Page 142 of The Enemy Protector
My hands shake as I open the first box.
This is ridiculous. I’m a grown woman. I can handle this. I’ve killed a man. I’ve faced down assassins and board members and my own cousin who wants me dead. I can take a pregnancy test.
I follow the instructions. Pee on the stick. Wait three minutes. Read the results.
Simple.
I set the test on the counter and force myself to walk away. I sit on the edge of the bathtub and think of the many ways my life will change if I see two pink lines.
When I finally look at the test, there they are. Two pink lines staring back at me.
Positive.
My vision blurs. I blink and realize I’m crying.
I take the second test. Same result.
The third test. Same result.
Three tests. Three positive results.
I’m pregnant.
I slide down to the bathroom floor and pull my knees to my chest. I don’t know if they’re happy tears or terrified tears or some combination of both.
I’m pregnant with Sergei Sokolov’s child.
The man I married for protection. The man who has somehow become the most important person in my life.
I’m carrying his baby.
Our baby.
I don’t know how long I sit there on the bathroom floor before I hear the bedroom door open.
“Sofia?” Sergei’s voice carries through the bathroom door. “Are you in there?”
I quickly wipe my face and shove the pregnancy tests back into their boxes. “Yeah. I’m here.”
“Are you alright?”
No. I’m not alright.I’m pregnant and terrified and I don’t know what to do.
“I’ll be out in a minute.”
I stand on shaky legs and look at myself in the mirror. I don’t think I’ve ever allowed myself to consider pregnancy. Motherhood. I know my life. I know the challenges. I know whatI went through losing my own mother. I didn’t want to make my own child go through that pain.
I splash cold water on my face and take a deep breath.
Sergei is sitting on the edge of the bed, his elbows on his knees, his head in his hands. He looks exhausted. Defeated.
“What’s wrong?” I ask.
He looks up at me. “We found Yuri.”
My stomach drops. “Where?”
“He’s gone underground. But we have a location. Kirill is putting together a team.”
