“Yeah!” I croaked while I clenched my fist, trying hard to control the little tremors that racked my body.
I do not know if it was his presence or the accident that made me like this, but I feel so light-headed that at any moment, I would pass out.
Caleb frowned when he looked at me. “You don’t look okay. Are you hurt anywhere?” he sounded concerned.
I shut my eyes and took a deep breath.
How many times in the past have I wished him to talk to me like this?
“Caleb, she does not look good.”
My body
“Did you know before today that we are having twins?” Caleb asked once more. I could not believe my ears. Last time I checked, Caleb wanted to conduct a DNA test to prove his paternity. Now, he was taking responsibility and owning my kids as his. Strained silence followed right after. I was in no mood to respond. But my companion seemed oblivious to my mood or he was just plain thick-skinned, I could not decide because this was the first time something like this happened between us. “When is your next doctor’s visit?” I shook my head. Well, I have to give him points for persistence. But it brought my long-buried resentment to the surface. I lashed out. “Why? Are you coming along?” I asked, voice dripping in sarcasm. Caleb ignored the barb. He shifted his gaze from his driving to me. It was just a quick look, but I was not comfortable with the expression I saw on his face. “Yeah.”His admission threw me for a loop. “Are you pranking me or pissing me off?” I could not
Caleb's POV"Boss?" My assistant Marco straightened when I reached the table reserved for our company. He motioned to one of the chairs so I could sit, but I waved my hand to decline and shook my head no. I prefer standing while watching my ex-wife bask in her popularity. Marco joined me, standing at the back while my eyes kept glued on the stage, still reeling from the explosive news that threw me for a loop. The great J. W. Croix was my ex-wife. "Why didn't HR fact-check her records before hiring her three years ago? Why did it slip our attention that Cassy was related to the Burkes of New York." It only came to my attention recently that my ex-wife was the heiress to the Burke’s fortune, and now this!Marco pulled his eyes away from the stage and replied."We never hire people based on their family background, boss. We hire them based on their skill set and job fit."“Why did she keep it a secret?” I persisted. Marco shrugged his shoulders. “Sir, Mr. Kingston, only Cassy
Caleb’s POVAmanda pulled her body away from me, but before that, she left a lingering touch, tugging gently on the end of my necktie.I lifted my hand to grab the end of the necktie from Amanda’s grasp and stepped back, giving her a wide berth.Then, I looked at Cassy.She had her head bent down to the shattered glass on the floor.“I am sorry, Ms. Burke.” One of the crew staff for the night was crouched near her legs, expertly picking up the pieces of broken glass on the floor.“It’s alright. Sometimes, people miss and make mistakes. Don&rsquo
CALEB’S POVI felt her body stiffen like she was disgusted by the skin-to-skin contact. Unable to stand the sudden tension between us, I pulled her to sit to the side. I was relieved when Cassy did not fight back. Instead, she kicked her shoes and leaned back. She closed her eyes and placed her hand on the side of her head. “Does your head hurt?” I asked when she started massaging her temples. She ignored me, but I was trying hard not to smile. At least she did not insist on leaving. After a while, she rested her head on the sofa’s back. Her position allowed me to see her face.There were shadows under her eyes. She was so pale that purplish veins showed on her face. “Are you hungry?” I remembered she had not eaten anything during the event and was concerned for the babies in her tummy. Since I learned she was pregnant, I read many books about expecting parents and read that pregnant women were always hungry. After a while, Cassy’s eyelids opened. I thought she would ig
Cassy’s POV“Why are you doing this?” I slammed the paper he just handed me earlier to his table, not understanding his actions. First, he wanted to give me alimony after our divorce. Now, he wanted to withdraw the offer to buy the franchise for my book. What is Caleb Kingston up to?My eyes narrowed into slits. I hate it when people play games with me. “What are you up to?” Suspicion laced my voice as I bent my body to the waist and leaned toward Caleb’s desk, challenging him. I did not, for one second, trust Caleb’s words. He had an underlying motive, I am sure, about it. Caleb, sitting at his desk, looked up from the document he was reading to lean in my direction, bringing his face closer to mine. The move startled me. I did not realize that we were too close. We were almost touching noses, for Pete’s sake!Uncomfortable with the sudden proximity, I pulled back so fast to put distance between us. For my own peace of mind, I straightened my body to stand in front of Ca
“The babies are going to be fine.”The doctor assured me when I inquired about them after the ultrasound test.The assurance brought a sense of relief.I sighed at the same time Caleb’s hand squeezed mine.It was then that I realized he never let my hand go, especially when the doctor’s transducer skimmed my belly to check for my babies’ condition.“There were no signs of fetal distress.” The doctor said once more.“Thank God!”I heard Caleb mutter under his breath.But I wanted to make sure. “Why did I bleed, doctor? Is there a possibility that I am going to lose my babies later?”The doctor smiled in understanding.She tried to explain as best she could.“It’s called spotting and happens sometimes. This is because sometimes, the cervix bleeds more easily during pregnancy. After all, more blood vessels are devel
Cassy’s POV“But I broke our family’s tradition. I am divorced and pregnant.” My words hint at disappointment, but I could not blame anyone except myself. It breaks my heart to know that I let them down. “Am I a bad person, mom?”Mother looked at me with all the love in her eyes. She sat on the edge of my bed and combed her fingers through my hair, just like she used to do when I was just a little kid. “Of course not, baby. It’s just that sometimes what we want is not what we deserve.”“Don’t I deserve to be loved?” I bit my lip. It was something that had been bothering me for a while now. Mother smiled tenderly at me. “Everyone deserves to be loved. But it was not our call whom to love. It’s fate.” I nodded. “And I was stubborn and headstrong.”“Yes, you are. But not in a bad way. Sometimes, to get what we want, we must have the heart of a warrior. We must know when to fight and when to stop. Don’t fret. True love will come your way at the right time.” “And when is the
The next time I opened my eyes, Tory was watching me.I looked around, checking for that one familiar face of a man, but he was not around, which made me heave a sigh of relief.“Hey, you are awake. Are you hungry?” Tory rose from her seat when she noticed me sitting on the bed.Then, she crossed the small living area to the mini-pantry and started rummaging through the mini-fridge inside my room.“Your ex brought a lot of stuff. Enough to feed an army.” She announced, ticked off in her fingers the food on the fridge.“You name it, and it’s here. All I have to do is reheat whatever you fancy.” Then, she closed the fridge.“I don’t know.” My nostrils twitched after taking a whiff of what was inside the refrigerator and not finding any of the aroma to my liking.My stomach started to churn.In haste, I grabbed the IV drip’s handle and ran to the restroo
Sigh. Have you ever felt that you have to go but cannot make that first step? That is how I feel today. Cassy and Caleb’s story has ended, yet I feel sad at the thought of saying goodbye. I started this story December 2023, and since then, it has brought me so many firsts: * First book with more than 200 chapters, * First book with 200k+ words, * First book with a banner promotion, * First book with highest reads at 70.2k to date, and * First highest-grossing book. This book wouldn’t reach those milestones if it weren’t for you. So, on this page let me thank some of the people who left their marks in my book: First is my editor Lyra Pinter. Thank you for the patience, support and tips you provided to make this book where it is at the moment. Also for GoodNovel. This platform gave me the opportunity to reach out to more audience. Thank you for the gems Chi, Lean Cantara. Jennifer Gonzales, Lhyn, Susan, Yolly Villanueva, Maria Theresa Sant
Cassy POVCaleb spun me around in excitement, and I squealed in delight. When the children noticed what we were doing, they abandoned the toys scattered in the playpen to run toward us. “What’s happening?” Oakley asked.From the background, I could hear my mom tell her. “You and Joachim will have a baby brother or a sister soon.” “Oh!” Oakley sounded surprised.By this time, Caleb had already put me down, and I was watching the enraptured emotion on my little girl’s face. A grin worked its way to her face, making her more beautiful in my eyes. She took her brother’s hand excitedly. “We are going to have a baby! Yay! I am going to be a big sister!” Oakley and Joachim jumped at the news. They were clapping, and so were everyone around us. Even Rosalie Kingston Pierre looked at us with a wistful smile. Greg and James, Caleb’s friends, proposed a toast.“Congratulations on the baby!” They both shouted and tapped their glasses with spoons.It created tinkling sounds that gave off
Cassy POVDuring the party, I could feel that something was bothering Caleb. It's not that I was suspecting him of anything. It was more like I was just puzzled at the antsy behavior. From time to time, he would leave me to talk on the phone, and my lips formed a straight line in displeasure. I am sure it was business, but can’t he postpone business for a while to enjoy the children’s party?“You look lonely, babe. Where is your husband?” Reynold approached me when he noticed I was standing alone in the corner, watching the event while my husband was out of sight. Caleb just stepped out of the room, purportedly to answer Gordon’s call, and it is honestly pi*sing me off. I shrugged my shoulders and looked murderous. The day began magnificently. Caleb and I rose before dawn and tiptoed our way to the twins' bedroom to spruce it up with birthday decor. We wanted to surprise the twins, and we did!The smile on their faces was priceless. Caleb and I could not contain our tears whe
Caleb POVWe started milling around, stopping by some tables to talk to some parents. From the happiness wreathed on the children’s faces, I could see that everyone was having a good time. My two best friends arrived, and I immediately snaked an arm around Cassy’s waist when I noticed Greg smiling at her. I still hadn’t forgotten what he told me before - that he had a crush on my wife. Cassy was surprised but did not remove my arms around her waist while we talked to my best friends. This alone made me shoot Greg a gloating look. If I didn’t need them for my proposal later, I wouldn’t have invited them, especially Greg, but they are the only people I could rely on.A crowd gathered around us, and my two best friends entertained them, allowing Cassy and I to extricate ourselves from the circle to welcome Adam and Cassy’s friends as they trickled in one by one. Martin Crest, Cole Higgs, and John Collins came in one after the other, bearing boxes of gifts for the twins. When Joach
Caleb POVWarmth filled my heart as I listened to Oakley divulge their wish for everyone to hear.My chest felt stuffy when I learned that their wish was me.Even though they did not know me or had no idea about me, my kids longed for me like I longed for them the past years.“I am happy, too,” I responded before grabbing them to kiss the top of their heads.Oakley climbed into my lap. Her little hand started caressing my face.“Thank you, Daddy! I love you!” Oakley declared.My shoulders started to shake. I don’t know what I did before to deserve these children, but I was so happy.“I love you, too, Oakley. You, Mommy and Joachim, are Daddy’s treasures.” I admitted and realized that my voice sounded guttural, even to my ears.I looked at Cassy and saw her smiling through her tears.I don’t think I will ever
Cassy POVDays passed by quickly, and before we knew it, it was already the kids' birthday.“Shhh!”Caleb said when I giggled because, for the first time, it was us barging in on them, not the other way around.The kids were still sleeping soundly.Oakley slept with her arms spread wide. She had kicked off her blanket to the foot of her bed.On the other bed, Joachim slept on his side, facing the wall.“I could not believe they were four years old.” I gushed.Caleb walked to the bed holding the cake we ordered at Felicity&rsq
Cassy POVUnfortunately, thechildren’splan to spend the weekend with their grandparents did not materialize because Mom and Dad told me they were leaving the next day.“Why? Thekids’birthday is only days away?”I could not hide the disappointment in my voice.The children look forward to having the family on their big day. They
Cassy POVI watched my parents, and the happiness radiating on their faces was enough to put a smile on my face.“Now, we can eat,” Oakley interjected.Her declaration broke my embracing parents apart.“Sorry, my little darling!” Mom said awkwardly, chucking Oakley on the chin.Oakley giggled and ran to the dinner table with Joachim in tow.The elder Burkes followed them and helped them with their seats while Caleb and I looked on with smiles painted on our faces.Then, I nudged him. “Tell me, how did Dad manage to order the flower arrangement this fast?&rd
Cassy POVThe children giggled, but they didn’t protest. They wallowed in the attention Mom gave them.“Come on, grandma, let’s eat,” Oakley said after a while. She scooted to the edge of the bed, her feet dangling.Dad took her little hands to hold her while she slid down the bed and her feet connected to the floor.“Wax, let’s go!” Oakley turned around and beckoned for her brother to do the same.Joachim followed Oakley. Dad helped him, too.They both ran to the door, trying to open it. They both jumped, hands touching the knob, but since they were not tall enough, they could not turn the knob open.