Page 41 of Modern Romance September 2026 Books 5-8

“Don’t be naive.” My grip on her waist tightens. “Good men or not, you have to think about the baby.”

Hurt flickers in her eyes. Confused, I watch the anger slip away, replaced by a cool detachment I don’t understand. “Yes. Of course.”

She starts to pull away, but I don’t let go. Wary now, she watches me as I lean down. Despite my own anger and the guilt still pumping through me, I’m all too conscious of her hips pressed against mine. I want to kiss her. Want to push her up against the wall of the elevator, pull the skirt of her dress up and bury myself inside her.

My cock hardens. Her lips part on a gasp. A groan escapes as she presses herself against me.

“Dominic.”

I will never get tired of her saying my name like that. That throaty, breathy moan dripping with desire. Just hearing her evokes memories of her body wrapped around me, my cock buried inside her wet heat, the awe in her eyes as I took her over and over again.

But that was then. Before the baby. Before the engagement and the press and the never-ending attention.

“Sophaya.” I lean down and lay my forehead against hers. “We can’t. Not here.”

She freezes. Red blooms in her cheeks even as she holds her head high. “No.” She shakes her head slightly. “You’re right. Not here.”

I hate myself in that moment. Hate what I’ve done to her, then and now. Hate the humiliation she’s trying to hide.

Before I can say anything, she presses the emergency button. The elevator continues its descent.

As the elevator reaches the first floor, I glance over at her. “It’s not just about the baby.” Startled, she looks up at me as the doors slide open. “You matter, too. And I will do whatever it takes to keep you safe.”

I don’t wait for a reply. I keep an arm out to brace the door until she exits the elevator.

Arthur is waiting for us. He takes the lead, walking in front while I walk behind. People call out to Sophaya, and she smiles, waving as we continue out the front doors.

The reporters are still there, albeit slightly more contained than when we arrived. Arthur and I walk Sophaya to the limo. Her driver opens the door, and she gives the crowd one last smile and a wave before climbing inside.

“I’ll be right back.”

I close the door before she can ask any questions and walk back to the crowd. I stop in front of Wilford.

“You’re fired.”

His scowl disappears as he lets out a short bark of laughter. “You don’t have any authority over my job.”

“I just bought Brighton Media five minutes ago.” His smile slips. “That’s right. The company that owns your magazine. So I do have the authority to fire you, and I’ll exercise that right as I see fit, especially when I discover an employee has multiple counts against him of harassment and stalking the subjects of his so-called stories.”

He blanches. “Look, those were made-up charges—”

“Including you rear-ending that Australian actress after she refused to give you an interview? How about taking pictures while she lay unconscious in a ditch?”

“I called the emergency line!” he retorts. “I didn’t leave the scene until the ambulance got there.”

The other paparazzi are easing away from him, disgust etched on their faces.

“Your visa to Siravelle has been revoked.” I lean in, savoring the flicker of fear in his eyes. The same fear I’m sure countless people felt as he hunted them and exploited their personal lives over the years for his own financial gain. “Leave before you find out just what kind of justice I’m meting out to those who hurt the people I care about.”

I turn and walk back to the limo. The cameras start clicking again, as do the shouted questions. But this time they’re not directed at me. They’re directed at Wilford.

I note the cracked window as the driver opens the door. I slide inside and sit across from Sophaya. She’s staring out the other window and doesn’t even glance in my direction. She says nothing until the limo is halfway down the hospital drive.

“Thank you.”

I nod and look out the window as the forest rises up, the late afternoon sun disappearing behind the treetops as the limo enters the pines.

I need to be careful. Whether I like her or not, there will come a day when something changes between us. When something forces us apart. We’ve had a series of pleasant days. But happiness doesn’t last. And the pain that comes after, whether it’s abandonment or loss or betrayal, is ten times harder when it comes on the heels of broken hopes and dreams.