Hired a Gigolo Got a Billionaire (Zoey and Christian) novel Chapter 381

Chapter 381

Madeline’s POV

The moment Marcus left, I stormed into Olivia’s office with a fury I didn’t even know I still had in me.

“You’ve lost your mind!” I snapped, my voice echoing off the empty room. “How could you involve Marcus in this?”

Olivia looked at me with an expression that mixed guilt and determination, but she didn’t back down.

“Madeline-”

“No!” I cut her off, all the adrenaline and terror from the past few minutes turning into pure rage. “You have no idea the danger you put him in! It’s dangerous for him to be here, it’s dangerous for you if Dominic finds out you’re conspiring against him, and it’s dangerous for me!”

I started pacing back and forth, my hands shaking.

“And on top of that, you invited Vivian to come along!” I went on. “What kind of plan is that supposed to be?”

“Calm down,” Olivia said, raising her hands in a placating gesture. “I only invited Vivian because I knew she wouldn’t come. If she was invited, she wouldn’t suspect anything. It was strategic.”

“Strategic?” I repeated, incredulous. “Olivia, these people don’t play games! They pointed a gun at his head in the Maldives. A real gun, with a real laser sight. If they find out you’re involved in this—”

“I know the risks,” she interrupted. “But I also know you’re drowning in this situation. Someone has to help you.

11

“No one needs to help me!” I yelled, even knowing it was a lie as the words left my mouth. “I’m going to get married, I’m going to have my baby, and I’m going to move on with my life. Marcus needs to forget he ever met me!”

Olivia studied me for a moment, her expression turning serious.

“He can keep coming here, if you want,” she said calmly. “No one would suspect anything if he pretended to be a janitor or something. The studio is always hiring people for maintenance-”

“I never want to see him again!” I cut in sharply. “And I want you to stop interfering in my life, Olivia. I didn’t ask for your help. I don’t want your help. And I don’t need your help.”

I headed straight for the door, desperate to get out of there-to escape the pressure, the possibilities, the impossible choices being shoved in front of me. My hand was already on the doorknob when I heard Olivia’s voice behind me.

“What do you think is going to happen when Dominic finds out that baby isn’t his?”

I froze, my hand still gripping the knob. The question hit me like a punch to the stomach, because it was the exact fear I’d been trying to suppress ever since I’d confirmed the pregnancy.

“It’s his,” I said, without turning around.

‘Are you one hundred percent sure that baby won’t be born with a beautiful pair of blue eyes?”

1/3

Domme may be

be capable of hurting a baby.”

“And how can you be so sure?”

The question echoed through the empty room, and I realized I didn’t have an answer. I couldn’t be sure. In fact, the more I thought about it, the less certain I felt about anything involving Dominic. A man capable of having a gun pointed at someone’s head. What else was he capable of?

But I couldn’t go there. I couldn’t let my mind follow that dark path. Because if I started considering every horrible possibility, every way this could go wrong, I’d end up having a real nervous breakdown.

And this time, the psychiatric clinic might not be a lie.

I needed to think about one thing at a time. I needed to focus on facts, on probabilities, on the things I could actually control.

The chances of the baby being Marcus’s were minimal. A small percentage against a large one. Maybe one percent versus ninety-nine. And I needed to cling to those ninety-nine percent like my life depended on it.

Because maybe it really did.

“You’re speculating about an absurdly small possibility,” I said to Olivia, trying to sound more convinced than I felt. “It’s far more likely the baby is Dominic’s.”

Olivia looked at me with an expression that mixed pity and frustration.

“Madeline, you can’t base your safety and your child’s on probabilities,” she said gently. “You need a plan for every possible outcome.”

“My plan is to get married, have my baby, and live my life,” I replied automatically.

“That was never your plan,” Olivia shot back. “That’s the plan they made for you. There’s a huge difference.”

“It doesn’t matter,” I said, trying to rebuild my mental defenses. “It’s my reality now. And I’ll make it work.”

“Even if it means sacrificing your happiness? Even if it means raising a child inside a lie?”

“Better a comfortable lie than a dangerous truth,” I replied, repeating something I’d heard my mother say more times than I could count.

“Do you really believe that?”

The question made me hesitate. Did I believe it? Or was it just what I needed to believe to keep going?

2/3

“I believe that sometimes we don’t have a choice,” I said finally. “And that it’s better to accept reality than fight it and end up hurting everyone in the process.”

“Including yourself?”

cluding myself.”

Olivia shook her head, clearly frustrated by my stubbornness.

“You do have a choice, Madeline. You always have. You’re just too afraid to use it.”

“I’m not afraid,” I lied. “I’m responsible. I understand consequences. I know my decisions affect people other than myself.”

“And Marcus?” she asked. “Doesn’t he deserve to know if he might be a father?”

The question hit me like a punch. Did Marcus deserve to know? Did he deserve the chance to decide for himself whether he wanted to step into this mess? Or was it kinder to protect him by keeping him in the dark?

“If the child is his,” I said carefully, “he’ll find out eventually.”

“When?” Olivia pressed. “When the baby is born and can’t be hidden anymore? When Dominic finds out and decides to do something about it?”

“Dominic won’t find out,” I insisted, but my voice sounded far less convincing than I wanted it to.

“Madeline, babies don’t lie. If that child is born with features that don’t match Dominic’s, he’ll know immediately. And then what are you going to do?”

I didn’t answer. Not because I didn’t know what to say, but because any honest answer would force me to face fears I wasn’t ready to confront.

“I’ll deal with it if and when it happens,” I said at last.

“And what if it’s too late to protect both of you?”

I didn’t respond. I didn’t know how.

COIN BUNDLE: get more free bonus

P

Comments

Support

Share

GET IT

X

3/3