BEATRICE:Drake fell silent at my statement. "Beatrice…"Staring at the sky, the stars had slowly twinkled right at us. It was so beautiful, and I wished I could stare at them and enjoy them. Not something like this. Not when I was facing some kind of problems. It's because of the men you allowed to enter your life. What if you keep on closing your doors, Beatrice? Do you believe you will still have some problems like now? Heaving a long sigh, I said, "Why are you here again? I did not tell you to fetch me or something like that," I muttered under my breath. It was better to change the topic than dwell on the topic about Josh. It will only create conflict between us.He cleared his throat, and I could see that he was thankful too that I changed the topic. Damn it. Using the back part of my palm, I wiped the imaginary sweat on my forehead. What am I doing, actually? I was what? Arguing in the parking lot while others could witness us? Besides, Drake was not some ordinary person
BEATRICE:My breathing labored while my mind internalized what Drake had said. Josh? The one whom I started to get my trust, just fooled me? Why? What could he get from it?Trust?But after what he did, I did not think he would be able to make me trust him again. You are not yet sure, Beatrice. You still wanted to learn the truth, right? “Answer me!” I demanded.My head felt like it was going to spin as I waited for Josh to explain his side. Each passing moment felt like hell. “Little One…”When my strength left me, I leaned heavily on the car.What else will be the cause of my death again?I laughed at the irony of the situation. The man whom I kept on defending from my ex-husband was the same person who wanted to make a fool out of me? Did he think I was that foolish?“What did you say, Drake? Maybe you need to say it again since Josh seemed not to hear your previous statement.”Drake heaved a long sigh. “I only found it yesterday. This man. He was the one who paid the burgl
BEATRICE:“Are you okay, Beatrice?” Drake asked as I sat in the passenger seat. I was about to sit in the back seat, but he told me that I should sit beside him so that he would not sleep while he was driving. Which I did. To stop him from saying anything anymore. I opened the door and stepped into the car. The first thing that I smelt was his expensive phone. Until now, everything that was said, did not fully sink into my mind. I meant….Josh? That man whom I thought would be the best future husband? That man who never said anything bad against me? How could I forget about him? This kind of pain was difficult to remove. It felt as if my boyfriend had broken up with me.I just wanted to be at peace. With his eyes on the road while he kept on glancing at me, he asked for the second, “Are you okay, Beatrice? You can tell me everything that is running in your mind right now. You're not alone, okay? I'm just here.” I scoffed and threw my head on the window. “Do I look like I am okay?
BEATRICE:"YOU...You believe me now?" Drake asked, in disbelief while staring at me with wide eyes. “Do you believe that all I wanted from you is to keep you safe, Beatrice?”This man was willing to do the extra mile just to keep me safe. He was willing to splurge all his money in order to protect me. And how many times did I ever see how much he was willing to do for me? I saw everything. What if everything was because of Grayson? What if you're just the excess baggage and he was only forced to protect you because he did not want Grayson to be motherless?He said he loved me. I would like to start with that. I wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt. As of the moment. "Yes. I believe you now. But I hope you will only tell me the truth from now on."His eyes smiled. He looked so dashing. If what he claimed that he loved me was true, why did it have to be me? There were so many beautiful women surrounding him.Why not? You were the mother of his son.I did not want to be conside
BEATRICE:Yeah. I should not answer it, not because Drake said I should not. But because I wanted it. I needed to set things up with him.Josh…I needed him to be removed from my life. But could I face him right now? The thought of seeing him right now brought shivers down my spine. He murdered his own wife? And he lied with a straight face. There should never be hesitations again. “You think he is that bad?”I said no hesitations, alright? You need to make up your mind this instant!“He is the worst, Beatrice. He is the most dangerous person that you would encounter.” How sure was he, actually? Very sure that he asked someone to tail your suitor.“There is nothing to argue about that. I am totally happy that I removed him from your life. Not because he is my competitor, but because he is dangerous. You understand me, right?”Did I? Back in the past, I was stubborn. I was not listening to him. I did not listen to any of his words, thinking it was because he was jealous. But it was
BEATRICE:Drake and Sarah had a past. I should have known. The woman would not be acting like this if the two did not have any relationship at all. That was why she was acting as if he owned Drake. I wondered what kind of relationship they had?Images of the two of them in bed flashed inside my mind. Damn it. It was all in the past, yet why could I not move on? Why did I feel irritated towards the woman? Drake smiled nervously, while I pretended to not care at all. “I know if, Drake. There's no need to hide.”I was not envious or anything like that, okay? I don't have to react because that was the truth. "It's all in the past, Sarah.""That's why I am reminding you about it. I want the world to know that my ex-boyfriend in the past is now a billionaire. Nah. If only I was not stupid before, I should have not let you go. I was stupid and foolish."I folded my arms in front of my chest, while debating if I would walk away or not.Listening to ex-lovers was not really my forte.
BEATRICE:Why should I react to Sarah's statement when it was the truth? My ex-husband had married me because I was rich. He could use our family’s influence. Wasn’t we the reason why the investors kept on trusting him? That was the reason why. “Drake. All the women whom you had relationships with were wealthy and influential. You use us to your advantage so it will never be a surprise if…” she trailed off. Sarah. She was an example of an annoying bitch. She minds the other’s business.But what she said was true, right? You were married to each other. He agreed because the Watson family was wealthy. Most of you were already billionaires. And some zillionaires even. That was one of the reasons why your mom was confident to marry you off to someone else because no one would be able to say no.Men and women practically wanted to be with us because of what we could offer. Prestige. Power. Money. Anything that you could name."Watch your mouth, Sarah," Drake growled. "I respected you a
BEATRICE:Doll…The words kept on ringing in my head.Doll.It brought happiness to my heart. You like hearing him say those words, right? Who would not?This was the first time Drake had called me into something else aside from my name. Doll. Why choose that endearment from the rest? Did he believe I was a doll? I was far from being a doll. There were already some additional fats all over my body. Has everything changed between us? Well, for starters, you two were already making out in the elevator and you almost gave yourself, alright? Second, you’re already envisioning a future with him. That is a good sign, Beatrice. “Old people are usually like that,” he said all of a sudden.”My heart jumped at the sound of his deep voice.“Like what, actually?” What was our topic once again? I already forgot since I was focused on him. I already forgot about the old woman. “Cranky. My grandmother is usually like that. Don’t let her words affect you. We did nothing wrong.”Making out in the
BEATRICE:I was about to tell Drake, but stopped myself from saying out loud. There was already too much that was running on his mind and I could not afford to add more problems to him. “It was nothing, babe,” I replied and leaned on his shoulders, as he continued to drive the long road. Grayson was in the backseat already knocked out. “Nothing that you should be concerned about.”“Are you sure because you seem bothered after talking to your Mom. How did your conversation go? You know what? I made sure that you and your Mom will have some time to talk.”“Really? That's the reason why you left us at the table?”How considerate of him. How could I not fall for him over again? He was worth it. He was worth everything. “Yeah. Your Mom won't talk if there's some audience around us.”And she was able to say everything she wanted when we were alone. “Tell me the company's situation.”He was silent for a moment, before saying, “No need to worry about it. Let me handle it, doll. I will make
BEATRICE:Something about the board losing their trust on you? I wanted to ask, but no words would come out of my mouth.Why was it so difficult to ask him?“Hey. Are you okay?”Are you okay? Why can’t you tell me the truth? Why do you suffer in silence, Drake? Don’t you believe that I could help you, too? We are all in this together, right? Why don’t you let me join your suffering? I want to help you with it. So please…at least let me join you.“I am. How about you?”He chuckled. “I am fine. How about you?”“You’re acting weird, Beatrice. But to answer your question. Yes. I am fine. I am always fine whenever you are with me. I forgot all my problems because there is you, doll.”“Tell me how much the company meant to you.”“It’s my life,” he answered. “I worked hard for it. That was the result of working too much because of our absence, doll. I promised myself that I would make it successful so that when you returned, I could offer it to you.”"You did well, babe. I am so proud of you
BEATRICE:Seeing my reaction, Mom clicked her tongue together. "Based on your reaction, I assume that your ex-husband did not say anything to you about it.""He...He did not, Mom.""The board of directors agreed that if he did not do something to save the company, they will pull off the remaining of these stocks and what do you think will happen?""Worse case scenario, the company will continue to have losses and would eventually file for bankruptcy.""What about his people? Do you think he is fine with that? He will blame himself for what happened and he's the only one who knows what will happen."I clenched my fist. "Why are you telling me these things, Mom?" She shrugged off her shoulders. "I was surprised that you were able to have a child.""When Drake divorced me, I didn't know that I was already carrying a child during that time.""I won't question that child. He took a lot after you which is fine with me.""What do you want, Mom?""You? What can you do to save your ex-husband
BEATRICE:Mom and Dad. I wanted to rush to their side and hugged them until they found it difficult to breathe, hoping that a tight embrace would fulfill the countless years of not seeing each other. Back then, I was still debating on whether I would see them face to face, but now... I was glad that Drake had pushed me to meet them. My heart felt like it weighed a ton. Dad's eyes simmered with tears, while Mom... I did not know what she was thinking. She wore a poker face. Mom was always like that. Unreadable. My other siblings called her Ice Queen Mother, for showing rare affection towards us. I always scolded them for calling Mom that, but they would only say that it was Mom's fault for being smart like that.I was the one who fulfilled the emotions my siblings craved. I thought it was enough, but it was not. Despite Mom's personality, they still wanted to feel her affection. "Mommy. Who are they?""Your grandparents," I whispered.They finally reached our table."Beatrice,"
BEATRICE:Guilt washed over my chest, knowing the tragedy that fell on Zereka's life. Poor child. I should have known that she had suffered. If I did, I should have been patient with her."Oh, my goodness, Drake. Are you telling the truth?""I'm the only one who knows about it, and I hope you will not tell a single soul, doll. She will kill me for sure. The tough exterior was only a facade, because she did not want others to treat her weakly. Deep inside, she was still thirteen years old I saw crying for her Mom's name. Please be patient with her, doll. I know it's unfair to you...""It's fine." Now that I know that child's background, how could I be a bitch? "I called her a bitch. She might be hating me for that.""You also cannot be blamed.""I want to meet Zereka again and who knows? Maybe we will be friends in the end. How about children? Does she want children? Do you think she will like Grayson?""I saw her staking your social media account and stare at Grayson. So, maybe she li
BEATRICE:“I told him I was going,” I explained. "He invited me at first, saying he will have a better chance than him being alone.""Oh, great. Does Everette know about that?"I shook my head. "He did not know anything. If you tell him right now, that's the only time he will know about the plan.""There's only a slim chance that they will invest in his company and do you know the percentage? Only one percent, Beatrice. After what he did to you, for divorcing you, do you think they will forgive you easily? You two became the talk among your relatives. They keep on asking questions about you and your ex-husband. However, when your Mom snarled and scolded them, they became silent. However, the rumors of your separation did not stop, angering Clara even more. Everette and I were witnesses to that. When you disappear from the family, the rumors become even worse.""More than five years had passed, Maybe she had forgiven what happened?" I hoped she did. And if she did not? I no longer
BEATRICE:“Beatrice? Are you still there?”What a bastard.He knows that Christina had her miscarriage, yet he called her?“Yes, I am here. What is it again?”“Is there no chance that the two will reconcile?”Exhaling, I inquired, “Did you call because he asked you?”“I was about to call you even if he did not call. But he got the right timing. He called me first before I was able to call you.”“Christina, the next time he calls you, don’t answer it.”“Why?" she asked, her voice full of curiosity. "Did something happen between you two that I was not aware of?"I bit the inside of my cheeks, debating if I should tell her or not.She's still not fully recovered, Beatrice. what if she will be sent to the hospital again, because of stress?There was a point, there. "N-No. Nothing happened.""So why are you evading him as if he is bringing the plague?""I-It's because of Drake. I have decided that I will give him a chance."I heard her mutter a few curses in the background. With a faint v
BEATRICE:Relax. Don’t fret. Control yourself, Beatrice. You will not lose your control because of that woman.“Did you hear me? She pulled my hair!”“Why would Beatrice do that, Zereka? She’s not the type to—”She sniffed. “You never listened to me, Drakey. You always believed that I was making a scene. That I am lying to you. How could I do that? I love you so much that I will never ever lie to you,” she declared, cutting off his words before he could even finish it. Rude. Every time she said that she loved her brother, the hair on my arms would always stand. It always felt like it had a double meaning. “Do you know what she called me? A bitch, Drake. I’m only eighteen years old and someone already called me a bitch!”“Beatrice. Is that true?”“What do you want to hear, Drake?” I asked. “Tell me so that I will tell you right away. Don’t waste my time anymore.”“Doll… I’m not saying anything wrong. All I wanted is you to tell me your side. I don't want to take sides as much as pos
BEATRICE:If Drake was here, I would never know why Zereka was here. If Drake was here, she would keep on pretending to be the sweet little sister of his. She could fool anyone with that sweet face of hers. "I'm sorry, but you don't have a say on that, too. We have chosen ourselves to love each other and even if a million people would be against our path, our love will remain strong. That includes you, by the way."It was a cheesy statement. I never thought the time would come when I would say those words, but here it was.She threw back her head and laughed. "Love? Are you freaking kidding me? Don't tell me that kind of bullshit. Love does not exist. Only lust." I was taken aback at her curse. My forehead knotted seeing how she bawled her palms into a fist. "Are you perhaps..." Did she perhaps not experience how to be in love? That she did not know how it felt? That she believed it was all lies? Right. I remembered. This woman was Drake's half-sister. And Drake's family had n