Page 81 of Pregnant By A Rich Demon 3

“That’s not an answer.” My voice was shaking now, anger and fear mixing in a way that made my chest tight. “Why do you have them locked up like that? Why are you watching them like—like they’re prisoners?”

Amai sat down beside me, close enough that our knees touched, and reached for the phone.

I pulled it back.

“No. You’re going to explain this to me. Right now.”

He exhaled slowly, his jaw tightening, and then he leaned back against the couch.

“Yaya made my life a living hell,” he said, his voice flat. “She tried to do the same thing to you at that clinic. You saw it yourself.”

“I know that⁠—”

“But that’s not why she’s there.” His eyes locked on mine, dark and intense. “She has information about where her father, Victor, is keeping my money. Money he stole from my family. Money we need to survive this war.”

I stared at him, trying to process what he was saying.

“So, you locked her up?”

“Yes.”

“And you’re just—what? Torturing her until she talks?”

“If that’s what it takes.” His voice was cold. Matter-of-fact. Like he was discussing the weather. “What Yaya knows places you and the babies in danger, Truth. Victor is coming for me, and if he thinks he can use you to get to me, he will. I’m not letting that happen.”

My throat felt tight.

He leaned forward, his face inches from mine.

“I refuse to apologize for protecting you. I refuse to apologize for doing what needs to be done to keep you and our children safe. That’s who I am, bae. That’s what I do.”

I swallowed hard.

“I’m not asking you to apologize,” I said quietly. “But I need you to hear me when I say this.”

I held his gaze, refusing to look away.

“I will not raise my children in a home where people disappear whenever you get angry. I won’t do it, Amai. I can’t.”

His jaw tightened, but he didn’t interrupt.

“If you want me—if you want us—you need to understand that I’m not going to be okay with you hiding bodies in the backyard every time someone pisses you off. That’s not the life I want for my kids.”

Amai was silent for a long moment.

Then he spoke, his voice low and steady.

“I’m not capable of being harmless, Truth. That’s not who I am. I’ve done things—terrible things—and I’ll do them again if it means keeping you safe. I need you to accept that. I need you to accept all sides of me. Even the dark parts.”

Tears burned behind my eyes, but I didn’t let them fall.

“If you never hide anything from me,” I said slowly, “I can do that.”

His eyes searched mine.

“I saw the darkness in you the day we met,” I continued. “I saw it, and I didn’t run. Because I also saw something else. I saw your yearning for love. For connection. For something real.”

Amai’s hand moved to cup my face, his thumb brushing against my cheek.