“Aw, we all are always here for you,” Fallon gushed.

“Yup, don’t forget that,” Lucas said, kissing Audrey’s temple.

“Piper! Is the rumor true?” Fallon asked with a grin on her face.

Piper smiled, placing her hands on her belly.

“That I’m knocked up by this guy and that we are married? Yes, crazy kids, I know.”

Everyone laughed as Lucas shook his head.

“It is awesome knowing that there is a girl out there who could knock Erik Titov off his rocker. Congratulations, guys,” Lucas said, toasting his glass to them.

Everyone did the same as Erik laughed, bringing Piper closer to him.

“I don’t know about off my rocker, but she does rock my world.”

Everyone smiled as Piper rolled her eyes with a plastic grin on her face. A part of her wanted to run into the nearest bathroom and cry, because she hated to lie to the people she loved. They all seemed to be happy for them. Little did they know this relationship was one-sided and Piper needed to remember that. She needed to quit thinking of the possibility of Erik changing and falling in love with her; it wasn’t going to happen.

Looking down at where his hand rested on her waist, near their unborn child, she began to feel aggravated … this didn’t matter to him, none of it, and she wanted to swat his hand and walk away. This wasn’t fair, and when she glanced up at him, it must have been written all over her face, because he knew something was wrong. He moved a piece of hair that had gotten stuck on her lip gloss and smiled.

“You okay?”

She blinked and felt her eyes flood with tears. God, she hated her stupid emotions. One minute she was head over heels for him, another she wanted to kill him, but now she just wanted him to hold her, and tell her there was a chance he could love her. Why did she have to go through this while being pregnant? If she wasn’t pregnant, she would have a level head, her hormones wouldn’t be all out of whack, and she wouldn’t think with her heart so much.

“I think I need a drink and a Gummy Bear cupcake.”

“Okay,” he said, and was about to lead her away, when Fallon stopped him.

“Hold on, I want a picture of us three with our bellies!”

Piper watched as Fallon pulled her phone out and handed it to Lucas. Taking hold of Piper’s arm, she brought her close while Audrey hugged Fallon’s other side. Piper looked up at the camera and smiled brightly as the picture was taken. Fallon reached for the phone and Piper smiled as she looked at their photo, their bright faces and growing bellies.

“We are to-die-for cute!” Fallon gushed.

“We sure are.” Audrey laughed.

“I love it. Can you send it to me?” Piper asked.

“Sure!”

Piper waited until her phone dinged with the picture and was about to walk away when she noticed that Shea and Elli were making their way toward them. Turning to see if Erik saw them coming, she noticed that Jakob and Harper had arrived at the party, too.

Jeez, could she get a break?

Erik glanced over at her and took her hand in his, bringing her to him. He leaned down, his lips along her jawbone, his beard tickling her cheek as he whispered, “You want me to go get you a drink?”

She shook her head and said, “Elli is coming over here.”

She felt his face move and when she looked up at him, he was looking toward where Elli had stopped to talk to someone else. It was so weird not seeing Elli pregnant anymore. Piper had always thought Elli had a gorgeous figure pregnant or not. Even after four kids, she was still stunning in a long black dress that sparkled in the light. Her hair curled across her shoulders and she looked like a million bucks. Beside her was her handsome husband.

When Piper glanced back up at Erik, he was looking down at her and asked, “Are you sure?”

“Yeah, I can go get it.”

Erik shook his head. “Don’t leave me with all these people.”

She laughed as he gave her a small smile. “They are your friends.”

“Yeah, but it’s weird, they are looking at me like I’m an alien.”

Piper let out a snort as she shook her head. “It’s all in your head.”

“No, really, I feel weird.”

Piper rolled her eyes. “And I help you not feel weird?”

Erik paused and shrugged his shoulders. “I feel normal when you are around.”

Piper raised an eyebrow and said, “I’m not sure if that’s a compliment or not, but for your sake, I’m gonna take it as one.”

Erik’s eyes darkened, causing all kinds of butterflies to flutter in her belly as he whispered, “If you want a compliment, I’ll give you one. You are looking really hot tonight.”

Well, that stunned her, and with wide eyes she whispered, “Thank you.”

When Piper felt an arm go around her middle, it broke the intense gaze they were sharing, and Piper looked over to see Elli smiling at her.

“Well I must say, y’all are mighty cute together.”

Piper smiled up at Erik as he glanced down at her, causing her heart to skip a beat. He looked as if he was going to kiss her. A big lusty kiss on the lips, maybe a little tongue, and when he leaned down toward her, Piper’s eyes drifted shut just as his lips pressed against the spot between her nose and cheek.

“Aw! You two are so stinkin’ cute!” Audrey gushed.

Disappointment filled her as she opened her eyes to find that Erik’s lips still lingered by her nose. She wanted to feel his lips on hers. She wanted to be completely taken by him. But she needed to remember, this was strictly to protect his career. He was acting.