Page 96 of Rebellious Hearts

Now, at least, I had proof.

Now, I knew that my world would forever change, no matter what happened with Ben.

Ben.

I had to talk to him. I had to tell him what was going on so that he would know. My life wasn’t the only life that would change.

I left my room, walked to his, and knocked on his door.

He opened it a moment later. His eyes were dull, his jaw clenched.

I frowned. “Can I come in?”

“Is it important?”

I swallowed hard. “Yeah.” He was being cold, distant. He looked furious.

Ben hesitated before he stepped aside. It didn’t feel like I was welcome. It felt like he was conceding instead of just telling me to leave.

“Is everything okay?”

“Fine,” Ben said. “Richard rescheduled for four o’clock. It turned out to be a cramp in his arm, nothing serious.”

“Oh,” I said. I’d completely forgotten about Richie and his medical scare. “That’s good.”

“Yeah.” His voice was hard. “Then we can get this over and done with, and we can go home.”

“It’s hard to imagine it’s coming to an end,” I said softly. “Being here felt like an escape, a holiday, even though we were working.”

“All bubbles burst sooner or later.”

I frowned slightly. “Are you sure everything is okay?”

Ben turned to face me. “Why wouldn’t it be? Like you said, it’s almost done. Then we can go back home, back to our lives, and you’ll be released from this act I got you into. Just one more meeting, then you’re free.”

“Free? It wasn’t like it was a prison or something.” Had he not been there with every moment, every kiss, every touch between the sheets?

“Yeah, well, you won’t have to pretend anymore.”

I was confused. “I wasn’t pretending, Ben. I thought we already talked about this. I thought—”

“Is there a reason you came?” Ben asked, cutting me off. “I have work to take care of, and I’d like to get it done before Richard arrives. I want to make sure the deal is airtight so that we get what we need from the start.”

I swallowed hard. Whatever was going on, it wasn’t good. Something had happened, and Ben was pissed, and he was being cold toward me.

Despite being in the same room, it felt like we were miles apart.

“Fine,” I said, something inside me hardening, too. If he was going to be like this with me—factual, hard, businesslike—then I’d be the same with him. This was just a meeting, and I was just giving him feedback on a situation.

Facts.

Maybe it would make it easier to tell him what was going on if I saw it as just another project.

“I’m pregnant.”

Ben had turned away from me, but he froze. For a moment, he didn’t move.

“What?” he asked, not looking at me.