Shes dead.

I HOLD MY brEATH ASI wait for Stelios to answer, but what I hear instead is his phone ringing, and my husband tersely telling me it"s Astro calling him.

"Excuse me for a moment."

I can feel myself paling as the billionaire abruptly turns away without waiting for me to answer. I"ve been with him long enough to know when he"s pissed, and right now he is definitely enraged...with me.

The thought is more than a little scary, and I can"t help tensing up when I catch sight of him walking back inside the stadium.

Don"t cower, B!

I hastily rearrange my features to hide my fear. My resting bitch face will never be as intimidating as Theía"s, but all I"m aiming for right now is a mask to hide my thoughts.

Stelios speaks briefly to Sasha, and my heart drops to my stomach when I see the other man glance at me before saying something back to my husband.

Don"t read anything into it, B.

But the moment Stelios reaches my side, the words simply fly out of my mouth.

"You"ve told him then?"

The way my husband"s gorgeous face hardens almost has me stumbling a step back, and I can only bite back a cry as he suddenly cups my elbow in an unshakable grip.

"Are you that much in a hurry to let the whole world know you want a divorce?" he hisses under his breath.

He pulls me close to him before I can answer, and I can only suck my breath in at the way our sides are suddenly pressed completely against each other.

"I told him we won"t be able to join them for lunch," Stelios says curtly as he leads us out of the stadium.

"Why?"

Eddie opens the door for us, and Stelios waits until we"re inside his limo before answering.

"Helene"s dead."

I stare at him blankly.

"It"s what your grandfather called to tell me, and since I can tell you"re already wondering about it, the answer is no. Neither your grandfather nor Kayra or I had anything to do with her death."

Stelios says something else about Helene dying of natural causes and Papou wanting to meet with us, but I have a hard time concentrating since all I can think about is her.

Helene is dead.

She"s the only person in this world who would"ve made sure hell would break loose if Stelios and I were to divorce.

And that person is now dead.

My gaze darts back to my husband, and this time I really can"t help shrinking back when I see the rage burning in his slate-gray eyes.

"You"re mad at me," I whisper unsteadily.

"What else should I be?" Stelios snarls. "Am I supposed to be happy that my wife asked for a fucking divorce?"

"I"m s-sorry—-"

Stelios" fingers curl into a fist, and even though I know he"d rather kill himself than hurt me, I still end up scooting back to the opposite side of the seat.

"Don"t fucking say sorry if you"re not planning to take the words back."

I no longer know what to say at this point, and all I can do is stare at him helplessly.

"Tell me something, Bailey."

The calmness of Stelios" voice is terrifying, and it reminds me of the stories Astro used to tell me about him.

The calmer he is, the deadlier he gets.

"How long has this been in your mind?"

Even though I have no plans of answering such a leading question, my resting bitch face has apparently failed me—-

"I see."

His tone is so, so quiet, and it"s enough to make me jump in my seat. "Stelios, I"m—-"

My husband cracks his knuckles, and the rest of my words die in my throat.

"Why do you want a divorce, Bailey?"

"D-Do we really need a reason at this point? Helene"s already dead—-"

"Just answer the fucking question," Stelios bites out.

"It"s n-not you—-"

"Is it because you love someone else?"

I"m torn between horror and hysterics, and all I can do is shake my head. How can he even think that when the only man I"ve ever been in love with is him?

"Don"t fucking lie—-"

"I swear it on my parents" graves, Stelios. It"s n-not that at all—-"The rage in his eyes suddenly dies out, and my words falter.

"This is because of what I am, isn"t it?"

Oh God.

"You thought you could handle—-"

"Stelios, no."

I know he"s going to call himself a monster, and I just can"t let him do it.

"You don"t need to lie."

The flatness of his tone hurts, and even though I realize letting him believe I see him as a monster is the quickest way for me to get a divorce—-

Tears burn in my eyes as I look at him in helpless appeal. "I swear, Stelios. It"s not that at all—-"

My husband doesn"t bother to answer this time, and I start to panic because I can already feel him distancing himself from me. Theía had also tried to keep us at a distance when she first learned of her diagnosis, and while it took everything in Papou and me to make her understand nothing in this world can keep us from loving her—-

This time it"s just me and Stelios, and while I never ever want him to see himself as a monster—-

I can"t tell him I"m in love with him.

I just can"t.

But when I hear him tell Eddie to take us home instead, I realize that my husband is already halfway convinced I"m divorcing him because I don"t think he"s good enough of me—-

Oh, Stelios.

If I don"t say anything now...

It will be over between us.

I"ll have my divorce, but he"ll also always think it"s because I see him as a monster.

"Stelios?"

His lips tighten, but he doesn"t even look at me, and it"s getting harder to keep myself from crying.

"Stelios, please—-"

"Leave it," he says flatly. "You"ve more than said enough—-"

"It"s because I want a baby," I blurt out.

Stelios" powerful body jerks at the words, and I can feel myself paling again.

Oh God, you"re in for it now, B.

"What the fuck did you just say?" my husband asks hoarsely.

I remember the time when Stelios and I were standing outside the courtroom, and he had told me he had something to say before going in.

It was the one and only time he had told me about his "condition", and how he would like to stay childless because of it.

"I won"t change my mind about this, so I"d like you to think really hard...if you"d still like to marry me."

Since having a baby was the furthest thing from my mind that time, it was easy to say yes. But now that my back"s against the wall—-

"You heard me."

It"s the only reason I can think of that can buy me my freedom without costing my husband his soul, and so I force myself to meet Stelios" stunned slate-gray eyes...before mustering the courage to repeat the same lie.

"I want a baby."

Stelios looks at me like I"ve just told him I"m an alien. "What the hell, Bailey?"

"J-just hear me out first, okay? I know I promised you I was fine with not having kids," I explain in a rush, "but the past few months, it...it changed me, and that"s why...I want a divorce. I want to have a baby—-"

"But not with me."

"Yes—-"

Wait, what did he just say?

Why would he even think—-oh, who cares?

The moment I see the bleakness in his eyes, my mind shuts down, my heart takes over, and I end up taking my words back. "I mean, no, you"re wrong about that at all. I would love it if you could give me a baby—-"

Oh dear Lord, please stop me from digging a deeper hole for myself.

"But since you also told me—-"

"I"m not a fucking child. You don"t have to sugarcoat the truth—-"

"I"m not!"

"What you really mean to say is that you don"t want to have a baby with me because I"m not normal—-"

"Don"t you dare put words in my mouth, Stelios Diamandis!" It"s my first time to feel terrified and furious at the same time, and it"s just more proof that this whole conversation has gone completely bonkers.

"I"m only calling it as I see it—-"

"I have never said you weren"t not normal, but you know what? I"m going to say that now—-"

"Because it"s true," Stelios grits out. "You think I"m not normal—-"

"I think you"re not normal because I think you"re extraordinary!"

Oh God, what are you saying, B?

I"m supposed to convince this guy to give me a divorce, not make him think I"m in love with him.

"Bullshit—-"

And yet the moment I hear my husband insinuate I"m lying, well—-

"You were orphaned just like I am, but you didn"t have someone like Theía and Papou to lean on. You were forced to take over the family business when all you wanted was out, and you managed to stay alive even when everyone wanted you dead so they could take your place. How is that not extraordinary?"

Oh my freaking God, but you"re doing it again, B!

"I"ve talked to professionals about your condition, Stelios."

And yet my mouth still keeps running away from me.

"It"s true that there"s a genetic component to worry about, but it"s just one factor among many! How you raise your child plays a huge role in what kind of man - or woman - he grows up to be—-"

"And you think I can do that? Raise a child right?"

"Absolutely!"

"Then let"s do it."

"Yes, let"s—-"

Wait a freaking minute.

Did I just back myself into a corner here?

I try not to panic as I search for the right words to say to him. "This is a baby we"re talking about. We can"t be hasty—-"

"You wanted a divorce because you thought I didn"t want a child."

"I did say that, but—-"

"Or was that all a lie?"

"Yes, I mean, no, of course it"s not a lie!"

Crap, crap, crap!

This guy has me so confused I don"t even know if I"m arguing to stay or leave.

"If you meant everything you said, then there shouldn"t be a problem—-"

Do something, B!

"But what about you?" I finally manage to strangle out. "Were you lying when you told me you never wanted a child—-"

Stelios cuts me off with just one look. "I had hoped you would know better than to suspect me of lying about such things."

And now he has me feeling guilty and confused, and I can no longer remember what point I"m supposed to make.

"I never wanted a child," my husband says quietly, "and I don"t think I ever would if any other woman was to be its mother."

Oh dear Lord, no.

"But if it"s you, Bailey..."

Don"t listen to him, B!

"If it"s with you, I know it will turn out alright."

And just like that, he"s stolen my heart all over again, and the next thing I know my husband is yanking me towards him—-

Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God!!!

"Stelios, w-wait—-"

But my husband is already cupping my face, and that simple touch alone has my entire body shuddering against his.

Is this really happening?

There suddenly doesn"t seem enough air inside the limo, and need of the most sinful kind has come out of nowhere to breathe fire all over my body. I know I should pull away, but oh dear Lord—-

"Open your lips, wife."

It"s that note of command underlying his diabolically sweet voice that kills me, and I"m now officially brainless.

Bye, logic and reason.

It was nice knowing you.

His tongue thrusts inside my mouth the moment my lips part, and a sob bursts out of me as the sheer intimacy of his kiss is so, so raw it has my whole world spinning out of control.

My first kiss.

I finally have my first kiss, and while a part of me just wants to relish the thought that I was able to have my first kiss with Stelios—-

There isn"t any room at the moment for such sweet, cutesy sentiments...with the way my husband is already burning all of my inhibitions away as his tongue thrusts in and out of my mouth.

Oh God, oh Lord, please don"t let this be a dream!

Now I know exactly why some people describe kisses as being tongue-fucked in the mouth, and I can only moan in surrender when he hauls me to his lap without breaking the kiss.

My husband becomes my world from that moment on, and all I can think about is how hard he feels all over...and how the unending thrusts of his tongue inside of my mouth have also made my breasts swell and ache like they"re about to burst with passion.

Will this be how it feels...if I"m swollen with Stelios" child, and my breasts start to lactate?

The thought is just too much, the image in my mind so tender and vulgar at the same time—-

God, oh God, oh God!

The quickening of my pulse is my first hint, and when I feel the triangle between my legs start to throb, I just know, oh God—-

Stelios" big, muscular body jerks in surprise when I wrap my arms around his neck, and even though feeling him break the kiss with a sharp lift of his head has me crying out—-

It"s just too late, and all I can do is cling to him as I whimper his name.

"Stelios!"

And then I"m helplessly grinding my pussy down on his groin as I start to cum.