Chapter 13 : Mr. Supportive

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I wake up well-rested, alone and cold. I blink at the sad skies, seen through the big window. I frown a bit when I notice that Braden's not here anymore with me, but then I think he might go to work. And then I frown again because he came home really late and he barely had enough hours of sleep.

I hate that he wants to care about others so much, but doesn't take care of himself.

I sigh and pick up my phone, checking the time. And my mouth hangs open. It's already 12 o'clock and that means I slept for almost 12 hours. No wonder why I feel so well-rested.

But little do I know that the bigger reason for my lifted spirits today is Braden. God, I'm so happy we made up after that argument. I despise arguing with Braden and I hate when he's mad at me. I hate it even more when he's hurt by me.

I lay in bed a few more minutes, because, well, I can and I don't have anything better to do anyway.

I hate that I'm basically imprisoned in this suite and on top of that I have nothing to do and no one else to talk to because everyone's at work. It's making me go crazy. And it's never good to leave me alone with my thoughts.

When I finally get the strength to get out of the bed, I go take a shower, which lasts longer than usual, brush my teeth, wash my face and just put on some clothes that feel comfortable – sweats and a warm sweater.

I go make myself a late, light breakfast because my stomach doesn't feel too good today and I'm not sure how much it'll stay in it.

When I try to exit the kitchen, I'm not too aware of my surroundings, so when I see a woman standing in the kitchen doorway, I scream on top of my lungs, stumbling a few steps back.

The woman just blinks at me, jumping up slightly, being surprised by my scream, but she smiles at me, unfazed. ''I'm sorry if I scared you,'' she says, her voice warm.

She's in mid-age, her face vain of any make-up, showing the real beauty of it. Her eyes are big, brown and shining brightly at me. She has her hair pulled up in a bun.

''Who are you?'' I ask carefully, warily. My heart is still beating wildly in my ribcage, trying to escape.

''I'm Amelia, Mr Campbell's housekeeper,'' she informs me.

I stare at her, dumbfounded. Braden has a housekeeper?

Well, of course he has. How dumb of it not to think about it sooner. How else would his place be so clean then? Because I sure can't picture him cleaning his place. ''Oh. I didn't know Braden has a housekeeper.'' I try not to cringe at how that sounds. It's true that we still don't know a lot of things about each other, but he's got me pregnant, for God's sake. Shouldn't I know a simple fact that he has a housekeeper?

But Amelia doesn't show any distress or any judgment towards me. She's just really nice and all smiles. ''No worries. I come here every Monday to clean the place and cook for the week ahead. Speaking of, do you want anything to eat?''

My mind is still wrapping around the fact that Braden has a housekeeper. I thought this was only happening in movies. I frown. ''No, I just ate, thank you.''

Amelia nods, clasping her hands together. ''Mr Campbell has informed me of your, ah, pregnancy. So if you need anything, just say so. I also have some tips if you have morning sickness.''

Well, this is getting more and more interesting. ''Braden told you I'm pregnant?'' I ask in a disbelieving tone.

Amelia nods her head.

''That's ... interesting,'' I decide to say. ''But I'm ready to hear those tips. I don't get sick every morning, but there are some mornings that I can't put anything in my stomach.''

Amelia smiles hugely. ''Certainly, Miss,'' she says, walking towards me in the kitchen.

I frown at her. ''No,'' I say. ''Call me Rory, please.''

Amelia looks unsure about that, but she finally decides on, ''Okay, Rory,'' although she sounds a bit uncomfortable at that. But I don't want her to be so formal with me. It makes me uncomfortable and I feel weird.

I offer Amelia to sit down and take something to drink or eat if she wants. She decides on a glass of water only before she sits herself down on the barstool in front of me, giving me an encouraging smile.

***

Amelia leaves somewhere around 2. She told me a lot of things and gave me a lot of helpful tips. She told me she has three kids that are almost grown up by now and she told me what helped her deal with the morning sickness, what food is the best to avoid, what helps with the sleepless nights and so on.

And then we just talked about general. I asked her how long has she worked for Braden and she told me it's been three years now. She also told me that she likes working for him. He's kind to her and in general he's a good boss.

She wasn't asking me a lot of personal questions. I got a feeling that maybe she'd feel like she'd be prying too much. But it was fun and I liked her.

What warmed me up towards her the most was the comment that won't leave my mind soon. ''If you don't mind me saying so, Rory, you're good for him. You're the first one he brought to this place and that says a lot. And he's been different since he met you. A good kind of different. I'm happy he found himself a woman like you.''

Of course that brought the tears in my eyes since I'm such an emotional mess lately.

When Amelia left, I curled up on my favourite spot – the window ledge in the bedroom. I found a book in Braden's study that sounded interesting enough to read. It surprised me how many books Braden has. I never thought of him as a type who likes to read. And there are a lot of different genres there. I also notice that the books are all in a good condition. Some were even first editions. I tried not to touch them, too afraid to ruin them with my clumsy hands.

The time passes and I lose myself in the historical novel so when Braden's voice hits my ears, calling my name from downstairs, I jump up and almost drop the book.

''I'm in the bedroom!'' I call back. I don't want to stop reading this book. It's too interesting. And I don't.

Braden comes in and I barely glance at him. That doesn't go well with him, of course. He demands all the attention.

He takes the book out of my hands.

''Hey!'' I protest, reaching out for the book, but Braden holds it out of my reach. I put my gaze on him – his sinfully handsome face being close to mine, his chocolate brown eyes staring right at me, a small smile playing on his lips.

My lips drop open, because – holy shit – his beauty always strikes me. My hand that's been reaching out for the book, moves on his cheek, feeling his rough stubble under my soft fingers. Braden's gaze softens on me, his smile getting from playful to gentle.

He puts the book on the window ledge by my legs and holds my face between his palms, leans down and without a warning, places his lips on top of mine in a hot, warm kiss. He sucks on my bottom lip, erupting a moan out of my mouth.

He smiles against my lips and deepens the kiss, angling the head so he has a better access.

I put my hands on his suit jacket, grabbing it in my fists for a better balance. He ends the kiss way too soon and I groan in protest. He only smiles back, looking all smug. He knows what he does to me and he never fails to use it against me.

''Hello,'' he breathes, his voice dropping low, hitting me right in the core.

I close my eyes and try to calm myself down. When I re-open them, Braden is watching me, biting his lip, trying really hard to hide his smile. ''Hi,'' I say back, my voice small and high and I bet Braden can hear how aroused he left me.

''How was your day?'' he asks me, his knuckles grazing my cheek. I lean into his touch, staring up at him like a love-struck puppy.

I shrug. ''I made a new friend.''

Braden raises his eyebrows questioningly. ''Oh, really?''

I nod my head. ''Yeah. You didn't tell me you have a housekeeper,'' I accuse him. ''She's really nice, though.''

Braden grins. ''Oh, I must have forgotten.''

I raise my eyebrows at him now, mocking him. Because Braden Campbell forgetting something? Impossible.

He rolls his eyes at me. ''Don't act so surprised.''

I pop a grin at him. ''How was your day?'' I ask him, cocking my head to the side, waiting eagerly for his answer. It hits me how much I missed him while he was at work.

Braden shrugs carelessly. ''The time couldn't go any faster. I just wanted to come home. To you.''

Well, what a nice thing to hear. I instantly flush with happiness. I place a kiss on his cheek, resting my head on his shoulder .

Braden puts his hand on my hair, brushing it softly. His touch feels good. I literally feel like a cat being petted. And I'm seconds away from starting to purr.

''We need to go soon. I hope you didn't forget about the doctor's appointment?''

My eyes widen. Shit. I totally forgot about it. I bite my lip. ''Uh, yeah, sure. I just need to ... get ready.''

Braden watches me with amusement as I hop off the window ledge and search for something to wear in the bag I took with me. I put the bag on the bed.

''Did you eat already?'' I ask him, not turning to look at him as I rummage through the bag. I take out a sweater in a dirty green colour and wrinkle my nose at it. Since when do I have this ugly sweater? And why did I pack it?

I shake my head and drop it back into the bag.

''No. I'll let you get ready and go get something to eat now.''

I nod, still searching through the bag. ''I heated up the lunch for you so it should be warm.''

I don't hear his reply, but I'm too focused on deciding which pair of jeans I'm going to wear.

I jump up surprisedly as Braden comes behind my back, putting his hands on my hips and putting a kiss behind my ear. ''God, I love you,'' he whispers tenderly. I become all mushy in his hands, his words unarming me completely. ''Did you eat already?''

I can only nod. I soak in his touch. I close my eyes and let all my senses consume in Braden, but he's gone too fast and I blink my eyes open, swaying a bit on my feet.

I don't dare to look at his face, but I hear him chuckle as he goes past me, leaving me standing there, looking at his back.

I sigh and bite the corner of my lip where I feel the small smile rising. Could life be any better in this moment?

I finish getting myself dressed in simple washed blue jeans and a black cashmere sweater. I put on minimal make-up – two coats of mascara and a lip balm to moisturize my lips. I leave my hair down falling down my back in soft waves. And I'm ready to go in just a few minutes.

I grab my coat and purse and put on my boots, heading down where Braden is sitting in the dining room, going through the pile of mail.

My eyebrows draw together. ''Do you get this much of mail every day?''

Braden lifts his eyes to me briefly, looking me from head to toe and then back up, making me squirm. And he drops his eyes back on the piece of paper he's holding, dismissively. ''Mostly, yes,'' he answers.

''That must be a very exciting thing for you – going through all that stuff,'' my voice is sarcastic.

Braden lifts his eyes again, an amusement dancing in his eyes. ''Are you making fun out of me?''

I roll my bottom lip into my mouth and then pop it out. Of course it doesn't escape Braden's notice and he follows the movement with his eyes. ''I wouldn't dare,'' I reply.

He lifts his eyes back up from my mouth, forming a smile of his own. He shakes his head and puts the paper he was reading down. He doesn't even bother cleaning up the mess as he stands up. ''Ready to go?''

I nod with a smile. ''Yep,'' I say, grinning like a fool for no reason at all.

Braden grabs my hand and leads me into the elevator where we ride down to the garage.

He opens the door for me, deciding to drive the Aston Martin today. I smile shyly at him as I sit in it.

I don't know why, but for some reason, I'm nervous to meet the doctor. I don't want anything going wrong and there's a big part inside me that's holding on to this baby like it's my safe line.

We start the drive quietly, both in our own worlds. But if I don't have anything else to think about or if I don't fill in this silence in the car, I'm going to get nuts. ''Hey, are you up for some sharing?''

As soon I say that I cringe at how I voiced that. When did I become such an idiot?

Oh, no, wait, I know when – the moment I set my eyes on Braden.

Braden turns his head to me, looking at me with raised eyebrows. ''Depends on what you mean with that?'' he asks playfully.

I purse my lips and wrinkle my forehead. ''I meant if you want to share anything about you and your past ...'' I trail off awkwardly.

Braden instantly becomes serious. His face darkens and the playfulness vanishes from his face.

Oh, God, no. I really do know how to destroy a good moment, can't I?

I want to slap myself across my face.

''I don't know. Anything particular you want to know?'' Braden asks, his voice tight and strained. I can hear that this is not easy for him.

I lift my shoulders. ''You can choose what you want to tell me,'' I say hopefully, trying to lift some tension that settled in the car.

Braden rolls back his shoulder, staring right ahead of him. He thinks for a few long, deep moments before he quietly starts, ''I don't think I mentioned this before, but Antonio Villega was one of my closest friends.''

A lump forms in my throat and my head turns in his direction. I'm sure my face shows how shocked I am.

Braden nods, still not looking at me. ''Yeah. Our friendship went way back. My family was hanging out a lot with his and that's how me and Brooke met him.''

So many emotions swirl in my body right now. Hatred. Disapproval. Agony. Disgust. And then the question that's screaming in the back of my mind, how could he? How fucking could he?!

''Victoria wasn't the first hit he blew at me. It was Brooke that he went after first, wanted to destroy her and take her away from me.''

My jaw falls open and I whisper out, ''What?'' I feel my face losing all colour, my eyes going wide.

Braden's jaw locks tightly, his knuckles turning white as he grips the steering wheel. ''He wanted her. Not wanted her as a man who likes a woman enough to be with her, but as a man who wants to fuck a woman and then brag about it,'' he clarifies.

My palm covers my mouth. ''He didn't ...'' I don't finish the sentence. My stomach is turning around.

Braden shakes his head quickly, briefly looking at me. ''No. Over my dead body. Brooke was young and naïve and I didn't notice what's going on at first. But when I did, I made sure that he'd never put his hands on her again. Thankfully, he didn't have a chance to hurt her. Much,'' he adds through the gritted teeth.

''That bastard,'' I seethe.

''That was the first straw. We didn't talk anymore after that for a long time. I couldn't even look at his face anymore. But then, some time passed and he came back to me. He apologised to me and to Brooke, telling me how much he changed. I was already seeing Victoria then,'' Braden continues and it seems like he's in a world of his own.

I dig my nails into my thighs, anticipating the worst. But what he says next, is worse than I imagined.

''I forgave him after some time.'' He laughs dryly. ''It was stupid of me and if I went back in time, I would never repeat the same mistake. And Antonio saw my forgiveness as a green light apparently. He proposed an idea of becoming a business partner with me. And stupid enough of me, I even considered it.''

Braden shakes his head, his voice starting to shake a bit. I put my hand over his knuckles on the steering wheel, trying to lift some of the tension out of him. It works just briefly.

''We started spending a lot of time together and that meant he started to spend a lot of time with Victoria. I never saw what was going on between them in front of my eyes,'' he says disgustingly. ''Until it was too late, that is,'' he finishes.

I have to blink a few times so I don't start crying. I stare ahead of me, too afraid to look at Braden and see his expression.

When I do find the courage to look at him and see all the emotions on his face right in front of my eyes when he doesn't even try to hide them, a sob escapes me. ''Oh, Braden ...''

Braden's head swiftly turns to me and he looks at me with wide eyes. He grimaces. ''No, don't cry, Rory. Not because of this,'' he says softly, taking one hand of a steering wheel and putting it on my cheek where a tear has already fallen down it. ''If you're going to cry every time I tell you something about me, I don't think I will bear it.''

''I'm sorry,'' I whisper, wiping the tears.

He narrows his eyes at me. ''And don't apologize for something like this, either.''

I clamp my mouth shut. I know he doesn't want my sympathy and I don't want to give it to him either. I just want to let him know that I'm here and I want to understand why is he the way he is.

I turn his hand on the steering wheel around, intertwining our hands together and pulling our joined hands down, between us. Braden sends me a small, grateful smile, squeezing my hand and I know that he understands what I wanted to tell him with it.

We understand each other without words.

I still feel like there's a dark cloud right above our heads now and it's all because of me. I want to fix this. ''I want you to tell me one happy memory you have.''

Braden looks at me from the side of his eyes, trying to read what game am I playing. I try to keep my poker face intact. I feel and see Braden relax a little, his body getting less tense. He thinks long and hard about my proposition, staring right ahead and concentrating on the road.

I'm biting my bottom lip in anticipation, my right leg is bouncing up and down.

''I remember the times,'' Braden starts, his lips lifting up a bit, ''when we went to a cabin by the lake that my parents owned, just out of the city. We went there every year in the summer and sometimes me and dad went there in the late spring, going fishing.'' Braden shows his teeth in a smile, obviously remembering something. ''I remember this one time, when Brooke was still very small, she wanted to go swimming badly, but she didn't know how to swim and she was too impatient to wait for someone to teach her. She just jumped into the water and, luckily, me and my father saw and heard her before she drowned.

''My father jumped in the lake instantly and, because I was mean like that, I started yelling that there's something in the water and I think it's a very big snake. My father knew I was playing, but Brooke went scared out of her mind and she started screaming, crying and kicking in the water.'' Braden chuckles. ''When she found out I was just joking, she was so mad at me. It was a long time after that she decided to go in the water again.''

I stare at him, open-mouthed, a huge grin is spread across my face. ''Poor Brooke!'' I sympathise. ''You were such a mean brother,'' I muse.

Braden's dimples show as he grins. ''We were bickering a lot. Well, mostly I was bickering her because she was smaller, younger and ...'' he glances at me, shrugging, ''she was a girl.''

''I'm a bit afraid to have children with you now ...'' I blurt, without thinking it much before saying something like that.

Braden turns his surprised eyes to me.

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