~SIERRA~
After a few awkward minutes of silence, we finished, and Nana took the kids to their room. She looked so excited as if she had planned everything with the kids, as she even winked, and I rolled my eyes. When they disappeared, I stood up to clear the table, but Damian stopped me.“I will do it,” he said, his hand now on my wrist. I looked down at where he was holding me, and he quickly realized as he removed his hand and apologized. I nodded and bid him goodnight. He seemed surprised as if he was expecting me to help him or something, but he cleared his voice and said goodnight to me too, so I walked away, but as I reached the door, he said, “I could use the company, though.” I turned and told him I was tired when, in reality, I knew I couldn't be around him.Then I rushed up and almost bumped into someone; it was Nana. “It’s okay to give yourself a second chance,” she said, and I shook my head and walked past her, running straight to my room.~SIERRA~Seeing my name made me feel things I didn't want to feel, as I didn't know how, but my hand was now on his chest. My fingers outlined the letters of my name, and then I felt his strong hands caressing my arms. It was strange, as back in our marriage years, Damian never bothered to touch me this way, but I didn't stop him as it felt nice.My skin had now developed goosebumps at his touch, so I stopped moving. I slowly looked up at him and met his eyes, as his eyes were already staring at me. I didn't break eye contact, as somehow it felt like he was communicating with me through the eyes.We were still staring into each other's eyes, while his left hand had now reached my face. He used his thumb to rub my upper lip. I don't know why I didn't stop him as I stood still. Then he leaned into my lips, and when he was inches from my lips, he stopped and asked if he could kiss me.It took me by surprise, as the Damian I knew would never ask. I mean, back then, he never kissed me, bu
~DAMIAN~I shot my eyes open and got off the bed at the first ring of the alarm. I wasn't asleep; I'd been up for an hour, just with my eyes closed, as I still couldn't help but feel a little hurt that Sierra left the bed before me. Now I understand how she felt on those days when I used to leave her in bed.It's not a good feeling, and if I were to go back in time, I would change it. I would have been better, treating her to breakfast in bed, helping her with her bath, or even reading a novel or something. If I could go back, I would do better, but no matter how much I regretted it, there was no going back, and I just had to accept it and do better if she gave me a chance, which even when she left me this early, I didn't doubt as I knew I was a step from winning her heart again.Inside the shower, I ran the tap and ran my hands through my hair. As I thought of a way to win her back, surely finding Carl was not enough; I had to do more than that. Then I remembered the scar on her abd
~DAMIAN~I walked inside and went straight to the living room, then sat on the sofa and tried to process what Thomas just told me. Sierra was his sister, but how would that be possible? Sierra was Mr. Reid's daughter, and it won't make sense that Mr. Reid was also Thomas's father because his father died when he was still a little boy—nine years old, and Mr. Reid was alive at that time.“Damian?” Only hearing Thomas's voice from the other end brought me back to my senses as I realized the phone was still pressing on my ear.“Thomas, how is it possible? Mr. Reid died like five years ago, and your father has been dead for ages now, so how could he be Sierra’s father?” I asked for an explanation. I was breathing at a normal rate now as I had calmed down; sitting down really helped."Well, it turned out Mr. Reid is not your wife's real father.” He kept using wife because, when I was around him, I insisted on referring to Sierra as my wife. After all, to me, she was still my wife.“Does tha
~SIERRA~Waking was a struggle today, but I still managed to pull myself together. Last night's memories kept haunting me, but if there was something I learned to do, it was masking pain and faking feelings, so I told myself I was Sierra and that no man could ever hurt me. Surely to Damian, it was just a night of pleasure, a night to satisfy his sexual needs, and who was I to take it in another way? It was a night of pleasure to me too, even if deep down I knew it meant something more.I've lived the last five years without a man. Gilbert tried, but I always turned him down, so something in me always knew that Damian was the one, that it could be him or no one, and since Gilbert, whom I almost gave a chance, disappointed me, I was set to being alone again.I walked to the shower—the pain between my thighs reminded me of him. I ignored the pain and made a mental note to take an aspirin as it had been years since I had sex, and with Damian’s size, I understood the pain.I took a bath an
~SIERRA~I suddenly found it difficult to stand on my feet, and just as I thought I was going to fall, someone held me, and by the scent, I quickly figured it to be Damian. I didn't have the time to struggle as the pain in my chest was too much, but still, I wanted to hear the whole story, so when Damian suggested I get to a seat, I shook my head and asked Nana to explain.“I think you should process this first.”“I don't need you to tell me what to do; I want the whole story now!” I demanded as I knew I wouldn't concentrate without hearing the whole truth. Mom and Dad got married before I was born, so I knew there was more to the story."Okay, I will tell you,” Nana said, cleaning the sweat on her forehead. “They were in love…” She then narrated everything. It turned out her husband's family wanted her son to marry another woman; marrying that woman would bring their family closer, but the son didn't listen as he was in love with his mom. “I had no choice but to accept his marriage b
~SIERRA~If it weren't for them, then I wouldn't see the point of living anymore. But to think of it, Nana didn't really hide the truth from me; maybe it was me who never dug deeper, as I remember her telling me about dad, well, now Mr. Dempsey or, let's say, Mr. Reid, falling in love with mom and even refusing to marry the woman Nana chose for him. She talked of my mother betraying him, and I remember asking her why he hated her so much; it was all because she cheated on him. Not only did she cheat, but she made a baby out of it, who is unfortunately me.Maybe my mother was trying to fix everything, but Mr. Reid never believed her. That's why Mom got into that addiction to drinking alcohol—it was part of the reason she died; the alcohol damaged her inside organs as well.I was deep in my thoughts but didn't miss the knock on the door; it could be my kids, and being a mother, I've learned to be cautious.“It's Damian, can we talk?” But as soon as I heard Damian's voice, I relaxed, as
~SIERRA~We were now on the road; my eyes were out the window just thinking of how I was going to tell my children about Damian and their reaction. I had been delaying it for so long, but not anymore. I had to tell them or I would end up like Nana; she kept the truth from me, and now I felt like I couldn’t trust her; I didn’t want my children to feel that about me too.I didn’t realize we were already close to the station. Ingrid’s scream was the one that shook me out of my thoughts as I turned at the back and quickly asked if she was okay. Damian was the one driving the car while I sat in the passenger seat Mrs. Woods was in the other car that came with us as it had guards who we needed for protection.“I saw a butterfly,” she said, and I quickly calmed down turned to Damian, and asked him to continue driving as he planned to pull over.“It’s just a butterfly, Ingrid; it’s not even special,” Nathan said, and Ingrid rolled her eyes.“It’s very special; do you know how lucky we are to
~SIERRA~It’s been a week; business was going well, and when I say business, I mean my businesses—my restaurants. Everything was well managed as I appointed restaurant managers since Gilbert had disappeared and Bruce confirmed he was never coming back as Bruce was still Gilbert’s friend.Ethan had taken over the company. I mean, after settling his case, he still needed to go for a hearing or whatever, but he was free, and surprisingly, the scandal only brought in more clients, as from what he tells me, the company was making more than ever.Damian helped Bruce at times with cases; otherwise, he was a full-time father even when I didn’t tell the kids he was their father, as I still haven’t found a perfect chance, at least not while Nana was gone, as she had disappeared, leaving only a letter claiming she was clearing her mind.Damian still helped Detective Thomas with the case, and I didn’t think they had any leads now as Damian only kept asking about Nana if I knew where she was, whic
FLORIDA, ST. AUGUSTINE 2023~DAMIAN~Ingrid did a good job keeping Sierra out, as it has been over two hours and they haven't returned to the house yet.The sun was setting and everything was perfect; we didn't need to do much, just the colorful lights, as the house was clean already.“Bottle is here,” Nathan excitedly said as he brought the bottle of juice. The bottle was the same as the one for champagne, and since they were too young for alcohol and Sierra was in that condition, we decided to settle for juice.“They are coming,” Atlas, who had been at the window, alerted us, and I quickly stood to my feet and hid the little box."Okay, wish me luck,” I said, and they both nodded, then Atlas switched off the light so that the candles could stand out.“Let us know when she says yes,” they said in unison before they hid behind the sofa.I was nervous. I've never been this nervous, even when I was handling court cases. I never got nervous, but Sierra, God, her reaction scared me.As I
FLORIDA, ST. AUGUSTINE 2023~DAMIAN~Whoever said love was a drug was damn right because I was high on it. Watching someone sleep for over an hour and simply enjoying the view is crazy because for the past week that's all I've been doing—watching Sierra sleep. It somehow gave me peace.After Sierra was released from the hospital, we stayed a week so I could sort everything.Ethan took over the head at the Winters, Sierra, and Thomas caught up as he left the detective work since Sam was not happy with it. Sierra gave them one of her restaurants in Texas, and they moved there—living in Sierra's home while Jane and her family moved into Sierra's mansion, the one in Georgia. Beatrice and Lana took mine as I wanted to express my gratitude for helping Sierra raise my children.After sorting everything, I booked tickets to Florida for a vacation since the holidays were in a month. We were still choosing a place to settle and start a family, as Georgia and Texas held bad memories, so we were
~DAMIAN~The first days we used protection, but after a few, we just couldn't control ourselves as we would get in the moment and only think of protection afterward. I didn't need protection; Sierra was my wife, but she always brought it up.Well, I was just so happy that we were going to have a baby—that Sierra gave me another chance.I walked to her bedside, kneeled, and started apologizing.“I'm sorry, I...”“It's okay; I know you did it to protect me.”“Still I hurt you; I should have told you; I shouldn't have pushed you away like that.”“And I understand; I forgive you; I do.” She was now holding my hands. “Please get up.”“Sierra I…”“Now Damian,” she demanded, and so I was left with no choice but to get up.“I'm really sorry; I promise that was not my intention; I was just trying to protect you and our kids. Ava called me; she threatened me.” She nodded her head in understanding and then squeezed my hand in a comforting manner.“Do you want to feel her heartbeat?” she asked, a
~DAMIAN~ “I was not planning to kill you, but...” Ava said as she walked close to Sierra, the burning matchstick still in between her fingers. My hands were now in the air, pleading with her. “Please… Whatever I have done, please just... Just let Sierra go, punish...punish me.” "Oh, sweet Damian, my cousin is in love,” she mockingly said, “but this is not about you; it's about her, her mother!” she yelled. “Actually,” she calmed herself, “it's about the both of you; your father did my mother dirty and her mother did my mother dirty, and so you are both going to pay.” It was not the Ava I knew; this woman sounded crazy. “Ava…” “Kneel!” I didn't want to argue, as I knew trying to reason would not work, so I kneeled my eyes on Sierra and the matchstick between Ava's fingers. “Good,” she mockingly said and blew to the matchstick so the fire could go as it was below her finger. “Do you want to hear a little story?” She asked as if I had a choice. Then she started talking about h
~DAMIAN~“Speed up!” I yelled, and Thomas agreed with me as he asked the driver to drive faster. Each second we were wasting was ticking as Sierra's life was in danger.When Atlas returned, he told me about the people who kidnapped him and how they told him that I was his father. I knew it wasn't the right time, but I took him upstairs to his siblings and told them the truth—that I was their father and that Sierra and I were once together.I didn't tell them about the contract as I thought it might be complicated for them, and so I told them about making a horrible mistake that made Sierra walk away. They were understanding, as they didn't judge; instead, they were happy that I was their father.I was not in a better mood, so I forced them to eat and helped them get ready for bed before I left Mrs. Woods with them as Jane had to get home to her baby. Sam and Thomas stayed downstairs with the officers, who came to help check for clues, and waited in case the kidnappers called—they thou
~SIERRA~Ava explained planning Damian’s parents' deaths because, as she said, the company and everything the Winters owned belonged to her. She explained how she got Damian on a drug so he would have terrible headaches. “I haven't been giving it to him lately, so he seems to be overcoming it,” she added. Then she explained using Carl to have her revenge on Mr. Reid since Damian’s parents were out of her way now."Oh, and the second man who left my mother couldn't be found. Turns out my so-called father wasn't useless as he took him down, leaving his son and wife in the streets.”“Son?”"Yes, your brother.”“What?!”“Ow, don't tell me the detective hasn't told you that you're his sister; that's why he has been protective over you; it's because you're his little sister.”“What?!” again I asked, as this was too much. How was it possible that Detective Thomas was my brother? Okay, nothing was making sense.“The man your father was cheating with was Thomas’s father.” She said, but I shook
~SIERRA~I haven't seen Ava since forever; she said to be in New York working with patients. How was it that she was here? My eyes roamed the room, and I realized, unlike where Lily took me, this place seemed like a home as I was on a sofa. I was almost relaxed, but when I saw that both my legs and hands were tied, I panicked.“W-what's going on? Why am I here? And…”“This is not the time for questions, Sierra; trust me.” Ava cut me as she picked a glass of wine on the table and took a sip before she placed it down and then stared at me.I still didn't understand what was happening, but something was clear: Ava tied my legs and hands, which meant she was the one who caused that accident; she was the one who kidnapped me.“Ava I…”“I will shut your mouth for you if you don't shut it; it's me to talk, not you.” She calmly said, and I nodded my head. Then she stood up with the glass of wine in her hands and said, "See, years ago, Rosemarie was just an innocent girl who didn't know the w
~SIERRA~I cleaned my cheeks and then walked toward my car. My driver was standing out as he opened the door for me. “To the station,” I told him as he waited for my instruction."Yes, ma’am,” he said and then started the car.Again, I found my hand traveling down to my flat belly. I never planned for this, and now that Damian didn't want the child, I was not going to keep it. I haven't seen myself pregnant for over five years, especially with Damian's child again.Or maybe he knew that I fell pregnant and he was doing the same thing he did years ago, running away. I closed my eyes and tried to focus. No, I couldn't let this distract me; I won't let it get in my way of finally having peace.“Ms. Reid,” the driver's voice shook me out of my thoughts. I then realized we had arrived at the station. “Should I come in with you?” He asked as he opened the door for me. I shook my head and told him to wait for me there; he just worked for me; I didn't need him to mix with my problems.When I
~SIERRA~No, this was not happening; I won't let it happen again. So I banged once more and the door flew open, and Damian, who looked healthy like he was not just in a coma, opened and asked me to come in. I could tell by his facial expression that something was wrong.“Do you want anything?” He asked as I took a seat on the sofa. No, I was calm. I was not the same Sierra from years ago who burst when he started acting like this. I was a mature, respectful woman. I couldn't act on my emotions, so I asked him for a glass of water.He walked away to the kitchen, and my eyes couldn't help but roam the area; it was just the same as I left it, in Cassie's style.“Water,” Damian's voice made me turn to him. I took the glass from his hand and thanked him, then placed it on the table.“Okay,” I cleared my throat as he looked restless like he wanted me to leave. “The doctor called me and told me you left without his consent.”"Yeah, I'm feeling fine; why should he keep me there?” He sounded r