Page 52 of Half of My Heart

This evening has already been exhausting and all I want to do is take Jenna and get the fuck out of here.

When we arrived at the theater, we took our mandatory photos at the step and repeat, some by myself, some with Jenna, and then the rest with the whole cast of the movie. I could tell Jenna was completely uncomfortable by how tight she stood next to me, but she plastered a smile for the cameras and made it through. Once photographs were done, Liz whisked Jenna away so she wouldn’t be bothered by the reporters, and I continued answering questions for those who were given permission to be on the red carpet.

Sean and I introduced the movie to the audience who was in attendance but decided to skip watching it with them. We normally don’t watch our own movies on premiere day, and we headed straight to the afterparty. Jenna was already there waiting for me, but as soon as I arrived, I was surrounded by people wanting to congratulate us and talk business.

“Where’s Jenna?” I asked Liz before another studio executive made their way up to me.

“I put her at the bar, in a private corner so she wouldn’t be bothered by anyone.”

I nodded my approval, but I hate that she’s by herself. I plastered a smile on my face as the next person stopped me and I tried to inch my way closer to the bar. By the time I took photos with people and made it through the crowd, over an hour had gone by.

I walk around the bar, trying to locate Jenna, but it seems she has moved. I’m walking behind one of the drapes to the lounge area when I hear my name being called behind me. I turn around and my heart stops at the sight of Valerie cautiously walking toward me.

What in the hell is she doing here?She’s wearing a formal gown, her hair and make-up done so she must be here with her husband, who has ties to the studio.

The closer she gets, the more volatile I become and I’m mentally not prepared to have this conversation right now. There’s nothing she can say that will take back what she’s done to me.

“You,” I growl in a low voice. “You’ve got a lot of nerve trying to talk to me.”

“Cal, please,” she pleads, and I hold up my hand for her to stop but she doesn’t listen and continues walking until she’s just a couple of feet away from me. “Please let me just explain.”

“Explain?” I sneer in a mocking voice. “You told the woman I love lies and kept me from my child for four years. What the fuck is there to explain?”

“I didn’t know she was that important to you, Cal. I thought she was just a fling! I’m sorry.I'm so sorry.I was blind with jealousy, and I know I should’ve never kept her pregnancy from you.”

“You had years to tell me!Years!”I scream in her face and she starts crying. Her whole body is shaking to the point that she’s having trouble breathing. “If it wasn’t for some goddamn stranger who wanted to make a buck off my name, I still to this day wouldn’t know about her!”

“I know,” she gasps out when she has enough oxygen to talk. “I didn’t realize the severity of what I’ve done until I found out I was pregnant with my own child.” She cradles her belly and it’s then I notice the small bump.

Black tears from her mascara start zig zagging down her cheeks as she continues to cry and repeats her apologies over and over again. I can’t stand to look at her anymore, nor do I want to hear her pathetic excuses. I just want to be done with her and never see her for the rest of my remaining days.

“Stay the fuck away from me and my family, you hear me?” She nods her head and I turn to leave and that’s when I see her husband walking toward us.

“What’s going on here?” he questions in a suspicious tone, his gaze moving between me and his wife.

“Ask your wife, but I bet it won’t even be the truth.” I walk away in disgust and go straight to the bar, needing a stiff drink. I need to get the hell out of here. I need to get away from these fake as fuck people and take the one person that matters the most to me here and leave.

The music has gotten louder, and the crowd has thickened. After I get served at the bar, I grab my drink and try to find Jenna. I see Cora watching something with a sour look on her face. I walk over to her to ask if she’s seen Jenna and that’s when a movement on the dance floor catches my attention. Sean is dancing with Jenna, holding her way too close and everyone is watching them, whispering in fascination. He looks over at me and winks.

I’m going to fucking punch him.

“Seems Sean is really taking a liking to Jenna. Maybe a little too much. Such a scandal this will cause,” Cora comments and I tune her nonsense out while I stare at them, my jaw clenched in anger. Sean is whispering something into Jenna’s ear, his lips looking like they are making contact with her skin.

I continue to watch them dance but focus on Jenna’s facial expression. They try to keep their fake smiles in place, but soon they start engaging in some sort of battle of words. Sean’s smile fades all together and as the music ends, he abruptly dips Jenna and kisses her full on the lips in front of everyone.

Red. All I see is fucking red.

“Don’t make a scene, Cal,” Cora warns, placing her hand on my forearm to prevent me from murdering my best friend.What the fuck is he thinking?I know he would never go after Jenna for himself. Knowing Sean, this is a game he’s playing to make Cora jealous and using Jenna as his pawn.

Judging by the sly smile that’s on Cora’s face, the only one it seems to have worked on is me.

Sean forces Jenna to take a bow at the applause of the crowd and walks her over here with his arm around her waist. Jenna is whispering harshly at him and his only saving grace right now from me not knocking him out is that everyone is watching us.

“She’s all yours,” Sean says with a smirk and grabs my drink from out of my hand and downs the rest of it before stalking over to the bar.

“We’re leaving now!” I announce in an angry voice and grab Jenna’s hand. She tries to remove it from my grasp as we maneuver our way through the crowd to the exit, but I grip her tighter and pull her faster.

“You’re hurting me,” she complains when we get outside. I let go of her hand when I see our limo and I tell the driver to take us back to the hotel. I open the door for her and get in after her, slamming the door shut.

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