Chapter 30

Connie shut the door behind her and immediately went to her daughter's bedside in the middle of the room. Her daughter's eyes were shut; she was in a pale blue hospital gown, and Connie could see a bandage on her wrist.

"Hi, baby," Connie said softly, sitting beside her daughter on the bed.

Vanessa slowly opened her eyes. "What the hell is wrong with you? Why did you do this to yourself? You almost died! If you die, who is going to take over your father's property?"

"Sorry, Mama. It wasn't on purpose. I was trying to threaten Cole into marrying me, and then it happened."

"That was close, but I'm glad you're here with me. How do you feel?" Connie said, placing a hand on Vanessa's forehead.

"My body feels heavy, and my head hurts a little."

"Where's Cole? He brought me to the hospital, right?"

"He's outside."

"Did the doctor say anything to you?"

"No, why do you ask? He only said I'll be discharged in a few days."

"He says you're pregnant."

"What?" Vanessa said loudly, slowly sitting up and leaning against the pillow. "What the hell?!" She shook her head. "No! It can't be me. There's probably a mistake somewhere."

"Stop being childish. The doctor says you are, and your test results will be ready soon."

"But how?" Vanessa asked, confusion evident on her face.

"Are you really asking me that?"

Vanessa looked away in shame. "I really don't care if this came as a shock to you, but please tell me the child is Cole's."

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Chapter 30

"Can you just say something?!" Connie asked impatiently after a few seconds of silence.

"I don't know!"

"Don't play with me, Vanessa. You better talk so we can end this mess."

"Did you and Cole sleep together recently?"

"Please don't start with those freaking tears!" Connie exclaimed as she saw her daughter's eyes welling up.

"Did the doctor say how far along I am?"

"How is that relevant? Oh, Christ! Don't tell me you've been sleeping with many men at the same time?"

"I thought you told me you're in love with Cole? What the hell went wrong?"

"Of course, I love him!"

"Then why are you doubting this baby? You and Cole had an affair, right?"

"That was a while back. That's why I'm asking how far along I am."

"How long?" Connie asked, staring at her daughter curiously.

"Oh God, Vanessa. I can't believe you had to ruin it all just when we were so close to getting everything we deserved."

"Come on, Mom. It's not easy to get rejected by the man you truly want. Cole literally tells me every day that he doesn't want me. And Ruben was always there to give me the attention I wanted."

Connie's eyes widened. "Ruben? Ruben Ewes? What the hell has come over you, Vanessa? Ruben is married with kids!"

"Please lower your voice, Mom. My head aches!"

"This must be karma! Never did I think a day would come that you would stab me in the back."

"Stop being ridiculous, Mom!"

"You call this ridiculous? Okay, what are we going to do now?"

Vanessa said nothing.

"When was the last time you shared a bed with Cole? Maybe when you both shared a bed and nothing happened."

"I know we slept together twice, shortly before Hailey showed up again."

06:29 Sat, 20 Apr

Chapter 30 (Note: The chapter number jumps inconsistently. This should be addressed in the original manuscript.)

"I don't care who the father is, and I don't care what you have to do. You are going to have this baby, and Cole is going to be the father. You are going to make him understand that, okay?"

Vanessa nodded, not knowing what to say.

"And we're going to ask the doctor for proof—maybe the test results or an ultrasound. Anything that works. And once you're discharged from here, you need to see Hailey with the proof and put her in her place."

"What's going on? What did Hailey do?" Eric's voice came through as he approached them. Both mother and daughter were unaware of his arrival.

Vanessa put her hand to her face, wiping tears from her eyes.

"Hailey? You must have heard wrong. We were just discussing ourselves," Connie said.

"Where's Cole?" she asked her husband.

"He's gone."

"Gone? What do you mean he's gone? Isn't he meant to be here with his wife?"

"What wife?" Cole's voice came through as he entered.

"What the hell?" Connie muttered. "There must be something wrong with the door; I can't hear anyone coming in."

"I thought you had left," Eric said as Cole stopped beside him.

"I almost did. But then I remembered I need to put some things in place since this is probably the last time I'll be seeing you all."

"What do you mean?"

"Are you dying?" Vanessa and Connie asked simultaneously, turning their attention to him.

"You could say that, because I am officially dead to you all from today."

"Why would you say so? Vanessa is here because of you."

"Enough, Connie!!" Cole shouted, glaring at her. "Aren't you tired of living in lies and toxicity? Doesn't it disgust you all to keep forcing yourselves on a man who doesn't love you?" He stared at Vanessa.

"I am pregnant, Cole."

"So?" He glared at her.

"Our baby!" She placed a hand on her belly.

J01, 20 API (This date is unclear and needs correction in the original)

Chapter 30

Cole chuckled. "You won! I think I underestimated how far you'd go just to end up with me."

"Come on, Cole, this baby is yours!"

"If you say that again, I promise I won't regret what I do to you." He spoke with such venom that even Eric was scared for his daughter.

"Please calm down, Cole."

"Just tell me when and where I slept with you. Look me in the eyes and tell me that bastard child you're carrying is mine?"

Vanessa burst into tears.

"Chill, Cole. She's just recovering, and you're putting too much pressure on her!" Eric intervened.

"Why not? Have you ever been accused of something you didn't do?"

"Come on, Cole. The whole world knows you and my daughter have been together! Who the hell would want to be with her when everyone knows you'll be married soon!"

"You're the only one she's ever been with, so you're the father!" Connie said.

"You've got to be kidding me!"

"Can we continue this conversation when she's better? The doctor said stress is why she passed out. We shouldn't be putting her under so much pressure," Eric said.

"Oh, don't worry about that, because I promise you there won't be any other time for discussion. Your daughter is nothing but a liar and a manipulator. She's either faking the pregnancy or the child is a bastard."

Vanessa gasped, sobbing harder.

"Don't you dare call my grandchild nasty names! You're the one who isn't man enough to accept your responsibility!" Connie intervened.

"I've had enough of your bullshit, and I regret ever knowing you all. This is my final warning to the Summers family. Stay away from me, or you'll all be arrested!"

Glaring at them, Cole stormed out.

"Stop crying, sweetheart. He's just an asshole. If he's not willing to accept you and the baby the easy way, then we'll go the hard way," Connie assured Vanessa.

"Don't do anything stupid!" Eric warned.

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Chapter 30

Connie rolled her eyes at him.

"Thank God you're here, Debbie," Hailey said anxiously, opening the door for her best friend. "It's almost 4 p.m., and the twins won't stop crying or eat. I'm so worried about them, especially Enzo, who's prone to getting sick. I don't know what to do anymore!"

This cleaned-up version addresses grammar, punctuation, and sentence structure issues, improving clarity and flow. However, the inconsistent chapter numbering and the ambiguous date "J01, 20 API" need attention in the original text.