NancyJake held my face with both his hands and made me look at him. “Let’s run away, Nancy. This is the only way I can find now to keep your ex-husband away from you. Let’s run away and live our love while there’s still time,” he said with determination in his words and his eyes. I was still stunned as I stared at Jake's face inches from mine; he had just suggested that we escape Bruce's eyes, a desperate act to live our platonic love. My heart was beating fast at that tempting proposal. What could go wrong if I agreed to go through this madness with him? What harm would it do to me if I dared to run away with him in a desperate attempt to be happy? And I was tempted to accept it; in fact, I was very tempted. Moments later, Jake was helping me hurriedly put my clothes in a small suitcase. It wasn't long before Bruce was back there with the security guards and carried out the threat he had made to me. I had dressed in some dress, and Jake had already put on his clothes. “My car is
NancyI went to take a shower as soon as we entered the hotel room, and after I got out of the shower, I went to Jake, who was waiting for me with the meal already on the table nearby. I went to sit on his lap and hugged him tightly, not wanting to let go. Not only that, but I was so scared, so I wanted to take advantage of every chance I had with him. That's why we were taking a road trip, so we could connect more and more. "Are you okay, babe?" Jake asked me, his hands stroking my back.“You're always asking me that,” I commented with a giggle. “I do this because I want to make sure you're okay, that everything's okay in here,” he said, bringing his hand to my chest. I smiled and took his hand with both of my hands, kissing the back of it affectionately. “If you’re around, I feel like I can do anything; but... I keep thinking about my kids,” I stammered, looking down. I couldn't help but think about it. He took his fingers, brushed my short hair behind my ear, and caressed my fa
LanieI had stopped at a bottle store to buy some good wine with Nancy in mind. She was very depressed these days because she had to be separated from Jake, who was a guy who was doing so much good for her. In the last few weeks, I have had the pleasure of witnessing my friend go from being a sad and depressed woman who had been completely destroyed and sucked in by a failed marriage to seeing her transform into a happy, self-possessed, and empowered woman because of the company of that man. It was as if she had been a caterpillar this whole time, and only now had she come out of her cocoon and shown herself to the world; even her recent haircut made her look stronger than ever. But these evils always ended up coming back to torment her, which is why she had decided to stay away from Jake. I, in particular, hadn't liked hearing that, but as always, I respected her decision. I didn't have a family or anything like that, so I always considered Nancy my soul sister, and I worried about
LanieI knew Bruce was a heartless animal, but after hearing these problematic lines from him, I began to realize that his case needed a straightjacket and prison. “You billionaires who think you own the world and are superior to human laws are a shame for our society. You fucking know very well that you can't buy a human being like you could buy damned cattle! Shame on you, you piece of shit!”“Oh, so the empowered woman who is far superior to today’s sexist system is nervous, uh?” he mocked me. He was trying to throw in my face the fact that I never wanted to get married and start a family because most of the time a woman's place was always in the kitchen, taking care of the house, the children, and the husband, and that There were few opportunities for us in this world dominated by men. I had never dreamed of that, quite the opposite, I always wanted to wear a suit and deal with dangerous matters that only hard-core men were involved in, like working in a casino, for example; I w
CandaceWe didn't stay long at the Morton mansion after we said our goodbyes; we packed up quickly and then moved into the house that my father-in-law had bought us as a gift in an attempt to convince Harald and me to stay in Denver. I gasped loudly, and my eyes lit up when the car stopped in front of the house where my husband and I were going to live. "Oh my God! What an amazing place!" I exclaimed, suppressed, getting out of the car and looking at the mansion, which had very clean architecture. Harald didn't say anything, but you could see from his face that he too was surprised by the way the place looked; the servants were already carrying our suitcases, which were in another car, into the house. “Did you like it, Harald? It is splendid, isn't it? I want to take a look inside! Come with me?" I said, inviting him with a little giggle and running towards the house. The entrance door was high, almost to the ceiling, and inside it was spacious, fresh, and white. The house was alr
NancyJake and I decided to take a longer car trip to New York, opting for the scenic route to avoid Bruce’s watchful eye and to seize the opportunity to spend more time together, enjoying the beautiful cities and the climate of traveling by car, thus getting in touch with nature in the south of the country. We left California a few days after arriving, heading for Texas via Arizona. Jake and I were eager to create pleasant memories; he even had an old Polaroid camera that developed the photo immediately after it was taken. Occasionally, we stopped in the middle of nowhere to walk hand in hand, stretching our legs and enjoying nature, since we were traveling by car. With Jake, I felt no rush to reach our destination because, with him, I felt like I had already arrived.“What a beautiful woman I have! Definitely a sight for sore eyes,” he commented passionately as I tried to concentrate on navigating the road stop.I laughed at his silliness and nearly veered off the road, distracted b
Amber Morton“Kris, your fake boyfriend got his girl pregnant, and you had the nerve to try to bribe the girl to get pregnant in exchange for money. All this so you can keep your name unsullied before the public? Wow, Amber! You really are a bitter girl, aren’t you?” A female voice said, and I knew that voice very well; it was the voice of Jade McLaughlin, my arch-enemy.I was still standing in front of the building where Kris lived. My heart almost stopped beating as I stared at my cell phone screen with a disbelieving expression. Had Jade found out about that? But I had barely left Kris' apartment. How come she already had this information? It was true that I had gone to meet Kris and his girlfriend to discuss her pregnancy. Kris and I had been maintaining a fake relationship for years, just to keep our status at the level it was at. It wasn't easy to stay famous, and always, in the trends of the moment, it was necessary to tell a lie here and there. Everyone did that in the celebr
Amber MortonWhen I woke up the next morning, chaos had really taken hold in the world of media. So much had happened that it was difficult to take it all in at once, but my advisor made sure to keep me up to date. They told me that after the photo I posted and after the gossip sites bombarded the internet with scandals about Kris, photos, videos, screenshots of his DM being an arrogant, abusive guy who had never really valued me, the basics of scandals that served to destroy someone's career, and the revelation that he had gotten another woman pregnant while still dating me, was the icing on the cake. In only one night, Kris' two million followers grotesquely plummeted to three hundred thousand, and several advertising companies and stretchers stopped following him too; that guy was completely canceled and wasn't going to bounce back so easily. Even the exposed that came out of me about Jade's recording, which seemed like I was bribing Kris's girlfriend so that she could terminate h
Nancy“Argh, don’t tighten it too much… You’re hurting my neck!” Peter was grumbling with a grimace as I straightened his tie.“Remain calm; just lift your chin; I’m almost done,” I told him, adjusting my collar. Today was my wedding day with Jake. I was already dressed as a bride and everything, and the ceremony would start in a few minutes. I was so nervous. Not only that, but I really hoped everything would go well.He grumbled in disgust. “Did you know that children shouldn’t be present at their parents’ weddings, Mom?” he said, making me frown.“What? Why do you think that?” I asked.“Because naturally, children are not born before their parents marry. It's not the natural order of things, let alone divorce and second marriages,” he said, being clear in his opinion, as he didn't want to accept my relationship with Jake.I sighed, smoothing his jacket after straightening his tie. “You're getting so big. You're even taller than me.” I smiled softly, and I stroked his black hair. “I
NancyMoments later, Jason and Jake were in the wine cellar, somewhere in the mansion, talking about wine and things like that. Laura and I were walking in the manicured gardens of their mansion, which were so beautiful and comforting.“Why aren’t they coming?” I asked after a while, looking behind me to see if her husband and my fiancé were coming to catch up with us, since they were just getting us some wine to drink and talk on the sofas that were there in the garden under a cozy porch."Oh my God! Jason must have stuck him with a long wine conversation,” Laura said with a long chuckle. “We received bottles of the first line from a friend of ours in Chicago, Carter,” she added.“Are you talking about Joshua Carter?” I asked because I knew that name and knew that he had a wine production company.“Yes, I am,” Laura nodded. “What a fortuity that you know him, too.”“Um, I actually met him because of Bruce,” I said. “The Mortons were an influential family, and from time to time Bruce
NancyJake and I traveled to New York to visit our friends who lived there, the couple Jason and Laura Davies, who, since the last time we had seen them, had evolved a lot in their relationship, that is, when I met them, they were still fighting and trying to see what they were going to do in their relationship because they also had issues to resolve. But I remembered Laura's words, when she told me at the time that her husband had hurt her heart, but that nothing he had done compared to what Bruce had done to me. So today it was very satisfying for me to be able to see the two of them together and happy after having solved all their problems. They had even had another set of twins, and they seemed so happy now that their eldest daughter was playing with the babies, running around exuding happiness and joy while Jake, I, and the couple were sitting on the mansion's porch, drinking wine and talking about everything that had happened. This couple had been very important in helping us
Nancy "What? Give it back in kind and make him taste his own medicine? What are you suggesting, Lanie?” I asked, being a little dumbfounded. She and I were still at the dinner table, and she had just suggested that. She shrugged now. "Yes. Didn't your husband go to bed with someone else? Then you also go to bed with another man, and then you become equals,” she explained, making me gasp. “How can you suggest such a thing? Do you think I'm such a vulgar woman up to this point? Do you think me going to bed with another man will solve things for me?” I asked, shocked that she was suggesting such a deviant thing. “It probably won't solve anything, but it will make you feel a little better. What is it? Do you think Bruce deserves happiness after all these years he played with you?” She retorted. “But that doesn’t mean I’m going to smudge my body by getting involved with someone I don’t know just to get revenge on him,” I countered. Lanie laughed, waving her hand. “I don't see it
Days were passing, and I thanked the heavens that everything was going so well, but today in particular, it was a year since Lanie, my dear friend, had died, and I was terribly sad remembering her.I remembered how she had done everything she could to cheer me up when I was at rock bottom after finding out who Bruce Morton really was.I remembered in detail what the season at her house had been like and how much she helped me, God in heaven...Nancy On that day, the ringing of my cell phone woke me up, and I felt my lamp, picked up the device, and saw that my daughter was calling me. “Hi, my love,” I said as soon as I answered, rubbing my face with my hand, still drowsy. “Hello, Mom? Haven’t you come home yet?” Amber asked on the other end of the line. "Um… Not yet, darling,” I replied a little fearfully. It had been two weeks since I was at my friend Lanie's house. "Um... Okay? When do you plan to return?” She asked in a somewhat petulant manner. I sighed. “To be honest, I
NancyThe last few weeks had been a whirlwind of emotions. After everything that happened with Candace, I felt like a huge weight had been lifted off our shoulders. The scars of pain and struggle were still there, but the feeling of relief was in the air. It was a new beginning for all of us. Like a good mother, I tried my best to care for Candace, and now, seeing her at home, taking a deep breath and starting to rebuild her life, my heart is filled with hope.It was on a mild morning that we realized that life was returning to normal. Amber's laughter echoed through the house as she tried to decide what to wear for a date. I watched her from the kitchen, where she was preparing a simple but nutritious breakfast. The smell of toasting bread mixed with the aroma of fresh coffee, creating a welcoming atmosphere.“Amber, do you need help?” I asked, trying to hide my smile at seeing her so excited and nervous at the same time.“No, mom, I can do it!” she replied, a little louder than usua
CandaceThe joy I felt holding my daughter in my arms was indescribable. After hours of pain and struggle, the little one was finally here, and I couldn't stop smiling. It was a girl. The doctor had shown me quickly, and I couldn't believe that this little creature, so perfect, was my daughter. I felt a wave of love that I had never experienced before, and that feeling enveloped me like a warm blanket on a cold day. I looked at her face, so small and vulnerable, and wondered what the future held for us.Jake and Harald were in the room, both overjoyed with the news. The energy was contagious, and the happiness in the atmosphere was palpable, like happy music that filled every space. The smell of disinfectant mixed with the light scent of flowers someone had brought, creating an atmosphere of celebration and hope."Look, Candace, you did an amazing job!" Jake said it with a wide smile that lit up his face. He seemed genuinely touched, and I could feel that he was genuinely happy for me
NancyThe morning seemed perfect, the kind of day I always imagined as a normal family, without constant tension or fears. Recent times had been full of challenges, losses and changes, but being there, in Jake's house, surrounded by the people he loved most, brought a feeling of completeness. Everything felt a little lighter. Of course, there were still traces of the past that occasionally appeared in our conversations and gestures, but something had changed within me, and perhaps even within my children.That day, we decided to have a family lunch. Me, Amber, Peter, Jake, Harald, Ivor and Candace, all gathered at a table for the first time, without formalities and without protocols. I wasn't sure what to expect from this meeting, especially with Harald there, a presence that, some time ago, would perhaps have been unthinkable in such an intimate environment. But, little by little, everyone had found a way to live together, with the wounds still healing, but now ready for a new phase.
NancyThe next morning, very early, before the sun even fully illuminated the house, I was already awake, organizing my thoughts. I knew I needed to talk to Amber and Peter, just the three of us, without Jake around. This moment was very important, and I wanted them to feel comfortable saying what they really thought, without fear. I knew this conversation was necessary, as there was a lot at stake. Jake was part of this new life I wanted to build, but most of all, my children needed to feel part of it.I took a deep breath before entering their room. Amber was already stretching, her eyes still sleepy, but she noticed my presence and smiled. Peter, still sleeping soundly, had a serene face, something rare to see. I approached him gently, touching his shoulder lightly. “Peter, honey, are we going to wake up? I need to talk to you and Amber. Just the three of us, without Jake.”He opened his eyes slowly, still confused from sleep, but nodded. Amber looked at me with a mix of curiosity