She blushed, but then shook her head quickly. “No, at least not now. I’m still thinking about the party. What will you do to Jeremy?”Gabriel stared at Rosalind for a few seconds. His face didn’t show any emotions. “Why? Do you still care about him?”“No, but I don’t want to ruin your relationship with him. No matter what happened between him and me in the past, you are his uncle.”“No worries, baby. I won’t do anything drastic, but I’ll surely show you off to everyone, including Jeremy.” Again, he gazed at her. “Do you still love him?”Rosalind took a deep breath. Her head bent a little. “I … I don’t know …. He was my boyfriend for five years. It was devastating me to see he cheated on me. But the worst thing was to know he used me as a shield.” A few drops of tears fell. She brushed them harshly. “Maybe knowing it after five years is better than never. I can’t imagine if I knew it after marrying him.”“I won’t let you.”She lifted her head to stare at him. “Sorry?” “I said I won’t
Rosalind quickly covered her mouth with a hand. When Gabriel lifted her body and brought her to his bedroom. He laid her on the bed and then grinned. “It’s a reflex!” She groaned in self-defense. “It’s not a request or invitation for you to … to …” Her face was crimson as she was shy to say the words. “To devour you?” Gabriel chuckled to see her blushing. “To eat you"?” He enjoyed teasing Rosalind. Then his expression was more tender when he said, “To make love with you?”Rosalind’s face was even more scarlet. He smiled to see that and then turned his body as he walked to a desk. After opening a drawer on the bottom, he took a small black velvet box. Then he returned to the bed. After sitting on the bed, he put the box on the bed next to her. “Here. Open it.”She sat too and frowned. “What is it?” Her hand later picked the box, and her breath was caught in her throat. In the small box, there was the brightest round diamond ring she had even seen. The shining precious stone was eve
Later, Gabriel hugged Rosalind, and her back touched his chest. They discussed nothing else until Rosalind was asleep. The next day, when she awoke, he wasn’t in the bedroom. She sat on the bed alone and wondered if she said something to offend him. However, no matter how hard she tried to recall her memory, she couldn’t find anything distasteful. Everything was sweet last night. Gabriel was so nice and thoughtful. Then why didn’t he touch her? It was true he hugged her until she slept, but that’s it. While he had sex with her vigorously two days ago, it felt weird to sleep next to him and did nothing.At first, she was reluctant to be with him. But after spending time with him, it felt so natural. For some people, Gabriel might be too old for her, as he was almost twice her age, but it wasn’t a big problem for her. She was secure and comfortable with him, even more, if she compared to what she felt with Jeremy. Rosalind blew her breath. Maybe he was tired. It made sense, as Gabrie
Rosalind’s cheek blushed, and her hope swelled to hear what Kathy and Luca said. It’s too early to say if Gabriel loves her, but knowing he has waited for her for four years, maybe Kathy and Luca had their points. Kathy squeezed Rosalind’s hand. “Don’t worry. He’s serious with you. I’m sure of that.”“Thank you, Kathy, Luca. It means a lot for me to hear it from both of you.”As they approached the venue, Kathy smiled. “Now, forget about everything. It’s time to enjoy ourselves!”Kathy’s enthusiasm spread fast. Rosalind grinned and nodded. “Yes! Let’s go!”They went inside the building. A janitor opened the door for them, and a handsome man greeted them. “Welcome to Lovely Salon and Spa. Have you had any booked appointments?”Kathy nodded. She opened her handbag and took a small piece of paper. “Yes, we had an appointment for two people. It’s paid in full for the complete package.”After checking the note, the guy grinned and clapped his hands. “Wonderful! This way, please!”As they
Rosalind took a deep breath to calm herself. Isabella’s words stung and hurt her heart deeply. Before the misunderstanding happened, Isabella always treated her well despite knowing how poor Rosalind was. She thought Isabella was her friend. That’s why her accusation hurt her more. “You got me wrong!” Rosalind shook her head. “It’s not like what you think. I’m not a slut.”“Really? Then why did you go after Uncle Gabe? If you are with Antonio, it’s more sensible. But it’s Uncle Gabe!” Isabela raised her hands and then clenched them. Antonio was her elder brother and Jeremy’s little brother. “Yes, Uncle Gabe is handsome and wealthy. He has a lot of experiences with women too. Is that why you didn’t want to fight for Jeremy?”Some visitors glanced at Rosalind and Isabella as Isabella talked loudly. Rosalind shook her head as it was she didn’t like: attracting negative attention to herself. Yet, no matter what she said, Isabella didn’t want to listen. What could she do to calm Isabella?
Meanwhile, the hairstylist patted Rosalind’s shoulder when she returned to her seat. He smiled sympathetically as he saw her sagged shoulders and sour mood.“Having a relationship with a huge age-gap surely is challenging, but I’ve heard Mr. Da Costa has a reputation as not easily impressed by pretty women, and he is even cold toward women. So if you can catch his attention, it means you are something in his eyes, my dear.”Rosalind only smiled a little, but the smile didn’t reach her eyes, as she still couldn’t believe how Isabella could say those nasty words. If only Isabella talked nicely, she would tell her how she caught Jeremy cheated on her with Monica. Wrong assumptions and prejudice were hard to deal with.The hairstylist talked about something, but Rosalind’s mind wandered elsewhere. No matter what she felt about what happened just now with Isabella, she knew she couldn’t end her relationship with Gabriel. She owed him two millions, but more than that, he helped her to save
Rosalind and Kathy enjoyed the pedicure, manicure, and full body wax. Afterward, they spent time in the sauna, chatting and relaxing themselves. After having a sauna, they had a shower and were given some juices to hydrate their bodies. Afterward, they strolled to return to the lobby“So how was it? Do you like the salon and spa sessions?” Kathy asked. “For sure. How about you?”“I like it a lot!” Then Kathy bent her body forward and whispered, “Especially since it’s a working day and my boss pays me to enjoy myself.”Both of them giggled cheerfully until some visitors who passed by turned their heads and smiled to see how joyful the two women were. A man who walked with a beautiful woman glanced at Rosalind and Kathy too. His eyes lingered for a few seconds longer to stare at Rosalind. Kathy, who noticed the stranger’s attention to Rosalind, smiled at her boss’s lover. “It seems you have a new admirer.”Rosalind shook her head and smiled. “Ah, you are naughty. Who will admire me as
Rosalind entered the bedroom. In a glance, it was an imitation of Gabriel’s bedroom in the WLS Apartment but smaller. There was also a bathroom inside of the bedroom. “Wow! It’s good!” Rosalind widened her eyes. “You like it?”“Yes.” Rosalind squeezed Gabriel’s hand to have his attention. “It’s comfortable and clean here.” She looked around, nodded, and smiled to show her approval of the room style. Looking through the windows, Rosalind could even see the beautiful scenery outside.Later, he closed the door and locked it. Rosalind spun her body to look at him. Her face blushed instantly when she saw Gabriel’s intense stare at her. “Gabe?”“Yes, baby?”“Why did you lock the door?”“Can you guess?” His grin was wide and naughty. He approached her and trapped her body against the wall with both of his arms pinning her body. “Baby?”“Yes?” Her breath was heavy. His head moved to her face and left a kiss on her cheek, then went to her neck.But then Rosalind shook her head. “What if so
Gabriel nodded at his mother. But then he bent his head, closed his eyes, and took a deep breath. He wiped his eyes quickly, but Anna could see a drop of tear fall from her son’s eyes. Later, Gabriel straightened his back and smiled as if he didn’t shed his tears for the woman he loved. Doctor Gianni then walked out of the VVIP room. He smiled to see the Da Costa family. First, he shook hands with Leonardo, Anna, Bianca, then he smiled at the youngsters. “Gabriel, you can go inside to see Rosalind and the baby,” the doctor said. “Both are healthy. Congratulations to your new son!”Gabriel shook hands with Doctor Gianni. “Thank you so much, Doctor. I don’t know what I have to say.”The doctor patted Gabriel’s shoulder. “Go inside. Rosalind is waiting for you.”When Gabriel entered the room, the nurse was still wiping and cleaning their baby. So, he approached Rosalind first and kissed her sweaty forehead. “Thank you, baby. You have fought so hard. I can’t imagine what you had been th
Gabriel called his mother right away while waiting for Rosalind to deliver their baby. “Mom, please come to Good Health Hospital. Rosalind’s water has been broken!”Anna was excited but also worried because it was a week faster than the doctor’s prediction. When she delivered Gabriel and Bianca, those two times were even past the due dates. Bianca delivered Jeremy and Isabella passed the due dates too, but with Antonio, the delivery was faster by only two days.Gabriel’s mother frowned as she recalled her memory about hers and Bianca’s giving birth.“Okay, I’ll come to the hospital right away. I’ll call your grandpa and Bianca too.”“Yes, Mom. I’m nervous now. Rosalind asked me to wait outside while I wanted to accompany her.”
Rosalind kept smiling to see how happy their little family was. They had been through a lot, and now they were together in peaceful harmony and happiness. What a priceless gift! She wouldn’t trade her family for anything.“What are you thinking of, baby?” Gabriel said.“Nothing, just how happy I’m to see us together.”He squeezed her hand and nodded. “Let’s have breakfast first.”“Let’s eat!” She nodded and smiled.After eating, they went to the university with Luca as their driver. They walked to the entrance to see many students who would attend the graduation day had already gathered there.
Time went by so swiftly. It was the time for Rosalind’s graduation. To her surprise, she would have a graduation day along with all students who attended the study in the university. So, she was excited to attend the graduation event.Gabriel hired the makeup artist and hairdresser to help Rosalind on her big day. At dawn, they were already busy putting makeup on her. When the makeup artist had finished with her job, it was time for the hairdresser to arrange Rosalind’s hair in an elegant bun.“Mom, you are so pretty!” Jane said. She jumped around as she was excited to see her mother in makeup.“Oh, thank you, sweety.” Then Rosalind glanced at the makeup artist. “Can you help to put on some powder and lip gloss for my daughter?”
Gabriel kissed Rosalind’s forehead and turned her body so he could spoon her. “Baby, you won’t need to worry about,” he stopped for a while, “Richard anymore.” He decided not to tell Rosalind the truth.“What happened?”“Well, I sent him to a rehabilitation center. Then he would go to jail.”Rosalind was quiet. She blew her breath and shook her head. “Richard only brought us troubles …. I’m sorry ….”“It’s not your fault.”“But he’s my brother.” She let out a long sigh.Gabriel had no choice because without telling Rosalind the truth, his wife would keep
After some reassurances from the doctor, Gabriel brought Rosalind back to the car. He nodded and smiled at the couple whose he cut the queue. “Thank you so much for letting us go first. I truly appreciate it!”“Don’t mention it. Is your wife okay? The baby?” The pregnant woman asked.“Yes, My wife and our baby are okay. She only needs a complete rest.”The woman smiled and nodded. “Thank God! We are happy for you.”Gabriel nodded and smiled at the kind woman. “Thank you so much!”Since the doctor’s assistant then called the woman’s name, she waved her hand at Gabriel and entered the examination room with her husband.
Gabriel shook his head again. “No, you just try to get away from the consequences of what you have done, not because you are truly repentant. It’s the punishment that scares you, not the hideous effect of what you have done to Rosalind and Jane. You are a hopeless case! The jail will help you to realize what you have done.”“You will send me to jail?!” Gregory’s voice pitched higher.“Yes.”“Then, go ahead!” Gregory spat to the ground. “I’m not scared!”Gabriel smirked and looked into Gregory’s eyes. “We’ll see. Once you are inside, you’ll shout to ask them to let you die.” Then, he straightened his back. “I’m the man of my word. Since I alr
Warning: this chapter contained violence and heavy cursing. Reader discretion is advised.Again, Pietro followed what Gabriel commanded and poured the water into Richard’s head and body. The man was conscious after a while.“If you don’t want to die, there’s no better time than now to confess,” Gabriel said. “Your name!” he shouted.“I-I’m … Ric—”A punch struck Richard’s cheek. “Again, one lie will get a punch. Keep lying to me and don’t blame me if you will die with no teeth and blood left.”“I’m truly Richard—”Gabriel hit Richard again. “Go on! I
Warning: this chapter contained violence and heavy cursing. Reader discretion is advised.Pietro stared at Gabriel who stood and stared at Richard with a menacing look. As he had been working with Gabriel for twenty years, he knew his boss would do harsh things to Richard. Yet, what Richard did was too much. So he could understand Gabriel’s mood. So Pietro cleared his throat. “Boss, what will you do?”Gabriel only grinned to hear that and removed his tie and opened his button shirt one by one. He even took his time to fold the shirt and tie neatly, then put them on a table. Later, he took his phone from his trouser pocket, pressed some buttons, and put the phone on the table next to his shirt and tie. Pietro gulped again. It reminded him when Gabriel was in his late twenties or early thirties. It was the time when he dealt with someone who betrayed him. “Boss, remember Mrs. Rosalind and little Jane? You don’t want to—”But Gabriel stopped Pietro’s words. “Remove his shirt.”It was a