HOLDING ME RANSOM: Lucca And Taylor's Love Story

TWO

I sat in the front row; the competitions had started, and all I was waiting for was to see how my daughter performs. Apart from her paintings and coloring, this was the first time seeing her do something she loves. I really wanted to talk to her teacher the moment we arrived, but when she stepped out in this cute blue leotard, I couldn't stop her, and that's how I found myself watching her perform on the balance beam. The girl looked more flexible than I would ever be.

Until the last moment didn't go as we expected, I got to my feet immediately as a gasp escaped my lips. She missed her landing from the beam and crashed into the mattress that wasn't looking even a little bit safe to me; the crowd went silent. With 'sorry,' 'please,' and 'excuse me' here and there, I was rushing towards her, but her teachers made it before me. Elena got up and stood up; I pushed the teachers out of the way and started checking her for any injuries, but she was fine.

"Mommy, I failed," she cried bitterly, and I wanted to hug her, but Elena galloped away.

"Elena," I ran after her outside and into the hallway. "Baby, stop."

We didn't see the person coming in front of her until she ran into him; Elena hugged his legs tightly to avoid falling.

"Hey, little one, are you okay?" He spoke up while looking down at her.

I came to a halt, my heart tightening in my chest as I recognized that voice. It was always there in my dreams, my ears yearning to hear it in reality. I stared at him, his curls short just like I remembered, and taller than before. Lucca Guerra looked handsome and young.

I realized that all his attention was on Elena, and he had not realized that I was there. Something deep urged me to take a step back and leave, but my feet were glued to the ground; I couldn't even take my eyes off him. My heart drummed hard in my chest. Is it weird that I wanted to run into his arms?

I didn't hear what Elena said to him before she took a step back, but her little movement was enough to bring me out of my trance. She turned to look at me before coming over and holding onto my hand, wanting to drag me forward, but I couldn't move.

Lucca glanced at me, his eyes locking onto mine. It somehow made me feel helpless and small. I watched as realization dawned in and something flashed in his eyes. I don't know why it crossed my mind that it's hatred. He hated me.

He slowly moved forward, his hands buried deep in his pockets. His jaw hardened, and his eyes became red; there was something about him that made me want to run away. "Taylor," he said, bitterness visible in his mature voice.

"Lucca," I squeaked, trying to take a step back. "Um, it was nice to see you, but we have to leave," I added.

I picked up Elena and turned around to leave.

"You like escaping, don't you?"

I stumbled but didn't dare to look back anyway. What should I say? That it wasn't intentional.

I continued walking away from the man that I had always wanted to see. "Mommy, is that Lucca Guerra, my father?"

The moment Elena said that, I almost fell face-first. I wanted to close her mouth, but it was too late.

"What did she say?" Lucca's voice came from behind me. We had not gone far from him, and Elena's voice was unusually loud. I bit my bottom lip, not knowing what to say. Footsteps came from behind me, and I didn't need to guess who they belonged to.

"I'm going to ask you just once, Taylor, is she mine?" his voice stern.

I don't know where I got the courage, but I turned around to look at him. "No, she is not yours," I said, and without waiting for a reply, I rushed outside the parking lot. As we got in the car, I felt glad that I had borrowed my sister's car. I ignited the engine and backed out of the parking lot. Lucca had followed us out; he stood in the parking lot, staring at the car. It looked pretty obvious that he didn't believe a word I said back there, but I didn't care.

I would continue to deny it. It's not that I didn't want Elena and Lucca to know each other, but I was weighing the pros and cons of the situation and seeing how things looked. He was already rich and famous, and I am just a small employee at an insurance company. If he wants, he can take Elena away from me, and I couldn't even fight back.

I didn't want to lose Elena; she is my little world and my everything.

"Mommy, is he my daddy?" She spoke up. I knew that Elena would ask about this.

"Yes, he is your daddy," I replied softly. I know she yearned for her father in her life, and because of my selfish reasons, I was taking that away.

"You are a big fat liar; you lied to daddy," Elena added. I turned to look at her, but she was really calm about this, and it made me feel so uneasy.

My phone started to ring, and Elena took it in her hand. "Who is that, baby?"

"Teacher Grace," she replied.

I took it and put it on the loudspeaker. "Miss Becker, you forgot all Elena's things here?"

"I am so sorry; an emergency came up, and we had to leave immediately. You don't mind giving them to her on Monday, do you?" I replied, while keeping my eyes on the road.

"No problem, Mrs. Becker."

"Okay, thank you, Teacher Grace. Is there anything else?"

"Yes. Elena has been having headaches and nausea; she coughed blood during my class on Thursday."

By the moment Teacher Grace's words came to an end, I was shocked silly. My eyes moved to Elena, who was looking at me with guilt, and I knew that none of her words were a lie.

"She didn't tell me," was all I managed to say. I was curious as to when this started, and no one had told me anything. I looked at Elena, and she looked fine to me. If it wasn't for her teacher telling me, I wouldn't have known. "I will have her checked up."

"Okay, Mrs. Becker," I hung up the phone.

"Why didn't you tell me, Elena?" I asked.

"Because I don't want to go to the dentist," Elena added with a pout.

"We're going to see a doctor the moment we arrive back home," I said in my stern voice.

I knew that she hated hospitals, but I had never thought that it would go as far as her keeping quiet about something this serious.

Why was everything coming at me so hard? And Lucca, why did we have to meet now, especially with Elena around?