Briana POVI darted away as fast as I could.Noah called out to me.I could hear the creaking sound of his shoes as they met the floor and pressed my feet to hasten my walk.Curious heads turned my way, but that did not stop me.
Briana POVI left Noah in the middle of the lobby with his mouth hanging open and felt great satisfaction at my handiwork.It was not always that I got to leave him stupefied in an argument, and it gave me immense pleasure to know that today, I did just that. I left Noah Hunter speechless!I believe I deserve a mental pat on the back.There was a skip to my step when I walked out of the building and into my brother’s waiting black SUV.When I opened the door, three tornadoes slipped past me to jump out of the car. They were wily that my attempt to pull them back was futile.I watched in amazement as they ran inside the building, shouting at the top of their lungs
Briana POV“I have a fully functioning brain, Briana. You know that I can always pay someone to check their birth certificates for me.” Noah warned.The seriousness in his voice was unmistakable. My heart started to throb as fear coursed through my spine.I tamped it down and started downplaying Noah’s suspicion."You'll find nothing. My children are Fords." I told him in false bravado.Noah's look was probing. But his hold on me slackened.I took that as my cue to leave. I turned around and walked out of the building to my brother's waiting car.I tried to walk as normally as I possibly could. Despite my efforts, my knees were wobbly.I can’t seem to get Noah’s threat out of my head.I worry about wha
Noah POVI watched Briana leave with suspicion and could not shake off the apprehension I saw on her face.I have a strong feeling that Briana was not telling me the truth.When the black SUV left, I picked up my phone from my pocket to call Brent.“I have another task for you.” I opened it when Brent picked it up.“Fire away.”“Check the records of Briana’s children. They’re triplets. Briana said they are Ford’s, but I have a strong feeling they are mine.”There was silence on the other end.“What made you say they were yours?” Brent countered.I hesitated, and Brent picked up my silence wrongly.“As your friend, I am giving you a word of caution. Don’t look
Noah POVWhen Langley left, I slowly massaged my temples. Then, I closed my eyes, fingers tapping the smooth surface of my desk.My head ached, thinking the man I trusted did not deserve my trust.My laptop sounded like a notification for a new email. And when I checked the sender, it was Langley. I opened the file with shaking hands and started reading its contents.When I finished, my chest felt stuffy. Here is the proof of my uncle’s duplicity.I remember five years ago, he pushed me to take a leave of absence from the company to concentrate on myself.“You need to heal from the loss of your parents, from what happened to your marriage, and to get your strength back. Don’t worry about the company, I will manage it for you.”I snickered in my head because I took his words and trusted him.Talk about misplaced trust.I called Brent."We have the evidence," I told him and forwarded him the email Langley sent me.For a while, we discussed what to do.“We need to take caution. Un
Noah POVBlearily, I looked at the house across the street with longing.It was dawn when cars pulled up in the house’s driveway, causing me to straighten my back to watch with a hawk-like gaze. The doors of the cars simultaneously opened to give way to its passengers. My eyes widened when I recognized the similarities in their faces. The Ford brothers are here. Their arms were loaded with parcels and shopping bags. A smile broke out of my face. I would hazard a guess that they were for the triplets.A gladness filled my heart knowing these men doted on my children even when they were not blood-related. "You should have brought a cart. Here, let me help." A curly-haired woman said to a Ford brother.The shopping bags transferred hands, and they marched up to the house.When they disappeared, I heard a noise, much like a holler."Riley, Mason, Brixx! Dada is here!"The others shushed him while the lights came on. The house previously shrouded in darkness had been filled with li
Briana POVI woke up to the sounds of loud voices and instantly got alarmed.It must be the new home. My ears perked up when I recognized the familiar voice of my brother calling out to my children.I groaned and looked at the triplets, thankful the ruckus did not wake them.Well, that was premature thinking. As the saying goes, you can not count your chicken until it is hatch.In my case, I shouldn't be too confident because right after I got out of bed, I noticed my triplets' eyes fluttering open at the slightest movement from me.At first, they looked disoriented. Then, their little ears picked up the voices, and a grin slowly curved on their cute little faces.“Dada!” Mason squealed in delight.He flew off the bed and ran out of my room with his two brothers in pursuit.When Mason reached the last step, he launched into Rowan’s waiting arms.“I miss you, kiddo!” Rowan hugged Mason to himself while Mason muttered.“I miss you, too, Dada!” The other two launched themselves in my
Noah POVI was dreaming about Briana when my phone started buzzing, rousing me from sleep.Frustrated, I grabbed the phone without looking at the caller ID to bark. “What?”“Noah?”I sighed. “Yes. Uncle Matt?” I replied using my normal tone of voice.Uncle Matt cleared his throat. “Are you coming to the Rosewood Hotel’s grand launch?” He asked.There was a pregnant silence, and my insides curdled at what Uncle Matt had to say. I remember this same scene five years ago. He called me to ask if I was about to leave the office for my third wedding anniversary.“Yes.” I finally replied.“Okay. See you there.” He told me and hung up the phone.I stared at my blank screen for seconds longer before I clambered off the bed and padded my way to the ensuite bathroom.With water spraying over my head and face from the shower nozzle, I pushed Uncle Matt’s call aside and concentrated on my dream.At the possibility of seeing Braina again, a smile formed on my face. Maybe I can coax her to talk t
Brent POVDo you know what heaven feels like?It was having the love of your life wrap her arms around your massive frame and hold on to you like she did not want to let go or part from you. That was heaven for me - being held by Beth like this was my new definition of high. Before, what made me high was dodging bullets and trying to outwit Hades from the door of death.I used to live in the thrill of danger, but no more. That’s the reason I built BASS Incorporated frame by frame. For my own protection.I already cheated death once, and I am not sure I can do it again. I released her and cupped her chin. Then, I leaned my head in to capture her lips in a gentle kiss. At first, I only pressed our lips together and pulled back. Her tongue darted to worry her upper and lower lips, and I became excited.I pulled her again, and this time, I took her lips in a searing kiss.I took control of the kiss, nibbling and chewing on her lips before I let my tongue slide over the seams, wai
Brent POV“You are a billionaire.” She uttered in a daze, and I nodded my head. BASS Incorporated is a renowned surveillance and security company.“Why didn’t you tell me?”“As you mentioned earlier, your desires are simple. There is nothing about my company or wealth that could impress you.” I told her bluntly. “Still. It’s one piece of information you kept from me. I was supposed to know because I was your wife.”“At the time, the BASS was not this big. I started as a private investigator. My reputation grew with the help of Noah Hunter. He threw work my way. I specialized in corporate espionage. I unravel many cases of economic sabotage and stealing company trade secrets. Then, the Fords also gave me jobs.” “Isn’t that a bit dangerous?” Worry etched on her face, and I leaned forward to smoothen the folds it created on her forehead. “I am doing administrative work nowadays. Before, I used to handle cases that took me weeks, sometimes months, to finish.” The creases on her foreh
Brent POVI held out my hand and anxiously waited for Beth to take it.When she placed her hand on mine, I closed the gap between us to pull her to my chest and wrapped my arms around her.“Thank you.” I closed my eyes and sighed.Beth pushed at my chest and self-consciously looked around.“People are staring.” She whispered shyly.But I was not concerned about that. What matters is that Beth agreed to give us a try.“I don’t care about them. I only care about us.&rdqu
Brent POVI felt her resistance fading away.Our chests heaved with too much emotion, but I was not letting her go.She twisted her body, and I released her, but I made sure that she was not far.I took her hand, all the while looking straight into her eyes.“I told you, I love you.”“Love is nurtured, Bernt. You did nothing in
Brent POVI did not know my promise would come to a test early that morning when Krizzie and I walked out of the kitchen to find Beth and Dr. Roberts at the door, talking sweetly.They were so engrossed with each other that they did not notice us.“I am sorry about last night,” Beth said.“No. It’s me who needed to apologize for my rude behavior. I am sorry, Beth. I got jealous of your ex-husband.”Beth hugged a bouquet of roses to her chest and put them under her nose to sniff.Her action dove a knife deep into my heart, but I wouldn’t gi
Brent POVShe is avoiding me.“Mommy, ahh!” Krizzie opened her mouth and took a bite from the sandwich Beth placed near her mouth.“Yummy.” She declared while munching happily.“How about Daddy? You let him have a bite out of our sandwich, too.” Krizzie prodded her mom.The smile on Beth’s face froze. She did not move until I forced her by coiling my fingers around her wrist and pulling her hands near my mouth so I could take a bite out of her sandwich.All the while, I was looking at her.
Beth POV“Mommy, wakey, wakey!” I opened bloodshot eyes to search for Krizzie, but when I felt the tremors around me, I immediately shot up in bed. “Krizzie!” I cried in alarm.I was ready to pluck her from the bed when I realized something.Krizzie was jumping on the bed. I pressed a hand to my chest to steady my heavily pounding heart as I stared at my daughter. I really thought there was an earthquake. Phew!“What’s wrong, Mommy?” Krizzie stopped her play to stare at me, erasing the smile on her lips.I shook my head. “I thought there was an earthquake.” Krizzie’s eyes widened, and she giggled. “You are s*lly, Mommy. It’s just me, Krizzie.” She informed me. I nodded, glad that it was just my overactive imagination.“Yeah. Mommy’s s*lly.” I agreed and grabbed her by the shoulders to pepper tiny kisses on her face. We heard a knock on the door, prompting me to release my daughter. Krizzie’s eyes connected with mine before her hands flew to her mouth. Then, without warnin
Beth POVWhen the door slammed shut, and I was left alone in the house, it was as if all the fight left me.I felt so drained.Arguing with Brent had been emotionally and mentally taxing. That is why I avoided it at all costs.If we could co-exist peacefully with our child, that would be better.For years after our divorce, I accepted that all we could ever be is Krizzie’s parents.I never want to return to that time when all I do is beg for his love and attention.When he offered marriage,
Beth POV“If I am selfish. I would do that.” He countered so casually that my anger meter was beginning to exceed its limit. It was ready to burst into flames. “And what are you trying to imply? That you are the epitome of selflessness, is that it?” I snapped, too angry to care whether my voice was going through the roof. I don’t know where Brent was getting all this nerve to tell me.“You have some nerve! You who never wanted my baby in the first place.” I hissed.My teeth gritted and my hands clenched into fists. “Because it was never in our agreement, d*mn it, Beth. All along, I thought we were in sync with our ideals. We agreed not to have any babies, but what did you do? You went behind my back and got yourself pregnant without my knowledge.” Tears sprung in my eyes when I remembered all that happened nine years ago. I thought I was already past it, but d*mn, it still hurts like h*ll.I sighed, trying to keep my tears in check because I didn’t need them now. It was not g