21EMILY’S POVOuch.I couldn’t deny the stinging sensation in my chest, as I watched them. In my head, the girl changed to me, and it was me and John again, brimming with love for each other as we kissed. I wanted to tear my eyes off them, I really wanted to, but I couldn’t. My eyes were stuck staring at them. I didn’t want them to see me staring, but…Damn. Even though all the feelings left in me for John was hatred, I still couldn’t help feeling hurt.Maybe I connected with the part of me that had been in love with John. Staring at him kissing the girl madly, made me wonder if I was just another girl. It made me wonder if I was just a stand-in. A default person to always go to whenever he needed someone.Those lips he had kissed me with… he was kissing someone else with them… Everything about it seemed wrong.If I thought about it all, it was too painful. If his love had been fake, if our moments had been fake… if… if my idea of his feelings towards me had been fake…I blinked hard
22LUCAS’ POV.“Wait… You need to breathe. You need to calm down.” I said, dropping my notepad, on which I had been jotting down new tech ideas.She plastered a hand against the window with wide eyes, trying to breathe.“No… no, please take me off. I can’t stay here, I’m going to start screaming. I’m going to. I can’t… I can’t breathe.” She said, looking around frantically.I went to her immediately, and pulled off her jacket, which was heavy, and could contribute to her feelings of suffocation.“Wait a sec. Wait…”She tapped my shoulders, trying to get to her feet, but I stopped her.Tears welled up in her eyes, and she couldn’t even speak. She kept on trying hard to breathe, and it seemed to be getting harder, and more intense.Her mouth stayed open, in an attempt to let air in, and I got really scared. We were high in the sky, and I had no idea on how to calm her down because I knew people didn’t get down from Ferris wheels on ropes.“Breathe, please, breathe…” I said, getting more
23EMILY’S POV.Nothing… Nothing…The way he had casually said it made me feel like a fool. The fool for loving him, for being with him. All those moments had been fake.How could a person act so well? How could he have fooled me so well that I didn’t even know about it?It was unfair.It felt like my heart was being pricked horribly by a needle—like it was being cut mercilessly by a surgeon’s scalpel.I had never hated John more at that moment. To think that I had almost married a man like that was sickening.He and his family were alike. Rude, arrogant—only doing the things they wanted, without caring if it was wrong or right, or if they were hurting others. But then, what did I expect? Did I expect him to say it meant something to him?Or that those times were his best times? What exactly had I been expecting? Why did I even ask that question?Thinking about it, it was a little weird…Like… Wow… the John I had known all along was fake. This was the real one, and for years, I hadn’t
24LUCAS’ POVI stared at Stephanie speechlessly, and immediately bent to her, trying to see if she was still breathing.“Damn.” I muttered, realizing she wasn’t breathing, and lifted her into my arms. She was quite heavy for a woman, and I had to grunt to adjust her properly in my arms.Then, I placed her back into the car, and got in, trying to drive to the nearest hospital. I didn’t know if she had a medical condition, but if anything happened to her, I could easily be blamed, and apart from being blamed, I’d feel terribly guilty.I hated being around victims. Somehow, my mind always found a way to blame me for their condition. Crazy, isn’t it?Damn…There seemed to be traffic on the road, and I kept glancing back at her, to ensure she didn’t fall off or stop breathing.No matter how I disliked her, I didn’t wish for her death. This was the second time she was showing signs of being a weakling—something I hated in women.They all thought they had to be weak to be perfectly feminine
25EMILY’S POV.I sprang to my feet, staring at the smashed laptop in disbelief. What had just happened? Was it really John’s laptop that had been smashed to the floor?Why would she do that!?“Why would you do that?” I asked hotly, turning to her, but the only thing she did was glare at me, like I was the one who had done something wrong.I was confused.“If you answer my question, then I’ll answer yours.” She replied haughtily, “Why would you do such a thing?” She asked, leaving me in more confusion than I had been.“Why would I do what?” I asked, my brows knitting together.“How could you even think in all your lowliness to raise your voice on John? I mean… each time I hear how it all played out, I get mad. I boil with so much rage that it feels like I’ll go crazy if I don’t do something drastic.” She spat out, using her hand gestures to show how she felt.“And what is so bad about that? People raise their voices when they get mad, they…”“Not you! Not to John. He’s a freaking Alph
1EMILY’S POV“Ouch!” I withdrew my hand immediately from the oven and saw that my mitten had a hole in it. “This is going to sting.” I remarked, looking at it in anger. Then I turned to the sink and turned on the tap.“Did you hurt yourself, Miss?” Dahlia asked, coming into the kitchen.“Oh, it’s just a little burn.” I replied, although it was obvious on my face that even as little as the burn was, it hurt badly.Dahlia browsed through the cupboards, and in a minute, she had taken my hand and dabbed it in cool honey.“My mom always did this. You’ll heal just fine, but she never hesitated to dab honey on skin whenever it got burned.” She explained, and I watched her. It must have been nice to remember her mother. Dahlia’s mother was long dead and gone, and the only family Dahlia had were her two children.She never talked much about her children, but Dahlia had been more than a mother to me. She kept the house clean, cooked, and never hesitated to listen to me whenever I needed it.Al
2EMILY’S POV.My heart went into a slow beat, and it seemed like everything had stopped. Maybe I was the only one who stopped.John, who smiled like the sun...John, who saw only me...John, who couldn’t wait for us to get married.John, who watched old movies and made cliché statements because I knew I loved them.John, who swore to give his everything to me...John, who was on the bed, groaning and cloaked in the shiny fabric of perspiration, was before me.The girl’s hair shielded her face as she continued to let out soft cries, and it was only when I staggered backwards that they stopped.John pushed her off him frantically, and she rolled off the bed to the floor, grabbing the sheets and covering herself with them.My heart seemed like it was about to explode with each beat.I tried taking deep breaths, but I couldn’t deny the hot tears that wanted to come running down.“Emily.” He called with a cracked voice, and I looked at their clothes on the floor, strewn in different place
3EMILY’S POV.I grabbed his hands and pulled them off, throwing them away from me, and turned to him.“What the heck do you think you’re doing?” I asked, looking at him with surprise, but it felt like a drum hitting my head. I staggered, and he caught me again.“What am I doing?” He asked, and I tried to pry my hands out of his, but he held on to my wrist firmly.“You know what you’re doing. How could you approach me for the sake of doing this? You’re a jerk! A traitor!” I accused him, with my words slurring.“A traitor?”“I thought we were comrades!” I shouted in an uneven tone and swayed on my feet once more, but he caught me by the waist.“Comrades? You’re drunk. I’m only trying to get you to your room.” He said, and in pretense of brushing my hair backwards, he brushed his palm over my breasts once more, and I pushed him away.“I asked what you think you’re doing!” I shouted, but my eyes couldn’t even open properly anymore.“I’m getting you to your room.”“All men are the same. Y
25EMILY’S POV.I sprang to my feet, staring at the smashed laptop in disbelief. What had just happened? Was it really John’s laptop that had been smashed to the floor?Why would she do that!?“Why would you do that?” I asked hotly, turning to her, but the only thing she did was glare at me, like I was the one who had done something wrong.I was confused.“If you answer my question, then I’ll answer yours.” She replied haughtily, “Why would you do such a thing?” She asked, leaving me in more confusion than I had been.“Why would I do what?” I asked, my brows knitting together.“How could you even think in all your lowliness to raise your voice on John? I mean… each time I hear how it all played out, I get mad. I boil with so much rage that it feels like I’ll go crazy if I don’t do something drastic.” She spat out, using her hand gestures to show how she felt.“And what is so bad about that? People raise their voices when they get mad, they…”“Not you! Not to John. He’s a freaking Alph
24LUCAS’ POVI stared at Stephanie speechlessly, and immediately bent to her, trying to see if she was still breathing.“Damn.” I muttered, realizing she wasn’t breathing, and lifted her into my arms. She was quite heavy for a woman, and I had to grunt to adjust her properly in my arms.Then, I placed her back into the car, and got in, trying to drive to the nearest hospital. I didn’t know if she had a medical condition, but if anything happened to her, I could easily be blamed, and apart from being blamed, I’d feel terribly guilty.I hated being around victims. Somehow, my mind always found a way to blame me for their condition. Crazy, isn’t it?Damn…There seemed to be traffic on the road, and I kept glancing back at her, to ensure she didn’t fall off or stop breathing.No matter how I disliked her, I didn’t wish for her death. This was the second time she was showing signs of being a weakling—something I hated in women.They all thought they had to be weak to be perfectly feminine
23EMILY’S POV.Nothing… Nothing…The way he had casually said it made me feel like a fool. The fool for loving him, for being with him. All those moments had been fake.How could a person act so well? How could he have fooled me so well that I didn’t even know about it?It was unfair.It felt like my heart was being pricked horribly by a needle—like it was being cut mercilessly by a surgeon’s scalpel.I had never hated John more at that moment. To think that I had almost married a man like that was sickening.He and his family were alike. Rude, arrogant—only doing the things they wanted, without caring if it was wrong or right, or if they were hurting others. But then, what did I expect? Did I expect him to say it meant something to him?Or that those times were his best times? What exactly had I been expecting? Why did I even ask that question?Thinking about it, it was a little weird…Like… Wow… the John I had known all along was fake. This was the real one, and for years, I hadn’t
22LUCAS’ POV.“Wait… You need to breathe. You need to calm down.” I said, dropping my notepad, on which I had been jotting down new tech ideas.She plastered a hand against the window with wide eyes, trying to breathe.“No… no, please take me off. I can’t stay here, I’m going to start screaming. I’m going to. I can’t… I can’t breathe.” She said, looking around frantically.I went to her immediately, and pulled off her jacket, which was heavy, and could contribute to her feelings of suffocation.“Wait a sec. Wait…”She tapped my shoulders, trying to get to her feet, but I stopped her.Tears welled up in her eyes, and she couldn’t even speak. She kept on trying hard to breathe, and it seemed to be getting harder, and more intense.Her mouth stayed open, in an attempt to let air in, and I got really scared. We were high in the sky, and I had no idea on how to calm her down because I knew people didn’t get down from Ferris wheels on ropes.“Breathe, please, breathe…” I said, getting more
21EMILY’S POVOuch.I couldn’t deny the stinging sensation in my chest, as I watched them. In my head, the girl changed to me, and it was me and John again, brimming with love for each other as we kissed. I wanted to tear my eyes off them, I really wanted to, but I couldn’t. My eyes were stuck staring at them. I didn’t want them to see me staring, but…Damn. Even though all the feelings left in me for John was hatred, I still couldn’t help feeling hurt.Maybe I connected with the part of me that had been in love with John. Staring at him kissing the girl madly, made me wonder if I was just another girl. It made me wonder if I was just a stand-in. A default person to always go to whenever he needed someone.Those lips he had kissed me with… he was kissing someone else with them… Everything about it seemed wrong.If I thought about it all, it was too painful. If his love had been fake, if our moments had been fake… if… if my idea of his feelings towards me had been fake…I blinked hard
LUCAS’ POV.I was taken aback by the question. I hadn’t expected it at all. Was she trying to impose it on me to say something nice, or was she really asking for my honest opinion?I sighed, ready to speak. Being honest was always the way to go. I parted my lips to begin, but she was faster.“Let me make it easier. What do you think of her, as a person, business partner, and as a marriage partner? You know if we join forces through marriage, we’ll be formidable. We’ll conquer both the home, and international market easily. We won’t have any competitors.” She said.I was well aware of that fact. Marrying Stephanie and taking over her companies, and adding them to mine was definitely going to skyrocket me to immeasurable success, but…I wasn’t that greedy.“As a person, Stephanie is beautiful, she’s smart, graceful, and eloquent. As a business partner, I think I’ll admire her wits and confidence. She can make potential business partners feel like they’re on the losing side if they don’t
19EMILY’S POV.The next time I opened my eyes, the suns rays were playing on my face through the open window.“Good morning, ma’am.” I heard a maid say, and tilted my head upwards, slightly to look at her.“What happened?” I asked, and she came to my bedside.“You fainted, and we had to rush you to the hosoital. The doctor said you had outdone yourself, and were being stressed physically, mentally, and emotionally.” She said, and I groaned.“Who said I was struggling mentally and emotionally? Did he open up the walls of my mind to see? Is he a psychologist? I was completely fine yesterday morning, until I began to work like I had twenty maids imbued in me.” I snapped, and she smiled.I didn’t want John thinking in the least that he managed to get a reaction from me, or that anything he was doing was getting to me. He had decided to torture me, and proclaim us as enemies. There was no way I could show my weakness no matter how hurt, sad, depressed, and defeated I felt.“The doctor sai
18LUCAS’ POV.“No, I don’t know her.” I replied, and was technically saying the truth, or maybe it was a half-lie and a half-truth. He asked if I knew Emily, but I didn’t. She was still a stranger to me. I knew her identity, which made me a liar, but apart from that, I knew nothing about her. Her personality, where she lived, where she worked. I didn’t know anything about her, so that passed as the truth.“Why did you ask?” I asked, and he sighed.“It was just something about the way she stared at you when she first saw you. It was like she was seeing a ghost. She couldn’t hold your hand properly. Like you guys knew each other, and she was shocked to find out you were my Uncle. When I told her you were my Uncle, that was when she stepped backwards, and succeeded in pushing the heirloom off the table.” He said.“Hmm. Maybe I was too handsome?” I asked, teasing, and he laughed.“I know you’re teasing, but how can you sound so serious when you’re joking?” He asked, and I burst into laug
17EMILY’S POV.The dinner was an intense one for me, with the family not wasting time to hint at me not being good enough, especially the children.In fact, the adults hinted at Katie being the better option, by complimenting her beauty, smooth skills, eloquence, and calmness, although they never said it out loud that they were comparing her to me.It was what I ought to know since I wasn’t a fool.“Katie’s so sweet with the knife.” Derel said, staring at her in awe, as she cut up a strong piece of meat for him, and she smiled, giving him a little bow.“I like how she’s mysterious. I’ll totally want her for a… uh, what’s John to me?” Sadie asked, and everyone laughed.“He’s your cousin, darling.” Her father replied.“And what’s my cousin’s wife to me?” She asked.“I think the answer is your cousin’s wife.” Derel replied, looking like he doubted his own words.“It’s Cousin-in-law.” Jude corrected quietly.“My smart beauty.” Lady Genevieve said calmly, and for the first time that night