, but my voice came out weak.
Everything went fuzzy at the edges.
The last thing I heard was footsteps running, Adrian's panicked voice calling my name.
Then nothing.
I woke up in the hospital.
Adrian was beside the bed, holding my hand so tight it hurt. His face was pale, eyes red-rimmed.
"Hey," I croaked.
"Oh thank God." He leaned forward, pressed his forehead to mine. "You scared the hell out of me."
"What happened?"
"You fainted. Hit your head when you fell. You've been out for two hours."
"Is Lily.."
"She's fine. They monitored her heartbeat. She's completely fine." His voice cracked. "But you're not. Your blood pressure is too high, and you're dehydrated, and the doctors say you've been overdoing it."
Guilt flooded through me. "I'm sorry. I was just finishing."
"I don't care about the work, Sophia. I care about you. About our daughter." He pulled back to look at me, and I saw fear and anger warring in his eyes. "You could have seriously hurt yourself. Hurt Lily. And for what? A presentation?"
"It was important."
"Nothing is more important than your health. Than Lily's safety. Nothing." His hand moved to my belly, where Lily was kicking reassuringly. "You have to stop pushing yourself like this. Have to let yourself be pregnant, be human, be tired."
Tears stung my eyes. "I just wanted to prove I could do it. That pregnancy doesn't make me weak."
"Sophia, no one thinks you're weak. You're the strongest person I know. But strength also means knowing your limits. Knowing when to ask for help."
"I'm not good at asking for help."
"I know. But you have to learn. For Lily. For me. For yourself." He kissed my forehead gently. "Promise me. No more overworking. No more pushing through exhaustion. You take care of yourself, or I will personally lock you in our bedroom until she's born."
Despite everything, I smiled weakly. "That's kidnapping."
"It's protective custody. There's a difference."
"Adrian.."
"Promise me, Sophia."
"I promise. No more overworking. I'll rest. I'll take care of myself."
"Good." He settled back in his chair, but didn't let go of my hand. "We're staying here tonight for observation. Then tomorrow, you're going on full bed rest until Dr. Martinez says otherwise."
"Bed rest? But.."
"No buts. Doctors orders." His expression softened. "Please, Sophia. I can't lose you. Either of you. You're my whole world."
Fresh tears spilled over. "I'm sorry I scared you."
"Just be more careful. That's all I ask."
Dr. Martinez came in then, confirmed what Adrian had said: high blood pressure, dehydration, signs of overexertion.
"Bed rest for one week," she ordered. "Then modified activity. And Sophia? No more work until after the baby comes."
"But the Harrison launch."
"Will happen without you. Your team is capable. Let them do their jobs." She gave me a stern look. "Your only job right now is growing a healthy baby. Got it?"
"Got it," I said quietly.
The week of bed rest was torture.
I watched the Harrison launch from my laptop Adrian had grudgingly allowed that much and it went perfectly. My team crushed it.
"See?" Lucas video-called afterward. "We handled it. You can relax now."
"I hate relaxing."
"I know. But suck it up. You've got six more weeks of this."
Elena visited daily, bringing food and terrible reality TV to watch together.
"This is our life now," she declared, sprawled on my bed at thirty-five weeks. "Immobile and massive."
"At least you're almost done. Another week or two."
"Can't come soon enough. I can't see my feet. I can't sleep. And Lucas is driving me insane with his constant hovering."
"Adrian too. He brings me water every fifteen minutes."
"Because you need to stay hydrated."
We both jumped. Adrian stood in the doorway, holding predictably a glass of water.
"How long have you been there?" I asked.
"Long enough. Drink."
Elena snorted. "Told you. Hovering."
After she left, Adrian climbed into bed beside me, careful not to jostle me.
"I know I'm being overprotective," he said.
"You are."
"But I can't help it. Every time I think about finding you on that floor." He shuddered. "I've never been that scared in my life."
"I know. I'm sorry."
"Don't be sorry. Just be careful." His hand found my belly, and Lily kicked in response. "Six more weeks. Then she's here. Then we can all breathe again."
"Six more weeks," I agreed.
Six more weeks until I met my daughter.
Six more weeks until everything changed again.
I couldn't wait.
END OF CHAPTER 18