Author's Note: This was actually a deleted scene from Intimacy. I wrote this around the same time that I wrote the Drama Chapter. It didn't really fit the the flow of the chemistry between Amanda and Larry, so I just took it out from the book entirely. Enjoy!
She stared down at her phone in disbelief. The pictures that had been posted on Instagram in which Larry and her had been tagged in sent a bolt of pain straight through her heart. Her hand shook as she braced her other against the wall of the hallway for support. She hadn't made it to the apartment yet. Her phone had gone off before she had even had a chance to reach the door. In fact, she had just stepped off the elevator when it had chimed shrilly with a notification. Normally she wouldn't have bothered until she had actually entered the apartment before checking it, but something had been subconsciously nagging at her. She supposed it was a good thing too. She found herself turning right back around and straight back onto the elevator in a state of numb shock. She didn't know where she was going but she certainly didn't want to be home at that point and time. She moved on auto pilot, walking through the New York streets as if she was watching from someone else's eyes. She didn't entirely care that people around her were pushing and shoving, bumping into her and jostling her in different directions. By the time she had reached the end of her path, tears she hadn't even noticed were freely flowing down her cheeks, silent tears of anguish and heartbreak.
Her finger reached out and pressed down on the buzzer. There was no voice, but there was a click as the door was unlocked from the inside and she slipped quietly inside. Again, she moved with no real sense of urgency or purpose, making her way towards another elevator. Within seconds, she was in front of a door she had no real intention of going to, but it was already too late. It was wide open and waiting for her by the time she reached it. She felt fingers grasp her chin and pull her head up faintly. She was suddenly staring up at Laurent, her eyes glittering with fresh, un-shed tears. She didn't say a word, at that moment, there was no real need. He could see the pain in her eyes and on her face. Hell, he had seen the pictures on Instagram almost the very second they had been posted. Damn his brother.
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"I know, belle."
Those were the only words he spoke to her, but the raw emotion she heard in them vibrated into her very being and she collapsed to her knees in a fit of sobs, her body trembling and shaking. Lau caught her before she fell, easily lifting her into his arms as if she weighed nothing more than a feather and not six months pregnant. He carried her into the living room and sat with her on the sofa, his arms wrapped securely around her shaking frame. He rocked them gently back and forth, running his fingers over the braids of her hair. How could Larry have done this to her? Rage boiled inside of him. Yes, he knew that he had hurt her too but this was far worse. He hadn't gotten her pregnant and married her only to end up cheating on her with the very woman that had been causing them all these issues. His younger twin didn't deserve her. Hell, he didn't deserve her. She deserved far better. She deserved the world. He could almost feel her pain and heart-break as if it was his own. She must feel as if she wished she had never met either of them at this point. However, if that was the case would she have really come here instead of seeking out other friends and family that weren't associated with Les Twins?
"Did you know h-he w-was with h-her?" She inquired, her voice watery and husky. She sounded so lost and shattered.
"Non, cherie. I just saw the pictures a little while ago when they were posted. I had absolutely no idea he was seeing her. If I knew, I would have told you immediately."
She nodded wordlessly, burying her face against his chest. She let out a strangled, heart-wrenching cry that had him immediately tightening his arms around her.
"How could I have been so stupid, Lau? Was I really that blind?"
"You are anything but stupid, bebe and certainly not blind. He is my Twin, someone I know better than I know myself and I never in a million years would have guessed he would have done something like this, especially to you of all people."
She didn't say anything else and neither did he. Laurent simply held her as she wept. He knew that Larry would be contacting him sooner or later trying to find where his wife was and God help him when he did.
~~~~~~
"She's asleep." Laurent's court words snapped at someone though the phone. Amanda peeled her eyes open, watching as his tall, graceful stature paced back and forth along the far side of the living room. She must have fallen asleep at some point, exhausted from the emotional stress and strain. "She's a damn wreck, Lar. I hope you're fucking happy. " She could hear the anger evident in his voice and in a way it flattered her that he was stepping up to her defense. "I may have her hurt, mon frere, but it was nothing like what you have done to her. I didn't get her pregnant. I didn't marry her only to cheat on her. She's fucking shattered because of you." There was a pause on his end. "Non, I'm not waking her up so you can talk to her and you better not dare show your face on my doorstep, Larry. Not until she's ready to talk to you. She doesn't need anymore stress than she's been under. Just stay home and think about everything. Think about what you've just ruined." Her lower lip trembled, her eyes watching as he crossed the living room towards her where she still laid. He leaned down and pressed a kiss against her temple lightly. "How'd you sleep, belle? Did I wake you?"
She shook her head faintly. "No." It was all she said, her gaze shifting so she was staring at the floor instead of at him. He knelt down on the floor my her head, running the backs of his fingers over her cheekbone.
"I know that this probably won't do any good, cherie, but I am very sorry."
"This isn't your fault, Lau." She said softly, a sigh slipping past her lips. "It's mine. Mine for being foolish enough to where I thought I could trust him. You two are internationally well known. There are women throwing themselves at you two on a daily basis, how could I ever hope to think that anyone as infamous as you two would want someone as simple and as common as me?"
"Belle, don't think that way. You are anything but common or simple. You are unique and a damned good woman. Any man would be lucky to have you as their wife. The fault is mine and Larry's, not yours, cherie. We were the ones who fucked up, not you."
"Maybe, but it feels like I'm the one who did something wrong to have it turn out like this. Maybe if I hadn't been so strong with my emotions for you, I wouldn't have chased you off. Maybe if I would have been more like Melissa, Larry wouldn't have cheated."
"Don't you dare feel that way, Amanda. You are better than Melissa by a long shot and I didn't run because of the strength of your emotions. I ran from mine. I have never felt this strongly about anyone before and I was scared, terrified. I know it's not an excuse, but it's the truth, belle. You rocked my world and I didn't know how to handle it."
"I don't know what I'm going to do, Lau. I really don't."
He pressed a kiss to her forehead. "I know. While you are figuring things out, you're more than welcome to stay here for as long as you need to. I have a spare room you can use." He knew that she honestly didn't have any other place to go. "I will pick up some of your things in the morning if you'd like."
"I think that may be the best for now. At least until I decide what I'm going to do. I know what I want to do, but kick his ass and hers isn't exactly an option."
"I can kick his for you." She smiled faintly, a twitch of a single corner of her lips, but it was enough for him to know that he could still get her to smile. "How about some Taco Bell and a movie or two?" She almost immediately sat up at the mention of Taco Bell. He chuckled softly, laying his forehead against hers. "Mon Dieu, I adore you, belle."
