Unwrapped by The Billionaire

by Joanna Nicholson

  “Thank you Juliet, for the offer I mean…I’ll keep that in mind,” she said, arranging the cups on the tray. Juliet stepped closer to her and placed her hands on Nora’s shoulders, peering into her eyes.

  “You can tell me honey, if you’re going through something,” Juliet insisted.

  “I’m fine. Dad is fine and I’m not worried anymore,” Nora said, staring back at the older woman.

  “Not just about your dad, about anything that you might want to talk about,” Juliet said and Nora tried to think about what she was actually getting at.

  “Do you want to ask me directly what you want to know?” Nora said and Juliet rubbed her shoulders affectionately.

  “I’ve been hearing the rumors, but I wanted to speak to you directly…you know how rumors spread in a place like this,” Juliet continued and realization hit Nora.

  “What kind of rumors are you talking about?” she asked and Juliet sighed.

  “Apparently there was an altercation between Violet and you at the cafe?” she replied and Nora rolled her eyes and tried to wriggle out of her grip.

  “Okay, what are they saying?” she asked, turning back to the counter to open the box of cookies. She heard Juliet sigh again.

  “That Violet was angry…about something,” she said and Nora felt the back of her neck beginning to burn with fury.

  “About what?” she prodded Juliet, who she knew was bursting to talk about it but was trying to pretend to be prudent.

  “About Theo for some reason,” she said and Nora whipped around to face her.

  “You can go ahead and ask me directly, Juliet,” Nora snapped and she noticed the visible look of shock on the other woman’s face. She had clearly never expected Nora to lose her temper so quickly.

  “Okay, are you sleeping with Theo, dear?” she said, and pursed her lips like she was expecting the juiciest gossip. Nora let out a sigh and crossed her arms over her chest. This was exactly the reason why she liked to stay away from this place, there was no chance of privacy.

  “I don’t think that is anybody’s business, Juliet,” she said, glaring at her while Juliet tried to avoid looking directly at her.

  “Well, we are all like family here, dear, and I would feel very guilty if I didn’t warn you or have a talk with you. That is what your mother would have done and what she would have wanted her friends to do,” Juliet said and Nora rolled her eyes again. She turned back to the counter and started arranging the cookies on the plate.

  “I don’t know my mother, so I have no idea what to do to please her,” she said in a low voice and she felt Juliet place a cold clammy hand on her shoulder.

  “But I knew her, dear, and I want to step in on her behalf. Sleeping with an older man…someone who is your father’s friend, who knew you since when you were a child…it’s just wrong, honey,” Juliet said and Nora shrugged her shoulder away from her touch.

  “I didn’t say that I’m sleeping with him. You’re making that assumption based on some rumors and I’m telling you that it is none of your business,” Nora said curtly.

  “Well, that is not what your father will think if he found out. He won’t think it’s none of his business,” Juliet said and Nora whipped around to her again.

  “Are you threatening me?” she asked, glaring at the older woman and Juliet shrugged her shoulders.

  “No, honey…I’m just trying to look out for you,” she said.

  “And Theo is your friend too, have you tried having this conversation with him as well?” Nora asked and Juliet’s face colored slightly.

  “I wanted to come to you first. Theo is a man, men do things sometimes without thinking about the consequences,” Juliet said and Nora scoffed impatiently. She couldn’t believe how small minded people in this town could be, but then what else did she expect?

  “Juliet, you’re lecturing me about something that you don’t even know to be true or not!” Nora snapped.

  “And I’m asking you if it’s true or not!”

  “I don’t have to tell you that!”

  The two of them had raised their voices by now, and when Nora realized it, she dropped the decibel.

  “Please just leave me alone, Juliet. My personal life is none of your business and if you want to discuss it with my dad, when he’s trying to recover from a stroke…that is your decision to make,” she said, which rendered Juliet speechless for a few moments.

  “Your reaction to this is very telling, Nora,” Juliet said in a much colder voice than before.

  “The coffee’s gone cold now, I’ll have to make a new batch,” Nora said, ignoring her statement and Juliet huffed at that, before turning and walking out of the kitchen.

  When she was gone, Nora leaned her forehead against the cupboard and pressed her eyes close. She was certain now that everyone was going to find out, and it wouldn’t have bothered her this much if her father wasn’t included in that group.

  Chapter 21

  Jack called her the next day, while Nora was watering her father’s plants in the front yard. He had given her very specific instructions on how to take care of them while he was incapacitated and she was trying to follow them closely.

  “Are you back in New York?” Jack said.

  “My dad had a stroke,” Nora told him.

  “Oh Shit! Is he all right?” Jack said, and she got the sense that he was running on a treadmill or something. He was huffing and panting as he spoke to her.

  “He’s recovering, but I’m going to have to stay with him for a while,” she said and Jack didn’t sound too pleased to hear that.

  “That’s no good to me. I was going to ask you to join me on a double date tonight. You’ve met Lucas right? He’s madly in love with some girl he wants me to meet, and I was thinking you could come so that it wouldn’t be too awkward,” Jack explained and Nora sighed.

  “Lucas is madly in love?” she asked and she heard Jack laughing.

  “Yeah, or so he says. I’m sure it’s just a phase and he’ll get over it in a few weeks,” he said and Nora couldn’t help but feel her heart ache a little.

  “Why would you think it’s a phase? Is he incapable of falling in love?” she asked him and she heard Jack sigh.

  “I really don’t want to have this discussion with you again, Nora. There is no such thing as love,” Jack said and Nora dropped the hose from her hand, to concentrate on this conversation.

  “So what do people feel when they want to spend all their time with their partner? When they want to marry them and start a family?” she asked and Jack sighed irritably again.

  “Friendship and affection and I don’t know…like they’ve found an ideal partner to raise a family with? I’m not sure, Nora,” Jack said and she bit down on her lip hard.

  “You’re not sure because you don’t feel that way about anyone…about me,” she said and she heard the electronic beep of him shutting off the treadmill.

  “Every time I call you these days, Nora, all you want to talk about is soppy stuff. What is going on with you? You should probably come back to New York,” he said and she could hear the laugh in his voice. This was all a joke to him.

  “It’s not soppy stuff if it’s important to me, Jack!” she quipped.

  “It wasn’t important to you a few weeks ago, before you went home,” he said, hardening his voice.

  “I think I need some time away from you,” she said to him.

  “You’ve already spent a lot of time away from me,” he replied with another hearty laugh.

  “No, I mean that we need to go on a break,” she told him.

  “Don’t be silly, Nora. We’re just having a discussion,” he said.

  “I’m not being silly. I think we want different things from life and we should recognize that and just move on,” she said.

  “Are you breaking up with me?” he asked, seriousness entering his voice now.

  “Breaking up what? We didn’t have a thing to break in the first place, did we?” Nora asked, gripping the phone tig
htly to her ear.

  “You’re over reacting to this whole thing. Just come back to New York and we can talk about it properly.”

  “When I do come back to New York, I won’t be letting you know. Goodbye, Jack,” she said and cut the call.

  When she looked up, she saw that Theo was standing at the gate of the house, with his hands in the pockets of his dark pants. Nora’s cheeks colored because he had caught her arguing with Jack again. She admired the way his chocolate brown hair was swept back neatly from his forehead, the lines around his mouth as he grinned at her softly. His green eyes were sparkling as he stared at her. He was strong and masculine and knew what he wanted. She had always been in love with him, and trying to hold a relationship with anybody else was just a futile exercise. He could make her come just by staring at her.

  “I’m glad you did that, Nora. For your own good,” he said in his deep voice and she cradled her cell phone in her hands.

  “It’s no big deal,” she said, squeaking the words in a soft voice. Theo took a step on to the pebbled path and Nora felt Goosebumps erupt on her skin. Every minute away from him was torture.

  “You shouldn’t make the same mistakes I did. You deserve healthy loving relationships,” he said, piercing her with his glare and her cheeks flushed. She didn’t care what she deserved or didn’t, she wanted him.

  “There is no mistake that can’t be rectified. It’s never too late,” she said, finding the courage in herself somewhere to say the words. Theo stared at her, like he was actually thinking about what she had said, and then he sighed.

  “I’m here to see Andy,” he said, like he didn’t want her to think that he was there to see her.

  “He’s upstairs,” Nora said, her heart sinking a little at the thought of them being separated again. She wanted to cling to him for dear life.

  “He called me and asked me to come,” Theo said and Nora nodded her head and smiled.

  “He relies on your company,” she said but he wasn’t smiling.

  “He asked me to bring you upstairs with me when I arrived,” he said and Nora’s heart dropped to the pit of her belly. They were staring at each other, the color draining from her face as she did. This could only mean one thing and she wasn’t prepared to face it yet.

  Chapter 22

  Andy was sitting propped up in bed with a magazine open on his lap when Nora and Theo came into the room. He dragged his spectacles off his face when he saw them and Nora noticed the grave look on his face.

  “How are ya, Andy?” Theo asked, walking around the bed to the other side, while Nora lingered near the door. She was afraid of them being able to hear her heart beating out of her chest. She wasn’t prepared to have this conversation with her dad, especially not now when he was still recovering. There was no telling how this could affect his heart.

  Nora couldn’t believe that Juliet…or possibly a different friend had told him this rumor in the middle of his recovery.

  “You should have a seat, Theo,” Andy wasn’t looking at his daughter much which filled her with even more dread.

  “What’s going on, Andy? This all sounds very mysterious and serious,” Theo said, grinning at his friend and Nora wondered if he had any fear of where this conversation could be leading. If he did, he was making a good show of being confident in himself.

  Nora could feel her hands quivering as she clasped them together, and while she kept her face focused on her dad, she was also keeping a watch on Theo from the corner of her eyes.

  “It is serious,” her father said and Nora gulped.

  “Dad, maybe we should talk about it in a few days when you’re feeling better,” she said, approaching him with a forced smile on her face. Andy looked at her, his face was downcast and he was blinking hard.

  “This can’t wait, Nora,” he said and she stopped in her tracks. This was going to break his heart. He wouldn’t have seen it coming. He’d hate his best friend, lose Theo and probably never forgive Nora either.

  “Yes, it can, dad. We can have this conversation later,” Nora said and Theo was the one who interrupted her.

  “Let him speak if he wants to. There’s no point in him sitting here and stewing in his thoughts. Go ahead, Andy,” he said and she gulped again.

  Andy took in a deep breath, and she looked from Andy to Nora and then back at him again.

  “I want to make sure that if it ever comes to it, I don’t want you to resuscitate me. Just let me pass away in peace, and not surrounded by doctors and poked with needles and pipes,” Andy’s voice had become very somber and soft and a gasp escaped Nora’s lips. Even though this was a very serious matter, she was relieved.

  “Oh, daddy,” she sank to the floor and clasped his hand and held it up to her cheeks.

  “It’s what I want honey, and I want you both to know that so that you can work accordingly,” he said and stroked the top of her head. Nora could feel her eyes well up with tears and she nodded her head.

  “Whatever you want, buddy,” she heard Theo’s voice.

  “And I know I don’t have to say this, especially not to you Theo, but when I’m gone I hope that you both can take care of each other…you know, be there for each other,” he continued and another cry escaped Nora’s lips.

  “Andy, this was just a minor scare…you have a long and healthy life ahead of you, my friend,” Theo said and Nora looked up at his handsome and kind face, and felt like she was even more in love with him. Because of how much her father loved him too.

  “I just wanted to get this over with, say these things in case I didn’t get a chance again,” Andy said and Nora straightened up and smiled down at her father.

  “Theo is right dad, this is not the time to talk about all this,” she said and met Theo’s eyes. He had a look of relief on his face as well, even though he was doing a good job of hiding it.

  “And you don’t have to worry about us, Andy…I will always be there for Nora,” he said, looking straight at her, and she felt like he was touching her soul. She was sure that he was telling the truth, no matter what happened between them. There were so many things that she would have liked to say, but she couldn’t get the words out.

  “I love your daughter,” he added, in a deep voice and Nora choked, trying to suppress the gasp. They were staring at each other, ignoring the presence of Andy in the room. What did that mean? What was Theo saying?

  She gulped, licked her dry lips and opened her mouth to speak.

  “I have to leave now, Andy. You take care of yourself. I’ll come visit you tomorrow again old boy,” Theo said and slapped her father’s back.

  Without exchanging another look with her, he was gone from the room, shutting the bedroom door behind him. Nora made a move to follow him. She needed an explanation for what he just said, but her father had caught her wrist.

  “Nora…” he said, in a breathy raspy voice and she turned back to him trying to smile through the tears of frustration that were forming in her eyes.

  “Yes, daddy…” she replied.

  “Theo is a good man. I’ve known him practically all his life. He’s known you since you were a child,” he said and Nora’s brows crossed as she stared at him, her heart racing in her chest. “But he could hurt you, honey, without meaning to,” he added and Nora’s lips parted in surprise. She didn’t have to ask him to clarify to know exactly what he was talking about. He knew, and this was his way of giving his approval, and at the same time, warning her.

  “I love you daddy,” she said, falling on him to give him a tight hug. She couldn’t have asked for a more understanding parent.

  Chapter 23

  Nora woke up the next morning feeling sick. She ran to the bathroom and threw up, till she stood up unsteadily on her feet and washed her face and mouth. Peering into the mirror, she stared at her face. She looked exhausted. Her blue eyes had lost their luster and she looked more tired than she actually felt.

  With her brows crossed, she tried to think about what could have been making he
r feel this way. Was it something she ate? Did she catch a bug? She didn’t want to fall sick while her dad was still recovering. He had got out of bed now and was slowly beginning to walk around the house, but he was still not back to his usual form.

  Patting her face dry with a towel, she went back to her bedroom and looked around. It wasn’t like she was actually sick. She placed a hand on her belly to feel for aches, but there weren’t any. Then the thought struck her and in a panic, she rummaged around on the bed for her cell phone. She had an app for keeping track of her monthlies and she scrolled through it, realizing that she was late by a few days already. Usually, she was perfectly on time if not early.

  Nora’s heart was beating fast as she ran down the stairs. Her father was sitting on the couch watching TV.

  “Breakfast?” he asked her, as she walked past him to the front door.

  “No, thanks, dad. I’ll be back in a few minutes,” she said, slipping on shoes.

  “Where are you going, honey? You’re still in your pajamas!” she heard him say as she shut the door behind her.

  Wrapping her arms around her torso, she walked down the streets in a hurry towards the local chemist’s shop. She kept looking over her shoulders as she strolled through the aisles of the store as she picked up five pregnancy tests. She avoided the chemist’s eyes as she paid for them, aware that this could potentially lead to another rumor but she was panicking now. This wasn’t the time to think about gossip.

  Wrapping the boxes in a paper bag, she tucked it under her arm and jogged back to the house. Her dad was still sitting on the couch, with his feet up on the coffee table when she came in.

  “What’s that?” he asked, looking pointedly at the bag under her arms.

  “It’s nothing dad. I’ll be down in some time,” she said, kicking off her shoes.

  “Nora!” she heard his firm voice when she turned to walk away from him. She pressed her eyes close, tried not to curse under her breath and then turned slowly to face him. Who was she kidding? She couldn’t hide anything under her father’s watchful eye.