Chapter 48
Skye
I slept much better than I expected and by the time I woke up the following day, it was already late morning. I couldn’t believe how tired I was. I was never usually this tired. Ever. Luca was no longer around.
But when I tried to get up the world spun around me and I fell back onto the bed. The worrying moment passed quickly, but why did I feel so weak and unbalanced? Perhaps it was hunger? I could only remember eating small bites and portions over the last several days, so the first thing on my agenda was a huge breakfast.
Now that I realized it, I was so wiped out I couldn’t even properly recall how I’d been brought up to this room. I looked at my ring. I took my phone out and took a picture of it, then I sent the picture to Katie.
Her reply was instantaneous and full of emojis and gifs of shocked cats falling over.
WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Half asleep but will call you in a few hours. Get ready to tell all.
I calculated the time difference and realized it was four in the morning in Boston. With a sigh I rose and headed into the bathroom. After a steamy shower, I felt a hundred times better and refreshed so I tightened the tie of my robe and went towards the balcony. It was quite cold so I didn’t bother stepping out, but through the glass doors, the view beyond took my breath away. We were right by the ocean, and in the distance, were mountains and cliffs with houses built into them. It was like a painting and as I stared, I could feel my whole body relax and calm down.
My stomach grumbled then so I turned around and went to my suitcase where I found a pale green sweater and a pair of dark blue jeans. Then I tied my hair up in a ponytail. I knew I would be meeting Luca’s parents at some point today so I put a little bit more effort in my makeup. I was nervous about meeting them and wanted to try and look presentable. When I was ready I headed over to the door.
I pulled it open and peeked out into the lavishly decorated corridor. I didn’t want to just go wandering off in someone else’s home, but at the same time I didn’t want to remain in the room. At that moment a message pinged in my phone. My heart lurched when I saw it was from Luca.
Awake?
I sent back my reply.
Awake and very hungry.
His reply warmed my heart.
I’ll come get you. We’ll have breakfast together.
A few minutes later, he arrived at the door and I pulled it open for him. He looked dashing. Dressed in all black and with his hair in thick waves and a slight facial growth he looked nothing short of a regal Italian Prince.
“Ready?” he asked softly.
I nodded shyly and went with him. He led me through the beautiful villa to the ground floor dining room where a lavish buffet was laid out. A servant waiting by the table wished us both good morning in Italian.
“Would you like a cooked breakfast?” Luca asked me.
I shook my head. Even the thought made me feel slightly nauseous. Luca spoke to the man in Italian. He explained to me that he had opted for a slice of toast and some poached eggs. I immediately gravitated towards the fruit and fiber cereal. Everything on the table looked delicious but I only had the appetite for something sweet.
We sat at a round dining table overlooking the pool.
“My parents wanted to meet you earlier,” he said.
I nearly choked on my mouthful of milk and cereal.
He handed me a napkin that I eagerly accepted and quickly dabbed my mouth with.
“They’ll be back later for lunch,” he continued calmly. “So perhaps they can meet you then.”
“Alright,” I said.
“I also have twin sisters, but they’re currently at boarding school in New York. No doubt, you’ll meet them sometime in the future.”
I was quite surprised at that. That he had twin sisters and he mentioned a future where I was part of it. “Really? How old are they?
“Sixteen,” he replied.
I nodded.
I continued on with my meal. Then the waiter came to the table with a plate decked with golden yellow scrambled eggs and slices of buttered toast.
It looked delicious, but when the smell of the eggs reached my nostrils, my stomach suddenly lurched. I turned away and stood so fast I nearly threw my chair to the ground.
“Skye,” Luca called anxiously, as he too stood.
I held out a hand to hold him at bay as I dry heaved. “Sorry,” I muttered. “It’s okay. I’m fine.”
When I was calm again I faced him. His eyes raked my face while I tried to settle the bout of nausea that had suddenly attacked me. I found I couldn’t even return to my seat. The smell was that horrible to me.
“I think… I think I'm not really hungry,” I said, with a frown.
I looked at him and he was staring at me with a strange expression on his face. As if he had seen a ghost. He looked like a stranger. I froze. Then he asked the most dreadful of all questions.
“Are you pregnant?”
Chapter 49
Skye
Before I could answer him and tell him there was no way I was pregnant, a man walked into the room. I tore my eyes away from Luca’s strangely stunned face. The man who had entered the room didn’t look like Luca, but I knew instantly that he was Luca’s father. He had cold, dead eyes, which he trained on me.
I felt the blood drain from my face. There could be no worse way to meet my new father-in-law than this. I took a deep breath and tried to smile at him, but he didn’t smile back. He then turned his gaze to his son.
Slowly, as if he was moving in a dream, Luca stood. “This is Skye, father,” he said robotically. “Skye, meet my father.”
His father came forward and stood in front of me. Even though he was no longer young there was something dangerous about him. I had an instinctive fear of him and I had to resist the urge to move backward. I heard him exhale softly. “Now I see why my eldest son was so bewitched.”
“Father,” I heard Luca warn.
His father did not turn to him, he kept his cold eyes on me. “Take it easy, Luca. It was a compliment. If I was thirty years younger who knows… I might have done the same.”
I swallowed hard. I couldn’t understand the undercurrents of their conversation. I clasped my hands together. “I… I was just going for a walk so I’ll leave you both to talk. Please excuse me.”
“Really? It looks as if you’ve hardly touched your meal,” he murmured.
I was shocked by how keen his powers of observation were. I forced a smile. “I realized I wasn’t hungry after all. It was really nice to meet you.”
“Yes, it was nice meeting you too.” His smile didn’t reach his eyes. “All right then, enjoy your walk around the grounds while I have a quick word with my son.”
“See you both later,” I called out, and without looking at Luca I escaped from that sunny room.
I walked down a corridor that led to the front door. Once outside I realized I had no coat on and it was cold. Not as cold as Boston, but windy. The salt filled air blew at me as I walked towards the beach.
Luca was wrong. I wasn’t pregnant. Of course, I wasn’t. The very thought was ludicrous. I was on the pill and more importantly, I was almost paranoid about accidentally forgetting to take it so I was meticulous in my habit. I hadn’t missed a night since the day I went on it.
So I wasn’t upset because I could be pregnant, I knew I wasn’t. I was probably just sickening for something. I was upset because of the way Luca had responded to the idea that I might be pregnant. He looked as if it was the worst news he could ever have heard. The thought clearly horrified him. I could lie as much as I wanted to myself, but it was now undeniable that my only value to him was as a body in bed.
All he wanted from me was sex.
It distressed me greatly and I felt as if I wanted to cry my eyes out, but I hardened my heart. I was just being a fool. What did I expect? He never promised me love. In fact, he made it obvious that he would tire of me quickly.
I could see men in dark
suits hanging around the periphery of the grounds. When I reached the sand I walked blindly towards the beach. Once on the sand I took my shoes off and began towards the water’s edge. I was shivering, but I carried on walking until I was walking on wet sand. Seagulls flew overhead as freezing cold waves started to froth around my toes.
I felt so lost. So utterly unhappy. I wanted to scream at the sea.
Suddenly, I felt my skin begin to prickle. I turned around and saw Luca walking towards me. The wind whipped my hair into my face, and I pulled the strands away and held them down.
He came and stood next to me. Taking his jacket off he draped it around my shoulders. His face was veiled and he looked like the unknowable stranger I’d first met at the party.
“You don’t look well,” he said, his voice mixed with the sound of the waves.
“I’m not pregnant.” I told the sea. “I’ve been taking my pills.”
“I’ve sent someone into town to get a pregnancy kit. It is not foolproof at this stage, but I believe it can give a reading even at three weeks.”
I nodded. “Sure, I’ll take the test.”
We walked back to the house together in silence. I wanted to say something, but the words wouldn’t come. At the front door he said, “I have work to do, I’ll see you when the kits come.”
Then he walked down the corridor and disappeared into the depths of the house. I went up to our bedroom and lay on the bed staring at the ceiling. Katie called, but I couldn’t answer the phone. Very soon, there was a soft knock on the door. I went to open it. A dark haired girl in a uniform stood holding a tray.
“Breakfast,” she said simply in a strong accent.
Luca must have sent it. I thanked her and relieved her of the tray. There was a bowl filled with cereal and fruit and a jug of milk. I tried to eat some, but the sensation of wanting to be sick returned. I abandoned trying to eat, and lay on the bed. Thirty minutes later, the door opened and Luca walked in. He held two packets in his hands. Wordlessly he came to the bed and held them out for me.
I took them from him and went to the bathroom. My heart was pounding so viciously against my chest that I could barely breathe. I tore the stick out of the packet and sat on the toilet bowl. I was ready to march out of that bathroom and show him I wasn’t pregnant and he could go back to just fucking me day and night. But I knew in my heart something had changed. I could no longer pretend to myself that he felt something for me. There was something special between us. Something he couldn’t talk about, but it was there.
A few minutes later I stared at the result in shock. I felt as if I had gone completely numb. It was impossible. It must be a mistake.
“Skye,” Luca called and my hands went over my mouth.
I rose to my feet and pulled my panties up. Then I went to open the door. I handed the stick over to him and went to sit on the bed. I actually needed to sit down. I never ever in my wildest dreams ever thought I’d be pregnant. How could it be?
A deathly silence filled the room. I then heard him as he came around to me. I couldn’t face him.
“You’re pregnant.”
“So it seems.” I think I was in such shock that my voice came out flippant and nonchalant. As if I didn’t care either way. Nothing could be further from the truth. I cleared my throat and tried again. “I didn’t do this on purpose. I’m just as shocked as you are.”
He stared at me as if he was seeing me for the first time and what he saw disgusted him.
“Don’t worry. I won’t ask you to take care of it, or anything like that. I’ll sort everything out myself.”
“Is ‘sort everything out’ a euphemism for get rid of it?” His voice was so cold a bone chilling fear overwhelmed me.
“I didn’t mea—”
“That’s my child you’re carrying,” he snarled. “And you're my wife. And I will never allow you to get rid of it, do you understand me?”
I stopped breathing. “I wasn’t going to.”
“Spare me,” he said coldly. “If you don’t want the child, you can hand it over to me after it is born.”
Bewildered, I stared at him. I couldn’t even believe we were having this conversation. “Why would I hand over my child to you?”
“I am leaving for Boston tonight. My visit here is over. You can either stay here and finish your vacation, or you can travel back with me.”
I jumped to my feet. “I’ll come with you.”
“Fine. Be ready to leave at seven.” Then he turned on his heel and left.
I stared at the closed door, my strength starting to crumble. The tears I had been fighting so hard to keep at bay poured down my face.
Chapter 50
Luca
I did it again.
I walked out of our bedroom wanting to smash everything in sight. All kinds of emotions churned in my gut. I trusted her. I let my guard down and trusted her. I actually believed the fantasy she had weaved. What a fool I was. Once was not enough for me.
I have to go and make the same damn mistake again. I trusted another of her species. Heartless liars all of them. They are beautiful to look at but they are poison. They use their bodies to lure hapless men into their snares.
Beautiful liar.
I strode down the corridor and ran quickly down the stairs. I could feel my blood roaring in my ears as I went into the library. My father was sitting on an armchair smoking his pipe and playing a game of chess with himself. His old dog, Punto, was curled up in his lap. The dog was almost twenty now. When I was growing up, I sometimes thought he loved the dog more than he did his own family.
He looked up at me curiously.
“Something has come up. I’m leaving tonight,” I said.
For a second he said nothing, then he took his pipe out of his mouth. “I read a story once in a Russian newspaper. It was about a man who picked a beautiful flower growing in the wild and brought it home. His beloved cat ate it and died. Some flowers are to be admired from afar, never brought home.”
I swallowed hard. For the first time in my life I wanted to punch my father really hard. Yes, she was a poisonous flower, but she was my poisonous flower and I couldn’t bear for anyone to say anything bad about her.
“She’s pregnant,” I said coldly.
He looked at me expressionlessly and I knew what he was thinking, but even he dared not say those words. I turned away from him and walked out of his presence.
I found my mother in the music room. She was on the telephone. She ended her call abruptly and called to me to sit next to her. I stood over her.
“I’m leaving tonight, Mama. Something has come up.”
“Oh,” she exclaimed surprised. “Will you be coming back?”
“No, I will see you in Boston when you return in spring.”
“But I have not even met Skye,” she protested.
“She is in the bedroom now. You can go up and meet her if you want.”
She seemed astonished. “Without you?”
“Yes, I have to go out now.”
“What is going on, Luca?”
“Nothing is going on. I’m just rushed for time.”
“I see. I arranged a dinner party in your honor and to welcome Skye into the family.”
“I’m sorry to spoil your plans.”
She stood. “What’s wrong, Luca?”
“Nothing is wrong. Anyway, you should know Skye is pregnant.”
She frowned. “That is great news, but why do you not seem happy about it?”
“I am happy,” I said, and to my shock I realized that was the truth. Despite everything I wanted that child. I wanted a child I could call mine again. It was too long since I saw a little face look up to me and a little voice call me Papa.
Chapter 51
Skye
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1y6smkh6c-0
-Don’t You Worry Child-
The flight back was unbearable. I stayed alone in the bedroom for most of the flight and Luca remained in the main cabin and work
ed on his laptop. When I ventured out once I saw he had fallen asleep in his chair. My heart bled to see him sleep in that uncomfortable position because he did not want to come to the bedroom and share the bed with me.
The journey back to Torrington Hall was accomplished in total silence. I lay my head back and kept my eyes closed. I loved this place and yet I could feel no joy to see the big gates open to let us in. When we reached the house, Melania was standing at the doorway to welcome us back.
Luca nodded at her curtly and walked into the house.
“What’s wrong?” she asked me gently.
And that was my undoing. I threw my arms around her and sobbed like a child.
“There, there,” she consoled. “Nothing is as bad as it first seems. Come with me. What you need is a big mug of hot chocolate, but not just any hot chocolate, but my secret recipe.”
Feeling utterly miserable I followed her into the servants’ quarters until we came to a small door. She unlocked it and I followed her into a small living room. It was simply decorated in shades of cream and sage green and was surprisingly classy. She led the way through to a small kitchen.
“Have a seat,” she invited as she rummaged around her cupboards for the ingredients needed to make her special hot chocolate.
Sniffing I pulled myself onto a stool at the small square island. She didn’t speak while she boiled the milk and chocolate. Afterwards she dropped in a few marshmallows and came to sit with me.
“What about you? Aren’t you going to have some too?”
She smiled. “Nope. I only have this on my birthday and special occasions.”
I blew the surface and took a sip. She was right, it was easily the best hot chocolate I’d ever tasted. “This is delicious,” I said.
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