Pascal's POV:I felt hurt that she had to go through all of that, and my actions had triggered that traumatic memory for her.Her last words shook me because now I understood what she went through and my contributions to it. "I went for therapy and all to be able to move on with my life. All this and what you said about finding me worthy to be your wife just took me down this horrible path that I never wanted to thread on to begin with. I felt like I had not learned my lesson and I had fallen for the reason I had a mental breakdown ten years ago. Like history was repeating itself again but with a guy I actually genuinely like, not one I was manipulated into thinking I had feelings for. That was why I had to get away from you, you were playing me all this time like I did not matter! " She was screaming by the end of it. I could feel her pain. Almost touch it, it was that palpable. And I had enabled this. But I had to make something clear first."I never played you Sandy, you always m
Zina's POV:Today was the day I have both been looking forward to and dreading at the same time. Going out as Zina Honduras. I was to meet up with my friends at a local diner, it has been ages since I hung out with Jasmine, Kathy and Bella. I am very certain they would be pissed at me when we finally meet up. For a number of reasons. One, they are not aware that I married Neil. Two, they were not invited to the wedding, three, I cannot disclose details about the wedding since it is a contract wedding, so I was going to lie to them about the details. And four, I have not told them of the madness that is termed Megan Claudie, or the sex tapes that thanks to Neil were no longer in existence. Maybe I should not talk about the sex tapes. It is a memory I do not want resurfacing. But now that I am thinking about it, I have not heard from Megan or heard about her since the incident. I know Neil did not kill her or have her killed, so where was she? I think I will stop thinking about her
Zina's POV:I walked towards the table that the girls were at with a heavy heart. I wish I could puff the guard away but he seemed determined to carry out the instructions given to him by his boss as he outlined to me in the car.First, he walked me out of the car to the entrance of the restaurant where we were meeting. I had no issues with that part, it would be weird if they let me walk there on my own. So I was cool with it.Then he says his boss asked him to walk me to the table I was to sit worthy friends on. I was like why? I was already inside. He said it was a safety precaution against my friends. I was shocked. I know they were crazy but did I really need a guard walking me to the table? I drew the line where he said he would sit with us. Unless he was going to have a sex change in the next ten seconds then he was definitely not coming to join me on my girl time with the ladies.Neil of course found it hilarious and asked the guard to just sit close enough to ensure I returne
Zina's POV:Admittedly, I did not know where to start. The beginning was beginning to seem like ages ago. A lot has happened and is still happening."Well umm, I guess I should start with my break up with Daniel. It was nasty to say the least. So that night we went clubbing. I had a one night stand, naturally, I was more drunk than sense but I somehow remembered him. Now, I do not know if that was karma or good luck but I had applied for the job of a secretary in one of the big companies. I go for my interview and guess who is interviewing me? The man that blew my mind and went back seven ways to Sunday." I said and took a sip of my tea. Then Kathy said,"He was that good huh? Got you blushing months after the encounter? I am calling dibs on his cousins. Go on." Kathy said and there were mixed reactions, mostly laughter though."Yes, he was that good. Anyway, I went in for the interview and saw my interviewer and instantly thought that my life was over. He recognized me as well. So I
Neil’s POV:I was receiving reports on the hang out Zina was having with her friends. I was not really interested in the content of their conversations, even when he sent me a message that Zina was catching the girls up on the drama in her life I was unbothered. She would not say anything to jeopardize our agreement, I had that much confidence in her.But what cracked me up was what the feisty one, Kathy was? What she said about erring, forgiving and forgetting. Priceless! But then again they have been sipping tea all afternoon, time to help my dear wife gain some brownie points with her friends.“Get me the manager in ten minutes.” I texted my bodyguard with her. He responds with a ‘yes sir’. Soon my phone rings and it is my driver.“Good day sir, I have the restaurant manager here with me.” He said over the phone. The guard probably sent him the errand so as not to catch Zina’s attention. Smart, he would get a bonus for this.“Great, give her the phone.” I instructed and prepared to
Megan’s POV:I was taking a walk when I saw Neil’s car parked outside a restaurant. Well I was not on a walk I was heading to the place I was to meet Jeffrey, got the dude hooked the way I wanted. My first instinct was to hide of course, I have not seen him since my release from prison. The last thing I wanted was to give him the impression that I had moved on from him.His wallet was mine and mine alone. I decided to watch the door for a moment and what I saw flooded me with raw anger. I could almost taste it. I saw his personal bodyguard Matt open the door and that ingrate Zina walked out behind him. She says something to him and he answers. Three cabs drove to where they were standing and three out of the four ladies behind her entered into a cab and the cabs drove off. Then I nearly keeped over when I saw Neil’s personal ride drive up to where she was standing, and Matt opened the door for her and the other lady to enter the car.All my months with Neil I was never allowed in thi
Zina’s POV:I was sitting outside in the garden just enjoying the morning when Neil came out and found me, he sat next to me with a small smile.“Good morning.” I greeted him. He nodded his head and handed me the flask I did not notice in his hands earlier. I gave him a look, it was too early to be drinking. He gave me a small smile.“It is coffee. I did not want to carry the teapot and cups to come here when I saw you out here.” He said and offered me the flask which I looked at properly. It was beautiful, and I trusted him. So I took a sip, and grimaced. It was black coffee and my sweet tooth did not agree with it at all.“Warn a lady next time.” I said and handed him back his coffee. He gave a laugh this time around.“So tell me about your hang out yesterday. Matt gave me some tidbits but I wanted to hear from you. But before you go on I would like to say that from the report I received from Matt, your friends are quite entertaining.” Neil said to me and I blushed hard, already kno
Zina’s POV:“So the marriage rumors were true, congratulations to you sir and to you Zina. Now those gossip mongers will finally shut up in the coffee room!” Margaret said and I gave her a small smile. All through the whole trip I have not been able to say anything. Nerves were eating at me like no man’s business. But the first step was done with. I had entered the building and everyone was too stunned to say anything. Next step was the board meeting. Hopefully that went well as well.It went well, even my absorption into the finance department went without a hitch. I can safely say it was a good working day. But at closing hours, my husband dearest was still waist deep in work, someone messed up a deal and he has been trying to salvage the situation. With his phone on his ear and his free hand on his waist, the only sign I got that he knew I was around was a small nod in my direction. After an hour he was still on the phone and I was more than ready to take off my work clothes. Comi
Zina’s POV:“You really know how to ruin a surprise.” I said dryly to Kathy who this time around screamed but opened the door widely for me to step in. Sandra was already on her feet when I stepped in. She had tears in her eyes.“Babe, if that make up isn’t waterproof don’t even think about it. I am here to walk you down that aisle to your happily ever after, think you can hold it all in till we are done?” I said to her and opened my arms to give her the hug we both needed. The tears now flow, I was grateful Neil forced me to come. I would not have traded this feeling for anything.We held on to each other until the other girls joined us in our hug. We saw some flashing lights and looked to see the wedding photographer.“I’m sorry, I could not help it. This was too precious to pass up. Wait, I just got an idea. We will do this outside, don’t worry we won’t mess anything up.” The photographer said in a rush but I was not paying any attention to her. I was fixated on my best friend who
Neil’s POV:The PI had to work with Matt and Ian and I did not care, I wanted answers which were pretty easy. The idiot’s name was Jeffrey. I of course remembered him but I could care less about him at the time, he was after Megan and she thought to use it to stir some jealous shit but it failed woefully because I never called him to order or ordered him away from Megan, it infuriated her to no end.So she ended up using him to get to one of the people I loved deeply. Yes, I was admitting that I loved my wife.They had tracked Jeffrey to the flimsy hideout he carved for himself, I say flimsy because it was not difficult to track him. Gabriel of course had skipped town but he was found eventually, and the lady of the hour was picked up from her apartment. She kept screaming that she never meant to hurt me, that Zina was the target. Like that was going to help?Anyway Zina had been by my side all through. My parents have moved to my place temporarily to help them commute to work easier.
Neil’s POV:I woke up feeling immensely tired, like I was run over by a truck. I blinked to try to recognize where I was. I was still in the hospital ward. I remember waking up earlier and I saw Zina who was running around, then some doctors came in.I sighed and turned to see a passed out Zina on the couch, how long she had been there was a mystery to me but I could tell that she had not been sleeping well, even the dim light could not hide the exhaustion from her face.She needed more sleep. Just then the door to the room opened and a nurse peeked in before trying to quietly step in, she did a good job of being quiet until she was next to my bed and saw that I was awake. She gasped but not loud enough to wake Zina.“Sir, you are awake. Let me call the doctor real quick.” She said to me and I nodded my head but I cast a significant look at her and thank goodness she understood and did not make any noise or wake Zina up. The doctor soon came in and after quietly examining me she told
Zina’s POV:Neil was supposed to wake up yesterday according to what the doctor said, but here he is, still lying there and not yet awake. I am really trying not to lose my head, this is becoming overwhelming as the hours pass by. I have seen too many movies and the worst case scenario kept playing in my head. What if he never woke up?What if they declared him brain dead?What if he became a vegetable?Did the last two not mean the same thing?Oh my gosh!I massaged my temple as I felt the beginning of a headache. “Please Neil, just wake up, please just wake up.” I said in my head and lifted my head to see that he was still in the same position. The door opened after a brief knock, a nurse stepped in with some towels.“Good morning ma’am, I am here to wash up Mr. Honduras. May I proceed?” the nurse asked me and I nodded my head. I stood up and stayed at a distance where I was sure that I would not interrupt her or block her movements and watched wipe him down with a towel, soap and
Zina’s POV:I followed the doctor with bated breaths, not really knowing what to expect but I was just glad that I was finally getting to see him. This was not my plan for the day, this was not my plan for any day. The meetings I was rushing out for seem so trivial right now. As we approached the door I felt the hand that I had been clutching unconsciously squeeze mine back. I looked up and saw my mother in-law give me a reassuring smile through the tears that filled her eyes. I nodded my head, bracing myself for this. The door opened and my eye zeroed in on the only bed in the room. The tears I thought were giving me a break came out, I could not control it. I didn't even want to, lying there looking pale with bandage wrapped around his body and wires hooked up to machines was my husband.There was a bandage wrapped around his head, his lip was burst at two places and it was a disturbing color of blue. From the amount of movies I had seen I was glad that the machines were beeping, m
Sandra’s POV:As soon as we arrived at the hospital, some men in suits immediately surrounded the vehicle and opened the door on Pascal’s side. Pascal turned to me, completely ignoring the madness that was the paparazzi. This was the first time I was experiencing them and this was crazy to say the least. From the ones receiving the news updates this was a favor, but to the families involved this was a major nuisance.“No matter what happens, do not let go of this hand and always follow where I tug you to. Do not answer any questions, do not say anything to them. And as much as possible keep your head down. Ready?” Pascal asked me and I nodded, I just wanted to get this show on the road.I nodded and he took my hand in a firm grip.He came down first, waited for me and took his own instructions. He did not say anything to any of them, he kept a firm grip on my hand and kept a steady pull until we got to the hospital entrance where they were banned from entering.“Where are they?” I hea
Zina’s POV:I was already heading out of the doorway but I was so focused on my phone, the girls were giving me reasons to regret not coming with them. They looked to be having so much fun, even the video of them attempting scrubber diving was so hilarious. I was about to scroll to the next video when I looked up and saw Neil’s car parked in front of the entrance instead of my designated car.What was going on?My question was going to be directed to the person that could answer it, I turned and saw Matt walking towards me. He looked uncomfortable.“Good morning Matt, where is my ride?” I asked him with a smile which he smirked in return to.“Boss went for a drive early in the morning. I think he got the day off or something, so he instructed that we ensure his princess got to work safely. And since he took your car I figured he would not mind you stepping in to work today in style.” Matt said and I rolled my eyes, ever since that picture of us surfaced on the internet he has not miss
Zina’s POV:I was two weeks into resuming work and roughly two weeks to the end of my contract with Neil. I was getting depressed as the days went by, I do not know how my heart went and fell for a man that did not want it. And aside from some guarded conversations, we did not spend as much time as I would have wanted. He was immersed in so much work these days and I was left to my own devices.My table was cleared. I was waiting for the afternoon reports so I could work on those as well. On the bright side I was getting reviews from my team. They loved how I worked, how I was giving them short breaks in between. Of course I have asked them not to be too comfortable, rush months are around the corner.I relaxed into my seat and I suddenly felt horrible again. In a matter of weeks I was going to be kissing all of this goodbye. No more Mrs. Honduras, no more special treatments. No more Neil, which was the part that stung the most. I would no longer have the access I have to him right no
Zina’s POV:“I swear he took me by surprise that day. I just never took him for one for public displays of affection, of course the gossip blogs took it up and praised him for not being ashamed to show the world that he loved his wife. I don't even know why we are making the headlines. There are other rich couples out there.” I said to Sandra who encouraged me to abuse my privilege as the boss’s wife and meet up before it was time for the lunch break.“Well not all couples consist of Neil Honduras. What about your mother-in-law? Has she shared any tips on how to survive the madness in the early days?” Sandra asked me and I smiled. My mother in-law was meeting us up for lunch, well me but I was not ready to dismiss Sandra.“Yes, she called me yesterday. I am supposed to meet her for lunch but you are staying because you too will soon be the wife of a CEO. Guess your dream of being a housewife is finally coming to be.” I said to her and she shamelessly raised her tea cup for a toast.“A