Kayla’s POV
At work
A violent, sickening wave of nausea rolled through my stomach, making the world spin.
I gripped the edge of the marble reception desk so hard my knuckles turned white.
Cold sweat flowed out across my forehead, and my vision blurred.
Not here.
Please, God, not here.
Morning sickness had been manageable for the past few weeks, but today, at four months along, it was worse.
I pressed a trembling hand against my stomach beneath my loose top, taking shallow, desperate breaths.
“Miss Williams?” A deep voice cut through the office.
I snapped my head up, but the sudden movement made my head spin even worse.
Lucien Thorne stood directly in front of my desk.
He held a paper in his hand, but his gray eyes weren’t looking at any paperwork.
He was staring directly at my face, his dark brows pulled together in intense, sharp concern.
“You’re white as a sheet,” Lucien said, his low voice laced with an undeniable edge of authority.
He stepped closer, his massive frame towering over the desk.
“Are you about to faint?”
”N-No, Mr. Thorne,” I stammered, my voice sounding weak, thin, and entirely unconvincing even to my own ears.
“I’m… I’m completely fine.”
”You are shaking, Kayla,” he countered flatly, taking another step forward.
Before I could back away, he reached out and his large, warm hand lightly brushed against my arm to steady me.
The heat of his touch sent a jolt straight through my chest, making my heart pound against my ribs.
He stared at me, his piercing eyes scanning my pale lips, the dark shadows under my eyes, and the faint exhaustion written across my face.
Without breaking eye contact, Lucien turned his head slightly toward his open office door.
“Marcus.”
Marcus, who had just stepped back onto the floor, rushed over instantly.
“Yes, Boss?”
”Call Dr. Smith from the executive health suite,”
Lucien ordered coldly, never taking his eyes off me.
“Have him bring his kit up here to my private office immediately.”
Panic seized my throat.
The company doctor?! This story is hosted at novelping.com.
If a doctor examines me, he’ll check my vitals—he’ll figure out I’m pregnant in two seconds!
“No! Please, Mr. Thorne, no!” I gasped, taking a frantic step backward, my hands trembling visibly.
“That really isn’t necessary! I don’t need a doctor!”
Lucien’s eyes narrowed into dangerous, gaze at my extreme reaction.
“You can barely stand, Miss Williams.”
”I just… I didn’t sleep well last night,” I lied desperately, forcing myself to stand up straight, clutching my hands together so he wouldn’t see them shake.
“I’ve been working late, and I forgot to eat breakfast this morning. It’s just exhaustion and low blood sugar. I swear to you, I am fine!”
Silence stretched between us, heavy and suffocating.
Lucien didn’t say a word.
He stood there, broad, powerful, and terrifyingly handsome, studying my panicked expression.
He looked at my pale face, my wide, terrified eyes, and the subtle, defensive way I was holding my arms wrapped tightly around my waist.
He wasn’t convinced.
Not even for a second.
A man who built an empire on uncovering lies could smell my fear from a mile away.
He knew I was hiding something..something big enough to make me prefer fainting over seeing a doctor.
“Exhaustion,” Lucien repeated slowly, his deep voice smooth yet dripping with deep suspicion.
“Yes, sir,” I whispered, lowering my head.
Lucien stared down at the top of my head for three seconds.
“Go home for the day, Kayla. That is an order. And if you look like this tomorrow, I will personally ensure you are examined.”
He turned on his heel and walked into his office, the heavy heavy doors closing behind him with a firm, echoing click.
I leaned against the wall, taking a long, shaky breath as tears of terror filled my eyes.
He was closing in.
The walls were shrinking around me, and I knew my time as an invisible trainee at Throne Corporation was rapidly running out.
Marcus’s POV
For weeks, Sarah’s words in the Café echoed in my mind like a ticking time bomb.
‘When a ghost from four months ago shows up right under your boss’s nose, carrying a package that belongs entirely to him…’
My phone buzzed on my desk, breaking my thoughts.
From: Boss
This girl, Kayla.
She looks far too familiar, and I don’t believe in coincidences.
Find out who she is.
My blood ran cold.
The pieces of the puzzle were violently grinding together.
I spent the next month quietly digging through closed files, traffic logs, and private security archives.
Finally, my cross referencing paid off.
The facial recognition match hit: Kayla Williams was the exact woman Mr. Thorne had saved a month ago.
Still Intrigued, I pulled up the high security footage from the Grand Astoria Hotel from that exact same week, reviewing an unrelated security flag from the night Mr. Thorne stayed in the suite.
My breath caught in my throat.
There she was on the hotel camera.
Walking down the corridor, to Mr Throne’s Hotel Room, and the next morning, Mr Throne leaving and an hour later, she too leaving the room.
Kayla wasn’t just the unconscious girl from the Snowy roads.
She was the unknown woman who had spent that fateful night in Mr. Thorne’s bed.
Hands trembling, I dialed Sarah’s number immediately.
The second she answered, I didn’t even drop a greeting.
“Why are you pushing this?” I demanded, my voice tight.
“I found the footage. She was at the hotel. But why did you come to me back at the café? What ‘package’ is she carrying, Sarah?”
Sarah went silent on the line before letting out a shaky sigh.
“She’s four months pregnant, Marcus. It’s Lucien Thorne’s baby.”
I froze, the world going completely still around me.
“How can you possibly be sure it’s his?
Women like-”
”Don’t you dare finish that sentence!” Sarah snapped, her voice trembling with raw anger.
“Kayla isn’t like that! I was the one who set her up that night out of desperation because her mother was sick! She was a virgin, Marcus! She has never been with another man in her entire life. That baby belongs to your boss!”
I swallowed hard, my logical mind fighting hard to believe whatever she was saying.
It sounded like a twisted drama.
A pregnant mistress hiding right under the CEO’s nose?
“I… I don’t believe you, Sarah.
People lie for money.”
”Believe whatever you want,” Sarah yelled out, hanging up the phone in my face.