What is he doing? What on earth is he going to do? Read on to find out. <3 <3 <3
__________________...~ ~ ~ O L I V I A ~ ~ ~.Dread gripped my heart so tight that I found breathing hard.I quickly called him back.But he didn't pick up.I had no choice but to go ahead and call William. Maybe he was with him."Hello?" It took several rings for him to pick up. "Olivia?""Where are you?" I asked hurriedly. "Are you with Jackson?" I asked him."No," William replied, he sounded exhausted. "What's going on?"I told him about the phone call and my fears."I think he is at the beach house," I informed him."Alone?" William's voice was alert now."And possibly drunk.""I'll go check on him right now," he said. "You stay put.""I am leaving as well. I will meet you there." I told him as I put on my coat and picked up my car key."What? No, Olivia, stay here. It's late and you don't need to-" William tried to protest but I was already out the door. "What about Kelse?" He asked."She is already asleep and Sarah is here to take care of her," I told him even though I had n
_______________...~ ~ ~ J A C K S O N ~ ~ ~."What an Oscar-worthy performance," William said dryly as he drove.I grunted."It wasn't good enough if it didn't make her run back to me like I was the oxygen she breathed," I replied."You're drunk," William said, his voice devoid of any emotion.I rolled my eyes. "I have drunk, Harvey. That does not mean that I am drunk. If I were, I would have probably messed up our plan."He shook his head, turning to give me a glare before turning back to the road. "Don't call it 'our' plan, Reign. This was solely your idea.""But you played along with me, didn't you?" I smirked.William didn't say anything for a moment. "You're playing with fire, Jackson. You keep complicating things. Now that you have come clean about most of the things, then why don't you come clean to her about this also. She might do as she is told if you are just honest with her. It was always that simple for you. But you just keep spinning a web that, my friend, I am worri
_________________...~ ~ ~ O L I V I A ~ ~ ~ . "Liv-""And can you ask Harvey to get the papers ready for me to transfer your mother's legacy back to you?" I asked. "I would ask Sarah but she is being more than generous with me and I do not want to burden her with anything more.""Liv-""Please, Jackson." I sighed, getting up from the couch. "I need a clean break."Jackson sighed, looking down. When he looked up, he had a small sad smile on his face. "I fucked up beyond repair, didn't I? Just tell me something, anything, that I can do to make your pain a little less."I stared at him, feeling that treacherous prickle at the corner of my eyes.I didn't want to cry.But it was getting harder to keep it all inside by the day.It was so difficult.Every day, my heart broke for the little girl who waited for her Daddy."Can you..." My voice broke so I had to clear my throat. "Can you be there for her?" I asked. "Can you stay in Monkey's life?"He stared at me for a long moment and for
_________________...~ ~ ~ O L I V I A ~ ~ ~."For now. It is inevitable. It will happen, I promise. Just not now."Sarah and I just stared at each other for a long moment."You..." She opened her mouth, sighed, and then shut it.I smiled at her."YOU ARE OUT OF YOUR FUCKING MIND!" I jumped when she yelled out, shaking me violently. "DID YOU HIT YOUR HEAD? SHOULD I TAKE YOU TO THE ER? IS THAT IT?"I sighed. "I know it sounds like a dumb idea right now but-""Oh, it doesn't sound like a dumb idea! IT IS A DUMB IDEA!" She glared at me. "Liv, I know you have this need to fix everyone around you but please, can you make an exception this one time? He is the one who pushed you into a shark-infested ocean five years ago and left you there to be feasted on. He does not get to ask for your help now that karma has hit him and he is in the same condition you were in five years ago.""He didn't ask anything of me," I argued. "He transferred Lilith Corp. to my name and looks like he is ready
_________...~ ~ ~ J A C K S O N ~ ~ ~."Good, because I have changed my mind."My left eye twitched as I fought to control my reaction."Y-yeah?" I cleared my throat. "You finally agree that you deserve to own Lilith Corp. after everything that I have done to you?""Well," she began, folding her hands in her lap. "I thought about it. And I realized that maybe I do need to reconsider everything and give everything a second thought."Why the hell was she being so vague?She wanted out. She wants out.She was not an idiot who would stay with me after all that I had done. So she was going to leave. But now, she was taking Lilith Corp. with her. Maybe William was right. Maybe I should not have let everything to the goodness of her heart."Jackson." Her voice was calm, soothing even. "I don't want the company. That still stands."The tension in my shoulders eased slightly. "But?"She wants full custody of Monkey, surely."But, I am willing to hold off on the divorce."The words hung in
_________...~ ~ ~ J A C K S O N ~ ~ ~."Don't you think this is getting too frequent?" William asked as he plopped down on the barstool next to me. I glanced at him sideways. "What is?" "You acting like you are regretting your entire life?" He snickered. I glared at him. I knew he was going to start with it all over again. I didn't know what his problem was - he did not like Olivia. He was on my side from the beginning. I wanted to know what changed in the past months so I turned to face him. "Why are you team Olivia these days?" I asked him. "We have had this conversation." He rolled his eyes. "I am not team Olivia. I have never been team Olivia. I am team dumbass Reign. I want him to be happy. Should I record the answer this time so that I can play it the next time you accuse me of the same thing?" I swirled the drink in my glass. I might as well just shut up because I don't know what to say or believe anymore."Reign," William began, his voice firm but not unkind. "You
_______ . . .~ ~ ~ O L I V I A ~ ~ ~ . "This is our new home?" Kelsey squealed as she ran up the stairs to the beach house. "Yes it is." I smiled at my daughter and looked over at Jackson, who had a vacant look on his face. He had been like this since we had that talk in his office. Did I push him too much? The thought kept nagging at me as I watched him drag his feet across the sand. "You okay?" I asked as I watched the movers carry the boxes inside. Jackson nodded, but his eyes remained fixed on the horizon, the waves crashing against the shore. "Jackson, what's wrong?" I asked again. He turned to me and he looked irritated. "You. You are what's wrong." "What? What did I do?" Jackson's jaw tensed as he stepped closer. "What did you do? Liv... Olivia, I can't even call you Liv because I killed that part of you, didn't I? So Olivia, you are making me feel like trash by doing this." I took a step back, not knowing what to say. "I didn't-" "No, you don't get to do tha
___________...~ ~ ~ J A C K S O N ~ ~ ~ . "Now I am worried." I turned to see William walking towards me with two cans of beer. "About what?" I asked. "You. What else?" He rolled his eyes as he plopped down next to me on the sand. "I am worried that Olivia is right about you being in a dark place." I snorted. "Are you going to get on Olivia's heal-thy-asshole-husband bandwagon now?" I took the can from him and opened it, taking a swig. "I am not a fan of Olivia." He said. I snorted again, this time choking a little on my drink. "That's not what it looks like these days." "Well, your happiness and my niece's happiness happen to be dependent on her so forgive me for wanting her well-being as well." He justified. I gave him a sideways glance. For someone who had sworn to have no kids or like them, William dotted on Kelsey way too much."So you kissed Sarah Hopkins-""Shut up! That was an accident and it is never happening again." He grumbled, looking away. I chuckled. "
_________...~ ~ ~ O L I V I A ~ ~ ~ .New day, new me. Last night, when Jackson said that he had more secrets, for a moment I thought he was going to come clean. For a moment, I thought he was going to show some kind of remorse. But then I didn't know what I would do if he did suddenly confess to all his wrong-doings. What the hell was I supposed to do? How the hell was I supposed to react? But he simply shrugged and walked away, waiting patiently for me at the living room with Kelsey and Pickles for their sandwich and snacks.He gave me time to sleep on the thought. What would I do if he suddenly came clean? And I had come to a conclusion. I was not going to forgive him. Him confessing to his sins was like a serial killer confessing to his murders. Would the confession decrease the severity of the crime committed? Maybe to the court of law, it would. But not to the victims. And I was the victim. And in my court of law, there was no forgiveness of Jackson Reign. “You ok
_______...~ ~ ~ O L I V I A ~ ~ ~.“Daddy!” Kelsey ran into Jackson’s arms as soon as we walked in through the door. Pickles, on the other hand, seemed not very interested in seeing him and went sat down by Kelsey’s feet though she was wagging her tail.“Monkey, I missed you!” He picked her up and twirled her around as she giggled. “So how was girls’ week?” That was the excuse we had come up with to cover up the latest fuck up. “Fun!” She giggled. “Daddy, get me a brother so than you can have boys’ night!” Jackson laughed nervously as he looked over at me. Yeah sure, bruh. I am going to give you another child after all the shit you put me through.“Alright Monkey, get changed. Mommy will fix you up a sandwich.” I told her as I walked over to her bedroom to drop off her bag. “Okay!” She was in a really good mood tonight since she was back with both her parents. And Pickles. My daughter did not want anything more than this. And I felt horrible that I could not even give her th
_________...~ ~ ~ O L I V I A ~ ~ ~ .“Till when are you going to keep this up, Jackson?” I asked as soon as the other two stepped out of the conference hall. Sarah was not at all happy. I knew that she believed in me but there was a part of her who still believed that I will melt for the sob story that Jackson would present to manipulate me. I needed to make my loyal best friend proud. Jackson winced as if me calling him by his whole name had done more damage than all of his bullshit did. “Liv, just listen to me.” He said. I knew he had enough time to make up a good story and that he had come completely prepared to get the deal that he wanted.I crossed my arms across my chest and tipped my chin up. “I am listening. So say what you have to say.” And he did. His made up story of how Elena had approached him to get William’s help with her divorce. “You don’t believe me.” He said after I stayed silent for almost three minutes after he had finished his tale. “Oh I believe you.”
___________...~ ~ ~ O L I V I A ~ ~ ~ .“I know that you have got this.” Sarah turned to me. “I know you are in your boss girl era, but a gentle reminder that your asshole of a husband will do whatever the fuck it takes to get the company in his name. You are not allowed to fall for any of his bullshit. Capiche?” I took a deep breath and let it out. “Yes yes, ma’am. I will do my best to not be influenced by hi-”“No no no.” She stomped a foot to make a point. “That’s not the attitude we are looking for. We are not going to do our best to resist his manipulation. We ARE going to resist his manipulation. Now, rephrase your sentence.” I rolled my eyes. My friend was motivating and coaching me like I was going out to war, which I was. Did I love it and felt grateful for her support? Absolutely. But she was going a tad bit overboard with it at this point. “I am going to not be influenced by his manipulations. I am not going to fall for his same old cheap tricks. And I am going to m
___________...~ ~ ~ J A C K S O N ~ ~ ~ ."She said she still loved me. That means I still have a chance to set things right, right?" I asked as I paced William's office. I looked over at him, who was looking at me as if I was an idiot, and raised a brow, "Well?" "Why the hell would you go to meet Elena? When you know very well that she is trouble?" William asked. I rolled my eyes. He was still stuck there when there was much more important matters to worry about. "Why the hell would you go to meet Sarah? It's not like you knew Liv was going to be there? Why the hell would you go to meet your arch nemesis alone? What would have happened if she had stabbed you and fed you to some wild animal?" Of course, I knew I was being dramatic but I would not put anything past that pain in the ass. William let out a chuckle. "One, she is not my arch nemesis. Two, you have a wild imagination. Careful now Reign, someone might think you actually care for someone other than yourself." I t
________...~ ~ ~ O L I V I A ~ ~ ~ ."I am keeping the company until you prove yourself."The fact that he played right into my hands with this was so damn hilarious that I had to do everything to not laugh at the absolutely horrified look on both his and his asshole best friend’s face. I side-eyed Sarah who seemed like she was going through as much as a hard time as me trying to stay serious. “What do you mean?” He finally found his voice. I thought the man had had a stroke hearing my condition and lost the ability to speak. “You heard me. I am not signing the Lilith Corp. back to you until you prove that there was, is, and will never be anything between you and Elena.” I said as evenly as I could, trying not to sound arrogant or victorious.“Liv, that makes no sense.” He said. “Whatever you mean?” Sarah spoke, coming to stand beside me. “It’s the most sensible thing I have heard her speak ever since you came back into her life.” Jackson turned to look at his stumped friend
__________...~ ~ ~ J A C K S O N ~ ~ ~."Harvey, you motherfucker! Why the hell would you visit them without telling me?" I bellowed into my phone as I hurried to my car. Why the hell did he have to go there? Why the hell would he do that without letting me know in the first place?"And why the hell would you go see Elena, of all people, after telling Olivia you were hanging out with me?" William sounded equally pissed. He had no right to be. Okay, maybe I should have given him a heads-up but why on earth would I ever imagine that he would turn up at their door?"There is a situation." I breathed out as I got into my car and connected my phone to the system."Don't tell me that bitch is blackmailing you with something else now." William sighed.I rolled my eyes."She wanted to talk.""Seriously, man." William sounded exasperated on the other end. "I know you both never had anything going on between the two of you, but I always felt like Elena had something for you. And even if the
________...~ ~ ~ O L I V I A ~ ~ ~ ."What's D-E-F?" Sarah rolled her eyes. "Deception, Extortion and Fraud?"I snorted as I passed her a bowl of popcorn as I plopped down on her couch. I had just told her about Jackson's date idea.It was good to see that her humor had not been affected after what happened. I knew that my best friend was still beating herself up for things that she could not control.And the sleepover was me trying to fix that."I do not like that you left my Kelse alone with that fraud just to come here to make me feel better." She pouted.I rolled my eyes.Of course she knew what I was doing."You think I haven't learned my lesson?" I asked, feigning disappointment at her for undermining my common sense. "I dropped Monkey off at my parents at the pretext that they have been wanting to visit some kiddish stuff with her for the past few days. And Jackson has been wanting to visit William, no doubt to plan more bullshit against me, so it worked out for the best fo
_______...~ ~ ~ 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.