Page 9 of Bound By Her Shocking Secret

So all that left was the burning question of how on earth it could be possible.

Daniel spied the drinks trolley in a corner of the room and went over, finding an unopened bottle of whisky and a tumbler. He poured himself a generous shot and swallowed it in one gulp, the fire racing down his throat doing little to make him feel any calmer.

Mia looked down at a sleeping Lexi for a long minute, knowing it was futile to delay the inevitable any longer. Daniel had been waiting for half an hour now—she could only imagine how irritated he would be. He’d never been good at waiting for other people, having little tolerance of those who couldn’t keep up with his demanding pace.

But babies adhered to their own schedule, and it had taken some time to put Lexi down after the distraction of Simone babysitting her and then the strange man. But Mia was certain that she was okay now, and that was the main thing.

Mia stepped away from the cot and realised she was still wearing the evening dress. It felt too constrictive now. Too revealing. She quickly pulled down the side zip and tugged the dress down and off, finding a pair of worn jeans and a long-sleeved shirt, doing up the buttons hurriedly.

She tugged at her hair, pulling it down from the elaborate up-do, knowing it would look unkempt and wild, but it made her feel more herself.

She took a breath and opened the door, and saw Daniel immediately. Impossible not to in the small space which seemed even smaller now. He was sitting on her two-seater couch, dwarfing it to Lilliputian proportions. He’d taken off his jacket and his bowtie was hanging loose. One arm was stretched carelessly across the back of the couch and one ankle rested on the knee of his other leg.

He looked relaxed, but Mia could feel the tension. He had a glass resting on his bent knee, the golden liquid at the bottom catching the light.

He lifted the glass towards her. ‘I hope you don’t mind? I had to open the bottle.’

She shook her head. ‘No, of course not.’

Her throat felt dry. She went and sat on the edge of the armchair that faced the couch, feeling like a guest in her own apartment. Part of her longed for a drink too, to give her some sense of confidence, but she also needed her wits about her. Daniel Devilliers had an ability to make her forget...everything.

‘So, are you going to explain to me how it’s possible that I have a child—a daughter—when the last time I saw you was in hospital, after you’d miscarried the baby?’

Mia was clasping her hands so tight she wasn’t aware of her knuckles showing white. The memory of Daniel standing at the foot of her bed, pale and grim, was still too vivid. And those words.

‘It’s probably for the best.’

She shook her head, as if that could rearrange her thoughts into some sort of coherency.

‘Mia, you owe me an explanation.’

She looked at Daniel and realised that he must have thought she didn’t intend telling him. She stood up, agitated. Too many memories were crowding out the present moment.

‘I know. I just... Give me a second, okay?’

She went over to the window that looked out over the rooftops of the Parisian buildings nearby. Always one of her favourite views. She could see other people moving around their apartments. She could also feel Daniel’s gaze, boring between her shoulderblades.

She turned around, arms folded. Before she could speak, though, she saw Daniel’s gaze drop to her chest. Something flashed in his eyes. Something that was all too memorable and that precipitated an answering flash of heat in her solar plexus. She looked down to see that she’d done the buttons of her shirt up wrongly and there was a clear view of her ample cleavage through the gap above her folded arms.

She cursed and quickly uncrossed her arms, fingers fumbling to straighten the buttons. Embarrassment flooded her. She hoped he didn’t think she’d done it on purpose.

When she looked up again, Daniel was sipping his drink, expressionless. More embarrassment flooded Mia—she must be imagining thisheat. The man had been married, and he’d probably taken countless lovers since. She knew how voracious he was in bed. A man like that would crave stimulation.

Now he frowned. ‘Mia...’

Right. The baby.Lexi.

She cursed herself. She couldn’t blame the baby for baby brain when she was eighteen months old.

Suddenly an expression crossed Daniel’s face. Something like shock. He put his glass down on the table and moved his leg, sitting forward. ‘Did you lie about the miscarriage?’

It took a second for his question to register, and then Mia recoiled in horror. ‘No, of course not. How could you think such a thing?’

Daniel stood up. He waved a hand in the direction of the bedroom. ‘Well, how else can you explain the baby?’

The baby.

All of Mia’s protective instincts snapped into place. ‘Her name is Lexi. She’s your daughter.’

---