Thaddeus drove the kids to kindergarten. Since he had accepted the task from Mona earlier, he had been paying close attention to Bobby along the way. Now that Mona had mentioned it to him, he also noticed that Bobby was acting differently than usual. Bobby usually wore casual and sporty outfits. He liked white shirts and jeans or just plain uniforms. Today, he wore a biker jacket and even gelled his hair, unlike how he usually dressed. Thaddeus tried calling him, but there was not much response. He peeked into the rearview mirror and saw the boy looking outside the window with his chin propped on his hand. The boy’s thoughts seemed to have drifted out of the window. “Bobby, Daddy is calling you,” Millie said and tapped on Bobby’s shoulder. “Bobby, you keep gazing out lately. What is that head of yours thinking?” Even Millie noticed Bobby’s unusual behavior lately, and alarms rang in Thaddeus’ heart. Bobby recollected his thoughts and looked at Thaddeus calmly. “What i
The girl, who was chewing on a piece of bubble gum, had pretty cool short hair. Noticing that Bobby was looking at her, she rolled her eyes and gave him the finger. Bobby averted his gaze and picked up a coloring pen to draw with pursed lips. Only Thaddeus took notice of the blush across his son’s cheeks. The moment outside gave Thaddeus all he needed to know. Turning on his heel, the man took long strides to the faculty office. Thaddeus got to know about how the kids had been doing in school lately and even filled the teacher out on the situation surrounding the girl. The girl was Megan Moore. Her parents had been killed in a traffic accident when she was one, and Megan had stayed with her maternal grandparents ever since. Her grandparents were in their advanced years and were out of touch with reality, so their idea of raising children was pretty backward, which contributed to Megan being withdrawn and rebellious. Nevertheless, it was hard enough for these senior citizens to
Thaddeus observed his son righteously taking full responsibility. For Bobby to have such cognition and accountability at his age, the boy showed the grace Thaddeus had once demonstrated in his younger years. “Alright. We’ll go with your idea. But I need to make one thing clear though: I’ll be the first to beat you up if you make Mommy sad.” Thaddeus caressed his son’s head.“Okay. Got it.” Furrowing his brows, Bobby took a glance at Thaddeus and mumbled under his breath, “Jesus, we all know you love your wife the most.” With his son grumbling, Thaddeus pulled on the boy’s ear. “What are you doing there, mumbling to yourself?” “Uh, nothing. I should get back to class, Daddy.” Bobby jumped off Thaddeus’ lap and waved his arm. Thaddeus put on a straight face and educated his son, “Go on. Although it’s good to help out a classmate, you can’t let it get in the way of your business. Got it?” “Yes.” Bobby turned to the side and looked in the direction of the schoolyard. The other
Mona told the cab driver to pull up and stared from afar while taking note of the address. With the phone in her handbag ringing, she pulled it out of her bag for a look. It was Ben calling. Mona took the call, and the voice on the other end of the line sounded anxious. “Where are you now, Mona? We couldn’t get in touch with you for the last few days. You got us worried sick.” “I had a little situation. What happened?” “It’s the opening of our studio today, but we have people coming here and calling our flagship designs rip-offs. They are threatening to report us to the Federal Trade Commission for unfair business practices.” “Are you talking about my two designs?” “Yeah. The two hit designs.” “Don’t sweat it. Those are my original works, so it’s ridiculous to say the designs are rip-offs. They can take us to court all they want, but they won’t get anything out of it. We can sue them for slander.” “Mona, things are not as simple as you think. They came here with the d
The leader of the group – a tall and burly man – took a step forward and blocked the entrance. He said to Mona, “Well, you’ll be wasting your time. The owner across the street is on vacation in the Maldives. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have sent me in the first place.” Furious, Mona lifted her chin and looked the man in the eye. She angrily uttered, “That doesn’t give you the right to come in my place and cause havoc. You’re breaking the law by starting trouble here. I’m going to call the cops.” Mona was incensed as these people had to ruin the opening of her business. They acted righteously as if they had a leg to stand on. They would only push her and her team around further if she did not show them who was boss. “Call the cops? Go on. I can tell you that my uncle is the chief of this precinct. We are not scared of a copycat like you.” The man looked at Mona and Ben in disdain. The way he saw it, these people were young and easy marks. He was only paid to do a job, so he would m
The police officer frowned. “Couldn’t you have settled this on your own?” “I tried to talk to them, but as you can see, they refuse to leave. They threatened us to move our business elsewhere or his uncle, apparently the police chief, will put me behind bars. I want to know if I’ve broken any laws that called for jail time.” Mona made it sound serious as there was an ongoing investigation into the integrity of government officials. For someone to throw their weight around in the name of their uncle who was the chief of police, the uncle would probably take a lot of heat if it made headlines. The burly man freaked out. “Nobody said anything about putting you behind bars. Don’t be ridiculous.” “Quit the racket and shut up.” With a stern look, the police officer gave the burly man a glare and then turned his attention to Mona. “You two should come with me to the station, so I can get your statement. I’ll sort this out for you.” “Thank you, officer.” Mona expressed her gratitud
Thaddeus glanced at the woman by his side, assured that she was doing well. He then pulled a long face and stared at the man who went after Mona. He questioned, “What did you chase after her for?” The man took stock of Thaddeus’ expensive taste in clothes. Intimidated by his commanding presence, the man backed down a little in confronting Mona. “She hit me. Half of my face is swollen,” the man whined as if Thaddeus was the father of the offending daughter while he tattled to the father as the victim of bullying. “Did you hit him?” Thaddeus lowered her head and asked Mona in a soft voice, not putting the blame on her at all. “I can’t believe he’s the one complaining. He started it, so he deserves a beating.” Mona stared daggers at the man. Thaddeus furrowed his brows and reached out to hold Mona’s hands to rub between his palms. “Your hands must be hurting. I’m only a phone away. Just leave this to me the next time.” Mona was dumbstruck, and so was the man standing in the
Surprised, the man lost his manners for a moment and cried out. Mona had an idea who the man was after Thaddeus addressed him as Mr. Foster. The man was likely the richest man in the neighboring city and Sherry’s father. “Yeah. We have two children together.” Getting a grip on himself, James looked at Mona a different way. The stunner must have a couple of tricks up her sleeve to have Thaddeus wrapped around her little finger. “Thaddeus, you’ve got game. You have two children before you’re even married.” James sneered. It was common for men to fool around with women and have children out of wedlock in the business circle. Thaddeus was the first to have the decency and the gall to admit to it. “You’ve got the wrong idea, James. We were married, and our marriage was legal in the eyes of the law. Sorry to let you down, but I’m not that kind of guy.” Upset, James pointed at Mona and questioned Thaddeus, “So, you’re saying that you caused a ruckus and even tried to throw my d
The couple was tired after a time of bonding, and they lay on the wicker chair, closing their eyes before slipping into dreamland. Sometime later, Thaddeus felt a chill and opened his eyes. His T-shirt was wet, and Bobby and Millie were spraying water at him with water guns. The youngest child was nearby too in her stroller. She suckled on a pacifier and watched the bustle. “Where’s your mommy?” Thaddeus shuffled his hair and looked around, searching for Mona. “Freeze, Daddy. We have held Mommy captive. Surrender yourself to us.” Acting like the boss, Millie pointed her massive water gun at her daddy. Thaddeus had indulged his eldest daughter so much that the girl would only have things her way. Nevertheless, Thaddeus played along since it was only a game. He knew his children well. Millie took after Mona and was shrewd. Still, Millie would be on her best behavior when in public. “Hurry up and surrender, Daddy. Put your hands up, and we will release Mommy.” Millie poked
It was a cooling breeze for the Summer as flowers bloomed in the garden of Fontaine Residence. Mona rested on a wicker chair under the wine arbor, holding in hand the latest issue of the weekly design magazine, with her face on the cover. In the photo, she held a trophy up on the stage of a design competition, standing out amidst the radiant background. Since the birth of her youngest, Mona took a month off for rest before picking up her passion again and returning to the world of design. Recently, she won first place in an international design competition and found fame. Mona was happy with her life and enjoyed the rich and peaceful state of things. She had time to herself for once during the weekend, so she found a quiet spot to enjoy time alone while the kids had a nap. The sunlight shone over Mona through the leaves, basking her in warmth. She let out a yawn and closed her eyes for a nap. Thaddeus walked out of the house and saw the woman enjoying the moment of bliss. The t
“Mommy, did the baby kick you today?” Millie wobbled her way over and placed her hand on Mona’s belly. She could feel the baby stirring inside her mommy’s stomach. Millie was pleasantly surprised. “The baby kicked me! Mommy, is the baby swimming inside your belly?” “Yeah. The baby is kicking.” Mona affectionately caressed her belly. The fetus had been kicking and rolling a lot more lately, so she could not get much sleep. The tall and strong man drew near and looked tenderly at Mona. His husky voice lingered in Mona’s ear. “Weren’t you craving strawberries? I placed an order, and the fruit is being airlifted here as we speak. It’ll arrive tonight.” “Yay.” Mona was gleeful. Since the beginning of her pregnancy, she had become quite fussy and craved the strangest food. She wanted caviar from Japan, cookies from France, and strawberries from the highlands. Anything she asked for would be transported fresh to the house the next day.The man had taken good care of her during her en
“No. I won’t let myself go.” The man huffed heavily after finishing his sit-ups. Then, he rolled out of bed and got changed in the walk-in closet. Mona stared at the man’s well-toned back, gasping at his body upkeep. People would probably have a hard time believing he was a father of three. With that in mind, Mona became aware of a potential threat. She got up and drew close to the man. “You’re responsible for taking care of the baby once the child is born.” Thaddeus straightened his tie. “Alright. I can do that. I want to be present in the baby’s life and your pregnancy. You should rest at home once your belly gets bigger. I’ll handle Bobby and Millie’s school run, okay?” The man pinched Mona’s face dotingly. “Now you’re talking. Are you heading out?” Mona got up on her tiptoes to brush off the dust from his shoulders. “Yeah. I need to sort out a lot of paperwork.” “I wrote down notes of the meeting I attended on your behalf a few days ago.” Mona walked out to retrieve a
Thaddeus was in the hospital for a week before he was discharged. The election day for the successor of the Fontaine Group was two weeks later, but Thaddeus had not made a full recovery in his legs. He remained in a wheelchair and persisted in his daily physiotherapy. Mona had a room freed up in Fontaine Residence for Thaddeus’ rehabilitation. A specialized doctor would come around the house every day to help Thaddeus with his recovery. Thaddeus was a strong man to fight through the pain in his physiotherapy sessions. That day, Mona watched as the workers hung a decorative painting on the wall in the hallway. She ordered paintings of her preference and had them shipped from abroad. Mona instructed the workers to put it up, not paying attention to the wobbly painting that had been hung behind her. The painting was about to hit her from the back. Thaddeus was exiting the rehabilitation room when he caught sight of the danger. Getting up from his wheelchair, Thaddeus took large stri
The few pictures of Mona and Victor at the height of a tussle gave the impression that they were having an intimate moment. Thaddeus went through the photos with a look of disdain. “So you stood there and pretended to take pictures of me to show me these? You set my wife up with another man to tell me she was cheating on me?” It was not hard to guess the game the paparazzi were playing, but who was he trying to fool? The man was dumbstruck, as it never occurred to him that Thaddeus could see through him. It had taken the three of them to come up with the idea. However, it had not taken much for Thaddeus to foil their plan. Mona let out a relieved smile. She thought that Thaddeus would be furious at the look of the pictures and had prepared herself to give a long explanation. She was surprised that Thaddeus quickly saw through the attempt to drive them apart. Their relationship was solid, and no one could come between them. Mona thought to herself with glee when she took
Mona stood in front of Thaddeus, blocking his face as she confronted the paparazzi who took their picture. “Hand over the camera!” “There’s nothing in the camera. Besides, it’s my personal property. Why should I give it to you?” “You clearly took a picture of my husband. You have some nerve to say there’s nothing.” Mona grabbed the man by the wrist and lifted her foot to kick. Thaddeus grabbed her wrist to stop her. “You’re pregnant. Think about the child.” Thaddeus pulled Mona back, leaving himself exposed to the paparazzi. “Why do you want to photograph me? Do you want to see me in a wheelchair? Take a picture then.” Thaddeus pulled a straight face. His nonchalant gaze spoke of intimidation. Dumbstruck, the paparazzi looked at Thaddeus’ legs and smiled dryly. “What happened to your legs, Mr. Fontaine?” Thaddeus did not answer. However, his dark eyes flicked chillingly as he looked murderously at the paparazzi. Even in a wheelchair, Thaddeus did not have to say anythi
With the help of the two caretakers, Thaddeus sat in the wheelchair. He had overcome his emotions and pulled himself together. His mind was clear as he sorted out what he should do next. Thaddeus called the assistant into the room and laid out the following plan. “I won’t attend any media interviews before the election, but I won’t disappear from the public eye either. I don’t want to give the press something to talk about. My wife will represent me. Going forward, whatever she says or does will be considered my own. She has the authority to attend all corporate conferences, big or small.” Mona dropped her jaw in shock. She was to attend company meetings and speak on his behalf. It was trying to make the impossible happen. On second thought, Thaddeus must have his reasons to do so. She had the confidence to do a good job anyway. The assistant took note of everything Thaddeus said. The Fontaine Group was about to choose its next leader, and with Thaddeus still in recovery, the
“It’s okay. That’s normal after surgery. The doctor gave me a heads-up. Since it’s a brain operation, you might have damage to the motor nerve. With the help of physiotherapy, you’ll be back to running in no time.” Mona consoled Thaddeus. Thaddeus lifted his hands and gave Mona a gentle push. “Leave.” Mona froze. She looked at the man who was fine a second ago, not knowing what to do. “Can you leave? I need some time alone,” Fixing his gaze on Mona, Thaddeus spoke callously. “Okay. I’ll be right outside if you need me.” It dawned on Mona why the man was persistent in driving her away. He did not want her to see him at his worst. In a way, he was trying to protect his pride and dignity as a man. However, they were a married couple. Mona would never turn her back on him. Mona could understand the man’s vulnerability and his feelings at the moment. Hence, she said nothing and quietly left the ward to give Thaddeus the time and space to sort his emotions. Instead of doing n