Page 83 of The Duke's Spinster Bride
“I fail to see how it is not.” He arched an eyebrow at her. “At least, I was under the impression that getting pregnant was a rather simple affair. Even enjoyable to some.”
“Of course, that is what you think. You are a man after all.” She peered down the bridge of her nose at him, the corner of her mouth quirking downwards.
“And what is that supposed to mean?” He straightened at her look, his hackles rising as he took a step towards her.
“. Of course,youdo not understand why I am reluctant to be a mother, how could you?” She threw her hands up in exasperation. “You will be the father, I will be the mother.”
You will be the father.
“And this is why you are reluctant to have children?” Frederick’s blood turned to ice.
“Of course it is.”
Her words hit him like a slap to the face. He stumbled backwards. That was the problem. She was reluctant to be a mother with him. She did not want children with him. That was what she meant.
How could I have been so blind?He ran a hand across his face.“I cannot believe this. I knew it. I knew this was a mistake.”
The word echoed in the silence around them and he caught sight of Andrea jerking back as though struck. Her face was in shadow.
“A mistake?” Andrea was panting, one hand clutching her chest. “Is that what you think? You think this is a mistake?”
“What else am I supposed to think?” He laughed bitterly. “I should have known better. Damn it, I did know better. and still… I should never have agreed to this.”
“Then why did you?”
To love is to lose.His father’s words echoed around his head. He had let Andrea in, had believed her when she said that she wanted him. “Because I trusted you. But clearly I was fool for doing so.”
“Why?”
“Because you lied to me. You hid things from me, kept secrets. You asked me to be honest, to be truthful. To show you myself.”You made me feel like I could show you myself, like doing so would not make you leave.He bit the words back. “You made me think you would stay, but you have been ready to leave at the drop of a hat.”
“I am not the one who said this was a mistake.”
“Just admit it, Andrea, you have never been committed to this.” “Why else would you behave like this? Why else would you refuse to have my children? Why else would you keep secret bank accounts if you were not planning to leave?”
Andrea let out a frustrated growl and flung the door to the bedroom open, stalking inside. Frowning, he followed her. “What are you doing?”
He received no answer, watching as she pulled things violently from her drawers, flinging them across the room. At last she stopped, whirling around to face him.
In her hands, she held a small box. She thrust it into his chest and he took it from her. “You wanted to know what that money was for? It was for this.”
“What?” He held the box in front of him. It was heaver than he expected.
He saw tears fill Andrea’s eyes as she pushed past him. “I wanted to surprise you. To do something nice for you for a change. That is why I did not tell you about the accounts.”
Frederick shook his head. “I do not understand. You… But… Where are you going?”
She had moved past him into the doorway of the bedroom. At his words, she froze. His heart squeezed as she turned to face him.
“I am leaving.” The words sliced into him, piercing the steel door around his heart.
“Andrea –” he began reaching towards her but she jerked away.
Tears streamed down her face as she backed away from him. He stood, trying to make sense of everything. His mind raced. She was leaving. She had bought him a gift.
She does not want your children.Of course she was leaving. Why would she stay?
“You said it yourself, Frederick. This was a mistake.” Her voice broke as she turned from him. “We should never have done it. So I am leaving. As per our original agreement.”
