Noah POVThe traffic had been light, and thirty minutes later, I pulled the car at the entrance to Rosewood Hotel.“You go ahead. I have an interview in thirty minutes.” Briana told me.Her arms reached for the snap of her seatbelt.My forehead creased into a frown.“What interview?”Briana never mentioned anything to me when we were at the house.“Remember what I told you before? Britney had to stop.”My heart raced.“What do you intend to do?”“I was just going to give her a dose of her own medicine. She abused her influence over the internet, and I intend to change that.” She said in a hard-edged voice.“Can’t we just let it go,” I asked.I felt partially guilty for what happened to Britney because I strung her along. For years, I thought she was really the love of my life until Briana’s comeback showed me that what I believed all these years was a sham.“Why? Do you love her? You don’t want to hurt her.”Briana’s lips thinned, making her insecurities appear unannounced.I did no
Noah POVI nodded. Maybe she was right.Maybe we needed to do this to stop Britney once and for all.“Alright.” I squeezed her before letting her go and taking her hand in mine.“Come. Let me walk you to your office.” I told her.I only meant to see her safe inside her office, and then I would leave. Still, when Martina informed us that the television crew that would interview Briana had arrived, I decided to follow Briana and get inside her office.I thought we had resolved our troubles before coming to Briana’s office. I had not counted that her visitors would make me antsy, making my heart feel ill at ease.I was seething when we arrived at Briana’s office and found Jimmy Ferguson, a late-night talk show host, waiting there with his staff.“Good morning, everyone. Sorry to have kept you waiting.” Briana said briskly to address Jimmy, his cameraman, and PA.Jimmy Ferguson stood from his seat, eyeing Briana with interest.The minute the door opened, he had already fixed his eyes on
Noah POVBriana gasped when I pulled her for a hug before Jimmy Ferguson could make his move on her.I saw the way he looked at her.He was attracted to my Briana.I abhor the way he looked at her.He was like a vulture ready to snap his prey.Briana returned my embrace. She must have momentarily forgotten about our visitors because she did not make any move to let go until Jimmy Ferguson cleared his throat.I felt her body go rigid at the sound of Jimmy’s throat clearing and squeezed her body to assure her.Still, I could sense Briana was embarrassed when she stepped away from me.I loosened my hold on her but did not allow her to leave my side. Instead, I snaked an arm around her and clipped her to my side, which Jimmy noticed immediately.I gloated at the envious way he looked at my arm around Briana.If he thinks that I will allow him a moment to touch what is mine, then he is highly mistaken.“Thank you, Jimmy,” Briana said.Jimmy extended his hand, and his smile brightened. “My
Briana POVI pretended to be busy for Noah’s sake.But when he closed the door behind him, I stopped the pretense and put down the pen and paper I was holding to lean back on my chair. Tiredness seemed to seep from every pore of my skin.I closed my eyes and sighed.There was a knock on the door. I knew it was Martina.“Come in.”The door opened and Martina came in.She frowned when she saw me.“What’s wrong? You looked troubled … and weary.” She sounded hesitant like she did not want to verbalize what was in her thoughts. “Has Noah left?” I asked, ignoring her comment.“Yes.” She replied, and I nodded slowly.I took a deep breath. I don’t know what I was feeling. I felt like Noah abandoned me. We had a misunderstanding, but he did not even stay to fix it.He has changed. He was not like this. Before whenever we had a misunderstanding, he wouldn’t leave my side until we made up. But now…I shook my head, wanting to dispel the sad thoughts. Maybe that’s how couples behave as they g
Noah POVI heard Briana’s surprised gasp and deepened the kiss.It was a gentle kiss aimed to soothe the pain I inflicted on her due to my insensitivity. Still, the minute my lips closed in on hers, passion burst inside me. I cannot seem to stop feeding on Briana's lips. They taste so much like honey, forgiveness, love, and lust. “I love you,” I told her when I pulled away because my phone had been ringing nonstop. “It was Langley,” I told her apologetically when I pulled the phone out of my pocket to check. Briana’s lids closed. But before that, I saw the yearning and the longing that matched my own. “Later, wife,” I promised and swiped the phone’s screen to receive Langley’s call. “What?” My voice came out harsh as it came between panting. I looked at Briana. She was panting, too. While my ears were glued to the phone, my eyes refused to abandon her face. I kept looking at her flushed face, wanting to continue where we left off. But Langley’s waiting. I took deep breaths t
Noah POV“Oral defamation case is not a criminal case in Redwood City.” My attorney explained when I told him what I wanted to do with Britney’s recent action that caused me a two-day staycation at the hospital.Brent brought a compilation of evidence against Britney. Unfortunately, we cannot file a criminal defamation case against her.“So, it was a useless case?” I asked, thoroughly disappointed.“If you want to put her behind bars, the law can’t help you.” My lawyer said, shaking his head.I clucked my tongue, feeling lost and drained.I thought I already had enough ammunition to make Britney accountable for her actions, but it seemed as if the prevailing law in Redwood restricted my hand.“Is there any other way?” I asked my lawyer, feeling discouraged that my plans won’t push through.I realized that my recent actions against Britney only showed Briana that I was protecting her when it was not my intention. Now, I intend to rectify that misconception and make Briana feel less thr
Briana POVWhen Noah left, my stomach started to churn, and my gums salivated.Bile rose from my throat.I tried to suppress it by covering my mouth with my palm but to no avail.Immediately, I rose from my seat and ran to the bathroom, where I puked my heart out.“Gwark! Gwark!”Acid spread through my throat and mouth, making me gag until another round of vomit hit me.I pushed my hair away from my face and opened the faucet to gargle tap water.Then, I pulled several paper towels from the dispenser to dab at my sweat-beading face.
Briana POVWe bought several packs of home pregnancy kits. Then, we also visited the neighboring convenience store to buy food.“The hotel has everything you need and want,” Martina commented when she saw me buy some items from the grocery that were also available in the hotel’s kitchen.“I want this brand. It’s different from our supply at the hotel.” I explained and dumped all my haul at the counter.I paid for our purchases, and we hurriedly left.“Are you ready?” Martina asked.We finished attacking the food we bought at the convenience store to stall the planned test. But now that we are full, there is nothing left to do but to face what we set out to do.“Are you?” I countered back.And we both chuckled at our silliness.“I’ll go ahead,” I told her, walking briskly to the bathroom. The faster the task is done, the better.I peed and collected samples in a small container provided in the box. Then, I soaked the white absorbent end of the strip in the urine for five to ten second
Hello my loves, Jenna and Charles’ story was one of the most painful stories I had written so far. It was because I had to dig up long-forgotten events in my life.But I had to do it for you to be able to understand the motives behind Jenna and Charles’ actions and the pain they invariably inflicted on each other. Jenna and Charles were both non confrontational. They keep things in stride and hope for the best, but sometimes even with the best intentions, our pain could not lay hidden for too long. It needed to be addressed and voiced out, not because you wanted to lash out at your partner or give them the same pain they were giving you.Sometimes, our silence is our cry for help. Or it was a way to protect ourselves. We retreated into the inner recesses of our soul to find solace and comfort because the people we expected to comfort and provide solace for us could not hear our cry for help.But all’s well that ends well. Am glad for those people who had requested me to do a story
Charles POVOne year later…I was standing behind the french windows of the room I was occupying at the Rosewood Hotel, eyes looking outside toward my wife.This past year was a crazy one.Just as Briana predicted, Jenna and I barely had time for ourselves. The kids were growing, and they were beautiful to watch.Jenna’s laugh made its way to where I was.As I watched Jenna play with our children, I could not help comparing her to a rose in bloom.I could not help feeling proud of the changes in her.&nb
Charles POVWe placed our babies in a customized baby carrier that could fit the four of them, and Jenna and I walked out of the suite that had been our temporary home for the past month.At the lobby, we looked like we were on a parade with our nannies in tow and bodyguards, but that’s a small price to pay for the security and safety of my family.“Jenna! Charles!” Beth called out to us.We stopped when we neared her.“Where are your kids?” I asked after she and Jenna hugged each other.I learned this past month that Beth chose to be a stay-at-home m
Charles POVThe next day, our other two babies were born one after the other.Jenna and I were also there to witness everything and become part of our children’s birth.Jenna’s eyes were puffy when she held our two other newborns in her arms. She had been crying nonstop since yesterday because it still had not sunk in that she was a mom of four babies.When we visited Briana, she and Jenna had a long talk.Briana was smiling, but I could see that she was at a loss when it was time to take the baby away from her.I realized that this ordeal put a lot of strain on
Charles POVThe phone in the delivery room rang, and a nurse went to answer it.“Dr. Martin, it’s delivery room 2.” She said from across the room, allowing us to hear.Dr. Martin went to answer it. Her face was serious when she placed the phone back in its cradle.Then, she turned her head back to her medical team.“Are you still up for another delivery?” She asked her team.Their high spirits rubbed off on Jenna and me. We were smiling when they shouted, of course.
Charles POVIt was a crazy day.We were having a meeting when I heard that Briana had been rushed to the hospital.“Brie is having our baby,” I told my brothers and friend after I dropped the call.It was Jenna. She, Noah, and Biana were already in the hospital because Briana's water broke.My face contorted as emotions I could not name assailed.A mix of fear, excitement, nervousness, worry, and happiness barraged me.Briana, my baby sister, was going to deliver my and Jenna's baby right now. 
Jenna POVThe days quickly passed by.Though we did not talk about it, it seemed as if Charles and I were in tacit agreement to take things slow concerning our careers and concentrate more on each other.We go out of town and do things we had never done before as a couple.It was marvelous.“It’s good that you spend more time with each other because I tell you, once the four babies arrive, you won’t get even a wink of sleep,” Briana told me when I came to her house that afternoon to catch up and to check on her.It’s the baby’s
Jenna POVI turned my head sharply in Beth’s direction to find her busy talking with Brent.They were whispering, and from the blush that tinted her cheeks, I was sure the talk was naughty.“Don’t you want me to be here?” The uncertainty in Charles’ voice got to me.“Of course not!” I denied it, but I could feel my face growing warm because Charles’ eyes were riveted on my packages.I was sure that by just looking at the logo outside the bags, he would know what Beth and I were up to.My guess was not far from the t
Jenna POVWe arrived at our new home much later than expected because I requested the cab driver to drop us off at the nearest florist.After purchasing the flowers I needed, I dragged Beth to the supermarket to buy some scented candles and stuff.“Are you going to sed*ce your husband?” Beth looked confused.I lifted my head from browsing through the label of a scented oil I wanted to purchase to look at her.“What?” I asked since I did not hear her.“If you plan to tempt your husband, you don’t need this.” She told me, looking exasp