Love Regardless: A Billionaire BWWM Pregnancy Romance (11 page)

“
Elliot,
is there?” I asked, gaping.
Oh
God, that man.

Denise nodded.

“
He’s
trying to calm the crowd and plead for their understanding. It’s
not his wisest move.” She said.

I made up my mind in
a split second.

“
Call
Charlie. Have the car ready.” I said as I stood and packed my
handbag and coat. Denise dashed for the room, buzzing Charlie’s
pager as she went. I spared a minute to glance at the reply text from
Elliot.

I’m in Brooklyn
on business. Can’t do lunch, sorry, C. – E.

I sighed heavily.
While I knew he wouldn’t tell me of the uproar going on there,
I’d hoped he would know me well enough to know that I would
find out and go to him.

As I stood, my
stomach sends me another wave of nausea. I looked at the now cold
milk and pat my belly, reassuring both myself and baby.

Downstairs Charlie
was waiting with the door of the car open. I slid in. Charlie looked
as me in the rear-view mirror.

“
Brooklyn?”
He asked, knowingly. I nodded. “My wife told me what was
happening in a text earlier.” He said, giving me a smile.

The closest Charlie
could get to the scene is a block away because the cops were out
warning everyone against the crushing crowds as one got closer to the
center
of Brooklyn – or where the
casino was. As it was there where droves of local people moving
towards the next block.

Charlie had only just
opened his mouth to warn me against the dangers of the crowd but I
had already opened my door and gotten out in the cold wind. I patted
the back of the car so that Charlie would know to leave before taking
off and melting into the crowd.

I was confident that
no one would recognize me as I dragged my coat around me to protect
me against the harsh wind. I could tell that the crowd was riled up.

By
the time I spotted the
Rouge Rooms
,
I saw Elliot over the heads of those in front of me. He was standing
before the casino’s double doors, surrounded by press. The
crowds stretched in every direction, shouting, making it impossible
for me to hear Elliot. I could tell he was giving some kind of
statement as the cameras seem to be twinkling in his face.

I pushed myself into
the crowd, ignoring the frowns and catcalls of those I pushed out of
my way. The crowd seemed to be nearly with me, crushing and enclosing
Elliot who was doing his best to look calm. Nearby I could see
Ophelia smirking in the distance, standing by her Audi with guards
around her. Her smirk boiled my blood as I watched Elliot remain
cool.

I’ve pushed my
way to the front of the steps before Elliot saw me. His eyes widened
as he turned to me, the press following his gaze. The crowd was
pressing on my back and out of the corner of my eye I saw Ophelia
step forward at my approach.

The queasy feeling in
my stomach seemed to be mounting as the crowd pressed in further,
their shouts breaking my focus as I looked to Elliot. The cameras
were flashing in my face non-stop.

Just as Elliot
stretched out a hand to pull me up onto the steps with him, I felt a
strong shove from behind me.

I seemed to fall in
slow motion as I reached for Elliot’s grip, I hit the steps
with a crush, which brought out a yelp from the base of my stomach as
I met the concrete edge of the step with my stomach.

I awoke to the sound of a beep that never seemed to leave. The sound
of it filled every corner of my mind as I kept my eyes pressed firmly
closed.

I only moved when something cold seems to run up my arm, causing a
shiver to run the length of my body. Before I could wriggle away
something grabbed my hand.

“
Stop it Clara.” The voice was sharp
shards of silk and I knew it was Elliot.

I peeked through my lashes; blinded by the fluorescent light bulb I
couldn't see anything else. When I finally found his eyes I found
them weary with bags under them like bruises.

“
Hey you.” I said, groggily and Elliot
rolled his eyes at my nonchalant attitude. As I looked to him I
remembered – and quickly dropped my hands to my stomach and
immediately cried out in pain. Elliot snatched my hand away from my
abdomen giving me a gentle smile.

“
Clar, don’t hurt yourself. It’s
bruised.” I nodded, not really taking in what he was saying. My
brain felt distinctly fuzzy, as though there was a thick fog in my
mind.

I leaned up and touched the sides of Elliot’s face. He was warm
and lovely – and just what I needed. I noticed also that he was
wearing a T-shirt and jeans rather than his usual suit attire. I
frowned remembering the mob in Brooklyn – he was wearing a suit
then, wasn’t he?

I looked around, the beeping sound taking over once more. The
hospital room was spacious and unlike the one I was used to as I
realized that Elliot probably had me taken to a private hospital on
the edge of the city. The room looked more like a plush hotel room
than a hospital. If there were no drips and no incessant beeping
noise, I wouldn’t recognize it as a hospital.

“
Where am I, El?” I asked, touching
his face again. I looked back at him and realized that his eyes never
left mine.

“
You are in the Lenox Hill hospital in the
Upper East Side. I had you taken here because I know the doctors
well.”

Of course he did.
I
rolled my eyes and Elliot caught my hand in his, interlacing his
fingers with mine.

“
You know I hate it when you roll your
eyes.” He whispered, leaning in and I smiled as he pressed his
lips to me. The kiss lasted longer than usual but it was still not
long enough for me.

“
I love you.” He whispered, quieter
still into my mouth, his forehead pressed to mine.

The sound of the crowd in Brooklyn fed into my
mind and filled my ears – but Elliot’s
I
love you
wiped my mind blank. I
repeated it to myself, but all I can think of was Elliot’s hand
in mine and how perfect that felt. I had his baby in me, and it felt
perfect to me.

“
I love you too.” I responded, and it
felt perfectly normal to do so.

In this moment we were just Elliot and Clara.

The moment was broken instantly when a nurse came in. Suddenly, the
beeping noise returned and it was all I could hear. She said nothing
when she saw me awake, only nodded cautiously to Elliot. I had
expected her to explain what was going on and how hurt I was, but all
she did was look to Elliot before he nodded. She then proceeded to
adjust my drip and checked my cannula before leaving. I looked
questioningly to Elliot.

He pulled down the metal by the side of my bed and I moved over
wincing, to let him sit at the edge of my bed.

“
You’ve been in here for a week, my
love. When you fell, your stomach and the baby took most of the hit.”
My eyes flitted between both of his gray ones. He looked troubled,
and didn't continue.

“
And is the baby okay?” I demanded, my
voice full of panic.

“
Yes. The baby went into trauma and you
suffered some bleeding but they checked you out and have been
monitoring you. You and the baby are fine and the bruises will heal
in the coming weeks.”

His reassuring words didn't match his troubled expression. I wanted
to scream at him to tell me what he was holding back from me.

He cast his eyes downward and looked at me.

“
Throughout all the screening and tests that
the doctors did, they discovered that the baby as a congenital heart
condition.” He spoke slowly, looking closely into my eyes,
watching to see if I understand.

“
What? Does that mean the baby won’t…”
My voice trailed off but I knew from the look in his eyes that he had
understood what I meant.

“
No. The baby has Down Syndrome –
there is no way of telling how severe it is until birth, but the baby
will not die.” Elliot spoke like he felt personally obligated
to keep the baby alive himself.

Down Syndrome. I knew what this meant instantly and my heart broke as
I pulled my hand from Elliot’s and rested it on my still-small
bump. It hurt to touch, but all I wanted right now was to hold my
baby.

“
I don’t care.” I whispered. I
didn't care. Down Syndrome or not, I wanted this child for the rest
of my life. Elliot’s face broke out into a crooked smile and I
saw that his eyes were wet.

“
I don’t either.” He said with
conviction.

After that I scooted over as far as I could in the bed and Elliot
climbed in with me, resting his head on my chest and his hand on our
bump.

I knew that I should ask about what happened with the case and the
publicity for the casino fire. I should ask if Ophelia had done
anything else horrid in the past week. I should do so much –
but I didn't. We laid in silence and closed our eyes and for the
first time it felt like it was the three of us now.

*****

I was released from the hospital three days later
with a firm warning to rest and to come back if I noticed any more
bleeding or abnormal symptoms. Elliot was in the office by the time I
was released but he sent Miles to pick me up in the Audi R8, after
which I got dropped off the
Countess
and crawled into the bed and rested.

Almost a month after the accident, I moved into
the
Countess
with Elliot. The apartment was large enough to hold several large
families, so there was no shortage of space. Although I returned to
work, I didn't feel one hundred percent recovered until I was nearly
seven months pregnant – Denise was endlessly kind and helped me
with all of my pains and troubles. The staff were well prepped on how
to carry on when I went on maternity leave, so I was not too troubled
about what I’d find once I returned.

The first time the baby kicked, I was with Judith and it was a moment
I wouldn't forget. Although I didn't know the sex of the child, it
made it all feel real. Elliot had since felt the kicks and was
speechless every time.

Sadly though, I was seeing less and less of Elliot during the day as
his court case approached with rapid speed. Elliot told both me and
Judith that he wasn't nervous, but the tenseness in his shoulders
begged to differ.

I had successfully avoided Ophelia, but had spent a considerable
amount of time with Henry who was still quiet around me, but let me
help him color in the pages of his coloring book.

The court case was being held tomorrow in the Boroughs in the
Criminal Court and it was an open case, meaning that much of the
public would be there. My fellow lawyer Alexander Kyle would be
taking over the case, and I was eager to see him do a good job.
Judith was also coming, along with Henry – though Elliot
thought Henry should not be there.

By the time I got back to the Countess from the office, the
housekeeper had laid out dinner on the table. I could smell the
delicious lasagna the second I stepped onto the marble floor. Kicking
off my comfy flats (I miss my Jimmy Choos) I changed into my pajamas
and a fluffy dressing gown before sitting down to eat.

I didn't know when Elliot would be home due to last minute
preparations for the defense, so I poured myself some sparkling water
and took my dinner in front of the TV. I switched on some mindless
baking show and ate.

It was not until I had nearly finished eating all
together that I noticed the crisp, white envelope on the coffee
table, on the top of the pile of mail which laid waiting for Elliot.
It only caught my eye because of the handwritten name on it –
Clara Greyson
.
There was no address.

I rested my dinner on the sofa and leaned forward, groaning slightly
at the pain in my back as I picked up the envelope. It was barely the
size of my palm.

Inside I found a folded photograph. Initially I
groaned when I saw that it was the photo of Elliot the night the fire
in the
Rouge Rooms
was set, but a subtle difference caught my eye. At the corner of the
picture, where Elliot was approaching the door I saw his exposed
arms. Peering closer, I looked at his arms – on the forearm was
a large, ruby red birthmark which looked like a disfigured snake
tattoo marring the arm.

Elliot had no such birthmark
.

But Henry did.

On the back of the photograph I found a scrawled
sentence;
the original, before I edited
it for her.

The
her
was easy to place as Ophelia.

I stood, wobbling slightly as my balance had become increasingly
worse during the pregnancy.

I picked up my phone to call Elliot. His cell phone rang three times
before he picked up.

“
Are you okay?” His voice sounded
jaded with exhaustion.

“
I just wanted to tell you that a letter
came in the mail today-” I began, but a voice in the background
of the phone cuts me off. I recognized it as Alexander Kyle, barking
instructions for the next day.

“
Clar, I have to go. I’m really
sorry.” Elliot’s forlorn tone just before the dial tone
told me that he had accepted his fate of being found guilty against
Ophelia’s wave of evidence.

I put down the phone, frowning – my hand resting in its default
place of happiness on my bump. I opted to simply wait until Elliot
came home to tell him. Glancing at my watch, I knew he couldn’t
be much longer.