Chapter 11LILY’S POVI wanted to go visit my mother at the hospital but changed my mind after seeing how miserable I looked. It’ll only get her to worry about me and the last thing I wanted was for her to worry in her state especially now the doctor mentioned she was responding to treatment.I felt like a lost puppy – alone, lost and unsure of what to do next. I thought of going to the family house but after remembering Robert’s harsh words and false accusations, I quickly erased the thought. I wasn’t ready to see him again for now. I feared he might have told his family members I was on a mission to sabotage his company and steal it from him. They’ll see me as a bad person and might never accept me as a part of the family or worse, throw me out. I was already struggling to fit in. Robert might use that chance to convince his grandpa that I wasn’t the right wife for him, that I wasn’t the good, decent woman he believed me to be. If he manages to do that and his grandpa believes him,
Chapter 12LILY’S POVAfter spending time at the bar, I made my way back to my apartment, grateful today didn’t end as badly as it started. Robert will be pissed I haven’t completely moved out of the apartment to the family house but at that moment, I didn’t want to think of it. His happiness was my top priority but with everything that happened today at the office, I just needed some time away from him. I wasn’t ready to face him after he treated me harshly and unfairly.I tried to keep myself from thinking of the worst-case scenario of him telling his family members what happened at the office as I approached my apartment. However, I noticed something unusual.My apartment was already open and some men were carting away with some of my property. I thought they were thieves but thieves don’t come stealing in broad daylight and my neighbours would have alerted the police if they were. They were dressed in special uniforms, looking like construction workers from a reputable constructi
CHAPTER 13 ***Please note all the chapters of the book are written from Lily's point of view unless stated otherwise.*** My breath caught and my hand instinctively ran up against my mouth to hold back the gasp about to escape. I was in a rush to leave for work this morning so I forgot to hide the pregnancy test result. I had left it on top of the nightstand. Now he’s found it. Something I promised never to let him find out about till the time was right. How could I been so forgetful and careless? This is bad…very bad. My heart was pounding against my rib cage. I tried but unsuccessfully to steady it as I lifted my gaze to meet Robert’s raging eyes. I don’t think I have ever seen him this angry. Normally, couples are supposed to celebrate the news of pregnancy especially if it has taken a long time to come. Any husband will be happy about this. Any husband but Robert. Was pregnancy really that bad a thing for him? Did he despise it, or did he just hate the thought of me carr
Chapter 14With that said Robert turned and made his way to the door. But I said something that dragged back his attention.“So it’s okay for Scarlett to be pregnant with your child but not me?” I asked with painful tears that hurt my eyes streaming down my face.“What did you just say?” He turned and asked, his brows knitting in sharply like he didn’t hear me correctly.Trying to maintain a tough demeanour, I vigorously wiped the tears off my face and tried to blink away my tears. I looked at him directly in the eyes. “I know everything. From how you got her pregnant and have been sleeping with her behind my back to your plans to get rid of me once your grandpa is no more and this contract marriage is over,” I scoffed in disbelief, that feeling of hurt and betrayal I felt when Scarlett told me all this creeping back into me. “I know you don’t love me like I love you, Robert but the last thing I expected you to do is betray me like this. All these years all I have done is stay true a
Chapter 15The TV was playing and the noise that came with people talking and walking around could be heard as I was seated in the waiting room of the hospital. But I barely paid attention to any of that as I was drowned in my thoughts. Robert’s hurtful words and the doctor’s message last night daggered my mind, leaving me feeling very anxious and uneasy. The thought of having this abortion only made it worse. I hadn’t done it before and didn’t know what to expect. As much as it scared the hell out of me, it was the only way I could get the money I needed to save my mother. I had to report back to Robert later in the day with the proof of the abortion procedure for him to give me my monthly paycheck for the contract marriage agreement. I couldn’t wait to get the procedure over with so I could go see how my mother was doing and give Robert what he wanted.Last night after Robert left, those men came back and carried the remaining furniture in the apartment which was my bed. I proved s
Chapter 16Someone tell me I’m dreaming. Tell me this isn’t true. Robert can’t be dead. He just can’t. I had just seen him yesterday. Even though he rejected my love and treated me cruelly and harshly, I still loved him with all my heart and didn’t want him gone at all. I had grown so attached to him I could barely go a day without seeing him and knowing how he was doing even though he might not want to do the same for me.I couldn’t seem to understand how someone could have done something this heartless and pinned it on me. He didn’t have any enemies that I knew of. The last thing I’ll do on this earth is kill someone, much less the father of my unborn child. The love of my life. My lifelong crush. If the police had come for me, that meant the news had probably gone viral. What will his family and the entire city think of me now? What do I tell my child when he grows up and wants to know what happened to his father?My head was bowed low in despair as the police car sped through. I h
CHAPTER 17“What is your relationship with Mr. Ronald Wilson?”I swallowed a lump around my throat to find my speech coherence. “He is the grandfather of my husband. As such my grandfather-in-law.”She scribbled on her notepad and continued.“Do you perhaps have some personal grudge against him maybe because of a past conflict or disagreement?”Her question caught me off guard. Grimacing in confusion, I stammered, trying to reiterate my point, “No…no, I don’t. Why would I hold a grudge against a man who has been so good to me from the very first day he set his eyes on me…”“I don’t know,” she shrugged nonchalantly. “You tell me.”She was taking this the wrong way. Robert’s Grandpa and I have been on good terms right from the start. He was my late grandpa’s best friend. The long-standing promise they made to each other before my grandpa died was the only reason I got the chance to be this close to Robert as his wife after all those years of not seeing him and being far away from him. B
CHAPTER 18 “What?...” I grimaced intensely in bewilderment, feeling blood drain from my face. “I…I didn’t stab anyone…” “How then do you explain the fact that the forensic results show your fingerprints are all over the murder weapon?” She raised a brow, looking at me as if waiting for me to come up with a lie. “What…what fingerprints are you talking about?” I stared at the blood-stained blade on the table in front of me before looking back at her, completely clueless. “So you’re going to deny this one too?” She asked, her face crimson with stern rage. “You mentioned earlier you had a little misunderstanding with your husband yesterday, what caused the little misunderstanding?” I lowered my gaze and shook my head in despair, bitter tears making its way down my cheeks. My heart was clenching painfully in my chest. I can’t do it anymore. I just can’t. It was all too much for me to bear and understand, I might just go crazy. I have been wrongfully accused of a lot of things
CHAPTER 130LILY’S POV ~ “You know what?... Just leave. I’ve had about enough of you invading into my life like a damn shadow, lurking where you don’t belong. I refuse to believe what you just said because I know it’s a lie, a manipulation tactic to disorient and make me ease up to you. But it won’t work. You can’t deceive me again.”“I’m not lying Lily…” ~“I don’t want to hear it,” I brought my hand forward to stop him. “That’s how you lied to their teacher about you and I being separated and sharing custody of the kids. I never thought you’d stoop so low just to get your way. Don’t you think that’s embarrassing for someone who once thought he could get anything he wanted with the snap of his finger?” I asked with a condescending sneer.“That was different, Lily…”“Why don’t you stop being an asshole and leave like she told you to?” Noah fumed from behind me, clearly annoyed and fed up with Robert’s persistence.“Did the Chihuahua finally find its voice?” Robert sneered at Noah,
CHAPTER 129LILY’S POV ~ “Don’t bother,” Nana Mae said firmly, like one holding onto the last shred of her dignity. “I have been working here for the past two years. I know my way to the door.”She looked at me, her eyes glistening with hurtful disappointment. “I was wrong to think of you as a daughter. You’ve changed so much over these past few weeks I can barely recognize what you’ve become. If you keep up with this attitude, not only will your kids hate you but you also going to end up alone, feeling miserable and regretting your entire life.” She finished before furiously matching towards the exit. ~“My kids won’t hate me because they love me very much and know how much I sacrificed for them to be where they are now, and I can never feel miserable and alone because I have them by my side!” I yelled at her scornfully but I don’t think she heard it because the door had slammed shut, proving she’d left.If she thought her words would affect me then she was wrong because, at this
CHAPTER 128LILY’S POV~ “I said now!” I yelled at them. “Don’t make me repeat myself.”They both jumped in fear. Liam gave Robert a quick hug before they raced to their room like they were being chased by a monster.After I heard them shut their door, I faced Robert because I didn’t want them to witness what was about to happen. ~“You have some nerves showing up at my kids’ school and pulling them from their classes even after I warned you not to get any close to them,” I said, my eyes burning into him with murderous intent. At this point, if Noah proposed we hire an assassin to take him out again, I’ll pass it in a heartbeat because I’ve had just about enough of him.“Still, that isn’t enough reason for you to do this,” he said, gesturing toward the mess I made on the floor. His frustration was evident, and judging by the look on his face, what I did really got to him. Just exactly what I wanted.But I couldn’t help snorting in disbelief, a scornful smirk curving the side of my
CHAPTER 127LILY’S POVWe drove straight home after Nana Mae made it known to us the kids were safe and home. Noah was speeding on the way he almost ran into a construction vehicle. I hadn’t seen him this angry and serious in a while.If Nana Mae hadn’t called, we would have been on our way to New York. Noah had wanted to drive to his hangar and get one of his private jets to take us when she called. I was relieved we didn’t leave the city. The thought of meeting with Robert’s family members filled me with nothing but dread and rage. They were monsters, and seeing them will bring back a lot of memories I struggled to forget.I couldn’t believe Nana Mae was asking if I was sure Robert was the one who hurt me. Like what the fuck! Did she think I was lying or making a big deal out of the matter? Robert had probably put up an act to deceive her and the kids. That’s what he’d been doing ever since he arrived – putting on acts and pretending to be sorry while in reality, he had ulterior mo
CHAPTER 126LILY’S POV~ “I have nothing to say to you,” I sneered at her coldly. “Just know that if anything happens to my kids, I’ll make sure you lose your teaching license and I’ll burn this school to the fucking ground. Now, where did he take them?!”“I don’t know…” She squeaked amid the tears burning at the back of her shielded eyes. ~“What do you mean you don’t know?” My eyes were wide as I stared at her in disbelief.“He didn’t say…” she muttered.I gripped my forehead, feeling the panic flood my system. How do I find them when I had no idea where Robert had taken them? I didn’t have his contact and didn’t know any means I could use to get to him. As far as I was concerned, this was a kidnap. Robert had kidnapped my kids.Quickly, I rushed out of the office, determined to get to Noah and tell him because he’ll know what to do in this kind of situation. Miss Hampton tried calling me back but I ignored her like she didn’t exist. If anything happens to my kids, I’ll make sure
CHAPTER 125LILY’S POVNoah and I pulled up to the school just as the bell rang, signalling the end of the day. The whole area was filled with parents who had come to pick up their kids. Nothing warmed my heart more than seeing little children reunite with their parents after a long day in school and telling them how it went. I couldn’t wait for Liam and Lila to tell me how their day went.We waited for Liam and Lila in the spot where they usually stayed after school to wait for me. But five minutes went by, ten, fifteen, getting to twenty minutes yet they were nowhere to be seen.Having this odd feeling that something could be wrong, I stepped out of the car in search of them, telling Noah I would be right back. Why were they taking so long? What could be keeping them? Usually, they wait for me at that spot before I even arrive.I went straight to their classroom only to see their classmates were gone, leaving the classroom empty. The hallway and other classes were empty too. Tensio
CHAPTER 125LILY’S POV~ Moments later, Tony, the head of security came back on the line. “Mrs. Jones, I have gone through all the footage of your office and can confirm there was no unauthorized entry. I’ll send it to you so you can see for yourself.” I didn’t wait for him to finish as I put the telephone back into the casing. I glanced around helplessly, feeling the tears I was holding back trail down my cheeks. Sooner or later, Noah will come asking why I hadn’t sent the pitch to him. What do I tell him? What do I do now? ~I was fretting, pacing the length of my office like a crazy ass scientist when the door pushed open and Noah walked in. My heart skipped a beat on seeing him and I had to place my hand against my thumping chest to steady it.“I’m sorry…” Noah apologized, his brows furrowing in confusion as he found my reaction a bit disturbing. Vaguely disturbing. I had never reacted like this whenever he came to my office. “I didn’t mean to startle you like that.”“It’s oka
CHAPTER 123:ROBERT’S POV~“I won’t force you two to forgive and accept me immediately,” I said with a smile that was painful yet blissful. “Take all the time you need. I’ll wait for a thousand years if I have to. But just know that I’m finally ready to be the daddy of your dreams. The daddy you have always wanted. I’m willing to do anything to prove that I’m your biological father. I’ll run a DNA test if I have to…” ~Suddenly, Lila cut me off with an unexpected thud of a hug that made me almost lose my balance. “It’s okay,” she said as she wrapped her hands tightly around me, burying her face into the side of my neck. “You’ve done enough. I’m still mad you left us all these years but I have forgiven you, and I can’t wait for you, mummy, me, Liam and Uncle Noah to come together and become a very big happy family.” She added, her voice brimming with joy.My blood bubbled with joy and I exhaled a long sigh of contentment as I embraced her deeply, not wanting to let go, not wanting th
CHAPTER 122ROBERT’S POV~ Taking a deep breath, I lowered myself to their level, meeting their eyes with honesty.Overcoming a lump forming in my throat, I said, “Your mummy… lied.” ~“Uhh…” their brows furrowed.“What do you mean she lied?” Lila asked agitated as she paid close attention to me.“I’m not in the military, and I’ve never been to Mars. Humans can’t even survive there—or on any other planet besides Earth. I’m just a billionaire CEO. My family owns multiple business enterprises, which is why I’m dressed like I’m running for U.S. president,” I said with a faint smile.Liam and Lila switched glances. Their faces fell and in their eyes were this disappointed and betrayed look. I knew that inexplicable feeling of hurt you get when someone you love lies to you about something important. But I didn’t want them to see Lily as a villain. She only did what she had to do to protect them from a father who, at the time, didn’t know the value of what he had. A sharp wave of regret