Page 126 of Pregnant By A Rich Demon 2

Amai guided me back to the bedroom with one arm still wrapped around my waist, supporting most of my weight. My legs felt weak, my body exhausted from the violent purging, and I was grateful for his steadiness. When we reached the bed, he pulled back the covers and helped me ease down onto the mattress.

The sheets were cool against my overheated skin, and I sank into them with a sigh of relief. My stomach still felt unsettled, but the worst had passed. For now.

Amai pulled the covers up over me, tucking them around my shoulders with a care that made me melt. He smoothed my hair back from my face, his touch gentle, and I closed my eyes, too tired to do anything but accept the comfort he was offering.

“Try and get some rest,” he said quietly.

I opened my eyes and looked at him. He’d changed—dark jeans, a black t-shirt that fit him perfectly. His hair was slightly mussed, and there was a shadow of stubble along his jaw. He looked tired too, but alert. Focused.

“Where are you going?” I asked, my voice hoarse.

“To the store,” he said. “I’m going to get you something you can actually keep down.”

I wanted to tell him he didn’t have to do that. That I’d be fine. That he’d already done enough. But the truth was, I needed him to go. I needed something in my stomach that wouldn’t come back up. And I needed a moment alone to process everything that had happened in the last twenty-four hours.

“Okay,” I said instead.

He studied me for a moment, his dark eyes searching my face like he was trying to read something there. Then he leaned down and pressed a kiss to my forehead—soft, lingering, protective.

“Please call your mom,” he said when he pulled back. “I know she’s worried.”

Guilt twisted in my stomach. I hadn’t called my mama since I left with Amai yesterday. She had to be losing her mind by now.

“I will,” I said.

“Good.” He straightened and looked at me again, his expression unreadable. “I’ll be back soon.”

I nodded, and he turned and left the room. I heard his footsteps moving down the hallway, heard the front door open and close, heard the sound of his car starting in the driveway.

And then I was alone.

I lay there for a moment, staring up at the ceiling, trying to gather the energy to move. My phone was on the nightstand where I’d left it last night, and I knew I needed to call my mama. But I also knew that conversation was going to be… difficult.

Because what the hell was I supposed to tell her?

Hey, Mama. Sorry I disappeared. I’m at a lakehouse with a man I barely know who just found out his brother might be the father of my baby. Oh, and I slept with him last night in front of a fireplace, and it was the most intense, soul-altering experience of my life. But don’t worry—I’m fine.

Yeah. That would go over well.

I sighed and reached for my phone, unlocking it and pulling up my mama’s contact. My thumb hovered over the call button for a long moment before I finally pressed it.

It rang twice before she picked up.

“Where the hell have you been?”

Her voice was sharp, angry, and laced with the kind of worry that only a mother could produce. I winced and pulled the phone slightly away from my ear.

“Mama—”

“Don’t ‘Mama’ me, Truth Renois! You left with that light-skinned man yesterday and ain’t been back since! I was about to call the damn police!”

I closed my eyes and took a breath, trying to find the right words. “Mama, I’m sorry. I should have called?—”

“You damn right you should have called! I been sitting here worried sick, thinking something happened to you! You know how this city is! You know what can happen to a woman out here by herself!”

“I’m not by myself,” I said quietly. “I’m with Amai.”

There was a pause on the other end of the line. A long, heavy pause that made my stomach twist.