Chapter 25: Stupid and In Love

Elena’s P.O.V
“Is he still following us?” I asked Landon through gritted teeth, my hands clenched on the seat. I was trying hard to suppress the nausea that kept churning in my stomach, threatening to empty out my already empty stomach.
“No.” Landon glimpsed at the rear view mirror momentarily before returning his attention back to the road. “I think we lost him when I took a diversion through Orange Street. He isn’t familiar with the roads here so I’m sure we won’t be seeing him anytime soon.”
I released a breath I hadn’t been aware of holding and slumped back in my seat. Slowly, I uncurled my nails from the car seat and placed them on my lap. My knuckles were white and my hands hurt from the strain of holding onto the seat for so long. “He isn’t going to let this go, is he?” I asked Landon, my voice sounding a bit breathless.
I expected Landon to be reassuring that he and my dad would do everything in their power to keep Knight away from me, but I wasn’t expecting what Landon said next. “He’s the father of your child, Elena. If the roles were reversed, would you have been able to let go of the child?”
“Damnit, Landon! I don’t need you playing devil’s advocate right now!” I snapped at him and regretted it instantly.
Landon wasn’t the one being a jerk, I was. He was only trying to help me by being my voice of reason. I went to apologize to him but felt his knuckles brush my cheek momentarily before he withdrew his hand to place it back on the steering wheel.
“I know, Elain.” Landon spoke quietly. “I know.”
Landon and I didn’t speak for the next five minutes as he drove past Wimbledon Street and into Green Road where the area got really posh and expensive. When I was in middle school, I used to say all the snooty people live here because the most popular girl in my class had been from this area. I wonder what Teresa was doing now? Surely not running away from the father of her child.
“Where are we going?” I asked Landon when he didn’t immediately take a U-turn and head back home, but instead, turned right and drove deeper into Green Valley.
“You’ll see.” He said simply. “We’re almost there.”
Frowning, I waited patiently as Landon drove inward for two more minutes before turning to one of the most beautiful houses in the neighborhood.
Landon pressed a button on the remote that had been lying on the dashboard and the gates to the estate opened with a light ‘ping’ of a sound and Landon drove in once the gates were wide enough. They started to close on their own as soon as the car was inside and I realized that the gate had sensors.
The drive was short but the property was magnificent. The house was two storied and a light golden yellow in colour as if it had been kissed by the sun. The windows were large and I could see one side of the house had a glass wall just like my parent’s house did. The lawn was wide and green with several rose bushes covering the walls and scenting the air with their sweet perfume. I didn’t need to see the inside to know that it was magnificent. And also, there was a small pool off to the side of the house that had sparkling clear water in it.
“It’s beautiful.” I said as I finally faced Landon. “Whose house is this?”
“Yours.” He said, calmly leaning against the car and I felt my entire body freeze.
“What?” I asked when I could finally speak again.
Landon smiled. “You always said you liked big windows and a big garden. That you wanted a big kitchen where you could cook for your entire family and at least seven rooms so you could have six children.”
An odd numbness spread through my legs and made its way up my body as comprehension began to draw on me. Because I remembered clearly what I’d told him and it wasn’t just for me. I had wanted this house for us. I had wanted this spacious garden because strong, macho, brave Landon had loved to plant roses and bring me the flowers when they bloomed. He’d tried to grow lilies a couple of times but they’d never survived. And now, my eyes fell on the beautiful red and pink blooms that lined the sides of the front porch, lilies in full bloom.
“Yeah, I managed to grow them.” Landon spoke but his voice sounded from far away. He must have noticed me stare at the flowers, remembered what I was remembering.
But most of all, I remember when I had told Landon that I wanted to live with him…right before Landon started to get distant. Right before he started to spent hours upon hours buried in his work and didn’t have enough time for me. Right before I felt that we had grown distant to the point of no return and I booked a flight straight for LA and never looked back.
“Elena!”
Landon was there to catch me when my knees bucked and my legs gave away. He engulfed me in his arms as he went down with me, holding me close as I lay helplessly in his arms, staring blindly at the house.
“I’m so stupid.”
“We both were, Elain.” Landon said instantly. “Stupid and in love.”
“Yes.” That was one thing I could never deny. I had loved Landon, loved him so much that it was a constant ache in my chest. I’d never truly gotten over him and it was one of the main reasons why I had stayed celibate for almost three years before giving in to Knight. It wasn’t because I thought I’d gotten over Landon, it was the exact opposite. It was because that night, Knight had looked and acted just like Landon, the resemblance so similar that I had finally given in to the ache in my chest.
“What am I going to do?” I asked out loud, but I didn’t know if I was asking Landon or myself.
What am I supposed to do? I was pregnant with another man’s child and yet, here I was, relieving my old feeling for Landon only to discover that the feelings weren’t so old after all.