This afternoon was the first time Amanda stepped into the mansion's backyard, and she smiled as she was amazed to see many daisies planted in almost every corner of the three-meter high parapet surrounding the mansion.Daisies of various colors, low apple trees, and towering avocado trees, but a lot of fruit hanging there and other trees to cool the atmosphere.There was a park bench near the avocado, almost attached to the wall behind it, but Amanda still had to walk a few meters to reach the area because the courtyard was so large.Sunlight overpowered the center of the courtyard, burning anyone who lingered beneath it, so Amanda escaped and sat on the park bench with no one around.The woman snorted. "Nadine should be here. She'd be thrilled to be able to enjoy a setting we rarely see, but I can't bring myself to call her."It had been four days since Oriaga had visited the mansion, and Amanda was glad not to see the man, but she wanted her cell phone back, so she kept asking the s
"What happened to her, huh? Can't you guys take care of a woman? You got my wife hurt?"Amanda was surprised to hear someone's anger, but she could tell it belonged to Oriaga. The woman got up from the chair in the corner of the reading room as she put down a thick novel. She even forgot to fold the edge of the paper to mark the last page of her reading, as there was no paper border.The reading room or mini library in the mansion was located on the second floor, and Amanda did not close the door so that she could hear the angry voice quite clearly.The mansion was quiet even though several servants lived in it, so it was easy for Amanda to find peace while reading a novel."Oriaga's back at the mansion?" Amanda murmured. She was limping without the help of crutches. The wounds on her pair of knees had been wrapped in bandages and band-aids by the maid this afternoon.Amanda stood behind the railing of the second-floor divider. She found all the servants of the mansion, as well as Zay
The short hand on the clock was almost eleven, and Amanda had opened her eyelids half an hour ago. Now, she could not fall asleep, so the woman chose to stay in bed daydreaming.Amanda wasn't alone. Oriaga was asleep next to her. After their long kiss ended, Oriaga stepped aside and closed his eyes, and he quite emphasized his tiredness after today's work. Amanda managed to make the man feel calmer before sleeping comfortably.It was hushed, only the ticking of the clock.The woman tilted her body to the left to face Oriaga, and she silently watched her husband. They always had plenty of time to protect each other from a close distance without obstructions.However, looking at Oriaga secretly was something Amanda was doing. If their relationship had been delicate from the beginning, something like this would have been very natural, but what happened made the situation awkward. Amanda didn't want to show any feelings for the man even though Oriaga was her legal husband.One of Amanda's
Amanda was daydreaming behind the dining table. She had been sitting there for half an hour and hadn't touched her breakfast even though several menus were on the table.While still holding her cell phone, the woman would call Nadine or her mother, making video calls while enjoying breakfast in their respective places. Amanda felt like she had company because she always sat behind the dining table alone every day.It had been almost a month since her marriage to Oriaga, but not once had they sat down together in the dining room to eat something. Ironic. Amanda should call it that."Look at Miss Amanda. Even though she is married to Mr. Oriaga, it is quite obvious that they have no happiness." A servant again engaged her friend in gossip while in the back hallway, from the surrounding windows—they could see Amanda, who was still daydreaming without movement.Another maid snorted; anyone would feel sorry for Amanda, although she could ask Oriaga for anything, but it didn't seem to be th
Nadine grumbled, sitting in the corner of her boyfriend's coffee shop after work. Even though the distance between her new office and Rudolf's coffee shop was even further, Nadine still visited, even on weekends. Especially since Amanda was no longer at home, Nadine felt so lost she ran away to find other activities even though her parents' relationship was back in harmony.Rudolf finished delivering another customer's order. He made something for Nadine, then moved over to her carrying a tray and flashing his warm smile, effectively reducing Nadine's fatigue after work."How are you today?" The first question Rudolf always said when he met Nadine. He rubbed the top of her head after placing the tray with the 'Caffe late' and a piece of cheesecake then sat down next to Nadine.The woman smiled. "Thank you for the welcome and the kiss. As for work, it's all very well under control, but other things—" She snorted again. "Not at all. I miss my sister.""She still hasn't heard from you?"
Amanda had intended to sleep before she noticed the car driven by Zayn entering the mansion's courtyard. Still, the horn alerted Amanda, so she watched from the balcony.She rarely opened the window, but tonight Amanda did, standing on the balcony railing as she watched her husband get out of the car after Zayn opened the door. Several tote bags were something Zayn had to carry as Oriaga walked into the mansion, laptop bag in tow.Amanda had no intention of leaving the room or locking the door like before, and she chose to sit on the bed while hugging her knees. Oriaga's appearance tonight did not surprise her. She seemed to have resigned herself to the situation."Whether he's there or not won't get me out of this prison," Amanda muttered. She began to hear someone's footsteps, the tapping of loafers as they met the floor, getting closer to the main room, then the door knob moved to reveal her husband there."You're not asleep yet, huh?" Oriaga smiled wryly, and he walked over."None
On the surface of the dining table were a large number of ready-to-eat menus. Amanda stood silently beside the dining table when she saw all that. Her husband was already sitting there without eating anything but focusing on his laptop screen."Why are you just sitting there? You can't sit down, huh?" Oriaga scolded."I know you can afford anything, even if it means acquiring ten Michelin-certified five-star restaurants, but that doesn't mean you can bring this much food just for one human, Oriaga." His wife was frustrated, although when experiencing severe hunger, she was sure she would not be able to finish that much food."Hey. I bought some because I didn't know what you wanted and what your tastes are at the moment. I had no idea. Stop blaming." Oriaga defended herself. "You should appreciate Zayn for standing in line while buying at some places. Can you understand that?"Amanda rolled her eyes. She pulled out a chair roughly before sitting there, arguing in front that food was n
The atmosphere in the office this morning was different and quite strange. If other people said hello, it would be expected, but unfortunately, after saying hello—they were talking about Oriaga behind his back, something that rarely happened in Gregorious' office.The man didn't respond, and he thought it might be the scent of his new perfume, or let's call it the perfume he had stolen from his wife last night. Oriaga picked it up from the dressing table and put the glass object in his pocket before leaving the mansion.He was sure Amanda was confused about not finding her perfume this morning. While the man had said nothing about 'borrowing' or 'asking for' it, could one call this situation theft?"Joana, do I look strange today?" asked Oriaga when he found Joana sitting behind her cubicle while the man had stopped."Strange, sir?" Joana was puzzled. She moved to take in her boss's appearance. "I think everything is fine.""Really? Or is it the scent of my perfume?"The woman only re