Lucas walked down the stairs when he heard voices. The voices he heard were giggling and chatting. They were familiar voices, but he wished they wouldn't be there in his house. He hoped he would wake up and find them gone.But there they were, still in his house like a bad dream. He clenched his jaw in anger. Mia and Lucy quieted down as Lucas stepped off the last few stairs. They looked in his direction, but he tried to pretend they were invisible. "Aren't you going to greet your mother, wife-to-be, and son, Lucas?" Lucy asked with a grin as if mocking him. Lucas continued to walk towards the exit like he was not affected by Lucy's words. "Lucas Archer Jr!" Lucy said as loud as she could in an attempt to get a reaction from Lucas, but he knew her too well and was not going to give her the satisfaction by responding to her. "LJ, I love the sound of that," Mia cheerfully added as she rubbed her stomach. Lucas angrily stopped in his tracks and turned back towards where h
"Are you sure you will be fine? I can stay all night if you'd like." Lisa asked Isabelle for the tenth time. She drove Isabelle home and ensured she was up in her apartment and safe. She calmed Isabelle down and made her some chamomile tea to help her calm her nerves and sleep. Isabelle felt seen and well taken care of, one other thing that she hadn't felt in years. 'How could someone I have not spoken to in years be this kind to me?' She wondered. "Thank you, Lisa." She sniffled. "And I am so sorry.." Lisa held her hand before she could finish. "Hey, you do not need to thank me or be sorry." Her eyes sincere are reassuring. "I should apologise for bringing this on you at such a time." "You had no way of knowing," Isabelle yarned. Lisa knew it was time to let Isabelle rest. She said her goodbyes and promised to check up on her the next day. **** Isabelle woke up to the sound rattling cabinet doors. She sat upright quietly on her bed to listen for where the rattli
Isabelle had not been her best self for a few days, but Lisa was always around to keep her company and away from her thoughts of Lucas and their divorce. Lisa was always there when she needed a shoulder to cry on when she needed to have a laugh, even when she just needed someone to be there for her. After lunch, Isabelle decided to give Lisa an explanation for abandoning their friendship the way she did. Lisa had not asked her once for an explanation, but Isabelle felt the need to explain. After everything Lisa had done for her since their reunion, it was the least she could do. "I'm sorry for how I left things between us," she hesitated, trying to find her words. Lisa did not need an apology or an explanation, but she sat there and listened in silence. "I somehow believed Lucas when he said he was all I needed, when he said he would be my family and my friend till death do us part. Yet here I am." She bit her lower lip, trying so hard to hold her tears back. She began to
"Okay, I think we can both agree that we have had enough crying and being sad for today," Lisa grinned as she got up from her seat. "Shopping always makes me feel better. Let's go grab you a dress." She stretched her hands out to Isabelle, who was still in her seat. "Get up couch potato," Lisa teased. 'Shopping would help, I guess,' Isabelle thought. She shrugged as she reached out to grab Lisa's hands. "Thank you." She stood up with Lisa's help. She wasn't just thanking Lisa for the help getting up but also for being the wonderful friend and support system she had always been. At the store, both Lisa and Isabelle picked out dresses to try on for Lisa's book launch event. They headed to the changing area, and Lisa tried on her dresses first while Isabelle waited to give her opinion on the dresses. Lisa went in and came back out. They both made eye contact and laughed at how silly she looked in the first dress. She tried on the second dress, and they both agreed that the colour
"Was that Isabelle," Lucy asked immediately. Lucas put his phone down from his ear. "Drive us straight home," Lucas commanded the driver in an attempt to divert his mother's attention, anger clearly laced in his voice. "quickest route possible." "Yes, sir," the driver responded in a murmur. Despite Lucas trying to avoid the issue, Lucy was very keen on knowing why Isabelle had called Lucas. "You promised me you would never talk to that woman ever again. Lucas, you promised you would marry Mia and take care of your unborn child with her. " Lucy forced tears out of her eyes in an attempt to manipulate him. Lucas promised Lucy that what had happened at the house when she passed out would never happen again because he thought he would lose her, and part of him wished he had not made any promises to her. He promised her he would do anything and everything she wanted, and Lucy's first request was that he would never talk to Isabelle again because she felt Isabelle was the reaso
"Isabelle Turner?" The voice called again. This time, it sounded even closer than before. Isabelle turned around and immediately gasped as she almost ran into a figure that stood right in her way. He held her on both sides of her arms to keep her balanced. "I'm sorry, I should not have snuck up on you like that." the figure said with a smile on his face as he took his hands off of her and took a few steps backwards. Isabelle starred at him andrily for a while. She tried to find her words, but her anger evaporated when she realised she had seen him somewhere before their encounter. She tried to think but she could not place where she had seen him. He stretched out his hand to greet her. She stared at his stretched out hand, and then his face, she waited for him to introduce himself, but he did not. He moved his stretched out hand even closer to her, indicating that he would not drop it until she shook it. Isabelle placed her hand in his. They both looked down at their hands t
Isabelle woke up early in the morning, realising she had just spent the night on the couch. She sat up and stretched her neck while trying to figure out why she had just spent her night in the uncomfortable couch instead of her bed. She picked her phone up to check what time it was when she realised that she had been calling her husband Lucas before she fell asleep. "He hasn't called me back?" She said to herself while she ran her fingers through her curly hair as she always did since she was a little girl. "Where could you be Lucas?" In all the thirteen years they had been together, Lucas had never spent the night away from home without informing Isabelle about where he would be, this was new. Isabelle was worried that something could have happened to him. Something terrible. She had called his office the previous night but was informed that he had just left the building at the time, so she waited a few hours before calling his driver who had informed her that Lucas had insiste
Three hours had passed since Lucas had asked Isabelle to leave their house, his house. Isabelle cried, laughed, and cried even more, hoping she would wake up from some bad dream she was having or that Lucas would walk upstairs to inform her it was some prank and that he was sorry. But three hours was enough time to realise this was no joke, prank, or dream. It was real. It was happening. Thirteen years of marriage and 3 years of courtship had just ended. She watched as the servants Lucas had instructed to pack up her clothes, moved from one closet to another, gathering everything she owned and packing them up in bags. She thought of what her life would have been if she hadn't met Lucas or how it would have been had she chosen to pursue her dreams instead of settling for everything he had promised her. Where did all that go? All the promises of an eternal forever. All the promises of loving her till they were both old and grey. She was only in her mid thirties, and he
"Isabelle Turner?" The voice called again. This time, it sounded even closer than before. Isabelle turned around and immediately gasped as she almost ran into a figure that stood right in her way. He held her on both sides of her arms to keep her balanced. "I'm sorry, I should not have snuck up on you like that." the figure said with a smile on his face as he took his hands off of her and took a few steps backwards. Isabelle starred at him andrily for a while. She tried to find her words, but her anger evaporated when she realised she had seen him somewhere before their encounter. She tried to think but she could not place where she had seen him. He stretched out his hand to greet her. She stared at his stretched out hand, and then his face, she waited for him to introduce himself, but he did not. He moved his stretched out hand even closer to her, indicating that he would not drop it until she shook it. Isabelle placed her hand in his. They both looked down at their hands t
"Was that Isabelle," Lucy asked immediately. Lucas put his phone down from his ear. "Drive us straight home," Lucas commanded the driver in an attempt to divert his mother's attention, anger clearly laced in his voice. "quickest route possible." "Yes, sir," the driver responded in a murmur. Despite Lucas trying to avoid the issue, Lucy was very keen on knowing why Isabelle had called Lucas. "You promised me you would never talk to that woman ever again. Lucas, you promised you would marry Mia and take care of your unborn child with her. " Lucy forced tears out of her eyes in an attempt to manipulate him. Lucas promised Lucy that what had happened at the house when she passed out would never happen again because he thought he would lose her, and part of him wished he had not made any promises to her. He promised her he would do anything and everything she wanted, and Lucy's first request was that he would never talk to Isabelle again because she felt Isabelle was the reaso
"Okay, I think we can both agree that we have had enough crying and being sad for today," Lisa grinned as she got up from her seat. "Shopping always makes me feel better. Let's go grab you a dress." She stretched her hands out to Isabelle, who was still in her seat. "Get up couch potato," Lisa teased. 'Shopping would help, I guess,' Isabelle thought. She shrugged as she reached out to grab Lisa's hands. "Thank you." She stood up with Lisa's help. She wasn't just thanking Lisa for the help getting up but also for being the wonderful friend and support system she had always been. At the store, both Lisa and Isabelle picked out dresses to try on for Lisa's book launch event. They headed to the changing area, and Lisa tried on her dresses first while Isabelle waited to give her opinion on the dresses. Lisa went in and came back out. They both made eye contact and laughed at how silly she looked in the first dress. She tried on the second dress, and they both agreed that the colour
Isabelle had not been her best self for a few days, but Lisa was always around to keep her company and away from her thoughts of Lucas and their divorce. Lisa was always there when she needed a shoulder to cry on when she needed to have a laugh, even when she just needed someone to be there for her. After lunch, Isabelle decided to give Lisa an explanation for abandoning their friendship the way she did. Lisa had not asked her once for an explanation, but Isabelle felt the need to explain. After everything Lisa had done for her since their reunion, it was the least she could do. "I'm sorry for how I left things between us," she hesitated, trying to find her words. Lisa did not need an apology or an explanation, but she sat there and listened in silence. "I somehow believed Lucas when he said he was all I needed, when he said he would be my family and my friend till death do us part. Yet here I am." She bit her lower lip, trying so hard to hold her tears back. She began to
"Are you sure you will be fine? I can stay all night if you'd like." Lisa asked Isabelle for the tenth time. She drove Isabelle home and ensured she was up in her apartment and safe. She calmed Isabelle down and made her some chamomile tea to help her calm her nerves and sleep. Isabelle felt seen and well taken care of, one other thing that she hadn't felt in years. 'How could someone I have not spoken to in years be this kind to me?' She wondered. "Thank you, Lisa." She sniffled. "And I am so sorry.." Lisa held her hand before she could finish. "Hey, you do not need to thank me or be sorry." Her eyes sincere are reassuring. "I should apologise for bringing this on you at such a time." "You had no way of knowing," Isabelle yarned. Lisa knew it was time to let Isabelle rest. She said her goodbyes and promised to check up on her the next day. **** Isabelle woke up to the sound rattling cabinet doors. She sat upright quietly on her bed to listen for where the rattli
Lucas walked down the stairs when he heard voices. The voices he heard were giggling and chatting. They were familiar voices, but he wished they wouldn't be there in his house. He hoped he would wake up and find them gone.But there they were, still in his house like a bad dream. He clenched his jaw in anger. Mia and Lucy quieted down as Lucas stepped off the last few stairs. They looked in his direction, but he tried to pretend they were invisible. "Aren't you going to greet your mother, wife-to-be, and son, Lucas?" Lucy asked with a grin as if mocking him. Lucas continued to walk towards the exit like he was not affected by Lucy's words. "Lucas Archer Jr!" Lucy said as loud as she could in an attempt to get a reaction from Lucas, but he knew her too well and was not going to give her the satisfaction by responding to her. "LJ, I love the sound of that," Mia cheerfully added as she rubbed her stomach. Lucas angrily stopped in his tracks and turned back towards where h
Isabelle woke up abruptly to the sound of her alarm. She groaned as she questioned herself as to why she needed an alarm. She had nothing actively going on in her life, and now she felt like she had no reason to wake up early in the morning or a reason to smile. She grabbed the alarm and hit snooze before yanking the batteries out and throwing the alarm into a drawer right beside her bed. She lay on her stomach and groaned into her pillow at the thought of what had happened the previous morning. As she began to doze off, her phone vibrated, and she grabbed it to check who was calling her, 'Lisa Ross.' She groaned as she realised that she had a meeting planned for later that afternoon with Lisa. She let it go to voicemail in hopes that Lisa would be calling to reschedule. She hesitantly played the voice message Lisa sent, "Hi Isa, sorry, old habits," she chuckled. "I just thought to call in and see if you're still up for lunch later today. I'm just excited and can't wait
Lucas stormed into his house angrily. He wondered why Lucy would lie to Isabelle. His driver told him Lucy would be waiting for him back at his house when he got into his car from Isabelle's apartment. Mia stood from where she sat on the couch as she tried to hug Lucas as he entered, but Lucas pushed her away. "Don't you ever touch me," he yelled angrily. Mia scoffed as she folded her arms in shock and half embarrassment. "Lucy!" Lucas wondered where she could be. He began to walk towards the stairwell when Lucy emerged from the hallway that led to the library. "Good morning to you too, son," she mocked. "It's too early to be this angry, don't you think?" She spoke calmly with a smile on her face that made Lucas even angrier. 'She's enjoying this.' He thought as he watched her walk towards him. She playfully pinched he cheek, "Oh my boy, have you had anything to eat?" He starred at her in disbelief, 'How could ruining someone's life make her this happ?' "Why would you tel
Isabelle woke up to kisses and morning breathe. She kept her eyes closed in fear of it being a dream, and Lucas disappeared immediately she opened her eyes. "Good morning, Mrs Archer," Lucas whispered. The words, the voice, everything was so familiar, yet felt like a distant memory. She reminisced on how she woke up to those four words every morning for three years since they got married. After their three years mark, everything seemed to change, Lucas, their relationship, everything. Lucas kissed her on the lips, and she braced herself for whatever would happen after she opened her eyes. He was real. He was really there, with her. She smiled at the realization that everything had happened the previous night and that he was still there in bed with her. "Good morning, Mr Archer," she replied in her sleepy tone. Lucas began to kiss her as he told her how much he had missed her and how home did not feel like home without her. Isabelle wanted to ask why he had divorced he