Chapter 6
CHAPTER SIX
The quiet was the first thing I noticed when I walked in. It wasn’t a lonely silence but an intentional quiet. The kind you create when the rest of your life doesn’t give you any. And in my world? Until I walked through the doors of my pristine home, I didn’t get this reprieve. This reset.
I slipped off my heels at the door and carried them by their straps as I crossed the hardwood floors of my place in Corona del Mar. My nerves were already unwinding, as if I’d just walked into a high-end spa to escape the madness of the outside world.
Windows spanned the far wall, perfectly framing the final moments of sunset as it bathed the neutral tones I’d spent months perfecting in a beautiful soft gold hue.
My townhouse embodied the ideal minimalist aesthetic—sleek lines and an absence of clutter.
Most importantly, everything was precisely in its place.
Serenity was exactly what this space gave me, and after tonight? I needed it.
After placing my shoes on the shelf in my custom-built walk-in closet, I moved into the kitchen and poured a chilled glass of Chardonnay. At the marble island, I exhaled slowly, letting the events of the evening replay in my mind.
Titus Hawk. God.
I swear, the man didn’t just walk into a room—he captivated it. Every conversation shifted. Every person adjusted. Even the air felt… different.
And I hated that I noticed the exact second he walked into the ballroom, falling in step beside his brother as he joined Avery and Nat’s husband at their table. The same table I’d be joining.
But it wasn’t just that I noticed him. It was that he noticed me.
I leaned against the counter, taking another slow sip of wine.
“You’re not impressed,” I muttered under my breath. “He’s no different from the jackass who owns your building, turning a simple tenant reception into some overblown billionaire event.”
I told myself that. My mind didn’t care to listen.
His voice was firm, composed, and carried the unmistakable confidence of a man who never questioned himself.
Then there were his amber eyes, catching the light differently than everyone else’s in the room.
When they locked onto you, it didn’t feel like attention.
It felt like an assessment. Like he wasn’t admiring you, he was figuring you out.
It wasn’t flattering. It was… annoying.
A sharp knock at the door cut through my thoughts, and I frowned as I glanced at the time. It was too late for a neighbor and too early for a problem at some luxurious event.
Another knock. Softer this time.
Something in my chest tightened. I set the glass down and walked to the door, pulling it open without checking, and everything in me stilled when I saw who was at the door.
“Cat…”
Amelia.
My sister’s voice was enough to tell me something was wrong. Her hair was pulled into a messy knot, loose strands falling around her face. Her eyes were red and exhausted—like she hadn’t slept in days.
And the bag slung over her shoulder? That told me everything I needed to know.
“Come in,” I said, standing aside to make way for her to enter.
She exhaled like she’d been holding her breath for hours, stepping inside slowly like she wasn’t sure she was allowed to take up space here. An assumption that couldn’t have been more wrong.
“Amelia,” I said, closing the door behind her, “what happened?”
She set her bag down gently, like even that felt too loud in my space.
“I didn’t know where else to go.”
And just like that, everything else disappeared. The gala. Titus. The tension. All of it was gone.
I crossed the room in two steps, pulling her into me before she could say anything else.
“You came to the right place, sweetie,” I said quietly.
Her hands clutched the back of my dress like she was holding on to the only stable thing she had left. And maybe that was true.
I pulled back slightly, scanning her face. “You’re staying here,” I said, already deciding. “As long as you need.”
“Cat—”
“No,” I cut her off gently. “We’ll figure everything else out later.”
A tear slipped down her cheek. “I messed up,” she finally said.
I softened, brushing her tear away with my thumb.
“We all do.” I smiled into her watery eyes.
She shook her head. “Not like that.”
That was when I realized this wasn’t a minor issue. It wasn’t something that would just pass by. This was the kind of problem that could change things or alter lives.
I took a slow breath. “Okay,” I said, steady now. “Then we will handle it. Together,” I informed her.
Because that’s what I did. I fixed things. I controlled what I could, and I protected the people who mattered. No matter what it might cost me.
“Let me get you some water,” I said, knowing booze was only going to pile on more tears and make it harder for me to get answers. I nodded toward my living area. “Have a seat on the sofa.”
“I’m pregnant,” she choked out through sobs, burying her face in her hands.
I stopped and turned back to catch her before she collapsed against the wall. I gently helped guide her to my sofa and sat with her, waiting for the tears to stop.
She sniffed a couple of times and let out an aching moan, her energy fading with God knows what she’d been through up until she had the courage to come to my place for help.
“Does Mom know?” I questioned, knowing neither one of us really had a great relationship with the woman.
“No, I haven’t talked to her.
Amelia might have been my half-sister, but I’d never considered her anything less than a full-blooded sister.
My father left before I was born, and when Amelia’s father died while she was still a baby, I naturally stepped in to look after her.
Someone had to. God knew our mother's priority had always been the wealthy Spanish family she cooked for—not her daughters.
After Amelia graduated from high school, she joined me in the United States, moving to Southern California to live with me. She was twenty now—twelve years younger than me—and stayed only a couple of months before heading off to UC Davis to study veterinary medicine.
That’s where she met her boyfriend, Gabe, and standing here now, I had a feeling the child was his. Or worse… that it wasn’t.
The last time I saw them, they’d seemed happy and comfortable in the small apartment they shared.
He was pre-med, and somewhere between late nights studying for their biology courses, they’d formed a bond and fell for each other.
He seemed like a great guy, which meant if the baby was his, there was no way Amelia would be standing in my home looking broken.
“Okay, I need to know, who is the father?” I finally asked after she’d fully pulled herself together.
“Gabe,” she said through more tears.
I frowned. “Where is Gabe?” I questioned with more curiosity and some irritation about the answer I felt she was about to give me.
“Let’s just say I’m not the only woman pregnant with his child right now,” she said as I reached for tissues and handed her one.
I had to remain calm and keep my composure. “How do you know this?”
“Because he told me,” she said as if I should’ve already known the answer. “He said he was choosing Marianne, and that I would have to just figure this out.”
“Oh, sweetheart,” I said as calmly as I could, feeling the heat of anger flooding my face. “We’re definitely going to figure this out, and child support is not going to be fun for him and the woman he chose while they’re paying off his student loans and raising their child.”
“Her family is wealthy,” she said. “They own some bank franchise or something,” she rolled her eyes. “Most likely why she was the top pick.”
Okay, she’s hurt. Rejected. Pregnant with her boyfriend’s child, and he refuses to step up and take responsibility.
That’s the only reason my intelligent sister would be talking about her cheating bastard of an ex like she was mad that she wasn’t his first choice—like she was somehow second to the other woman he knocked up.
Fucking men. Some of these dipshits had the maturity level of a jellyfish.
“Well, thank God for that,” I said, rubbing her back. “Because it seems clear that staying with him would’ve only meant more problems down the line.” I exhaled, already shifting into logistics. “You’ll stay here with me—but what about school?”
“I talked with my professors, and they’re letting me finish my classes online,” she said, looking at me.
“Okay, since you’re still in pre-vet school, we can get you transferred down here. Long Beach or Irvine are your best bets and closest to what you had at Davis,” I informed her.
“I don’t think I can thank you enough,” she said, hugging me.
I held my broken sister. “You came to the right place, honey. No gratitude is needed. We just need to get you established down here and working so you can get medical insurance.”
“I’ve already worked that out, and Banfield Pet Hospital helped me transfer to their Newport location as a part-time vet assistant. I’m not that useless, sis,” she half laughed through her tears.
I hugged her again. “That’s because I raised you right,” I chuckled. “Well, the good news is that it’s not like you’re leaving your whole life behind. You’re just transferring it to Southern California, where the men are hotter, and the beaches are warmer.”
“I will get a place as soon as everything settles and I’m in school down here,” she informed me.
“Take as much time as you need,” I said. “We need to get you to a good OB doctor, and you’re in luck because I know two of the best. They’re actually husband and wife, and they work at a state-of-the-art hospital.”
“That’s a relief,” she said.
“Yes, I’ll call and see if John or Mickie can take you on as a new patient, but I’m quite positive they will. They’re both very lovely people,” I told her.
“You seriously find a way to fix everything, don’t you?” she laughed.
“Well, it is what I do for a living. Although my specialty is fixing spoiled-brat billionaire problems and their overly lavish events.”
“Still,” she smiled, and I was happy to see her smiling again, “that’s quite a demanding and highly stressful job.”
“Only if you let it become so, which I don’t. I just assess, fix, and control, and then all is well.”
She rose. “Can I get in the shower? It’s been a long drive,” she said.
“Yes,” I stood. “Let me get the guest room ready for you. The bathroom is right through that hallway,” I said, pointing past the kitchen.
When Amelia disappeared into the bathroom, I pushed my thoughts about her sad situation aside. As of now, it seemed she’d taken control of the major things. Tomorrow, I’d call a moving company to pack up and remove all her personal items from that house and handle any other loose ends there.
Thinking about Gabe right now was something I would not allow myself to do. I had to be to work early tomorrow for our first day in the new office.
After learning tonight that the imposing building behind mine was the newest headquarters for Titus Hawk’s company—or empire, as he so arrogantly loved to proclaim with every other word tonight—I wanted to make damn sure I stayed in my own building and avoided any accidental run-in with the man who seemed convinced I’d screwed his company over by overcharging him.
I was not in the mood to explain myself, or to point out that if he had an issue, he should take it up with his financial department, not me.
I wasn’t the one who’d made the decision to accept the price I’d quoted.
They had. It wasn’t my problem, and if it meant he’d never hire me again? Even better.
I just wanted to be focused on tomorrow—on the new office and making sure everything transitioned smoothly. I wasn’t about to start canceling clients over a move.
Then, I’d deal with my sister.