Chapter 22

Today marks the first week of my blue-eyed princess's life. Yes, she has her father's eyes, just like everything else. When she opened her eyes, I was the first to observe them, and I couldn't help but smile upon noticing that she had inherited her father's beautiful sea-colored irises.

This week that I spent living with Jhonny, I liked it. I liked knowing that at the end of the day, he would be with us in the same place and that he would sleep in my bed.

The first night he slept over, I woke up cuddled next to him, Harley was on his chest, and I watched them for a few minutes, imagining what our lives would be like if he and I were together, but it was only a fleeting thought. When I realized that he had slept in my bed despite my warning him not to, I got up and scolded him. It was our first fight of the day, and he apologized, saying that he had initially gone to sleep in another room but then heard Harley crying and got up to tend to her, unintentionally falling asleep in my bed.

But then I let him sleep in my bed because, to be honest, it didn't bother me, quite the opposite. As for his mood, it hasn't been the same lately, he's been a bit down, and I'm afraid to ask him and receive a negative response.

Regarding Harley, she's growing more attached to him each day. Throughout this week, I've only carried her once or twice a day, and it's just for breastfeeding. She simply wanted and cried for Jhonny's arms.

"Laura, hurry up," he demanded, knocking on the door and interrupting my train of thought. It was seven in the morning, and he was pressuring me to finish up in the bathroom.

"Jhonny, every room in this hallway has a bathroom, and there's also one downstairs. Why do you want to use mine?" I asked from inside.

"Just because, this is the one I like," he replied simply.

"Well, then you'll have to wait because I'm going to shower," I said, hearing a huff from him.

I stepped into the shower, closed the glass doors and turned on the water. I was showering when I felt a penetrating gaze on me. I turned around and locked eyes with Jhonny, who was urinating.

"What are you doing here?!" I shouted, covering the essential parts of my body with my hands.

"I told you I needed to use the bathroom," he said, washed his hands, and left the bathroom.

Jhonny was a difficult man to decipher, and somehow I could understand him. I left the bathroom wrapped in a white bathrobe with a towel on my hair. I approached the crib where my daughter was still peacefully asleep and then went to the closet to get dressed.

After dressing up and ready, I heard the artificial sound of the bathroom water, and I assumed Jhonny was showering. Harley's little hands were moving; she was awake. I approached her and took her in my arms to breastfeed her.

After breastfeeding my baby, I took her to her room and changed her diaper and clothes. I returned to my room with her in my arms, and Jhonny was already dressed. He approached me, took the baby from my arms, and planted a kiss on her forehead.

"I'll be leaving tonight," he said as we had breakfast on the bed. I nodded and turned my gaze to the television. The truth was, I didn't want him to go; in one way or another, I had gotten used to him this week, to our morning routines, our senseless fights... Sleeping with him. On top of that, I had a bad feeling.

"I know," I whispered.

"Let's go to the nearby park," he requested, surprising me. The park was in front of the villa, a private park owned by the residents here. Hardly anyone went there; mostly teenagers who lived in this place and stay-at-home moms with young children.

"Uh... Alright," I accepted, still surprised. The truth was, I needed a breath of fresh air, especially now that I was completely healed.

We prepared Harley together and placed her in her stroller with her fluffy white blanket. We decided to walk since the park wasn't too far away.

"I'm going to miss her," he said once we were walking in the park. I looked at him confused.

"You won't see her as often as before, but you can still see her whenever you want," I responded to his words that sounded like a farewell, but I dismissed the idea immediately.

"You don't understand," he whispered, looking at me intently, with a gaze that conveyed something I couldn't decipher, and then he smiled, a smile that seemed sad. But he didn't say anything else; he just kept walking and changed the subject of conversation.

...

We had a great day at the park. We ate ice cream and talked about trivial things. He showed me photos of the moment my little one came out of me and the place where other newborns were. Occasionally, he stopped in one place just to take a photo of Harley.

We were back home, and he was finishing packing his clothes into the same bag he had brought a week ago when his phone rang, and he went outside to answer it.

As I was about to leave and go to the kitchen, I heard him talking, and I froze in my place.

"I know, Mom... I'll leave... Yes, I know, Mother, I know! I damn well know that Sunday is my damn wedding!" he whispered-shouted, making my body go cold.

It can't be, not now...

Tears filled my eyes, but I quickly wiped them away and went back into the room, taking my baby in my arms. Within seconds, he entered, looking angry, his face flushed.

"I have to go," he said coldly. He was upset, but I was even more than that. I was disappointed.

I followed him to the sidewalk where his car was parked, holding Harley in my arms. He turned around and looked at me nostalgically, kissed Harley's forehead with a trembling kiss as if he was about to cry at any moment.

"Goodbye, Laura," he bid farewell in a hoarse voice, kissing my forehead and caressing my cheek. Then he turned around and started walking towards the car.

"I... I'll give you two options, Jhonny," I spoke once I managed to connect my brain to my mouth. He stopped abruptly but didn't turn around. "You can lose everything now, everything you once said you wouldn't lose for her... I know you love her," I said on the verge of tears and with a trembling voice, "you will gain much more than what you'll lose, or you can leave right now and continue keeping what you have, but I swear you won't see my daughter ever again. She doesn't deserve to be kept a secret.

He said nothing, I only saw his back tense up, and his fists clenched.

"I'm giving you options, Jhonny," I spoke again, eager to hear his response. "You can stay and lose now and win later, much more. Much more than what you have now."

His only response was to advance towards the car without looking back at any moment. He got in and stayed there for a few minutes, giving hope to my heart that somehow believed he would come out at any moment and stay with his daughter and me. But it didn't happen. The engine of his car roared, and my hopes died as he sped away from my sight, causing all the tears I had held back until now to flow frantically.

I just stared at the place where he had gone with his daughter in my arms, so absent from what was happening, and my heart shattered by his decision because, even though I didn't want to admit it, I was damn in love with him.

I was in love with Johnny Smith.