Page 83 of Warlord’s Empire

“Enough!” she snapped at herself in the bathroom mirror. “You’re just thinking yourself in circles. Find out first, deal with the aftermath later.”

But she knew.

She lifted her shirt, revealing her slightly rounded stomach. She’d thought it was growing from all the good food she was eating. Soon it would get even rounder. She touched it gently, trying to imagine what it would feel like to grow bigger over the course of months. To feel her baby move.

She smiled. She liked the image. It made her feel soft, maternal maybe. A baby. Something created by her that belonged to her.

“Are you okay in there?” Radik demanded from the other side of the door, startling her. “Are you sick again?”

She pulled her shirt back down. “I’m fine. Just need a few minutes, okay?”

She turned the sink taps on so she couldn’t hear Radik and Dr. Smith on the other side of the door. Sitting on the toilet, she opened the box and read the instructions. Dr. Smith was right, it looked straightforward.

She did as the test instructed, then set it on the edge of the sink. She knew Radik expected her to show him right away, but she wasn’t going to. She wanted to be the first to know.

She sank to the floor and began counting in her head. While she counted, she pictured the baby. It would have light brown skin, dark hair, brown eyes, a mix of her and Radik. It would be perfect.

“Two minutes,” she breathed as she finished counting.

She snatched the test from the edge of the sink and looked at it. Relief shot through her and she had to laugh at herself for her reaction.

She pushed herself off the floor and took a deep breath, opening the door.

“Saskia.” Radik looked like he’d gone through hell while she was in the washroom. She almost felt sorry for him. She handed him the test.

He stared at it for several seconds, then passed it to Dr. Smith.

The doctor looked at Saskia closely as if measuring her reaction, then smiled. “Congratulations, Ms. Koba, you’re going to have a baby.”

Chapter Thirty-Seven

Saskia stood in the living room, peeking through the curtains, searching the street outside for Radik. The village was bustling with people. Most wandered by on foot, but there were a few bikes and a truck. None were Radik.

They needed to talk. It had been three days since he found out about her pregnancy and they still hadn’t talked. She was pretty sure he was avoiding her, but she didn’t want to believe it.

Zander was still in Marifiya, and Radik seemed to be preoccupied with entertaining the doctor. They often went to Radik’s office to smoke cigars and drink scotch. She supposed they talked about the past, but she wouldn’t know. She wasn’t invited to join them.

Saskia spent most of her time in her room, despondent over being abandoned by the man who knocked her up. Okay, he hadn’t physically abandoned her, but emotionally, for sure.

It hurt that he was choosing his friend over her at a time like this. She hadn’t done anything wrong, yet she felt guilty. Yes, she should have thought about babies, STDs, infections, all that before having unprotected sex, but she hadn’t. And neither had he.

She turned from the window and dropped into the nearest chair, pulling her legs up. Every day that passed, she felt lonelier. Nonna hovered and Nikka was a gem, bringing Saskia tempting foods and talking nonstop about her pregnancy, but it wasn’t the same. She wanted Radik, but the Radik she’d fallen on love with was gone, leaving behind a cold stranger.

“How are you doing today, Ms. Koba?” Saskia glanced up to find the doctor settling himself in one of the chairs. “You’re looking much better.”

Since discovering it was the pregnancy making her sick, Saskia had been eating bland foods, drinking ginger lemon tea in the mornings, and generally taking it easy until any nausea passed.

She tried to smile at the doctor but failed. “I’m feeling much better, thank you.”

An awkward silence fell. Saskia tried to think what her mother would say at a time like this, then almost laughed. Her mother may have been a psychotic murderer, but she was an excellent hostess… when she wasn’t trying to poison her guests.

Saskia’s private moment of grim humour helped center her. “How are you enjoying your time in Marifiya?” she asked politely.

“I’m enjoying Marifiya very much,” he replied, his tone pleasant. “For a paramilitary compound, it seems to have all the comforts of an idyllic village. I particularly enjoyed my lunch at the outdoor cafe yesterday.”

A shaft of hurt shot through Saskia at not being invited. She forced a smile. “The people here are very kind and accommodating. I enjoy spending time with them.” Her smile disappeared. “The people who enjoy spending time with me, anyway.”

Zander seemed to catch her meaning and his face grew serious. “I’m sorry not everything is what you had hoped for.”