OLIVIA “Ma'am, I apologize for telling Adrian about it and I want to assure you that he was the only person I told. I can't possibly lie to you. You just gotta believe me,” Kate confessed. “And you expect me to believe that? If you are so sure about this, why did It take you ages to respond? Were you processing the lies you were going to say to me?” I sparked outrageously. Regardless of how honest she sounded, her body language suggests otherwise. It made it difficult to understand her.It's been nearly a decade working with Kate, and not for once has she been found wanting. If she stopped working for me today, I don't think I would ever find someone like her again. She makes the job of a personal assistant look so easy. But today, she stunned me. I saw a different side of her that hadn't been witnessed before. It makes me wonder if I've been working with her clone over the past few years.“I couldn't respond immediately because I was stunned. I didn't know what to say to you. You
OLIVIA I was shocked to see Kate stepping out of the hospital with Adrian. Wasn't sure if that's what I wanted for myself.While I demonstrated my frustrations at Adrian, I was equally disappointed in Kate for believing that she had learned her lesson.As they got closer to me, I rehearsed the abusive words I was going to hurl at Adrian when he eventually approached me.“What is he doing here?” I asked Kate immediately they showed up.“Don't worry, I got this,” Adrian interrupted Kate the moment she wanted to speak.“Before you get pissed off, this has got nothing to do with Kate. It was all my idea," Adrian hurriedly vindicated Kate, knowing I was going to berate her for going against my orders. “Who cares? I wasn't talking to you. The last I checked, you aren't my assistant. So back off!” I ignored Adrian and made him look stupid.“Over to you, Kate.Why's Adrian here? Do you ever learn from your mistake?” I blasted Kate just when she thought Adrian had vindicated her.“I tried t
OLIVIA “Okay? Please tell me already. I am not loving the suspense,” I pleaded with Escobar. “Can you guess? Do you have the slightest idea what I want to say to you?” Doctor Escobar teased me with the question.“Now you need to stop, doctor. How do you expect me to guess In this critical condition? Please tell me. I've lost my sense of reasoning right now,” I begged him. “Fine! I will speak up already. I can see that you're losing it already,” he finally agreed to spill. He wasn't far from the truth. I was already losing it inside of me. If he hadn't agreed to spill, I would walk straight into Cyril's ward to find out what the problem was. “So, we got good news for you.” He smiled without hitting the nail on the head. “There we go again. What about the bad news?” I facepalm. The last time he elaborated on some good news, he still had to find a way to attach bad news to it. I don't expect things to turn out differently this time. “Don't worry, no bad news this time. Isn't tha
OLIVIA I stepped outside to join Adrian and Kate. As I walked towards them, I felt my heart bleeding inside of me. I lost a part of me that can never be regained anymore. I just wanted the ground to swallow me up and end my mysteries. I lost my confidence. I hurriedly diverted into an isolated corner a few miles away from them. I couldn't summon the courage to go explain to them what happened, especially Adrian. He won't hesitate to remind me that I deserve a better man like him. Slowly, I peeped at them and noticed they weren't looking in my direction. I read their lips. They weren't speaking to each other either. The situation must have been so overwhelming that they could not even utter a word. “Olivia, you can do this. Don't subject yourself to suffering.” I assured myself with words of encouragement. I had no idea what I was talking about, but I was hoping it would be helpful. I needed all the motivation I could get. I sighed and did a cross sign before stepping outside. I
OLIVIA “Why are you so bothered about me now? I thought you asked me to leave and never return. That I would gladly do,” he said and made attempts to walk out on me. “Adrian? Don't you dare walk away from me?” I stopped him and went to meet him."So what now? Do you want to start another fight with me? Are you being paid to be a nerd? Aren't you tired of throwing tantrums? Grow up already and stop acting like a child,” he made a travesty of me. His taunts punctured my head and got on my last nerves.“I'm afraid, this child won't let you leave until you tell her what she wants to hear,” I pulled him back. I took out my phone and started dialing a number.“What the fuck are you doing? I just hope it's not what I'm thinking right now?” Adrian tried snatching the phone away from me, but I was quicker than him. I quickly edged backward to prevent him from snatching the phone away from me. Finally, the person I called answered the phone. I had to put the conversation on the speaker to g
OLIVIA Adrian dwelled extensively. He appears to have made a brilliant suggestion. Adrian might as well turn out to be useful eventually. I shouldn't have written him off too early.“Hold on a second, let me think about this,” I placed my hands below my jawline to deliberate on what he had just told me. “Stay right here you two.I'll be back,” I implored them and went away. They kept asking where I was going. I ignored them. I was only focused on arriving at Doctor Escobar's office. I needed his help to fetch Rene's home address from Cyril. It would be very risky going to Cyril's ward alone since he thinks I'm his assistant.Luckily for me, I met Doctor Escobar at the reception.“Olivia, what are you still doing here?” He quizzed me. He was shocked to still see me hanging around the hospital. He thought I had left already. “I need your help,” I pleaded with him while struggling to breathe. "You might want to calm down and speak to me. Why don't we discuss this in my office?” He pr
OLIVIA As we drove to Rene's apartment, I thought of ways to convince her to come help Cyril restore his memory. It was a massive risk I was willing to take.If I had another chance to decide, I wouldn't have opted to go this far just to get Cyril back on his feet again. He doesn't deserve me, and I'm certain that he would have abandoned me in the hospital if I was In his situation. I saw how he neglected me back then in this hospital as though I never existed. I still haven't gotten over the trauma. It wasn't enough for him to neglect me; he still had the guts to choose Cyril over me.Thinking about the unfortunate incident only increased my hate for him. “Are you okay, Olivia? If you need someone to talk to, I'm here.” Adrian volunteered. He exhibited the benevolent traits that got me laid. “Why would you ask such a baseless question? Don't I look okay to you? Are you insinuating that I'm lost? If I need someone to speak to, it's not you. The last time I leaned on your shoulder,
OLIVIA “Kate, what about you? Are you backing out too? You haven't made your decision yet.” I asked Kate even though I knew what her response would be. I just needed to be certain if I would be approaching the situation alone. “Am I supposed to answer that question? Of course, you know my response,” Kate smirked. It wasn't the kind of response I had expected from her. “Are you going to pull that stunt on me? I wasn't even asking for too much. Just answer the damn question and stop beating around the bush like a headless chicken. A straight response is all I ask from you. I'm going to do this for the last time, Kate. Are you on my side, or are you just going to walk away like Adrian?” I yelled at her. “I'm in, ma'am. You know I got your back anytime. Where do we begin?” Kate finally responded. “And who said I walked away? Are you seriously making decisions for me now?” Adrian cuts in just as I am about to relay the plan to Kate. I looked behind, hoping to find the person that Ad
OLIVIAAfter my discussion with Adrian at his house, I was already having second thoughts about his opinion. I hadn’t stopped imagining new possibilities either.Why do I need to come back to New York when I can actually start a life in Paris? New York had done nothing but bring me harm lately. I definitely needed a change of environment to accelerate my healing process.Since my exit from both my marriage and the company, I saw no reason to show my face in New York again.I was eager to leave everything behind, and having Adrian as my only partner was a good start—better than I had ever imagined.I had only spent a few weeks in Paris, yet I had fallen in love with the city immediately. It was the perfect place for me to start a new life.“How long will you be staying in Paris? You never mentioned that. Five days, a few weeks, or a month?” Kate asked me.“Forever, Kate. I’m finally leaving New York for good, and I ain’t coming back,” I replied with a smile on my face.She closed the l
OLIVIAI woke up in the morning with Adrian sleeping next to me in bed. It had always been my dream to see that happen.Unfortunately, my marriage with Cyril had limited me from many things I would have accomplished.It was my first day as a divorcee. It also turned out to be one of the most important days of my life.I was relieved knowing that I wasn’t married to Cyril anymore.I was also thrilled that Cyril wouldn’t be coming after me anymore, thanks to the restraining order from the judge.I wrapped my arm across Adrian’s body and kissed his forehead. “Good morning, honey. I hope you had a beautiful night?”“Of course, I did. But not as beautiful as you. You’re the best thing that ever happened to me,” Adrian yawned and lifted his head, showering me with praises.He had already prepared himself for a moment like this.He hadn’t asked me to marry him yet, but I was already imagining us as a couple.He treated me like a queen. He treated me in a way I had never felt before.“You kno
OLIVIA“Kate, can you be kind enough to prepare a meeting for me in the conference room, scheduled for the next 30 minutes? I want to meet with the company's investors one last time,” I informed Kate as we drove back to my apartment after celebrating my victory in court.“Okay, ma'am. I will reach out to all the investors immediately,” Kate heeded my command.“Sorry, ma'am, I just thought about this now. Will Adrian be a part of the meeting? You know he just left not quite long ago. You never mentioned if he should be part of the meeting,” Kate asked me a few minutes after my previous instruction.“This shouldn't be a question, Kate. I intentionally decided not to mention Adrian's name, and you should know the reason. Well, we are all aware of how important Adrian is to me at this point. I will need him more often,” I responded as I took a U-turn back to the company.My initial plan was to go back home and rest after a terrible day in court. But at the same time, I was desperate to ge
OLIVIAA worrisome call jolted me from my slumber in the early hours of the day.It was disheartening—just when I thought I’d be able to stay home all day.The call was from my lawyer. The moment her name popped up on my screen, I bolted out of bed as if I were being chased by a beast in my sleep.Clearing my throat, I took a deep breath, summoning all the courage I needed to speak. The call was unexpected.“Hello, Olivia. Good morning. Are you there?” My lawyer’s voice called me back to reality.It had been over five minutes since I picked up, yet I still hadn’t spoken a word.“So sorry for the inconvenience, attorney. I just got out of bed, and I still feel dizzy. What's good?” I lied.I yawned and spoke softly, hoping to make my excuse more believable."That's fine. Sorry for waking you up. I just had to," she apologized."Anyways, the court hearing is this morning, and I need you to be there in an hour. I'll send you the court address immediately. We're done talking now," my lawye
OLIVIA“I get the point now. You’re surprised by my sudden visit, aren’t you? I was heading to your apartment when I saw Cyril being dragged into a police vehicle like a criminal. I had a feeling he might have come here to do something stupid. I was also surprised that he knew your new address,” Adrian explained, satisfying my curiosity.I was relieved. Initially, I had been scared that I was imagining things that weren’t real.Adrian’s presence was undoubtedly what I needed most, especially when it felt like I was going astray.He was surely going to serve as my support system. Banking on Kate would have been the wrong choice, considering how shocked she had been when Cyril became unconscious.“Thank you for coming, Adrian. I must confess, you came at the right time. That son of a bitch almost had me. Thankfully, Kate came to my rescue. She hit his head with a vase,” I told Adrian.There was no way I could explain the whole scenario without mentioning Kate’s heroics.In all uncertain
OLIVIA“The cops are here now. It has got to be them. You reached out to them, didn’t you?” Kate freaked out as she heard the siren of a car from a distance.She had every reason to believe they were driving toward my apartment.She wasn’t next to me, yet I could hear her heart pounding faster. Fear had taken the best part of her. What was left inside of her was emptiness.“Calm down, Kate. You don’t have to freak out like a suspect. The cops ain’t getting you arrested. The last time I checked, you murdered no one,” I assured Kate.It was precisely what she needed at that point."I'm scared! What if they start asking questions? I don't want to spend the rest of my life in jail," Kate cried as though she had just committed murder.To completely allay her fears, I got closer to Kate and held her head. “Listen to me, Kate. You don’t have to say a word. I will do the talking once they show up.”“I am calm now. I won’t freak out no more,” Kate assured me after making a cross sign.I placed
OLIVIA“I will go through this in my spare time and get back to you. Presently, I just want to rest my head. I just got back not quite long ago,” I told the lawyer.On her way out of the house, I apologized for how I welcomed her into my home.I also explained how Cyril and Rene had been making my life miserable over the past few days.“I don't have much to say to you. Just endure. It's going to be over soon.” That was the advice I received from the lawyer before her final exit.After Selena’s exit, I went to my newly furnished apartment and started reading through the documents carefully.I had a feeling that Cyril was gonna show up, and he was the last person I expected to see.As I read through, I heard a knock on the door.I frowned because I thought it was Kate. I never wanted anyone to interrupt my leisure time.“I am coming, Kate. A moment, please. You don't have to keep banging the door like a thief,” I shouted.I dropped the documents on the sofa and went to open the door for
OLIVIAI knew this was going to be a bad idea from the start. I shouldn't have told you about it. Now, look at what just happened," I lamented bitterly.A while ago, Adrian had given me the best sex of my life, and the next minute, I was already regretting my existence. My problems kept haunting me like prey."Hey, moon pie," Adrian murmured, pulling me closer.He had the sweetest touch—one I felt deep in my bones. And I wanted more. Just one more round before he finally departed for New York City."You know I love you, right? And I would sacrifice anything for your happiness," he whispered, kissing my forehead.I had no idea what Adrian was talking about, but I nodded anyway, keeping my fingers crossed in anticipation."Don't worry about the extra sum you'll have to pay once you leave the marriage. I've got everything planned out," Adrian assured me.“Is this a joke? Please don't pull my legs. I don't think I can endure this,”I doubted Adrian almost immediately.I thought it was one
OLIVIA “Hi, Sugar.I just arrived in Paris. Can you please send me the address of your apartment or hotel? I would greatly appreciate that.”That was the first thing I saw on my phone when I woke up in the morning—a text from Adrian.The message caught me off guard. I never thought he was actually going to show up.It was too late to ignore him now that he was already in Paris. It would have been easier if he had called before visiting.A few minutes after I texted Adrian my hotel address, my phone rang.I didn't rush to answer because I assumed he was already close by.And when I finally summoned the courage to speak with him, the first thing he said was, “I am outside the hotel now. What’s your room number?”I panicked and became dumbfounded.If I hadn't known Adrian for too long, I would have believed that he finally possessed some supernatural powers that were making him appear at the destination of his choice."Are you there?I just asked you a question, Olivia," Adrian called m