Page 13 of Saint Of Envy
After she leaves, I head straight for the bathroom to take the pregnancy test before Luc returns. I want a concrete answer to ease my racing thoughts.
I take the test, set a timer, and leave it in the bathroom so that I’m not tempted to peek at it until it’s ready for an accurate result. There are two tests in the box, so I used them both. Whatever result they show, if it’s the same, that will mean it’s my answer.
But just as the timer goes off, the door opens and Luc steps inside. He looks at me curiously for a second as I hold the timer in my hand before quickly silencing it. I could make up some excuse for why I’ve set the timer, although I’m a terrible liar when put on the spot under pressure. Besides, after he told me his secret about using his persona as the Saint to usurp power from Vincent, and he opened up to me about how his feelings have changed—I feel like I owe him the same sort of raw truth.
“Come with me,” I say as I reach for his hand without telling him where we’re going.
As if sensing that it’s something important and sensitive, Luc takes my hand and walks with me without asking questions. When we reach the bathroom and I open the door, the two pregnancy tests are in plain sight, sitting on top of the bathroom counter. It doesn’t take him any time at all to see what they are, and as soon as we look at them, it’s immediately clear that I am, indeed, pregnant.
Not one but two bright pink plus signs stare up at us from the tiny test windows.
Luc is still holding onto my hand as I brace for his reaction while also trying to wrap my head around my own feelings at this indisputable news.
“You’re pregnant,” he whispers quietly as he turns to look at me. “With my child?”
I nod.
Luc squeezes my hand tighter before wrapping an arm around me and pulling me against him. He kisses the side of my face, and I can feel his hand stroke the back of my head before reaching down my back to wrap me in a tight embrace.
“I love you, Valentina,” he whispers.
“You’re not upset at the news?” I ask with a sigh of relief.
“Upset? How could I be upset? We’ve created a new life between us—part me, part you, and part fate.”
“It raises the stakes in this whole situation that we’re in,” I remind him. “It puts you in an awkward situation between your family and me and this whole mess that I’ve dragged you into with the Conti family.”
“Trust me,” he reassures me as he holds me close. “I’ve been struggling internally with my familial obligations long before this. The only thing that this news intensifies for me is my devotion to you and my protective instincts that are committed to keeping you, and now also our unborn child, safe.”
He reaches down to place his thumb beneath my chin, lifts my face to his and kisses me softly on the mouth.
This is what real love feels like, and I think that I have known it all along.
CHAPTER 8
LUC
“It’s too dangerous,” I say when Valentina mentions wanting to leave the hotel suite. “Just because Leonardo has done nothing yet, doesn’t mean that he won’t. And now, with you being pregnant, it risks too much.”
“I know that you’re worried, and I am too,” she says, pleading with me to reconsider the strict security protocols that I have her under. “But who knows how long it will be before Leonardo acts? I can’t stay cooped up in here any longer, Luc. It’s been days and I’m going stir-crazy.”
“I can have whatever your heart desires brought into the suite for you,” I offer.
“I want nothing brought in,” she argues. “I want some freedom. It’s necessary for me to leave this room and the building. I can’t continue to be caged, Luciano.”
“I’m not trying to cage you. I’m trying to keep you safe.”
“I know you are, and I’m beyond grateful to you for that. And you know I want to stay here with you, but I also need to feel like Ican have a life outside of these walls too—even if there are some risks involved.”
As much as I hate to admit it, and as much as it worries me, I know that what she’s saying is true. What kind of life is it for her to stay trapped in here, as she lived with Leonardo at his estate? Still, the thought of her being exposed to the eyes and ears of the city makes me feel increasingly tense and vulnerable, even more so now that she’s pregnant with my child.
“Alright,” I concede. “But first, I want to know what prompted the arranged marriage to Leonardo to begin with. Every time I’ve asked you about it, you’ve only given me vague answers before changing the subject. And if I’m going to protect you, even whilst giving you more freedom with Leonardo still out there seeking his revenge, I need to know exactly what I’m dealing with. No more secrets.”
She sighs, but then concedes and fills in the gaps of what I’d already suspected. “My father’s hotel business was failing. His pride was based on that business venture. It meant the world to him to keep up our family’s reputation and to uphold the status and legacy of his family name. But when the business struggled, he took out a loan that he couldn’t repay.”
“Let me guess,” I say. “That financial arrangement led him straight to Leonardo Conti.”
“Yes,” she nods. “He needed the help. And as much as my father has always struggled to show his affection for his family, I think he was trying to do right by us. He wasn’t looking for power or wealth; he was simply trying to survive for our family.”
