"Mom, there's a letter here addressed to me," Grace said as she shuffled through the mail, walking into the kitchen.

"Well go ahead and open it," I told her.

"It's from UCLA," she pointed out.

"I know where it's from sweetheart. Open it," I said eagerly.

She gave me a suspicious look as she opened it. I was super excited about what it had to say, and because she's evil, she knew I wanted to know, so she read it in silence. I had to rely on the look on her face as she read, and when she lit up, I knew it was good news.

"You signed me up? When?" she asked.

"The test Fabio and I gave you a while back was the entry test. We sent through the test and your results. They needed me to provide papers that I was qualified to be a home school teacher, and luckily those arrived just two days before we gave you the test. You did better than the average student, so Fabio and I were really hoping that you'd get in," I explained.

While she's only thirteen, her IQ level is pretty high, so we sent through some application forms for a programme for smart kids that UCLA runs. The programme lasts six weeks and we'd promised ourselves that we'd figure everything else out once she got in.

"I can't believe you did this for me. I'm so excited! I want to tell dad. Is his phone still off?" she asked.

"It is," I lied as I nodded.

"Aaaw man! I guess I'll tell him when he comes back, whenever that is. In the meantime, I'm going to tell Nina," she said before running off without giving me a chance to say anything.

I shook my head and got around to finishing up the cake I was baking. I was trying to keep myself distracted, but being alone never worked out well when that's what you're trying to do. Instead, my mind travelled to the very person I was avoiding thinking about.

Olivier Myron Black.

I felt a chill run over me, goose bumps decorating my flesh. My thoughts travelled back to seeing him three weeks ago with that woman. I still don't know who she is, simply because I didn't care enough to find out.

I just left.

I didn't know what else to do, and he didn't bother coming after me. He'd only bothered to call me three hours after I left, but by then it was too late- I didn't care at all about whatever scenario that was.

At first, I was mad at Castro for taking me there, until he pointed out that the intention was never to hurt me. Instead, he was truly hoping that he was wrong about his suspicion, and that's when I learnt that I was right to think that he and Olivier have some sort of deeper history.

Especially since the woman knew who he was, like he was close to her and Olivier.

I came home to find that Richard had left with my mother. Apparently, she was refusing to go home, so he put her in a guest lodge that I knew I had to settle the bill for. What pissed me off even more was that my brother was missing precious school time because he was babysitting a grown ass woman.

Grace, Ethan and Fabio came back to the house, so it's the four of us here. Kristaline had to go back to London for business, but not before she tried to interrogate me about the whereabouts of her brother.

It's safe to say that she could tell that I wasn't ok and she wanted to kill him for it.

I lied and told everyone that he's away on business. I knew that if they called Rowena, she would back up my lie in a heartbeat, but I also knew that Fabio wasn't buying any of it. I didn't expect him to anyway.

I was just tired of having to deal with the situation.

And so, I decided that I wouldn't.

Instead I've put my focus into my pregnancy. Dr Martens had already stressed that I had to keep my stress levels and blood pressure down, especially because I'm carrying twins. The health of my babies is more important than anything and anyone right now.

"Are you ready to talk about it?" Fabio asked as he walked into the kitchen. Ethan was sitting in the lounge watching cartoons.

"You've asked me that every day for the past three weeks and my answer has been no. What makes you think it would be different now?" I asked.

"Come on Rose. You can't let this eat you up in silence," he attempted to sway.

"Except it isn't. I've let go of it Fabio because if I go down that path, my stress levels are going to go up and I'm not willing to risk my babies' health over Olivier's shady behaviour," I replied.

"Ok, so he did something shady. That's more than you've given me in the past three weeks. Where did he do this shady thing?" he questioned.

"Grace's letter came. She got in," I informed.

"Really? That's grea- wait! You're trying to distract me," he caught on.

"No, I'm not. I'm telling you something that I don't mind talking about," I defended as I poured the batter into the cake tin.

"Rose, whatever he did is big enough to make you not wear your engagement ring. You haven't worn it once since we've come back," he commented.

"You're observant," I said.

"Of course, I am. Now will you please tell me what's going on?" he begged.

"Why don't you call him and ask him?" I asked.

"He gets super snappy with me, something he's never done with me before, and the fact that he's staying at a hotel speaks volumes. You know that someone is bound to ask questions about that at some point, right?" he pointed out.

This was news to me.

"He's staying at a hotel?" I asked.

"Yeah! He's been staying there since the night you told us to come back," he informed.

The day of the discovery.

"I didn't know that," I admitted.

"Look, at least tell me what he did so that I can put the pieces together for you if possible," he offered.

I bit my lip, unsure. "I went looking for him three weeks ago at his office, and Rowena told me that he hadn't come in. I bumped into Castro on my way out, and once he knew of my dilemma, he took me to some apartment. We got there an-"

"And Olivier was there with a blond woman. Damnit!" he said irritably.

"Wait, you know just from the little bit I just said?" I asked.

"I knew from the moment you mentioned Castro taking you there," he replied.

"I don't understand. He said he didn't take me there to hurt me," I said in confusion.

"He didn't. He must've had a suspicion and hoped it wasn't true, but it was something you needed to see. Did Olivier see you?" he asked.

I nodded. "The blond answered the door dressed in nothing but a dress shirt, but he appeared just seconds later, dressed in nothing but dress pants."

"Ok, so at least he's aware that he messed up," he commented.

"Who is she Fabio?" I asked, knowing very well that I wasn't keen on finding out.

"She's Daisy," he replied.

I frowned. "His ex-wife?"

He nodded. "Theirs is a truly complicated story, but I didn't think he'd do something this stupid with you in the picture. I honestly thought he was done."

"Wait! You mean to tell me that he's been with her since their divorce?" I asked.

"Only four times, but all four of those times were enough to almost suck him back in. You'd think he would've learnt his lesson by now, though I guess staying at the hotel counts in his favour," he noted thoughtfully.

"What does that even mean?" I asked.

"The fact that he's not staying in the same place as her right now means there's a possibility you got the wrong end of the stick," he replied.

I raised an eyebrow. "And how would you know that they're not staying together?"

"Daisy hates hotels, and she loves her lavish apartment too much. He did after all get it for her," he informed.

"This is too much Fabio. I didn't sign up for this, especially now. I'm too fragile for it," I pointed out.

"And I completely understand where you're coming from, but Rose, he can't stay at the hotel forever. People are going to start asking questions soon, and the last thing you want is people prying into both your lives," he argued.

"So, what? I let him come back and get cornered into facing him?" I asked.

"No. He can come back and you don't have to say a single thing to him," he responded.

"And what must I do if the kids are around? Force myself to tolerate him? You know damn well that if he walks through that door right now, they're going to expect us to be a happy family," I attacked.

"As we should be."

I froze in place, eyes wide as I kept my eyes glued on Fabio. The look on Fabio's face suggested that I wasn't hearing things as he looked behind me. He shot me an apologetic look.

"I'm going to keep the kids upstairs," he said before leaving the kitchen.

Leaving me with him.

I could feel him moving before I heard him. He was walking closer to me, but I wanted him nowhere near me. I moved to the other side of the kitchen, forced to look up at him so that I knew where to move to dodge him.

I didn't expect the view that met me. My fiancé is an attractive man, that is a fact known by many, but the man staring at me with pain in his eyes didn't reflect him at all. A rugged and thick beard decorated the lower part of his face, while dark rings surrounded his eyes.

He looked absolutely exhausted.

His eyes zoned in on my stomach and I didn't miss how they slightly enlarged. It may have only been three weeks apart, but I'd popped in that three weeks. I was almost sixteen weeks pregnant, but I looked at least six months pregnant.

"Rose..." he whispered, trailing off.

"When was the last time you slept?" I asked him.

"I can't remember," he murmured.

"Go sleep right now. I'll wake you up when I feel you're well rested," I instructed.

"Rose, I-"

"I'm not talking to you in this state Olivier. You look like you're going to fall over from exhaustion," I scolded.

He shook his head. "I need to hold you. Give me that and I'll do anything you want."

I was wary of his request, but a big part of me wanted to be in his arms again. I slowly sauntered over to him before falling into his open arms. They enclosed me tightly enough to not hurt, but to also let me know that he was there.

None of us said anything as we stood there in each other's arms. I took comfort in his scent, one that lingered in our room, reminding me that he wasn't there. I squeezed him just a bit tighter, needing to convince myself that he really was there.

That I hadn't given in to any hallucinations.

I didn't realize I was crying until he pulled me back so that he could wipe away my tears. They just kept falling and he leaned down, placing his lips softly on mine, asking for my permission.

My hands moved from his waist to his upper back, pulling him closer and concurrently giving him his answer. He took that as his cue to deepen the kiss, taking the lead with me willingly following.

I needed this.

It was probably a bad idea, but I could argue that it was the calm before the storm. I didn't know what it is he had to tell me, but I knew that there was a very high chance that it would upset me, or at least it wouldn't be something I want to hear.

And so, I needed this.

I needed this kiss, this moment, to remind me of all the good that is Rose Kidman and Olivier Black as a pair- a pair who so truly believed that they'd found forever in one another, the kind of love to make them forget about all others.

But of course, I was the idiot.

I pulled away from the kiss and stepped away from him altogether. I could see the hurt in his eyes as I wiped my tears away. He took a step towards me and I took one back. I could almost see him break apart, but I couldn't let him- not without knowing the truth.

He sighed and left the kitchen, heading upstairs.

With him gone, it gave me a chance to gather my wits. I managed to pour myself a glass of cold water to calm my nerves. I was pouring myself a second one when the doorbell went. With me being the only one downstairs, I had to get it. I didn't expect to see the person on the other side.

"Valerie?" I questioned. She looked frantic.

"Where is he?" she asked, walking past me.

Please, come in.

"Who?" I asked.

"Don't play stupid with me. I already know that he's here," she snapped.

I raised an eyebrow. "And how do you know this?"

He only got in a few minutes ago.

"I don't have time for this. Where is he?" she asked, walking to the lounge.

"What do you need him for?" I asked.

She sneered. "Do I look like someone who has to answer to you in any kind of way?"

"In my house you do," I replied.

"OLIVIER!" she suddenly shouted.

Out of reflex, I smacked her. "Would you not behave like a child in my house?"

"Did you just smack me?" she asked, looking genuinely confused.

Honestly, I didn't blame her for that bit.

"Yes, I did. Now, Olivier's unavailable. You can call him later," I told her.

She looked at me for a few seconds before turning towards the stairs. I went after her, intent on stopping her. I grabbed onto her arm just as she reached the fifth stair, except her heel snapped, sending her flying towards me.

I landed with a painful thud, and for a short while, I wasn't sure of anything that was happening around me.

When I slowly started coming to, my ears were ringing, and the back of my head hurt. I could hear someone screaming as I tried to sit up, but the lower region of my body hurt like hell. I could hear shouting before I forced myself to focus on one thing at a time.

"Rose? Beautiful can you hear me?"

"I, I, ah."

"Don't strain yourself beautiful. We're going to get you to the hospital okay? Just don't move."

I couldn't speak, let alone move, and with the pain at the back of my head, I gave into the black dots.

When I came to again, I could hear beeping around me. The distinct smell of antiseptic was to my left and it was irritating my nose. It felt like I was already slightly elevated, so I didn't have to fight to get into a comfortable position. Instead I slowly worked on opening my eyes.

The first person I saw was my fiancé.

He looked distressed as he stood with another man, a man I assumed was the doctor. The man seemed to be calmly explaining something to him, but I could see that nothing was going through. I don't know what the doctor was saying, but Olivier sure as hell wasn't listening to him.

"Oli," I said softly.

His eyes snapped to me and I watched as a million emotions flashed in them all at once. "Rose."

"Why am I in the hospital?" I asked.

"Miss Kidman, my name is Dr Ronan. What's the last thing you remember?" the doctor asked me.

I scowled, trying to remember. "Oli came home, we kissed and then he went to bed."

"You don't remember anything beyond that?" Olivier asked me.

Am I supposed to?

I shook my head. "I don't. My head hurts."

"That's understandable. Miss Kidman, you fell at the stairs of your home. Your family found you at the bottom of the stairs and y-"

I started hyperventilating, causing the machine to go off frantically as tears rushed to my eyes. "My babies."

"Calm down Miss Kidman. As I was telling your fiancé, your babies are fine. Dr Martens came and checked you himself, so he can come and give you a better report back if you'd like?" he offered.

"Please," I whispered.

I needed to know that my babies are fine.

"What about the blood?" Olivier asked him.

"That's what I was getting to. Now, the blood may have looked like it came from her vaginal area, but it in fact came from her back. When you lifted her, did you see anything particularly sharp on her floor?" the doctor asked him.

Olivier frowned. "There was nothing there and I can't think of anything being out of place there. The floor boards are all in place."

"Well, Miss Kidman, you have a deep cut on your lower side and back, almost as though you were sliced or stabbed, except your fiancé told me that you were alone when they found you. Can you remember anyone being there after he went to go sleep?" he asked.

I blinked a couple of times, trying to think, but I was coming up short. "I don't remember anything."

"That brings me to another point of order; you landed quite painfully and you hit your head. We managed to stitch you up, but you might experience migraines for the next couple of weeks," he told me.

"So, what now?" Olivier asked him.

"Well, I can't imagine that her back is doing all that great with how she landed on it, so we'd like to keep her here for a week. We also want to monitor the wound on her back since we don't know what it is that cut her. We want to watch out for infections and monitor her brain activity. I'll get Dr Martens to come and address you about your babies, but after a week, she should be free to go home," Dr Ronan explained.

"Thank you, doctor," Olivier said.

Dr Ronan smiled. "It's no problem. I'll be attending to my other patients, but let the nurse know if you need me. Miss Kidman, take it easy and if you remember anything, have them call me immediately."

I could only manage a nod. Dr Ronan walked out of the room, leaving me with Olivier. I was curious about where everyone else was since Dr Ronan mentioned that my family found me. I was internally hoping that none of the kids found me.

"Ethan is the one who found you."

My heart dropped at the thought of my poor son seeing me like that. "What happened?"

"He screamed and Fabio and Grace ran to him before they saw you. I was in the shower, but I heard him scream too, which is why I took longer to get to you. I thought my heart would stop when I saw you laying there helplessly. When Grace noticed the blood, I thought I would lose it altogether."

I didn't know what to say, especially since he was crying. I wished more than anything that I could remember what happened, but I couldn't. Instead the pain at the back of my head was getting worse the more I tried.

"Don't strain yourself. You don't have to remember anything. All that matters is that you're ok," he said softly.

"What about security? Don't they know who came to the house?" I asked.

He looked at me warily. "No one came to the house Rose. I was the last person to get in. There's nothing on the videos either."

"And they caught nothing on older surveillance? Maybe the person got in long before you did?" I questioned.

"I'll have them look through it, but it's unlikely," he replied.

"How else would you explain the cut on my body? You said it yourself. There's nothing on the floor that could've caused it," I pointed out.

"Rose, I'm tired, and you need to rest too. We'll try and figure everything out later," he said.

"Fine," I mumbled.

He was at least smart enough to know that I wouldn't be resting until I'd seen Dr Martens, so we sat in silence. I reached out to grab his hand in mine, and I could see that he appreciated it as I placed our joint hands on my belly.

Dr Martens eventually arrived and gave us the full report we needed. Apparently, what really helped the babies was my landing on my back, but he figured that they'd need to test some things out once I could stand; specifically, the strength of my back.

"I need to call Fabio and have him start the investigation ok?" Olivier told me once Dr Martens was gone.

"Ok," I whispered.

He leaned down and kissed my forehead. "I'm really glad that you guys are ok."

I pulled his head towards me before kissing him. "I love you."

"I love you too Miss Kidman, always."