Page 97 of Shattered Veil
She flinches at my harsh tone and hops off the bed. “What are we doing?”
“According to you, we’re having a baby.” I smile to get her to smile.
“I thought you’d tell me again how you don’t want kids. How you don’t want a relationship and—”
“That was before. Now it’s the complete fucking opposite.” I don’t mean to sound so gutturally angry, but how can she think I’d tell her to bugger off?
“We don’t have to get married.” She steps farther away from me. “I don’t want to get married yet. I’m only twenty-seven. I didn’t plan this.”
I stand there, still naked, my dick not quite flaccid yet. “I know you didn’t plan this. And if you haven’t bled since we were first together, I take responsibility for pressuring you to take me without protection.”
“I said yes. I’m responsible.”
“These can’t be our wedding vows,” I joke as the idea of marrying her shines brightly with no shadows or clouds in my thoughts, nothing haunting me about the decision.
“Seriously, you don’t have to marry me.”
“Seriously, that’s not how this works in my world.”
She steps back. “You can’t force me.”
“Wanna bet?”
CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE
Ella
Since we’re running massively late, we put the baby talk on hold. Balor showers alone, and I quickly cook our breakfast, making egg sandwiches we can eat in his car on the way to my school.
Balor stays quiet during the drive. The time factor hijacked our little stand-off. He thinks he canforceme to marry him. I assume it’s not the end of the discussion.
My mind races with so many scary thoughts. The worst is being held captive in his townhouse by a guard with no chance to escape. Triggers from Wes screaming at me that I couldn’t see Hannah or Val ever again make my stomach turn over.
How did I get here?
“Are you okay?” Balor squeezes my hand. “Your face just drained of all its color.”
Which must be noticeable since I inherited my mom’s light-bronze skin tone. “I assume it’s the...you know.”
His jaw tightens as his eyes stray to the new driver, Denton. With no partition, because his Rivian isn’t a limo, nothing we say is private. And when Balor doesn’t finish my sentence, that I’m pregnant, I take the hint that he doesn’t want anyone to know either.
“When you’re done with school, I’ll pick you up and we’ll spend the rest of the day at home.”
“Home?” I squeak.
“My home.” His lips part as if he’s ready to declare it my home, too.
But he doesn’t.
These few hours, however, will give him a chance to arrange for my confinement. Whether literally with chains or through pressure and manipulation.
I just smile and rest my head on his shoulder as I oftendo in the car. He cups my face and presses a kiss on my forehead. “We’ll figure something out. But Ella, I told you even before this. You’re mine.”
Nodding, I take a few deep breaths.
We arrive at Fredricks Elementary and Balor studies the building differently from the other times he dropped me off. I’m carrying his child.
Game changer.