CHAPTER 12
Alyssia
“Girl, your baby daddy is loaded!” Kandace screeches into the phone.
Two weeks after my appointment with Dr. Slosher, I stand in my bedroom, turning from front to side, deciding if the blazer I’ve decided to wear for this job interview is too tight. At ten and a half weeks pregnant, it fits well enough that I can button it over the white blouse I’ve chosen.
Luckily, this interview is a video call. If I make it to the next round, it’ll probably be in person.
I can’t believe in a couple of weeks I’ll be out of my first trimester.
“Will you stop calling him that,” I scold my best friend while I put on my only pair of diamond studs.
“That’s what he is, isn’t he?” Kandace throws back at me.
“I thought you were supposed to be helping me prepare for this interview.”
I have a video interview with the Jacqueline Reed Foundation today. I spent my time on bedrest applying to as many jobs as I could find and even reaching out to the emails of a few names I heard the night of the gala.
My work paid off.
In two hours, I have my first-round interview for a market researcher position.
Kandace agreed to help me prepare, but for the past ten minutes she’s been doing an internet search of Travis and telling me just about everything she’s found.
“His family, too. We’re talking eleven figure net worth loaded. And oh shit, a few years ago his uncle, some CEO named Aaron Townsend, literally bought a library and named it after his wife.”
“What?” In spite of myself, I take a seat on the edge of my bed.
“Yeah, but that’s not even the extent of their legacy. Travis’ father is a former NFL god, Tyler Townsend. Did you know that?”
My stomach does a little flip.
“I did know that. He told me.”
“I can’t believe you didn’t know more about his family. You’re usually the first one looking things up or doing an internet search. Do you remember when I first told you about Patrick? You had that man’s work history, employer, and childhood address by the end of the night.”
Kandace and I both laugh. She’s not wrong. That day, junior year of college, she told me she’d met a guy online that she really liked, I went to work looking him up.
That was more than six years ago, and they’ve been married for two years now.
“I did some research, of course,” I tell her.
“Not enough to know that his family is super loaded enough to buy and name libraries after themselves. His dad’s also a sports commentator on Prime Sports Network. Have you?—”
“No,” I reply, knowing what she’s going to ask. “You know I don’t pay attention to sports.”
“Right, but that was before you got pregnant by a professional athlete.”
I swallow the lump that forms in my throat. My stomach muscles tighten. In the past two weeks since finding out what Travis does for a living, I’ve done my best to avoid or ignore it altogether.
Hence, my lack of internet investigation.
“I’ve been preoccupied with this job search,” I remind her.
“What for? With money like that, he can take care of you and three of your babies without blinking.”
“We’renothaving three babies. Just one. And I don’t need him to take care of me. Just the baby.”
