“Lorna showed up a few minutes after I saw you.”
Simona sighed wearily and scrubbed a hand across her forehead. Lorna Price had been interested in Travis and upset when he chose Simona over her. “What did you tell her?”
“I didn’t tell her anything. One of the other girls asked me who you were, and she might’ve overheard me talking. I’m so, so sorry, Simona.”
“But what would she have to gain by dragging my name through the mud? Travis and I have been over for more than a year.”
“She’s still bitter and she hasn’t been getting many parts, whereas Travis’s career has taken off. I knew she blamed you, but that was a long time ago. I don’t even know who invited her. We don’t talk anymore. Not since...”
“I have to go,” Simona said softly. She didn’t give Amber a chance to reply.
“Mamamama.”
She picked up her baby and hugged her tight. “Mommy’s not going to let anyone come near you.” And she was Yasmine’s mother, the one who vowed to guard her with the ferociousness of a lioness protecting her cubs. Simona couldn’t go through that circus again, and she would do whatever it took to keep that from happening, even if it meant leaving.
Her heart squeezed. To keep her little girl safe, she would leave everything behind. And everyone.
Chapter 19
Donovan lowered his body into his chair and buried his head in his hands. Over the past week, the media frenzy besieging him and Simona had tested his control in ways he’d never imagined. He was wound so tight that the least little thing might make him snap.
Brad had finally made some headway on the several lawsuits he was filing and had demanded a retraction be printed, but he also had some disturbing news. Thanks to Amber, they found out that the person who initially provided the false information was a woman linked to Simona’s ex. Under pressure, the woman had admitted to following them and taking pictures.
The one person Donovan wanted to lay hands on, however, was Travis Jacobs. The arrogant asshole was still trying to use Simona to make himself look good in the media by adding to the lies and claiming that Simona was the type of person to use a child for blackmail. But when Donovan finished with Travis, his looks were likely to be the only thing he had left.
The only time he felt some measure of peace was when he went home. The delightful laughter and kisses that Yasmine greeted him with, and the soul-stirring lovemaking with Simona that filled his nights, gave him a sense of completion and fulfillment unlike anything he had ever felt. Donovan finally understood what Terrence had tried to explain after he married Janae and had Nadia.
But for the past two days, Simona seemed to be withdrawing, and every time he tried to talk to her, she would tell him she was fine. In his heart he knew she wasn’t, and he hoped with time she would open up to him. The constant hype in the tabloids and on the entertainment TV shows was taking a toll on her. He had done everything in his power to prove to her that he’d kept his promises. It was up to her to believe him. Only now he had to call and tell her that Travis wanted a paternity test.
Taking a deep breath, he picked up the phone. “Hey, sweetheart,” he said when Simona answered. He could hear Yasmine in the background babbling.
“Hey. Is something wrong?”
“Brad has gotten the magazine to print a retraction, and Lorna confessed to following us and taking the pictures.”
“Oh, thank goodness. Now I can finally put this mess behind me.”
“Simona, there’s something else... Travis is requesting a paternity test.”
“What? He knows this baby is not his,” she hissed.
“I know that, too. It’s clear he’s still trying to keep his fifteen minutes of fame by lying. But taking the test will put him out of our lives for good.”
“Donovan, I don’t want to subject Yasmine to this drama.”
“You won’t have to. The only information Travis will receive from the testing is that the baby is not his, nothing more. You can take Yasmine to the hospital today to get it done. I can meet you there. The sooner we get this done, the sooner we can move on.”
Silence reigned for a full minute before she finally agreed.
Later he met her at the hospital for the test, then they spent a quiet evening together. Donovan went to work the following day feeling confident that in a few short days it would all be over. He met with Terrence to discuss two concert dates in New York and New Jersey, then the two of them met with a prospective client. He took a moment to check on Simona, and she sounded better.