Ever since Dorothea started getting serious about cooking, she found herself working from home most days. After lunch, she wandered into the garden to walk off her meal, phone pressed to her ear as she called her best friend.
“I’m so bored, Carmen. Ever since I got pregnant, everything feels so restricted. I can’t do anything without overthinking it.”
Carmen’s voice crackled through the phone. “Actually, our company just launched a new reality show. Guess what—I’m the assistant director. And the main investor? Your husband’s brother. The show follows the daily lives of pregnant women, all from pretty well-off families. We’re live-streaming their routines to show everyone that pregnancy isn’t as scary as people think. Moms-to-be can still have amazing lives.”
Carmen sounded way too excited. “Want to join? With your husband’s connections, you don’t have to worry. No one would dare edit you badly or start drama online.”
Dorothea hesitated. The idea of strangers watching her every move made her skin crawl. “That just feels too weird. I don’t think I could get used to it.”
“I get it. Live-streaming is a lot, but if you just stay off social media and ignore the comments, it’s really not so bad. Oh, and the pay is wild. Eight episodes, only two shoots a week so it’s not stressful, and you finish in two months. And each episode pays two hundred thousand…”
“Two hundred thousand per episode?” Dorothea nearly dropped her phone. “So, if I do all eight, that’s one point six million?”
She had plenty of money, but who would say no to more?
“I’m in. When do I sign?”
There was a pause on the other end. “Didn’t you just say you couldn’t handle it?”
“You’re the assistant director. What’s there to be nervous about? It’s not like you’d let anything weird happen to me. And now that I’m having a baby, I need to start saving for their future!”
Carmen sighed. “Shouldn’t you ask your husband first?”
Right. She’d almost forgotten about Latham.
That night, Dorothea slipped into a silky purple nightgown and waited for Latham to finish his meeting in the study. When he finally came out, the first thing he saw were her long, bare legs stretched across the bed.

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