JULY 2022DAX'S POVI knew that Lana and my brother were once lovers. I knew the day I decided to sign the contract with her since I already had people dig up her past and everyone she had been with. I knew that signing the contract with her would not only make things awkward between my brother and I, but I knew that I also wanted her. The thought of them being in the same room together somehow seemed to hurt my feelings more than I thought it would. Even when I realized that what I had done might end up badly someday, my curiosity to be with her for my brother to see felt satisfying. And when I finally had her, I wanted her to myself. I wanted to keep her to myself and never think that she could be with anyone else, but me. She was exactly right for me. She felt made for ONLY me. And I wanted her to profess that only I was allowed to enter her and make love to her. But when she called my brother's name when we were about to make love, it felt like a punch in the gut. I wanted that
LANA'S POVMy head felt heavy as I opened my eyes slowly to a white ceiling and white walls, and then a beeping machine by my side. I knew exactly where I was. The place was quite familiar, and I could feel the drip middle that was connected inside my inner elbow. I groaned in distress. Dax and this unknown doctor rushed to my side. And then Xavier on my other side. I sighed, disappointed that I wasn't dreaming. It was true that they saw the video tape together. In my mind, I was convinced that Dax was going to cancel my marriage contract with him. "You're awake." Dax beamed by my side. "You gave us a scare." Xavier jumped in. I looked between them and just wished that I hadn't woken up yet. I saw my shame in their eyes. Xavier didn't seem bothered to see me after seeing the video tape we had. He seemed very relieved and happy to see me. I mean, that was expected of him. If this was going to destroy Dax and I, he was going to be over the moon. "How do you feel, dear?" The doctor
LANA'S POV"There's a sex tape of you?"I looked at them in horror, my eyes filling up with tears. "Show us the video, Lana." Dax roared, his eyes burning with anger. They stood up and looked at me expecting me to show them the video. "The video is- is of me and..." I looked at Xavier, "Xavier."They looked at each other. They looked confused at first, and then their countenance changed to anger. I still did not understand why they were acting so strange. They were both mad instead of Dax being the one to burst about the video and curse at me and Xavier. I expected him to even storm out of the room after telling me on my face that the contract deal was off."When was the video taken?" Xavier asked. I swallowed hard. "2 years ago, before you left college." "Tell me you know the sick fuck who sent you that video?" Dax snapped. "Is it leaked?" Xavier asked, going through his cell phone."I think Sasha sent it to me." I confessed, taking out my cell phone to show the video to them.T
LANA'S POVAs we entered inside the house, Dax let go of my hand before I awkwardly let go of Xavier's. My heart was pounding hard against my chest because I knew that something was going on. I didn’t want to think what I was thinking without hearing everything from them first. But something was wrong somewhere. Dax allowed Xavier to hold my other hand while he held the other, that was very strange. Dax's relaxion about his brother's behaviour made me nervous, and I had to ask. "What's going on? You both came to get me from the clinic, and now you were both holding my hands. Is there something that I should know?"They turned around and looked at me. And then at each other. It was as if they were communicating something between them that they didn't want me to know. Xavier took a step forward and cleared his throat. "Take a seat, we will explain everything to you." He answered. I furrowed my eyes in confusion. "You're scaring me. What's this about?" I got even more anxious.I did n
LANA'S POV19 YEARS AGO..."Amalah, come down already!" My mother's voice called from the living room. I was still in front of the mirror, fixing my hair. "Coming, mom!" I answered, trying as much as I could to be quick enough. My mother made my hair, but I wanted it to be perfect. I was 5 years old. I loved to see flower decorations in my hair whenever we went out. It reminded me of my grandmother before she passed on. She used to tie her hair up with flower ribbons when she was little. My mother had an album of her pictures when she was my age.Her face was not vividly clear in my mind, but I missed her so much. She was the only person closest to my heart like my mother was. She made me laugh all day. She knew my favourite dish and always made sure that I was fed and full. My father was driving that day when we were going to town. They usually took me with them when they wanted me to get dresses for myself and toys. As usual, I was sitting in the backseat, holding my teddy bear cl
LANA'S POV After hanging up the call, I sat on the edge of the bed and took a deep breath. I wanted to control my breathing because my heart was beating fast. Amalah James was in my past and I didn’t want to go back there. It took me years to forget about her and start my life afresh. It required me to attend countless therapist sessions at my school to be where I am today. Even after the day I bumped into Pepper, I was not able to remember all the details because I had my mind wired to forget everything that happened before I turned 14. Nothing was ever the same for me since I moved to Highwaters. So, the thought of my past creeping up on me scared me. Just when I thought I had everything in control, this proved to be a setback. I just wanted to forget about Amalah James… ***The next day, I had rethought things and knew just what I needed to do. "Can I talk with you guys?" I said to them when I found them in the kitchen together. They were making breakfast, laughing, and singing
LANA'S POV"Should I carry you inside, or you're now sober enough to walk by yourself?" Dax said when we arrived outside the driveway of the Salvatore mansion.I just looked up at him, feeling my head getting lighter. It was weird. I wanted to fall asleep. I realized that I might have been sleeping all the way to the house, and he just woke me up when he stopped driving."Are we home yet?" I asked stupidly. He rolled his eyes and sighed. "Well, I guess I have to carry you inside, then." And just as he was pulling me out of the house, I realized what he was doing. I hated it when he treated me like a baby. As if I could not think for myself. I also didn't want to be touched by him anymore after he ruined such a fun day for me. He had no right to come out of nowhere and think that he can dictate my life. "Put me down, Dax!" I yelled but could not kick. I was too drunk and could not even lift a finger to save my life.He did not answer me. And before I knew it, we were inside the livin
LANA'S POVThat night, I couldn't sleep. No matter how much I tried to close my eyes and clear my mind of anything that could trigger my insomnia, nothing worked. My mind was racing. My heart was beating fast against my chest. I felt like I was going to get a panic attack. My hands were trembling. A lot happened during the day that triggered so many unwanted memories. I could not escape from my own mind.I was confused. Lost, and did not know how to make of what I was told about my real father. It shook me to my very core, and my mouth kept falling to the floor. It was hard to believe that there was a man out there who was a father I never knew about. I just had so many unanswered questions about how he even knew where to look for me, and how that orphanage was able to get my cell phone number. As much as I believed that my father had died, I still wanted to see this man. I wanted to prove a point to him and to myself that he had no right to come and make false claims when he was not
OCTOBER 2022LANA'S POVThe next morning, I woke up from my cell phone ringing inside my bag. I got up and took it out of the handbag and answered it. "Hello?""Is this Amalah James?" I hesitated for a second, closed my eyes, and exhaled. "Yes?""You're talking with Din Flemmings, I am Paolo Costa's lawyer. I am calling regarding your father's estate." "Oh." I sat down on the couch in the bedroom and looked at Dax and Xavier as they got up and looked at me with confused expressions on their faces. It was a bit weird that Costa already listed me as one of the beneficiaries of his estate when we only reunited shortly before his death. "Can I come and see you to talk in person, Miss James?" "Oh, I'm- That will be okay, I guess." I was hesitant."Perfect. You can send a location of your choosing," Din replied enthusiastically. "I will send you my house address," I answered. "That will be perfect. I hope to see you soon."I hung up the call and felt like there was a big lump in my
LANA'S POVI rushed out of the house and went to my car, and when I got inside, I cried against the steering wheel. I wanted to feel nothing when I saw JJ and killed him, but the thought that his blood was on my hands, tortured me. Dax couldn't even help without making me feel worse than I already felt. I sniffled and lifted my head off the steering wheel, pushed the key inside the ignition, and drove away. I went straight to the nearest bar that I could find. I ordered five shots of vodka and gulped them as if they didn't make me feel as if my tongue was being burned. I wanted to forget everything that happened and wake up to a whole new chapter of my life. I was tired of how miserable I felt every day since I lost my parents. I needed a break..."Lana, we need to go home." A familiar voice spoke as I felt a hand tap on my shoulder. My head was heavy as I lifted my head from the table and looked at the person. "Dax?" "Can we go home?""I don't want to go home. I don't want to go
DAX'S POV "She's been sitting in that exact position on the couch for hours now. She refuses to eat anything or even drink anything. I don't know what we should do," I vented to Xavier as we watched Lana from the upstairs balcony. "JJ is in the garage, so maybe she should see him before I kill him." Xavier's response sounded as if he didn't think before talking. I quickly turned and looked at him and whispered. "Are you insane? She doesn't need to see that asshole after what he did to her, again." "It's the only way to get her out of the current state that she's in. She must face him," he still insisted. "No, Xavier. That's a stupid idea and it's not happening," I stood my ground. "Where is he?" We looked down when we heard Lana's voice. Xavier took the opportunity to give me a 'I told you so' look and I frowned. I took a deep breath and headed down the stairs to Lana. "You need to get something to eat and rest," I said when I got to her side. I wanted to see JJ pay for eve
XAVIER'S POVI kept counting the minutes that Lana was inside Suzy's apartment. I wondered if she remembered that we had to be somewhere and did not have time to waste here. I frowned because I saw this from a mile away, and if they had both listened to me, Dax and I wouldn't have found ourselves in this awkward situation. "We have to go in." I was infuriated and Rico was not even close to finding that asshole JJ. He was nowhere to be found and his bodyguards were back at Boliver, which was very unlikely that JJ could go anywhere without them."She's only been there for ten minutes, Xavier. Just calm down," Dax replied in a very relaxed tone. "She's been with her forever, Dax." "Can you trust her for a minute and give at least five more minutes? Suzy is her best friend, remember?""Fine," I huffed and dialed Rico's number. "Tell me you got some clues about where he could be," I said as soon as he picked up the phone. "He didn't leave Highwaters.""Are you sure he didn't go back t
LANA'S POVTo figure out where exactly we could find JJ, I started off by calling Suzy before Xavier's friend could help in finding him. We were in town and just around the corner from Suzy's apartment when I called her. Dax and Xavier were looking at me and trying to signal to me that I had to act as natural as possible so that she would not be suspicious of my call if she was with JJ. "Hey, Suzy. Are you home?""Yes, I am. What happened yesterday? You just left without saying a word to me or even picking up my calls when I called you. Did anything happen when you went to the toilet?"I was relieved when I heard that she was not convinced that I ran away because I saw her with JJ. "Yeah, I'm - I met an old friend in there and I was trying to get to her, but I already lost sight of her.""You could have said so, Lana. I was so worried about you. Where are you right now?"I looked at Dax and Xavier and stuttered. "I - I am at home. With Xavier and Dax."Suzy suddenly started crying on
LANA'S POVThe next morning, I woke up next to Xavier staring at me."Good morning," he smiled and kissed my forehead."Good morning baby," I looked at him and suspected that he might have been waiting for me to wake up so that we'd carry on where we left off last night. "You good?" "I'm good baby, and I slept like a baby. How are you feeling?" I got up and tied up my hair into a bun so that I'd prepare to take a shower."I'm good. I was watching you to make sure that you didn't run off on me."I looked at him and laughed. "You're unbelievable! Oh my gosh!" I took my pillow and threw it at him and got off the bed and dressed up so that I'd head out to the bathroom that was outside. He chuckled and got off the bed too. "Can I come with you?""Do you want to?" I looked at him and smirked while my hand was already at the doorknob. "Are you daring me?" He smirked and stood up with his dick hard as a rock.I couldn't help it but blush. "I dare you."I quickly turned the doorknob but bu
LANA'S POV As soon as I roared the engine to life and drove off, Suzy tried to call me but I didn't pick up. If I knew her 'Jay' was 'JJ', I would have tried to tell her why she was not supposed to be with him. And now that I had a picture of him sleeping with her in my mind, I felt like I was losing it. The very thought of his tongue on her repulsed me and I could not wait to get home and get Dax and Xavier to do something about this. "Lana, are you all right?" Xavier asked me when he saw me walking inside the living room. He was sitting on the couch with Dax, and it looked like they were having lunch."I saw JJ," I walked towards them. "What?" Dax exclaimed and got up from the couch. "He's Suzy's boyfriend, can you believe it?" I answered them, still unable to get the picture of them together off my mind. "I should have known when Suzy told me her boyfriend's name was Jay."It was as if I was there every time they made love and made each other cum. I wondered if he felt as good
SEPTEMBER 2022LANA'S POVSuzy and I finally had our lunch date. She was so happy when she saw me and we ordered our favorite food in our favorite lunch spot. It was everything that I wanted to do for months, but couldn't because I didn't know how to face her and continue lying on her face. She was the only person I was close to except Dax and Xavier. It made me happy to finally be able to be myself around her and not hide anything from her. It bothered me for months that I couldn't tell her about Dax and Xavier and the contract. "How are the brothers?" She winked. I giggled while trying to get a spoonful of my mashed potato gravy. "They are good boys.""I still wonder how it's like having two men all to yourself. You must tell me what it's like, Lana." "How about I leave you to wonder?" I laughed."No way, you will do no such thing! You must tell me about the sex!"I almost choked on my drink but I quickly had it under control and laughed. "Suzy, will you stop?"She leaned forwar
LANA'S POVAngry, I picked up my phone and called Xavier after ending the call with Costa's lawyer. It was no coincidence that Xavier sent me a voice message about how he wants me to know that he loves me in case he didn't make it. He was with Costa when he died, and I needed to know what happened."Lana?" He answered."What happened to Costa? I know that you were with him."He was quiet for a moment before he answered. "So, you know?""I know. Why didn't you tell me?" "Because it wasn't the right time to tell you that, Lana." "He was my father, Xavier. You don't have any right to decide when I should know about his death.""I understand, Lana. But I didn't want to tell you before you got out of the clinic.""That's no excuse, and you know it. Now, tell me what happened."He sighed. "Lana, we both need our rest.""Should I ask Dax?""Fine. JJ shot him, the guy who -""The guy who raped me, I know his name. So, he killed him?""Yes, but I will find him, I promise." "oh, he killed hi