Chapter 9

I snapped my head around to face him and glared. “No, James! This is stretching things too far. You can’t just make all of these major decisions and expect me to go home with you,” I stated. “You are going to take me back home—to my home! Now!”

Of course, James kept his demeanor resolute while I was on the verge of having a full-blown meltdown. He still scoffed nonetheless.

“You mean that sketchy apartment complex? Come on, Mia. With both know you’re a lot smarter than this,” he pointed out dryly. “That place is not suitable to raise a baby, even you cannot deny that. Besides, knowing Chris, I’m willing to bet that the guy has a decent number of items he’s collected over the years stuffed away in your place.”

My eyes widened. He was right. Because my brother’s work constantly kept him moving around, it was cheaper to allow him to leave his found collectibles with me rather than pay for a storage unit.

And yes, Chris did tend to collect his fair share of odd artifacts, all of which were crammed into my apartment. All those sharp, misshapen, and breakable items were not ideal for a space that was going to be shared with a newborn.

“Go ahead,” he pressed. “Tell me I’m wrong.”

He knew I couldn’t and for that, my mood grew even more sour. James reached his hand over to rest over my own. His voice softened with honest concern.

“Mia, I promise. My home is far more suitable to raise a child in. The two of you will be properly cared for,” he said. “I’m confident that someday you may even come to like it too.”

I knew he was right in his argument, although it didn’t make me feel any less upset.

“You and I are in a material relationship now. So, as per husband and wife, it is entirely expected that we share a home together,” he explained further.

I allowed my head to lean back in defeat and remained quiet the rest of the way.

We soon pulled into a private, iron-gated property that expanded over hundreds of square feet.

Holy shit.

This wasn’t a house. It was a goddamn mansion! It was an architectural dream come true and utterly breathtaking.

The car pulled up the main front doors and we were immediately greeted by a team of staff. And I soon found myself to be, once again, at the center of everyone’s attention. My body instantly tensed up and James leaned down to whisper into my ear.

“Remember, Mia. We need to keep up the appearance even here,” he said. “Word tends to get out.”

An older woman, wearing a formal uniform, stepped forward and graced us with a wide smile. “Oh, welcome home, Mr. Derek.” Her eyes then shifted to me. “Are you a friend of Mr. Derek’s?”

I was about to nod my head when James wrapped a strong arm around my waist. He returned her jovial smile and shook his head.

“Not quite. Mia, I’d like you to meet Lily. She’s my headmaid.” We both exchanged smiles while heading into the house.

“Mia is the lady of the house now,” he announced.

Several of the other staff members dropped their mouths in total shock. Many of them shared whispers between themselves while Lily maintained her calm demeanor.

“Oh, my goodness!” she exclaimed. “That’s wonderful news! I didn’t even know that James was seeing anyone. You must tell me how you two came together.”

James lightly squeezed my arm, signaling for me to step up. I did my best to press through the exhaustion that was eating away at me.

“Well, I suppose you could say that it was love at first sight,” I told her. “Over the past few days, he and I have gotten to know each other and really wanted to make it official.”

“Not at first sight,” James corrected me. “You see, Mia and I knew each other as children. She was rather in love with me when we were younger. I still have one of the love letters she wrote.”

I felt my heart plummet into my stomach. I choked back on a startled gasp.

No! That wasn’t possible!

There’s no way he could have gotten his hands on one of those damn letters I’d written when I was just a silly teenager. I kept many of those small messages hidden away in my diary until one day one of them had gone missing.

I figured it must have somehow fallen out of my notebook and evidently landed in the hands of the worst bully in my year. Because, the next thing I knew, the letter was posted all over the school’s bulletin board.

I could still recall the mortifying sensation of burning humiliation I felt as the entire school crowded around and laughed at me. It went on for what felt like forever until all news of the matter had stopped.

The postings had been taken down and there was never any sight of the bully from that day forward. Apparently, she’d been expelled. I’d hoped that James would have never caught wind of the situation.

“So, you did know about it,” I muttered.

“I was taken care of, Mia.”

“You’re the one who got her expelled, weren’t you?”

“You’re Chris’ sister. He told me to always look out for you when he couldn’t. I’ve always looked out for you, Mia,” he clarified. “Come now, Lily is going to give you a brief tour of the house.”

I gently shook my head and folded my arms across my chest.

“Why on earth would you bring up that particular matter?” I asked quietly.

“It gives our story a bit more credibility,” he said smoothly.

Lily didn’t seem like she had any possible doubts about our story and happily escorted me through the various rooms on the main floor, while James went on to finish up some personal work on his own.

“Now, I must caution you. Mr. Derek doesn't like being disturbed when he’s in his study,” Lily told me firmly. “And as for the backyard, James does not want anyone near the green maze and the smaller garden.”

As we reached the courtyard, a sudden shrilling, female voice broke through the air.

"Why is this woman at James's house?!"