Page 41 of Corrupted Empire

I get to my feet and lift Harry into my arms. “Ready to meet your little brother or sister?” I ask.

Harry grins. “Yeah!”

We head into the examination room, where Alexis is laid on the table with her shirt pushed above her belly. An older man in a lab coat introduces himself as Dr. Steinman and offers me the seat next to the table.

“Let’s get this show on the road,” he says cheerfully, smearing Alexis’ belly with ultrasound gel.

My eyes are glued to the screen as he starts to move the wand over Alexis’ belly. Her fingers find mine, and I squeeze reassuringly.

“There we are,” Dr. Steinman says, stopping with the screen centered on the black and white of an impossibly small figure. “That’s one perfectly healthy, seven-week-old baby.”

Alexis squeezes again, but this time out of joy. A baby. My heart swells, and my head fills with visions of a little girl with ribbons in her dark hair, or a little boy in a waistcoat to match mine and his brother’s. I already know that I am going to spoil him or her rotten.

“As far as pregnancies go, I would say this one is running smoother than most,” Dr. Steinman says. “You two have nothing to worry about.”

He goes on to reel off some facts and figures, but I’m barely listening. My eyes are glued to the screen. To the image of our perfect baby. To the sound of its heartbeat reverberating through my eardrums.

Once we finish, I keep hold of Harry on the way down to the car. Alexis is uncharacteristically silent, which usually means she’s thinking hard about the words she is going to say next. She waits until we are in the car and I have clipped Harry into his car seat.

“Does this change your answer?” Alexis asks softly.

“My answer about what?” I meet her sapphire gaze, and she smiles hopefully.

“About us being a family.”

I look out the window as the car pulls away from the curb and clear my throat. “I’m going to make sure you’re well taken care of. You’ll have the best prenatal care money can buy.”

“That doesn’t even slightly answer my question,” she replies, irritation lacing her voice.

That’s because I don’t know what to tell her. Can we be a family? No. I still can’t trust her. I can’t let myself feel for her. The concept of a family entails unconditional love, and I cannot offer that to Alexis when she could just as easily use it against me.

That being said, I can think of a few good reasons to keep her close.

“You and Harry will move back into the mansion,” I say. “I think it would be beneficial for Harry.”

“I agree,” she replies. “But Clara comes with me.”

I glance over, and she sticks her chin out with resolve. Considering Clara already knows about my organization, I suppose it’s not that much of a risk. I can already tell that Alexis’ return will be conditional on Clara’s recovery. She is fiercely protective where Clara is concerned.

“Fine,” I say, and look back out the window.

“Good.”

“Good.”

We spend the rest of the car ride in silence.

15

Gabriel

I leave Alexis’ room early in the morning, and it feels strange to me how quickly we have fallen back into our familiar rhythm. She has been in the mansion only a week, and already I have spent most nights in her bed, sneaking out of it most mornings. I can’t help myself. I can practically hear her body calling to me throughout the day, teasing me, tempting me. And then when I go to her in the darkness, she is always so enthusiastic that I couldn’t control myself if I tried.

I nod to the guards stationed outside Alexis’ room, and the ones further down the hall outside of Clara’s. I’ve had few interactions with the little blonde since she moved in, but she has been quiet and respectful, and that’s all I can ask for.

I go to my office to complete a couple hours of work while I wait for Silvano to arrive and present his report. At least I try to. I’m distracted by the thought of what he will have to say when he gets here. I don’t know what I will do if he doesn’t have good news.

I give up with an hour left to go and grab a coffee from the kitchen. My personal chef, Victoria, is rolling out dough. She looks up and smiles when she sees me.

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