Chapter 26
Ava needed a crane to get out of her chair. The massive boulder around her middle was making it hard to do simple, daily tasks. Every morning was a battle to roll out of bed and get to work without knocking her baby bump into things. She was lucky to have empathetic co-workers who helped with lifting and running errands she couldn’t do. Even her secretary had gotten into the habit of leaving a peppermint tea on her desk before she waddled in of a morning. But Ava hated feeling vulnerable, having people run personal errands for her. She never instilled the practice as a CEO, and reminded her staff that things would change when she came back from leave. If she did at all . . .
Her pregnancy had altered her thinking, changed her inner wiring. She wanted the best upbringing for her child, to grow up in a safe and loving environment. She never planned to be a single parent but accepted her fate. As much as it hurt not to have Elias by her side, it was placating to hear his voice on the end of her phone every week.
A knock sounded at her door and Ava’s secretary Sherry poked her head in. “Can I get you anything, Miss Wolfe? A tea or a Danish perhaps?”
Ava glimpsed from her computer. “No, it’s fine. Alfred has delivered my sandwich already.”
The brunette smiled and tentatively entered her office. “Please forgive my intrusiveness, but you must be pretty excited about the birth. How much longer do you have?”
“I’m thirty-eight weeks now, so my doctor said I can go at any time. And yes, I’m very excited. Terrified at the same time too.”
“I’m a mum of three boys,” Sherry explained. “It’s normal to be scared, Miss Wolfe. But after all the pain and pushing, you’ll have a beautiful new baby to hold in your arms. That outweighs everything else. Will your mother be with you?”
“Of course. Veronica is my sole support system. She’s been with me to every scan and doctor’s appointment. I wouldn’t have ever done it without her.”
“Mothers are wonderful like that.” Sherry retreated for the door, wrapping her fingers around the knob. “If you need anything else, please buzz me, Miss Wolfe.”
“Thank you, Sherry.” Ava waited until the secretary had closed the door before returning to her work. She was half way through writing a report when the baby kicked abruptly, startling her. She leaned back in her chair and rubbed her hand across her belly, watching the skin expand as her daughter attempted somersaults inside her.
“You’re active today, little one,” Ava cooed. Feeling parched, she pushed her chair back and wandered across the office to her mini bar. As she leaned down to open the door, an immense build-up of pressure almost winded her, causing Ava to collapse onto the cabinet lining the wall.
“Oh!”
She exhaled through narrowed lips, resting her forehead on her arm, allowing another wave of Braxton Hicks to pass. This one was more intense than the prodromal labour contractions she experienced during the week. Keeping her breathing shallowed, Ava straightened slowly, stabilising herself against the cabinet.
A warm liquid rushed down her inner thigh, creating a pool between her feet. “Oh shit. No! Not now.” Panic interlaced with fear as Ava remained rooted to the spot, unsure whether to move to get her phone. Instead, she screamed. “Sherry!”
Her office door swung open and Sherry bolted inside. Upon seeing Ava bent over the cabinet, moaning in pain, she cursed under her breath and ran to the phone on Ava’s desk. “Don’t worry, Miss Wolfe. We’ll get you to the hospital in time. Hold on for me, honey.”
Ava responded with a panicked scream, uncaring if half the office heard her. “Get me an ambulance now!”
~ ~ ~
Most people would be excited on their wedding day. Not Elias. All he could think about was Ava and their baby. He picked up his suit jacket from the bed and slipped it on, studying his reflection in the mirror. He was a man divided between two halves of his heart. One was captained by loyalty and the other, passion. His heart would never be whole until he chose the right woman.
He fingered the silky soft petals of the rose pinned to his lapel. There were days he felt just as delicate, easy to bruise and tear. So why did he think marrying Daisy was the worst decision to make? A part of him didn’t want to break her heart, but she hurt him too, selling her photographs to the press. They were both tainted and damaged souls.
His mobile phone buzzed, and he crossed the room to answer it. It was Ava’s number. He answered it without hesitation. “Ava, are you okay?”
“It’s Veronica, Ava’s mother.”
“Is Ava all right?”
Veronica’s voice was partially muffled by a woman moaning in the background. “Ava’s in labour right now. She’s ten centimetres dilated and ready to push. If you want to be here for the birth, I highly suggest you get your ass over here right now.”
Elias’s shoulders slumped with defeat and he collapsed onto the bed. “Veronica, I can’t. It’s my wedding day. I’m about to walk into the church.”
“I don’t know what to say, honey. The baby could arrive at any time. You’re more than welcome to visit after your daughter is born.” Her end went silent for a moment and Elias gripped the phone so hard his fingers ached. “Elias, I have to go,” Veronica said at last. “Call me back on this number when you can.”
Elias remained seated on the bed, his spine razor straight, his phone still attached to his ear. Ava needed him. Their daughter needed him. This was the sign he’d been praying for. He glanced at his watch. The ceremony was starting in fifteen minutes. He didn’t have time to sneak away for the birth and come back. The decision he made now would change his life forever.
Someone knocked on his bedroom door and Karen poked her head in. “Honey, are you ready? I got a call from Olivia. They’re ten minutes away. It’s time to head to the church.” When he remained speechless, Karen entered the room, concern splashed across her face. “Elias, what’s wrong?”
“Ava’s in labour right now.”
“Oh, what do you want to do?” She sat down next to him.
The pressure of tears built behind his eyes and he curled his fingernails into his palms to divert the pain. “I don’t know, Mum. I’ve never been so unsure of anything in my life.” He rested his head on her shoulder, craving her reassurance and empathy. “I love Ava. I should be there with her for the birth of our baby.”
“Honey, if you are certain of your feelings, you must listen to your heart.”
“What about Daisy?”
Karen took his face in her hands and stared deep into his eyes. “Do you really want to go through with this wedding?”
Without an iota of repentance, Elias replied, “No.”
Karen dropped her hands into her lap. “There’s your answer.” She patted his thigh. “You better tell Daisy before you leave. Allow her some dignity. This is the biggest day of her life. She doesn’t need to be humiliated in front of everyone.”
Elias kissed his mother’s cheek and bounded out of the room. He ran down the hallway searching for Daisy. Knowing his fiancée, she would stop for a touch up before walking down the aisle. He caught a wisp of a white gown entering a room down the hallway and he dashed towards it.
He barged into the room before the door closed, startling Daisy and her three bridesmaids.
“Elias, what are you doing here?” Daisy shrieked, leaping out of sight. “You can’t see me before the wedding.”
“I need to speak with you urgently.”
A flicker of fear flashed across her face before she waved her hand in the air. “Fine. It’s okay, girls. I’ll meet you at the church.”
Her bridesmaids begrudgingly left the room. Elias waited until the door shut behind them before pulling Daisy out of her hiding spot. She looked like a princess in her white strapless wedding gown. Her golden hair fell in soft waves around her shoulders. Her makeup was effortless and clean. Her beauty stung him.
“What’s wrong with you?” she asked, crossing her arms over her chest. “Do you have cold feet?”
He dropped his gaze to the carpet, unable to look her in the eye. “I can’t do this.”
Daisy’s eyebrows snapped together. “Excuse me. You can’t do what?”
He motioned the air between them. “Us. I can’t marry you.”
Daisy’s face crumpled in distress, her perfectly painted lips pulled downwards. “It’s Ava, isn’t it?”
Elias swallowed hard. “I’m sorry, Daisy. I really am.”
Fresh tears streamed down her face, creating white streaks on her cheeks. “Is that all you can say to me? We have history, Elias. What do you have with this woman? Nothing!” She rubbed her hand across her eyes, ruining her makeup. “Even on my wedding day, this fucking woman has power over you. Why did you decide today is the day to break up with me?”
“Ava’s in labour,” Elias said carefully. “She’s having my baby, Daisy. I need to be there for her.”
“So you’re choosing her over me again. Why am I not surprised? We are getting married today! Can’t you see that? You inexplicably promised me a future when you proposed to me.” She turned her back on him and ripped her engagement ring off her finger. “You’ve broken my heart, Elias.” She shook her head with disbelief. “It’s my fault.”
“Daisy, it was never your fault. It’s just—” He reached for her and she ripped her arm away.
“Don’t you fucking touch me!” Daisy whirled back around and tossed the ring at him. It bounced off his chest and rolled underneath the bed. “It’s my fault because I existed, Elias. Maybe I was too possessive over you. Maybe I cared too little. But this whole ordeal has showed me what type of man you really are.” She cracked a sneer. “I hope you make her happy.” She sauntered into the bathroom and slammed the door behind her.
Elias pressed his ear against the door and listened to hollow echo of her cries. “Daisy, I’m sorry. I don’t know what else to say.”
“You’re abandoning your family to be with another,” Daisy cried out inside the bathroom. “I’m pregnant, Elias. Are you going to deny this child?”
“Of course not. I want to be a part of our baby’s life.”
“Once you walk out that door, I will rebuke all your parental rights. This child deserves more than what you’re giving me. What kind of man walks out on his pregnant partner, anyway?”
As much as he hated to admit it, Daisy was right. He turned from the door and retrieved the ring from underneath the bed. He placed it gently on the bedside table, alongside his rose boutonnière. He made an inward promise to be a good father to both children, even if his relationships with their mothers were unstable. He wanted Ava from the first moment he saw her, a desire that scared and liberated him. It was simple and animalistic, an electricity he didn’t share with Daisy. Loyalty had betrayed his heart, but passion would keep it beating. He closed the bedroom door behind him and left his life with Daisy behind.