[Vivienne]Something tells me he’s about to say something that I would hate with everything I have.Something probably cheeky, stupid, and not worth my time.I roll my eyes, leaning back in my seat. “On second thought, maybe I don’t want to know.”“Why? Giving up that easily?” he says, but it sounds like a challenge.I don’t like the fact that he’s trying his best to get a response out of me, but something inside me doesn’t mind either—that he’s willing to try that hard. For me.I have no idea why that thought is so exhilarating when it shouldn’t be.Sure, I’ve spent years pining for this man’s affection, wondering how it would feel to finally be accepted by him, to be loved by him. But that should have changed by now, shouldn’t it? I’ve moved on. He’s moved on. There simply shouldn’t be any feelings involved. And if there are, then it’s simply wrong. So damn wrong.“Something tells me you’re dying to tell them anyway, aren’t you?” I perk up a brow, more than sure now.A soft chuckle
[Caden]By the time we land in Shizuoka, one of the most beautiful cities in Japan, it’s already past dinner.The kids got hungry and ended up eating while we were still in the air, before passing out from pure exhaustion.When we get off the private jet, Vivienne’s assistant has already taken care of all the arrangements.A queue of three cars waits for us on the runway, and they drive us straight to a diamond-star hotel—one that even I (being a billionaire myself) never thought I’d step into, at least in this lifetime.The place looks like something out of a dream—marble fountains in the lobby, crystal chandeliers the size of small planets, and staff that bow so low it feels like we’re royalty. I can see Vivienne trying to act unimpressed, but even she does a double-take when we pass the massive koi pond inside the elevator.Yeah. Inside the elevator.The kids are too groggy to care. Both of them are in each of our arms, as they stay half-asleep and half-awake throughout the elevato
“Uh…” Ben starts, scratching the back of his head like that’s supposed to make him look innocent. “We were... uh, watching cartoons.”Well, that’s pretty obvious. But the question is, "Why?"I look at the time just to be sure and realize we’ve only slept for, what... four hours?I round the couch and look them dead in the eyes, despite being aware Axel can’t very well see. But he can hear, right? And they both need to hear this.“You’re supposed to inform me when you’re leaving the room, Ben. This is not cool.” I turn to face Axel. “And so do you, mister. Did you tell your mom you were leaving the room to watch TV?”Axel pouts, eyes lowering. “No? Mom doesn’t let me do anything fun this early in the morning.”“Exactly my point. Now, get up and move your ass. First, you two will shower, change your clothes, have breakfast, and then your mom and I will decide if you’ve been good and deserve to watch TV or not. Is that clear?”They both look unhappy as hell. Not that I care.I usher both
[Vivienne]When I open my eyes, I don’t expect anything out of the ordinary.Like all my mornings, I expect to wake up staring at the ceiling, followed by my phone screen, and then realizing I have only half an hour to get ready or risk being late.But none of that happens this time.This time, when I wake up, I feel like I’ve been crushed by a train or something of that sort. My heart hurts, and when I try to turn or lift my arm to rub my face, it takes an immense amount of strength to do that.“Ughhhh!” I groan, blinking a few times to make sure I woke up in the same dimension I slept in—and not the other way around.“Hey, it’s okay,” a deep voice says, too faint for my ears to pick up clearly. Or maybe I’m just too drowsy to catch it. It’s only when I look to my side that I realize it belongs to the only man I have no desire to face first thing in the morning.“What the hell are you doing here?” I snap—or at least I try—only to feel like my throat is closing up on me, warning me no
[Vivienne]I shouldn’t be having such thoughts right now.Especially when I’m engaged to someone else and the thoughts I’m having involve my ex-husband in the most outrageous manner.Like really. Why would I suddenly think of his lips on mine, his hands on the most secretive and sacred places of my body, and something absolutely unholy that has something to do with his mouth and my…Shit.This is probably the fever talking.Because as far as I know myself, I can’t be that horny for a man. And that too, for a man like Caden.The guy is literally and solely responsible for some of the worst years of my life. Not only did he embarrass me, disappoint me time and again, but he humiliated me whenever he got the chance. He broke my heart in the worst ways possible, even though he knew how terribly and deeply I was in love with him. He didn’t appreciate me when he had the chance, so why—why would my brain force such images into my head?Instead of these steamy encounters, my brain should put
[Vivienne]“Why are you telling me this?”I don’t know how else to put my bafflement into words if not by being straightforward.No matter how difficult this man can be sometimes, I can’t deny that the man in front of me is known for his straightforwardness when it comes to business. His opinions on matters are never all over the place. Absolutely not. In fact, despite his aloof persona, he always has strong opinions about everything.Simply put, he’s not one to talk in circles, and right now, I plan to do the same.At first, he stays quiet, still sitting on the floor, picking at some invisible thread on my dress. His eyes are lowered, never meeting mine, as if he’s neither done nor ready to end this conversation.“I don’t know,” he says then, quietly as usual. “Maybe I think you should know. Or maybe because I’ve been keeping these things to myself for so long that now I can’t keep them in any longer. If I did, I might explode, and I don’t want that.”I don’t know what to say. Should
[Caden]I haven’t even told her everything yet, and I already feel like so much weight has been lifted off my shoulders.Makes me wonder: why didn’t I do it before? What was I waiting for? What worse could have happened if I had taken that kind of risk?But I can’t rebuff my fears either.It’s hard for me to accept—or confess—but my fears weren’t exactly baseless.When you’ve faced disappointment and betrayal so early in life, it makes you wary of trusting literally anyone—sometimes even your own judgment. And that’s what happened to us. Even though everything inside me approved of Vivienne and we ended up getting married, I still couldn’t get rid of this constant fear and suspicion that somehow she would betray me too—that she would leave me when I was at my lowest, and I’d be able to do nothing but hold myself responsible for letting another person get close to my heart.I’m about to question if my attempt to open up right now is even worth the effort when I finally look up and find
[Vivienne]The dinner at the table turned cold an hour ago but no sign of Caden.I check the time on the wall clock for the hundredth time perhaps, and try to suppress the hurt that once again rises to the surface like an angry volcano beneath my chest.It’s our third anniversary, and it’s almost midnight now, but like every single day in the past three years, he’s late as usual.I don’t know why I even try. My husband has dismissed me, rejected my efforts, and broken my heart so many times in the past, one would think I would have learned my lesson.But unfortunately, I have been cursed to be always hopeful.“Madam, should I reheat the dinner?” The head maid asks, pulling me out of my thoughts.I suck in the hurt and wipe away the tears from my eyes, not wanting to look as devastated as I feel.I smile at her like I always do.“No. That won’t be necessary,” I say and get up from the chair, pretending to yawn, hoping to look tired. “I think Caden got caught up in the meeting again,” b
[Caden]I haven’t even told her everything yet, and I already feel like so much weight has been lifted off my shoulders.Makes me wonder: why didn’t I do it before? What was I waiting for? What worse could have happened if I had taken that kind of risk?But I can’t rebuff my fears either.It’s hard for me to accept—or confess—but my fears weren’t exactly baseless.When you’ve faced disappointment and betrayal so early in life, it makes you wary of trusting literally anyone—sometimes even your own judgment. And that’s what happened to us. Even though everything inside me approved of Vivienne and we ended up getting married, I still couldn’t get rid of this constant fear and suspicion that somehow she would betray me too—that she would leave me when I was at my lowest, and I’d be able to do nothing but hold myself responsible for letting another person get close to my heart.I’m about to question if my attempt to open up right now is even worth the effort when I finally look up and find
[Vivienne]“Why are you telling me this?”I don’t know how else to put my bafflement into words if not by being straightforward.No matter how difficult this man can be sometimes, I can’t deny that the man in front of me is known for his straightforwardness when it comes to business. His opinions on matters are never all over the place. Absolutely not. In fact, despite his aloof persona, he always has strong opinions about everything.Simply put, he’s not one to talk in circles, and right now, I plan to do the same.At first, he stays quiet, still sitting on the floor, picking at some invisible thread on my dress. His eyes are lowered, never meeting mine, as if he’s neither done nor ready to end this conversation.“I don’t know,” he says then, quietly as usual. “Maybe I think you should know. Or maybe because I’ve been keeping these things to myself for so long that now I can’t keep them in any longer. If I did, I might explode, and I don’t want that.”I don’t know what to say. Should
[Vivienne]I shouldn’t be having such thoughts right now.Especially when I’m engaged to someone else and the thoughts I’m having involve my ex-husband in the most outrageous manner.Like really. Why would I suddenly think of his lips on mine, his hands on the most secretive and sacred places of my body, and something absolutely unholy that has something to do with his mouth and my…Shit.This is probably the fever talking.Because as far as I know myself, I can’t be that horny for a man. And that too, for a man like Caden.The guy is literally and solely responsible for some of the worst years of my life. Not only did he embarrass me, disappoint me time and again, but he humiliated me whenever he got the chance. He broke my heart in the worst ways possible, even though he knew how terribly and deeply I was in love with him. He didn’t appreciate me when he had the chance, so why—why would my brain force such images into my head?Instead of these steamy encounters, my brain should put
[Vivienne]When I open my eyes, I don’t expect anything out of the ordinary.Like all my mornings, I expect to wake up staring at the ceiling, followed by my phone screen, and then realizing I have only half an hour to get ready or risk being late.But none of that happens this time.This time, when I wake up, I feel like I’ve been crushed by a train or something of that sort. My heart hurts, and when I try to turn or lift my arm to rub my face, it takes an immense amount of strength to do that.“Ughhhh!” I groan, blinking a few times to make sure I woke up in the same dimension I slept in—and not the other way around.“Hey, it’s okay,” a deep voice says, too faint for my ears to pick up clearly. Or maybe I’m just too drowsy to catch it. It’s only when I look to my side that I realize it belongs to the only man I have no desire to face first thing in the morning.“What the hell are you doing here?” I snap—or at least I try—only to feel like my throat is closing up on me, warning me no
“Uh…” Ben starts, scratching the back of his head like that’s supposed to make him look innocent. “We were... uh, watching cartoons.”Well, that’s pretty obvious. But the question is, "Why?"I look at the time just to be sure and realize we’ve only slept for, what... four hours?I round the couch and look them dead in the eyes, despite being aware Axel can’t very well see. But he can hear, right? And they both need to hear this.“You’re supposed to inform me when you’re leaving the room, Ben. This is not cool.” I turn to face Axel. “And so do you, mister. Did you tell your mom you were leaving the room to watch TV?”Axel pouts, eyes lowering. “No? Mom doesn’t let me do anything fun this early in the morning.”“Exactly my point. Now, get up and move your ass. First, you two will shower, change your clothes, have breakfast, and then your mom and I will decide if you’ve been good and deserve to watch TV or not. Is that clear?”They both look unhappy as hell. Not that I care.I usher both
[Caden]By the time we land in Shizuoka, one of the most beautiful cities in Japan, it’s already past dinner.The kids got hungry and ended up eating while we were still in the air, before passing out from pure exhaustion.When we get off the private jet, Vivienne’s assistant has already taken care of all the arrangements.A queue of three cars waits for us on the runway, and they drive us straight to a diamond-star hotel—one that even I (being a billionaire myself) never thought I’d step into, at least in this lifetime.The place looks like something out of a dream—marble fountains in the lobby, crystal chandeliers the size of small planets, and staff that bow so low it feels like we’re royalty. I can see Vivienne trying to act unimpressed, but even she does a double-take when we pass the massive koi pond inside the elevator.Yeah. Inside the elevator.The kids are too groggy to care. Both of them are in each of our arms, as they stay half-asleep and half-awake throughout the elevato
[Vivienne]Something tells me he’s about to say something that I would hate with everything I have.Something probably cheeky, stupid, and not worth my time.I roll my eyes, leaning back in my seat. “On second thought, maybe I don’t want to know.”“Why? Giving up that easily?” he says, but it sounds like a challenge.I don’t like the fact that he’s trying his best to get a response out of me, but something inside me doesn’t mind either—that he’s willing to try that hard. For me.I have no idea why that thought is so exhilarating when it shouldn’t be.Sure, I’ve spent years pining for this man’s affection, wondering how it would feel to finally be accepted by him, to be loved by him. But that should have changed by now, shouldn’t it? I’ve moved on. He’s moved on. There simply shouldn’t be any feelings involved. And if there are, then it’s simply wrong. So damn wrong.“Something tells me you’re dying to tell them anyway, aren’t you?” I perk up a brow, more than sure now.A soft chuckle
[Vivienne]A week later, we are on my private jet to Japan.I can hardly believe we’re doing this together—or the fact that Axel might actually see with his own eyes.I know, I know. I might be overzealous at the prospect of my son being able to see again, but can you really blame me? What mother wouldn’t want her child to live a normal life? What mother wouldn’t want what’s best for her child? And this—this opportunity—might be the best of all, after everything my son has gone through at such a young and tender age.I run my fingers through his soft, short hair as he babbles about the things he learned from Ana about Japan. Ever since they found out we’d be heading to the country, they’ve both been sitting in front of the computer and browsing the internet like crazy.Axel even learned some odd facts that he’s excited to share with Ben and Caden.“Do you know, Mommy, that in Japan, they have square watermelons?” he says, his little hands flailing excitedly in the air as he leans agai
[Caden]I don’t take her threat lightly for even a second.But even then, my lips manage to pull up a small smile.Her being so close—willingly or not—does some weird shit to my hormones. All I want right now is to grab her, kiss her, sprawl her over this damn table, and fuck her until one of us passes out.But obviously, that’s not why I’m here. So maybe it’s time I get my head out of the gutter and focus on what really matters.“Got it,” I say to her, trying to look as serious as I can manage, which, considering my personality, shouldn’t be hard. “Now, can we get back to the business at hand, or do you want to stay here and sit on my lap instead?”That gets her attention just fine. And before I know it, she’s loosening her grip on my shirt, taking a deep breath, and moving away.“Whatever,” she tosses the single word over her shoulder and walks back to her chair. “Speak.”I look around one more time, realizing her office is much more spacious and elegant than anything I have ever se