Wrath of Andrea

EIGHT

EIGHT

Lucas's POV

My mind was a raging whirlwind at this moment. So many different emotions were swirling in my mind.

Love, for Andrea and my unborn baby.

Fear, for their safety.

Anxiety, to meet Andrea for the first time in months.

Confusion, to know how she exactly was at the moment.

Awe, knowing she managed alone the past eight months.

And anger and betrayal, for leaving me without even telling me the truth

I felt like grabbing her as soon as I saw her and placing a long, sweet kiss on her lips so that she never forgets how much I love her. Twirl her in her arms to show her how happy I am. No, perhaps I should not do that- it might be bad for the baby.

Oh shit! Fuck! I was completely unprepared for the baby, I knew nothing about babies except that they need a lot of attention. There wasn't a nursery for the baby and it would be coming in a month. Was it a boy or a girl? Would they be a daddy's girl or a momma's boy? Would they be sweet and shy or noisy and mischievous?

I wanted to tell my family and friends about what I discovered but I decided against it. I had to find Andrea first. I had only one lead so far- Maria. Even then, I was not sure whether we knew the same Maria or was it merely a coincidence. But I could not just ignore it assuming it to be a coincidence. One of the diary entries had described the inside of her flat but there was no information as to where it was. Her diary was a dead end to her location.

Deciding to immediately talk to Maria, I put on some decent clothes and locked the hotel door behind me as I went to Mr Jadeja's cabin. As I knocked on the door and he called to come in, I saw Mr Jadeja with two ladies, one his age and one half his age and very much pregnant. Those must be his wife and daughter-in-law.

And I turned outright. He introduced me to both of them and they were very sweet and polite.

"Nice to meet you, Mrs Jadeja and Maria. We talked on the phone previously, and I finally can talk to you in person."

I looked towards Maria and said, "I know this is the first time we met and it may seem very weird, but I need to talk to you personally."

She tilted her head and looked at me confused, "Yeah?"

"Please, it is very urgent." I pleaded and Mr and Mrs Jadeja looked between the two of us and especially me dubiously.

"Okay, we can talk in the lobby. Come on." I followed her out of the room like a lost puppy.

She walked to the main lobby and sat on one of the comfortable peach sofas. I sat on the same peach-coloured armchair opposite her. As soon as she opened her mouth to most probably ask questions, I interrupted her, "Do you know Andrea Mathews?"

She looked shell-shocked when I asked that. Her body language said that she at least knew her and I was rarely wrong in my deductions. But my hopes were dashed when she spoke, "Uhh no... Why are you asking?"

In the small, very tiny, chance that she knew Andrea and was not telling me, I told her the major details about mine and Andrea's relationship- what I did almost eleven years ago, why we suddenly decided to marry, the fake pregnancy, seeing her in Goa and the now real pregnancy. I did not specifically tell her about the diary and its contents, but I hinted that I knew that the baby was mine and she was hiding in Goa.

She stayed silent for a few moments and then finally spoke, "You love her, right? And you want her by your side."

I nodded my head at her words hopefully. 

"I am sorry but I do not know your wife. I can help you find her though, I lived here in Goa till my marriage, so I can ask around if you want. Take care, Lucas."

She stood up holding her swollen belly and was about to walk away when I called out. "Wait!"

She turned around curiously, "I am sorry if I am wrong but I am getting the feeling that you are hiding something from me. I do not blame you for girl code or anything like that, but if you know Andrea by any chance, please please give her a letter from my side. Otherwise, you can just- just throw it in the dustbin."

I tore a paper from the hotel book on the table and wrote on it.

Hi Andrea...
I am writing this in a bit of a hurry. I just want you to know that if this paper ever reaches you, I want you to know that I love you. I know that we have things to resolve before we are a perfect married couple, but which couples don't have struggles.

I read your diary, the one you forgot at the medical store... Sorry for the invasion of privacy but I needed to know about your whereabouts. The truth was so much different from what you made everyone assume. I would gladly tell you that I and your family and friends will always love and forgive you.

That being said, I want to meet you. I am staying at the Mahaavi Resort in Goa for the next two weeks and may even extend the stay now that I know you are here. I'll tell the staff your name and that you can access my room. My cell number and email id are still the same.

I love you, and our unborn baby as well.❤️

Your husband,
Lucas

I gave the note to Maria. She folded it in half without even looking at it and said, "Papa called. He wants to discuss something with you. I will make sure this reaches your wife."

I smiled.

After a few minutes of just smiling to myself, I walked back to Mr Jadeja's office. He was alone this time.

"Hi, Lucas, what has got you grinning this much?"

"An update from my wife," I said cryptically. He did not need to know about my family's struggles.

He shook his head and said, "Young couples these days."

"I wanted to say that as the deal has been signed, I want to hold a party. Not a party per se, but a close gathering of family and friends next week."

I pondered on his idea. "My family would not be able to come at such short notice but I would love to meet your family. I will try to bring my family here soon for a huge party, especially my wife, next time we have one."

~~~~~

Here you go with another chapter! I'm proud of myself that I was able to write chapters even in a tight schedule.

I hope this pandemic gets its way to hell and we get back to our normal life. Anyways, how do you like the chapter? Do you think Andrea will get the letter? Will Maria help?

~~~~~