I had to appreciate her reasoning. “I would love the company.” I nodded. Having Leslie around would be a distraction. I would focus on entertaining her, and not dwell on Weston or Jeremy.
“Okay, it's settled. I'll get to bond with my little niece,” she looked over at Lyra and then back at me, “while you figure out what you're doing with your life.”
“But first, can we do some retail therapy?” I gave Leslie my saddest puppy dog eyes.
“But of course!”
We were home from winter break and I was back into the swing of things, including working late on my birthday. Leslie was leaving in two days and I was already dreading it. I had my friend back and Lyra had grown used to having Titi Les around.
Leslie had pushed the subject of doing dinner for my birthday, but I didn’t want to plan anything. It wasn’t that I didn't like celebrating my birthday, but that would always be linked to Weston. It also didn't help that Jeremy hadn’t been home. To be fair, I still had no clue what to make of our situation. Weston was with Chelsea, but I didn't want Jeremy to be my fall back. I loved Jeremy, but I knew in my heart that the love I had for him was a fraction of what I felt for Weston.
Was that fair? Because you can't have your soul mate, do you settle for the next best thing and continue to live your life never fully satisfied? Was that marriage? Was that the definition of happily ever after?
I sat at my desk with my eyes glued to the computer screen, so distracted by my own thoughts that I missed him entering my office.
“Happy Birthday,” he sang.
I jumped. “Holy crap! You scared the freaking life out of me.” I stood and tugged my skirt lower.
Weston chuckled and walked around my desk. Placing a soft chaste kiss on my cheek, he handed me a bouquet of lilies. “I tapped on the door, but you didn't look up.”
“Work,” I said before lifting the bouquet to my nose. “You remembered that they’re—”
“Your favorite.” He smiled. “And I also remembered you’d be the type who would work on her birthday.”
“How's Chelsea?”
“She's . . . “ He lowered his gaze to the floor for a few beats. “She—”
“Mommy!” Weston's words were cut off by the little one running towards my office. “Happy Birthday!”
Our little one.
The following seconds moved in slow motion.
Weston spun in the direction of the door, and the bouquet of flowers dropped from my hands as my mind and heart realized what was about to happen.
“Lyra Skye Darcy!” Leslie shouted from behind her. “What did Titi Les tell you about running away?” My eyes closed. This couldn't be happening. This wasn't how he was supposed to find out.
Lyra gripped my legs and my body was running on a shot of anxiety that was working its way through me. I opened my eyes to look down at her. Her gray eyes smiled up at me—Weston’s eyes—and my own began to form tears. He would hate me for the rest of his life.
“Oh shit,” Leslie said when she walked into my office. Weston’s gaze scanned hers for some kind of answer, then he turned his attention back to me. I could see the thoughts running through his mind.
I scooped up Lyra in my arms and held her. “Hi, sweet pea.” Lyra wrapped her arms around my neck even tighter. “Why don't you go with Titi and get a candy bar from the vending machine? Mommy needs to talk to her friend, okay?” I said in a surprisingly calm voice.
“Yay!” Lyra cheered. She hopped out of my arms and dragged Leslie out of my office.
Weston looked as if he'd seen a ghost. “Is she . . . “ He shook his head. “Is…” His voice broke. “How old is she?” I didn't answer him as I closed my office door. “Is she mine?” Weston barked from behind me.
I turned and rested my back on the door, my head hung low as I answered him, “Yes.”
“She's mine?” he asked in disbelief.
I nodded slowly. A few tears dropped from my eyes. “Yes, she’ll be four in a few months.”
“Dammit, Emilia!” He kicked my bouquet. White petals shot up like confetti. “Lyra?” He paced the length of my office, his hands gripping his hair. “Lyra Skye?” His gaze seared me.
“I'm—”
“Don’t you dare say sorry! I've been a father for almost four years and you never said a word,” he said through gritted teeth.
“I tried—”
“Bullshit! You should’ve tried every fucking day! Every day since she was born you should have tried to tell me.” Weston’s hands rested on my table. His head was low, his heart broken into a million pieces. I heard the whimpers escaping his body. I couldn't speak; the guilt of keeping his daughter away from him pressed on my heart.
“She has my eyes,” he cried.
“I know.”
“And your hair.”
“Yes.”
“Exactly how we imagined she would look. Does she know who I am?” Weston sniffled and wiped his eyes before turning to face me.
“No.” I shook my head as I swallowed a cry.
“Does she call Jeremy Dad?” He squinted to hold back his tears. “Does he know?”
“No, she calls him Jeremy. He found out after your song.” My voice was shaky.
He looked up at me, his eyelashes damp. “When did you find out you were pregnant?”
“The day you got the record deal in London.”
“Fuck!” He shoved a stack of papers off my desk. He looked up at me. The hurt in his eyes had changed to anger. “Wait? So when I went to your house and asked you to come with me?”
“I knew.”
“Why didn’t… Fuck, Em, I could have been there for you!”
“I presumed I would lose it. I had been told I couldn’t get pregnant, and if ,and lost it there you would blame yourself. I knew if I told you, you would have given up everything to be with us.”
Weston’s broken heart showed through his face. His eyes were dull and frown lines ran along his forehead. “That was not your call to make. You kept her from me for four years. Four! I missed everything because I was never given the choice. You knew my dad left me. You knew I wanted a child with you!”
“I did it to protect her.”
“That's bullshit!”
“I did what I thought was best.”
“I want to be in her life and you can't stop me,” he threatened.
“You can't just barge into her life.”
“No, but I can make sure that you never keep her from me again.” Weston’s lip curled in disgust.
I shook my head, my heart squeezing tight. “I wouldn't do that. I tried to tell you.” I pleaded with my eyes, but he refused to meet my gaze.
“When?”
“T-The day you found out Chelsea was pregnant. I went there to tell you about her.”
His jaw ticked, and heavy breaths blew through his flared nostrils. “Well, that's fucking great. Chelsea lost the baby, and I lost four years out of Lyra’s life.”
Weston marched passed me and headed towards the door. “Don't go,” I pleaded, my voice shrill.
“I need to leave.” He looked me dead in the eyes. “Because if I stay in this room with you, Emilia, I'm going to say things I might regret later on. But know this isn't over. I want joint custody.”
Weston stormed out of my office and vanished into the hallway filled with my coworkers who had stopped to listen to our argument.
“Don’t you all have work to do?” Brian shouted as he headed towards me. “Everything okay?”
“I don’t know … I think I just lost Pointless Statement as a client.”
Brian nodded slowly. “Why don’t you take the rest of the day off? I’ll reach out to the guys and see where it all stands.”
I nodded. If I spoke, the waterworks would follow. I rushed to the bathroom and dried my tears before I went to locate Lyra and Leslie. By the time my red cheeks faded, I found them in the cafeteria. Leslie cast a wide eye concerned look my way, but I simply mouthed later and swooped down to take L
yra in my arms.
“How about we go and get cupcakes for Mommy’s birthday?” I kissed Lyra’s little cheek. The last thing I wanted to do was discuss the horrific events that had occurred in my office. I didn’t know what Weston had up his sleeve, but I planned to spend the rest of my birthday with my daughter and best friend, sharing a box of cupcakes.
“Yay!” Lyra cheered as though she didn’t have a care in the world. Little did she know, her life was about to change forever.
48
WESTON
It had been almost a month since Chelsea asked for some space. I was focused on my music as it helped to drown out the pain.
Christmas came and went, and I had not heard from Emilia. I sent her a text message wishing her a Merry Christmas followed by a Happy New Year seven days later.
Still no response.
I was finally ready to talk about what had happened to Chelsea, but it seemed like Emilia was avoiding me.
It was the last week of January when Leslie called me. The phone rang, and the smile grew on my face when I noticed her name on the screen.
“Hey, Les,” I sang her name. “Long time no see.”
“Well, I heard somebody's a famous rockstar and has no time for anyone.” Her voice was bubbly. “Happy belated birthday!” She laughed. “I wanted to call you on your actual birthday, but I figured you were too busy with strippers and hookers.”
I chuckled. She was still the same Leslie: funny, and always keeping me on my toes. “Not really my style.”
“Yeah. Yeah. Listen, I'm in town for a few days, and I was going to pay our mutual friend a visit at work since it's her birthday today. Do you want to come with?”
For the first time in three weeks, a genuine grin greeted my face. “Yeah, I'll head over there now.”
After I’d hung up with Leslie, I got dressed and headed out the door. Making a pit-stop, I stopped at a florist before heading over to SoCal. I knew that lilies were Emilia’s favorite, so the florist filled the bouquet with white lilies and a few pink roses.
With the bouquet in hand, I walked into SoCal like I had done so many times before but, this time, there was a bit of hope in each stride. From the information I’d gathered from Axel, Jeremy was still out of the picture. Chelsea and I weren't anything anymore, so I was going to take one final stab at winning Emilia back. There was nothing left to keep us apart.
My head was held high as I walked towards her office. She was crouched over, her gaze locked on the computer screen. I gently tapped on her door, but she didn’t look up at me, so I took a second to admire her. I’d memorized her face and spent most of the past few years dreaming about her. The button nose that sat in the center of her face, and the freckles that she refused to admit she had. Even the way her crimson hair flowed down her shoulders. I’d imprinted it all. I remembered every single thing about her.
It was also the moment my life drastically changed.
People say there is a thin line between love and hate, and that you hate the people you love the most. But for as long as I could remember, I’d never hated Emilia. I didn't hate her when she left me or when she told me to follow my dreams and refused to come with me. I didn’t know how to hate her.
“Happy Birthday!” I sang as I walked into her office.
Emilia jumped and her gaze shot up at me. “Holy crap! You scared the freaking life out of me.” A smile curled up on her face, and she stood.
Laughing, I walked around her desk and placed a kiss on her cheek. Her sweet scent was intoxicating. “I tapped on the door, but you didn't look up.”
“Work,” she shrugged and brought the flowers to her nose. “You remembered that they’re—”
“Your favorite.” I finished her sentence, my cheeks burning from the smile that wouldn’t leave my face. “And I also remembered you’d be the type who would work on her birthday.”
“How's Chelsea?” Her eyes scanned mine for an answer.
“She's . . . “I shifted my weight from one foot to another. How could I say she’s good, she lost the baby, so I guess she’s okay. “She—”
“Mommy!”
My words were cut short.
“Happy Birthday!”
A chill ran up my spine as my gaze caught a glimpse of crimson hair, and my heart dropped. Emilia had a child?
The bouquet dropped from Emilia’s hands as Leslie’s voice shouted behind me. “Lyra Skye Darcy! What did Titi Les tell you about running away?”
My body was ice cold. That was our name.
The little girl gripped Emilia’s legs and looked up at me before looking up at her mother. Her eyes. Those gray eyes. I’d seen them before. I saw them every time I looked in the mirror. They were my eyes.
“Oh shit.”
Leslie’s voice cut through the fog in my head. Glancing over at her, I expected an explanation. But my voice refused to work.
Emilia scooped her daughter into her arms, and it was the first time I realized how much she looked like us.
Could she?
“Hi, sweet pea.” Emilia’s voice was shaky. “Why don't you go with Titi and get a candy bar from the vending machine? Mommy needs to talk to her friend, okay?”
“Yay!” Lyra cheered.
Lyra.
My Lyra.
She hopped out of Emilia’s arms and dragged Leslie out of my office. When they were out of the room, my voice returned. “Is she . . . “I shook my head not believing this. “Is…” I knew she was. “How old is she?”
Emilia closed her office door.
“Is she mine?” I yelled.
She bowed her head. “Yes.”
“She's mine?” I had a child I’d never met before by the woman I loved the most.
Emilia looked up at me and wiped a tear from her eye. “Yes, she’ll be four in a few months.”
My daughter, Lyra Skye, was almost four.
49
EMILIA
Weston was true to his word. By the next day, I was subpoenaed by his attorney. I didn't want to fight to keep him away from Lyra; that had never been my intention. I hired an attorney and we went to court. The judge ruled that after a positive DNA test, Lyra would spend the weekdays with me and every other weekend with her father. We would also alternate holidays, but when the judge suggested a mediator I declined. My only request was that Lyra be introduced to Weston slowly. She had no idea who he was, so I feared that her spending the night at his place would traumatize her. Weston and I both agreed we would meet every day after school in a public place so she could get to know him.
It took a few weeks while my attorney went back and forth with Weston's attorney. The process ran quicker than most since I wasn’t trying to keep Lyra from him nor was I asking for any money. During this time, I reached out to Jeremy. I knew I wasn't settling; I was doing what was best for Lyra's future. I called him a week after my birthday. Lyra was at a play date with Susie, a little girl she met at school, when I decided to talk to Jeremy. I needed to be home alone; I didn’t want him to come by when Lyra was there and only confuse her further. There was enough change in her life already. My hands trembled as I called him.
“Hello?” he answered. His voice was stern and serious like he was a completely different Jeremy from the one I knew and loved.
Hi, did I call you at a bad time?”
“No, what's up?”
My heart rate picked up and I closed my eyes. “I want you to come home.”
“Emilia…” His stern voice broke as he said my name.
“Jeremy, I've had plenty of time to think about us. It’s been almost two months, it's time you came home.”
“I'm staying at the Hilton. Let me pack up and I'll be home within an hour.”
“You're at the Hilton? I thought you were staying with your brother in San Fran?”
“I've been bouncing back and forth. I didn't want to go home in the event you were there with…” His voice trailed off.
“This is your home, Jeremy. I would never disresp
ect you that way. Please come home.”
I sat in my bedroom, staring at my sliding room door; it was how we always entered each other's house. When my doorbell rang, I gasped. I leaped off my bed and sprinted straight for the front door. Before I turned the knob, I took one deep breath and pinched my cheeks for color. Jeremy stood in black slacks and a baby blue button-down. His brown hair was brushed back and his face was clean-shaven.
“You used the front door?” I was out of breath.
I didn’t want to barge into your home.” His sad eyes showed me how much pain he was in. I had done that to him; I had broken his beautiful soul.
“Come in.” I held the door open for him. Jeremy sat on the couch awkwardly. It was as if he had never been here before. “Can I get you something to drink?” I offered.
“No, I'm okay.”I chewed on my lip. I didn’t know where to start.
“How’ve you been?” he asked.
The tears pooled in my eyes. “Why is it so awkward between us?” I asked sadly. “It's never been this way…”
“I guess it's because I thought I knew you and now I feel like you’re a complete stranger.”
I grasped his hands in mine. “Jeremy, I'm so sorry I lied to you, but I didn't expect that my past would come and knock on my door. Weston and I were together for almost a year when I found out I was pregnant with Lyra. The day I found out, he was shipping off to London and I didn't even know if I wanted to be a mother, so I lied to him. When you met me at that pharmacy, I was planning to give Lyra up for adoption.”
“What changed your mind?”
“The second they placed her in my arms, I knew. I knew I had to step up. And then you came into my life and made everything better, everything easier. You’re everything I ever wanted, Jeremy.”
Jeremy took a few seconds to process what I said. “Did you tell him?” he asked.
“Yes,” I admitted on an exhale. “He has a lawyer on retainer and wants joint custody. I’m not going to fight him.”
Love Letter Duet: The Encore Edition Page 28