She flutters her long dark lashes at me and plasters on an evil smile as Maddie stands, wide-eyed and nervous. “I wanted to meet your family! Plus, I thought it’d be better to tell him in person that he’s gonna be a grandpa!”
Victoria has pulled the rug out from under me, and the look on Maddie’s face tells me she’s about to be sick. Or stab me. I’m seconds away from saying fuck it and running to comfort her.
“What?” My dad gasps. “Really?”
“Yep,” I reply tight-lipped. My father is beaming with pride as Victoria gives him a big hug. When did she have the time to butter him up?
“Liam, this is great news!” I haven’t seen him this happy in ages.
“I knew you’d be excited, Mr. Evans.” Victoria is playing the wife role perfectly. I only wish Maddie wasn’t here for this shitshow.
“This sounds like a personal moment, excuse me.” Maddie walks out of the living room while Victoria chats with my father. Maddie goes to her room, and I quickly follow her.
“Baby, wait…” I beg quietly. “I’m so, so sorry. I have no idea why she’s here, but I’m going to get her out as soon as I can.” I reach for her, but she pulls away. “Maddie, this is just a part of her game and to gain control.” Getting my dad involved adds another level of threat, and I’m pissed.
She crosses her arms, taking another step back. “You don’t seem surprised about the pregnancy.”
I lower my head, inhaling a deep breath. “Mads.”
“You knew.” Her voice chokes up. “You’ve been lying to me.”
“No, no.” I shake my head. “No.”
“How could you not tell me? Did you just think it would go away? You got her pregnant! And you’re sleeping with me!”
“It’s not like that, Maddie. Calm down.” I plead with my eyes, not wanting to raise my voice. “I wasn’t going to say anything until I knew one hundred percent. I asked for a paternity test.”
She shakes her head, fury burning in her face. “You’re a piece of shit. You wanted to have your cake and eat it too. You wanted to pretend nothing was going on and just used me as a distraction.”
I growl, pain burning inside my chest. “How can you even say that?”
Before she can answer, Victoria’s high heels click behind me. “There you two are! I was just about to tell your dad our exciting news!”
Oh God, there’s more?
“What news?” I spin around, not even bothering to smile this time. My father’s standing next to her, so I pull back my scowl the best I can.
“Well…I wanted to wait to say for sure until I had my ultrasound, but I saw my doctor a couple of days ago, and he confirmed it. We’re having twins!” She claps her hands and does a little jump. “Daddy is gonna be so excited! Grandmother, too! Oh my God, she’s going to be so happy!” My father lights up in surprise. If I wasn’t so pissed, I’d be shell-shocked too. “Now we can go to Vegas together and share it with everyone, honey.” She comes over and wraps her arms around me in a hug.
Considering my dad is here, watching, and I don’t want him to suspect anything, I lean down and kiss her cheek. “That’s amazing, sweetie.”
It’s no Oscar-worthy performance, but my dad buys it.
“Wow…this is the best news!” He wraps Victoria and me up in a big group hug.
“Congratulations!” Maddie blurts out. “Sounds like double trouble, hope you can handle it!” The smile on her face and tone in her voice is so fake that I’m surprised her head doesn’t burst with rage.
“Of course we can,” Victoria responds, placing her hand on my chest as she snuggles her way under my arm. “Especially since Liam’s moving to Vegas. We’ll have our perfect little family.”
My jaw nearly cracks at the mention of me moving. It would be over my fucking dead body before I moved to Vegas to be with Victoria. She’s so delusional; her bullshit is almost shocking.
Maddie forces a grin. “That’s awesome. Liam loves Vegas. He’ll feel right at home, I’m sure!” Then she takes a step back. “Well, I’m heading in for the night. It was lovely to see you again, Mr. Evans.” Tilting her head, she shoots a murderous smile. “Victoria. Always a pleasure.” She bites her cheek and glares at me. “Liam.” Then she swallows hard. “Good night.”
“Dad, go sit on the couch. I’ll meet you there. Victoria and I need a moment,” I say, grabbing Victoria’s wrist and pulling her into the kitchen.
“Have you lost your fucking mind?” I whisper-hiss. “This isn’t what we discussed! How could you bring him into this? How could you drop this news on me without telling me first? I’m not moving there!”
She yanks her hand out of my grip, scowling. “You’re the father of these babies, whether you like it or not! Plus, what other options do you have, Liam?”