Alexander Burke ~•~I watched as my phone rang multiple times but I couldn’t bring myself to answer the call. It was Olivia calling me but I couldn’t respond because I didn’t know how to face her. Even though Caroline advised me to tell her about it before it made the news in a few hours, I couldn’t bring myself to do it. I didn’t want to hurt her again. I wasn’t sure how she felt about me but I was certain that she was going to be hurt if she knew the person involved. I had been lying to her for days. I mean, I had kept the information from her for days. We spoke almost every day since I left for California and I didn’t tell her about what was happening. But this time, I couldn’t bring myself to answer her calls because the news was getting out today. My father claimed he wanted to make a statement for the New Year's. Why didn’t he make such a statement with his own life? I let out an unbelievable scoff as I thought about everything that happened. Why couldn’t I stand up for my
Olivia ~•~I was frozen in my car, my eyes glued to my phone. I couldn’t believe what I had just seen. Tricia? I hadn’t heard her name in a while. It couldn’t be true. Alexander wouldn’t do me like that. At least, that was what I told myself. Everything started making sense. I knew something was fishy when he canceled the trip at the last minute. He had another agenda in California. That was the same reason he didn’t want me to go on my own. He knew exactly what he was doing. I felt like a fool. I felt so stupid. A few months ago, he was trying to make a move on me but now, he has gotten married to his ex-girlfriend. The same girl who was a major factor in our divorce a few years back. I let out an unbelievable scoff and my grip tightened on my phone. We weren’t together and a part of me felt I wasn’t meant to be angry. But I couldn’t hide it, I was extremely angry. It would have been understandable if he had moved on with someone new but it’s TRICIA! Oh my goodness! What was
Alexander Burke ~•~I was still inside the room when I heard a knock on the door. “It’s Caroline.” I heard my sister's voice echo from the other side of the door. “Come in! The door is unlocked.” I said and sat upright on the bed. Caroline had a concerned expression registered on her face as she pushed open the door and walked to the bed. “Did you tell her about it before it was released publicly?” I shook my head, regretting my decision. “No, I wanted to tell her but it was too late,” I muttered, rubbing the bridge of my nose as if it would relieve the stress. Caroline sighed. “Do you think she has seen it? Has she reached out to you?” I shrugged. “I have no idea. I turned off my phone.” “You know you can’t shut her out forever, right? You have to talk to her about it.” Caroline advised solemnly. “It’s better you do it now.”“I think I should wait a little bit, this isn’t the right…...” Caroline cut me off before I could even complete my sentence. “There is no right time for
Olivia ~•~I couldn’t sleep the previous night and it was baffling. I wasn’t expecting the news of Alexander’s marriage to Tricia to affect me that much. I was disappointed in myself. Why was I so bothered? We weren’t together and it wasn’t meant to be any of my business. But somehow it still stung badly. It felt like a heavy punch to my guts. I didn’t know I had feelings for Alexander. Or maybe I was just upset because it was Tricia who made me finally give up on my marriage. And now, she had gotten the man. It wasn’t a competition. I couldn’t be in a competition with another woman because of a man. No, I wasn’t a teenager anymore. I was a grown adult who was responsible for two amazing children. Alexander wasn’t a prize. Oh my! I hated myself for feeling like this. Why was I so bothered? I was losing my mind. I couldn’t help but wonder what the blogs were saying about it. I didn’t care to read the comments because I had promised myself to stay clear of the comments that invo
Olivia ~•~I stood in the kitchen, staring at my phone, my eyes burning with unshed tears. Alexander claimed he’d be back in New York, first thing in the morning. And he’d stop by my house to talk to me. But all I could see were photos of him and Tricia, plastered across the internet - smiling and posing for the cameras as they arrived at the airport together.The headline screamed at their arrival, but it was the image of them at the side that made my stomach churn. I could feel the familiar sting of betrayal creeping into my chest again, twisting the knife deeper. He was supposed to be here, having a serious conversation with me, not having a photo-op with her. I let out an unbelievable scoff and dropped my phone on the counter. I wiped my eyes, angry at myself for caring too much. This wasn’t supposed to hurt like this. I had promised myself I wouldn’t let him get under my skin again. But I was angry and disappointed all over again. I needed to get past this. I needed to move
Olivia ~•~My heart raced as I walked towards the house, my palms growing sweaty with each step. Finally, I stood at the door, my hands hovering around the doorbell. I didn’t understand why I was nervous. If anyone was meant to be nervous, it was meant to be Alexander. I was the victim here. I took a deep breath and calmed myself before unlocking the door. My legs felt heavy and uncoordinated as I walked inside the house. Alexander was sitting on the couch in the living room. I took another deep breath, trying to steady my voice but it still came out shaky as I greeted Alexander. “Hey, hi.” I couldn’t even look him in the face. The only thing I could think of was how he had hurt me because of the same person. TWICE! Alexander stood up from the couch and moved closer to me. “Olivia, why are you avoiding eye contact with me?” He asked, his voice low. “Do you hate me so much that you can’t even look at me?” There was a hint of guilt and regret in his voice. I let out a wistful sig
Olivia ~•~The roar of the jet ski engine drowned out everything else as I held the handlebars tighter, speeding across the waves. Maya clung to me, her laughter echoing as we flew over the water. “Wooooo!” Maya yelled, throwing her arms up as we hit another wave, water splashing in all directions. “This is insane!” I screamed over the roar of the engine, a wide grin plastered across my face. For the first time in ages, I felt alive, like nothing could touch me. “Faster!” Maya screamed, laughing as she wrapped her arms tighter around my waist. “Show me what you’ve got, Liv.” I smiled as I leaned forward, pushing the throttle harder. We cut through the waves, our hair flying widely in the wind. We zigzagged through the open sea, occasionally dodging boats and other jet skiers. Every turn felt exhilarating like it was a moment of pure escape. “Holy crap, this is the best!” Maya shouted as she laughed uncontrollably. I couldn’t stop grinning, the adrenaline coursing through my ve
Olivia ~•~“Not today!” I muttered to myself and swiped away from her message. I traveled to Miami to forget about all the New York shenanigans. I didn’t want to entertain anything from anybody. Sandra and I weren’t friends so I didn’t owe her any conversation. If she wanted to speak to someone urgently, she should talk to whoever her new friends were. She should speak to the people who she hasn’t betrayed. Shoving the thoughts about Sandra away from my mind, I dialed my mother's number. I wanted to check up on them to see if they were good. I waited impatiently as the phone rang. My mother was barely with her phone, so sometimes she missed my calls. But I was hoping she would answer because after seeing that text from Sandra, I really wanted to speak to them to make sure everyone was okay. My mother didn’t answer the phone but that didn’t stop me from calling multiple times. The outcome was still the same and I was about to give up but I decided to try one last time. Fortunat
Mason Craig ~•~I had tried calling Riley earlier when I saw her calls but she didn’t respond. Initially, I felt she was upset because she felt I was ignoring her, but I chose to believe that she was asleep. I was washing my face in the bathroom when I heard my phone ringing. I had been expecting Riley’s call, so I rushed outside to take my phone. As I saw Riley’s name flashing across the screen, I let out a relieved sigh. “Hey.” She greeted me with a low voice. I apologized for missing her call and told her about how I tried calling but she didn’t respond. Surprisingly, she was not upset and was okay with it. Before I could ask her about the reason she called, she started talking. She wasn’t happy with the fact that my father refused to debunk the rumors and wanted me to convince him to accept her father's terms. Apparently, that was the only way she would believe that I wasn’t part of my father’s schemes. The call was a brief one because she hung up as soon as she passed her m
Chapter 230Riley Burke ~•~We were talking about random stuff, and then out of the blue, she stared at me and asked. “I’ve been meaning to ask you this for a while. Have you met someone new? Are you seeing anybody?” “Emm… huh? Wha….” I stuttered as I tried to form a coherent sentence. I had no idea why I found it difficult to answer her question. It wasn’t like I ever kept my love life a secret from my mother, her question just caught me off guard. My mother was always the first to know whenever I got into a relationship or met someone new. But this time, her question felt like a trap. What if she knew about me and Mason and was just asking to see if I would tell the truth? But there was actually nothing going on between Mason and I. I mean. We hadn’t even gone out on a date. I wasn’t even sure I really liked him or wanted to date him. He just talked to me and sent me a gift basket. I let out a deep breath and cleared my throat. “I’m not seeing anybody,” I replied, my voice st
Riley Burke ~•~I called Mason’s phone severally but he didn’t answer. I was upset for a moment but I decided to calm down. I figured he would be busy with his family, due to everything that was happening. Or he could be asleep because the day was already dark. After tossing my phone on the bed, I decided to rest my head for a few minutes. But the next time I opened my eyes, I saw that it was morning. Sunlight streamed through the window, making me realize I hadn’t closed the curtains before I slept off the previous night. I blinked repeatedly as I tried adjusting to the brightness coming through the window. Letting out a loud yawn, I sat upright on the bed and reached out for my phone on the scattered sheets. As I picked up my phone, I glanced over the screen to see what time it was. But I realized I had gotten a lot of calls from Mason. I was deeply asleep and didn’t hear when the call came in. I contemplated returning the call but it was too early. I decided to wait for a l
Mason Craig~•~A few moments later, I heard a loud bang on my door, followed by my mother’s angry voice. “Mason Craig! Why did you choose to betray our family?” I had no idea how long I had been asleep for but I jerked back to reality after I heard those words come out from my mother’s mouth. I stood up from my bed immediately and walked to the door. My mother had a disappointed look on her face as the door swung open. “What are you talking about?” I asked, my brows etched in confusion. “So you decided to tell your little girlfriend about what we did? You decided to snitch and betray your family?” She questioned, her voice laced with disdain. My eyes were still thick with sleep and it took me a minute to process what she was talking about. “What do you mean? What girlfriend? I didn’t say anything to anybody.” I responded, my tone defensive. “Oh please!” She waved her hands violently in the air. “Don’t act like you don’t know what I’m talking about. Follow me downstairs, your fa
Riley Burke ~•~After I was done talking to Mason, I went to meet Rowan because he asked me to meet him after my class. We were meant to go back home together. He was waiting for me in the driveway. I settled down in the front seat of the car and fastened my seatbelt. As we drove back to the house, I contemplated telling Rowan about the situation with Mason. But I wasn’t sure if I should say anything. Rowan would be so upset and probably tell my parents about it. I didn’t know if I wanted anybody to know what I knew Mason personally. It was best if I kept it away from them for a while. After an exhausting drive, we arrived at the house. “Is Belle still pissed at you?” I asked Rowan as we both stepped out of the car.He shook his head. “Yes, I messed up big time and I’m not sure she’ll forgive me easily,” Rowan admitted, running his hands through his hair. My lips parted and I blinked. “What? How did you mess up?” My curiosity got the best of me and I couldn’t resist asking him
Mason Craig~•~After Riley left, I remained in the office for a few more minutes. I needed some time to think and clear my head. I was certain that Riley didn’t believe anything I said and I had no idea how to make her see that I was being completely honest with her. Even if she eventually comes around, things will still be weird between us because of my parent’s behavior. After meeting so many shallow people, I finally found someone worth starting something with again. But it was already crumbling before it could even start. I didn’t have any other classes, so I decided to head back home. I locked the office and made my way back to my car. My uncle was a professor at the university, so he gave me a spare key. He asked me to go there whenever I needed a break from the crowd. He was one of the reasons why my father allowed me to attend Columbia University. He wanted me to go to a different country for college, but I didn’t want to go far away. Most times, I do regret my choice. I
Riley Burke ~•~I was already pissed when I saw Mason walking into the class. But his stupid text only fueled my irritation more. He still had the guts to ask if he did something wrong. Whenever I was upset and couldn’t do anything about it, my legs automatically started shaking. Liam noticed and tried his best to calm me down.I hated the fact that I was about to crash out in public. At first, I didn’t want to respond to his text. But out of annoyance, I responded to him and then blocked his number afterward.I didn’t want him to contact me anymore.After what felt like an eternity, the class was finally over. At one point, I even wanted to walk out of the class, but Liam persuaded me to stay. As everyone left the class, I wanted to rush out before Mason could get the chance to speak to me, but he was faster than me. I knew I wanted to have a conversation with him to demand answers but I wasn’t interested anymore. My daddy was going to take care of everything. “What do you want
Mason Craig ~•~After thinking about what to do for a while, I decided to tell Riley about it. I could imagine how devastated she would be if she found out about it from someone else. I didn’t want her to think I was part of it in any way. I knew telling her was me betraying my parents, but I didn’t care. The truth was going to come out eventually. I didn’t want it to look like I was enabling their behavior. At first, I wanted to call Riley and talk to her about it over the phone, but since we had a class together later in the day, I decided to leave it. I would have a conversation with her after our class. A few hours later, it was time for me to leave for school. I was already running late, so I grabbed my keys and bag before rushing down to the car. While I was on my way to school, I couldn’t stop thinking about the damage my parents had caused. They were so hungry for power and success, it wasn’t healthy. Even if they were giving me the silent treatment, I was still determ
Riley Burke ~•~As I got to school, I contemplated going back to my dorm room or going to class. I wasn’t sure I was in the right head space to see Mason. My mind was spinning with different thoughts and I was laced with anger. I couldn’t believe someone would betray me like that. I felt so stupid and used. I didn’t even know what to say to him. As I stepped out of the car, I decided to call Harper first to ask if she was in the room. I didn’t want to go to meet in an empty room, it would just fuel my frustration more. Harper didn’t answer her phone. I was guessing that was in class and couldn’t take the call. Letting out a frustrated sigh, I decided to call Amelia instead. I let out a relieved sigh when Amelia answered on the first ring. “Hey, what’s up? Are you in class?” I asked with a hint of urgency in my voice. “No, I’m in the dorm room.” She replied. “What’s going on?”I didn’t want to talk on the phone. “You’ll see me soon.” I ended the call and made my way to the dorm