CHAPTER THIRTEEN #2
He looked at her face, and then his gaze dropped involuntarily to her stomach, hidden beneath the tailored cut of her coat. An overwhelming wave of emotion crashed over him, so intense it made his knees feel weak.
Part of him was instantly, blindingly ecstatic simply because he was going to be a father. But the other, infinitely more powerful part of him was struck by the miraculous, impossible fact that the child belonged to Kennedy.
The realization washed over him like a holy light.
It felt as though the universe, in all its chaotic cruelty, had just thrown him an unbreakable lifeline.
He and Kennedy were going to be connected for the rest of their lives.
No matter how much she hated him, no matter how much distance she tried to put between them, they were bound together forever.
He was delighted by the thought of having a child with her—something he had never, ever allowed himself to imagine would actually happen.
In Grayson’s desperate, unraveling mind, the pregnancy wasn't a complication. It was salvation. He suddenly realized he now had a lifetime to prove to Kennedy how deeply he regretted what he had done, and a lifetime to show her how wrong he had been about her character.
"Kennedy," Grayson whispered, his voice cracking with emotion. He took a hesitant step toward her, his hands trembling. "A baby. We are having a baby."
"I am having a baby," Kennedy corrected, her voice cooling by several degrees, instantly halting his approach.
She held his gaze, refusing to let him romanticize the situation.
"I came to inform you because you have a right to know.
But I want to make myself clear, Grayson: I do not expect a single thing from you. "
Grayson frowned, the ecstatic high faltering slightly under her icy gaze. "What are you talking about?"
"I am not asking you for money. I am not asking you for support, or protection, or a relationship," Kennedy stated, her tone leaving absolutely no room for negotiation.
"If you want to be involved in this child’s life, that is your choice.
I will not stop you. If you do not want to be involved, that is also your choice, and I will respect it. But I do not need anything from you."
"Kennedy, don't do that," Grayson pleaded, the desperation returning in full force. "You don't have to do this alone. I am here."
"I am not alone," Kennedy replied pragmatically, unaffected by his pleading.
"I am perfectly fine. My parents and Spencer are taking care of me.
Ryder will obviously be involved, and your parents are welcome to be as involved as they wish to be.
The child will be surrounded by family. I am simply giving you the option to choose your level of involvement. "
Grayson’s jaw tightened. The protective, fiercely possessive instinct that was bred into his bones flared to life, burning through the guilt that had paralyzed him for weeks. He was not going to be a spectator in his own child’s life, and he was certainly not going to let her box him out.
"It is my child too, Kennedy," Grayson said firmly, his voice dropping into a register of unyielding authority.
He stepped closer, refusing to let her distance push him away this time.
"And I am choosing to be involved. I want to be involved in everything.
Every doctor's appointment, every decision, every stage of this pregnancy.
I am not walking away from you, and I am not walking away from this baby. "
Kennedy looked at the fierce determination burning in his eyes. It was the Grayson she remembered—the commanding, immovable force of nature that had anchored her entire life. But she felt no thrill at his declaration.
"Fine," Kennedy agreed simply, her tone indifferent. She adjusted the strap of her leather handbag. "If you want to be involved, you can be. I will have my assistant forward you the dates of my upcoming medical appointments."
She was treating him like a business partner. The sheer, transactional coldness of her response cut Grayson to the bone, but before he could argue, the intercom on his desk buzzed loudly.
"Mr. Ashford-Wale," Diane’s voice crackled through the speaker. "I am so sorry to interrupt, but Miss Winters is downstairs in the lobby. Security is sending her up in the private elevator now."
Kennedy’s posture immediately went rigid.
The last thing she wanted was the stress of running into Olivia Winters. She had no interest in another screaming match, she had no desire for another confrontation, and she refused to be caught between the two of them ever again.
"I am leaving," Kennedy said instantly, turning on her heel and walking briskly toward the office door.
"Kennedy, wait, you don't have to go," Grayson started, panic spiking in his chest as he hurried after her. "I'll tell security to send her away."
"Do not bother on my account," Kennedy replied, pulling the glass door open without breaking her stride. "I have said everything I came to say. We will be in touch regarding the appointments."
She didn't wait for his response. She walked swiftly out of the office, bypassing the private executive elevator and slipping through the door to the secondary staff elevators, effectively vanishing before the main doors could even open.
Grayson stood in the doorway of his office, his chest heaving, his mind spinning with the colossal, life-altering weight of the last ten minutes. He was going to be a father. Kennedy was carrying his child.
The soft ding of the private elevator echoed through the reception area.
The doors slid open, and Olivia Winters stepped out.
She looked anxious, her blonde hair slightly windblown, wearing a simple trench coat over a casual dress. She offered Diane a tight smile before her blue eyes locked onto Grayson standing in the doorway of his office. She hurried toward him, desperate hope radiating from every line of her body.
"Grayson," Olivia breathed, stopping just short of him.
She looked up into his face, searching for any sign of softening.
"I know I showed up unannounced. But it’s been weeks.
Have you thought about us? Have you thought about our relationship?
Please tell me there is still some way for us to fix things. "
Grayson looked down at her.
He saw the woman he had loved. He saw the woman he had intended to marry.
But as he looked at her now, all he felt was sorrow.
The innocence of their relationship had been destroyed by her family’s greed, and the lingering taint of her physical attack on Kennedy made it impossible for him to see her the same way.
But more importantly, the universe had just fundamentally shifted its axis.
"Olivia," Grayson said, his voice quiet, carrying a gentle finality. "I am so sorry. I truly wish everything had happened differently. I wish none of this had ever occurred."
"It doesn't have to be the end!" Olivia insisted, her voice pitching higher, tears immediately springing to her eyes as she reached out to grasp his hands.
"Grayson, whatever the problem is, we can work through it!
We love each other! We can move past my family, we can move past the party, we can fix this! "
Grayson gently, firmly pulled his hands free from her grip. He could not let her hold onto a hope that no longer existed.
"We can't, Olivia," Grayson told her, the truth solidifying in his chest, firm and immovable. "There is no going back now."
"Why?" she sobbed, a note of genuine hysteria creeping into her voice. "Why won't you even try?"
Grayson took a steadying breath. He owed her the truth. He owed it to himself, and he owed it to the life that was currently growing inside the woman who had just left his office.
"Because Kennedy is pregnant," Grayson stated, the words falling into the quiet area like stones.
Olivia froze, the air leaving her lungs in a sharp, strangled gasp. All the color drained from her face as the catastrophic reality of his words struck her.
"She is pregnant with my child," Grayson continued, his eyes locking onto Olivia’s, devoid of hesitation or doubt. "And that is the life I am choosing."
Olivia stared at him, her mouth parted in paralyzing shock, unable to comprehend the fact that the future her family had schemed so viciously to secure had just been permanently, irrevocably handed to the woman they had thought of as the enemy.