Olivia ~•~Throughout the outing with Maya, Maxim was blowing up my phone with constant texts and calls. I tried too hard to ignore them but Maya noticed. I had no choice but to tell her about it. And as usual, she forced me to accept his invitation. She offered to take the kids to her house while I spent time with Maxim. Maya made sure to convince me to accept his invitation. She even helped me text him back, letting him know I had made my decision. “You wouldn’t want to be alone when you get older.” Maya’s words replayed in my head as I stepped into the car Maxim had sent to pick me up. I took a deep breath as I settled down in the back seat. It was just a date with a friend. It didn’t mean anything. I wasn’t interested in being in a relationship with anybody right now. I already had so much on my plate. After a short ride, I arrived at a restaurant. It looked so elegant and classy. Maxim was there to welcome me as soon as I stepped out of the car. “You look so breathtaking
Alexander Burke ~•~I tapped my fingers impatiently against the table as I waited for Caroline to arrive. According to her, she was only five minutes away. She said that over thirty minutes ago. Jason was kind of sad because he felt alone and didn’t have anybody to play with, so Caroline took him out to the park to cheer him up. But something urgent came up and I needed her to come back to the house. I had been waiting for her for what felt like forever. I called her phone again but she didn’t respond. Just as I was about to storm out to find her, I heard someone open the front door. I stood up from the couch and made my way to the door. “Finally!” I let out a deep breath as I saw Caroline and Jason walk into the foyer. Before I could even voice out my frustration, Caroline apologized. “I’m so sorry but Jason said he wanted ice cream, so we had to stop at the ice cream shop.” Jason ran off to his room while Caroline and I stopped in the living room. “I need to talk to you abou
Olivia ~•~“Can we just stay for one more day?” Riley begged as I led them downstairs. Our trip had finally ended and it was time to go back home. But Riley wasn’t thrilled about it, she enjoyed her stay and wasn’t ready to go back home. I shook my head gently. “No, sweetheart. I have work and you have to go to school.” I replied as we stepped out of the entrance. Rowan turned to his sister. “Don’t you miss Jason? Don’t you want to go back home to see him?” He asked, raising a brow at her. I was proud of Rowan for how he treated Jason. He loved him unconditionally and always wanted to include him in everything. Initially, he was even upset that Jason didn’t travel with us. Riley’s face formed into a frown. “If we stay for an extra day, it doesn’t mean we won’t go back to see him.” They kept on arguing as I ushered them into the back seat. I didn’t interrupt them because I didn’t want Riley to bug me about staying back anymore. I settled down on the front seat and the driver drov
Olivia ~•~As I walked into the house, I went over to the kid's room. I knocked gently on the door before opening the door to see them lying down on the bed quietly. “Mama, I’m sorry for saying something like that.” Rowan apologized before I could even say anything. He looked so horrified. I closed the door behind me and sat down next to the twins. “It’s okay, baby. It isn’t your fault.” I said, giving him a sympathetic look. “You know you’re still a child right?” I asked and he nodded. I turned over to Riley who was lying beside him. “You know you’re also a child, right?” I asked her and she responded with a simple nod. “Sometimes I have to keep things away from you guys for your safety. I don’t want you to see the world differently. I want you guys to have a normal childhood. I don’t want to bother you with my problems.” The room was silent for a while. Riley and Rowan exchanged glances, their faces mixed with a hint of uncertainty and sadness. I hated that they had to be in
Olivia ~•~After getting some groceries from the store, I hurried back home. Luckily enough, the kids were still asleep, so I had time to make breakfast for them. I wanted them to have something to eat as soon as they got up since we slept off without any dinner the previous night. After spending about an hour making pancakes, waffles, and chicken, the kids finally woke up from their sleep. The aroma of my delicious meal probably attracted them to the kitchen. “Are we having pancakes for breakfast?” Rowan asked in a slightly groggy voice as he stepped into the kitchen. “I was about to go find you in your room when I saw the note you left on the door,” Riley stated, her voice still thick with sleep. “Good morning, babies.” I paused and gave them forehead kisses before fixing their plates. “You guys didn’t have dinner yesterday, so I wanted to make you breakfast early.” “Thank you, mama,” Rowan said as I handed him his plate. “I’m taking you to your daddy’s house today.” The ki
Alexander Burke ~•~I watched Olivia silently as she stormed out of my office. I felt a pang of guilt because of the way I had just treated her. Her visit caught me off guard because I wasn’t expecting her to show up at my house. I wasn’t in the right headspace to speak with her and I had no idea how to control my emotions. I was still angry at what she did and I didn’t know how to hide it. A part of me wanted to call her back, but I just decided to let her go. Besides, I was still going to see her later in the day when it was time for the kids to go home. After she left, I stood up from the chair and went out of the office. It had been a while since I last saw my kids, I missed them a lot. I figured they would be in Jason’s room, so I went straight to his room. “Daddy!” They both jumped on me as soon as I stepped into the room. “Hey,” I responded with a smile as I hugged them tightly. “I missed you so much,” I added, meaning every single word. “I missed you too,” Riley respon
Olivia ~•~I was on my bed, scrolling through my phone when it started ringing. I looked at the caller ID to see it was Maxim. I was still upset because of what Alexander had done earlier, so I decided to ignore the call. I wasn’t in the mood to speak to anybody. After waiting for the phone to stop ringing, I continued scrolling through my phone, doing nothing in particular. Maxim called me back and even if I didn’t respond, he kept calling multiple times. I knew it wasn’t fair to ignore him. But I didn’t like speaking to people when I wasn’t in a good mood. Suddenly, I received a text from him. [ Are you busy? Please pick up, I miss your voice.] The anger that was surging through me suddenly vanished and my lips curled into a small smile as I read the text. Immediately after, he called me again. This time, I answered on the first ring. “Hey,” I said, my voice barely audible. “What’s going on?” I asked, trying hard to contain my excitement. “What were you doing?”I hesitated f
Alexander Burke ~•~After watching a movie with the kids, I talked to Caroline about my encounter with Olivia. She made me realize that there was no use staying upset at Olivia. Olivia did what she had to do for her father to finally get justice. Olivia even apologized to me, so it wasn’t nice treating her that way. I was skeptical at first but I thought about the situation and imagined how I would have reacted if the roles were reversed. I could have approached the situation differently but I couldn’t blame her for how she approached hers. Anyway, it was all in the past and I needed to let go of it. Olivia was meant to pick up the kids later in the day, but Caroline asked me to take them to her house instead. She wanted me to apologize to Olivia as soon as possible. She didn’t even give me any room to protest. I had no choice but to agree. I mean, I also wanted to apologize to her. The driver picked up Jason from school and the kids were so excited to see him. After they playe
Riley Burke ~•~I felt better after Amelia and Harper called to check up on me. It was the weekend and we weren’t having classes, so they had gone back to their respective houses.Our group conference calls always lightened up my mood. After we rounded up the call, I made my way downstairs for dinner. Caroline volunteered to make dinner. For someone who barely cooks, she was a great chef and I was excited to try her food. As I stepped into the dining room, the aroma of roasted chicken filled the air and my stomach growled in response to the scent. I was hungry and couldn’t wait to eat. Everyone was already sitting on the table. “You’re finally done with your phone call?” Rowan asked as I sat beside him. A few minutes earlier, Rowan came to tell me that dinner was ready. I told him to hold on because I was on a call with my girls. I nodded. “Of course, I am.” My family and I engaged in a light conversation as we ate our meal. Every bite I took tasted heavenly and I couldn’t he
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