I entered the dressing room with Kali, and Domenica slid the curtain over to give us privacy. Marcello waited for us on the couch, afraid to let me out of his sight. We had the entire store to ourselves for the next hour.
Kali tried on her bridesmaid dress, a strapless pale blue gown that fit her lithe body perfectly. “You’re glowing. Marriage suits you.”
I laughed. “I’m not married yet.”
“But you look happy, like a woman in love.”
I grinned in response. “How about you? I haven’t seen you without Damian or Bastian in weeks.”
She rolled her shoulders. “Honestly, they are driving me crazy. I haven’t had a moment alone since your return. Your kidnapping shook them. I think they’re afraid someone will take me.” Kali chuckled. “But I’m not that important.”
“You’re the daughter of our future governor and the girlfriend of two Salvatores.”
“I’m just getting sick of them watching over me.” Kali flipped her blonde hair over her shoulder and sighed. “I kind of miss being on my own, traveling around Europe, and living in different hostels. It was fun having a life outside of Devil’s Creek.”
I grabbed her wrist. “This place makes you feel as if you’re drowning, but don’t run again. Please. I need my friend.”
She squeezed my hand, her expression brightening. “Sorry, girl. You know I love being your friend. And I love my guys. But it can feel so suffocating.”
I nodded. “It gets better. It took me ten years to get to this point with Luca. You’ll get there once you figure out which one of them you want.”
“I don’t think I can choose, but this isn’t healthy for any of us.”
I kicked off my pumps and stripped out of my skirt and blouse. I slipped into my gown with Kali’s help. The dress had black feathers with a long train and a low-cut corset. It was exactly as I had envisioned.
“Girl,” Kali beamed as she appraised my dress. “You look like…”
“A black swan,” I finished for her.
“Wow! This is incredible.” Her mouth widened as she ran her hand down the feathers in awe. “I can’t believe you sketched this.”
“The designer did an incredible job,” I said with a smile.
“You look hot. Damn, even I want to fuck you.”
I laughed so hard I snorted.
“Luca will love this dress.”
“How are we doing, ladies?” Domenica said from the other side of the curtain.
“We’re almost done,” I told her.
We appraised ourselves in the mirror for a moment. I smoothed a hand down the front of the gown and smiled at myself in the mirror.
My cell phone dinged with a new message, and before I looked at the screen, I knew it would be Luca.
Luca: How’s my beautiful bride?
Alex: I feel like a queen in this dress.
Luca: Because you are a queen.
Clutching the phone in my hand, I smiled so wide my cheeks hurt, wishing I didn’t have to wait a few more days to make Luca my husband. I wanted to marry him that second.
After we changed, Kali suggested we head into the bathroom. She lifted the plastic bag from the bench, and we locked ourselves inside the bathroom. Kali unboxed three different pregnancy tests.
I sat on the toilet, and Kali handed me one after the other. It was probably a good thing I’d drank two bottles of water before we left the house. Nerves shook through me as we waited for the tests to change color. I washed my hands, unable to look at them, while Kali could not take her eyes off the counter.
Kali gasped. I moved beside her, and my eyes widened at the sight of all three tests. One had a blue plus sign, another two pink lines, and the final one said positive.
“There’s no denying you’re preggers,” she muttered.
“I have to tell Luca.” My heart dropped to my stomach. “The timing could not be worse.”
“It’s not the end of the world. We have allies committed to taking down The Carver. He won’t get you.” She rubbed her hand over my stomach. “Or this baby.”
Luca
Alex laid across the bed on her stomach, staring at me for the past five minutes without speaking a word. She had been acting strange all day, constantly fidgeting and avoiding my gaze whenever our eyes met.
“What’s going on, baby?”
“I have to tell you something.” She cleared her throat. “You won’t like it.”
I loosened my tie as I approached the bed. “What did you do?”
“I’m pregnant,” Alex whispered.
The entire world felt like it stopped at her words. My heart raced so fast I could hardly catch my breath. She couldn’t be pregnant, not with our wedding this weekend. Not with The Carver on his way. Drake had a lead on the man we believed was the real identity of The Carver. He’d been following him for the past day, tracking his online activity, but he still had the advantage over us.