Agad na kumabog ang dibdib ni Samantha sa nakita. Nanginig na rin siya.
“H-how…” bulong niya, halos hindi maituloy ang gusto niyang sabihin. Her mind cannot process any coherent thought.
Gasps filled the air. Kasunod niyon ang mga bulong-bulongan habang nakatuon ang mga mata sa kanya. Her mind reeled in an instant panic.
She wanted to run and hide but her feet seemed to be cemented on the spot she’s standing on. Taranta siyang nagpalinga-linga. She was looking for her brother. However in her confusion, she cannot seem to find Lucas in that sea of strangers.
Maya-maya pa, lumapit sa kanya mula sa kung saan ang pamilyar na bulto ni Kristine. She didn’t see her in the guests who came in earlier. She was wearing a red seductive dress that accentuated all the curves of her body. Her beauty was shining—like a dazzling goddess that has fallen from the sky.
She gave her a stern look and the blood on
Mangiyak-ngiyak si Samantha habang pinagmamasdan si Mandy na nasa hospital bed. The doctors said her friend was heavily drugged thus, unconscious. They assured her that once the effects of the drug wears off, Mandy will wake up on his own. Kaya lang hindi pa rin siya makampante. Patuloy siyang mag-aalala para sa kaibigan hanggang hindi ito gumising.Gumalaw si Bettina sa tabi niya. Magkatabi silang nakaupo sa sofa. Tulog ito habang siya ay gising na gising. Gaya niya, hindi na rin umuwi si Bettina kagabi at mas piniling bantayan si Mandy matapos nilang mabalitaan ang kalagayan nito. Hindi pa kasi nila nasasabihan ang pamilya ni Mandy sa sinapit nito. Ang gusto niya, kapag ibinalita niya ang nangyari sa pamilya nito, gising na ito at nakakausap.Lalo pa at doble-doble ang dagok sa kunsensiya niya ang isiping baka siya ang dahilan kung bakit nagkagano’n si Mandy.She released a slow breath, leaned on the couch and stared blankly at the ce
Dinig ni Aaron ang mahihinang pagsinghot ni Viviane sa gilid niya habang pinagmamasdan siya nitong alisin sa desk niya ang mga personal niyang gamit. As of this morning, he’s no longer the CEO of Sandejas Shipping Lines.When the video of him and Sam went viral, sinabihan na siya ni Diego na nagkaroon ng private meeting ang majority ng board of directors. He knew then that he had to use his back-up plan should the board will try to vote him out because he didn’t marry Kristine.He sold all of his shares to Joshua.When they turned 21, lahat silang magkakapatid ay nabigyan ng equal shares sa kumpanya. But when he took over SSL, ang shares ng Daddy nila ay napunta sa kanya, making him the biggest shareholder of the company and the default CEO. But when he backed out from marrying Kristine, he knew it wouldn’t be long that the board will come after his neck. That’s why he met with his brothers. He needs to make sure that
“Mommy, can I take Mama Duck and her babies with us? They are squishy. They can fit in my baby bag,” ani Charlie kay Samantha. Her daughter was holding her toys on her hands, looking at her with doe eyes, waiting for her response.She smiled softly and reached for her baby’s face. “Of course we will bring Mama Duck and her babies,” aniya.Charlie beamed at her. She gave her a hug before rushing towards her own bag and stuffed her swimming buddies inside of it. “Mommy said you all can come with. We are going to swim on our big big tub!” sabi pa nito sa mga laruan nito.Muli siyang napangiti. Charlie’s innocence warms and hurts her heart at the same time. Her daughter deserves everything that’s beautiful in this life. But sadly, she cannot even give her a complete family.She shook her head slowly, dismissing the sad thoughts slowly filling her head. She has things to do today. Kagabi, kaba
They say that once you tell the truth you will be free from something. But Samantha felt nothing but free right after she told her family and Aaron her secret.The loud silence inside the room was choking her, filling her heart with overwhelming uncertainties—with guilt so heavy for only one to bear.“What? This a*shole is the father of Charlie?” gigil na tanong ni Lucas nang makahuma sa pagkabigla sa sinabi niya. “This is the man who abandoned you and my niece?” Lucas continued in gritted teeth. She sobbed, unsure of what to say.“Lucas, I didn’t know. I was drunk that night when—““You were drunk? You took advantage of my sister?” gigil na putol ni Lucas kay Aaron. In one swift move, Lucas was already a few feet away from Aaron, ready to charge. Humakbang na rin palapit ang mga bodyguards ng kapatid, closing in on Aaron. Agad siyang nagpanic.“No, Lu
Tahimik si Samantha habang hinihintay ang sagot ng Daddy niya at ni Lucas. They were in the lanai, near the pool. Nagsisimula na ang pag-aagaw ng iba’t-ibang kulay sa langit. Sa malayo ay tanaw na rin ang paglubog ng araw.Iniwan niya si Aaron sa salas upang kausapin ang ama at kapatid niya tungkol sa pakiusap nito na makita si Charlie. She knows that at the end of the day, it would only be her decision should she want Charlie to meet Aaron as her daughter’s father. But she wants her family to understand where she’s coming from kaya siya nakikiusap ngayon sa mga ito. She already have enough trouble to last a lifetime and she doesn’t want to be at odds with her family, not right now.“Whatever you think is good for Charlie, just do that, Sam,” anang Daddy niya bago siya nilapitan at niyakap nang mahigpit.Gumanti siya ng yakap sa ama at lalong ibinuro ang mukha sa dibdib nito—taking more of his comfort
Samantha silently watched Aaron as he laid their sleeping daughter on their bed. It’s past 10 in the evening at katutulog pa lang ni Charlie. Mula nang ipakilala niya ang mag-ama kanina, hindi na bumitiw si Charlie kay Aaron. They played and watched Charlie’s favorite movies. Maging noong hapunan, mas gusto ni Charlie na kausap si Aaron kaysa sa kanya. And she wasn’t jealous a bit. She knew they were trying to catch up with the many years they had spent apart.At kung siya ang tatanungin, she’s genuinely happy. Sa kabila nang galit na naramdaman niya noon kay Aaron, she had longed for this time to come—that she gets to introduce Aaron to Charlie. She knew it’s not a good time to be happy just yet, with the scandal and the threat to her life, but she is more than grateful to have this moment to celebrate.Aaron gently kissed Charlie’s forehead. “Goodnight, my princess. I will see you in the morning,” bu
“Yes, mother. No, I have yet to know today, if the Aguinaldos would let me. Yes, I will tell Sam. No, I’ll probably stay here for a while. Okay. Bye.”Mabilis na isinuksok ni Aaron ang cellphone niya sa kanyang bulsa. It was barely six o'clock in the morning saubalit nakaligo na siya at nakabihis. He barely slept last night. He was excited for today. He promised Sam that he’ll be there when she wakes up kaya siya maaga ngayon.He just got a little bit distracted when his mother called and asked him where he was. Ayaw pa sana niyang sabihin ang totoo, subalit sinabi na rin niya to ease his mother’s troubles. As expected, his mother was ecstatic. Ang gusto nga nito magpunta agad sa San Gabriel upang makilala si Charlie. But of course he had to explain the situation. Hindi pa nga niya nakakausap ang Daddy ni Sam at ni Lucas.There are still things that needed to be discussed with the Aguinaldos. And of course, ang tungkol
“Where exactly are we going?” kunot ang noong tanong ni Samantha kay Aaron. It was just a few minutes after four o’clock in the morning and there she was, already awake and off to somewhere with Aaron.She barely slept last night or technically early that morning. Nasa isip niya kasi ang pa-secret ni Aaron. Sa trabaho niya bilang events planner, sanay siyang magplano ng surprises ng mga kliyente niya. She does her job as flawless as possible because that’s what her clients deserve—a high that only a surprise celebration that comes from the heart can give. And now that she’s clueless to what Aaron was about to do, siya naman ngayon ang kinakabahan. She’s half-excited and half-worried to be exact. At kahit na kanina pa siya sinasabihan ni Aaron na h’wag nang magtanong, nagtatanong pa rin siya.“I told you, babe, it’s a surprise,” ani Aaron, ang mga mata nasa daan pa rin.Humaba na ang