Chapter Three
Raffael ~~ I drove my car out of the compound looking at her through the rearview mirror as she watched me leave, looking defeated. She had refused to sign the papers claiming it was because of Tori. That was half true. I’d already planned to file for divorce months ago, Tori coming back was just the tip of the iceberg. Three years ago we got married because she liked me. She persuaded her grandfather to meet with my dad and organize an arranged marriage for us. My father, in a bid to save his failing company, had no choice but to agree. I only agreed to it because of my father but after he passed a year ago, I had no reason to be in a marriage where I didn’t love my wife. My mum and sister weren’t in support of our marriage so I had backup for the divorce. I drove to the hotel where Tori was staying. I parked at the underground parking and made my way to the elevator. I pressed the button to go up to the fifth floor and made my way to her suite. “Tori?” I called out as I went into the room. “I’m in here.” She said from the balcony. She came out dressed in a little cropped top and tight short shorts. She came and engulfed me in a hug. “I gave her the divorce papers,” I said as we broke the hug. “You did? Oh my God.” She squealed as she walked back to the balcony. I followed behind her. “She refused to sign it though.” “Why?” “I don’t know but I’ll definitely get her to sign it,” I said as I sat on one of the stools. “She manipulated you into marrying her, it’s no surprise she doesn’t want to sign the papers.” “How so?” I asked, curious to hear what she had to say. “She knew your father couldn’t refuse the offer her grandfather made. She also knew her grandfather would do anything to make her happy and now she’s acting like the spoiled brat she is and refusing to sign the papers.” “Interesting,” I said, nodding my head. “Come here,” I added, dragging her towards me. I pulled her in for a hug holding her tight. After she pulled away, we stared at each other for a while then she kissed me. Her lips felt familiar yet foreign at the same time that I couldn’t help but kiss her back. I withdrew after a few seconds, shaking my head. “I’m still married to my wife. This isn’t supposed to happen.” I wanted to divorce her but that didn’t mean I wanted to cheat on her. “It didn’t matter then and it shouldn’t matter now.” She shrugged, going back to the living area. “I was drunk then.” “Still doesn’t change the fact that it happened.” She turned back around. “She needs to sign those papers quickly. I don’t want to hear that excuse again.” “She’ll sign it. It’ll only be a couple of days.” “Better.” We hung around in bed. We didn’t do anything inappropriate, we just talked, watched a movie, and ate food I prepared. After a long day, I decided to go back home to face my reality. I said goodbye and went down to my car. I got in and drove off. I made a quick stop at the office to sign some documents then headed home. As soon as I parked my car in the driveway, I got a call from my assistant. “Mr Edwards there are videos and pictures of you kissing your ex-girlfriend on the news.” “What?” I said shocked. How the hell did they get a picture of me and Tori kissing? “We’re trying our best to take down the articles and erase the news but everyone’s talking about it.” “Make sure it dies down before tomorrow. I’ll call you later.” I said and hung up the phone. “Fuck.” I cursed under my breath, knowing how it would affect our reputations. After taking a deep breath, I exited the car. I went into the house and rushed upstairs. Camilla shouldn’t see the video that was circulating. She would throw a tantrum again and refuse to sign the papers. I went to the room but I couldn’t find her. I went to the backyard but she wasn’t there either. I checked every possible place in the house she could be but she was nowhere to be found. “Martha,” I called. “Martha.” She came rushing. “Yes, Mr Edwards?” “Where’s Camilla?” “She left immediately after you did this morning. She didn’t tell me where she was going.” “So she’s been out all day?” “Yes.” “You can go.” I waved her off. I picked up my phone and was about to call her when I heard a car pull up in the driveway. I went out the door and saw as she came down from her car. “Where have you been?” I asked as soon as she reached the door. She didn’t give me an answer and acted like I didn’t exist as she walked past me. She went upstairs and I followed behind her. “Camilla, answer me,” I demanded frantically, following behind her. I held her wrist as she was about to go into the room. She looked at her hand which I held and looked back at me. She didn’t say anything but her stare was deadly enough to make me release her hand. Has she seen the video already? I followed her into the room. I watched as she moved around the room, taking her jewelry off and undressing. “Camila,” I said again. “Don’t act like I’m not standing in front of you. I need an answer. Where were you?” She folded her arms and walked up to me. “That’s none of your business.” She said, quoting me from earlier this morning. I sighed, pinching the bridge of my nose. “I’m sorry.” “Yeah right.” She walked back to her dresser to clean her face. “While you were out kissing that bitch, I was with Skye at an amusement park.” She had seen the video. “What were you doing at an amusement park?” She looked at me crazy. “That’s the question you’re asking?” She walked back to me. “You don’t have anything to say about you kissing Tori? It’s bad enough you were out with her last night, now you’re kissing her? Do you have to embarrass me like that?” “Look, it was a mistake. She kissed me, I didn’t kiss her.” She raised her hand and landed a slap on my face. “Say that again.” I moved my hand to feel the place where she slapped me. My cheek was throbbing really bad. “Did you just slap me?” “Yes, and I’ll do it again if you keep lying to me.”Chapter Four Raffael ~~~ I looked at her in disbelief. She had just slapped me for saying the kiss was a mistake. I took a deep breath. “Look, I don’t know how those pictures and videos got out.” “I don’t want to hear any of that. Get rid of them before tomorrow. Grandpa shouldn’t find out about it.” She said then went to the bathroom to freshen up. She was right. I picked up my phone and called Tori. “Have you seen the news?” I asked. “Yes, the media is brutal, the headlines are crazy.” “That’s not what this is about. I don’t think we should see each other for now.” “But-” She tried to complain. I interrupted her. “But nothing. I’ll call you when everything dies down.” I let out before hanging up the phone. One of the guards called me and told me there were reporters outside the gate. I looked at the CCTV and sure enough, there were many reporters outside the gate. I ordered the guards to get rid of them and send them away. I was about to go to the office. I didn’t m
Chapter Five Camilla ~~~ The last forty-eight hours have been hell for me. My name had been on the lips of everyone. The media had been putting out the most outrageous news about me. I woke up this morning, deciding to block out any negativity. I showered and then went downstairs to eat my breakfast. Raffael came downstairs and sat at the other end of the table. “Good morning.” He said as he sat down. I didn’t give him a reply. I looked up at him and saw that the handprint from the slap I gave him was gone. Thank God. I wouldn’t know how to explain that to my grandfather. “Grandpa called, he wants us to go to his house after you meet with the shareholders,” I said. “How did you know I have a meeting with the shareholders?” He asked. I merely stared at him and ignored him. I was done with my food so I left the table and went back upstairs. I picked up the phone and texted Skye. I was really thankful for her. She was the only person I had apart from my grandfather and Raffael.
Chapter SixCamilla~~~~~ “Don’t tell him you gave me divorce papers. He shouldn’t even know that you thought about getting divorced. Tell him you’re going to make everything right at the press conference.” I said when we got out of the car and were walking to the front door. We got to the door and the guards standing by the door opened it for us. My grandpa and his secretary were already downstairs. “Lala.” My grandpa said, smiling widely as he saw me. “How are you?” He asked coming to hug me. “I’m doing good Pops, how are you?” I asked. “Your old man’s fine.” He said with a big smile. “Raffael.” He said extending his hand for a shake. They exchanged pleasantries and we got seated. “So, how’s business going Raffael?” Grandpa asked. “It’s good.” He said shuffling in his seat.” I just closed a deal with Mr Smith.” “That’s good.” “Dinner’s ready.” Hailey, one of the helps announced.” “We’ll be right there.” My grandpa said Camilla her off. “We’ll talk later. Let’s go have d
Chapter SevenRaffael ~~~~“Camilla. What was that about?” I asked immediately after I got in the house.“Leave me alone Raffael.” She said attempting to go upstairs.I dragged her back. “You slapped her in public?”“What was I supposed to do huh? She kept provoking me and disrespecting me. Was I supposed to just stand there and watch her?”“Were you stalking her?” I asked. “You sent someone to follow her around so you could watch her every move and then you went to meet her?”“What the fuck Raffael. You think I would do that?”“I mean who knows what your pathetic self is capable of.” I shrugged.She stood still taking deep breaths trying to hold back tears.“Fuck you.” She said and then ran upstairs.“Fuck.” I said kicking the couch. I took a deep breath and then went upstairs to the guest room. I took off my clothes and then went into the shower.I got out a few minutes later and then dressed up. I took my car keys and left the house.I drove aimlessly for hours thinking about ever
Chapter EightRaffael ~~~~I drove to the hotel I wanted I and Tori to meet. It was a small one just outside the city where I was sure we wouldn’t be seen or photographed.I got there in under thirty minutes and checked into the room I had booked under a fake name. I got to the room and waited for Tori to arrive.I waited for a little while then I heard a knock on the door. It was Tori. She threw herself at me immediately when she got inside. I had no choice but to hug her.She withdrew and went to sit. I followed sitting beside her.“How’s your face?” I asked moving it from one side to the other.“It still hurts like a bitch.” She said pointing to the bruise on her cheek.“What actually happened yesterday? Why did she slap you? She said you provoked her.” I asked with a hint of concern in my voice. “Provoked her? She was just mad because you chose me over her. I simply wanted to chat with her and try to explain things then she got angry.”“Hmmm,” I said.“Why did you want to meet?
Chapter NineCamilla~~~~I woke up feeling better than last night. Raffael had left the house last night after our little argument.I got up from the bed and went to take a shower. I got dressed and ready for the day. I called Skye to tell her to come over since we were both free for the rest of the day.It was almost 8’clock and he hadn’t still returned. Normally he would return at seven and then leave again before twelve. I wonder where he was.I called Anthony, his assistant to check if he was still at the office or if he was with someone else.“Hello, Good morning Anthony. I just wanted to check with you if Raffael was still at the office.”“He didn’t come in yesterday mam.”“He didn’t go to the office yesterday?” I asked confused.“Yes.”“Okay, thank you.” I said and hung up the phone.I threw my phone on the bed, biting my lip in confusion. If he didn’t go to the office yesterday where could he be? Is it possible he went to meet with her?I shook the thought out of my head and
Chapter TenCamilla~~~~My eyes fluttered as I struggled to adjust to the bright light. I finally managed to open my eyes and I looked around. I was on a hospital bed.What happened? My head ached so bad and I felt really nauseous. I stayed in my position for a while then the door opened. It was Skye.“You’re awake, finally.” She said rushing over to my side.“What happened?” I said trying to sit up.She helped me up. “You fainted.”“Why?”“The doctor hasn’t said anything yet. He was waiting for you to wake up. I’ll go get him.” She said and went out the door.She returned in a few minutes with our family doctor.“Ms Edwards, how are you feeling?” He asked.“My head still aches a little bit.”“We’ll prescribe some drugs to help ease the pain.”“Is that the reason I fainted?”“Uhm.” He looked over to Skye to indicate he wanted the conversation to be private.“It’s okay, you can say whatever you want to say.” I assured him.“You are 13 weeks pregnant, Ms Edwards.” He said handing me a
Chapter ElevenRaffael ~~~~The drive to the airport was short and silent. I didn’t have anything to do in California, I just needed to be away.Anthony dropped me off at the airport and then left. I made sure to wear a hoodie and sunglasses to avoid being recognized and photographed.I got on the plane and found my way to the first-class section and found my seat. After a long seven hours, we finally landed in California.I went to get my luggage and then went to the front for my best friend, Sam to come pick me up.I waited at a coffee shop for about ten minutes before he finally arrived.“Sam.” I said standing up to hug him as he came towards me.“Raffael. How’ve you been brother?”“Been good. How are you?”“I’m doing alright. You ready to go?”“Yeah.” I nodded.I carried my suitcase and we went outside. We got in the car and were on our way to his apartment. We arrived there shortly and went inside.“The first room by the left.” He said.I dragged my suitcase and went to the room
Chapter Forty-FiveCamilla’s POVAfter a week of working on Alexander’s house, we were finally done. I was going over every day and me and Alex were having some conversations.I told him about what happened with me and Raphael because he asked. I found myself telling him about what happened recently too. We were back to being friends like before.“We’re finally done. That’s good.” He said.“It looks great doesn’t it?”“It sure does. Exactly what I asked for. You guys did a great job.”“Thank you.”“Want to go out for coffee? You haven’t repaid me for taking you home that day.”“Fine.” I said.There was a coffee shop five minutes away from the house so we decided to walk there instead of driving.“So do you have any new projects planned?” He asked while we were waiting for our coffee to be ready.“I have quite a few.” I replied.“I wanted to invite you to a party next week. If you’re free that’s it.”“What day?”“Friday.” “Sure I’ll be there.”“Great.”We got our coffee and sat back d
Chapter Forty-FourRaphael’s POVI dropped Jason off at school and left for work. I had a meeting with a new client before I went to the project site.I spent the whole day at the site, I had some serious work to do. It was getting late and I had to call it a day and go home. I had to go to my mom's place because that was where Jason was. He was asleep when I got there so I decided to let him be.“So when can I meet my granddaughter?” My mum asked.“Slow down ma.”“Slow down for what? I was only asking a question.”“We’re still trying to navigate how we’re going to parent from different cities.”“Let her move back. That’s not a problem.”“You’re reaching. I can’t ask her to pack up her life and move to New York because of me. I was the reason she left in the first place.”She sighed and then went to the kitchen leaving me with my sister.“How is Camilla?” My sister asked.“She’s doing good. She runs a company with her partner. The company we’re currently working with.”“That’s nice.
Chapter Forty-ThreeCamilla’s POVMartha had arrived the day before and we were all excited. We didn’t talk much about what had happened while she was gone. It was a Monday and she got Rory ready for school and then I dropped her off and returned to the house.I didn’t have to go to work until 10am so I had a lot of time to get ready. I finished getting ready and I had a lot of time left so I decided to chat with Martha.“So he wants to be a part of her life?” She asked.“Yes.” I answered.“How would that work? You live in different cities.”“I really don’t know but we’ll figure that out.”We chatted for a while tge I looked at tge time and realized it was time for me to leave for work. “I’ll be on my way now. See you later.” I said and left the house.For the first few hours, I was at work, and for the remains part of the day, I went to visit the site we were working on.I was about to turn into the kitchen when I got hit by someone and got coffee spilled on my shirt.“What the hel
Chapter Forty-TwoRaphael's POVThe next morning, Jason and I got ready for the day and I dropped him off at my mom's house before going to work. I didn’t have much to do at work so I finished up pretty early. I then told Anthony to take me to the hotel Tori was staying at.We got there and went up to the room. I knocked on the door several times but I didn’t get an answer. I had a key but I wanted her to open the door herself.After about three minutes, I was still waiting for her to open it so I decided to use the key I had. I walked in and closed the door behind me. “Tori.” I called out. “Are you in here?” I didn’t get a reply back.It was a suite so I checked the room and the kitchen but I couldn’t find her. The receptionist said that she hadn’t checked out.I remembered that I hadn’t checked the bathroom so I went there and I saw her passed out on the floor.I bent down beside her. “Tori.” I said shaking her.I looked around and saw a bottle of pills lying on the floor. I tried
Chapter Forty-One Camilla's POV The night Raphael left was pretty rough. After he was gone, Rory resumed crying. We managed to calm her down, get her ready for bed, and put her to sleep. She woke up in the middle of the night crying for him. I couldn’t understand how she had gotten attached in such a short time. I put her back to sleep and stayed with her the rest of the night. The next morning we woke up and prepared for Skye and my Grandpa to leave. I had to tell her that they were going to leave and she started crying again. She went for a walk with my Grandpa while Skye and I were making some last-minute arrangements. “Rory’s pretty devastated.” Skye said while we were packing her suitcase. “I know. And I can’t understand it. I understand her crying cause you guys are leaving but I didn’t expect her to cry for Raphael. She got so attached to him in a short amount of time.” “She’s never felt how it was to have a dad and she finally got it. She’s a little girl but she’s als
Chapter FortyRaphael's POVAfter six hours, we finally landed in New York and I went to pick up my luggage and waited for the driver to arrive.After a few minutes, he arrived and I got in the car. My assistant was there too.“How are you doing?” I asked.“I'm good, sir.” He replied. “There's a problem.”“What is it?”“Tori is in police custody.”“What? Why?”“She was caught stealing from a mall. She called me and asked me to relay the message to you.”I sighed. “Take me to where she is.”He instructed the driver to take us to the station. I couldn't believe that she was arrested. What a disappointment. I turned on my phone and of course, it was all over the news.Everybody was making mention of Jason, our son, and how they felt sorry for him. After I left her, she became more of a mess than she already was. She started using and got addicted. I've tried to get her help but she doesn't want it.We reached the station and we were led inside. We talked to the policemen and then bailed
Chapter Thirty-NineCamilla's POVAfter Raphael and Rory left, I and Skye went to do some shopping. She and my Grandpa will be going back to New York tomorrow.We first went to the mall to get some clothes and random things that Skye wanted to take back to New York. We also got some things for my Grandpa and Rory. I knew Raphael was going to leave today. I was thinking of getting him something but I didn’t want to do too much.After we were done shopping, we went to get food. We just ordered regular burgers and went to find a place to sit.We were on our phones while waiting for our order to arrive me Skye let out a gasp.“What is it?” I asked. She didn’t reply to me immediately but kept scrolling on her phone and her mouth opened in shock. “Skye, what is it?”“It’s about Tori.”“What about her?”“You won’t believe this. She was caught stealing.”“Stealing? That’s a lie. From where?”“From a mall. She got caught with a dress in her bag.”“Oh my God. That’s awful.” I said and Skye gav
Chapter Thirty-EightRaphael’s POVIt was the day of the dance and Aurora and I had spent all of last night practicing our dance moves. The dance started at 2:00 pm and it was currently 11:02 am. I was on my way to their house.When I arrived, Camilla was doing Rory’s hair while Skye was steaming her dress. The chairman wasn’t at home.“Hey daddy.” Aurora said.“Hi, baby. Your hair is looking beautiful.”“Thank you.” She laughed. “I’m going to be the prettiest girl at the dance.”“You sure are.”“Hey.” Camilla said.“How are you?” I asked.“I’m good.” She replied. I went to drop my suit in the living room and came back to the dining.I sat on one of the chairs and after a few minutes, Skye was done with the dress and Camilla was done with Aurora's hair. “It looks really pretty.” I said.“Thank you, daddy.”We still had about two hours before the dance started. “What are we going to do for the next couple of hours before the dance starts?” I asked.“I guess we could watch a movie or
Chapter Thirty-Seven Camilla's POV After Raphael left, I wasn't in the mood to talk to anybody so I went and locked myself up in my room. Skye got Rory ready for bed and they all stayed up watching TV till 8:30 and went to bed. After they went to bed I came out for a glass of water. I spent a little time in the kitchen and when I was about to leave, I saw Skye coming out of the room. “I thought you were already asleep?” I asked. “I came for a glass of water. But I'm glad I ran into you.” “Why?” “I wanted to talk to you about Raphael.” She said and sat on a chair. “What about him?” “Look at the way you treat him, Camilla. You act like he's going to take Rory and sell her off. Give him some grace. I know you're hurt but for Rory’s sake please.” “But.” She interrupted me. “I know he hurt you. He's trying to make amends. If you would just let him.” “I’m trying to forgive him but I just can’t. Every time I think to be nice I just remember that morning he came hom