Page 25 of Bullied Pregnant Mate

I took a deep breath, got out of the car, and headed up to the front. I didn't bother knocking and opened the door.

I took the space in, not having had the chance last time. It was a large open space with a tall ceiling, hardwood floors, and white walls. There was a lot of sunlight, and I looked from the living room into the dining room, finding it quiet.

"So, how much do you think this will cost?" Gina's voice broke the silence, and I turned towards the dining room.

Walking into the dining room, I continued down and then turned towards the kitchen. The door was open, and Gina stood in the doorway, leaning against the wall. She was talking to someone standing in the kitchen.

"Right now, it's hard to estimate. There is a lot of wiring that needs to be done."

Gina clicked her tongue and turned, her eyes dropping to me. "Lucas.." She pushed off the door frame, and the door to the kitchen shut off as she did. "What are you doing here?"

"I brought you lunch," I said, pulling the bag up.

She smiled, and then her eyes went down to her watch. "Jesus, it is that time, isn't it? God, the day got away from me."

I looked towards the kitchen. "Who's in the kitchen?"

"An electrician," she said, opening the bag. "I have a plumber coming as well to get an estimation. I want to get as many things done as possible while not living here."

I knew that was going to cost a pretty penny, and suddenly, I wondered what she did for a living. She'd said before that she made good money, but I had no idea what she did for a job.

"Are you sure you want to spend a bunch of money right away?" I asked her.

She froze, and her eyes snapped up to me. She frowned. "What do you mean?" her words came out clipped, and I knew to choose my words carefully.

"I mean, is this really what you want?" I waved at the house. "This is going to cost a lot….and I mean…like a lot of money. You're completely remodeling, including wiring, plumbing, and whatever else this place is going to need."

"Are you saying I can't?" she asked, her voice shifting into anger.

"No," I said. "I'm just worried you don't know how much work this will take and how much money. I'm just making sure you know what you're getting into."

She shook her head and sighed. "Money isn't an issue."

I frowned, still on the fence. It wasn't that she couldn't do this because she could, but it would cost her. And she was just a single person.

After a moment of silence, she sighed. "Lucas, money isn't an issue. If I didn't have any, would I have asked you to sign a prenuptial agreement?"

"I figured you had important valuables."

She snorted, taking a seat in a chair and taking a bite of the sandwich. "No, I mean…I do, but that wasn't why. I make good money. I'm a freelancing IT specialist. I'm a hot commodity and make substantial money, so it won't be an issue."

I was a little surprised. I knew so little about Gina, and I had no idea she'd done so well for herself.

I leaned back on my heels, resting my hands on the back of a chair. "IT? I never knew that."

"Why would you?" she said, the same words she'd used before.

It twisted me up because she was right. I wouldn't have a reason to know—I never had a reason to know until now—and now I wanted to know everything I could.

I tightened my grip on the chair. "If you have money, why didn't you leave the pack?" I figured maybe she stuck around for the money, but that didn't seem to be the case. It sounded like she had everything she needed to leave.

She fell quiet for a second before she shrugged. "And go where? As you all have told me my entire life, I'm just a weak wolf that will cross the wrong wolf and end up dead."

I frowned, hating that I'd said words like those to her. I hated a lot of the things I had done before.

"It was better to live around people that pitied me rather than people that could actually kill me." She took another bite. "Though it isn't like the pack didn't try."

I had always wondered how she lasted. And as I stared at her, I realized that Gina was so much more than a small wolf. She was smart and calculated. But I could also see Gina had clearly suffered.

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