Chapter 8 The Calm Before the Storm

The air in my apartment felt heavier than usual, saturated with tension and silence. After Jordan left, I found myself rooted to the spot, staring at the door he'd just exited through. His footsteps had faded down the hallway, but the weight of his presence lingered. I had told him to leave, yet a part of me felt like I'd just sent away the only person who had ever truly understood me.

But that wasn't true, was it?

I shook my head, the thoughts swirling like a cyclone. No matter how badly I wanted to believe Jordan could change, I couldn't. I couldn't pretend that the man who had walked out that door was the man I had once loved. Too much had happened. Too much had been shattered.

I walked into the kitchen, my feet dragging as if the weight of my decisions were pressing me down. I reached for the coffee pot, but my hands trembled too much to pour it properly. I let out a frustrated sigh and set the mug down on the counter, trying to steady my breath.

The sound of my phone vibrating on the counter startled me, and I glanced down. Declan's name flashed across the screen.

For a moment, I hesitated. My fingers hovered over the screen. Would it be easier to ignore him? To distance myself from everyone? To just breathe for a moment without the pressure of constant decisions?

But I couldn't.

I swiped the screen, answering the call.

"Lila," Declan's voice came through, warm yet tinged with concern. "How are you holding up?"

I sat on one of the kitchen stools, rubbing my temple. I didn't have the energy to pretend anymore. "I don't know, Declan. Everything feels like it's falling apart. Jordan was here. He... he wants to make things right. He wants me to give him a chance."

"And what do you want?" he asked gently.

The question hit me like a punch to the gut. What did I want? What did I really want in all of this chaos? My thoughts felt scattered, as if they had been pulled apart by a thousand different forces.

"I don't know," I admitted, my voice quiet. "I don't know anymore. I've spent so much time trying to fix what was broken between us. But what if it can't be fixed? What if it's just too late?"

"Lila," Declan said softly, "You're allowed to be confused. You don't have to have it all figured out right now."

I closed my eyes, taking a shaky breath. Declan always knew the right thing to say. He didn't pressure me. He didn't make me feel like I had to have all the answers. He just let me feel, let me be vulnerable.

"You've always been there for me," I said, my voice thick. "You know everything about me. All my flaws, my mistakes."

"And none of that matters to me," he replied immediately. "What matters is what you need right now. And if that's space, I'll give it to you. If that's someone to lean on, I'm here. If it's someone to help you figure it out, then I'm ready for that too."

I felt a small smile tug at my lips, despite the heaviness in my chest. Declan's words were a balm to my bruised soul. But they also made me realize how much I had been leaning on him for strength. How much I had relied on his presence, his support.

"I don't know if I'm ready for any of that," I said, a note of uncertainty creeping into my voice. "I don't even know what I'm doing anymore."

There was a pause, and then Declan spoke again, his voice steady and comforting. "Then take your time, Lila. Do what you need to do for yourself. I'm not going anywhere."

I bit my lip, trying to steady the emotion that rose up inside of me. For a moment, the weight of it all threatened to crush me.

"I don't want to hurt you," I whispered, my voice barely audible.

Declan's response was immediate, his tone firm yet gentle. "You won't. You never could."

But I wasn't so sure about that.

Just as I was about to respond, I heard a knock at the door.

My heart skipped a beat. It was too soon for anyone else to show up. I hadn't even had the chance to process what had just happened with Jordan.

"Lila?" Declan's voice interrupted my thoughts. "Who's at the door?"

"I don't know," I muttered, standing up from the stool and walking to the door. My pulse quickened. I didn't want anyone else barging into my life right now, especially not after the emotional storm that had just passed.

I peeked through the peephole and felt a wave of shock rush through me when I saw the familiar face.

It was Claire Foster.

I hadn't seen Claire in person since the day I had left the company. The day everything had started to fall apart.

I opened the door cautiously, not sure what to expect.

"Lila," Claire greeted me with a tight smile, her eyes glinting with something I couldn't place. "We need to talk."

I stood frozen in the doorway, unsure of how to respond. Claire's arrival was the last thing I needed. She had always been an enigma-sharp, calculating, and fiercely ambitious. And while I knew she had always been a friend of sorts, something about her made me uneasy.

"What do you want, Claire?" I asked, trying to keep my voice steady, despite the nerves churning in my stomach.

She stepped inside without waiting for an invitation, her heels clicking sharply against the floor. "I need to discuss something with you. Something important."

I closed the door behind her, eyeing her cautiously. "What's going on?"

Claire didn't waste any time. "It's about the company. There are some people questioning your position in the future. Declan's position too."

A chill ran down my spine, and my heart rate spiked. I wasn't ready for more drama. I wasn't ready to deal with business battles on top of everything else.

"I don't want to be involved in company politics right now, Claire," I said, my voice sharp. "I'm dealing with enough."

She looked at me with a knowing gaze. "I understand. But the truth is, Lila, this isn't just about the company anymore. It's about the baby. You're the one who has leverage now."

I blinked, taken aback. "What do you mean?"

Claire's eyes gleamed with something that bordered on satisfaction. "You have both of their attention now. Jordan and Declan. And you're going to have to choose. It's not just about your heart anymore-it's about the future. Their future. The baby's future."

The weight of her words settled over me like a dark cloud. I felt my stomach drop, my head spinning. I wasn't sure what was worse: the decision I had to make between the two men, or the fact that Claire was somehow playing this game in ways I didn't understand.

"Let the games begin," Claire murmured, her smile turning cold.