Page 286 of The Bonus

“Do what?” She puts her hands on her hips, indignant.

“Lie.”

“Not planned, obviously.” Ariana smirks over at me. “It just happened.”

I feel myself melting into the boiling pot of deep, dark hell.

Gabriel’s brow furrows and he holds his hand up to stop Mark who is walking through the restaurant toward us.

“Let us pretend for a moment that I wasn’t pulling out for the last three months that we were together.”

“You were not,” she snaps.

He raises his eyebrow. “I’m not stupid, Ariana.”

Her eyes hold his.

“And if you are…” he frowns as he does the math... “ten weeks pregnant, can you explain to me why you’ve been drinking like a fish?”

Her mouth falls open.

“In fact, I believe you were at the Junction Cocktail Bar on Saturday night until two a.m., very inebriated, and left with a man who came back to your house.” He folds his napkin in front of him. “He left around eleven thirty the next morning and then returned that night.”

“You’ve had someone following me,” she gasps. “You still care.”

He lets out a slow, evil smile. “What I care about is you trying to manipulate me…and I knew you would try. I just wanted an insurance policy as proof for when the time came.”

Thank god.

He raises his hand, and Mark walks over. “I must ask you to leave,” Mark tells her as he takes her elbow in his hand.

She pulls her elbow from his grip. “Don’t touch me.”

“Get her out of here,” Gabriel snaps.

Mark escorts Ariana from the restaurant, and I swallow the lump in my throat.

My heart is pumping hard in my chest. Gabriel takes my hand in his. “Sorry, my love.” He kisses my fingertips. “I hate to say it, but I knew it was coming.”

I give him a weak smile, glad he knew it was coming, because I am totally rattled.

“What’s pulling out?” Dominic asks.

Gabriel frowns. “Out of that whole conversation, that’s what you got?”

Dominic nods. “Yes.”

I burst out laughing.

Gabriel sips his drink, unimpressed. “Something you must always do.”

I put my hands on my hip as I look around my giant-sized wardrobe filled to the brim with designer clothes, beautiful shoes and swanky handbags. Surely, something in here is date worthy… But the question is, does it fit me?

It’s Thursday, and tomorrow Gabriel is taking me on our first date, and he’s organized for Deb to come for the weekend to look after the kids.

We’re going away alone for two whole nights; I’ve never been away from the kids for two nights. I’m excited and nervous and had to wax my own bits because I didn’t have a sitter to go to the salon.

Right… I take a black dress off the hanger and hold it up, this seems okay. I hold it up over my body and look in the mirror.

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