*Andrea*
I was extremely nervous.I tapped my cell phone and glanced down at my phone, realizing I was only a minute or so away from my boyfriend's place. Releasing an unsteady breath, I put my phone back into the front pocket of my hoodie, pushing my hair behind my ears and looking around. It somehow felt like my reason for going to Lucas's place was floating boldly above my head for the world to see.I pressed my lips together, bracing myself.Lucas's house came into view. The word house was putting it mildly. Lucas lived in fucking paradise. His father was an extremely well known multi billionaire and though I had never met the man, I'd seen his face splashed a couple of times on TV and newspapers. Plus, he was practically never around. Which was probably the reason why Lucas had chosen to live in one of the penthouses in front of the actual mansion his father owned.There was no reason for him to live somewhere else.His father had more than enough. Lucas and I had met at one of the diners where I'd worked in the past as a waitress. I'd been about to serve him and his equally rich group of friends when someone had bumped into me from behind, causing me to spill the content of the tray right on his expensive shirt.And that hadn't even been the worst part.I'd equally lost my footing, landing right on top of him, and flashing his friends my ass in the process. Since the manager of the diner had made all the younger waitresses like me wear extreme short uniforms to attract the male audience, it hadn't been a surprise to hear his friends whistle at the view. Hurrying to quickly tidy up the mess I'd made, I'd turned back and bent to pick up the items that fell, giving Lucas an even nicer view of my ass.And I'd been wearing a thong.Luckily, Lucas wasn't as much of a rich asshole as his friends and he'd immediately asked me to stand back up, signaling some other older waiter to clear up my mess as he steered me to the washroom. It had been awkward at first but we'd both managed to clean up as much as we could with our clothes on, making occasional eye contact and small talk from across the washroom.I'd been surprised when he kept frequenting the diner after that.He always made sure I served his table and after a few weeks, we became friends. A few more weeks after that, he asked me out and I accepted because, why not? He was rich and extremely good looking with a perfect face, nice jawline and sexy bedroom eyes. But more than that, I especially loved his cute boyish smile. And Lucas was almost always smiling whenever he was around me.I finally got to his penthouse, pausing in front of the door and taking in a steadying breath. We'd been dating for six months now and in those six months we'd never had sex. I hadn't been ready to lose my virginity yet and Lucas had respected that fact. We'd made out and I'd even given him blowjobs a couple of times but we had never had penetrative sex. Even from behind. And not once had he pressured me or made me feel silly for waiting.All that was going to be in the past now.Because after turning eighteen two months ago, I was finally ready to have sex with him. I'd even skipped going to work today because I'd been too excited to let him know and too eager to have my first time with him. I wanted him to be the one to take my virginity. I'd been able to get past all the alarm and security systems up to this point because Lucas had gotten my details installed so I could have free entry and exit. I touched my index finger to the final fingerprint security device on the front door, waiting for the light chime I knew was bound to follow.There you are, I thought after hearing it.I gripped the door knob and twisted the door, pushing it open and immediately stepping inside. It wasn't weird for the alarm system to be turned on despite the fact that he was inside the house. Lucas was the son of a well known man and that automatically made him well known by default. He couldn't risk being inside of his own house and having burglars breaking in.The house was as quiet as it always was. My phone beeped once and I took it out of my pocket to read the text from my best friend slash roommate, Alison. She'd sent me a good luck heart sticker. I reacted to the sticker and turned off my phone, putting it in the back pocket of my jeans. I fisted and unfisted my hands, taking in a deep breath and then heading upstairs to his room. It was late in the morning but if I knew Lucas then he was still lazing around in bed.I walked silently towards the door, all the while trying to shake off the nerves knotting themselves in my stomach. I was prepared for this. I'd even gotten myself a sexy red Victoria secret lingerie which I was currently wearing beneath my clothes. Alison had made sure I was as prepared as I needed to be seeing as it was going to be something I wouldn't ever forget in a hurry, if at all.Because everyone knew how important a girl's first time was to her.I paused in my step, hearing faint noises coming from Lucas's room door. Frowning slightly, I wondered if he was playing his loud music already. It was a little earlier than he usually did. I took even more silent steps towards him, straining to make out the noises I was hearing and hoping that it wasn't what I was thinking. I got to his room and paused right outside of it, carefully placing my ear on his room door and waiting to pick up the sound once more.A loud high pitched moan filled the air.My heart sank to the pit of my stomach as I felt a surge of something hot and painful pierce my chest. My eyes widened as I took a horrifying step away from the door, hoping that my ears were somehow failing me. My heart began racing in my chest but for all the wrong reasons. No no no, I changed silently in my head like a mantra. It couldn't possibly be what it sounded like. There was no way Lucas was cheating.He couldn't possibly do that to me.I felt my eyes sting when I heard a low masculine groan, followed by another high pitched moan. "Fucckkkk," A woman screamed from behind the door, her voice dripping with pleasure. I heard a loud roar in my ears and it took a while for me to realize it was the sound of my own heart shattering at my feet. I felt a tear slide down my eye as I heard the sound of the bed squeaking. Gathering courage, I silently twisted his door open and stepped inside.To confirm my worst fear.Lucas was in fact cheating on me. He was lying on his back with some thin redhead riding him. I brought a hand to my mouth as I stared in horror as she pulled her hair with one hand, the other seemingly gripp her boobs. She had her back to me so I couldn't see her face. Just the picture of her bouncing wildly on my boyfriend's cock.I doubled over in pain.To think that I'd been planning to lose my virginity to him. The thought sent a fresh wave of hurt rolling through me. I must have made a sound then because they both paused and then quickly sprang away from each other. I sniffed and angrily wiped my tears away, not wanting anyone to see me breakdown. They both reached for the white bedsheet, covering themselves with it."Andrea, what are you doing here?" Lucas asked confusedly. His eyes shot to the table calendar on his nightstand before coming back to meet mine. "You're supposed to be at work," He informed me. I couldn't stop the flare of anger that had my jaws clenching. Was that really the first thing he could bring himself to say in this situation? Was he even sorry that he had cheated on me?That I had caught him fucking someone?I moved my attention to the redhead beside him. She at least had the decency to look guilty, keeping her head down and refusing to meet my eyes. I felt stupid standing there in front of them and the condom I'd gotten from the store on my way here seemed to be burning a hole in the back pocket of my jeans. Another tear rolled down my face and this time I didn't have it in me to wipe it off.I was too broken to pretend."We're done," I whispered shakily, sniffing and sobbing like a two year old. He tried to get a word out but I lifted my hand and stopped him. Shaking my head, I let him know I wasn't interested in whatever he had to say. He has completely broken my trust. I had to live with the image of the both of them firmly ingrained in my memory. "Have fun with your whore." I spat, turning and slamming the door behind me as I left the room.I heard the light thud as he jumped down from the bed, followed by a string of cursing words as he probably looked around for his underwear but I took advantage of the time to get as far away from the room as possible, not ready for whatever bullshit story he had managed to come up with. I heard his voice as he called out for me, begging that I let him explain. If anything his voice made me want to put even more distance between us and so I did what life had taught me to do best.I ran.***"Fuck, I'm so sorry Andrea," Alison whisperd, hugging me even more tightly as I sobbed into her chest. I was an absolute mess. My eyes had refused to stop tearing up and my nose was leaking but Alison - bless her heart - didn't seem to mind that I was ruining her favorite stay at home shirt. I heaved, squeezing my eyelids tightly as the image of Lucas and the redhead played over and over again in my mind. My sobs were loud and ugly and I just wanted to finally let it all out after barely being able to get myself back home without breaking down.I calmed down after a few minutes.Alison rubbed my back soothingly, mumurring soothing words into my ear as I gained control of my breathing. I hadn't even been able to tell her exactly what had happened but she'd gotten the gist. After a while, I leaned away from her, silently thankful that my tears had been the only thing to dampen her shirt. I took the tissue she handed me and then blew my nose into it, throwing it into the trash can by my feet.She handed me another wad of tissue paper which I used to dry my tears, folding it and blowing my nose once more before trashing it. I reached for the water bottle lying on the couch and drank the entire water inside of it, dropping the bottle on the table and resting my head back against the couch. Alison stared at me in sympathy, smoothing her palm down my hair and giving me time to catch my breath."I thought he had been waiting for me," I confessed sadly, my voice breaking. "All this time I had thought he had been waiting for me," I bit the inside of my cheek angrily. "When he'd actually been fucking his cheap whores behind my back." I pressed a hand to my chest, trying to soothe the dull ache I could still feel. I still couldn't believe Lucas had done this to me. We'd been together for six months.Had he been cheating the entire time?Alison let me get a hold of myself as we stared silently at the television. The name Alejandro Costa was boldly written on the bottom. I picked up the TV remote control and increased the volume just in time to hear the journalist's report on whatever had happened. I craned my neck in surprise when I registered what she was saying.Alejandro Costa had returned to Florida.After almost a year of traveling and doing business with many other countries he had finally returned home to manage his companies and hopefully spend some time with his son. His son. Who just happened to be the asshole who had broken my heart to pieces and then thrown those pieces into my eyes. Alison and I watched as the media hounded him while he was making his way to his car after clearing his luggage.Alison shook her head, letting out a little scoff as the news carried on. "It's a shame you can't go to bed with his dad instead to get back at him," She said with a light laugh, staring at the image of Alejandro on the screen. Her head tilted as her shoulder raised in a casual shrug, "I mean, he is sexy." She confessed laughing once more. Her laughter died down once she turned her attention to me and realized I wasn't taking her statement like the joke she had obviously meant for it to be.I bit down on my lower lip."That's actually a good idea," I stated, meeting her gaze. I ignored the way her eyes widened in horror at my words, already coming up with the perfect revenge plan. "I'm going to lose my virginity to Alejandro Costa." Nothing was going to hurt more than Lucas finding out i fucked his dad and let him take my virginity. It was the perfect way to get back at him for hurting me so badly and treating me like a fool."Andrea, you can't be serious," Alison spluttered helplessly, looking like she wanted to physically shake some sense into me. I gave a flat look. The one that I knew would drive home the point that I was dead serious. Her mouth went agape and she was speechless for a few minutes before speaking. "He's way older than you."It was my turn to shrug."I don't care," I stated, knowing it was there truth. Alejandro Costa might be one of the most influential men in the country, but I was determined to get him to fuck me one way or the other. And then I was going to rub it in Lucas's face. My phone rang with an incoming call just then and I reached beside me to check who it was. Seeing Lucas's name dancing on the screen brought a new surge of rage. Unthinking, I did the first thing that came to mind.I threw my phone against the wall, watching it smash to pieces.*Alejandro*"Okay, be sure to keep me up to speed," I said to the manager of my company in New York before ending the call and looking out the window. I had arrived in Florida late in the evening yesterday so I'd had to check myself into a hotel. I decided to rest for a few hours this morning before calling my personal driver to come pick me up. I let out a deep breath, resting my head back against the seat from where I sat in the owner's corner. Home, sweet home. A part of me had hoped that Lucas would come pick me up from the hotel. It had quickly become rather obvious after I'd waited for more than three hours that he had no intention of coming. The house came into view in a blink and I took in the mansion I'd built years ago with my well-earned money. My attention shifted to the penthouse Lucas occupied but I got the feeling from how quiet it was that Lucas wasn't at home.Figures.He'd known I was going to arrive today but he hadn't bothered to at least be here when I arrived. H
*Andrea*Here I was, sitting beside the richest silver fox and father to my cheating ex. Looking at him, I couldn’t believe that I was the one who had just mischievously flirted with him a few minutes before. “You said your name was Anna, right?”I opened my mouth to correct him and stopped myself almost immediately. Anna was the name I had given him. As much as I knew he wasn’t close with his son, I wouldn’t risk the chance of him finding out about me until my plan was well and truly executed. I smiled coyly at him, though it was because I thanked the universe for making things flow smoothly and efficiently for me. All I had to do tonight was to seduce him to get him to bed.‘Yes, I am Anna, and you are Alejandro Costa,’ I replied. A waitress dressed in a black and purple skirt suit approached our table. She nodded at me and smiled at Alejandro before stealing a glance my way. I looked at the short outfit she had worn, and she looked comfortable in it, a stark contrast to the mic
*Alejandro* After being gone for a while, Anna came back looking a little flushed, with her cheeks red and a strange smile. I couldn't help but ask if everything was fine. “oh, it's nothing,” she said, brushing it off. I didn't try to push it, so we kept talking. After a while, I realized the bar was beginning to get empty. I looked down at my watch; it was already late. “Do you wanna go somewhere else?” I asked. “Yeah, sure,” she answers without hesitation. We walked out of the bar together, leading her into my already waiting car, and asked my driver Sam to take us back to a particular apartment that I owned. He gave me a questioning look, knowing fully well that I only go to that apartment when I want to be alone. I gave him a little nod to assure him he didn't hear wrongly, and we were on our way. It didn't take long before we arrived at my apartment. I alighted from the car, going round to open the door for Anna, and then we made our way towards the apart
*Andrea* The Uber was already waiting for me outside when I walked out of Alejandro's apartment. I got in fast, greeting the driver and telling him the address as he drove off. I rechecked the message to confirm what I saw. Alison's message stared back at me. ‘Hey, where are you? Lucas is here.’ My body revolted at the message, and I couldn't believe Lucas had the nerve to show up late at night at the apartment. I would have loved to spend a little more time with Alejandro, but I had to cut the time off to go and face my cheating ex-boyfriend. I sat back in the backseat, massaging my temples, this is not what I needed now. The car stopped abruptly. “We are here.” I peeked out the window; we were already at my house. I wish the ride had been longer so I could be ready to face Lucas. I got down, closing the car door behind me after paying the driver and walking slowly towards the door. I took a few deep breaths before opening the door to my apartment. I walked in, shutt
*Alejandro* I opened the door to the meeting room filled with directors. I walked straight to my chair, and they all stood till I had my seat. I was in high spirits. My day has been going well. I pulled the chair back and took my seat behind the chair. I opened the laptop on the top of the table. Mark, one of the board of directors, passed me a file, and I flipped it open. “This contains a report on the mail which has been built in the city's outskirts,” he said. I nodded. I flipped through the file. There were so many errors. “Who prepared this?” I asked. Everyone went silent; the air became heavy. I raised my head, not hearing anyone speak. I looked around. Everyone's attention went to a cranny-looking girl with enormous, round-rimmed glasses. She put up her hands unsteadily and stood up. “That's Lisa. She is from the planning team,” Mark leaned closer and whispered. She looked so young; this seemed to be her first time organizing something big. I was in a good m
*Andrea* The evening would have gone better if I hadn't seen Lucas striding into the restaurant with the same girl he had cheated on me with. I couldn't afford to have him see me with his dad. So I left first. I was glad I had seen him first. It wasn't fair to Alejandro, but I had no other choice. I walked to the bathroom to avoid bumping into him at the entrance. Lucas can be an ass sometimes and could create a scene though he is with another woman. Our last encounter hadn't gone quite extraordinary. His hands were wrapped around the woman's slender waist until they reached the seat he had reserved, which was adjacent to ours. I walked out of the bathroom and took the back door one of the waiters had shown me, which cost fifty dollars. I hailed a cab. I sent a text message to Alejandro. I was sorry we had to end today like this—a day that was going well. I'll make up for it by buying him dinner next time. When I got home, I opened the door and stepped in roughly as if I wa
*Alejandro*I couldn't bring myself to look at Anna for long, fearing that I may want to pull her up, so I treated her a bit cold. Not because I wanted to but because I had to. I tried to keep my work life from my personal life as I have always done. How did she suddenly start working here? The last time we spoke, she never mentioned looking for a job. She was slightly startled by how I treated her, but I'll have to apologize afterward, just not now. I pushed the file I was reading to the side. I couldn't concentrate anymore. I bent down and massaged my template. I raised my head when I heard a knock on the door. Slowly, the door pushed open, and Anna stepped in. She walked gently towards me, and I had to force my head to keep looking down. I only raised it when she stopped in front of me. “Sir, there's some…” The door opened abruptly, shutting her up. She swallowed and turned. Their heels clicked sharply on the floor. And she stepped in, Clara. I stood. “Honey,” she called and
*Andrea*He couldn't even stop me from leaving. As I walked to the restroom, I thought of the girl I had seen him with that afternoon. How she had pressed her body into his and how she had spoken to me without respect, and Alejandro had sat there watching her.Maybe I judged him wrongly. Maybe he was a bastard like his son. Take a deep breath, girl, and don't stress yourself over a man. I repeatedly told myself. I walked to the restroom and went into a cubicle. Soon, I heard water running, and then two girls started talking. “She came again today. Everyone was so tensed.” One said.“It has been ages since she visited. Why did she come today?” She sighs and continues, “It isn't as if she is the boss's wife of anything; why does she have the power to boss anyone around here?” The second girl asked.“She had some relationship with the boss. I heard he was madly in love with her. He allowed her to do whatever she wanted until they ended. Maybe he is not over her yet. Rumors have it that
*Alejandro*We were at the airport, dropping Lucas, Alison and Williams off. Williams was heading back to Florida and Lucas was traveling to attend the conference and manage the company's branch over in Florida. Fortunately, Jane had been able to get it postponed and since I'd already promised Lucas he could attend on my behalf, I wanted to keep my word. Alison, of course, was going with Lucas. She'd already said her home was wherever Lucas was. Everyone was expecting them to get engaged any day now."I'll miss you, auntie Alison," Austin said, trying his best to hold back his tears. Alison picked him up and gave raining kisses all over his face. Watching them tugged on some unknown part of me. Alison had become a huge part of Austin's life. Whenever Andrea and I couldn't have him with us, he was always with her. I couldn't imagine how they both felt now that she was moving temporarily.She kissed his cheek for the last time before letting him down. "I'll miss you too buddy," She sai
*Andrea*It had been a few weeks since I'd gotten back from the hospital. Nora was dead, Lucas was recovering and Austin and I had gotten some semblance of peace back in our lives. I'd managed to convince Alejandro to have a talk with Williams and it was the most difficult thing I had ever done. Alejandro had refused to speak about him for days, always asking me to please change the topic whenever I brought him up.And I had. Every time.As much as I had wanted them to make peace, my loyalty lies with Alejandro and I had never wanted to force him to do something he wasn't ready for. Fortunately after a few more days, he'd loosened up and we'd had the conversation. He'd kissed my head, letting me know he would never go back to being buddies with him but he was willing to make peace just for Lucas. They'd met at a restaurant a few days later.Alejandro had not wanted him in the house.Alejandro had given me a summary of how the talk had went. He'd made Williams understand that they coul
*Alejandro *I held onto the stretcher as the nurses rolled Andrea away. The stainless white walls and strong stench of disinfectant were the last thing on my mind as one of the nurses hurriedly called the attention of a doctor. I fisted my hands helplessly when the doctor asked me to wait outside, watching as they rolled her into the room. I brought my fist to my lips, shaking my head and trying to control my rising panic.I lowered myself on the chair in the waiting room, tapping my feet impatiently on the floor. I hated hospitals. It was filled with such sad people. A woman pushed a man on a wheelchair passed me. Kids ran around the waiting area, oblivious to what was actually going on. It wasn't hard to imagine what I looked like. My hair was a disheveled mess and sweat clung to my skin.I looked at my watch. It had only been two minutes since Andrea had been in the room but it felt like an hour. I stood up and paced around the hallway , unable to continue sitting in one place. Ho
*Andrea*I was pulled forcefully along the rough ground barefoot. My clothes were torn, and because they held my leg, walking became hard. But I bared all of it, hoping I would get through this. “Make her walk faster; we must make sure the piranhas have dinner on time.” Nora was in front, leading as they dragged me. “You don't have to do this, Nora. Don't do this,” I said. I can't imagine my son living without his mother. He had just gotten his father back after five years of living without him, and now Nora was about to make him lose his mother. I didn't want to watch this; I just couldn't.“Shut your mouth, or I'll make you shut it,” Nora warned. “We are close to the lake; you Should save that strength for the initial struggle; oh lord, it will be so fun to watch you.” She let out a laugh, and I wanted to run a dagger through her mouth and cut off her tongue.We soon reached the lake, which had a small bridge and railings. We stopped. “Nora, we don't have to go this far,” I said
*Andrea*I don't know how Lucas came here. But what shocked me the most was that Nora could have him tied like this next to me. One of the men had hit him hard on his head, causing him to lose consciousness. My heart tightened as I watched Lucas groan in pain before dropping to the floor. How could a mother be this heartless? What bothered me more was that it was Lucas who was here. Alejandro should be the one here, not Lucas. I had left through a place where, though it was dark, there was still a CCTV camera there, so why was help not coming? When I saw one of the two men with Nora carrying Lucas up, I asked, “What are you doing to him?” To Nora, I said, “he is your son, so why are you doing this to him?” I expect her to yell at the man who had hurt Lucas and to go pat her son; that's what I'd do. That's what every mother would do. But at that point, I had forgotten that not every mother would kidnap and threaten someone with a gun.It didn't take long for Lucas to regain his co
*Alejandro*The night has to be the longest night I have ever had. I looked back to the early hours of that day. Things had gone well; we had all been happy. All I had to do was to divorce Nora and get back my life. Andrea and Austin. But who would have thought that I would lose both of them that same day? I would never have imagined. I did all I could to find them, but everything led to a roadblock. It was frustrating. But I had to put up with it. I wasn't going to lose hope. I know I can find them.I don't care if I have to flip the earth over. I will find them. I spent the night watching one footage or another, checking everywhere I could, and getting the police involved. Alison didn't sleep either, and neither did Lucas. The following day, when he left to get a few things for us, I stepped into one of the empty rooms, and for once, I felt tears gather in my eyes.I didn't allow them to fall, and I will accept that it may take longer to find them.I was to meet with the inspec
*Andrea*Austin stood still, not moving, “Momma,” he called. From the corner of my eyes, I could see that Nora was trying to stand up.I wasn't going to allow that. I leapt on her and held her down. “Austin, please run. Don't worry about mama. Go and get help for momma.” I yelled, and he ran out of the room.Nora struggled under my hold, but I kept my grip on her tight. I would not allow her to move. Never. Not until Austin was fully out. She pushed me away and aimed for the door. But I hit her head hard with my hand, sending a blow across her head that made her go back on her knees. I don't know how far Austin can go, but I knew I had to keep Nora down so she wouldn't call on her men for as long as I could.I walked to the door, but before I could step out entirely, she pulled my hair and dragged me into the room, “Go after the child, go after the child.” She kept shouting while trying to stop me from running. I couldn't see what was going on behind the door as she closed it, but
*Andrea*It felt like I was dreaming. My mind kept retracting back to the entrance. We had just stepped in, and he had run after Alison. I could still see Alison walking towards me alone. When she said she didn't see him, we went ahead and searched for him immediately. At first, I thought he was just being mischievous as always and promised to scold him in case of further occurrence. But after searching the restrooms and the hallway and not finding him anywhere, I began to feel uneasy. Then we had to search around the hotel. I searched outside; maybe he had run out. But he wasn't outside. After searching for over twenty minutes and not getting any sign of him, worries finally sipped into my heart. I couldn't hold back anymore, and tears began to roll down my eyes. I called Alejandro immediately.We'd been searching for over two hours, and he had yet to be seen. When Alejandro told me that he had been tracked, I wept; that meant my son had been kidnapped. He had been taken away.
*Alejandro* I had just stepped out of my car when my phone rang. I picked up the call immediately when Andrea’s name appeared on my screen.I had been delayed as a result of traffic. Lucas got out from the other side. “We are here, Andrea, sorry just give us…”“We can't find Austin,” her voice rang out from the other end. I removed the phone from my ear, stared at the screen, and placed it back. “We can't find Austin. We came together, but he's gone. He's not in the restaurant. I don't know where he is. We've been searching over thirty minutes…” she was breaking down. I stopped on my track, my entire mood flipping.“What do you mean?” I began working, taking large strides. “When? How?” She didn't respond; she just kept sobbing. Noticing my change, Lucas asked, “Dad, what's wrong?” I ended the call, “Austin has gone missing,” I said, running towards the entrance like a madman.I didn't mind the curious stares I received immediately after entering the hotel.I looked around, but A