by Tiana Cole
A quick search of the penthouse revealed Jessica wasn't there, and when I dialed her cell it went unanswered. Frustrated, I frantically called Jay and Tasha in hopes she'd be with them. Jay's phone went straight to voicemail so I assumed he was at work, but thankfully Tasha had given me her number and a call to her proved more fruitful.
“Hello, Bastian,” she answered casually, almost as if she were expecting my call.
I attempted to speak as coolly as possible so I wouldn't sound like a madman, but failed in that effort and knew my urgency was noticeable.
“Hello, Tasha. Is Jessica with you? Do you know where she is?”
“She's here, Bastian, but she's upset. She's downstairs playing with JJ right now. Do you know what happened?” she asked.
I breathed a sigh of relief knowing Jessica was in good hands at my beach house. The elevator doors parted and my mother stepped into the penthouse with a scowl, clearly upset that she'd been left behind for the second time that day. She hurriedly made her way by me without saying a word and closed herself in the guest room I'd put her up in. With no desire to speak to her, I quickly headed back to the waiting town car while continuing my conversation with Tasha.
“Yes, I know what happened. My mother fed her some total crap, but I'm on my way to straighten things out,” I replied. “Please don't tell her I'm coming. Just keep her there, okay? I'm on my way.”
Before hanging up, Tasha assured me she wouldn't let Jessica leave. It took entirely too long to get out of the city, but my driver finally landed us in the Hamptons where Tasha answered the door to my home with an apologetic smile.
“She's in the family room,” she whispered.
I said a quick thanks as I rushed passed her to find Jessica curled up on the sofa watching a cartoon she'd no doubt put on for JJ. He was napping peacefully on the floor with a couch pillow and blanket, his thumb planted adorably in his mouth. I imagined that being our own child one day, and the image affirmed my decision to finally come clean with my feelings for Jessica. This talk was long overdue, and couldn't be put off any longer.
“Jessica,” I spoke her name softly. She turned her head and looked at me in slight surprise.
“How'd you know I was here?” she asked.
“I called,” I shrugged. “Simple as that.”
“I guess we should talk…” she sighed, shifting her body so there was room for me to sit next to her on the couch.
“Yes, we need to,” I agreed with a nod as I sunk into the cushion by her side and took her hand in mine. “I don't want any more uncertainty between us going forward. My mother told me what she said to you, and I want you to know that none of it is true.”
“It's not?”
“No, it's definitely not,” I assured her, tightening my grip on her hand. “I told her days ago how I really feel about you. She just doesn't want to believe it.”
“What do you mean?” she asked, looking a bit confused.
“I told her the truth,” I said, then paused to take a deep breath. This was it. My pulse raced knowing there was no turning back now. “I love you,” I confessed, looking deep into her eyes with the utmost sincerity, and she stiffened in shock by my unexpected admission. “Everybody sees it. I've known it for a while now, I've just been trying to ignore it. Maybe because of how our relationship started off. Maybe I was afraid you didn't feel the same. Either way…it's true. I'm in love with you, Jessica.”
Her eyes searched my face as she looked for even the faintest sign of deception, but she found nothing but earnestness.
“You…you love me?” she asked with wide eyes that had begun to fill with tears.
“Very much,” I nodded, overwhelming emotions bringing tears to my eyes as well. “You're everything I didn't know I was looking for in a woman. You're also my wife, and now the mother of my child. Honestly, I can't even imagine my life without you. You make me ridiculously happy. I want us to forget what started all of this, the arrangement, and make a go at this as a real family. I know we've only been together for a short time, and under false pretenses, but being with you just feels so right. I didn’t expect to fall in love with you, but I did…and now I never want to let you go.”
She searched for something to say, her lips trembling and a tear running slowly down her cheek. I wiped it away with my thumb and brushed the hair from her face.
“I…I love you too, Bastian,” she told me softly, and my heart soared in my chest. “It's why I get so upset, you know? When your mother told me that you still saw our marriage as just some arrangement, and that you'd take the baby when you divorce me…I lost it.”
The shock of what my mother had truly said to her hit me hard. I sat with my mouth agape, stunned disbelief turning me to stone as I registered the extent of how cruel my own mother had been. I snapped out of my daze and took Jessica's hand in mine again.
“Wow, she failed to tell me that part,” I snickered out of frustration as I shook my head. “You have to believe me, none of that is true. In fact, I told her the exact opposite of that and apparently she couldn't handle it. She's very old school, you know? She doesn't see how we can have a real marriage, but I do. We both love each other right?”
“That's right,” Jessica nodded with a smile and squeezed my hand.
“Then what's stopping us?” I asked with a grin. “Nothing, so let's do this thing for real. Let's forget about this silly arrangement and live an amazing life together with our child.”
“I like the sound of that,“ she glowed. “So, starting right now…real marriage?”
“Real marriage,” I smirked, then met her lips with mine for a kiss that was interrupted by her brother's booming voice.
“Arrangement? Real marriage? What the hell are you two talking about?”
Jessica bolted upright, her body suddenly stiffening, and JJ, who was startled unpleasantly out of his sleep, began to cry. Jessica and I turned to see Tasha and Jay standing near the kitchen. We hadn't heard Jay come home, and of course he and Tasha had overheard the latter part of our conversation.
“Oh, God…” Jessica muttered, her eyes wide with panic. I closed my eyes in resignation knowing I should have never made her lie to her own family.
“Both of you need to explain, because it sounds like…like—” Tasha began as she stepped into the room to pick up JJ and hush him from his fit.
“It sounds like you both had an arrangement going into your marriage,” Jay finished for her, “and if I'm guessing correctly, I'd say it had to do with Bastian's citizenship.”
He was clearly angry as he followed Tasha into the family room and hovered over both Jessica and I like we were errant children. Unsure if he may take a swing at me, I tensed as I braced myself for a potential blow.
“You're right,” I confessed. “I asked Jessica to marry me to avoid deportation. But since then…things have changed between us. We wound up falling in love,” I told him genuinely as I stole a glance at Jessica. She rose from the couch and I followed her lead, standing by her side with her hand clenched in mine.
“I'm sorry I lied to you,” she said apologetically, “but I didn't think…” she trailed off as she tried to form the right words. “I didn't think you'd understand,” she sighed.
“You fooled everybody,” Jay grumbled, shaking his head at her before turning his cold gaze on me. “And you,” he hissed, “you had my sister lie to her own family.”
“I shouldn't have done that, and I'm sorry,” I replied, my head dropping in shame. He had every right to be upset with me. When I'd proposed the arrangement to Jessica, I'd only been thinking of myself and hadn't considered the lies she'd have to tell to friends and family.
“We couldn't tell you the truth,” Jessica blurted, her eyes filling with tears again, but these ones not of happiness. “It would have put you in danger. I wanted to tell you, believe me I did, but I couldn't risk you knowing,” she pleaded.
“That's no excuse,” Jay snorted, once again shaking his head in disappointment. “
You completely lied to us. Made up some song and dance and told us lie after lie. How much did he pay you for this?” he asked angrily.
“I…I…” Jessica stammered, taken aback by the question and unsure of how to answer. I looked at her nervously, but as she opened her mouth to speak Jay cut her off.
“You know what? I don't even want to know,” he fumed. “I just can't believe you, Jessica. This so isn't you. This isn't the sister I know. Taking a bribe and breaking the law? Risking your entire future for money?”
Tasha held JJ closely, one of his ears pressed against her chest and her hand over his other ear to muffle his father's tirade. She bounced him up and down gently as she watched the scene unfold without chiming in. Jay turned his scowl to me again and spoke bitterly.
“You're a goddamn plague,” he growled as he pointed a finger at me. I wasn't afraid of him physically, but I did cower slightly in shame. “My sister always told me you were a scumbag, and it looks like she was right. She was just fine without you dragging her into this mess. You could have hired some two-bit hooker to pretend to be your wife, but instead you chose Jessica.
She worked her ass off pass the bar exam and make something of herself, and you put that in jeopardy with this asinine scam.” He looked us over for a moment, his face turning from anger to hurt as he added, “You know, for two smart people, you both acted pretty fucking stupid.”
Tasha stood next to him, her eyes also filled with hurt, and a quick glance at Jessica's solemn face, now stained with tears, told me their disappointment was crushing her. It was all my fault for getting her involved, and my heart sunk as I realized what a mistake I'd made.
“I think it might be best if you both left,” Tasha said quietly. “I realize it's your house, Bastian, but it would take us too long to pack right now and we need some time to digest this.”
JJ looked on with innocent confusion, tears forming in his eyes as Jessica began to sob. Tasha rubbed the back of his head soothingly and whispered to him that everything was going to be just fine, but her words did little to comfort him as he began to scream and cry for his aunt.
We awkwardly shuffled by them, and Jessica turned to whimper another apology when we reached the front door. I wrapped my arm around her shoulder, pulling her close to me and kissing her forehead as she wept. JJ lost his young mind at the sight of his aunt's distress, and Tasha excused herself to take him upstairs.
“Look, I'm really sorry, too,” I sighed, looking Jay in the eyes despite how hard my shame made it to do so. “You're right. I should have never put Jessica in this situation. I really didn't mean to cause so much pain, but I want you to know that I really do love your sister with all my heart. No matter what, I'm not leaving her or our baby.”
Jay simply looked at me without saying a word. I guided Jessica out of the house, and when we got to my town car she leaned against it and buried her face in her arm. She continued to cry, wailing loudly as her body shook and chest heaved. My driver, who'd been waiting in the vehicle, shifted uncomfortably in his seat and nervously fiddled with the radio in an effort to mind his own business.
“I'm so sorry, Jess. I'm so sorry I made you lie to them. I wouldn't have made you do this if I knew this would happen,” I consoled her while rubbing her back. She turned to face me and I held her close to my chest, feeling the warm wetness of tears on my shirt.
“You didn't make me do anything,” she sniffled as she gripped my back tightly. “I'm the one who agreed to it.”
“Still…”
“That was horrible,” she said as she broke the embrace to wipe her nose with her sleeve. “I've never seen him so disappointed in me,” she sniffled again.
“I'm sorry, Jessica. I'm so sorry,” I repeated, lacking any other words. I was a fast talker in the courtroom, and had used my quick wit to win my reputation as a lawyer and businessman, but I found myself drawing a blank under these emotional circumstances. I pulled her into me again and rubbed her back until she'd calmed down.
“Please take me home,” she whispered.
I knocked on the passenger window of the town car, and when my driver cracked the window I dismissed him with a polite, yet forced, smile. Jessica handed me the keys to the Mercedes, and we began the long, silent ride back to the penthouse. I could feel Jessica's turmoil in my own chest, and couldn't stop chastising myself for putting her through such an ordeal. We I pulled into the parking garage, Jessica wiped her eyes a final time and spoke softly.
“I'd give back every cent of the money for Jay's forgiveness.”
“I know you would,” I replied. “I know it was never just about the money for you. I mean, yeah, I'm sure a part of it was, but I know it was never all about your bank account.”
“It wasn't,” she confessed, looking down at her hands and fidgeting with them as she opened up to me. “Honestly, I'd been a bit lonely. I'd been so wrapped up in my career, I hadn't even dated in…God, I can't even remember how long,” she explained. “I'd come home to my empty apartment and it would be hard not to get depressed sometimes, you know? As stupid as it sounds, I guess it seemed like it would be kind of fun to play house for awhile. To feel like I had somebody…”
“That doesn't sound stupid at all,” I sighed, then offered my own admission. “I was kind of in a similar situation. I spent so many years focused on work, before I knew it I was in my thirties and still a bachelor. No wonder my mother was hounding me about settling down.”
She smiled wide, then leaned over the center console to kiss me deeply. We made our way to the elevator hand in hand, and when the doors parted we found my mother lingering in the living room as if she'd been expecting us. She returned my icy glare with the look of a child who'd just been caught with their hand in the cookie jar. She knew she'd made a mistake, and knew there would be consequences.
“Mama, you know I love you,” I began, “but you need to pack your things. I'm putting you up in a hotel,” I said bluntly. Jessica looked at me in surprise, and my mother's expression was ten times that.
“You may as well send me back to Greece, then,” she huffed.
“Whatever you decide, I really don't care,” I shot back. “You offended and hurt my wife. The mother of my unborn child. I won't have her exposed to your venom anymore. Think what you want about us, but I love Jessica and we're staying together in a real marriage whether you like it or not.”
Outraged, she stormed down the hall to pack her things while I bathed in the satisfaction of having finally stood up to her. Jessica looked at me in disbelief, and I flashed her a small smirk.
“That was…wow!” she grinned, looking thoroughly impressed by the stand I had just made. “That's my man,” she beamed.
“I'd slay dragons for you, babe,” I growled playfully.
“I think you just slayed one,” she joked, then gave me a quick peck on the lips. I was glad to see her spirits lifting, but knew she was still hurting from the emotionally exhausting day. Moments later my mother resurfaced from the guest bedroom, suitcase trailing behind her, purse slung over her shoulder, and her head held high.
“You can take me to the airport,” she barked. “I'm leaving.”
“My driver will take you there,” I replied, gesturing to the elevator with one hand and fishing my cell phone from my pocket with the other. “I'll call him now and have him meet you in the lobby. I really have nothing more to say to you until you apologize to me and my wife.”
With her mouth set in a firm frown, she hurried by us and into the elevator. Too stubborn to offer any kind of apology, she stood with her back to us as the doors closed and the elevator began its descent.
“Now there's the real Kraken,” I snickered.
Jessica burst into a fit of laughter, and I couldn't help but laugh along with her. Things had gotten so serious, the levity was a welcomed change.
“Can we go upstairs?” she asked, and I saw what she needed in her sultry gaze.
“Of course,” I answered, scooping her off of her feet a
nd carrying her up to our bed.
Chapter 17
Bastian
Over the next week, things had been amazing between Jessica and I. Well, as amazing as they could be given the events that had unfolded at the beach house earlier in the week. Yes, we were still upset over the falling out with Jay and Tasha, and neither of them had reached out to us yet, but we hadn't heard from immigration either which led us to believe they hadn't ratted us out and may possibly forgive us in time.
Jeannie had been stopping by the penthouse after work, and her presence seemed to cheer Jessica up. Not knowing the truth about the situation, Jeannie wasn't entirely sure what her friend was so down about, yet she didn't press the issue…thankfully.
We'd scheduled a 'friends night,' as Jeannie eloquently titled it, and had invited Nick to join us for dinner at our place after work. Jeannie and Nick seemed to have a mild flirtation going on, and I knew Jessica was secretly rooting for them to get together. Jeannie and her boyfriend had split a few days earlier, and she was quite candid about being back on the market. They arrived at the penthouse together, and Jeannie roped Nick into helping her cook dinner.
“I'm just saying, there should be no question what the baby's name is. It's either Nicholas or Nicole,” Nick joked as he chopped onions to the best of his ability.
“Those are two very good options, but I'm not sure if we're naming the baby after you, Nick,” Jessica laughed.
“Why not?” he snorted. “I'll be the kid's favorite uncle. Little Nick or Nikki will love to be named after me,” he boasted, which got everyone laughing.
“You've thought this out, haven't you?” I asked with a smile.
“Yeah, well, I figure if I'm the godfather then I should get a say in naming the baby,” he shrugged.