Page 104 of The Brutal Arrangement

When she brought back the bowl of popcorn and a bottle of flavoring spray to add to it, it was a game of Murphy’s law. What could go wrong, did.

She was clumsy and dropped the bowl instead of setting it on the coffee table. Then as we both got on our hands and knees to pick it up, laughing at her clumsiness that she swore she never had until she was pregnant, her elbow hit the flavoring and knockedthat to the couch. She panicked that it would stain, so I hurried to get paper towels to clean it, telling her that we’d take care of it.

I came back and saw her still on her hands and knees, picking up popcorn. Since she was wearing white shorts and was bent over, it was very obvious that she had dark stains on her bottom. My mind instantly went to the fear of her spotting again.

“Sloane! You’re bleeding!”

She turned, frowning. “What? No, I’m not.” Twisting suddenly seemed to pull a muscle on her side, and she winced and put her hand there, which I misinterpreted as her sensing pain in her stomach.

“Stay there. I’m calling for help!” I held my hands up, willing her to just freeze and not endanger herself or her baby any further.

“No. Lucy. Calm down. I’m fine—” Hurrying to get up, she blinked and staggered like she’d faint.

“You’re not fine!” I urged her and guided her onto the couch. “Please. Just wait while I call for help.”

“Lucy! Take a deep breath and listen to me. I’m fine!”

Her protests couldn’t fit into my mind. Panic overrode me as I called Damon, praying that he was finished with those guards. Fortunately, they were, and all three brothers rushed up here to find me soothing Sloane, who was annoyed more than in pain.

Maxim didn’t listen to a single word of protest that she was fine. Scowling and so worried that she was hurt, or that the baby wasn’t okay, he picked her up and took her straight to the hospital. Saul went with them while Damon stayed with me, trying to calm me down from the fear that something could’ve happened to her.

And in the end, nothing had.

Via a video call as they waited to be checked out, a grumpy Sloane frowned at the screen while a smiling and slightly sheepish Maxim told us it was a false alarm.

“I accidentally sat on the damn bottle of popcorn oil,” Sloane said. “When you ran to get a towel in the kitchen, I leaned back and got some on me in the worst place possible.”

I cringed. “Oh.”

“And when I turned, I pulled a muscle in my side that’s been a minor issue since before I got pregnant, from a bad fall off the pole at the club one time.”

Cue another wince from me.

I hated that I could’ve fallen so deep into hysteria and panic like that and not kept a level head. “But you almost fainted.”

“No, I didn’t.” She huffed, glaring at Maxim for a moment. “Since the last time I had a scare, the real one, the doctors warned me that I could feel lightheaded if I got up too quickly. Going from kneeling to standing like that was the exact way I could experience that harmless sensation.”

“So…” I bit the inside of my cheek. “No scare?”

She sighed, softening her expression. “Not that time.”

“I’m sorry,” I replied.

“I’m not,” Maxim said, leaning more into the screen and blocking her. “I appreciate your looking out for her.”

“Okay, I’m not fragile,” she insisted. “I’m not delicate. I’m pregnant. Like millions of other women—” She growled andshook her head. “Just you wait, Luce. Wait ’til Damon’s crazy protective of you too.”

He scowled. “Are you implying I’m notalready?”

I patted his thigh. “No, that’s not what she’s implying.” But I saw how sensitive he might be on that note after this morning. It had taken me a long time to explain to him that he didn’t slack in protecting me earlier today. Just because he wasn’t here didn’t mean that he’d abandoned me or neglected to keep me safe. Grigory’s situation was complicated, and it wouldn’t happen again. Everyone in the organization would heed Maxim’s reminder thathewas the boss right now, and Grigory’s mind wasn’t to be trusted yet, regardless of how long he’d been the boss before he was poisoned.

“I told you that I was fine,” Sloane said to me, then to Maxim again. “You seriously need to listen to me. If anything is wrong, I will tell you.”

“Sorry,” I told her again, hating that my fear for her had snowballed like that.

“I’m not mad at you, Luce.” She gave me a small smile. “It shows that you give a shit about me, you know?”

“I do,” I said, also smiling. “I really do. I’m so glad I met you and we can share these experiences together. Well, not quite like it turned out today. I’ll listen to you when you say you’re okay. I’ll trust you when you say that.”

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