Forbidden Love

Chapter 50

 
Bryan walked past the hotel receptionist, who greeted him with a warm smile as he headed to the elevator. He had just returned from a board meeting and was on his way to his hotel room, to review what was discussed in the meeting, to see if any changes would be necessary.

He stood in front of the elevator, waiting for the doors to open. When it opened, Bryan was surprised to find Paula, a man and a little boy, he suspects to be her husband and son in the elevator.

"Bryan?... What are you doing here?" Paula exclaimed in surprise, as she never thought she'd ever run into Bryan here.

"I'm here on business" Bryan replied with a polite smile.

"Uh, Bryan. Meet my husband, Chris.. Chris, this is Bryan, Henry's best friend" Paula introduced both men.

"Nice to meet you" Chris, Paula's husband said as they shook hands.

"Likewise" Bryan replied. His attention was soon diverted towards the little boy standing in front of Paula, whom he swore looked a lot like Amy.

"And you must be Carl" he smiled, squatting to the kid's eye level.

Carl gasped in surprise, earning a chuckle from Bryan. He was shocked that this stranger knew his name. He quickly hid behind his mom, peeking from behind her leg. Bryan smiled at his cuteness. Amy was a 100% correct when she said her little brother is adorable.

"Don't be scared. Amy told me a lot about you" he continued, hoping that would make the kid feel a bit at ease with him.

"You're friends with Amy?" Carl's curious voice asked at the mention of his sister's name. He was now interested in this stranger.

"Mm-hmm" Bryan replied with a nod.

"It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Carl. I'm Bryan" he added, stretching out his hand for a handshake.

Amy had told him a lot about her little brother. How fun it was to be around him. How close they were to each other, even though they had different dads. How his smile can light up an entire room and how she would give anything to make him happy. Bryan was happy to meet the one person that truly makes Amy's eyes sparkle and gives her a sense of responsibility.

Carl moved away from behind his mom's leg and joined his small hand with Bryan's large one in a handshake.

Bryan stood up after interacting with Carl and asked Paula why they were in Italy. Paula explained that, her and her husband were given some time off from their jobs, so they decided to take a vacation to Italy.

"We were about to go sightseeing" she concluded.

"That's great" Bryan replied and was about to say goodbye to the family, so they can go on with their day, when Paula interrupted him.

"Um, Bryan. Can I have a word with you?"

Bryan stared at Paula for a few seconds, wondering why she wants to talk to him. From her body language, he could tell that what she wanted to discuss with him was important, so he agreed to talk to her.

Paula gave her husband and son a goodbye kiss and promised to join them in an hour. Chris and Carl then said goodbye to Bryan before exiting the hotel building.

After they left, Bryan suggested that they talk in the hotel restaurant, which Paula agreed to. They both ordered a martini cocktail when they got to the restaurant.

"I know this is sudden, but I've been meaning to talk to you" Paula began, after their drinks was served by a waitress.

"What about?" Bryan asked, taking a sip from his drink.