Page 1 of A Mafia Christmas

Chapter One

Beth waited for Alastair to leave the bedroom before she raced to the bathroom and vomited like she had the last few weeks. This time was close. If she threw up in front of Alastair, he’d throw a fit.

She knew she looked pale and had lost a few pounds, enough for Alastair to see and comment on it. He wanted the doctor to come look at her, but she already knew what it was. A baby. She was pregnant with Alastair’s child, and as much as it thrilled her, it terrified her, too.

After rinsing her mouth out, she stood in front of the mirror and pressed her hands against her stomach where the baby lay. Tears filled her eyes. What was she going to do? She wanted desperately to tell Alastair but was terrified he’d ask her to abort it and that would destroy her.

When they talked about it in the past, he’d always veto the idea. She asked him why, but she always got dismissed. They had never had a conversation about it, and she didn’t bring it up anymore, but she’d heard a few of his comments about bringing a child into their family. There were so many dangers it would be hard to protect it. Then he said he had never seen himself as a father. When she hinted about wanting a child, he cut her off and changed the subject.

She needed to confide in the girls, but she worried that if someone besides her knew, he’d find out before she was ready.

She thought long and hard about what to do and still hadn’t come up with anything, which stressed her out, making the nausea even worse.

Beth climbed into the shower and stayed there until she felt calm and centered. She leisurely washed her hair and body. Her hand instinctively went to her lower stomach, knowing she had to stop it or be found out before she was ready. She knew it would be only a few more weeks before she started to show, so she didn’t have much time. The differences were already showing. She couldn’t drink coffee or smell grease without getting nauseous. Her breasts were bigger, and her nipples were darker and more sensitive.

She’d been able to hide her body to an extent when Alastair made love to her. She kept the lights very low or off. So far, he hadn’t caught on to anything. She knew that wouldn’t last. It was only because he was busy that he hadn’t noticed anything yet.

She turned off the water and wrapped a towel around her hair before reaching for another one for her body. After drying and rubbing lotion all over her body, she pulled on a long dress, the kind Alastair liked to see her in. It was convenient because it would help hide her pregnancy longer.

She made her way down to the dining room. She was hungry but was afraid to eat anything, especially in front of people. She breathed a sigh of relief when she found only Faith and Hope at the table. The moment she sat down, a maid came to take her order.

“A piece of dry toast and fruit.”

“Can I get you a coffee, Miss Beth?” the maid asked.

Beth shook her head. “No, thank you. I’ll take an orange juice, though.”

She turned to the other two to find them staring at her. “What?”

“You always have coffee in the morning,” Faith said.

“So, I can’t change?” Beth asked and smiled.

Hope’s eyes narrowed on her. “What’s going on?”

Beth sighed. “Can we talk about this after breakfast? Somewhere quiet.”

“Sure,” Faith said and patted her hand.

Beth was able to hold the conversation off for an hour but could tell the girls were getting impatient. Beth stood. “Let’s go outside.”

The three women walked to a favorite part of the garden where they liked having lunch or tea in the afternoon. They sat down and the two girls waited for Beth to talk.

She looked at them and then down to her lap.

“You can tell us anything,” Faith said.

“I … I’m pregnant,” Beth whispered.

It took a moment for it to sink in, and then they both smiled.

Faith’s smile slipped from her face, and she grabbed onto her sister’s arm. “You aren’t happy about it?”

Tears started to fill her eyes. “Oh, I’m happy about it, but…”

“But?” Hope asked.

“Alastair doesn’t want a child,” Beth said.

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