I stood in front of the mirror, feeling the gentle tug of Mia's hand as she dressed me in my beautiful white dress. Staring at my own reflection, memories from the event last night flooded my mind as he images of my clothes being torn by my stalker has been trending through everywhere. I recalled the expression on Lance's face, and a smile tugged at the corners of my lips. I really wonder how exactly he must be feeling right now and the thought of his distress brings me nothing but joy."You seem to be happy about the Bane family’s visit, or should I say about Kingsley's visit?” Mia's voice brought me out of my reverie. I arched my brow at her question, not knowing why she would make such assumption. “I saw you smiling just now,” she clarified in a her teasing tone.Kingsley's family is coming over today to talk about our engagement and wedding. I already insisted that there was no need for an engagement ceremony once the wedding date was set, but both my parents and his parents refu
As I wanted to reply, Dad cut in."There is definitely no way she’d know a riff-raff like that. Have you forgotten that she has been in Italy for the last nine years, so how would she know him? There are men like that everywhere, even in Italy, trying to get her attention, just like there are girls trying to get Kingsley's attention," Dad said, reminding him that there are also girls flocking around his son. Mr. and Mrs. Bane swallow hard at his words, knowing that Kingsley was quite popular among ladies. But I could guarantee his loyalty.Dad's face reddened with anger as he remembered Lance. "That scoundrel is in prison now, and I'll make sure he rots in jail for the rest of his life for what he did."Mr. Bane turned to me as if he had not heard everything Dad had just said. I would say he was just trying to be careful, as the last thing he would want was any scandal that would tarnished his image and his empire's. "Do you know this man, Ariel?"I shook my head, trying to keep my v
As the two families had already discussed the wedding and everything was finalized, Kingsley and I were set to have our engagement this month and our wedding next month. Dad and I walked Kingsley and his family to their car as they were engrossed in a deep conversation, while Kingsley and I trailed behind, our hands intertwined.The night was calm, and the cool air felt refreshing after the tension of dinner. I just hoped that all doubts Mr. Bane had about me would have completely disappeared with all the convincing stories my father and I gave."Thank you for coming. I really appreciate it," Dad said as we reached their car."It was our pleasure," Mr. Bane replied, a bright smile on his face as the security opened the car door for him.Kingsley turned to me, "I will call you," he said gently.I nodded, smiling up at him. "Okay, bye."Mrs. Bane looked at me, her eyes serious and filled with love. "Maya, if there's anything you're unhappy with or doesn't meet your taste, please let me
"Watch what you say. What do you mean by 'unfortunate'?""Isn't it unfortunate for you to treat her like this? Isn't it unfortunate that she doesn't even know her real mother? Isn't it unfortunate for her to see her loved one suffer all because she was born by me?""Maya, you need to—" she tried to move closer."No! Do not step closer to me because from now on, I will treat you exactly the same way you treated her.""Maya, are you crazy right now?""Yes, I am getting crazy. If you can treat your own blood like that, why can't I treat you the same way? And I promise you, if you ever lay a hand on her or Mia again, I will abandon everything. I will tell the world that Bella is my biological daughter and call off this entire charade of an engagement."Mom looked shocked, her eyes wide. "How can you say that to me after everything I've done for you? Do you realize the consequences of your words?""I do, Mother," I said, my voice trembling with emotion. "But I won't stand by and watch you
I woke up with a pounding headache as I held my head with my two hand, groaning. I felt my my head was splitting into two and I could feel my eyes were still puffy from crying too much last night. Lying on the bed while staring at the ceiling, I tried to clear my head maybe it would reduce the pain. Mia entered the room with a tray in her hand, a smile was on her face as she walked closer to me. "Good morning. How are you feeling now?" I gently rose from the bed, stretching my body lazily. Rubbing my temples as I sit up, wrapping the duvet around me. "Well, I think I'm fine now." Mia walked over and handed me a glass of lukewarm water and I gulped it down immediately. It's just as if she was already aware of my pain. Returning the cup to her, I wrapped the duvet around me again, yawning loudly. "I really wanted to thank you for standing up for me and Bella yesterday. It meant a lot to us." I sighed as I remembered what happened yesterday again, but I wondered why she would tha
The car finally pulled up in the front of the company building. I took a deep breath, straightened my dress, and squared my shoulders. I felt the wind catching my hair as I walked toward the entrance while the camera flashes all around me. I could already guessed today's headline; “ Ariel Roderigo first meeting with the Board of Directors” My entire dressing would definitely be sold out. I could assure that but today's meeting outcome, I don't think I know that. I took a deep breath as I stepped into the boardroom. The room was grand, with a long, polished mahogany table dominating the center. Portraits of past CEOs lined the walls, a silent reminders of the legacy I was now a part of. But my eyes stopped at the last portrait, which was of my father's and my grip tightened when I saw that my picture was nowhere to be seen, but I quickly masked my anger with a smile. As I walked toward my seat at the head of the table, the directors glanced my way with their cold and disapproving
After a long day at work, I set off to return home but just as I stepped outside, the rain began to fall heavily. Bryan quickly opened an umbrella, escorting me to the car. I sank into the seat, feeling exhausted after a grueling first day as CEO. I was totally exhausted as I did alot of work today; board meetings, reports, meeting some staff and smiling all throughout and also the strain of reading and signing so many documents. This is definitely not going to be easy like I thought. As the car approached my house, I saw two of them shivering in the pouring rain. They looked pitiful, drenched to the skin and their clothes clinged onto their bodies. They are really desperate, aren't they? Well, we are talking about her golden son and their family breadwinner, so of course they must endure everything but it would have been a nice view if their daughter-in-law had also joined them. We drove past them, splashing through the water to their body, and I felt a pang of something; guilt?
But Laura’s expression stayed calm and steady as she looked at me. It was quite clear that she wasn’t as clueless as her daughter, who actually believed what I said.Laura knew I was lying about not being Maya. I was sure she had learned the truth from Lance as there”s no way anyone could recognize me so easily; I had changed a lot.Even when Lance recognized me at the party, I was shocked as I didn't expect him to recognize me so easily.Laura dropped her head for a moment and let out a heavy sigh, cutting off Morgan, who seemed frustrated that her mother didn’t react to her words.“Thank you for granting us this audience,” Laura began, her voice steady but strained. “I… really appreciate it. As you must have already know why we’re here, I’ll get straight to the point.” She lifted her eyes to mine. “Please, let Lance go. I’m begging you.”I could hear the desperation in her voice as she said those words to me. I was sure that she had for once dreamed that there would come a day she w