After the Secret Wedding Rise of My Queen

Chapter 252 Xander Notices Isabel's Baby Bump

When Xander glanced at Isabel's stomach, Isabel immediately tensed up, thinking for a moment that he had noticed something. But who would have thought the man would suddenly blurt out such a remark? Was he trying to scare her to death?

Seriously though, wasn't that line just a little bit flirtatious?

Isabel stared at Xander's handsome face and thought to herself, It's only because you have such a good-looking face. If it were anyone else, I'd have punched him right then and there.

Time flew by, and a week passed in the blink of an eye.

Isabel stood in front of the mirror, gazing at her abdomen.

Was it just her imagination? Why did it feel like her lower belly was starting to show?

Logically, it shouldn't. It had only been a month and a half; it was way too early to be showing.

However, she was pregnant with triplets.

Isabel pulled a measuring tape out of the drawer and wrapped it around her waist.

It used to be exactly 24 inches. Now it measures 24.2 inches.

"It really has gotten just a tiny bit bigger."

Xander opened the door right as Isabel said that. His eyes immediately went to her exposed waist.

"Why didn't you knock?" Isabel asked.

"The door wasn't closed, so I just came in," Xander replied. As he spoke, his eyes remained glued to Isabel's waist.

So slender. So alluring.

"Being just a little bit thicker is better. Too skinny, and it might snap too easily."

Xander's mind drifted back to that rainy night. He remembered the ease with which he had lifted her waist-high. A disturbing thought flickered through his memory-what if he had been careless, his grip too tight, and he had hurt her? Isabel pulled her shirt down, covering her belly.

Deprived of the beautiful view, Xander frowned subconsciously.

This woman was too stingy. It was just a belly, nothing special. Plenty of people dressed like that out in public.

"The weather's great outside. I'm going to get some sun," Isabel said, stretching as she walked out. As she went downstairs, her eyes landed on the cake sitting on the table.

"Whose birthday is it?" she asked, confused.

"A friend's," Xander replied, following her down the stairs. "I'm throwing a birthday party for this friend later today, so I might come back late. Don't wait for me for dinner." Samuel entered just in time to hear Xander say that.

A bitter pang of jealousy twisted inside him. Nowadays, he thought, Xander only has eyes for Isabel. He remembered a time when Xander would have confided in him, but now... now he didn't even bother to mention him.

"Perfect timing. I need to visit a friend too-check in on Yolkie. I haven't seen him in days, and I kind of miss him," Isabel said. She had already made plans with Richard the night before to visit him today to check on his health and Yolkie. Not long after Isabel left, Xander and Samuel drove off to pick up Ivana.

Today was Richard's birthday, and Ivana was planning to surprise him with a cake.

Ding-dong! The doorbell rang.

"Coming," Richard said as he straightened his clothes and went to open the door.

When he saw the radiant, beautiful face outside, his mood lifted significantly. "You're here," he greeted her.

"Yup. I even brought some groceries. If you don't mind, I can cook for us tonight. Let's have a few drinks while we're at it," Isabel suggested, lifting the grocery bags in her hands.

In truth, Isabel's visit wasn't simply about seeing Yolkie or having nothing better to do than cook at Richard's place.

Her real goal was to get Richard drunk and extract information about the Zimmerman family from him.

Lately, her dreams had been becoming more frequent and vivid. The image of Leslie in those dreams, especially as a child, looked strikingly similar to her own childhood in her past life. Not only that, but the emotions Leslie experienced in those dreams resonated with Isabel more and more.

This suspicion in her heart was growing stronger by the day, yet she had no way to confirm it.

As it stood, Leslie's only surviving relative was Richard. Isabel had no choice but to go through him to learn more.

But she couldn't directly question him, which was why she came up with this plan.

"You can cook, huh?" Richard asked, his eyes showing a flicker of surprise as he looked at the groceries Isabel had brought.

Isabel nodded confidently. "I'm not exaggerating when I say the chefs at five-star hotels can't compare to me. What do you say? Tempted to try?"

Richard chuckled. "Well, I'd hate to trouble you."

"It's no trouble at all. Besides, you've been looking after Yolkie for me. You're the one who's had it hard. This is the least I can do," Isabel replied as she walked in.

Yolkie bounded over, tail wagging excitedly, as he ran toward Isabel.

Isabel quickly set the groceries on the coffee table and opened her arms to welcome Yolkie's enthusiastic embrace.

She had thought Yolkie would leap at her, which would be too much for her belly to handle. She was ready to dodge, but to her surprise, Yolkie stopped just in time and instead hugged her leg. Yolkie was truly something else. It probably remembered her stroking her belly and telling it that there were three little owners inside. Clearly, it had taken that to heart.

"Yolkie, you're so clever!" Isabel said, laughing as she petted the dog's head. "It's only been a few days, but you've grown so much. A few more months, and you'll be a big, proud dog." Yolkie seemed to understand her praise. His tail wagged furiously as he hopped around in delight.

Just then, the doorbell rang again.

Ding-dong-

Isabel turned her head toward the door, thinking, Could it be Xander and the others?

She shook her head. That's unlikely. Xander said he was going to a friend's birthday party. Beep-beep-beep- The sound of someone entering the password followed.

"Oh no!" Richard exclaimed under his breath. "I've only given that password to one person." "Xander's mom?!" Isabel's eyes widened as she guessed.

Richard frowned and nodded.

Hiss! Isabel sucked in a sharp breath. Seeing the door about to open, she realized there was no time to run upstairs. She quickly lifted the tablecloth and crouched down, hiding underneath. With a beep, the door unlocked and opened.

Ivana, Xander, and Samuel walked in. Ivana was holding a cake. "I rang the doorbell earlier, but no one answered. I thought you weren't home, so I just entered the password and let myself in."

Richard's gaze subtly lowered

toward the table, where the edge of

Isabel's skirt was still visible. He

reached out casually, tugging the

tablecloth a little further down, then

shifted his attention to the cake in Iyana's hands.

"What's this?" he asked.

"It's your birthday today. Did you forget?" Ivana said as she walked over and sat on the couch.

"All these years, you've probably

ret

been spending your birthdays alone, haven't you? No one to celebrate with you Ivana said with a hint of pity in her voice. Her gaze toward Richard was filled with the warmth of an elder looking at a beloved

younger relative.

After all, Richard was the godson of the Nelsons. Whether or not he was their biological child didn't matter. The Nelsons had never treated him as an outsider; they genuinely regarded him as their own.

Now that the Nelson couple had

u

f.n

passed, and Leslie was no longer alive, Richard was the only one left in the Nelson family. Ivana, whose husband had also passed away years ago, felt it was her duty to care for this younger generation.

Thump-thump! Isabel's heart raced as she tried her best to stay calm.

At that moment, a foot suddenly stretched toward her hiding spot.