Who is A and J?
“Mr. Dalton, I brought snacks,” Regina knocked at his office door. “He’s not in the office yet, dear.” Laurie, his assistant, had just come in and was surprised someone was at his door early that morning. “Oh, hi Laurie, I didn’t see you at your desk. I thought you were in there.” “Are these from the new bakery?” Laurie looked at the boxes on her table. “Yeah, my friend owns the place, and he bakes the pastries daily. The chocolate cake is so good, so help yourself. You too, Arthur, for your assistance.” He smiled while setting his things on the desk. Arthur Johnson is the CEO’s second assistant. While Laurie took care of the phone calls and important business transactions, Arthur dealt with the paperwork and out-of-office errands. Mr. Dalton usually sent him to different job sites or offices to deliver time-sensitive materials, which is why Regina often sees him at the Bennet mansion. “Don’t mind if I do,” Laurie said as she poured some coffee and got a pastry. “Hmm… this hit
Owen was amused. Regina managed to avoid him all week by hiding in the bathroom or the kitchen when he came in to greet his mom, finding one task or another, so they had no interactions. He tried to be astute about his timings when he came home, but for some reason, she always knew the minute he arrived. He heard snippets of her voice as she talked to several members of the household, sometime catching glimpses or her as she darted to her car or moved about the house. It was Friday and Owen just wanted to relax, so he came home early and got himself a beer from the fridge. Regina usually took half the day off, so he knew he had the house to himself for a few hours until his brothers arrived. Owen was on the treadmill with only his riding shorts on when his mother walked in. “You’re on my machine,” she declared. It was the last 30 mins of his workout. After lifting weights, he was doing cardio to strengthen his lungs and his heart, and during this time, he usually listened to music
“We have nothing to talk about.” Regina walked away at the same time Yvan did and went in the opposite direction. Owen looked at her retreating frame with a frown on his face. ‘This woman should be glad I let her speak to me that way.’ He smirked. ‘You’ll have your day, Regina. They will know I am right.’ Inside the room, Marius helped Mrs. Bennet stretch her muscles before they bathed her. Marius and Regina had known each other way before they worked with the Bennets. They worked at the same hospital and knew the same people, and because Regina still did not have the guts to visit the hospital, at the moment, Marius was her link to her old life. They bonded instantly, and Marius brought her the latest gossip and spectacle from the new and old staff. Who was sleeping with whom, which doctor dated, what nurse, who got fired, and what staff had a breakdown. The hospital was a very interesting place to work in. With hundreds of employees thrown around in different shifts, there wa
“You should have seen your face. I’m not a pervert who places cameras without telling people. That’s an invasion of privacy.” Regina frowned. ‘What is wrong with him? Why is he laughing?’ He twirled the pen in his hand. “Unless you think I should place cameras in her room. Are there things I need to know?” Regina looked annoyed as she sat back down. ‘Did he just play a trick on me and laugh in my face?’ “And I didn’t hear your conversation,” Owen said as he stood beside her chair and sat on his desk, “Though now it makes me very curious. Will you tell me what you were talking about that made you think I’d fire you?” “I would rather not repeat it, plus I don’t want Marius to get in trouble. You can punish me all you want.” Owen cocked an eyebrow. “What is it with you and protecting all the men around you?” It baffled Owen that instead of throwing people under the bus to save her neck, Regina repeatedly volunteered herself for punishment. It went against what he thought he knew
In her embarrassment and haste, Regina left her notebook behind. It was the diary she used to log in Mrs. Bennet’s daily activities, her mood, diet, exercise, and the overall assessment of her progress. Regina would type up the report at the end of the work week and leave it for Owen to read unless there was something imperative he should know, and she reported those right away. So it was not unusual to see her notebook lying around, but Regina never left it when she went home, for between the pages, Regina had a secret. Owen flipped the pages and appreciated that Regina had legible handwriting, for it was easy for him to read her notes. He even read the side notes and smiled at the doodles on some pages. He read the last entry for the week and realized he enjoyed reading her notebook better than the reports she printed out for him. When he was about to close the notebook, he noticed pages at the back had more doodles on them. He touched the page and felt moved when he saw an
Regina stopped by Jason’s bakery before heading to her parents. She wanted to bring them some of the pastries and cakes she enjoyed from his place. “Ms. Regina, I’m glad to see you in here again. Do you want to tell me what you want, and we’ll bring it to your table?” “Jason, can we drop the formalities? We’re friends, aren’t we? Or I think at least we are.” “We are, Regina. So what can I do for you today? Are you dining in?” “Oh, not today, Jason. I need to visit my parents, so I need an Iced Latte with an extra shot of espresso, then an entire chocolate cake, and wrap me some of your favorites. Mostly fruit ones, if you have them.” “Are you having a party?” “No, I just want to distract them with sweets, and maybe they’ll stop asking me the usual annoying questions.” Jason smiles and nods knowingly. Of course, she loved her parents, but they constantly nagged her about her job, and now that they have that squared off, they can’t stop talking about marriage. Regina tapped he
“Hey Jason, I did something yesterday that may or may not bring my whole family to your cafe.” Jason looked at Regina with a puzzled expression. “My mom was being unreasonable, setting me up on blind dates, so I said I was going on a date today and that she shouldn’t bother.” He looked at her with a smug expression on his face. “I didn’t give your info, but knowing my family, they’d find you sooner or later.” “Don’t worry about it. I can handle a few more extra customers.” “Charge them double when you see them. Tell them it’s a gift from me.” They both laughed, and the tension was gone. “I’m glad you’re okay that this turned out to be a date when I specifically invited you to a tasting event.” Jason felt awkward that he skirted the issue when he gave the invitation. He got so shy that he did not know how to ask her out. “Well, I thought it was just what you said, but the flowers and your attire gave it away,” she teased. It had been an awkward beginning when Regina arrived at
“Where have you been?” Regina turned around swiftly, ready to face Owen with a snarky comment. “Ms. Regina, I’m sorry if I startled you.” “Oh my gosh, it’s just you.” “I tried to call your attention earlier, but you weren’t responding.” “Hey, Art. What are you doing here? Do you live in the area?” “I’m... I uh… well uhm… Ms. Regina, do you mind if I talk to you somewhere private?” “Uhm, sure, let me set these things down, and I’ll be right back.” Arthur saw the flowers in one of her bags while a frown followed Regina as she entered the building. Regina bought a few boxes of tea and some desserts to take home from the event. She wanted to share some of it with a few people from the Bennet household and her doorman, Jeffrey, and his assistant. “Jeffrey, this bag is for you guys. I got you some tea and desserts from the hotel.” “Oh, Ms. Regina, you shouldn’t have. You spoil us too much.” “Well, you guys do a good job guarding this building and ensuring our safety at all times
“Regina, are you okay?” Arthur’s softer voice asked from the other side, and she looked up as she wiped her tears away. “I need to tell you something before he comes back. I drugged you the entire time you were with Jacob because he wanted you to cry and scream when he raped you, but he wouldn’t touch a sleeping body. He said it felt like he was fucking the dead. So I made you sleep.” “You what?” “I drugged you, so he couldn’t do anything to you. All the things he told you were lies. None of them happened.” “You did that for me?” she asked, confused about whom to believe. Was this version of Arthur telling the truth, or was it also another lie? “I couldn’t bear the thought that I stood by and watched while he harmed you.” “Why?” “I always loved you, Regina. I always will,” Arthur said before his face changed again. “That stupid shit. What did he tell you?” Armed with the knowledge that nothing happened between them, Regina stood to taunt Jacob. She wanted to get to the bottom o
“I wanted to see.”“And there’s a reason I told you no.”“Babe…”“That guy left me for dead, Regina. Would you like to see a picture of that?”“Yes. I want to understand why a man with a face so kind could be so horrible.”“I will show you the footage from the precinct and how they found out Arthur’s mental illness.” Owen sighed, knowing that keeping the truth from Regina would just give her more reason to sneak around. “Then will you come to bed and forget about this?” She nodded as Owen retrieved a file from his computer and showed her a video of Arthur arguing with himself at the precinct. He was fighting with himself as if there were two people instead of one, and Regina felt unnerved. “The doctors said Jacob was too traumatized by Arthur’s loss that he erased the fact that he was dead. In his grief, he developed the Arthur persona, who was kind and smart, just like the actual person. It was a form of coping mechanism.”“Where is he now?”“In the psychiatric hospital inside the
“YOU KILLED ARTHUR! YOU DON’T DESERVE TO BE HAPPY!” It said before images began appearing on the screen. Regina was frozen and horrified because of the text, she was trying to figure out what the images were but Owen closed the lid before she did.“Don’t touch the computer. It was just a virus. I have a friend who can clean this for you.“Who would send such a horrific message? And what is that message about Arthur? Is he dead?”“Yes, no. It’s a long story. Don’t worry about it.” He said as he moved the laptop to his desk.“Don’t lie to me, Owen.” Regina stood up to face him. “We said no secrets. What was that about? And why is there a naked woman on my screen?”“Did you have an affair and not tell me, because gods help me, I am not taking this crap from you.”“No babe, I wouldn’t do that to you. You have to sit while I tell you what that was about.”“I can’t sit. My blood is boiling right now.”“Okay, let’s go to the kitchen, get a glass of water for both of us while I collect my tho
“Dad, thank you for giving me the extended leave. France has inspired me a lot with my artistic side. Did you see my paintings?”“Yeah, I have a few of them put up in the hospital and around the house already. Is that what you want to do now? Paint?”“Oh no, that’s just my side hobby. I was inspired by the nursing home in France and wanted to build a non-profit nursing home as a branch of our hospital.”“That sounds like a good idea. I think someone suggested that before and we just didn’t have time to look into it. Talk to the project manager so we can get this started. Which wing do you want it in?”“Well, that’s the thing. I want it to be separate from the hospital, in a more scenic setting so we can usher the old people to rest peacefully. I don’t want them to feel like they’re in the hospital all the time.”“Are you willing to put in work for this project? This will be a lot of work, starting with finding available properties. You can’t just quit mid-way because it’s too hard.”R
“What are you telling them?”“Don’t worry about it, sweetie. I have everything in control.” He said confidently as they walked to his mother’s room.“Mom? Are you awake?” Owen asked. Myles was reading her a book Regina sent from France, and the scenes were getting steamy, so he was glad that his mother’s attention got diverted to the guests. “Look who’s here?”He stepped aside, and Regina softly exclaimed, “Surprise!”Mrs. Bennet stared at Regina, wondering who she was, and then it clicked. “Mandy? Oh, I’m glad you’ve come. I’ve missed you so.” She grew emotional as Regina sat on the bed and hugged her.“So did I Mrs. Bennet. I am glad to see that you are better.” Regina touched her forehead to get the temperature and her wrist to check how fast her pulse rate was.“Oh, it was nothing. They just worry too much. Now I’m in the hospital when all I want to do is see that dog.” Bella had been constant in her life, and like Regina, not having seen her for a few days, threw everything out o
News of Owen’s mystery woman spread throughout the nation as pictures of the couple were shared across every website on the internet. “Owen, what are we going to do? Can we hire someone to delete the pictures?” Regina asked as the car sped away. He smirked, “No.” “No? But your reputation?” “I’m a single man in a relationship with a beautiful woman, so I don’t care about the pictures.” “But the paparazzi, they’ll know.” “We’re not hiding our relationship, my love. Unless you want to.” “I don’t.” “I know you don’t want your face in the media, so we won’t tell them who you are. Let them find out on their own.” “I don’t care if they find out. I’m through hiding. It didn’t do me any good, anyway. I kept lying to people I really liked. I just hope they could forgive me,” she said, leaning back into the seat, more relaxed. “Well then, that’s settled,” Owen smiled and leaned over to nuzzle her ear. “You know they’ll be at my apartment waiting. What do you say we go to yours and lock
Regina asked how they all knew each other, and the three men regaled her with stories of when they met while re-constructing the apartment she was staying in.“So I have a question. If Owen owns the complex, then why do I have a small apartment?”Caelan and François both laughed and teased Owen.“Well, I didn’t want you to get suspicious about paying such a small price for an enormous apartment, so we gave you the smallest unit. It was Caelan’s place.”“Aww…” Regina looked at Caelan, “You gave it up for me? I’m sorry if I brought in mismatched furniture in there.”“Don’t feel sorry for him. He got a bigger apartment out of the deal, so he’s happy about that.” Owen butted in, and Regina laughed.“I don’t mind how you decorated the place. I like it and will keep most of the furniture,” Caelan replied.“So I heard Owen hired you to follow me around and disrupt my dates with Jason. Is that true?”“Well—I—He—Yes, it’s true,” Caelan could not defend himself, so he admitted the truth.“So th
The sun was peeking through the horizon by the time the couple fell asleep, satiated and full of love. Neither wanted to sleep lest everything was just a dream. Regina woke up first, staring at the sleeping man beside her, waiting for him to awaken. “What are you doing?” Owen asked, his voice husky from sleep.She blushed that she got caught running her finger down his chest, tracing the lines of his abdomen. “Waking you. Did it work?”“It did.” He grabbed her waist, pulling her toward him. He hooked his legs around hers and kissed her neck. “I missed you so much that when you stopped sending me messages, it made me go crazy.”“I’m sorry. I was so ashamed about what happened that I did not know how to handle the situation. How could I not know anything about my body?”“There were a lot of things happening during that time. Stop blaming yourself. We’re here now, where we should be. Just don’t shut me out again.”“I promise I won’t.” Owen nibbled her neck, and her body came alive. “W
“I had a baby—”“I know.”Regina scrunched her brows in shock. “But I never told you. The diary said you didn’t know.”“The baby was ours,” he said, holding her gaze. If her mouth wasn’t hanging open before, it was now.“How—”“How did I know? I have the same tracker app you do, and they were synched together so I could watch your cycle. I wanted to know when it would be safe because we were having unprotected sex. We needed to take extra precautions to prevent having an accident.”“But we still did.”“It doesn’t make a difference. I still love you.” “You knew, and you didn’t tell me?”“I was waiting for you to share your troubles, so I gave you the space you needed, but you just distanced yourself from me. I didn’t want to nag you because you’ve been through so much already. So I waited.”“The diary said I couldn’t tell you because I felt guilty.”“I know.”“But I didn’t tell you…”“You said it in the letter that you sent me.”“The letter that you keep talking about?”“Yes, do you w