Page 96 of Sinful Lies

I look at my brother. “You sure about this?”

Alexei inhales deeply, the muscle in his jaw flexing as he turns to glance at the wall of photos behind him.

“No, but we can’t run from this, Dimitri. I want to make sure we’re as prepared as we can be for when this all blows up. And itwillblow up.”

“I know.” I sigh, rubbing at my jaw.

My bother stares at me. “I expect you to keep an eye on things while I’m gone.”

“Of course. Just…be careful. These Russian guys are fucking snakes.”

Alexei’s mouth quirks up into a feral grin.

“You forget who gave them that reputation.”

23

ZARA

I’m fucking pregnant.Pregnant.

I have to keep pulling the pregnancy tests out of my purse, where I’m hiding them, to stare at the two red lines, hoping that at some point it sinks in.

But that is yet to happen.

Thankfully, Dimitri seems preoccupied with work, so he hasn’t paid too much attention to my sudden change in behavior. I’ve been an anxious wreck around him, terrified that he’s going to piece together that the nausea I’ve been feeling hasn’t been a stomach bug, but rather morning sickness.

I need to get this pregnancy confirmed by an OBGYN before I can eventhinkabout telling Dimitri.

Pregnancy tests can be wrong all the time, so it’s worth checking.

But I’ve been putting it off because I don’t want to burst the bubble that Dimitri and I have been in for the past week.

Since I’ve been sick, he’s taken so much time out of his day to take care of me, making sure I’m eating and drinkingenough and tucking me into bed every night like I’m a child.

I’ve loved every second of it, and a small part of me hopes that it will only continue when he finds out the truth.

But mostly, my mind has been spiraling in the opposite direction.

Biting the bullet, I decide to call the doctor's office on my way into work, and I manage to get an appointment for lunchtime for a blood test. In a few hours, I’ll know for certain, but until then, I need to try and get through the work day.

Stepping out of the elevator onto my office floor, I head straight for the break room to make a coffee. It seems that morning sickness likes to hit me at every hour of the day and night, so I’ve not managed much sleep over the past few days.

I run straight into Karlie who’s in the process of putting on a fresh pot.

“Hey.” She glances over her shoulder. “Have you heard the news?”

“What news?” I grab a coffee mug from the cupboard above her.

Karlie looks toward the door before leaning closer to me.

“Giovanni’s back,” Karlie whispers as she leans against the counter.

“Really?” I almost drop the coffee mug as my heart tries to climb out of my throat.

Karlie grimaces. “Yeah. He looks a little worse for wear.”

I frown.

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