Page 103 of Modern Romance September 2025 1-4
‘Only out of obligation, but not before the baby was born.’
‘What the hell doesout of obligationmean?’
‘I would have told you because you have a right to know and our child has a right to know its father, but I wouldn’t have asked for anything from you or wanted or expected anything.’
Incredulity rang from his eyes. ‘You think I wouldn’t have heard about the pregnancy once you started showing?’
She had a small drink of her water, holding the glass tightly to stop him seeing the tremor in her hand. ‘I’d planned to hide myself away after Lucie and Thanasis’s wedding. I’m not one for the society social scene so no one would have missed my presence.’
‘What about your family?’ he asked in disbelief. ‘How the hell did you think they were going to react when you told them? Your brother would have hunted me down.’
‘I wasn’t going to name the father to anyone until after the birth. My hope was that my parents would fall in love with the baby before I told them. I hoped that loving it would make it harder for them to turn their back on it.’
He put his cutlery down and pushed his plate to one side to lean forwards. ‘Did you, at any point in all your plotting, consider my feelings and what I would have wanted?’
‘Alexis, I was just another notch on your bedpost. If you hadn’t taken me back to your apartment that night some other woman would have gone with you, and if you remembered me it would only be because of who I am and the fact that we didn’t exactly part on good terms. I thought you’d be relieved to be let off the fatherhood hook.’
‘Let off the fatherhood hook?’
For the first time since she’d known him, Lydia saw real anger on his face.
‘Oh, come on,’ she defended herself, gripping her forearm. ‘I can’t be the first woman you’ve had a condom mishap with. For all I know, there could be a dozen mini Alexises stashed away around Europe.’
‘No, Lydia, there are no mini Alexises, not in Europe or anywhere. What you and I shared that weekend wasnot normal, do you not understand that?’
‘You called me anot particularly memorable one-weekend standonly yesterday!’ she protested.
His lips twisted. ‘They were just words. In my world, what counts is actions and intentions, and your intention until your hand was forced otherwise was to keep me out of my child’s life. You didn’t even want me to share in the pregnancy with you.’
‘Only because that’s what I thought you’d want!’
He stared at her for the longest time, long enough for her trembling insides to turn into a guilt-ridden quivering wreck. ‘Then you don’t know me at all.’
‘Alexis…’
He cut her off with the scraping-back of his chair. ‘I’m going to bed. I haven’t slept for two days and need to sleep. Finish your meal and join me when you’re ready—I choose to believe that it’s sleep deprivation causing my dinner to taste so bitter.’
He disappeared inside without another word.
Lydia crept into the bedroom. She’d seriously debated finding another room to sleep in but didn’t want to make matters worse. She’d angered Alexis enough as it was.
Her heavy heart twisted to see the dim bedside light left on for her. Twisted harder to see the huge form burrowed beneath the sheets and the flash of black hair poking out of the top.
In the bathroom, a toothbrush still in its packaging had been left on the ledge above the sink for her, and she brushed her teeth automatically, her head too full of the man she was about to slide under the sheets beside to even pay attention to the action of rinsing her mouth out.
Was it possible that she’d hurt him?
It had never crossed her mind that Alexis was capable of feeling something as everyday human as hurt, but, hurt or anger or both, it didn’t matter, she’d caused it. Hurt or anger or both, she still felt wretched.
The heavy robe hung back on the door, she tiptoed to the bed holding tightly to her thrashing heart and carefully slipped under the covers.
It wasn’t until she turned the light off and the only noise to be heard through the darkness was the blood roaring in her ears did she realise Alexis, his back turned to her, was still awake.
‘I’m sorry,’ she whispered, guilt driving her words. ‘I shouldn’t have made assumptions. I was…’ Terrified. The positive sign on the pregnancy test had unleashed a swathe of emotions but terror had been the strongest, a future as a single mother without the family who’d always loved and protected her all she could see. Her family who were already having to deal with the prospect of losing everything.
The thought of tracking Alexis down a second time to tell him the news and what she’d believed would be the strong likelihood of him contemptuously offering to pay her off had terrified her too. The bad feelings they’d parted with had still tasted bitter in her mouth but, as hard as she’d tried, she’d been completely unable to stop her mind being consumed by him. Been completely unable, too, to stop her heart skipping and her stomach lurching every time her phone made a noise. Knowing the life growing inside her meant she would be tied to Alexis for the rest of her life…that had been the most terrifying thing of all.
She swallowed to force her next words out. ‘I can make all the excuses in the world but I should have told you as soon as I knew.’
