I pulled over to the curb across the street from the restaurant. The rage blurred my vision, and I struggled to think clearly. So many pent-up emotions ripped me apart. I’d turned into a hungry bear that couldn’t think about anything else besides killing something.
I should just leave.
But I couldn’t resist a look.
I stared at the tables outside, blanketed in the spring sunlight. There were a few other couples sitting there, but the place was mostly empty. My eyes landed on the back of her figure. Her long hair was down her back, curled the way I liked. Her jean jacket was over the back of the chair, and she wore a pink summer dress and heels.
But what struck me most was the way her dress fit her.
She was pregnant.
My entire body stiffened as I stared at her, unable to process what I was looking at. That couldn’t be her. There was no way she could be pregnant without telling me. She was so far along that it had to be mine.
She wouldn’t do that, would she?
But the better explanation was that it wasn’t her. I could only see the back of her head.
She rose to her feet and excused herself to go inside, probably to use the restroom.
That’s when I saw her face.
It was her.
And her stomach was huge. There was no doubt she had a baby growing inside her. It wasn’t just some weight she’d put on after our breakup. In the rest of her physique, she actually looked thinner. Her face was more slender, her neck more delicate.
When she walked inside, her date stared at her ass. He watched her go until she disappeared from view. Then he pulled out his phone and appeared to be flipping through his newsfeed. With dark hair and eyes, he was a good-looking guy. He had classic Italian features and a strong jaw, and he was the kind of guy that could get pussy easily.
This was worse than I thought.
Cassini returned a moment later, her hand on her stomach as she sat down.
This guy was so into her that he didn’t even care that she was pregnant.
Because she was fucking perfect.
And I threw her away.
Before I knew what I was doing, I got out of the truck and slammed the door. My eyes didn’t even scan the street before I crossed the road, unafraid of any traffic. My eyes were locked on the woman who had been mine for months. Her stomach was enormous, and that could only mean one thing.
I was the father—and she didn’t fucking tell me.
I was pissed off, hurt, and psychotic all at the same time.
All I could see was red.
This wouldn’t end well, but that didn’t stop me from storming up to their table.
Her date saw me first because he was facing me. He was smart enough to sense the danger, so he stood up and immediately went to Cassini, as if he could somehow protect her from me.
I grabbed him by the front of his shirt and shoved him back hard, making him trip on the concrete and fall backward.
Cassini jumped to her feet and grabbed the knife sitting on the table. She gripped it the right away for an attack before she looked at me. Her eyes flashed in recognition, and she slowly lowered the knife. “What are you—”
“You’re pregnant. You’re pregnant, and you didn’t fucking tell me.” Now that our eyes were locked on each other, I was even more irrational. This woman was so damn beautiful that it made me even angrier. Her body had changed so much, but knowing I did that to her made me want her more. “What the fuck, Cassini?” I could feel the vein in my forehead throb with my rage. I felt so betrayed, so idiotic. This entire time, I’d wasted time drinking my sorrows away while she grew our baby inside her. And she didn’t tell me.
“You need to calm down—”
“I will not fucking calm down.”
All the other customers on the patio abandoned their meals and scattered away. Her date finally got to his feet again.
She moved to him. “Alessandro, are you alright?”
I grabbed her by the arm and yanked her back. “You’re talking to me right now.”
She twisted out of my grasp. “And you pushed him to the ground.”
“Because he was stupid enough to rush me.”
She turned back to him. “Are you alright? I’m so sorry about that—”
“You want me to call the police?” Alessandro asked calmly. “Or maybe we should just go inside.”
“You can go inside, asshole.” I hated how calm he was, how he didn’t shit his pants like other men would. He was no match for me because he was far too lean, but he didn’t scream like a girl either. This guy had potential. It made me hate him even more.