“But you must trust me to keep you safe,” he said.

“Why do you care?” I asked, my voice rising slightly. “I am just a piece of collateral to everyone in this city.”

“You are not collateral to me.”

He looked down at my stomach again.

This time, his eyes stayed there.

“And neither is the child you are carrying.”

The room seemed to lose all its oxygen.

I stepped back, my heart pounding violently against my ribs.

“What?” I gasped.

“Did you really think I would not find out?” Dante asked quietly.

“How… how long have you known?”

“Since the day my men brought you here.”

He walked to the window, looking out at the rain-slicked streets below.

“My doctor confirmed it when he examined you after your escape from Marcus’s men.”

“You told him to keep it from me?” I asked, anger mixing with my panic.

“No,” Dante said, turning back to face me. “I wanted to see when you would trust me enough to tell me yourself.”

I looked away, crossing my arms tightly over my chest again.

“It is not yours,” I whispered.