The Royal Contract

It would seem like fate was not on her side as she once again faced the possibility of meeting the father of her child. But would that be wise when she had done everything to stay far away from her past?

“How was work?” Amelia asked when she peeked into the nursery to check on Luisa. “I did not notice that you have arrived.”

She also did not see her friend when she walked into the apartment. She went directly into the nursery, wanting to see her little angel, needing her support through her pain.

She turned away from her child and walked toward her friend, not wanting Luisa to be disturbed by their conversation. The last thing she needed was a crying child while she was conflicted.

“It is tiring,” Eida did not elaborate, not ready to tell her about her latest assignment. “But I just got back.” She closed the door behind her, leaving her child in her quiet room. “Where is Angela?” She did not notice her either.

In the meantime, she would keep that information until she figured out what to do. Besides, there was no reason to trouble everyone if she could handle it.

.....

“She is in her room. She was a little winded earlier. So, I ask her to take a nap before dinner.” Her friend told her as they stood in the hallway.

“Why don’t you rest in your room, and I will call you when dinner is ready.” Her friend offered, probably noticing the exhausted look on her face. She was not entirely physically tired, but her mind was quite overwhelmed.

“Ok.” She quickly agreed, using the opportunity to resolve her problem in the confine of her room.

She quickly strode away, leaving Amelia to deal with dinner, hoping to be alone with her thoughts. She did not even bother to change as she dropped her body with her hands spread across the bed.

But instead of closing her eyes, she kept her gaze on the ceiling, seeing nothing as her thoughts ran wild. As the faces of people that she loved stretched across her eyes, fighting for her attention.

Followed by the people who she had hurt and ruined their lives. Could she let Lance marry another woman when all she ever wanted was to be with him, to be his wife?

Did her child deserve the future she had planned for her? Could she allow her to grow up not knowing her father? Was she ready to raise her, knowing she denied her true identity?

What about Lance and his right to his child?

“But what about the Count?” She mumbled in the air as if she was daring fate to answer her question, blaming her destiny for her current predicament.

As she tossed and turned in her bed, unwanted thoughts kept creeping into the forefront of her mind. Rebellious ideas flashed across her eyes that could easily lead her to trouble.

But was it worth it?

“The heck with it.” Eida cursed in the wind as she scrambled out of bed, grabbing her bag and phone. “The hell with him.” She swore under her breath as she exited her room.

She turned to the nursery, peeking at her little angel, then moved closer to her crib, watching her sleeping child. With her fingers, she touched her chubby cheeks and stared at the pinkness of her lips.

She looked more and more like her father. She could only wonder what else she would pick from him. What traits would she inherit from a father living a hundred miles away?

“I need to leave for a few days. But I hope when I come back. I have good news for you.” She softly whispered in her ears as she leaned forward to give her a tender kiss on her silky cheeks.

After a few minutes, she was out of the house, driving her car like a madman or woman, cruising the busy street, stopping only due to the traffic and the red lights.

She did not even bother to say goodbye to Amelia, knowing she would only subject herself to millions of questions by telling her friend about what she had in mind.

She opted to text her instead, giving some lame excuse about her job.

Then, she made arrangements before she lost her nerves and changed her mind.

“Have you gone mad?” She shrieked, banging her hands on the wheels as she quickly pressed on the break when a car suddenly cut her off at her left.

She almost bumped into the steering wheel. Luckily, the belt did its job. Was that a sign that she should turn back and stop this foolishness? She wondered as she looked at the busy street.

But a honking at her rear snapped her back to the present as she gently pressed on the gas to keep moving. The traffic might slow her down, but it was still getting her to where she needed to be.

She glanced at the clock on her dashboard, seeing she still had time to spare. All she needed was to get out of this traffic jam and into the highway. Then, she would be on her way.

“What now?” Eida muttered under her breath, seeing a commotion just ahead of her.

She tried to stretch her neck to see what was happening and could only sigh. A man came out of his car and started shouting at the driver of another vehicle before him.

She concluded that would create more traffic. She looked at her options, seeing that the other cars were moving away from the accident. She just needed to maneuver her car until she could detach herself from the jam.

Well, it took her more time than she would want, but at least she was moving again. However, checking on the time, she knew she would not make it if she did not speed up.

“You can do this.” She psyched herself up, not having driven fast for so long. She could see the traffic light ahead, and it was still green. She knew she could make it, but the car before her crawled at a snail’s pace.

She was not going to make it as she saw the changing lights on her windshield flicker before her eyes. But for some divine force within her, she stepped on the gas instead of the break.

The devil may care, but she did not. She ran through the red light like a criminal on the run. She must be insane, risking her life at that moment. However, the thrill that went through her body was through the roof.

She felt she could do anything.

She knew she could do this as it lit a fire within her.

Until.

The siren behind her told her that she was going nowhere. She had to stop before her situation worsened, pulling to the side of the road to deal with authorities. She believed she had just committed a crime and could not do anything about it.