Page 55 of Ruin Me Sweetly

“You’re going to have a little boy,” the nurse said.

Bella’s fingers came to rest on my nape as I pulled back.

“A son,” I whispered, unashamed this time, as another tear broke free.

“Oh, Luke,” she murmured, tears shining in her pretty blue eyes.

I kissed her forehead before we turned back to stare at our tiny miracle.

“A son and a daughter. We’ve got Zach as a spare,” I snickered.

She slapped my hip—decent of her, all things considered, since she could have aimed elsewhere.

The silence that followed was perfect. Each of us lost in our own thoughts, watching the son we’d created. She had no idea just how much planning it had taken to get me to phase four.

Once all the checks were done, Bella was handed some paper towels to wipe down her belly. I took them from her instead and began wiping away the gel myself.

“Oh, you’ve got a good one,” the nurse joked.

Instead of joking back, Bella’s response was as loving as her heart.

“I really do,” she murmured, reaching up to cup my cheek.

I crumpled the paper towels in my fist and kissed her one last time before we went to show the kids their new sibling. We’d decided to surprise them on the day of the birth, rather than reveal his gender now.

In twenty-six to twenty-seven weeks, we’d meet our child.

All I had to do was ensure there was extra staff on hand. A personal bodyguard, or potentially just locking her in our bedroom until she gave birth.

That could get messy, though.

Amber came running toward us, Zach following at a more casual pace behind her, though his gaze lingered on Bella’s stomach before flicking up to meet mine.

Yes, son. Come to Daddy.

I smiled. He ignored me.

Amber was hopping in place, clutching the scan picture. Once she managed to stop bouncing long enough, she showed it to Zach. They held it together, and I watched as Zach slid an arm around Amber’s shoulders.

“I’m glad he’s staying with us,” Bella sighed.

“Yes. You never know—we could be grandparents soon.”

She tried to pinch me. The joke was on her. I had an excellent fat-to-muscle ratio.

Chapter 27

Isabella

Just as I was about to take a sip of my mango milkshake, the one I’d been craving all morning, my phone rang. Rhea stared at it in disgust.

Luke.

“You’ve got to be shitting me,” she muttered. “You do realise if he wasn’t your husband, you could get a restraining order against him, right?”

I stared at the evil bastard through the restaurant window.

That low-life piece of shit. That backstabbing son of a pimp.