Love Regardless: A Billionaire BWWM Pregnancy Romance (10 page)

He became even
brighter in her presence and she in his.

She never took her
eyes off me, looking me up and down most excitedly – it became
clear that Elliot didn't bring girls home a lot.

I walked forward,
trying my best to be confident.

“
It’s
a pleasure to meet you.” I stretched out a hand and she took it
happily with both of hers. Her skin is papery and soft. She smiled a
crinkly-eyed smile at me.

“
Mom,
this is Clara, my girlfriend. Clara, this is my mom, Judith.”

Judith
smiled even wider at the word
girlfriend
before urging me to sit down on the
comfy, squishy couch. Elliot sat beside me and Judith sits opposite
us, after resting a small tray of tea and china cups before us on the
small coffee table.

Elliot surprised me
by taking my hand in his and leaning forward.

“
Mom,
I’ve got to tell you something.”

“
Well,
you could have told me you had a girlfriend but I’ll forgive
you.” She said laughing an infectious laugh that made me
giggle.

“
Clara
is five weeks pregnant.” My giggle faded instantly as I coughed
in shock. He never told me he was going to tell her! He turned to me,
as if to explain. “My mother got pregnant with me unexpectedly
too. She will understand how you feel.”

One look at Judith
told me that he’s right. She was not looking at me pityingly,
but with a type of kindness that I couldn't ignore. It made my heart
ache for my own mother, a woman I barely remember.

Elliot spoke again.
“Clara was my lawyer for the case against Ophelia, mom. But
I’ve asked her to pass it on to another lawyer so that neither
she nor the baby is put in jeopardy if the case goes badly.”

Judith’s face
fell as she poured some tea for all of us. I took a cup from her and
watched as she seemed to mull over all that was said.

“
Clara,”
Judith smiled and leaned towards me. “Congratulations, to you
both. I know my Elliot, and he will take good care of you.” I
beamed at Elliot as he blushed under the affection of his doting
mother.

“
I
know he will.” I replied, and I firmly believed what I say.

“
This
will be scary.” She told me, watching my eyes to look for
traces of fear. I tried my best not to show my panic. “And I
can only apologize for my daughter and the trouble she is causing.
Ophelia has been going through a difficult time since their father
passed – it has unhinged her in many ways.”

I
nodded, though I don’t forgive Ophelia her unkindness. My phone
buzzed with emails from Denise at the office and I swiftly switched
it off. I dread to think of her face when I tell her that I’ll
be passing on the case to another firm.
A
multi-million dollar case.

“
Mom
knows that I didn’t cause the fire.” Elliot said and
Judith’s face fell. A noise from upstairs made me jump and
Elliot laughed.

“
Henry
is just upstairs having a nap. He’s had a long day at group.”
Judith explained and I relaxed. “Elliot, does Clara know what
happened that night?” Judith asked pointedly. Elliot stiffened.

“
She’s
seen the photos of me there.” Elliot said tensely. He tightened
his grip on my hand and smiled at me ruefully. “I didn’t
start the fire to get the insurance money from my father’s
ownership of the building.”

“
Did
you start it at all?” I asked, resting the teacup down. I
needed to ask a straight question to get a straight answer.

“
No.
Henry did.” The silence fell as I saw Judith sigh. She
instantly looked older than her years and I could tell that worry has
gripped much of her life. “He didn’t know what he was
doing. From what he is able to tell mom, he tells us that Ophelia
asked him to do it – she had hoped that the insurance money
would fall to her as she had a better relationship with dad than I
ever did.”

I nodded. This all
seems so unimportant compared to this time yesterday. Why was it that
being pregnant made me care less about the case? I guessed my
priorities have shifted.

“
I
was phoned by Ophelia to tell me that Henry had run away and might
have gone there to find dad – but the fire had started when I
got there and Henry was gone. She staged it. I didn’t want to
tell you in case that put the spotlight on Henry.” Elliot
continued. “Henry never had the family estate in Moldova; I
just didn’t want you to look for him.” He looked at me
apologetically.

I could understand
that much.

“
It’s
just that Henry is such a spot soul,” Judith said, her voice
melting. “He wouldn’t have known what he was doing. His
autism is severe.” Her voice melted in love again as she
thought of her younger son as his disability became clear to me.

I rested my head in
my hands, a headache forming.

“
It’s
awful that she used Henry as a pawn.” I responded quietly,
disgusted. Henry was the picture of innocence and his gentle
misunderstanding of the world is plain. Although he was built like a
giant, he was incredibly gentle – one meeting with him taught
me that.

Judith’s hurt
seemed to stretch across the room as she nodded. I wondered how bad
it must feel if your child betrays you using the vulnerable, someone
you truly love, as a weapon. Neither Elliot nor I mentioned the
leaked sex tape and I began to sincerely hope that Judith doesn’t
read the papers.

After that, Ophelia
is not brought up in conversation again as Judith brought out some
lemon cake and asked me about myself and my upbringing. She seemed
most impressed when she heard that I began my own firm at the age of
twenty-four without the help of my family, and did not look at me in
a depraved way as I explained my history with foster homes. I tried
not to go into detail of mine and my father’s estrangement.

“
My
dad was highly supportive, just from a distance – he still is,
though I am not comfortable enough to see him in person. He lives in
Georgia now.” I spoke truthfully. I had never resented my
father for his upbringing in life, but his treatment of me I would
never abide.

“
And
your mother?” By this time Judith had moved onto the couch next
to me and I had kicked off my shoes, my feet tucked underneath me.
Elliot was outside on the phone though I imagined he was dealing with
the fallout from the sex tape video.

“
She
died when I was young due to brain cancer.” I said, smiling –
it’s a simple story. I don’t have many memories of my
mother’s face and appearance but I will never forget her
warmth. She had six tumors in the end.

I discovered that
Judith is a wealthy woman, well taken care of by her children but
refused to move to a better address in a newer house.

“
This
is where the children grew up and where I have always lived.”

We
stayed in Judith’s home until dinnertime, which I helped her
prepare. Henry came downstairs in his
Avengers’
pajamas, his hair floppy with his ever-present smile. Though he
didn't talk to me, he greeted me with a hug that was soft but
fleeting. Judith told me that she won’t mention the pregnancy
to anyone until I pass the three-month mark.

Elliot reappeared to
see me wearing one of his mother’s old aprons and chopping
carrots while Judith sang along shrilly to Mariah Carey. This was the
closest I’ve had to a family since I left Georgia for Harvard
and I couldn't help but relish in the enjoyment of it all. Elliot
stood at the doorway for a while and smiled to himself before I even
noticed him.

“
Get
your bum over here and come help with the turnip!” I said
laughing as his mother sang louder still. Henry sat at the table with
a coloring book, smiling all the while.

The rest of the
evening passed calmly and I realized that I have relaxed so much by
being away from the office with my phone switched off – though
I knew I would have to deal with the consequences tomorrow. But for
today, all is well.

*

After
that day, I spent every Thursday night at Judith’s house both
with and without Elliot. Nearly three months have passed this way and
much has changed. My life was dramatically different now that I am
off of Elliot’s case – although I found him a very
trusted replacement.

Kally was thrilled to
hear I was pregnant as she’d always hoped to be an aunt but
like me, has no siblings. I approached the matter of telling her, my
staff and emailing my father with little enthusiasm after my
three-month scan.

Elliot insisted I
have a full 3D screening done as money wasn’t a problem for us.
If I was being honest I felt like he was more worried than I was
about the baby, though the root of this anxiety, I’m sure, lied
in Henry’s invisible disability – Judith did not know of
Henry’s intellectual problems from the scan and the unknown had
never been a pleasant thought for Elliot.

In fact, over the
last few months Elliot had become if possible, more protective of me
– despite the fact that I still worked every day on minor
paperwork he insisted on meeting me for lunch at some point every day
at the mid-afternoon. I was not going argue with him, because in my
opinion, the more time I spent with him – all the better as I
had become more dependent on his company than ever.

Although
both of us lead highly busy and intense lifestyles, Elliot never
failed to spend the night with me, either at mine or his – we
have yet to come to a decision about whether or not to live together.
Was it too soon?

My stomach churned
all through the door at the office. Overall I hadn't been
particularly sick with this pregnancy, but I did feel nauseous
frequently. Thankfully my secretary Denise had four children and let
me in on the trick that warm milk soothed my stomach.

“
How
was your scan last week?” Denise asked as she laid down a large
mug of piping hot milk in front of me. I really didn't pay her
enough.

“
All
is normal.” I replied, smiling up from my notes on the finances
of the firm, a yellow highlighter in hand.

“
That’s
great. Elliot must be pleased.” Denise said, turning for the
door. Once she was gone I couldn't help but think back to Elliot’s
face when he heard the baby’s heartbeat for the first time. He
looked awed and immediately loosened his tie and unbuttoned the top
button of his shirt before looking at me like he was seeing me for
the first time. Yes, Elliot was pleased. That day is a particularly
happy memory in mine and Elliot’s relationship.

Despite being content
in all aspects of my life, I couldn't help but be restless towards
Elliot’s case and wishing I was still in charge of it. Elliot
had reiterated to me countless times how important it was for me to
stay separate from the case as his partner, and the mother of his
child. He told me time and time again that this case would receive a
lot of publicity and my safety could be jeopardized.

I understood this. I
truly did – but it didn't stop me wishing I was responsible for
proving Ophelia wrong. Judith hadn’t told Ophelia that I was
pregnant, and Elliot said that Henry wouldn’t think to tell her
– which was for the best.

I put down the
highlighter in annoyance. In truth, finances are the least
interesting aspect of having a firm, but I always made a point of
addressing any issues personally because I knew that a great number
of people’s mortgage payments depended on me keeping business
running as usual.

As if out of habit I
opened the search engine on the computer and swiftly type in both
mine and Elliot’s names. I’d done this every day since
the sex tape scandal as I convinced myself that I would like to be
aware of any other leaked news immediately, though I didn't know if
this was strictly true.

The first thing to
came up after my search was an online article written by a New York
blog which was uploaded only twenty-two minutes ago. The headline
immediately caught my eye;

Leaked
Photographs puts Elliot Cresham on the Scene the Night of
Rouge
Rooms
Fire, Brooklyn – Previous Lawyer and Current Girlfriend, Clara
Greyson Tries to Cover-up.

My stomach sank
through the floor to the
center
of the
earth. Ophelia had chosen to leak the photos after all – and
she chose a very public moment to do it, as Elliot was meant to be
giving the commencement speech at the NYU graduation today. His
speech was now redundant as I was sure all that anyone would want to
hear was the truth of his alleged arson attack. Glancing down the
rest of the search engine’s results I saw fifty or so other
articles citing the same story. This immediately explained why Elliot
hadn’t text me back about getting lunch today.

I tried to call his
cell phone but it went straight to voicemail. I text him, asking him
where he was and if he was okay – I had no choice but to wait
for the answer so I sat impatiently, trying to become engrossed in
finances again one hand on the small bump in my tummy.

My baby, our baby.

Denise burst through
the door the second my phone buzzed with a text message.

“
Ma’am,
my friend who works in Brooklyn just emailed me to tell me…”
She was panting, but I was impatient. “She says that there is a
riot of sorts taking place in Brooklyn – the entire local
community is out in force because Elliot just showed up there.”