Page 198 of SINS & Riley
Doors slam. Nurses rush me down a hall. Monitors shriek. A cuff bites into my arm, wires snake across my belly, sticky and cold against my skin.
The world spins out of control and I’m so delirious, I swear I hear Dante’s voice. “Can you do a paternity test?”
That can’t be right.
The nurse replies. “Yes. She’s far enough along.”
What?
He knows he’s the only man I’ve ever been with. So why the hell would he?—?
The fury’s right there, ready to ignite. But I choke it down. Because I’m the basket case unraveling, and at the moment, he’s the one holding me together.
If this is what he needs to stay, to fight for me, then fuck it—he can have it.
I can’t confront him now. Not when I’m clinging by a thread.
The second the nurses and doctor slip out, it’s just us. His arms crush me close, like if he holds tight enough, he can keep me from scattering into pieces.
Tears streak hot down my face, my chest jerking against his shirt. “It’s too soon.” The words rip out, jagged. “I can’t—” My breath stumbles. “I can’t have the baby now.”
“Shh.” His mouth brushes my hair as he rocks me.
And we wait.
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RILEY
Six hours later, with the entire D’Angelo clan crowding the lobby, the doctor finally sweeps in. One look at my wild eyes, at Dante’s feral grip around me, and she smiles like she’s seen this exact scene a hundred times a day.
“Braxton Hicks contractions. Rougher with preeclampsia.”
Air floods back into my lungs like I’ve been drowning. “But the baby’s okay?”
“She’s perfect.”
“She…” Dante whispers, deep in thought.
My stomach twists. Dante didn’t know. I never told him.
God, I was so furious at him, I kept it locked up, a secret I’d only unleash on my terms.
And now?
He finds out like this.
In a sterile room, from a stranger in a white coat, when he thought he might've been losing our child.
Shame chews at me.
He’s been here all night, holding me together, and I’ve been treating him like he’s the enemy.
The doctor keeps going, her voice almost cheerful as she maps out my recovery. “You’ll need rest. Basically all day, every day. No stress. No lifting. Low sodium. Plenty of hydration. Regular monitoring.”
Each word piles on.
My voice cracks. “So… basically chained to a bed for the next four months?”
