Chapter 7
Chapter Seven
Britney
I had no idea why Michael was insisting on giving me any money, at least not really. I’d not done anything to earn it. At work, I knew what to do, and even though that was my last day, no one knew, and I walked with a commanding stride.
Sleeping next to Michael was comforting and waking up beside him was oddly calming, if I was being honest with myself.
Since I’d found out I was pregnant, I’d been determined to figure out fast my next move without taking a chance to breathe, but when I left work, I headed to Soho and met Kelly at a trendy upscale café, I realized my life was good in the past because I knew what to expect.
Now I was lost, but when I stepped in, she was waiting there.
I sat, ordered while we chitchatted, and when I drank my lemongrass tea with sugar, I started to come out of my shell.
I’d agreed with his plan the day before because I hated the idea that anyone might attack him.
If I could protect him, that was the least I could do. He’d helped transform me into a mom to be, and the more I got used to the idea, the more I liked the image of me pushing a carriage around Central Park.
Kelly asked, “Would you want to be Upper West Side, Lennox Avenue, Soho, or somewhere else?”
I stared at her like she was crazy. My place was in lower Manhattan because I could get to work quickly in the morning.
But everything was changing.
I was wearing down and asked, “What did Michael say?”
“That you’re picking,” she said.
I swallowed and pointed at one of her listings in Soho that had pretty light. “Great. Okay.”
When we slipped into a limo and relaxed in the back seat, Kelly said, “You’re stressed, but I would have thought you’d be happy. Michael is literally your dream guy come true.”
I took a deep breath and said, “I never had a dream guy.”
She squeezed my hand. “You squeal at British accents every time we ever heard one and watch Pride and Prejudice when you’re upset.”
I laughed and nodded. “I like the simpler problems in many ways. While I’m sure it’s scary to marry someone to secure a home and all, it just seems easier than having to figure everything else out.”
Kelly motioned toward a building around the corner, and a minute later, the limo stopped there.
“Interesting,” she said. “You’re sweeter than you let on. We all knew it, but I think being pregnant has made you a little soft.”
I gazed up at the pretty twelve-floor building near the bay and hugged myself as I asked, “You think that’s the issue?”
She spoke to the front desk, and we were directed to the elevator.
“Want to tell me what’s going on so I can be a better friend?” she asked.
My heart raced. I hadn’t been ready for how my life would spin out of control. “We’re going home to see my parents.”
She narrowed her gaze. “I didn’t even know you had parents still alive.”
My heart raced as I hadn’t been completely open with my circle of friends. “And my perfect sister.”
Her eyes widened. “Perfect? She must be because you’re the strongest of us all, the most successful, and the most fun.”
Fun wasn’t something I’d been lately. I’d been moping. I took a deep breath and said, “I… I’m not that bad, then?”
We stepped out of the elevator, and Kelly got out a key. “So pregnancy brain is stealing your confidence, I guess.” She went to a pair of curved black double doors, clearly custom, and unlocked them.
I took a deep breath, following her, then said, “No… it’s me. I don’t know who I’m supposed to be.”
She held one door open for me and switched on the lights. “You’re supposed to be you.”
“In this apartment?” I asked as I stared at the bright light of the day coming through the many windows offering a skyline view. Then I focused on the center of the living room, complete with a fireplace.
I’d only seen places like that in magazines, and tears formed in my eyes.
Kelly asked, “You like it?”
I nodded and pressed a hand to my belly, which was bubbling either from nerves or this was how pregnancy now was or maybe just gas. Bodily feelings at all weren’t something I’d ever noticed until now. “I love it. Fuck, it’s nice.”
She walked me to the side and said, “This is the nursery, and in the opposite direction is the indoor pool.”
I followed and saw an empty room overlooking the bay with a view of New York. I couldn’t even imagine a pool too.
Kelly stopped and said, “You’re crying.”
I took my friend’s hand and a deep breath. Last night, Michael had been tender and sweet with me. I rocked back and forth. “I kept Michael a secret all this time because… I thought he was never going to fit in my world, but the truth is so different.”
She took my hand and walked me the other way as she asked, “And that’s bad?”
I swiped at my eyes, saying, “I’m just a mess, and I’ve never been a mess in my life.”
She bumped shoulders with me. “Ahhh, we love you just as you are.”
We walked into a long, thin natatorium with a glass roof to the sky, and the air felt more humid, so the pool must have been heated. My heart thumped. This home would have everything.
I stared at Kelly and said, “Well, let’s tell Michael this place you found in Soho is my favorite.”
She squeezed my hands. “Then go home and tell your man you love him.”
My eyes widened, and I froze. We weren’t there. I wasn’t even sure Michael, with those titles he’d told me about, even had a middle name. Love was too much.
But she was right that I needed to find out and stop being so circular about everything.
I hopped back into the limo and headed home. My small one bedroom, really a converted studio, had no view other than a brick wall.
My heart was hammering as I let myself back in, and my nose smelled meat. I was starving and licked my lips then called out, “Michael?”
He came over, and his lips met mine. In his kiss, I forgot everything.
When he let me go, he said, “You’re home. Contract is at your desk for you with everything you requested, and we have an appointment soon.”
Maybe I needed to really see if we might get along forever. Having a storybook life of my own would be nice.
“We do?” I asked then headed to my office as work came first. There, I started reading the long list of duties.
He said, “After dinner, we’ll get your ring before we head to North Carolina. And I booked the Hilton in a nearby town as it was the best I could find.”
The duchess had monthly duties, one of which was decision making regarding the fight against poverty, apparently.
“Okay,” I said. “That’s great. We can fly in and out. Did you talk to Kelly?”
“Yes, we put an offer in.”
My life was changing. While I was probably more like a Lydia than an Elizabeth Bennett, I signed the contract and realized I was making a deal. I held it in my hand as he set the table.
I walked over to him and asked, “Michael, is there a way to renegotiate a little?”
He set down the kabob-with-vegetable skewers and asked, “What’s on your mind?”
I moved the vegetables away as the smell bothered me. I shook his hands. “I love having sex with you. You know that.”
He narrowed his gaze. “Okay. And?”
I sucked on my bottom lip. Kelly was right that my life was different, but I wasn’t sure about anything. I met his gaze and said, “I just think we should cool it down and maybe figure out if we can be friends outside of the bedroom.”
He squeezed my hand. “So you want to take a break until we’re both emotionally connected.”
I pressed one hand to my heart. “That sounds deep.”
He held my chair for me. “I’m in. I won’t touch you this weekend in North Carolina.”
I handed him the signed contract and sat. “I’ll probably need a hug.”
He scooted me in and said, “That’s great.” He joined me at the table. “Do you know why I want us to go to your parents?”
“Not really.”
I tried a chunk of meat. It was yummy and warm, and I ate it quickly. When I finished and reached for a second piece, I met his gaze.
He said, “Because where you come from doesn’t define you, but in a way, it seemed to be paralyzing you. And I need you to be the kick-ass woman who keeps me in line.”
Heat rose to my cheeks. I wasn’t sure I was up for that job all the time, especially if my feelings for him grew. My face tensed. “Is that really how you see me?”
“Of course.” He ate one of the vegetables off a skewer.
I sat back as the idea of eating those tomatoes made me gag. Then I took his hand and said, “I think I’ve been living in a state of shock since I got the news.”
“So now it’s time to relax and live.”
I cut my long piece of meat more slowly this time as I smiled. “I could get used to having my own jet to invite my friends on.”
“And where would you book the girls’ trip?”
I ate a bite and thought about my answer. Then I said, “Charlie took us all to Hawaii. Kir took us to Mexico. I’d be better meeting your parents if I had backup.”
He nodded. “Done. Invite them all to London so they have their passports ready when we get back. However, the day we go to my parents estate, it’s better if it’s just us.”
Accepting Michael’s money was somehow easier than opening up in any sort of true way. We weren’t friends, and I wasn’t sure how to figure out how that was going to work, but I said, “Done. Michael, why are you nice to me?”
“Because your touch sends a spark in me that makes me want to live.”
That sounded sweet, but that’s how he was, really. I finished my kabob then said, “Hold onto that because the Smith house won’t be easy.”
The next day would be the first of our getting to know each other, and my family and his had to believe we were in love. If I could fool them, then maybe we had a chance to fool his parents.
That night, though, we were starting a new chapter to see what would happen next, and I needed to focus on that instead.