Chapter 20

LILIAN

After having a sumptuous dinner, Jayda and Lilian settled on the sofa in the living room where they talked about different things while enjoying their ice cream.

“You won’t believe what happened today,” Lilian said as she took another bite.

“What happened?” Jayda asked curiously.

“Sebastian called me.”

Jayda sighed. “He also sent me a bouquet of roses and a box of chocolates. The roses came with a note. He said he’s sorry and that I should give him a chance to be in my life and my baby’s life.”

“Are you for real?” Lilian asked, totally surprised.

Jayda nodded, enjoying the taste of her ice cream.

“So where are the apology gifts?” Lilian asked because she could not recall seeing any roses in the house.

“I had Anna return them along with a letter reminding him that he was to return the documents I sent to him by noon. Also, the restraining order applied to the gifts so he shouldn’t send any gifts to my house or office.”

JAYDA

Jayda noticed Lilian was looking weird. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah…I mean, I’m just surprised that he acted a little romantic.”

“That’s not all,” Jayda mentioned as she took another lick of her dessert. “He came to see me at the office.”

“He said so when he called. He said that you refused to see him.”

Jayda nodded. “I told the receptionist to tell him that I won’t speak to him except through his lawyer. What did he talk to you about?”

“He said he was deeply sorry for everything and that he wants to make it up to you. He wants me to plead to you to see him so that he can apologize and explain why he acted the way he did.

“He sounded stressed and I could hear the remorse in his voice. I almost could not believe Sebastian Miller was the one talking.

“He said only his mom and best friend are aware of you and the baby. Apparently, his mom spoke some sense into him and made him promise not to give up on you. So, what next?” Lilian asked her best friend.

Jayda exhaled. “I knew I was taking a chance when I sent those documents. If he signed, I was going to raise my baby alone but now that he didn’t… I won’t deny that I feel something for him. Even before I read the note, I knew the roses and chocolates were from him and that gesture made me a little bit happy. But Sebastian Miller needs to be taught a lesson.”

“He sure does,” Lilian agreed.

“If not for the shoulder you gave me to lean on, I don’t know how I would have survived it all. Sebastian cannot just approach me and expect me to forgive him like that. He hurt me really bad, and he has to work really hard to earn my trust.”

Jayda looked at her friend. “Are you going to speak on his behalf?”

“Nope. I told him he shouldn’t involve me in the matter, and that he should find a way to sort things out with you himself.”

Jayda nodded.

“Enough of your baby daddy talk. I got something for you. Hopefully, it will cheer you up.”

Lilian went into the guest room and brought back a gift bag.

Jayda smiled as she reached for the bag. The first thing she pulled out was a tiny pair of unisex sneakers.

“Aww, Lily, you’re going to make me cry,” Jayda said, her eyes not leaving the tiny pair of shoes.

“Hurry up, there’s still more in the bag.” Lilian smiled.

Jayda found a set of glass milk cups for babies and a T-shirt for her. It was a gray T-shirt with a ~Mommy To Be~ design in black print.

“I honestly don’t know what I will do without you, Lily. Thank you,” Jayda said with a glint of happy tears.

“You’re welcome. Well, you’ve been going through a lot lately and I wanted to make you happy, so yay! Mission accomplished.

“I wanted to buy everything in the store, but I restricted myself to these three items because I didn’t want to freak you out.”

Jayda chuckled. “Thanks, my love. I will make sure I rock this T-shirt pretty soon.”

“So, do you want the baby to be a boy or a girl?” Lilian asked, interested.

“Okay, you’re now scaring me, ma’am,” Jayda said, and they burst into laughter. “Honestly, I haven’t really thought about it. I’m still trying to process the fact that a little miracle is growing inside of me.

“If I am to decide, I would like to have a boy for my first child, but I think I would be okay with any gender, so long as he or she is healthy.”

“Wow, Sebastian Miller, Junior!” Lilian teased. “Aunt Vanessa will be very happy to have a grandson.”

“He is permitted to look like Sebastian, but he will only inherit my character,” Jayda commanded.

Lilian smiled “Whatever. But I do hope it’s a girl.”

***

JAYDA

^THE NEXT DAY^

As soon as Jayda finished saying her morning prayers, she reached for her ringing phone. She smiled when she saw that it was her mom.

“Morning, Mom.”

“Good morning, my love. You promised to return my call yesterday, but you didn’t.”

Jayda face-palmed. “I’m sorry, Mom, I got carried away with other things.”

“I hope you aren’t overworking yourself?” Grace asked, concern evident in her voice. She had been like a mother hen since the day Jayda confirmed that she was pregnant.

“No, Mom, I’m not. Your grandchild and I come first in everything I do.”

“Good to hear, my dear. I’m on my way to see a friend, and from there we will go do some shopping. Your dad and I will be leaving for Italy tomorrow morning. One of his close friends’ sons is getting married, and we were invited.”

“Cool. I won’t tell you to have fun, because I know you and Dad will enjoy yourselves to the fullest.”

“Sure, we will. So, any news from Sebastian?” Grace asked, making Jayda groan.

“Mom, your friend must be waiting for you. We will talk about Sebastian when you come back from Italy. You’re going just for the wedding, right?”

“I forgot how stubborn my daughter could be and how good she was at changing subjects. Well, we won’t be leaving immediately after the wedding. We will stay back for a few days. Don’t worry, I’ll call you from time to time and send you pictures.”

Jayda rolled her eyes. She had more pictures of her parents from their various trips and events than pictures of herself on her phone.

“Take care of yourself, and I’m hoping you will have settled with Sebastian by the time I’m back. I love you, dear.”

Jayda smiled. “I love you too, Mom. Bye.”

Jayda had almost placed her phone on the nightstand when another call came in. She thought it was her mom who was calling back, so she picked up the call without even looking to see who it was.

“Yes, Mom?”

“Jayda, it’s me.” She heard a familiar voice say.

Jayda went still, trying to figure out how he got her number, but then she realized he was a billionaire and had his ways. A shiver of desire crept up and down her spine as she imagined him doing everything in his power to find her. He must want her very much.

But did she want him?

“Please, don’t hang up. Please hear me out for just a minute,” Sebastian pleaded. “I’m sorry, Jayda, I’m so deeply sorry for everything. I’ve been nothing but a jackass to you, and I regret my actions. I really need to see you so I can apologize in person and explain why I acted the way I did.

“Everything about you made me see life in another perspective, but I was so stubborn and stupid not to accept the fact that you were different from the other women I’ve been with.

“I now understand what people mean when they say you don’t know the value of something until you’ve lost it.”

Jayda couldn’t believe what she was hearing. Could she even trust him?

“I want to make amends, I want to be in your life and our baby’s life, Jayda. Please give me the opportunity to make it up to the two of you.”

Jayda could hear the plea and nervousness in his voice. She could picture him looking slightly frustrated and guilty.

She didn’t know what reply to give him so she ended the call as soon as his one minute was over.