The Queen of His Heart (Royals of Westlake #3)

Prologue

PROLOGUE

Sophia

“I’m pregnant.”

I whisper the words so quietly, but against the cold, empty bathroom, it sounds like I’m screaming them as loud as I can from the very depths of my lungs.

“What the fuck ?” Berlin demands. “Did you just say pregnant ?”

Lily’s eyes are bugging out of her head. She looks like a cartoon character.

I’m still holding the test out to show them. I don’t know how I haven’t dropped it; my hand is shaking so hard.

I can’t be pregnant.

My dad is going to kill me.

My mum is going to be heartbroken.

What the hell am I going to do?

I’m knocked up to a guy I don’t even know if I like all that much, let alone love.

My head is pounding and everything my eyes try and focus on is blurry, like it’s covered in a thick fog I can’t quite see through.

I can’t breathe.

I know Lily is touching my arm, but it doesn’t feel real. None of this can be real.

Please , please don’t let it be real.

“Soph, breathe.” Lily squeezes me so tight her nails dig into my skin. “I need you to take a breath, honey.” I feel air hit my lungs, and the fog disappears.

I look around the bathroom, hoping I just dreamed it all in some sick, twisted nightmare, but the test with the two pink lines is still in my hand, tormenting me from inside its plastic casing.

“Oh my god,” I choke out.

Berlin is shrieking something about not trusting the water in this god forsaken town as she paces back and forth from end to end of the room.

She’s acting insane, but I’m starting to wonder if she’s onto something. Teenage pregnancy does seem to be contagious in this town.

“That’s it, I’m importing sealed bottles from Canada from now on.”

“Berlin, I don’t think that’s helping,” Lily tells her gently .

It’s definitely not helping, but at this point, I don’t think there’s any helping me. I’m pregnant . Knocked up. With child. Got a bun in the oven.

“A fucking baby, ” Berlin rasps, finally stopping in her tracks.

“I need to go talk to Josh,” I mutter.

That gets her fired up, real quick.

“Like hell you do, he’s done enough already, him and that stupid penis of his are what got you into this mess. You were just fine before you started hanging around him and his stupid fertile sperm.”

She’s pacing again.

I don’t have the energy for this. I can’t do accusations and blame. I barely have the energy to stay upright.

No wonder I’ve been so tired and felt so shitty half the day. It’s baby-growing fatigue. What the actual fuck?

The second bell rings, and we’re officially late for assembly now.

I’ve been counting down until this day – the day that Liana finally pays for what she’s done to us all, but all I can think about now is nappies and bottles and vomit and not getting any sleep for eighteen years.

Holy crap.

I can’t have a baby. I am a baby.

“We have to go to assembly. It’s going to be too obvious if we’re not there,” Lily tells me as she pries the test out of my hand. I’m holding it so tightly my knuckles have turned white, but she somehow manages to wriggle it loose.

I watch through the mirror as she puts it into the front pocket of my bag, then leads me towards the door.

Berlin looks like she’s gone into shock now. She’s practically catatonic as we shuffle single file out the door.

“I can’t believe this,” I hear her say.

She’s not the only one.