"Joyce, has Prince woken up?" I asked when the middle-aged woman opened the door for us."No, miss. He’s sleeping very soundly.""Thank you, Joyce." The woman smiled and nodded, then walked away, leaving the two of us in the living room.I was about to walk to the bedroom, but Troy’s strong hand grabbed my arm."Don’t go, keep me company here!"I stopped walking and sat beside Troy.Tonight was very cold and quiet. Faintly, I could hear music and karaoke from one of the nearby bungalows. I hugged myself because of the cold.Troy sighed deeply several times. He looked at me intently."What’s wrong?" I asked."I’m sorry about earlier. I was wrong to ignore you." Troy spoke seriously, his gaze never leaving my face.I exhaled slowly."Yeah, next time don’t invite me if you want to gather with your family," I said softly.Troy shook his head."No. I don’t mind bringing you. I’m just sorry about Grace’s behavior. She’s always like that.""I’m fine. I have no right to be angry.
"Joyce, where's Troy? Is he awake?" "Mr. Peterson is still sleeping, Mrs. Batterman!"I heard Joyce talking to someone. She mentioned Mrs. Batterman. Could Lucy be here?I had just finished bathing Prince and came out, pushing his stroller."Good morning, Aunt Lucy!""Morning... Oh, whose baby is this?" She seemed surprised to see me and Prince."This is my son. Please, have a seat. Do you want to meet Troy? I think he’s still asleep in his room," I replied."Where is Troy sleeping?" She immediately walked past me. Well, this bungalow did belong to their family."In that room." I pointed to a room that was further back and smaller than the one I was staying in."Why isn't Troy sleeping in the master bedroom? Why is he in the guest room instead? And you’re comfortably sleeping in the master bedroom. What’s Troy thinking?" Aunt Lucy suddenly stopped in front of the room I was staying in.I felt uneasy hearing her irritated tone."S-sorry. I was just following what Troy said."
"Don't you feel sorry for Grace? She really hoped you would join her at the tennis court." Lucy's shrill voice could still be heard trying to persuade Troy."Sorry, I can't. I already promised to take Sarah and her kids out this afternoon."I didn't expect Troy to answer like that. I was sure his aunt would soon get even more upset and angry."You prefer to go out with that single mother of two instead of being with Grace? Are you stupid or what, Troy? I can't believe you're letting yourself be ordered around to babysit!""Sorry, what did you just say? That I'm stupid?" Troy's voice sounded cold and firm."T-that's not what I meant, but... how about you come over to our bungalow for a bit? We can talk there!" her tone began to soften. She was no longer as insistent as before."Sorry, I already said I can't. Your hearing is still good, right? Or is it your memory that's having issues?"I giggled hearing Troy's recent remark. I guarantee that after this, his aunt's voice would no
"Isn't that Troy Peterson, the actor?""He hasn't been in the spotlight for a while, and suddenly, he has a kid."I heard the restaurant patrons talking while walking around the tea plantation."There was a rumor he was close to a widow. Maybe it's that beautiful widow.""No wonder Troy is interested. The widow is as beautiful as a young girl.""No matter how beautiful she is, she’s still a widow. It's such a shame for someone so handsome to end up with one!""Yeah, Troy should be with another celebrity or a famous model. Instead, he’s with a widow who already has two kids."Why were they speaking so openly about this near us? My ears felt like they were burning. I held Gillian's hand and quickened our pace along the path in the tea plantation toward the pavilion."What's wrong?" Troy, still carrying Prince, suddenly caught up with me and grabbed my hand."Let go," I snapped, shaking off his strong hand, which surprised him.Troy sighed loudly behind me. He didn't call out to
"Excuse me!" I tried to break through the crowd of women and teenagers busy photographing Troy's face.It was quite difficult to get past these women. But finally, I arrived in front of Troy.The man was startled to see me, already in tears."Sarah!""Troy, Gillian is still missing!" I shouted unconsciously."Mommy! Why are you crying?" I immediately turned to the voice I had been longing to hear.It turned out Gillian was right next to Troy. He was holding on to her with his left hand tightly. While his right hand was stroking Prince, who was starting to get sleepy. Of course, I couldn't see Gillian earlier because she was covered by the women who were fighting to take photos with Troy."Gillian, come here, sweetie!" I grabbed my daughter and took her away from the crowd without caring about all the eyes watching. I ignored Troy's repeated calls for my name. For some reason, I felt so irritated. Why didn't Troy inform me that he had found Gillian? Why was he busy answering ques
"I want you!""Huh? W-what do you mean?"Troy stared at me deeply. His face was getting closer."Sir, excuse me. Miss Batterman and her mom are here." I heard Joyce's voice from outside the room.The door to this room was slightly ajar. Troy's housekeeper must have seen him holding me.Suddenly, Troy slowly released his embrace. He clicked his tongue in annoyance several times."What do they want now? They are always interrupting!" he grumbled as he walked away, leaving me still trying to calm my nerves.I sat on the bed, my heart pounding fast. My breath was heavy. Troy's gaze was so different earlier. He had never looked at me like that. I had one hand pressed against my still-racing heart.After calming down a bit, I got up to leave the room. The tension I had just felt made my throat dry and I felt thirsty.I faintly heard a heated argument between Troy and Lucy. I walked to the kitchen to get a drink. After drinking a glass of water, I started to head back to the room. It
"What time is your meeting?" Troy asked while driving. This morning the roads weren't too busy yet. We left for the city right after dawn."After lunch. The meeting is at my office," I replied while bottle-feeding Prince."I'll go with you then!""No need, Troy! You've been away from your company for too long. From now on, I'll handle Albert's company. If I need you, I'll definitely call you."I didn't tell Troy that the people I was meeting later were named Roy and Levin. I also didn't want to involve Troy here. Gradually, I needed to get used to managing without his help. He wouldn't always be there for me and the kids. Lucy would surely find a suitable woman for a handsome and successful man like him."Sarah, why are you daydreaming? Prince has finished his milk."Oh no! How could I be so careless? Ever since Lucy came to the bungalow yesterday, I had been spacing out a lot and having trouble sleeping."Are you sure you don't want me to come?" Troy asked again."No need, Tro
"Sarah?" Levin was very surprised to see me. The tall and well-built man with tan skin looked at me in disbelief."Levin? It really is you, Mr. Levin Batterman, CEO of Net Multicorp." I stared at him intensely. Levin looked quite different in his cream suit and dark brown tie compared to when I last saw him.Levin repeatedly looked me up and down, probably noticing my different appearance this time. Today, I was wearing formal attire: a long skirt and blazer. Unlike yesterday at the bungalow, where I wore a blouse and jeans."I had a hunch yesterday when Calvin mentioned the representatives from Net Multicorp were Mr. Levin and Mr. Roy Batterman," I said, smiling.We chuckled at the unexpected reunion."Please, have a seat, Mr. Batterman.""Thank you," replied the thick-bearded man."This company is actually a family business. My brother Roy and I are the ones managing it," he explained.I nodded in understanding."Sarah, you look stunning!" Levin spoke softly, leaning closer