CALEB Staring at my reflection in the mirror reminded me of my previous wedding years ago. The expression on my face was the same as the one I had when I was getting married to Rosy. I was forced into marrying her just like I’m being forced into marrying this little witch. I swallowed hard and huffed out in anger, straightening a cuff that didn’t need the effort. “Whoa! Whoa! Look at that soon-to-be-married man,” Julius laughed, walking into my room. Casper and Kim trailed after him, grinning from ear to ear. I knew that the grin on their faces wasn’t that of happiness for me but mockery. They were all in dark tuxedos, which was the usual attire for the best men at a wedding. Casper’s raven hair was brushed back with some of the hair in the middle sticking out. I do wonder if he looked at the hair in the mirror before stepping out. Kim’s dark hair was gelled into a style as always, and Julius’s curly bangs, which swept across his shoulder, glimmered lustrou
CALEB Katherine gasped in horror, and her wobbly feet lost their support on her body, sending her down to the ground. Casper was fast enough to catch her before she reached the floor. Mom sprang up from her seat and marched towards me in fury, throwing a slap across my face. I swallowed hard and clenched my fist as I tasted blood in my mouth. “You useless boy, what exactly do you think you are doing?” She snapped, waving her fingers at me. “Stop shouting, Mom, you just got discharged from the hospital,” I said in a calm voice. “Like you cared!” she raved. “Why will I care about a woman who faked a suicidal attempt? I knew you were faking it, Mom; I knew you were wide awake!” I snapped back at her and her eyes widened in shock. She was taken aback by my unexpected accusation. “What… what… what are you saying?” she stuttered, glancing over at my dad who sat down quietly, watching the drama going on before him. “I am telling the truth,” I retorted. “That isn’t enou
CALEB The room was as silent as a graveyard as we sat around the large oval dining table, none of us uttering a word. I could tell how hard my mom was trying to sink into the drama that was playing out in the church. It was harder for her with the number of eyes glaring at her. Grandma was the first to make a sound by clearing her throat, her large accusing eyes fixed on my mother who kept fidgeting in her seat. “I respected the girl because you were the one who chose her for Caleb,” Grandma began, referring to my mother. My mom’s lips parted and slammed together in guilt. “Look at the disgrace that wretched girl has caused our family, she ruined our reputation!” Grandma spat, and Mom shuddered slightly, picking on her manicured nails. “No, no, grandma. You are getting everything wrong. Katherine’s family is the one getting the embarrassment,” Mom tried to defend herself, and Grandma scowled at her. “You think so? What are people going to think about the futu
MADAM HELEN “Get the work done by tomorrow if you’re not ready to fit into the list of unemployed people,” I snapped and slammed down the receiver, sighing loudly as I rubbed my forehead. I glanced down at the birthmark again and my lips twitched as I tried to remember where I had seen the mark before. I am certain that I have seen this mark somewhere before, but I can’t seem to discern the exact place and body. But one thing was sure, the mark was found on the body of a little boy. The problem I have now is remembering the boy’s name or his parents. “Miss Rosy is here, Madam Helen,” the intrusive voice of the chief maid seeped into my thoughts. I groaned out and nodded my head in approval as I pulled the paper into the drawer. The door opened and Rosy sauntered in as sassy as always. It always makes me happy to see one of my grandchildren taking after me, I won’t have to worry about the fortunes of the Connor family when I’m gone because I’m sure they’ll be in safe han
ROSY I frowned upon seeing Caleb still in the garage, pacing restlessly around his car. I narrowed my eyes and began to walk towards my car, ignoring his presence. “Don’t try to act like you didn’t see me,” his hard voice made my heart skip a beat. I swallowed hard and continued walking briskly towards my car. I still wonder why I gave my chauffeur a leave. Now I’m alone with this madman in the garage. “We need to talk, Rosy,” he shouted when I got to my car. I spun around and glared at him. “There’s nothing to talk about. Let’s end the deal and stop seeing each other. The sex never happened, okay?” I snapped out without thinking twice. I realized the mistake I had made when I saw his lips twitch into a sardonic smile. “Didn’t you say we should keep that secret behind the doors of my room but here you are blurting it out,” he mumbled. The serious and angry look on his face was gone; it was replaced by that mocking smirk that caused a stir of irritati
MADAM HELEN I shifted my attention away from the flower and glanced at my phone which had been ringing for some minutes. “I hope it’s not one of those useless employees,” I muttered as I wiped my hands on a rag and picked up the phone. “Yes?” I groused, staring at the blooming buds of the hibiscus flower. “Okay, send it to me.” I dropped the phone and sighed before going back to inspect my plants. The glass doors of my private plant house opened and a maid stepped in. “Miss Rosy is here to see you, ma’am,” she announced with her head bowed low. My brows snapped up in surprise as I stared at the maid in disbelief. “Rosy is here?” “Yes, madam,” she replied. “Let her in.” She left the house, and soon the door opened, and Rosy ran in, breathing heavily. I pushed out the smile that tried to break out on my face as I glared pretentiously at her. “It seems like you missed your way. This is the house of Caleb’s puppet, have you forgotten?” I said. From the corner
ROSY“This is a sample of the product; we need your approval before the production is kicked off. We took our time to research it, and the team of researchers concluded that the product would be a hit in the food industry,” Miss Theresa concluded and dropped her tablet on the desk.“Hmm…” I hummed, staring at the juice before me.“The advertisement?”“It will begin as soon as the production is completed, ma’am.”“When will that be over?”“In less than a week,” Miss Theresa assured.“You don’t have to worry, we’re out to get a famous model for the advert. The offer will be so tempting that she won’t be able to say no, also—”“I don’t need the model,” I cut her off and her jaws dropped.“Huh?” she huffed.“I have someone in mind for the advert. Slash the offer, I will handle it myself,” I said.Miss Theresa darted her lashes and slowly nodded.“Yes,” she said before retrieving the tablet.I picked up the small bottle of juice and clicked it open before consuming half of the
ROSY I shuddered slightly as I stared at Cassandra’s prying eyes, wondering what she was doing here. “What are you doing here?” I asked, trying not to sound hostile. She batted her lashes and sent a fake smile across to me. “You think I will leave my daughter alone?” She answered. I scoffed, twitching up my lips in disgust. “You not only believe that I will hurt your son but also your daughter?” “I just want to be sure that my daughter will be fine in your company,” she chipped and I scoffed out loudly, glaring at her. “Why do you want to see me?” Juliet demanded, faking a smile at me. I sighed, slowly developing second thoughts for this meeting. I shook my head and turned around to walk away. “You are walking away, don’t tell me that you brought us here to waste our time,” Cassandra snapped. I spun around, glaring at her. “I sent for Juliet, not you!” I snapped back at her. She narrowed her eyes at me and waved her hand in the air. I looked at Juliet, rem