IV
Two Years Later
Carmen smiled as she opened her eyes, feeling the warmth of the sun as it shone through the blinds. She turned to her right and felt her smile widen as she took in the image of James as he slept beside her. She gently ran her finger over his face, feeling the grooves of his face.
A smile appeared on his face as her finger lingered over his lips, as he reached for her wrist, opening his eyes to look into hers.
"Good morning you," Carmen said. James breathed a laugh.
"Good morning, fiancee," he said as he kissed her lips softly. Carmen smiled when he pulled away.
"You know, as much as I love waking up next to you and calling you my fiancee, I wish we could just get married already and I could call you my wife. We've already been engaged for two years," he said as he kissed her cheek, putting his head in the crook of her neck.
"What are you trying to say?" Carmen asked, closing her eyes as the warmth of his body next to hers began to surround her.
"I'm saying," he lifted her left hand and kissed the finger where she wore her engagement ring, "we should get our family's blessings and start planning our wedding already. Why wait any longer?"
Carmen bit her lower lip as she heard his words.
"Do you want to get married that bad? Because I kinda like being engaged to you," she said in a teasing tone.
"We can't be engaged forever," he said as he kissed her lips once again.
"Besides, if you like our relationship now, imagine how much better it could be when we get married," he said, wriggling his eyebrows suggestively. She chuckled as she gently hit his chest before wrapping her arms around his torso and hugging him tightly.
He kissed her forehead as they remained in their embrace. But to her disappointment, the sound of her phone ringing forced them to break apart. She rolled over to the bedside table and picked it up, answering it as she sat upright.
"Hello?"
"Hey Carmen, sorry to call you on your day off but we really need your help. An important client is coming next week and we've gotten behind on our preparations. If it's not too much to ask, could you come in today to help us?" Ashley said. Carmen felt a surge of disappointment at the thought of cancelling the plans she had made with James but she also didn't want to create a bad impression since she had only been there for just over a year as an actual employee.
And so, with that thought in mind, she agreed to go in.
She rushed to get ready as James went into the kitchen to make her a quick breakfast. And once she had eaten, she rushed out of the door.
- - -
Carmen walked along the street with strangers around her, on her way to work, when her phone rang. Bringing her handbag closer to where it could be seen, she searched for her phone and answered the call as soon as she found it.
"Hello?" she said, continuing to walk.
"Hey babe, I'm gonna have to cancel our dinner plans," she heard James say. She felt her lips turn down in a frown as she looked both ways when she reached an intersection, before crossing the street.
"Why?" she asked.
"Duty calls," he said jokingly. She chuckled slightly as she got closer to where a crowd had suddenly gathered. She finished her conversation with James before her curiosity got the best of her and caused her to join the crowd, looking through the window of a shop to find an interview on a TV.
She didn't notice the words at the bottom of the screen as she recognized the person being interviewed.
"That was a great game you just played. You must be feeling proud of your team," the interviewer said. Her eyes moved from the interviewer to the person who was being interviewed,
Taylor
To say that she was shocked to see him after all these years would have been an understatement as she stood there, frozen in her spot.
"He's such a good player," she heard someone in the crowd say.
"And he's pretty hot," another person said. She rolled her eyes at the last statement before she returned her focus to the screen where someone had joined Taylor.
"And who is this little cutie?" the interviewer asked. Taylor's face lit up with a smile as he picked up the little girl and held her close to him. The little girl turned to face the interviewer and smiled, wrapping her arms around Taylor.
"This is Emily, my daughter," Taylor said.
And as soon as Carmen heard that, her grip on her bag loosened, causing the bag to hit the concrete floor.
His daughter?
The only child that she knew that was Taylor's was the one she had given birth to.
Was it possible that this little girl was her child?
Was this her baby girl all grown up?
Carmen felt as if her legs were weak as she continued to look at the screen, almost falling onto the ground when someone caught her.
"Are you alright miss?" the man who had caught her asked. She turned to him in a daze as she nodded her head.
But when she looked back at the screen, she couldn't stop herself from looking at the little girl.
Was that really her daughter?
She remained in the same spot, eyes glued to the TV until she noticed people walking away as the interview finished. With rigid movements, she continued making her to her workplace.
- - -
As she worked, she couldn't shake the image of the little girl from her mind. The way that her eyes had sparkled as she looked at Taylor, her lips turning into a wide smile. And she hadn't missed the loving way that he had looked at his daughter.
She had been so caught up with her thoughts that she didn't notice that she had been making a mess until Ashley tapped her shoulder. She pointed to the floor as her eyes widened.
"The photocopies. How many did you make? I asked you to make ten," she said as she bent down to pick up the papers on the floor. Carmen looked at the photocopier screen and saw that she had accidentally entered '100'. She immediately stopped the machine and bent down to pick up the rest of the papers.
"You seem so distracted. Everything okay?" Ashley asked her, sounding concerned.
"Yeah everything's okay. I just--do you mind if I make a quick phone call?"
Ashley shook her head before she gave her the rest of the papers and rushed to her cubicle to grab her phone. And as soon as she did, she dialed James' number.
He answered on the third ring.
"Hey, I'm a little busy. If you don't mind could you call me a bit lat--"
"I didn't give you an answer this morning," she interrupted him.
"What do you mean?" he asked, his tone reflecting his confusion.
"Getting our family's blessing.
Let's do it--next weekend."
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