"Good morning Mr. Valdez, I'm stuck in a traffic, sorry I'm late." "It's alright Ms. Andeza, I'm just arrived ten minutes ago." The man got up from his seat and pulled one for Nathalie. The two sat down and exchange their greeting before the man called the waiter. The two chatted happily while eating their sumptuous meal. "I haven't eat my breakfast so I ordered a lot, does it turn you off Mr. Valdez?" Nathalie asked while munching her food, her cheeks was bulging like a squirrel. "No worries Ms. Andeza, it's actually nice to see a woman who didn't restrain herself from eating a lot. You know women nowadays always care about their figure so they always eat a little." "That's true, but I'm different. I don't get plump easily in just one heavy meal so its fine for me to eat more. I don't even restrain myself if I'm starving." "Then, I think I shouldn't restrain myself either. I am a man and I have much a bigger appetite than you. What do you think, should we compete?" Nathali
Nigel didn't hesitate, he rushes out and chase after his ex-wife, but they seemed to play tug and war when Nathalie refused adamantly. Mr. Valdez stepped in to help her. "Bastard, let go! You're so shameless, are you that desperate?""Don't meddle to us, mind your own business!" Nigel retorted. This guy have a nerve to threathen that he might lose his job but he just smirk on him. He didn't look scared in whatever this guy might capable to do, for him, he's just like a jumping clown.Out of madness, Mr. Valdez finally called a security, but when it came over, Nigel introduce himself that made him dragged Nathalie away freely without any restrictions.Mr. Valdez left in a daze, never would he imagine that that man he called bastard was non other than a young elite businessman Nigel Sarmiento, the one he had planned to have business deal in the future. Thinking what he had done and said to him, he finally realized that the man might mocked him because of his naivety. After some thought,
Nathalie was reeling when she arrived home, struggling to process what her ex-husband had told her. She couldn't fathom why Elaine would do such a thing. Nigel told her how the woman shamelessly claimed the credits that belong to her, pretending that she's the one who had saved him from the fire.Nathalie massaged her forehead, wondering if she should still hurt now that it was all over. Yet, her ex-bestfriend's betrayal had left her with so much pain. Torn and uncertain, Nathalie poured herself a rare glass of wine, seeking comfort.Lucille arrived and found her only daughter drinking alone. She dropped her shopping bags on the floor and approached her. "Nat, you're drinking? When did you even learn to drink? What's going on with you?" She took the wine glass and moved the wine bottle away. Nathalie remained unmoved, letting her mom take the bottle. "Mom, I'm so confused... What am I supposed to feel? Should I get mad about my failed marriage, or because of my best friend's betr
Nathalie couldn't answer Nigel's question as it made her ponder deeply, should she confess her fear of loving him again? What would be his response if she did? Though intrigued, Nathalie hesitated. Knowing her priority wasn't rekindling their romance, especially with the company's ongoing crisis and her health issues."Nathalie, are you still there?" Snappped back to reality, Nathalie apologized to Nigel and directly hung up. She slumped against her chair and letting out a deep sigh. She rubbed her temples. Only now did she realize that its really difficult to have a complicated relationships and she didn't want to get involve with this again.........Upon entering the company, Nathalie immediately sensed a strange and weird gazes among her colleagues. She couldn't help to have an urge to rub her forehead, she wondered; 'What malicious reason could be behind their peculiar stares this time?'Nathalie diverted her attention from the unfavorable glances, channeling her energy into h
Nigel cleared his throat while Nathalie went blushed like a ripe tomato. The man unconsciously fix himself despite that his impeccable business attire and neatly combed hair was just right. Nathalie abruptly stood up, creating distance between herself and her ex-husband. She sits in one of the sofas not far away.Nigel cleared his throat once again and asked awkwardly, "Um, what were we discussing again?""About sending me a bouquet of flowers...." Nathalie's sterness returned. "I'm telling you again, Mr. Sarmiento - stop sending me flowers or anything else. I don't want anything from you."Nigel pau sed for a moment. "Fine, but I have one condition." Nathalie raised an eyebrow. "You're giving me conditions? Seriously? And who do you think you are to give me conditions?"Nigel ignored her displeasure, he doesn't seems to hear anything. "My conditions are; From now on, keep me posted on your plans and who you're hanging out with.""What?!" Nathalie blew up, age suddenly stood up. "Hey
"How is it going?" Nigel asked over the phone. He still at the company, working overtime."Sir, Ms. Andeza visited a high-end hotel. Unfortunately, the receptionist declined to provide the confirmation of her check-in, citing their hotel confidentiality and privacy policies."The guy Nigel hired to tail Nathalie got back to him.Nigel's expression turned stern. He dropped his pen and stood up. He adjusted his slightly rumpled suit and instructed; "I understand. Keep surveillance until I arrive." He then promptly headed to the hotel.When he arrived at the hotel, he easily tracked Nathalie's whereabouts using his connections. As he walked down the hallway, he spotted her while heading into the restroom. He quietly followed her and dragged her inside."Let me go, who are you?" Nathalie struggle againts whoever was pulling her inside of the restroom, but was stunned to see who it was. "N-nigel?" She slightly pushed him and distanced herself from him. "What is it again, why are
When Nigel suddenly rose from his seat, Nathalie inferred she had successfully provoked him. She assumed he would leave but was surprised when he approached her. It was only then that she realized everything when she was suddenly lifted up from her seat. She almost wrapped her arms around the neck of someone who lifted her. Everything happened so fast; Nathalie just figured out she was now sitting in her ex-husband's lap. She reacted quickly and would have stood up immediately but the man was faster than her as he hold both of her hands tightly. "Nigel Sarmiento, what are you doing? let me go!" Both of her cheeks were starting to turn red with embarrassment, she never expected her ex-husband to behave this way. She tried to get away. "N-nigel, please..... it's embarrassing..." She said, glancing around awkwardly. "Embarassing? Are you embarrassed of me now?" Nigel glanced at the people around. He saw that only the women there were glancing at the two of them while the men acted as
As soon as Nigel walked into the café, he look around and started searching for Nathalie. He then spotted her in the corner while waving at him. He subtly adjusted his tailored suit and approached slowly. He inadvertently caught the attention of the socialite women dining nearby who began casting admiring glances at him.Seeing the women's reactions, nathalie suddenly became irritated. She rolled her eyes at Nigel. "What took you so long?" she snapped as the man approached and sat down.Nigel ignored her question and promptly took the two menus politely offered by the approaching waiter. "Order whatever you'd like," He said after placing a menu in front of her.Nathalie gently pushed it back. "I'm fine, I'm full.""Just order coffee, then." The man suggested while choosing what he's going to order without lifting his gaze. "Heh, coffee? Are you sure?" Asked Nathalie.Nigel looked up upon hearing the sarcastic response of the woman infront of him, his brow slightly raised. He's abou
"Nat, are you happy?" Nigel asked, squeezing Nathalie's hand as they walked holding hands through the park. They'd ditched their work to spend some time together."Of course, I am. But you know, I'm not sure if I'm going to regret this or what. I admit, at first, it was tough for me to accept Lyka and her pregnancy. But then I thought, it's my brother's child after all and he's innocent. But... it turns out that's not the case anymore. I don't know, it's just that... when I finally accepted everything, we then found out...""Nat..." Nigel interrupted, stopping in his tracks and smiling at Nathalie. "Are you regretting that the wedding won't push through? You know, we could still go through with it.""What–"Just as Nathalie was about to ask a question, Nigel dropped to his knee. He pulled out a ring box from his pocket and opened it, revealing a beautiful ring. "I know this might catch you off guard, but I just can't help how I feel. My heart is telling me not to let you go. Nathalie.
Nico didn't answer his mother, instead, he turned to the pale Lyka. "Where's your aunt?" Lucille was getting confused. "Wait, what's really going on, Nico?" Nico pulled up a chair and sat down. "I'll answer your question later, Mom. Please wake up Dad and call her aunt. I'm going to expose something." Lyka seemed to have figured out what was about to happen, and she started crying out of worry and fear. It was over for them; this was what she was talking about. There were no secrets or lies that wouldn't be exposed, but she never thought it would happen this fast. Lyka tearfully called her aunt, and since Rina could sense that something was wrong, she immediately excused herself from her friends at the Mahjong game. She arrived, panting, and as soon as she entered the villa, she loudly called out to her niece, forgetting that they were just guests in someone else's home. "Lyka! Lyka! What happened? Why did you call me?" Lyka had already mentioned that she was in the living ro
"Uh, hello... Brother Nigel? It's Lyka." Nigel's brow furrowed as he realized who was calling him. He was about to hang up, but Lyka stopped him: "Wait! Don't hang up yet. Sorry for calling you at this hour, but I'm too embarrassed to admit this to the people here." Nigel's response was curt: "Speak. What do you need?""Um, it's just..." Lyka was about to confess to Nigel when Rina suddenly appeared, causing her to jump in surprise and drop her cellphone. "What are you doing here? Why aren't you sleeping yet? Don't tell me you're trying to cool off when you have air conditioning in your room." Rina pulled Lyka by the hand. "Come on, it's not good for a PREGNANT women to stay up late." Before being dragged away by her aunt, Lyka quickly picked up her cellphone from the lawn. Meanwhile, Nigel was left wondering on the other end of the line when Lyka suddenly went silent. He turned off his cellphone to avoid any further distractions and drifted off to sleep...........A month l
"Mom, why are you calling me? Is everything okay?" Nathalie wondered, since her mom rarely called her when she was at the office. Her mom only called when there was a problem. On the other end of the line, Lucille was supporting her forehead. "Nat, we have a problem..."After Lucille explained the issue:"What?!! They're going to live in the house?" "Yes, dear. Don't tell your Dad yet, okay? He has an important meeting today and I don't want it to affect him." "Wait... did you agree to it, Mom?""I don't know what to decide. Rina told me they're out of money to rent even a small unit, and on top of that, Lyka is pregnant with your brother's child. How can I turn them down?" Nathalie sighed. As instructed by her mother, Nathalie didn't mention the two to her father or brother. But by lunchtime, she couldn't keep it in anymore. She didn't want to drop the news on them when they were about to head home to avoid catching them off guard. So, after they finished lunch, she told them
"Mom!" Nico exclaimed, seemingly wanting to contradict his mother, but unable to do so. He didn't like the idea of getting married suddenly, especially since he didn't like Lyka. And because he found out that she had planned everything, he felt a sense of disgust towards her."I'm sorry Nico, but you need to take responsibility even if you didn't mean for it to happen." "B-but Mom....."Nathalie couldn't help but feel sorry for her brother, while their father's thoughts remained unreadable. Meanwhile, Rina secretly celebrated and rejoiced. Thinking that they had succeeded after all, and had even managed to caught a fat fish.Lyka secretly glanced at Nigel, biting her lip. Her face showed resistance, but like Nico, she couldn't express it. Did it mean she would marry Nico in exchange for the good life her aunt was talking about? But Nigel was the one she truly wanted...When the two returned to their temporary residence, a friend's house where Rina and Lyka was staying, she couldn'
Everyone fell silent at Nico's revelation. Lucille was incredulous while armando grabbed Nico's collar. "Is what you said true, Nico? Are you saying you got someone pregnant?"Nathalie immediately calmed her father down. "Dad, please give my brother a chance to explain. I know he didn't mean for this to happen." She couldn't believe what nico had admitted, because she knew him to be picky when it came to women, so she had a feeling that he hadn't done it on purpose.Nico bowed his head. "I'm sorry, Dad, I-I don't know how it happened...." "How can you not know? You were in control of your body. It's impossible that you don't know what you did!" "Dad, whether you believe me or not, I really don't remember what happened. All I can recall is that I felt dizzy and hot when I entered that suite....."Nico was still speaking when Rina suddenly burst out. "What are you saying, you're the one who got Lyka pregnant?" She snorted. "If you're thinking of covering up what Nigel did, stop it."
The room went quiet. Rebecca was the first to break the silence and asked, "S-sister, what did you just say?" Rina repeated what she said, and this time, everyone reacted. They turned to look at Lyka almost in unison.Lyka looked down in embarrassment, uneasy under the scrutiny of everyone's gaze. She felt like a specimen under observation.It hadn't sunk in yet for Nigel what his aunt had said, not until he noticed everyone staring at him with doubt. He seemed irritated by the questioning looks, and his irritation was evident in his tone. His face darkened as he turned to his aunt. "I have no idea what you're talking about, where did you even get that?" He then turned to Lyka. "Is that how desperate you are to cause trouble for us?""W-wait a minute... You're saying... Nigel got this girl pregnant?" Lucille asked, pointing to Lyka. "How did that happen?" She looked puzzled, unable to understand how it was possible, given that she knew Nigel had feelings for Nathalie. So, how did h
"Your brother Nigel is already home with his girlfriend," Rina pointed out."What's the point, anyway? Our plan won't push through since the result is negative," Lyka replied. She looked somewhat disappointed."I know we didn't get what we wanted, but are we just going to give up like that? It would be a waste to come all the way to the city for nothing.""What else can we do?... Aunt, why don't we just go back to the countryside? I'll just continue my studies there.""What? No way! I'm not going back there to be a farmer and get my skin burned again by the intense heat of the sun. Why would I struggle there when my sister and her son have such a great life here?""But Aunt...""Just don't give up yet, I'll see what I can do. Maybe I can find a way, you never know." Lyka fell silent and didn't say another word.Rina headed to the hospital where Lyka had taken a pregnancy test. When the result came out negative, she almost got into a fight with the doctor.She went there because it w
"Nathalie, listen carefully...." Nigel 's expression was utterly serious. "You must hate her because she's the one who started it all...." And then he told her about Elaine's fake heart condition.Nathalie clenched her fists. "So, she wants me dead? What did I ever do to her to make her want my life? I already gave you up to her back then and I even decided to donate my heart to her just to prolong her life.""Well, she's not worth it. She's evil, and if she really needs a heart donor, it would be a mistake for anyone to donate to someone like her." "Never mind, it's over now. What's important is that she didn't succeed completely. She may have separated us for three years, but we're still together. For everything she's done, let's just leave it to God to punish her."Nigel smiled slightly. "Um, from now on, no one can ever separate us again... not even her... Nathalie..." He wrapped his arms around her waist. "We haven't done this yet, but can I...?" Nathalie smiled sweetly, she le