AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Definitely Not Him
Chloe
Seattle, Washington
6 weeks, 1 day pregnant
“Hey!” Madison looked up from the counter once I stepped inside her shop. “What are you doing here before lunch?”
“I found him, found him today.” I stuttered. “My boss, royal, our date, all makes sense now.”
“Huh?” She squinted. “What are you saying?”
“Him.” I paced the floor. “William, but really Tyler. He’s not him, but it’s him, and—”
“Hold that thought and let me grab my notepad from the back,” she interrupted. “The last time you came here in a panic, you gave me my bestselling flavor idea.”
I walked to the ice case and crafted a jumbo bowl of ‘What the Fuck Chocolate Chunk’ and ‘I’m Screwed Brew,’ but couldn’t bring myself to eat a spoonful.
My mind was still running in a million different directions, and my anxiety level was ascending to another planet.
“Okay, now where were we?” Madison returned.
“Definitely not him,” I said, plopping into a chair. “He told me his name was William, but—”
“Definitely not him? I love that one!” She scribbled it onto her pad. “Want to draft some flavor notes to play with before I add it to the menu?”
Am I speaking in a foreign language?
“Way to hold out on the huge news, Chloe.” Kristin walked inside, moving behind the counter. “When were you planning to tell us that the prince of London—well, ex-prince—was moving to Seattle to work at your company?”
“He’s my new boss.”
“Well, duh. They announced that he’s the new co-CEO, so—” She took out an Oreo cone. “That makes sense.”
“They say he’s always loved reading and his late mom wanted him to run something literature-related many times.” Madison swooned. “Was your first morning under him promising, or do you feel like it’ll take time to adjust?”
“The prince of London—ex-prince, whatever—is my new boss!” I couldn’t put this any more bluntly. “He’s also the same guy I fucked on my birthday, i.e., the guy who we’re searching for because he knocked. me. up.”
Madison’s jaw dropped to the floor. Kristin’s cone dropped next.
“He didn’t tell me his real name,” I said. “We’ve been searching for a ‘William’ all this time and he’s a damn ‘Tyler.’”
“Well, technically ‘William’ is his middle name,” Kristin offered. “His mom gave both him and his little brother, Charlie, that. I think his younger sister Priscilla has it, too.”
“His sister’s middle name is ‘Willa,’” Madison corrected her. “Close enough to ‘William’ and his late mom’s love for willow trees.”
“Since when do you two keep up with the royals?” I asked.
“Whenever you’re not around because you hate celebrities.” Kristin shrugged. “I mean, I still think it’s pretty phenomenal that you only read books for entertainment, but you should try to know some stuff.”
“No, I should quit my job and pen a letter about my pregnancy in the press,” I said. “Maybe that’s the best way to tell him.”
“Whoa, hell no.” Madison shook her head. “You can never tell them anything.”
“Why not?”
She exchanged a nervous glance with Kristin, and the fearful look in their eyes triggered uneasiness in my chest.
