1

I never realized leaving her would be this hard. Even though it was just for three months, it felt like a lifetime. We hadn’t been together for that long. Still, from inside, I felt torn when I held her that morning.

“I’ll miss you,” she mumbled, kissing my lips. Her lips lingered, and I tasted her sweetness now mixed with her salty tears.

I should tell her I’d miss her too. My tongue glued to the roof of my mouth and my throat constricted. No words came out as I gazed into her hazel eyes. She tried hard to blink her tears away, but they kept falling.

Brushing away a teardrop, I kissed her eyelids, unsure what to say. I wouldn’t see her for another three months. The past twenty-four hours had been pure bliss. My cock ached from all the lovemaking. It was time for our goodbyes. Only I wasn’t ready. I’d never be ready.

“I…” Words failed again. Closing my eyes, I rested my forehead on hers. I didn’t know how long we stood that way.

“Sir, we have to leave now,” my driver announced, breaking our moment. I released her from my embrace, cupped her cheeks, and nodded. Arianna smiled, a fresh batch of tears filling her eyes. She pressed a kiss on my palm.

“Call me.”

“I will.” I cleared my throat, realizing my voice was cracking. Why am I hurting this way?

When I stepped into the elevator, she stood where I left her. Her eyes bored into mine, reflecting the pain of my heart. I watched her knees give way when the door closed as I stood helpless. Resting my head on the cool metal door, I rubbed my aching chest.

Why am I getting so emotional? This shouldn’t have affected me this much. It was not even a minute, but I already missed her. Her teary face consumed every fiber of my memory. Maybe I should’ve asked her to go with me.

My body was on autopilot when I entered the car. The trip to the airport was short and blurry. I nodded curtly to something my driver said, performing every task in robotic mode. People blurred past, and voices echoed around me.

Arianna Swanson. She was all I could think of.

Was three weeks enough time to get to know each other? Enough to turn my life upside down? Three magical weeks that filled my otherwise dull life with laughter and love.

Love. My throat tightened. I thought I’d never use that word again. The discomfort and denial that normally came after such a thought never made an appearance. I waited for some kind of negative reaction from some corner of my mind, but nothing came.

It was too soon. What if I didn’t feel the same after three months? What if she ’didn’t feel the same way? People changed all the time. Didn’t they?

I felt a slight tap on my shoulder and blinked. “Sir, fasten your seatbelt, please.”

Without a word, I secured the seat belt, looking out of the window as the plane moved on the runway. The takeoff had always been my favorite part of flying. No matter how many times I had flown, it always filled me with a sense of excitement. Now, I felt nothing.

As the distance between the land and plane grew, the city was now nothing but a chain of lights from bird view. With a sigh, I reclined in my seat and pulled the blind over my eyes, shutting the outside world with it. My thoughts took off to the past, reminding me of a time when she’d just been a friend of  my cousin, Mike. A time when I didn’t realize she was more than that.

***

Two weeks ago

“Sir, she is persistent and threatens us with a court order.”

“The Cortez estate belongs to my grandfather.” My volume rose. “She doesn’t have any claim to anything that does not belong to my father. I don’t want her anywhere near us, Marcus. Instruct your security team regarding this issue.”

“Okay, sir.”

“She won’t be any trouble once we get the restraining order.”

In my peripheral vision, I spotted a group of men and women approaching the corridor where I stood. I turned to see my cousin Mike had arrived with his friends.

“Sure, sir. I’ll take care of it,” Marcus said.

“Good.” I disconnected the call and went to greet our guests.

My brother Enrique was getting married in two weeks. The event would be colorless without Mike’s friends Arianna and Rosalinda, who had become more like family over the years.

My gaze swept over them before going back to Arianna’s face again. Something was off in her expression. I looked at her, wondering why she appeared dull. She no longer sported her vibrant smile, and her eyes didn’t twinkle anymore.

“Mike! It’s great to see you.” I greeted my cousin with a hug and a pat on his back.

“Orlando! It’s been a while, cousin.”

“Arianna and Rosalinda, welcome to the Cortez estate.” Arianna gave me a tight smile that didn’t reach her eyes. I tried to figure out what I was missing. When I realized I was staring at her, I turned to my brother. “I’m heading to the city. I have to meet the caterers and the wedding planner to make some final arrangements. Tell Papa I’ll join him for dinner.”

“Sure, brother.” 

Turning away from the group, I walked toward the heliport. My phone rang again. “Hello.” I picked up, not seeing who it was.

“Sir, Mr. Waylon requests a meeting with you,” Sheila, my personal assistant, said.

Waylon had to wait. I was in no mood to talk about business. “Schedule it after my brother’s wedding, Sheila.”

“I told him, but Mr. Waylon is pressing because he won’t be available to meet for another three months.”

I sighed in exasperation. When Waylon Group suggested a joint venture in a few parts of Europe, I agreed because it would bring us more profit. However, this meeting had been dragging out forever because of our tight schedule. “All right, fix it over lunch today. I’ll be there by two.” Enrique would flip if I missed the meeting with the caterers.

“Will do.”

My thoughts wandered to Arianna as I climbed into the waiting chopper. I had known her since childhood. I’d watched her grow from this cute little kid to a shy teen and to a bubbly young woman. Though we talked little, I knew all about her. Her carefree laughter and sharp wit were something I’d gotten used to recently.

After what happened in college, I locked myself away from everyone, focusing only on work. Dad, Enrique, or Mike tried to help, but nothing worked. I was closed off to the world with no intention of opening up ever again.

If it wasn’t for Grandpa Cortez, I wouldn’t even attend the weekly dinner. When I missed the dinner a few weeks in a row, he just came over to my apartment and demanded my presence. My family wasn’t ready to give up on me.

The dinner was always a boring event with us all lost in our own worlds and Grandpapa trying to randomly converse with us. Then, a couple of years ago, that changed. It was just another week, and once again I was in the office with no intention of going to dinner. My cell phone kept ringing, and I ignored it until I saw Grandpapa’s landline number popping up.

“Where are you, son?”

“I’m working, Grandpapa. I’m sorry, I can’t make it today.”

The silence on the other end stirred my guilt. “I don’t know how long I have, Orlando. Is it wrong for an old man to want to share a meal with his entire family once a week?”

Crap. Not this talk again. “You’re not going anywhere, Grandpapa.”

“How can you be so sure? We have enough money for generations to come. But I need you now, Orlando.”

“Grandpapa…”

“The dinner won’t start until you come.”

A string of curses broke free when I heard the disconnecting click.

Did he have to pull the “I won’t live long card” every time? With a grunt, I shut down my laptop and headed home. I would have to talk to him today.

Thirty minutes later when I parked in front of our mansion, all I wished was to yell at Grandpapa for blackmailing me. I didn’t see where I was going until I bumped into a bubbly blonde. Flowery cologne took hold of my sense as I blinked her into focus.

“Oh, sorry.” She giggled, and before I could respond, she ran around behind me. Her fingers grabbed my suit, and I whipped my head around at the sound of another loud giggle.

“You’ll pay for that, bish!” Rosalinda came barreling toward us with something in her hand.

“I’m sorry, Rosie. I was just kidding.” Arianna dragged me along as she hid behind me. Her contagious giggle forced the corners of my lips up.

Rosalinda closed the distance with a mischievous grin. “Move out of the way, Orlando. I’m wiping that smugness off her face.”

“Hey, I was merely stating the truth.”

“No, you weren’t.” Rosie chased her. Both running in circles, Arianna used me as her shield.

“You’re in love with Jeff.” Arianna’s face lit up, eyes crinkled as she clutched my shirt, evading Rosie’s hit.

“I’m not.”

“Liar. I saw you go belly up when he kissed you.” Her giggle drifted around me.

“Shut up!” Rosie hissed.

They both caught me in their banter while pushing and pulling me around as they argued.

“No.” Ari was at my back, dragging me with her as Rosie tried to catch her.

“You’re asking for it, Ari.”

When I turned my head, Arianna was sticking her tongue out at Rosalinda. A cute gesture that made my heart race, something it hadn’t done in a long time. Suddenly, I noticed her features. She was no longer the shy teen I remembered. Arianna Swanson was an attractive young woman, and she had the most beautiful smile I had ever seen.

“Orlando is here.” Mike came into view with a huge grin. “Girls, please let my cousin go. You’re smothering him.”

The girls let me go, and when I looked at Arianna again, her cheeks were glowing pink as Rosie whispered something in her ear.

“I promised to hang out with them this weekend, but you know how adamant Grandpapa can be. So, I brought them here,” Mike quickly explained. “I swear, it won’t be long before he kicks us out of here. They turned the place upside down from the moment we entered the mansion half-hour ago.”

A chuckle volunteered itself, slipping out of my mouth before I could stop it. Mike threw me a surprised look. His expression changed, and I was quick to mask my amusement.

“Hey, bro.” Enrique clapped my shoulder. “Thought you weren’t coming.”

“Grandpapa called.”

“He can be persistent when he wants to be.” Enrique sighed as a frown crept on his face. He massaged his forehead. “I should stop drinking.”

“You say that every time.”

Enrique rolled his eyes. Grandpapa and Dad were at the table when we took our seats. The things I wanted to tell him flew out the window when I noticed his full-blown smile. His silver hair reminded me he wasn’t getting any younger, and I felt ashamed for standing him up so often.

“Grandpops, this is so unfair,” Enrique whined, taking a seat beside Dad. “How come Mike’s allowed to bring two girls when you won’t allow me to bring one?” He put a bright smile on his face and sipped the water.

“You know why.” Grandpapa chortled. “You shall bring no girl for dinner unless she is the girl you want to marry.”

“Damn.”

“Yeah, Grandpapa has a point. I prefer to eat my food without choking on it every second.” Arianna snickered, and Enrique made a face at her.

“You’re jealous.”

“Jealous? Puh-lease…” Arianna rolled her eyes. “You have the worst taste in females.”

“Besides, what’s the point of bringing your birches for dinner when they ate nothing that’s being served?” Rosie piped in with her signature smirk.

“Birches?” Enrique’s brows shot up.

“I’m keeping it PG-friendly.” Rosie stuck her tongue out.

“That’s harsh, you know.” My brother rubbed his chest with mock hurt.

The girls shrugged. “We’re just stating the facts.”

“I agree.” Mike joined the conversation. “I never saw any of your girlfriends eating real food.”

I couldn’t help the laughter that bubbled in my chest, and a warm sensation washed over me when I noticed Arianna taking big bites of her steak. I liked women who weren’t afraid to eat. Beside her, Rosie was also enjoying her meal.

They showed up for every dinner after that weekend, making each more colorful than the last.

Arianna Swanson. Her name brought a smile to my lips for reasons I couldn’t quite describe.

Her presence always lightened up the mood, and I soon found myself looking forward to the dinners. Then, one day, she didn’t come.

“Where’s Arianna?” Her absence was noticeable, and I couldn’t help asking.

“She’s on a date with Brian,” Rosalinda replied.

“Oh.” She was on a date. It shouldn’t have bothered me. But it did, and I didn’t know why.

Arianna missed several dinners after that, and I began excusing myself often. Shaking my head to clear the thoughts, I focused on the work. My body was on autopilot when I carried on with the day. Her face kept popping up in my mind, and I couldn’t shake off the nagging thought that demanded answers.

***

Nothing could explain why I was feeling this way when I climbed the stairs of one of the finest restaurants in Linnesse. It was a haven for middle-class families with its affordable services and star hotel experience. The restaurant was almost full with the waiters bustling around to serve the customers.

Someone grabbed my pants, causing me to look down. A blonde child with bright green eyes gave me a toothless grin. Chocolate smeared her cheeks, and I reached out, tapping her nose.

“Hello, sweetheart.”

“I’m so sorry.” The mother came running. “Hannah, you don’t grab people with dirty hands.” She threw a strict glance at her daughter and proceeded to dab my pants with tissues. I hadn’t realized they now held little chocolate hand imprints.

“It’s okay, ma’am.” Taking the tissues from her, I smiled in assurance. Being a mother was hard enough. It wasn’t much, and my black trousers hid it well.

“Are you sure?” Some tension left her shoulders, and relief flooded her features. A man I assumed was the child’s father hoisted the little girl.

“I’m sure. It’s just chocolate.”

She didn’t move, and her gaze still unconvinced. “Your suit looks expensive.” She chewed her lip.

Of course, it is. Hannah giggled in her father’s arms. Then she turned toward me with a shy smile, “Sowie.”

“Don’t be.” I patted her cheek and turned to her mother. “It’s fine, really. You have a beautiful daughter.”

“Thank you.” Her father smiled and pressed a kiss on her forehead. “We’ll be on our way, then.”

“Sure.”

“Thank you.” The mother mouthed, trailing after her small family.

This was no place for an official meet and greet. Why did Desmond insist on having a meeting here?

I got my answer as soon as my gaze landed on her. What the––shock rendered me speechless. Legs hesitated to move as the world around me spun. Bile rose from the pit of the stomach. Never in my nine lives had I thought I’d see her again. What is she doing here?

 “Sir, they’re over there.” The restaurant manager pointed at the occupied table, pulling me out of my stupor. I can see that. Biting the retort, I managed a tight smile and forced my body to move.

Her gaze met and held mine. The corner of her lips curled up. Discomfort rolled in my chest as my muscles clenched. Willing my gaze away, I kept it on him for the rest of my walk.

“Ah, there he is!” Desmond Waylon, the chairman of Waylon Group, greeted me. Another surprise. I was expecting to meet his son, the CEO. For a fifty-year-old, Desmond cleaned up really well, reminding me of George Clooney.

“Hello, Mr. Waylon. It’s good to see you.” I gave a forced smile. The shock hadn’t left my system yet, but the last thing I wanted was to give her the satisfaction of knowing she still affected me. She wasn’t welcome anywhere near my world.

Cerulean eyes continued to assess me, which I ignored.

“Ken, this is Orlando Cortez, the CEO of the Cortez empire. Mr. Cortez, meet my fiancée Vivienne.”

Ken, as in Kenzie. Vivienne Kenzie Jeremiah, my ex-girlfriend. And she didn’t like being called by her first name since she thought it was an old school type.

“Hello.” I gave her a curt nod, hands buried deep within my coat pockets. Her smile widened.

The smile that once made my insides flutter now had the effect of worms crawling over my skin. I averted my gaze and focused on the menu in front of me. The hunger had long left, and I ordered a sandwich with juice.

“Sandwich? Come on, Mr. Cortez. Let’s treat ourselves with something better,” Desmond said.

“I had an early brunch. I’ll have something light on my stomach. You go ahead.” Fortunately, he didn’t press me further.

Desmond turned to Kenzie, taking her hand in his. “If you say so. What do you want, darling?” Darling. My stomach churned.

“I’ll have whatever you’re ordering.” She leaned into him, pecking his lips, which was unnecessary.

“Surprise us with your chef’s specialty,” Desmond said to the waiter, who beamed.

“Definitely. Do you have any preference, sir?”

“Anything, as long as it has meat,” Desmond replied and once again turned to her. She leaned to him, laughing louder at something he whispered in her ear. I pulled my phone out, keeping myself busy so I didn’t have to put up with their PDA.

Shortly, one of the chefs walked to our table and spoke to Desmond, taking notes as he inquired if they were allergic to anything. I’d always admired their professionalism and care in catering to their customers. When he walked away, I faced the couple, regretting every passing second.

The entire lunch was a waste of time, considering Desmond continued to act like a lovesick puppy, and she just kept touching him to spite me. When he leaned to kiss her cheek or whisper something, she’d look at me with a smirk. Was it working? No. I wasn’t jealous. I was furious that I couldn’t leave and was being forced to put up with her immaturity even after all these years.

A few times, I tried to talk business, but he shrugged it off, saying we had a lot of time to discuss it. I felt like a third wheel, sitting there while they crooned at each other.

When I’d had enough, I stood and checked my watch. “It’s a pleasure meeting you, Mr. Waylon, but I’m afraid I have to leave.”

“Oh, no, stay. We’re having a great time, aren’t we?”

I gave him a tight-lipped smile. “I have other appointments that I can’t miss. I’ll see you some other time. Perhaps in a more professional environment,” I said. My gaze fell on her, and I masked the grimace. “Have a nice day.” I didn’t stop for his protests. I couldn’t care less for the business deal now that I knew it involved her.

On my way out, I flagged the waiter who served our table, dropping a few hundred dollars in his hands for their bill, and didn’t look back.