Total pages in book: 32
Estimated words: 31777 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 159(@200wpm)___ 127(@250wpm)___ 106(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 31777 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 159(@200wpm)___ 127(@250wpm)___ 106(@300wpm)
How was he going to keep her safe from this?
And how was he going to keep a helpless, vulnerable baby safe?
Fuck!
Okay. You have this.
Gray wasn’t a guy who let himself get consumed with worry. He just got on and did stuff. He’d work out what he needed to do to keep both Maeve and their baby safe.
Maybe Ilya, Maeve’s bodyguard, would have to stay with her all the time when Gray wasn’t there. Whether she was off the property or not.
Yeah, that was a solution.
Maeve let out a small moan.
Jesus. His poor baby. She didn’t even have anything in her stomach to throw up. When she finished, he helped her sit against the wall while he flushed the toilet and grabbed a cloth and glass of water. After wiping her face, he held the water up for her to take small sips.
She needed electrolytes. And food. He studied her carefully. Were her cheekbones more pronounced? Was she losing weight?
Shit. That wasn’t good.
He still wasn’t happy with her for not telling him as soon as she started to feel ill. However, he’d deal with that naughtiness at another time when she was feeling better.
“I can hear you thinking,” Maeve said, eyeing him. “I’m just a bit concerned about what has you frowning so much?”
“You’re losing weight.”
She sighed. “No, I’m not.”
Gray took in her pale skin and the dark marks under her eyes. They hadn’t been there yesterday, had they?
Right. Someone was staying in bed today.
“You are.”
“Gray, I’ve thrown up a few times over several days. Did you see how much I ate last night? If anything, I’m probably gaining weight.”
He disagreed.
“You look tired and pale. You’re staying in bed today.”
“No, I’m not!” She attempted to stand.
What did she think she was doing? She could get dizzy and fall! He stood and picked her up, putting her on his hip.
“Yes, you are. I’m the boss.”
“You’re bossy. There’s a difference.”
Not to his mind.
“Need to brush my teeth,” she told him as he turned toward the bedroom.
Right. Of course she did. He set her on the counter by the sink and put some toothpaste on her toothbrush.
“Open wide,” he ordered.
He brushed her teeth and waited for her to rinse before picking her back up and carrying her to bed.
“You are staying in bed until your cheeks have more color and you don’t look like you’re going to pass out,” he told her.
“I’m pregnant, not ill.”
Well, they hoped not. What would he do if she was ill? Worry filled him and he had to take a deep breath in, letting it out slowly.
Nothing could happen to Maeve. She was his whole world.
You’ll fix it.
Like you always do.
Right. What was he thinking? He’d just fix things.
“I’m going to have a shower and go into town to get a pregnancy test,” he told her, sitting on the bed and facing her. “I don’t really want to leave you, though.”
“I’ll be fine, Daddy,” she told him. “I’m just a bit tired now. I’ll rest a bit, then have some toast or something.”
He brushed her hair off her face. “You’re everything to me, precious girl.”
“You’re everything to me, too, Daddy,” she whispered back.
“Lie down. I’ll check on you before I’m ready to go.”
Maeve opened her eyes as the bed dipped down.
Oops. When had she closed her eyes? What was going on?
“Sorry, didn’t mean to wake you, baby,” Gray murmured, running his hand over her head. “Go back to sleep.”
“I wasn’t sleeping,” she grumbled. “Just resting my eyes for a moment.”
“Sure you were. I still don’t want to leave you.” He frowned, looking worried.
“Go get the test. I’ll be okay. I promise.”
“I want you to wait in bed until I get back,” Gray bossed.
Wait. No. She was planning on getting up, having a shower, and getting dressed in her Christmas Eve dress.
“I don’t need to stay in bed. It’s Christmas Eve! And I just had a rest. I’m feeling heaps better.”
Mostly.
And who knew how long he’d be gone? Maeve didn’t want to miss out on anything.
“I want you to rest,” he said firmly. “You were just ill. Can’t believe I didn’t notice that you were ill before. You’re in trouble for keeping that from me, by the way.”
Drat.
She’d kind of hoped he’d forgotten about that.
“Not going to punish you while you’re not feeling well, but I’m also not going to forget.”
“Daddy! That’s not very fair. I was just sick and now you’re threatening me!”
He raised an eyebrow. “Oh, so now you’re sick? I thought you were feeling heaps better.”
This was not going well for her.
“I do feel a lot better. I feel good enough to get out of bed, but not good enough to be spanked.”
Gray snorted and shook his head. “Good try. I’ll get someone to check in on you.”
“Daddy! I’m not staying in bed.”
“I can see that I need to start writing things in a naughty girl notebook.”