Begin Again novel Chapter 17

It took Eden fifteen minutes to get to her parents' penthouse. She knew they were both livid judging from the cold, silent way they regarded her when she came in.

Both, professors at Rock Union University, prided themselves on being rational, thinking people who used words instead of fists, and the quieter and calmer the tone, the better.

"I'm sorry you found out the way you did," Eden apologised as soon as she sat in the loveseat facing the endless pool on the deck.

"Is it Simon's?" Erica McBride asked in her breathy voice, hope lighting up her small face.

Eden always thought she'd easily be the prettiest woman in the room if she could smile more. She had the same slanted brown eyes like her. Her olive skin was smooth and ageless, thanks to the copious amounts of skincare products lining her vanity station in her enormous walk-in closet upstairs. Her brown hair was always kept in a chic bob, and she wore very little makeup. But she was still striking enough to inspire many a love letter from the disillusioned, tortured writers who flocked her English 101 lecture.

For a Literature professor, whose specialty is romantic poetry, there was nothing remotely soft and romantic about Erica. She always had a pained expression on her face, as if being happy would suck the very life out of her.

"It's not Simon's," Eden said and held her gaze challengingly. But it's her father who charged into the battlefield first with all his accusations.

"No wonder Simon left you, you were doing shit behind his back," Steve McBride said calmly, his hands resting loosely on his slightly rounded stomach, a growing result of his indulgence on good food and fine wine. Even in the heat of a fierce battle, he never raised his voice, no matter how furious he was. It was something Eden had always appreciated in the past as a child. She’d found it reassuring somehow. But as she got older, she’d slowly come to realise it was his brand of intimidation.

She often wondered if her parents were always this way before they met each other, cold and aloof. Or if one had moulded the other into a glacial statue.

"Simon cheated on me first, Dad. He left me for one of my closest friends. He humiliated me, and I don't know how else to explain this to you," Eden blurted. She was tired of always defending herself and seeking their love and support. They were her parents; their loyalty should be to her and her alone.

"You must have done something to push him into that woman’s arms!" Steve carried on.

"You are unbelievable!" Eden lost it, stunning both her parents with her harsh tone. She never raised her voice at them, or anyone for that matter because they'd taught her well. "He hurt me! He humiliated me! I'm your daughter!"

"What about our humiliation?" Erica pointed out as she tapped a manicured finger on her chin thoughtfully.

Eden gawked at her, open-mouthed, flabbergasted by the nonsense spewing out of her mouth. Somehow, Erica had found a way to make her pain and heartbreak all about her.

"Are you fucking kidding me right now?" Eden gritted her teeth and rolled her eyes heavenward. "Your humiliation? You didn't have to call a hundred people and tell them you won't be getting married because your fiancé ran off with one of your best friends! You didn't lose your dog in a custody battle you were never informed of. You are not hanging on to a goddamn engagement ring like a tacky-ass person because it's the only reminder of the four years you poured all your love and attention into something that wasn't meant to grow!"

"You need to calm down," Steve put up his hands, but Eden rounded on him too.

"No, you need to face facts and let go of your stupid dream of being on the university board!"

"How do you know about that?" Steve cringed visibly, his ears turning as red as a traffic light.

"I'm not stupid, Dad. Simon's father is the chairman of the board," Eden blurted and pressed her hands firmly on her lap. "You wanted to use my marriage to earn your spot on the board. I can't believe you'd try to take such an easy way out. You taught me better than that!"

For the first time since Simon broke things off, she saw something close to shame in her father's eyes as he hid his face in his gigantic hands, the thinning crown at the top of his head shimmering brightly under the massive chandelier dripping from the ceiling.

"I'm your daughter," Eden added softly. "My broken heart, my hurt, my pain should have been your only concern. But somewhere along the way, you forgot who your child is. But that's okay because I've learned something from all of this. Now that I'm going to be a mom, I pray I don't turn out to be a shitty parent!"

"You can't possibly be planning to keep that child!" Erica, silent all along, finally had an opinion.

"Watch me!" She chewed the nail on her right thumb, a terrible habit she always regressed to whenever she's troubled or angry.

"What will people say, our social circle, my friends, you can't be bringing a bastard's child–"