“It’s going to be pretty fucking obvious when your stomach swells.” His palm glanced across my stomach, and it was like something had come over him, the look in his eyes, the way his words grated with possession.
I hated that he was right. My heart jumped into my throat. Because, oh my god. How do I take back that decision? It seemed like my only choice in the moment. I can’t believe I did that.
I’ve never hated myself more than now.
I’m choked with it.
I want him to choke too.
I swallowed, took a deep breath, and met his eyes, refusing to let him see how he affected me. I wouldn’t give him any of the power. He didn’t get to know he forced me into this.
“You’re right. It will be pretty obvious when my stomach swells. But I wonder who they’ll think the daddy is.”
Grayson pressed me deeper into the shelves, and above me the flour and sugar fell on us like snowflakes. I licked my lips, and his eyes dropped to them—
The door swung open behind him.
“Grayson.” Tansy Crowne’s voice wafted like the sweet sugar in the air. “What an interesting place to look for the restroom.”
He didn’t move off me, eyes burning.
It wasn’t until I elbowed him that he finally retreated. He took a step back, past his mother. Ran two shaky hands through his hair, eyes on me, then kept walking.
I moved to follow, but Tansy gripped my bicep. “I won’t have my son caught in the pantry with his brother-in-law’s wife. You’re not a mistress anymore.” I noticed the kitchen had cleared out. There were no souls; the flour hadn’t even been cleaned off the counters.
I took Tansy’s hand off my arm, looking her in the eyes. “I never was.”
After dinner finished, we all gathered in the foyer. West had his arm around my waist, and Grayson’s glare hadn’t left the hand.
“I guess this kinda makes Story your sister, huh, Lottie?” West said.
“Sisters?” Lottie and I screeched at the same time. We glanced at one another, horror writ across both our wide eyes.
Sisters.
I hadn’t thought about that implication when I’d dived headfirst into the shark-infested safe haven that was her brother.
“Think you’ll get along with your new bro, Story?” West asked, nodding his chin in Gray’s direction. My stomach somersaulted.
“Promise you’ll be good to your new sister, Gray?”
Grayson dragged his glare from West’s hand, to West. West grinned.
West whispered so only I could hear. “Brother fucker.”
I wormed my way out of his grip, and he laughed.
“I think we’ve all had an exciting day,” Tansy Crowne said. “Maybe we should retire.”
Lottie looked to her brother. “I guess you’re going to sleep….in the guest wing?”
“Story can stay in Gemma’s wing,” Grayson said, voice cold. “It has the most security. West, you can stay…in one of the guest wings.”
Grayson may as well have said, West, you can go fuck yourself.
“Excuse me, hi.” Gemma raised a hand like she was in school. “I’m not sharing my wing with a servant just because you fucked her a few times.”
Tansy exhaled. “Gemma…”