AUGUST 2022DAX'S POVTwo weeks later, my apartment was decorated to celebrate Lana's 25th birthday. She was out to meet with her mentor when I organized everything and wanted her to have the best day of her life. I invited Xavier and wanted them to try and get better. They were talking at least, trying to make up for everything that happened. I bought her favorite Hyacinth flowers and made sure that it was breathtaking. I didn't want to leave out anything that I knew that she would love to see at her birthday party. I also had a surprise for her for the next step of our relationship when everyone had gone. "I hope she will like this," Xavier poured himself a glass of wine as we waited to see that everything was set and ready for Lana's arrival. "I know she will like this. She's been looking happier these past few days.""Oh?" Xavier smirked."Stop it, you're not the reason." He chuckled. "I didn't say I was, but you just admitted that she's been happier these past few days, and i
LANA'S POVBefore I saw Xavier next to Dax when I walked into the living room, and people were singing a birthday song for me, I hoped that I'd see him today. Nothing could explain the joy in my heart when I saw him. I was really happy that he showed up even though he didn't tell me that he would be coming to see me. My heart melted when I was everyone who was invited to my surprise birthday party. It made sense why Dax encouraged me to go and see my mentor today. He wanted to arrange everything for me. It made me emotional because no one had ever done something like this for me before. Xavier's True North necklace gift was out of this world. I loved it so much that I could not help myself but jump into his arms. I forgot for a moment that the house was filled with strangers and people that I didn't want to know my business with them. "You're so beautiful, I want to take you away from this place and show you how much I've missed you," Xavier whispered into my ear as I received my gi
LANA'S POVI woke up the following day and found Dax and Xavier in bed with me. I got off the bed and watched them for a moment before I went to the bathroom to take a shower. I looked myself in the mirror, appreciated my life, and counted my blessings. I was still here and thriving, I had to give myself a little pat on the back.After I showered, I dressed up and quietly left my bedroom while Dax and Xavier were still asleep. I figured that they might have had too much to drink yesterday. But it worked to my advantage because I didn't plan to be around the house today. Instead, I took my handbag, went outside, stood there for a while, and gazed upon the car that Costa bought for my birthday. I had to admit that Costa had a taste in cars and the one he bought for me was no exception. It was exquisite and the thought that it belonged to me gave me goosebumps. I decided that I had nothing to lose and went to the car and opened it. I found a little box on the driver's seat and there we
LANA'S POVAs soon as I pulled outside the driveway, Xavier and Dax came out. They both had their hands inside their pockets as they waited for me to come out of the car. I looked at them, took a deep breath, and got out of the car. "Where are you coming from?" Dax asked as soon as I took a step to the stairs leading to the front door. "I just got home," I walked up to them and went inside the house. They mumbled something behind my back and followed behind. They closed the door and looked at me as I sat down on the sofa and took a very deep breath. I didn't know how to distract them so that they wouldn't ask me a thousand questions about where I was and why I did not see a need to tell them where I was. "You left this morning without saying a word or even asking Nicholas to drive you wherever you wanted to go. At least if you had done so, we wouldn't have spent the entire day worrying about you and why you had to switch off your phone," Dax scolded me. "I am not a child, Dax!""
LANA'S POV"What are you doing here, Costa?" I got up from the couch and felt like I was going to hyperventilate."I came to talk to you about the DNA, Lana. You requested it, remember?" He walked towards us and stood just a little distance from me. I wished that he did not show up whenever I seemed to be happy in my life. "I know, but you have no right to show up in here whenever you want!" "Lana, it's okay," Dax tried to calm me down. "No, he needs to leave. I don't want you here, Costa." I sneered at him. “Yes, leave Costa. You are not welcome here.” Xavier stood by my side.Whether Costa was truly my father or not, I didn't want him to be in my life. The damage had already been done and nothing was ever going to make up for the fact that I lost my parents when I was young. I mourned them for years until I eventually accepted that this was how things were meant to be for me. Not all of us were meant to grow up in a cozy home with our parents, and I made peace that I was amongs
XAVIER'S POV"You knew Lana 12 years ago?" Dax asked me when I came down to the living room. I took a long breath. "It was at Boliver. I didn't even know it was her all this time, but I ran away that day!" It felt like the walls were closing in on me. My past had come again to tear Lana away from me. I didn't know what to do or not to do. My mind was all over the place. "Wait a minute, you went to Boliver? When and how?" Dax was shocked. He knew everything else I did, but not the incident at Boliver when I quit being a street thug with my friends. "The school trip I told you and Dad about was made up. I was going to Boliver with my friends for a job that we wanted done..."(12 YEARS AGO, XAVIER'S MEMORY)"We wait here for the people who are going to do the business transaction, everybody understand?" JJ said after briefing us about the people who were going to do a drug business transaction at the ally around sunset. We hid behind the waste bins and brainstormed how we were going t
LANA'S POVI stared at the ceiling while I lay on the bed. I wanted to feel numb and not shed a tear after everything that happened. The thought that Xavier was there the day my life changed forever, broke me more than I had imagined. I loved him but wanted to hate him at the same time, but I couldn't.I wanted to hate him and feel nothing for him anymore. He seemed to be everything that I was not supposed to fall in love with. Perhaps this was another sign from the universe that we were not meant to be. As much as I loved him and my heart broke when I imagined him not with me, I had to find it in my heart to let him go. "Lana?" Dax knocked on the door again. The desperation in his voice to see me open the door was evident. But I hesitated, I didn't want to cry when I saw his face. "I want to be alone, Dax!" I yelled loud enough for him to hear from the other side of the door. "Please open the door..." He continued to beg. I sighed and got off the bed and went to the door. I opene
XAVIER’S POVCosta and I met the following day and drove to Boliver to find JJ and Milo. His source from Boliver confirmed that they were still around there and had made a great name for themselves. We had to be very careful when going to deal with such men. But we had all the back up we needed. Costa’s men were on their way behind us to make sure that we were not easily outnumbered if things were to go otherwise.JJ was a very egoistic and temperament maniac. We had to be very careful when going to deal with someone like him, even though Costa insisted that JJ was the one who had to be careful when dealing with him, especially when it came to his daughter. And that was no doubt. Costa had a reputation of killing his enemies without a second thought. People knew that even though all evidence was available to put him behind bars, he was untouchable even by law.But just like JJ, Boliver was his playground and no law ruled there against him. And now, we were going to his den to provoke