The Billionaire Boss's Scandal

Showtime

Connie answered the door with a grin. "Hey! Come on in!"

Amara followed her inside. A waft of lasagna filled her nose and made her stomach growl. She tried not to let herself get distracted. She needed to focus.

As she followed Connie to the kitchen, her eyes moved to Connie's stomach. She was wearing a bit of a looser top, but her baby bump was still visible, at least to Amara. To someone who wasn't looking for it, it wouldn't be obvious.

"So, how have things been lately?" Amara asked. She was trying to start with small talk before going straight into prodding Connie for answers. If she told Amara about the baby's father or the murder on her own, it would make Amara look a lot less suspicious.

"They've been great! Better than ever!" Connie announced. 

She bent over to peek into the oven. Amara bit at the inside of her lip, trying to figure out exactly how to get these secrets out of her.

"Did I ever tell you the story about when I found out I was pregnant?" Amara immediately winced. Subtlety was apparently not on her side tonight.

Connie gave her a quizzical look. "Um, I don't think so."

"Yeah, it was really scary at first," Amara continued. "I went through my entire pregnancy just hoping and praying that Joshua would come back to me. Or at least help me." She gave a tiny laugh. "Sounds stupid when I say it now."

"It's not stupid," Connie said. "Men have a responsibility to their kids too. And if they don't want to deal with that, then they shouldn't have sex with every other woman."

She reached up into the cupboard and grabbed some plates. The way she stretched, Amara could really see her bump now.

Amara leaned against the counter. "What would you have done if you were in my situation?"

Connie looked up and her eyes met Amara's. She searched her face, as if she was looking for something. That's when Amara realized that she was analyzing her. Amara held back a shudder. Even if they were friends, Connie was still a cop, and possibly one who had committed a murder.

"Why do you ask?" Connie finally asked after a tense silence. 

When Amara bit her lip, and didn't respond, Connie crossed her arms. "What's this about, Amara?"

It was quiet. Forgoing all subtlety,  Amara asked one of the many questions that had been on her mind.

"When are you due?" She asked.

An "Oh, crap" expression formed on Connie's face. She sucked in a big breath and turned away.

"January 26th." After a minute, she spoke again. "How'd you know?"

"They say other moms can tell," Amara said. She gave her a soft smile.

Connie quickly changed the subject and the two chatted on and off about different things throughout the night. However, halfway through dinner, Amara was getting antsy. She didn't want to overstay her welcome, but she needed to get some answers out of Connie, and she had to do that before she left. Chances were, if she screwed this up, Detective Milne wouldn't let her try again.

"So," She began carefully. "Tell me about your boyfriend."

"Pardon?" Connie asked, appearing confused.

"Well, if I had to guess, I'd say you're about four months pregnant, but you've never mentioned anything about a partner," Amara said. "And you're obviously not married...."

"Oh, yeah," Connie averted her eyes. "He's not in the picture anymore."

"Oh," Amara tried to appear surprised, but she was actually getting more excited. She was on the right track at least. "I'm sorry."