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Fifty-three
Brianna is awake.
I race out of the office with Sophia hot on my heels, desperate to know what’s up. El’s voice swims in my head, forming a thick cloak over me. Anticipation curls my insides, I almost miss a step on my way out.
My baby is awake.
At the garage, I pat my pockets for the keys. Nothing. Where’s my briefcase? I groan, patting my pockets for the second time with more care as if the keys will magically appear. It does. I pull the bunch out, arm trembling as I try to hit the unlock button on the fob. I miss it the same way I missed the keys the first time.
The fob drops from my hand, Sophia picks it to open the door. Inside the car, shook and unable to move with my hands tightened around the steering, I stare into space. By awake, she means not asleep, right? Not the false alarm that happened last time.
“What happened?” Sophia asks once she slides into the passenger seat.
&
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Mrs Reluctant Billionaire Fifty-four
The neurologist Sophia referred to us is kind. The test results and brain scans came back okay. No brain damage which is something to be thankful for but the bulk of work lies on us. We have to retrain her to do the littlest things. She can’t even hold a spoon. Walking is impossible for now. She’s a human jelly.Brianna might be fourteen but her brain is not, same as her body. It’s like having a kid in a teen’s body. On some days, the coma seems like a better option. And it gets harder to follow the sequences. Sitting education comes before standing, I didn’t realise how tiresome it would be to teach a person to sit.Sitting is so normal for an average human that I’m stunned each time I have to hold Brianna up in her wheelchair. She can’t sit straight. But the occupational therapist promises it’s normal. It will take time.I have a newfound respect for everyone, especially the therapists we have been working with.
Mrs Reluctant Billionaire Fifty-five
Boundaries. I am respecting boundaries. It is what I tell myself as I pick my phone to call Lydia and have her dismiss the applicants waiting. It is the same thing I say as I tuck Brianna in bed. I smoothen the hair out of her forehead and place a kiss on her cheek. Her head rolls to the side, she blinks sleepily at me.“Hello,” I murmur, pushing back the urge to crawl in bed with her. “Daddy loves you.”“Hello,” she whispers in a scratchy voice. Her eyelids droop and her breathing evens out. She is asleep.Wait. She spoke.Brianna spoke.The realisation washes over me, my breath rushes out in shallow puffs. I thread my fingers into my hair and stare at my baby girl in awe. She fucking talked. If I left with El, I would have missed this.Tears of joy stand in my eyes, I bounce out of her room to mine. Holy fuck. She spoke to me.After a phone call to the physiotherapist and a
Mrs Reluctant Billionaire Fifty-six
El spins to face me, eyes ablaze with fury. She crosses her arms under her breasts, giving me a healthy glimpse of them. A lump wedges in my throat. I miss sucking her boobs. Playing with them.Can’t we fuck and make up?She stretches her hand to the door. “You should leave.”I cock my head, my eyes do a lazy sweep across her body. Her muscles lose some of their tension. “No.”She scoffs. “You can’t be in here.”“But I’m already here.”“Brandon.”“Elna.”A frustrated sigh leaves her, she grabs her purse and I cover the distance before she thinks of escaping. Trapping her between my body and the sink, I trail a finger across her collarbone. She sucks in a breath and looks up to me. The heat from her body warms me, sends a burning sensation pulsing through me.“You danced with T,” I whisper, p
Mrs Reluctant Billionaire Fifty-seven
We are back to zero point. I am back to living in my house. The doctors said it was okay to move Brianna so I brought her home with me. She needed to leave that place anyway. It holds bad memories.My fingers tangle in my hair as I try to make sense of the designs staring back at me. It made sense in my head until I put it down. Ed attested to its nicety or did he say that to please me? I slide down the seat, hands dangling from the sides of the swivel chair. There’s a lot of adjustments to make. But I don’t feel like doing anything.The walls of my office seem to close in on me, I loosen my tie and stagger to the girls’ empty office. The respite is short-lived as I lower myself to the couch. I squeeze a toy frog as the memory comes rushing back. El was pissed. It didn’t matter what I had to say in my defense, she was not hearing it. That woman walked right out of that place with T.Dude didn’t even flinch when El came o
Mrs Reluctant Billionaire Fifty-eight
The ride home is quiet. It’s always quiet but the silence leaves room for me to think. I don’t want to think.“Turn on the radio,” I tell Enzo. There’s a brief moment of hesitation before the voice of the presenter fills the air. “Thank you.”Raindrops pelt the window, rolling down to the floor. Buildings come into view as we take a turn into a residential street. A boy runs out of a brown house, his father catches him before he steps into the rain. His rambunctious laughter rings out after him. Given the chance, I am sure he will do it again.Why can’t I be a kid again? I miss the days Brendan was still Brendan and Brandon was still Brandon.“Sir?”My head raises. We are home.But the problem is the Porsche in the garage. Only one person drives a Porsche. I scamper to the house. He didn’t tell me he was coming today. Brianna is in the house. He doesn’t
Mrs Reluctant Billionaire Fifty-nine
“He was my brother too, you know?” Joshua continues in a whisper. Sweat breaks out on my forehead despite the cold, so I remove my jacket. “And no matter what he did, he was still my brother.” I swallow that painful truth with a deep sigh. “When I was in boarding school, he would always call. Even when they never did.” They. Our parents. I never called either. “One morning, he’s there being his usual arrogant self. The next morning, he’s not there. How in God’s name was I expected to deal with that?” His words wash over me. Long buried guilt and resentment rouses. Shame sinks its claws into my skin as I stare at his hunched frame. At his feet. At the tiles that are wet with his tears. My eyes are too dry, I can’t bring myself to share in his sorrow. The guilt has drowned other emotions. I can only watch him. “I was trying to find closure and somehow I found myself in your room.” We all lived together in Salford. It was a rule then, one we followed because we ha
Mrs Reluctant Billionaire Sixty
Coming here is my little way of earning Joshua’s forgiveness. He didn’t ask but I want his forgiveness.I look out the window of his room to the garden with guests. My eyes follow the girls as they mingle with strange faces. They are happy to be here. They chatted nonstop on our way, bolted as soon as we got out of the car. I can’t say the same for me. And I dread every second until I have to face my parents.Joshua’s hand settles on my shoulder, he offers me a glass of wine and I set it on the windowsill. He sits across from me and we watch together. We came in this morning. If the girls told my parents I am here with them, they are doing a great job of dodging me too. I smile at Joshua. Talking to him feels good. Better than therapy. I didn’t hold back anything but he hasn’t said a word since my outburst. No accusations.“Do you forgive me?” I ask without tearing my gaze from the girls. They are danci
Mrs Reluctant Billionaire Sixty-one
“I wanted to let you know Brianna woke up,” I say to Ava while picking at the material of my seat.The calm silence stretches into something so suffocating I want to bolt out of here. She’s too cool about my reappearance. If I had to deal with a client with my attitude, I would have stopped seeing them. I glance at Ava, she averts her eyes but it’s too late. She was watching me too. Her dreadlocks are gone, replaced by short brown hair that curls at her temples. I liked seeing the cowries. Made me feel better.Worry prickles my neck, I rub my hand against the back of my head and pretend her stern frown has nothing to do with me. “That’s good to hear,” she finally says. “Congratulations. I’m happy for you.”I lower my head to avoid meeting her gentle gaze. It feels like she has more to say but she’s weighing her words like I am doing. The quotes on the wall make less sense. Identify you
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