Page 193 of Falling for the Wife

“It might be a ploy to get you back. Women tend to do that a lot these days.”

Women had done it since the beginning of time for all sorts of reasons—to get a loved one back, to make a fortune, forge dynasties, wreak havoc, to scorn someone—but was Kimberly after something? I just couldn’t wrap my mind around the fact that she would confess something this monumental when I was weighing in my options about my life. If it wasn’t about money, maybe she was looking after the baby’s best interest, and that was to have its real father know of it, to be a part of its life.

Kimberly … I would never know what was going on in that beautiful head of hers. She remained an enigma, persistently guarding the real woman behind all the shy, gorgeous smiles.

“So which is it? Do you think she’s trying to get you back? Maybe to trick you into marrying her since she’s carrying the heir to your father’s billion dollar empire?” he probed, making me flinch inwardly because he couldn’t be farther from the truth.

“I might’ve thought it, too, if the woman in question wasn’t already married.”

He threw me a condescending look.“You slept with a married woman?”he asked with derision. “Since when did you start lowering your standards, Luca?”

Grounding my teeth together, I held my tongue from responding to his acerbic tone. Instead, I resorted to calming myself and enlightening him about how ignorant I was about what I had gotten myself into. “She wasn’t married until two weeks later—unbeknownst to me.”

Openly admitting it wasn’t all that bad, but still, my insides felt raw and irrevocably damaged by her selfishness. Did she know what she had done to me by cruelly cutting me out of her life then stabbing me with the revelation that she was pregnant and married to Anton?

She made me into this shell of a man who was unbelievably angry at life, so much so that I toyed with it with little care about what would happen if I died or not. She had started this, and she wasn’t done obliterating me to smithereens. What did I ever do to her to deserve such sadistic treatment?

“Was she causal or something more?” Andrés cautiously inquired, his eyes trained on me, scrutinizing my facial expression, though I was giving him none.

“She’s…” I breathed in, having a difficult time pinning the perfect word to describe her at the moment,“married,so she shouldn’t be anything to me.”

“But she does regardless of her marital status.”

There was no point in denying it, so I kept my mouth shut.

I loved her. Of course I did. However, her betrayal … and now this went far and beyond any sane man could comprehend. I still sought revenge even though she was possibly carrying my baby, but this time, revenge was by far a softer word to describe what I intended to seek.

“Nevertheless, baby or not, you should get this operation sorted out as soon as you can so you can prepare and be ready for next year’s circuit.” And just like that, Andrés was back to business.

Knowing how our friendship worked, if this visit didn’t pan out to anything, Jacques would be out to see me next, basically to give me the same lecture until I gave in. If I didn’t, they would eventually drive me insane. It was what we did with Andrés him when he went MIA for a month and we found him in Brazil, out of his bloody fucking mind. We never really found out what that was all about, either, but we assumed it was due to his familial and title obligations. The method was the same. Never relent.

“We shall see.”

“Luca.” he immediately reprimanded, but I had already made up my mind, for the time being.

“I want to get to the bottom of this. Then, once I do, I will finally make a decision. I will personally inform you about any progress if you feel so inclined.”

“You mean, until you can prove that the child she’s carrying is yours?” the Spaniard pressed on. “And if it is”—he kept going, engaging me further—“will you get the damn, bloody operation then?”

If it is, then I must do what every man should do to protect their family, my own child. “Of course. There’s not even a question of what lengths I’d go to be a part of this baby’s life.”

“That settles it, then.” Andrés stood up and went swiftly towards the brandy decanter, pouring himself a hefty drink before tipping his head back to down the entirety. “There. Now let’s pray to God this baby is yours, because it’s the only thing that can save you from your mad stupidity.”

I smirked, almost agreeing with him.

Tre

The moment Andrés left for the airport, I called Gino into my study. Instead of confronting him about his interference with my life by informing my friends regarding my current health status, I had another more pertinent task for him.

Sending him a steady glance, I cleared my throat, ready to take the next step. “I need you to call my lawyers for an immediate meeting, preferably before sundown today.”

“Sí, of course, signore,” he said before appearing hesitant, as if he had something to get off his chest.

Raising my brow, I sent him a patient yet curious look. “Is there something you want to add, Gino?” I kindly asked, wondering what was going on to make him seem uncomfortable.

He made a short nod, still seeming apprehensive. “Someone’s here to see you, Signore Luca.”

Well, that didn’t take long, I noted. “Don’t tell me it’s Jacques? I can’t take any more nagging for the remainder of the day.”