Chapter 94

Olivia

The street lights flickered on as the sky painted itself a deep indigo.

I found myself nervously perched at the corner table of a dimly lit Italian restaurant in our old town, our favorite place when we were together.

Ryan was late. An empty chair and untouched glass of red wine stared back at me from across the table, echoing the emptiness I was feeling.

The nostalgia of this town hit me harder than I expected. Even though it had only been a few months since I moved into my aunt’s villa, it was like I was being pulled back in time as I sat there in the dimly lit restaurant.

Back to when Ryan and I were a ‘we.’ Back to when things were simple, and we were happy. For a short period of time.

But then again, he had left me waiting. My anger was bubbling up inside of me as Nathan’s last words of warning echoed in my mind. Maybe this was a mistake.

Finally, almost forty-five minutes late, he breezed in. Ryan looked the same, yet utterly different.

There was a strange emptiness in his eyes that I hadn't noticed before. Maybe that emptiness had always been there and my rose-tinted glasses just kept me from seeing it.

The laughter lines around his eyes were more pronounced, but they didn’t reach his gaze as he stared at me from across the restaurant.

He apologized for being late, took the vacant seat opposite me, and ordered a drink without meeting my eyes. It was awkward, almost like we were two strangers on a first date, not former lovers catching up.

“I ordered you red wine,” I said, gesturing to the glass in front of him. “I thought that was your favorite.”

Ryan shrugged. “I like white wine now.”

There was a silence. The waiter brought Ryan his white wine, and all I could do was stare at Ryan’s dark hair, his brown eyes, wondering to myself whether he always looked like a caricature of a man or if this was something new.

“Well then,” he said, sipping his wine and avoiding my gaze. I saw him eye a waitress up and down, his eyes lingering on her thighs. “I told you that I have some things to say, so I guess I’ll say it. I’m not interested in getting back together with you.”

I took a deep breath, clenching my hands into tight fists under the table. “I didn’t ask you here to talk about us, Ryan,” I said, my voice trembling a bit despite my best efforts to keep it steady. “I asked you here to talk about the baby.”

He let out a nonchalant shrug and finally met my eyes. “Olivia, I’m not getting back together with you just because you’re pregnant.” His voice was cold, detached, as if he were talking about the weather.

I flinched at his words, a lump forming in my throat. I had expected him to be upset, maybe even angry. But this… indifference was something I was not prepared for. “This isn’t just about me, Ryan!” I hissed. “This is about our baby. Your baby.”

He frowned, taking a swig from his drink. “Look, Olivia. It was your choice. You could have… you know…” His voice trailed off, and he couldn’t even finish the sentence. But his meaning was clear.

An icy rage surged through me. My hands were shaking as I gripped the table cloth beneath the table, out of Ryan’s sight. “And what? Had an abortion?” I spat, my voice rising. “And now you’re just going to wash your hands off the whole situation and not pay a dime of child support?”

He had the audacity to look me in the eye and shrug. “Pretty much.”

That was it. I snapped.

I stood up, grabbed my untouched glass of water, and splashed the remaining water in his face. The restaurant went silent, the shocked faces of the patrons turning towards us. “You selfish jerk!” I spat out, my voice echoing in the silence.

I didn't wait for him to respond. He was still shocked by the coldness of the water, frozen to his seat.

I turned on my heel and stormed out of the restaurant, the cool night air wrapping itself around me. I could feel the tears pricking at the corners of my eyes, threatening to spill over.

“I should have listened to Nathan,” I whispered to myself as I walked back toward the car where Levi was waiting.

What was even the point of this? Did Ryan only want to invite me out so he could be rude and tell me that he didn’t want to get back together or be in our child’s life? Why couldn’t he have just sent that in a text, or better yet, left me well enough alone?

Levi was waiting for me in the car. I had him park a little ways down the street, and I didn’t tell him the real reason behind why I needed to come here.

I told him that I was meeting up with a friend and nothing more. Levi, despite the closeness we had developed over the weeks, didn’t know the truth about my baby or my so-called ‘relationship’ with Nathan.

And he likely never would.

He looked up as I approached, concern etched onto his features. I didn't even make it to the car before I broke down. Levi immediately got out, pulling me into a hug as I sobbed onto his shoulder.

“What’s wrong, Olivia?” he asked, rubbing my back as I sobbed.

Through my tears, I muttered a half-lie. “My friend doesn’t want anything to do with me anymore,” I murmured. “They said that I should have had an abortion.”

He didn't say anything at first, just tightened his grip on me. Finally, he sighed.

“I'm sorry, Olivia,” he said gently. “People can be such jerks. Do you need me to talk to them?”

Levi's words, though simple, were a comfort. His tone was warm, empathetic. And at that moment, I didn't feel quite as alone.

“Thank you, Levi.” I whispered, sniffling and pulling away. “But I’m okay. I just want to go home.”

He nodded, helping me into the car. I leaned back against the seat, a sense of exhaustion washing over me.

The whole ride back was silent, each of us lost in our thoughts. My mind kept replaying the events of the evening, each word from Ryan's mouth stabbing me anew.

Levi parked the car and opened the door for me. I muttered a thank you and walked towards the entrance of the house. But before I went inside, I turned back to look at Levi. His expression was kind, his eyes held a spark of understanding.

“Thank you for giving me a shoulder to cry on,” I murmured.

The young bodyguard was silent as he looked up at me from the bottom of the steps. There was a glint of something in his eyes. I couldn’t quite read what it was. All I knew was that I was lonely, and heartbroken, and I should have listened to Nathan.

And maybe, just maybe in that moment, I would have done something stupid and regrettable if I had allowed Levi to take another step toward me. He was handsome; I couldn’t deny that. And he was sweet and kind, and gave me a shoulder to cry on.

But I didn’t want him, not really. Not like that. I was just sad and lonely and pathetic.

Suddenly, Nathan’s car sped into the driveway and screeched to a halt, breaking the silence between the two of us. Levi and I both looked up as Nathan slammed his car door and came storming toward the bodyguard.

My eyes widened as Nathan grabbed two fistfuls of Levi’s shirt and shook him, hard.

“Who the hell do you think you are?!” Nathan growled.