The CEO Above My Desk Chapter 183

***Violet***

I stared down at the pregnancy test like my brain physically could not process what it was seeing.

Positive. Not faint. Not questionable. Not one of those annoying little maybe lines that make you squint at it for twenty minutes while spiraling emotionally.

*No.*

Very, very positive.

Beside me, Camille made the smallest choking sound imaginable before slapping both hands over her mouth. “Oh my God.”

I didn’t answer. I couldn’t. Because suddenly it felt like the entire world tilted sideways underneath me.

Pregnant.

I was pregnant.

My fingers tightened painfully against the bathroom counter while my thoughts started crashing into each other all at once.

My mother’s voice echoed violently through my head.

*It only takes once, Violet.*

Jesus Christ.

Camille slowly moved closer beside me like she was approaching a wild animal that might bolt at any second.

“Vi?” Her voice sounded softer now. Careful.

And somehow that almost made me cry harder than the actual test.

I looked up slowly toward the mirror. I barely recognized the woman staring back at me.

My face looked pale beneath the bathroom lights. Eyes glassy. Completely overwhelmed.

Pregnant.

With Rowan’s baby.

Oh my God.

The bathroom door suddenly opened behind us. “You alright in here?” Agent Bennett’s voice cut through the silence calmly.

Neither me nor Camille answered immediately. What the hell were we even supposed to say?

The federal agent stepped fully into the bathroom a second later before stopping near the sinks.

Then her eyes landed on the counter.

The pregnancy test.

And instantly… Everything clicked across her face. “Oh.”

Not judgment. Not shock exactly. Just understanding.

Camille slowly lowered her hands while staring at the test again like it might suddenly change its mind.

“She didn’t believe me,” Camille muttered weakly.

“That’s pretty normal,” Bennett admitted quietly.

I still couldn’t stop staring at my reflection. My hand slowly moved toward my stomach without me even realizing it. Tiny movement. Instinctive.

And somehow that made everything feel horrifyingly real.

Camille noticed it immediately. Her expression softened so fast it physically hurt to look at. “Oh, honey.”

That did it.

My throat tightened instantly. “I can’t do this right now,” I whispered.

Camille immediately grabbed my hand. “Hey. Hey, look at me.”

I shook my head hard. “No, Camille, seriously. I can’t.” My voice cracked violently now. “There are federal agents upstairs. People are dying. Hargrove is insane and there’s apparently a corruption ring buried inside the city and now this?”

Tears burned hard behind my eyes. “I don’t even know how to process this.”

Camille squeezed my hand tighter immediately. “Yes you do.”

“No I don’t.”

“Yes, you do,” she repeated softly. “You’re scared.”

She was right.

I laughed shakily under my breath while wiping quickly at my face. “Of course I’m scared.”

“You know what I did when I found out I was pregnant?”

I looked over at her weakly.

“I cried for two hours, accused Theo of ruining my life, then ate an entire Taco Bell party pack by myself.”

Despite everything, a tiny laugh escaped me.

Camille pointed immediately. “There she is.”

I huffed another weak laugh while covering my face briefly with one hand.

“I’m serious,” Camille continued softer now. “Nobody feels ready at first.” Her eyes dropped briefly toward the pregnancy test before lifting back toward mine. “But then one day you realize there’s this tiny little person depending on you and suddenly…” Her voice cracked slightly. “Everything changes.”

Agent Bennett stayed quiet during most of it, leaning lightly against the counter nearby while giving us space. Professional enough not to intrude. Kind enough not to leave.

I appreciated that more than she probably realized.

Finally she spoke carefully. “Mrs. Ashcroft.”

I looked toward her slowly. Her expression stayed calm. Grounded.

Like she was trying to anchor the room before we all emotionally floated into space.

“You do not need to make every decision tonight.”

That made me pause.

Bennett continued gently, “You don’t have to figure out motherhood tonight. You don’t have to figure out your marriage tonight.” Her eyes softened slightly. “And you definitely don’t need to figure out the next eighteen years while standing in a corporate bathroom during a federal investigation.”

“I just…” I swallowed hard. “I don’t even know how to tell Rowan.”

At that, Camille actually smiled. Not teasing this time. Soft. Knowing.

“Oh please,” she said quietly. “That man already looks at you like you personally invented happiness.”

My chest tightened painfully.

Agent Bennett nodded once slightly. “He’s observant.”

Camille snorted softly. “Obsessive.”

“Protective,” Bennett corrected calmly.

I leaned back against the counter slowly while staring at the test again. Positive. Still positive. Still terrifying.

Camille suddenly wrapped an arm around my shoulders and pulled me sideways against her.

And just like that, I finally let myself lean into somebody else for a second.

“I’m here,” she whispered quietly against my hair. “Okay? No matter what happens upstairs… no matter what happens with this case… I’m here.”

I stared at the pregnancy test for another long moment before finally reaching over and grabbing it off the counter. I wrapped the stupid test in toilet paper quickly before shoving it into my coat pocket.

A little gross? Sure. But honestly, I’d done worse.

Camille watched me carefully. “That cannot possibly be sanitary.”

“I survived motel coffee and gas station sushi once.” I shrugged weakly. “I’ll live.”

Agent Bennett snorted quietly under her breath before straightening again.

I looked toward her tiredly. “So what now?”

Her expression shifted slightly back toward professional mode again. “Now,” she said calmly, “it’s your turn.”

Right. Federal interrogation. Wonderful.

I exhaled slowly before nodding once. “Okay.”

Camille immediately grabbed my hand before we left the bathroom. Not dramatically. Just quickly. Grounding me.

“You good?”

No. Absolutely not. But I still squeezed her hand back anyway.

Agent Bennett walked beside us quietly as the three of us headed back down the hallway toward the executive floor.

And somewhere between the bathroom and Rowan’s office lobby… A terrible idea entered my brain. A truly awful one. Petty. Emotional. Slightly immature.

I decided immediately that this was how I was telling him.

He was probably going to hate me for it. But considering he spent the last six hours hovering around me like an emotionally constipated security system while simultaneously helping interrogate his ex-assistant?

I felt a little justified.

As we pushed through the side office doors back onto the executive floor, Rowan was standing beside my desk talking quietly with Theo and Devin.

The second he saw me, his entire posture shifted immediately. Attention locking onto me instantly.

God. That man really did watch me constantly now.

I took one steadying breath. Then walked straight toward him.

Rowan opened his mouth immediately. “Are you alri—”

I pulled the pregnancy test from my pocket and slapped it directly against his chest. Hard enough it made a smacking sound against his suit jacket.

The entire executive floor froze. Completely. Theo’s mouth physically dropped open. Devin stared blankly. Camille immediately folded over laughing behind me.

And Rowan?

Rowan just stood there holding the pregnancy test against his chest like his brain had fully disconnected from reality.

I didn’t stop walking. Nope. Absolutely not. If I looked at him right now I might actually combust from stress.

I shoved open the conference room doors immediately while Agent Bennett followed behind me looking significantly more entertained than a federal agent probably should.

The second the doors shut behind us, she slowly raised one eyebrow toward me. “Should you maybe have done that differently?”