Lover (Betrothed 3)

He didn’t blink as he answered the question. “The mafia.”

“You’re being serious?” I knew he was telling the truth because I’d witnessed them in my hotel before. It gave me a sickly feeling, like my entire body was pierced by blades. My family’s legacy had been built on a bedrock of crime. I wanted to change that, but I had no idea how.

“I never joke about the mafia.”

“Why do you have to meet them in the hotel?”

“Because that’s how it’s always been.” He could read the unease in my gaze. “You have nothing to worry about.”

“I still don’t like it.”

“I’m sorry, but that’s how it is.” He headed back to the door. “I’ll pick you up at the end of the day.”

I was still at my desk when Damien walked inside. He helped himself to the chair in front of my desk. “So…is he still mad?”

Hades was in a much better mood, but I suspected that would change once Damien was mentioned. “Yes. And I don’t think it’s a good time to talk to him about it, if that’s what you’re planning on doing.”

“Why?”

“Because we finally talked about…you know. The wounds are still pretty fresh.”

Damien’s eyes turned sad. “Are you doing okay?”

I shrugged. “I guess I feel like I have no one to talk to. It’s such a terrible thing, and I don’t want to hurt the people I love. Talking about it only makes them feel worse.”

“You can always talk to me.”

My eyes narrowed slightly.

“I can’t give the best advice, but I can listen. I can hug you if that’s what you need. I can tell you everything is gonna be okay and mean it.”

Hades was right to be upset with Damien, but I felt bad for my husband’s best friend. He was like a dog that didn’t understand his misbehavior. He’d had no idea where his choices would lead, and if he had, he never would’ve gone through with them. He would give his life for mine in a heartbeat. “Thank you. But I think I’m okay.”

“Hades was really upset about the whole thing. I won’t go into the specifics.”

“I know…” When I saw the tears in his eyes, I knew the depth of his heart. “Hades should be back pretty soon, so you should get going.”

He sighed loudly. “The guy won’t even talk to me.”

“It’s gonna take some time. Let the dust settle.”

He bowed his head.

When I looked at the clock, I knew it was time to pack up. I’d opened my top drawer to put all my files away when I noticed the box of tampons sitting there. I didn’t think twice about it at first and dropped my paperwork insides.

Damien spoke again. “We’ve been friends forever. I can’t picture my life without him. I know things have been shit this last year, but before this, everything was fine. We’ve been brothers…”

“Shit.”

Damien narrowed his gaze. “What?”

My thoughts went to a different place as I tried to remember the date of my last period. The last time I needed tampons, I was sitting in this office. That meant it’d been over a month since my last period. I was late…really late. My cycle was always regular, and this had never happened before. I’d been on the shot for years, and I tried to recall my last injection. I was pretty sure I’d missed my last appointment because of all the shit that was going on.

When Damien didn’t get an answer, he spoke again, “Everything okay?”

“Yeah…no.”

“What’s wrong?”

I slammed the drawer shut and felt my heart race a million miles an hour. The truth was staring me in the face, and I wasn’t ready to accept it. Being pregnant was a joyous moment, a blessing any woman would be lucky to have. In normal circumstances, I would be happy about the addition to our family, even if it was sooner than we wanted.

But who was the father?

I wasn’t sure how far along I was, but it’d been over two months since I’d last been with Hades, and the rest of the time, I had been with Maddox. There was no way to know exactly when the medication wore off. Hades could’ve knocked me up before I was taken, or Maddox could’ve done it while I was his slave.

But God, I hoped it was the first.

Abortion never crossed my mind, because I would keep any baby I would ever have. Even if it was a one-night stand with a random guy, I could take care of a baby on my own. But that father of my child being a rapist…I wasn’t so sure about that.

And Hades wouldn’t like it either.

Just when I’d started to heal and see myself as still desirable, this happened.

This fucking freight train.

Damien continued to sit there. “Okay…you’re freaking me out.”

I’d forgotten he was there. “I just realized something…”