_________...~ ~ ~ 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 ~ ~ ~."My baby brother!" Kelsey exclaimed. "When will I get my baby brother?"I froze.I had thought that she had dropped the whole thing but I guess I was wrong."Not anytime soon." Jackson beat me to the reply.Kelsey pouted, her big eyes watering. "Why not?" She sniffled."Mommy and Daddy once told you how we fought and acted like strangers right?" He asked.She nodded. "Yeah, but then you became friends again, right?" She asked, her innocent eyes bulging out of her sockets."Yeah, we did." He continued to speak. "But when grown-ups fight and act like strangers, it takes a little longer for things to be all fine. And you can't have a brother until then."Kelsey's bottom lip quivered as she digested the words. I narrowed my eyes at Jackson. I hated the conviction with which he implied that it will all be fine in a little while and Kelsey could have a brother then.But I didn't want to challenge him on it, not right now. Not when the night was b
_____________...~ ~ ~ J A C K S O N ~ ~ ~ .Stress. I guess when God made me, he accidentally poured a whole tanker of stress into my life. I rubbed the back of my neck as I stared at the message from my asshole best friend. WILLIAM HARVEY: It's taking longer than I thought. Both of the works. I swore as I threw the paperweight across the room. I wiped the sweat off my forehead. "LILIANA!" I yelled. "LILIANA, GET IN HERE!" My middle-aged PA hurried in, looking wide-eyed at the shattered paperweight on the floor. "Why isn't the air conditioner working?" I spat at her. She looked at me weirdly. "WHAT?" "I will get it checked right away, Sir." She said. "And get one of those paperweights." I waved dismissively at the wet mess on my floor. It was a gift from Olivia when we were first engaged. I didn't know if she had noticed it the last time she had visited, but if she did she would make some other pathetic assumption about the whole situation. "Of course, Sir." She pick
__________...~ ~ ~ O L I V I A ~ ~ ~."Monkey is not going to be happy that you left without meeting her," I told Harry as he wrapped his arms around me, lifting me off the ground and giving me a shake before putting me back down."I will come visit. I really need to go this time." He mumbled as he stepped back. "Give her all the gifts. I tell her I sent them, not that I was actually here. Thanks for having me.""No, thank you for spending time with me when your schedule is so packed." I smiled.He nodded and put his hand out to Jackson who took it. "It was good to see you, man."Jackson simply nodded, not saying anything. He was awfully quiet since lunch. And I think I know what this is about.I waved until the cab disappeared and turned to Jackson. "Jackson, it's all in the past." "I didn't say anything." He muttered before abruptly turning on his heel and stalking into the house.I rolled my eyes before following him. "So you are not pissed Harry was with me during the preg
____________...~ ~~ O L I V I A ~ ~ ~."Mommy!" Kelsey squealed as Jackson dipped into the water with her in his arms.I laughed at the scene, taking out my phone to capture the moment.Jackson looked over, the water droplets glistening on his tanned skin. "Want to join us?"I hesitated, feeling the warm sand between my toes. "I'll just watch for a bit," I said, trying to keep the sadness from my voice. The breeze picked up, carrying the scent of saltwater and sunscreen.Kelsey giggled as Jackson splashed water at her, her eyes lighting up with joy.I sat on the picnic blanket, watching them. The sun was setting, casting a soft glow across the beach.Jackson's eyes met mine, and I tried to smile again, the problem at the kindergarten getting to my head. I am pretty sure it was more of a grimace than a smile at that point.He waded out of the water, Kelsey still in his arms, and approached me. "Your turn," he said, extending a hand.I shook my head, my eyes wide. "I am not going i
__________...~ ~ ~ O L I V I A ~ ~ ~ . "What's wrong?" I asked as soon as she opened her front door. My best friend looked ready to kill someone. "Where's Kelse?" Her voice was hoarse as if she was either crying or yelling, but by the looks of it, I guessed it was the latter. "What's wrong?" I asked her again. Sarah grabbed my arm and pulled me into the apartment and closed the door when she realized that Kelsey was not with me. "Why didn't you bring her?" She asked as she walked back into the living room, dragging me with her. "I told you to bring her!" Her voice rose as she sat down, filling two glasses with whiskey. She held one up to me. "You want Monkey here when we are going to sit and have a drinking marathon?" I asked, raising a brow at the almost empty bottle. "I failed." She sighed. "I failed as a lawyer and I failed as a best friend." She said as she rubbed her face with her palms. I looked at her confused. "What are you talking about?" I asked as I sat down nex
_________...~ ~ ~ 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.