Chapter 118: Chapter 118

"Carol! What's going on?" Sebastian asked, rushing over to where Jessica was still lying motionless on the ground. He searched for a pulse, heaving a relieved sigh when he felt a faint one, and lifting her up in his arms while asking a petrified Carol to get one of the drivers. She remained frozen on the spot, staring with wide, scared eyes at Jessica.

"I'm sorry ... I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to push her, but she kept hitting me and I got angry, so I pushed her. Oh, my God! I killed her, didn't I? She's dead and it's all my fault. I've killed someone and I'm going to go to jail. I killed her!" Carol exclaim, still standing where she was while Sebastian was already carrying Jessica out of the garden.

"Snap out of it, Carol. She's not dead. Go get one of the drivers now." Sebastian yelled at her, immediately propelling her into action. She scrambled past him and the unconscious Jessica to go get a driver who drove them all to the nearest hospital, where Jessica, who regained consciousness while they were on the way there and created a huge scene. She seemed to be fine, but the doctor still admitted her so he could observe her overnight as she had suffered a concussion from the fall.

Carol stood in a corner of the hospital room, guilt literally killing her, while Sebastian sat on one of the vacant chairs in the room, rubbing his forehead wearily. This was why Jessica had to leave. She had metamorphosed into someone he did not recognize at all. He could sympathize with her, considering the ordeal she had been through, and knew that she needed help seriously, but she was refusing any help he had to offer. He had booked sessions with a therapist for her several times, but she had steadfastly refused to see anyone. Right now, she was complaining bitterly about why Carol was in the room, and how she wanted her gone immediately.

"I want that crazy woman gone from my room this instant! She's the one who put me here, for chrissakes, and I can't stand to see her within a foot of me."

"No, Jessica. You put yourself in this place. I know Carol would not just push you unprovoked."

"Oh, so you're taking her side once again? You always do this now, forgetting that I've been the one with you all this while and she knows practically nothing about you. In fact, I'm going to press charges against her once I'm out of here."

"Jessica, I'm sorry I pushed you and you slipped and fell, but you shouldn't have slapped me, either. I'm not your punching bag and while I can understand that you've gone through a lot, I will not allow you to walk all over me when it's not my fault." Carol spoke from where she was standing.

"I don't want you talking to me, and I don't want you in my house, either. Thank God your sham of marriage ends in two weeks, so I will not have to put up with seeing you again."

"Alright. I'll just leave now. I can see my presence is only irritating you." Carol said.

"Yes, it is. Do shut the door on your way out and have a safe trip away from here."

"I'll come with you," Sebastian said, standing up too.

"What? Why will you do that? Who will stay with me, then?" Jessica asked angrily. She had obviously not expected Sebastian to say he was leaving too.

"You're only going to be here overnight. Charlotte's in jail and all her cohorts are either dead or have been apprehended by the police. Even the house you were caged in has been seized by the police and everyone there arrested, so you're very safe. If you want though, I'll send Gloria or one of the other maids to come to stay with you this night until you're discharged tomorrow. If not, the driver will be on hand to pick you up as soon as you're discharged and if I can make it, I'll come to see you before you're discharged tomorrow morning, otherwise, I'll see you later in the evening." Sebastian said, and taking Carol's elbow, led her outside the room despite Jessica's protests.

"Don't worry. I'll soon be out of your hair and you will stop having to mediate fights between two women. I'm sure it's exhausting." Carol said jokingly on the drive home, even though nothing was funny about the whole situation.

"You seem really eager about leaving, Carol. You don't like living with me, then?" Sebastian asked as a very bright flash of lightning shone in the sky. "I think it's going to rain quite heavily." He finished, pausing as he waited for her to answer his first question, his pulse racing.

"Yeah. It's going to rain. I enjoy living with you a lot, Sebastian. It's almost as though I should never leave. But, the contract is coming to an end, so I guess I do not have a choice. I'll miss you so very much." Carol told him quietly, her eyes becoming misty immediately at the thought of leaving and not seeing him again, or at least, not as frequently as she did now.

"So don't go, then. Stay with me for some more time at least. I'll ask Jessica to leave as soon as she comes back, so she does not continue to constitute a nuisance to you. What do you say about that?" He asked as the car stopped and he helped her down from it. Carol stared at him, hardly able to credit what she was hearing. Sebastian wanted her to stay with him just as she wanted?

"Alright, Sebastian. I'll stay." She replied, reveling in the loud whoop of joy he gave as he scooped her up and planted a kiss on her cheek and then all over her face. He peppered her face with kisses, before finally setting her back down on her feet just as the first drops of rain fell from the sky. They both ran straight for the house, laughing giddily like silly little kids. Sebastian had not told her that he loved her, only that he wanted her to stay a little longer, so Carol wasn't sure if it was too soon to say anything about how she felt to him.

Also, there was still the issue of the pregnancy, but she would tell him about that the next morning. This sort of weather was not meant for a serious discussion like that. What it was meant for was lots of lovemaking and cuddling, which was exactly what she and Sebastian did as soon as they got to his bedroom. Once they were done making love, Carol lay contentedly in his arms, listening to the sound of the heavy rain and thunder outside, while he rubbed her back since he knew how much she loved him doing that.

"You should move into my room, you know. It makes no sense that we stay in separate bedrooms in my opinion."

"Have you forgotten what happened the last time we had sex in your room?" Carol asked, groaning at the memory, while Sebastian laughed at it.

"If only you were not too chicken, we would have given her a display that would have made her run screaming for the hills." He joked, but Carol was not finding it funny.

"What if she refuses to leave, Sebastian? You and I know that she wants to get back together with you. I don't think I'll want to stay and watch that."

"I'll take her name off the property and compensate her with two more houses if she wants them. I can't keep babysitting her forever, and the sooner she knows that, the better for everyone. I don't know why, but whatever feelings I had for her are dead and there is no point in leading her on."

"Is it because she cheated on you that you don't love her anymore. I remember you were so desperate to find her and get back together with her."

"No, I don't think it's because of that, really. It's just how I feel." Sebastian replied, not knowing if he should tell her that it was because he was already in love with her that his heart was no more with Jessica. He did not want to scare her away though, after all, she had only just agreed to stay even after their marriage contract was over. He did not think that it would be wise to push her.

"Hmm. Did you both ever think of having children while you were together?" Carol asked quietly, her pulse racing as she awaited his response. She was trying to gauge how he would react when she finally told him that she was pregnant. He deserved to know about it, even if she was going to get rid of it at the end, which she did not think she was going to do anyway.

"Christ, no! Jessica never wanted them, and frankly, neither did I. I still don't, to be honest. I don't think I'm ready for that yet."