Chapter Twenty-Seven

Chastity

The moment he’d stepped into my office, my anger at Patrick and Jessa was burning brighter than the sun. To think about what they’d done – tried to ruin something that meant so much to me – brought out a strength I didn’t know I had. I managed to stand up for myself and do what I needed to do. I’d been forceful and commanding without being over the top about it. As Jordan would say, I’d handled my shit.

That didn’t mean things were fixed with Jordan, though. And as I stared into his eyes, I wasn’t sure they ever could be fixed. I’d kept something pretty big from him and he had every right to be pissed. To find out the way he had – I couldn’t even begin to imagine how that had made him feel.

I didn’t know if he’d ever forgive me. And I couldn’t blame him.

“I was going to tell you,” I said, my voice softening.

Tears stung at my eyes, and this time, I didn’t bother wiping them away. I just let them fall. It didn’t matter.

“I wanted to tell you, Jordan,” I said. “But with everything going on between us – I wasn’t sure you’d want to know. I wasn’t sure you’d even want to be a part of my life, let alone this child’s.”

“Of course I’d want to know. It’s my child, Chastity,” he said, his voice somehow soft and hard at the same time. “What kind of man do you think I am?”

I shrugged. “I really didn’t have a lot of time to think about it,” I said. “I just found out myself to be honest. I had no idea that I was pregnant. Didn’t even think it was possible. I mean, we were so careful – ”

Jordan studied me for a moment, and I couldn’t bear to look into those beautiful aqua eyes of his. I couldn’t handle seeing any hatred or anger toward me. After everything we’d been through, I wasn’t sure we could make it work. But God, I had fallen for him and it hurt like hell to think we’d never again have a chance to be together. To make a life together.

“Accidents happen,” he said. “Condoms break. Hell, I’m sure the ones I have in my wallet are old or got damaged somehow. I should probably be more careful. I guess it’s too late for that now. The horse is already out of the barn, so to speak.”

“I guess so,” I whispered, reaching for a tissue to wipe my eyes.

My cheeks were wet with tears. Before I could wipe them away myself though, Jordan stood up and walked over to me, kneeling down in front of me. With his hand, he wiped away the tears that were rolling down my face before gently stroking my cheek.

“I’m so sorry, Jordan –” I choked.

“Shhh,” he said, pressing his finger to my lips. “No more tears.”

He leaned forward, holding my face in his hands, and kissed me. His lips felt so warm and alive, and it seemed to warm me up just by being next to him. A fire inside of me burned bright, as I realized that maybe, just maybe, there was hope for us after all.

I gasped as Jordan’s tongue pushed past my lips and into my mouth, as he held my face against his.

We separated, only for a second to catch our breath, and I whispered, “I love you, Jordan.”

I wasn’t expecting him to answer – though, I hoped he would. He stared into my eyes long and hard for a moment before he spoke.

“I love you too, Chastity. And I’m going to be there for you. For both of you.” He placed a hand on my belly, and I placed my hand on top of his. “Somehow, some way, we’re going to make this work.”

I knew, in that moment, that nothing else mattered. All I wanted was Jordan and my child – our child. My heart swelled with happiness and the tears started to fall once more. Only this time, they weren’t tears of sadness.

“Let’s leave New York,” I said.

Jordan stared at me as if I was speaking Latin or had grown a second head. He looked at me and shook his head.

“But your company,” he said. “Everything you’ve worked for? We can’t just leave it like that.”

“I’ll work something out,” I said, squeezing his hand. “And let’s face it, this is not what I want to be doing with my life anyway. Maybe it’s time we pack up, go somewhere new, and start living the lives we want. Start living for ourselves, not for what others want us to be.”

Plus, with the new partnership with Layla Waterstone, I knew my company – and my brand – would be in good hands. I could still design, but I could leave the day-to-day operations up to someone else. Someone I trusted. Somebody I knew wouldn’t stab me in the back and screw me over.

“Where do you want to go?” he asked, kissing my hand and staring up at me.

I smiled, feeling lost into the oceanic depths of his eyes. “The Seychelles. You and me,” I said. “You can go to school and finally do what you want, Jordan. And so can I. We can be a family.”

“Are you sure?”

“I’ve never wanted anything more in my entire life,” I said.

The more I spoke, the more excited I got. The more real the idea sounded in my ears. There was nothing stopping us. As I looked at him, tears of joy rolled down my face unchecked.

“Please, Jordan,” I said. “Let’s do this. Let’s really do this. For us – and for our child.”

He nodded, resting his face against my belly. “If this is what you want, then let’s do it.”