Stephanie lazily opened her eyes, wincing as the harsh light in the room scorched her eyes. She was trying to remember where she was , what she doing here and more importantly, why she felt so weak.
“Steph?”A familiar voice called out and she wrinkled her face in confusion. It was her boss. What was he doing here??. She fully opened her eyes to see her boss looking at her with —concern?.Was that really concern etched on his face? She blinked. “Can you hear me?” an unfamiliar voice said and she realized it was a doctor, she didn’t see him before. Her eyes widened almost instantly when she realized what had happened. She had fainted!!!. Her throat suddenly felt parched and everything came rushing back, her mind only on one thing, her pregnancy. “M.mmy…my bb..bbab..bab..y” she croaked out hoarsely. “Stephanie, listen to me. The baby’s going to be fine and you are going to be too!” Paul stated pulling her hands into his and squeezing it lightly, his eyes reflecting reassurance. she sighed and opened her mouth to speak when Paul quickly interrupted her, “Shhhh, you're going to be fine, just get some rest, you’ve been extremely stressed out”. With that, he went out of the room,discussing things she couldn’t hear with the doctor.Paul had felt his heart shatter when he carried an unconscious Stephanie to the hospital. He didn’t care about the baby anymore, but She had to survive, she must at all costs. He had been worried, that the doctor noticed and told him that bleeding and fainting during pregnancy wasn’t unlikely and that hers was caused by fatigue.That was when he realized that the stress he was going through because of the matter was little compared to what she would be going through. ************************** Paul had gone to the building which was Costa incorporations headquarters and called his secretary who was already worried about Stephanie’s constant absence. “Make an announcement, we have a vacancy for the role of a personal assistant,” he said and her eyebrows shot up in surprise. He came later than usual and now this?, she was indeed surprised. “Sir?” She couldn’t quite believe what she heard. Did Stephanie retire without telling her or has she been dismissed?? “You heard me Natalie,” he said, looking livid. and she nodded rapidly before scurrying out of the office. He would find someone to take her position until she was better. He knew she’d be hurt but it was for the better, he thought. He went through the day missing Stephanie and wondered how he’d cope in the office without her, he hoped that the new personal assistant would be just as perfect as her, but even as he thought so, he knew it was impossible, Stephanie was too perfect. He even found himself calling her desk line before realizing that she wasn’t there to take the call. Six years ago when he had first met her, she looked nervous and frightened, he had reviewed her résumé and was surprised that someone with such talent would choose to be a personal assistant and when she had been questioned, she said, “I believe that there are lots of things to learn by working as an assistant to a successful man as yourself” he knew she wasn’t truthful, she just wasn’t lucky to get a job and looking at her grades, she would be a valuable asset to the company, she was just what he was looking for. After hiring her, he thought he had made a mistake. She was clumsy, she dressed very terribly and kept making mistakes. It took three months before she became a true personal assistant and years before she became so perfect and an invaluable asset to Costa incorporation that other people had told him that he was so lucky to have her. The shrill ringtone of his phone brought Paul’s mind back to the present and he groaned in annoyance as he saw the caller ID. It was Victoria!.He hissed in annoyance and ended her call, deciding to just leave her a text stating that he was busy. He stormed out of the office a few minutes later and Natalie kept wondering what was going on in the company. Stephanie was surprised and couldn’t help but wonder why her boss had been acting the way he had towards her lately. The doctor had placed her on bed rest for two weeks. She was moved to a VIP room and a nanny was hired to take care of her in the hospital. Of course, it was all thanks to her boss and she decided that he was doing all that just for the sake of the unborn baby. He always came to visit her every day and asked how she was faring. Sometimes, he’d come with flowers, sometimes with snacks which she liked. He was,—sweet?,she wondered. Ciara had visited and gushed at how beautiful the VIP room looked and felt. She even stated that “being in this room alone will take away all your sickness!”. Paul came that evening and she smiled, he was wearing a black tailored suit and a red tie. He was holding daises!,her favorite flower. “Were you bored?” He asked as he plopped himself onto the sofa in the room. “Not at all” she had replied with a small smile “About my offer..” he began, bringing out a document from his briefcase. Stephanie paled.Was that why he had been so kind toward her? Why had she been so foolish and hopeful?!, she should've known better,she thought. But, there was no point in fighting him, it was like fighting in a battle that was going to be lost. So she said something she’d probably regret for a long time. “I’ll sign”. Paul was surprised that he immediately turned to stare at her. “There’s no point in fighting a lost battle,” she said as she took a pen and signed the document. “Good!, I already moved your things,” he said firmly and she looked at him in confusion. “Moved my things?” She questioned puzzled. Why would he move her things?…or did he get a new apartment for her? Was that in the contract, why didn’t she read it? She mentally face palmed and sighed. “Yes Steph, it's in the contract and it's for your own good, now I can't let you carry my child in a filthy environment,” he said firmly and she swallowed hard upon hearing her apartment being called a filth. “Let me even have a look at that contract!” She said after being silent for a while as if looking at the contract would change the fact that she already signed.“This is ridiculous!!” She suddenly screamed out. “Move into your home? quit my job?,what on earth is wrong with you!!” She yelled out. “I didn’t force you into signing it, you did it yourself and if you think about it, it's for your own good,” he said and Stephanie stared at him in horror. “There is nothing normal about this!!. You tricked me! You've been so kind to me all these times just so I could sign this! You knew I would never fight you after all you did for me this week!,how could I have been so stupid!!” She yelled out in pain. “You signed it already and what did you think? that i was being so caring because I liked you?” He scoffed, “Stephanie wake the fuck up!,!. I just want the child and nothing else” he bit out firmly. Stephanie was in pain listening to him. What really had she been thinking? She sobbed as she stared at the contract. She had literally sold herself to her boss. She would live with him until she gave birth, she would quit her job, she would speak to no one about the pregnancy and who was responsible, she would never appear in front of the child after it was born and she would take much care not to do anything that will affect the child, including working anywhere else. Breaching any terms of the contract will make her pay 50 million dollars. But adherence to the contract clauses will make her earn 50 million dollars.Throughout the drive to Paul’s house, Stephanie sat,fiddling with her fingers as she gazed blankly through the windows, wishing she hadn’t gone out that night. Missing her old life and the independence she thought she had. She had decided to stop crying as tears would do nothing but bring her headaches and not solve any of the problemsThey got to the house, she wasn’t surprised about how it looked. Big and beautiful with palm trees lining the entrance and daises sitting between each palm. She had been to the house several times when they were working on a project. The project that made her overwork. Which took her to the club to relieve all the stress which brought all this mess. The feeling that she had entered an unwelcome chapter in her life overwhelmed her.“Welcome home Stephanie,” he said opening the door for her. She sighed, muttering,“More like welcome to hell."Stephanie sighed as she glanced around the room which was much bigger than her previous apartment entirely. It was beautiful and everything was pink and fresh,with the smell of daises overwhelming her senses. It was either he had decorated the room for her,or this used to be a woman’s room. She was very sure it was the former as she would have known if a woman lived with him. “It’s your room. Make yourself at home” Paul said and turned to leave. “Thanks,I’ll be sure to lock myself in it for the next few months” she quipped sardonically,noting that indeed her things had been arranged in the room. “I brought all your things.And bought a few more” he said before leaving,ignoring her statement. True to his words,she opened the wardrobe to find it filled with all kind of dresses!. They were designer and she gasped in surprise. She found her own dress among them,looking like it belonged anywhere else but this room. She believed that indeed he had arranged the room for her and the cloth
‘You don’t own me!’,she yelled back at him.Stephanie had entered the house and was about to head straight to her room when Paul stopped her and asked her why she spent such a long time outside the house.‘no!,but I own the baby in your stomach,so it could be said that I own you too!. He fired back and soon the house became filled with their yellings as Paul’s voice reverberated.‘I regret seeing you that night’,she spat out bitterly,remembering the night that led to these chain of events.‘same!,’he replied. Out of hundreds of women in the club that night,why didn’t he pick any of them instead of his personal assistant!Why did he even go there that night!!,he mentally questioned himself. Women like Stephanie were only meant to be for fun,not carrying his child!. Stephanie was about to say something when the door opened,followed by a very familiar voice.‘What is going on here?’All eyes turned to the blonde woman that
Paul sat at the counter of the dimly lit bar, fiddling with the drink in his hand. He had been sitting and waiting for Kenneth for almost thirty minutes and was really losing his patience. The two women at his home really bothered him. Victoria had tried to get him to lay with her so many times that he believed she got tired and stopped. He saw the hurt in her face each time he rejected her and it bothered him, leaving him feeling awful about deceiving her, but it had to be done. He had to marry her or risk losing the company to his cousin, whom he absolutely despised. But he was happy that she was making an effort to be close to Stephanie, who has avoided him ever since Victoria showed up.He pulled his phone from his pocket and began to dial Kenneth’s number when he felt a pat on his shoulder.He shoved the phone back into his pocket, sighing as he saw the familiar face. It was Kenneth.‘I thought I was going to grow grey hairs here waiting for
A day before the fundraising event,Stephanie came back from Ciara’s house feeling a bit uneasy. She had told Ciara everything about the incident with Victoria and they decided to find out about the woman named Helena by themselves instead of asking paul. She feared what she would hear. She had never heard that name but it did sound familiar,like she's heard it somewhere before.As soon as she arrived in her room,she plopped down on the bed,trying to rid herself of the gnawing feeling in her belly. She groaned when a knock on her door prevented her from doing so. It was probably Victoria or the cleaning lady. After that incident,Victoria hadn’t even bothered to talk to her at all and frankly,she preferred it like that. She knew Victoria hated her but what was she to do?,she was here against her own volition.‘It's open’ ,she called out,easing herself upwards. The door opened and she sighed upon seeing who it was,she definitely wasn’t expecting him,it was paul.
Theresa Costa was a woman who hated nothing more than embarrassments, but what she had experienced the night before was something she totally wasn't expecting.She had pleaded with The Ross’ to not call the marriage off, that it was just a small issue and her son wasn't in his right senses. The Ross’ had angrily left the ceremony and she had paid her most trusted bodyguard to make sure that news didn't spread about what had happened that evening.That night, she tossed and turned as she thought of what she and her husband had worked for, going down the drain because of her son's stupidity. If it were another woman, she might not have been this bothered, but it was Stephanie! A common personal assistant! A nobody!It was just too much for her to believe and as soon as it was dawn, she got up and dressed up. Her maid, Cara glanced at her, wondering why she had put on a very dark lipstick. She knew the woman she served and she knew that her lipsticks were worn according to how she felt,
“I’m pregnant” She said in the calmest voice she could muster with her blue eyes looking everywhere else but his. Paul Costa’s grey eyes shot up to the woman before him, easing his back onto the chair in his huge office. The Woman has been working for him for the past six years since he became the executive director of Costa Incorporation. There was something different about her this afternoon, perhaps it was the way she styled her hair or the Color of her eyes, He had never seen her without her glasses. That was probably why she seemed so different. Heck! It could even be the perfume she was wearing, it was jasmine. Paul couldn’t remember if her hair had always been this black or her eyes this blue. He wasn’t sure if any of those things were attributed to the difference he saw in her, But then, he had never paid any attention to her, all he knows was that she could do her job right, she was the ‘perfect assistant’ and that was why she still worked for him after 6 years. Stephani
“Excuse me, sir?!” Stephanie’s eyes shot up as she stared at him,gasping as she realized what he meant. He was offering her such a huge amount of money to get rid of the baby, her baby!!. She was not prepared for this at all, She shouldn’t even be here but here She was,being told to kill her baby for a fee,a huge one. She thought the best thing to do after finding out about her pregnancy was to let the father of the baby know, She didn’t think about his reaction and the fact that He wouldn’t be too pleased to father a child with her or could even deny the pregnancy. A highly respected multibillionaire like him could suffer from such scandal and this would have a huge effect on the company, stock prices will go down. Of course,the best way to prevent that was to not father a child with her,therefore,the baby must be terminated. But she loves children, she had always wanted children of her own with a man she loves and She is about to have a child now, with a man she is head over he
It was around 8:00 a.m. when Paul Costa strode into his office building. It was a huge building, the headquarters of Costa incorporations, in the very Heart of New York. He was wearing an Armani suit and a blue tie, he looked as handsome as always and had a smile etched on his face. The moment his foot touched the marble floor, everyone fell quiet. Nobody was expecting him until 9:00 a.m. and they certainly didn’t expect to see him smiling, it was strange. He never smiled, he was always scowling and frowning. People parted as he made his way to the elevator, they had the notion that his smile was dangerous. He went all the way up,to the top floor. He walked past an empty desk, where the personal assistant should be, and noting her absence he nodded. Immediately he got into his office,he reached for the telephone and stopped after seeing the letter across his desk. “Dear Mr. Costa, You are to sign the documents in the envelope under this letter. You also have a conference call wi