The Billion Dollar Mistake

20. Resentment

It has been three months and the only thing that has changed is my location.

After Eva betrayed my trust by telling Mr. Myles things about me, I cut ties with everyone. I just couldn't trust that they cared about me. The fact that they haven't tried to contact me lets me know I made the right decision.

It is no longer a chore to take care of Luci. She doesn't look like him, so it's much easier to look at her. I still don't want her, but she's part of my routine now. We even bond over crying.

Like last night, I was studying for midterms and she was fussy. Frustrated, I paced my living room floor with her in my arms, a Twizzler in my mouth, and anatomy notes in my hands. She finally quietened down and I went to put her in her crib. When her back touched the mattress, she wailed. As the tears stained her cheeks, my own rolled down from my eyes.

After a warm bath and hot shower, we were good as new.

Damn what a difference a year makes.

"Hey Rayne!" My coworker, Kenya greeted as she pushed through the doors, arms filled with treats. I smiled as I reached for them. "Is it busy?"

"No, not yet." I shook my head, walking to the break table.

"Great, so we can catch up." She smiled, plopping down on the couch. "How's my baby?"

"She's fine. She still hates sleeping alone." I sighed, Kenya nodded.

"Koven still doesn't and he's practically a grown man." We chuckled together.

"You know, I can keep her for you, right?" Kenya asked. "I'm sure your boyfriend is itching to get back in you." She winked at my disgust.

"No boyfriend here." I laughed humorlessly as I bit into a muffin.

"Where's Luci's dad if you don't mind me asking?" She asked.

She was the only one who knew I had a daughter. She figured it out the moment I walked in with an inside out shirt and two different shoes. She explained that I had "mother" written all over me. I broke down and told her everything, excluding the name of Luci's father. She listened and offered her services. She asked to meet Luci and even went with me to pick her up. When she met Luci, she joked about me being able to asexually reproduce. I laughed, but Lucien was nagging at the back of my brain. Lucien is the mystery. If I can help it, no one will ever know.

"We... We don't see eye to eye." I answered, playing with my straw.

"The sex must have been bomb." She mused, I quirked an eyebrow. "Sex is always good if you can't stand him."

"Gross!" I laughed out, throwing a bag of chips at her. I would never admit it, but my only sexual encounter spoiled me. Getting myself off was a hard task after Lucien Myles.

"I'm just saying, that's how Koven got here." She shrugged.

"I'm trying to keep another Luci from entering this world." I mumbled.
----
Work went by pretty fast. As expected, our business picked up right before closing. Fall break was coming up and a lot of kids came in to shop for vacation outfits. I felt so odd discussing school stuff with others. My school didn't have breaks since I was taking night classes. I had class every Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday night from six to nine. Some days, I barely got to see Luci. Today was one of them.

"Hey, you said you're from outside of Cyrenville, right?"

"Yeah." I nodded, feeding Luci. She stared at me through hooded eyes as she gripped my fingers.

Kenya passed me a newspaper. I gave her a confused looked that she laughed at.

"It's a newspaper, honey. You're supposed to read it." She spoke slowly.

"I know what it is," I swatted her hand away. "Why did you give it to me?"

"Figured you'd want to follow some hot hometown gossip." She shrugged, pulling Luci out of my arms. Luci stirred a little before returning to sleep.

"I don't know why, I hated it there." I shrugged, lifting the paper in my hand. I casually scanned the front page.

"Ah, that's the glory. You get to read about the hellhole without experiencing the heat." She mused.

I giggled while tossing the paper on the coffee table. The pages scattered slightly around. I bent over to rearrange them. A picture of a lady in a pink coat drew me in. The headline was enough to make my draw drop.

Our Favorite Billionaire Back On The Market?

Oh shit.

"I have to go." I announced suddenly, Kenya quirked an eyebrow.

"It's like a ten minute drive to campus from here." She stated, concern written across her face.

"I know, I just need to get some stuff straightened out with my teacher." I said, grabbing my purse. Kenya nodded as I kissed Luci.

I swiftly walked to my car, willing myself to stay calm until I was away. Pulling off, I made it to the grocery store before I began to panic. My hands waved frantically as I gasped for air.

5-4-3-2-1 1-2-3-4-5

Five cars. Four birds. Three carts. Two poles. One store.

The traffic, birds, music.

Watermelon.

As I focused on each thing, I began to settle down. My heart beat slowly turned to normal. The burning sensation turned into a dull ache.

The lady in the article, the headline, Lucia; everything came together. It all started to make sense.

I served the lady for years until I was put on bed rest. She came in and ordered two coffees and five pieces of cake every day. I used to wonder where she was hiding all of that.

There were only two billionaires in the whole city and they were brothers. One of them just happened to be the father of my child, the other was a known bachelor. He wanted nothing to do with relationships and made his intentions clear.

With Lucien being back on the market, there was nothing keeping him from coming for Lucia. While a part of me would be happy, the other part wanted her to stay with me. She kept me grounded.

Here's to hoping he'll never find me.