“Oh God. This can’t be happening.”
“Have you given any thought as to what you plan to do?”she’d asked me.
“What do you mean?”
“Although teen pregnancy is common in this country, there are different options available. If you don’t want to keep the child, there’s always adoption or even abortion,”she’d told me.
I’d known in that moment that I could never erase something that was part of Cillian, nor could I ever give his child away, so it left only one option. Despite telling her that I would be keeping the child, she’d still provided me with literature on all of my options, and only for the first few weeks after my mother and twin died did I even consider anything other than my original decision. Thankfully, I’d stuck to what I’d always known, and seeing everyone so happy together made me glad I had not changed my mind.
It might’ve taken us a while to get to this place, but all would be better going forward. Cillian loved me as much as I loved him, and we both adored Ciara, who loved us in return. A smile tipped my lips as I realized we were now finally going to be the family I had spent that entire summer dreaming we would be. It hadn’t been easy, especially with so much loss, but true love did prevail in the end. At least for us, and it was all I had ever dreamed it would be.
“Mommy,”I heard, and at the way she put emphasis on my name, she had to have called me already once or twice.
“What is it, baby?” I asked Ciara as she stood in front of me.
“I sing tonight. Are you gonna watch me?” she asked.
I smiled before reaching out to adjust the long, white sleeves of her shirt before straightening the straps to her pinafore.The international school she went to required her to wear a uniform, which was something her school in Brooklyn had not. When she’d first enrolled, Ciara had been displeased that she couldn’t wear anything from the mountain of clothes that Cillian had bought her that first weekend here. It was only when she saw everyone else wearing the same attire that she finally cooperated.
I glanced at the school crest and noticed something glistening on it. After swiping my finger over it, I realized it had to have been some glaze from her donut. “So you beat your Daddy out for it after all.”
They had been pretending to fight over that particular donut earlier. “Of course, Mommy. I always win.”
I heard a growl come from the kitchen, but when I looked over at him, he was actually smiling. God, how I missed seeing that look on his face. I hadn’t seen it directed toward me since Summit Crest Preparatory days, and they were long gone now.
“I’m going to drop her off at school, then I have a few work things to do. I’ll be back so we can grab lunch together,” he said to me.
“Okay,” I said before handing Ciara her bookbag.
“Bye, Mommy,” she said, then gave me a kiss.
“Have a good day at school. I love you.”
“Love you too,” she said to me, then looked over at Cillian. “C’mon, Daddy. I don’t want to be late.”
“If we are, we’ll blame it on your mother,” he teased.
I gasped. “How is it my fault?”
His gaze darkened as he focused it on me. As he slowly appraised me, I could feel my skin heating beneath my clothing. “My shower ran long because of you.”
I closed my eyes for a nanosecond as memories of being plastered against the tile as he slammed into me came rushing back. They were so vivid, and I could feel myself blushing as Iremembered how I shamelessly begged him to fuck me harder. Thankfully, I only had one leg on the floor, so he couldn’t see the toes I had curled on the one tucked beneath me.
“You were quite dirty if I recall,” I teased back.
“I still am,” he said, then when Ciara tugged on his arm, he turned away from me. “Let’s go, princess.”
I smiled at them as they left the penthouse, then let out a sigh the moment the door closed behind them. While it immediately dawned on me that I was, in fact, still a prisoner here in this place, it didn’t bother me as much now as it had even twenty-four hours earlier. Maybe tonight, I could approach the topic with him again and convince him to agree to give me a bit more freedom.
Cillian was worried about his grandfather, and after knowing the extent of what he’d endured at the hands of the elder man, I could almost understand his fear. I was not my mother or my twin, and unlike last time, I would know to expect something so I could stay alert. My family had no idea the evil that had been about to befall them, but I did now. I also knew what Ronan Brannington was capable of. What he would learn soon is what I was capable of, and I would surprise him for sure.
Until I had the talk with Cillian, I would abide by his wishes and stay put. I couldn’t stay idle, though. Needing to share my profound happiness with someone, I went into the other room to get my cell phone so I could call Monica. The last she had heard about Cillian from me was that he was playing jail warden where Ciara and I were concerned.
“I’m not sure if you’ll be happy for my reconciliation or not, but there’s only one way to find out,” I said aloud as I grabbed my phone and quickly dialed her number.
“Ro,” she said a few seconds later once she answered.
I sighed. “Remember, it’s Reagan,” I said to her, especially as I remembered how hurt she had been to know I had used afictitious name with her. It hadn’t mattered that it was the name on my identification or not; she had felt slighted that I had never confessed the truth during the six years of friendship that we’d shared.
