Chapter Thirty-One Drea
After a week on the beach, I was ready to come home. Or at least to my new home in New York. My things had already been sent to Rafe’s apartment, so Leo just arranged for them to be brought to ours.
It didn’t take me long to settle in. I really like Leo’s apartment. Considering it was bigger than a lot of houses, it felt strange calling it an apartment. Leo gave me freedom to decorate, but at the moment, I was too overwhelmed with school to think about it.
Since Maeve had to finish up classes in Dublin, she wasn’t home through the week. She came over on the weekends, or Rafe would go to her. After two weeks in New York, Leo had even taken us to Dublin to visit. Since I’d barely been out of Philadelphia, I loved seeing Ireland.
I blinked, and Leo and I were celebrating our first month anniversary.
Despite so many life changes in such a short time, I was the happiest I’d ever been in my life.
During the day, I attended classes online after Leo pulled some strings for me.
There was only one lab I had to go back to school for every week, which of course he made me take a bodyguard with me.
Leo usually got home around seven. With the extra time on my hands, I was learning to cook.
Since Maeve had no idea how to cook Italian or Sicilian fare for Rafe, she’d always come to my place if she was in town, and we would make a meal for the four of us.
After our past, it was hard to believe she was becoming my best friend.
Other nights when Leo had to work at Inferno, he asked me to meet him there. We’d usually eat takeout in his office or at one of the restaurants nearby. Then I’d accompany him to do a sweep of the floors.
We’d get a little handsy with each other in Heaven or Hell before escaping back to his office to fuck. Despite our bathroom escapade in Palermo, I still hadn’t worked up the nerve to actually be with Leo in Lust. He didn’t seem to mind that I wasn’t up for voyeuristic sex yet.
Every night after Leo fell asleep, my hand would naturally go to my abdomen.
It was agony not being able to talk to anyone about it.
Most days, guilt consumed me because I felt I was hiding the baby out of shame.
Everything involved a level of subterfuge.
My prenatal vitamins were switched with a bottle of vitamin D.
For my doctor’s appointment, I told Leo I was getting a massage and facial.
Despite her being an outsider to our world, I’d still gone to Brooklyn for my appointment.
At almost three months, I still didn’t have a bump. When I voiced that concern to my doctor, she explained that I had a tilted uterus, which meant I wouldn’t show until later in the pregnancy.
After she left the examining room, I’d broken down into hysterical laughter. I mean, what were the odds? I’d already planned just to feign weight gain if I started to show before it was time to tell Leo. It was certainly believable considering how much I’d been eating lately.
I knew the clock was ticking on my reveal to Leo. I was still keeping to the story of getting pregnant on my honeymoon. If he wasn’t totally dense, Leo would wonder when my period would be coming to wreck our sex life. Knowing Leo, it wouldn’t let a little blood stop him from sex.
When my eyes snapped open before the alarm, I had only a minute to react before my stomach clenched, and bile shot into my throat. Throwing the covers back, I then clamped my hand over my mouth. After racing into the bathroom, I buried my head in the toilet.
And just like that, morning sickness had begun.
When I was finished, I brushed my teeth before heading back to bed. Thankfully, I hadn’t woken Leo. He was still snoring slightly. After easing back into bed, I waited for the alarm to go off.
To my shock, my stomach growled. When it wouldn’t stop, I finally got up and went to the kitchen.
Although I’d never been a fan of eggs, nothing sounded more delicious than an omelet. And not just one omelet. I wanted two, and I wanted it with spinach and feta.
Taking my plate and orange juice, I headed into the bedroom just as Leo’s alarm went off. “Drea?” he questioned in a gravelly voice.
“Want some omelet?”
Rubbing the sleep from his eyes, he teased, “Since when do you cook omelets?”
“Keep talking shit, and I won’t give you any.”
With a very sexy growl, Leo commanded, “Come over here and feed your man.”
“Fine.” After cutting off a piece, I held the fork out to him. “Open wide.”
“Yes, ma’am.” Leo then flicked his tongue suggestively before I stuffed the bite in his mouth. Chewing thoughtfully, he said, “This is really good.”
“I’ll take that as a compliment.”
Leo grinned. “My little domestic goddess bringing me breakfast in bed.”
“It is the most important meal of the day.”
Squeezing my ass cheek, he rubbed his face in the valley of my breasts. “I know something I’d like to feast on.”
“Is that right?”
“Mmm, hmm.”
“We need to finish breakfast first.”
Leo pulled his head from my breasts before taking the plate from me. He stabbed a large piece with the fork before bringing it to my mouth. “Open up.”
After obliging him, he wagged his brows. “I know something else I’d like to stick in your mouth.”
Swallowing, I said, “You really know how to sweet talk a girl.”
“I woke up hard as a rock from dreaming of you.”
“You wake up hard if the wind blows,” I countered.
Leo choked on the bite he’d just taken before grabbing the orange juice for me. After he recovered, he said, “I can’t help my virility.”
“I was thinking more a horny bastard.”
“Oh, I’ll show you horny bastard.” Leo tossed the now empty plate onto the bed before taking the glass and putting it on the nightstand. He then grabbed me by the waist and flung me onto the bed.
Giggling, I said, “You’re such a caveman.”
As Leo loomed over me, the erotic gleam in his eyes sent a shiver of desire down my spine “And you’re my dirty little whore whose panties are probably wet at the moment.”
Although I was slightly wet, I shook my head. “Dry as the sahara.”
Leo tsked. “Andrea Neretti, you are such a liar. In fact, I’ll bet you that if you’re wet, you have to blow me.”
“Go on. Check.”
At Leo’s wicked grin, my heartbeat accelerated. After spreading my legs, he slid his hand into my pajama pants. The moment he touched my core I thrust my hips up for friction.
“Aha!”
With a triumphant look, Leo held up his fingers to me that glistened with arousal. “A gentleman would finish what he started,” I pouted.
“But I’m not a gentleman, remember? I’m a horny bastard,” he teased.
“Ass,” I said with a grin.
Since Leo slept naked, all he had to do was roll over and fling back the sheet. His cock proudly jutted forward. As he pushed himself back on the mattress, I started crawling beside him.
After all these weeks together, I knew how much he liked me to rub the frenulum before taking him inside my mouth. Spitting on the top, I then began rubbing the sensitive skin.
“Fuuuuck,” Leo grunted as he threw his head back.
When he started leaking precum, I slid him into my mouth. As Leo’s cock bumped against the back of my throat, I moaned in pleasure. But the feeling was short-lived. As Leo flexed his hips, my stomach clenched, sending its content shooting up my throat.
At my gag, Leo froze mid-thrust. Hurriedly, I slid him out of my mouth. Just as I started scrambling to my feet, I puked all over the sheets and blanket. Swiping my mouth, I surveyed the damage.
“Oh God,” I muttered in mortification.
Leo’s gentle hands came to my shoulders to steady me. When I looked at him, remorse filled his eyes. “Jesus, D, I’m so sorry. I thought you could take it like you did before.”
“It’s not your fault.”
He brushed some strands of hair out of my face. “I’m pretty sure it is.”
Since there never was going to be the right time to tell him I was pregnant, I decided it was now or never.
With a smile, I said, “Actually, I can assure you it isn’t about you choking me with your monster cock.”
Leo grinned. “It’s not?”
Shaking my head, “It’s morning sickness.”
His brows furrowed adorably. “Morning sickness? That’s what pregnant women have.”
“That's right.”
“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?”
“No. But there’s nothing you or anyone else can do.”
Leo pulled me back to where he could stare into my face. “There is nothing that I won’t do to help you.”
“I wish you could.”
“Why won’t you tell me what’s wrong?”
Drawing in a deep breath, I prepared to lie to him once again. I was getting too good at telling lies. “I’m just scared to bring a baby into our world where it’ll be used like a pawn.”
“I won’t let anyone do that.”
“As long as my father lives, this baby, along with you and me, will always be a pawn.”
Leo’s eyes narrowed. “Maybe your father will have an unfortunate accident one of these days.”
While that might’ve saved me months ago, I’d spun too big of a web for that to help now. But it would also mean that Vittoria would be safe. And the twins. “Maybe so.”
The malice in Leo’s expression faded and was replaced with joy. “When can I tell my brothers?”
“It’s still very early. It’ll be two more months before I’ll be out of danger of miscarriage.” The truth was I only had another month before I was out of danger.
He groaned. “You know I’m the worst at keeping secrets.”
I smiled. “You kept me a secret for over a year.”
“That’s different.”
“Okay, you can tell your brothers.”
“And Talia?”
“Yep.”
“When should we tell your parents?”
That ship has already sailed. “I…uh, well, I guess we could tell them soon.”
“We are supposed to have dinner with them next Sunday.”
“Then I guess we can tell them then.”
At what must’ve been my apprehension, Leo took my hand in his. “We don’t have to tell them shit.”
I laughed. “I know. But we might as well get it over with.’
Frowning, Leo asked, “Don’t you think they’ll be happy? I mean, as happy as two dysfunctional assholes like them can be?”
“Oh, I’m sure they will be. I mean, I’m well on my way to doing my duty. I’m sure if it’s a boy, they’ll be even more elated.”
I’m sure Father would get a sick sense of pleasure if it were a boy. A bastard having a place in the Neretti organization would be his ultimate revenge after everything that transpired.
Leo cupped my cheek with his hand. “In the end, it doesn’t matter what they think or anyone else for that matter. We’re happy, and that’s all that matters.”
“You’re right. This is just about us.”
Along with the secret hanging over us like a dark cloud.