Chasing Forever(Chasing Series #4)(18)

He was about to do a vaginal check up on her, so he gently explained that she was entering her third trimester and needed to eat a little more. After the examination, he proceeded towards her belly, producing a tube of clear gel, expelling a good amount on the tip of her stomach.

With baited breath, I became anxious at the mere idea of seeing the baby on the screen. True, there was a high chance that it wasn't mine, but there was that puny bit of a chance that it could be.

The screen was blank as he pressed the device into the skin of her stomach. The first thing I heard was the heavy whooshing sound of a loud heartbeat. It surrounded the room. A few seconds later, the baby appeared on the screen, looking like a tiny, sprouting bean, curled up and all.

"Come meet your pequeña." The doctor was addressing me, but I was too busy being mesmerized at the tiny form on the screen.

After a minute or two, I dropped my gaze towards her stomach before reverting back to the screen. Oh my, I thought to myself, swallowing the dryness in my throat. Emotions ran havoc in my mind and body. I barely recognized what they all were because I was truly out of my depth here.

Lucy …  no wonder she loathed me and had moved on without hesitation.

Not before long, we were done with the exam and the doctor advised Amelia and myself that she needed to eat more and add light exercise in her regimen, so when the time came that she went in labor, she wouldn't have much difficulty.

Exiting the private clinic, we quietly strode towards the car where the driver held the door open.

For a while, I kept glancing at her, hoping her facial expression and demeanor would change. From the hotel to the clinic, she was simply monotonous, robotic, as if everything bored her senseless. Maybe last night had drained her. After all, she had cried buckets. I was sure that had taken a toll emotionally. The least I could do was at least try to be understanding.

"Feel like going baby shopping?" I kindly asked, hoping she'd say yes.

She shook her head, merely giving me a brief glance before turning her head back towards the window. "I'm tired," she whispered. "Maybe next time."

I sighed. "Okay, definitely the next time I come back then." Stifling my disappointment, I asked her again, "Do you want to just drop me off so you can go home and rest?" I didn't want to be such an inconvenience. I had little to no experience when it came to pregnant women, and from what I knew, they were one not to be messed with, most especially when they were exhausted.   





 

"Can I stay with you?" she asked before turning around to face me with an unreadable, dark depth. "Until you leave tomorrow, if you don't mind?"

Weighing it over, I supposed she could. After all, didn't I need to make sure she ate? Besides, I needed to make a call to the chef and ask him a favor.

"It's fine. We need to discuss and straighten out details anyhow."

"We do, don't we … ?" she trailed off, back to her expressionless state.

Noting the extreme duality of her personality, I was truly considering that something might be going on with her, beyond pregnancy and all.

My flight back was tomorrow around noontime. Would that be enough time for her to open up to me?





Chapter 15

Toby



For the past five hours since we got back, I had been working on my laptop, emailing and making appointments for potential clients. The second I got back to England, I would have to look for office space, hire an assistant, and start from there. Obviously, that was the easiest part. The essential, rigorous part of doing business was done behind closed doors, negotiating deals, doing vast research, studying market trends and emerging markets. It was basically readying to deal big, volatile risky investments, banking on the fact that my choices and strategies would pay off-and most did. This was my comfort zone. One of my abilities that I excelled in-taking calculated risks, analyzing data and trends in a shifting global market.

Stifling a yawn, I stretched my arms before folding my hands behind my head, closing my eyes as I took deep breaths. This had been my mechanism for ages when I was under stress and pressure. Then again, my life was always the same, barely without pressure and obligations.

Getting up from the worktable, I decided to order in for dinner since Amelia was still fast asleep in the spare bedroom, barely squeaking a sound. I strolled over to her bedroom and opened the door as quietly as I could. She remained in the same position she had been when I'd checked on her two hours ago. Containing a sigh, I decided against waking her up and silently shut her door when the sound of the buzzer chiming made me immediately tense.

Obviously, it couldn't be room service since all I had done was think about ordering less than a few minutes ago. The only person I could think of was Amelia's mother, Costanza. Walking towards the main entry hall, I was on the defense when I opened the door with no trace of surprise when I found out who it was.

"Mother, now's not the time to pester me. You can come back some other time." I was about to shut the door when she fumed and pushed it against me before she came barging in inside like she ought to be, confidently striding in her typical regal-like stance.

My nostrils flared as I slam the door shut, following where the person who bore me waited with impatience. The woman who most people would say I looked like, but that was where our compatibility ended.

Consciously brushing the strand that fell off her coifed hair, she darted me a drastic glare, huffing like a lioness ready to pounce on her cub for misbehavior. "You will fix everything. Costanza is going to be here shortly and I expect you to graciously apologize for your rude behavior. You will do this, son, or I'm going to raise hell."

"Raise all the hell you like; I will not oblige any of your demands. I am done dealing with your nonsense," I uttered in a sharp, crystal clear voice. "You still haven't gotten that into your stubborn head? I. Said. I. Am. Done."

"Why are you yelling?" a voice behind me asked.

I spun around and found Amelia frowning before her eyes travelled to find my mother. "Evelyn? What brings you here in Spain?" Scanning her face, I looked for a sign that she'd had anything to do with my mother's unsurprising visit. I didn't find any. She was stunned, just as I was.

My mother started to move, brushing past me to get to Amelia, giving her a hug and pompous, cheek-to-cheek air kisses. "What do you think? Saving both our families from humiliation and embarrassment. I'd rather not be the subject of the gossipmongers for the summer."

Her voice irked me to no end. Of course, she'd think about herself more than anyone. Gossip during summertime would reduce the invites for garden parties and galas. It would be a total tragedy for her, I knew.

"There's nothing to save. Everything is filed; my lawyers are only waiting for her signature. The rest is done."

My mother's cold eyes matched mine, measuring how she could try to beat me, however there was nothing left to fight. I was through with it all. Nothing more. I had to hand it to her, though, she didn't back down on our eye-standoff; Amelia broke our concentration by speaking.   





 

"I'm signing." She cleared her throat before speaking again, "Before you leave, I'll sign the papers."

My mother's expression was …  priceless. "No, child, you will do no such thing!" she gasped with horror.

As much as I would like to lavish on this little triumph, before my mother no less, I was more focused on Amelia, hoping that she was serious about this. This meant everything to me. "Are you sure? I mean, if you need extra spousal support, that won't be a problem."

She shook her head, wrapping one arm around her stomach and the other holding the lapels of the robe. "I have more than enough."

Right after that statement, my mother went beyond ballistic. She stressed the situation and how the humiliation would ruin everyone. She even called Amelia's mother to hurry up so she could help convince us about the divorce. However, after a quick word from her daughter had her turning around to go back home, leaving my very own mother in utter mayhem.

It took my mother a good fifteen minutes worth of screeching colorful names and lecturing about social commitments and wealth before she finally left us in peace and silence, quaking the room with the harsh slam of the door in her wake.

Arms against my chest, I pressed my lips together, speechless. That was the person who had given birth to me. This was beyond hysterical. "That was rude of my mother. I apologize," I uttered in pure disbelief as I stared at the door, praying that she'd surely decided to leave the hotel instead of some dramatic exit before she came back with the finale.

"She needs to let you go, too … "

The old Amelia would've sided with her, screaming profanities and uncaring about anyone else but themselves. Yet, this new version of her remained pragmatic, siding with me for the very first time.

She kept silent for a bit, casually walking towards the back of the sofa, fingers caressing the texture before she thought out loud, "She doesn't love you. I think she loves the idea of you and what she aspires you to be. I think it's because she hasn't accomplished much in life. She gave birth at such a young age and never really found herself …  It made her this way. She wants to live through you, becoming something bigger, someone much more important that people could look up to," she whispered as if the idea had just dawned on her as well. "When she talks about you, it's as if you're the only hope she has. I felt bad about that …  but my selfishness paved a much bigger opportunity for me, so I took advantage of the situation."