Page 50 of Shark Bait

“The prettiest,” I say, my face burning from his public display of affection. Are we a couple now?

“I bought you a present, but I’m afraid you’ll hate it,” he says.

I turn around, throw my arms around his neck, and interlock my fingers. He’s flirting, so I’m flirting back. He is safe for me to flirt with. So very safe. He’s also handsome, and his combination of quiet, kind, and dominant is intoxicating.

I could get addicted, and as with all drugs, he’s dangerous territory. “I’ll have you know I’ve never gotten a present I hated, even when I got presents I didn’t like. Hate is a strong emotion. I don’t really…” I cock my head. “I don’t hate anyone.”

“Then I’ll be your first.”

I laugh. “Nobody aspires to be hated.”

“I aspire to be your first something.”

Oh.What’s a girl say to that?I rise on my toes, and, because he won’t bend his head and let me kiss him, my lips brush his cleft chin. The stubble prickles, and since I’m pregnant, with raging hormones I can’t control around this man, I wonder what his stubble would feel like if he were to rub it between my legs.

“You’re mine tonight,” I whisper.

“Been yours since the day we met.”

If he hadn’t been holding me by my hips, I think I might have swooned.

“Do you think we’re moving too fast?” I ask.

Shark steps back as Alessio walks up. “Excuse me, lovebirds. Troy, I need you to cut your cake before the kid drives me crazy.”

“Right away.” I rush behind the table with the picturesque marina behind me. Leo’s in front of me, holding a fork and plate, while Valerina and Alessio are on either side of me, lighting nineteen candles. My mom would’ve gotten the 1 and 9 candles like she did when Denver turned nineteen, but I must admit, this many lit candles is way prettier.

I’m thinking about the wish I want to make when they start singing a happy birthday song in both Italian and English. It’s a good thing, because I’m thinking about how I’ll word my onewish. The only wish in my mind is for my baby to be healthy. I piggyback on it and wish that I deliver him in a safe place.

Once I have my wish, I smile at Shark, who’s taking a picture, and blow out my candles with Leo’s help. They are all making my birthday as cheerful as it can be.

Children, if allowed to be children, make everything more enjoyable, and I imagine a life in which I have mine. I pat my belly just as Shark takes another picture.

I stretch out my arm and wiggle my fingers, calling Shark over. “I want a picture with you.”

He pockets his phone and hands me the knife. “Let’s cut your cake before Leo cuts both yours and his mom’s.”

“Valerina, can you take a picture of us?” I ask.

She’s wiping Leo’s fingers after he helped remove the candles. “Sure.”

Shark tucks my hair behind my ear. “I don’t take pictures, draga moja.”

I frown. “Like never?”

He shakes his head.

“Can I ask why?”

“Ask later,” Alessio interrupts and slides a little teal box toward me. “From me and Valerina.”

I gasp. “You shouldn’t have.” But it’s so nice they did! I reach for the box, and the smooth feel of the box’s material under my fingertips tells me they bought something expensive. I shake it. “What’s in it?”

“Open it and find out,” Alessio says.

Valerina bites her lip. “I really hope you like it. We scrambled as best we could given the short amount of time. But you can exchange it anytime, and the lifetime warranty is great.”

I pull the pretty black satin bow and open the box. My fingers touch my lips. Diamonds. Teardrop diamond earrings. “Are they real?” I ask, already knowing the answer.

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