MATILDA'S POV.I stepped into my office and took a deep deep breath but it didn’t feel like relief, rather I felt so overwhelmed.“She doesn’t want him,” I whispered to myself, the words barely loud enough to reach my own ears. “That’s good. That’s... good.”My heart wanted to celebrate, wanted to feel triumphant, but the hollow ache in my chest wasn’t budging.“Why does I feel so… empty?” I muttered placing my hand on my chest. My thoughts jumped back to Arlan, his worried and sorry face, the way his voice softened every time he said her name. Saraya. The name twisted in my mind like a thorn.And then it came back to me... 'Butterfly'.I stopped dead in my tracks, few steps away from swirling chair. "Wait... butterfly?" The word tumbled out of my mouth, I could feel my mouth go bitter as another wave of disgust washed over me. “Seriously? Butterfly?” I scoffed, a small laugh escaped from my lips. “He has known her for long? And she gets a nickname?”The sting of the realization hit
SARAYA'S POV.While I had headed meeting upon meetings, each passing second felt like a drag, making me feel empty.By the time the day finally ended, I wanted to do something different from work and bring a little fun to my hurting heart.I decided to take a drive round the city to clear my head but I happened to see a billboard of Cartier Collection."What about I do some shopping and maybe hit the club afterwards?" I suggested to myself and made up my mind to visit.I walked into the store and it exceeded my exceptions. The store was nothing but sleek, with racks of designer clothes arranged like art displays.A young sales attendant who could be mistaken for a model walked up to me and smiled. “Welcome to Cartier Collection. How can I assist you today?”“I want something bold,” I said. “Something that stands out.”She nodded. "Then you're at the right place, come with me while I recommend some of our luxurious and limited designs to you ma'am." She said and led the way.I tried o
DOMINIC'S POV.From the moment, she walked into the club, she held me spellbound."Who is she?" I asked one attendant.The attendant stared at her and was drooling at her beauty. I smacked his shoulder lightly to snap him out of it."Stop ogling her like a fool and tell me who the hell she is," I barked.He stammered, "S-sorry, sir. She seems like a new face. I don’t recognize her."A smirk tugged at the corners of my mouth. "New, huh? Perfect. I should take my chance before these ravening men begin to take their chances with me. You can go." I dismissed him.To my surprise, she took over the dance floor putting herself on the spotlight. I saw the way other men fed their eyes on her body and I knew I shouldn't wait any more time before approaching her.As I approached her, I wanted others to know she belongs to me and me only. So I had placed my hands on her waist.Her fierce eyes locked with mine. "Take your hands off me." She snapped.I loved the fierce look on her face and imagine
SARAYA'S POV.I opened my eyes and winced as pain shot through my head. It felt like my skull was splitting in two.Groaning, I closed them again, but the pain didn't subside. Slowly, I tried again, opening then gently and then I froze.“Finally awake, are you?”The voice made my eyes snap open. Sitting at the edge of my bed was Grandma, her arms crossed and her face tight with anger.“Grandma?” I croaked, my throat dry. “How long have you been sitting there?” I asked, trying to shake off the grogginess and the eerie feeling of being watched.She didn’t answer. Instead, she pointed at the small table beside me. “Drink that.”I turned my head slowly, spotting a glass filled with some golden liquid. “What is it?”“Honey water,” she said, looking away.On a good day, I would have laughed out loud. Such acts doesn't suit my grandmother in any way. I stared at the glass, eyeing it suspiciously. “Why would you bring me a glass of honey water?” “Because your head is pounding, isn’t it? Or d
DOMINIC'S POVI parked at the same spot as yesterday, waiting for Saraya to come outside.She was all I could think about last night. Her face, her energy, the way she ignored me continued to taunt me and I couldn’t shake it off. I woke up early, determined to see her again. Maybe it was a little creepy to follow her like this, but I don't care.I leaned against my car, watching her front door, my heart racing when she suddenly appeared.She looked simple but stunning, wearing a black hoodie and gray joggers, her hair pulled back in a loose ponytail. She didn’t try to stand out, but somehow, she did.I stayed a safe distance behind her as she jogged through the neighborhood. She ran like she was preparing for the Olympics. Her speed was tenacious.Running after her was exhausting as hell as I gave up twenty minutes into the sprint but she went another forty minutes before stopping to catch her breath.When she finally slowed down and stopped by a bench to catch her breath, I knew it w
DOMINIC'S POV.I walked up to the man whom Saraya had just walked out on, staring at him dangerously.I had followed her to the restaurant and my heart broke when I saw she was having a date. Imagine how elated I become when the date ended on a bad note.But I wasn't one to let things to end that way. "I should rub in some salt in the injury before leaving." I had thought to myself."Who are you?" He asked, adjusting his glasses."You see the lady that just walked out on you right now, I'll advice you stop all communications with her." I declared."And how dare you tell me what to do?" He stuttered while trying to put on a strong font.I seized his collar. "I dare to do whatever I want, Saraya is mine and mine alone. You don't stand a chance anyways."He swallowed hard, his eyes darting to the exit. He wasn’t going to argue, not with the deadly look on my face.Satisfied, I released him with a shove, watching as he stumbled back. He didn’t say another word as he turned and practically
ISLA'S POV."What do you think you're doing?" I screamed at Saraya.Saraya stared at me and sighed. "Grandma, can you please not do this tonight?" She pleaded. "I'm exhausted as it is.""Then you should gotten your acts together instead of ruining your date your Toby." I snapped."Trust me when I say I did the right thing walking out on him." Saraya replied defiantly. "I'm already mad at myself for tolerating his respect in the first place when I should walked out earlier.""Of course, not only did you walk out of him. You got your friend to threaten him as well." I clapped my hands. "Good job, Saraya."Saraya blinked her eyes severally. "Toby told you my friend threatened him?" She asked in an unbelievable tone."You heard me right.""Toby is lying, Dominic wasn't even with us in the restaurant and even if by some sheer of coincidence he was, he wouldn't have done that." Saraya replied. "So you're saying Toby lied when you actually showed up with some sort of stranger.""That strang
MATILDA'S POV.I pulled Tessy into a hug the moment she stepped in. "So good to see you again, I've missed you." I confessed.Tessy blushed. "Never thought I’d hear you admit that so willingly," she teased.I grinned. "Come on in.""Thank you," Tessy replied, stepping into my office and started looking around. "This is my first time coming to your place of work, and I must say, you've done exceptionally well for yourself."I couldn’t help but smile at the compliment. "Now, I'm flattered," I said. "Come in and have your seat."Before I could say more, my phone buzzed with an incoming call. I glanced down and saw Arlan's name flashing across the screen. A wave of annoyance hit me.Tessy noticed my reaction. "Everything okay?" she asked.I didn’t even answer her; I just ended the call with a swipe of my finger. "Arlan," I muttered under my breath. "He’s got some nerve.""Maybe you should hear him out?" Tessy suggested gently. "He is the father of your child after all."I shook my head sh
MARY'S POVI didn't sleep a wink the entire night, I kept on thinking of what I could do to gain leverage over Ian.The alarm rang on my bedside interrupting my thoughts. I angrily pressed the off button. "Shut the fuck up!" I yelled at the bed clock.Taking a deep breath, I got up from bed and walked to the mirror and studied my reflection. I ruffled my hair, letting it fall messily around my face, then rubbed my pale eyes until they looked swollen. My nightgown was already slightly wrinkled, which worked in my favor. "This looks perfect." I said, taking in my disheveled look.Once I was satisfied with my appearance, I stepped out of my room and walked down the long hallway to Isla’s room. My footsteps were slow, hesitant, like a woman in labour.I needed to get in character and I was doing a great job. When I reached her door, I didn’t bother knocking. I turned the handle and pushed it open, letting the door slam against the wall.Isla jolted awake, her eyes wide with shock as she
SARAYA'S POV.I turned to my side when I noticed a figure hovering over me. I stirred and open my eyes and couldn't make sense of who it was so I screamed."Easy, it's me." Gabby held me."You scared me" I said breathing heavily. "What's going on?""You were sleeping longer than expected, it's already 10a.m in the morning so I came to check on you." She explained."What? 10a.m?"Gabby stood up and drew off the curtains and opened the window. "You believe me now?"I quickly grabbed my phone, there I saw Dominic has replied my message and he had also called severally.I sat up quickly, my heart racing as I unlocked my phone. I read his message and he had also sent another message about an hour ago.Dominic: Hey, how are you doing? I called a few times. Call me back when you see this.Guilt settled in my stomach. I had been so lost in sleep that I hadn’t heard my phone ring. I tapped on his contact and called him back, my fingers trembling slightly.Gabby sat on the edge of my bed, watch
MARY'S POV."That little rat, I wish I could just yank his neck off his body this instant. How dare he spy on me?" I asked breathing heavily at the realization that I was about to drag down.Arlan aside, if Isla gets to find out about this, she will never look at me the same way again."I've built my reputation to be a submissive wife, respectful daughter in law and dutiful mother and all of that is about to come crashing down because of that idiot! I can't stand that let that happen." I told myself.I clenched my fists, my nails digging into my palms as I paced the room. "I have to do something very fast." I kept reminding myself as several thoughts ran through my mind but none of my ideas were good enough for the situation I had found myself.Ian thought he had me cornered, thought he had the upper hand? "That fool had no idea who he is dealing with, I will show him that I'm not to be disrespected.""But you have until tomorrow morning, what can you do before then?" A tiny voice ask
IAN'S POV."Awesome," I clapped my hands. "So Mary intends using Dominic to spy on Saraya. Guess I'm not the only one who is worked up about Saraya's existence." I said to myself."I've known she didn't care for Saraya like she claims to but I don't know Saraya made her so insecure she would go all the way.""Let's shake her up a little with this." I said staring at my phone before replaying the voice note."Isn't it too early to confront her? What if it goes down south?" A voice said in my head. "While it's still early, time is not on my side. With the way the company's shares have been plummeting since I took over, it's just a matter of time before those punch of greedy people start discussing my impeachment.""I'm in no position to consider the timing, even if it's just a straw, I have to grap it tightly with both hands and figure out a way to survive."I stood up and headed to her room with a victorious smile. "Let's see how she would react."I knocked twice on the door, taking a
SARAYA'S POV.I walked in feeling exhausted, at this point, there was no more tears coming out from my eyes.Gabby who had been waiting quickly rushed to me. "You gave me quite a scare, you wouldn't pick your phone..." She was saying when she finally looked up and saw my face. "Oh my, what happened?"I sank into her arms. "I hurt him, Gabby. I did."Gabby wrapped her arms around me, her grip firm and reassuring. "Who did you hurt?" she asked gently, stroking my hair."Dominic," I whispered, my voice hoarse. "He—he told me again he had feelings for me, and I... I couldn’t give him what he wanted."Gabby sighed, pulling back slightly to look me in the eyes. "Saraya, it’s not your fault. You can’t force yourself to love someone just because they love you.""But he’s been nothing but good to me," I said, my voice breaking. "He was there when I needed someone, when I was at my lowest. And instead of appreciating him the way he deserves, I—""You were honest," Gabby interrupted. "And that’s
SARAYA'S POV."Dominic, ever since I met you, you've been a good person and friend to me. I wouldn't want to jeopardize our friendship.""What are you scared of?" He asked."I'm scared of everything!" I snapped. "Letting someone new in and being vulnerable to them is something I don't want to do anytime soon.""I think it's time you let go.""What?" I asked like I didn't hear him the first time."I said it's time you let go of your obsession with Arlan." He said firmly, making me nervous. "He is never going to be yours, he is expecting a child with Matilda and if my memory serves me correctly, she should put to bed anytime from now."The realization in his words made my heart go cold. Dominic must've noticed how his words got to me but he didn't stop."Are you really going to stand between a father and a child because of your obsession?" He added.I felt the sting of his words like a slap across my face. Obsession? Is that what he thought this was?I let out a bitter laugh, shaking my
DOMINIC'S POV."Saraya...""Dominic, what's going on?" She asked sounding so worried. "I just got to my phone and saw your calls and message. Is my dad okay? Are you okay? Is everyone fine?""Calm down, princess." I managed to break through her worrisome questions. "I came to see you.""What?" She said. My actions took her by surprise just I had expected. "You mean you came all the way from Sydney to Colorado just to see me?" She asked like she needed to be sure."That's correct." I affirmed."Dom...""I know what you want to say but you can chastise me for showing up unexpectedly when you see me. What do you say?" I suggested, hoping she would agree.There was silence on the other end. I could almost see the way her brows would be furrowing right now, the way she’d bite her lower lip when she was trying to process something she didn’t see coming.I held my breath, waiting.“Dominic…” she finally said, her voice softer this time. “Why do you have to make such trip when we could have e
DOMINIC'S POV.The flight touched down at the airport and I soon checked out."Saraya, here I come!" I screamed out drawing stares from onlookers but I didn't care.I bought out my phone. "Okay, let's do this." I said, dialling her phone. It rang a few times but there was no reply. "Could she be busy at the moment?" I thought to myself, wondering why she wasn't picking I flagged a taxi down, "take me the closest and coziest hotel around, I'm so tired."The taxi ride was quiet, but my mind wasn’t. My heart raced faster than the car, my thoughts were fixated on one person—Saraya. I could help but wonder how would she react when she see me? Would she be surprised? Shocked? Angry?I leaned back in the seat, running a hand through my hair. “She’ll probably be mad at first,” I muttered under my breath. Saraya wasn’t the type to welcome unexpected visitors with open arms, especially not when she had told me that the last time I showed you expectedly on Christmas day. But I silently hoped wi
ALEX'S POV.I patted his back awkwardly, the strength of his hug catching me off guard. “I’m here, Arlan. I’m okay now.”He pulled back just enough to look me in the eyes. “Do you have any idea of how I felt when you collapsed? I couldn't focus knowing fully well it would be on me if you never wake up?”“I’m sorry I got you and everyone worried.” The words came out in a whisper, guilt settling in my chest.“You’re sorry?” He shook his head. “Don’t be ridiculous. Its all my fault, I should've told you everything...” His voice broke again, and he rubbed a hand across his face.I tried for a weak smile. "It's okay." I replied. "It would have been difficult if I were in your shoes too."“Thank you for coming around,” he said, but a small, relieved laugh slipped out anyway.I gestured to the chair by my bed. “Sit down before you fall over. You look like you haven’t slept in days.” I said pointing the eye bags beneath his eyes.“I haven’t,” he admitted, sinking into the chair. His elbows re