“But you’re not pregnant.”
“Actually I am.”
“We’ve only been married a month.”
“I know. We probably should’ve used something.”
To my relief, Leo’s face stretched into a broad grin. “Holy shit, I’m potent!”
I couldn’t help laughing at his enthusiasm. “Yeah you are.”
Leo pulled me up off the floor. “You’re really pregnant?”
Nodding, I said, “ I’ve had a test. I was just waiting for the right time to tell you.”
At the intense love burning in Leo’s eyes, a sob choked off in my throat. It was the reaction every woman wanted their partner to have when announcing they were going to have a baby.
“I’m going to be a father,” Leo said reverently.
I cupped his face in my hands. “You’re going to be an amazing dad.”
His brows creased with worry. “How can you be so sure?”
“Just a hunch.”
Leo snorted. “You gotta give me more than that. I mean, it’s not like I had a great role model. Not to mention the fact I helped my brothers torture our father to death.”
One of my hands left his cheek to rest over his heart. “Because of this.”
“My rock hard pec?” he teased.
I smacked him playfully. “Way to ruin a moment.”
Leo winked. “I couldn’t help myself.”
“You know you’re using humor to deflect from the serious emotions of the moment that you find difficult to process.”
Leo’s neck jerked back like I’d slapped him. “Where the hell did that come from, Dr. Neretti?”
“Psych 101,” I mused.
“Pretty impressive for an introductory class.”
“Let’s just say I know a little about deflecting difficult emotions myself.”
“Okay, even though I’m scared out of my fucking mind, you’ve made me the happiest man in the world.”
“Really?”
“Absolutely.”
Unable to speak, I threw my hands around his neck and squeezed him tight. “I love you,” I finally choked out.
Leo rubbed circles on my back. “I love you, too. And I love our baby.”
Tears stung my eyes at his words. God, I hated myself. I hated that this wasn’t really Leo’s baby. I hated that I had to lie to the man I loved. And most of all, I hated my father for blackmailing me.
Overwhelmed, I began to sob, “Drea, are you okay?”
