“He wasn’t on the call, but Mom said she’ll talk to him.”

“Good.” I find it strangely satisfying, knowing that Nora finally took this step. It means she’s that much closer to acceptance, to finally admitting that the baby is a fact of our lives. “Now you can stop worrying about it.”

“Right.” Her eyes gleam black in the soft light of the bedside lamp. “The hard part is over. Now all I need to do is give birth and raise the child.”

Her tone is light, but I can hear the fear underneath the sarcasm. She’s terrified about the future, and as much as I want to reassure her, I can’t tell her that everything will be all right.

Because deep inside, I’m just as terrified as she is.

* * *

Given the late night in the office, I sleep longer than usual, and when I wake up, Nora is already stirring.

Hearing my movements, she rolls over in bed and gives me a sleepy smile. “You’re still here.”

“I am.” Giving in to a momentary impulse, I pull her close, wrapping my arms tightly around her. Sometimes it feels like the time we have together is not enough. Even though I see her every day, I want more.

I constantly want more with her.

She drapes her leg over my thigh and burrows even closer, rubbing her nose against my chest. My body reacts predictably, my morning erection stiffening to a painful hardness. Before I can do anything, however, she distracts me by speaking. “Julian . . .” Her voice is muffled. “Who’s the woman in Lucas’s house?”

Surprised, I pull back to look at her. “How do you know about that?”

“Rosa and I saw her yesterday.” Nora seems reluctant to meet my gaze. “We were, um . . . passing by.” She glances up at me through her lashes.

“Were you now?” Propping myself up on my elbow, I study her, noting the flush on her face. “And why were you passing by? You don’t normally walk in that area.”

“We did yesterday.” Pulling the blanket around herself, Nora sits up and gives me a determined look. “So who is she? What did she do?”

I sigh. I didn’t want Nora exposed to that drama, but it looks like I can’t avoid it. “The girl is the Russian interpreter who sold us out to the Ukrainians,” I explain, carefully watching Nora’s reaction. My pet is just getting over her nightmares, and the last thing I want is to trigger a relapse.

As I speak, Nora’s eyes grow wide. “She’s responsible for the plane crash?”

“Not directly, but the information she gave to the Ukrainians led to it, yes.” If Lucas hadn’t decided to take charge of the situation, I would’ve sent someone to Moscow to take care of the traitor—if the Russians hadn’t done it for me first, that is.

As Nora digests that information, I see her expression changing, darkening. It’s fascinating to observe. Her soft lips stiffen, and her gaze fills with pure hatred. “She almost killed you,” she says in a choked voice. “Julian, that bitch almost killed you.”

“Yes, and she killed nearly fifty of my men.” It’s that loss that eats at me more than anything—and I know it eats at Lucas as well. Whatever punishment he decides to dole out to his prisoner will be no less than she deserves, and I see that Nora is reaching the same realization.

As I watch, she jumps off the bed, leaving the blanket there. Grabbing her robe, she pulls it on before starting to pace around the room, visibly agitated. The brief glimpse of her naked body arouses me again, but I keep my gaze focused on her face as I get up.

“Does it bother you, my pet?” I ask. Nora stops pacing, her eyes straying to my lower body before she looks up at me. “Is that why you want to know about her?”

“Of course it bothers me.” Nora’s voice is filled with a tension I can’t quite define. “There’s a woman tied up on our compound.”

“A female traitor,” I correct. “She’s hardly an innocent victim.”

“Why couldn’t you let the Russian authorities take care of it?” Nora steps closer. “Why did you need to bring her here?”

“Lucas wanted this. He has a bit of a . . . personal . . . relationship with her.”

Nora’s eyes widen with comprehension. “He had an affair with her?”

“More of a one-night stand, but yes.” I walk toward the bathroom, and Nora follows me there. When I turn on the shower and begin brushing my teeth, she picks up her own toothbrush and does the same. I can see that she still looks agitated, so after I rinse out the toothpaste, I say, “If this really bothers you, I can have him take her away somewhere.”

Nora puts down her toothbrush and gives me a sarcastic look. “So he could torture her with no one the wiser? How would that make it better?”

I shrug, walking over to the shower stall. “You wouldn’t see it.” I leave the stall door open, so I can talk to her. The shower is spacious enough that no water will get out.

“Right, of course.” She stares at me as I begin to lather up. “So if I don’t see it, it’s not happening.”

I let out another sigh. “Come here, baby.” Ignoring the soap covering my hands, I reach for her and tug her into the stall with me. Then I take off her robe and throw it on the floor outside the stall.

She doesn’t resist as I bring her under the hot spray with me. Instead, she closes her eyes and stands still as I pour shampoo into my palm and begin massaging it into her scalp. Even wet, her hair feels good to the touch, thick and silky around my fingers.