“Over the last couple of weeks things between Michael and I have become rather… strained.” “Why?” I cut Adrian off in mid-sentence as I can’t take in what he is saying. I was under the impression that Michael and Adrian were cool. Therefore, I am really surprised by his words and I need to know more. I quickly apologise for butting in as I alert him to continue. “Sorry, go on.”
“I guess it all started when Michael stopped answering my calls.” “I am confused I thought that everything was good between you two, what happened for things to change?” Adrian sighs. “Chad happened.” A cool shiver runs up my spine at the sound if his name. Vivid flashbacks of when he had me locked in that room are starting to flood into my head. I quickly close my eyes and I try tobreathe through my anxiety. Once my heart rate decreases a little, I open my eyes to look at Adrian.
“Michael isn’t talking to me right now because he is back in contact with Chad.” I frown as I can’t take this in. I can’t believe that Michael would talk to Chad after what he has done. Adrian has to be mistaken because Michael wouldn’t hurt me in this way.
“Surly Michael wouldn’t betray us like this?” Adrian grabs my hands firmly and he pulls them close to his chest.
“Alanna, they are brothers – family. How can we compete with that?” I scowl again at Adrian.
“But you are his brother and I am his friend surly that means something to him?” Adrian shakes his head at me. “Baby, we cannot rely on Michael to be on our side. Chad is his biological brother and he wants to spend time with him. We cannot deny him that even if it hurts us dearly.”
“But Chad is a … jerk. How can Michael stand to be around him? How can Emma, after what he has done to you?” Adrian is now sitting next to me on the sofa and he is gently stroking the fabric with his fingers as he considers his next words.
“I have spoken with Emma and she is in bits over Michael’s actions. She has even begged him to stay away from Chad, but Michael isn’t listening to her. I have a feeling that she won’t stick around if Chad is in the picture any longer. Michael has changed in so many ways, I saw him the other day and his attitude was rancid.” I can’t process this new information about Michael and my head is starting to thump from the stress. I roll over on my side and I huddle into Adrian. He holds me firmly as he concludes our conversation.
“Chad doesn’t know that Zara is in contact with me and it would be for the best if it stays that way. Zara is frightened that Chad will harm her and the boy if he found out that she has agreed to a DNA test. She has told me that she is no longer going to stay with him- Zara is leaving Chad and taking the boy with her. We can’t trust Michael right now, so please baby promise me that you will not tell him about Zara and us?” I consider his words and then I agree.
“I won’t tell Michael a thing.” I rise up from the sofa and I march over to the dresser. I lift my phone and I begin to dial Michael’s number. I hit send and I wait as the phone rings. My temper is boiling right now and I wish that I couldgive Michael a piece of my mind. I want to scream at him for being so stupid. He should know better than to let Chad into his life. If Michael doesn’t wake up and see that Chad is bad news then he will lose everyone around him - including me. My heart is racing when Michael answers. I hope that I don’t lose control and tell him how I am actually feeling.
“Hello,”he says quietly.
“Michael its Alanna, I need to talk to you is now a good time?” The phone is silent and then I hear Michael clearing his throat. “Go on,” he says. His voice is quiet and refined; I wrinkle my nose at his voice as he sounds really different. I want to scream at him and I feel that he needs a good wake-up call. However, I resist as I cancel my plans with him.
“Listen Michael, I am sorry but I have to cancel our plans for tomorrow. Something has come up at work and I can’t get out of it.” “I see, well okay then.” His voice is sarcastic and I feel as if he doesn’t believe me. I gaze over at Adrian and I smile at him. I turn my attention back to Michael.
“I am sorry but I just won’t be able to make it tomorrow.” “Okay then Alanna, goodbye.” Michael rudely hangs up on me and I am left speechless by his actions. Maybe Adrian is right, perhaps Michael has changed. I slam my phone down onto the surface of the table as Adrian glides over to my side. My head is pounding and my heart is numb from what has just happened. Chad is turning Michael against me and I am powerless to stop it. I can feel a gentle tear begin to fall from my eye and I quickly wipe it away as Adrian reaches out and lifts me into his arms. I wrap my hands around his neck as he carries me upstairs. We reach our room and Adrian places me down onto the bed. I try to rise up as I need to change intomy night-dress, but Adrian pushes me back down. He lightly smirks at me as hemarches over to my closet. A few moments later he returns to my side with a silk night dress. He places it down next to me as he takes my hand in his. He is stunning and I can’t catch my breath as I look at him. His chocolate hair is flopped down onto his forehead and the collar of his white shirt is open to reveal his golden skin. His eyes are glowing and I am lost in their sea. Adriangently lifts my hand up to his mouth and he lightly places a kiss on my skin. He lets go of my hand and then he stands up. He loosely places his hands into his pockets as he begins to talk.
“You look exhausted, baby. Please try to forget about everything and go to sleep.” I smile at him and then my gesture fades as Michael pops into my head once again.
“Adrian what are we going to do about Michael?” Adrian sighs at my words as he makes his way back over to my side. “Baby, there is nothing that we can do. Now please get some sleep, you have deep, black circles under your eyes and I can’t bear to look at them.” I frown at him –is he slating my looks?
“Straighten your face I didn’t mean it like that.” He snaps. I reluctantly smile at him as he begins to explain. “The last time that I saw you with dark circles around your eyes was when I saw you lying in the street – shot. Forgive me, but I just don’t want any reminders of that day.” I slowly sit up in the bed and I wrap my arms around Adrian’s neck. I pull him towards me and kiss him tenderly as he strokes my hair. We break free from each other after a few moments of passion and then Adrian bids me goodnight.
Nine
I wake up the next morning to stomach wrenching sickness. I climb out of bed and I rush into the bathroom – not controlling my need to be sick as I enter. I rush to the toilet and the vomit begins to spout from my mouth. The noises are deafening and Adrian comes rushing into the bathroom.
“Are you being sick, again?” He asks as I stand up and I switch on the shower. “Yes, I must have a 24 – hour bug- thing,” I reassure him. Adrian frowns as he marches over to me. He lightly places his hand onto my forehead as he checks my temperature.
“You’re ice cold, baby perhaps you should go to the doctors and get checked out.” I smile at him as I check to see if the wateris hot in the shower. “I’m fine; I will however need some privacy.” Adrian scowls at me, but he accepts my wishes. I quickly shower, dry my hair and get changed into today’s outfit – black skinny jeans and a white roll neck jumper. I apply some light make-up and then I make my way down the stairs and into the kitchen. When I enter I see that Adrian has already made himself some breakfast and to my horror he has made me some as well. As I walk further into the room Adrian quickly alerts me to take a seat at the breakfast bar. He ushers me with a plate of food consisting of bacon, eggs and toast. I smile as Adrian is being super cute by making me breakfast, but I feel guilty as the smell and the sight of it is making me gag.
“Wow, this looks amazing, but I really couldn’t eat a thing right now. I am sorry that you went to all this trouble.” Adrian exhales at my words, but he quickly accepts them as he reaches over and kisses me softly on my cheek. I watch him as he begins to clear away the food. He is dressed casually today in dark blue jeans and red checked shirt. His hair is extra messy and his smile is captivating. He loses patience with the cleaning and he soon gives up. I laugh at him.
“What are you laughing at?” He says firmly. I laugh harder as I look at him more. His face is like thunder and his eyes are like dark green marbles. He looks so frustrated and I can’t help feeling impressed with his manly reaction to cleaning.
“Nothing,” I inform him as I stand up from the seat. I nudge him out of the way as I take over the cleaning duties. I slide the dishes into the dishwasher and then I quickly wipe the kitchen counters. I throw the dish-cloth into the sink and then I turn to face Adrian.
“Now was that so hard?” Adrian rolls his eyes as he gently kisses my head. I follow him into the hallway and I wait behind him as he rummages in the closet. Adrian pulls out his black leather jacket and he drapes it onto his strong body. I smile at the sight of my gorgeous husband – god I’m still getting used to that word. Adrian leans into the closet again and he pulls out my coat. Adrian spins me around and then places my dark blue cashmere coat around my shoulders. I lightly kiss him on the cheek as he reaches out and grabs his car keys from the side table. I grab my handbag and then I follow Adrian out of the house and into the car.
We drive for about thirty minutes and when we arrive at our destination my heart begins to race. Adrian glides the car swiftly into the parking lot and he stops the car into a large space in front of the entrance. He switches off the engine as he turns to face me. I stare into his eyes and I can see that he is anxious. Adrian has a way of trying to mask his feelings, but I have learned how to spot when he is nervous about something. His eyes begin to dart from side to side and he nervously runs his fingers through his hair. I reach over and gently touch his leg to comfort him. He smiles at me and then he turns his attention to the entrance of the London Zoo. I stare out the window of the car as I scan the crowd of people who are entering the gates of the zoo. I haven’t seen Zara or William yet and as the thought of them enters my mind, my heart begins to pound and my nausea from earlier has returned. I don’t know how Adrian will react around William and I am worried about how the child will feel about seeing him. It must be very confusing for William as he has spent his five years on this planet thinking that Chad is his father. Now, everything that he knows might have just been a lie. I have seen things on the TV about children who learn that their parents aren’t their actual parents and I can honestly say that in most cases things don’t always turn out the way that they should. I can’t imagine how difficult this is going to be on William, after all Adrian is a stranger to him and meeting new people and thrusting them into their lives can be very traumatic for a child. I just hope and pray that the truth is revealed soon as this worry and stress is not fair on any of us – including Zara. I have seen first-hand how scary and repulsive Chad can be, so I can understand why Zara wants to leave him. Although I do feel some compassion towards her, it doesn’t stop my hatred of her being around Adrian. I loathe the fact that she has held back on letting Adrian have the DNA test and I despise her for the hold that she has on him. She has a way of compelling him into doing as she says and I hate her for that. I can’t escape my fears of how much she will want to be in his life if William is actually his son. When I saw her at Mr And Mrs Jenkins’s anniversary party, I could tell that she still has feelings for Adrian. The way she looked at him was alarming to me as it’s the same way as I look at Adrian. I watched as she couldn’t take her eyes off him and I was jealous because I know that in the past, he has cared deeply for her. Adrian doesn’t like to admit it, but I know that some part of him loved Zara and I am terrified that he might still have feelings for her – especially now that she might be the mother of his child.
Adrian turns to look at me as a red BMW pulls alongside of us. “They’re here.” He says as he gently smiles at me. I take in massive gulp of air as I look past Adrian’s head and into the car. I can see that Zara is driving, her dark blonde hair is straight and it’s loose around her face. She has on huge dark sunglasses which cover half of her face and Iimmediately look away as Adrian rolls down the window.
“Hello,” he says in cool voice. Zara isn’t in my eye line, but I can’t miss her posh English twang. “Hello Adrian,” she says smugly. I have to hold back my fury as she steps out of the car. She smiles at Adrian as she opens the car door for William. The small chocolate haired boy rushes out from the car and he grabs onto his mother’s leg. I stare at him and I can see so much of Adrian in him – it’s actually scary. He has the same lips, nose, cheeks and eyes as Adrian and when he makes eye contact with me for the first time, I can see Adrian staring back out at me from his eyes. Adrian quickly steps out of the car and that’s when Zara sees me. She marches straight over to the window and I am little stunned by her rudeness. She doesn’t smile or say ‘HI’, but instead she shakes her head at me whilst she gives Adrian a piece of her mind.
“What is she doing here?” Adrian clears his throat as he briefly turns around to smile at me. I lean forward in my seat as I await his words.
“Alanna is my wife and I want her here. Do you have a problem with that?” Zara frowns at me as she rolls her eyes – intensely. “Yes, it is a problem. I don’t want her here. Now please make her leave.” My heart is racing.
“That is not going to happen and I don’t want row with you in front of the boy. Now back off Zara, Alanna is staying.” Adrian says firmly. Zara puffs and blows her way over to the car window again and I bring myself to look at her. Her dark blue eyes are darting through me and I can tell that she despises me.
“You better not cause any problems, is that understood?” I force myself to smile at her as I reply.
“Crystal!” Adrian rushes over to the car and he opens the door for me. I take his hand as I step out into the parking lot. Adrian leads me over to Zara and William and he instantly introduces himself to the child.
“Hello mate, I am Adrian and this is my wife Alanna.” The little boy stares at us as he considers replying to Adrian’s words. He looks up at his mom, but she just rolls her eyes as she pushes him forward. William smiles at me as he begins to stumble over to us. He greets Adrian with a smile as he tells him his name.
“My name is William,” Adrian can’t hold back his smile as he locks eyes with the little boy and then William does something that totally surprises me, he rushes over to me and he lunges into my arms. He wraps his little arms around my waist and I am trying hard to hold back my tears. I gently pat him on the head and he begins to talk in his fluid English voice.
“I like you Alanna,” I gently laugh, but then my face turns sour as Zara lunges forward and pulls William away from me. I want to smack her for the force she has used on this small child.
“She has to leave.” Zara informs Adrian with an icytone. I hold back my words as Adrian jumps to my rescue. “We have talked about this and Alanna is staying.” Zara grabs William by the arm as she pulls him towards the car. She thrusts open the door as she gives out her threats.
“Either she leaves or we do, choose, Adrian.” I sigh as I lock eyes with Adrian. He looks devastated by Zara’s actions and I can tell that he was looking forward to spending time with William. I grip onto Adrian’s hand as I know what I have to do.
“Doll, it’s fine, I will go.” Adrian shakes his head at me as he makes a darting look towards Zara. I can feel his hand begin to tremble as I grip him tighter. Zara is staring blankly at me as she maintains a tight grip on William. I smile at the little boy as he looks confused. This situation must be terrifying for him and I can’t help but notice how unconsidered Zara is being of her son. She has pulled him away from us – without explaining why. His eyes look as if they have tears forming in them as she squeezes his little arm. William is scared and confused and all I want is for his worries to go away. So if I have to leave Adrian alone with his ex-girlfriend who clearly still has feelings for him, then that is exactly what I will do.
“Baby, you don’t have to go.” I turn him towards me as I stare up into his green eyes.
“Yes I do, now please let me go.” I loosen my hands from Adrian’s as I turn to face Zara.
“But baby where will you go? We only have one car?” I think for a second and then my thoughts become clear. “I will take the car and perhaps Zara could drive you home?” A wicked smile comes to Zara’s face as my words ring in the air. I would love to wipe her smile right off her face – but I resist as I know how important spending time with William is to Adrian. I quickly smile at William as I make my way back over to the car. I jump into the driver’s seat of Adrian’s black Range Rover and I quickly buckle up. I start the engine as Adrian strides over to the unrolled window. He gently places his hand onto my cheek as he says his goodbyes.
“Baby, I want to thank you for allowing this. I know it must be hard on you, but it just shows that you are the bigger person.” I smile at him as I gently touch his hand.
“I know how important this is to you, text me later?” Adrian smiles at me. “Of course and you know that I love you, right?”
“Absolutely,” I push the car into drive and I gently glide the car to the exit of the parking lot. My heart is racing and I feel like crying as I look back at Adrian in rear view mirror. Zara, William and Adrian are walking off into the distance. From a far they look like a normal, happy family and as I stall at the junction for about thirty seconds, I can’t help but wonder if I have made a horrendous mistake by leaving him alone - with Zara.
Ten
(Adrian)
The air is cold and my hands are numb from the iciness of the cool winter day. My nose feels as if I could fall from my face and icy shivers are running up my spine, but none of that compares to the cold bitterness that I feel inside. I am walking across the car park and up to the front entrance of the zoo with a boy who might be my son and woman who I despise. Her fake smile makes my skin crawl and I can’t describe how much I hate her for making Alanna leave. My heart was breaking as I watched my wife drive away. I wanted to run after the car and rip her back into my arms, but I didn’t because I know that she wouldn’t want me to do that. Alanna is an angel and she wants me to spend time with the boy. She knew how important this day was to me and her kind heart wouldn’t let anything ruin it. I can’t thank her enough as I know that this isn’t easy for her and I know that another girl wouldn’t be as understanding as she is. Alanna is my world and my heart is aching for her, but I know that today has to go well. Therefore, I will keep her beautiful face in my thoughts as I try to get through the day without her.
Three Thousand Miles - Forever, (book #3 of Three Thousand Miles, Series) Page 14
