Total pages in book: 93
Estimated words: 90894 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 454(@200wpm)___ 364(@250wpm)___ 303(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 90894 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 454(@200wpm)___ 364(@250wpm)___ 303(@300wpm)
He closed his eyes and rubbed his temples in frustration. “Fuck. I told her I didn’t want her to come for the results. I should’ve known that she wouldn’t listen.”
“Well, you can’t exactly kick her out.”
“Sure, I can.”
“Believe me, I would love it if you kicked her to the curb right now, but how is that going to make things any easier if you find out Chloe is yours? You’re going to have to deal with her whether you like it or not. The sooner you learn how, the better.”
Deep in thought, he nodded to himself for a while. “You’re right.” Pressing the button, he said, “Send her in.”
Our relaxing breakfast was officially over.
I threw away our food wrappers to distract myself from the jitters creeping in.
The door opened, and Genevieve entered the office, quietly closing the door behind her. She was dressed conservatively, wearing a gray pencil skirt and a cream-colored, sleeveless blouse that showed off her toned arms. Her scent was familiar—Chanel No. 5. It dawned on me that she was built a lot like the television host, Kelly Ripa—petite and svelte. She actually resembled her a bit.
Graham didn’t even look over at her. He stayed silent, fidgeting with his watch, a nervous habit that until now, I almost thought he’d completely done away with.
Genevieve made eye contact with me first. “Soreena, I didn’t realize you would be here.”
“It’s Soraya. And, yes, I’m here to support Graham when the results come in.”
She took a seat. “So…you know everything.”
“Yes. He and I don’t keep anything from each other.”
“Well, that’s nice of you to be here for him.”
Graham finally spoke to her. “I thought we discussed the fact that I preferred you not come here today.”
“I need to be here, Graham. I’m sure you’ve given Syreeta an earful about what a bad person I am, but I’m here today to support you, too.”
Graham’s tone was stern. “It’s Soraya. Not Soreena. Not Syreeta. So-RAH-ya. What is so hard about that?”
“Soraya….Soraya…sorry…I’m a bit nervous myself, okay? I didn’t come here to make trouble. I’m just trying to be supportive as well. I realize that this whole situation is all my fault. I’m not denying that, but I can’t change the past. I’m just trying to make things right moving forward. If I have to spend the rest of my life making up for it, I will.” She looked like she was about to cry. Either she was truly upset, or she deserved an Academy Award. Graham remained unaffected by her mini breakdown.
Several minutes of awkward silence ensued as Graham went from fiddling with his watch to twirling the ends of a pen between his two index fingers.
He tossed it across the room and grumbled, “What the hell is taking them so long?”
Genevieve was trying her best to lighten the mood and looked down at my feet. “I like your shoes. What brand are they?”
“Michael Kors. They’re not Louboutins or anything, but I like them. They’re comfortable for wedges.”
She smiled. “I like them, too.”
Graham rolled his chair back and got up. He started to pace and seemed to be losing his cool, so I attempted to calm him down. “They said before noon, right? Well, there’s still a little time.”
He took out his phone. “I’m calling the lab.” He put it on speaker.
A woman answered, “Culver Laboratories?”
“Yes. This is Graham Morgan. I was supposed to be getting a call before noon today with the results of a paternity test your lab conducted for me this week. We’re three minutes away from the deadline. I’d like my results now, please. Arnold Schwartz indicated that he would oversee everything personally to ensure those results would be in by this morning. I have a special reference number he gave me if you need it.”
“Yes, sir. That would be helpful.”
As Graham gave her the information, I said a silent prayer that by some miracle, it turned out he wasn’t the father. I wasn’t sure if that made me a bad person or what. Until those results came in, there was still hope as far as I was concerned. What if there was a third man we didn’t know about…one who was darker like Graham, maybe resembled him? Anything was possible, right?
The clicking of a keyboard could be heard in the background as the woman retrieved the information. “I’m going to put you on hold, Mr. Morgan. It seems that the results are in, but when they indicated that someone would call you to read them, they were apparently basing it on Pacific Time. But I do show here in the system that the test has been completed. I just need to see if we have authorized personnel available to give you those results.”
He whispered under his breath, “Jesus Christ.”
These people on the West Coast had no idea how much was riding on this. If they did, they’d surely hurry the hell up.