Chapter 45 Unexpected News
Elena
“Roman, we have a child together.” I’m pregnant… or at least I… I was,” I stutter, my heart pounding in my chest.
I planned to tell him calmly, but I think I’ll have to do this.
Roman tenses. His eyes study my face for a second before he laughs.
“Very funny, wolf,” he says, running a hand through his hair.
“No, Roman, I’m serious. I had a baby.”
His dark brown eyes land on me.
“Funny,” he says calmly.
I groan internally, rising to my feet. I begin to pace in front of him. He watches calmly, the worry etched into his face.
“We had sex last year,” I said.
“I remember,” he says, crossing his arms over his chest again. “What do you think?”
“I mean, it led to the baby. I was pregnant. And then I gave birth.” I continued.
Roman blinks. Slowly. It would be funny if I weren’t so scared.
“That’s why I moved to London for a year,” I explain softly. “I was pregnant, and I had to hide it from you, from everyone. And I’m so sorry I did that. I was trying to do the right thing. I thought it might help if I stayed away for a year. So I did. I went away and had a baby. It’s a girl. Her name is…”
“Shut up,” Roman says icily.
My mouth snaps shut. His expression is darker than I’ve ever seen it. I watch him slowly rise to his feet.
“Elena, you seem really upset right now. What the hell are you talking about?” He was damn serious.
“You, you have a baby. A little girl,” I say, my heart pounding.
He lets out a sharp laugh.
“That’s nonsense. You never got pregnant, and instead of telling me, you decided to cross the ocean!”
“I can explain…” I continued.
“No! I’m tired of hearing this,” he says, clearly angry.
“Roman, I…” He interrupted.
“Just stop, okay? Damn it, stop.”
He takes a deep breath and, taking one last look at me, walks away, leaving the apartment. As soon as he’s gone, I collapse onto the couch. My head is in my hands, and my eyes are filled with tears.
“Well, that went really badly,” I tell myself.
With nothing better to do, I text Kiara and ask her to come home with my baby. She comes into the apartment with a worried expression on her face, especially when she realizes the fact that he is not here. “Where is Roman?”
“He left,” I answer categorically, taking Cassie from her arms.”
She has already woken up with a pleasant expression. I carry her to the couch and sit down, making soft cooing sounds. Her cheeks are flushed, and her short dark hair is slightly disheveled. She is the most beautiful thing I have ever seen.
“What happened?” Kiara asks, still standing by the door. “You didn’t tell him?”
I let out a sharp laugh. “I told him.”
“Then what?” She was curious.
“And nothing, Ki. He didn’t believe me. I tried to talk to him, but he just left.” I said.
“It’s…” Kiara trails off.
I just sigh before turning my attention to the bundle of joy in my arms. Her brown eyes practically sparkle as she looks at me.
“I love you so much,” I breathe, pulling her closer to my chest.
More than anything else in the world.
Russo
We were searched three times before we were allowed into Don De Luca's private office. By the time the door opens, I feel a slight irritation, and my lips curl into a smirk when I see Roman. He's sitting at his desk in a black suit, his expression calm and composed.
"You know, if you were worried I had a bomb on me, all you had to do was ask," I say, entering the room.
Jason is right behind me. I greet the other occupants of the room. Roman's cousin Michael stands behind his chair. Tony stands against the wall, his cold brown eyes expressing his irritation.
"Do you have a bomb with you?" Roman asks with a smirk.
"Nope. If I did, we'd all be blown up by now," I tell him, sitting down in front of him without his knowledge.
Jason stands near the closed door, arms crossed over his chest. Roman's blue eyes glance at him questioningly.
"This is my best friend, Jason," I inform him. "He's like your Tony or Michael. Except he's not as upset as Tony, and not as computer savvy as that Mikey over there.
"Hey," Tony says, offended.
Mikey's expression flickers as Roman's jaw clenches.
"You did your research," he says, nodding curtly.
"Of course. I'm trying to get to know my business partners," I tell him, leaning back in my chair.
I tug at the button on my suit, letting it unbutton. I'm the epitome of easygoing, and I'm sure that will irritate Roman.
"Business partners?" he asks, his voice sharp.
“Yes. As soon as we can agree.” I said.
“You keep talking about agreements and deals. But I've never given you any indication that I'd be willing to enter into a partnership with you. I don't know you; I don't like you,” Roman declares.
“That's really mean, Rom. You know a lot more about me than most people,” I declare. “For example, you know my name. You know my face. I'd say that's enough information.”
“I also know what it's like to put a bullet in your skull,” Roman snaps.
"Wow," I grin. "Easy with the threats. We haven't even gotten to the good stuff yet."
He tilts his head to the side and shrugs. "Okay, okay. What do you want, Russo? And it better be worth my time."
I lean forward.
"As I've said since our very first conversation, Roman, I want a partnership. You and I have the potential to do something truly amazing here. You just need to keep an open mind. I want you to not only see the big picture, but to visualize it."
"Let's get down to business," Roman said.
I pause, scratching my brow before speaking. "A marriage alliance. Between our two families.”
Roman tenses. In the background, I see Tony's eyes widen. Michael is the only one who doesn't seem to react. "What the hell are you talking about?"
He didn't expect that. But he should have at least considered it. He turned it over in his mind. I sigh inwardly.