Aria
I’d been staying with Serfina and Hayden for a week now.
They were off to Jamaica soon to visit Hayden’s family, and they deserved the break after everything they’d been through. I told Serfina everything that had happened, although neither of them knew about the pregnancy, and I wanted to keep it that way. I didn’t trust that they wouldn’t tell Sebastian.
He hadn’t been himself the last time I saw him. His bright blue eyes were no longer the ones I loved; they’d darkened, and any kindness he’d once had had been consumed. He was different.
It had been a long time since I’d seen him covered in blood like that. He’d clearly been fighting again—where else would it have come from? Sickness churned in my stomach at the thought of something more. I shuddered, trying to push that idea away.
I hadn’t heard from him, which was what I’d asked for. Time. Space. For once, he’d given it to me. Deep down, I just wishedhe’d fight for us, that he’d turn up and tell me how sorry he was and that he loved me more than anything. That he’d be the man I’d always known him to be.
But he hadn’t.
It was my first day back at work since that day—since Sebastian had been escorted from the building. I’d been worried about seeing him, and I didn’t know if I was strong enough to stay away from him if I did.
I placed my bag down at my desk and twisted my ring as I peered through the office window. To my surprise, it wasn’t Sebastian sitting in there. It was Caspian.
I made my way over to the office door and knocked.
“Come in,” he said.
I opened the door and walked through. Caspian looked up, smiling at me.
“Good morning, Aria. How are you feeling?”
“Erm, I still feel a little off, but I’m ok to be at work.”
This pregnancy was killing me. I was sick every morning and night, struggling to keep things down. I was surprised Serfina hadn’t picked up on it. I suppose having an en suite in the guest room helped cover it up. My body felt fatigued all the time, and I struggled to keep my eyes open in the day.
“Are you sure? You look a bit pale, and I wouldn’t want my PA overdoing herself if she wasn’t a hundred per cent.”
I tilted my head, knotting my brows together as I looked at him. Did he just call me his PA?
“I’m sorry, Mr Whitmore. I’m a little confused. Where’s Sebastian?”
He leaned forward, resting his arms on the desk. “Sebastian no longer works here.”
I swallowed hard to push the sickness back down. This was not the time for pregnancy symptoms.
“I don’t understand.”
“It was a unanimous vote. The board lost faith in Sebastian, and after what happened with his father the other day …” He trailed off. “Did he not tell you?”
“Erm, no,” I replied quietly.
Bit difficult when I hadn’t seen him for over a week and didn’t have a clue where he was or what he was doing.
“Secrets always catch up to people eventually. How about I give you a day to think about your position?”
“What do you mean?”
He stood, making his way around to me. “Take the day off. Think about whether you want to continue as my PA or not.”
I didn’t know what I wanted anymore. I’d been set on going back to university come September, but with everything that had happened and the pregnancy, I didn’t know if it was plausible anymore. It would be easier to stay here, but I needed to think things through. I needed to do what was best for the baby. I wouldn’t ask Sebastian for anything. I never had, and this was no different.
“Ok, I’ll go away and think about it.”
“Good. We’ll catch up tomorrow.” He smiled.
