"Where's Xavier?" Zach asked while Amy looked at the contents on the device with furrowed brows.
"He rushed out to meet Lorraine as soon as he saw the news trending", he replied.
"And it's everywhere", Amy mused out loud as she browsed through the tablet. "Every news about outlet."
"He didn't know about this?" Zach guessed, his brows furrowing deeper from annoyance.
"No", George said after shaking his head.
He glanced at Amy who leaned back in the sofa now multitasking between her phone and the tablet George brought. The latter looked at Zach whose expression seemed to be unreadable as he had fallen deep in thought.
"She deliberately did not want to keep this quiet", Zach mused with irritation.
"After the backlash she faced last time", Amy glanced at him before looking back at the two devices. "She needed the support. And she wants five-" she chuckled before continuing. "$500, 000."
"A year?" Zach asked.
"Month", George answered. "Every month. She believes she deserves that much especially since she's carrying Frost bloodline. What do we do about this?" George looked between them with an expression that made him look like he was seeking wisdom from two superior beings.
At JFK international airport
"Are you okay?" A middle aged man asked with a furrow of his brows. "You rarely leave work early and you look very pale. Why don't we take you to the hospital? Maybe you caught something."
"It's just a headache. I should be fine by tomorrow", Lorraine forced a smile at her supervisor.
"Get that checked out if it persists", he said sternly.
"Thank you, sir."
She excused herself and went to the lockers to change out of her uniform. Her mind had been hazy from when she saw the headlines from the billboards and the internet.
She grew numb from the shock but didn't realize she had grown pale until her supervisor pointed it out. One thought echoed in her mind: home. She needed to go home.
As soon as she stepped out of fbe building, she looked around for a taxi when her sight landed on a familiar figure wearing a grave expression as he stood beside his car. It seemed he was about to run inside to look for her.
She subconsciously clutched her bag hard as she held his gaze. Xavier could see the pain in her eyes and panic started to build up thinking she would walk away or run. Instead, she quietly walked to the passenger side and got in. Should he be relieved or worried?
He didn't waste a second and went to the driver's side and drove to their place. The ride was silent, he did not dare to say a word afraid of her reaction and she too was silently relieved that he didn't say a word.
Should he dare, she didn't think she was strong enough to suppress her emotions. It was hard enough to hold back her tears. After many agonizing minutes, they finally got home. She didn't wait for him to get the door and quickly went inside.
"Lorraine!" He called out in urgency and jogged after her.
She took large strides and disappeared into the elevator. He was a second slower as the doors closed right in his face but it was enough to catch a glimpse of her crying face.
He took the stairs going up to their floor, panic coursing through his veins. He run, taking two steps or three at a time. She was going to leave him..... She was leaving..... She can't..... He grew more panicked with those thoughts intensifying.
He finally reached their floor and rushed to kick the door open. He first went to look in their room and to his relief, he found her. She had just opened their wardrobe and he run to her, hugging her from the back.
"Lorraine!" She stiffened in his hold when she felt him around her. He was breathing heavily and his eyes stung from unshed tears. She struggled to free hersekf but his restraint only grew stronger. "Lorraine. Please. Please."
She felt her strength seep away with his pleas. Lucky he was holding her or she woukd collapse onto the floor. The cries she suppressed finally came out into heartbreaking sobs as she leaned her head against him. He turned her around to embrace her.
She punched his chest and tried to free herself but he held onto her and wrapped his arms around her. She cried into his chest, each cry trying to lessen the pain in her heart. They stayed like that until they both ended up on the floor, leaning against the wardrobe but she was still in his arms.
"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, I'm really sorry Lorraine", he tucked away some stray strands of hers before cupping her chin so she could face him.
She sniffled as a tear trickled down her cheek. "How long have you known about this?"
"I promise you I just learned about this from the news. I never kept in contact with her after the breakup", he spoke with earnesty.
She sighed, seeing the truth in his eyes. She sobbed softly, "This hurts, so much. It hurts so much Xavier."
"I know. I don't- I'm really sorry Lorraine. And I know it's selfish of me to ask you this but please don't leave me. I can't live without you", he pleaded. "Please."
She there was a hard lump lodged in her throat accompanied by the pain in her heart. She subconsciously closed her eyes when he reached out to wipe her tears away. Somehow..... His touch was lessening the pain... She realized something in that moment. And Lorraine was not one to hide her thoughts unless otherwise.
"As much as this hurts, the thought of being apart from you is more painful", she admitted. He gasped out in relief and collected her in his arms very happy. "But, I'll need time." He pulled away and sadness was evident in his eyes as she continued. "It's just a lot right now."
He opened his mouth to speak when his phone started ringing. He fished it out from his trouser pocket and his brows slightly furrowed when he saw Zach's name flashing on his screen. A feeling of dread arose within him, but he knew he couldn't avoid him so he answered putting him on speaker.
"Zach", he answered with a hoarse voice. "Now's not a good time-"
"It's me!" Amy shouted from the other end, catching his and Lorraine's attention. "Real quick, when was the last time you slept with this girl?"
"Amy", he said through gritted teeth seeing Lorraine tense up. "I have more important things to deal with."
"I know. But believe me, this is also important", she said calmly.
Lorraine's face had contorted into an angry. She didn't want to sit there and listen in but Xavier held onto her as ge wracked his brain. "Uhh..... Weeks before the breakup. Why?"
"Huh", she replied dryly and muttered something under her breath. "I'll call you back."
She abruptly ended the call leaving Xavier and Lorraine exchanged a puzzled look. Meanwhile, sharing the same feeling was George who sat opposite the couple back at Frost Corporation.
"Babe, how about a little detour to my old place on our way home?" She asked with a smile.
"Aren't we dealing with Xavier's issue?" George asked.
"Let's do it", Zach replied to Amy, completely ignoring George.
"Why were you asking about the timeline? Did you find something odd about it? You know, Nicole hasn't revealed how many months she is. Can any of you say something?" He was growing frustrated from the suspense while watching them getting ready to leave.
"We'll call you", Zach replied whilst adjusting Roserie in his arms.
"After some digging. I can't go around running my mouth without checking facts", Amy replied and tried not to groan in pain as she stood up.
She walked over to the other sofa where hers and Roserie's bags were. George's brows furrowed and gave a questioning gaze at Zach whilst pointing at Amy, finding her walking weird.
"Get out", Zach said with a sharp glare before walking fishing out his phone and dialing a number. "We're leaving in five."
Seeing then busy, George showed himself out of the office. Soon, Zach and Amy left for Crystal palace. Paparazzi were already crowded in front of the building when they arrived. Although Zach's team could ensure that they pass without being photographed or questioned, it would still raise questions seeing him ther.
Worse yet, there would be misunderstandings knowing the Frosts were powerful and Nicole was weak compared to them. So they parked in the underground parking lot where Crystal palace's manager awaited them.
"Jim", Amy greeted with a smile and walked over to shake his hand.
"Madam. Welcome back."
Visit freewe𝑏nove(l).𝐜𝐨𝗺 for the 𝑏est n𝘰vel reading experience