A Wrong Surrogate for the CEO-Chapter 128: Making up

Kayla had just gotten back from work, and she was very exhausted.

She collapsed on her bed after having a bath, and trying to decide what she was going to eat before calling her long distance husband, when the doorbell rang.

A slight frown furrowed on her face. She wondered who it could be as she made her way out of her bedroom and down to the door.

Kayla opened the door, and came face to face with Lara.

Without even letting Lara say or do anything, Kayla slammed the door in her face.

And no matter how much Lara rang the doorbell, Kayla refused to open the door.

~~

Lara’s heart refused to stop aching. And it only got worse when Kayla slammed the door in her face and ignored her for several long minutes.

As Lara trudged dejectedly away, her feet dragged on the floor. Calling another taxi was exhausting, and she wondered if she should have taken Marcus up on his suggestion to drive her back here.

But bringing Marcus with her would probably make things worse, so she had refused.

Maybe she should have. At least she would have had someone to talk to, especially now that Kayla was refusing to talk to her or listen to an explanation.

Lara heaved a deep breath as she got into the taxi. She gave the driver her destination, and as the car got closer to her next stop, Lara could only hope that there wouldn’t be a door shut in her face this time.

~~

Laura and her daughter were watching an animation when the doorbell rang.

"Who is it, mummy?" her daughter asked. Laura kissed her daughter on the forehead as she stood up.

"I have no idea, sweetie. But hold on while I check," she said and walked down the hallway.

It couldn’t be her husband, because he knew the door combination and would just make his way inside once he got back from work.

But apart from her husband, Laura had no idea who could be at the door.

The moment Laura opened the door and saw who it was though, the slight smile on her face fell away.

It was Lara.

"What are you doing here?" Laura asked as she folded her arms over her chest. Lara’s face was pale, as if all the blood had been drained from her body.

She looked tired, and the eye bags under her eyes made her look like she hadn’t slept in days.

"I need to talk to you, please," Lara said quietly. Laura stared at her for a long time, saying nothing.

Lara’s lips wobbled. She took a step closer. "Please, Laura."

Curtis’s sister sighed as she moved away from the door.

"Fine. Get in."

Lara flashed her a grateful smile as she walked in, and Laura closed the door behind him.

Then both women faced each other. Laura’s expression was blank, her anger carefully masked.

Lara, on the other hand, was very nervous. Her anxiousness was obvious, and it wafted from her in huge waves.

"What do you want, Lara?" Laura asked, and she didn’t bother to keep her voice mild or anything.

Lara took a deep breath before she spoke. "It’s not what you think. What you guys saw that day, it’s not what you think."

Curtis’s sister raised her eyebrows. "What are you talking about? You mean making all of us worried as hell and then turning out to be in another man’s arms? Is that it?" she quipped.

Lara shook her head.

"Marcus is...Marcus and I are not together. We..." she started to explain, but Laura shook her head and stopped Lara from saying whatever she wanted to say.

"I don’t want to hear it, so don’t bother. Why are you here? If you have an explanation to make, you know I am not the one you should be talking to. So why are you here, Lara?" Laura asked.

"I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to inconvenience you. But Curtis had changed the combination on the gate lock and I wasn’t able to get in. And Kayla...she shut the door in my face."

Laura raised her eyebrows at the explanation. "So you came here to do what? I will not talk to Curtis for you, Lara. I have helped you enough, and I am done butting into your business. This is your mess. Deal with it."

There was an air of finality in Laura’s words, and Lara knew that there was no way of getting through her.

But she had to try.

"Marcus is gay."

Surprise slammed into Laura as those words settled around and between them.

"What?!"

Lara sniffed and went on. "I grew up in that town. It’s been so long, and I haven’t been there in years. Marcus used to be my best friend. But we grew apart, and I never kept in touch with him. When your mother came to see me, something started to happen to my brain. The memories came back, but they weren’t complete. It was fractured. And the future bled into the past. It was hard to separate them. I didn’t know what was real and what was not. And it was... overwhelming. So I went back home. To that place I used to love as a kid."

Lara paused. Laura’s expression wasn’t really blank with rage anymore as she listened. She said nothing though, and waited for Lara to continue her story.

"I met Marcus again. He never left, and it was so nice to meet a familiar face from the past. He didn’t judge me for leaving him behind all those years ago. He got married. I met his husband, and they are happy together. Being away from everything here calmed me down. And my memory started to come back. Marcus helped me too. He listened to me. Made me calm meditation playlists. Told me to not give up on Curtis. I...I didn’t cheat on your brother, Laura. I would never do something like that. I just...I needed to remember. That was why I left."

Lara’s last sentence came out as a sob, and Laura’s heart melted.

"Oh, honey," she said as she stepped closer and pulled Lara into a hug.

"Do you... do you think Curtis is going to believe me?" Lara asked.

Laura pulled away and looked her straight in the eye. "I think you should ask him that yourself."

And before Lara could ask what she meant, Laura pulled the door open. Curtis was standing before the door, his hands tightly wrapped over two baby carriers.

His eyes were as wide as saucers, and Lara knew that he had heard every single word she just said.