The Moment I Realized I Can't Lose You novel Chapter 13

Chapter 13 

“I really thought he was going to come after you.” Walking out of the hospital, Bianca glanced back at the crowded entrance and pouted. 

Audrey stood by the curb and flagged down a cab. “Rainey was calling him. There’s no way he’d ignore her.” 

She said it casually, but Bianca could still see the profound disappointment and heartbreak hidden in her eyes. 

Once they got into the backseat of the taxi, Bianca reached out and gently patted Audrey’s flat stomach. “Baby, your dad might be a jerk, but you’ve still got me, your godmother! Don’t worry, your mom and I are going to raise you perfectly!” 

Audrey laughed, swatting Bianca’s hand away. “It’s only been two months. The baby can’t hear you yet.” 

But she felt the warmth of Bianca’s sincerity. 

For the rest of the day, both women formed an unspoken pact to not bring up Joaquin or Rainey again. They laughed, shopped, and thoroughly enjoyed themselves at the mall. 

By the time Audrey finally headed home, completely exhausted but satisfied, it was past eight in the evening. Tossing her shopping bags onto the sofa, she collapsed onto the cushions to rest. She was so tired that within minutes, she drifted off into a hazy sleep. 

Half-asleep, she vaguely registered her phone ringing incessantly on the table. She answered with her eyes still closed. “Hello…” 

“Audrey!” It was Joaquin’s best friend, Felix Foster. “We’re at the Dynasty Hotel, VIP Suite 501. Joaquin is wasted. You need to come pick him up…” 

Felix had made this exact phone call countless times over the past year. Every time, no matter how deep her sleep, Audrey would immediately drag herself out of bed, rush over as fast as possible to pick him up, and then spend the night brewing hangover soup and taking care of him. 

But right now, all she wanted to do was sleep. 

Before Felix could even finish his sentence, she hung up the phone, tossed it aside, 

shifted her position, and went back to sleep. 

The atmosphere in Suite 501 of the Dynasty Hotel was horrifyingly tense. Felix stared at his phone in disbelief. “She hung up. Joaquin, did you guys have a fight?” 

Joaquin ignored him. Reeking of alcohol, he used his fork to fish a piece of meat out of the boiling spicy pot and shoved it into his mouth. The searing heat burned his tongue, leaving a trail of fiery pain all the way down his throat and esophagus. 

He frowned fiercely. Why did people eat this stuff? This was what Audrey liked? 

“Yeah.” Audrey smirked. “If you can’t find her, I have her number. I’ll pass on the message. And please, do not call me again. Not tonight, not ever. Whatever happens to him from now on is none of my business.” 

After hanging up, Audrey forwarded the address Felix had given her straight to Rainey: “Joaquin is drunk. Go pick him up.” Having done that, she rubbed her eyes, stood up, and dragged herself upstairs to the bedroom. 

Back in the suite. 

The room was dead silent. Felix had put the phone on speaker. Everyone present had heard every single word Audrey said. 

Among this circle of wealthy heirs, everyone knew the complicated history between Joaquin, Rainey, and Audrey. 

The men exchanged bewildered glances, completely stunned. 

“Pop!” 

The sound of a bottle opener slicing through the silence drew everyone’s attention. 

Sitting at the head of the table, Joaquin popped open another bottle of hard liquor and tipped it straight down his throat.