CHAPTER FIVE
Ethan's POV
Days began to run into weeks as the woman spent longer living with me. I got to know that her name was Emily Davis, which was a moment too late for me. She never got to know of mine and never deemed it fit to ask, and however much I tried to bridge the gap between us, any sort of friendship between us remained sadly out of reach.
I moved her to a room at the very back of the house, so I wouldn't get to see the wariness and hostility in her eyes, yet it burned at the back of my head and kept me awake at night. To all and sundry in the house, I hated her as much as she hated me and I tried to make it known that I only tolerated her presence, but that was a lie. She was an attractive woman: slim, petite, with that thick brown hair I craved to run my fingers through, those freckles that dusted her nose and her cheeks, and damn, was I attracted to her!
However, I knew my place as a mafia boss and the leader of an empire, and I knew that she wasn't worth my time. She was only here to birth my heir, and I would send her out of the house the moment she successfully did that.
I patiently watched and waited for any sign, any news that she was pregnant, but I never got one. She seemed well enough the few times a week that I saw her: no paleness or sluggishness that I attributed to pregnant women. She didn't look a day close to pregnancy, and I was beginning to worry that our experiment hadn't worked.
On the day that I did get news about her, I was in my office, preparing to receive some of my mafia associates for a short meeting. I'd gone through a whole bottle of whiskey out of sheer nerves, and I could feel the alcohol's work in my body already. When my guards burst into my office, I jerked my head up in annoyance, a retort on my lips.
"What the hell is this?" I demanded as the three men stood before me.
"We're sorry to disturb your personal time, boss," One of them said as they all took deep bows before me. "But the woman...your guest...she..."
I stood up so fast my chair skidded backwards. "She what? What is wrong with her?"
The men all straightened up and my second-in-command, who stood between them, raised his head to look into my eyes.
"She collapsed not long ago, somewhere at the back of the house." He said.
I didn't realise when I'd grabbed my jacket and moved, but suddenly I was at the door, my guards closely following. I reached the grand staircase that led downstairs and began to scurry down it. "Where is she?" I yelled. "Where the fuck is she?!"
"She's in one of the cars already, sir." They called after me as I raced out of the house and down the front stairs.
Damn that woman If anything should happen to her and my heir.
I halted as I watched her being carried into the backseat of one of my Audis, and I walked forward to join them.
"Sir..." The chauffeur who was holding the door open protested, but I pushed him aside and entered into the back with Emily.
She appeared to be in a lot of pain as she was groaning uncontrollably, one hand on her belly and another swung carelessly across the back seat. I scooched in beside her and lifted her head, placing it on my laps. To others this might be nothing but an act of pure concern and perhaps for the woman, but this was nothing but an effort to make sure my baby was okay. I only cared for her because she was carrying ny heir, and nothing more.
Or so I thought.
Emily's eyes were closed, and I breathed in relief as I saw that her eyeballs were moving rapidly beneath them. She wasn't dead, at least not yet. "Take us to Beth Israel hospital." I ordered the driver, and he maneuvered the car out of the compound with a loud screech.
We got to the hospital in record time and some nurses rushed to the car, helping her out of it. I followed them as they placed her on a stretcher and wheeled her inside. I tried to follow as they took her into the ER, but one of the nurses gently held me back.
All through the wait, I could feel eyes on me, scrutinizing me. I knew they probably all wondered why I was so agitated for a woman I barely knew, and I wondered the same thing too.
We waited for almost an hour before the doctor came out of the ER. Behind him, some nurses were wheeling Emily out of the room and towards a ward, and my eyes trailed them as they went. She looked pale, much paler than when we'd left the house mere hours ago.
By God, she looked half dead already.
"How is she?" I asked, turning to the doctor. "Is she okay?"
The doctor dipped his hands into his pockets, scrutinizing my agitated face. "First off, who is she to you?"
"Oh, damn the questions, doctor." I scoffed. "Will she be fine?"
The doctor stared at me for long minutes. Then he replied. "She'll be fine."
Relief coursed through my body and I took a step back, my eyes still on the doctor. He seemed to have more news to share.
"Anything else?" I asked tentatively.
"Well, there's news, Mr Brown." He said. He then looked around the corridor we stood in, before adding. "She's pregnant. Congratulations!"
Ethan pov I rushed into the ward where Emily lay, my men closely following me. She was on a bed on the far end of the room, and her back was turned to me, but I didn't care. My heart was simply bursting at the seams with happiness.I'd finally have a child of my own.Giddy with joy, I called out. "Emily?"She turned her head to look at me. Her eyes were full of hope, as though she'd been expecting someone else, and I watched as the hope filtered away and her eyes hardened."Good morning, Mr Brown," she said dully and turned back to the wall. I felt the joy in me come down a notch. I walked forward and sat on the chair beside her. "How are you feeling?" I asked."Very well, thank you."The smile on my face faded at the tone of her voice. Regardless, I pressed on. "The doctor said you're pregnant. Have you heard?"Her breath hitched as she took in the news. "Is that so?" She asked, her voice shaky."Yes," I answered. "Since our...act proved successful, I would have to tighten security
Emily's POVI watched as Ethan Brown walked out of the hospital, leaving me with his men. We were all plunged into silence for a few minutes, then the man whom I supposed was his second-in-command cleared his throat."Miss Davis, if you will," he murmured, and I nodded, then stepped forward. Two guards were at my sides, with two others behind me. The second-in-command himself was at my front, leading the way. I felt utterly protected, and yet vulnerable and bare—so, terribly bare. They would never be able to shield me from what I felt inside.The ache of my mother's death gripped my heart as tightly as a wrench, made even worse as this was the very same hospital where she'd died. She was the only thing that mattered to me in this world, and that vile beast of a man had yanked her from me in only a few hours of knowing him.We reached the front door in a matter of seconds, and the second in command reached out to open the door. "After you, Miss Davis." He murmured, and I nodded in than
Ethan's POVI was in my room, a cup of coffee in one hand. Zadok was sitting opposite me, and we were surrounded by a chaotic mess of papers and scattered thoughts. The soft ruffling of papers filled the room, but my attention was elsewhere. I was thinking about Emily: the last time we'd seen was when my mother had visited, and that was two days ago already. I knew my mother was capable of killing anyone's spirit with her words, Emily not excluded."The records are good, boss." Zadok commented, pulling me out of my reverie. "Things have been looking up."I nodded absentmindedly and took a sip of my morning brew. Sunlight filtered through the window behind me and warmed my neck. I rubbed my hand over the warm patch of skin, then picked up a file on the coffee table. I opened it and stared in satisfaction at the numbers on the sheaf of papers.Three million fucking dollars spent on shipping a couple of arms across the Atlantic, much less than we spent only three months ago. I was extrem
Emily's POV Someone was knocking intermittently on my door. I buried my face deeper in the pillows and tried to block out the noise, but it was persistent, pressing against my eardrums annoyingly.I groaned and turned to the other side, dragging the sheets with me. The bed smelled of days-old sweat and several sleepless hours. I hadn't showered in two days, or eaten, or stepped out of the room. And I wasn't planning to do the latter anytime soon, not as long as Ethan Brown was in this house with me. I didn't want to face him just yet; I knew what would happen if I did. My body would fight against my will, and I would remember just how perfectly we'd fit together when we were producing this baby. My insides would clench with desire when I see his bright blue eyes or those long, dexterous fingers; I would remember how they'd played with my nipples, how they'd flicked around inside my folds and given me pleasure.And I would hate myself for it.I was a sucker for the man when it came ri
Emily's POVI gave him a silent stink-eye, then crossed the dining room to where my plate of lasagna still sat. As I passed by him, our shoulders brushed and I felt a spark of the desire I thought was loat, reignite. His tamarind scent wafted into my nose again, and I sniffed aporeciatively. Fuck, what was wrong with me?I pulled my seat back and sat behind my plate of food, then slowly looked up at him. He was a few feet away, his blue eyes fixated on me, his expression stony and unreadable. I turned my gaze to the lasagna before me, which had gone cold and uneatable. Swallowing an angry retort, I picked up my fork and digged in, then raised it to my mouth. The smell of cold food hit my nose and nauseated me and I dropped the fork in defeat. I wasn't hungry, despite having starved myself for two whole days."I can't do this," I declared and stood to my feet, then walked towards the door. As I walked past him, Ethan Brown grabbed my arm and pulled me back. A feeling of deja vu washed
Emily's POV A shot ricocheted through the dark and dank basement, sending my heart into overdrive. I gave a loud gasp that sent Ethan looking straight into my eyes. I watched as his eyes widened and he mouthed the word: fuck.What I didn't wait to hear was him calling out my name.I turned and raced out of the basement, darting up the stairs, the taste of fear lingering on my tongue. My breath was ragged and my heart thundered against my ribcage as I raced through the house, hearing his footsteps behind me."Emily!" He called out again, but I didn't stop. I reached my bedroom before him and closed the door behind me. My hands shook as I turned the key, not stopping until I heard the satisfying click. I quickly took a shaky breath to calm my jumpy nerves, but there was no time to take more breaths. Not with him hot on my heels, the memory of his murderous face imprinted on my mind. I knew what he would do to me if I wasted any time. I knew I had to act fast.My entire body shook as I
Chloe's POVI stormed out of Ethan's house, my anger boiling over like a heated storm. Anger at Ethan for supporting that miserable girl over his own birth mother, anger at that pathetic excuse for a surrogate mother, anger at myself for insisting that Ethan got me someone to bear our child.One of Ethan's guards rushed to me to escort me outside, but I shooed him off with an impatient wave of my habd I didn't need his help, or that of anyone else who worked with him to feel better. Ethan and his cronies could go to hell for all I cared.And what was worse was how he'd threatened me when I'd opened my mouth to defend his mother. What was wrong with him? Had that puny surrogate mother charmed him so well he didn't know where his priorities lied again?I pushed open the door and walked out. The cool evening air did little to soothe my hatred and anger as I made my way to my car. Frustration made me clench my fists, and I could feel my heart beating erratically in my chest, drowning out
Emily's POVSeveral weeks had passed after Chloe had stumbled on Ethan Brown and I. In those weeks, Ethan had basically ignored my presence. It was as though whatever private discussion he'd had with his fiancée had been for the worst. I'd only seen him once during those weeks, and that had been when he'd instructed Zadok to fetch me from my room to have a very quiet breakfast with him.Throughout that breakfast, Ethan had been very reserved, barely meeting my eyes even as I'd thrown question after question at him. In the end he'd snapped and told me to keep my questions and let him have a peaceful breakfast. Ethan was an asshole, I'd always known that, but his attitude had surprised me.Right now I was standing before a full-length mirror in my room, utterly naked and cradling my belly. A tiny bump was starting to show already, nothing more than what I would have seen had I had a very full meal. I hadn't eaten today—my tray of breakfast was on the coffee table in the room, untouched.