(Leigh’s POV)When Alfie and Elle left, I felt alone and lonely again as I went back inside the room. I sat on the front viewing chair, staring at the open casket where I told myself a gazillion times that Granny was only resting, closing her eyes for a while.In her last will, she only wanted a very short vigil after her death, having one day of wake to allow us to gather before her burial. Tomorrow will be the last viewing for others who want to pay their respects, but I don’t want to think about it. If possible, I don’t want to wink or blink and leave her side. I was not even sure if we, my little Alexander and me, were ready to say goodbye to her.“Leigh,” Kayla whispered, bending her knee a little to reach my ear. “Umm… Someone’s looking for Alex, and…” Her voice sounded anxious about something as she glanced outside the funeral homes. “She’s a bit aggressive. Can you talk to her while I look for Alex?”I nod, standing upright before this uninvited guest gets the attention of my
(Leigh’s POV)“You are our little Kayleigh! No matter how old you get, I would always see you as my ten-year-old grandchild, singing and dancing while playing in the front yard, Kayleigh,” I heard Abuela saying.I rolled my eyes at her. “Granny, I am old enough to live independently, so please help me convince Papa and Mama to allow me to stay in the city. Please, please, Granny,” I hugged her, hoping she would give in to my request.“But Granny will get sad, Kayleigh,” Abuela pouted her lips, embracing me and planting kisses on my cheeks.“Aha!” I exclaimed, laughing at her. “So, it’s you, not Papa,” I said, accusing her as I chuckled.Her eyes moistened with tears. “No,” She moved slightly away from me, placing her palms gently on my face. “Did I tell you how you brought light to this family, baby?”I sneered at my grandmother. “Yes, a bazillion times.” My mocking smile turned sweet and gentle. I have that story many times that I was their miracle baby, the one they didn’t expect co
(Alexander’s POV)Whitney Houston made me raise my head and snatch my attention, stopping me from reviewing the budget proposal of Dulce Alejandro. I saw George standing by the doorway of my private office, staring at me in wonder.“Boss, I’m jealous!” George complained, mocking me early this morning, playing the song “Where Do Broken Hearts Go.”“What now?” I hiss, returning my attention to the paper I was reading. “Will you please stop that music? Have you gone mad, playing music in the office?” I snarl that I also wish I know the answer to Whitney’s question.She rolled her eyes and turned off the music from her cell phone. “I saw Leigh and -” When I propped my elbows on the table and looked at her with full interest, she pressed her lips together and suppressed a burst of laughter.I breathed out heavily, finally realizing she was just trying to get my attention, and for the past two months, there were three things that she would do to get my attention. First, if she would play ve
(Alexander’s POV)“Calm down, children,” Elle chuckled as if the situation was nothing but a joke. She sighed, opening her planner. “So, Zyra, just to make this final, you want Kayleigh, I mean, us to plan this wedding…” She said, writing it on the sheet. “You want to…” She looked at her and smiled, “have the wedding on the same date as Sebastian and Leigh’s wedding since you wanted a double wedding.”“Yes,” She answered briefly, rolling her eyes at Elle. She got distracted when her phone rang. “Excuse me. I’ll just take this call,” she said, standing up and walking toward the wooden bench near the fountain.When I was sure Zyra was far enough not to hear us, I reached for Elle’s hand, dying to ask her my question.“Please, Elle, tell me, how’s Leigh?” I was almost begging, hoping she would give me an answer.“Still grieving,” Elle answered after flickering her eyes at Zyra.“Don’t listen to Elle. She has moved on already,” Alfie said, clearly lying about her. He always tends to prote
(Alexander’s POV)“What’s happening, Alex?” Leigh asked, her eyebrows knitting with curiosity.I shook my head and stared at her face. “Have you not been eating, Leigh?” I asked worriedly, brushing the few strands away from her beautiful face, tucking them at the back of her ears.My heart was upset and anxious that she looked pale, her eyes sad and lifeless, and the curve of her lips as she smiled was like winter, not her usual warm and cheery summer smile.“Have you not been sleeping?” I asked again, pulling her closer to me, leaning her head to my body, and kissing her hair. I close my eyes as I inhale her sweet-smelling scent of strawberry.“Why are you here?” She uttered a question instead of replying to me.I chuckle bitterly, not at her but to myself, sighing heavily as I answer. “I was so worried about you, Leigh. I only came to our meeting because I thought I’d be seeing you.”She moved slightly away from me. “Meeting? What meeting?” She raised her eyebrows.“George said I ha
(Alexander’s POV)“Have you gone mad, Alex?” Leigh hissed angrily, clenching her fist and hammering me as we sat on the couch of my private plane. She was quiet from her apartment to the airport, but when we reached the hangar, I could hardly get her out of the car that I had to carry her just to get inside the plane.I caught her hand, gripping her wrist while my other hand fastened her seatbelt when Sheila, the cabin crew, reminded us of our seatbelts.“Yes!” I answered. When I fly, I always sit on a seat surrounding the table so I can still work while I am on travel. This is my first time sitting on the couch, for her sake. “We’re not getting married to other people unless we settle our issue.”“We don’t have any issues, Alex! This is kidnapping.” She growled but pursed her lips right away when Sheila approached us, asking us if we wanted something. I shook my head, smiling apologetically at the usual crew who flew with me in my travels, and looked amusedly at Leigh, sulking like a
(Leigh’s POV)Alexander Hearst lives in a paradise!As I reach the balcony of the bedroom, I close my eyes, inhaling the fresh air from the farm. When I first saw the place, I fell in love with it that I wanted to live here. I looked heavenward, loving the clear, blue sky, and the night suddenly excited me, wanting to see the moon and the stars in the sleeping sky.The door opened, and I heard Maxine panting while Callie was whimpering as she paced around the bigger dog. I sneezed again, but I smiled as I turned around. Like a trained dog, Maxine was only sitting on the floor, facing me but not coming to me after Alex told her not to go near me. Yet, even though she was a foot away from me, her nearness still caused me to sneeze. When I sniffled, she barked, walking another foot away from me and sitting again. Her paw reached Callie’s tail when my puppy tried to walk toward me. Startled, Callie turned to Maxine, barking at her.I could not help laughing at what I witnessed. They were
(Leigh’s POV)This was the first time that I had had a good sleep in two months. When I opened my eyes, my lips curved a sweet and gentle smile on my lips as I saw Alex staring at me.“Good morning, Cupcake!” greeted Alex, lowering his head and claiming my mouth, kissing me passionately in the early morning.I moaned, wishing to reach for him, but this might be just a dream that if I tried to touch him, he would be like a bubble, popping out in my sweetest and most beautiful dream. If last night was real, then I had the greatest moment of my life, making love to Alex many times, my heart screaming only his name, crying in bliss as we exploded like stars and reached cloud nine together.“What do you want to do today?” He asked as he nipped on my neck.“Huh?” I smiled, clutching the sheet of the bed. “Can we stay in bed all day?” I suck for air, thinking what else is fun to do on the farm but stay in bed with him.“That sounds tempting, Cupcake, but sad to say, since you own this farm-”
(Alexander’s POV) “You may kiss your wife,” the officiant said, but my lips molded Leigh’s lips before he could finish his line. Leigh and I laughed as we watched Alfie’s video that he had sent us. I saw myself as tears rolled down my cheeks as I claimed her mouth, tasting the sweetness of my wife’s lips and feeling the overflowing happiness that we had finally renewed our vows. We were seated on the couch, facing the king-sized bed where the twins slept soundly. “Renewal of vows,” Leigh whispered as she leaned her head on my shoulder. “When I saw you and Chase talking this morning -” I cut him. “He was telling me the big problem I’d face if I continued my plan of marrying Zyra.” Her almond-shaped eyes gaped at me, looking at me with wonder. “Why didn’t you sign the divorce papers, Alex?” I planted a kiss on her hair. “Because I always hoped we will have our chance, Leigh.” “Me, too,” She smiled, but her eyes squinted and asked me, “When they said that the groom was missing, I
(Leigh’s POV)The groom is missing.How dare Alex ruins his multi-million-dollar wedding? I was puffing out air, thinking about what came to his crazy mind running away on this special day.When Ellen and Kayla came to my room, they were quiet. They seemed to have known the problem, but they chose not to talk. Kayla placed little Alexander in his stroller while Ellen approached me, taking baby Amanda from me.Elle opened the door and helped me fix the skirt of my wedding gown.“An update, Elle?” I asked her.“Alfie’s fixing the problem,” she said, glancing at my sisters, who padded out of the room. She laughs nervously when she notices I am worrying and don’t know what to pick first. “Focus, Leigh. This is your wedding. You’re not the one who loses the groom, so give that beautiful smile and have a blast,” she said, picking up my bouquet and giving it to me.“I just saw him a while ago -” My voice trailed off, realizing it was nonsense to talk about him now. “And why are you here? You
(Leigh’s POV)So much for my plan of beauty rest!I hardly had a wink last night because baby Amanda was crying almost all night that I wanted to rush her to the hospital, but whenever I danced her in my arms, she would stop crying and go to sleep. George brought Maxine yesterday to our house, and since she couldn’t come to our bedroom, she has been howling and crying until midnight. Only when Kayla got Callie out of my room that she stops whimpering.“What happened to you?” Elle blinked, looking at me as she entered my room.I climbed down from the bed lazily, went to my dresser, and saw my hair worse than a haystack. I groaned, looking at my eyes.She rolled her eyes, tugging me back to the bed.“What time are we leaving?” I asked, lying again on the bed. I need sleep—more of it.She chuckled. “We’re actually leaving. Just sleep in the car,” she suggested. “You need to have your hair done, makeup, and everything.”I groaned, going under the covers of my blanket. “Why is it that it d
(Leigh’s POV)“For you… For you, I will…” I breathed out, clutching my shirt, wondering why I couldn’t memorize my wedding vow.I inhaled… and then exhaled, looking at the perfect blue sky. It was a miracle that the weather today cooperated with us. Since Alex left that night, the sky has been crying with me, and though my family and friends saw me smiling, my heart was aching from the deep wound of the hard decision we had made.As long as we are together, every step or decision we make will be a mistake.“The flowers are soooo beautiful, Leigh,” Alfie uttered, admiringly looking at the different flowers, from roses of different colors to other flowers that we hardly recognize unless they would tell us what they were.I smirked at him. “When you get married, and the budget is sky is the limit, this is the result.”“But the couples would go to hell after,” he sighed.“Don’t say that,” I said, looking at the large and open meadow.It was last week when Mr. Hearst, the older Mr. Hearst,
(Alexander’s POV)After dinner, George went to Aunt Ida’s house, her temporary place to stay while we were here. Even if I don’t ask her, I know how she likes staying here because of the homey feeling we are experiencing.I heaved a deep sigh as I looked at the dark sky, trying to gather my senses together, thinking of what happened today and what I would do after this. For a honeymoon idea, I knew how much Leigh wanted to go back to the farm. We could spend our time there as one family, and when the twins are one or two, maybe we could all travel together.“Beer?” Royce asked, giving me a bottle of beer.I smiled, taking the bottle.“Reconsidering?” He sat on the wooden bench, gazing at the sky.“About Leigh or the twins?” I smirked, causing him to chuckle.He drank his beer, giving me a silent answer to tell him my plans for them.“As much as I hated Leigh for lying to me, I still love her, Royce,” It was easier to be honest to him than tell Leigh my feelings. She is one complicated
(Leigh’s POV)Was it the warm sprinkle from the shower? Perhaps Zyra’s fingernails have poison causing me to feel like this.Before he stepped into the shower area, my body was burning with desire, and there was a need inside me that wanted him to touch me… and kiss me.“Leigh,” His voice trailed off because as soon as he was in front of me, my hands grabbed his head, curling my fingers to his hair, never wanting to let him go. My heels have their own mind, raising my body to reach his soft lips, making my tongue do its work, exploring his mouth, taunting him into an adventure that I didn’t care if we would regret in the end.I must have turned on something in him, too. He pinned me to the wall, and his hands excitedly touched every part of me, feverishly arousing my heart, body, and soul. We were on fire, kissing intensely, touching passionately, caressing our bodies like we have hungry for a long time.He brought me into a new world when he thrust his manhood to my core, rocking and
(Leigh’s POV)Before I went to the kitchen to drink water, I brought the three babies to the porch and continued working there. Being a single mother, I had to work, but I mostly handled special editing projects, so I could still work from home. I asked Dyna to watch them for a while as I went inside, but as soon as I returned to the porch, she left in a hurry to go to her bakeshop. If only I could pull the days to our wedding day so that this would be over. Yet I also wished to stop the time, hoping that Alex would not get my children from me. I was in the middle of editing a picture when a familiar car stopped in front of our house.I rose to my feet, walking in the direction of the white vehicle because I was not sure at first who could our unexpected visitor be, but when the passenger door at the back of the car opened, I was surprised to see Zyra.She dashed to me, looking furious as she approached me. “You bitch!” She screamed angrily as she pulled my hair toward her.I could n
(Alexander’s POV)With a crib in Kayleigh’s bedroom, it was impossible to add another bed, and despite everyone’s disapproval of letting me stay in her bedroom, they didn’t have the choice when Carlito spoke up, explaining the reason why. I received sullen looks, especially from her brothers, but no one shared their disagreement.I have been staring at her ceiling for an hour now, listening to her even breathing. I felt guilty for taking our children on the day of her birthday, but I didn’t know, and I was already consumed by much anger that I didn’t think much.When I heard baby Amanda cry, I closed my eyes immediately when I felt Leigh move. She got up, still yawning, when she climbed down from the bed, taking our daughter from the crib. She sat on the chair next to the bed and pulled off her sleepwear to expose her breast to her. When I heard her even breathing as she breastfed our baby, I opened my eyes to check on them, watching her look like she was sleeping.As my little girl w
(Alexander’s POV)Kayla and Eloisa came into the room with little Alexander and baby Amanda. When the twins cried, it was like something snapped inside Leigh’s mind, making her blink. She scrambled to her feet, ignoring me in front of her and seeing only her two children.“Alex…” She cried.Eloisa, her eyes puffy from crying, nodded. “Yes. Alex came back and returned them.”“Are they hungry? Is Alex…” Leigh said, pressing her breasts and shaking her head. “Never mind.”“You have to eat and clean up first, Leigh,” Kayla told her.“Of course,” she said, pacing around the room, not knowing what to do first. “Is Alex -”She stopped again, perhaps she still didn’t know how to ask it, but couldn’t she see me? Kayla placed Amanda in the crib and approached her sister, putting her hands on her shoulder and holding her in place.“Alex is fine. He’s very much okay. You don’t have to worry about him. Listen to me, Kayleigh, gather yourself together because the twins are hungry. Eloisa will help