The Billionaire's Claim

I can't describe how lost I've been these last few weeks. I had hoped that Nate would return in the next few days after he left England, but he actually didn't. When he still didn't contact me that was the final straw. A small part of me was relieved when he didn't come back with that woman. But he made sure to announce to everyone that he was enjoying the single life.

What a fucking insult that was.

George had stormed over to Nate's apartment the minute he heard news of Nate's return. I was thankful that George was fighting for me, but when George returned with a busted lip, I pleaded with him to stop.

What could we do? Nate had made up his mind.

My little brother, Eaton, led an intervention with my parents. He was the only one who, without saying a word, could drag me out of my bed.

I knew that I needed to focus on myself and not think about Nate, which was why I had been blogging more recently. I was trying to get back into it and was falling in love all over again. I now had my own photographer to help create photos for me. Cameron knew all of my right angles. He knew how much lighting was needed for the right picture. Honestly, I was not paying him nearly enough.

One thing that worried me was that I think he liked me more than a friend, but I just didn't feel any attraction towards him, which sounded awful. I had been thinking about talking to him about it all day yesterday when we were filming in Oxford, but I didn't get the chance.

Cameron was supposed to be here any minute to drive us to Tammy's dress fitting. When I saw his car pull up outside, I grabbed my bag and ran out of the house.

"Loretta you're aware that if we're late Tammy will—" he starts to shout with his head poking out the window.

"I know I know we're dead!" I said, panting as I ran to the passenger side of the car. I was late to a meeting for her wedding once and she nearly killed us both because we were outside taking pictures. In my defense though, she forgave me the minute I pulled her in for a picture that made it onto my blog.

"Dan messaged me and said he's having a party tonight. We could go together if you want?" Cam broke the silence. I froze when I realized what he just said. Together as in a date…not just as friends. Right?

"Um, Cam I don't know. I haven't really thought about it,” I said quietly.

"Loretta get over yourself. I just want to go as friends,” he said jokingly. That was harsh but I guess he was right. So, he wasn't asking me out on a date. I may act like I am over Nate but in reality, I'm anything but over him.

"Can I ask you a question, Cam?" I'm now fully turned in his direction. He glanced at me still trying to keep his eyes on the road. I guess I better sort this out now before I further embarrass myself.

"Do you have a girlfriend?" I asked him seriously. Cam turned onto a side road and switched off the engine. He finally turned to me. When I looked at him my eyes widen at the smirk on his face.

"Loretta, I'm married,” he said simply, practically looking constipated because I knew he was dying to burst into laughter.

"You're married!" I all but shout, my heart raced with total embarrassment. Seriously Loretta. My eyes moved over to his left hand that rested on the steering wheel. A simple wedding band sat on his finger. How did I not notice that before?

"Yes, have been for the last year." He chuckles.

"Oh, thank god," I whisper, finally taking a deep breath. Cameron's eyes snapped back to me.

"What's that supposed to mean?" he asks harshly. I think I may have hurt his feelings with that one, but I can't actually believe he kept this from me.

Who keeps their wife a secret and why haven't I met her? I would have thought it was important seeing as we spend a hell of a lot of time together.

"I'm sorry, that came out wrong. I just got mixed signals and my heart is with someone else, so I was just wondering…but married." His face relaxes a bit, and his face brightens up. He's probably thinking about her right now.

"Nate is lucky."

I look at him surprised; I didn't even know he knew about that. Although I guess he's not oblivious to the attention that's been focused on Nate and me.

"I'm not an idiot. I know about Nate, and I also know you're deeply in love with the dick." I laughed lightly at Cam's change in tone. I guess he wasn’t a fan of him.

"You know what? How about after this I introduce you to my wife and then we all go to Dan's?" Cameron suggested. I mean I'm sure that wouldn't be bad. I'd love to meet his wife. I'm sure she's lovely.

"Okay but first let's get to the boutique before we’re on bridezillas radar." With that said Cameron put the car in gear and we were back on the road. Both of our hearts raced because neither of us wanted to be on her radar.

That woman is bad shit crazy.

"I can't. You go in alone." I look behind me and Cam hasn't moved a single inch from the car.

"What do you mean you can't? We're going to be late." I roll my eyes at his behavior. Oddly, he reminds me of George. Maybe that's why we get on so well.

"She's at the window. I can feel her heated gaze already." I peek at the window and he's right. She's standing at the window with her arms crossed. Not impressed.

"Fine, I'll speak to her. I'm sure your wife is proud of your courage, Cam," I mumbled as I slammed the car door and headed inside.

He shouted in objection, but I had already made it inside.

"Hello gorgeous," I said to Tammy, testing the waters. She currently had her back to me as she talked to her sister, Lindsey. I could pretty much see the stress on her face.

"Get changed," her voice called out to me. She didn't even bother turning to face me.

Lindsey shoved the dress at me quickly before running back to Tammy.

I walked into the dressing room and tried on the dress. It could be worse, I say, considering what I looked like in the mirror. She's decided to have her bridesmaid's wear lavender dresses, and I hate this color so much. But if I objected, I think Tammy would hate me and probably break down crying, so I decided to keep my mouth shut.

"It's a shame that you look beautiful in that dress," Tammy broke the silence as I stared at myself.

I lift my eyebrow. "Why's that?" I questioned her.

"Because I wanted you to look ugly for once." The other girls laugh at her comment. I shrug it off, sending a quick “save me” text to my partner in crime outside.

"Does that mean I can take it off now?" I asked her, dreading her reply.

"I suppose so," she replied weakly. Before she could even turn back around, my knight in shining armor burst through the door.

I'm telling you, the replica of George.

"Not so fast ladies."

"Can't leave without a photo," he said, grinning and holding up his big ass camera. Unfortunately for Tammy, Cameron was her wedding photographer.

"Perfect. Just who I wanted to see," Tammy muttered, expressing a further hatred for the man.

Cameron didn't waiver at Tammy's hostile response. "C'mon, I brought you presents." Cam held up a bag and fished out some hats. When I saw what they said on them, I laughed. Only Cam would think of this.

"For you." He handed each of the bridesmaids one and finally gave one to Tammy.

"Picture time!" he exclaimed, shoving us all together for a group photo. "Say, POCAHONTAS," Cam called out as he grabbed his camera. Tammy rolled her eyes before finally joining in.

"POCAHONTAS," we all scream.

After a few pictures, we all took off the dresses. When my dress has finally been stripped off my body, I walked to the reception area, but stopped suddenly when I saw Tammy standing in the other room admiring herself in the mirror. She tried on her dress, and I don't think I've seen her so beautiful.

"You look beautiful Tammy," I said, stepping into the room. She quickly stared at me through the large mirror, but her face transformed into a smile and then she started laughing.

"When I met George for the first time, that's exactly what he said to me." I widen my eyes. Oh no things are about to get sentimental. Tissues would be nice.

"We had spoken before, but I was trying on a dress, and he was there with another girl." She giggled at this. "I'm sorry for being crazy Loretta. I'm just nervous," she admitted.

It's not like I was surprised. She had every right to be nervous. She was getting married.

"Of course, you are! You're getting married Tammy, but just know that George loves you. Trust me, I've known that boy for years now and I've never seen him so in love before. It's funny because he is as nervous as you. He's the one that has to wait for you to walk down the aisle."

I was standing in front of her holding her hands in mine. "Just relax and enjoy this because you're so lucky to be able to marry someone who cares for you," I said, looking deeply into her eyes.

"Oh, god, I'm sorry Loretta."

I shook my head. "No don't, I'm not trying to make you feel bad for me. Just enjoy it."

"You know Nate is an idiot right?" She held up my chin. "He doesn't know what he's lost. "

"On that note, I want to give you something." She let go of my hands and left me standing there confused. She finally returned with another dress in her arms. "This is your real dress. The dress you wore earlier is actually for my cousin," she giggled. I stare, shocked at the dress, which was simple yet beautiful and not that horrible lavender color. It was the same color as Lindsey's.

"Aren't all the bridesmaid's supposed to wear purple?" I asked, confused. I wasn't that bothered about the color or the dress, in fact.

"I've decided to give you the role of deputy maid of honor," she said proudly, but I just continued to stare at her confused.

"Tammy that's not a thing," I smiled, finding it adorable.

She pouted. "My wedding, my rules," she replied. “You've been part of my family ever since we became friends, Retta so don't complain and just take it and go before I cry and ruin all my makeup." I reluctantly left with the dress, but not before giving her a hug.

"And Loretta." I turn back waiting for her to talk. She smiles at me. "Show him exactly what he lost!"

After trying on the dress and making sure it fit me, I met Cameron out in the car so that he could drive me to his home.

"What went better than expected," Cameron said.

He's right. That went surprisingly well. I was expecting fireworks, and not the good kind, but Tammy was a simple girl at heart.

"When were you going to tell me you live in a palace?" I said looking up into the building entrance when we finally arrived.

"Well, you didn't ask." I hated that he was right. I don't think I knew much about the man other than what he told me in his interview. 

"Now I must warn you, she can be…" Cameron started to whisper, but stopped immediately when he felt a hand on his shoulder.

I couldn't help but laugh at his reaction. He must be really scared of his wife.

"Go on darling, please continue. I would love to hear the rest of your sentence," the woman urged him. I started to laugh at the whole situation.

I finally lifted my head and glanced at the women who had this man in a frightened state. A gasp left my mouth, and I quickly slammed my hand across my mouth.

What the actual fuck?

"Baby, I wasn't going to say anything. I just was going to say, um oh god, Christ." Cam couldn't seem to form a proper sentence. I would have laughed but I was currently preoccupied.

"Shut up, Cam," she quickly said, dismissing the poor man walking up to me.

"Loretta?” She finally said my name.

"Wait, you know her?" Cam blurted out confused. I quickly glared at him for not having the audacity to call me by my name.

"Her? Where are your manners? This is who you've been working for, and you didn't tell me?"

Cam seemed uneasy at the change in conversation. He decided to lean back, zipping his mouth shut. Good idea, I thought to myself.

"Angela, what the actual fuck?" I exclaimed, grabbing her and pulling her in a for a huge hug.

"Loretta fucking Christ!" she said, squeezing the life out of me. I haven't seen this little bitch since primary school, and I couldn't deny the fact that I was freaking out.

I obviously wouldn't recognize her now from when I used to know her, but we always stayed connected on Facebook through the years.

"Again, you know each other?" Cameron made it clear how confused he was. There were a lot of groundbreaking revelations happening in such a short period of time.

"Yes darling. I can't believe you've been keeping this a secret." She removed herself from me and turned to glare at her husband.

"In my defense, I didn't know you knew each other." Cam tried to justify himself, finally walking into the house.

"That's true," I said, linking my arms with Angela. As we walked into the house, I leaned over and whispered, "Do you think he's jealous?" She laughed whole heartedly as she pulled me into her house.

"Shut up Angela," Cam's voice rang from another room, vibrating against the walls of the big house.

We both looked at each other before bursting into giggles. There was no doubt that Cam was going to be in trouble after that comment. Angela was always the feisty one ever since she was little. Had the little boys shitting themselves at break, worried about being away from the patrol of the teachers.

"So, are your girlies ready?" Cameron called as he ran up the stairs and into their master bedroom.

I pressed the last hair piece down onto Angela's scalp, letting Angela see the finished look. I felt uneasy thinking about tonight but concentrating on Angela right now was allowing me to breathe a little bit.

If Dan was there, Nate would be too. After all they were friends. I don't know why Dan even thought it was a good idea for me to be there tonight. I just hoped that I didn't put myself in a position that I would later on regret.

Nate POV

"Jealous are we?"

I Ignored Daniel's comment. My eyes focused on the girl filling up my glass with even more tequila. I could see her looking at me from under those lashes; her lips wet from licking them as she walked over here.

Honestly, I was not sure why I even agreed to come to Daniel's birthday. He wouldn't have cared if I hadn't shown up, but I didn't want to be rude. Dan was a good friend of mine when he wasn’t being a prick.

George wasn't the only one pissed at what happened between Loretta and me. Dan made sure to make my life a misery by constantly reminding me of what I'd done. But sometimes I wanted to pound my fist into that shit’s face.

"Why would I be jealous?" I replied casually, even though I was finding it borderline impossible not to look over at her standing near the bar.

"Shut the fuck up Nate. No one cares about this petty game you're playing." Good gracious. Did anyone else want to join in bullying me today? I hadn’t even had the chance to take a breather since I arrived. Not like I deserved it anyway.

"If you're just going sit there and drool over her then please leave because I swear to god that girl does not deserve this shit." George said, then grabbed my shot and shoved it down his throat.

"That was mine," I groaned. I hold up my finger at the girl. She eyed my now empty glass and rushed over, filling it to the brim.

Dan let out a light laugh before muttering quietly. "So was she."

When I heard it, I felt a pain in my chest. I glared at Dan, his words were so right, and I knew that, but could he at least shut up about it for one minute.

Tired of this conversation, I stood up and grabbed my phone, sliding into my pocket. If I stayed around these two any longer, I was afraid of coming out with the truth. Many times, it had crossed my mind, but I held back.

"Leaving so soon?" he said, smirking. He was taunting me, clearly getting too comfortable in his position. I didn't let him have the satisfaction and walked away; my head held high as I passed many of the people here.

I searched the room. I needed something to distract me from the beauty standing not too far from me. Her beautiful dirty blonde hair was framing her face perfectly as she spoke to Tammy. My fingers twitched at my side as I noticed the familiar guy standing to her right.

I watched him carefully. His hand rested on the table, dangerously close to Loretta's small waist. I turned my head; I wasn't going to stay any longer and see something that was going to push me to the edge.

I found a woman sitting quietly at the bar. She seemed out of her comfort zone, not fully enjoying the night. She didn't seem to be giving any attention to any of the men that came over to flirt. I was in desperate need for company but not to flirt.

I decided to make my way over, my first sentence already running through my mind. But I didn't get the chance as the one woman I swore to avoid tonight stepped in front of me.

"Nathaniel," she spoke softly. Her hair fell over her shoulder. Those clear beautiful eyes stared up at me.

I clenched my fists. "You look like you've seen a ghost," she said, her lips turning up into a smirk. She was either completely out of her element right now or incredibly drunk because there was no way she had the courage to speak to me right now.

I knew her well.

"Go back to the girls Loretta, and stop fucking drinking," I growled into her ear as I moved her body aside. Loretta surprised me by pulling on my arm. The moment her fingers touched my skin I wanted to pull them up and kiss them.

But I couldn't. Fuck, but I wanted to.

"Still a controlling asshole I see. Fuck you Nate," she spat, pushing my arm away and slipping past me. I struggled to hold myself back from pulling her into my chest.

I let her go, watching her head back to the women. I watched from the corner of my eye as Tammy weaved her arms around her waist.

I needed to get out of here.

Dismissing my original plan on talking to that woman, I made a quick exit through the back doors and into the cold air outside.

I unlocked my phone and sent a message to Dan.

I'm leaving, happy birthday mate.

Loretta's POV

I was out of my element. Why did I even think that talking to Nate was a good idea? I had thought that the alcohol was going to help me be strong in front of him, but it wasn't.

I pulled away from Tammy when Angela came over.

"Guys I'm going to go home. Cameron's driving me." Angela hiccupped with a grinning Cameron behind her. I must admit, seeing Angela drunk was probably the funniest sight. She was so unstable; I swore I saw her talking to a table earlier.

"Mate, good luck." George slapped a hand on Cam's back, looking towards Angela with a funny expression.

Angela suddenly straightened her posture and walked up to George like a woman on a mission. His face transformed into a scared one when Cam stepped back, allowing his wife to give George a piece of her mind.

"Um Cam what is she doing?" George asked, looking a bit frightened. I can genuinely say that George was the definition of shitting it.

Angela continued to advance towards George until she got close enough to jab her finger in George's chest.

"Okay baby, that's enough." Cam finally picked Angela up, saying a quick goodbye as he took Angela outside.

"Girls, you ready to leave?" Dan walked up to us at the bar, proudly wearing his birthday badge like a little boy. I had brought it as a joke. I hadn't expected that he would willingly wear it in a bar like this.

I grabbed both my bag and Tammy's and followed Dan through the room to leave. I was glad that Dan hadn't wished to extend the night to a club because I was tired, and after seeing Nate, all I wanted to do was curl up in my bed.

"Stay close to me," Dan whispered, grabbing my hand as we struggled to make our way through the room. I didn't hesitate to grasp his hand and let him lead the way.

"George mate, why the fuck did you stop?" Dan said impatiently.

My head felt slightly heavy. I leaned in on Dan's back, enjoying the warmth radiating through his jacket.

"It's Nate; he's been taken to hospital," George said, finally turning around.

I felt Dan tense. I picked up my head and stared at George who was looking at his phone.

"Fuck. Alright, c’mon Loretta." Dan pulled me with him as he hailed a taxi and we all got in.

When I sat in the car, I started to sober up. I thought that he was still in the bar. How the hell did he end up at the hospital?

I rushed inside the entrance to the hospital to find Michael waiting for us. He looked tired and stressed as he stood there in his casual clothes. "I'm sorry Loretta but he was asking for you," he said, pulling me into a gentle hug.

"Can we go see him?" I whispered as I gently pulled away. He glanced down at me, an innocent smile on his lips. Michael guided me to Nate's bed. When my eyes fell on Nate, a gasp left my lips.

He was lying with his eyes closed. A drip was connected to his arm as Kyle and Andrea stood by his bed.

Bandages covered his whole stomach. His face was red with bruises forming on his face. He was nearly unrecognizable, and I desperately wanted to be Kyle and hold his hand.

With his eyes still closed he said, "what is she doing here?"

"Son you were asking for her." Michael stepped towards the bed, looking him in the eyes. Nate shook his head; his fists tightened their hold on the bed sheets as if this was painful. Ny heart clenched at the small gesture.

"I doubt it, get out," he said with such venom that I had to step back. Dan quickly wrapped his arm around my waist. I sent him a weak smile before standing up straight. I guess I deserved that.

"Nate, don't be so rude." Kyle scowled at him, sending me a look of sympathy. I wasn’t the one who needed the sympathy.

"No, it’s fine, I was just leaving," I said, stepping around Dan who had his hands clenched at his sides. I started to leave the room. I don't spare a glance to Nate. If he doesn't want me here then who am I to stay around unwanted?

"Get well soon," I muttered as I left the room.

I heard George say something before he followed me out of the room. I inhaled deeply as I used my sleeves to wipe away my tears. I don't know how many tears I can shed for Nate. If he was calling me, why would he want me to leave?

Nate hasn't been making sense ever since our fight.

George walked out and gathered me in his arms, letting me cry into his chest. "I hate him," he grumbled staring directly at the door we just came out of. I could only cry further; I didn't want to cause a problem between them too.

"He's your best friend. Go back in there and talk to him," I said pulling away.

George grabbed my shoulders. "And who are you, a stranger? Loretta we were best friends before I even met Nate. I will always put you first, understand?" His voice had risen and was now capturing the attention of most of the bystanders.

I just stared at him, letting the tears run down my face. The moment was graciously ruined when Tammy suddenly started sobbing uncontrollably. "That was bloody beautiful," she said wiping away her tears, clearly still intoxicated.

We both looked at each other before erupting into laughter. "I think we need to take her home," I said, wiping the ears from my face. He agreed with me, grabbing his fiancée's hand and leading us all out of the hospital.

At the apartment, George clearly wanted to make sure that I was okay, but I forced him to take care of Tammy who was attempting to make her way up the stairs. Her body swayed left to right. 

"George, I’m fine. Tammy needs you right now." I pushed him in her direction. He reluctantly agreed and ran over to Tammy just in time to catch her from tripping over her heels. I watched with amusement and a little jealousy as he helped her up the stairs. 

I felt my chest tighten as I thought about Nate. I wondered if I was ever going to be able to not think about Nate. The fact that he called for me whilst in and out of consciousness was enough to have me hoping that Nate still wanted me in his life. 

If he really was protecting me, surely, I would be safer with Nate.