Arabella POV....."Beep" the sound of my phone vibrating on the kitchen counter broke my concentration on chores, with soap still on my hands, I washed my hands, before I grabbed the phone eagerly. It was a message from Joseph, my husband. In five years of our marriage, it was the first time he had reached out to me directly rather than delivering his message through Ruby or his mother, but now his direct message filled me with a mix of surprise and happiness, "Bella, meet me at the Blue Royal Hotel at 7 PM, let's celebrate my appointment as CEO."I still couldn't believe whether it's a dream or real, for a moment, I allowed myself to believe that Joseph was finally recognizing my love and support, maybe tonight, he would publicly acknowledge me as his wife, maybe all my dreams might come true tonight, this is moment I've been waiting till now.But my brief moment of happiness was shattered by the cold voice of my mother-in-law's cursing echoing from the living room, "Bella! You use
The warm rays of the sun straight on my face pulled me out of a deep sleep. My head is extremely heavy, and everything felt like a blurring image, still sleepy, I mumbled to myself, "What's the time? If I'm late and miss making breakfast, Mother will kill me." The moment I opened my eyes completely keeping aside the sleepiness and looked at my surroundings, the reality hit me hard that I wasn't at home and this isn't my room, this realisation turned into bewilderment.Memories of last night started to appear in front of me as I saw my clothes scattered across the floor. "I can see that you're loving it by the way you're moaning with pleasure under me, right, little lamb?" That husky voice ringing in my mind even now. The man from last night wasn't Joseph, nothing is my imagination, moreover the bloodstain on the bedsheet confirmed it I had lost my virginity to a stranger, this confirmation clenched my heart.Tears began streaming down my cheeks, not because of physical pain but from
I was stunned by her words, "a wild night with an old man?" I repeated her words, unable to understand what she meant by, she just shrugged casually, "Come on, Bella, I thought you were smart since you excel in everything, but you're a real fool to be frank, you're an emotional fool."My silence seemed to make her happy, "just one message from him and you rushed to the hotel without thinking about anything? Is there any fool like you?" She taunted at my helpless situation, I snapped back, "Whether you believe it or not, I got a message from him.""Oh, I know you did," she smirked with a proud smile, "Bella, meet me at the Blue Royal Hotel at 7 PM, let's celebrate my appointment as CEO, isn’t that what you got?"My eyes widened in shock, how did she know the exact message I got from my husband? She tapped her fingers in front of my face bringing me out of my thoughts, "you must be wondering how I got to know the message, it's because I sent it to you."I was speechless as she continued
"Mommy... mommy!" The sound of my children’s voices pulled me out of the nightmare that has been stressing me, I opened my eyes to see Abigail and Alexander, my everything, looking worried, seeing me opening eyes, they quickly hugged me."Mommy, we were so worried," Abigail was the first one to jump on me with a worried look, while Alexander mumbled wiping my tears, "You were crying in your sleep, are you okay, Mommy?"I smiled at them, trying to ease their concern, while ruffling their hair, "Yes, I'm fine, just a bad dream, Mommy's okay." They hugged me tighter once again, and filled my face with kisses."These are good luck kisses," they announced with a proud smile."Oh my goodness, I’m going to have so much luck," I chuckled at their innocence playing along with them, these past six years of hellish life, they’ve been my only ray of hope to dream about the future.I thought back to the day of the accident, the day I lost consciousness in the arms of a stranger, when I woke up, I
"I thought I was on time. Am I late?" My presence in the dining hall left everyone stunned, the surprise on their faces was quite evident, I had anticipated this reaction, after all, they never expected me to return, since they wanted to hide their sins forever. Their hateful glances made that clear.As soon as she saw me, my grandmother approached with a warm smile, "Oh dear! You're finally here, I missed you a lot," she exclaimed, pulling me into a loving embrace, I hugged her back and smiled, happy to meet her after a long time, "Yes, I'm here for you, grandmother, happy birthday."Holding her hand, I glanced at her smiling face just as always, but she is weak than before, wrinkles on her face more visible now, "How is your health, grandmother?""I'm fine, especially now that you're back, I'm much happier," she replied, her eyes brighter with full of happiness, her glance shifted at my children, and I introduced them, "This is Abigail, and this is Alexander, they're my children."S
The moment I decided to give my grandmother a limited edition Sapphire and Pearl necklace from Star Light Jewels as a gift, I anticipated this kind of reactions from everyone. This necklace, a limited piece even among VIPs who are in queue to get this into their hands, but this is something I designed personally for my grandmother.Britney glared at me, with suspicion, "Don't tell me you brought a knockoff as a present for my mother's birthday, you should be ashamed of yourself and your actions."I smiled calmly being surprised by her confidence to call it a knockoff without any proper knowledge about what she is speaking, "A knockoff?"Natalie sneered with a frown, "If it’s not a knockoff, do you really think you could get your hands on a limited edition necklace from Star Light Jewels? When even Joseph struggled to get one for me."My father sighed in disappointment as always, "If you can't afford something like this, why embarrass yourself and us with your foolish actions? I'm sorr
•••NO POV•••Arabella's words shocked everyone in the room. Even Natalie, who usually stays over confident, flinched by the furiousness of Arabella, they were all used to the old Arabella, the one who never spoke up against them no matter how they treated her, but this Arabella, standing confidently before them, wasn't even hesitating to taunt or even threaten them.Natalie’s outburst in anger making everyone to look curious to know who is speaking the truth, "You, don’t you dare accuse him as you like!"Arabella looked confident while responding to Natalie's outburst, "Accuse him? Is that what you think I’m doing? Then, my dear sister, why don’t you go and talk to him yourself? Find out whether I’m accusing him or simply telling the truth, why don’t you give it a try? Everyone of us here will know the real truth."Arabella’s confidence was no joke, each word she spoke is full of certainty, since she already knew exactly how the tables will turn out once the truth comes out.Natalie r
Natalie wanted to see Arabella break down emotionally, expecting her to be devastated by the news of her beloved man marrying Natalie. Instead, Arabella smiled brightly and looked at Natalie being pleased by the news, "I'll be waiting for an invitation, my dear sister, make sure to send me one." With that, Arabella and her children left without even looking back, showing no signs of sadness, it was as if she wasn't concerned about whom Joseph is willing to marry. Olivia glared at Natalie after the departure of Arabella, "I told you to keep your mouth shut in her presence, after six long years, she came here only because I begged her to attend my birthday lunch, not knowing how long I had left to live, all I wanted is a peaceful lunch with my entire family and here you are, trying to hurt her while she’s being mature and understanding." "Grandmother, you're misunderstanding me," Natalie tried to defend herself being furious, "Can't you see how unbothered she is? She never loved Jos
"Shall we get married now?" Xander asked her with a calm and husky voice.Arabella blinked her eyes, and before she knew it, a tear slipped down her cheek. Xander noticed her tears immediately, and his thumb gently wiped her tears, as his lips curled into a teasing smile, lightening the moment."Don’t tell me now you’re not interested in marrying me?" he said, with a soft yet playful tone, "are you planning to dump me my love?" Arabella chuckled through her tears, feeling a warm rush of emotions. Just then, the children, Abigail and Alexander, jumped in, with their voices innocent and full of love."Mommy, our daddy is so good, don’t dump him, he loves you so much," they both said, anyone can see the purest and genuineness in their voice.Arabella smiled, her heart blooming with love for her little ones, but then Viola also joined the scene, adding her own playful tone."He is the perfect brother-in-law, I accept only him as my brother-in-law, so don't think of dumping him," Viola d
••NO POV••George, her father-in-law extended his hand with a gentle smile, "Are you ready, dear?" His gentleness, eased her nervousness, Arabella nodded, while a soft response, "Yes" escaped her lips. George took her hand in his, sounded warm and fatherly. "You look beautiful my dear, truly radiant, today, you’re not just becoming my daughter-in-law; you’re becoming my daughter, and if Xander ever dares to bully you, come to me, I'll make sure he regrets it." Her eyes filled with tears at his words, and she smiled, with a voice barely above a whisper, "Thank you, father." George gently squeezed her hand. "Come, let me take you to your husband."Arabella nodded, from behind Viola signalled, everything will be fine and they'll take care of it, Arabella couldn't help but to listen to them.As they walked, Arabella couldn’t help but compare this moment to her past. In her previous marriage, she had walked down the aisle alone, feeling like an orphan in a world that had no place f
"It's Ruby, Joseph's sister," I said, while clutching my mobile hard.Viola’s smile faltered, replaced by a furious look, "That witch, why is she trying to contact you? What does she want now?" "She tried to blackmail me yesterday," I explained, recounting the encounter of yesterday which I almost forgot until this message of that bitch popped up, "She threatened to bring out the things that happened back in the past, and the shameless method they used to get rid of their house, using those photos, she is trying to demand money from me, and wants me to get back with that bastard, the most funniest thing is, she said I should be grateful for her brother’s forgiveness." Viola crossed her arms with a scoff, "That woman is really audacious, how dare she to threaten you? I swear if you had taken me with you yesterday, I would've punched that bitch's face until she couldn't speak again, if she wasn’t already miserable, I’d make her life a living hell for daring to mess with you."Her fier
••ARABELLA POV•• "I know," I said softly, feeling the warmth of his hand on mine."So, you knew it," Xander repeated, with a low yet slightly frustrated voice, "yet you went alone?"I never saw him being angry with me, this is the first time, I've seen him like this, I don't know why, but I kind of feel nervous by this behaviour of his.Before I could respond, his mother stepped in, with a light tone, "Stop it, Xan, you're scaring her, can't you see that?" "Me? Scaring her?" Xander frowned, glancing between us."Yes, you only," She sighed, gently slapping on his shoulder, "you shouldn't speak in such a harsh tone even if you're worried about her, first apologise to her." I tried to intervene, "it's okay, mother," but she stopped me, "it's not okay sweetheart, you shouldn't allow anyone to bully you, even if it is your husband." "I'm sorry," Xander apologised, lowering his head, I mumbled, "it's okay." She looked at me with a softened expression, "forget about him, let’s get you t
••ARABELLA POV•• "That's it?" I asked with a sarcasm raising my eyebrows.I faced Ruby without any fear right now, I scanned her from top to bottom, full of pride, and confident, she must be thinking, she can summon me and demand something so outrageous as if I'm the same Arabella who used to be begging for their forgiveness and mercy. Ruby smirked, tossing her hair over her shoulder, while taking a few steps towards me, "Yes, Bella, that’s it, you give us what we need, and we’ll pretend nothing happened, simple, isn’t it?" This woman, can't she even understand the differences in between the sarcasm and normal words, I never expected her to be a fool like this.I chuckled at her delusion, and the sound of my chuckling spread everywhere quickly because of deserted silence surrounding us, "You think you can blackmail me again? After everything you and your brother have done to me? After your brother stole the hardwork of mine and rose to CEO position, do you still expect me to be a
••NO POV••Arabella felt tears welling up in her eyes at his words, and for the first time, she allowed herself to believe that maybe this man is truly in love with her, and wants her to be in real relationship with him, she was out of words and been silent for a minute.Her silence pierced Xander's heart, as he expected an approval from her."It’s okay," Xander said gently, with a faint smile, "I don’t want to force you." Arabella could see the bitterness in Xander's face, and Xander is also upset as her silence almost felt like a refusal to him."It’s not about force," Arabella held his hand, "I knew you and your feelings are sincere, it’s just... I can’t answer you right now, can you give me some time?" Xander felt happy hearing to her words, though she didn't accept his proposal, at least she didn't reject him, so with a smile he said, "As long as you don’t reject me, anything is fine." Arabella doesn't understand why he is so gentle and understanding towards her, though she
••ARABELLA POV•• "Are you crazy?" I sighed with a reddened face, as his shameless words are still echoing in my ears and I couldn't let it go.He just laughed, totally unbothered, as if he hadn't just teased me to the point of embarrassment. Sometimes I wondered if he remembered this was just a contract marriage or if he was trying to make it a real one.Well, I don't blame him either because from the past few days with him, I truly got to know the meaning of love and family warmth, thanks to him and his family, my kids are enjoying the love and affection of a family, still I'm not ready to increase my hopes because of my past.The car ride to the hotel was filled with extreme silence apart from the sound of soft music playing in the background. Xander spared glances at me occasionally, and I caught myself doing the same as him, wondering what was going through his mind. When we arrived at the hotel, a table had already been reserved for us. I can say that the dining hall is very
••ARABELLA POV••"Who loves whom?" I was stunned to see Xander standing behind us, he crossed his arms staring at us, with a raised eyebrow, "what's happening here?" I gulped hard and took the initiative to answer, "nothing, just randomly talking with Xen." "From where exactly did this guy come?" He pointed at Xenon, while Xenon rolled his eyes, "I came to meet my darling Bella, it's not your concern uncle." Xander clenched his fist, "this brat!" But Xenon hid behind me, I don't understand why this guy always messes with others, then comes to me for protection.However before Xander could say another word, Xenon prepared to run away, "Let’s talk later, Bella, take care," he said in a soft tone, and left from there leaving me and Xander alone.As he disappeared from that place, I turned to find Xander standing some distance away from me, still with his crossed arms, and an expression of faint concern on his face. "What exactly were you two doing here?” He asked once again with a c
"Yes, he is my so-called ex, with whom I broke up," Xenon said with a sad tone, as if he is almost ready to burst into tears, Arabella pulled him to nearby place and both of them sat together.She offered him water to drink, "relax no tension, and have some water." "I know very well about you, all this is out curiousity to know more, right?" Xenon asked while taking a sip of water.Arabella chuckled and looked embarrassed but curiosity is quite evident on her face to know more about Aaron and Xenon, "So, are you going to tell me everything now? I mean, what made you to punch him? And what you meant by he is the guy you broke up with? When did you both even date to break up now?" Xenon leaned back, running a hand into his hair, as he literally hated talking about that past of his, "It's a long story, Bella, I don't even know where to start." She gently placed her hand on his, with a smile. "Start from the beginning, we are not going anywhere until you tell me everything, moreover I