~Gerald~Rosemary had my undivided attention once she said those words. I noticed that her expression was serious as she continued, "Here's the thing, I have been thinking. Don't you think it's high time you found a real job? Like a 9-5?"Where is this coming from? I wanted to ask. Instead, I said, "I love photography and the last exhibition I had in the UK was kinda successful. I'm looking to do more."Rosemary hung her head and sighed. "I knew you would say this. You are an MIT grad. For how long would you continue doing photo exhibitions? Last time we spoke, you told me you don't earn much. Your monthly allowance is also not going to be sustainable in the long run. You need to start thinking big."It felt so nice to know that she was concerned about me. My attraction to her was shooting to the roof now. I placed my hand under my chin and stared at her beautiful face. How did I land such a woman? I was still bedazzled by her when she pushed her milkshake into my other hand. "I just
~Rosemary~A shiver ran down my spine. My palm turned sweaty against the doorknob. I stared at the woman in front of me. She seemed not to have aged a day. In fact, she looked younger than she used to be. The wrinkles that were usually on her forehead were gone.It was my mother.I hadn't seen her in three years. Last I heard, she was off vacationing in different luxury destinations on Max's tab. Considering that she came all the way to my home this early, it couldn't be good.She eyed me. "Are you going to invite me in or what?" Her words snapped me back to reality. "Ermm... Please, come in."I held the door open wide enough. Nonetheless, as she walked in, she hit my shoulder with hers. It brushed against the scald that was yet to heal fully. I bit my tongue, braving the pain."Good morning, ma'am," Gerald said, walking over from the dining table.My mother turned a deaf ear to his greeting. Instead, she looked around the small apartment with her nose turned up in disgust."Mom, ple
~Rosemary~My mother gasped and slapped her chest. Her eyes were bulging out of the sockets as she stared at Gerald. "What did you just say to me?"Gerald's voice came out calm but annoyed. "I said, you need to leave. You've overstayed your welcome.""How dare you!" Mom pointed at him. "This is my daughter's house. You have no right to tell me to leave, you pauper!"My head suddenly began to ache. I sank to my knees helplessly. I knew my mother wasn't going to go down without a fight. This was going to be one hell of a long day."Say all you want, but you are the trespasser here. I won't have you causing my wife any more distress. Leave before I call the cops."Strangely, my mother became quiet. I was expecting her next shout to shake the entire apartment. But to my greatest surprise, she snorted. "I will be back, you two. I'll be back!"Then, she stormed out.I burst into tears all over again as I watched her leave. Gerald squatted by my side and resumed patting my back. "Don't let w
~Rosemary~I took another bite off my sandwich and crossed my legs leisurely. This seemed to annoy Max even more. He walked over to the desk and slapped it with both hands. He gave me a murderous glare before continuing, "Are you out of your damn mind? Why the fuck did you buy the land I wanted to use for the expansion of my factory?"Calmly, I took a sip of my now-cold coffee and then cleared my throat. "One of the rules of this world is 'first come, first serve'. No one is obligated to wait for you, Mr. Max Smith!""By the way, didn't I warn you never to step foot in this hotel again?" I added before he could utter a word.Max's face turned red. "It's a free world. I can go wherever I want. You can't stop me!""Oh, yes, I can! This is private property, not some park you can just stroll into!" I uncrossed my legs.He snorted. "I didn't come here to trade words with you, Rosemary. I have had my eyes on that land for a long time. Hand it over to me right now!"I chuckled. "And why woul
~Gerald~I so wanted to kiss Rosemary on the lips. Not because I wanted to show off in front of Max, but because I had been dying to do so ever since we got married. I could already imagine how they would taste: like strawberries or vanilla, or even a mixture of both.Damn! I exclaimed inwardly as Rosemary seemed to pout when I lowered my head even more. It took a great deal of restraint for me to settle for her cheek instead. My lips lingered on her warm skin. I inhaled deeply.God, she smells so damn good!I pulled back after a while. Stroking her hair, I asked, "You okay?"Rosemary opened her eyes slowly. They seemed misty as she looked up at me and nodded. "I...I'm okay now."I smiled at her. Then turned to Max. I saw that his mouth was opened wide in shock. With a smirk, I snapped my fingers. "Back to earth, mister!"Max blinked back to reality with a jerk. In a matter of seconds, his shocked expression changed to disgust. "Eugh! PDA doesn't suit the two of you at all. It's so re
~Gerald~The ride home was the most awkward one yet. For some reason, Rosemary had slipped back into silence. I kept stealing glances at her, but I couldn't tell what she was thinking. Did Max get to her? How so?As soon as we pulled up in front of our apartment building, Rosemary got out before I could get off to open the door for her like I always did. The situation became even more awkward once we walked into our apartment.I thought of a way to break the silence. Just when I was about to ask her what she would like for dinner, Rosemary plopped down on the sofa, knocked off her shoes, and let out a loud sigh."I don't know what to do!" She looked at me. "What should I do, Gerald?""About what? Max?"She bit her fingers nervously. "He wasn't kidding when he made that threat. I know I acted unfazed, but I am scared. He's a ruthless man with connections."I went to sit beside her and patted her back. "Don't worry about that. The way I see it, he was just bragging. He can't do shit.""
~Gerald~I turned in the opposite direction, only to see Rosemary matching over in her high heels. She was wearing a fitted dress today, so her hips swayed from side to side as she walked. Nonetheless, she still looked like a badass. I raised my hand and waved at her. To my surprise, she walked past me without even sparing me a glance. She went straight to where my supervisor and colleagues were.Standing with her arms akimbo, Rosemary glared at them. "You should be ashamed of yourselves!""Is she talking to me?" Mr. Hanks looked around in confusion. When my colleagues avoided his eyes, he turned to Rosemary and snarled, "And who the fuck are you?"Rosemary scoffed. "Didn't you just hear me call Gerald my husband? So much for being a "smart" man!"Mr. Hanks pointed. "You! Watch your mouth!""Watch your own mouth!" Rosemary retorted. "Seeing as my husband got employed so fast, shouldn't that tell you he's no ordinary guy?"She grabbed my wrist and pulled me closer once I got within a
~Gerald~I heard my phone buzzing as I was working. I flipped it over and saw that it was Elvis.Why could he be calling during work hours?Quickly, I slipped out of my cubicle and exited the building though a side door. I headed straight to the telephone booth which I had seen some employees use. Locking myself in, I finally answered the call, "What's up?"Elvis's voice came from the other end of the line. "Pardon me for calling now, boss. I know you are busy, but have you seen the news?""What news?" I leaned against the glass wall."The IRS just dropped the tax evasion case against Max Smith.""What! Why would they do that?"I heard Elvis sigh exasperatedly. "According to the press release, the accusation was unfounded and Max has been paying his taxes correctly.""That's not true!" I growled.He sighed again. "Boss, it seems something fishy went on behind the scenes. I just found out that about six officials that were involved in the probe were fired for no just reason."Hearing t
~Rosemary~A year later.“Are you nervous? Getting cold feet?”I blinked when I heard that voice. Sitting in front of the mirror, I looked at Sabrina who was styling my hair. “No, I am not nervous.”She sighed and stared straight at me. “So why have you zoned out more than three times since I started doing your hair? Something else bothering you?”I shook my head slightly. “I was just...just thinking about how different today would have been if my mom, dad, and Amani were here.”“Ugh!” Sabrina gagged. “How can you think of those fools on such a beautiful day?”My head lowered and I inhaled deeply.“Come on, girl. Forget about those folks. It’s not your fault that they were jerks. You have kept your mom out of your life for a year. Don't allow her into your heart again.”I raised my head. Then nodded. “Okay. I won't.”It had been more than a year since Amani committed suicide with the large dose of fentanyl she had on herself when she was arrested. And it had been seven months since my
~Rosemary~I pricked up my ear after Gerald removed the call from speakerphone and then said a few words. Although I didn't hear anything more, I was fairly certain it had to do with me.“I am coming with you,” I said as soon as he ended the call.Gerald shook his head. “No, you can't. Let me handle this.”“You are not the boss of me.”I took a deep breath, realizing that I was getting worked up. “I’m sorry. I—”“It’s fine. I can only imagine how you must be feeling now. But you don't have to follow me to the station.”“I do. And I want to. I want to look her in the eye and ask her why she did that to me. I also want to see Max and Amani. I want all of them to know that despite everything they did to me, they cannot break me.”Gerald stared at me, and I saw more reluctance in his eyes.“She deserves that much, Gerald,” Elvis chipped in. “After all she has been through recently, she deserves to look at her enemies in the eye.”Gerald said to him, “Stay out of this. Please.”“I know you
~Rosemary~Gerald’s head shot up as soon as I spoke. His eyes lit up and then, I felt his body crushing mine.“You are back!” he said, kissing my face. “What took you so long?”He pulled back and held my face. “Oh, my God! You scared the shit out of me. Don't do that again, okay?”I chuckled. “Okay, Mr. Beckett.”“I was so worried about…” His words trailed off. “Wait, what did you just call me?”I shrugged, “Mr. Beckett?”“You…you remember me?”I nodded. “I remember everything, Gerald. I am sorry that—”Before I could finish speaking, he knocked the breath out of me with a hard kiss. I smiled against his lips and then parted mine.Until now, I didn't know how much I had missed his lips on mine. As always, it felt like heaven. I held his strong arm despite the pain in the back of my hand due to the IV needle.“Catch your breath,” Gerald said, pulling back after like a minute.“What?” I chuckled again.“I’m not done yet. Just breathe.”I did as he said. And the second I was no longer g
~Gerald~“Seize them!” I roared the second I kicked the door open.All six of my men matched in and surrounded Max and Amani. They struggled but were pinned down within seconds.I squatted by the door, seeing Rosemary lying down.“Baby!” I scooped her up.She smiled at me. “You are here.”When she coughed out blood, I held her face. “Shh! Don't say anything. Let’s get you to the hospital.”“Wait!” Rosemary reached out and held my face. “I’m sorry for not believing you. Sorry, I realized too late.”“No! It’s not too late.”“I’m afraid it is.” She smiled again. “If I were to come back to this world again, I’d love to be your woman again. I would love to know love like you love me. To love you and be loved by you, Gerald. Just by reading your words, I realized that you are the man I always dreamed of having as a child.”She rubbed my face. “Promise me that we will meet in another life? Promise me that you will look at me the way you are looking at me right now.”“No! I can't promise you
~Rosemary~It was already past closing hour for most jobs, but my lawyer agreed that I come in to start the process. On the way, my phone dinged.A notification from the doorbell camera had just come in. I opened it and saw the live footage of Amani’s car pulling up in the driveway of Max's house.What’s she doing there? And immediately I just left too.I watched as Amani got out of her car. Max showed up from the inside. They spoke for a while. I thought they were arguing again. But then…“Oh, my God!” I screamed the second Max kissed Amani.“Ma’am,” said the taxi driver. “Are you okay?”I covered my mouth, shaking as Amani and Max made out on the porch. They looked like they wanted to gobble each other up. Max even grabbed her ass and squeezed it. Then they staggered into the house, still not letting each other go.“Ma’am, is anything the matter?”Hearing the taxi driver’s voice again, I raised my head. “Please, can you take my back? I will pay double.”He looked at me through the r
~Rosemary~I couldn't stop thinking of what Gerald said to me about proposing a prenuptial agreement. He sounded so sure that Max wanted me for my money. But Max was a billionaire, right?Right?I took out my phone and searched for the name of Max’s company. A few headlines came up.The first one: Brix Cars to get new CEOThe second: Max Smith resigns from the CEO position. Would this mark the end of the family’s hold on the company?The third: Brix Cars reportedly plunges into 30 billion-dollar debt.My jaw dropped lower with each headline I read. I had no idea that Max’s business was suffering this much, let alone the fact that he was no longer the CEO.Why didn't he tell me? Did this mean Gerald was right?Well… there's only one way to find out.I pulled out my phone and called the number saved under legal. “Erm… I’d like to draft a prenuptial agreement.”*****“What’s this?” Max frowned the second I handed the document to him.I kept my distance, a little scared. “Since we are goi
~Gerald~I slammed the door in his face. Before turning away, I listened as he stormed off, huffing and puffing about how I was making a huge mistake.“Before you say anything…” I began, looking at Elvis. “Get on the phone with the Russian mafia. I’m sure they would be pleased to know that Angel showed up here.”“No!”“What?” I exclaimed on the way to grab a glass of water.Elvis shook his head. “I don't think it’s a good idea to get involved in the battle between Angel and them. Time and time again, this has always ended with a bloodbath. It was hard enough for you to stay alive all these years despite having many enemies. I can't watch you get involved in a mafia war just because you want to take Angel down.”I sighed. “What do you suggest I do then?”“I suggest we wait. We wait for them to locate Angel and take him out. Since he's roaming without a care in the world, that should be pretty easy.”I shook my head with uncertainty. As far as I knew, Angel was much more powerful than m
~Rosemary~“Boss, are you okay? Boss!” Elvis ran to me as soon as the phone dropped from my hand. He made me sit on the sofa and peered down at my face.His tone changed. “Gerald, are you okay? Should I call the doctor?”I shook my head, clutching my chest. It was as if I was going to have a heart attack. But I knew going to the hospital won't help me.“Was that Rosemary on the phone? What did she say? Why are you like this?”I looked at him. “I don't know what to do, man. She’s getting married to Max again.”“What! How…but your divorce hasn't being finalized. You didn't sign the divorce papers, did you?”“I didn't. But now that she doesn't remember me or the love we shared, I’m afraid Max would make her drag me to court for the divorce. He's manipulating her big time.”I went on to tell him about the wedding photo Rosemary found and how she accused me of faking it and planting it in Max’s house.“This is getting out of hand. Should I tell the boys to take him out?”I groaned. “No. T
~Rosemary~“H-how is this… how did this…”I couldn't believe my eyes at all. I stared at the woman standing beside Max. She was wearing a very beautiful wedding dress. Most importantly, she wasn't me!She looked like me, but she wasn't me. She was Amani. I was sure of it!“So it’s true? What that man said is true! Max divorced me so he could be with Amani?”The photo slipped off my hands. Taking a step back, I stared down at it. “They even had a wedding. But why did Max propose to me two days ago? And Amani was so happy for me!”What the fuck is going on? Who's playing me for a freaking fool!All of a sudden, the door opened. I turned and saw Max. His eyes widened at the sight of me. He looked at my feet, and his eyes widened even more.“Care to explain?” I asked, folding my arms.I was trying so hard to keep it together. Heaven knows I wanted to jump at him and scratch his face. Another part of me also wanted to just break down crying. This moment reminded me of the heartbreak I su