Chapter 31 Would You Have Told Him?
While Derek loosened his tie and dropped it on the table. He walked toward the kitchen, poured himself a glass of water, and drank it in one go. Then he leaned against the counter, breathing out slowly.
For the first ten minutes of their arrival, no one spoke. The silence stretched on and it felt very uncomfortable and heavy like something covering the atmosphere.
Rebecca’s heart raced. There were so many things she wanted to say, so many questions stuck in her throat. She eventually took a seat on the sofa.
At the same time, Derek seemed restless. He ran a hand through his hair, pacing slowly as if he were trying to find the right words.
Finally, they both opened their mouths at the same time.
"So..."
"So..."
They stopped and looked at each other. For a brief moment, something almost like awkward amusement passed between them.
Derek cleared his throat. "You go first," he said calmly. "You’re the lady."
Rebecca hesitated. Leaning back against the sofa. She nodded and then spoke up.
"So…,” she said slowly, choosing her words carefully, "It was this wedding that made you call off our deal, right?"
That wasn't what she wanted to ask but somehow, that was what came out.
Derek frowned slightly. "Deal?" he repeated. That wasn't what he'd expected her to say after everything that had happened today.
"Yes," Rebecca replied, her voice steady even though her chest felt tight. "The arrangement we had when you came to my company by the name, Ryan. I'm talking about the arrangement you suddenly ended."
Derek stared at her for a few seconds, then understanding dawned on him. "So…," he said slowly, "You were talking about me?" He replied with a question of his own.
She looked confused. "Talking about you?"
"You said you had someone willing to marry you," Derek continued. "That someone was me?" He asked, barely surpassing his amusement.
Rebecca said nothing, her lips pressed together.
Derek sighed and ran a hand down his face. "I wasn’t actually going to marry you, I mean this you," he admitted. "My grandfather forced me into this wedding. He picked the bride. I didn’t even know who she was because he wouldn't tell me for fear of me going to make a deal with her."
Rebecca’s eyes widened slightly. "So you didn’t choose this?" she asked, leaning forward on the sofa.
"No," Derek said firmly. "I was left with no choice."
She crossed her arms over her chest. "Well, neither was I," she replied. "I didn’t want this marriage either. I had no choice because you bailed."
Derek studied her face. He could see the truth in her eyes the exhaustion, frustration and fear.
"So we were both trapped," he said quietly as he walked over and sat opposite her.
Rebecca nodded. "I guess you can say that."
Another silence followed after that. This one felt different, less tense, but still heavy.
Derek leaned back against the couch. "So… what happens now?" he asked. "What is this going to be like?"
Rebecca swallowed. "I don’t know," she admitted. "But before we talk about that, I want to ask you something." She had been meaning to ask him this, especially after her surprise when the officiant had called her husband Derek Hemsworth instead of Mr. Ryan Perkins, the name he had told her.
"Go ahead," he said, thinking she was going to ask about why he still went ahead with the marriage.
"Why did you hide your name from me?" she asked. "Why didn’t you tell me who you really were?"
Derek stiffened slightly and he looked away before answering.
"At first," he said slowly, "I didn’t want you to know."
"Why?" she asked, intrigued.
"Because I didn’t want you to agree to marry me because of my name," he said honestly. "Or my money. Or my background."
Rebecca frowned. "You think I would do that?"
"I didn’t know you well enough to be sure," he replied calmly. "People change when they hear my full name. They search me up. They see my wealth. Suddenly, everything feels… fake." He had gone through that phase a thousand times and had grown tired of it.
He paused. "I wanted to stay plain," he continued. "Surface level. I wanted to see who you really were before all that."
Rebecca absorbed his words quietly. After a moment, she nodded. "Okay," she said simply.
Derek looked at her, surprised by how easily she accepted it. "Okay?" he repeated.
"Yes," she replied. "I get it."
He hadn’t expected that response; he had envisioned her asking more questions or even taking offense at him calling her a gold digger indirectly.
Something softened in his expression. Then he straightened, his face becoming serious again.
"There’s something I want to ask you," he said.
Rebecca’s heart skipped a beat. She had no idea what he was about to ask, but she wondered if it was about Liam. "What is it?" she inquired.
He hesitated for a moment before continuing. "Imagine today wasn’t about me," he said carefully. "Imagine you were standing at the altar with another man."
Rebecca’s fingers curled slightly as she waited for him to finish his question. She knew it was definitely going to be a out Liam.
Probably he wants to ask her what she thought any other man would've done after Liam. Maybe if he did, then she'd ask him why he carried on like nothing Liam said mattered.
"Would you have told him?" Derek asked quietly, looking directly at her.
"Told him what?" she asked, though she already knew.
"That you’re pregnant."
The words hung heavily in the air. Rebecca’s breath caught in her throat. It wasn't this question she'd expected him to ask.
She'd thought he was talking about telling him about the crazy ex. Obviously, she'd been wrong.
Derek continued, his voice steady yet searching. "I’m sure my grandfather doesn’t know about it because if he did, today would have gone very differently even before that idiot came."
"So I want to know," Derek said. "If it had been someone else... would you have told him the truth?"