Chapter 11
Bonnie
“Hey, preggers,” I say as I walk toward my friend. Sabrina looks good, better than she did a few weeks ago. “You look great. I thought being pregnant with twins meant you’d have to be holding a bucket in one hand and hanging on to your giant, achy boobs with the other.”
She laughs. “Well, I did feel that way for the first couple of months. Now, at thirteen weeks, the morning sickness has settled a bit. It's just the constant hunger for food that I have to deal with now.” She lowers her voice to whisper, “And sex.”
I gag. “Geez, Sabrina, I’ve got an appraisal meeting on Monday, you know. How do you expect me to keep a straight face without imagining you two together, especially when the person you’re doing the dirty deed with is my boss.”
“Oh, I have no doubts you’ll work something out,” she says.
I shake my head. “Anyway, what’s up?”
“You up for some pampering and retail therapy this weekend? And it’s on me, we’re not spending a penny of Jordan’s money,” she adds before I can protest.
“Sabrina, you should, it’s your money, too,” I remind her.
“Yeah, I know, but this is you we’re talking about, and you hate billionaires, so…”
“Oh, my God, no, I don’t hate billionaires. I—just, well. It’s nothing to do with Jordan. It’s just a thing I have about money. I don't know what the problem is, I’ll get back to you when I do.”
It’s the Harmonial sect mentality I can’t bleach out of my brain, but I can’t tell her that. She’ll think I’m bonkers.
“It’s worth pointing out, though, that I’ll get myself fully reimbursed with Jordan’s money. With interest. Does that still trigger your ‘thing?’” she asks.
“No, because it’s your money, too,” I answer.
“I’m not even going to break my brain by trying to understand your logic. Bottom line, we’re splurging this weekend,” she asserts.
“Sure. I’m in.”
She changes the subject with my easy agreement. “So, are you settling in okay? Jordan doesn't stop singing your praises, but with how busy he is, I keep asking if he hasn’t just thrown you in the deep end.”
“Oh, no, I’ve got—”
“I know, you have Ethan, right? He would never let that happen.”
That’s so not what I was going to say. “Let what happen?”
“You know, he won't let you get snowed in with work. I know he works like a crazy person, but that’s a rule that applies only to him. He looks after everyone else.”
Um, I don’t know about that. “Why would he care?” He’s Zeus. His minions are there to serve him, not the other way round .
“What do you mean, why? He’s the CEO, he cares about the welfare of his employees.”
How do I tell Sabrina that her friend is an ass? And that right now he’s the last person I want to talk about?
“Yes, on a professional level he does, but he’s really not a big personality at work. I mean, you’re friends, so maybe you see a different side to him.”
“He can come across a certain way when you first meet him. I know I thought he was a little cold as well after I met him, but he’s really, really nice.” She wanders over to the water cooler in the corner of my office and pours herself a cup.
“Okay, PR officer.” She sounds like she really really wants me to like him. “I’ll try and keep that in mind the next time he’s barking orders.” I wonder if someone can be married and still have a tiny crush on someone else? “Sabrina, you know, it’s a little strange how much you like Ethan.”
She laughs. “What’s more bizarre is the way he and Jordan love each other.”
“Huh?”
“Oh, they keep it professional at work. But they're all over each other, like children in the house sometimes. Literally. It drives me crazy.”
Huh. I try to imagine Ethan being playful and fail. Then, I remember the toothless grin of the boy in the photo. I shrug. “Isn’t it weird, though, that I never met Ethan until Cancun?” I ask.
She tilts her head in consideration. “Honestly, I don’t know how that happened because he and Jordan are inseparable. Oh, yeah, you moved back to Dublin for a while last year so you missed our wedding reception.”
It was actually Clonmel, where my Nan lives, and it was well over a year ago, but I don’t correct her. Nan broke her hip eighteen months ago, and since she and her only son, my father, don’t speak, she had no family with her after she came out of surgery. As most of my work was virtual and online, I moved back to Clonmel for six months to help her out.
But that isn’t what has my attention. “You held a reception? You told me you and Jordan eloped, Sabrina.” I know they went to Vegas and came back married.
How am I just hearing she had a reception?
“We eloped yes, but we had a very small wedding reception, just before the honeymoon. Ethan was the best man and hosted it in his home. Sorry I didn’t tell you, it was just family. Nothing elaborate at all, and it only lasted a couple of hours, really. I know you would have wanted to attend, but I didn’t think it was worth flying back seven hours for.”
She brings out her phone and starts scrolling. “I think we took a few pictures.”
“Hold on, you held a wedding reception in Ethan’s home?”
“I told you, it was a small one. Besides his house is insanely big. I’m super jealous of his house. More so now the twins are coming.”
She finds the photos, and while it’s nice to see a blushing Sabrina and all our friends, I keep looking into the background. It looks like a canopy was put up in front of a lake with white swans swimming around and a lush, green field in the background.
“That’s his house?”
She nods. “There’s a lake on the estate. It’s breathtaking, babe, you should see it one day.” She nudges my arm, then continues, “You know, he officially lives in Connecticut, but it’s just under an hour’s commute to get to the office. Jordan thinks he’s crazy to not live in Manhattan. But since I’ve seen Ethan’s home, my penthouse has felt like a box, not a proper home. I’ve already told Jordan that I’ll move to Ethan’s when the babies come, but I think he knows I’m bluffing, so it’s gotten me nowhere.”
“You call your sprawling penthouse a box?” She’s ridiculous sometimes, I swear.
“We’re talking about a fifteen-thousand square-foot mansion on a ten-acre lot. How is my penthouse, not a freaking box compared to that?”
Wow. “Yes compared to that actually most homes would feel like a box. But isn't that a ridiculous amount of space for just one person?"
That’s just splurging. Wasteful. I feel a familial tightening in my gut. Why does one person need that much space? Or want to spend so much money on material possessions?
“Oh, it’s not just him—” Sabrina begins but is interrupted by someone coming into the room.
“Hey, Bonnie.” Jordan pokes his head into my office, and we jump. It’s those soundless carpets again.
“Hi, Jordan!” I greet back.
“Baby?” He looks at Sabrina expectantly, a grin on his face.
“I’m all set. We’re just planning for tomorrow.”
“So, shall I pick you up bright and early tomorrow? Say around 10?” Sabrina turns around to ask as she reaches her husband.
“That’s way too early,” I protest.
“Trust me, it’s not. I’d like to window shop for the babies as well.”
“Oh, wow. Don’t you have to know the sex of the babies before you start to shop?” I ask.
“Not for everything, godmother,” she says. And immediately I feel overwhelmed that she's naming me godmother.
“Aww, Sabrina. To both of them?”
She nods. "Of course"
“Oh my God, I’m so honored. I’ll be the best godmother ever!” I promise
“You’d better be. You know, you and Ethan are godparents, and it's bad luck if you don’t get along.”
I try not to roll my eyes. Sabrina needs to give this a rest. “You just totally made that up.”
“I’m sure it’s a bylaw somewhere.”
“Besides, we do get along. We have to, at least for the sake of work. I don’t know that we’ll ever be best friends like you guys are, but don't worry, we’re civil.”
I have no clue what we are, actually.
“And I really respect him as a person. Everyone does, right?” I ask Jordan.
He shoots me an overly bright smile. “Of course, Bonnie. Bree, don’t worry, okay? Those two are good. Let’s get you home, shall we?”
Sabrina gives me a hug before she leaves. “It’s good to see you’re settling in well. We’ll catch up tomorrow.”
I wave her off. “See you then, babes.”
Jordan says goodbye, then leads his wife away.
Great, we’re co-parenting now.