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Eighteen
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2021-08-11 07:55:00“...The durak is here.”
The statement rings loud and clear in my ears, my gaze lowers to Vincent’s lips moving in painfully slow motion. Every emotion I have held in comes rushing back to me, then I see red. My fist connects with his cheek before I can second-guess the move, the crunching sound of bone meeting flesh sends a sadistic thrill down my spine and I punch him again, smirking at the undeniable pop that signifies a broken nose.
He doesn’t get a chance to recover because my fist comes at him again. His neck snaps to the side, blood splatters to his jacket and I shove him to the floor. Grabbing him by the collar, I rain numerous punches on his face, his neck, every open skin my fist can access. I want to kill him. And the voice re-echoing the shit he said about Sophie only fuels my anger. Why does he have my daughter’s name in his mouth?
Blood trickles from the fresh cut on his cheeks, quickly spreading to the white tile
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Mrs Reluctant Billionaire Nineteen
I wake with a splitting headache, rubbing the back of my hand against my eyes, I place a kiss on Brianna’s forehead with a promise to visit often. The month is almost over and it is my first time here. I should check on her frequently but it’s hard seeing her lifeless body every time, being unable to do anything.The shirt at the foot of the bed catches my eyes, I look around for what I know is not there. A trashcan. I tuck the shirt under my armpit, stroll to Brianna’s wardrobe and pull out an old t-shirt of mine. It smells like whiskey and old shirt but it’s better than walking around the house in only a stained white singlet.My fingers press to my temple, I gently massage the spot until the headache subsides. I exit the room after a glance at the bed. A jolt of pain stabs my insides at the silence, I amble down the corridor with my head cast down. I don’t know, I guess a part of me expected she would have waved or something.
Last Updated : 2021-08-13Mrs Reluctant Billionaire Twenty
Her bedroom is empty. A flood of relief sweeps over me, a smile curls my lips. At least she has the good sense to keep T away from there. I jog down the stairs to my next destination—her home office. Making my way into the corridor, I pass through doors and voices from the third door have me pausing to listen.A man is inside. He says something to make her laugh, I dig my nails into my palm and scoff. I raise my hand to knock but decide against it. After one glance down the empty corridor, I push the door open.El jumps, her seat clatters to the floor and she smoothens the front of her gown. “Bran... Brandon. Hi.”Barely looking her way, I fix a pointed stare at her guest. T is more coordinated, too relaxed for a visitor. He stands and turns slowly to meet my gaze, no hint of fear in the smile he offers me. I give the mocha skinned man a onceover. I am a foot taller, bulkier too, maybe I will break his nose to teach him to sta
Last Updated : 2021-08-14Mrs Reluctant Billionaire Twenty-one
I rewatch the videos, everything from over two months ago. Nothing. The home camera doesn’t show Brianna or El or Sophia together. Regret ripples through me, I toss the laptop on the sofa. I should have put cameras in all the rooms instead of El’s alone, it made sense back then to do only hers. Propping the laptop on my lap, I rewind the video, pausing when a scene with El rushing into the bathroom comes up. The timestamp on the lower part of the screen shows the video is less than a month ago, I almost skip it until I see it’s not the same from the night she fucked herself with a dildo. Anger stirs inside me, I exhale. El stops in front of the mirror, for a few minutes, she stands there, looking lost and scared. I tense when she moves to sit on the toilet seat. Burying her face in her palms, she bursts into tears. What happened? Her trembling shoulders, matted hair and red eyes pull slightly at my heartstrings when she sits up to wipe the snot running down her
Last Updated : 2021-08-16Mrs Reluctant Billionaire Twenty-two
The girls are in bed when I leave the house in my matte Ferrari, I slow down as I near the entrance of the club, honking in response to the greetings of the bulky security men. They let me in without a second glance to park at my usual spot, my hands tighten around the steering, I exhale without stepping out.Twentieth of September. I look away from the date on my phone, wishing the lines will blur and my memory will fade but today is not my lucky day.Today makes it five years since Elna and I separated. I slip out of the car, step into the club through the secret entrance for the owner. My eyes adjust to the narrow, dim-lit corridor, a few naked bodies with masks protecting their identities sashay past me. I dismiss their greeting, dodging bodies until I arrive at the front of my playroom-cum-office. I take in a deep breath, rolling my shoulders to loosen the tension.Colognes mixed with the different smells thick in the air tickle my nostrils, I fiddle
Last Updated : 2021-08-17Mrs Reluctant Billionaire Twenty-three
Disgust flashes across Sophia’s flawless face, she steps over Amber and lowers herself on the sofa next to mine. The music fades to the background, my knuckles caress Mel’s cheek absentmindedly. With the lights on, I note the emotions flickering in Sophia’s eyes, how she sits stiff and upright against the couch.“Care to join us?” I ask, tone tinged with mockery.Mel doesn’t stop sucking me off when my grip slacks, her eyes are hooded as she takes my manhood to the back of her throat and I stroke her jaw, rearrange her messy hair so it frames her face. Such a good girl. Amber is still behind her, eyes lowered to the floor. Lust clouds my brain, I feel a certain high from having Mel’s mouth wrapped around my length, delaying my body’s response to Sophia’s appearance. I register my initial anger towards her but my brain is too muddled for me to act on it. For now, I let it be.“A finger,
Last Updated : 2021-08-19Mrs Reluctant Billionaire Twenty-four
The phone won’t stop ringing. Elna. Joshua. They won’t stop calling me.I spread out the files on my desk, picking out the thinnest from the bunch. Tracing the words written in big, bold letters on the front page, a weight lifts off my shoulders. Things are moving painfully slow with Jei but it’s progress, productions will start sooner than later. The news should have made me glad but there’s no one to share it with. Sadness sneaks up on me, my heart clenches. Even Sophia is ignoring me.A smile lifts the corners of my lips when my eyes wander to the girls huddled in a corner of their office, they grin at each other as they take turns to perform CPR on one of their toys. Wyn notices me first, she waves. Bren’s eyes gleam with mirth when they meet mine, I wave back at them, they share a look and giggle. They always do that. Pointing to the telephone on my desk as I pick the receiver, I motion for them to do the same. Bren rushes behin
Last Updated : 2021-08-20Mrs Reluctant Billionaire Twenty-five
“Long time, no see, Mister Stark,” Ava says once I’m seated across from her. Her greeting rubs me the wrong way, my head whips to her face and my fingers dig into the armrest. She realises her mistake when I don’t return her sheepish grin, her smile fades. “My bad, Brandon. Long time no see, Mister Brandon.” “Yeah.” I can go on to give a silly excuse for missing the appointments but I keep mute. Ava lets us sit in silence for a bit as if she’s giving me a chance to gather my thoughts. My eyes roam the place, taking in the details I missed the last time. The low centre table holds nothing except for a Rubik’s cube and a pencil. Since I’m not comfortable with her taking notes, she might use her recorder. My eyes flit to the walls. There are four framed pictures hanging from the wall, each poster displaying a quote that emphasizes kindness to oneself and the big importance of forgiveness—forgiving yourself and others. I snort, Ava levels me a cautiou
Last Updated : 2021-08-22Mrs Reluctant Billionaire Twenty-six
There’s nothing new on Vincent. The information staring back at me from my iPad is the same piece of garbage I already have on the bastard. I drop the iPad to the table and press two fingers to my temple, rubbing circles around the spot. Lethargy travels through me, a wave of dizziness hits me and I clamp my eyes shut, resting my forehead on the table. I should take a break, I should also get real food inside my stomach. Sitting up, I take another sip from the cup of hot coffee and release an unmanly sound. The bitter taste lingers on my tongue, I shudder and grab a handful of candy from the bowl on the table. The telephone rings, my body goes rigid as I lift the receiver. The girls are home, I will be taking them to the mansion this evening, I have stalled for too long. Are my princesses okay? They called me already to know when I’ll be home. I peek at my wristwatch, only a few minutes past two. I miss my baby girls too. Another spell of dizziness rams into me
Last Updated : 2021-08-23
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Mrs Reluctant Billionaire Valentine’s special
ElnaI shut the door to our bedroom and tiptoe inside. Brandon doesn’t stir. He’s dead asleep. Or so I think till I near the bed and drop the package—his valentine gift on the nightstand. He puckers his lips for a kiss and I gladly indulge him. His hands grasp my butt, he pulls me up to straddle him and I move slowly against his erection without breaking eye contact. “Are they asleep now?” “Yeah. Finally. Alleluia,” I reply with a laugh. “Maybe I shouldn’t have given them the day off.” Silly me thought it would be great to give the twins nannies Valentine’s Day off so our family could do something special. Bad choice. With two one-year old attention demanding kids, I need all the help I can get. To make it worse, this year’s valentine fell on a Sunday and most of last night was spent trying to quiet the babies. “Maybe.” Brandon captures my lips. The kiss is lazy but it soon grows urgent. His tongue searches for mine, twirlin
Mrs Reluctant Billionaire In the end (II)
The girls are dancing in a circle. Wyn is in the middle of the circle trying to perform a break dance. I laugh at her failed attempts, holding El closer to me as we sway gently to a rhythm in my head. El wrinkles her nose in disappointment, her fingers intertwine with mine and I spin her in a lazy circle.“You’re not supposed to be laughing at them,” she says as their mother dearest. “You cheer them up.”True. But it was funny. Wyn waves, Bren does the same. Brianna does not spare us a glance. Like me and El, she has two left legs. She can’t dance but she is better than us. I wrap my arms around El from behind, tucking my head into her shoulder. She smells delicious. I can’t wait to have her alone.The music filters into my ears, I close my eyes and the lyrics wrap around my heart.“What’s Josh doing?”My eyes fly open. Josh is at one of the two canopies with Joy. Most of the g
Mrs Reluctant Billionaire In the end (I)
It’s today. Our vow renewal. To be honest, it feels like we are getting married again. This time, we have the people we care most about to celebrate the reunion with us and it makes me anxious. Joshua claps my shoulder. “Relax.” It’s so easy for him to say that but he doesn’t get it. The love of my life is out there. I haven’t seen my wife since yesterday because her mother believes it’s bad luck to see the bride before the wedding. We stare into the floor-length mirror, our matching charcoal grey suits are differentiated by our ties. He’s my best man. “Is Joy coming?” he asks. Sophia will be in attendance but I can’t speak for her friend. I don’t say a word to him but I know this won’t work. Joy is older than Joshua. If her attitude towards him on my birthday is a sign to go by, she doesn’t like him. Some parts of me feel like this is an infatuation that will die soon. It is taking too long for him to get over her but I hope
Mrs Reluctant Billionaire One hundred and ten
The cries of our newborn babies snap me out of my sleep. I jerk up and check the time on the alarm clock. 7 pm. I groan into my hands.My life has changed since their arrival. My sleeping pattern has worsened and my knowledge about babies has increased.Babies poop a lot. They cry too damn much. They don’t need a reason to cry, just existing is enough reason for them to cry. It is exhausting.Brandon Langalethu Stark is the louder one. Brendan Lelethu Stark is quieter. Annika gave them their middle names with approval from their godfather, Joshua. Lelethu means ours while Langalethu, short for Langa means our sunshine. I must admit, he hasn’t been a ray of sunshine for a while. He’s a big ball of noisy energy. El rouses from her sleep at the incessant sound of her crying babies. I love my sons but they cry too goddamn much. Their cries are coordinated. Once one of them starts crying, the other twin is bound to join in.
Mrs Reluctant Billionaire One hundred and nine
Chaos breaks out. Everyone is all over me and El, saying so many things at once. The smile sitting on her face disappears. Tears fill her eyes, her nails dig into my shoulders so hard I’m sure it will leave a mark.She is hurting.Annika is speaking so fast, asking about the baby things. Mother is telling everyone to calm down. El is crying, she doesn’t want to go to the clinic with a wet dress. I don’t know what to do. I wasn’t present for the first pregnancy. Mother pushes me aside and helps El to her feet. I almost scream. Is she allowed to stand? What if our kids fall out?I rush to El’s side. Mother guides her through a breathing exercise as what she calls a contraction hits El. It must have really hurt. She balls my shirt and makes a pained sound that stops everyone in their tracks. More than six pairs of worried eyes pin her in a stare but she focuses on only me. My baby.“I’m okay,”
Mrs Reluctant Billionaire One hundred and eight
Choruses of happy birthday fill the air. I am dragged away from El before I can kiss her back or utter a reply. I was so worried she would forget about today I forgot it myself. Mother nudges me with her hip and grins. Well played. Even the girls were in on it.Joshua claps my arm. “Happy birthday, brother.” This idiot. He called me during the day and didn’t wish me anything. “Many happy returns.”We cheers to my new age and Bren pulls me to the living room where the real party is happening. The place has been redecorated. There are balloons tied to the wall, a table with a bigger cake on it and the words, “Happy Birthday, my love” written on it.There’s another cake. Well, there are three more cakes. Instead of my love, one has son, the other has brother and the last one has Daddy written on it. A cake from each of the most important people in my lives. My wife. My kids. My brother and my parents
Mrs Reluctant Billionaire One hundred and seven
El sneaks an arm around my waist. Her belly is bigger now. Our babies will be showing up soon. She leans on me for support while we wait for the private elevator. It was her idea to get out of my office to buy crackers. A little fun fact: We have boxes of crackers at home. If she wasn’t pregnant, her attitude would have been suspicious but with pregnancy, anything goes. Rule number 123432444: Never argue with a heavily pregnant woman. It will end in chaos. We enter the elevator with my hand on her lower back. Our reflections on the metallic wall smiles at us and El laughs. I set my suitcase on the ground and palm her face for a proper kiss. With the pregnancy due, her office has become mine. She spends more time with me than anyone else. I love it. Her lips taste like donuts. We ordered some an hour after she arrived to “pick” me. I will never let her drive in her state but she enjoys using that term even if she was brought here by a driver. She r
Mrs Reluctant Billionaire One hundred and six
El won’t stop staring at her ring.We are in the backseat of the car heading to the hotel for dinner when she reaches up to give me a kiss. Leaning on me, she smiles at her ring again. I think I did right by her. Her mother will be happy. We had a long, loud, argument about this. About the vow renewals too but that will be after El delivers.“I have two rings,” El says, hand stretched out in front of her. She rolls Mother’s ring on her middle finger. “Does that make me Lord of the rings?”“Lady of the rings, maybe.”My phone vibrates with a text from Joshua. He wants to know if I did it. I facepalm at his request of a picture. It’s one more thing I have to get better at. Capturing the memories on camera. I nudge El with my elbow to show her the text. Her hand eventually lowers, she nods eagerly and strikes a pose, flashing her teeth in all the selfies. She knows she is pretty.
Mrs Reluctant Billionaire One hundred and five
I tilt the laptop and the girls’ faces occupy the screen. Wyn is on top of Bren but her twin doesn’t seem to mind. Brianna is on one side of the bed, smiling at the camera. They are all lying on their stomachs. El settles down beside me, I prop the laptop on my knees and slip my hand into her shirt from behind. She shoots me a warning look. I bat my lashes like the cute baby daddy I am.“I miss Mummy,” Wyn says.My back meets the headboard and El rests her head on my shoulder. “What about me?”Again, she and Bren are rocking the same gowns. Wyn frowns. “I miss you too, I guess.”El bellows out a laugh. Evil girls. In a few months, I’ll have my boys. She wraps an arm around my waist to soothe me. It works for only a second before my attention returns to the laptop. Bren is grinning.“How are you?” El asks.“Fine,” three of them chorus.&
