If this is going to continue between us—and I definitely want it to—I have to tell him I’m pregnant. Not only that, I have to tell him that Beckett is the father.
Anything else would be insincere.
Dante glances over his shoulder and flashes a brilliant smile at me. I smile back, but in my heart, I know that my pregnancy will change everything.
Maybe that orgasm in the walk-in fridge is as good as it gets for me. Maybe I’ve been right all along, and I don’t deserve anything more romantic than that.
I shake the thought away, focusing on the tiny jolts of pleasure that still tickle my veins.
Even if the pregnancy changes what’s going on between Dante and me, I’ve still been able to experience something that I thought was completely out of reach. He’s still shown me a side of myself that I thought was long gone.
The calm, anxiety-free side. The carefree, orgasmic side. The brave side.
Maybe, now that I know I still have it in me, I’ll be able to bring myself to orgasm—even if Prince Dante doesn’t want me and my baby.
But even as the thought crosses my mind, I know that it’ll never be the same as it is with him.
13
Dante
The next week is spent organizing security and making sure all our systems are in order. Luca stays true to his word and has reporters following him everywhere. His face is on every tabloid in Farcliff.
I don’t quite succeed in being by his side. I still shy away from the cameras, but my name still shows up in a few headlines.
I hate it.
Every second of it. Every mention of my name. Every sliver of a photograph where I appear.
It makes my gut churn to see my name in big, bold letters.
It’s hard to change after so many years of living my life in complete privacy. When cameras flash in my face, I feel like I should be in a zoo. The paparazzi yell at us, asking all kinds of questions designed to get a reaction. Luca handles it with grace, and I just end up seething beside him.
I’m just not cut out for it.
I don’t know how Margot does it. How any of them do it.
But I try. I do my best to go with Luca when he’s in public, and be another set of eyes and ears as we work on drawing Beckett out of whatever hole he’s hiding in. We both know it’ll take time, and all we can do is try to taunt Beckett enough to reveal himself.
As the days pass, I can sense cracks in Luca’s facade. Lines appear near his eyes, and his shoulders stoop more than before.
He wants this all to be over. I see him with Ivy, in the evenings, snuggling on the couch. They talk about the bakery, about getting their own place, about giving back to charity.
They talk about the baby and their plans for the future.
They’re planning a life together, and I can sense that this whole Beckett threat is holding them back. So, I suck up my discomfort and I go with Luca where he needs to go. We head to bars, restaurants, cafes—anywhere public where we might be photographed.
By the end of the week, I’m exhausted.
Margot seems to pull away from me slightly, putting up walls that she’d let down when I first arrived. She has public appearances of her own, and I don’t see much of her. Every chance I get, though, I kiss her. Anytime we’re alone together, she seems to melt into my embrace and drop the walls that go up when other people are around.
Two weeks to the day after I arrive in Farcliff, a royal invitation arrives at our doorstep.
Luca waves it toward me, grinning. “Looks like our little media campaign has worked. The Farcliff royal family has caught wind of you being in Farcliff, and we’re all invited up to the castle. Me, you, Ivy, and Margot.”
I suck a breath in, nodding. “I’m assuming you want to make a big deal out of this? Cameras, reporters, paparazzi?”
Luca tilts his head from side to side. “Ivy and Margot will be there. I’d rather keep it simple.”
I try not to look as relieved as I feel. I keep my face still, but Luca still laughs.
“You can pull back from the spotlight, if you want. You’ve been doing well this week. I appreciate it. I don’t need you in the spotlight. Why don’t you run things