Yvonne's POVI heard the doorbell ring and knew it was Cynthia with the groceries I had ordered from the local market. I had become a shut-in. It wasn’t only because I was hiding from Kylian. I was, but it was also because I felt miserable. The morning sickness was an all-day sickness. When I had my first appointment with the obstetrician, I was informed that some women experienced morning sickness for months … and it could last all day. I was not looking forward to another six months of throwing up for random reasons. It could be what I ate, what I looked at, or what I smelled. The worst part was I never knew what a trigger was until it was too late.Cynthia was bringing me groceries and we were going to make a healthy dinner together. I had to eat right for my baby. Without a job or anything else to do with my time, I had spent a lot of time shopping online. I was already shopping for nursery items as well as maternity clothing. Today’s shopping spree had included grocerie

Kylian's POVWe were finally given a brief recap of what had happened to my mother and were now waiting to see her. She had taken a tumble down the stairs at the mansion and broken her hip. Kieran and I were standing in the hallway of the ninth floor of the hospital, waiting for the nurses to give us the all clear to enter the room where my mother was being settled into. They had brought her upstairs after a round of x-rays and a lot of pain meds, we were informed.“You can go in, but you can only stay for a few minutes. She and her roommate are sleeping,” the nurse informed us as she walked through the door of the hospital room.“Her roommate?” I said with a raised brow.The older woman nodded. “Yes, this is a hospital and we are full. She has a roommate.”“We want a private room,” Kieran blurted out.The woman was not impressed by our demands. “Then you can talk to the hospital administrator. There aren’t any available. Your mother will have to deal with wh

Yvonne's POVI called a couple more people, hoping to secure a lab. I couldn’t fail before I even started. I stared at the notes on my screen. There was so much to do. I felt like I was staring at Mount Everest and I had no idea where to start. Maybe I was wrong. I couldn’t do it on my own. I was kidding myself thinking I could. I couldn’t ask Cynthia to leave the comfort and security of her job to help me. When the idea came to me to start over, I had been dreaming.I had this brief moment where I remembered the good old days and thought back fondly on them. I hadn’t thought much about the actual hard work. The long nights and the days when I had wanted to give up, because I was so frustrated, had vanished from my memory—until now. I had been young and hungry back then. I wasn’t quite as hungry now and I felt like I had aged thirty years since those early days. I was a married woman, estranged from her husband and pregnant with his child … who he didn’t even know about

Kylian's POVHe shrugged. “It’s never been what I wanted. I don’t want that kind of responsibility. I like knowing I can walk away from the job if I want. If I were the CEO, there would be all kinds of restraints. I like the freedom of being the spare heir.”“What about Yvonne?” I blurted out.Kieran smiled. “I don’t want Yvonne. I wasn’t conspiring with her. I don’t love her. She’s a nice lady and we got along great, but it was never like that with her. I wanted to reconnect with her. I was surprised you and she were a thing. The Yvonne I knew was not your type.”“Yvonne is a beautiful woman. I wouldn’t blame you if you wanted her,” I persisted.He let out a long sigh. “I’m in love with someone else. I don’t want Yvonne. She is gorgeous, kind, and smart, but not the woman I want. One day I will tell you all about the woman I love, but for now, I need you to know I am not trying to ruin your life, take your inheritance, or anything else,” he said, and I almo

Yvonne's POVHe sighed. “I can only imagine. It isn’t personal. He doesn’t know how to be the kind of guy who women dream of falling in love with. He’s Kylian. He’s stern and aloof, but underneath all that, there is a good man in need of a good woman. I think that’s you, Yvonne.”I fought back the urge to race over to Kylian’s house and tell him I loved him and it would be okay. I wasn’t going to let myself get hurt like that. Not again.“I’m not interested in fixing a damaged man,” I snapped.“He’s not damaged. He has a big ego, that’s for sure. But he wants you, I know that. He’s too stubborn and prideful to make the first move. He knows he screwed up, but he’s so arrogant, he can’t do anything about it. He’s ashamed of his behavior,” Kieran explained.I scoffed. “He should be ashamed.”“I know you love him, Yvonne. Don’t do this to yourself. Give him a chance to make things right. I know he did something that hurt you, but it wasn’t intentional.