As I stepped off the plane, I closed my eyes and took in a deep breath as it had been so long since I’d been here. I abandoned everything in the middle of the night and ran away like a criminal, leaving behind my perfect life, including my career and my home, although I got no home again now.
"Mom, where’re we going?" Jersey asked and I gave her a wide smile as I bent down to her level, looking at her blue eyes which she got from her father. "We’re going to meet your father," The both looked surprised by what I said as they couldn't understand what I was talking about. "But I thought Maverick is our dad," Jael asked, and I gave him a slight nod. "Yes he is, but the person we’re meeting is your real dad, so you have to be well-behaved because we are meeting his entire family," I explained and also warned them. As I looked up, I saw the news of Cassius's grandfather celebrating his 75th birthday party at Nine Star Hotel, one of the biggest hotels in Los Angeles. “ This is the perfect time to make a grand entry” I muttered as a smile graced my lip and I took the kids by their hands, heading to the hotel where the party was taking place. . . . . "Mary, I’m very sorry to have used you, but the security is not allowing me in," I apologized to Mary, who helped me in. Well… she had no Idea of what I was here to do, so this might definitely be shocking news to her. I glanced around and I could see the shocked expressions on everyone's face, including my parents, and Cassius's expression was the most amusing as he kept looking at me and the kids with his mouth wide open and he looked cuter with that expression. "I’m not the father of these kids; she's lying," Cassius denied as he turned to the entire family, who stared at him as if he's crazy. Yes, he's very crazy. Only the blind would say such words as Jael was just a perfect replica of him. Well...Jersey takes after me but her eyes are undeniable. "Mary, you have to believe me. Fine, I had a fling with her before our marriage, but I always used protection. I can't betray you, and you know that," Cassius defended as he held Mary's hand, trying to convince her but she yanked his hand off and looked at me with tears streaming down her face as she just got betrayed by her only sister but that feeling she's feeling right now, couldn't be compared to what I went through and what I found out both the truth. Everyone's one gaze was on me and my kids but I didn't care about their opinion because the person that had the final say was Cassius' grandfather, Alberto Aldriche. "I need a DNA test. Bring that to me, and then we will have a proper talk," Alberto finally gave the final order, and I let out a wide smile. "Yes, grandfather," I replied as I watched the defeated look on my parents' faces, and right now, I was enjoying this. I shot a small smirk at Cassius, who's already burning with anger, and just then, Mary fainted, and everyone rushed closer to her while Cassius quickly carried her and took her out. My gaze met with my mother's angry stare, and I gave her the "I don't care" look. They created this demon, so they got to deal with it. I took Jael and Jersey by their hands, and we left the hotel dining room where the meeting took place. I checked into that same hotel since I couldn't go to my parents' house because I was very sure they would poison me and my kids to death. As darkness clouded the daylight, I tucked the kids to bed and then opened the glass door which led to the terrace. With my eyes closed, I took a deep breath as I imagined what's going to happen next as I’ve finally taken my first step. But I was sure of one thing, I got no plan to back down because if I wanted to, I wouldn't have begun this journey in the first place. . . . . “ Bang bang bang,’’ I was awakened by a loud bang on the door, and I wondered who couldn't make use of the doorbell and bang on the door like a crazy bitch. I angrily stood up from the bed to check who was banging on my door like that, only to meet Cassius with dark circles under his eyes, looking like a zombie. He shoved me aside and barged in. He looked at the kids on the bed and took a deep breath, he was silent for a while before turning around, now facing me. My eyes trailed every detail of his handsome face and I would say he's still devilishly handsome as before. "Tell me what you want,” he finally let it out, “Just name your price, and I’ll have everything at your feet. Just please, do one thing for me and just leave me alone." he said, trying to bargain with me and I only let out a small chuckle as his words seemed funny. “ I had no idea about this kids, you told me nothing and can't just come out of no where and tell me I got two fucking kids. So consider this as my last act of generosity and name your price.” “ Have you forgotten what I said to you the last time we met? I told you that you’ll regret this.” “ Don't tell me you're doing all this because of that? Emelia, I know this is not you, so just tell me what exactly you want and let's sort everything out right now.” “Ok fine, since you want me to tell you want I want, then I will,” I crossed my arms, rolled my eyes around, pretending as if I was thinking about want I wanted, “I want you. If you can give yourself to me and divorce Mary, I might be satisfied," I responded with a smirk, and I could see him growing angrier. I knew he wouldn't be able to do that because one of the reasons he married Mary was that he owed her a debt, and he has to stand by her till death do them part. Cassius was a man of his word, and I was sure he wouldn't want to go back on the promise he made to Mary, and his family would not allowed me to leave either because we’re talking about their grandchildren here, and Cassius and Mary would never be able to give them one. "You know that’s impossible. Okay, I’ll take responsibility for everything. I’ll pay for everything they need in life, including what they don't even need, so please just leave. Don't you feel bad for Mary? She hasn't woken up since yesterday, and her condition might get worse." "It takes two to make a child, why am I supposed to be the only one to take care of them? You should also consider the fact that I've been on my own for a good five years and I took care of them, so now it's your turn. And I don't care whatever happens to Mary, that's your fucking problem and not mine," I yelled at him, and Jael and Jersey were awoken by my loud voice. “Oh, that's quite great. Since they are awake, do you want to say hi to them? It would be amazing if they reunited with their long lost father," I teased, and without saying anything, he angrily stormed out and slammed the door. My fist tightened as I couldn't contain my anger. "I just need to hold on until they accept me into that family and fully trust me," I muttered to myself as I tried to calm down. “ Hmm, my babies are now awake,” I moved closer to them and placed kisses on them as they both laughed and begged me to stop. “Ok, you need to get up from the bed. We’re going somewhere.” I pulled them up and then took them to the bathroom to have them take their bath before heading out for breakfast. After breakfast, I went to one of the Aldriche hospitals. On getting to the hospital, It’s quite big and as I had no Idea of where I was heading to, I met with the receptionist. "Hi, I’m Emelia Roderigo. Please I’m here for the DNA test and I don't know where exactly I should head to," I said and she looked at me weirdly and then checked the system. "We’ve been informed and have been expecting you, ma'am. This way, please," she replied and led us into the lab where their blood will be taken. “ You’ll be attend to here, please wait,” she explained and then left. After waiting for a while, the doctor finally entered with two nurses. I told him to use their hair, but the doctor insisted on using blood, and I wondered if he thought the hair on their heads was fake or something. "Mummy, will it hurt?" Jersey asked as she saw the nurse with the syringe. She’s already scared, but I told her it wouldn't hurt and that I would be by her side. The nurse moved closer and put the syringe in; she screamed out, but I held her. "You're such a cry baby. I'm sure Jael won't even..." I turned to Jael only to see him already trembling and sweating in fear. "Oh my God, Jael, are you alright?" I asked as I quickly moved closer to him, and he burst into tears. Seeing him like this, I told the doctor that they didn't need his blood since they are twins, and he agreed but he requested for his hair, which made me angrier. Why would he ask for something he refused to take in the first place? As I just wanted everything to end very quickly, I gave it to him. "We will send you a copy of the results once it’s ready, ma'am. You can have a nice day," he said, and I only scoffed at his words and then left with my kids. As I made my way out of the hospital, I wondered if Mary was here and wanted to check on her, but I couldn't show any weakness at this time so I headed back to the hotel. On getting to the hotel, I went to the receptionist and she gave me the key and also told me that someone was waiting for me. Turning around, I saw Maverick. "Maverick!!!" The twins exclaimed and quickly rushed into his arms. I was really happy because now I got a companion. "I came to pick you up, so let’s go," Maverick said as he approached with the kids, and I let out a smile as I moved close to him to give him a kiss, but he quickly told me the kids were there and we shouldn't corrupt them, and we both chuckled. We went inside and he helped in packing the luggage into the car, and we drove to his house, which he got here, and our hands intertwined as he drove while we exchanged smiles.CASSIUS'S POVI held onto Mary's hand as I prayed for her to wake up. I haven't gotten a single wink since yesterday. Why did Emelia choose to do this to me? Why didn't she tell me all this before coming to meet my family? I let out a small sigh as I got hit by a heavy headache, and just as I raised my head, I saw Mary with her eyes open. I quickly pressed the emergency button, and the doctor rushed in immediately.Checking her vitals and everything, I kept asking them if she's fine because she kept staring into an empty space without saying anything.“Tell him to leave,” Mary said, as the first words she spoke were for me to leave.Not wanting to make her condition any worse, I left the ward, and just then, her parents arrived, and I asked them to go in. Standing by the door, I watched as she wept in her mother's hands, and my heart sank.“This is all because of Emelia. If anything happens to Mary or she ruins my marriage, I’ll hunt you down,” I sneered as I closed the door and banged
After Grandfather's threat of having a son that hadn't been confirmed to be mine succeeded me, I stormed out angrily. I got into my car, driving recklessly, and I almost knocked down someone. After a few minutes, I parked near the sea to cool down my head. Dipped my hand into my pocket to retrieve a pack of cigarettes. I attempted to light one, only to find the lighter malfunctioning.“Nothing just seemed to be working out well for me…” I yelled as I smashed it on the ground and stomped my feet on it, trying to vent out my frustrations. I let out a loud scream as my hand ran through my hair.Where did everything go wrong? As I remembered when I broke the news to Emelia, I wondered if she was already pregnant by that time. If she was, why didn't she tell me about the pregnancy? Even though I wasn't sure if I would accept the pregnancy then, it wouldn't hurt knowing about it.What if the kids are truly mine? Will Emelia use the kids as an excuse to come back into my life? But she already
EMELIA'S POV A smile graced my lips as I watched the kids ask Cassius if he’s their father. Yeah... I already knew that he would force his way here once he heard about the DNA test results. The look on his face right now is quite funny, but now I'm seeing something totally different as his frustrated look suddenly turned into a cold gaze. “This is really bad because I'm gonna break someone's fragile heart…” Cassius used the tips of his left fingers to nudge Jersey back away from him and then looked at me, giving me a devilish smirk. “What the heck do you think you're doing?” I asked in fury as I could see sadness on my kids' faces because of this bastard's attitude towards them. “You should have thought well about this before you took those crazy steps,” he raged as he slowly moved toward the side of the room and picked up a club. “What exactly were you expecting? I will happily run into your arms and thank you for giving birth to these brats here?” “ You should mind your languag
Waking up the next morning, I felt a huge arm wrapped around me, and I knew it’s Maverick. I smiled when I remembered the hot fuck we had yesterday. Slowly turning to face him, I admired his handsome face.“Despite everything I've gone through, I'm thankful that I have you by my side,” I whispered as I used my fingertip to trail down his nose.He opened his eyes, and his grey eyes met mine. I grinned as I moved closer to him with my head placed on his bare chest, and he wrapped his arm around me.“Good morning, sunshine,” he greeted, with a kiss on my head, and I blushed.“Good morning to you too, my shining armor.”“How's your night?”“Hmmm, I don't think I really need to say it since you already know it’s extremely great and...” I slightly raised my head and looked at him, and muttered, “hot, and I have you to thank for that.”“You don't have to, you are kinda strong and wild in bed, and that must have been why I’m head over heels for you,” he joked, and I gave him a hard punch on hi
I got the kids dressed up, and Maverick offered to drop us off at Cassius' family mansion. On the way, there’s total silence between Maverick and me, except only the kids' voices could be heard. “What if they insist on the kids living with them? Or they insisted on giving Cassius and Mary the custody of my kids which is definitely going to be impossible.” I was left in my own thoughts. The car came to a halt, and I looked up to see we had arrived at Cassius' family mansion. I alighted from the car and also helped the kids get down from the car. We bade Maverick goodbye, and I promised to call him if anything came up. We got to the gate, and the security let us in. Upon entering the house, I opened my mouth wide in amaze as I stood at the grand entrance of one of the largest mansions I had ever seen. A car picked us up at the gate. On our way in, we noticed the distance from the mansion gate to the mansion was quite long. The green, lush area surrounded the mansion, except for the d
CASSIUS'S POVMary is getting discharged today. As I helped her pack up, I received a call. Picking up the call, I learned that Mom was rushed to the same hospital.“What happened?” Mary asked as she noticed my mood change.I dropped the phone as I used my hand to ruffle my hair, not sure whether it’s good to inform her about it or not.“Mom fainted.”“What? What exactly happened? Why did she faint?”“Not sure, but I heard she’s also in this same hospital,” I replied as I let out a loud sigh and rubbed my forehead. “Mary, please, can you just go with Kingsley? I need to check on her.”Mary refused to leave and agreed to go with me while Kingsley left with the luggage. As we headed to Mom's ward, I was stopped by one of our maids who stood in front of me.“Is there anything wrong?” I asked as she suddenly stopped me. With the way she was tensed, I guessed it had to do with why Mom fainted.“Honey, can you just go ahead first? I will join you soon,” I said as I turned to Mary, and she n
MARY'S POVI left Mom's ward with a heavy heart, unable to find a single reason why Emelia is doing all this. I'm sure she will tell me everything once we finally meet each other. Deciding to head home because I was already feeling exhausted due to everything that had been happening since morning. On my way outside the hospital, I met Kira with... Emelia’s kids.“Mary!” She exclaimed and then rushed closer to me, hugging me.“Hey, we still see each other on Grandpa's birthday.”“Did we? I feel like it's been quite long,” she joked as she disengaged from me.I jokingly pulled her cheek, and we both chuckled. Kira is friendly and jovial to everyone. She’s the only one that liked me in the entire family. Or maybe she never actually liked me; maybe she just thought it’s better for at least one person to be good to me. I really have no idea.My gaze landed on the twins, taking a good look at them. The boy resembles Cassius while the girl takes after Emelia. I bent with my left hand on my kn
EMELIA'S POVI wasn't embarrassed by what Mary said to me because I knew I deserved that. I shouldn't have uttered those hurtful words to her, especially when we’re in public. I really didn't plan on saying those hurtful words, but she’s the one who pushed me to my limit.“Mummy,” I heard Jersey's voice as she ran into my arms.Kira had been taking care of them. I walked closer to her and thanked her because I knew both of them are troublesome, so she would have gone through a lot. As I wanted to leave, she seemed to have something to say to me but wasn't able to, and I wondered why she decided not to.We headed outside the hospital, and I hailed down a cab and headed home with the kids. Today has really been a long day. Since they said they weren't hungry and Kira had fed them, I decided to just give them a bath and then tuck them in.I sang a lullaby for them as I watched them sleeping, and I chuckled as I saw Jersey smiling in her sleep, which meant that she must have had a blast to
“Okay, I can do this,” I whispered as the grand doors loomed before me.I felt butterflies in my stomach, and I was really nervous. I hoped I wouldn’t embarrass myself by falling because I was trembling.Do you know why? Because IT'S MY WEDDING DAY!!!The moment I had waited for and dreamed about for so long. The wishes and dreams of every woman, and now, mine was about to come true. Or maybe I should say it had already come true.But as I stood there all alone, the smile on my face faded as I remembered the reality; I would be walking down this aisle alone. With no father to guide me, no mother to whisper comforting words to me about marriage.Although Eunice did help with all of this as we spent three days talking about marriage, I still wished it was my own mother. I learned a lot from Eunice’s words, and her love for her husband was the perfect example of a wife’s love. Despite her husband's heart belonging to another, she stayed with him, even now, as she finally learned to accep
“You came faster than I thought,” I said as I entered the Chinese restaurant room, seeing Jamez already sitting down.“I can’t believe you asked me to come here and still arrived late,” he replied.“I’m sorry, I had to pick someone up on my way.”“Hmm, I’ll be quick. Since I helped you last time with Desmond issues, so you should help me this time.”“Of course, we’re here to help each other. So what exactly do you need?”“I want to launder some money, but that fool has been keeping an eye on me.”“You mean your wife?”“Of course, who else? She’s always trying to act like the boss. Lately, she’s been nosy about everything happening in the company, keeping me in check. So I need to take everything I want before she tries anything stupid.”“I find that hard to believe. Don’t you both love each other?”“Love?” He scoffed. “If she hadn’t kept control of the company, I’d have divorced her a long time ago.”“But I thought she gave you all her property. Aren’t you in charge?”“That’s true, bu
ONE YEAR LATER“Good work, everyone,” I said, lifting up my hand and high-five with Kira.Kira was now working with me and in team B department. She’s also part of the reason why today's show was a success.“Wow, I can't believe we actually did it!” Betsy squealed in happiness.“But what happened to your hair? Why did you cut it? Are you going through a heartbreak?” Alexasked, and she rolled her eyes at him.“But, why did you only praise Team B? Is it because they're your favorite team?” Kathy's loud voice echoes through the room as she enters.I smiled at her words.“Of course not. I was just making my rounds and visiting all the teams,” I replied, and then she grabbed my hand and dragged me towards her team.As we were heading to her department, I suddenly felt the floor become slippery, but Kathy caught me and stopped me from falling.“Who is the monkey that did this terrible job here?” she yelled angrily, and all the cleaners quickly rushed towards us.“I’m very sorry, ma'am. It's
With my mouth agape, I looked at Mary, who still continued laughing."Is that true?" I turned to Mary."What if it is?” She answered without a hinto of guilt. “ Do you think if I hadn’t lied, you would have married me? Do you think you would have even given me a chance?" She asked Cassius "Is that why you did all this? Because you wanted him, knowing I loved him?" My voice quivered."Can you please shut up? You liked him? Then why didn’t you tell him? Why does everyone always like you and not me?""What are you talking about? Mary, everyone loved you, even your parents.""Look at her, acting clueless. Do you know why I broke up with all my boyfriends? Because they all said you were beautiful.‘Oh, Emelia is such a goddess.’‘Look at her glowing skin.’‘I wish I could be her friend.’‘Can you at least be like Emelia for once?’Those were their words. They admired you and always said you were every man's dream, while I was right there beside them.""Mary…" I called softly, realizing sh
EMELIA'S POVChecking the news, I saw both positive and negative comments. Some people were happy about the news, while others criticized me for being with Cassius after almost ruining his entire family.“Stop looking at this,” Cassius said as he shut the laptop.I heaved heavily, feeling frustrated and unsure of what to do.“Just give it a while; everything will sort out,” he said with a reassuring smile, and I nodded.I shouldn’t have let the kids go to school today. Who knows if those reporters went to their school? I picked up my phone to call their teacher, but David’s call came in.I bit my lip, feeling tense because I was sure it was about the news of Cassius acknowledging the kids.“Let me talk…”“No, I will,” I declined, standing up from my seat and picking up the call.“Hey, sweetie. Did you miss me a lot?”“Did I? I don’t really think I did, but I miss those troublesome big heads,” he joked, and a smile flashed across my face..David and I had a conversation, and I asked ab
MARY'S POVThe smell of hospital disinfectant filled my nose as I slowly opened my eyes. Looking around, I realized I was in a hospital room. The memories of everything that had happened came flooding back.“Cassius,” I muttered in anger as my hand tightened into a fist.I should never have trusted him or signed the divorce papers first. Now, everything I had worked for all these years was gone. I lost everything; my family, my marriage, my honor, and my prestige. There wasn’t a single thing I could claim as a gain from this marriage. Cassius had used me as a tool until Emelia returned to his arms.I laughed like a crazy person, and my laughter echoed across the room. The nurses exchanged worried glances before one of them rushed out. A short while later, she returned with Linda.“Are you okay now?” Linda asked as she walked to my side. I continued to stare into an empty spot.“Your husband brought you here and left immediately. I….”“He pushed me, and I hit my head heavily on the gro
CASSIUS'S POVWearing my clothes, I gently placed a kiss on her forehead and tiptoed out of the bedroom, heading out of the house. I had something I needed to do urgently. I entered my car and drove to my house.On getting home, I picked up a brown folder and took a deep breath. I needed to settle everything today. Grabbing a recording device, I entered the house but didn’t find anyone, so I went to the bedroom. As I slightly opened the door, I heard Mary screaming at someone on the phone.“What do you mean by treatment? How can I get a treatment at this time?” she yelled angrily, and my shoulders slumped.What? She is sick? How could I not know about it?Different questions raced through my mind as I rethought what I wanted to do. What kind of husband asks for a divorce from his sick wife? Staring at the brown folder in my hand, I decided not to go through with it. As I was about to close the door, I stopped at what I heard next.“Don’t you hear what I’m saying? I can’t get any trans
I heaved heavily, my heart thumping as if it would jump out of my chest at any moment."Do you think he will forgive me?" I asked, fidgeting with my fingers, resting my back against the car.Cassius leaned closer to me and held my hand, stopping me from fidgeting with my fingers."I think he will, and if he doesn't, I am here for you," he said with a smile, which I returned.I apologized to Cassius and his family. Although it was very hard for them to forgive me for my actions, they still did. His father is being released today, while George has been sentenced to life imprisonment for what he did.Desmond's secretary actually went to deliver a message to a man that also lived in the dead cop building. I heard the man was very close to Desmond.The Aldriche family was still recovering from their loss, and I hope they really do. Betsy apologized for her actions, but surprisingly, Cassius's mom just hugged her, realizing she did so because of her only granddaughter's death. Every parent
"You called me?” I asked as I approached Bryan."Yes, I did because there is good news and bad news. Which one do you want to hear first?""Just tell me. I've seen a lot in this life, and it really doesn't matter anymore. Whatever happens will happen.""Okay. The good news is that Lydia wasn't the culprit," Bryan said. I felt a small wave of relief, a smile briefly gracing my lips. Maybe I had hoped too much for her not to be the one."Her husband, George, is the one. That's the bad news," Bryan added, and my shoulders slumped.I tried to speak, but no words came out. What was going on in my head at this moment was still unknown to me. I know there was no different if the wife or husband was the culprit but it was still surprisingly.Bryan asked me to follow him, leading me to where Leonard was being interrogated. Trialing behind him with my grip tighten on the bag I was holding, my heart pounded heavily. I didn't even know if seeing him was a good thing because I was still trembling