(Blake’s POV)
“What happened, Blake?” Samantha was shocked when I brought Tara unconscious in my arms inside the house. Her mouth gaped open as she and Nana Shea stood up from the sofa. She moved, took her smartphone from her bag, but she stopped and trembled when she saw the blood in my arms.
“God, Blake...” Her eyes just widened, stepped back, and tripped at the sofa, landing her bottom on the seat.
“Doctor... ambulance... hospital...” I could not breathe, and I did not know what to do. “Sam!” I screamed at her when she just stared at me, making her jump from her seat. I could not believe I was crying, standing frozen in front of them. My heart has never been so terrified.
“Blake! Samantha!” Nana Shea raised her voice. The two of us looked at her, and we were not breathing, or maybe just me.
She took a deep breath and walked calmly towards me. She held Tara’s
(Blake’s POV)“You can come here, you know. It’s not nice listening to someone’s conversation,” Tara said, putting her cellphone beside her. She turned around in my direction to tell me that she was talking about me.My face turned red, feeling embarrassed and childish of listening to her conversation. My feet were stuck on the floor, and I could not move because, for one, I was scared to face Tara, and second, I was ashamed about everything that had happened today.“If you just stand there, you can close the door so that I can concentrate on my work,” She instructed but did not bother looking at me. She took her palette and started doing her magic with colors.I took a deep breath and gathered all the courage I had to face her. She scared me more than my Dad and my tough competitors. I slid the door slowly and started walking towards her. She pointed to the chair, maybe five feet away from her, w
(Blake’s POV)It was supposed to be a joke. I imagined a romantic moment with her, just us treading the water, and then I would kiss her, but I snapped out from that imagination with I saw the horror in her eyes. She was struggling and making an effort to breathe above the water’s surface.“Bla-” She couldn’t even finish calling me. I remembered asking her if she liked to swim, but she said she wasn’t sure about it because they lived in the countryside. My heart pounded as I realized Tara could not swim. She was within my reach, so I pulled her, and to my surprise, she held onto me and wrapped her arms around my neck.“Blake...” She cried, shivering and holding tighter on me. I tried to move away from her a little, but she shook her head vehemently and continued to cry. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry, Kitten. I didn’t know,” I glanced in the direction of the dock,
(Tara's POV) "I will ask you just one question, but I want your honest answer. If your answer is no, I will walk away right now, and I won't bother you again," I swallowed. That one question will always be the hardest to answer. "Tara Evans, do you love me?" My heart skipped a beat. I was too nervous to answer that all I could do was stick my tongue against the inside of my cheek. If I answered no, and Blake would be true to his words, he would leave me alone. My heart would probably stop beating. If I answered yes, there would be no turning back. I would be happy, but why does it feel like it would open up a can of worms? "Tara?" I opened my mouth to answer, but an angel saved me from answering his question. We heard Sean calling. "Uncle Blake! Aunt Tara!" He opened the door and came in, running inside the bedroom. Following him was Samantha, but just like Sean, she also stopped a
(Blake's POV) “What are you going to do? Fly?” Tara asked, spreading her arms. She giggled when I tried to steer away from her. I glared at Samantha, but she just raised her glass to me. “Then explain yourself!” Stella screamed on the phone. “I’m confused, S.” She knitted her brows. “After I drink that, I got baffled,” She said, pointing to the empty glass on the countertop as if Stella could see it. “What did you drink?” Stella’s voice was still in panic. I was giving Samantha a look, but she was just smiling. Tara looked at the ceiling. “Coffee, water, juice, seawater-” “Seawater? What do you mean?” She interrupted. She made a face, amusing Samantha more. “Blake pushed me,” She shook her head. “Ah, no... he pulled me out of the boat, that’s why-” “Tara Evans, you don’t know how to swim!” She was screaming again. She covered my ears with her hands. “I kno
(Blake's POV) “Tara,” I moaned her name, kissing the hollow of her neck. “Tell me to stop,” I told her once again, and all I needed right now was her permission. I want to take her now and claim her as mine to hell with her answer.“I can’t,” She swallowed and took a long, deep breath. “I can’t breathe, Blake,” She said, hearing and feeling the shortness of her breathing like she was in pain. I froze and then slowly glanced at her as if she was hyperventilating. As if cold water splashed all over my body, I got up and helped her get up from the bed.“Do you have asthma or something?” I asked, my heart pounding. Samantha had struggled with asthma when we were young, and looking at her nasal flaring and labored breathing, and I could say she was having an asthma attack.She took a deep breath, then looked at me
(Tara's POV)I felt like I was going to have a heart attack as I stared at the red, lacy thong I hooked on my pencil.“What’s this?” My heart was pounding as I looked at other things in the luggage. I could hear Blake laughing, and I wanted to punch him now for making fun of me.“You don’t have to wear them, Tara, if you don’t like them.” He said, walking away from me. “I’ll be in the cockpit. Just find decent clothes to wear, for sure she included one, then decide if you wanted to go home right away,”Blake walked out of the saloon, leaving me looking at the contents of the luggage. The veins in my head were throbbing as I searched for something less seductive. I heaved a sigh as I chose the white summer dress and sniffed, preventing myself from crying, as I took the pair of cream-colored underwear. I took my pouch, which contained
(Tara's POV)“Because I want to have more of you. I want you, Tara,” He breathed, his voice low.I swear my heart jumped out of my chest when I heard those words. I could feel the warmth of his breath on my lips. My hands reached for his face, and my fingers started trailing his eyebrows down to his pointed nose and stopped on his soft lips.“Do you love me, Tara?” He asked in a whisper as if he was afraid to know my answer.This is crazy because I don’t know Blake much, but I am soooo head over heels for him. It was like my heart would explode to pieces if I part ways with him... if I didn’t see him again. Even with John, I have never felt this before.“Yes,” I answered, allowing my heart to answer for me. For one moment, I only thought about myself, forgetting my promise to myself and the rest of my family.All that matters to me right now is
(Blake's POV)My head slowly turned to Tara, who was so engaged in each photo. Where did she find the album? I closed my eyes and heaved a sigh before walking towards her. I was sure Samantha did not include it in her gift to Tara. “Kitten, let’s put food in your tummy first,” I said, trying to take it away from her, but she groaned. Her eyebrows creased, and she squinted her eyes on me. I raised both my hands to say I would not dare get it. Instead, she took the plate and placed it beside the photo album.“You’re so handsome,” She said, trailing my picture with her index finger. A few seconds passed without any word from her made my heart worry. “How old were you in this picture?” She finally asked.I glanced at it. “Twenty-one,” I focused on my food. I was not ready to talk about the past or... the future. What matters to me now is her,
(Tara's POV)It was a bizarre dream, but I could not remember where I was, except I was walking endlessly on the bridge with Clarice when I heard Bree calling me. When I stopped walking, Clarice seemed to understand. She smiled at me and nodded. I must have walked far because it took me time to reach the end, but I heard them talking about me every day. I listened to Bree as she read stories and sang to me. Whenever I heard Blake’s voice calling me to wake up, telling me how much he loves me, I would run.This morning, Bree woke me up with her song, but I couldn’t open my eyes. When I could finally open my eyelids, it was the god-like face of my fiance that my eyes first laid on. I feasted my eyes on him and thought of the day I saw him at the office with Sadie. It hurt me, but my heart was telling me how much he loved me, and that was enough for me to give us another chance. I closed my eyes again and fell into a deep sleep, dreaming of Blake and Bree on the island. Their loud chats
(Blake's POV)It has been a week, but Tara remained unconscious. Jerome would use the term sleeping whenever Bree is around. He is always careful of his words, especially when my daughter’s almond-shaped eyes turn round at words she hardly understands.Fear still crept into my heart of losing her, and the only consolation I have that she would wake up one of these days is that her ventilator support was already taken away. She could breathe without the support of the machine, but when I asked him why she was not waking up, he explained many medical reasons. My heart has one explanation, though. Tara was giving up on me, and what scares me is hearing the words coming from her that she didn’t want me in her life.I watched Bree as she reads her book to her Mom. Her voice has become my alarm sound in the morning. She would sing to her and read her a story. After Stella or Gianna fed her breakfast,
(Blake's POV)For how long I was staring blankly at nowhere, I did not know. My heart was aching much that all I wanted was to be with Tara, but I went out of her room because I felt dying, seeing Tara in her bed, still unconscious, and the beeping of the heart monitoring machine was driving me nuts.I lost the entire day with Tara when I woke up in one of the hospital rooms. I yelled at every nurse who came, hating they put me to sleep. What if Tara woke up and asked for me? No doctor, not even Jerome, could calm me down. Then Nana Shea came into my room, surprising me.“Blake,” She called my name, and I saw myself like I was a little child again. I cried and held onto her when she came to me.“Get a grip, Blake! Tara and Bree need you right now,” Nana Shea said, wiping my tears. “Unless you calm down, they won’t allow you to see Tara. You don’t want to scare Bre
(Blake's POV)Before my eyes could open, the corners of my mouth lifted already. As she snuggled closer to me and held on to me tighter, I felt to be the luckiest man in the world. I kissed her forehead before getting up from the bed slowly. I watched Tara, and with her uneven breathing, I now felt guilty for tiring her out last night. I kissed her shoulder and moved out from the bed slowly, letting her rest.Humming La Vie En Rose, I went down and started picking up our clothes I tossed anywhere last night. Bree will be coming home soon, and I didn’t want to explain why our dresses, especially the underwear were everywhere around the house.When I heard Bree and Jem entering the house, I still had our clothes in my hands, and I had to put the clothes on the couch because Bree ran to me excitedly. I crouched down and opened my arms to her.“Daddy!” She beamed and kissed my cheeks.
(Tara's POV)Slowly, my eyelids opened, and the morning sunshine greeted me. I rolled to my bed and realized I was alone, but my lips curved a sensual smile as I remembered what happened last night.“Show me that good sex you’re saying a while ago, Kitten,” He whispered in a raspy voice as we entered the elevator. His lips curved a playful smile as he pinned me to the wall and kissed me passionately.I never thought that those simple words would turn him on.I grabbed the sheets of my bedcovers, biting my bottom lip now as I recalled how I kissed him with lust and love. I was too angry with Sadie that another side of me came out of my body and soul.“You’re mine, Blake!” I uttered, kissing him and biting his earlobe as I whispered those words. “Every part of you is mine!” I said as I took off his tuxedo and opened the buttons of his dress suit.
(Tara's POV)Being rich must be tiring, I said to myself as I looked around. The beautiful gown I was wearing today, including the shoes and accessories, could feed a family, or maybe an entire community for a week already.The pledges of the guests tonight were overwhelming, and surely the institution benefitting it would be thrilled. They have already exceeded the needed fund of the group for the charity they were supporting. Before I met Blake, all these were only part of my imagination existing only in movies and novels we used to read. Being here made me realize that two worlds were created—one for the rich and one for the poor. Yet one thing is needed to survive in both worlds. You have to be strong.“Shall we dance?” Blake asked, extending his hand to me.I smiled, feeling the relief of finally having Blake with me. He had been busy talking with many people tonight.
(Tara's POV)I stopped by the door, admiring Blake in his black tuxedo. He was too gorgeous that I wished to be selfish tonight, not wanting other women to look at him. “Just to remind you, Blake, this is a charity event, not your wedding yet,” Samantha grinned as she reminded him while fixing his bow tie. Samantha looked beautiful in her red gown with elaborative lace embroidery from top to bottom. Men would surely ogle at her as her long gown was designed with a high-cut halter neck and sheer side panels, but she kept on telling me I must be ready because cameras would be on me today, eyes of every guest would be fixed on me because of curiosity.She tapped his chest and turned him around to see me. She giggled when Blake opened his mouth, but no words came out.I shrugged, smiling sheepishly as I walked to him. “Samantha made me wear this,” I said, blushing.
(Tara's POV)Blake kissed me with a mix of anger and love, but he stopped when I started touching him. It was as if he was burned with my touch, and when he saw me panting after that breathless kiss, his face went pale. His eyes suddenly were in a panic that he got up immediately and helped me sit.“Are you okay?” His eyes were round, and I could recognize the panic and fear overwhelming him.My eyes narrowed, and I looked at him. “I’m okay,” I said, still panting from the kiss.“Can you breathe?” He asked, now pacing in front of me, which he didn’t know stresses me now.“You’re overreacting, Blake,” I uttered as I took my clothes and started getting dressed.He shook his head. “I told you, we won’t do anything until I talked to your doctor until we have you thoroughly check and-”I stood up, now feeli
(Tara's POV)Samantha had brought me a long list of wedding planners she knew, and all I had to do was select the best one. We were about to go back to the office to talk about the charity event we would be attending when Blake startled us as he stormed inside and went straight to the bedroom.“What happened?” Samantha asked, standing up.I shook my head, leaving the magazines and papers on the center table, and we went upstairs.The door was opened wide, and as we stepped inside the bedroom, I could hear movements in the bathroom. My heartbeat was getting crazy at first, but I felt it stopping when we heard Blake screaming in anger.When he came out of the bathroom, his face was red, his eyes were flaring in anger, and he was breathing heavily as he threw everything in his hand. My eyes widened, and my body quivered as I recognized the things he threw in front of me. I gasped when I sa