Chapter 188 So Annoying
Arabella didn't really have anywhere else to go, but she instinctively didn't want to return to their shared home just yet. Finding out she was pregnant—with twins, no less—had completely blindsided her. She needed time alone to process everything.
Alexander saw her hesitation. "Want me to take you to Daisy's place?"
Arabella thought about it. "Yeah, okay."
Though something about it felt strange.
That weird feeling only intensified when the car stopped outside Daisy's apartment complex. Alexander leaned over, his voice gentle but serious. "Pregnancy makes you vulnerable. Be careful with yourself, okay? Whether you decide to keep them or not, don't get hurt."
Arabella murmured her agreement and got out of the car.
She finally understood where that strange feeling came from. The way Alexander had driven her to Daisy's, fussing over her with all those warnings—it reminded her of high school. She'd hit a rough patch with her studies and impulsively taken three days off. Her parents hadn't dared pressure her, instead gently asking if she wanted to stay with a friend to clear her head. When she'd said yes, they'd driven her over eagerly, hoping the change of scenery would help.
Alexander gave her the same vibe as her parents back then. Except he wasn't her parent. The whole thing just felt... weird. But she didn't dwell on it, quickly heading into the building.
What she didn't know was that the moment she disappeared inside, Alexander pulled out his phone and called Daisy.
"Mr. FitzRoy!" Daisy's voice burst with surprise. "What made you think of little old me? Don't tell me you've got another gig for me?"
She'd just finished her last project and was between jobs, still looking for a good script. If Alexander wanted to do her a favor, well, she'd just have to graciously accept. Hehe.
Alexander paused. "One of my investment companies just backed a few new productions. I'll have Moris send you the scripts. They're big-budget projects, though you probably won't get the female lead. Can you live with that?"
"Yes, yes, absolutely!" Daisy nodded frantically. Was he kidding? Any production Alexander invested in would have an insane lineup. She'd be crazy to care about billing. Honestly, if she could work with those famous directors, it would give her serious leverage in the industry going forward.
Daisy was practically vibrating with excitement. "Mr. FitzRoy, you're like my guardian angel! I'm devoted to you forever. I'll build you a shrine—"
After a moment of silence, Alexander cut in. "Don't thank me yet. I need a favor."
Daisy sobered instantly, her tone cautious. "What kind of favor?"
She wouldn't betray her friend. Even though she thought it was a shame Arabella and Alexander were splitting up, she'd never go against her best friend's wishes.
"Arabella's coming to see you," Alexander said. "She hasn't had dinner. Can you make her something to eat?" He hesitated, then added uncertainly, "You can cook, right?"
Daisy's confusion deepened, though she felt oddly defensive. "I mean... not very well."
Definitely not as well as Arabella, anyway.
She didn't think much of it. "Don't worry about it. I've got plenty of stuff at home. If she's hungry, she can just cook for herself."
Perfect—she could mooch a meal too. Score.
Alexander paused, immediately spotting the flaw in her logic. "If you don't cook, why would you have plenty of stuff at home?"
Daisy glanced silently toward her kitchen. "Why do you care?"
Alexander had no interest in interrogating her about her personal life. He just said, "Don't let Arabella cook for herself. If you can't handle it, I'll order some dishes and have them delivered. Just tell her you got takeout."
Daisy was speechless. "Why can't I just order actual takeout?"
"Takeout isn't healthy," Alexander said flatly.
"You sound like my mom," Daisy muttered.
So naggy. So weird.
Alexander ignored her griping, repeating his instructions. "No takeout. Take care of her. If she's staying the night, make sure she goes to bed early."
Daisy was completely done. "Got it."
Turned out even the most commanding men lost all their appeal the second they started nagging.
Before hanging up, she asked, "How long until Arabella gets here?"
"I called you right after watching her walk into your complex," Alexander replied. "She should be there any minute."
Daisy's face changed. That fast? She'd thought Arabella was still on the way!
Oh no. She had a situation in her kitchen. Arabella couldn't see this.
She immediately ran to the kitchen and started physically shoving the man inside toward the door. "My best friend's about to show up. You need to leave!"
Ethan looked hurt. "What? Why do I have to leave just because she's coming? Am I really less important to you than your best friend?"
"Don't be ridiculous," Daisy said matter-of-factly. "Who do you think you are, comparing yourself to my best friend?"
Ethan fell silent. His heart had just taken a critical hit.
He grabbed onto the doorframe, refusing to budge. "She's your best friend, which makes her my friend too! What's wrong with me meeting her? Getting to know your friends better can only help us!"
Daisy kept pushing, but he wouldn't move. Her patience snapped. She planted her hands on her hips and glared at him. "Let me give you some advice. Don't get any bright ideas about winning her over so she'll put in a good word for you. Whether we work out is my decision alone. I don't listen to anyone. And if you keep being difficult, I'll break things off tomorrow. Try me."
Ethan looked like he might cry.
Not daring to push his luck, he grabbed his jacket and left looking thoroughly miserable. On his way out, he shamelessly planted a kiss on Daisy's cheek.
Daisy wiped the spot with disgust.
Talk about cutting it close—Ethan had barely been gone two minutes when Arabella arrived. Daisy opened the door, but before she could say anything, Arabella announced, "I'm pregnant."
Daisy's brain short-circuited. She wondered if her ears were broken.
Arabella understood her reaction. She'd felt the same way at the hospital. So she kindly repeated herself. "I'm pregnant. With twins."
Suddenly Daisy understood why Alexander had been nagging like an old mother hen on the phone. Holy crap, the man's wife was pregnant! If it were her, she'd be even worse! Oh wait, she was a woman. Couldn't have a wife. Never mind, getting ahead of herself there.
Daisy helped Arabella inside with shaking hands, asking the obvious question. "It's yours and Alexander's?"
Arabella gave her a look. "Who else would it be?"
Daisy did some quick mental math. Arabella being pregnant was good news—Alexander was clearly thrilled. But Arabella had already decided on divorce, and now she showed up pregnant, running to her best friend... which meant...
"Don't tell me you're trying to decide whether to keep them?"
She stared at Arabella with an expression that was hard to read.
Arabella touched her still-flat stomach, feeling nothing. She answered honestly, "I don't know. This baby—these babies came completely out of nowhere. But I've always wanted to have a child." She'd never been the type to dislike kids. She'd always looked forward to having her own. But single motherhood would be challenging. Plus she'd taken in Becky. With her current financial situation, could she even afford to raise these two properly? She had no idea.
In short, Arabella's mind was a tangled mess. A thousand threads she couldn't begin to sort through.
Daisy sat down beside her, curiously reaching toward Arabella's stomach. "I can't believe there are actually two little people in there."
Arabella smiled gently. It did feel miraculous.
"If I were you, I'd keep them," Daisy said. "Don't worry about money—even if you raise them alone, Alexander has to pay child support. You didn't make these babies by yourself."
Silently she added: And knowing Alexander's personality, would he ever allow his children to grow up outside the family?
"He said he'd take responsibility too," Arabella sighed, resting her chin in her hand. "But what if growing up in a single-parent home messes with their mental health? Plus I don't think I can handle twins by myself. Maybe Alexander and I should each take one?"
Daisy tested the waters carefully. "Or... you could just not get divorced? Alexander treats you really well. He's perfect in every way, and he'd definitely be a great dad. Why not give him a chance?"
Arabella hugged a pillow, saying nothing.
Sensing an opening, Daisy pressed on. "What happened with Anthony was bad luck. That wasn't your fault—it was purely because that scumbag had no bottom line and zero sense of responsibility. But people are different, Arabella. Whatever else Alexander might be, he'd never pull the crap Anthony did. You can't let one bad experience ruin everything."
Arabella's voice came out muffled. "Of course I know he's different from Anthony. But the problems that come from our different backgrounds are still the same. No matter how good he is, I still have to deal with all that comes with the status gap. You know what? When I first married Anthony, his mom made me host a party. Just a small gathering, and I couldn't even handle it. I couldn't keep track of all those complicated relationships or deal with all the family drama. I don't want to spend the rest of my life doing things I absolutely hate. The old me would have risked everything for love. I don't want to be that person anymore."
Daisy struggled for a while before offering a hypothetical. "But what if the FitzRoy family doesn't have all that messy stuff? Maybe they don't even do parties, and Alexander wouldn't need you to navigate all those relationships..."
She trailed off, closing her mouth. Even she didn't believe that.
Alexander was the head of the FitzRoy family. The complexity of his social circle was obvious. As his wife, there was no way Arabella could avoid dealing with all that. Even if Alexander loved her and could shield her from most of it, some things she'd inevitably have to handle herself.
Daisy sighed. She finally understood where Arabella was coming from. Before, she'd thought it was a shame to give up on this relationship. But thinking about it this way, maybe it wasn't such a loss after all.
"But no matter what, you need to have these babies," Daisy said firmly. "Didn't the Watsons say you couldn't have children? And what happened? Anthony still doesn't have any kids, but you, my friend—you're having twins! You know what that means? It means the problem was never with you in the first place. You have these babies and shove it right in Jennifer's face!"
"And don't worry about raising them. Alexander will pay child support—what are you afraid of? Worst case, I'll help you raise them. Someone like me probably won't ever have kids anyway. Perfect—your kids can take care of us in our old age!"
Arabella had already been leaning toward having them. After Daisy's pep talk, the scale tipped even further in that direction.
A knock sounded at the door. Daisy went to answer it, accepting several bags from a delivery person. From the living room, Arabella called out, "You ordered takeout?"
"Yeah, got takeout," Daisy said, guilt creeping into her voice. "Figured you hadn't eaten, so we could have dinner together."
"You should've said something! Why go to all this trouble? I could've cooked for you. You love my cooking, don't you?"
"Hehe, but you're pregnant now! Can't have you working hard in the kitchen."
"I'm pregnant, not made of glass. Is it really that serious?" Arabella laughed as she helped unpack the containers.
Daisy didn't dare respond, silently thinking that Alexander had already turned her into a glass princess.
Arabella hadn't had much appetite earlier, but the food Daisy ordered was surprisingly good. Even the meat dishes didn't make her nauseous—her appetite actually perked up, and she ate quite a bit.
Daisy watched in awe. "No wonder you're carrying two—you can really put it away now."
"I really need to watch it, or I'll blow up like a balloon," Arabella laughed as she started clearing dishes toward the kitchen.
"Not necessarily—"
Daisy started to respond, then suddenly remembered what was waiting in the kitchen. Her face changed. She jumped up to intercept. "I'll clean up! You go rest!"
But it was too late. Arabella had already entered the kitchen. She stared at the neatly prepped ingredients—vegetables already chopped, meat prepared and ready to cook. Arabella was confused. "Since when do you cook?"
The technique on display here...
She turned to Daisy suspiciously. "You didn't do this, did you? You don't have the patience for prep work."
Daisy studied her toes. "Um... I kind of kicked Ethan out right before you got here."
"What?" Arabella froze. "Why'd you kick him out? It's not like I can't meet him. Wait—why was he here cooking for you in the first place?"
Hadn't she said last time she had no interest in men with fiancées? How did things progress this far so fast?
Daisy pressed her index fingers together sheepishly. "He... called off his engagement. I figured I'd give him a shot, but I kind of feel like... he's not quite up to standard, so I haven't told you yet."
"Oh my God. Seriously?" Arabella didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "Not up to standard? Does Ethan know you say stuff like that about him?"
"Who cares if he knows?" Daisy waved dismissively. "Anyway, let's not talk about boring stuff. Are you spending the night?"
She'd assumed Arabella would stay over, just like Alexander had predicted. But to her surprise, Arabella shook her head. "No, I should head back. I was just trying to avoid dealing with it for a bit, but after talking to you, I think I should go home and settle things about the baby with him."
Daisy kept quiet. As soon as Arabella turned away, she sneakily pulled out her phone to text Alexander.