Chapter 7

Monday morning arrived too quickly.

Dani stood in front of her bathroom mirror trying to convince herself she looked normal.

The attempt failed.

She looked exhausted.

Dark circles beneath her eyes.

Tension around her mouth.

The kind of expression that came from carrying too many secrets.

Her gaze dropped to her stomach.

Nothing looked different yet.

No visible bump.

No obvious signs.

To anyone else, she looked exactly the same.

To Dani, everything had changed.

She pressed a hand lightly against her abdomen.

A strange warmth settled in her chest.

The memory of the heartbeat returned immediately.

Fast.

Strong.

Alive.

Her baby.

The thought still felt unreal.

A knock echoed from outside her apartment door.

Dani frowned.

Who would—

Another knock.

Louder.

Her pulse jumped.

Nobody ever visited unexpectedly.

She moved toward the door cautiously and looked through the peephole.

Then froze.

Julian.

Her stomach dropped.

"What the hell?"

Another knock sounded.

"Dani."

His voice carried through the door.

Calm.

Controlled.

Dangerous.

"Dani, I know you're home."

Her pulse accelerated instantly.

How?

How did he know where she lived?

Then she remembered.

Of course he knew.

He owned half the city.

And she worked for his company.

Finding an employee address would take him less than a minute.

The realization wasn't comforting.

"Dani."

Another knock.

This one firmer.

"We need to talk."

Absolutely not.

She wasn't having this conversation in her apartment.

Not after the clinic.

Not after the heartbeat.

Not after spending the entire weekend trying not to panic.

Her phone buzzed.

A text appeared.

Open the door.

She stared at it.

A second message followed immediately.

You're making this more difficult than it needs to be.

Her annoyance briefly overpowered her anxiety.

Difficult?

He thought she was making things difficult?

He wasn't the one secretly carrying a child.

He wasn't the one risking everything.

The unfairness of it irritated her enough to unlock the door.

Only a crack.

Just enough to glare at him.

Julian stood in the hallway wearing a charcoal suit.

Perfectly tailored.

Perfectly composed.

Perfectly intimidating.

His eyes narrowed immediately.

"You look tired."

"No good morning?"

"Good morning."

The response came automatically.

Then:

"You still look tired."

Dani rolled her eyes.

"What do you want?"

Julian studied her for a moment.

Long enough to make her uncomfortable.

"You ignored my calls."

"There were two."

"You ignored both."

She folded her arms.

"I was busy."

"Doing what?"

Dangerous question.

Very dangerous.

The clinic.

The ultrasound.

The heartbeat.

Everything she couldn't tell him.

"Personal matters."

His gaze sharpened.

"What personal matters?"

None of your business.

The words nearly escaped.

Instead she said:

"Why are you interrogating me?"

"I'm not."

"You showed up at my apartment."

"You wouldn't answer your phone."

Dani hated how reasonable he made that sound.

Because it wasn't reasonable.

It was invasive.

Possessive.

And somehow annoyingly effective.

Julian glanced down the hallway.

Then back at her.

"Are you coming to work today?"

She blinked.

"That's why you're here?"

"No."

The answer came immediately.

Honest.

Direct.

Her pulse betrayed her again.

Julian took a step closer.

Not enough to enter her space.

Enough to make her aware of him.

"You've been acting strangely for weeks."

Dani looked away.

Big mistake.

Julian noticed instantly.

"You won't even look at me."

"Because this conversation is ridiculous."

"No."

His voice lowered.

"This conversation is overdue."

Silence settled between them.

Heavy.

Uncomfortable.

Then Julian sighed.

The sound surprised her.

Frustration.

Genuine frustration.

"You disappeared."

There it was again.

The real issue.

Not the phone calls.

Not the fundraiser.

Not the pregnancy test.

Her disappearance.

The two months she'd spent avoiding him.

"I thought that's what you wanted."

Julian's expression hardened.

"You thought wrong."

The words landed harder than she expected.

Because part of her had believed exactly that.

That he'd regretted the night.

That he'd wanted distance.

That avoiding him was doing both of them a favor.

Apparently not.

The realization complicated everything.

As if things weren't complicated enough already.

---

Vance Holdings felt different after the weekend.

Or maybe Dani felt different.

Every hallway seemed narrower.

Every conversation seemed louder.

Every interaction felt loaded with possibility.

Secrets had a way of changing ordinary things.

"Dani!"

She looked up.

Megan from Marketing hurried toward her.

"Stella's looking for you."

Of course she was.

Dani thanked her and headed toward the executive floor.

The elevator ride felt endless.

By the time the doors opened, her nerves were stretched thin.

Stella's office door stood open.

"Daniella."

Stella smiled as she entered.

Beautiful.

Elegant.

Controlled.

Exactly as always.

Yet after Friday night, Dani found herself studying the woman differently.

Watching for signs.

Searching for hidden meaning.

"How was your weekend?" Stella asked.

The question sounded casual.

Dani immediately distrusted it.

"Good."

"Liar."

The word arrived with a smile.

Dani froze.

Stella laughed lightly.

"Oh, relax."

Her pulse remained elevated.

"I only meant nobody who worked on that fundraiser had a good weekend."

Relief arrived.

Small.

Temporary.

Because Stella was still watching her carefully.

Always watching.

Always noticing.

"You seem distracted."

There it was again.

The observation.

Not an accusation.

Not yet.

A warning.

Dani forced a smile.

"Just tired."

"Mm."

Stella tapped a manicured fingernail against her desk.

Thoughtful.

Calculating.

Then she asked:

"Have you and Julian argued recently?"

Every muscle in Dani's body locked.

The question hit like a punch.

"What?"

Stella tilted her head.

"He seems irritated."

Dani's pulse thundered.

"I wouldn't know."

"Really?"

The smile remained.

Perfect.

Polite.

Terrifying.

"Because he keeps looking for you."

Silence.

Pure silence.

Stella noticed it.

Of course she did.

The smile widened slightly.

Interesting.

That single word wasn't spoken aloud.

Yet Dani somehow heard it anyway.

---

An hour later, Dani escaped to the break room.

She needed coffee.

Or water.

Or oxygen.

Something.

Anything.

She stepped inside.

And stopped.

Julian was there.

Alone.

Waiting.

Her stomach dropped.

His eyes lifted immediately.

Locked onto hers.

There was no surprise in his expression.

He'd known she would come.

The realization sent another warning through her chest.

The door clicked shut behind her.

The room suddenly felt much smaller.

Julian set his coffee cup down.

Then spoke.

Quietly.

Dangerously.

"Where were you on Friday morning?"

Dani's heart stopped.

The clinic.

The ultrasound.

The heartbeat.

The secret.

Every possible answer flashed through her mind.

None of them safe.

None of them is good.

Julian's gaze never left her face.

Waiting.

Watching.

Calculating.

And for the first time since the fundraiser, Dani realized something terrifying.

Julian wasn't letting this go.

Not until he found the truth.