Total pages in book: 63
Estimated words: 57341 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 287(@200wpm)___ 229(@250wpm)___ 191(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 57341 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 287(@200wpm)___ 229(@250wpm)___ 191(@300wpm)
But if I did anything, I loved playing with danger.
“Was anyone talking to you?” I snarled at him.
“Leave her be, Sam,” River commanded before Sam could open his mouth to retort something that’d no doubt piss me off. His VP swung his angry eyes to his president. “Adelaide is an old… friend of mine.” I snorted, making River grin at me.
Friend, my ass. You went balls deep in my pussy over and over and cuddled with me afterward on the garage floor.
River ran his eyes over me for a moment, like he was trying to commit the new me to memory. Reaching forward, he began to play with a lock of my brown hair. My pulse jumped. “You gained some weight, darlin’,” he noted. He let those mesmerizing, blue eyes lock on mine, sucking me into their beautiful depths. “Looks good on you.”
You don’t want to know why, I admitted silently.
Fucking hell, how was I supposed to tell him that he was going to be a fucking dad? And I knew it was his. I had called Tristan when I’d found out, and we’d had a DNA test done. It wasn’t Tristan’s, though he offered to support me and the baby anyway. Needless to say, I turned him down flat and sent him back on his way to the Sons of Death.
“You couldn’t find a better job than serving drunk, sleazy assholes?” River asked me as Natalia began cleaning up my mess on the floor.
I shrugged at him, my nerves feeling frayed as he continued to play with my hair. “It pays well, and I’m good at making drinks,” I reminded him as Amber came over with our drinks.
Amber set my drink in front of me, and I swallowed thickly, knowing I couldn’t have alcohol anymore. Not for another six months, at least. Longer if I decided to breastfeed. Hadn’t thought that far into the future yet.
“Not going to drink your drink, darlin’?” River asked me, his blue eyes intent on the side of my face as I stared at the vodka in front of me.
I couldn’t look at him. He would see right through me. I shook my head at him, still staring at that fucking drink. “Not much of a drinker anymore,” I lied, pushing the glass away from me.
He gripped my chin and turned my head to face him. My bottom lip trembled under his scrutinizing gaze. “You’re nervous,” he murmured, running his rough thumb over my cheek, soothing me whether he realized it or not. “Why?”
Panic clawed at my throat. “I—I need to get back to work,” I stammered. I jumped up from the seat, needing away from him before he uncovered my secret. I wasn’t ready to tell him.
I wasn’t ready to tell River that he was going to be a father.
I felt his eyes on me as I rushed back behind the bar, but I did my damnest to avoid his table for the rest of the night.
I released a sigh full of exhaustion as I pushed my key into the lock on my apartment door, letting myself in. I dropped my keys on the kitchen counter and toed off my shoes before I strode into my living room, jumping in fright when I saw River sitting on my plain, brown, leather couch, the lamp on beside it, casting his rugged features in an eerie shadow. My hand slammed over my heart, which was beating so hard, I feared it was trying to climb up my fucking throat.
“You nearly gave me a heart attack,” I snapped at him, swallowing nausea. “What are you doing here?” Anger. I needed to be angry. “Wait, on second thought, how did you know where I live and how the fuck did you get in my apartment?” I heatedly asked.
River shrugged and stood up from my couch. “I have access to all of my employee records.” I swallowed nervously. This man was always one step ahead. “And since you were avoiding me all night, I decided this would be the best way to talk to you. You’ve never done well with the element of surprise, darlin’.” Damn him for knowing me so well. “And your lock is extremely easy to pick, which needs to be changed.” I frowned at him. I never had to worry about someone breaking in until he did. “As for why I’m here… well darlin’, I wasn’t finished talking to you.” He pulled my ultrasound pictures out of his pocket and tossed them onto the coffee table. I pressed my hand to my belly, tears burning at the backs of my eyes, a lump building in my throat. “Especially not now. We need to talk about this.”
“River…” I started, my voice trembling as tears welled in my eyes and spilled over onto my cheeks. I stared up at the man in front of me, terrified of his reaction. I hadn’t wanted him to find out this way.