Page 244 of The Grand Duel

“Whatever it is, we can fix it.”

I shake my head, panic clawing at my throat. “Not this.”

“What’sthis?”

I swallow, my jaw taut. “I’ve got someone pregnant.”

Lissie

Out of all the girls, I’m the only one sitting in The Elm Café when the clock hits twelve sixteen, making them officially late. I pull out my phone and check I’ve not got the address wrong, alreadyknowing I haven’t, and then I lift my cup of tea and take a small sip.

They’ll be here soon.

I click onto my message thread from Jovie to distract myself from the uneasy feeling in my stomach, reading through the handful of messages we’ve exchanged over the past two months.

I try a new message.

Hey Jove, I hope Will is okay. How’s her new nursery placement going?

I hit send and place my phone down on the table, rolling my toes together in my shoes as I look up around the café.

Movement outside of the window catches my eye, and I turn my head, finding Nina heading for the entrance.

Letting out the caught-up air in my lungs, I will myself to relax.

I smile, rolling my shoulders when she pushes inside the shop, her stomach swollen and full. She scans the area, and I stand.

And the moment her eyes land on me, I instantly know something is wrong.

“Lissie,” she says, walking to the table and wrapping her arm around me, pulling me in for a hug. “I’m sorry you were left waiting. The girls can’t make it.”

“Oh.” I frown. “Is everything okay?”

She steps back and looks up at me, her face telling me it isn’t. “Charles is outside in the car. He’s going to head home for the day.”

“What’s happened?” I rush out.

My heart is in my throat, my entire body filled with adrenaline.

“He’s okay. Everyone is okay. He just needs to speak to you.”

I shake my head, everything slowing as she leads me out of the café. “What’s going on?”

“Charles, get your head on straight first!”

I snap my gaze from Nina and come face-to-face with Charlie. He’s shaking off Mason’s grasp, not looking where he’s going as he crosses the road.

With him directly in my path, I step forward and stop him with my hands on his arms. The momentum of his body follows through, and he barrels into me, his arms coming around me to keep me on my feet.

I cling on to him, know that the look on Nina’s face…the fact he’s here right now and not in the office like he should be.

“What’s going on?” I ask.

He pulls back and looks down at me.

His beautiful blue eyes stare back at me, lost, the whites dull, the skin around them red.

“Lis,” he rasps.