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~ ~ ~ O L I V I A ~ ~ ~
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...FIVE YEARS LATER...
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"Kelsey Jennifer Smith, you really need to get up now or you will be late!" I walked into my baby's room, a spatula in hand to find that my baby girl who had to leave for kindergarten in half an hour was still in bed and with the blanket over her head.
"I don't want to go to school!" She whined from under her space-themed blanket.
I sat down on the edge of the bed and placed my hand on where I saw the bump of her head. "And why is that, monkey?" I asked her, lighting tapping on what I assumed to be her forehead.
Kelsey threw the blanket off her face and pouted. "I will go to school if you give me something that I am going to ask you!"
Oh boy. This was never fun.
My baby girl, no matter how much I hated to admit it, was a product where the sperm won the gene battle. My genes didn't even try. Except for hair color and face shape.
So she was stubborn as an ox, like her biological father.
And she always got what she wanted, like her biological father.
And that never went well for me, like it was with her biological father.
"And that is? A kiss? More chocolate syrup on the waffles? Don't say a puppy." I grinned at her, hoping she would not grab onto the puppy that I had let slip from my tongue.
"A Daddy."
I froze.
"Huh?"
Kelsey sat up on her bed. "I want a Daddy, Mommy. Everyone at school has a Daddy, except me. Why is that?"
Maybe, the puppy was a better option.
"Uh... Jasmine has two Mommies." I tried, squirming uncomfortably in my seat.
Kelsey was only four. And she had never mentioned her father before and I had never brought it up. I thought that when she was older, I would be able to make her understand. But now? At four years? This was going to be one difficult task.
"Then get me one more Mommy." Kelsey scoffed.
"Am I not enough?" I pouted.
Kelsey narrowed her eyes.
I know I know. I should not be emotionally blackmailing my own child but what else was I supposed to do? Where was I supposed to get her a Mommy or Daddy when my last relationship had ruined relationships for me?
But hey, another Mommy. The idea wasn't too bad. If only I developed an attraction towards women.
"Mommy!" My kid brought me out of my useless train of thought.
"Yes, monkey?" I smiled sweetly at her.
"I want a Daddy. You suck at running." She said.
I gaped at her. "I run faster than you."
I know I know. I should not be comparing myself with a four-year-old but what else was I supposed to do?
"You don't run faster than other Mommies and Daddies at the parent sports meet!" She pointed out.
Should I just spend more time at the gym because her need for a Daddy seemed to be rooted in being good at athletics?
My heart stung. Her biological father really was good at sports though. Except, he could never be her Daddy.
"Honey..." I started but sighed. What was I supposed to tell a four-year-old? "It's complicated okay? You are too small to know and understand."
"I want a Daddy." She said stubbornly. "And I want a brother."
"Where did that come from?" I spluttered.
"Mommy, please?"
"Monkey, I won't say it again. Get out of bed and brush your teeth. Then we will get you ready for school."
"But I want a Daddy!" She screamed.
"I will get you a Daddy for Christmas," I said.
Wow, Liv, nice going!
"Really?" She grinned. That look of victory that she got copy-pasted from her biological father.
"Yes really."
"That is, in two weeks?"
Oh shit.
"Bad word Mommy!"
Did I say that out loud?
"So in two weeks?" She held up two fingers, got up on her feet, and bounced on her bed.
"I meant next Christmas!" I tried to placate the situation. Where was I supposed to find a Daddy in two weeks?
"Nooo!!"
"Fine! Two weeks." I sighed. I sucked at this parenting business.
Leaving Kelsey to brush, I made her bed, massaging my temple with my free hand.
What had I done?
What was wrong with me?
I was going to disappoint my daughter in the worst way possible in two weeks. Unless I put an advertisement in the newspaper for a Daddy for rent or something!
Huh. That is not a bad idea! Maybe I should do just that!
I smacked my head.
That was a terrible idea.
A horrible idea.
One that would inevitably blow up in my face in the worst way possible.
Where do I come up with such stupid shit? This is because of this dumb brain that I got the heartbreak of my life!
I paused.
Let's not go into details of all that because it was far too depressing.
"Monkey! Do you want waffles or pancakes?" I called out.
"Monkey waffles!" I got the reply.
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A lump formed in my throat as I read the headline.
Fashion mogul dies at 56.
Lilith Reign was dead.
My ex-mother-in-law who was like a mother to me, my baby's grandmother, was dead.
A lone tear trickled down my cheek and I hastily wiped it away.
No, Liv. Don't cry. These are people of your past! They don't hold any importance to you!
She had not once tried to contact me after the divorce. She was on her cheating son's side. There was nothing for me to feel sorry or sad about.
Or so I told myself all morning.
My head hurt like a bitch and I had no choice but to take my afternoon off.
I walked into the apartment, kicked off my shoes, and collapsed on the couch. I needed a good cry. A hard cry. The kind of cry that would rip my soul apart. But, no, I shouldn't do that. I promised myself that I would not do that.
Tears streamed down my face.
Ugh, when will my eyes ever listen to me?
Instead, I decided I needed a bath. And a nap before it was time to pick Kelsey up from kindergarten.
But before I could even do that, the doorbell rang.
I groaned. Who could it be?
Dragging myself off the couch, I walked to the door, peeking through the peephole.
My heart stopped.
Jackson Reign.
The man who had crushed my heart into a million pieces was standing outside my door.
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Kelsey is a mood, isn't she? What will Olivia do about the promise she made to her daughter? And what on earth is Jackson Reign doing back in their lives? Read on to find out. And let me know what you think about the story so far. And maybe if you could, leave a review on the main page. <3 <3 <3
_______________...~ ~ ~ O L I V I A ~ ~ ~.I took a deep breath and steeled myself. I could do this.But did I want to do this?He would leave if he thought I was not here, right?What did he want from me?I swiped at my cheeks and took another deep breath. I had to be strong.I unlocked the door and pulled it open.Jackson stood there, looking as handsome as ever, but his eyes were filled with something unreadable. Regret? Pity? I couldn't tell. I could never tell."Liv." He said, his voice thick.I raised a brow. Liv? LIV?Jackson's gaze searched my face, looking for something.I kept my face a mask. "What do you want, Jackson?"He stepped closer, and the scent of his cologne hit me like a tidal wave of memories. "Can I come in?""Umm... No." I said blankly.Jackson's eyebrows shot up in surprise. "Liv, I need to talk to you."I smiled at him."I don't want to listen to a word you say." I shot back.Jackson looked taken aback, his eyes widening for a moment before he regained hi
_____________...~ ~ ~ O L I V I A ~ ~ ~."Mommy, Mommy!" My angel ran towards me. "I told all my friends you will get me a Daddy for Christmas!"I mentally face-palmed.Why did I think that was a good idea?I smiled at her nevertheless. "Did you, now?""Yes!" She fell into my arms and I picked her up."Maybe you should have kept it a secret. As a surprise."What was the use of telling her that now?My darling thought for a moment. "Oh, I should have!"I patted her head as I walked to the car. "That's okay. No need to fret over it now.""Okay. Mommy, will you get me ice cream today?" She asked as I buckled her into her car seat."Hmm..." I pretended to think about it. This was my chance. "Do you want ice cream now or Daddy in two weeks? You can only choose one."I waited for Kelsey to choose the former. Come on, it was such an easy choice. Who would choose Daddy over ice cream?"Daddy!" She threw her hands up in the air.Apparently, my daughter would choose Daddy over ice cream.S
________________...~ ~ ~ O L I V I A ~ ~ ~.I stopped abruptly only to almost fall over forward when Jackson bumped into me. He threw his arms forward and around me, exactly around my breasts."They are bigger than I remember." I heard him mutter.I shrugged him off and whipped around to glare at him. "Excuse me?""What?" He shrugged as if it was entirely normal for an asshole to grope his ex."Keep your hands off of me!" I gritted out."You would have fallen and broken your nose if I hadn't." He said as he touched his own swollen nose."My nose, my business. Stay out of it." I stomped my foot. I knew it looked childish but I really did not have the energy to take this up with him like a proper adult. It was taxing to have a dynamo for a daughter. Besides, I had had a fairly taxing day otherwise as well.He opened his mouth like a fish, as if he wanted to say something. But he was smart enough to think that it was a bad idea and close his mouth and simply nod.I squared my shoulde
_________________...~ ~ ~ O L I V I A ~ ~ ~."What Christmas present?" Jackson asked.Before I could handle the situation, Kelsey spoke up. "Mommy is getting me a Daddy for Christmas." She held up two fingers. "In two weeks."I kept staring at my daughter even when I felt Jackson's eyes boring into my skull."Hello, Mr. Stranger." Kelsey diverted his attention and I finally felt his laser gaze leave me. Why did it feel like we were back in the past and he had some crazy power over me again?This was not good. I needed to get my shit together.For the past five years, I was positive that I would not see or hear from Jackson ever again. Never did I harbor any hopes of him showing up at my door. I was desperate to move on, desperate to give my daughter only the best because she deserved nothing but the best.And I was convinced that I had indeed moved on.And I still do believe that.Except, I feel like he is still capable of manipulating me. Still capable of making me feel that I d
________________...~ ~ ~ O L I V I A ~ ~ ~ ."My name is Jackson Reign," Jackson told my sweet sweet girl as he knelt down in front of her. "I am your Mommy's... friend. What's your name?""I am Kelsey Smith." Kelsey gave him a toothed grin as she put forward her hand, which he took. "I am my Mommy's baby.""Yes, that you are." He grinned back.My heart felt like someone was squeezing it inside their fist. It was not a good feeling but the scene in front of me was something that I had dreamt of endless times even though I had no hopes of it really happening. It was so hard to navigate through my heartache when this particular scene haunted my dreams. "So how long have you known Mommy?" Kelsey was ever the curious kid. She took Jackson's hand and tugged at him, a gesture that brought a very wide variety of emotions in Jackson's eyes. And I could not and did not want to decipher any of them. I was done trying to do that. Jackson and I were way past those days."Umm, five years?"I
_______________...~ ~ ~ O L I V I A ~ ~ ~ .I slammed the door in Jackson’s smug face as I felt anger like no other boiling inside me. How dare he charm my daughter and manipulate her into striking another meeting with her? And how dare I be so weak to let that happen? “Mommy…” Came my precious little troublemaker’s very familiar tone. “No, monkey, he is not going to be your Daddy.” I turned to her. “But he is so nice!” She clapped. “And handsome and strong! I bet all my friends will be super jealous if he becomes my Daddy.” I rubbed the back of my neck. “Is it really a Daddy you want or a show pony?” I asked. “Huh?” I took in a deep breath. I had to calm down. I could not make the mistake of taking out my anger for him and myself on my most precious baby. I sat down on my haunches in front of her. “You know what Daddy means?” “What Granna is to you?” “Yeah, good girl. Daddy is part of your family. Daddy is someone who you love and respect and look up to despite their s
_____________...~ ~ ~ O L I V I A ~ ~ ~.“Thank you so much for having me for dinner, Li- Olivia.” I stared at the bouquet of yellow roses that Jackson Reign held outstretched in his hand.“Yellow roses mean eternal love.” That’s what he used to say before one fine day, he revealed that there was no love at all and everything lived and cherished had been nothing but lies and betrayal. “I developed an allergy to roses after my pregnancy.” I gave him a saccharine smile and waved the flowers away. Jackson raised a brow, an amused smirk forming on his stupidly handsome face. “Is that so? Because I could swear that I saw a vase of roses on the dining table yesterday.” Oh well, it was worth a try. “Hyper-realistic faux flowers.” I shrugged. “Right.” He was not buying it for a second but I would be damned if I let him have it. “I am sure one or two of them were wilting.” “As I said, hyper-realistic.” I stared him down. He stared right back for a good minute before letting out a
_______________...~ ~ ~ O L I V I A ~ ~ ~."You have turned into a monster, Olivia." Jackson dared to look like he was the one who was being wronged here. "I know what I did. And how wrong it was. But my mother-""Your mother is none of my fucking concern," I cut him off, my voice icy cold. "She knew everything and did nothing. Just like she did nothing while you were busy playing house with Elena. Just like she did nothing when she found out you had a child with me. She is just as much to blame as you are."Jackson's eyes narrowed and for a moment I thought he would argue. But then he took a deep breath and nodded. "Okay. I understand your anger. But I need to do this for my peace. For the peace of her soul."I let out a wry chuckle."It's always, always about what you want, isn't it Jackson?" I asked.He let out an exasperated sigh as if I was being unreasonable."Why are you twisting everything I say, Olivia?" He rubbed his temple. "Why can't you take what I say at face value f
_______...~ ~ ~ O L I V I A ~ ~ ~.I stepped out of my room in a white and green floral dress with a denim jacket thrown over it. I had my white sneakers on. "Daddy, it's coming apart!" I walked to the living room to find Jackson working on Kelsey's pigtails. "Do you plan to stay up all night, Monkey? Why are you dressing up?" I asked. Both of them looked over at me. Kelsey grinned at me while Jackson had that look of awe that used to make me melt on the spot. Used to. Not anymore. Because I knew it was a farce. "Mommy, you look so pretty!" Kelsey clapped her hands and turned to Jackson. "Right, Daddy? Mommy looks like a Barbie doll, right?" I rolled my eyes as he nodded in agreement before looking back at me. "Even better." "Alright, let's go, shall we?" I asked, holding my hand out for my daughter to take. She held my hand and then turned around to hold her father's hand as well. "Let's go! I miss Pickles!" "Don't tell Grandma that you are going there to meet Pickles.
_______...~ ~ ~ O L I V I A ~ ~ ~ . I could feel him stewing all day long.Jackson did not like the counsellor. That was for sure. Which was fine. Because what he wanted did not matter anymore. He was going to get played so hard that he would not know what had hit him. I would make sure of that. I was going to play his own game against him. The game of manipulation. And this time, I was fully prepared. I had my claws sharpened and ready. "Mommy, is Daddy okay?" Kelsey climbed onto my lap in the living room couch and looked over at her father, who was staring out at the night with a glass of whiskey in his hand. My eyes subconsciously moved to the huge bar that he had built into the apartment after I had moved out. So far it was the only change I could note in the place. "There's just a lot going through his mind right now, Monkey." I told her, ruffling her hair. Okay, call me a bad mother. Or call me an overthinker. I didn't care which but the fact was that I did not fee
_______...~ ~ ~ O L I V I A ~ ~ ~ . "Why aren't we going to the counsellor we planned on seeing in the first place?" Jackson asked as he pulled up to the counsellor's office building."They don't have any open dates for the next three months and it's not like we can wait that long." I said as I stepped out, taking up the cozy minimalistic design. It looked more like a cozy cabin than a counsellor's office. There was a transparent name plate with the name 'Dr. Oliver Warren'. "Olivia. Oliver. Sounds nice, right?" I asked as Jackson walked over to my side. "Does it matter?" He asked. "It's not like we are going to have any personal relationship with him." I nodded, suppressing the twitching of my lips. "Let's go in." I murmured and stepped forward, opening the door and walking into the reception with him on tow. The nice lady behind the desk immediately ushered us into the counsellor's room. The place was empty. "Please take a seat." She said, pointing at the couch opposit
_______...~ ~ ~ O L I V I A ~ ~ ~ . "He got you back in that apartment and you let him?" Sarah screeched at the top of her voice. I flinched away from the phone and looked around as if someone would be eavesdropping on me in my own office. "Yeah, but-" "I literally left you after giving a talk on how not to let him manipulate you and you went and got yourself manipulated?" She continued to screech. I knew that she had her own office, but at the decibel level of her screaming, I was pretty sure that a person in the other building would also be able to hear her. "Listen to me, woman!" I raised my voice. "Listen? Woman, I want to kick you at this point! Why the hell would you move there? You could have come to my apartment. You could have gone to a hotel. Why go there? Why let him take you there?" I closed my eyes and listened to her yell some more. She did not seem like she planned to stop any time soon. But I could not interrupt her because that would aggravate her some mo
_______...~ ~ ~ J A C K S O N ~ ~ ~ . The evening traffic was a bitch and we were crawling like slugs in the highway."You need to get Mommy more presents, Daddy." Kelsey giggled in the back seat. "I am going to get her the best present in the world." I replied, with a crooked smile on my face as I watched my baby play in the booster seat. "What's that?" "Well," I bit my lips to control my smile but I couldn't. "Your Mommy has given me every happiness in the world. So it's time I gave it back to her." William had informed me that Sarah had called to discuss the divorce proceedings. No, not to discuss. She was leaving the entire procedure in his care, thereby eliminating any trouble for us to cover up this mess in front of them. So now, we could just pretend to get divorced. And then every single lie except the one about the will will be over. And then when she signs over the company back to me then, phew, I will have everything I could ever have. "Will she be happy, Daddy?
_______...~ ~ ~ O L I V I A ~ ~ ~ . I choked on the awful smell of awful cooking as soon as I opened the front door. "What is going on?" I coughed as I fanned my face as I walked over to the kitchen, which looked like it had been hit by a hurricane. I watched the scene unfold as Jackson picked up a smoking pan to the sink and turned on the sink. "It's nothing. We were just-" The smoke set off the fire alarm system and the water sprayed all over us. Kelsey's eyes were as big as saucers as she started jumping up and down with her arms in the air."It's raining inside!" She squealed with pure blissful joy. I watched my little one dance around, the smoke subsiding on the pan in the fridge and the man who was looking around like he had fucked it all up. "Where is the control valve?" I asked him with as much calm as I could muster. "I don't know." He slumped. "Does it turn off on its own? Is it automatic?" I asked. "I don't know." He looked... defeated. "What's wrong?" I ask
_________...~ ~ ~ O L I V I A ~ ~ ~."I gotta say, that is a thoughtful gift." Sarah nodded as she stared at the picture of the bouquet. "To think that he still remembers your Goodreads username." "It means he has a sharp memory. Not that he cares about me." I grunted. "Besides, he always played the gentleman when he wanted to. You do remember that he almost convinced you that all men were not the same five years ago, don't you?" Sarah groaned. "You got your Mom flowers?" She asked. I nodded, taking a sip of my coffee. "Where are my flowers?" She asked. I looked up at her and raised a brow, "You are allergic to pollen." She rolled her eyes. "Then you could have gotten me those fake ones." "Faux." "Yeah yeah, whatever they are called. You could have gotten me some of those!" She waved her hand dismissively. "Fine, I will have them delivered." I took another sip. "Hey!" She snapped her fingers in my face. "That's not the attitude I am looking for!" I gave her a look. "W
_________...~ ~ ~ O L I V I A ~ ~ ~ .The dude did not even let me see what he got for Kelsey.He went straight to the parking without any shopping bags. I wonder if he got her some jewelry that fit in his pocket or something. That would be stupid. She was four. She was not interested in jewelry. But he was stupid, wasn't he? And it was not like he was going to put in any real effort because... why would he? He wanted to pretend to be the good father so he was going to get something to make her happy, without putting any thought into whether she liked it or not. I rolled my eyes as I put the bouquet and the shopping bags in the backseat of my car after making sure that the idiot was nowhere in sight. I sighed. Should I get her something else? I knew she would love the toys. And she had been asking for more toys for Pickles. But still... What if she felt disappointed by what her Daddy got her? I slumped my head against the roof of my car. Well, I guess she would just
_________...~ ~ ~ O L I V I A ~ ~ ~ ."Jackson left Monkey with you?" I asked as I stepped out of the elevator and walked to the exit of the company. "Yeah. He said he had some work to finish and that Kelse was missing Pickles." I sighed. I was missing Pickles too. "Maybe I will also come over, spend some time with Pickles." "What's left of the renovation anyway?" My Mom asked. "I thought most of it was already done before you three moved in." "We are pet-proofing the place and getting in a high fence. I don't want Pickles or Monkey to wander into the water unsupervised." I explained to her. "Well, you should have thought it all through before getting a beach house for your permanent residence!" She exclaimed. I rolled my eyes. "I remember you telling Jackson what a wonderful idea it was." "I wasn't thinking about the practical implications then. What do I know? I am a airhead socialite. How can you expect me to figure out what you corporate moguls haven't figured out?"