The Tycoon's Unexpected Baby (The Abbot Sisters #3) - Elizabeth Lennox Page 0,47

you to go, Dimitri. And you need to divorce me.”

“Not going to happen, agape mou,” he countered, and stepped into her bathroom, disappearing for a moment. She waited, wondering what he was doing in there. She wasn’t sure what the bathroom looked like by now since she hadn’t cleaned it in a while, but it was probably a mess. Pepper couldn’t remember the last time she’d cleaned her home. Looking around, she noticed that there were piles of clothes all over the place, mounds of used clothing with sheets of designs piled on top of them. The designs all had intricate instructions and…when had she done all of this?

Oh yeah! The last forty-one hours! She kept forgetting.

Dimitri reappeared, walking purposefully towards her. He tossed his jacket over her couch and loosened his tie. “I’ll order some breakfast while you shower.” He paused and looked around, taking in the mess. “You know what? Let’s go out for breakfast and I’ll have my assistant get someone in here to clean things up.” He walked over to stand in front of her, placing a hand on her upper arms. “You haven’t been taking care of yourself, Pepper. So I’m going to.”

She pulled away, shaking her head. “I don’t need you to take care of me.”

He sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. There was an angry silence for a long moment as they glared at each other. “Maybe I need you to take care of me, Pepper.”

That was a startling announcement! “What do you mean?” she asked, her voice hoarse with worry and disuse.

He watched her for a long moment and she felt that empty place in her chest thud with…worry.

“You weren’t the only one who lost our child, Pepper. I did as well. Then I lost you. I love you. And I need you. I lost everything that day when you walked out on me.’

Oh, that was low! She bristled at his words and that hole in her chest thudded louder. “You didn’t care about our baby!”

“I cared!” he told her fiercely. “I was just as excited! Don’t you dare tell me that I didn’t care because…” he stopped, shaking his head. With a weary sigh, he pointed towards the bathroom. “Get in the bath, Pepper. I added the lavender bubbles you love.”

Pepper stared at him, in more pain that she’d thought possible. He was hurting? Somehow, that made everything so much worse! All this time, she’d been wallowing her own pity party, so painfully sad that she’d lost her little baby girl only a week after discovering her existence.

She opened her mouth to argue, but he lifted his hand, stopping her. “You’re not strong enough to handle this conversation, Pepper. Get in the bath. Relax for a while.” He looked around. “From what I can see, you’ve been pushing yourself to death and I’m not going to allow it. Not anymore.”

Pepper glared at him. But she should have known better than to challenge Dimitri. He was bigger, stronger, and meaner. So when he glared right back at her, then started purposefully towards her, Pepper jumped and almost skittered into the bathroom. “I’m going!” she snapped. “Sheesh!”

She stepped into the bathroom redolent with the lovely scent of lavender. He knew it was her favorite since she wore lavender scented lotion as well. He knew her so well, even though they’d had so little time together before…before.

For a moment, Pepper considered draining the bath and just taking a shower. It was a spiteful thought and that was the only reason she didn’t follow through. That and because the bath looked so inviting and every part of her body ached. So, instead of being a brat and ignoring the bath, she slipped off her robe and pajamas, tossing both into the laundry basket, then slipped into the warm water.

As soon as she was submerged, Pepper closed her eyes, feeling the soothing warmth and gentle smell of lavender ease the pain. It wouldn’t last, she thought as a tear slipped down her cheek. The pain would return as soon as she got out of the bath, but for this moment, she’d allow herself to be pain free. Just for a moment.

Dimitri stepped into the bathroom, worried that Pepper had done something to harm herself. He knew she was in pain. And after their conversation this morning, he finally understood that she thought that the miscarriage was her fault, that she hadn’t protected their child. But Dimitri didn’t believe that she was to blame. How could