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After day three, Derek called to tell me work was quiet so he’d requested a month off and suggested that we get out of the city and go on a holiday somewhere. Connor and Amelie couldn’t agree with him fast enough, both saying it was for the best, considering the media had gone crazy over the recent Jessica and Ryan story. I was now dubbed as Ryan’s ‘other girl’, the one that had tried to come between the happy lovers.

I had paparazzi waiting day and night outside my apartment building, and they would pounce every time they saw me leave. They even had the audacity to chase me down the street, and hound me with questions as to why I would do such a thing. The whole situation was overwhelming and a couple of times I found myself close to having an anxiety attack. I was thankful I was left in the protection of Connor’s driver, Clifford, who was asked by my brother to stay by my side until everything died down. I didn’t see that happening any time soon and was afraid of it never happening.

I knew by the photos in the papers and magazines that Derek waved in my face that Ryan was dealing with the same issues. Apparently, after denying his relationship with Jessica, he refused to speak to anyone, and also refused to sign anything for fans.

Most of the photos were of him with a lowered baseball cap with an aloof look that seemed to be a permanent fixture on his beautiful face.
Ugh
. I had to stop thinking of him like that. He was just as much to blame for this mess and Jessica was.

After surviving the horrifying week and Ryan’s constant text messages, I’d finally agreed to the holiday Derek had begged to go on, and chose Saint Barthélemy as our destination. My father had a beach house there, equipped with its own private beach. There was nothing the sun, the beach and cocktails couldn’t fix.

****

We were at the airport when my cell buzzed inside my handbag. I pulled it out and looked at the screen.
Great
. It was Ryan. Something inside of me told me I’d punished the guy long enough, so I took a long, deep breath before answering the call, careful to avoid the wary gaze Derek was throwing my way.

“Hello?” I answered abruptly.

“Evangeline? It’s me.” It immediately pained me hearing the sound of Ryan’s tired voice on the other end.

“I know who it is. Why do you keep calling?” I replied, trying to ignore the tight ache in my chest.

He went silent for a moment. I looked up instinctively as the overhead speakers boomed with a female voice, advising the next flights boarding.

“Are you at the airport? Where are you going?”

“I really don’t think that’s any of your business, do you?”

He sighed into the phone. “I guess not. Evangeline, please listen to me. I swear I never touched her again after that night. She’s making this all up. I don’t know why, but she is. I’ve been faithful to you the whole time.”

“Ryan, she’s pregnant. It doesn’t matter whether you’ve been with her again, because the last time you slept with her you left her pregnant!” I snapped. I didn’t mean to sound so angry but I couldn’t stop myself.

“That’s bullshit! I don’t believe her stupid story and neither should you—”

“What can’t you believe? The part where you two are a ‘happy couple’ and I’m the other woman ruining your relationship, or the part where she’s
having
your baby!”

“Both!” he shouted on the other end. “I’ve said in a public statement that her and I were never a couple, and that her stories are all cruel lies. She’s crazy, Evangeline. It may have taken me a little longer to realize that but it’s the truth. I’ve ordered my manager to sort out the media mess and I’ve got my lawyers looking into her statement about supposedly carrying my child.”

“You can do that?” I questioned, glancing over at Derek, who just raised a brow.

“Just listen to me. I’ll do whatever it takes to clear this up. You’re the only girl I’ve been with where I’ve forgotten to use protection. So if anyone were to be pregnant it would be you, not her. But you’re on that birth control, right? I can’t deny I haven’t slept with plenty of girls but not one has come out claiming I’ve fathered children. Her story is just a fucking publicity stunt set to ruin my life and yours.”

“Accidents happen, Ryan,” I reminded him in a weak voice.

“I’m well aware of that, Evangeline. Look, my manager and lawyers will handle everything until I can get back to New York, but please, I can’t have you give up on me. I’d never hurt you, Evie. Please just believe me. I can’t lose you.”

I didn’t know what to say. My mind was torn and spinning like crazy. Half of me wanted to ignore the mess and run straight back into his arms, while the other half whispered not to forgive him so easily.

“Just tell me where you’re going...please,” he asked, sounding beat, ending the silence between.

With a quiet sigh, I decided on telling him. It wasn’t like he was going to be able to pop up uninvited anytime soon anyway. The major league season was well underway with his team playing away most of the time.

“St. Bart’s.”

“For how long?”

“I don’t know. I’ll stay there the whole summer if I have to.”

“Please don’t leave me to fight this alone.”

“I don’t know what you want me to do, Ryan.”

“Say you’ll come back. We’ll get through this together—” The lady on the overhead spoke again, cutting Ryan off.

“I have to go. Good luck with the next game,” I said hurriedly, and before he could say anything else I hung up.

Derek rushed by my side as soon as I dropped the cell into my bag. Overwhelmed with emotion, I couldn’t help but burst into tears as soon as I felt his comforting arms wrap around me.

“There, there, baby cakes. St. Bart’s will get your mind off this dreadful place, trust me.”

CHAPTER 28

Derek wasn’t wrong. As we stepped off the private jet, or I should say my jet, since it was one of the things my father left me, the salty, fresh scent of the Caribbean ocean hit me, almost making me forget about the terrible life I’d left behind.

Two weeks into our holiday, and Ryan was nothing but a distant thought in the back of my mind. My days were spent mostly at the beach, either going for a swim in the warm refreshing water, basking in the summer sun or drinking cocktails by the pool bar. We’d also taken the yacht out and sailed around the island the weekend Connor and Amelie came for a visit.

St Bart’s had been a favorite holiday destination for my family when I was younger. It was the first time I’d been back in thirteen years, and it brought back so many happy memories. One memory was of my two brothers play fighting in the ocean, splashing one another, while I followed Mom around, trying to copy everything she was doing. Another one was of my father and I building a sandcastle together, only to later have Connor run up and jump on it, laughing as he stomped all over it. I cried, so of course that caused a fight between the two boys, since Alex was the protective older brother at the time.

“What are you thinking about?”

My eyes fluttered open, and I turned to the side to look over at Derek laying on the matching sunbed next me.

“Huh?”

“You have a stupid grin on your face. I thought you were asleep?” he asked, looking at me from the top of his shades.

“Oh. I was just thinking about when I used to come here with my family. How Connor used to pick on me and Alex would put him back in line.” I smiled, thinking of my oldest brother again.

“I can’t imagine Connor being so mischievous. He’s just too damn serious.”

“Oh, he was and he was a handful. He just had so much energy.” My smile faded. “He grew up quickly after Alex and Mom died. He took it upon himself to protect me. Even though we had Gran and Pop, Connor never left my side until he was eighteen and left for New York. It broke my heart when that day came but we still spoke everyday.”

“I still remember that. Trying to beg you to come out was a nightmare. You’d always say to us: ‘not until he calls’.” Derek waved his arms about and did a terrible job of mimicking my voice, which we both laughed at.

“You miss him, don’t you?”

I shot him a look. I knew we weren’t talking about my family anymore. I nodded slightly, afraid of admitting it to myself.

“I need more suntan lotion. Care to rub it in for me?” he asked, a clear sign of changing the subject.

I gave him a smile, pushing back the thoughts of Ryan. “Go on. Turn that fabulous ghetto booty of yours around,” I said teasingly. I saw him pull a face before rolling onto his stomach.

I sat up, and picked up the coconut scented, suntan lotion, and began rubbing it into his back.

The usually delicious fragrance of the lotion smelled kind of funny today. We had only bought it two days ago, so it couldn’t have been off.

“Umm, are you just going to cover a part of my shoulders and let the rest go crisp?”

I snapped back to reality.

“Sorry, Derek. I was just... Does the lotion smell funny to you?”

“What? No. It smells fine. Like tasty coconut.”

Thinking I probably just had a little too much sun, I began applying more. But as soon as I got another whiff, the smell made my stomach turn. What on earth?

“Sorry, Derek. I can’t―”

Before I had time to go anywhere, I whipped my head to the side and threw up all over my sunbed.

“EVAN! What the hell?” Derek jumped up and scrunched his face up at the unpleasant sight.

“I don’t feel so well,” I replied, hanging my head between my legs.

“Shit, maybe you have sunstroke. Come on, we need to get you out of the sun and drinking some water.”

I spent the rest of the afternoon hugging the toilet bowl. I had no energy to move anywhere else. Despite Derek’s suggestion of sunstroke, I didn’t develop any of the other symptoms associated with the condition, so it had to be something else. In the end, I was ordered to go to the doctors by my melodramatic best friend who refused to let me ‘die’ on him while holidaying.

****

“Ms. Montgomery, have you ever experienced symptoms like this before?” the doctor asked.

Since I couldn’t get very far without getting sick again, we had to go to the closest medical center we could find. Fortunately for us it only happened to be about ten minutes away from the house and because it was quiet, I was admitted straight away. Derek waited outside while I sat in the room with the extremely serious doctor.

“I’ve had food poisoning before but nothing this severe. I’ve never had it affect my sense of smell before,” I answered honestly.

“I never said anything about food poisoning. When was your last period?”
Wait. What?

“Well I was due for my next―” Oh. My. God. I threw my hand over my mouth. It couldn’t be…
No. No. No.

“You were due when, Ms. Montgomery?”

“No. It’s not possible… This can’t be happening to me.” I stared at the doctor wide-eyed. How could I have been so stupid? Stupid enough to continuously sleep with Ryan without protection knowing I couldn’t remember to take the pill on time?
Because you let yourself become distracted.

The doctor seemed to understand my state of panic. Or maybe he knew what was wrong with me from the start? He pushed away from his desk, turned around and opened the top drawer of a cabinet. He pulled out a small plastic container and a long white stick.

Handing me the container he said, “The restroom is around the corner to your right. Come back with a sample for your urine and we will conduct a pregnancy test. If you’re unsatisfied with the results, we can take a blood sample for more accuracy.”

I quickly nodded and left the room, ignoring Derek, who was calling out to me as I passed.

My entire body was shaking. I didn’t know whether I wanted to break down and cry, or throw angry curses out to the world. I didn’t need this right now.

When I’d finished, I made my way back into the doctor’s office, throwing an awkward glance at Derek, who was staring at me openmouthed. Of course, why wouldn’t he be when I’m carrying a clear, plastic container full of my urine?

I handed the container back to the doctor, who had applied gloves and then stuck the white stick into the container. “Just a few minutes and we should get an answer.”

I was sweating profusely. I couldn’t have a baby now, not right in the middle of this Jessica-Ryan fiasco. How would I even begin to explain this to Ryan? Would he believe me? Would he hate me? Would he want the baby? Did I even want a kid? I wasn’t sure of the answer, but I knew deep down I didn’t have the heart to get rid of it. Could I even raise a child? What kind of mother would I be?

I was so lost in my thoughts that I didn’t even hear the doctor speak until he lightly tapped me on the arm, jolting me back into reality. “The results are positive, Ms. Montgomery. Now, I’m not sure they’re the results you were wanting, but nevertheless it’s something you may wish to discuss with the father. Shall we perform a blood sample just to be certain?”