Like the weight of two empires has finally lifted off my shoulders.
We drive for hours—first in one car, then another, switching vehicles in a remote parking garage where no one can track us.
At some point, I drift off, exhaustion catching up to me.
But when I wake, we’re pulling into a small coastal motel, the sun just starting to peek over the horizon.
Leo gently helps me out of the car, his hands careful as they wrap around me. “You’re sure you don’t want to go to a hospital?”
“I’m okay,” I say. “Promise. We’ll go to the doctor as soon as I’ve had a chance to shower and rest.” Mostly, I just want to know that the baby is alright, but no doctor is going to be open at this hour, and I feel fine aside from the throb of my bruised cheek and split lip. I don’t need a hospital.
Leo doesn’t argue, but I see the tension in his jaw. The guilt. The fear. He still blames himself for not getting to me sooner.
We settle into the motel room, and I peel out of my ruined dress to step into the shower, letting the hot water wash away the blood and fear.
When I come out again, wrapped in a terry cloth robe that’s threadbare compared to the plush one from his yacht, Leo’s waiting.
He sits on the edge of the bed with his head in his hands, and my heart twinges to see the strain of his emotion along the tense curve of his back.
He looks up the moment he hears me, his eyes full of something I can’t quite name as he straightens.
“Come here,” he murmurs, reaching for me.
I go to him, sinking into his arms and curling against his chest as his hand settles instinctively on my belly.
He’s quiet for a long time before he speaks.
“How long have you known?”
“That I was pregnant?” I whisper. “A little over a week.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?” The hurt is plain in his tone, and guilt makes my stomach clench.
I should have told him from the beginning.
So many things could have turned out differently if I had. But I was too uncertain about us to take the chance.
“I still wasn’t sure what we had was real. Not until the yacht… And then I wanted to make sure the baby was alright before I said anything to you.” I close my eyes, burying my face in his shoulder. “I was going to tell you last night. Then I heard you and your father talking, and I was so heartbroken, I just… I needed some space to think. But when I got to my parents’ house, well, you know the rest of the story.”
He holds me tighter, his arms strong and comforting, the sound of his heart sweet music to my ears. “I’m sorry. For everything.”
“I am too.”
A sad smile graces his beautiful face as he leans back and cups my uninjured cheek so tenderly, it tugs at my heartstrings. “You have nothing to be sorry for,” he assures me.
And fresh tears sting my eyes. I nod, my heart swelling with relief and an overwhelming love.
Leo leans in to kiss me, slow and deep, like we have all the time in the world.
And maybe we do.
Maybe this is the start of something new—something precious and exciting.
I don’t know what the future holds. But I know I’m not afraid of it anymore. Not with Leo by my side.
And as I melt in his arms, I realize something with absolute clarity. We survived.
And now?We get to live the life we want—together, just me, Leo, and our baby.
