Prince, I get up off the lounge chair. Felicity huffs, leaning on the pool fence. When she sees the Prince, her eyes widen. She curtsies awkwardly and then turns to me. “Hunter gave an interview.”
My ribs squeeze. The Prince slides his hand over my lower back, and I lean into him for comfort.
Felicity glances at him, and then back at me. “He told the Enquirer that you’re pregnant. I’ve drafted a statement to deny it, but…” She chews her lip, glancing at my stomach.
“But you want to know if it’s true or not,” I finish for her.
Felicity nods, and the Prince freezes beside me.
“He published medical records,” Felicity says, frowning. “They could be fake, but…”
My heart sinks. I wish I could have had a few more weeks with him. Maybe even just a few more days, the way things are going. I wish I could have laid in bed beside him and felt his naked body next to mine. I would have loved to have felt him inside me just once—just to feel what it’s like to orgasm with a man like him.
But now, I’ll never know.
The news will never bring us closer together. Once he finds out I’m pregnant, he’ll never want to keep up this…whatever this is between us.
I take a deep breath, dragging my eyes up to Felicity’s. I nod.
Her face falls. “Margot…”
“Just over eighteen weeks,” I say, running my hand over my stomach.
The Prince hasn’t said a word. His hand is still on my back, but I can sense the uneasiness pulsing from him. Gathering all my courage, I force myself to look at him.
I gulp. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you.”
Tears sting my eyes.
The Prince shakes his head, sliding his hand around to hold my waist. “You were never obligated to tell me.”
Felicity clears her throat. “Is His Highness the father?” Her eyes dart from me to Dante and back to me again.
I shake my head. “No.”
“Who…?”
“It’s not important. He’s not in the picture.”
Felicity lets out a breath. “Well, this complicates things.”
I snort. “I know it does. But that’s why you get paid the big bucks, Felicity.”
“What am I going to tell your sponsors?”
“Tell them I’m going to be a mother,” I shrug.
“So…you’re keeping it?”
I stare at my publicist, letting her words sink in. Heat rises to my head and I feel like steam is blowing out of my ears. “Of course I’m keeping it, Felicity. This baby saved my life. This baby is the one good thing about my life right now.” I gulp, stealing a glance at the Prince. “Well, one of very few good things. It’s everything to me. To be honest with you, I don’t care about the sponsorships, or this house, or what you’ll say to news outlets or what you want to post to my social media. Do whatever you want. Excuse me.”
I nod to the Prince, slipping past Felicity and making my way into the house. My heart is racing and my face feels hot. I clench my fists, climbing the steps up to the second floor as blood pounds in my ears.
I can hear Ivy and Luca kissing in the living room, and it only makes me feel worse.
I’m alone.
Again.
I was a fool to think it could work out. I was an idiot to let Dante get close to me.
It’ll never work out. His murderous half-brother is the father of my child, and the minute he learns about it, he won’t want anything to do with me.
It’s not until I’m undressed and under a hot shower that I let my shoulders relax. I cradle my tiny baby bump, sending all my love and strength inward.
Then, I realize that I’m not alone. I’ll never be alone.
I have my baby.
15
Dante
I watch Margot walk away in stunned silence. Her publicist stares as well, and then turns her gaze to me.
“Did you know?”
I shake my head. “No.”
Scanning my body, I try to figure out what I’m feeling. Shocked, of course. Protective.
A little turned on?
The thought of Margot being a mother makes my heart thump. I saw the pain in her eyes when she looked at me—but also the determination.
Now, I feel like I understand the strength inside her. I understand how she can face her fears, her anxieties, and her worries. I understand how she can recover from her past and keep moving forward.
She’s a mother.
To my surprise, that fact doesn’t change my opinion of her, or how attracted I am to her. I watch Margot walk into the house as