We arrived at the house which Taylor had purchased a few days ago and the servants there help carry our bags into the two-storey white mansion standing before us. I wanted to pick Reign up and carry her in, but she insisted she'd walk and so I let her and she hold onto my finger for support. We walk into the house and Taylor silently follows behind.
"We'll be living here?" Reign asks, looking around with wide eyes as soon as we enter the house.
"Yes," I reply and the two of the maids already waiting for us, in blue uniforms walk up to us.
"Good afternoon, sir." She greets and Reign and I looked at her.
"Good afternoon to you too." I greet back with a nod. "Can you show little princess here to her room?" I ask, pointing to reign and the maid smile warmly down at her before nodding her head.
"Sure thing, sir." She replies, looking at Reign who is still holding my middle finger captive in her little hand. "What's your name?"
Reign's eyes narrow up at the maid, "You're not Lucia, you're not Mommy."
The maid smiles, guess she figures the little girl was a smart angel. "No princess I'm not, but I can be your friend. My name is Rachel," She gives Reign her hand of friendship.
She shakes her head in refusal and let go of my hand only to grab hold of my leg. "Reign no needs another friend, dad is her only friend."
I laugh out helplessly and unclasp her hands from my legs and bend down to properly have a good look at her. She looks troubled maybe even scared and I wonder why that is. She isn't really believing that she would lose me if she makes a new friend, does she?
She is!
Oh, you poor angel.
"Baby, she not going to take my place or make me stop being your friend. Okay?" I answer in a reassuring tone of voice.
She nods a little, not looking convinced. "You promise, daddy?"
I nod, "I promise." I kiss her forehead and she turns towards Rachel, this time giving her her hand and Rachel takes it and they walk away.
"I talked to Federico." Taylor's voice breaks my gaze off Reign and I get up and look at her. Where did she go, we had walked in together, but I lost track of her after I began talking with the maids. She must have gone out that time to pick the call then.
She looks a little happy, which is one thing I am not used to seeing but before I can ask who she talked to or why she's suddenly happy she continues to speak. "My meeting with the Gate's business cooperation board is tomorrow at 10 a.m."
"Why are you telling me?" I furrow my brow and cross my arms.
My real reply should have been 'Did you suddenly realise I exist in your life and want to share information with me?'
"Because I don't want you to be in the dark anymore and that's what I've been doing all the while," she confesses and I stare at her with scrutiny.
I don't believe her, I don't want to believe her, I don't want to be a fool anymore because with her anything is possible.
You think she cares about you one minutes and you only find out it was just another ploy by her into manipulating you and using your head.
She continues to speak, taking me from my thoughts. "I know you don't trust me, but I mean it," She moves towards me and I try as much as possible to avoid looking at her. "I don't want to be the bad guy, Keenan and this seems like an opportunity to start afresh with everyone. We are back here where we left four years ago, a lot of things have changed and so have we, but you changed in the best of ways Keenan."
Is she trying to fuck with my head or does she mean what she's saying? Wanting to start afresh and give us another try because a big part of me does want that.
She stops only when she's standing before me, "I see how you are with Reign, she's happier with you than she is with me. I don't want that to ever stop, if anything I want it to continue."
"Are you going to tell Rory the whole truth about Reign?" I ask.
She opens her mouth, but pauses and just blankly stares at me. "Rory doesn't deserve to know anything, to me he's dead. Reign doesn't need him in her life either."
"He's still her father, Taylor."
"Well, he died!" She raises her voice and snaps at me.
I step back from her and cleared her throat, "I'm leaving." I tell her, changing the subject.
"Where are you going?" She asks, her voice going slow and soft at once.
Her acting should be laughable at this point but it isn't to me. She plays the emotion card so well you can't discern if you're being played or if she's being real.
"You obviously don't need me anymore, you don't even take my advice," I bite out bitterly. "I love you so much and it hurt that I haven't noticed you didn't need me all these years!" once again I left hurt and heartbroken and it sucks and hoping there could ever be a good thing from being with Taylor has been my sin.
"Keenan-" she tries to come closer but I protest against it.
"Don't." I put out my hand and stop her from giving me the 'maybe someday I'll love you like you want me to' speech, hell I was sick of it.
I know I made a promise to never leave her, but that was then when she needed me, now she is strong enough to be on her own. She was gone and didn't wish to be back and as much as I loved her, I couldn't take the pain and heartache anymore.
I have to put myself first, consider my own well-being. This is a difficult thing and almost impossible, but it can be done.
"What am I gonna tell Reign?!" she exclaims, blankly staring at me.
Oh, Reign.
One of the reasons I decided to stay this long... No, she's the one reason, not for Taylor, she has used me enough already, not even for Rory, he chose to believe lies and thrust his friend away and neither did I do it for myself, but for Reign.
She is the innocent one in all of this, she'll be confused why I am no longer around right. She's going to ask questions, questions Taylor won't answer... At least not honestly.
I shrug, "It won't be your first time lying to our daughter, you will figure something out." I begin to walk away.
*