Page 161 of Forbidden Forget-Me-Not

Yes. She would. I closed my eyes briefly.

“Just so you know, she didn’t fight,” I said quietly. “She chose this, she chose to go.”

Nathaniel snorted.

“Spare me. The only reason Kaylani chose to leave was to buy time. Or she’s coming up with a new plan. You know that. My sister is resourceful.”

“I know, but she did it to protect me. I can’t let her.”

“Goran?”

“Yes?”

“Shut up and get off the phone so I can get going.”

I smirked, needing that.

“Yes, sir.”

I ended the call and gripped the edge of the tiny sink. The bathroom felt too small. Her toothbrush was still in the holder. A strand of her hair was caught in the corner of the mirror. The air smelled faintly like her shampoo.

Needing to keep busy, I brushed my teeth and stared at nothing. That’s when I saw it. Just the corner, almost hidden beneath a pile of tissues.

Toothbrush hanging from my mouth, I bent over and nudged the rubbish aside, revealing a gift box.

Blue and gold. Wrapped neatly, like something important and meant to be handed over with a smile.

I didn’t know why it caught my attention. But if she had gotten me a gift, she would have left it for me anyway. Maybe it was because it didn’t belong in a bathroom, or because I had never seen it before. But whatever the reason, I slowly picked it up.

I shook the box, and something rattled inside. My eyes narrowed.

It was light. Too light and noisy to be a watch. Too small and the wrong shape to be a new gun. Not that I thought she would gift me a firearm.

The ribbon slid away with a gentle tug, and I tore off the paper, revealing a plain white box with blue writing. My brain registered the brand before my heart caught up.

The world narrowed, and my fingers shook as I opened it. The pregnancy test slid out into my palm, and there it was.

Two blue lines. Undeniable.

For a second, everything froze. No air moved in my lungs. My thoughts scattered and refused to form. Then reality slammed back with all its weight.

She wasn’t just walking into a marriage. She was walking in carrying my child.

My hand clenched around the box, knuckles white. My head spun. Kaylani was pregnant. I was going to be a father.

A sharp, fractured laugh broke out of me. Of course, she wouldn’t tell me. She knew exactly what would happen if she had. I would have tied her up and never let her go. But I hadn’t signed any divorce papers, so she was pregnant and legally married to me.

Nathaniel was right. Kaylani was stacking emergency exits like a general preparing for a siege. And she was doing it alone.

“You stubborn, brilliant, too-damn-brave woman,” I murmured under my breath.

This wasn’t her sacrificing herself. It was strategy. She was buying us time, giving us a chance to rally the troops.

The air in the trailer felt different now, thicker and filled with purpose. My mind ran through every angle, every possibility.

Dimitri thought he had us in checkmate. He didn’t realize Kaylani was already three steps ahead. She was carrying the child of another man, but the baby was still Mikhailov blood. And blood changed everything like an ace card up her sleeve.

Chapter