Astrid's POV"You guys stay here. I'll be right back. Just give me 15 minutes.""Yes, ma'am. And if you aren't out in 15 minutes, should we come in?" My female bodyguard asked me."No. I'll just text you if I need you."The guard nodded and stepped back as I straightened my dress to walk into the restaurant.And meet with the devil. Just how stupid could I be?The nerve of this idiot asking us to meet at a hotel. The only reason I came here was for closure, not to hear anything about Damien. I knew he would only try to sabotage Damien and me... because he's jealous of our relationship.Unlucky him. He asked Fiona, right? She can be everything to him. I'm never giving him a second chance."Mrs. Starkov, welcome," the hostess greeted before I could say a word. "Please come this way. Mr. Martinez is waiting for you."Damien didn't know about this appointment. Not like I was keeping it a secret from him–I just left when he wasn't at home.I told the guards that in case he asks, they shoul
Astrid’s POVEliza was sitting across from me, glaring with her arms folded across her chest while I smiled sheepishly and scrolled through her phone, awing at pictures from their little vacation. They had visited Luke's favorite island, and while it had been her idea for his birthday, my new best friend didn't seem too thrilled.“I don't get it. What's your problem, Liz? You should have told him you wanted to visit someplace else. I doubt he'd have refused.““Oh, please, Astrid. He wouldn't. I just know how much going there makes him happy. He grew up there, and the orphanage he was raised in is where we spent most of our time.“I rolled my eyes. How could she have been the married one for a period longer than me, yet I was more sensible?“Look here, in marriage, we have to be happy. I know Luke—he wouldn't have gone there if he knew you wanted to go somewhere else. Communicate with him, girl.”“Just like you're communicating with Damien, huh?” She wiggled her brows. “Tell me somethi
Astrid's POVEver since Eliza had told me to be careful with Tiffany, I had been on edge in my husband's house. Each time I saw her, I would try to study her subtly and make sure that I could prove Eliza wrong.It was easy to do so because Tiffany didn't show signs of someone who was planning anything. Just like Damien had ordered, she minded her business, only speaking to him when absolutely necessary—not like he responded. The man would remain silent, and when I glared at him, he'd give a one-worded reply, and that would be all.I doubted that she really had something planned. According to Eliza, Tiffany, just a few months ago, had tried to return to Damien's life, but by then, she was still an alcoholic."There is no way someone can change so fast, okay? Don't even think about it. It's not possible. I know this woman—she has reasons for coming here, and you have to be careful not to fall into her trap," Eliza had warned me.Tiffany said she returned because she was dying and wanted
Damien's POVI kept watching the clock. Time seemed to have stopped moving ever since she was wheeled into the hospital room. I paced the white corridors, running a hand every so often through my hair. I shouldn't be doing this. I don't care about her.So why was I acting so concerned?No. It couldn't be that I felt for her, right? Not after all she did to me. I promised to never care.Dang it."Damien, maybe you should sit down for a bit. Here, have some water."Astrid's soft voice pulled me from my thoughts. I didn't argue because my legs were already weak and trembling, and I was scared I would faint if I didn't.I sat down, and she sat on the seat directly close to me, placing her soft palm in mine."You really should calm down, okay? I believe she'll be fine. They are the best doctors watching over her in there. So just calm down, and let's wait for the doctor."Her words calmed my nerves just a little bit, enough for me to sit without constantly tapping my feet on the ground.Ab
Damien's POVI rolled my eyes. Now what did she want?"Fiona, how can I help you?"A loud sigh met my ears. "Damien, I thought we agreed to be less formal with each other. Come on, we aren’t strangers anymore."I cringed when I heard her call my name in what she probably thought was a sultry voice. Her desperate tone was evident even over the phone. Having dealt with my sick mother's case today, Fiona was just adding to the headache that was already forming in my brain."Fiona, I'm really not in a good position to chit-chat right now. Is everything okay? Why did you call?""Uh... You don't want to talk to me? Is that it?" she whines, making me groan."That's not the case. I'm just busy. Can we talk another–""No, it's okay," she cut me off. Nobody had the right to cut me off. Only Astrid. "I see now how you prioritize people. It's Astrid, isn't it? You must be with her. You lied to me about wanting to divorce her."I fisted my hands tight, squeezing my phone so hard I'm surprised it d
Astrid’s POV“What is it again, Adrian? What the hell was that?”He stood up from his seat in the garden and walked closer to where I stood. His hair was slicked back, but he was in a casual outfit, and a black hoodie dangled on his arm.“Astrid, I told you I was going to dig deep into everything, right? I'm pretty sure we are getting close to discovering everything that has been hidden in the shadows for so long.”Adrian beamed, but I couldn't bring myself to smile. No. The picture was disturbing, to say the least."I thought Grandma said she hated Dad. So why are they meeting? And it didn’t look like a picture from long ago, but recently."My mind buzzed but couldn't relax. Nothing was making sense anymore."Well, maybe they have reconciled and fixed their issues, I mean. They are mother and stepson, right?" Even my voice sounded unsure by the end of my sentence.Adrian shrugged. "Sure, but Astrid, you remember telling me that your grandmother said she would never go back on her wor
Astrid's POVI believe I was getting really better at pretending everything was fine, maybe because I knew I couldn't risk Damien knowing the plans my grandma and dad had. I had to be sure.Adrian told me not to let Damien know because he would get really protective, and we would not uncover many truths. I was willing to give it a shot at keeping quiet, and I did hope it turned out perfectly."Are you ready, honey?" Damien asked, wrapping his arms around my waist as he tilted my head to give him access to my neck so he could plant his face there."I am, but can't we just stay at home? Must we go?" I didn't even know where we were going."Yes, we must go because I have something for you."I groaned, letting him hold my hand and take me out with him.Tiffany was fine. She had left the hospital a while back, and Damien had done a complete 180 in how he treated her. While he didn't hug her or do what a mother and son would normally do, he was really nice and tolerated her, letting her sit
Astrid's POVOh my goodness. I slept with Damien.We did it!My eyes opened to the sunlight filtering in through the window, bright like the joy in my heart. The night was intense, passion-filled, and as rough as it could get.Eliza would not let me live this down.Stretching, I noticed his side of the bed was empty. It was cold, meaning he had been awake for a while. My heart dropped. Did he leave?My thoughts started racing. What if I wasn’t good enough, and he got embarrassed and decided to go home?Oh, come on, Astrid. Maybe he's just somewhere else in the house.Putting on my flip-flops, I walked slowly out of the room and into the living room of the cottage I hadn’t bothered to explore when I arrived.Well, one couldn't blame a woman, right? There were many more things to explore last night aside from a house I'd probably see many more times.His body isn't going anywhere either, my subconscious mocked, to which I flushed bright red.A sizzling aroma hit my nostrils as my ears p
Astrid’s POV "Dear Astrid, I know I am still an enemy in your heart. Or maybe you have truly forgiven me, as you said. But I have decided to go far away, to let us all have peace of mind. Why? Because I have tried to move on, but I can't. Somehow, I still have feelings for you. Inasmuch as I worked with your sister against you, I just couldn't get rid of them. I had to pretend when I was helping you, just so you would allow me to keep you safe. I will come back. Of course, I have to. But that will only be when I am sure that I have moved on 100% from you. I am also sorry for planting the bomb in that car. I know you blamed yourself for their deaths. Please don't. It was going to happen either way. Take care of yourself and your baby. I love you, Astrid. I am not expecting you to say it back, ever. But I just want you to know that I do. Bye, Astrid." * I closed the letter, feeling a tear drop onto my hand. Adrian had been of much help, and I think he was doing the right thing b
Astrid's POV The police cars had barely parked when I was rushing inside, ignoring the calls for me to come back. I was beyond reasoning today. All I needed was to make sure Damien was safe. How? No idea, but I was going to stop them today, even if it meant killing my own father. As I ran through the living room and took the corridor leading to Damien's office, my steps halted as Tiffany and Arthur came rushing down the corridor. Tiffany held him up as he limped. They hadn't seen me yet, so I hid behind the wall. To my side, there was a golden vase on the floor. God bless Damien for keeping antiques like this around. With much difficulty, I lifted it and held it, listening closely so I didn't miss my target. As they came barreling down the corridor, I lifted the vase and, with all my strength, hit it hard against Tiffany's head. She fell to the ground, unconscious. If she was dead, then it was good because what was going to happen to her if she didn't die from this was going to be
Damien's POVI woke up to muffled voices and movement. Blinking through the haze, I saw Arthur and Tiffany standing close together.It was real. Not a dream.My own mother was siding with Arthur.What in the world?My eyes trailed down to Arthur’s legs, noticing that his previously wounded leg was now patched up and bandaged. A bit sloppy, but still okay.I cursed the heavens at that moment for making my mother a nurse before she married Dad. Now, with her helping his injuries, she could help them escape, and I would have no way to fight back."Ugh."Shut. My groan alerted them, and they turned to look at me."Hey, son. You’re awake?" Tiffany smirked. "You should get some rest. You’ll need your strength."Arthur nodded, stepping beside her as she walked toward me.My stomach churned, and I clenched my fists. I had to find a way out of this.I struggled to support myself and stand, but only then did I notice that my hands were tied behind my back. Liquid dripped from my head, and when
Damien's POVLike music to my ears were the groans of Arthur Marshall as he clutched his wounded leg while glaring daggers at me from where he lay on the floor. He had broken in, expecting to take me unaware.Astrid had broken me. After her departure, I had become a mess, going as far as drinking alcohol and doing things I had promised never to do. Luke, seeing that, reduced the amount of security in the house. First mistake.One day, I came home, and the bodyguards tried to help me. In anger, I decided to relieve all of them from duty for a few weeks, just until I could get Astrid home. So I gave them a much-celebrated vacation, which they took. And that was where my self-torture skyrocketed.I didn’t even show up at the office but spent my days indoors, working in my home office tirelessly and then drinking myself to sleep. That was the routine. And that was how Arthur found me.Luckily, Luke was wise enough to leave some cameras in my house, connected to the office. That was how he
Astrid’s POVToday was D-Day.Adrian had let me go to his house, a mansion in the middle of the city—much smaller than Damien’s, but it would have to do. Since Grandmother didn’t know where Damien lived exactly, she wouldn’t know I wasn’t at his place and that this was all a plan. The police were on standby, cameras set; she had to confess whether she knew it or not.“My beautiful grandbaby, look at you! You’re so healthy and happy—you look fat,” Grandma greeted as soon as she walked through the door.“Hi, Grandma. Nice to meet you.” The words felt bitter on my tongue, but I had to pretend to be happy to see her.After that day, Damien didn’t leave me alone. Every day, he kept disturbing me, so I had to move out of that house to somewhere else, which he still found—telling me there was no way he was letting me and his baby go."Co-parent my foot." Those were his exact words to me.It was only because of Luke’s intervention that he didn’t carry me back home. Thank God he didn’t, or els
Astrid's POVLying over the toilet seat had become a habit of mine. Even after leaving Damien's house and going to the small apartment Adrian had rented since I refused anything too extravagant, I couldn't keep anything down. I was booked for a doctor's appointment tomorrow, and so I decided to just drink a lot of water to replenish whatever I was losing. But from the looks of things, I could go to the doctor today.The thought of Damien and Fiona currently kissing or doing something else–it was nighttime, so maybe they were wrapped in the sheets already–filled my head, making me restless.Each time I closed my eyes to sleep, their faces would pop into my mind. Damien's first making me smile, and then Fiona reminding me that I had lost him forever.As I finally stood up from my spot on the ground, Adrian knocked on the door."Astrid? Come on, there's something you need to see."I groaned. Couldn't a pregnant, heartbroken woman rest?"What is going on, Adrian?" I asked. I just wanted t
Damien’s POV"What is wrong with Astrid?" I asked Luke the moment I stepped out of the house and into my car.He didn’t immediately respond but glared at me for a couple of seconds. When I raised a brow, he shook his head."You’re so dumb, Damien. What day is it today?""Thursday?" I replied, wondering what today had to do with my question."And what is happening on this particular Thursday, Damien?"I tried to wrack my brain for answers. Of course, a lot of things were happening. How did he expect me to know which one he meant?"Just tell me what is wrong with Astrid, Luke. She doesn’t look fine. She looks so pale, so sick. In fact, turn the car around. Let’s go take her to the hospital.""And then what next? Damien, you’re getting married today. Do you really think any married woman would be happy and look lively on the morning of her husband's wedding to her sister who betrayed her in the past?"Of course, I knew it. I had just been trying to deny it, but his words hit me in the gu
Astrid's POVIt had been a week since the announcement that shattered my existence. Damien and Fiona weren't planning on taking things slow. Not one bit.I walked down the stairs as carefully as I could, my thoughts running. What if he knew I was pregnant? How would he react? Would he even let me walk down these stairs? Or would he prefer I sleep downstairs? What about my job? My eating habits?I'd been trying so hard to eat, but as soon as anything got close to my mouth, I felt like throwing it all up. The doctor told me it was normal, but I needed to eat for my child's sake. Everything I was doing now revolved around this little life in me. If not, I'd have been a shell of myself.Every night, I'd cook. Enough for both of us. Then I'd wait for him to return so we could eat, but when he didn't show up after hours of waiting, I'd just eat as little as I could and sleep after soaking my pillow with tears."Myra, has Damien eaten?" I asked her as I walked into the kitchen.She turned to
Astrid's POVAs soon as I picked up the call from Eliza, screaming filled my ears."You shouldn't have told him! God, you just acted out of impulse, and now what? If you had spoken to me first, this wouldn't have happened.""And if you had told me, I would never have told him, okay? I didn't know that was the situation!" Luke shouted back.I took the phone away from my ear to stare at the screen, sleep completely clearing from my eyes.What was going on? I'd never heard them quarrel. And why did she call me while they were arguing? Maybe I was butt-dialed. Yes, that had to be it."Hello?"I was about to drop the call when I heard Eliza speak into the phone."You better hope she picks up this call before he finds out."Finds out? Finds out what?"You just ruined everything we've been working on for months!""I'm sorry, okay? I had no idea that was what was going on. I would never have said it, but—""Oh, she's not picking up.""I'm right here, Eliza," I said, bringing the phone closer