Page 144 of The Devil's Fire

Althaia went to sleep after I made sure she ate something, and I made sure she ate enough. Another thing I noticed was her decreased appetite. She could barely finish her plate.

One of the things I adored about her was her love of food. Her eyes would dance with excitement every time she was about to savor something she loved. The way she would close her eyes and wear an expression of sheer joy when it exceeded her expectations.

It never failed to bring a smile to my face. And, fuck, it frustrated me endlessly that she hadn’t been looking after herself, whether she knew about the pregnancy or not. But I was here to take care of her now and make sure she was safe and happy. Not like how I found her.

I had to take a deep breath to calm down as I remembered that phone call.

“Luca.” I said, accepting his call while en route to my next meeting. “Update me.”

“Boss, I think you better get your ass down here.”

My blood went cold.

“Where is she? Is she safe?” I asked in a sneer, my knuckles turning white on the steering wheel.

“She’s with us and safe.” Luca’s words had me slightly relax. “But we had to call the paramedics.”

I slammed my fist against the steering wheel.

“You were supposed to fucking watch over her!”

“We understand, but it was unavoidable. She had a panic attack.” He sighed.

“Let me talk to her.” I said as I made a sharp U-turn, speeding up to get back to the manor as fast as possible.

“She’s asleep right now.”

“Fine. Don’t let her out of your sight. I’m coming.” I ended the call and made another. “Antonio, I want wheels up in thirty minutes and cancel everything I have. I’m going to Florida.”

“Noted.”

Parking haphazardly in front of Althaia’s house, I rushed inside, and my eyes landed on her body curled up on the couch.

I crouched down, softly caressing her cheek when she let out a small whimper, her lashes wet with tears. Fuck. I had already planned to come and see her, but I should have come the second I heard her tear-stained voice last night.

I went to Luca and Giovanni.

“Why the fuck is she crying?” I hissed low to not wake her up.

“I think it’s best if you talk to her about it.” Giovanni said, and I stepped up in his face.

“Are you refusing to answer me?” My voice went cold as I wrapped my fingers around the gun tucked behind my back.

Giovanni watched the gun in my hand, then shifted his gaze to Althaia before letting out a small sigh.

“It’s not my place to say.” He kept his eyes down, accepting his fate without resistance. My eyes narrowed on him before shifting to Luca, who also kept his gaze lowered.

I raised a brow and turned to Althaia, a thoughtful expression on my face.

Interesting. They have silently pledged their loyalty to her.

“Stay here.” I told them and tucked away my gun. I went upstairs to find her room to pack a bag. I already knew she had a fight with her mother, and I wasn’t going to let her stay here.

I found a bag in her closet and filled it up with clothes and what I thought she would need. I took her purse, to make sure everything was in there before I left. That was when my eyes landed on the pregnancy tests.

I held all three of them in my hands and took a seat on her bed as I read the bold letters.

Pregnant