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A strange phone call
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2022-03-29 23:36:01The next day dawned bright and early. Carol and Sebastian saw Mr. James and his wife off to the airport, after which they came back to the hotel. Carol was mostly quiet, especially when they were coming back after bidding Mr. and Mrs. James farewell. Sebastian regarded her thoughtfully, wondering what the hell was wrong with her.
“Are you up for an adventure today? I plan to go on a tour today.”“No, I don’t.” She told him, avoiding his gaze. He did not know that she had heard a part of his conversation the previous night, and she had no intention of letting him know."You did not even ask what kind of tour it was before deciding that you are not going.""I don't think that's necessary. I think I’ll just stay in the hotel and sleep for most of the day."“Hmmm. That’s boring.”“I know. I’m boring. Deal with it.” Carol replied, wondering why she should be so angry. Technically, Sebastian had not done anything wrong because all that she had heard him say was the truthRelated chapters
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“Who was that?” Melissa asked as soon as Carol hung up. “It was my dad.” “Oh. I hope that there is no problem though. You look troubled.” “It’s just that my mom and dad haven’t been able to reach my sister recently and they’re getting worried.” “Oh. That’s tough. I hope they find or hear from her.” “I hope so too. I’ll try her number and see if it goes through.” Carol said, dialing Victoria’s number and not surprised when the thing went straight to voicemail. “Hey, it’s me your favorite girl, Victoria. Don’t be shy to leave a message for me, and I will get back to you when I can.”
Last Updated : 2022-03-30The Substitute Bride Saga A romantic getaway
That night, Sebastian treated Carol to a romantic dinner along the sea of stars just for the two of them, after which they went back to the resort and made sweet, tender love. Carol was surprised that he was still making efforts to be so sweet to her, but she was too afraid to ask him about it as she did not want to hear the answer, in case it was something that she would not like. With the way he was behaving, it was almost as though she had imagined that conversation with his uncle in which Sebastian had sounded like one who was still pining for his ex. It wasn’t that Carol did not want the ex, Jessica to be found. No, she wasn’t that callous or heartless. She did hope the girl was found alive and whole, but she just did not want the lady and Sebastian to get back together because of her own selfish reasons. If this woman had been found during the early months of her marriage, Carol had no doubts that Sebastian would have booted her out in a jiffy and welcomed his ex back into his a
Last Updated : 2022-03-31The Substitute Bride Saga The party
The party was in full swing by the time Carol and Sebastian got there as they arrived sort of late, what with their session of love-making in the shower. Although there weren’t many people present, the whole thing still looked to be fun. Carol could not find Melissa anywhere and when she called her, she didn't answer the phone, probably because she did not hear the phone ring because of the noise. Feeling relieved, Carol began to dance with Sebastian at his request. She did not miss the side-eyes that many ladies at the party were giving him and she knew that if she left his side for even a moment, she would be replaced instantly if Sebastian allowed it. There was just something so magnetic about the man that drew girls in their groves to him, as though they were moths that were attracted to flames.Carol felt powerful and proud that he was all hers and she had him all to herself, at least for now. This was one of the things that she liked about Sebastian. Even though they were not tru
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Feeling a bit tired, no doubt from the activities of the day, Sebastian walked around, looking for a somewhat quiet place to sit down while he waited for Carol to come back, but everywhere was noisy. It was amazing how much he had come to like Carol, and if he was being truthful to himself, it was beginning to become something more than likeness, but since there was no point to it, he shut down such thoughts and refused to let them blossom. Finally, he decided to go out to the beach area to get some air, as the hotel was beachfront. There were some tables and chairs arranged around, so he chose to sit on one of them, while he texted Carol to let her know where he was so that she could come to meet him as soon as she was done being introduced to people like her friend wanted. Sebastian did not really like the friend, Charlotte, and he could tell that the feeling was mutual. It seemed Carol did not li
Last Updated : 2022-03-31The Substitute Bride Saga Unease
The hurt in Carol's chest was too much for her to process as she watched Sebastian, her very own Sebastian caressing another woman's face with such tenderness that it was quite obvious that there was something between them. From where she was standing, the woman was backing her, but even if she wasn't, there wasn’t enough light to make out her face. Carol had been standing here with Charlotte beside her, just watching the scene unfold before her eyes for the last three minutes. Had it been that Sebastian had only been talking to the woman, it would not have been a big deal. However, she had watched him touch the woman’s face tenderly and even try to give her a hug, although it seemed the woman did not want the hug. “Wow! Men are scum. Is that not your husband? What on earth is he doing touching another woman like that?” Charlotte asked from where she stood beside Carol, squinting her eyes to see better. Of course, she could hear the conversation between Sebastian and Jessica, but Caro
Last Updated : 2022-04-01The Substitute Bride Saga Finding out what happened
The walk to the hotel where the party had been held earlier that night seemed to take forever, but the air helped calm Sebastian’s frayed nerves, at least a little. He did not know where to wait for Jessica, so he just sat where they had met earlier and waited for her. The party was still in full swing, but he did not go in. The last thing he needed was to see Carol’s friend at that time of the night. At exactly twelve midnight, someone tapped Sebastian on his shoulder, causing him to jump about a foot high as he sprang up and turned to face whoever it was. He had not seen anyone approach because he had been facing the entrance to the hotel, thinking that Jessica would approach from there. It was Jessica, still dressed in the baggy t-shirt and jeans that she had been wearing earlier, but this time, she seemed a little better off emotionally, although not by much. Her hair was piled up in a messy bun
Last Updated : 2022-04-01The Substitute Bride Saga Flashback
The party had been held in Sebastian’s house in honor of his uncle, whose birthday it was. Prior to this time, Sebastian had become really worried about his uncle’s sudden hatred for his fiancée, Jessica, whom the man had loved to bits and treated as he would a daughter before. He would have a talk with his uncle about it, he decided. Many wealthy people, most of them billionaires like Sebastian and his uncle, had been invited and the party was going really well. Sebastian walked around, playing the perfect host and greeting people, most of whom were investors in his company. Sebastian had just finished having a small discussion with one man and his heavily perfumed wife when he realized that he had not seen Jessica for a while now, and his uncle too was nowhere in sight. The last time he had sighted Jessica was when she was surrounded by a group of wannabe models like herself who had c
Last Updated : 2022-04-02The Substitute Bride Saga A sad occurrence
“Oh my God!” Sebastian breathed as the implications of what he had just remembered hit him. His face turned ashen and it felt like he was having difficulty breathing. Jessica, who did not know what was wrong with him, or the fact that he had just put two and two together looked at him worriedly, wondering what the hell was wrong with him.“Sebastian? Are you alright?” She asked.“Oh my God.” He repeated. “No … no … it can’t be.”“Sebastian. You’re scaring me. What is it?”“That night… the night of the party. He was quarreling with you…”“Yeah. Of course, he was. You were there and saw it, remember? He did not want us to be together, and was trying to make me leave you against my will.”“Oh, God no. He said… he said he could make you disappear if you refused to disappear on your own. That old bastard! That fucking old bastard! He followed up on his threats.”“I can’t really remember. The whole of that night is just blurry to me, because it was after the fight, a
Last Updated : 2022-04-02
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The Substitute Bride Saga Happily ever after
The sun was shining brightly this morning, and Carol was in lively spirits. It was her vow renewal day. She and Sebastian had opted to just renew their vows, and this time, make them with more meaning. Her joy knew no bounds, and her face radiated with it, as Mrs. James noted with pleasure. “You look very happy, my dear.” Mrs. James stated, cradling a three-month-old baby James in her arms, her face taking on the radiant look that many-a-grandmother had when they had the pleasure of holding their grandkids. “I can say the same about you, aunty. You’re really glowing.” Carol complimented in turn, taking care not to ruin the work of the lady who was doing her makeup. “I know, right? Baby James here has brought such sparkle into our lives. I’m more than thankful that I live close to you guys. I will be able to see as much of this handsome little face as I want.” Mrs. James said, looking down at the baby she carried in her arms. He stared back at her and babbled some meaningless baby wo
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The weeks after Sebastian came to plead with Carol to come back into his life were the sweetest ones of Carol’s life. She had thought that Sebastian was attentive and sweet to her before, but now, she knew that that was an understatement. He treated her like a fragile egg that could break at any time, and Carol was happily soaking up all the attention and affection. She still hadn’t gotten used to the way he just seemed to throw money around, but was more than grateful and touched, when he bought two flashy cars and a huge mansion not too far from them for her father, whom she could tell was very lonely.“I know that you’ll love to be close to your grandchild once he’s born." Sebastian had said as though it was nothing, waving away Donald’s thanks when the latter had broken down in tears, telling him that he did not deserve it. Now, Carol could easily hang out with her father anytime she wanted, and she was so happy about it.Sebastian didn’t work as hard as he did before any longer,
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“Carol.” It was just one word, but that one word was enough to break the stupor she had been in as soon as she saw him.“Sebastian.” She said in turn, standing up to go bring another chair for him to sit down, but in essence, she was trying to buy herself some time to get her breathing under control. He looked so good and smelled so nice that it was all she could do not to throw herself straight into his arms and breathe in his essence as though her very life depended on it. She saw Sebastian’s eyes widen at the small bump under her loose gown, and her hand went to hold it selfconsciously.“It’s growing.” She told him needlessly and then slammed her mouth shut. She sort of felt nervous being in Sebastian’s presence and wished that she had worn a more flattering dress than the one that she had on now, but there was nothing she could do about it now. Sebastian collected the chair from her and brought it over to place it i
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It was a warm, sunny, and bright day, but it was also a slow one. Carol sat in the tiny bookshop in which she had gotten a job the very day she got here, waiting for customers to come in and fighting sleep. She was the only one in the shop, as the owner had dashed off to prepare for her birthday party, leaving Carol all alone in the shop.“Don’t worry. You’ll be able to handle it. Price tags are on every book, so you don’t need to worry about not knowing the prices. If you need anything, my number is pasted on the wall over there, so you can call me. Bye now.” The middle-aged woman had said, sailing out the door before Carol could even say anything else, so here she was, bored beyond measure and counting the seconds as the time ticked slowly by. She had managed to sell two books, but it seemed that the shop did not get any customers, because, for the remainder of the time, she just sat there alone, staring into space … and missing Sebastian,
The Substitute Bride Saga The search
Sebastian fought the urge to retch as he observed his surroundings and the woman in front of him. If this was where Carol was staying, then he would drag her home with him today, even if he had to drag her kicking and screaming. He would not have her stay with this woman who did not like her and was clearly very irresponsible.“Hello, Belinda. Sorry to disturb you, but we’re looking for Carol. Is she here?” Mrs. James asked.“How the fuck am I supposed to know where she is, huh? Anyway, what is it to you? Is the contract not supposed to be over? Why are you still looking for her?” Belinda asked suspiciously, and he could see that she was also high on drugs.“Well, um, we had a little altercation, and I haven’t seen her since then, so I was wondering if she was here. Do you perchance, have her number? Her dad is also not answering his calls.”“Look, I don’t have any business
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It was raining cats and dogs once again, exactly as it had been raining on that fateful day when Carol had left him till now. Sebastian was sitting in his aunt’s house, sipping a mug of hot coffee and ignoring everything that she was currently saying. He looked like a shadow of himself, which was not a surprise, considering the fact that most times, all he did was drink and have to deal with a nagging Jessica, who was still in his house, even though he had taken her name off the deed to the house. Because of her, he was hardly ever in his house again, but preferred to stay here at his aunt’s for a better part of the time he was not working himself to death … literally. “Are you even listening to anything I’m saying, Sebastian?” Mrs. James asked, shaking him a little to get his attention.“No, aunt. I can’t say that I am. I’m sorry, but I think I zoned out a little there. What were you saying?” He asked finally. Mrs. James shook her head, reminding him of when he was still a recalcitra
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“Wh…what does he mean by this?” Donald asked at last, after scanning the text message. “Your guess is as good as mine,” Carol replied, rubbing at her face, hardly able to believe the level to which Sebastian was willing to stoop to be cruel to her. If he thought that she was going to just lay low, act like a sheep and allow him to ride all over her, then he had another thing coming. She just couldn’t get the image of that text out of her head. Good morning, Donald. How are you doing? So, have you heard from your daughter yet? I just wanted to let you know that she’s with something of mine. Something invaluable. I don’t know if she told you about it or not, but she’s pregnant with my child and according to the contract that she signed, if such a thing were to happen, then I’ll have full custody of the child. Tell her to come out of wherever
The Substitute Bride Saga Crippling loneliness
“I don’t think that what you are doing makes any sense at all, Carol,” Donald said worriedly, looking at his daughter, who averted her gaze and tried in vain to stop the tears welling up in her expressive blue eyes.“Why do you say that, dad?” Carol asked him, wiping away her tears.“Well, maybe because you’re pregnant and you choose to slave away at doing a regular job instead of taking proper care of yourself.”“A lot of pregnant women work at regular jobs, dad.”“I know that, but not a lot of them have huge lumps of money lying in their bank accounts untouched while they look malnourished. Why are you punishing yourself this way, my dear? I mean, it’s only been one month since you left Sebastian. In that one month, you’ve become almost as thin as that girl Jessica., whom we do not like at all.”At this, Carol burst out laughing despite herself. Her father was acting like a
The Substitute Bride Saga Nowhere to be found
It was with a growing sense of urgency that Sebastian drove away from the hospital, Jessica's insults and curses trailing after him until he could no longer hear them. It was a sad thing indeed that she was now the way she was, but there was nothing that he could do about it. He had offered to help her, but she kept turning down his help at every turn, so there was nothing he could do for her anymore. He could not do the very thing that she wanted, which was to be with her, as he did not love her anymore. He stopped by a flower shop on his way back to the house to get some flowers for Carol, knowing that women loved things like that. Hopefully, she would forgive him, and even if she did not, he would keep trying until she did. He still did not know how she managed to wind up pregnant, if she was taking her pills like she had claimed, but he knew that sometimes, those things were not foolproof, especially if the lady who was taking them fell sick during the period. He remembered that C
