Page 158 of Baby Surprise for my Brother's Best Friend

My hand reaches for the doorknob, but she grabs my ankle.

I hit the floor hard, unguarded, unprotected, face and belly first, breath whooshing from my lungs.

I roll to my back, but she’s on top of me in seconds, pinning me with terrifying force.

One knee traps my hand while she grips the other, holding me down.

The knife shakes in her free hand as she raises it, the blade glinting inches from my face.

Slowly, she draws the blade down, hovering inches from my belly.

My baby.

My heart and my breath cease at the same time.

This isn’t just about Alessio anymore. This is life and death.

"Please don't. Not my baby," I cry out.

"It didn't have to end up like this, Sophie."

My heart sinks. It's over. This is the end.

And in an unbidden moment, my mind goes to Alessio.

I love him, and I'll never see him again. We'll never meet our child.

A tear slides down my face.

A bang makes me jump as the door slams open.

The most beautiful voice I know cries out, "Shit! Sophie."

Alessio bursts in, Nikolai right behind him.

Natalia freezes, her entire body stiffening.

Alessio closes the distance between us in one stride, grabbing her hand welding the knife and shoves her off me with a force that sends her skidding backward across the hardwood floor.

Before she can recover, Nikolai kicks the knife away and pins her with swift, brutal efficiency. He grabs his phone, his voice cold and sharp as steel.

"We have her. Address confirmed."

I sit upright, my limbs trembling.

Alessio’s hands are all over me, checking, holding, grounding. He pulls me into his chest like he needs to feel every part of me to believe I’m real.

“Are you okay? God, Sophie. I’m so sorry. I never should’ve left. I should’ve—”

I clutch his shirt, unable to speak through the sobs building in my throat. I’m shaking. From fear. From adrenaline. From the impossible weight of what just happened.

I jerk as a sharp, low ache pulses through my stomach.

A hot, wet sensation trails down my leg.

I pull back just enough to look, and I freeze.

“Alessio…” My voice is barely a breath. “No, no, no, no…”

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