Chapter 153 Like All Good Things

Chapter 153 Like All Good Things
ALICE

The appointment with the doctor went better than I could've expected and I left his office feeling so much better.

"See?" Thelma said to me as she pulled me closer. She had a big smile on her face. "I told you everything would work out, didn't I?"

The doctor said I didn't have much to worry about. Though there were risks, he assured me that there was a high chance my baby would be okay. 

That relieved me beyond belief.

It was one less thing I had to worry about, that was for sure. Now, I could focus on other things. Finding a place to stay was at the top of that list, but last night, Francesca told me that she'd be offended if I left her home so quickly. 

"There's no point at all!" she had argued. "I have a lot of room and I could use the company, too. Besides, I don't think it's right for you to be alone right now, Alice. You've been through a lot. Let someone take the reins every once in a while."

I hadn't told her about the pregnancy yet, but I was considering telling her tonight. I couldn't do it earlier because she and Rory had gone looking for the perfect place where he could open his bakery. 

Thelma and I were going to meet them now. After spending the whole night thinking about it, I realized I was pretty grateful for Francesca's offer. I didn't want pride to get in the way of my brother's future, as at the end of the day, that was the only reason why I hesitated. This was a brilliant opportunity and I had to be happy for him, not feel ashamed that we were being helped. 

Francesca had been so kind about it, and how amazing would it be for him to achieve greatness in the one part of his life that he loved the most?

"I think Francesca will be thrilled when she finds out," Thelma claimed, bringing my thoughts surrounding the bakery to an abrupt stop. "This baby wouldn't be her first grandchild, but everyone knows how much she loves Theo. He's her favorite, that's for sure, and she'll be really happy, Alice. You will, too. Seeing you with your brother gives me the certainty that you're gonna be an amazing mother."

"I'm so thankful for everything you've done for me, Thelma," I said genuinely. She took my hand in hers and didn't say anything; she just smiled. 

According to Francesca, she had already found the perfect place for Rory to set up his bakery, and when we arrived, I could hardly believe my eyes. It was a fairly small space with glass walls and just enough room for a few tables in addition to the display. The back was cozy and he'd have enough space for two assistants. 

"What do you think?" she asked me excitedly. "It's some place, huh? Luckily, it used to be a bakery, but the owner died and his daughter couldn't continue the business, which is the only reason why they're selling the place."

I felt so emotional. "I don't know what to say, Francesca. This is all so amazing! I'm elated and I...How can I ever repay you?"

She walked up to me and took my hands in hers. The look in her eyes was a stern one. "We're family, Alice, and I don't know if you're aware, but we don't talk about money. Ever. Don't see it as a favor—it's my duty to take care of you now, and your brother is your family, so he's my family now. Okay?"

Tears burned in my eyes and made my vision blurry. All I could do was nod. 

I'd never felt this loved and supported in all my life. 

I walked up to Rory and hugged him. "What do you think about all this? Are you happy?"

"Yes," he answered, pulling back. I could see the excitement in his eyes and it made me want to cry even harder. "I like it here."

"You do?"

He nodded. "Are you gonna bake with me?"

"Me?" I hadn't even thought about it, but my answer was an immediate yes. "I think it'll be great. Just the two of us here, baking side by side like we used to before. Wouldn't that be great?"

This time, he was the one who hugged me. He held me tight and the tears fell. I missed this. I missed him. Hell, there wasn't a very big age gap between us—just seven years—but I'd taken care of Rory like he was my own. I would babysit him every day after school. In fact, I'd spent so much time with him that I'd noticed that something was different about him right away. Though Rory struggled with delays in almost everything in his life, our parents always insisted that he was perfectly alright, and that he was just taking his time 'growing up'. 

In the first grade, Rory was behind all his classmates, and he had a hard time even remembering the alphabet. He would come home really upset, as his teacher would embarrass him and call him 'lazy' for not being able to read like the others. His classmates would laugh at him, too, but he only told me this much later, when he was fourteen. 

I pushed for him to see psychologists and other specialists. Even then, our parents refused to believe that he had a 'problem', as they saw it. For weeks, they were mad at me, almost as if I was the one who triggered his condition by making him see a psychologist. 

Shaking my head, I decided not to keep thinking about this. It would only ruin my day. 

The point was that I spent so much time far away from him and the distance killed me. I wouldn't do that ever again. I'd always promised him that he'd come live with me as soon as I could manage, and now, that dream came true. "We'll be around each other all the time now, okay?"

"I want to stay here."

"You will," I promised him. "You will."

It was a splendid afternoon, and I would never forget my brother's excitement at the thought that he'd bake to his heart's content. 

But of course, like all good things, it couldn't last forever. 

Because later that day, I saw an article that said that the billionaire Theodore Linden-Hawthorne was going to get a divorce. 

And that his current partner was his old fiancée, Carmella Westenberg.