Page 33 of Secret Baby for a Damaged Billionaire

He finally takes a deep breath and looks at me. “I need to know everything that happened with Carlo. Every detail.”

I nod in agreement. “I know. I’ll tell you everything.”

He turns his head and gazes out the window. “I know about Dom too.” He grabs his sweat rag, wipes his head with it again, and throws it at the wall.

My breath catches as my thoughts spiral. I race through my mind, trying to figure out what he could be talking about. The only interaction I’d had with Dom was….

“Why didn’t you tell me, Emily…?” His voice trailed off. “You misled me.”

I dropped to my knees and grabbed his shoulders, forcing him to look at me. “Lucas Walker. Listen to me now. There is nothing happening with Dom. I want you. Only you.” I stare into his eyes.

He shakes his head, pulling his eyes away from mine. “I know he’s still texting you,” he says. “It doesn’t sit right with me.”

“Excuse me?” I blink, taken aback by his words. “What are you talking about?”

“Chloe told me about the texting,” he spits out.

My heart drops to my stomach, and I suddenly understand Chloe’s cryptic message earlier. She must have filled him in on her twisted version of events, which explains why he’s been acting like this.

“Wait, Lucas,” I stammer, desperate to explain. “I can—”

“Save it,” he interrupts coldly, getting to his feet and walking away from me. “You think I don’t know what’s going on? You think I’m that stupid?”

“Lucas, you’re not stupid,” I say firmly, standing up and following him. “But you’ve got this all wrong. Let me explain.”

“Fine,” he snaps, rounding on me. “Explain. Tell me how you were going to tell me about Carlo. Or how you’ve been texting Dom behind my back.”

“First of all,” I start, feeling my own anger rising to match his. “I was planning on telling you about Carlo today, in person. I didn’t want to dump that on you last night over the phone. I admit now that was a bad decision. I should have told you right away.”

“How good of you.” His voice drips with sarcasm.

“Lucas, don’t,” I warn, clenching my fists at my sides. “As for Dom, he texted me once. Last night. I don’t know how he got my new number.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes, it is!” I cry, frustration getting the better of me. “And you know what? I bet Chloe knew that too. She just chose to leave out certain details because she loves creating drama.”

“Chloe?” He looks momentarily confused before his eyes narrow again. “You’re trying to blame this on her now?”

“Think about it, Lucas,” I implore him. “Why else would she have told you about Carlo and Dom? She’s trying to drive a wedge between us.”

He hesitates, clearly mulling over my words. The anger in his expression wavers, and for a moment, I see the vulnerable man beneath the tough exterior.

I reach for my phone and open the text from Dom.

“Here,” I say, thrusting my phone into his hands, showing him the text message I sent before blocking him. “Read it for yourself.” His eyes scan the screen, widening at the sight of the short and firm message: Leave me alone. “See?” I huff, snatching the phone back from him. “I wasn’t hiding anything from you. I was just trying to deal with Dom myself.”

He drops his gaze to the floor, his voice barely a whisper. “Fuck.”

#

“Emily, I’m sorry,” Lucas admits, his voice barely more than a whisper. “I should have trusted you. It’s just that when Chloe mentioned Carlo and Dom, all in the same breath, I couldn’t help but feel like something was off.”

“Off?” I echo, raising an eyebrow. “You mean like Chloe deliberately stirring up drama between us?”

He drops his head back, with a groan.

“Look at the timing. She’s made it clear she doesn’t want us together and now this,” I point out, crossing my arms over my chest. “I would have told you everything if I had a chance, but I couldn’t reach you because you were so busy ghosting me.”

---