Chapter9
Tessa looked at herself in the bathroom mirror. She was bigger than ever before, but she was still able to hide her baby bump under the flowing silk gown she had bought for that night. The opening of the store was supposed to happen in a week, just a week before they were headed back to the States to move into their New York apartment.
Tessa and Oscar had since made up from their fight and agreed that they should wait until they had the baby to announce the pregnancy. Tessa realized that if they revealed it any sooner, she would probably be overwhelmed by the public’s attention. This would be the next baby in the Legros family, and possible heir to a billion-dollar fortune.
People are going to want to meet Tessa and her family. The press would certainly look hard into her past and paint whatever picture they could to get people clicking on their articles and buying their magazines. Oscar explained all of this to her after their fight, and she realized he was only holding off on the pregnancy announcement to spare her the stress of being in the public’s eye.
The paparazzi hadn’t been so bad in Athens, but if they found out that she was pregnant, they would certainly have been bombarded in the Greek city. She wanted to have a smooth and easy delivery, so waiting until after the baby was already there was certainly the best option.
Though things were smoothed over between the two, Tessa was still getting more and more nervous as the baby grew and she got closer to being a mother. She certainly already felt like one, but there was something new about caring for a child that she didn’t realize when she first got pregnant.
Her sister was always telling her horror stories of Maverick having poop explosions or puking on her right before she left for work. Tessa knew she would always have Oscar there to take care of her, but even billionaires don’t always have things easy as parents.
Tessa also made sure to let Oscar know that only she and Oscar would be raising the baby. Oscar had grown up in a wealthy family, so he was used to nannies cycling through his various mansions, always leaning towards a caregiver in tough times and not his mother or father.
She didn’t want her baby to know anyone as their mom but her and feared what would happen if she let a nanny do most of the childcare. This also worried Tessa, however, as Oscar hadn’t always made himself perfectly available to her at all times throughout the pregnancy. When they were together, Tessa felt perfectly safe in his arms. She knew he would always be there and take care of her.
When he was away, she would really start to worry. He had followed through with his promise and hadn’t missed a doctor’s appointment again. He certainly showed up late plenty of times, sometimes making her anxious that he wouldn’t come at all. He was definitely a workaholic, so Tessa worried that might overrule raising their child together. She tried not to let her fears about the future bother her present mind. She was working harder than ever to control her anxiety and make sure that her baby was growing in the most peaceful home possible. Tonight, however, she couldn’t help but feel especially nervous about what was coming up.
Oscar was throwing an early party for everyone involved in the store and factory’s opening. He wanted to boost morale and give his employees a night to enjoy free dinner and drinks on him to push the opening of the store and make sure everything in the final week went smoothly. The party was going to take place in the empty store, before merchandise filled it in the following week.
He had hired catering companies to transform the Legros store into a beautiful ballroom-like center for the party. It would be the first time Tessa and Oscar were making an official appearance as a couple. She had bought the perfect gown for the night. It was long-sleeved with purple lace on top and flowed into layers of silk down from the waist. The loose fit perfectly hid her growing stomach. Even sitting down, you could barely see any bump at all. No one would suspect she was carrying the billionaire’s baby. Tessa was just about ready and only had to put her earrings on when Oscar knocked on the door.
“Hey beautiful, you about ready?” Oscar asked, opening the door a crack. “I have something I want to show you.”
“Coming!” she said as she hurriedly put on her earrings.
When she walked out, Oscar was standing there, holding a beautifully wrapped flat package. He started by saying, “I don’t think there’s ever going to be a gift good enough as the one you’ve given me. Each day I’m amazed that someone like you walked into my life. On top of that, you’re carrying my child, and there’s nothing on the planet that could show my gratitude.
“I’m going to spend as much time trying to repay you for the magic you’ve brought into my life, Tessa.” He handed her the package. If the gift wasn’t so flat, she would have thought he was proposing. His delivery was a bit nervous, so Tessa could tell he thought much about what he was going to say. The gesture was so sweet she could have fallen over and cried right there.
“Oh Oscar, you didn’t have to.” She grabbed the package and opened it quickly. “Oh my god. Oscar, this is too much.” It was another Cronus original, this time, of a sunset overlooking the Athens park. The park had played such a special role in their relationship that Tessa was blown away that he was able to find a painting of it by one of their favorite artists.
“I thought it’d look perfect in the nursery,” Oscar responded. She leaned in and kissed him, not caring that she was messing up the makeup she had just spent so long perfecting.
Oscar had a limo pick them up. He warned Tessa that when they got out, there would probably be paparazzi waiting to snap a picture of him and his perfect girl. She knew the day was coming that she would have to appear on his arm next to him. She was certainly nervous, but she was thrilled at the idea. She never would have thought she’d be caught on the arm of a billionaire. When they pulled up, the reality hit Tessa hard. She went to open her door, but Oscar stopped her.
“No, let the driver do it. We’ll get out on my side. It looks bad if you get out first.” He straightened out his suit and took a big breath as the driver opened the door. Once he stepped out, Tessa was hit with a wave of anxiety. She thought about slamming the door shut and telling the driver to get away. She could hear people yelling and asking questions to Oscar, not really able to tell what exactly they were saying.
She thought she might throw up right there in the back seat of the limo. She looked down at her stomach and started to panic. What if someone did realize she was pregnant? What if her dress got caught in the door and the limo drove away, forcing her gown to get ripped off and revealing her pregnant belly? What if she tripped and fell right in front of all the cameras? She didn’t think she could do it. Just when she thought about running through the other door, Oscar stuck his head in.
“Hey cute girl, you going to come say hi?” Oscar teased as he reached his hand towards her. She suddenly felt calm. Seeing his face, those crystal blue eyes and bright smile, she knew that she would be able to handle whatever might happen once she got out of the car. She grabbed his hand and felt light, almost like she could fly right through the door. Then the flashes started hitting her eyes. She could hear the cameramen calling her name but didn’t know who to look at. “Just ignore them and hold my arm tight. They’ll be gone once we’re inside.” She looked straight ahead, right at the doors to the Legros store. She smiled as nicely as she could, ignoring everyone around her but Oscar. She felt glued to his arm and never wanted to let go. Once inside, she felt more relieved than ever.
“We did it!” Oscar said. “Now it’s time to really show off my beautiful girl.”
They walked towards a table and Oscar pulled a chair out for her. “You can sit here while I get us some drinks.” He left her alone at the table and she got a chance to look around. She had been in a Legros department store before, but not that often. She mostly bought her clothes from secondhand thrift stores, enjoying the unique clothes she could find there instead of department stores. She was still impressed knowing that this company was all Oscar’s, and only one of hundreds all over the world. In just a week, the tables would be replaced with clothing racks and perfume counters. She looked around the room.
Everyone in there was someone who had helped in the opening of the store, or their family. Oscar wanted a chance to get people excited about the opening. Some had only worked in building the factory and hadn’t gotten to see the store just yet. Tessa felt amazed that the man she had fallen in love with was responsible for putting all of this together. She was infatuated with Oscar and the way he was as a businessman.
She knew that this dedication and compassion would make him an amazing father. Just as she started to feel comfortable, she spotted Lydia walking towards the bar. She hadn’t seen Lydia in person yet, only in photographs of her and Oscar. She felt sick once she laid eyes on her face. She always thought Lydia was a stunning beauty and seeing her in person only made her more terrified.
She was the opposite of Tessa. She was a stick-straight thing with blonde hair. She looked like a pageant girl, and that terrified Tessa. Was this what Oscar was interested in? Was he attracted to Tessa? The storm in her head was acting up, making her less confident by the second. She grabbed her belly and remembered that she was the one carrying his child and Lydia was the one getting divorced from Oscar. She quickly removed her hand, remembering no one was supposed to know she’s pregnant.
At the bar, Oscar ordered two glasses of champagne and a glass of sparkling water. As discreetly as possible, he chugged one of the champagnes and filled the empty glass with the sparkling water. He and Tessa had planned on her pretending to drink so as not to give anyone the idea that she could be pregnant. He left the rest of the sparkling water at the bar and started to walk to the table, only to have Lydia pop up in front of him, seemingly out of nowhere.
“That for me?” Lydia said devilishly.
“Lydia? What are you doing here?” he said angrily. He certainly didn’t put her name on the list.
“Well, I was married to you when you first started to build, I figured I should be a part of the celebrations. Besides, I always know how to sweet talk Josiah into putting me on the list,” she said with a grin.
“Look, Lydia, you should go. I don’t want any rumors to start by you being here. I already have a date for the night and am only interested in being with her. It’s not appropriate.” Oscar wasn’t one who normally put too much thought into what the public thought of him, however, he was looking for any reason to kick Lydia out of the party.
“Relax, Oscar. I wanted to come tonight also, so I could tell you the good news in person. I signed the papers and my lawyer will be sending them over. By Monday we’ll be officially divorced. What better way to show everyone you’ve moved on than to make nice with your ex-wife before the store opens?” she explained to him.
“Fine. You can stay, but don’t start anything,” Oscar said, walking away. He only wanted to focus on the mother of his child that night.
“Who, me?” Lydia said suspiciously. She laughed and walked away, ready to schmooze her way back into the public’s eye.
Oscar returned to the table and handed Tessa a glass. “Thanks for the champagne, sweetie,” she said loudly, overdoing the cover just a bit. She took a sip. “Oh, wait that one’s actually champagne,” she said, handing her glass back to Oscar and taking the other one. She took another sip. “There we go.”
Oscar laughed and responded, “Sorry honey. I’m just a little flustered. I just ran into Lydia.”
“I saw. What’d she say?” she responded.
“It’s done. She’s finally signing the papers.” Oscar leaned in and gave her a kiss. “Come on, I want you to meet some people.”
*****
Tessa had spent the last 45 minutes meeting people and she’d probably never remember their names. There were so many “managers of” that she couldn’t remember who was who. She didn’t care, however, as Oscar had introduced her as his girlfriend, time and time again. She pictured what it might be like if he called her his fiancée, wife, or mother of his child. Girlfriend would do for now, however. Just when she thought she was going to fall over, she decided to take a breather in the bathroom. It wasn’t easy for Tessa to meet so many new people at once.
She walked into the bathroom, only to see that it wasn’t empty. Lydia was already inside, powdering her face in the mirror.
“Oh. Well hello there,” she said from her perfectly glossed lips. “I’m Lydia, as I’m sure you probably already know.” She reached out her perfectly polished hand and Tessa grabbed it, shaking lightly. Her hand was incredibly cold.
“Tessa. Nice to meet you.” She could feel her throat tightening.
“Sorry to meet in this bathroom.” She laughed. “But I’m glad we are meeting. I really wanted to tell you in person how very sorry I am for sending that text. It was wrong of me to interfere. But you’re with Oscar now, and I’ve accepted that.” She collected herself and looked in the mirror. She sounded like she was reciting a monologue.
“Thanks. For apologizing,” Tessa responded.
Lydia didn’t seem to notice and continued, “I’m sure you know by now how amazing Oscar is. I couldn’t help but lose it a little bit when I found out he was seeing someone else. I’m sure you can understand going a bit crazy if you thought you’d never get him back.”
“I understand,” Tessa replied, still standing there awkwardly.
“Anyway, look at me standing here like a crazy person talking to you in the bathroom! I just feel so terrible for how I acted! Go, go on, you probably have to pee or something!”
Tessa had gone into the bathroom to originally be alone but instead she walked into a new nightmare. As a pregnant woman, however, she pretty much always had to pee, so Lydia wasn’t wrong.
“Oh, wait honey, there’s no hooks in there, you can leave your purse out here with me! You know how many germs they can get sitting on the floor of a bathroom stall,” Lydia said suspiciously.
“Oh, thanks,” Tessa responded. She thought it was a strange offer, but she didn’t really know what Lydia would want with her purse anyway.
Tessa set her purse down on the counter and walked into one of the stalls. Lydia was right, there weren’t any hooks anywhere to put a purse. She cleared her throat to break the silence so Lydia couldn’t hear her peeing. Could the situation get any more awkward?
“You know, you two do make a very stunning couple. You can imagine that’s hard for me to see but I don’t like to be known as a liar!” Lydia said to break the silence. When she was sure that the coast was clear, and Tessa was mid-stream, she started frantically digging through her purse, looking for any juice she could use on Tessa. “And that dress you’re wearing! It’s incredible.”
Lydia had spotted it. Tessa had an ultrasound picture tucked away in a pocket. Lydia pulled out her phone and quickly snapped a picture of it and put it right back in place just as Tessa opened the stall door. She turned around, holding the purse and handed it back to Tessa.
“Have a good night,” she said and ran out the bathroom door. Tessa was confused, but thankful that she had her first quiet moment that night. She washed her hands, looked in the mirror, and took a deep breath before heading back into the party.
She spotted Oscar talking to an older couple across the room. She headed over and tried to join in their conversation right away, despite still feeling weird from her and Lydia’s interaction. They were talking about Oscar as a little boy.
“Tessa sweetie, this is Elena and Rafael Petros. They knew my father when he was alive and actually helped me find a good location for the store here in Athens,” Oscar explained.
“We knew Oscar as a little baby boy! His father would always bring him to Greece as a child, but he never visits as an adult!” Rafael teased Oscar. They all chuckled.
“So nice to meet you both,” Tessa replied.
“Such a nice party! But we have to go now! It’s so late past our bedtimes!” Elena replied laughing. They walked away, and Oscar turned towards Tessa.
“How you feeling? Want to get out of here?” Oscar asked.
“You can do that? No one will notice?” she asked back.
“Eh, I’ve said hi to everyone, I’m a busy man, they’ll understand,” he replied.
“There’s nothing more than I want right now than to get out of this dress and into bed,” she responded, laughing.
“You read my mind.” Oscar leaned in and kissed her for the first time that night. When she pulled back, several people were smiling at them. He grabbed her hand and led her out the door. This night marked the first time in their relationship that Tessa had zero doubts about their relationship.
Of course, from the beginning, she knew that Oscar was someone she wanted to end up with. Like most relationships, however, she struggled with some self-doubt, as there were parts of him she still hadn’t seen. She loved him but wasn’t willing to throw herself all the way in. She didn’t want to see herself hurt if she discovered something she wasn’t too excited about.
This night was different. She felt like she saw all of Oscar. She saw how his employees adored and respected him. They looked up to Oscar as someone they wanted to grow to be, not with resentment or hatred, like many employees do to their bosses. She met old friends that told embarrassing childhood stories. She saw how other people loved him, making her fall deeper in love with him than ever before. She couldn’t wait to start her life with him. How could things get any more perfect?
Just as Oscar opened the door to head back to the car, they were blasted with three times as many cameramen as they had been when they arrived. They were blocking the door now as well, instead of making a nice pathway for them from the entrance to the car. Security was struggling to hold them all back. Tessa was completely blinded by the flashing lights but was still able to make out some of the questions they were asking.
“Tessa! Tessa! Is it true you’re pregnant!” one man shouted.
“Tessa honey look over here! Tessa are you carrying Oscar’s love child?” another one screamed.
“Tessa! Look at the camera baby! Did you really tell his ex-wife that the baby’s just to get his money?” The questions were getting worse and worse.
“Oscar! Is it true you offered her three million to get an abortion?” a man screamed. One of the security officers pushed himself into Oscar, almost knocking him over. Oscar collected himself and wrapped his arms around Tessa, almost lifting her to the car, pushing men out of the way better than the security was doing.
“Tessa are you really pregnant!” another man screamed just as Oscar slammed the door in his face.
“Oh my god are you okay?” Oscar said as he took his jacket and wrapped it around Tessa. She had made it out physically fine, but emotionally, she thought she was about to break.