Chapter 1 - Sweaters in Spring
For five months, Norah Hayes had lived inside Dominic Russo’s mansion by following one simple rule.
Never give anyone a reason to look too closely.
It was harder than it sounded.
The Russo estate had been designed for people who expected enemies to come through the walls. Cameras watched every entrance. Guards rotated every six hours. Doors that looked decorative concealed reinforced steel. The tall windows overlooking the gardens were beautiful enough for an architectural magazine and thick enough to stop bullets.
Nothing happened inside Dominic Russo’s home without eventually reaching Dominic Russo.
And yet somehow, Norah had managed to hide a pregnancy beneath his roof.
She stood at the kitchen island on an unusually warm April morning, wearing a thick blue-gray cardigan over her nanny uniform.
Outside, sunlight painted the lawn bright green.
Inside, Norah was dressed for January.
She pressed one palm against the marble counter as a dull ache spread through her lower back.
Twenty-one weeks.
Five months.
Her stomach had changed rapidly during the previous few weeks. Loose sweaters had once hidden everything easily. Now she had to angle her body whenever one of Dominic’s security men entered the room.
Soon, no sweater on earth would save her.
Norah knew it.
She simply did not know what came afterward.
A small pair of feet raced down the hallway.
“Nora!”
Norah smiled before she could stop herself.
Lily Russo came sliding into the kitchen in white socks, nearly colliding with a chair.
The four-year-old had dark curls, enormous brown eyes, and none of her father’s ability to enter a room quietly.
Norah crouched carefully.
“Slow down, Bug.”
Lily launched herself into Norah’s arms.
Norah caught her, though the movement sent another uncomfortable pull through her back.
“You said we could paint today,” Lily announced.
“We can.”
“A castle?”
“Absolutely.”
“With a dragon?”
“Obviously.”
“And a princess with a sword?”
Norah raised an eyebrow. “Why does your princess need a sword?”
“Because dragons don’t listen.”
Norah laughed softly.
There were times when Lily made the estate feel almost ordinary.
That was dangerous.
Nothing about this house was ordinary.
Lily’s mother had died two years earlier, and Dominic had gone through three nannies in less than twelve months before Norah arrived.
The first had quit after discovering armed security outside her bedroom.
The second had lasted three weeks.
The third had left without collecting her final paycheck.
Norah had remained.
At first because the salary was better than anything she had ever earned.
Then because Lily had begun waiting at the front window whenever Norah had a day off.
And eventually because leaving became complicated for reasons Norah tried desperately not to examine.
Lily suddenly looked toward the hallway.
Her smile faded.
“Daddy’s home.”
Norah’s heart stumbled.
“He wasn’t supposed to be back until tomorrow.”
Lily shrugged.
A heavy door closed somewhere near the foyer.
Then came the footsteps.
Measured.
Unhurried.
Recognizable.
Norah stood immediately.
She tugged her cardigan closed.
Dominic Russo appeared in the doorway seconds later.
He looked like a man who had not slept properly in several days.
His black hair was slightly disordered. A dark bruise colored one cheekbone. His usual tailored suit had been replaced by dark jeans and a charcoal Henley.
He stopped when he saw them.
For a moment, his eyes settled on Lily.
Something softened.
Only slightly.
“Hey, Bug.”
Lily ran to him.
Dominic caught his daughter and lifted her into his arms.
“You were gone forever,” Lily complained.
“Three days.”
“That’s forever.”
“Apparently.”
Norah watched the transformation with quiet fascination.
The men who worked for Dominic seemed afraid to breathe too loudly in his presence.
Lily put stickers on his expensive watches.
He tolerated it.
Dominic lowered her to the floor.
“Go find Maria. I need to speak to Norah.”
Norah’s pulse accelerated.
Lily frowned.
“But we’re painting.”
“Five minutes.”
Lily considered this.
“Three.”
Dominic stared at her.
“Four.”
“Deal.”
She ran away.
Dominic watched until she disappeared.
Then his attention moved to Norah.
The softness vanished.
“You look tired.”
“I’m fine.”
“You always say that.”
“Because I usually am.”
His gaze traveled over her face.
Norah resisted the urge to pull the cardigan tighter.
“You’re pale.”
“I didn’t sleep well.”
“You haven’t slept well in weeks.”
Norah forced a small smile.
“Four-year-olds aren’t famous for respecting business hours.”
“Lily sleeps eleven hours.”
The smile disappeared.
Dominic stepped closer.
Norah’s back touched the edge of the island.
He looked at the cardigan.
“Isn’t that the sweater you wore yesterday?”
“I own several like it.”
“Why?”
“I like them.”
“It’s seventy degrees outside.”
“I get cold.”
Dominic studied her.
Norah had seen him question employees before.
He rarely raised his voice.
He did something worse.
He waited.
People became nervous and filled the silence with information.
Norah refused.
Three seconds passed.
Four.
Five.
Finally Dominic turned toward the sink.
“You should take the weekend off.”
“I don’t need—”
“That wasn’t a question.”
Norah’s stomach tightened.
“I would rather stay with Lily.”
“Maria can handle Lily for two days.”
“I’m perfectly capable of working.”
Dominic glanced over his shoulder.
“You almost fainted in the laundry room Tuesday.”
Norah froze.
“How do you know that?”
“I know what happens in my house.”
Of course he did.
She looked away.
“I stood up too quickly.”
“Then yesterday you barely ate.”
“I wasn’t hungry.”
“And you’ve stopped drinking coffee.”
“My stomach has been sensitive.”
“Norah.”
The way he said her name made her look at him.
There was no accusation in his expression yet.
Only calculation.
And perhaps something that frightened her more than suspicion.
Concern.
“You’re going somewhere this weekend,” he said.
Norah’s chest tightened.
“A doctor.”
She forced herself to shrug.
“If that makes you feel better.”
“It does.”
Dominic dried his hands.
“Take one of the cars.”
“No.”
The answer came too quickly.
His eyes narrowed.
Norah corrected herself.
“I mean, I’d rather take the bus. I have errands afterward.”
“I have drivers.”
“I know.”
“Then why take a bus?”
Because your drivers report to you.
Because your cars have trackers.
Because the doctor will put cold gel across my stomach and show me the child we made.
Norah smiled weakly.
“Sometimes I enjoy pretending I’m a normal person.”
Something unreadable crossed Dominic’s face.
“You think people with drivers aren’t normal?”
“I think people whose drivers carry guns are operating under a slightly different definition.”
To her surprise, the corner of his mouth almost moved.
Almost.
Then he walked toward the door.
“Saturday,” he said.
Norah nodded.
“Saturday.”
He stopped.
“And take your phone.”
“Why wouldn’t I?”
Dominic looked back.
Their eyes met.
For the briefest second, Norah had the strange sensation that the conversation had contained another conversation entirely.
Then he left.
She did not breathe normally again until she heard his footsteps disappear.
Norah placed both hands against her stomach.
A soft movement answered beneath her palms.
“No,” she whispered.
The baby moved again.
“Please. Not now.”
She closed her eyes.
Soon she would have to make a decision.
Leave Dominic’s home before he discovered the truth.
Or stay until hiding became impossible.
Both choices terrified her.
The first meant abandoning Lily.
The second meant trusting Dominic Russo with something more precious than Norah’s own life.
Neither felt survivable.
But what Norah did not know was that Dominic had stopped outside the kitchen rather than continuing down the hall.
And through the partially open doorway, he had seen the way both of her hands moved instinctively toward her stomach.
Dominic remained there for several seconds.
His expression changed.
Then he quietly walked away.
For the first time in five months, Dominic Russo was no longer merely looking at Norah.
He was watching her.
May you like
And the following morning, Norah would make the mistake that gave him the first real piece of the truth.
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