Page 112 of The Arrangement

Even though the superficial second degree burns on her arm had healed, there had been a slight discoloration in the scarring. While the rest of her was olive toned, from her elbow down was a mixture of garish white and a sore looking pink. The minor burns on her neck, however, had all but healed with little to no scarring at all.

How on earth she’d managed to forget about the capped sleeve, lace mermaid style dress after the accident, Viviana didn’t know. It had already been ordered. Given Anton hired two planners to take over what they couldn’t handle while managing her healing and Rocco’s—well, either of them could have picked it up and not mentioned it.

Viviana was blaming it on the pregnancy. All of her forgetfulness was the baby’s fault.

It was a perfectly viable excuse to her.

Not to Anton.

He assumed her tiredness weeks later, mixed in with the sudden absentmindedness, had something to do with the aftereffects of the accident. Viviana barely held herself back from sticking out her tongue at him like a child when the doctor explained it was likely just the pregnancy.

The dress, like several other things, had simply slipped her mind. Or, maybe she hadn’t wanted to go shopping for another one and she forced herself to forget about it. After all, Anton had been the one to pick that dress out and Viviana wanted so badly to let him take it off like he promised.

In the mirror, Viviana’s reflection had gone pale. Stress had that immediate effect on her now. There wasn’t any such thing as morning sickness. That was a goddamn myth, and the man who made it up should have been shot. It was more like morning, noon, night, and whenever the hell in-between sickness.

“Oh God,” she mumbled, turning away from the mirror as her stomach rolled. Viviana didn’t know if she could make it to the bathroom. “Sick … gonna be …”

Sasha was at her side, producing another one of those ginger suckers, pulling the plastic off and popping it into her soon-to-be daughter-in-law’s mouth. Viviana hated the way they tasted, but the damned things worked like nothing else.

With another soft grin, Sasha’s hand patted gently on top of Viviana’s still flat stomach, whispering quiet words in Russian before she asked, “Better?”

It was such a motherly action that Viviana felt her heart clench in the most painful way. More than anything, she wished her own mother was there. She loved Sasha like nothing else, but every girl deep down inside wanted their mother and father on their wedding day.

“Getting there. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome, now put the dress on.”

Viviana scowled around the lollipop.

Deciding to try and divert Sasha’s attention on the dress a little longer, Viviana asked, “How’s Daniil doing today?”

Sasha smiled faintly. “Much better. Even the doctors are surprised at his sudden energy and excitement. I think that may have something to do with his first grandchild being born. I know he’s not going to …”

Viviana frowned as Sasha trailed off and wiped at her eyes. There was a chance Daniil wasn’t going to see the baby. That was just the sad truth they were all trying to swallow. But just a few short weeks ago, his doctors had given him the possibility of a year, too. With careful monitoring, a good diet, and a little bit of luck, he very well could be there to meet his first grandchild. At least for the start of the baby’s life, anyway.

“He might, Sasha,” Viviana whispered, knowing that’s what Anton’s mother was thinking about, too.

“I hope so. It certainly seems like the news of the pregnancy has made him happier for the moment.”

And just how had hiding the pregnancy for the first little while gone?

Well, not terribly fucking great. It might have helped if Anton could have left her midsection alone for five minutes, but no, his hand or fingers were always waywardly traveling in that destination even if he didn’t realize it. The biggest shit-eating grin took hold of his features every time, too. Not to mention, he damn near had a fit every time someone bumped into her for the first month after she was out of the hospital.

More than once she had to remind him she wasn’t a glass china doll.

It didn’t work. Anton still had a thing about too many people crowding her.

Tonight should be fun, Viviana thought with a sigh.

Of course, none of that gave it away to Sasha. Oh no, the woman knew the moment she walked into Viviana’s hospital room. Somehow … Daniil had been completely oblivious to the way his wife’s eyes scanned her son and his fiancée before she smiled, kissed Anton’s cheek, and whispered her congratulations.

When Viviana asked how she could tell, Sasha shrugged and said, “It’s a mother thing.”

“Put the dress on. Now,” Sasha repeated, snapping Viviana back into the moment.

“But—”

A heavy exhale fell from behind Viviana. “Talk to me.”