Ploy

Francis was befuddled by what he had just heard. His widened eyes settled on her in shocked surprise, while she equally gazed back at him.

She was what? Pregnant? For who?

An aeon of awkward silence echoed through the room as they stared at each other with a locked gaze. Francis glanced at the paper in his hand once again before he broke the ear-piercing silence with a fit of derisive laughter prompting Elle to furrow her brows.

"Why are you laughing?" She asked, confusion dancing in her eyes, but her question only made Francis laugh a little bit more, leaving her utterly perplexed.

"Why am I laughing?" He asked amid laughter while she nodded. His laughter stopped, and a quick frown framed his face as he waved the paper at her, brusquely tossing it to her face.

"This is crazy!" He hollered, pointing a finger at the paper which was floating to the ground. "You're crazy. How can you be pregnant for me?" He asked in error because he didn't know how she could miraculously get pregnant without him touching her. When did such miracles start to happen? She was delusional!

He was confident in his mind that she was mad!

Elle stared at him with eyes as wide as saucers. "But I am. I'm truly pregnant." She insisted.

"You're not, Elle!" He snapped at her, slightly jolting her. His eyes turned cold and angry as he took a step towards her, "I don't know what you're aiming for with this ploy Elleanor Steele, but you are certainly not pregnant, and even if you are, I'm not responsible." He boldly declared, making Elleanor gasp in shock.

Her lips quaked as she stared at him in disbelief. "H-how can you say that?" She asked in an accusing tone. "How can you forget?" Her voice came sounding soft and filled with incredulity.

"How could you forget making love to me and sowing your seed inside of me? How-" Her lips trembled as tears pooled in her eyes, which held an accusing and disbelieving look in them.

Francis stared at her with inscrutable eyes intently narrowed at her. What was she saying? He didn't sleep with her. What nonsense was she spewing?

He hissed as he took a step away from her, "Elle, you must be imagining things. I never touched you. You have never let-"

"But you did!" She yelled, cutting him short.

"How?! When?!" He demanded. When did he touch her? Since his return, he had been careful enough not to cross paths with her. He had always stayed by Nevaeh's side to avoid her because he had feared her ruining things between him and Nevaeh, so he had been cautious.

So when did he touch her talk more of having sex with her? This wasn't making any sense.

"Elle, you have to stop this." He told her as he turned away. His eyes desperately combed around the room for his shoes. He had to leave and get his woman. Elle was crazy, and he didn't have the time for her craziness. She and her delusional pregnancy can look for whoever impregnated her because it was certainly not him.

"But what if you are?" He heard her say from behind him. He paused his search and turned back to her.

"What if I'm what?" He inquired.

"Responsible for my pregnancy." She stated. "What if I prove to you that you are the father of the child I'm carrying? Prove that we had sex, that you made passionate love to me and left your seed inside of me." She told him. Her tone and voice were unstable yet desperate and confident. He could feel the seriousness in them.

"But we didn't!" He was sure of it.

"We did." She challenged him, causing Francis to stare at her suspiciously. Taking note of his confused state, she took advantage of it and walked closer to him. She lifted her gaze to him as she spoke, "Francis, I might be many things, but I'm not a liar. You and I know this." She paused and cautiously held his hand and placed it on her flat stomach. "This child inside of me, it's ours." She said.

Francis glanced at his hand on her stomach as he thought about the possibility of him being responsible, but there was none. He would never cheat on Nevaeh and certainly not with this woman. And he still couldn't remember doing anything with her or anyone else for that matter. His eyes darkened as he drew his hand away from her. He took two retreating steps, looking her from head to toe.

"Prove it." He stoically said, taking Elle by surprise.