"Well, I think I will have a busy schedule from now on, maybe we won't be able to meet," she said, trying to avoid the meeting."He will be around for a while, I believe you’ll have time to organize and meet him," Tyler insisted."Yeah, maybe," she replied.Even though she had no intention of seeing him, she wouldn’t say anything at that moment. In the future, when Tyler arranged that meeting, she would come up with an excuse. The last thing she wanted was to see Tácio, especially when her pregnancy would be so apparent.The horses at the racetrack were in position, and the box seats were starting to fill up."Which one did you bet on?" Tyler asked."On none. Once again, I just came to accompany my friend.""Don’t you think it's boring when your friend starts dating? I mean, don’t you think it would be more interesting if, from now on, you went out as a couple?"She understood Tyler's move. She couldn’t deny that he was very handsome and seemed very interesting, yet she wouldn’t risk a
"I'm just saying this because you keep bringing it up," she explained, causing Ethan to reveal a slight victorious smile."It seems like you're getting nervous," he teased."Look, you know what? I came here to try to distract myself, but it seems I'm getting worse than if I had stayed home," she said, standing up from the chair. "I'm leaving. I hope you have a good day," she added to Ethan, walking away.When Kate saw Rafaela leaving quickly, she ran after her friend to understand what had happened. Until that moment, she hadn't noticed Ethan there, as she was too focused on the horses on the track."Hey, where are you going?" Kate asked when she caught up with Rafaela."I'm going home; this isn't the kind of place that distracts me.""Then I'll go with you, just let me say goodbye to the guys," said Kate."No need," Rafaela replied. "You don't have to ruin your day because of me; I just want to go home and sleep a little.""I don't want you to go alone, Rafa," Kate insisted."Don't wo
Realizing the foolishness she had done, she quickly bent down, grabbed the papers and the bag, and ran to the bathroom, leaving Ethan confused. In the bathroom, she started vomiting uncontrollably."Why does this only happen when I’m with him?" she asked herself, looking at her reflection in the mirror, trying to think of the excuse she would give when she returned to the table.As she walked back to where Ethan was waiting for her, she wondered if he could have seen the contents of the paper when it fell or if he would ask what it was about. When she approached the table, he was already staring at her with a confused look, waiting for answers."I’m sorry for leaving like that, I haven’t been feeling very well lately," she said, sitting down in the chair."What’s wrong with you? Those papers that fell on the floor, what do they mean?" he asked seriously."What are you saying about that? Those are personal things," she explained nervously."Was that an ultrasound? Rafaela, are you pregn
Maybe his face would change on the spot, unable to maintain his character, going back to treating her rudely, forcing them to leave right then and there, directly to an abortion clinic, to end what he didn't want at all.She took a deep breath, realizing that it didn't matter how he treated her or pretended to be. In the end, Ethan only thought about his own interests, showing that he didn't care about anything else. Regardless of whether he was good or bad, she could never tell him about her pregnancy, or rather, he could never know about that child. On an impulse, thinking about her future, she picked up the phone and called her mother, who lived in Brazil.She knew she had to share the news with her family, even though she knew they would bombard her with questions.“Hi, dear, you must have read my mind. I was just about to call you,” Sueli, her mother, said on the other end of the line.“Really? Did something happen?” she asked.“Don't worry, nothing happened. I just had a dream ab
Upon hearing what her mother said, her heart skipped a beat."Tácio was here?" she asked, trying to pretend she wasn't shaken by her mother's words."Yes, he showed up here last night," said Sueli. "I was a bit surprised since it had been a long time since he came to the inn.""What did he want?" Rafaela asked, in an anxious tone."He told me that he is going to the US for a seminar or something like that. He said he would be there for a while and asked for your address.""Why does he want my address?" she questioned."I'm not sure... he said he hadn't seen you in a long time and wanted to see you again since you're friends.""Friends..." she whispered."See?" her mother said on the other end of the line. "It seems like you still get upset when I talk about these things.""I'm not upset, Mom," she explained. "I just find it strange that he considers me a friend, even though I confessed my love to him.""I know. And that ungrateful man didn't reciprocate," Sueli grumbled."It's not his
"I'm still processing everything, Mom, because this wasn’t something that was in my plans at the moment," Rafaela said."If it wasn’t in your plans, how did you let this happen?" her mother asked."I protected myself, Mom, I swear to you that I protected myself, but still, it happened," Rafaela responded."And the father of this child, what did he say about it?""I'm not going to tell him.""What do you mean?""We’ll talk about that later too, Mom.""Then I’m left with nothing to talk to you about since all my questions somehow involve this man," her mother replied, frustration evident in her tone."I know it might be strange, but we’ll talk about it another day," Rafaela assured her."So, what do you want to talk about? You’re not thinking about having this child there without any family nearby, are you?""That’s what I want to talk about, Mom. I’ve been thinking about this." Rafaela took a deep breath before continuing. "I’ve tried to visualize how my life will be after this baby is
After finishing talking to her mother and hanging up the phone, Rafaela burst into tears. Surely, this would be the most difficult decision of her life, having to leave her son after his birth. Even though she fully trusted her family, she knew that a piece of her heart would break with that, but she tried to ignore it as long as she could because thinking about it caused her anxiety and suffering.One day at a time, that's how it should be.It was horrible not having control over things. She was now torn between the joy of motherhood and Ethan's reaction, who, if he found out at any moment about the baby, could cause an uproar. She knew nothing about his personal life, except that he had lived abroad for many years and only returned when his father said he was about to retire and wanted his son nearby, to start familiarizing himself with the company, and to become the future CEO.[...]On Monday, arriving very early at the company, she entered the elevator, pressing the number of the
"You will go in my place, Rafaela; you will receive someone for me.""Me?" she questioned, already imagining she would lose her precious lunch hour with Kate."Yes, I can't let my driver go; it would seem disrespectful on my part," he replied. And to not just stop there, I want you to go to a flower shop and buy a beautiful bouquet of flowers.""What specific flower do you want me to buy?" she asked, interested, trying to imagine who this person was that would receive so much of Ethan's attention, to the point of receiving flowers."Does that matter? What flowers do women like the most?" he asked her, and she didn't know how to respond.A woman, she thought."I don't know, women's tastes are different; some like delicate and discreet flowers, others like extravagant and colorful ones.""That seems difficult," Ethan seemed to think. "Tell me, what kind of flowers did you most enjoy receiving?" he asked."I’ve never received flowers," she replied with a certain sadness.Although she was