Filed to story: Submitting to My Bestie’s Daddy Read Online >>???
“She’s okay,” I said softly, “barely even a bump on the back of her head.”
“That’s good.” he nodded.
The wedge between us was too heavy for me to push aside on my own, and unless we were working together to climb it, we would both be talking to the wall and not each other.
“I’m sorry about our date.”
“Me too.” His answer was curt and to the point–no emotions.
“Gio.” I frowned, turning to him. “Please, don’t do this. Don’t ice me out.”
He sighed, then stared at me. I hated seeing the hurt, the frustration in his eyes.
“You promised me you’d stop treating Elena like this,” he said firmly, “that you’d trust me.”
“I do trust you,” I reached for his hand.
“It doesn’t seem like it, Olivia.” He pulled back, rolling to his feet. He crossed his arms, the anger crawling up his face, and I knew there was no one to get out of his one. “You canceled our date without any warning and stole my car and driver while I was in the bathroom. I had to find out after the fact that Elena had called from the hospital.”
“I know, I’m sorry,” I slumped, “I should have told you, and I shouldn’t have run off, but it’s not because I don’t trust you, Gio. I don’t trust her. It has nothing to do with you!”
“The child has everything to do with me,” he argued back. “I’m the father! I’m paying for the damn surrogate, and you had no right to stop me from going just because of your unfounded jealousy!”
“It’s not unfounded!” I snapped, crossing my arms. “She’s in love with you, Gio!”
He scoffed, rolling his eyes, but I wasn’t about to let this one go.
“I saw it tonight! As soon as she saw it was just me, she was disappointed. The first words out of her mouth were ‘Where’s Giovani?'”
He frowned, an odd look crossing his features. There was a hesitation in his eyes, like he knew that was weird, but his anger pushed it all away.
“So what?” he retorted. “None of that even matters. This isn’t even about Elena. It’s about you and how paranoid you are that she’s out to steal me–and actually believing I would fall for such a thing–that you’re willing to sabotage our relationship to make yourself feel better.”
“Paranoid?” I repeated with wide eyes, the word having gutted me with how much venom had been placed there. “That’s what you think? That I’m acting like some paranoid, jealous bitch?”
“I didn’t say that,” he snapped. “You did. Don’t put words in my mouth.”
“That’s pretty much what you said!” I screamed, getting to my feet as the hurt turned into a blinding hot rage. “You said I’m paranoid, that I’m sabotaging our relationship! Why can’t you ever take my side? Why do you have to defend her?”
“Fuck, Olivia.” He threw his hands in the air. “You’re the most stubborn woman I’ve ever met. I am not interested in Elena. I’m interested in our child. Let it go!”
“Fine,” I sneered, backing away from the bed. “I guess I’ll take me and my paranoid ass to the guest room, and you can sleep here alone where I can’t sabotage our relationship anymore!”
“Fine,” he growled.
“Fine!”
I slammed the bedroom door closed behind me, hearing him scream out in frustration before it all went very quiet.
I bit my bottom lip until it hurt, but I couldn’t force my feet to leave the suite. It felt like admitting defeat, like I was leaving, and I couldn’t do that, not again. Gio meant too much to me, no matter how angry I was at him.
I sighed, holding my arms around my middle as I walked toward the guest room. Once inside, I climbed into bed, tucking the pillow under my head, spreading the blanket around my freezing toes, and shut my eyes. Then, I slowly fell into a light, dreamless sleep.
*Olivia*
I was regretting my decision to sleep in the guest room. I tossed and turned all night, and by morning, my back was sore, and my whole body was left cramped from so much activity. I groaned, rubbing my neck as my muscles and tendons stretched uncomfortably.
I climbed out of the bed, groaning as I stretched my arms above my head. I was still utterly exhausted from the long night, and I felt even worse as the fight with Gio ran through my mind.
I didn’t regret doing what I’d done at dinner, but I did regret walking out on Gio. I sighed, glancing out the window to get an idea of the time. It was sunny, and that was about all I could figure out without my phone.
I’d left it in the bedroom, and I hadn’t charged it.
I padded across the carpeted floors, suppressing a yawn with the back of my hand as I gently opened the door. As soon as it cracked open, however, two voices caught my attention.
Despite speaking in low tones, I could hear them quite clearly. ‘They must be in the sitting room,’ I thought. I peered through the doorway, curious, and stiffened as I caught sight of my husband, standing in the midst of the room and looking just as exhausted as I felt.
He hadn’t shaved yet, as evidenced by the five-o-clock shadow around his chin, and his hair was messy like he had kept running his hands through it. Even standing in a long gray T-shirt and sweatpants, he was still gorgeous.
My heart clenched as I spotted the dark circles from lack of sleep and the bloodshot hint in his eyes. He had probably gotten less sleep than I did, which was saying a lot.
“I don’t have time for this,” he sighed, shaking his head in annoyance at whoever was speaking to him. I shifted to peer at the stranger, and my whole body went stiff.
There was Elena, dressed in a tight black dress. She had a hand resting on her baby bump, but it did nothing to distract from the way the dress hugged her figure.
“I know you’re busy, but if I could just have a moment–” Elena said softly, reaching out a delicate hand to his arm. He sent her an irritated look, stepping back in clear dismissal.
“No, Elena,” he said firmly. “Olivia is missing, and I have to find her. I don’t know how you got in here, but you need to go home now.”
“Please, it’ll just be a minute,” she pleaded with him with wide and innocent eyes.
It was hard to believe that those eyes masked a scheming woman who was chasing after another woman’s husband.
Gio let out a heavy sigh, pushing his hair from his face as he stared at her with an impatient look. “Fine. What is it?”
She stepped closer, her eyes gleaming with hope. “I know Olivia stopped you from coming to see me yesterday. She’s jealous, and I know it’s making you uncomfortable just as much as it is me. But it doesn’t have to be that way.”
He watched her with wary eyes, and I held my breath, staring in disbelief as she crept closer, a smile playing on her lips as she laid a hand straight onto his chest.
“I’m here for you and for the baby,” she said, shamelessly, “even if Olivia isn’t.”
“Excuse me?”
I flinched, still standing behind the door, but Elena didn’t seem to notice at all. Gio’s eyes narrowed into dangerous slits, and he glared at her like she had suddenly morphed into one of Dmitri’s men.
Elena only blushed, unaware of the danger as she pressed her body against his, cradling the baby bump in one hand. “We can be a family, Gio–you, me, and our baby. Because you know, I love you.”
If my heart could break into two, I was sure it would feel just like this. The rapid beats in my ears were all I could hear as I stared at the two of them. Everything was slow around me like I was traveling through molasses, but there was a deep ache in my chest that I couldn’t get rid of.
I clutched over my heart like I could somehow reach in and hold it together, but there wasn’t any glue or duct tape that could fix a broken heart. Anger, sadness, and worry filled me up like an empty glass, shaken around like a cocktail made for disaster. I didn’t know whether I wanted to jump out and scream at them until my voice was hoarse or fall to my knees and sob like the world was ending.
Maybe I should have done both, if I was being honest.
And to make matters worse, Elena jumped forward, leaning fully onto Gio as she grabbed a handful of his shirt and slammed her lips toward him.
