Chapter 2
She pushed through the staff entrance and hurried down a concrete corridor washed in cold fluorescent light, abandoning the cart when the service elevator came into view. Julian followed—leaving Camila, the staring guests, and his carefully maintained public image behind—and caught the steel doors before they could close.
“Why did you leave?” he demanded, his breath breaking between the words. “Why didn’t you tell me about the baby?”
Elena turned at last.
May you like
There was no apology in her face—only a rigid stillness as she covered her belly with hands reddened and cracked by chemicals.
“Don’t hurt us,” she whispered. “You already won. Just let me have the baby, and no one will ever ask you for money.”
