"You had a subdural hematoma. Bleeding between your brain and skull from hitting the pavement. They had to monitor you closely to make sure it didn't get worse."
"And did it?"
"No. You're healing. The doctors say you'll make a full recovery." His voice cracked slightly on those last words.
I really looked at him then. At the fear still lingering in his gray eyes. At the tension in his shoulders. At the way he was touching me like he needed to confirm I was real.
"What else happened?" I asked quietly. "There's something you're not telling me."
He was quiet for a long moment. "You were kidnapped. From this hospital. Vincent hired people to take you."
My blood went cold. "What?"
"They posed as doctors. Took you by helicopter." His jaw clenched. "I couldn't stop them. I tried, but?—"
"Dez. Breathe." I squeezed his hand. "I'm here. I'm safe. Just tell me what happened."
So he did.
He told me about the eighteen hours I was missing. About the ransom demand. About the deal he'd made with the kidnappers. About systematically destroying every resource Vincent had until my uncle was desperate and alone.
"The kidnappers brought you back here," he said. "Set you up with proper medical care as part of the deal. Then they told me where Vincent would be."
"And you killed him."
It wasn't a question.
"Yes." His eyes met mine, unflinching. "I made him suffer first. For what he did to you. For what he tried to do to—" He stopped.
"To what?"
His hand moved to rest gently on my stomach. "To our baby."
The world tilted.
"What?"
"You're pregnant, Angelina. Six weeks along. They found out when they did your bloodwork after the shooting." His voice was soft, reverent. "The baby's fine. Strong heartbeat. Completely healthy despite everything."
I stared at him, trying to process.
Pregnant… We were having a baby.
"I'm—we're—" I couldn't finish the sentence.
"We're having a baby," Dez confirmed, his hand still resting on my stomach.
Tears started streaming down my cheeks before I could stop them.
"Hey, hey," Dez murmured, wiping them away. "It's okay. Everything's okay now."
"I'm happy," I sobbed. "I'm just… God, Dez, we're having a baby."
"We are." He pressed his forehead to mine carefully, mindful of my injury. "You're going to be an amazing mother."
"And you're going to be an amazing father." I pulled back to look at him. "A scary, overprotective, probably-going-to-install-cameras-in-every-room father, but amazing."
He laughed. "Damn right I am. After this? Our kid is never leaving the house without a full security detail."
