"No," she whispered, her voice cracking as she rested her cheek against the solid, unwavering heat of his chest. "But I will be. Because I have you.”
Chapter Seventeen
Emily
Emily woke up with a pounding headache, the unfamiliar hotel ceiling swimming into focus. She turned her head, her gaze landing on the bare back of the man sleeping beside her. He was a familiar distraction, a desperate attempt to feel something other than the crushing humiliation of her sister's party. She traced the edge of the sheets, thinking about how she always made the exact same mistakes, spiraling into the very behavior she despised.
Pushing the covers aside, she got out of bed without rushing. A brief shower washed away the scent of sex, and she slipped right back into the daring red dress she had worn the night before. She left the room without a backward glance.
***
Arriving at the hospital parking garage, Emily pulled down the sun visor and meticulously touched up her lipstick. She could have stopped by a boutique first. She could have bought a modest linen suit to dress the part of the respectable Sinclair matriarch. But if she was going to face this particular humiliation today, she was going to do it in style.
She got the room number from the front desk. Her heels clicked sharply against the polished linoleum as she walked down the sterile, brightly lit corridor, ignoring the lingering stares of the nursing staff before pushing the door open.
Sloane was propped up against the hospital pillows, a tiny bundle pressed to her chest as she breastfed. Ryan sat on the bed beside her, his arm wrapped protectively around Sloane's shoulders. He was leaning forward, looking at the two of them with pure, unvarnished adoration—the exact same look he had given Emily when she first nursed their boys.
"I hope I'm not interrupting a beautiful family moment," Emily said, her voice dripping with artificial sweetness.
Ryan stood up right away, his protective instincts flaring. He stepped between Emily and the bed. "I hope you aren't here to cause trouble, Emily. Sloane had a very difficult delivery."
A sharp pang twisted in Emily's chest at the way he guarded the other woman. She forced a bright, brittle smile. "Don't worry about me, darling. I'm just visiting. Now, be a good husband and go get some coffee for your wife. I had a grueling night and need caffeine."
Ryan frowned, his eyes scanning her attire as if just registering the vibrant red silk. "Where are you coming from dressed like that?"
"I was celebrating my sister's upcoming wedding," Emily lied effortlessly.
Before he could question her further, she pointed toward the door. "The coffee, Ryan."
Ryan closed the distance between them. He cupped her face in his hands, his expression hardening into pure, unyielding possessiveness. "Be careful, Em," he murmured, his thumb brushing her cheekbone. "You are mine, and nothing will ever change that. I love you."
He leaned down and kissed her mouth firmly, marking his territory, before turning and leaving the room.
When Emily turned back toward the bed, she saw the profound sadness etched into Sloane's tired features. The younger woman had watched the entire display.
Emily walked closer, looking down at the infant. The little girl had a tuft of dark hair but undeniably shared her mother's delicate features. A hollow ache bloomed in Emily's chest.
"Did you come to try and get rid of us?" Sloane asked, her voice trembling. "To make me give up? Because even knowing how wrong this is... I can't leave him, Emily."
"Do you really love him?" Emily asked, her tone conversational but sharp. "Even though he keeps you as a dirty secret? You live in the back of my house as a favor, Sloane. Meanwhile, I am his wife. I am the woman who carries his name."
Emily lifted her left hand, letting the enormous diamond ring catch the hospital lights.
The expression of pure agony on Sloane's face was almost pitiful. Tears spilled over her eyelashes. She wiped them away with her free hand, holding her daughter closer. "I love him," she wept. "I love him enough to be happy with whatever scraps of his time and affection he is willing to give me."
Emily stared at her. "So be it."
She stepped closer to the bed, her shadow falling over the younger woman. "If you want to occupy the backup space in my husband's life, you will do exactly as I say. That child you are holding will be the last child you ever have."
Sloane gasped, shrinking back against the pillows.
"You are already in the hospital," Emily continued, her voice devoid of mercy. "Talk to your doctor today. Have your tubes tied, get an implant, I don't care what procedure you choose. But you will ensure that you never get pregnant byRyan again. From now on, I am the only woman who bears his children."
"You can't force me to do that," Sloane whispered.
"If you ever get pregnant again," Emily promised, leaning down so they were eye to eye, "I will cause a scandal that will be talked about for months across the globe. I will drag Ryan's reputation and yours through the tabloids, and I will play the perfect, devastated victim. He will lose everything. And at the end of the day, he will hate you, because you will be the one causing him to lose it all."
"You wouldn't be capable of doing that to him," Sloane challenged weakly.
