My Long Lost Billionaire

Felicity (33)

{Yes, after what feels like years a new chapter is finally out! I hope you guys enjoy, but it's time for that sad stuff :( }

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After that day at the waterpark and the conversation Douglas and I had afterwards, things began to feel different between us. There was secrecy which wound it's way into our relationship and constricted the both of us painfully. Even though it mostly came from Doug's side I was guilty of it too. I knew he was worried about mine and Peyton's safety but it would have been nice to be kept in the loop on the situation. The most I was able to pull out of him was that he had received messages from Tony somehow. Messages I assumed were threatening to all of us but he wouldn't disclose to me what they contained. I only knew they must have been serious threats since Douglas proceeded to hire a body guard to follow Peyton and I around on a daily basis. I can't say that I was angered by this action since I knew it was in our best interest but it still hurt knowing that he refused to confide in me. It made me feel as if our relationship had grown lesser than what I thought it was. Not only did he hire our body guard but we began to spend less and less time together. He refused to let me come into work, saying it was for my safety that I remained home with Peyton until Tony was captured and returned to his cell to rot. So with Doug spending the majority of his time either at work or cramped up in his home office, Peyton and I spent the passing days with my mother in the house all day every day. The first couple of days went by so fast and it was almost a relief to not have to work all of a sudden. But then the days began to drag on and they seemed almost endless. There were only so many cooking shows a woman could watch before she began to lose her mind and I was just about to that point. If I saw one more chef moving around the kitchen, telling me how to properly season the dishes they prepared I was going to throw a Peyton styled temper tantrum. Unfortunately for me, there seemed to be a lot of those from her these days. She had never been so fussy in the past and I suspected it was due to the fact that she rarely sees her father now. They grew so close in the short time in which they have known each other and now it was rare that he had time for either of us. But I held my head high so as not to show my mother or Peyton how devastated I really was from the 'separation'. Instead I acted as if I didn't miss him or his gentle touches at all, it was just easier that way.

A month passed with my newly acquired lifestyle and I was already sick of it. I heard from Douglas maybe four times a week and I only saw him maybe only once in that same time frame. He would stop by and visit Peyton and I at my mothers for dinner or to tuck Peyton into bed but it didn't feel like we were in a relationship. In fact I began to question where we currently stood with one another and so did my mother.

"Have you heard from Doug today sweetheart?" my mother asked as we were both cleaning up the kitchen from dinner. Peyton had gone to bed early since she had been cranky all day with tantrums and tired herself out faster than usual.

"We haven't spoken in a couple days." I replied carelessly, as if that reality didn't bother me at all. While the tone of my voice was calm and cool, my body had a different way to express the way I was feeling since I basically slammed one of the cabinet doors shut in frustration. My mother and I both stilled for a moment, wondering if the sudden noise had woken Peyton. When we heard nothing I went back to work cleaning but my mother continued to stare in my direction.

"Why don't you call him?"

I shook my head and sighed, turning to face her "And say what exactly?" I asked with my eyes beginning to glisten with tears.

"Tell him that you miss him, that you want to see him." she said soothingly as she walked to my side and placed her hand comfortingly on my shoulder.

I turned around and faced the sink, wiping my hand on the soft hand towel next to it. "He's too busy for that. It wouldn't make a difference and besides he already has so much to worry about with Tony. He doesn't need me to make things that much harder on him."

"But he knows you are going through a tough time right now too, it's not just about him. You need each other. And you and I both know that you're going to need more help with Peyton these next couple weeks, given my condition. He must understand that..."

A couple weeks ago, when I was first confined to staying at home all day my mother had confided in me about her illness. It had been easy to hide from me when I was working and spending so much time with Douglas but now that I was around so often she was forced to tell me the truth. She had been sick for a few months and was attending different appointments with numerous doctors to discover the source of the illness. But nobody could make a clear diagnosis. They couldn't determine what was wrong and with each passing day my mother grew weaker and weaker. She was given numerous prescriptions to help but nothing seemed to be working. The news had come as a shock to me and it took me a few days to come to terms with it, but I hadn't gotten around to telling Douglas about it. Not only was it painful to discuss and think about but like I had explained to my mother, he had so many things to worry about already ranging from the threats from Tony and running his company. My problems had to wait until things were back to normal and until then I had to smile like everything was okay.

"About that..." I trailed off "I haven't told him yet."

She looked at me sadly and shook her head slowly from side to side. "Felicity you're making things so much worse. He needs to know how you are feeling, he needs to know what is going on in your life. If he doesn't know he can't help you or be there for you."

I broke and finally the tears began to fall, "Well then he clearly doesn't want to be here does he? If being by my side, protecting me and caring about me is what he wanted don't you think he would be here?" I yelled a bit loudly.

She stood there staring at me, not sure how to respond. That's when Peyton's tiny cry was heard from upstairs. My yelling had woken her and I knew she wouldn't be going back to sleep anytime soon.

"Felicity." My mother started "You and I both know that he loves you, try talking to him. Your relationship can't survive much longer if you both keep going on this way."

I began to make my way towards the stairs, wiping the tears out from under my eyes as I spoke back to her over my shoulder. "I'm not even sure that there is a relationship to save anymore."

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{I had a HUGE whopping case of writing this chapter, almost directly in the middle I knew what I needed to happen but I just couldn't make it happen in a way that flowed well so it's just not too well written. But now I have the foundation set for what I'm doing next and it's only going to get better! So thank you for reading, I hope you liked this chapter and don't forget to vote, comment and follow! The next chapter should be posted before the end of the week.}