“We’ve picked up something on Dean. I have to go, Princess.” He gives a lingering kiss to my forehead before disappearing out of sight.
Silence descends for a while until my phone, which I’d retrieved from Father, buzzes beside me. It’s a text from a strange number.Hope you’re fine—Enzo.I furrow my brows.
This is the first time he’s texted me. I briefly wonder if he was aware of the shenanigans Father pulled on me. I don’t reply to the text and drop my phone.
Instinctively, I bring my hands to my belly. I’d wanted to say something about it, but I have to confirm first. Plus, I wanted him to know that I’m staying because my feelings are true rather than because of the baby.
As I head into the shower for a much-needed wash, thoughts brew in my head like a storm. Do I request permission from Dominic to go to the pharmacy? No. He’d probably ask the doctor to come instead. I can’t have a lot of eyes on me when I’m just finding out my status for the first time. Ugh.
Sneaking out myself isn’t an option either. With a limited timeframe to find my bastard father, things are much tighter and tenser. Dominic would never let me out of the mansion.
Then a thought crosses my mind. Sharon.
In the next minute, I find her and give her discreet orders to get me a pregnancy test. I return to my room, and head straight for the bathroom.
The warm shower is supposed to be comforting, but I can’t do anything other than think.
I don’t even know what to hope for. Should I pray that the test comes out negative? Or should it come out positive? Dominichas just confessed his love, and I have to ruin it by shoving a pregnancy test in his face?
I stay under the shower for God knows how long when I hear a knock on the bathroom door. I open it to see Sharon. She bows slightly, handing me a paper bag.
“I told the men I went to get supplies and I bought five, just in case. I’ll be outside if you need me, ma’am,” she says with care in her voice, and I shoot her a genuine smile, taking the paper bag from her and shutting the door.
In the bathroom, I sit on the edge of the bathtub, staring at the five little sticks I just peed on. The seconds drag by unbearably as I clench my fist against the tub.
My heart pounds in my ears, blood pulsing in my veins, until I see them. Two lines.
Tears prick my eyes, and for a second, I go numb. I don’t have time to sink into my feelings when I hear Dominic calling for me.
Instantly, I shove the wrappers and boxes deep into the trash and steady my breathing with a few deep, measured breaths before slipping into my bathrobe and walking outside. I notice that Sharon is gone and it’s just us now.
“Bella,” he drawls in a smooth voice, a contrast to the jittery nerves inside of me. “It was a tangible lead. We’ll find your father, I promise, and he’ll pay for every tear he made you shed.”
I stare at him but don’t hear anything that falls from his lips. All I hear is the sound of my own heart pounding loudly in my ears. Do I even tell him now, or after all of this has died down? Maybe that’s a—
“Are you okay?” He furrows his brows at me and that’s when I realize that I’ve stopped walking to him. “You look really pale.”
He starts to close the distance between us, and I blurt out, “I’m pregnant.”
He pauses mid-step, the expression on his face something I can’t decipher, and I hate it. With each second that passes, the room grows colder, silence taking over.
“Y-you’re what?”
I don’t look him in the eye when I respond this time. “I’m pregnant, Dominic.”
He closes the distance between us and lifts me gently before placing me back on the floor. Then his hand snakes around my neck, pulling me into a breathtaking kiss.
“My God, Bella…”
When the tension in my chest eases a little, I find myself asking, “A-are you happy?” Maybe it’s the hormones, but tears prick my eyes.
“Happy?” he echoes, his lips curving into a grin as he catches a tear with his thumb. “You just gave me what I didn’t know I was allowed to want. I’m overjoyed.”
My heart leaps at the joy in his eyes as his hand falls to my stomach, spreading warmth where he touches. “I promise to be the best father to our son and the perfect husband to you,” he whispers genuinely.
As I watch love fill his eyes, I make a silent vow to myself. To be a good mother and never repeat the same mistakes my parents made.
“Son?” I cock a brow at him when I realize what he said. He presses me impossibly closer to his chest.
