43

  Clarissa

  The doorman rang that our son was back. I dashed into the bedroom and changed in the sixty seconds it took for Sam to come up the elevator. Arman had texted that he was letting Sam ride the elevator alone. There had been a bit of a clothing emergency with Aurora taking a fall, getting dirty, and needing to change her clothes.

  Elon joined me in the race to get dressed. We both finished in time and were at the front door when it opened and Sam walked in.

  I bent down to hug him then drew back to look at him. “Sam, you look tired.”

  He gazed at me quizzically. “Your hair is wet.”

  I nodded and straightened. “I took a shower. Ready to head home?”

  He yawned and nodded. Soon, we were on the helipad on the roof of the building.

  We were about to board the helicopter when Sam stopped and took out his cell phone. “Can you take my picture getting on the helicopter, Mom?”

  “Sure," I said. Sam posed as I snapped the photo.

  "Why do you want a picture?” Elon asked.

  Sam smiled as we all hopped on board to head back to Connecticut. “My old friends thought I was lying.”

  Elon’s eyes widened. “Old friends?”

  Sam shrugged. “My old football teammates. I miss some of them.”

  Sports had been Sam's anchor when we lived in Florida. Hopefully, he would make new friends soon.

  Elon asked, “How many kids were on your team?”

  “Sixteen when I left," Sam said. "Rosco broke his arm.”

  Elon texted someone and quickly received a return message. He folded his hands. “Invite the team to Miami for the Super Bowl. I’ll get a bus to take everybody to the game, and they can sit in our box.”

  Sam's mouth dropped open. “Are you serious?”

  Elon met my gaze then whispered, “Our son has issues connecting to his new life, so I want him to feel safe with some friends from his old life.”

  “That’s sweet then,” Clarissa said.

  Elon nodded. “We can bridge Sam's new life and old life a little easier and hopefully get him to therapy.”

  Elon was wonderful. I sighed. “That sounds good.”

  He said, “We have fifty tickets. Some are for family, but we won’t use all of them. So I can send twenty four to the team's coach so he can set everything up. And if you want to stay on the team, Sam, you can have use of a jet to get to all your practices and games—as long as you keep your grades up.”

  My heart thundered. When I was driving Sam, all broken and hurt, away from our apartment in Florida, he'd cried to get back to his team.

  I’d been terrified for both of us, but it was over now.

  Sam hugged Elon. “Thanks, Dad.”

  Elon hugged him back, and the two of them were happy. I had no idea how we’d manage school then daily trips to Florida for a few weeks.

  Sam texted his friends.

  I said to Elon, “You don’t have to make this big of a gesture.”

  Sam glared at me like I'd ruined his moment.

  Elon said, “Kids who enjoy football are good kids, and the school therapist said he needed friends. It’s a win-win.”

  My mind wasn’t focused on the logistics. I would figure that out later. “I think she meant he should make friends at his new school, and I don’t want him to backtrack.”

  Elon said, “He will make friends at school, but it’s best that he keeps his roots if he wants. I’ll go with him to the practices and games, but let’s use it to make a deal that he goes to a private therapist.”

  I wasn’t sure what to say. But Elon and Sam were the most important people in my life. “That is a good idea. Give me a moment.”

  I spoke to our son, and he finally agreed to therapy. I relaxed. Sam started texting, and I took Elon’s hands. It was good that we were all together. The helicopter took off, and we left the city, soaring over the highways, and headed home. As we landed, Sam was snoring. I laughed.

  Elon unbuckled himself and then Sam and picked him up to carry him inside. We were soon walking to the house together.

  “Sam was excited making all those plans,” I said.

  Elon said, “I'm glad he’s home, and hopefully he goes to school happy tomorrow.”

  We worked together to put Sam to bed. Elon ruffled his hair, I kissed his cheeks, and then we left his bedroom together. We had already formed a routine.

  As soon as we were in the hall, I wrapped my arms around Elon. It was more than time to tell him he was in my heart.

  Our lips met, and I forgot where we were for a few minutes.

  After the kiss ended, I took his hand, and we walked to his bedroom. “Kissing is good.”

  I waited till I closed the door, and then I took both his hands in mine. As I gazed into his eyes, I knew I had nothing to fear from Elon. I took a deep breath. “I never thought I could fall in love with you. I was so broken when I came here.”

  He tilted his head. “It’s okay.”

  I'd said the word love, so hopefully the next sentence would come out easily. The rest of the world disappeared when we were together. “And I wasn’t sure how to even see the obvious, but I never wanted another man in my life. It was always you.”

  “Good.”

  I cupped his face. Joy radiated through me. “And I love you even more now than I did before.”

  His intake of breath made me blink. I hoped I wasn’t too late.

  “You do?” he asked.

  Telling him was easy now. I laughed and nodded. “I love you, Elon. It’s always been you.”

  “Good, because I love you too.”

  He kissed me. I held him tight as we were truly meant to be. He was in my heart, and I needed to always believe in us—forever.

  44

  Clarissa

  The next morning, Elon and I had breakfast with Sam, brought him to school, and went to work downstairs like nothing out of the ordinary had happened. But there was an easier vibe between us now.

  I was twenty minutes into creating next week's schedule when the school counselor called. I answered and listened. Then I nodded. Elon stopped working and watched me.

  When I hung up, I said, “Sam’s agreed to focus on his new team at his new school and only go to Florida on the weekends for games as well as see the counselor you booked.”

  Elon smiled. “Sounds good.”

  Last night, I'd thought his idea was sweet, but getting Sam to adapt to life in Connecticut was important. Our lives were here.

  I’d mentioned that to Elon this morning and to Sam's counselor over the phone, and the situation was resolved.

  I sipped my kale banana smoothie and worked more on the schedule. I liked having a regular schedule and then making whatever adjustments were needed. The predictability meant everyone was usually happier and had more time to enjoy their lives.

  I finished my smoothie. I was almost through coming up with a draft for the preliminary schedule when the doorbell rang.

  Elon stopped typing and asked, “Who's at the door?”

  I hadn't ordered anything. I shrugged. “I don’t know.”

  I stood, and he did too. We held hands, and I whispered, “I love you.”

  He pressed his hand on my back. When we reached the door, he whispered, “I love you too.”

  Elon opened the door.

  As I stared into eyes of hate, my body went from warm to cold in an instant. My parents stood on the threshold. Goose bumps broke out on my skin, and I could feel Elon tense next to me. Then my mother hugged me. I had no idea what to do.

  When she finished hugging me, I said, “Mother. Father. I thought you were both in Florida.”

  Elon asked, “Do you want me to call security?”

  My father's posture grew stiff, and my mother froze. Neither expected much of me, but I lifted my chin. For a split second, I’d wanted to disappear. I’d never wanted to see them again. However, I met Elon’s gaze and shook my head. “No. I got this.”

  I let them come into the hallway. Elon’s phone rang, and he answered it. I could tell it was another doctor calling. He stood back but stayed close.

  My mother looked the same with her short brown-haired bob that she didn't bother to style. She looked me in my eyes. “We wanted to apologize in person. We had no idea you were carrying a Norouzi child.”

  If they'd known, I suspected they'd have tried to get me to sell my child to them or bind me to them in some other way. It was obvious they were here for the connection to Elon's family, not for me. My heart sped up, but I could handle this.

  “It shouldn’t matter to you who the father of my child is,” I said.

  My father said, “Things would have been very different if you’d told us.”

  Right. They’d never even let me call them Mom or Dad as that was too informal. I sighed. “You made it clear how you felt about me, and I only wanted Elon if he loved me for who I am.”

  My mother blinked and stared at me quizzically. “But you’d have ended up exactly where you are now.”

  Once again, my feelings hadn’t mattered. I shook my head. “How did you know where we lived?”

  My mother took out a printed piece of paper. “Connecticut was in the news, and we were mailed a blog post.”

  Father added, “And since we worked for Elon's parents, we knew his address.”

  I read the article, which was accompanied by a picture of Elon and me kissing on the street yesterday. I held back a laugh as it felt unreal that the blogger had used the words "secret baby." It was definitely me in the picture, but the story was crazy. Elon had finished his call, so I handed him the printout.

  He read the blog post and said, “Regina wrote this. It's a gossip site.”

  He snapped a photo of the printout on his cell phone and attached it to a text. “Let me talk to Jeff for a moment.”

  Jeff was the lawyer investigating the gossip that surrounded Elon's brother Warren. He was trying to discover who hated the Norouzi family. I guessed Elon was going to assign Jeff another case.

  "Of course," I said to Elon then pivoted to face my parents. I folded my hands in front of me. “Look, Mother and Father, you didn’t want me. Let’s not pretend we were ever happy.”

  My father said, “We raised you to take care of yourself.”

  I could have pointed out that it was never okay to let your child go hungry but decided arguing was pointless. “Right. Well, I hope you enjoy retirement. It's time for you to leave now.”

  My mother brushed against me. “Very well, but we hope one day you’ll forgive us and call us so we can meet our grandson.”

  That would never happen. I might have forgiven them for their neglect, but there was no reason to let poison back into my life.

  It would be better if we stayed apart. They had a condo. I had Elon.

  I stood at the door and waited for them to go. After they left, I took a deep breath and turned back to Elon. My heart lifted. I even laughed.

  He gave me a quizzical look. “Are you okay?”

  I took his hands and hoped he understood why I was laughing. “I was half-afraid and, for one second, thought about fleeing the premises.”

  His gaze narrowed. He looked so serious. “I was right here.”

  I squeezed his hands. “I saw you standing guard in my corner. And in a way, I’m glad my parents showed up today.”

  “You are?”

  I went up on my tiptoes and then back down. “I thought I wasn’t good enough for you for a long time.”

  “And now?”

  A huge smile grew on my face. I had love. I had everything I'd ever wanted. “I can handle their ridiculous question with ease.”

  “Good.”

  I went to kiss him but then stopped. “The hard part is going to be explaining to Sam when he’s older why my parents aren’t in the picture. But I’m stronger now because I love you, and you love me. Sam will have us and your parents, who love him too.”

  Elon wrapped his arms around me, and I was reassured without a word that all was fine. We were together.

  “I still haven’t proved that I'm not trying to buy your love,” Elon said.

  “Don’t even think about that. What matters is that you’re here with me now.”

  And maybe we could take a break from work to enjoy each other.

  45

  Elon

  Clarissa's parents showing up unannounced set off a storm inside me, and I hired extra security guards.

  Jeff was determined to find Regina, wherever she was, although it hadn't mattered to me that she'd written that I was living with Clarissa.

  Clarissa had always been part of me—even when she was gone. And now I had everything because she was once again in my life.

  We finished our work for the day. It was time to head to lunch that I had my staff set up outside since it was such a nice day.

  I needed Clarissa to know that she’d be safe with me. I also still needed to find a way to prove myself. As we stepped onto the patio, I said, “I’ll fly with Sam to his game.”

  The property extended to the beach from the far end of the house. She sat with me in the garden. “You don’t have to.”

  We uncovered our salads.

  “Hunter can’t hurt me," Clarissa said. "I have you.”

  I picked up my glass of wine as we were done with work, and I was all hers. “I want to see Sam play with his friends. I also want to talk to his coach so he knows the Super Bowl offer is legitimate.”

  She took the glass of wine I handed her. “I’m happy.”

  I was, too, but something was missing.

  I needed to know this was forever.

  We finished our salads, main course, and dessert. The time flew. I wondered if it was too soon to ask her to marry me.

  She was the only one for me, but I kept my lips sealed.

  We went to pick up our son from school, and I hugged him.

  Sam held our hands, and he asked his mother, “What's going on, Mom? I can tell you’re upset.”

  My heart stilled. I hadn’t recognized anything was wrong. Clarissa swung her hand and smiled at our son. “I think we should wait till we get home to have that discussion.”

  Once again, I'd missed something. Sam hopped in the limo.

  “I’m just starting to like this school," Sam said when we were home and walking to the house. "The team seems okay, too, which is why I’m not begging for us to move to Manhattan so I can go to school with Aurora.”

  I followed Clarissa and Sam into the house.

  “You’re getting along with Aurora?” Clarissa asked Sam.

  Sam shrugged as he dropped his book bag on the floor. “Her mom had it rough like you did, but she’s happy with Uncle Arman now.”

  Clarissa laughed and playfully bumped him. “Well, I’m glad you’re making friends with a girl.”

  His lower lip curled. “Let’s never call her that.”

  "Why not?" She batted her eyes, clearly teasing him.

  Sam wrung his hands. “Because… I don’t know. I just like her as a friend.”

  “Good,” I said. The last thing I needed to worry about was my son wanting to date. We needed at least a few more years of peace.

  Sam said, “I’m ready for that discussion.”

  Clarissa cupped his face. “Well, I love Elon, and he loves me, so we’re going to stay.”

  She was going to stay as my wife. I wanted to say it, but first I needed to ask her to marry me. I took out my phone and texted a jeweler to send me an engagement ring with a rose design and Beauty and the Beast theme. That was one of her favorite movies.

  Sam asked his mother, “You're really going to stay?”

  She laughed, glanced at me, and then asked Sam, “Is that okay?”

  “Fuck yeah,” he said quickly.

  Her eyes widened. “Language!”

  I had everything. Clarissa was getting stronger all the time, and I needed to know she would be here with me—forever.

  46

  Clarissa

  A few days later

  Getting on the plane to Florida had been harder than I thought. But I totally understood that Sam needed time to adjust to his new life, and Elon was providing a bridge that would allow Sam to connect his old world and his new.

  I kept my head high when we got to the football field, joking with Elon as he and Sam walked next to me.

  In some ways, Elon had always been the one to keep me sane. We joined the other parents in the bleachers, where Elon happily claimed his status as Sam’s dad.

  For the first half of the game, Sam and his friends dominated play, and Elon answered questions from the parents about the Super Bowl.

  Then his phone rang. He showed me the display on his screen. The call was from one of the doctors who ran his Manhattan branch. He said, “I need to take this call.”

  I nodded and smiled. “Sam knows you're here.”

  I did too. I let out a sigh and scooted off the bleachers with him. I wanted to stand at the fence watching Sam without being asked in whispers why I wasn’t wearing an engagement ring.

  Elon rubbed my back and said, “I’ll be right over there.”

  He walked to the parking lot where he could have a more private talk with the doctor.

  I folded my hands over the fence. When my son ran past, I called out, “Go, Sam.”

  Somebody tugged at me from behind and dragged me to a nearby tree. I shouted, “What the—?”

  Time stopped. It was Hunter.

  My heart thundered like I was in a time warp and I'd gone backward. His face was tight, and his steely-blue eyes had no flecks of light. “Did you think you could suddenly start living like a princess instead of the trash that you are?”

  My spine stiffened. He was tall, lean, and wearing that snarl he'd had when he raped me. I was ready to scream, but suddenly Elon was there, knocking Hunter off me and down to the ground. I massaged the arm Hunter had grabbed as Hunter shouted, “What the—“

  I glanced down at Hunter. My life was amazing now, and I wasn’t ever going to hide from life. I lifted my chin. “I’m not here alone.”