CLAIMED // 18+

Chapter Fourteen - Elaine

"Lainey," Paulina looks at me, all confused and worried at the same time "What did you just tell me?"

I feel the rising lump in my throat and I swear if I try talking, the words will get stuck at my throat and I'll start crying before anything even takes place. I didn't want to hurt Paulina, but she looks so hurt by what I just said, that it's taking everything in me to hold back my tears and regret.

"I--" I swallow, my lips trembling "I'm so sorry, I... I know I shouldn't have lied to you on the first place. I know I hurt your feelings with what I did, but, you need to trust me--"

"How do you expect me to trust you, Elaine? You literally lied to me about that because you don't trust me!" Her voice shakes. I feel my whole being eventually begin to crumble and fade "you didn't trust me. You thought that if you told me about your forbidden romance with some 'mafia' dude, I'd take you away from him and hand him to the police or something?"

"That's not the reason why--"

"Then what's the reason, Elaine? Do you even know the reason?!"

"Yes!" I exclaim, gripping tightly onto the fabric of my skirt "I didn't tell you because I didn't want to hurt you. After Cal, I..." I don't want to break into tears, but I can't stop myself. I'm so fucking weak right now. I continue speaking through the tears rolling down my face "After C-Cal, and the way you warned me all the time that he wasn't good for me, I didn't want you to say the same about Sebastian."

"Cal was an asshole! And I warned you because I saw him being one with my own eyes! Did you think I was making shit up about him!?" Paulina folds her hand to a fist. I haven't seen her being this angry in a long time. The last time, was exactly when she warned me about Cal and I chose not to listen.

I regret it. I still regret it to this day, why I didn't listen to her or believe her. I was so blinded by love, and was so stupid to not realize the obvious truth. I was young, dumb and my first love scarred me for life. But if I only believed Paulina, none of that would've happened.

Paulina crosses her arms condescendingly "you lied to me, because you think I'll just stop you from dating every guy you ever fall for?"

"No, that's not it. It's because Sebastian isn't just some guy. Even I thought about it a lot-- whether I should love him even." I quickly input "I know that his title and all makes him seem dangerous, and maybe he is, but he loves me. He protects me. He... wants to marry me. And, he's more than willing to have a baby with me."

"A baby, who's going to be-- what? The heir to the mafia throne? Sounds safe as hell, if you ask me." She scoffs.

"I knew I shouldn't have told you about it." I make the grave mistake of mumbling it under my breath. She hears it just fine.

"That's right, Elaine. You shouldn't have. Because, guess what? Again, I'm not making shit up for this 'Sebastian' guy either. He's the leader of a large crime organization and a good friend would never encourage this." Paulina gets up from her seat, slams a five dollar bill on the table, and starts to walk away. But then she pauses, and says to me, like a thousand daggers to my chest "when you do get hurt and everything I just said does come true, don't think of crying about it to me, because what happened once 3 years ago was enough."

And the next thing I know, she's gone. I can't help but cry, practically sob in the middle of a moderately empty restaurant. I can't believe how wrong all that went. I tried so hard for it to be not like this, and it was my biggest fear. Thus, my biggest fear is precisely what happened.

Amidst my sorrowful moment, my phone vibrates inside the pocket of my jacket. Sebastian's name flashes up on the screen. He's calling me.

I wipe my tears and clear my throat before I pick up his call.

"Hello?" I sniffle, trying my best to make it sound not so obvious. Immediately, Sebastian's voice soothes my heavy heart and sends me to a place of comfort.

"You don't sound well. Is everything okay, babe?" he says, concern written all over his voice.

"I'm fine," I swallow my throat "are you at your office? I can come now."

"You don't have to, angel. I'll come--"

I interrupt "No, I want to come. I really need to see you. I... I want to see you. So bad."

There's silence over the line for a second, before Sebastian speaks again.

"Okay."

***

"It's okay, baby. It' s all okay. It'll be fine."

Sebastian repeatedly tries to reassure me, holding me in his arms. He pulled me to his lap and hugged me to comfort me as soon as I came into his office and exploded into tears. He quietly gestures Leon to leave us alone, and I hear him walk away and shut the door.

"I didn't want to hurt her, Sebastian. That's all I really wanted." I sob. Sebastian rubs a tear off my cheeks with his thumb.

He cups my cheek in his hand and kisses me tenderly. It's all I really need right now.

"I'm sure she'll understand soon. She is your closest friend, right?" he lifts my hand up to his lips and kisses it.

I sniff my nose and smile at him "she's the only one I had beside me all this time."

"Exactly. Don't worry, she won't leave you like this." He tells me with a warm and kind tone, and adjusts me better to his lap "Now, let's not be too sad. We've got a wedding to plan, right? I booked a few appointments and cleared my schedule for the day to take you on trying out wedding dresses."

"Oh, um..." my eyes flash to the wall clock behind Sebastian. There's only 10 minutes left until I need to get to my shift at the grocery store. So, I say, trying to get off of him "I can't... today. I got a part-time job to do in 10 minutes."

Sebastian doesn't let me as he holds me still and tucks my hair behind an ear "you don't have to, not anymore from now on."

"What?" I ask, all confused.

"What I mean is-- you don't have to do those jobs anymore. My men took care of it." He says it like it's no big deal and leans in to kiss me. However, I quickly stop him.

"You did what!?" I exclaim "you're telling me that you ordered your men and made me lose all my jobs!?"

He grins with full confidence in what he just did "Yep, that's about it. Now that you're going to be my wife, and--" he caresses his hand across my belly "-- my baby mama, you don't have to do anything like that anymore. Because, the woman of the Don never have to suffer like this and only deserves the best--"

"Bullshit!"

I yell and immediately push his hands off me and get off his lap. I'm literally fuming right now.

"Huh?" he looks utterly surprised and isn't sure of what's going on with me.

Is this the first time Sebastian's making me mad? Oh my god, will this lead to... a quarrel?

To be continued...