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His hands grip my hips from behind, his face buried into my neck. “I was hoping you’d still be in bed.”

“I’m making lunch for everyone,” I reply, leaning back into him. He kisses my neck, and a soft whimper escapes my mouth. “Are you hungry?”

“Ravenous,” he rasps, gently pushing my hair to one shoulder and running his nose up the column of my neck. I’m about to spin around and jump him when I hear a throat clearing.

When Haze turns us around, Daisy is standing there, her narrowed eyes pinned on us. “Haze, we need to talk. Now.”

Haze sighs, still not letting go of me. In fact, he pulls me even closer. “Whatever you have to say, you can say it in front of Luella.”

Well, that’s new.

Her bright pink lips tighten. “This baby has nothing to do with her.”

“If the baby is mine, it does. And I actually did want to speak to you.”

“Yeah?” she asks, perking up.

“Yeah, when did you say you were doing the paternity test? I sent Scorp a message this morning, and he said he could get it done this week for us. All we need is some blood from you and a cheek swab from me. It’s non-invasive and completely safe for the baby,” he says, and her face drops. I almost feel bad for her. “Since you’re further than seven weeks, we can do it now.”

“I’ve decided I’m not going to do the test until the baby is born,” she replies with a smirk, lifting her chin.

Instantly, the temperature in the room drops. “Why, Daisy? You obviously have something to hide if you don’t want everyone knowing the truth. You owe it to your child to find out who the father is.”

She steps forward, resting her hand on the back of the chair at the head of the table. “I’ve told you who the father is, Haze. And if you want to be a part of our child’s life, you better stop fucking around and pay some attention to its mother.” With that parting shot, she spins around and disappears like the witch she is.

“Fuck,” Haze grits out, hand moving to the back of my nape. “I’m not going to let her control me. If she wanted to prove the baby is mine, she would.”

I go quiet.

I don’t know what the right answer is here, only my own selfish one.

I don’t want him to cater to her every need while she holds this baby over him, either.

But what happens if it is his? Is this something I can pass off as a future problem? Because it’s not just a problem, it’s kind of a deal-breaker. I thought we would find out soon, and then we could all quit living in limbo.

And then, a thought occurs to me.

His piercing would make it easy to break a condom, wouldn’t it?

Deep inside, I must have thought that Daisy’s baby wasn’t his, but now the fear is real.

But she did fuck around, so I don’t know if all of the men are using protection or what. I don’t know how this all became my problem, but I’m annoyed that it has.

“What are you going to do?” I ask him as he cups my face and forces me to look him in the eye. “I don’t know if it’s a good idea for me to be with you, waiting for everything to hit the fan.”

His amber eyes scan mine. “There’s a small chance the baby is mine. Would it be so bad if I came with a child?”

“How would you feel if I got pregnant with someone else’s baby?” I fire back.

His jaw tenses. “This was before we reconnected, Luella,” he reminds me. His tone is gentle, but I don’t miss the storm brewing in his eyes.

“Yes, and we didn’t reconnect until I stumbled upon you because you never bothered to come and find me, did you, Haze?” The words are out before I can stop them, but once they are out there, I realize how very true they are.

He was happy never to see me again.

He let me go.

He didn’t care where I was or who I was with.