Page 74 of The Marriage Auction 2: Part 2

From: Julianne Myers

You cook? Since when?

j/k 12

Yum! And yes, I have a grill. It’s hidden away in the small closet off the balcony.

I was about to respond with something equally funny and prickly when I felt the hair on the back of my neck stand up. Istopped at the entrance to my sunken living room and glanced up. My entire body chilled as Bianca stood from the chair nearest the balcony.

“What the fuck are you doing in my home?” I snarled.

She lifted her hands in supplication. “Gio, please, we need to talk.”

“You and I have nothing to say that can’t be discussed between our lawyers,” I declared and stomped over to the bar, suddenly needing a very large drink.

“Please, I know you’re angry. Just hear me out,” Bianca begged.

“Fuck you!” I snapped as I grabbed the crystal whiskey decanter.

“Gio, I’m sorry, okay! I’m sorry. I fucked up.”

I poured two fingers of the amber colored liquor and slammed the entire thing down, hoping it would hit immediately and magically make my ex disappear.

No such luck.

Bianca approached, her long, tanned legs on full display. I knew her well enough to know she’d made a point to put my favorite assets of hers on show. I’d constantly told her how much I appreciated her dancers’ legs. They were a mile long, unblemished, and toned to perfection in the short, flirty skirt she wore. She’d paired it with a tight-fitting sleeveless turtleneck and a blazer. Her dark brown hair was parted down the center and pulled into a sleek pony-tail running down her back. It made it impossible not to take in those big brown eyes, and full, red-painted lips I’d once adored.

Those perfect legs couldn’t compensate for the fact she was entirely too thin for my preference. The woman hardly ate, and when she did, it definitely wasn’t late night Chinese food, or crusty bagels like I’d shared with my wife just this morning, intermingled with sips of coffee and cream cheese coated kisses.

Frankly, as I stared at Bianca, I realized I was in love with the idea of her more than I’d ever been with the woman standing before me. She was a beautiful woman on the surface, looking a lot like a Hollywood actress, only a lot thinner. To me, Bianca was a cubic zirconia while Julianne was that rarest natural jewel—a clear, flawless diamond.

“Anything you have to say, you can say to my lawyers, Bianca.” I pointed to the elevator door. “Get out,” I hissed.

She ignored my request and walked forward until she stood on the opposite side of the bar. I took that opportunity to pour myself a refill.

“What about the baby?” she asked, sliding off her coat and tossing it onto one of the barstools. She then turned to the side so that I could see the slightest rounding of her abdomen.

I gritted my teeth and let out a long sigh. She fumbled with her coat and pulled out a single black and white square image and set it onto the granite top.

“That’s your baby,” she said with confidence pointing at the sonogram photo.

I ignored the photo entirely. “And you know it’s mine how? And why now? Did a doctor confirm it with a blood test, DNA, anything that could hold up in a court of law?”

Her lips pursed. “I just know it, okay?”

I sucked back half of my drink and shook my head. “You don’t know shit. And that’s because you are a backstabbing, unfaithful, gold-digger that I want out of my life and my fucking apartment. Right! Now!” I roared.

She crossed her arms over her chest. “I want you back,” she murmured, and I swore I could barely hear it through the din of my anger, like rushing water between my ears.

“Jesus, you have got to be kidding me. What would make you think I’d take you back after everything you’ve done to me?”

“Because you love me, and we’re going to have a baby together.”

“I don’t fucking love you anymore, Bianca. And honestly, I’m not even sure I ever did. You fucked my best friend on the night of our rehearsal dinner, not a month after my parents died. Do you have any idea what that did to me? I counted on you to love and support me through thick and thin. I was going to promise to cherish you through sickness and in health. Until death do us part. Do you understand that? Of course you don’t. You didn’t even last until the ceremony before you broke those vows.”

“Gio…please…”

“I gave you everything. And you gave me lies and betrayal. You kicked me when I was at my absolute lowest. I’ll never forgive you for what you’ve done. And I’m going to tell you right now, if that baby is in fact mine, I will be securing full custody and raising him or her with my wife.”

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