Early the next morning, Camilla sat up in bed reading through her social media posts when a call came through on Steven's phone.
Looking at the number, Camilla didn't say anything at all to Steven. She woke him up and handed him the phone. "It's the same people that have been calling all night," she informed him icily. "Huh!" he responded in a daze, still trying to wake up. Camilla explained to him about the phone calls from the night before, and these women not giving up on calling him, wanting him to fetch them at all unearthly hours of the night. Steven had no recollection of what had happened or how he had even gotten home. After explaining the phone call, Camilla confronted him for not fetching her from work the previous afternoon. "Why didn't you fetch me from work yesterday, and where were you? You got home so drunk," she questioned him. Camilla got straight to the point. Steven started to explain, "I finished work early yesterday and decided to go and have a few drinks at this bar," he didn't dare give excuses, he could see Camilla was in no mood for his antics, "the bar I went to was a strip club," he continued, "I don't remember much of anything." "So you don't remember telling me that you were on the way to fetch me!" she raised her voice. "Quite honestly, no, I don't," he said with a guilty look in his eyes. "And those girls that were phoning you?" she questioned, not happy with his explanations. "I really don't know them," he said quietly, "honestly, I don't know them at all, as for how they got my number, I don't know." He seemed genuinely truthful in what be told her about the girls. As for not fetching her the day before, he still wasn't off the hook. That afternoon, they took a drive through to Warrington to Golden Square shopping centre. While walking around, Steven's phone rang. He looked at the number, and by the look on his face, Camilla could tell that he knew the number. Answering his phone, he said, "Hi, how are you doing?" The voice on the other end was a friendly, female voice, "I'm good, what are you up to today?" she asked. "Nothing much," he responded, "just out with the family today." "That's nice, well enjoy!" she said. They both said goodbye and ended the conversation. Camilla looked at him questioningly, waiting for an explanation. Noticing the look on her face, Steven said, "she's just a friend." "Uh huh!" Camilla thought to herself. Steven didn't answer her again and just left it at that. That evening, she noticed that Steven was unusually quiet. He didn't have anything to drink the whole day, but he was on his phone a lot that evening. As Camilla leaned over to him, she noticed that he was chatting to a female. The context of the conversation was not very savoury, to say the least. She didn't confront him then and there about the text messages, but she decided to go and do some laundry. They would, after all, need fresh clothes for Monday. While checking through his pockets, Camilla came across a photograph of a fiery, red-headed woman with a peach completion. "Please don't lie to me!" she lashed out at him. Steven took the photo she had thrown at him. He had actually forgotten he had this picture of Lucille. He looked at the photo, "What lie can I spin?" he questioned himself. "It's Lucille. She asked me to give it to Matthew. She met him the other day when he was with me. She said she wanted him to have this picture," was the escape answer he gave her. Matthew was single. He worked with Steven. He was a senior manager in the firm. Matthew was tall with dark brown hair, a neatly shaved beard. He was the same height as Steven but more masculine. "I don't know about that," Camilla responded, "if she was really interested in him, why didn't she just give him the photo herself?" "Everything is just way too coincidental." She thought. "She didn't know his number," Steven answered, but Camilla could see the guilty look in his eyes. "Something about this doesn't sit right. This woman seems familiar," Camilla pondered. Camilla didn't say another word. She went back to the laundry area and continued with the washing. While taking out the first load, she realized why the woman's face was familiar to her. Angry as hell, she went back to the dining room where Steven was watching TV and, with a raised voice, said to him, "This is it, why do you insist on lying to me!" Quizzically looking at Camilla, he responded, "What do you mean?" "That woman in the photo, it's the same woman you were chatting to earlier, it's the same woman who called you while we were out, and it is the same woman that you went to meet a few months ago!" her anger blazed inside her. Staring dead straight at her, Steven could not deny that he had just been caught in a tonne of lies. "How can I explain my way out of this one?" The wheels of deceit turned inside his head as he conjured up another lie to cover all the uncovered lies. There was no way out. There was no lie he could conjure up to cover all the other lies. He had to face the cold, hard fact that he had been caught in his lies. He said to his wife, "I really don't know how to say this, Lucille and I have been having an affair," he admitted. Finally, the truth was out. Camilla collapsed on the settee and cried. She had realized that this was the case for a while now, but the hard reality of her husband admitting to having this affair hit her like a tonne of bricks. Seeing how this affected his wife, he bent down in front of her and said, "Camilla, I'm sorry." "You're sorry!" she yelled at him, "you are nothing but trash, get out of my sight!" Disgusted by his behaviour and his lack of respect for their martial vows, she burst into tears. This had been the first time she had ever resorted to using derogatory name-calling. This usually wasn't how she was.Steven didn't know what to say or how to comfort his wife. She was angry and bitter, so instead of saying anything, he did what he usually does. The solution to getting out of any situation, he picked up the keys to the car. "I'll be back later," he said in a low-key tone of voice, walked out the door, and drove off.Camilla had no energy to deal with her husband at that point. She went to her son, who was just waking up from his afternoon nap, put him in the bath, and then put on a change of clothing to get him ready for bed. While he was playing on the mat in the dining room, Camilla prepared something for the two of them to eat. After playing for just over an hour, Marshall started to yawn, so Camilla took him to the room, laid him down, and read him a story. It took all of about ten minutes before her young man fell fast asleep.Quietly leaving the room, Camilla went to sit on the settee. Looking at her phone, she saw a message from Steven, "I'm sorry Camilla." The message said.
Camilla woke up a little later than she had planned. Steven was already up and making something to eat. "You awake!" he exclaimed.Looking at the time, Camilla responded, "Why didn't you wake me up?""You've been awake a long time, so I decided to let you sleep a little later. Come sit down, the food is ready.""How's Marshall?" she asked."He's okay, his fever didn't spike again through the night, and he has had his breakfast and a bottle, and he's gone back to sleep," he smiled at his wife."What! Is he sleeping again? What time did he wake up?" she was surprised."He woke up at 7a.m. We played in his room, I gave him porridge and his bottle, and he just went to sleep about ten minutes ago," he explained the routine to his wife. Camilla sat at the table and began eating the bacon and eggs her husband had prepared for her, along with a couple of slices of toast with strawberry jam. "This is a lovely spread, thank you,
Five years had passed since the birth of their daughter Meghan. Meghan, now five and Marshall, now seven were in primary school.Steven and Camilla had seemed to have moved into a better space in their relationship.Camilla had been wanting, for a while, to start her own business, but Steven was adamant that she stayed in her job. He wasn't one for change, or that is at least what he portrayed towards his wife. The plain fact was that he didn't want to see Camilla doing better than him financially. In the company where Steven worked, things had gotten a lot tougher, and the stress load was on top of him.It had been a few years since he had been in a bar. One night, after getting home, he went to shower, picked up the keys, and said to his wife, "I'll be home later."Confused by what he said, she asked, "Babe, where are you going?""I'm tired, Camilla. I just need to go out and unwind!" his tone wasn't harsh but not gentle or loving either.At 11 p.m. that evening, she was still wait
The next morning, when Camilla woke up, she noticed that Steven had a mark on his shoulder. Looking at the mark, she asked, "Steven, where does this come from?"He looked at the arm. "Gosh darn, she wasn't supposed to leave marks on his body," he thought to himself. Quick to respond, he said, "I bumped into the filing cabinet at work.""Those look more like fingernail scratches," she thought.Thinking about what Michelle had said the night before, she asked him, "Steven, you came home so drunk last night you fell asleep. What happened?"He started thinking, then said, "after I finished in the office, I went to the bar not far from there and had a few drinks, I met up with a few guys from college as well." Steven was very swift and managed to learn to lie easily. "How quickly he lies," she thought and got out of bed. She didn't believe a word of what he was saying. She picked up her phone and called Michelle. They chatted for a few seconds on the phone. As the call ended, she heard
Camilla was sitting on the veranda, enjoying her glass of wine in silence while the television was softly playing in the background. While sitting there, Camilla had started to think about all the things that had happened to her since getting married to Steven. Tears rolled down her face. "What have I ever done to deserve the treatment I keep getting from Steven?" she pondered.Deep in thought, she hadn't seen the tall, handsome, muscular gentleman approach her. She jumped when a husky, deep voice greeted her. A little dazed, Camilla didn't recognize the man at first. "Every time I see you, you are crying," he said, concerned."Um, oh," she didn't know what to say."Let me introduce myself," he said, walking over to her, "I'm Bradford.""Hi Bradford," she greeted back."I'm here visiting my grandfather," he continued, "I just decided to go for a walk to clear my head.""I understand, I know that feeling well," she commented.The two of them sat for a few seconds, then he said, "Why a
Having seen the photo of her cousin and husband, Camilla was unsure what she was going to do.The next morning, she woke up early, got the children dressed, and took a drive to her aunt and uncle's place. She hadn't informed them that her and the kids were coming but hoped that they would be home.On arriving, her aunt saw her face, pulled her in, and said to her husband, "Please go take the kids to the shops and get them something nice for breakfast. I will message you when I am done, and then you can come back."Camilla's uncle understood full well what her aunt was alluding to and said, "Come kids, let's go buy breakfast and do some shopping, then I will buy you each an ice cream and a soda." The children did not need to be tempted twice. They loved their great uncle.Once they had left, her aunt turned to her, "Camilla, what on earth happened?" Camilla related the whole incident of yesterday and also explained it had not been the first time he had raised his hands to her. "My chil
Camilla was officially on leave for three weeks.The first two or three days of her leave, she would just be relaxing at home, getting things in order. While she was busy the first day, which was the day after she had spoken to Bradford, she received a text message. "Hi there, it's Bradford, I'm just checking in to see how you are doing!" he stated.A smile lit up on her face, "I'm okay," she responded."So what are your plans today?" he asked, "I didn't see you get on the bus this morning."She laughed, "I'm on leave for a few weeks," she told him, "you, keeping tabs on me now?" she couldn't help but chuckle. This man was so easy to talk with. She felt so comfortable speaking with him. When she spoke with him or read a message from him, she would get butterflies in her stomach, and her heart would race. She couldn't understand why he had this effect on her. Every day for the next 3 days, Bradford and Camilla would spend a few hours chat
As the first week of her leave drew to its end, Camilla was more excited about her new, up-and-coming venture. She was ready to absorb and take it all in. She sat for hours during the day designing a few different structures for her meeting that Friday with Bradford and his grandfather. After all, did Bradford really think the patriarch of the family was going to give his grandson full control while he was still alive?That Friday, Camilla headed over to the Hemmingway offices. As she entered the building, she was met by her cousin Tamara as Tamara was exiting the building. Greeting her cousin, she asked in a low, subtle voice, "What are you doing here?" After all, Camilla didn't want to let on to Tamara that she was well aware of her skanky antics with her husband.Tamara responded, "I had an interview with the managing director for the position of personnel assistant. What brings you down here?""I'm dropping off some documents, I have a meeting with the
Just two days were left before the wedding day. Michelle and Camilla had been very busy with the finer details. Camilla had taken James' mom and Aunt Joyce to the boutique to get their dresses for the wedding, and Michelle was at the beauty salon doing pre-bridal test runs of makeup before the day. That afternoon, Bradford and James treated all the women, Michelle's mom, James' mom, Aunt Joyce, Michelle, and Camilla, to a spa afternoon with massages. Enjoying the two hours, the ladies discussed a lot of the ideas for the reception. "Where's Tamara?" Michelle asked. "She's coming down with Frederick tomorrow morning," Aunt Ruby said, "Apparently she has something planned for you and Camilla." Camilla's eyebrows rose, "I hope she's going to behave." They all laughed. In the past, this may have been something of a warning, but Tamara had changed, and she was more placid than before. The morning before the wedding. Tamara and Frederick arrived at her parents' place around 7 that mo
Tamara and Frederick started attending the University of Bolton. Both were studying as per the specifications from Bradford. It was nearing the wedding of Tamara's brother, James, and his fiancé, Michelle. James had given his sister permission to bring a plus one to the wedding. One Friday afternoon, after lectures had ended, Frederick had invited Tamara out for dinner and drinks. "This could be the perfect time to invite him to my brother's wedding with me!" she thought. "I'll swing by your place. Be ready by 6 p.m.," Frederick informed her. Smiling, she said, "Anything specific?" she asked. "Nothing major," he responded. By 6 that evening, Tamara was ready and nervous. They'd been out with friends in a crowd, but this was their first official date. "Wow, you look beautiful," Frederick said as she opened the front door. Tamara was wearing a long, black pencil skirt with a white, long-sleeved blouse and a black jacket. "Thank you," she smiled coyly. She was blushing at the att
For the next three days, Bradford was forced to stay in hospital despite the fact that he wanted to get back home. Camilla remained at the hospital with him while they had frequent guests in and out. While lying on the bed, Bradford asked, "Can you please continue the audiobook. I want to hear what Desmond has in store for Theresa next."Camilla laughed, "Bradford, you really are something else I tell you. So do you want to listen for the sake of listening, or is it to conjure up something in that devious mind of yours for when you get home?"A devilish smile grew across his lips at the thought of what he would plan for his wife. Camilla saw that smile, and she knew what he was up to. Shaking her head, she responded, "I have no words for you, my husband." Camilla continued to play the book as they sat snuggled together on the hospital bed. Some of the scenes were excellent, and Bradford said, "Just imagine that this was us and Desmond was me," he smiled. His manhood getting a high-r
There was a long wait till Bradford was wheeled out into the ICU. "Doctor, how is my husband?" Camilla asked, tears rolling down her cheeks. "We will have to see. We managed to remove the bullet," the doctor said. Judith's father arrived at the hospital. "Tell me, is Bradford okay?" He asked, sincerely concerned about the young man. "He's still unconscious, Mr Brown," James said. "Please keep me updated on his progress," the elder gentleman said and left the hospital. Camilla went into the room, "Babe, please wake up, I need you," she said, crying as she sat beside his bed. The family popped in briefly, one at a time, to see him. "Thank you all for coming," Camilla said, "you can all go home. I will keep everyone updated on the family chat group." Nodding, they said goodbye and left.Later that evening, James and Michelle took the children in to see him. "Dad Brad, you need to be okay. We all need you, but mom and Morgan need you more," Meghan said, holding his hand. Marshall w
After finally settling on moving to Alderley Edge, Camilla and Bradford discussed attending the funeral for Jessica. Camilla had suggested that Bradford go alone, but Bradford wasn't having anything of it. "No, my love, where I go, you go. You are my wife. I'm proud of you being next to me," he uttered, putting an arm around her waist.In the past, when Camilla was married to Steven, he would definitely not have encouraged this. He would have left her behind and gone alone, but this was Bradford Hemmingway, the CEO and heir to the Hemmingway fortune. Plus, he was a different type of person altogether. He loved his wife.Meanwhile, the wedding for Michelle and James was coming quickly, and there were many preparations to be made.That Monday Camilla decided to go to the office late. Michelle had asked her to accompany her to the bridal shop for a dress. "Okay, honey, I will see you later in the office," Bradford said as he left, kissing his wife goodbye. When Michelle arrived, they wen
The next morning, James awoke with the news playing on the television. Michelle had gotten up slightly earlier to prepare breakfast for them. The news report said, "Breaking News MHP Styal Prisoner found dead in her cell. Investigations are underway, but it looks like suicide." Michelle looked up and saw a picture of the woman who had passed away. James came down the stairs at this notable point, and Michelle gasped in shock. "James, isn't that, doesn't that look like, Jessica. Bradford's ex?" she stammered in disbelief. Looking at the picture on the television, he said, "it may be." James picked up the phone and called Bradford. "Hey man, listen, have you seen the news yet?" Still half asleep after the long night, Bradford said, "Brother, it's still away too early, man. What's up?" James responded, "Bradford, go turn on the tele man. There's a picture of a lady on the news from Styal. She looks like Jessica." Realizing what James was on about, he said, "James, it is Jessica. W
December had approached pretty quickly. Tamara had sold her place, bought a new place, and moved to Bolton. The nights were getting darker earlier, as was the norm in England. James and Michelle were preparing for James' wedding. While Bradford and James were looking into selling their place and buying a bigger place for themselves and all before the new year would arrive. Meanwhile, at Style Prison, Jessica was having a terrible time adjusting to life in prison, under the strict watch of the prison guards. Many heated arguments had broken out between Jessica and a few of the inmates. Jessica was not one to back down and often came up against some of the most cruel women on her block. Randy, another female prisoner, with black, braided hair and tattoos on her body, had been locked up for the murder of her mother, her sister and her sister's little baby, all because the sister's husband refused to leave the sister for her. Randy was facing life in prison without the possibility
The next day, Camilla and Bradford were in the office having coffee. Bradford said, "Babe, the family are coming around 10 they want to discuss something with us." Camilla looked at her husband and asked, "Did they say what for? And who is coming?" Bradford smiled, "it's Uncle Chris, James, and probably Michelle and I will gather Tamara as well. I suspect it has to do with Tamara and studying further, but I'm not sure what else," he said.Thinking about it, Camilla responded, "I think I do. The house Tamara owns is in Poynton." With that Judith knocked on the door, Mrs Hemmingway, Mr Buyson is on the phone," she announced. Camilla stood up and went to take the call. While Camilla was speaking to the client, Chris and Tamara walked into the offices. "Dad, I'm going to Camilla quick," she said. Chris nodded and greeted Judith. "Morning, Sir," Judith greeted him. "Morning, can you let Mister..." Just then, the office door opened, and Bradford stepped out. "Uncle Chris, it's good
While love antics are found at Hemmingway International and at Jones & Co., things between Tamara and Frederick are warming up. Bradford and Frank had spoken to Tamara's parents and Frederick's parents, respectively, regarding the idea that they had for the two of them. However, they both felt that for them to prosper within Hemingway International, they would need to both take courses at the University of Bolton. Fortunately, Frederick lived in Bolton, so it was not a problem for him. Frederick was twenty nine and single. He'd had a few women in his life, but none were serious. Not until Tamara came along. Something about her captivated him. He was drawn to her wild nature and zest for life. Frederick was average height for a male. He had sandy blonde hair with green eyes. Tamara was shorter than Frederick, not that this stopped her. On the other hand, Tamara lived in Knutsford, so for her, it would be at least a forty-minute drive each day to and from Bolton. Tamara had decided t