CONNOR
I sat on the high stool facing the counter in my favorite bar, listening to You’re My Universe by BTS and Coldplay play softly in the background.
Ever since Grace and Laurie left the house, I didn’t know what to do with myself. I understood her anger and resentment and knew that she had every right to be mad at me but I wasn’t expecting her to find out that way. I couldn’t believe even my mother knew about it.
Of course she knew about the properties my father acquired before I took over the family’s business but I didn’t know she knew the house at the outskirt of London belonged to Grace. And using that against my relationship with Grace was something I really, really didn’t see coming.
“Been a while, Mr. Shelby, what cocktail would you like today?” Bill, my favorite bartender asked, dragging me out of my thoughts. I raised my head to stare him, forcing a warm smile on my face.
He was a tall, great-looking handsome bloke with rich brown skin and shiny dark afro hair, reminding me of NK, Grace’s best friend or better said, soul sister.
“Helpless,” I told him, after thinking for a while, “make it strong.” I nodded at him and he sent me a knowing smile before turning back to the wine shelve.
I watched him mix the drink, wondering if I should speak to NK to help me talk to her friend since she was the therapist among them. I believe she would see things from a more objective view right?
I don’t think so, therapist or not, Grace’s friends would be always be biased when it came to their friend. So I wouldn’t even bother going to NK. I looked around, to see if Lena my little sister was here yet. When she called that she wanted to see me, I was already out of the house so I asked her to meet me here.
“Kindly make it two glasses of ‘Helpless’, Bill,” Curtis said behind me. Startled, I twirled, glowering at him as he took the empty seat beside me.
“Coming right up!” Bill called from the other side.
“How did you know I was here?” I asked, knowing I was sounding dejected and forlorn.
“I couldn’t find you at the mansion, so I followed your pheromones. What’s wrong?” he asked, giving me a scrutinizing look like he was going to know what was happening from my face. “Wait, you gave the ladies space to celebrate? Jody was coming over to the mansion.” the look of surprise on his face soon turned to suspicion.
“Jody is probably at her bestie’s place, I guess.” I helped him solve his riddle.
“Wait, Ms. Jones is not at the mansion?” he asked with alarm and we both didn’t even know when Bill placed our glass of drinks in front of us.
I sighed and picked my glass up sending Bill a nod of thanks, taking a swig before dropping back my glass on the counter. Marcus understood at once, with the look of shock on his face.
“Seriously? What happened? Did the proposal not go as planned? Don’t tell me you were too shy to go through with it?” he half-yelled at the last question, giving me a quizzical look.
“It’s something I really don’t want to talk about right now, Marcus.” I said with a tone of finality and faced the bar, taking continuous swig of my cocktail. Bill made it extra strong, I was beginning to feel tipsy.
I missed Grace even though it was barely a day I saw her last.
I missed Laurel. I miss throwing her in the air and watching her shriek with joy. I want my family back.
“I know you don’t want to talk about it, sir, but you have to go get your family back.” Marcus pressed with an adamant expression.
“But how do I do that when she made me promise that I wouldn’t go find her, eh?” I drawled, flinging my hands dramatically. At this point, I couldn’t control my actions anymore. I stared down at my glass and realized I had finished my drink.
“So you’ll just sit here and mop all night, is that all you can think of?” a female who sounded like Lena spoke from behind and when I turned, there she was standing beside me with a scowl plastered on her face.
Lena grew up as a tomboy and was currently dressed as one despite how feminine she looked and how much my mother tried to make her like more female things and behaviors. It didn’t work though, Lena was strong headed like our father.
“Hello, sister. Care for a drink?” I laughed clumsily.
Shit.
“I thought I was coming to talk about me and my issues, but my brother has his own plate full already.” she sighed in frustration and sat beside me, so I was sitting between her and Marcus.
They both exchanged pleasantries as Lena ordered for an alcohol free cocktail.
I had sobered up a bit so I asked Lena what the issue between her and my mother really was. Not that I cared about my mother’s opinion though, my sister’s feeling mattered to me. And as soon as I asked, Lena opened up immediately as though she had been waiting for me to ask.
It made me feel really bad, like I had been neglecting my only sibling all these years.
She told me she left home because our mother had refused to accept her sexuality and even when she brought her girlfriend to introduce them, our mother embarrassed the hell out of her. “It was so painful and humiliating,” she said, rotating her glass absentmindedly.
I couldn’t help but order another glass of the strong cocktail again. All that Lena just told me made want to travel back to Whales and give my mother a good warning. “I’m so sorry you went through all that in the hands of the person meant to take your side.” I apologized, squeezing her hands.
“Well, unfortunately, my girlfriend left me then, and I promised never to bring anyone to show to her again, I’ll even get married without her knowing. If I had known you were going to bring your fiancé over, I would have stopped you.” she explained, and I could see the deep resentment in her eyes.
I chuckled dryly and explained to her that Grace didn’t leave because of what our mother did. She left for something else, something that was entirely my fault. I gulped the whole drink as soon as Bill dropped it on the counter, diving back into tipsiness.
“Then call her and apologize, call her and sort it out. This is not one of your no-strings-attached relationship, Connor. She’s the mother of your child and you did something no one in London would ever believe you’d do. I mean you proposed to her publicly! ” she snapped at me before shoving her hand into my pocket and snatching out my phone.
At first, what she was about to do didn’t occur to me until I saw her dialing a number and before I could stop her, Grace had already picked up the call.
Shit!
I exclaimed in my head, feeling everything spinning round and round till the world went blank.