Paige’s POVHolden Estate, Manhattan 6 months after the Hospital Shooting“Where are you? I'm all dressed up.”“Paige. I'm so sorry. There was an emergency board meeting and now I'm on my way to Chicago to solve the problem. I'm really sorry, my love.”“Oh.” I said, trying hard to sound like he didn’t just break my heart again. “It's okay. But you're coming back tomorrow, right? Gwen’s play starts at 6.”“I know. I’ll fly back tonight right after I sort things out there. Okay? I love you so much. I'm really sorry about this, Paige.”“I love you too, Callan. Goodnight.” I hang the phone up before I let myself cry. It's been months of the same conversation. He's cheating. Stop it, brain. I told you this was all too good to be true. It's not. He loves me. Only me. Then why are you so scared to check all the social media? I told my brain to stop convincing me Callan’s having an affair. A gust of wind blasted the balcony door open and immediately pulled me back to the shooting. Mig
Paige’s POVI read Callan’s reply and looked at the back. I see him standing among the other late people in the crowd. He winked and waved at me and I had to smile. Better late than never they always say, right brain?Yup. I just hope he’s sober.My phone vibrated again and when I checked it was Callan telling me to stop talking to my brain about whether he was drunk or not and that he’d just stay at the back to not draw attention to his magnificentness and ruin the play. I sent him laughing emojis. My heart swelled with joy and I felt all sorts of tingles all over my body by how much he knew me. See? You two weirdos are perfect for each other. Okay. Bye brain. We have to focus on Gwen’s play now. Gwen looked beautiful and I never knew how good she was at acting until now. I looked around at the gym one more time and felt so proud everyone was looking at her with awe.After the play ended and the kids lined up on the stage to take their bow, Callan suddenly ran and climbed up, giv
Paige’s POVMy Callan is truly back, brain.You can say that again. Man, the amount of sex you guys are having, I’m surprised your hooha is still okay.It sure is a bit sore, but nothing a hot bath can fix. Besides, I don’t want him to think anything bad if I ever say no to his advances.”Hey, beautiful. Can you please stop talking to your brain, now?” Callan chuckled as he held my chin pulling me back to reality. It was a beautiful day and we decided to eat breakfast with Gwen out under the sun. She however, took two bites of her toast and drank her OJ and left us, rushing for school. ”I wasn’t.” I lied and giggled when he rolled his eyes. “I love this. I love having breakfast with you out here in our garden.””Me too and I’m excited to go with you to work today.””Actually, about that. I’d rather you go pamper yourself the whole day coz we’ve been invited to a party tonight at 6.””But—.””No buts, Paige. I want you to feel your best tonight.””Okay. But I’d really rather be with
Paige’s POVI took the phone from him and dropped it as soon as I saw the video. I felt the bitterness of bile rising up my throat and ran toward the rest rooms. Callan ran after me and kept knocking at the stall I managed to lock before emptying the most expensive dinner I’ve ever had. “Paige. You have to know that wasn’t me!””She grabbed your ass at the airport! Maybe you fucked her in the plane, huh?””Paige! Open this door right now! That wasn’t me! I never even touched her!”“You hugged her at the airport!”“NO! She suddenly hugged me and grabbed my ass. And I fucking pushed her! She’s just trying to get back at me for calling her a brat tonight.” “Then how do you explain the fucking video, Callan?”“I could think of a million explanations! Deepfake… A look alike? Jericho’s fucking sex robots? That’s it! It must be the robots. I’m calling him right now!” He said and the banging on my stall door stopped.I thought about all that he said and decided to open the door. I gargled us
Callan’s POV “Really? You’re going to leave me just like that?” “If you’re going to slowly throw your life away with drugs and alcohol? Yes. I will, Cal. Have you been lying all this time about being sober and never using that?” “Yes! You got me! I lied! I lied, Paige! That’s all you think of me now, anyway! You have no idea what I’m going through. Just when everything was getting back to normal this fucking shit happens!” All my blood rushed to my head and all I wanted was to scream so loud, but Paige beated me to it. “I don’t care about the video! You don’t have to take drugs and get drunk because you’re upset about it!” I felt the pain in her voice, but couldn’t bring myself to hear her just yet. I held on tighter to the blue pills on my palm, my fist shaking with rage. “Upset? I’m not upset! I’m so fucking mad at her, I want to kill her, Paige! Gwen is going to get bullied for this again.” “Gwen will be devastated if you hurt yourself because of this. How about we go on
Paige's POVCallan threw my phone across the room, and it smashed against the mirror, shattering it into pieces."Are you crazy? Why did you do that?" I shouted, the words echoing in the quiet."Fuck him! He's not taking you away from me. Not Gwen! Not you!" Callan snapped back, shoving my hands off his arm as he stormed out of the bathroom, wearing only his boxers. The chill in the room bit at my exposed skin, and I felt my whole body trembling. I picked my phone up, my heart sinking as I read the already opened message: I'm filing for sole custody. He doesn’t deserve to be around Gwen, Paige or you for that matter. If you don't want to lose Gwen, choose to be with me.I rushed out, looking for Callan, my footsteps almost soundless on the carpeted floor. When I found him, he was already in his study, the room dim except for the cold blue light of his phone. He was on a call, his voice low but filled with an edge."Callan, stop. Who is that?" I demanded, but he ignored me, continuing
Paige’s POVManhattan1:45am“Wait! Let me buy one thing before you close up.” A strikingly handsome man wearing a tuxedo with a boutonniere, pushed the door I was just about to close and lock. “Sorry. We’re close. It’s almost 2am, sir.”“Please? I’ll make it worth your while. I’ll buy the most expensive thing there and give you a thousand dollar tip.” “Yeah, right.” “Here. You can swipe the most expensive alcohol you have plus your tip.” He said, handing me a golden master card. His smile was intoxicating and his piercing stare made me blush. I cleared my throat and told myself to get a grip. Gorgeous guys like him are always nothing but trouble and heartaches.“Fine. Okay, come in.” “I’ll take a bottle of your most expensive whiskey.” He said as he sat on one of the bar stools.“Sure thing.” I said, swiping his card, before turning my back from the bar and standing on a stool to reach the Dalmore 50 which I was specifically told to keep on the top shelf at all times unless aske
Paige’s POV The rest of the morning was ordinary. Callan left an hour after sitting on his desk, and reading and signing papers. When he left, Darla and the rest of the staff seemed to relax a bit more and three of the other women came over to Darla and mine’s desks. “Hi. I’m Andrea. This is Macy and Bridget. We’re Darla’s bffs around here.” “Hey. I’m Paige Miller. It’s great to meet all of you.” I smiled back at them. “So…what were the two of you fighting about in there? Did you have a bar-night stand with him only to realize he was going to be your boss?” Andrea asked, smirking and the three of them giggled.“Bar-night stand?” I asked and then freaked out when I realized the meaning of her word play. “What?! NO!” I shouted too loudly that everyone else raised their heads from their desks. “Whoa. I was just kidding, Paige.” “Right. Sorry. I just don’t like people joking about me and might start a crazy rumor.” “But you two were tense in there though. I could tell. I know body
Paige's POVCallan threw my phone across the room, and it smashed against the mirror, shattering it into pieces."Are you crazy? Why did you do that?" I shouted, the words echoing in the quiet."Fuck him! He's not taking you away from me. Not Gwen! Not you!" Callan snapped back, shoving my hands off his arm as he stormed out of the bathroom, wearing only his boxers. The chill in the room bit at my exposed skin, and I felt my whole body trembling. I picked my phone up, my heart sinking as I read the already opened message: I'm filing for sole custody. He doesn’t deserve to be around Gwen, Paige or you for that matter. If you don't want to lose Gwen, choose to be with me.I rushed out, looking for Callan, my footsteps almost soundless on the carpeted floor. When I found him, he was already in his study, the room dim except for the cold blue light of his phone. He was on a call, his voice low but filled with an edge."Callan, stop. Who is that?" I demanded, but he ignored me, continuing
Callan’s POV “Really? You’re going to leave me just like that?” “If you’re going to slowly throw your life away with drugs and alcohol? Yes. I will, Cal. Have you been lying all this time about being sober and never using that?” “Yes! You got me! I lied! I lied, Paige! That’s all you think of me now, anyway! You have no idea what I’m going through. Just when everything was getting back to normal this fucking shit happens!” All my blood rushed to my head and all I wanted was to scream so loud, but Paige beated me to it. “I don’t care about the video! You don’t have to take drugs and get drunk because you’re upset about it!” I felt the pain in her voice, but couldn’t bring myself to hear her just yet. I held on tighter to the blue pills on my palm, my fist shaking with rage. “Upset? I’m not upset! I’m so fucking mad at her, I want to kill her, Paige! Gwen is going to get bullied for this again.” “Gwen will be devastated if you hurt yourself because of this. How about we go on
Paige’s POVI took the phone from him and dropped it as soon as I saw the video. I felt the bitterness of bile rising up my throat and ran toward the rest rooms. Callan ran after me and kept knocking at the stall I managed to lock before emptying the most expensive dinner I’ve ever had. “Paige. You have to know that wasn’t me!””She grabbed your ass at the airport! Maybe you fucked her in the plane, huh?””Paige! Open this door right now! That wasn’t me! I never even touched her!”“You hugged her at the airport!”“NO! She suddenly hugged me and grabbed my ass. And I fucking pushed her! She’s just trying to get back at me for calling her a brat tonight.” “Then how do you explain the fucking video, Callan?”“I could think of a million explanations! Deepfake… A look alike? Jericho’s fucking sex robots? That’s it! It must be the robots. I’m calling him right now!” He said and the banging on my stall door stopped.I thought about all that he said and decided to open the door. I gargled us
Paige’s POVMy Callan is truly back, brain.You can say that again. Man, the amount of sex you guys are having, I’m surprised your hooha is still okay.It sure is a bit sore, but nothing a hot bath can fix. Besides, I don’t want him to think anything bad if I ever say no to his advances.”Hey, beautiful. Can you please stop talking to your brain, now?” Callan chuckled as he held my chin pulling me back to reality. It was a beautiful day and we decided to eat breakfast with Gwen out under the sun. She however, took two bites of her toast and drank her OJ and left us, rushing for school. ”I wasn’t.” I lied and giggled when he rolled his eyes. “I love this. I love having breakfast with you out here in our garden.””Me too and I’m excited to go with you to work today.””Actually, about that. I’d rather you go pamper yourself the whole day coz we’ve been invited to a party tonight at 6.””But—.””No buts, Paige. I want you to feel your best tonight.””Okay. But I’d really rather be with
Paige’s POVI read Callan’s reply and looked at the back. I see him standing among the other late people in the crowd. He winked and waved at me and I had to smile. Better late than never they always say, right brain?Yup. I just hope he’s sober.My phone vibrated again and when I checked it was Callan telling me to stop talking to my brain about whether he was drunk or not and that he’d just stay at the back to not draw attention to his magnificentness and ruin the play. I sent him laughing emojis. My heart swelled with joy and I felt all sorts of tingles all over my body by how much he knew me. See? You two weirdos are perfect for each other. Okay. Bye brain. We have to focus on Gwen’s play now. Gwen looked beautiful and I never knew how good she was at acting until now. I looked around at the gym one more time and felt so proud everyone was looking at her with awe.After the play ended and the kids lined up on the stage to take their bow, Callan suddenly ran and climbed up, giv
Paige’s POVHolden Estate, Manhattan 6 months after the Hospital Shooting“Where are you? I'm all dressed up.”“Paige. I'm so sorry. There was an emergency board meeting and now I'm on my way to Chicago to solve the problem. I'm really sorry, my love.”“Oh.” I said, trying hard to sound like he didn’t just break my heart again. “It's okay. But you're coming back tomorrow, right? Gwen’s play starts at 6.”“I know. I’ll fly back tonight right after I sort things out there. Okay? I love you so much. I'm really sorry about this, Paige.”“I love you too, Callan. Goodnight.” I hang the phone up before I let myself cry. It's been months of the same conversation. He's cheating. Stop it, brain. I told you this was all too good to be true. It's not. He loves me. Only me. Then why are you so scared to check all the social media? I told my brain to stop convincing me Callan’s having an affair. A gust of wind blasted the balcony door open and immediately pulled me back to the shooting. Mig
Callan’s POV“It’s called survivor’s guilt, Callan. You have to listen to my advice if you want to move forward with your life. Most of all, you have to stop taking alcohol with the medications I gave you.”I could hear my therapist talking, but half of my mind was thinking about Maya. She was all alone in a room stuffed all over with white foam. Even her bed rails had foam covers.“Hi, Maya. Can you hear me? God. I fucked up, Maya. I’m so sorry. Please…Maya, come back.”I held her hand, but she just stared at me. She just sat there on her bed and kept staring at me. Her face is devoid of any emotion as if her mind was empty. I looked at the nurse who smiled sympathetically while shaking her head. “Callan? Did you hear what I said?”“What?” I said, looking at my therapist who had come back into my view. “Yeah. Sorry doc. I was just thinking about my visit with Maya earlier. “Dr. Leonard is working almost 24/7 with her, Callan. He’s hopeful he’ll get her through her trauma. You have
Callan’s POV“Callan. Hmm. That feels so good, babe.” Paige said as she stared from underneath me. I closed my eyes and thrusted harder and faster, almost feeling my release. When I opened my eyes again to look at her beautiful face, she was gone and I wasn’t on top of her. I was back in the ICU hallway holding the gun against Miguel’s forehead. He begged me to let him go, but I felt my finger pull back the trigger. The sound of the gun firing woke me up. My eyes bolted open and my chest rose up and down. Paige was fast asleep beside me. I’m so sorry, Miguel. If having nightmares forever is my punishment I’ll accept it and more. I’m sorry for killing you.Technically your mom killed him. You really have to forgive yourself. None of what happened is your fault. Who knew your mom was off her meds for months?Shut up, brain. It was my fault for choosing Brazil. It was my fault for not stopping my mother. I was his big brother and I failed him. I failed dad. But you can’t do anything ab
Paige’s POVThe 9 hour flight was the longest I’ve ever taken in my life. What’s worse was Callan couldn’t calm down and kept drinking. I told him he shouldn’t in case he needed to donate blood for his dad, but he shocked me saying rich people have their own blood banks and even donate a huge monthly amount of money for stem cell research in the hopes of helping scientists achieve the formula for immortality. “For organ transplants there’s the black market, but dad has been an advocate in helping the authorities stop that evil business.” Callan said, sighing. He looked out the window but there was nothing but darkness. I held his cheeks in my hands, forcing him to face me. He closed his eyes and cried.“You and your dad have been so close these past few months, so don’t beat yourself up. Your dad will be fine. The doctor told aunt Helen he’s unconscious but stable.”“I just don’t want to lose him, Paige. Especially now that I’ve just met Miguel.”“I know, my love. I know. It’s all