"Dad, she's perfectly fine. You and mom don't have anything to worry about. Calm down."
"Calm down! She was sick and you didn't make her stay home."
"Lexi never listens to me. You know she doesn't."
I tried to open my eyes. My entire being felt weighed down like it was trapped under something. Luca laughed loudly, making me wince. There was a pounding just at the back of my eye. My lower back was throbbing with light pain. I knew at any moment it would get worse if I kept laying like this.
"I'll call you guys back later."
"You should contact her family."
"...What family?"
"Luca Thompson..."
"Kidding. I called them when we got home and Jacob said he was heading into town an hour ago. Brad said he was coming by again after he left the company."
"Your mother and I are coming too. We'll be there in a couple of minutes or so. Don't let Jacob or Brad meet each other."
"Got it. Everything will be fine, father."
It seemed like they would hang up, but Luca had one last thing to ask his father.
"Did you go and see Vanessa last week?" He asked.
"...Yeah. She's doing just fine. She wanted to talk to you. Wanted to see you again."
"You know I don't do well in hospitals."
"...She knows. What she doesn't know is how long she has left. You need to go see her one day. You may not have long," His father said with a hint of disappointment lacing his voice.
"Sure. One day."
"When you do, call. I want to go with you."
"Bye, dad."
"Bye."
Luca hung up. I felt his side of the bed dip as he got up. My eyes snapped open to see him running a hand through his hair. I wish I could do that right now. Just cause. Luca turned around and saw me staring. His smile seemed to light up the room. Ew. What was he thinking about?
"You feeling okay?" He asked. "If you were sick, you should have told me. Father gave me a mouthful over the phone." He smirked. "Brad is going to have my head." If I weren't angry with him, I would have laughed. "Anyway, is there anything I can get you, darling? Water? Food? Shelly came by with some pasta yesterday."
"...I...No-nothing," I whispered.
"You speak!" Luca exclaimed happily. I couldn't tell if he was for real or not. "Ice-cream it is. I was wanting some myself."
Before I could even disagree with him, Luca ran from the room. He had to be kidding me. There was no way he would actually be happy to be my servant. Where were the kids? Did he send them to his parents? Did Brad have them? What was he up to? I couldn't seem to wrap my head around the idea of him acting this nice. What was today?
I sat up slowly and ran my fingers through my oily hair. I needed to wash it before going into public. Where was the calendar? I spotted it across the room with the date circled in gold and silver. Of course. It was my birthday. How could I forget my own birthday? With me being so busy last week and with Asher's return, of course I had forgotten. I had been planning the gala for months.
Luca came back into the room with two bowls of Mint Chocolate Chip ice-cream and an unconscious Dominic. He handed me the bowls to lay our baby between us. I knew what was coming next. I just hoped he wasn't loud enough to wake Dom or I'd kill him.
"Happy birthday," Luca cooed. "My baby's turning 26. How do you feel right now? Older? Younger? I think you look as beautiful as you did when we got married."
I blushed at this. Gosh, he was driving me crazy and my day had barely started yet. This was really weird. My birthday had never meant of lick to him. Why was this one any different?
"It's okay not to know, Danni. Make a wish." He grinned as he pointed to the lit candle in my bowl. "Go on."
I immediately blew out the candle without thought. Luca frowned for a moment before smiling again. What? There wasn't anything I wanted. So...what next?
"That was quick. What did you wish for?"
Quick. I needed something to think of.
"I wished...I wished for both of us to be happy when we go our separate ways," I muttered.
Luca's smile dimmed. What? It's not like he was guilty of not wanting the same thing. I looked away from him and shoved a spoonful of ice-cream into my mouth. It was my birthday. My wish. Of course I wanted myself to be happy when I left him. Any wish that got me away from him was a good wish.
"Thank you for giving me...love." I sighed.
"Lexi, none of this is your fault. More mine than yours, but we're not going to talk about that." He put down his bowl. "I've hurt you a lot and I just want you to know that I do love you and appreciate your efforts of molding this family into a happy family.
Happy family? We were less than a happy family? What made him think I was going to just sit there and take that useless complement? It wasn't even a compliment. This man. He worries me sometimes. What was going on in his head.
Before I could say anything to him about our family, he took my bowl away. I wasn't even finished! I guess I should get a proper breakfast though. No telling what I was going to do today. Knowing Luca and his parents, they'd want me to stay home. I wasn't willing to do that. Especially if all of my friends and distant family were flying here for my gala.
"My parents should be here any minute now," He said. "Why don't you shower and such while I dress the children and make them breakfast, yes? The usual bar or deluxe?"
"I know your parents are going to force me into eating a lot, so deluxe," I confirmed. "Make sure they don't toss my baby around like a ragdoll."
"When have they ever done that?"
After Luca left the room with the bowls, I finally got up from bed. Dominic was still sleeping, so I had to force myself to be extra quiet. He woke up to the tiniest sounds sometimes.
Today was not going to be that day. I showered and blow dried my hair. I hoped this wouldn't take long. I was planning to have a little fun before the party.
Getting dressed was a little harder. I didn't want to go out to be caught by the media. I wanted to go out to be ignored by the media. That meant dressing up like I was one of my adoring, not so rich fans. Lucky for me, I hadn't thrown away my outfits from last year. I knew they were going to be useful one day.
A commotion downstairs caught my attention. I hurried to get dressed, nearly tumbling down the stairs in my Jimmy Choos. When I walked into the kitchen, Luca was talking with Jasmine. She had a napkin in her hand ready to wipe her mouth. I watched the scene for a while until I heard a noise in the living room. I left the doorway to see what it was.
Chelsea, Luca's father, and her husband, Kostas, were watching Dominic. More like letting him nearly hit a table before Chelsea decides to pick him up. I walked all the way in and took my son from her. I loved Luca's parents, but they really tested me sometimes. Like really? My kid? My little boy? It's like they were trying to raise Luca all over again.
"Hey, Lexi," She greeted. "I didn't expect you to come down this morning."
"I guess no one did," I replied. "You're here earlier than I thought."
"Kostas sped over here. He wanted to know how you were doing."
I looked over to her husband, not surprised to see his face buried in one of my many books. I left a lot of them laying around the house for easy reading. Mostly on unsolved mysteries and ways to get away with being a serial killer. It wasn't that I was planning to become one. Maybe I should. I went to grab my keys by the front door and my purse off the couch. How did it
even get there?
"I slipped a couple invitations in there," Chelsea noted.
"Thanks. Dominic might need to be changed. He prefers to have Luca do it," I said.
"I'll remind him, hon. Anything I should be worrying about?"
"The party planners should be here in awhile. They'll finish decorating so you won't have to.
The caterers are coming by around 3. They'll need the kitchen to be cleared and need the backyard to be set up. I'm going by the store just in case they can't get everything finished in time."
"You really don't have to do that."
"But I want to. I feel like it has to be done by me so I won't be paranoid that nothing bad
happens."
"No. There's no need to do that," Chelsea assured me. "Anything extra that needs to be done will be done by Kostas or Luca. No need to worry yourself."
"That's correct. Except dad will be the slave." Luca came up behind me and held me by my waist. His chin rested on my free shoulder. "Why don't you go by the station and say hi to Mr.
D. Then hang with some friends, yeah?"
"Really?" I asked.
"Yeah. Isn't that what she should be doing, mom?"
"Yes. Now go. We have everything under control. We'll call if something goes wrong." Luca's mom smiled at me. "Have fun, but not too much fun."
"Is there anything else you want us to take care of?"
"Yes. Make sure that the kitchen gets closed off. No one but the caterers, you guys, and the planners can enter. Anyone else has to stay in the living room or outside."
"Close off the stairs too?" She asked. I nodded. "I'll make sure to put a guard there. Make sure no one tries to get by too easily."
I smiled at her. Luca's parents were truly nice people. I was going to miss them. I couldn't quite understand how Luca couldn't stand to be around them.
"Thank you guys so much." I smiled and turned to Luca. He let go of my waist and smiled down at me. "Do not forget to feed the dog..."
"We won't forge," Luca said and kissed me. "I'll make sure to ask Adrien about those guards. I'll double check to see if they're all clean and trustworthy. Oh and I have a friend who'll take care of the dog until the party's over. I'll take her over there after you leave." I nodded and passed Dominic to Luca.
"See you later, Lexi."
"Later, Kostas."
"Change your son, Luca."
⭕️⭕️⭕️⭕️⭕️
Walking into the police station was like setting myself up for murder. Everyone looked at me like I was a stain in their clothing. Did adults not like me as much as the teenagers did? Well, that wouldn't surprise me at all. Many of them did express their unwanted opinions about me every chance they got. Except for the officer behind the desk. For some reason, he was such an optimist. There was nothing he would say that sounded bad.
Mr. Davenport was talking with someone when I spotted him. I wanted to wait until he was finished, but I was caught by Asher. He saw me and his face immediately lit up. I forgot he worked almost everyday. Was he giving up on his modeling career? I hoped not. Before he could walk over to me, Sheriff Davenport poked his head out of his office and called out to me. I happily headed his way.
"What brings you here?" He asked.
"Nothing much. Wanted to give you a late invitation for your family," I said innocently.
"That's a nice thought. They're in Texas at the moment."
Right. I did forget. Too bad for them, isn't it? I wasn't here to chat anyway. Just wanted to say hi and get on with my day.
"Anyway, I guess I'll be seeing you at the gala tonight. They'll be a very special announcement tonight." I sent him a smile and turned to leave.
Without another word from the Sheriff, I exited the office and nearly had a heart attack.
"Lexi, Lexi, Lexi." Asher shook his head at me. "Such a surprise to see you here. I should handcuff you and put you in jail for burglary."
"I'm not going to respond to that," I muttered. "Care for a drink, crybaby?"
"I'm not a crybaby. Just mad that I don't know you like I thought I did anymore."
"Exactly. Crybaby."
"I'll decline on that drink if you don't stop."
"Make me."
Asher got in my face and glared at me. I calmed my breathing and tried to stop my heart from thrashing around in my chest. Stupid hormones. Why couldn't I just be close to the man I was once in love with?
"Asher, I was wondering--" Nolan looked at the both of us. "Are you going to kiss her or what?" He asked Asher.
"This must be Nolan," I said. "Nice to meet the guy Asher keeps bragging about."
"He brags about me?"
"You wouldn't believe..."
Asher backed down and shoved his hands in his pockets. That's right. You wouldn't want to tarnish both of our covers in one go. I bet many people were tweeting about our little greeting now. I hoped the media was deep into Los Angeles.
"...Well, I would normally beg to differ, but I have a date. See you later, Ash," Officer Nolan saluted and left the station in a hurry.
"See. You made him run off," Asher accused. "No one wants to hang around you anymore."
"We're not going to argue about this. I don't think it's appropriate for--"
I leaned around Asher to get a better look at the man at the front desk. I must have been seeing wrong. There was no way he was here for me. I was dead to him. He was more than dead to me. How was it that he's already in town and finding me? I guess his stupid governmental job let's him keep tabs on everyone.
"Go wait in my car. There's someone I need to talk to at the moment." I tossed my keys to
Asher. He looked at me in question as I walked off.
"Well if it isn't my stalker father," I snarled. "What are you doing here?"
"I'm a government official. I know almost everything my daughter does," He muttered, turning away from the desk. "Dinner at the finest restaurant in the city?"
"If it involves your family, then no. I don't want to have dinner at the finest restaurant in the city."
"If it were only the two of us, I doubt you would still want to come willingly."
"Please leave me alone. I have places to be."
"If they are more important than eating lunch with your father, then you shall leave and I won't come to your gala. Imagine how disappointed young Jasmine would be. Her favorite grandfather didn't show up."
"She hates you."
"And I hate my family."
I knew Jordan was one to flaunt his stupid money around. He probably picked the most fancy and reporter attracting restaurant in the city. I swore if anyone figured out I wasn't in Los Angeles, I would go on a killing spree. After my last movie with Luca, I hadn't been getting any privacy. Reporters braving the high gates like they had years ago. It was a nightmare.
"Asher, you remember my family," Jordan said. "Tiffany is now 23 and on a break in medical school. Sebastian is 20 and working on getting his MBA."
That was surprising. I thought Tiffany was going to follow in her mother's footsteps and model or something. It was normal for the son to be like his dad. The silence was very awkward. Asher didn't know them that well, so he couldn't strike up an interesting conversation. I was at a loss, because I didn't care for any of their lives.
"Diane had been begging to come visit you for the longest," He said.
My head snapped to Diane. She had her eyes locked in on her phone. She missed me?! I barely liked the woman. Did she think I missed her too? I just couldn't believe that. She didn't act like she missed me. A glance from both my half-siblings said it all. They still hated me for being born first.
Jordan stared down the waiter who was gaping at our family and had frozen taking our orders. I winked at him, making him blush like crazy. Asher cleared his throat and the waiter asked Diane what she wanted. I guess someone was getting a little jealous and he wasn't even my husband.
We all ended up ordering salads for a fast lunch. None of us wanted to be in each other's presence any longer than we had to. Diane finally spoke up, but it wasn't nice. I knew she hadn't missed me.
"Have you seen the Davis family around town yet?" She asked.
"No," I said. "Haven't seen much of them since they moved."
"I heard that they were invited to your gala. Aren't you worried Sam still likes Luca?" She asked and smirked.
"Nope. Not at all. She's the least of my worries right now."
"So you wouldn't mind if they hooked up?"
I raised an eyebrow. "I would mind greatly, but I don't control my husband."
Her face was full of surprise. Maybe because I was sitting next to my ex-boyfriend and just said I didn't care if my husband cheated on me.
"Is that so?" She asked.
I sighed. "Yes. He does what he does and I do what I do. No strings attached. It was your idea to have me marry him."
"It wasn't my idea, silly. I just agreed with your father."
Asher and I finished eating. There was no way I could continue to sit with people who still hated me. I liked Sebastian. Did me leaving make him just like his parents? That was sad. A little depressing.
"I was thinking of getting a couple drinks before I headed back home," I said. "You mind if I invite some friends?"
"No. As long as it's not Jade," He said.
"There's nothing wrong with her..."
"There is. You just haven't noticed it yet."
"I've been friends with her since middle school. I think I know what Jade is like."
I took Asher's arm and walked the short distance from the gaudy restaurant to the bar across the street. I really hoped no one would spot me. I knew there was going to be tons of different tabloids about how I was going to a bar with a man in the middle of the day. Asher Monteil being that man. I didn't want to ruin his career. Yet.
"Kat Kat!" I exclaimed. "I was just going to call you."
"Really? I guess that means you're heading to the bar or already there," She said.
"Yep. Be here in thirty minutes?"
"I can be there in ten. We literally just entered the city."
"What do you mean...we?" I asked.
"Me, the twins, and Callie. Carmen was going to come, but she had to deal with a little problem back home." Katherine said. "We can't wait to see you, girl. Just make sure there are no reporters around."
"Already done. Just hurry up before they realize I never went to Los Angeles."
"Hahahaha. You're still giving out fake leads?! You're so mean."
"No. Simply business. See you girl."
"Au revoir."