My eyes drop to her stomach again. It’s impossible to say how far along she is. I honestly can’t decide what’s worse—if it’s mine, or if it’s not mine.
Neither option is ideal. I lick my lips, my mouth suddenly drier than the Sahara. I need a drink. And not water. A thousand different emotions battle for dominance in my body.
Our eyes meet again, and she stands silently, giving me a minute to process. I scrub a hand over my jawline. Finally, Ifind my tongue. ‘Is it mine?’ My voice is low and demanding.
I watch her throat bob as she swallows.
Her chin juts out defiantly. ‘No.’
Something sharp and painful stabs my sternum—it takes me a long beat to process the sensation—disappointment. Before I can utter another word, she announces defiantly, ‘It’smine.’
Our eyes remain locked as we drink each other in. ‘Let me rephrase the question.’ I pace the thick plush carpet. ‘Am I the father of the baby growing in your stomach?’
Silence sprawls between us.
The air is thick with tension. Both the sexual kind—and the other kind. Pregnancy suits Irish. She’s utterly fucking stunning. But I can’t think about that right now. I need answers.
‘That’s irrelevant,’ she says finally, blowing out a breath. ‘I’m doing this myself.’ Her teeth clack together. Those deep dark eyes glint with steely determination.
I don’t know if I want to kiss her or kill her for putting us in this predicament. Although admittedly it was my idea to go bareback. But she was supposed to be on the pill. I saw the goddamn things in her suite.
For fuck’s sake.
I drag my fingers through my hair.
‘Answer the fucking question,Zara.’ It’s the first time I’ve used her name, her real name, and it feels oddly intimate as it rolls from my tongue.
‘Yes,Cole,’ she says finally, staring at me unwaveringly. ‘Youarethe father, but like I said, I’m doing this alone.’
The sweet relief that floods my blood is both shocking and oddly… empowering.
It’smine.
No one else’s.
Mine.
And so is she.
Whether she knows it yet or not.
Because there’s no way she’s doing this alone.
No way in hell.
I take care of what is mine.
I’ve spent the last few weeks scouring the entire city for her. I was hours away from hiring the best goddamn private investigator in the country.
I wanted her before I knew she was carrying my child.
Now, it’s not even a want; it’s a deep, primal need overtaking all rationale.
Her focus falls to my mouth. She wets her lips. ‘Look, this is a shock for both of us. Let’s take a few days to process, and maybe we could meet again next week.’ She glances at the door.
There is no way I’m letting her walk out of it.
Not now that I’ve finally found her.
