Chapter 5
Scarlett ran down the flight of stairs, and her vision became blurry as her eyes filled up with hot tears which streamed down her cheeks. She stumbled as she got to the sitting room and as she got up, my eyes came face to face with a life-sized picture of her and Aaron, hanging on the wall. She stared hard at the picture for a long time and shook her head wistfully as the memories came flooding. From where she stood, she could still hear Adriana’s loud giggles from the bedroom floating down to the living room. Or maybe it was her head. Sobbing, she looked around the house one last time and with a heavy sigh, she picked up her suitcase and left the apartment. Confused and tired, she walked down the street. “But where do I go from here?” She asked herself as she stopped and looked around the street and saw so many strange faces. It dawned on her, she knew nobody and had no one to run to—friend nor family—and the sad reality that Aaron had been her entire world irked her and fresh tears rolled down her face. “I am not your husband,” Aaron’s words reechoed in her head. “I never loved you anyways.” Scarlett shook her head, trying to clear her head of those toxic and stinging words. Aaron, the one man who she’d taken a huge risk for, and Adrianna, the one and only person she’d ever called a friend. It was so hard to believe, and she wished it was all a dream. With a deep breath, she began walking again, placing one foot after the other. “Barman! One more pint of beer and a glass of whiskey, please.” Scarlett said as she gulped down the last content of the glass before her. She sat at the counter, drunk and slightly conscious of her surroundings. She was determined to get as drunk as possible, and she’d come downtown to this pub where she was sure no one at all would recognize her. “Here you go, ma’am,” the bartender said as he handed her. “Great! ” she said, slurring her words. She took a huge gulp from the beer glass and dropped the cup noisily on the counter, reclining on her chair and scanned the rest of the pub. She watched wistfully as people went out and came in, laughing and chattering about, and images of the good days with Aaron came to her mind again. She shook her head and laughed, so hard that she began to choke. She raised her glass to her mouth again and in one gulp, she downed the rest of its content. “Hello,” A deep masculine voice asked, startling her. She looked up to see who it was but she couldn’t make out his face in the dim light, as her vision was blurry. “Who are you?” Scarlett asked. “What’s a beautiful lady like you doing here, drinking alone?” he asked. She giggled. “Wow, to think that no man would ever find me attractive.” Her words came out as complete gibberish and she laughed again, banging the table hard. His deep chuckle ran through her body. “You are drunk, why is a beautiful lady drunk?” he said and Scarlett grinned, not caring if she looked like a maniac. “Why do you care, are you going to take advantage of me?” She said flashing a grin, she was trying so hard to make out his face but her drunken haze seemed to be toying with her vision. “I don’t take advantage of drunk ladies” came his deep voice and Scarlett shrugged. She smiled at him, she could dimly make out his features. Short brown hair, he was well built. She couldn’t still make out his eyes, was it brown or black, maybe blue? “So why don’t you take advantage of drunk girls. Do you have a moral code or something?” She said and he smiled, she could make out his well cut jaw now. He leaned in close, Scarlett could smell the cologne on him, his manly smell. “Yes I have a moral code. Besides, why would I take advantage of some defenseless woman when I can actually do it with her fully aware, begging me for it and not staying like a lifeless doll?” he said and Scarlett nodded, she liked this person already. “Oohhh. So are you going to take advantage of me?” she asked and the man shook his head. “No!” he said firmly and Scarlett raised a brow, she took another swig of her whiskey and chuckled. “Why? Scared?” she teased. The man watched her drink for some time before he stared ahead. “Scared? Me?” he said and Scarlett laughed. “Here,” she said, offering him her glass of whiskey. He took the glass from her. “My, you must be impotent. You just called me beautiful and then you are scared to take me on a wild ride?” She mocked. The man chuckled. “You really think I'm scared, huh? How do I prove otherwise?” he said. Scarlett gave him a sultry look. She leaned forward, making sure her cleavage was in full view. “What would you make of these, then?” She asked and he laughed. He feasted his eyes on her, staring lustily at the top of her breasts which looked attractive in the dim light. He reached to touch, and Scarlett leaned forward a little more. “What the hell is going on here?” a voice behind them yelled, startling them. “Scarlett!” From the shadows, a tall man draped in a black suit appeared behind them. “What exactly is happening here?” He turned to face the man. “Who are you?” “I should be asking you that. Who the hell are you?” the man questioned. The stranger stared hard at him and shook his head. He turned to see Scarlett reaching for her glass again and he hurriedly took it before her hands got to it. “Hey!” she complained. “No more, Scarlett,” he said. He turned again to face the guy again. “I think your time here is up. Get out, now!” The guy furrowed his brows, looked the stranger in the face for a few seconds before he backed away. Scarlett shot him a look. “Give me my damn drink. I paid for that. And who are you, anyway?” she said. “Julian, and like I said before, you’ve had enough!” Julian hid the glass behind him and Scarlett sighed. She tried to pry his hands from behind him but he was stronger and she just ended up hugging him. She sighed as she took in his smell and stayed like that. “Give me my drink please,” she pleaded. She needed to get her mind off Aaron’s betrayal, and the drink was the only thing helping. “You don’t need it,” he said. His arms held her still and Scarlett didn’t object, she was too weak to even move a muscle. “I need it badly” she said and the guy raised a brow. His hands tightened around her and she wrapped her hands around him too. “No, Scarlett. It’s enough. What are you doing here anyway? Why aren’t you home? Where’s your husband?” He asked, looking her over. She was a mess. “My husband?” She asked and gave a dry laugh. “I don’t have a husband, and I don't have a home either. And I’m not going back there.” She said, she pulled away to stare at him. “What’s the matter?” “The matter? No, there’s nothing wrong, actually. He chose Adrianna over me after everything, so I understand.” “He did that? After what you did for him?” “Look, I don’t know and I don’t care. Now, if you would hand me my drink?” she said and Julian shook his head. “You need to go home,” he said firmly and Scarlett sighed bitterly, annoyance engulfing her. “Home? Where’s that?” She asked, shooting him a look. Her mind wandered to Aaron and Adrianna making out in her bedroom again and she hissed. “I just want something or someone to help me forget my pains, and since you won’t give me my drink, then why don’t you make me forget?” Scarlett said, running a hand along his chest, then lowered them till they were at his belt. Julian caught her hand, and pushed them away. He stood and in the dim light, she made out his face, but her alcohol-addled brain couldn’t place who he was. She started to feel dizzy, probably from too much drink. She stumbled and Julian grabbed her before she could topple to the floor. ********** Scarlett woke up in the early hours of the morning and found herself nicely tucked in a lush hotel room. She squinted and sat up. How did she get here? She scrambled around for her phone and found it next to her. The time said 6:53am, and she sighed and stretched, then sank back into the softness of the bed. Her mind wandered, trying to remember the activities of the previous night. She’d been drinking, yeah, and then the guy who’d flirted with her, and then the second guy who had taken her drink from her. That was all she could remember. Who was he? Something caught her attention and from the corner of her eye, she saw a note on the side table. She opened it. You fell unconscious. That’s what happens when you drink too much. Call this number when you see this, if you need anything. Julian. Scarlett was puzzled. “Julian?”Chapter 6“Julian?”Scarlett sat up on the bed, confused. She kept staring at the paper in her hands for a long time, and at the same time racking her brains to think of who this person was, but she couldn’t think of anyone. She read the note again, and on impulse, picked her phone to dial the number. She typed out the number on her keypad and stopped momentarily as she was about to hit the call button. “What do I say to this person?” she asked, speaking to herself. She discarded the idea and dropped her phone, and then reclined on the bed as she looked around her. She’d never been in a room as lush as this, even her room at the apartment where the masked billionaire had kept her wasn’t as luxurious as this. This had to be a real five star hotel, and only someone who had good cash could pay for a place like this. She didn’t have that ‘good cash’, and she didn’t know anyone around who did as well.So who put her here?She got up, and walked to the window, drawing the curtains open an
Chapter 7Damon paced about the living room, livid. He had just come into town the previous night, and was relieved to hear of his child’s safe delivery, but his excitement was cut short when he was informed of the situation behind it. He boiled in anger as he called Rose, demanding her presence in his house, first thing the following day.He’d paid Scarlett, and had given his staff strict instructions on her welfare and wellbeing, while he left the country for a business engagement. This deal had kept him away for more than four months, and as he returned, he was excited to see his child, the boy whom he’s always wanted.Scarlett had just one job to do— carry his child for the stipulated time and give birth to him without any glitch. He made sure she was well taken care of, and that no harm came to her. And Rose had the effrontery to go attack her? He’d always known she could be petty and worrisome. But he didn’t know she could be that cold-hearted as well. And it was all because s
Chapter 8Damon stood, dazed and transfixed to the ground as he watched Rose and this stranger, all soaked with sweat and having the time of their lives. As soon as he yelled her name, the man hurriedly got off, picking his pants and running past him outside the room while Rose rolled off the bed casually, picked up her dress and went into the bathroom. Few minutes later, she walked out of the bathroom and walked to her bedside table and pulled the drawer, bringing out a pack of cigarettes and a lighter. She took one and clipped the bottom, lit it and inhaled deeply, releasing a thick puff of smoke.“Are you gonna keep standing there looking like a dummy?” She asked as she sat on the bed.Damon looked at her. She didn't look one bit bothered.“You're going to act like nothing just happened? You're my fiancée, Rose. And you just slept with another man!” Damon said.Rose blew out another puff of smoke. “Yeah, I just slept with another man. And what's up with that?” Damon was shocked. W
Chapter 9Lots of thoughts ran through Scarlett's as she sat beside Julian in the car, who'd been silent for the whole 45 minutes they'd been in the car. He'd come that morning to pick her up, and without hesitation, she'd packed up and followed him immediately. Not like she had a choice anyway, she was practically homeless and knew nobody in the city. The thought of the cash she'd deposited in Aaron's account flashed in her mind and she shook her head wistfully. Damn! If only she'd known.She glanced at Julian again, and she wondered why he was so silent. Except for the quiet hum of the car's engine, the silence in the car was deafening. Ever since he'd come to her hotel room the previous day, she was sure he had spoken nothing more than 20 words. His face was masked behind thick black shades, and it expressed no emotion. She needed to say something, yet she was unsure. But she asked anyway.“Um… where are we going?”Julian said nothing. He was as still as he'd been. “Hello?”He mad
CHAPTER ONE: AARON’S SURGERYSCARLETT’S POVToday is the day I decide to carry another man's child in my womb, while still married to my husband, Aaron.I know it sounds so crazy, but I have thought of a thousand reasons to back out of this decision, yet nothing else holds me down as much as the fear of losing my husband. The last time I spoke to the doctor, I was warned that if Aaron didn't get a surgical operation within the next four weeks, he would be at risk of dying.The burden to raise the money for his surgery fell solely on my shoulders, and his mother wasn't taking it easy on me at all as she told everyone who cared to listen that I was the reason behind her son's misfortune. She never accepted me as her daughter-in-law, anyways.When I first saw news of an unknown billionaire who needed a woman to bear a child for him through surrogacy, I had applied nonchalantly, without any expectations.Early this morning, a strange number called me, informing me of my scheduled intervi
CHAPTER TWO: LET'S SIGN THIS!SCARLETT’S POV"Are you dumb?" A voice asked, jolting me out of my thoughts.I looked up at the masked man before me and it felt like my tongue had been tied, because I wasn't even able to speak. Rather, I shook my head, and started to cough.He leaned back on his chair, folding his arms across his chest. I knew he was watching me through the mask and worry gnawed through me."I asked you a question." He said.I let out a harsh breath and mumbled, "Yes, yes. I am very sure about this. What are the terms of the contract, please?""Almost everything has been stated in the document you shall sign next week. However, I have to make certain things clear."I bobbed my head as I clenched my fists, waiting for him to continue. At this point, I was ready to do just anything, as long as I got the money for my husband's surgery."Are you married?" He blurted.The question threw me aback as I wondered if my response would make me to lose this deal.."Uh! Yes..yes..oh
CHAPTER THREE: MISSION OVER, SCARLETTSCARLETT’S POVFour Weeks Later.As I stared at the test strip in my hands, relief washed over me. The two lines were boldly visible on the strip, confirming what I already knew."Finally. it's real" I muttered under my breath, breaking into tears.I was pregnant with the masked man's baby. I had spent the last few weeks, living in complete fear of not not being able to get pregnant, despite how much I had been paid.I was even more worried that the masked billionaire would silently kill me here in Italy and no one would know. Well, no one actually cared enough to call me, even after I left the country.There was a sickening feeling at the pit of my stomach as I rubbed my flat belly, trying to imagine what my child looked like. Would the child turn out to have a striking resemblance with the masked billionaire, or with me, its mother? I was consumed with worry that I might never know the gender of the child in my womb, as the masked man made it cl
CHAPTER FOUR: BIG SHOCK!SCARLETT’S POV"Ladies and gentlemen, this is your captain speaking. We have arrived at San Diego International Airport, California." A loud voice announced from unseen speakers, "Please fasten your seatbelts and prepare for landing. Local time is 10:45 AM. We hope you have enjoyed your flight, and we thank you for choosing our airline."My heart skipped a beat as I sat up straight. I had been on this flight for what felt like an eternity, and the thought of finally getting back home made me nervous.Ever since my child was taken away from me in Italy, my heart was shattered. I knew that I wasn't supposed to get attached to the baby, but I hadn't even gotten a chance to look at it, or even hold it in my hands.I glanced around the cabin. My fellow passengers were stirring, some yawning, others checking their phones or gathering their belongings.As the plane began its descent, I shut my eyes and thought of my husband, Aaron. Ever since I left the country, he h