Pretend I'm Yours (Pretend 1)

“You gave me another chance and look how that turned out,” he says, wiggling his eyebrows to try to make me laugh. It’s not going to work.

I sip my tea. “No.”

Sebastian sighs. “You have to talk to him at some point. He is your baby’s father.”

“That’s what I have lawyers for.” I tuck my feet underneath me

as I rest my teacup on my leg.

Sebastian reaches out and touches my leg lovingly. “I’m meeting with a few people this morning to work on the building construction. I can cancel if you want me to stay here.”

“No, I’m fine. Besides, I have my trusty guard outside.”

Sebastian gives me a weak smile. “You two had better have talked to each other and made up by the time I return.”

“Don’t count on it,” I say, returning to my tea.

Sebastian gets up and walks out my front door. I peak around to see if Kade will try to sneak in before Sebastian has a chance to lock it, but I see no signs of Kade. Maybe he went home?

I finish my tea, and it’s mid-morning, but I’m already exhausted. I don’t have any meetings today, but I do have a lot of emails to go through. First, I need a nap; then I’ll get to the emails.

I grab the grey throw draped over the back of the couch and pull it over me, curling up on the couch. I should be thinking about how I’m going to get the courage to talk to Kade, but all I can focus on right now is sleep.

I feel his hot breath on my neck.

I smile.

Kade.

I don’t care that he snuck into my house. Or that he’s breathing over me. Or that he woke me up from a much-needed nap. I’m just happy he’s fighting to be in my life.

I open my eyes. And jump to my feet when I see the eyes staring back at me. They don’t belong to Kade. These eyes are far too evil.

“Nathan,” I say, stepping backward trying to reach for my phone on the coffee table behind me. But when I reach the coffee table, I feel nothing.

Nathan smirks. “Looking for this?” he asks, holding the phone up.

I take a deep breath and stare at the door behind me. Kade will hear. I need to talk loudly, and he’ll call the police. But when I glance out the window and see it’s dark outside, my confidence fades. How did I sleep the entire day away? Where is Sebastian? And did Kade manage to sleep on my front porch for another night?

“What do you want, Nathan?” I ask, trying to think of what to do next to keep Nathan occupied.

“I’m here for you, of course.”

I nod. Trying to stay calm as I grasp my belly. I won’t let him hurt you, I think.

“You don’t want to do this, Nathan. You are free. You should go live your life.”

He glares at me. “I’m out on bail. I’ll be going back as soon as you testify against me. You’re nothing but a fucking liar.”

I swallow. “I won’t testify to anything. I can’t. What happened between us was a long time ago.”

Nathan steps closer to me, and I freeze, just like before. I can’t save myself. I’m not strong enough.

He reaches out to grab my arm, and finally, I snap awake.

“No,” I cry loudly, not this time. I swat his hand away and run toward the front door.

I grab the doorknob and pull, but the door is locked with three different locks. Why didn’t I think about how to make a quick escape?