Page 30 of Surrogate for the Bratva
“Good,” April answered with a smile. “The morning sickness is finally sticking to the mornings. But my gums have been very sensitive. Is that normal?”
The doctor nodded. “It is perfectly normal in the second trimester. Just try to avoid anything sweet or too acidic.” The doctor smiled at me as if she was trying to include me. “Are we ready for the first shot of your little one?”
“Isn’t it too early for that?” It seemed like just yesterday she’d sent the text to say she was pregnant.
“Sixteen weeks is just soon enough,” the doctor assured me with a professional smile. “If your little one is feeling cooperative today.”
April laughed. “If they’re anything like their father, it’ll be a tossup.” She and the doctor shared a laugh at my expense, but I didn’t care. My image was focused on the screen and steady thrumming that suddenly sounded in the exam room.
“That is your baby’s heartbeat.” The doctor beamed proud as if it washerbaby.
It was strong and fast. It was a Romanov heart. “That’s the heartbeat?”
She nodded. “It’s strong.”
“How cool,” April whispered, her voice a little shaky and watery. “Wow.” Her words summed it up perfectly.
“It never gets old,” the doctor assured us. “Do you want to know the baby’s sex?”
“Yes,” I answered immediately.
April and the doctor laughed.
I was in a daze for the next thirty minutes as we left the doctor’s office and headed to lunch, thinking about the magical moment I’d just witnessed. If Maria had been here, I would have missed this and that would have been a travesty.
“Are you okay, Igor?” April waved her hand in front of me, concern etched on her face. “Igor?”
I blinked and a slow grin spread across my face. “I’m fine.”
April laughed and tilted her head to the side with a knowing smile. “You’re stunned and that’s all right.”
“I’m not,” I insisted.
“You are,” she teased. “You’re going to have a little son who will probably be a hellraiser just like his father. You should be stunned,” her smile dipped into a conspiratorial grin. “Unless you’re too tough to be stunned?”
“Not stunned. Excited and in disbelief.”
She arched a brow.
“Okay and yes, a little bit of shock. It’s real now. A son. I’m going to have a son.” It was exactly what I wanted. Exactly what I planned for. My son was growing in April’s belly, and I couldn’t be happier. “Thank you.”
Her face blushed a sweet shade of pink. “You are very welcome, Igor.” Her gaze slammed into mine and it was unsettling. Her eyes and her smile were warm, almost affectionate. “Congratulations.”
Now that I knew the Romanov name would continue for another generation, I needed to have a conversation with April about taking care of the baby. Our current inability to keep ourhands to ourselves made this sticky but it needed to be done. “We need to have a conversation.”
Her smile dimmed. “Don’t worry, Igor. I’m not trying to change my status as your surrogate,” she whispered the last word. “It’s been fun and now you want me to know this isn’t anything serious and that it can’t possibly be anything but what it is. Right?”
I opened my mouth to tell her she was both right and wrong, but something just outside the window drew my attention. A black sedan rolled past slowly, so slow that it was noticeable against the faster moving cars.
Trouble.
The car crawled to a stop and the two windows on the driver’s side rolled down at the same time just as two muzzles appeared. “Get down,” I growled.
“What? Igor, what did you—” April’s question was cut off by the sound of the front window shattering and gunshots spraying the restaurant. “Igor!”
I reached behind me for my gun, one hand on April beside me. I squeezed off two shots before the tires squealed, and the car took off. “April!” I called out, but she didn’t respond. “April!” Her body shook under my hand and when I turned to face her, I found her curled into a ball, one hand protecting my baby and the other shielding her head and face. “It’s okay, April. They’re gone.”
“Igor,” she whispered. Her voice was small and shaky, unsure as she risked raising her head.
