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Because doing so was dangerous, thoughtless, and placed a bright red target on the child’s back.
“Yes.” Her eyes continued to search mine, never blinking. The woman was barely breathing. But searching my soul for affirmation I wasn’t furious with her.
With the baby.
Stymied in my emotional stability, I didn’t react nearly fast enough. Isabel tossed the covers toward me, hurriedly crawling toward the other side of the bed to try to escape. That wasn’t going to happen. She would not walk away from me.
Without thinking, without so much as realizing I could crush her emotions, I yanked her back, pulling her close to me. “Isabel.”
“Just go away. Please. You don’t want the baby and that’s fine with me. I don’t know what I’ll do, but I will decide. I will take control of my life. Not you.” She’d raised her voice, spitting fire and brimstone as I’d come to expect from her.
And dear God, I realized at that moment just how much I loved her.
I swept my hand behind her head, digging my fingers into her scalp and pulling her forward. She slammed her hand against my chest, amazing me with her strength as she managed to keep me at arm’s length.
“Don’t you understand?” I told her. “I want this baby. Whether a boy or a girl, he or she is very wanted. So are you, Isabel.”
“Damn you. Too little, too late. You’ve spent so much time warning me, protecting me.”
“Is that so wrong?”
“It’s wrong because you’re a killer!” The obvious exclamation point was followed by the snarl appearing on her upper lip. As if she’d screamed obscenities. “I’m sorry. The doctor said I might be a little more emotional than usual.”
“Being emotional is understandable. But you’re right. I am a killer.”
Her features softened as her eyes implored mine.
“How can either one of us even consider bringing a child into such a horrible world? Can you imagine the little girl or boy’s childhood? Sorry, baby boy, but your daddy can’t attend your birthday party because he’s out hunting pigs. Not the animal, sweetie, but the latest man to betray him.”
Even while she was pushing me away, her fingers were curling around my shirt.
“What is he going to do when he finds the traitor?” she continued. “Well, I think a pig roast in order. Complete with a spit over a very nice hot fire. Is that what you want?”
“A little dramatic. Don’t you think?” I tugged her even closer.
“Not dramatic enough and very truthful.” She wiggled and with the strength of her upper body, she almost slipped from my hold.
“You did offer a very creative idea.”
“You’re incorrigible. Should I remember the story of you killing all those workers today? We’ll make it a bedtime story for his third birthday.”
“Well, you could except you’d be fabricating the entire thing.” At least my admittance caught her off guard. She blinked several times, finally allowing her heated gaze to settle on me.
“What? You didn’t kill them?”
“Net,” I answered in Russian. “I bought the company instead.”
You bet I knocked the wind out of her sails. “What?”
“You heard me. Those responsible left the workers who were all from Kingville to suffer the consequences. They make tee shirts. I thought it would be a nice addition to my business.”
“You are… just when I feel righteous in hating you, there you go again and do something amazing.” She laughed as she gripped both sides of my shirt, pulling herself closer to me. The sheet slipped away and she was able to wrap her legs around mine. “What am I saying? You made a choice not to eliminate a group of people and I just called that amazing.”
“I guess it is.”
“Pretty sad.”
Using the knuckle of my index finger, I lifted her head. “What’s really bothering you, that I didn’t catch the people involved, which I will?”
