Chapter Seven

Time has never been slower for Belle, who was waiting outside her room. Really! Outside of the room that she paid for herself. As much as she wanted to protest Preston's idea to speak with Nikolai, the look on his face wasn't asking for an explanation, nor was he open to discussion. Which is why even when she has her hotel keys, she wouldn't dare open the door.

Sticking her ears in the door only proved that the room was soundproof. 

All she could do was wait, and every second of it was torture.

"Hey," she answered her friend's call. Her eyes were still glued to the door. "Anything alright there, Bon?"

"You know what? You are so lucky to have an independent kid. The cutie is sleeping in my arms so soundly!"

That's a relief. "Good to hear. I'm sorry for making you go there. I know the nanny can be trusted, but—"

"For the millionth time, it's not a bother at all. I completely understand why you're there. So, take a chill pill, and don't worry about it here. We got this. As long as you know, everything's fine there... right? Things are okay there?"

How foolish of her to believe and to make the people around her believe that things were that easy to handle. Now, she's stuck outside, waiting and praying that his brother has not made a criminal out of himself. "I'll tell you everything when I come home soon. Very, very soon."

"Uh-oh, sounds like bad news."

She decided that the waiting time was over. It has been thirty minutes, and that's already more than she could handle.

8... 9... 10.

As if on cue, the door opened. It was Nikolai. He gave Belle a quick glance, and she automatically looked for any signs of concussion, bleeding, or wounds. By some miracle, Nikolai looked exactly how he entered the room. No harm done.

Now, that is a relief and a disappointment. All they did was talk, then.

They stood close to each other; no one was saying a word. Belle was about to give in when Nikolai sighed and walked away. Just like that.

"What the hell did you two talk about?" It was a good thing that Nikolai left without adding damage to their situation, but after what they talked about a while ago, would he seriously leave just like that? That's it? Everything is over now?

As soon as Belle closed the door behind her, Preston finally broke his silence. "You were the one who fell for him?"  He asked in disbelief.

She knew the answer too well. 

“All by yourself. Katherine Isobelle? Seriously? ”

Another attack straight through her heart.

Belle, with what was left of her pride, tried to keep a straight face. No need to say it out loud. For sure, Preston already knows the answer.

"Did he even want to marry you? Because I couldn't figure out how the hell this started. He was in love with another woman, for god's sake. Even you should know."

All it took was a second for her to break her facade. The well-composed lady she was pretending to be vanished in front of Preston's eyes. For the first time, she broke down in front of her brother.

"Is that what he told you?" That must be what they talked about when they were alone. She was so foolish, trying to force Nikolai to love her. “Did he also tell you how much I begged for him to love me? That I wanted him since the beginning? It’s true. I loved him all by myself, and that is a mistake that I will forever regret, Preston.”

This must be the end. She came here hoping to get at least one win. Instead, what she got was more loss.

“You must be so ashamed of me. I told you, Prez. All I want is to leave. Nikolai got what he wanted, didn’t he? I thought begging for his love was bad enough. This is even worse. So, can I please just move on? ”

Preston gets her suitcase. “C’mon. You have a plane to catch.”

Belle didn’t know what her brother was thinking. He didn’t even spare her a glimpse while they were in the car. Is that it? Is he just letting Belle leave? And Nikolai agreed; that was why he walked out without saying a word to her.

This is what she wanted. However, she felt no difference with something like disgusting trash being tossed aside.

They arrived at the airport, and when she tried to open the door, it was locked. She tried again, still locked.

“Preston, the door.”

“Give me your address, and don’t you even dare give me a fake one.”

“What? You’ll go there? ”

“Why? Can’t I?”

After all, Belle is his little sister. It would be nice for Liam to meet him, too. She always wanted to introduce her son. The only thing that was stopping her was not knowing how to explain the Nikolai part of her story. 

Things have been messy and draining. On the bright side, Preston now knows about his nephew. Belle smiled at the thought of Preston and Liam meeting. "Of course you can. I already sent you my address. Check your phone."

Belle’s face turned white as Preston forwarded what she sent to Nikolai. All while her eyes were glued to the screen.

"What the hell did you just do, Preston?" He snatched his phone. The message was sent. What was even worse was Nikolai just saw the message. Deleting the message now would do nothing. 

This isn't making any sense.

“Don’t be selfish now, Isobelle. Let your kid meet his family. Plus, do you think Nikolai's family can let you board the flight somewhere to continue living your life knowing you are still married to their son? Not to mention, now that they know about their grandson?”

That pissed her even more. Mention Nikolai’s family like they are untouchables. It was one of the reasons they kept the pregnancy a secret. Belle had no idea what Nikolai's parents could do. Back when he still cared a little, he wanted to make sure that Belle's pregnancy would be stress-free. That plan includes keeping everything a secret from his family.

“What can they even do to me? It's their son who wants to divorce me. I may not be as rich as them, but I can handle them, Preston."

"You can't. That's the truth. And by this time, Nikolai is most probably negotiating with his parents. They were plotting something to stop you from the flight. You can't leave the country, Belle. They already sent me their lawyers, and damn, they are willing to play dirty. Think of this when you think of your next actions."