One Night in London (19 page)

“Tell his dumb ass that.” She took a bite of her salad.

Waving my hand in front of my face, I spoke, “Nah. I don’t want to start a fight or anything. He’ll eventually come around and tell me.”

“What? Did you just hear yourself? The two of you are in a hot and heavy relationship. He’s taken you on trips, given you expensive jewelry, and you have sex twice a day.”

“Sometimes three.” I held up three fingers.

“The point is, Chloe, he should have said it by now.”

“He will.” I smiled. “When the time is right.”

“You are too forgiving of a person.”

After finishing lunch, Sienna went back to work and I headed to the art gallery. Climbing out of the cab, I saw Willie walking down the street.

“Hey, Willie,” I yelled and gave him a wave.

He stopped and waited for me.

“Hey, Chloe.” He coughed.

“Are you okay?”

“Yeah. Just a little cold, nothing to worry about.” He coughed again.

“Okay. You better take care of yourself. I’ll stop by and see you soon. I have to get back to work.” I smiled.

I couldn’t stop thinking about Willie and how he didn’t look so good. After work, I ran to the drugstore and picked up some cough drops, a few bottles of water, and some cold medicine.

“I bought you some medicine, Willie.” I held up the plastic bag as he sat up against the brick wall in the alley.

“Chloe, you didn’t have to do that.”

“Don’t be silly. You’re not feeling well and you need to take care of yourself. I also picked up your favorite candy bar.”

“You’re too good to me. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome. I have to go. Sebastian and I are going out and I have to get home and change.”

“It makes me happy to see you so happy.” He smiled.

“I
am
happy. See you later, Willie.” I waved.

As I walked up to my building, Eli pulled up and Sebastian climbed out of the limo.

“Are you just getting home?” he asked as he gave me a kiss.

“Yeah. I stopped by the drugstore after work and picked up some cold medicine for Willie. He’s not feeling well.”

“Ah. That was nice of you.”

“It won’t take me long to change. If you can behave yourself, I may even let you watch.” I grinned as I grabbed his tie and he followed behind.

“Oh, I’m going to watch, but I can’t guarantee that I’ll behave. I can’t seem to do that when I’m around you.”

After a nice dinner and a bottle of wine, we headed back to Sebastian’s penthouse. Lying in bed, his arms held me as my head lay on his muscular chest. This was where I belonged.

“Hey, Sebastian,” I spoke as I stroked his chest.

“Hmm?” he spoke.

“I love you.”

For a moment, there was silence and I thought for sure he was mustering up the courage to say it back.

“Me too, baby.” He kissed the top of my head. “Now get some sleep.”

A tiny piece of my heart broke when I heard him say that. Was I expecting too much from him too soon? Maybe I shouldn’t have been so free to tell him that I loved him when I did. I’d never forget the look on his face. We were in Hawaii and we were having dinner on the beach. The sun was setting and it was a magical moment; one of those moments that take your breath away. It was romantic and I got caught up in the scenery. But it was a moment that I would never regret. Telling him that I loved him made me incredibly happy. I wanted him to know because he had never been loved his whole life. But the more I said it, the deeper the cut in my soul became because he couldn’t bring himself to say it back. Closing my eyes, I tried to push it out of my mind. Tomorrow was a new day, and maybe, just maybe, it would be the day that he would tell me that he loved me too.

Chloe

Two Weeks Later

I
picked up the white stick that sat on the bathroom counter for the past five minutes. Holding it in my hand, tears started to fill my eyes as I stared at the blue plus sign displayed in the window. With a smile, I looked at my mom.

“We’re having a baby!”

Sebastian

O
n the way to Chloe’s, I had Eli stop at the florist, where I picked up a dozen gerbera daisies in multiple colors. There was much celebrating to do tonight because I had just signed a deal that made my company millions of dollars. I wanted to take her out to celebrate, but she insisted on cooking me dinner. Which was fine. Just being with her was celebratory enough.

When I stepped into her apartment, she greeted me with a hug and a passionate kiss, congratulating me on the deal.

“Sebastian, you brought me daisies.” She smiled. “But I should be giving you something.”

Following her into the kitchen, I spoke, “Trust me, baby, you will be giving me something after dinner.” I winked.

She seemed to be in an exceptional mood. Don’t get me wrong, she was always in a good mood, but tonight, she seemed different. Opening the bottle of wine that was sitting on the counter, I poured some into two glasses and set them on the table. Halfway through dinner, I excused myself to the bathroom.

While I was standing there taking a piss, my eyes happened to glance down at the small trashcan that sat next to the toilet. Reaching down, I pulled out the white stick that displayed a positive sign and my heart started racing out of control. Sweat formed on my forehead and I found it difficult to catch my breath. Pulling the box out of the trash, I read the words: EPT. Shock overtook my body as my hands started to shake. Throwing the box and the stick back in the trash, I shut the lid to the toilet and sat down, cupping my face in my hands. Chloe was pregnant and I didn’t know what to do. Was I happy about it? Hell no. I didn’t want kids. Not now, not ever. How the fuck did this happen? Chloe was on the pill. Did she do this on purpose? All kinds of crazy thoughts went through my head. Standing up, I took in a deep breath, grabbed my phone from my pocket, and calmly walked back to the table.

“I’m sorry, Chloe, but I have to go.”

“What? Why? What’s wrong?” she asked as she stood up.

“I just got a call from Damien. Something about the deal and he needs me to come to the office. I’m sorry.”

“Okay. Will you be coming back?”

“Probably not. I don’t know how long this is going to take and it could go really late. I’ll text you later.” I kissed her head and bolted out the door.

Walking down the street, I called Eli.

“Yes, Sebastian?”

“Come get me. I’m around the block from Chloe’s apartment.”

“What? Why?”

“Just hurry up, Eli.” I ended the call.

As I stood with my back up against the wall of Pizzapopolous, dazed and confused, I heard someone call my name.

“Sebastian?” Connor smiled.

“Oh. Hey, Connor. Ellery.”

“What are you doing just standing here like this?”

“Waiting for Eli.”

“Where’s Chloe?” Ellery asked.

“She’s at home. We were in the middle of eating dinner when I got a call from Damien. I have to go into the office,” I spoke nervously.

“Ah. I hate those kinds of calls.” Connor smiled. “Well, good seeing you, my friend. Let’s have dinner one night; the four of us.”

“Sure.” I gave him a nod. “You two have a good night.”

Finally, Eli pulled up and I wasted no time climbing into the backseat.

“What’s going on? Are you not feeling well? You look kind of pale.”

“I don’t know.” I stared straight ahead.

“Sebastian, what’s wrong? Did you and Chloe have a fight?”

A fight. If only it were that simple. Taking in a deep breath, I looked at Eli.

“Chloe’s pregnant.”

His eyes instantly darted to the rearview mirror.

“What?”

“I was going to the bathroom and I found the pregnancy test in the trash. It was positive.”

“So she didn’t tell you?”

“No. She didn’t get a chance. As soon as I saw it, I made up an excuse that Damien called and needed me at the office.”

“You just ran out on her like that?”

“I had to get out of there, Eli.”

“What are you going to do?”

“I don’t know. I haven’t even been able to tell her that I love her, let alone be a father to a kid.”

“Be careful, Sebastian.” He slowly shook his head.

“Careful is what I thought we were being. For fuck sake, she’s on the pill. How the fuck did this happen?”

“I’m not surprised, with the way you two fuck like rabbits. Maybe she missed one or something. I’ve heard of it happening. People getting pregnant while on birth control.”

“I can’t be something I’m not. I swear, if she did this on purpose...”

“Oh come on, Sebastian. Chloe would never do something like that.”

“I don’t know.”

Eli pulled up to my building and followed me up to the penthouse. Pouring us a drink, I spoke, “I think I need to get out of town for a while and clear my head. I need to figure things out.”

“And what are you going to tell Chloe?”

“That I have an emergency business meeting.”

“Lies are not good, Sebastian. They always come back to bite you in the ass. What you need to do is let her tell you that she’s pregnant and the two of you need to talk about it.”

“I can’t. I’m in shock and I need to leave town for a while.” I threw back my drink and pulled out my phone, dialing my pilot.

“Hello, Mr. Bennett.”

“Make sure the plane is ready tomorrow morning. I’m going to Seattle. I’ll be at the airport at eight a.m.”

“Sure thing, Mr. Bennett.”

Finishing the last sip of my drink, I set my glass down on the bar.

“Be here tomorrow at seven o’clock,” I spoke to Eli.

“I don’t think you’re doing the right thing.”

“I don’t care what you think!” I shouted. “I need to clear my head.”

He put his hands up. “It’s your life, Sebastian. It always has been. I’ll see you in the morning.” He walked out with an attitude.

I waited a couple of hours before I sent Chloe a text message.

“Hi. Listen, I need to fly out tomorrow morning for an emergency meeting in Seattle. I’ll be gone at least a week, maybe a little longer.”

“Oh. Okay. I’ll miss you. There was something I wanted to tell you tonight, but it can wait until you get back.”

“Okay. I’ll be in touch.”

“I love you, Sebastian.”

My heart sank as I read her last text message. I didn’t respond. I couldn’t. I grabbed the suitcase from my closet and began to pack. Once I was finished, I called Damien.

“What’s up?” he answered.

“I’m heading to Seattle tomorrow and I’ll be gone at least a week, if not longer. You are to oversee the company. This stays between us, Damien.”

“Why are you going to Seattle?”

“I just am and I don’t want to be bothered while I’m there unless it’s serious.”

“Okay. Is Chloe going with you?”

“No. I’m going alone and I don’t want to discuss it any further. Just do as I ask.”

“Okay, Sebastian, but I will admit you have me a little worried.”

“There’s nothing to worry about. I’ll be in touch.” I ended the call before he had a chance to say anything.

Chloe

T
wo days had passed and I hadn’t heard a word from Sebastian. After sending him a few text messages with no response, I tried to call him, only for his phone to go straight to voicemail. Sitting at my desk and rereading his text messages from that night, a nervous feeling flooded my belly. When I told him that I loved him, he didn’t even respond with a “me too.” Nor did he tell me that he missed me. Something was off with him and it bothered me a great deal. When I dialed Sienna, she answered and held up her finger, telling me to hold on a sec.

“What’s up, buttercup?” She smiled.

“Can you come over tonight? I need to talk to you.”

“Sure thing. Hey, are you okay?” She frowned.

“I don’t really know. We’ll talk later.”

“Okay. I’ll stop and pick us up a pizza on the way over.”

I gave her a small smile. “Sounds good. I’ll have the wine or tequila waiting.”

“Shit, Chloe. Tequila? Did something happen with Sebastian?”

“I’m not sure. I have to go. I’ll see you later.”

“Okay. Bye.” She pouted as she ended the call.

Trying to keep as busy as possible, the work day finally ended and I headed home. Stepping into my apartment, I set my purse down and went into the bedroom to change. Sitting down on the bed, I glanced at the pile of change that sat upon it from Sebastian. I missed him and I couldn’t help this gnawing feeling inside me that something was wrong. After changing into my sweatpants and a tank top, I buzzed up Sienna and watched as she walked up the steps with a pizza box and a brown bag in her hand.

“What did you bring?” I asked as I took the pizza box from her.

“I get the impression comfort food is in order, so I stopped at the store and picked up some cookie dough ice cream and a dozen cupcakes from your favorite bakery.”

“Aw, thanks.”

She followed me into the kitchen and put the ice cream in the freezer.

“So tell me what’s going on?”

Taking down two plates, I took them to the table.

“I haven’t heard from Sebastian in two days.”

“Well, maybe he’s really busy and hasn’t had a chance to call you.”

“Too busy to send his girlfriend a text before he goes to bed at night? I tried calling him and it appears his phone is turned off.”

“Huh?” She twisted her face. “Why would he turn off his phone?”

“I don’t know. Something isn’t right, Sienna.” I took a bite of my pizza and threw the slice on the plate, pushing it away. “I don’t feel like eating right now.”

“Okay. Let’s go back to the night he was over for dinner. You said that Damien called him and said that he needed him back at the office.”

“Yes, and then he texted me a couple of hours later saying that he needed to fly to Seattle for an emergency meeting and that he’d be gone for at least a week if not longer.”

“Why wouldn’t he call you and tell you that? I would think that was something he would want to tell you over the phone, not via text.”

“I really didn’t think anything about it. But I told him that I loved him and he didn’t respond back at all.”