Chapter 43
Chapter Forty-Three
Harper
I was walking down Park Avenue and stopped in front of the high-rise that was being built. The one I designed. Staring at it, tears started to fill my eyes.
“Can I help you, lady?” one of the workers asked.
“No. I’m just admiring the building.”
“Pretty cool, huh?”
“Yeah. Seeing it from the model to actually being almost built is surreal.”
“Do you work for the company?”
“I did. I was the one who designed this building.”
“Wow. Really? Congratulations.”
“Thank you.” I gave him a small smile.
“I gotta get back to work. Have a nice day.”
“You too.”
I wiped the tear that fell down my cheek and headed home.
The nursery was complete. I’d painted the walls a light grey and bought all white furniture. The one piece I loved the most was the crib with pink tufted fabric on each end. It was elegant and made for a princess. Her name sat above it in big pink letters. I’d painted the ceiling a lighter shade of gray and added white fluffy clouds and stars painted white with a hint of light pink, giving off a beautiful glow. As I stood back with my hand on my belly and admired it, a call came in from the lobby.
“Hello.”
“Harper, it’s Sammy. There’s a Mr. Rhodes Sr. here to see you.”
My belly started to twist in knots. Grayson’s grandfather? Why would he be here?
“Send him up. Thanks, Sammy.”
I walked over to the door and opened it just as he stepped off the elevator.
“Mr. Rhodes. What are you doing here?”
“Hello, Harper. May I come in?”
“Of course.”
“Thank you. My, look at you.” He smiled. “How much longer do you have?”
“Four weeks left.”
“You look as beautiful as ever.” He leaned in and kissed my cheek.
“Can I offer you some tea or coffee?”
“Coffee would be nice. Thank you.”
I went into the kitchen and made us each a cup of coffee. When I went to hand him his cup, I couldn’t find him. So, I walked down the hallway and saw him standing in the nursery.
“Forgive me.” He smiled. “I just wanted to see where my great-granddaughter was going to be sleeping.”
“He told you?”
“Yes. Grayson told me everything. Let’s go sit down.”
We walked to the dining area and took a seat at the table.
“Ever since Grayson’s parents passed away, he wasn’t the same. He was reckless in his youth, which continued into his adult years, but he had a good business sense. He knew how to separate his business life from his personal life.”
“I’m sorry, Mr. Rhodes, but why are you telling me this?”
He held up his finger as he sipped his coffee.
“What Grayson did was awful, but I am to blame for that. I was the one who gave him that ultimatum. I believe I failed himin many ways. I was never going to sign the company over to Alfie. I’d just said that to scare Grayson into wanting to get his personal life together. At the rate he was going, he would never have found true love. I figured if I could get him to be serious and give a woman more than one chance, he would find it and see how beautiful life could be when you have someone to share it with. Unfortunately, he went about it the wrong way. But he learned his lesson the hard way. He loves you, Harper, and he loves that baby. So much so thathe quit and told me he didn’t want the company.”
“What?” I cocked my head.
“He came to me and told me that he didn't want it if he couldn’t run the company with you and his daughter by his side. So, he quit, and now he’s gone.”
“Gone where?”
“Nobody knows. He just up and left.” He sighed.
“Did you ask, Julius?”
“Yes, and he said he didn’t know, and that Grayson never even told him he was leaving. He gave everything up because he lost you. I’m not telling you any of this to make you feel bad or sorry for him. Because what he did to you was terrible. But I want you to try and take some comfort that he does truly love you and he didn’t lie about that.”
“Thank you, Mr. Rhodes.”
“Please, darling, call me Leon. Will you please keep in touch with me? I would love to meet my great-granddaughter when she’s born.”
“Yes. I promise I will.”
He got up from his seat and walked to the door.
“I can see why Grayson chose you, Harper. You’re an amazing woman, and you will be an amazing mother. Have a good day.”
“Thank you, Leon.”
I shut the door and took in a deep breath. I went about my day and tried to put everything Leon said out of my mind. Grayson giving up his company was huge, and I couldn’t imagine him doing that. He loved that company more than anything. I tossed and turned all night long, and I barely slept.
A couple of days had passed, and I couldn’t stop thinking about Leon’s visit. It was a constant gnawing inside of me. Fuck it! I took a cab to the cryobank and went up to Julius’s office.
“Harper?” he spoke in shock. “What are you doing here?”
“Hello, Julius.” I arched my brow at him.
“Have a seat.” He gestured.
“I need you to tell me where Grayson is.”
“I have no clue.”
“Bullshit. You two are attached at the hip. There’s no way Grayson would leave without telling you where he was going.”
“Seriously, Harper, I don’t know.”
“Listen to me.” I got up from my chair and planted my finger on his desk as my face was mere inches from his. “You don’t want to mess with a pregnant lady. You had no problem telling him that I was the one who bought his sperm, creating this clusterfuck of a mess. A mess for which I should sue your ass and this company for. Now where the fuck is Grayson?!”
He sat there, leaning as far back from me as possible.
“He’s in Montauk. Let me get you the address.” He grabbed a pen and a piece of paper, wrote the address down, and handed it to me.
“Thank you.”
As I walked to the door and placed my hand on the handle, Julius called my name.
“Harper.”
“What?” I turned my head.
“He’s changed, and he doesn’t look the same. I want to give you a heads up.”
“Thanks. Have a nice day.”
I looked up the distance online, and it was about a two-hour and forty-five-minute drive. I packed a small bag just in case I needed it and rented a car. While driving, I called Laurel and Charlotte to let them know I would be out of town for a couple days, but I didn’t tell them where I was going.
“I don’t understand why you’re leaving town,” Charlotte asked.
“I need to get away for a couple of days. The baby will be here in four weeks and I need some time alone to think and do some soul-searching.”
“You better be careful, Harper,” Laurel said.
“I will. I just need a change of scenery.”