Page 9 of Consequence of One Reckless Night

Chapter Four

Raquel stood outsideClub M, a brightly colored building looking incongruous beside sedate cafés and boutiques which lined the street. She’d spent the last half hour at a café across the club deliberating, planning her next move—which was locating Alexandre.

As soon as she’d confirmed her pregnancy, after a discreet visit to a clinic far from her house, she knew that she had to tell Alexandre about the baby. She didn’t know how he would take the news, but one thing was certain—she wanted him to know before she told her family, and the thought filled her with dread.

She was unsure of Alexandre’s reaction to the news, but she knew how her family would react.

A stranger’s child born out of wedlock? No one would pop the champagne in celebration!

Her mother would be livid—and so would her sisters. Her oldest sibling Arcanjo was busy with his own life in America, so for the time being, she didn’t have to worry about his reaction.

No matter how she presented the news to her family, and she would have to eventually because a pregnancy wasn’t something she could hide forever, there would only be one outcome—she would be kicked out of her home.

There was no forgiveness in the DaCosta household. If you didn’t follow the edicts of Sylvia DaCosta who ruled with a firm hand, you were as good as dead to her.

It had taken Raquel an entire day to come to terms with her situation—she was ruined!

Pregnant with a stranger’s child when she was promised to one of the most eligible bachelors in Goa. There would be no mercy from her mother, and certainly none from the society when the news got out.

Her mother and sisters were successful and well-known. Sylvia was an astute businesswoman who had a cluster of high-end boutiques and saloons. Her older sister, Anabela was a doctor and her younger sister, Tahlia was a fashion designer. Even her brother ran a very successful business in North America.

Raquel on the other hand, was a music teacher at a girls’ school run by the Catholic nuns. Most people didn’t know she was a part of the famous DaCosta family but if her news got out, she was certain it would bring shame to her family, and Sylvia would never forgive her for smearing the family name.

Uncertain how to find Alexandre, Raquel had racked her brain for the location of his apartment. When she’d fled his apartment, she’d been blinded by tears and hadn’t paid any attention to her surroundings, but she regretted it now.

How was she to find this man? She couldn’t just look him up on the internet—surely there would be thousands of Alexandres in the country, even one like India where Christians were a minority.

Her only resort was to make enquiries at Club M. Hadn’t he taken her to the VIP lounge? That meant he was someone important and the staff would know something about him.

But how would she enter an establishment closed during the day? She couldn’t wait till evening, not when she had a dinner party to attend. Her own pre-engagement dinner, where she would, for the first time, meet her fiancé!

Sweat beaded on her brow as Raquel gingerly walked toward the entrance of the club. For a minute, she stood looking at the closed door, willing it to open.

“Help me, Holy Mother,” she whispered as her stomach churned. Bile rose to her throat. “Please help me.”

As if in response to her heartfelt prayer, the door opened, and a man walked out. He walked past her without even noticing her, something which didn’t upset her, because no one ever did.

Only Alexandre had noticed her, and his undivided attention had gone to her head, and landed her in the predicament that she was in now.

Not waiting to think, she rushed to the door which was about to swing shut and stepped inside the club. The interior was dark, but the bar area was lit, so she made a beeline toward the woman who stood wiping the counter.

Walking up to the bar, Raquel asked, “Do you...um... know where I can find Alexandre...?”

The woman looked up. “He’s in the manager’s office. That way.”

Surprised that the woman didn’t ask her who she was and why she was looking for Alexandre, Raquel followed the woman’s direction to a dimly lit passageway.

Her heart fluttered with anticipation.

Alexandre was here! She was finally going to see him after five weeks!

A frisson of excitement shot through her, but it was short lived.

Theirs wouldn’t be a joyful reunion, she reminded herself. What man would be happy having a woman, one he had a one-night stand with, turn up out of the blue with a life-altering announcement?

Fear paralyzed her as she stood outside the manager’s nondescript door.

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