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So the first two weeks passed in a blur of rehearsals and long days away from the club for him. I’d thrown myself into work as much as possible. At night, we’d sneak off to some clandestine part of the expansive property for alone time.

Club training crossed the boundary line for me. On every level. So Pasha convinced Sebastian that several of the dancers at the club needed new routines and additional coaching. Given his background, nobody questioned it.

If anything, the girls were thrilled to tap into their own creative minds and collaborate with him. The arrangement kept him busy. More importantly, it kept him out of the training rooms even longer.

From what I’d heard, he’d even recruited Kinsley as a dance partner for the demonstrations. I loved him for that. There was a significant difference between professional intimacy and personal intimacy. One belonged to the performance. The other belonged to us.

But putting it off would not be feasible much longer. More pointedly, Sebastian would eventually put his foot down. The thing that made it worse was that paranoia had set in. I spent entirely too much of the day spiraling.

Did we steal too many glances at one another? Was I smiling too much? Where was my snark with him these days? In my head, I overanalyzed every damn minute of the day.

Nothing was incriminating on its own. Together, though? That was another story entirely. I wrapped both hands around my teacup and stared down at it. This shit was getting exhausting.

The dining room hummed with the familiar comfort of morning. At least for them it did. For me, every day felt like another step closer to the inevitable. Because damn it all to hell, Pasha was right.

Secrets had a shelf-life. And ours was rapidly approaching its expiration date.

“Alek was so disappointed. I told him not to get his hopes up, but he does every single month,” Kinsley said, shaking her head.

“I was probably a week late before I tested. I had to purchase and then hide it,” Tori offered.

Before I realized it, I’d retreated into my head. My attention drifted to our evening schedule. Family movie night. Would it be odd if we shared a blanket?

“I wasn’t even a day late. I normally start in the morning, but since I hadn’t, Alek insisted I pee on a stick. I swear my ass is on borrowed time.”

“You mean your womb?” Tori chuckled.

Kinsley rolled her eyes. I smiled, half listening. The conversation drifted around me in fragments.

The King’s. Pregnancy tests. Tori’s fear. Babies.

My attention snapped back to the room, and I dropped my fork against the plate. The sound seemed unusually loud. At least to me it had. But Tori continued talking. Her words blurred together.

“My earliest symptom was breast tenderness and then morning sickness kicked in. Thankfully, it only lasted the first trimester,” Tori said.

The smell of eggs suddenly turned my stomach. I swallowed. Hard. An uncomfortable amount of saliva flooded my mouth. Not for the first time, either. I’d noticed it on and off over the last several days. Usually when food was involved.

Maybe I’d eaten too quickly. Maybe it was stress. God knew there was enough of that lately. I took a slow breath through my nose. Then another. My stomach dipped and twisted, anyway.

Check your app. No, I’m not late.

I tried to dismiss the thought. Tried to focus on literally anything else. The weather. The dolls the girls didn’t know about. My schedule for next week.

Bitch, you better check your fucking app.

Instead, I did the next best thing. Mental math. When was my last period? Definitely before we left London. How many times had we had unprotected—

Adrenaline flooded my system. I blinked and tried to control my racing heart.

“Are you okay, Izzy?” Kinsley asked, leaning toward me.

Blood rushed to my head. My phone was in my hand before I consciously reached for it. The screen blurred. I swiped twice and opened my cycle tracking app.

No.

The word echoed through me. This wasn’t happening. A hollow feeling opened beneath my ribs as the dates stared back at me.

Oh my God. No.