REINAYou can call me a creep and a stalker but to be very honest, the waat Ethan left this morning had me shaking in my boots. I had seen different sides of Ethan, his angry and his happy sides, his naive and knowledgeable sides but what I saw today was unlike every thing I've seen.He was angry but he was bottling it up, it was almost like when you put mentos into coke and lock the bottle immediately. It would wait till anyone tries to open it for it to explode.After the driver had dropped Andrew at school, I had to track Ethan's GPS to know exactly where he was supposed to be at that early in the morning because he hadn't even tried to explain anything.It's crazy how tables turn because right now? I'm the one that is meddling into his privacy to know what the hell was up to.From the static position of the Red dot on my laptop, he wasn't moving, he was seated in a place but the location had me delving directly into my car immediately.He was at an abandoned beach, who was he meet
REINA"Hold on, what?" I stood up from my squatting position as I sent my hands to my waist.Is he telling the truth or he's just saying this to guilt trip me? Come to think of it, Ethan has never ever guilt tripped me. If he wanted to corner me, he would do it straightforwardly just the same way he pushed me into working in his company just so he got me back and i must commend him because he did get me."I know it's sounding totally unbelievable but he contacted me first. And not to even make it sound like I'm exaggerating or anything but he kind of threatened me. He somewhat mentioned how I brainwashed you into getting back together with me and how I wasn't healthy for you. He said a lot of things and then we both got into a heated argument. He—" I held my hands up because somehow, I felt like the more he talked, the more i was loosing my mind."I'm sorry, Ethan but I'll have to ask you to stop right there." He nodded slowly and locked eyes with me while my head and brain ran a 50 m
REINAWe spent few hours more on the beach since we both didn't have much to do for the day anyway and Andrew wasn't going to be back until it's 3pm. I made a mental note to confront Bruce on what Ethan had told me."Don't you think it's time we go home? You still have to over the company's files so you would be practically in before you resume work." He suggested and I nodded while we both walked back to the car with hands intertwined."I just remember that I'd be heading the company. My heart just does these drum rolls whenever I remember or think of it. It's not even funny." I placed my hands on my chest to sow the dramatic expression that was flooding me and he chuckled."I've seen you working in your office and you always aced it. See this as a promotion and you'd be able to handle it, besides, I'm always here. You don't have to worry about anything." I smiled broadly and turned to face him."I'm seeing it as a promotion but it's no even helping me at all. The only thing that my
REINAThe rest of the day was spent with Ethan filling me in with the latest design, the one that was at the top of fashion design of the week and I remembered when I was a worker under him and my team struggled to meet design of the week.Beautiful times.Well, it had to end once Andrew was back from school because we had to keep the little champ occupied. Ethan was moe than available for that anyways so I didn't stress much. We all played till it was almost evening when my phone started ringing again."Your phone is beeping." Ethan informed as he passed the over to me without even looking at the caller ID."Who is it?" I asked and he just shrugged as he approached me and handed the phone over.This man is taking this privacy thing too seriously, almost too seriously and I guess we'll have to address that as well."It's Bruce." I said immediately I saw the number and he just shrugged. I hadn't even saved the contact but this was exactly what happened when someone was at the back of
REINA "Can I get a hug?" That was the first thing Bruce told me as he caught sight of me entering the restaurant and approaching him. I would have hugged him on a normal day but I was here to get him understand that threatening Ethan was wrong and besides, I could see some familiar faces inside of the restaurant.Some people that I know I had definitely seen from Ethan's company—my company.I didn't want to be the cause of any uprising rumour or what not so I just chuckled and politely shook my head in negation as he drew out the chair for me."Thank you." I mouthed and sat gracefully while I watched him walk over and seat down too."I'm sorry. I know I'm moving fast in telling you to hug me, it's just that it has been a long time we saw each other. What about Andrew?" I bit my tongue as I tried to get into character while I cleared my throat and intertwined both of my hands giving me a soft glare."You're right, Bruce. You're moving fast, a little too fast for my liking. As for Andr
REINA "You did! You gave me the right when you felt like it was going to be nice to return to him after everything I've done for you. You rejected me now than a hundred times so what? You could return to your ex who didn't care about you huh?" He spat standing up to match my glare and I took two steps backward in shock.The chair screeched against the floor as a sad smile formed on my face."Wow, Bruce. Wow." His gaze softened as it seemed like he just got into realization of what he had done."Reina..." He trailed off and I didn't even wait for him to find his words before I would be able to reply him."Bruce, say nothing please. Thank you so much for clearing my doubts that people change and metamorphose into something that their close friends can not even recognize. You really did a good job at proving me wrong and proving that Ethan was right about." I picked up my bag to leave when he waltzed in front of me and blocked my path."What did I do that is so bad? Tell me." He grunted
REINA"Oh my God." I was shivering as I placed my hands over my mouth to prevent me from shrieking out while shock filled me at the sight of blood running down Bruce face and Ethan crackling his fingers like he had not just launched an attack.I must admit that I have never seen this side of both men, they are so new to me right now."Ethan." I whispered and he turned to me racing a brow."Yes princess." He answered plainly like he hadn't just punched Bruce in the face, I turned to see Bruce trying to scramble to his feet as he took few steps towards Ethan.Bruce folded his hand into his fist while i placed myself in front of them because i was quite sure that if I didn't do that, a huge fight would break out and i didn't want that."Get out of the way, Reina." Bruce warned as he staggered looking murderous with blood dripping from his face down to the floor. A little crowd has gathered and I could hear some people whispering that they would have to call the police if the fight escala
"Andrew?" I dropped my bag in the living room and ran over to his room to check if he was there with the nanny that Ethan hired but they weren't. I know I'm not supposed o be this aggravated but there was no human being in the house and Ethan had said that the nanny was supposed to be with my son in the house. They weren't supposed to go anywhere, they were supposed to be here by the time I returned. I checked the balcony and every other place but they weren't there as well which had my heart wavering as I wondered if something had had happened. I mean, something bad must have happened right? I picked up my phone immediately and began dialing Ethan's number again ,I am so remorseful that I might be disrupting his call with his lawyer but if he doesn't pick up, I might pass out by the time he gets here. And thank goodness, he did pick up. "Ethan, they're not here. There's no one in the house, there's no sign—" I was literally rapping the entire thing I was saying that he had to i
ReinaThe hotel room was quiet, apart from the soft hum of the air conditioning. I sat cross-legged on the plush armchair, staring at the untouched glass of juice on the table.My luggage sat in the corner, still zipped shut. I had not bothered to unpack. This was not home. It wasn’t even close.I leaned back, rubbing my stomach slowly. My phone buzzed on the table, but I ignored it. No doubt it was Ethan again, calling to apologize, to promise that things would get better, to swear he was not hiding anything else. But how many times could someone make those promises before they started behaving like a sane human?The fight we had replayed in my mind for the hundredth time.“You don’t get it, Ethan!” I shouted at him, my voice cracking. “Every time you keep something from me, it feels like you are building a wall between us. How am I supposed to fight for us when you keep shutting me out?”Ethan had run a hand through his hair, feeling frustrated and confused. “I’m not shutting you
Reina I was scared of making a terrible decision. The air was heavy as I sat at the small café table, my hands cradling a lukewarm cup of tea. My eyes darted nervously around the room, scanning every face for any hint of familiarity. This meeting felt risky, but I had no choice. I needed answers. I had already made a decision a long time ago on how to deal with my relationship with Ethan. The door chimed, and in walked Sarah, her sharp heels clicking against the tiled floor. Her tailored navy suit and confident posture reminded me of the ambitious PR strategist I used to know. She spotted me and waved at me and her expression softened as she approached me.“Reina,” she greeted warmly, pulling me into a brief hug. “It has been a while.”“Too long,” I admitted, gesturing for her to sit.Sarah settled into the chair opposite me and leaned forward. “So, you said you needed help. I read about the scandal. It’s brutal. I wonder why someone would pull off something as terrible as that
ReinaI stared at the headline plastered across the screen of my phone: “Designer Reina Traps Billionaire Husband: Isn't she such a Gold Digger?” My chest tightened as I scrolled through the venomous comments flooding the article.“She is clearly after his money.”“Poor Ethan. He deserves better.”“I knew she was too good to be true.”“Okay, I like this. I have never liked that woman for any thing.”The words felt like daggers. Each one sliced deeper into me, leaving me raw and exposed. My hands trembled as I tried to lock my phone, but I couldn’t look away. O was shaking and deep down, I wanted the ground to open up and swallow me. Why was all these happening to me? This was because of the stupid man I fell in love with. Because of him, I have suffered a lot of things. I have been treated like a filthy rag and I was no longer respected. I was thinking of filing for a divorce and the thought of my son came to me again. I didn't want to drag him into this mess. “Reina!” Ethan’s
ReinaI sat on the edge of the couch, staring blankly at the rejection email on my laptop screen. My chest felt tight, as if someone had tied a band around it and kept pulling.“We regret to inform you…” the words blurred before my eyes. This was supposed to be my moment. My designs, my heart and soul, were rejected not because they were not good enough, but because I was not safe to associate with anymore.All because of the scandal on the internet. Ethan walked into the room, his tie loosened and his face weary. He carried a raging anger with him as he walked and his energy was practically crackled.“Reina,” he began, but I cut him off, holding up my hand.“Not now,” I snapped. “I just got rejected from the showcase. They said they can’t afford the bad press. Thanks to you, cheater.”His face hardened. “What?”“You heard me,” I said, shoving my laptop toward him. “This scandal of yours is ruining everything.”“Mine?” he barked, his voice rising. “You think I wanted this? Reina, som
Reina The last thing that I would believe without a visible evidence was Ethan cheating on me. I stared at my phone screen, the photo staring back at me like a ghost haunting my marriage. But this time, it was not just in a private message. It was plastered all over social media, accompanied by salacious headlines.“Billionaire Ethan Spotted with a fling.”My fingers trembled as I scrolled through the comments. Some people mocked the situation, while others speculated about the woman in the photo. There were even fake stories weaving tales of Ethan’s supposed sexual stories with her.My stomach rumbled and I was dumbfounded. I had gone from deceiving myself that this was not true to believing it in an instant. My husband’s name, our family, dragged through the mud like this, it was unbearable.I don't know why Ethan did something like this to hurt me. It was difficult for me to believe all of these up till now. But guess what? I was yet to approach him up till now. “Mommy, can
Reina“I was done for and my joy had been short-lived. I don't think I would be able to recover from this shock,” I muttered to myself. The house was still quiet except for the ticking of the clock in the kitchen. I sat at the table, staring at the blurry photo on my phone, the message below was still burning into my mind: “Is this your husband?”My chest felt heavy and like a heavy weight pressing me down, it made it hard for me to breathe. The image was a little blurry but I could not deny it.Ethan’s face was unmistakable, the curve of his jaw, the way his shoulders hunched slightly when he leaned in to talk. And the woman? She was a shadowy figure, even though her face was half-hidden, I could still notice her hair and the way they held themselves. The closeness between them made my stomach rumble. My fingers tightened around the phone as a thousand thoughts raced through my mind. Who sent this? Why now? We had just started putting the pieces of our life back together. Why
ReinaArriving there, the house I saw was everything we had dreamed of. It was gigantic with a lot of massive windows that enabled light to go through it. I had a liking for it already and didn't mind if we were going to live here for the rest of our lives. “It looks good. Why don't we pay for it? Relocating doesn't seem that bad. Besides, it's in another city.”“Sure. I will pay for it. I don't mind either. It's just sad that we keep running away from a lot of things. Both the unknown and the known.”“It's tiring, sweetheart. But what can we do? We are humans and we will always have a lot of problems.”Ethan shook his head while I kept admiring the building. The living room had very high ceilings and the furniture looked new and neat. The walls on the other hand were painted white and the floors were sparkling white that it gleamed as if they had never been walked on. The other me would have pushed against going to another city but when our lives were at stake, I could not say an
EthanI sat on the edge of the bed with my head in my hands. I have made a lot of terrible decisions and now the consequences have come crashing down on me. The room was dark, but even in the shadows, I could see the mess I had made of my life.How did it come to this? How did I become this man? The man who let his family slip through his fingers, who made promises he could not keep. I thought I was doing the right thing when I took that job. Becoming more rich and putting my name on the top richest chart was what I wanted. But now… now I have lost everything that matters.I betrayed Reina. Not just with that night I can’t erase, but with every lie I told to cover it up. I thought I could protect her, shield her from the storm I had created. But she saw through me, she always does. And Andrew… God, what kind of example have I set for my son?Tears burned my eyes, and I didn’t fight them. I deserved this. The shame, the guilt, the fear. I deserved to feel every ounce of it.“I’m so
EthanI kept to my words and I contacted Louis who told me where to meet him. Although, Louis made it clear to me that he had long retired from anything detective but he would help me. I arrived at the address a few minutes early and my nerves were already unraveling as I scanned the quiet parking lot.Where he told me to meet him was a small, rundown place on the outskirts of town, the kind of spot where no one asked questions. It was Perfect for this kind of meeting.The fluorescent lights inside flickered slowly as I stepped through the door, and some weird aroma hit my nostrils. I hated the smell. If I knew that this was what I would meet with, I would have worn a mask. A couple of people sat in a booth near the back and they were having loud conversations. My eyes moved around until they landed on Louis who was seated at a corner table with his back to the wall.He had not changed much since the last time I had seen him. He still had the same gray hair, same sharp eyes that