All Chapters of Billionaire, I'm No Longer Yours: Chapter 31 - Chapter 40

(Lila)Nick’s fist connected with the last thug’s jaw with a sickening crack. The man fell on the basement floor, joining his unconscious partners. Blood was dripping from Nick’s face as he leaned against the wall, breathing hard.“We need to go,” I touched his arm gently. “Your wrist looks bad.”“I’ve had worse.” Nick tried to straighten but winced. “Robert’s still out there somewhere. He ran upstairs when he heard cars approaching.”The basement felt different now with the thugs unconscious and Robert gone—less threatening somehow, but the symbols on the walls still made my skin crawl. My own desperate carvings from fifteen years ago, and the ones copied and twisted into something cruel.The silence broke with a yell—high-pitched, terrified.“James!” I grabbed Nick’s sleeve. “That came from outside. It was James!”We ran up the narrow basement stairs together, his arm shooting out to hold me when my foot caught on a broken step.“Wait.” Nick pulled me to a stop near the top. “Listen

(Lila)I sat hunched in the hospital waiting room’s plastic chair, watching Nick pace. His suit was still covered in dirt and blood from the basement, but he wouldn’t leave to change. None of us would leave, not with James being examined behind those doors.“Sit down before you get even more tired,” I said, but Nick kept walking.“Can’t. How long does a basic examination take?”“They’re being thorough.” My hand touched my still-flat stomach as if on its own accord. “After what James said about Grace…”Ethan hadn’t moved from his position against James’s door since we arrived. His clothes were as ruined as Nick’s. Dried blood crusted the collar where Robert had split his lip.“Mr. Baldwin?” A nurse approached Ethan. “We need to document your injuries too.”“I’m fine.” Ethan didn’t look away from the door. “Focus on my son.”“At least let us clean that cut—”“I said I’m fine.”The nurse retreated, shaking her head. I understood her frustration, but I also understood Ethan. None of us co

(Lila)I lay propped up in Nick’s bed, doctor’s orders keeping me confined while my body struggled with the pregnancy. I stared at the ceiling as James spread his homework across my blankets.“What’s seven times eight?” I asked, helping him with multiplication.He scrunched his face. “Fifty-six?”“Perfect!” I high-fived him. “You’re getting so good at this.”Ethan sat in the armchair by the window, pretending to work on his laptop but watching us instead. Nick moved around in the kitchen, the sounds of cooking and the smell of garlic filling the penthouse.“Will the baby be good at math too?” James asked suddenly, touching my still-flat stomach.The pencil in Ethan’s hand snapped. Nick stopped chopping vegetables.“Maybe,” I said carefully. “We’ll have to wait and see.”James nodded seriously. “I’ll help teach them. Since I’ll be their big brother.”My throat tightened. Ethan stood abruptly, disappearing into the kitchen where Nick had gone completely silent.“Will they call Dad ‘Dad’

(Lila)I pressed against Nick in the courthouse bathroom, my fingers working at his tie while his hands slid under my skirt.“We shouldn’t,” he whispered against my neck. “The hearing starts in ten minutes.”“Then be quick.” I yanked his shirt free, needing to touch skin.His mouth crashed onto mine as he lifted me against the wall. The marble was cold through my blouse but I didn’t care. After that night, after finally being together, I couldn’t keep my hands off him.“Someone could come in,” he warned even as he pushed my skirt higher.“Then lock the door.”He fumbled with the lock one-handed, unwilling to set me down. When the bolt clicked, his control snapped. We came together frantically, desperately, my legs wrapped around his waist as he drove into me.“Nick,” I gasped. “Please…”The door rattled. We froze.“Five minutes to court!” Alexander called through the wood.Nick pressed his forehead to mine, both of us breathing hard. “We need to stop.”“I know.” But I couldn’t make my

(Lila)I sat propped up in bed while everyone argued around me. Alexander paced by the window, his suit jacket thrown over a chair. Ethan leaned against the wall, running his hands through his hair so much it stood on end. Only Nick remained steady, perched on the edge of my mattress with his hand on my knee.“She can’t just threaten us like this,” Alexander snapped, turning sharply. “We’re Montgomeries. We don’t bow to blackmail.”“This isn’t about family pride,” Ethan pushed off the wall. “This is about protecting my child. If Grace exposes everything…”“What exactly would she expose?” Alexander rounded on him. “That you got my sister pregnant then abandoned her for your ex?”“I didn’t abandon anyone!”“Stop it,” Nick cut in. “Fighting won’t help.”I pressed my hands to my temples as they continued arguing. The doctor had ordered bed rest, but stress radiated through the entire room, unavoidable.“We could try buying her off,” Alexander suggested.“She doesn’t want money,” I said qu