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CHAPTER TWENTY FOUR

After the wedding's finished, my eyes are only just starting to stop watering. I look around, wondering where my dad and Veronica are in the sea of people. Somehow I've managed to lose them so easily.

"Shit," I mutter to myself as I notice Howard Archibald marching angrily towards me. Panicking, I swiftly turn the other way, attempting to outrun him..

However it seems I fail and as I reach inside, I feel a hand grab my wrist and pull me towards a separate corridor. My heart beats quickly, stressing as I notice it's definitely Harold pulling me away.

"Get off of me," I shout, trying to use my other hand to release his grip. He grunts in irritation at my struggling but I don't stop trying to free myself.

He stops as we're away from anyone, turning to me. I move back to stand against the wall, frightened about whatever the hell this man is doing.

"What are you doing?" I scream at him as he stands across from me.

He moves forward shushing me, "Be quieter. I needed to talk to you."

I shrug off his hand as he clutches my wrist again, "What the hell about?"

He stares at me for a while as if deciding how to talk to me. "Nate told me about your baby."

I watch him carefully, wondering what his reason is for all of this, "What about my baby?"

"Well, had I have known before that you were pregnant, I would have paid you off," Howard says whilst pacing in front of me. I take in a sharp intake of breath as I properly hear his words that make me completely furious. "Nate's future would have mattered more to me than a child that he'd accidentally conceived."

I scoff at him, "I wouldn't have taken the money had you known I was pregnant."

"I think you would've," Harold replies mischievously. "Any teenager would've taken that money when they would've known that they could have ruined the reputation of a reputable family in New York City."

I walk towards him slowly, "Mr Archibald, out of full respect I would like to tell you that that means nothing to me. I would've never aborted my baby or given him away for adoption no matter how much you'd have paid me."

He studies my face, deciding what to say to me next, "Nate doesn't need a child to dictate his future. So, now that he knows, I would like to tell you that he shouldn't have to be involved with the bringing up of your child."

"Howard," I say, deciding to be more impolite by his first name than his last. "I'm not forcing Nate to do anything. I haven't even uttered a word to him about having to take care of my child so I don't understand why it should be a problem to you."

My words tremble as I speak to him as I get more frustrated with everyword. He sighs, "Quinn, I'm just trying to tell you what's going to happen. There should be no association between you and Nate furthermore and you should no longer bother yourself with the prospect of him being a father."

Nate's future is going to carry on as expected and there should be no child to defer him from what should already happen. Otherwise, we could do anything to you to stop your future going smoothly. Well, as smoothly as it can go already go given you're a teen mother."

I stare at him in shock, mostly frustrated that he should even say these words without Nate's consideration. I narrow my eyes at him, my trembling voice still evident as I shout at him, "Or what? What the hell would you do to me? It's Nate's choice what he wants to do and in this moment he doesn't seem to want to be anything to me so the whole point of this little talk is pointless."

I carry on as I feel a surge of confidence within me, "You can't dictate his future, Howard, it's completely his choice. But, I can't seem to see anything that you could do to me anyway," I chuckle as I think about it. "There's nothing you could do to me if Nate even decides that he wants to be a father. There's nothing to blackmail against me."