Caleb's POVI groaned in pain as I struggled to open my eyes. The room was dimly lit, and I could hear the constant beep of machines monitoring my vitals. Everything hurt, and my body felt like it had been put through a meat grinder. Slowly, the memories of the day came flooding back to me, and I realized that I was in a hospital bed.I couldn’t believe that Aaron had actually beat me up. When I woke up that morning, I had a gut feeling that something was going to go wrong but I ignored it. It. I was really excited about the day’s events. I Was already aware that Victoria was opening up her bakery since Eric had told me about it. I wasn’t expecting an invitation from her because we hadn’t spoken for two months since our last conversation nor had we seen each other. I wasn’t going home as much as I used to. Partly because my workload had increased drastically.I had taken on more shifts and more cases to fill my time. The main reason however was that I didn’t want to face Tori. I sti
Victoria's POVIt had been a week since the evening that turned my life upside down. The evening that Aaron beat Caleb up. I thought I had moved on from it all, but the truth is, I was still struggling to accept everything that happened. Alice and Sam were super supportive. I could tell that they were worried about me because they took turns checking on me at least once a day.Even mom had started the habit of dropping by my house to just ‘talk” until I called her out on it and promised that I would be fine to which she responded, “I am your mother. It’s my job to worry.”I couldn’t argue with her there. If I was complaining about people fussing over me, I couldn’t imagine how suffocated Caleb felt. His mom even flew in from England when she heard what happened. Lucky for me I had my job to go back to, unlike Caleb who was stuck on bed rest after his dad made him take a one-month leave for work.I tried to focus on my bakery. It was doing well, which was a silver lining in all of this
Caleb's POVI woke up to the sound of my phone buzzing on my nightstand. I rubbed my eyes and checked the time - it was only 6:00 a.m. Who could be calling me this early? When I looked at the screen, I saw that it was my brother Eric. My heart skipped a beat. Was everything okay? He knew better than anyone how much I valued my sleep. "Hey Eric, what's up?" I answered groggily, my voice was still unbelievably hoarse."Caleb! You won't believe it - it's a girl!" Eric exclaimed."What's a girl?" I asked, still half-asleep."My baby! She's here! She was born just a few hours ago!" Eric said, his voice filled with excitement.I sat up in bed, suddenly wide awake."Oh my god, Eric! That's amazing! Is everything okay?""Yeah, she's healthy and perfect.”“And Gloria?” I asked.“She is doing great, too. She’s exhausted though so she is resting," Eric said, referring to his wife."I'm so happy for you, man," I said, feeling a huge grin spread across my face. "When can I come to see her?""As s
Victoria's POVAs I stood behind the counter of my bakery, The Cookie Jar, I couldn't help but feel a sense of pride and accomplishment wash over me. Today I was working at the register. I normally preferred to be at the back but once in a while, I wanted to be right up front where the action was. I wanted to interact with the people who supported my business. Some Christmas music was playing softly in the background setting the mood. There was a murmur in the air as people talked in low tones. I looked around at the customers, chatting with each other over coffee and pastries. There was a sense of community in the air, and I was so glad I was the one who curated it.My thoughts were interrupted by the sound of the door chime. I looked up to see a mother and her young daughter walk in, the little girl bouncing with excitement. I couldn't help but smile at their adorable matching outfits. They both had blonde hair and blue eyes and they were both dressed in pink identical coats and ha
Caleb's POVI was lounging on the couch in my living room, enjoying the peace and quiet of my home after a long day at the hospital. I had back-to-back surgeries all day and a particularly challenging case that I couldn’t crack and it was driving me crazy. I had gotten home, ordered takeout, and decided to spend my evening doing absolutely nothing.I had just settled in and put on a movie when there was a knock at the door. I sighed, reluctantly getting up to answer it. I wasn't expecting anyone, and I wasn't in the mood for visitors.They didn’t stop knocking which annoyed me even further.“I’m coming god dammit!” I shouted. “This better be good,” I grumbled as I opened the door.When I opened the door, I was surprised to see Brianna standing on my doorstep. We hadn't spoken since we broke up, and I had assumed she had moved on. But here she was, looking as beautiful as ever, and it threw me off guard. It took me a while to find my voice again."Hey," I said, trying to keep my voice
Victoria's POVCaleb had been awfully quiet ever since Brianna showed up. It had been three whole weeks of nothing but radio silence from him. I had left him tons of messages and calls but he never returned even a single one of them.He also hadn’t been home since then. I wanted to believe that he wouldn’t go back to Brianna again but I had a bad feeling about this whole situation. I had even asked Eric if he knew anything about the situation which it turns out was a mistake. The conversation only caused drama. When I told him that Brianna might be back in the picture, his reaction was over the top.“WHAT!!! Please tell me you’re joking,” he basically yelled in my ear.“Why would I joke about something like that?” I asked. “He finally gets away from that bitch then now he’s just letting her sink her claws into him again? What the hell?” I was shaken.I had no idea that Eric disliked Brianna this much. If I knew we would have formed an alliance. The “we hate Brianna club.” I had a fee
Caleb's POVI never thought I'd see the day when I'd be back with Brianna. After everything that had happened between us, I was positive that this time we would not get back together. I never thought I could forgive her but somehow, she managed to worm her way back into my heart. I guess the third time’s the charm.I had gotten the hesitant support of my family and Tori. Immediately after I left Tori’s bakery I went to seek out Eric and my dad. I wanted to let them all know that Brianna and I were going to give it another go. I could not figure out why I was so hesitant to tell them.Bree and I had already been dating for three weeks again. I went to Eric first who was at home with Annabelle and Gloria. He took the news exactly how I thought he would; horribly.Lucky for me, Gloria was there to remind him that I was an adult, and as my brother he had a duty to support me and be there for me. After Eric grumpily gave me his blessing, I went to find Dad who was in his office.Ever since
Victoria's POVAs I sat there staring at Caleb, I couldn't believe what he was saying. For years, I had dreamed of hearing those three little words from him, and now they were finally coming out of his mouth. "I love you, Tori," he said.My heart leaped in my chest at the sound of his words, and for a moment, I felt like I was floating on a cloud. He loved me. Caleb Stallone actually loved me back. All these years that I had spent pining over him thinking that there was no way that he loved someone like me, I was wrong all along. He felt the same way that I did! I was elated. At that moment, I felt invincible.But then, as he continued to speak, my happiness quickly turned to anger. "I even broke up with Brianna for you," he said as if that was some kind of accomplishment. He just had to go ahead and ruin this wonderful moment for me. He made it sound like he was doing me a favor.I felt like I was being made to sound like the consolation prize like I was some kind of second choice th