The Hook-Up (Part Two)

Chapter 289

When she pushed over the flowers sat in the car and reached for her phone and texted him.

You are too much. Have a good day with the babies. <3 you.

Lauren pulled her car into the expansive surface parking lot near the court house. She stood up smoothing out the tightening shirt and stretching her legs to make sure her pants fit. She placed the parking ticket on the top of her windshield and then turned to see several cameras for whatever celebrity was having a court hearing that day. Shit.She thought to herself leaning against her car to call Kat. "Hey, Kat..." Lauren started. "There's a bunch of cameras in the front. I don't know what to do. They'll ask." Lauren heard a silence in the other end from her lawyer and lots of noise. "Kat?"

"Oh...It's Kanye..." Kat told her. "Just hang out there for a bit. They should be gone in a few seconds."

"Are you sure? It looks like there are a few that don't look like they're moving..." Lauren said a bit concerned. "I don't want to call Bruno and get Dre because I don't want him to know what we're doing...."

"Then don't. I'll come by and get you." Kat told her.

"Okay. I will..." Lauren told her moving to the back of the driver's side of the car.

"You aren't having second thoughts, are you?" Kat asked her. "You sound kind of tense.

"No. I'm for sure about this. I'm not for sure I want everyone to know what's going on." Lauren explained. "Everyone knows about the cheating and the divorce and I'd rather we just kind of do it all on our own and not have all the world knowing what is going on..."

"It is going to go well, Lauren." Kat reassured her waving at Lauren as she neared Lauren. "Let's go, chick. It's not going to take long."

"Okay. I can do this." she said closing her eyes squeezing her hands like she did with Bruno when she got nervous.

"Just keep walking. I don't think anyone sees you." Kat said walking in front of her past a few photographers. Lauren saw a few flashes go off not sure who exactly they were photographing.

"Is that Bruno's wife?" she heard a male photographer ask someone standing next to him.

"No. She's taller." the other guy answered. "Plus I think she's skinnier than that."

"Oh lord. Me being pregnant just saved me." Lauren said in a low tone to Kat with a giigle.

"Well, that's good." Kat answered pressing an elevator button. "So it's like a three page form that costs a ton of money."

"I figured it would be as much as it was before..." Laure told her as they neared a small office. Kat talked to a few clerks and then handed Lauren a form and a clipboard.

"I highlighted all the things you need to sign and check." Kat told her while explaining exactly what she was doing. Lauren finished everything starting to sign her name as Lauren Hernandez.

"That's right, right?" she asked her lawyer for reassurance.

"That's fine." Kat answered taking the paper from her. "That's all we need." she told her taking Lauren's credit card. The clerk swiped the card and handed it back to Lauren to sign. "It's official. You and Bruno and still married." Kat smiled. "And that's it."

"It's our anniversary today..." Lauren said as they walked toward the elevator they came out of.

"Well congratulations." Kat said with an unsure tone.

"Yeah. I don't know if it's a good thing or a bad thing. Maybe it just means a new start to our lives. This last year, aside from the twins, has been kind of shit. Up until the very last minute."

"Yes. I know." Kat told her as a friend and not as a lawyer. "I think the two of you are perfect for each other, though. Like I liked Wes and you together for the little bit you were together but you light up when you talk about him and the things you do together. I really want it to work out for the two of you."

"I do too." Lauren said seeing the flashes go off as they neared the entrance of the court house. "Shit. I guess they found out it was me." she told Kat keeping her head down through the flashes and questions. She made it to her car getting in the car after saying goodbye to Kat. She sat down in her seat, closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "Oh god." she said to herself. "I just want this year to be better." she continued feeling tears come down her cheeks. "Just get better...." she continued to talk to herself wiping away the tears realiizing that she told Bruno that she would be home soon. She drove home and turned into the driveway to see Bruno's car peeking through the garage door. She picked up her bags and held onto the paper that had ended their divorce. She clutched that in one hand and pulled out her flowers from him in the other. "Brunnnooo..." she moaned coming in the front door of their home. "Come help me with the floweeerrrsss..."

"I'll be there in a second...." he yelled at her as Geronimo and Gigi ran toward her.

"Oh don't make me fall..." she told the dogs who stopped almost immedietly. "Bruno...the house is clean and...." she paused smiling at him. "And I don't hear 9 month old babies and their noises...."

"They're with Eric and Cindia." he said placing the flowers on the counter.

"You have to read the card...." Lauren laughed handing him the card Ryan had written.

"Oh my god." Bruno groaned at his friend's note. "I would have said it in a different way."

"What would you have said?" she asked him.

"Well...." he said reaching for her hand and then holding onto her waist looking into her eyes. "I would have said...."

"No alcohol, Bruno." she told him.

"Damn." he smirked. "If you weren't pregnant I was going to get you drunk and have sex with you...but since that won't work.."

"No. It won't work." she said with the same smirk.

"I would just say that I'm really happy that I get to spend the next year with you. Because I wasn't sure if I was going to...." he answered her.

"Oh. And that." she said reaching for the table behind her. "It's official. We're not getting a divorce." she handed the paper watching him smile.

"That's good because I really wanted to spend my anniversary with my wife and not my ex-wife..." he said smiling at her.