The Billionaire's Bundle of Joy

Chapter 19

JUSTIN

The last look Veronica gave me was filled with anger and the promise of trouble. Her mother is the biggest shareholder in the company next to me. The part that my father left to me is fifty-one percent, while Elvira has thirty-five percent. The rest is scattered among a few other people.

With her current anger, she can either pull out her shares or start buying more to ensure it’s just the two of us left. Elvira Arguelles is wealthier than her husband, Vicente de Castro. And in terms of character, Elvira is a ruthless and crooked businesswoman. She gets everything she wants by any means necessary.

When I walked into the kitchen, Riz was cooking pancakes, and Manang was chatting with her. I didn’t immediately enter and listened to their conversation.

“Manang, please eat.” She handed a plate of pancakes topped with sliced strawberries and syrup to Manang.

“How fancy, dear. Thank you.”

She also handed the old woman a fork and poured her a glass of water.

“It only looks fancy, Manang. But it’s just flour and eggs.”

Riz seemed to be in a good mood despite what had happened earlier in the living room. I noticed that she doesn’t stay mad for too long. And that makes her a rare breed. People tend to dwell on the past, but Riz is different. She might get hurt, but she always chooses to move on.

I cleared my throat. “Where’s mine?”

Manang quickly excused herself, saying she would let her husband try the pancakes. Riz didn’t answer me and continued flipping the pancakes. I positioned myself behind her and rested my chin on her shoulder. She was wearing my shirt, and since she was smaller than me, it was oversized on her. I nuzzled her neck and asked again.

“Why did you leave your fiancée there?” There was a hint of irritation in her voice, but she didn’t pull away from me.

“I don’t have a fiancée. I’m married now.” I stroked her belly. Even with her messy hair and the oversized shirt, I was completely attracted to her. I am not in love with her, let’s be real here. Maybe it’s because she’s carrying my child. Yes, that’s it.

“Tsk. Get it together. Sit over there or go back to Manila. You don’t even eat— Justin!” One of my hands slipped inside her shirt and squeezed her breast. I played with her pebbled tip. She pinched my arm.

“I don’t eat what?” I whispered to her. She shot me a glare. “What I ate earlier was delicious at— Ouch!” She pinched my ear.

I stole a quick kiss on her cheek and then sat on a barstool, waiting for her to bring me food. When I was a kid, my mom and I could only eat pancakes at a fast-food restaurant when we received a lot of tips. And that was very rare. That’s why I appreciated the few times we shared pancakes together. She worked at a resort here in Batangas, and Aling Belen was the one she entrusted me to when she wasn’t around.

Riz placed a plate of pancakes and a glass of orange juice in front of me. She turned around to leave, so I grabbed her arm.

“Where are you going?”

“To get your coffee.”

I let her do what she wanted. I want her to feel comfortable here so that when I return to Manila, she’ll be accustomed to living here. When she came back, she had her food and my coffee. She quietly sat down and started eating.

Eating pancakes with her gave me a nostalgic feeling. The only difference now is that my mother wasn’t there; it was her and my child.

It’s a feeling I’ve never felt for any woman. Not even for Veronica. Partly why I stopped eating breakfast is because of her. Besides my busy work schedule, she never cooked for me and wasn’t fond of eating either. Most times, I wouldn’t eat until dinner. That is, if I wasn’t too tired. Sometimes, my stomach would only be filled with coffee all day because I just wanted to sleep.

“Stop staring,” she said, frowning at me. She was just about to bite into a strawberry when I held her arm and brought the fork to my mouth. She looked surprised. “That’s mine—”

“I’ll replace it.” I fed her. Riz hesitated to take it. “It’s tiring,” I teased her. That’s when she took it, but it was clear she was flustered.

“Why are you doing this?”

I shrugged. “I just want to. Is that bad?” Riz shook her head. “Okay. By the way, we are going to see your OB today. We need to make sure you and the baby are okay.”

“We? I can go by myself. Just tell me the address so you won’t be bothered. You’ll be driving to Manila today.”

I couldn’t tell if she didn’t want me to go with her or if she just didn’t want to be a burden. She was practically pushing me back to Manila.

“You don’t want me to go with you?”

“All I’m saying is you’ll be late. I didn’t mean anything else.” The crease on her forehead was becoming permanent from all the frowning.

“So you’re worried about me?”

Her face turned red. “No, I’m not! You’re just hungry. Eat your breakfast so you’re not imagining all sorts of things.”

Riz looked nervous and started to take bites in quick succession.

“Slow down; you might choke. Want me to feed you?” It was amusing to tease her. And suddenly, I felt like I was back in high school.

I was skinny back then and wore glasses. Even though my mom was married to my dad, I didn’t immediately use his last name. It took time. I didn’t wear the expensive clothes and shoes he gave me. My old clothes were still fine; they were clean and not torn. And that was the best time to know people. Most of them were judgmental, but some were kind and didn’t judge based on appearance.

That’s how I met Ryleigh.