Chapter Sevnety-Two

Chapter Sevnety-Two
Everett

The last couple of days have been hell. I shouldn’t be in London! I should be home with Aubrey after everything that happened, but she told me to stay put. I wasn’t going to listen because I know she needs me, but my return will add to her stress because of Hugo and Erica not knowing. They would know there was something, but by what Aubrey said, Erica would be fine with it. We are still on the fence about Hugo. I don’t want to make things worse for Aubrey.

My focus has been nearly nonexistent. My worry levels have been sky-high. Work is the last thing on my mind, but I am stuck here, and I hate it. I have been staying out of everyone’s way because I have been taking my mood out on them, and I don’t want to do that. I can do that, not with this being a new business. We can afford for everyone to quit. I only deal with them if I really need to.
All I want is to jump on the next flight, and it is taking everything in me not to do that. Hugo will be here in a couple of days. I know he is going to question me about everything, and to be honest, I have gotten to that stage where a part of me wants to tell him everything. I know Hugo. He will push and push on the subject. He will be an asshole about it, and I will end up snapping. I know he is only protecting Aubrey, and I appreciate that. I appreciate everything he has done for her, but it is my job, not his. He can accept it or not; it won’t change anything.

I return to my apartment and head straight for the scotch, pouring a double and sit on the sofa, sighing loudly and take a swig. I am exhausted. I have barely been sleeping. There has been too much on my mind to sleep. I rest my head back against the sofa, close my eyes and massage my temples. Every part of me is tense with stress.

The sound of my cell ringing pulls me from it. I take it from my pocket to check who is calling and smile when I see it is Aubrey. God, I miss her. She only left a few days ago, but it feels like months.

I quickly answer it. “Hey, baby girl.”

“Hello, handsome.” She coos.

“I miss you.” The words come out of my mouth without hesitation.

“I miss you too. Are you still at work?”

“No, I am back at the apartment.”

“Okay, then, in that case, can we switch to a video call?”

“Yes, please.” I would rather see her than just hear her voice.

We hang up, and she calls back seconds later by video. I notice she is sitting against a tree. She must be at the park. She shouldn’t be out alone, not while that bastard is still around.

“Aubrey, where are you? Why are you alone?”

She lets out a sigh and runs her fingers through her hair. “I am at the park. I will be fine. I only came here so I could call you. I couldn’t do it at the office. Hugo knows where I am.”

“Aubrey, I don’t like you being out alone, especially when he could be anywhere.”

“I will be okay. Once we talk, then I will head straight back. I promise.”

I nod, but I still don’t like the idea. I will make her stay on the call with me until she arrives back at the office. At least that way, I know she will be safe until she gets back to the office. I didn’t expect her to be back at work already.

“How are you, angel?”

“I am doing okay. I came back to work because I was going a little stir-crazy. Hugo is taking me to view a couple of apartments tomorrow.”

I was happy when I found out he wanted to find her somewhere new and safer. If it weren’t so soon, I would suggest she move in with me, but we are not there yet. It isn’t the right time. We can’t anyway, not until the truth about our relationship is out in the open.

“Good, I hope you find one and soon.”

“I am sure if Hugo and Erica have anything to do with it, I will.”

“Yes.”

“How was your day?” she asks, changing the subject.

I fill her in on my day, and she does the same. We chat about everything and anything. It is nice until she needs to return to work. I am so eager to get back to Aubrey.

“You can keep talking to me until you arrive at the office.”

“Yes, boss.” She says with a giggle.

I shake my head and chuckle. “I need to discuss something with you.”

Aubrey seems nervous when I say, “What? Is everything okay?”

I nod. “Yes. You know, when Hugo arrives here, he is going to ask me a million questions and push, right?”

“Probably, yes.” She sighs.

“What are your thoughts on me telling him? I can tell him while he is here. You can tell Erica while Hugo isn’t there?” I suggest.

I am unsure if she will be willing, but I would rather suggest it than just blurting it out when I see Hugo.

“Is that such a good idea? Shouldn’t we tell both of them together?”

“Aubrey, I may not have a choice. If he pushes enough, I will break.”

Aubrey falls silent for a moment, thinking about my suggestion. “Okay, then maybe it is best that we do. Please do it somewhere public because you know it isn’t going to go well.”

I will do it here in the apartment. I don’t want to cause a scene in public. At least here, he can yell and do whatever he wants without drawing attention to us.

“Are you sure? Will you be okay telling Erica alone?”

“Yes, we need to do it at some time. I will be fine. Erica isn’t going to be as hard to tell as Hugo, which is strange considering Erica is blood, and Hugo isn’t.”

“He is protective, that’s all. We can discuss it more later. I know you will be arriving back at work soon.”

Aubrey nods, and we chat until she arrives, say our goodbyes and hang up. It won’t be hard to bring the conversation up with Hugo because it is the first thing he is going to want to talk about with me. I am expecting it, so maybe I can prepare better for it. He will be angry. I don’t know to what extent, but I will need to wait and find out.