BEATRICE:“You better listen to Jamie. You two have the same situation, but the way I see it, she seems wiser than you when it comes to men, Beatrice,” Christina declared. And now she was comparing me to Jamie even if we had different experiences and pasts? Jamie was much stronger than me since she was able to take care of her daughter without anyone's help. The same Jamie worked from home so that she could take care of Cassandra. While me? For five years, I was always relying on Christina. Financially. Emotionally. Without Christina, I did not know if I would be able to survive those five years alone. “Stop it, Christina. It’s no longer funny.”She faked a surprise look. “Why? Do you think that I am joking? I am not, Beatrice. I am only trying to protect you from future pain. I’m the one who cares about you. Not your asshole ex-husband.”Jamie hastily covered Cassandra’s ears so that the baby wouldn’t be able to hear that word.“Mind your language when you’re surrounded by children
BEATRICE:When I returned, Drake and Grayson seemed like they were waiting for me. The television was still on. It was only then that I realized that Christina was also sitting beside them. But a little farther away from Drake. Whenever my son was not watching, Christina would occasionally glare at the man. “Mommy! Did they leave, Mommy?”“Yes, Grayson.”“When will Cassy be back? I miss her already, Mommy. I did not have the chance to play with her.”“You will have the chance to play with her soon. When they returned.”“They will return right?”I would be happy if they returned since I badly needed cash right now. And speaking of money, I still haven't checked my account how much Jamie had wired. “Maybe…. I don't have any idea. It's Aunt Jamie's decision. Are you going now, Christina?”She folded her arms in front of her chest. “I should be going now. My husband is waiting for me. But…” she trailed off. There was hesitation in her eyes. It was because of Drake. She did not want to
BEATRICE:What the heck was happening to me? Just because I saw my ex-husbands naked at the top did not mean I would become a pervert! That was utterly disgusting! Since when was I lusting over a man’s body?Since you saw your husband. No. Ex-husband. You were always infatuated with his body when you were married. You know? The one-sided love? I mentally shook my head, not liking how I was appreciating him at a time like this. Regardless of whether we had some sort of past or not, it did not mean I was free to ogle at his naked body. What would he think? That I was still affected by him? I did not want him to think as if there was still space for him in my heart. Damn.However, regardless of how much I tried to wretch my eyes away from him, it would always return to him. Like what the…This was unforgivable. And I was certain Christina would also not forgive me if she found out that I was acting like this towards my ex-husband."Mommy! See? I am done taking a bath!" Grayson announce
BEATRICE:Those words were lies. I knew them in my chest, but why did my heart flutter hearing those words coming from his mouth?Why did he have to say that kind of bullshit just to make me believe that he truly wanted it to happen? There was no truth in his words. Only lies and false promises. "Mommy, I want to stay at Mr. Drake's side forever," Grayson announced as he pulled our hands and touched them. “I want him to be my Daddy. Is that possible, Mommy?”My lips parted as tiny bolts of electricity flowed between us. I was about to pull my hands away, but Grayson kept on holding them. His hands were much smaller compared to us, but how could those frail hands be the reason why my heart hammered like this?"Grayson, what about your real Dad?" I asked. "Don't you want him too?""Daddy never plays with me. Mr. Drake did. So, I would prefer Mr. Drake over Daddy."Drake and I stared at each other before my gaze returned to my son. "What if Daddy was only busy?" I asked. “Like Mommy.”
BEATRICE:My body was sore, and my eyes felt like they would be going to close any moment now. I failed to sleep right away last night. There were a lot of things going on in my mind that night and, in fact, until now. I had just walked Grayson to his school and thankfully did not find Drake there or anywhere in the school. I hoped it was because he realized his presence was no longer needed in this family. I have no part-time job right now. Tomorrow, I have to look for another one. Bills continued coming as well as the expenses. I need to work and work. But for now, I had to rest or maybe sleep for an hour. Sauntering towards the living room, I scanned the surroundings first for any dirt, found none, threw the keys on the floor, and was about to sit on the couch, when the doorbell rang. A scowl formed on my forehead. The doorbell continued to ring when I did not move. My brows furrowed. Who could that be? I was not expecting any visitors. Except for your ex-husband? the othe
BEATRICE:My face flushed at Christina's question. What the heck was she asking like that? And above all, why did it have to be Drake’s dick? Oh, great. The two words were a rhyme now. “You're blushing, Beatrice.” She wiggled her eyebrows. “Don't tell me…this is huge? Did you touch it a couple of times? Like it? I bet you like the texture,” she continued as if her mouth had no filter anymore. If I could see myself now, I would surely look like a red tomato. Fanning myself I declared, "Are you a pervert? Stop saying that kind of nonsense.""It's not nonsense, okay? Does my question make you remember something, huh?” she teased. “I bet he is huge given how you continued to cling like that to your ex-husband. Were you always satisfied in bed?”Would the ground swallow me right now? My heart could no longer take her questions. “S-stop it! This is no longer funny.”She burst out laughing. “You should have seen your face, Beatrice. I know you still miss the sex. It's normal. Don't you t
BEATRICE:Pain crossed Christina’s face and for a moment, I was tempted to take back my words. I didn't mean to hurt her feelings or anything like that. I understand she wanted me to have a companion who would serve as my kid’s father figure. Who would be with me through thick and thin, and who would never leave me at all? “Hey. Watch your mouth. You might be my best friend, but that does not mean you have the right to judge me. Besides, not all the men I met meant that something already happened between us. It was not always like that if I was fat.” The pain was evident in her voice.“You are no longer fat and even if you are, I still love you. Nothing will change that.”My words did not console her at all. Christina’s lips pressed in a thin line. “Nothing happened between me and Josh. I am not cheating on your brother and it won’t even happen. Ever. I’m scared of him. I don’t want him to leave me, okay? So you better stop saying nonsense because I did not like any of that. I loved
BEATRICE:Something flashed in my ex-husband's eyes before it disappeared completely. What was that? I did not know. My eyes darted to what he was holding— a bouquet and chocolates too. My favorite brand of chocolate. Did he still remember what I wanted? Seeing what I was looking for, he extended his hand and gave it to me. "For you, Beatrice. I did not know Christina was here. If I did, I should have brought two bouquets. I hope you like it."Just as I was about to accept it, Christina said, "She won't be receiving anything from you. Besides, she's allergic to flowers."Since when did I have an allergy again? I wanted to eat the chocolates. At least I would get the chocolates. "She accepted my flowers before," Drake commented. "She doesn't have any allergy at all, Christina. Stop making up things for Beatrice." "Yesterday and today are entirely two different things. She had developed a few allergies. But if you really wanted to express your feelings and don't believe me at all,
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
BEATRICE:DADDY?I admit that this woman could pass as Drake's daughter. They looked so much alike. Their nose. Their eyes. The shape of their faces. Maybe she was the one whom he was talking to in the past? About having a child but then his partner never let him see them?She looked so young. She looked after Drake. The resemblance between them was undeniable. My eyes shifted back to Drake and the newcomer. "Zereka. Will you stop playing pranks? Beatrice might believe that you are my child. You always fool a lot of people already. Quit doing that right now. This is a company and not your playing ground. What are you? A child?” Drake scolded. The child did not say anything at all. Instead, she laughed out loud while holding her tummy. "Drakey! You should have seen the look on her eyes. She looked as if she had seen a ghost. Oh, my goodness. Your woman is so gullible. I don’t like her anymore."I faltered. A child who did not know how to filter her words was the best of all. "St