Filed to story: Submitting to My Bestie’s Daddy Read Online >>???
I looked into her eyes. She looked emotional, a little bit heartbroken, but there was none of that carefulness I’d seen in her of late, the carefulness that set Alessandro off at the beginning of everything.
I owed him an apology, once we got out of here.
I nodded. “I accept your apology. We need to figur out how to get back to a semblance of normalcy. I have also made some stupid choices when my emotions were involved, but there’s a baby at stake here.”
“Yes,” Gio said. “Now that we’ve got everything out in the open, we’d like to see if there’s a way we can move forward with this relationship.”
Elena inhaled deeply. “Wow.” She blinked a few times. “I kinda thought you wouldn’t want anything to do with me after that, and I wouldn’t see you until delivery day. Um. Okay. Yeah, let’s see if we can figure this out.” She offered me a watery smile. “I liked it when we were friends.”
The months of simmering resentment and day drinking while she flirted with my husband rushed back to me. I took a sip of tea, searing the inside of my mouth. I believed she was sorry, and holding onto the grudge would only bother me in the long run, but I didn’t think I could be friends just yet.
Gio picked up on my hesitation. “Honestly, we think it might be better to set up a functional working relationship before we try for personal ones.”
Elena nodded and leaned back, a blush coloring her cheeks. “Yeah, of course.”
“I’m not saying we can never be friends again!” I blurted. “I just… need a little time. I had a pretty rough few months of it, and I’m not sure how quickly I can get over that anger, even though I forgive you.”
She nodded slowly and sat forward again. “Okay. That makes sense.” She swallowed. “If we’re working on our professional relationship, then I think we can’t touch each other for a while. Or at least, not without the person being touched offering to be touched, with full right of refusal to the other party.” Elena shrugged. “When I started showing, Gio—vani started putting his hands on my stomach, and that opened the door for a lot of other things.”
My heart broke a little. I wanted to feel my baby kick, wanted to lean close and croon so it knew my voice. But I nodded.
“That makes sense.” Gio’s voice sounded rough with unshed tears, and I knew his thoughts had gone where mine did.
“And I think we should meet outside of your house,” she continued. “It’s a beautiful place, and that makes it hard not to be jealous of.”
“Alright,” I said. “I have a few ideas of my own, if you’re willing to hear them.”
***
We left the house a few hours later, having agreed on a whole new set of rules for everybody’s conduct. The rain had cleared to a light shower, and the setting sun peeked through the clouds, illuminating the droplets in golden light. I shook my head when Gio went to open the umbrella and stepped out into the storm.
Warm rain met my skin, and I took a deep breath with my eyes closed. Elena was safe. Our baby was safe. And finally, finally, everybody agreed the way we’d been treating each other couldn’t continue.
Gio stepped up behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist. He felt warm and solid against my back, a bulwark against whatever showers came with our sun.
“She’s due in four months,” he murmured in my ear. “We have to start getting ready.”
*Four Months Later*
*Olivia*
I was brought straight out of consciousness by the sound of a loud ringing. My phone vibrated on the bedside table as the clock flashed 4:00 A.M. I groaned, blearily blinking in the still-dark room around me.
I reached out for my phone, fishing it from its spot and untangling the charger. By the time I brought it to my face, it was nearly out of rings and about to head to voicemail.
“Hello?” I asked, groggily, a bit grumpy with whoever had disturbed my rest.
“Hey, Olivia,” Elena’s chipper voice sounded weird, a bit strained, and too cheerful like she was forcing it.
“What’s wrong?” I frowned, sitting up in bed.
“Carina?” Gio muttered, stirred awake as I pulled out of his arms. “Who is it?”
“Uh, so I kinda wanted to let you guys know that I’m at home and could you give me a ride to the hospital please?”
“Is something wrong with the baby?” My thoughts went straight to the worst-case scenario, imagining her sitting on the floor of her bathroom bleeding out and still trying to keep a calm smile.
“Uh, a little–” She giggled nervously. “It’s–”
“Gio, get up!” I yelled, rolling straight out of bed, but as I stepped out of bed, my foot slipped. I screamed as I hit the ground like a sack of potatoes. The phone flew out of my hand, sliding across the floor and under the dresser.
“Olivia!” Gio shot up, leaning over the bed to check on me.
“Dammit,” I muttered to myself, unable to believe my luck. My legs had gotten wrapped inside the blankets and in my hurry, I’d tripped over the bedding.
“Uh, Olivia? Did you just fall out of bed?” I heard Elena’s voice call out from where my phone had stashed itself. I must’ve hit the speakerphone on the way down.
“Elena? What the fuck is going on?” Gio demanded, looking way too tired for this shit at four in the morning.
“Well, funny story–” She laughed in a way that did not sound funny at all and then dropped the biggest bombshell she really should’ve just started with.
“I think my water broke.”
It wasn’t an exaggeration to say that Gio and I didn’t even think to change before we rushed out of the compound in a blind panic. All of the drills we had gone over went right out the window, and all that was left were two utterly clueless, but well-meaning, idiots trying to find where they put their fucking keys, We ended up finding them in the coffeemaker.
Luckily, by the time we arrived at Elena’s place, we had gotten a tiny bit calmer–a tiny bit. Probably because we woke up a little. I was surprised she could still answer the door, smiling like everything was normal, but she only looked a little tired, her bags packed at her feet.
“You know,” Elena joked lightly, as Gio lugged her bags over his shoulder and I fussed over her, making sure every part of her was okay, “I really thought this was going to hurt more than it does.”
She regretted that after only a few minutes in the car. I held her hand tightly in mine as she grimaced, her whole body tensing as the first intense contractions rolled over her.
“You okay?” I asked, concerned at the weird look that crossed her face.
“Yeah, it just feels like a bad stomach ache,” she said, frowning unhappily. “And some bad period cramps rolled into one. It’s weird.”
And it was only going to get worse from there. Thanks to a phone call from Gio, they had a nurse waiting by the entrance for us by the time we arrived, and we helped transfer Elena into the wheelchair as she held a hand over her large swollen belly.
“Whee,” she gave me a pale look as they wheeled her down the halls at a brisk pace. It would be hours before the actual birth, I figured, but I hoped it was a smooth one.
Gio and I stepped out while they fitted her into a hospital gown, and I let him call our friends and family to let them know what was happening and where we were. I went to get water from the vending machine as we waited anxiously in the hall until Gio tapped me on the shoulder with an annoyed look and shoved the phone into my hand.
“Hello?” I answered, confused.
A loud shriek on the other end was my only answer–a high-pitched squeal that could only belong to one person.
“Dolly,” I laughed.
She squealed again.
“You’d better get here quickly. It’s still early so she’s not that far along, but she seems to be doing okay for now.” I told her happily but then my mind traveled to her trouble-making brothers and I added, “Make sure Alessandro and Tallon don’t do anything stupid.”
“Duh,” she said then the line went dead.
I rolled my eyes at her drama then turned to my tired husband who was leaning on the wall.
