I lost my Isabella two years ago. A car accident. She was eight weeks pregnant…
Fate was merciless—it took away my wife and child. But now, it has brought me… another pregnant woman.
A Rainy Evening and a Fateful Encounter
The wind howled through the narrow streets of Edinburgh, carrying cold raindrops that splattered against the cobblestones. Night had settled over the city, wrapping it in a misty embrace. In a small, dimly lit café, filled with the scent of freshly brewed coffee and soft, melancholic music, a woman sat alone by the window, motionless as if frozen in time.
Emma’s fingers lightly traced the rim of her tea cup, but she made no move to drink. Her gaze was distant, lost in the shimmering reflections of streetlights on the wet pavement. Her thoughts wandered somewhere far beyond this rainy night.
“Is this seat taken? May I join you?”
The deep voice startled her.
She looked up and saw a tall man in his early thirties, holding a cup of steaming coffee.
“Go ahead,” she replied automatically, her voice quiet, detached.
The man sat down, studying her with a strange intensity before offering a small smile.
“I’m James. And you?”
“Emma,” she answered, her gaze drifting back to the window.
James took a sip of his coffee, hesitated for a moment, then asked,
“Do you have a husband?”
Emma stiffened slightly, gripping her cup a little tighter. She let out a slow breath before answering,
“No. We divorced a week ago. He has someone else. And I…” she faltered, hesitating before continuing, “I’m pregnant. And I don’t know what to do. I might have to terminate the pregnancy.”
She finally turned to face him, her expression unreadable.
“Is there anything else you’d like to know, James?” she asked, her voice laced with quiet defiance.
He didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he studied her face, his gaze steady but thoughtful.
“Do you have a job?”
She let out a small, humorless laugh.
“I work at his company. But I doubt I’ll be there much longer.”
“Come work for me,” James said, sliding a business card across the table. “I run a travel agency. You’d be perfect as a consultant—helping clients plan their trips. It’s an easy job, and the pay is good.”
Emma frowned, suspicion creeping into her tired eyes.
“Why?”
“Why what?” James asked, confused.
“Why are you offering me a job? Why are you helping me?”
James exhaled slowly, rubbing the back of his neck as if weighing his next words.
“You want the truth?” he asked.
She nodded.
“I saw you in the reflection of a store window earlier today,” he admitted. “For a split second, I thought… I saw Isabella.”
Emma remained silent, but her fingers curled around her cup.
“My wife died two years ago,” James continued, his voice quieter now. “A car crash. She was eight weeks pregnant.”
The café seemed to shrink around them, the world outside fading into a blur of rain and city lights.
“I know you’re not her,” he said after a moment. “But maybe… maybe this is fate. It took my wife and child from me, and now, somehow, it has led me to you. And you’re carrying a child, too.”
Emma swallowed hard, her throat tight.
“You don’t even know me,” she whispered.
“No,” James admitted. “But I do know this—you need support. And I can offer it. My apartment is big—four bedrooms, and I live alone. There’s plenty of space. I’m not asking for anything in return. I just don’t want you to feel like you have no options.”
He hesitated, then added,
“I’m not trying to make any decisions for you. I’m just offering you a choice.”
Emma searched his face, looking for any sign of deception, but there was none. Only sincerity.
For the first time in a long while, she felt… safe.
Her lips parted slightly, her voice barely above a whisper.
“Alright,” she said.
And just like that, their fates became intertwined.
