Total pages in book: 68
Estimated words: 64362 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 322(@200wpm)___ 257(@250wpm)___ 215(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 64362 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 322(@200wpm)___ 257(@250wpm)___ 215(@300wpm)
Rome’s arms wrapped around me, pulling me to his chest. “It’ll be okay,” he said. “I’ll get you the best OB-GYN in the southeast. We will see a specialist.”
I shook my head. That wouldn’t help. I had done that the last time. “It doesn’t matter. I tried that. I still lost it at nine weeks.”
“I swear to you that I will do everything in my power to keep that from happening this time, but if it does, that doesn’t change us. We have each other. And that is all I need. You. I just need you. You’re my home, Angel Face. You always have been.”
My sobs came harder, and I clung to his shirt as I buried my face in his chest. I knew he loved me, but he didn’t understand the longing I had to be a mom. To hold our baby in my arms. To watch it grow. Have a family.
“This time,” he said, pressing his mouth against my head, “I will be there. Right beside you. Holding you, reminding you how much I love you and just need you. I will be there.”
He said, “This time.”
I sniffled, then leaned back to look at his face.
“I know,” he whispered. “And it tears me up to think about it. I won’t ever be able to forgive myself or go back and do things differently. But I can swear to you that there will never be a day that I walk this earth that I’m not right by your side.”
“You know?” I asked, wanting clarification on what it was he knew.
He pressed a kiss to the tip of my nose. “I know about our baby,” he said softly.
“How?”
He hadn’t known then. Had he? He wouldn’t have left me alone if he had?
A fresh wave of hurt began to build.
“By accident,” he said. “When the Mafia go looking for someone, they do their research. Background checks. That I refused to look at because it was invading your privacy. Until Blaise mentioned the miscarriage around the time it would have been my baby. Not Eamon’s. So, I looked at the medical record.” He let out a heavy sigh. “I’ve never loathed myself more than at that moment.”
There was nothing in my background that I had to hide. But I appreciated his not wanting to look at it. His knowing lifting a heaviness off me. Maybe I should have told him already. Faced that demon and dealt with it head-on.
“You said I didn’t have any flaws. Now, you know my worst one.”
His brows drew together. “That isn’t a fucking flaw, Angel Face. You are flawless,” he said in a fierce tone. “And maybe it’s the way it is because fate knows I wouldn’t share you very well.”
A sad laugh passed my lips.
He smiled at me. “No more tears today. I need to see you smile. Unless you’re coming on my cock, and then you can cry out.”
I raised my eyebrows at him, feeling somewhat better. I knew it was still going to break a piece of me again, but this time, I’d have Rome’s arms to fall apart into.
He pulled the shirt I was wearing over my head and then nodded his head toward the shower. “Get in,” he said, then rid himself of his shirt as well.
We were skipping over the elephant in the room. The one where he had another woman carrying his child. He would still get to be a father. I would still have to watch her pregnancy.
“You haven’t told me if you’re having a girl or boy.” The words were so thick in my throat that it was hard to get them out. But I managed.
Rome was unzipping his jeans, and he locked his eyes on me, then stepped forward and leaned in to kiss me. A lingering touch of our lips.
“Neither,” he said as he started pushing down his jeans. “The baby isn’t mine.”
I opened my mouth and closed it. Confused and ashamed at the amount of relief that was currently flooding me.
“She blackmailed a man. If he didn’t give her a bogus paternity test, she’d expose to his wife and the church he is a deacon at that he came to the club and paid her extra for head.”
“Are you serious?”
He nodded. “Yep. Didn’t even have to see the ultrasound. Found out before, when the doctor brought her paternity results into the room. I was so fucking happy.” He paused as a pained expression touched his face. “Then I came rushing back to you, and you’d vanished.”
I watched as he stepped out of his jeans and boxers, then kicked them aside. He was completely mine. I wouldn’t have to share him.
“Let’s get that shower,” he said, turning me around to walk that way. His hand landed on my butt with a loud smack, and I jumped. “Fuck, I missed that ass.”