One Wild Night

The early morning sun cast a golden glow over the cityscape as Tom weaved through the light traffic, a total contrast to their hurried arrival at the hospital the night before.

Lucy, nestled comfortably beside him, finally let out a long sigh of relief. "Thank goodness it's all okay," Lucy finally said, her voice thick with lingering emotion. "I can't believe how scared I was.

Tom glanced over at her, his expression mirroring her own. "Me neither," Tom admitted, squeezing her hand briefly. "I swear, I aged ten years in those fee hours."

"Really? You didn't look the least bit fazed. I don't mean you were not concerned. I mean, you just looked so calm," Lucy said and Tom nodded.

"We can't all break down that way. That was my niece or nephew we were talking about. Of course, I was terrified but I couldn't show it. Now when you were that way. And seeing Bryan like that... it was rough."

"Yeah. But I still think he held it together surprisingly well, considering," Lucy said, her voice laced with admiration.

"True. I doubt I would have been that strong had I been in his shoes," Tom said and Lucy looked at him.

"I'm sure you would been great. You would never let me see you that worried when I'm freaking out myself," Lucy said confidently.

"Maybe," he said and a comfortable silence descended upon them for a moment, broken only by the soft hum of the engine.

Lucy was relieved since the doctor had assured them that Sonia was fine and could go home if she wanted to, but she needed to be on bed rest and had to take some medication since her progesterone level was low.

Despite the doctor's assurance, Bryan had however insisted that Sonia stay in the hospital until evening so that she would be observed further.

Tom's stomach rumbled loudly, shattering the quiet. He chuckled sheepishly. "Now, I'm starving. Not having anything to eat since breakfast yesterday finally caught up with me."

Lucy laughed, a sound tinged with exhaustion. "Me too. Though I think I'm more sleepy than hungry. All that emotional roller coaster takes a lot out of you."

"Yeah. We can get something for breakfast and have Adolf bring lunch to us while we nap," Tom suggested and Lucy nodded in agreement.

"Perfect. I can't believe we have all these food in the car with us but can't eat them," Lucy said, referring to the remnant of the takeouts in bags which lay in the back seat waiting to be disposed.

"You should be glad you ate a bit from it. I got only a bite of the spring roll," Tom said and Lucy yawned.

"I guess so." Lucy snuggled deeper into her seat, her eyelids drooping.

Tom grinned. "Any particular place in mind for breakfast? Or anything in mind you want to have?"

"Nope," Lucy said, yawning widely. "Maybe we can stop by a bakery and pick up something," Lucy said with her eyes closed.

"And after breakfast, straight to bed?"

"That's a perfect plan," Lucy murmured her voice thick with sleep.

A couple of minutes later, Tom pulled into a familiar cafe they passed often and Lucy opened her eyes.

"Wait while I get us something for breakfast," he said when he saw how exhausted she looked.

"I love you," Lucy agreed, her eyes closing back.

By the time Tom returned a short while later with some bagels and pastries, and a cup of latte for himself with a cup of iced mint chocolate for Lucy, she had dozed off again.

Lucy opened her eyes when she heard him get into the car, "I can't believe I dozed off," she said with a tired smile as Tom placed the cups in the cup holder.

"You can adjust the seat and get some rest," Tom assured her as he took a bagel and bit into it.

"Nah. I can sleep when we get home. It's better to eat now so I can go right to bed when we walk into the place," Lucy said as she picked up a bagel from the takeout bag, and Tom chuckled.

They enjoyed a leisurely breakfast as Tom drove, and once they finished eating, Lucy stretched languidly in her seat, while a satisfied sigh escaped Tom's lips.

He turned to spare Lucy a glance. "So," he began, a playful glint in his eyes. "Club still on your agenda for tonight?"

Lucy shook her head. "It's Monday tomorrow."

He feigned surprise. "Monday? Really? I had no idea."

"Hilarious," Lucy deadpanned. "But seriously, work."

Tom chuckled. "Right. That pesky work thing." He paused for a moment, a teasing smile playing on his lips. "Did that ever stop you before, though? Like the night we met?"

Lucy's cheeks warmed at the memory. "That was a one-time lapse in judgment," she protested, though a grin tugged at the corners of her mouth.

"Can you imagine what would have happened had you not been the CEO? How could I be so late to work on my first day there?" She asked incredulously.

Tom raised an eyebrow. "Didn't you have good reason for it, though? I was told you had a good excuse…" Tom trailed off with a chuckle when Lucy hit his arm.

"Harry was such an arse. Don't even remind me of that. I cringe each time I remember the ridiculous lie I told that day," Lucy said and Tom chuckled.

"Lucky you, I was the CEO, and I still am. So you can sleep in and go late to work if you want seeing as that lapse in judgment that brought us here," he said and Lucy rolled her eyes, a smile blooming on her face.

"Maybe I need to make more lapses in judgment," she said and Tom bobbed his head.

"Exactly my point! You need to do that. But only with me. So how come we both come up with a better daring list for you now that you have ticked every item on the other list?" He asked and Lucy giggled.

"What would you put on the list?" She asked, and he shrugged.

"Get married to Thomas Hank. Have kids with Thomas Hank. Live happily ever after with Thomas Hank," he said with a wink and she grinned.

"That's a very daring list," she said and he nodded.

"And rewarding too. No risk, no reward," he said and she smiled.

"I will come up with my list myself. And we won't be going clubbing tonight. You know we have to go back to see Sonia, and then return to your place," she said, changing the subject.

Tom arched a brow. "Why do we have to go back to my place? We could go to work from your place," Tom pointed out, "And even spend the whole week there."

"That won't be a bad idea. But we would have Adolf going to and fro to bring us food. That would be too stressful for him," Lucy said and Tom shook his head.

"He isn't driving me or anyone at the moment. He can do that much. Besides, he is paying paid to drive, so he can as well drive the food down to your place," Tom said and Lucy smiled.

"Alright then. Let's spend the week at my place," she said happily.

"And while we are on the subject, after the close of work, you don't have to wait for me going forward. Adolf will be at the company to pick you up at the close of work each day," Tom said and Lucy raised a brow.

"You don't want us to go home together anymore?" She asked and he nodded.

"For now. I really didn't like seeing you sleeping on your desk. You can wait to me at home. I will feel more at ease that way," he said, and she sighed.

"Alright then," she said with a nod, thinking that she could use the time to do other more productive things for herself.

Just as they walked into Lucy's place a couple of minutes later, Lucy's phone rang and she raised a brow when she saw the call was from Candace, wondering why Candace was calling so early in the morning.

"It's Candace," she told Tom.

"I will quickly freshen up while you take the call," he said as he headed for the bathroom while Lucy received the call/

"Good morning," Lucy greeted with a yawn.

"I'm so sorry. Did I wake you up?" Candace asked in a worried voice.

"No. Is everything okay?" Lucy asked, more interested in knowing the reason for Candace's call.

"Yeah. Well, I called for two reasons. My dad is coming to Ludus to see Sara. I'm sort of worried about him. Do you think you could accompany him? I don't know, maybe drive him there? Or should I say, convince him to let you go with him? I know it's a lot to ask but I would have come with him myself if he didn't insist on traveling alone," Candace explained.

"No. It's not a lot to ask. When is he coming? Maybe if you can find out the time of his flight, I will go pick him up at the airport. I'm sure he will let me drive him to his destination when he sees me. He will realize how concerned you are," Lucy said and Candace smiled in relief.

"You're such a life saver. Thanks," Candace said since she had been very worried about it.

"Don't mention. How are you? Was Jam able to talk to Dawn?" Lucy asked curiously.

"That brings me back to the second reason I called. Yes, Jamal spoke with her and she's okay. Are you aware that Kimberly is engaged?" Candace asked and Lucy frowned.

"Kimberly? As in Dawn's mom? Since when?" Lucy asked, wondering how Kimberly could be in a relationship and be engaged so soon when she had released such a news about her and Tom barely some weeks ago.

"It seems like the families were keeping it hush, but there are rumors of it online with a picture of her and the man in question…"

"It could be a rumor. News like that spread between her and Tom, remember?" Lucy pointed out.

"Well, the man confirmed that he was marrying her," Candace said and Lucy frowned.

"Well, that's sudden. Congrats to her. So, Dawn is fine, right?" Lucy asked curiously.

"Yes. But Andy said she seemed sort of lonely. And she asked if you were going to visit her," Candace said and Lucy sighed.

"I wish I could. Maybe when I visit I could say hello to her when she talks with Jamal," Lucy said hopefully.

"Or maybe Tom would let you speak to her now that Kimberly is getting married and you don't have to worry about her causing any more problems for you," Candace said and Lucy smiled.

"You have a point. I hope so," Lucy said with a yawn.

"You seem tired," Candace observed.

"Yeah. Spent the night at the hospital. Sonia had a threatened abortion," Lucy said and Candace gasped.

"Oh, my God! How is she doing? It was just threatened right? Ryso is fine, right?" Candace asked, sounding very concerned.

"Yeah. The doctor said they are both okay, but she is still at the hospital being observed. Bryan insisted she stays there," Lucy said and Candace let out a relieved sigh.

"Can I give her a call now or do you think she might be resting?"

"Maybe you can do so later in the day. She was sleeping when we left the hospital," Lucy said and Candace sighed.

"I'm glad they're fine. I will let you get some rest now and let you know my dad's flight details later. My regards to Tom."

"Give me love to Jam and the others," Lucy said before hanging up.

Seeing as Tom was still in the bathroom, she got on the bed and in less than a minute, she slept off.