At Eight Months Pregnant, I Chose To Raise My Baby Without Her Vampire Father

When I got home, I didn't expect Adrian to be there at this hour.

He'd always used overtime as an excuse to come home late. I'd just come from the lawyer's office, and I hadn't had time to compose myself before I saw him coming down the stairs, looking visibly flustered.

Something shifted in his eyes when he saw my face. "Emily? You're back early. Why didn't you stay out and do some shopping?"

I shook my head, set my things down with forced composure, and studied him from the corner of my eye.

"I got a little tired so I came back early. I bought you a tie — see if you like it."

I held up the tie I'd grabbed at a shop as cover and stepped forward, holding it against his collar.

Adrian still reeked of floral perfume, his gaze evasive.

"Oh? What's the occasion?"

"I just felt like it," I said, one hand on my belly, my voice light. "We're husband and wife, aren't we?"

Husband and wife.

The moment those words left my mouth, I saw the guilt in his eyes deepen.

The irony — that even now, he still had the capacity for guilt.

I pretended not to notice and just stared at his wrinkled tie, a cold satisfaction settling inside me.

Clara was in the house right now.

A crash came from upstairs. I moved past him toward the staircase, but he caught me in his arms.

"Probably just a cup that fell. Don't worry about it."

His arm blocked my path — the gesture looked tender, but there was no give in it. That was Adrian. Even when he was keeping you out, he made it look like concern, as though he wasn't guarding against me but worrying I might step on broken glass.

"I'll take care of it," he said, looking down at me, his voice deliberately gentle. "You're too far along. Leave it to me."

I looked up at him. After a moment, I smiled.

"Okay."

He clearly hadn't expected me to agree so easily. A flash of surprise crossed his eyes. But I acted as if I'd noticed nothing, reaching up to straighten his crooked tie, my fingertip brushing — just barely — across a faint red mark near his collarbone.

The kind left by a woman's nails.

I stood there, looking past his shoulder toward the far end of the second-floor hallway.

Then I pulled my gaze back, as though I'd seen nothing at all, and rubbed my temple. "I'm a little tired. I'm going to take a bath."

Adrian seemed to exhale with relief. Even his voice softened. "Okay. I'll have someone get towels and warm milk ready for you."