Distorted Hope (19 page)

I woke later when Mark came in, bringing Beatriz with a tray of food.

“How are you feeling?” he asked as Beatriz put the tray on my lap.

“Better. Still a little achy but not nauseous anymore.”

Mark nodded. “Nathan said to stay in bed today and if you’re not feeling better tomorrow, I’ll call Dr. Perez.”

I spent the day in bed reading, watching TV, and sleeping. Jason came in after dinner and stayed with me, though we didn’t make love or even kiss. I didn’t want to get him sick and hoped I hadn’t already.

The next morning, I woke the same way, running into the bathroom to vomit. When Mark came in to check on me after breakfast, I was trying to get comfortable. I was a stomach sleeper, but my breasts felt weird and hurt and I couldn’t lay as I wanted to.

I let out a growl as Mark was entering.

“What’s wrong?” he asked with a laugh.

“Can’t get comfortable.”

“That happens when you’re sick. Do you want some Advil?”

“Maybe. I just want to stretch out on my stomach, but my—” I stopped, cheeks turning pink.

“What?”

“My breasts hurt.”

Mark’s eyes widened. “What?”

My cheeks turned pinker. “They hurt,” I said, pointing to my chest.

Mark looked down at my shirt-covered breasts. “Fuck,” he mumbled under his breath. “Fuck!” He turned on his heel and stormed out of the room.

I stared at the open door in shock. Mark was usually so even-tempered. What had upset him?

Dr. Perez arrived an hour later. He looked at me carefully and asked me a lot of questions about how I was feeling. Then he handed me a plastic cup. “Go urinate in it and leave it on the counter.”

I frowned in confusion. “Ooookay,” I said slowly.

I heard the doctor and Mark talking quietly in Spanish when I returned a few minutes later. Mark was running his hands through his hair, looking extremely agitated.

Dr. Perez disappeared into the bathroom, emerging a few minutes later with a sober look on his kind face. He looked at Mark and nodded, to which Mark let out another loud curse.

I looked between the two men, thoroughly confused.
What was going on?

Dr. Perez sat next to me and took my hand. “Kyra,
querida
, you’re pregnant.”

My mouth dropped open and I stared at the older man. “What?”

“You’re pregnant. The nausea, the achiness, the tiredness.” He motioned to my breasts. “Your tender, swollen breasts. They’re all pregnancy symptoms.”

I looked at Mark. His face was pale and his hands were locked on top of his head. “But… how?” I looked back at Dr. Perez. “I mean, Jason used a condom when we were on the boat and you gave me the… oh, no!” My hands flew to my mouth as the realization hit me. “It’s Nathan’s?”

“Nathan never wears a condom,” Mark said. “We don’t have to here. Most girls are already on some sort of birth control when they get here. Fuck, he’s going to kill me.” He walked over to the window and stared outside.

My thoughts turned immediately to Jason.
How would Jason react to me carrying another man’s child? Would Nathan punish me?
“What will happen to me?” I asked. “Will he make me… get rid of it?”

“Unlikely,” Mark answered from the window. “He doesn’t like the idea of abortions.” He turned and gave me a wry smile. “I honestly don’t know, Kyra. But I’ll do my best to keep you safe.”

I swallowed nervously.
Would Nathan hurt me?

“I’ll need to take the IUD out after you tell him,” Dr. Perez said.

Mark nodded and inhaled deeply. “I’ll call you and let you know how he reacts.”

After Dr. Perez left, Mark slumped into the chair in the corner of the room. He tapped his fist on his lips and stared at the wall across the room. Finally, he sighed and looked at me. “I’m not sure if I should take you with me or not when I tell him.”

“Will he hurt me?”

Mark squinted at me in confusion. “Why would you ask that?”

“He got so angry when he thought I was… someone else.”

He grimaced. “He felt bad about that. About hurting you. He wasn’t in his right mind when he did that.” He gave me a sympathetic look. “Nathan has a temper, but he’s not a violent man.”

“He spanked me. Hard.”

“He was disciplining you. Discipline is different than abuse.” Mark stared at the wall in silence again. His face became resolved and he stood. “Get dressed. I’m going to take you with me.”

Ten minutes later, I followed Mark down the stairs and across the courtyard to Nathan’s office. I was shaking like crazy, terrified of Nathan’s reaction.

Amé and Laurie were sitting out in the grass and they waved at me. I gave a small wave back and tried to keep the nervous nausea at bay.

Mark knocked on the door and I heard Nathan’s firm “Come.” My stomach churned. “Mark…” I whispered, covering my mouth with my hand.

Mark cursed and dragged me through the office and into the bathroom. When my stomach was calm again, he gave me a towel to wipe my face with and then we returned to the office.

Nathan looked at us with a cocked brow. “You brought her in here so she could share her germs?” he asked in a dry tone.

“No, sir…” Mark trailed off. He cursed under his breath and pulled me slightly behind him. “Kyra’s not sick, she’s… pregnant.”

Nathan’s eyes filled with anger as he looked at me. He stood, hands on his desk. “That fucking fucker,” he growled.

I stepped back in fear as he continued to glare at me.

“If he weren’t doing such a good job, I’d fucking—”

“Nathan, it’s not Jason’s baby,” Mark interrupted. “And she’s only been with one other man.”

A myriad of emotions flickered across Nathan’s face until he finally paled and sat back down hard in his chair. “You’re saying it’s mine?”

I winced as Mark nodded. Nathan’s eyes grew wide as he looked back at me. His eyes searched my body, seemingly for confirmation. When they latched onto my breasts, he took in a deep breath. “Oh.”

The room was silent as Mark and I waited for Nathan’s reaction. He stared at me, eyes unreadable. After an eternity, he stood and walked out of the room without another word.

I looked at Mark. “That went better than I expected.”

“What happens now?” I asked.

He shrugged. “I have no idea.”

I went back to my room a few minutes later when Nathan didn’t return. I laid down in bed and stared out the window. My mind felt like mush, unable to think of anything for more than a few seconds.

What will happen next? What will Jason say? What will Nathan do? Will Jason not want to be with me anymore? Will Nathan punish me? Will I be achy the entire pregnancy? Does giving birth hurt as bad as it seems in the movies? When does morning sickness end? What will Jason say? What will Nathan do?
On and on, the questions circled in my mind until I finally fell asleep.

I awoke to a gentle hand on my forehead. My eyes slowly opened and I gasped when I saw Nathan sitting on my bed next to me. He didn’t look angry.

“Hello, Kitten,” he said in a gentle voice. “How are you feeling?”

“Fine, thank you, Patrón,” I answered in a voice just above a whisper.

He stroked my cheek, his eyes soft. “I’m not angry at you. You don’t need to be afraid.” He leaned down and kissed me gently on the lips. “I won’t hurt you.”

I gave him a timid smile and he grinned. He looked… different. Happy maybe? Not that he’d been necessarily unhappy before, but now… I couldn’t pinpoint the difference.

“Why are you looking at me like that?” he asked, nuzzling my cheek.

I bit my lip. I hadn’t meant to show my thoughts on my face. “You seem different.”

He raised his brows. “Good different or bad different?”

“Good, I think.”

He grinned again. “Good.” He kissed me again, this time deeper. I was reluctant at first, thinking of Jason, and Nathan pulled away with a firm look on his face. “Kyra, first and foremost, you belong to me. Not Jason.”

Was he a mind reader?
“Yes, Patrón.”

Nathan’s brow twitched and he got a thoughtful look on his face. After a moment, his face softened even more. “I want you to call me Nathan from now on.”

My eyes widened. “What?” I asked without thinking first.

His hand slid down to my still-flat belly. “You’re carrying my child. I don’t want my child born to a slave.”

My mouth opened in confusion. “You don’t?”

“No, Kitten, I don’t. I was having a difficult time thinking of you as such, anyway.” He nuzzled my cheek. “You are mine. My girl.
Mi vida
.”

I knew I didn’t want to upset him. I liked that he was being affectionate. But…
Jason
. I loved Jason. I wanted Jason. Oh, how would Jason take all this?

As if to answer my question, there was a knock at the door and Jason walked in. “You awake, hon?” He froze when he saw Nathan leaning over me. Jason took a deep breath to calm himself before speaking. As possessive as he was of me, he had learned to control himself around Nathan, lest he not let us be together. “What are you doing in here?”

Nathan sat up and looked at him casually. “I was making sure Kyra was alright.”

Jason frowned at him and then looked at me. I looked away, feeling extremely guilty.

“
Is
she alright?”

“Yes. More than alright, actually.” Nathan smiled down at me. “She’s carrying my child.”

Jason grabbed his midsection as if he’d been hit in the stomach and stared at me. “You’re… pregnant?” he asked in a hoarse voice.

I nodded, giving him a look of longing and sorrow.

“But… how…?” He looked at Nathan. “How do you know it’s not mine?”

“Did you have unprotected sex with her?” Nathan’s eyes grew fierce.

Jason’s jaw clenched. “No,” he said after a moment. “You fucker.
You
did? After Mark warned me about her getting pregnant? Is that why? So you could?”

Nathan sighed. “Jason, I didn’t plan this. I didn’t do it on purpose. I had every intention of leaving the two of you alone. You were doing good work, Kyra was happy. Things were working very well. But…” He gave Jason an apologetic look. “I’m sorry, Jason.”

Jason stared at Nathan, hands clenching into fists. “You fucking bastard!” Jason yelled. “You can’t take her away from me. I’ll fucking sabotage the—”

Nathan stood. “I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” he said in a calm voice. “I can make your life a living hell if you do anything to sabotage this project.”

Jason snorted. “Like you haven’t already.”

Nathan’s brow cocked. “If you do anything stupid, I will tell the Colombians
you
are the reason their order will not be ready in time and then turn you over to them. I assure you, they will not give you a comfortable bed to sleep in and good food to eat. They will likely torture you to death over a very long period of time.”

Jason’s chest heaved as he glared at Nathan. After a long moment, his eyes closed and he took a deep breath. “Why couldn’t you have just left her alone?” he whispered, then turned on his heel to leave the room. He glanced back and gave me a gentle look. “I still love you, Kyra.” He opened the door and left before I could respond.

I turned and buried my face in my pillow, sobbing. Nathan had taken Jason away from me for the final time. We would not be together again and my heart ached like nothing else I’d ever felt. I knew I should be thankful Nathan wasn’t angry, but Jason was my first boyfriend. I loved him. And now, every day, I would have to suffer once again—being near him and not being allowed to be with him.

Nathan sat back down on the bed and rubbed my back. “I’m sorry, Kyra. I didn’t want to hurt you. But… this will be better, I promise.” He kissed my shoulder. “No one can take me away from you. I’ll do my best to make you happy.” His hand ran slowly up and down my arm. “You’ll only be mine. You won’t be with anyone else.”

I sniffed and looked up at him. “Really?”

He nodded. “Why would I let anyone else touch the mother of my child?”

I opened my mouth, wanting to know about him. Would
he
be with other women? But I figured it was probably a presumptuous question. He was the Patrón. Why would he limit himself to just one woman? He owned eight others. And they were far more experienced than me.