Chapter Diego Bittencourt
DIEGO BITTENCOURT
As I finished reviewing the last reports, my eyes drifted from the screen and landed on Maria Gabriela. She was across the room, smiling as she chatted with someone.
I didn’t know how she still managed to smile after everything. Maybe that was what infuriated me so much.
Or… maybe it was something else.
Either way, my gaze inevitably fell to her belly. She was definitely pregnant—five months now—and with every passing week, it became harder to deny.
The problem was, I still couldn’t accept it.
Over those five months, I’d kept a close eye on her pregnancy. Not because I believed the baby was mine, but because I didn’t trust her.
Maria Gabriela had been forced to show me every test, every report, every little detail—no hesitation. I’d made sure she kept me updated on every stage.
I turned back to my computer, but I couldn’t get her image out of my head. And on top of that, I was still making her life miserable—crushing deadlines, last-minute changes, unexpected trips… and yet, she kept going.
That strength of hers drove me insane.
Anyone else would’ve quit by now—thrown in the towel, admitted defeat, and told me who the real father was. But not her. Maria Gabriela persisted. And for some reason, that bothered me more than I wanted to admit.
I closed my eyes for a moment, trying to pull my thoughts together. This damn situation with her had flipped my entire life upside down.
I wasn’t just the cold, calculated CEO anymore. I was tangled in emotions I never wanted to feel. She was supposed to be just my secretary—nothing more. A piece on the board.
And now... I wasn’t sure what she was anymore.
“You’re not fooling me, Narcissus. I know you like her.”
My brother Alexandre’s voice echoed through the office as he strolled in without knocking—as usual—wearing that infuriatingly relaxed expression.
I looked up from the computer, already out of patience.
“Are you ever going to learn how to knock, Alexandre?” I muttered, more out of habit than any hope he’d change.
“Never.” He smirked, dropping a few reports on my desk, though it was obvious he wasn’t here to talk about work.
He crossed his arms and leaned against the desk, watching me—waiting, like a cat ready to pounce.
I sighed and pushed the reports aside, already sensing this conversation was heading somewhere uncomfortable.
“What now?” I asked, pretending to refocus on the screen, though I knew there was no escaping him once he got started.
“Nothing. Just wondering how long you’re going to keep pretending you’re not involved.” He tilted his head, his sharp gaze narrowing with that damned twin intuition I’d never been able to hide from. “Everyone can see it. You can fool the rest of the world with that unshakable CEO act, but not me.”
I met his eyes, trying to hold on to the mask I’d worn for years.
That mask had always been my armor.
But somehow, with Alexandre, it never seemed to hold. He could always see right through me, and that irritated me more than I cared to admit.
“I’m not involved with anyone—least of all her,” I said, my tone coming out harsher than I intended.
He raised an eyebrow, clearly unconvinced.
“Right. Keep telling yourself that. But tell me this—if you’re really not involved, why are you so obsessed with her? With her doctor’s appointments, her baby, her personal life?”
I went silent. His words hit harder than I wanted to admit.
It was true—I’d done everything to stay in control of the situation. But I wasn’t sure anymore if it was about the pregnancy… or something deeper I refused to name.
“She’s lying, Alexandre,” I said finally, grasping for justification, though I knew he wouldn’t buy it. “The baby can’t be mine. I thought if I pressured her, she’d tell me the truth. But she keeps insisting I’m the father.”
“And yet you keep pushing her, controlling every move she makes, practically suffocating her.” He shook his head, his expression softening with something dangerously close to pity. “You really think this is about exposing a lie? Or are you just afraid to face what you actually feel for her?”
I rolled my eyes and pushed back my chair, standing. The tension in my body was almost unbearable.
I walked to the window, staring out over Florianópolis, trying to find some peace in the city skyline.
“I’ll find out the truth about that baby’s father,” I said, more to myself than to him. “But I won’t give in. She’ll learn that I always win in the end.”
Alexandre exhaled, running a hand through his hair, frustration in his voice.
“Sometimes winning isn’t what matters.” He shrugged, heading for the door but pausing at the threshold. “Think about that.”
I sat back down, but his words lingered long after he left.
How was I supposed to think about anything when I was trapped between the fear of being betrayed again… and something that might be far more dangerous?
I didn’t know. And maybe that was what tormented me most.
My eyes found Maria Gabriela again from across the room. She was laughing at something, and the sound—or maybe the sight—of it unsettled me.
Not just because of what had happened between us, but because of what she’d come to represent.
I didn’t want to admit it, but maybe Alexandre was right.
Maybe what I felt for her went much deeper than I was ready to face.
But for now, I refused to give in.