Snow Carr Northridge.
"I'll do that ma'am" one of the bell boys said, relieving me of the stress of having to drag my two boxes along. Ian couldn't come with immediately so he said he'll come tomorrow.
"That work oriented boy, he's already missing a day out of a 5-day vacation. He's so much like his father" mum said rolling her eyes as we walked into a very grand hotel in Florida. Dad pulled her close and pressed a kiss into her hair.
"Oh come on June, cut the boy some slack. You should be happy he even decided to follow through with your idea of a vacation. Snow should be the one doing all the ranting you're doing right now" he said and winked at me.
"I know right. The poor girl is here without a partner but that's good for me anyway, I can't have too much people throwing their love in my face. For example, the four of you" Leanne said pointing at Dad,mum, Royalty and Roland. Roland, being the stubborn man that he is, pulled Royalty close and kissed her.
"Gross" Savannah and Leanne said together and we all laughed. Those two are just the spawns of Satan.
"You really should get a boyfriend Leanne. Don't follow in the footsteps of Royalty, I beg. I was almost considering sending an apology letter to Roland when he got mad at Royalty and stopped chasing her" mum said and everyone laughed out loud except Royalty, who was giving her mum the evilest eye ever.
"Oh mum please, can you not drag me into your bantering this evening. I'm not in the mood" Royalty said grumbling and we all chuckled. We were already at the reception and laughing way too loudly would be rude, especially since we're royalty.
"Calm down babe. You've been cranky all day" Roland said as we moved to the elevator, after sorting out our rooms. The rooms were side by side, except mine and Ian's, which was on another floor entirely.
"Try carrying another human being in your belly and see if you'll be living your best life" Royalty snapped and Roland raised his hands in mock surrender.
"Ooookay mommy, I am sorry" he said and regret flashed in Royalty's eyes. I'm sure she wanted to apologize but she couldn't do that since we were in public so she moved closer to Roland who looked at her and gave her a smile only a man who is head over heels for a woman would give, he pulled her close and muttered something that made Royalty pink. I was happy for her, so so happy but man, was I envious too!
I wanted this with Ian, I wanted to be able to find solace in his arms, to be able to apologize even without saying a word, I wanted to share every single moment with him and have fights with him....well, we do the last part quite well but it isn't exactly a lovers' kind of fight. Ours was always brutal.
"Bye Snow, since Ian is a no-show, I know you won't mind coming to our room for a girl's time out" Savannah said and I smiled.
"I'm a girl too....and I'm definitely coming. There better be Cheerios" Royalty said and we laughed before the elevator closed and I was left alone. My hands instinctively rested on my belly and I smiled. Sometimes I still find it soo hard to believe I'm really pregnant!. Like I have a baby growing inside of me.
When the elevator stopped, I walked out and while trying to fix my falling bag strap, my key dropped and before I could bend to pick it up, someone else did it for me.
"Thank you very much" I said immediately and looked up to see a guy around his mid twenties. He looked a little older than Ian but maybe with about a year and he was easy on the eyes. A little too easy if you ask me.
"You're welcome miss. I take it you just arrived here?" He said, he had the perfect(est) british accent in the world and I won't deny the fact that I swooned, at that accent.
"Uh..yes. Yes I just arrived." I answered and he flashed a toothy grin and nodded before handing me my key and walking away. Wow! Florida might be fun.
The room, or should I say suite, was absolutely exquisite and looked like something brought down from Heaven. I need to meet the interior decorator and take some serious lessons from his or her Royal awesomeness. It looked absolutely fabulous and amazing.
My boxes arrived two minutes later and I busied myself with arranging my things before taking a shower and heading down to Savannah and Leanne's suite. I wanted to call Ian but we were not exactly in that kind of relationship so I pocketed my phone and threw that idea in the trash.
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When Savannah threw the invitation at me, I thought we would be sleeping on the bed, eating junks and watching movies or listening to music but no!, she decided on the pool!
Just 3 hours after the great arrival in Florida, she had discovered the pool in the hotel and made sure to coerce us into getting dressed up for the pool and dragging us to the pool.
"I look fat in this" Royalty complained as she fingered in the big cardigan she was wearing, accompanied with maternity shorts. I laughed, lucky me, I haven't started showing yet.
"You're naturally fat plus you're pregnant, so I don't see why you should be surprised" Leanne said shrugging and we were all expecting Royalty to give her some kind of comeback or smack her, instead tears pooled in her eyes. I was gobsmacked!.
"Oh my God!. Sis, I didn't mean it. I was just joking. Oh my God, what have I done?!" Leanne exclaimed, regret plastered all over her face.
"It's fine. It's just these stupid hormones. I don't feel like myself" Royalty said and let out a short laugh, I sighed in relief.
"You gotta stop scaring us like that Royalty!. I don't know what I'd do if you full on start crying on me" I said pulling her into a hug, and soon everyone joined.
"Interesting sight" a voice said, interrupting our cute moment. It wasn't a recognizable voice and when I turned, my mouth was opened wide. Where did this guy come from?. Where did Florida ship this guys from???.
"Do we know you?" Leanne said with raised brow and he gave a side smirk that had me blinking, I looked around to see that everyone was definitely affected by that smirk. He was like a piece of art, done by the best artist in the world. If I thought Ian was the most good-looking guy I've ever met, then I thought wrongly.
"Aren't you a fiesty one?. Well, no. You don't know me but I don't mind introducing myself. I am Pierce Seven" he said and I blinked. Unusual.
"Seven?. Where's eight?" Leanne asked and he laughed. Even his laughter is beautiful!.
"That would be your figure ma'am" he said and it took a minute for me to grab but when I finally did, I let out a laughter. This guy is smooth!.
"That's smooth!. I like that" I said and he looked at me with a small smile and bowed.
"Hello beautiful. What's the name?" He asked and extended his hand, which I gladly took. His hand was strong and his grip was firm, nice grip from a guy but his hand had no effect on me. None whatsoever. If it were to be Ian, my sensory receptors would be going crazy by now. Ian had me real bad!
"Mrs Snow Northridge" I said and he gave a small smirk and shook his head, faking disappointment.
"Ouch. I guess I was late" He said and I gave him a fake sad puppy face and from there, I knew we would make very good friends.
"Don't you think you're overstaying your welcome?" Leanne said and he raised his brow. Gosh, can someone tell this guy to walk around with some kinda shield around him or something?, his hotness is blinding!.
"You seem to be enjoying my company mademoiselle" He said and Leanne rolled her eyes but I noticed the glint in her eyes. Anyone with eyes could definitely see the sparks. Thank you Lord for this wonderful brother in law to be.
"See you later ladies. Bye Mrs Snow" He said and walked away. Every single one of us sighed. Royalty inclusive!.
"That guy......is out of this planet. Too bad he's going to end up as my brother in law" Savannah said and we all laughed.
"Thank God I wasn't the only one seeing the sparks flying around. Leanne, is this the reason why you asked us to come to the pool?" Royalty said and we all laughed.
"I didn't see that coming but I'm glad I decided to get us down here" She said and we all chuckled.
"Look at your life, yet you were busy giving him attitude" I said and she rolled her eyes at me.
"That guy looks like someone who will have all the attention he wants. I need to give him a challenge. You know how it is" she said and I shook my head. I have a crazy sister in law.
We spent the rest of the day at the beach, talking about fashion, work, boys and babies. It was fun and it took my mind off the sadness and pain that ran deep inside.
"Guess we have to part here. Don't miss us too much" Savannah said as the elevator stopped at their floor and I waved them off and continued up to my room.
Once in the room, loneliness engulfed me and I was back where I began; desperately missing Ian. I picked up the idea I threw in the trash can and dialed Ian's number and feeling really cowardly, I cut the call and covered myself with the blanket. I have absolutely nothing to say to him and I'll end up sounding like a fool.
Just as I was about falling asleep, my phone rang and I broke out in sweat. Could it be?, as I picked up the phone and checked the caller ID, I knew I was screwed. With clammy fingers, I hit the answer button.
"Hello" his deep voice reached my ears and I wished there was no distance between us.
"Hi" I replied and silence followed after. I knew it!, I knew I made a mistake calling him. Now I just made a fool of myself.
"Are you alright Snow?, is there something wrong with you?" He asked and I could swear, I sensed concern in his voice.
"Yes. Yes, I am fine. I was just calling to ask after you. Hope you were able to complete what you needed to at work?" I asked.
"Not exactly. I'm still at work and I'll try to finish it tonight so I can meet up with my flight tomorrow. It's an early flight" he said and I couldn't wait for morning.
"Oh. Did ...did you eat?" I asked trying to elongate the conversation and hoping he doesn't drop the call on me.
"Well...I had lunch. I haven't been able to get around to dinner" I said and my mouth formed an O.
"But you should eat. You've been working all morning and it's only right that you eat at least twice even if you can't get three square meals. I know how busy you are Ian but still, you need to eat something." I found myself scolding him and when I was done, my face burned. He will definitely drop the call. I was mortified to hear his low chuckle.
"Gosh Snow, you're such a mum. I'll eat alright. Don't worry about me, worry about yourself. You're the one catering for two. Please tell me you fed my child" he said and the way he said it filled me with warmth. A wide goofy smile stretched across my face.
"Well. The girls and I had lunch, then we went down to the pool where we did more talking than eating, it was mostly junks though but I'm totally bloated. I feel really fat" I said and he chuckled again.
"Better get used to being fat. Have you seen Royalty?, she has added like two hundred pounds" he said and I laughed and went on to tell him about what happened at the pool.
"Are you kidding?. Royalty cried?!. Now I'm sad I missed that. I can't believe that girl has tear glands" he said and I shook my head.
"What kind of brother are you Ian?. You should be feeling protective about your sister" I said and I could almost hear him shrug.
"Protective?. Please, that's why she has Roland. It would be in my total jurisdiction if she had directed that insult at you." he said and I think the realization of those words hit the both of us and silence ensued. My heart was pounding erratically and I knew I was turning pink.
"See you tomorrow Snow. Go to bed, good night" he said and dropped the call. For the first time in a while, I slept with a smile on my face.
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