Of fucking course. “And they are?”
“I expect a raise. Not that measly salary you give yourself. And I want to keep Stella. And I’ll need you to go get Reagan back.”
“Oh, is that all?” I raise a brow at him as Stella walks in the door.
“Employment contracts are already drawn up and just need your signature.” Stella is all smiles as she sets them in my hands. “I figured you’d take this offer, so I took it upon myself to have them ready for you. Now, go get your girl back.”
I tooka chance and had Evelyn ring me in. It’s been two long weeks since I left the hospital. I knew Evelyn was taking care of Reagan. I had daily meals sent over here, to Evelyn of course, and told her to take them to Reagan under the guise that she was making her meals. I didn’t want her to worry about a thing. It was my way of being able to help, even if I couldn’t physically be there.
Knocking on the door, I wait.
“Come in, Evelyn.”
The muffled sound of Reagan’s voice nearly does me in. Taking a deep breath, I push open the door. Reagan is propped up on the couch, books and her computer surrounding her.
“Leo. What are you doing here?” Her mouth hangs open, likely in shock that I’m here.
“We need to talk.” My voice is firm, leaving no room for debate.
“Leo. Now isn’t the right time.”
“No.” I close the distance of her small flat in two easy strides. “Now is the perfect time. And I need you to listen.”
Reagan chews on the corner of her lip, adjusting her position on the couch. She nods.
“I resigned.” I get straight to the heart of the issue.
“You what? Leo, you own the company. You can’t just quit.”
I drop a finger onto her lips, silencing her. “I can, and I did. I stepped down from being CEO.”
“Leo. Quitting doesn’t fix our problems,” Reagan says, shaking her head.
Grinding my teeth, I shake my head. “Will you let me get this out?”
“Sorry.” Her hands are rubbing her belly. It takes everything I have not to reach out and touch her. It’s been the hardest few weeks, when all I want to do is hold her. Touch her. Hear her voice.
“For as long as I can remember, my entire life has been work. Almost like my way of giving my parents a bigfuck youfor not wanting me enough to stick around.” I blow out a breath. “But then this smart, sexy, and kind American girl landed in my lap. I never expected I’d see her after our night together, but then she started working for me.”
Reagan smiles. One that settles low in my belly and spreads through me like lava.
“Not only was she working for me, but turns out, she got pregnant. And for the first time in my life, I didn’t care about work. All I could think about was her and our baby.”
This time, my hand settles on the bump, over Reagan’s. As if the baby knows it’s me, she kicks. I’ve missed feeling her moving around in there. I keep talking.
“And so, for the last few months, I’ve been working hard to find someone to take over for me. I might not have shown up when I was supposed to, but I was doing it for us.”
“You what?” Reagan’s eyes are watery. “You missed those appointments because you were trying to find someone to take over for you?” She presses the heels of her hands into her eyes.
“I was. Because I didn’t want to miss a moment of this. I want to be here for everything with you. With this baby.”
“Leo. Why didn’t you tell me any of this?” Reagan reaches out, cupping my cheek.
“Because.” I lean into her touch. God, how I’ve missed this. “Because what if it didn’t happen? What if I couldn’t find anyone? The thought of disappointing you is too much to bear.”
I’m laying it all out for Reagan. Because she deserves it. Because she has become the woman I love. The woman that my world revolves around.
“I hate to break it to you, Leo,”—Reagan pulls me closer—“you’ll mess up. I’ll mess up. But the fact that you did this for me, for us, I just…” her voice cuts off on a sob.
