Regina leaned against the wall and leveled a menacing stare at Nikita's back. Her fists were clenched at her sides.She cursed Nikita and wondered if she was pregnant with Nathaniel's baby. There was a good chance that she might be, considering she was still working for him a month ago.It was also unlikely that Nikita had slept with anyone else. Nathaniel was extremely territorial and a terminal germaphobe. He wouldn't have kept Nikita around for that long if he knew she had been touched by another man.Regina took a deep breath as the thought settled. A vicious gleam shone in her eyes. She had to get rid of Nikita's baby no matter what!Nikita did not run into Regina again during the examinations that followed. She thought the universe must be pulling the biggest prank on her, for the secret she had tried so hard to keep had been discovered by the one person who shouldn't know about it.But knowing Regina, she would not tell Nathaniel about this. After all, the baby was now the
Nikita poked and pushed the food with her fork to find small clumps of white, powdery substance clinging to it. She even picked up on the faint chemical scent when she leaned in to take a whiff.She was grave, angry even, as she took a picture of the substance and sent it to the food vendor.The vendor was quick to respond. They reassured her that the food had been untouched up to the point of delivery and that nothing in the restaurant matched the white, powdery substance. They also told her to take the problem up to the delivery man.To prove they were innocent, the vendor even forwarded her the security footage from the kitchen.Nikita watched the security footage and was convinced that the vendor was innocent. When she confronted the delivery man, he insisted he hadn't touched or tampered with the takeout and that he had followed standard procedure.With both parties denying fault, Nikita had no choice but to take it up with the customer service department.It was only after
Nikita lied smoothly, "Sorry, my blood sugar's running low. I skipped a couple of meals today."Nathaniel's heart twisted at Nikita's feeble state but could not resist snapping at her. "Are you so stupid that you'd forget to eat on time? What's so great about Mason when he won't even let you have your meals?"He did not wait for Nikita to retort before bundling her up and shoving her into his car. He then brought her to the nearest restaurant.Nathaniel avoided ordering food with strong flavor profiles. Having ordered a few dishes, he urged the waiter to serve their food first.Nikita felt much better after sitting in the restaurant for a while, and her mind had cleared. She knew exactly who was behind the poisoning attempt today: Regina.No one else knew about her pregnancy. She had likely pieced together that Nikita was carrying Nathaniel's baby and came up with such a cruel plan to get rid of it.Nikita thought about Regina's behavior at the mall today. Had Regina stood behind
Nikita trailed after Nathaniel. She gritted her teeth and forced a tight smile. "Mr. Foster, perhaps you'd like to reconsider? I think—""You think?" Nathaniel halted abruptly in his steps, causing Nikita to crash into him. He turned and assessed the woman in his arms. His heart skipped a beat, but he did not show it.Nikita heard him drawl imperiously, "What right do you have as a designer to tell your clients what they want in a design?"Rage and resentment welled up in her when she heard this, but she forced them down. "Pardon me for overstepping. If the first draft is to your liking, I'll proceed with it and hand you the final product in two days."Nathaniel stared at her and found her obedience endearing. Swallowing, he cupped the back of her head and pulled her in for a kiss.Nikita's breath hitched, but before she could react, Nathaniel's tongue demanded entry and swept in. He explored her mouth with a fierce hunger.To make matters worse, they were in the middle of a busy
Looking back, Regina began to realize that Nathaniel had only fussed over her and indulged in her because he wanted to make Nikita jealous.She seethed at the thought. What had Nikita done to bewitch him like that?Regina hated that her two attempts to get rid of Nikita's baby had failed, though she was lucky she'd had the foresight to hire someone legally insane to drug Nikita's takeout. If not, she might be behind bars right now.Presently, Nikita was waiting in the shadows just around the Lane residence's entrance. She watched as Regina got out of the car.Regina was about to go through the front door when she sensed something and looked up in NIkita's direction.Suddenly, a hand reached out and hauled Regina into the shadows. She tried to scream, but someone had covered her mouth.Nikita pinned Regina on the ground as the latter stared at her with wide, frantic eyes. She wanted to shriek and cry for help, but her voice came out muffled.Nikita sneered as she drank in Regina'
Ruby asked, "What happened to you?"Stella Langley, Regina's mother, hurried to her daughter. "How did you end up like this? What will Mrs. Foster think?"Regina met Ruby's gaze, and an idea suddenly crossed her mind. She might not be able to get rid of Nikita's baby, but someone else could do the job for her.Ruby had always hated Nikita. She valued status above all else and would never allow someone like Nikita to marry into the Foster family, nor would she let Nathaniel sire an illegitimate child.If Ruby found out Nikita was pregnant with Nathaniel's child out of wedlock, she would make her abort the baby. Unlike Regina, she did not need underhanded methods to make Nikita abort the child.At the thought of this, Regina willed the tears to spring to her eyes, and her voice cracked as she explained, "Nikita did this to me! She ambushed me!"Ruby's face visibly darkened at the mention of Nikita. "Tell me about it after you shower and change into something clean. I won't let her
Regina's heart sank when she heard this. She felt like a bucket of ice water had been tipped over her.She wanted to explain to Ruby, but the latter cut her off stonily, "You and Nathaniel are close. I came today to see if you'd talk to him for me and persuade him to meet Ms. Gray. He'll like her, I'm sure."Having said this, Ruby patted Regina's hand and added softly, "I trust you have no objection to that."Regina blanched as she nodded. She was resentful and hurt, but she forced a tight smile anyway. "Don't worry, Ruby. I'll talk to Nathaniel about this.""That would be best," Ruby said.When Ruby left, a vicious grimace twisted Regina's face as her fists clenched at her sides.…Nikita had only just left the company building after work the next day when a passing car stopped her.The car window rolled down to reveal Ruby's delicately made-up face that did not show any sign of aging. She ordered in her usual haughty tone, "Get in the car. I need to talk to you."With so man
Ruby frowned at the words. Just as she was about to put Nikita in her place, a glimpse of a tall figure rushing through the doorway caught her eye.Nathaniel's gaze swept over the room before landing on the woman with her back to him. Without hesitation, he strode toward her.Ruby's expression softened into a smile when she saw her son. "Nat, what brings you here?"Her remark made Nikita turn, and she was startled to see Nathaniel. What was he doing here? Did he already know?Standing beside Nikita, Nathaniel's eyes immediately fixed on the check on the table. His expression darkened as he asked, "Mom, why are you giving her money?"He had just finished work when Harvey told him Ruby had taken Nikita. Panic set in, and without hesitation, he rushed to the restaurant. He feared his mother might do something to Nikita. But now, the two women sat quietly. The check was still lying on the table. It was hard for Nathaniel not to jump to the worst conclusion.Ruby exchanged a subtle