Page 80 of Ruthless Mafia Daddy

As I start the twenty-minute walk back to the office, I keep one hand on my abdomen, lost in thoughts about my childhood.

When my mother was in this position, she had no idea that the very life she was growing would be the one to take hers.

I did that. I took her life.

What if the same thing happens to me?

The thought of leaving this child without a mother has my heart cracking open.

Who would take care of it?

Maria already took me in, and I always felt as if she resented me for it. I know my dad blamed me for the fact that mom died. It haunted him to be around me, and eventually he bailed.

I have no reason to believe that Andre wouldn’t do the same.

There is an actual life growing inside me, and yet I’ve never felt more alone.

25

ANDRE

Lila’s lying.

She’s been acting strange all morning, barely looking at me. As if my presence is causing her physical pain.

“I’m off to my dentist appointment.” She appears in the doorway to my office. “I’ll be back at two.”

I nod, watching her with narrowed eyes.

She doesn’t look me in the eye, and her body is angled away from me. It’s the exact opposite of how she’s been for the past few weeks. She’s been nothing but a tease, constantly getting me so riled up that we end up fucking on my desk, or hers, or on the floor of the breakroom like animals. We can’t get enough of each other’s bodies, but that’s been as far as it goes.

The moment we finish, I walk away, and so does she.

I don’t want to give her any inclination that I think about her beyond sex. It complicates things too much.

So, the fact that she seems almost ashamed right now has me on alert.

Is she meeting someone for lunch? Is that why she’s seeming so off?

Anger flares, and I fight the urge to demand she stay here, regardless of an appointment.

“I’ll have my phone on me if anything urgent comes up,” she adds before disappearing from sight.

I wait for Lila’s soft footsteps to disappear down the hall until I get to my feet.

I won’t accept her lying to me, even if it’s nothing important. I want to know what she gets up to at every minute of the day, so I grab my phone and keys and stalk out of the office.

By the time I’m descending the steps outside the building, she’s already crossing the street.

I keep a safe distance from her, not wanting to give myself away.

How am I meant to explain the fact that I’m following her without spooking her? She’s still under the impression that all I want from her is sex, and I intend to keep it that way.

She heads down East 73rd street. We walk for about six blocks before she turns right and stops outside an obstetricians office.

I stop dead in my tracks as I watch her walk inside.

My blood runs cold. There is no way this is what it looks like because if it is…

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