Chapter 1

It was a warm summer afternoon and a day filled with meetings with different clients who had thrown in their proposals for tenders at the pristine VW office located on the tenth floor in the upmarket building in downtown Baltimore, billionaire businessman Eric Logan, decided to have lunch at his favorite restaurant just around the corner of his office building. While he was contemplating taking a walk just to let in the summer air and give him enough time to sift through his mind and reminisce on the turmoils of his now-ended marriage with his ex-wife, Rebecca. Eric hated divorce and wanted a committed relationship and he and Rebecca had agreed on a two-year gap after marriage before having kids to enjoy their marriage before the distractions of kids were involved.

As he walked down the street he was a little drawn back thinking to himself if he should rather eat at a restaurant far from his office as a few people who always saw him come in and sometimes with Rebecca, during his lunch break would ask him questions which he was not in the mood for the day to answer. He decided to drive to a different restaurant to enjoy his meal in peace. Eric spotted a restaurant, Longhorn, at the north end of Brighton street and thought to himself "at least no one knows me here" he entered the restaurant and sat down close to the window so he could enjoy the view presented outside.

Once settled in, a waitress with blonde hair and blue eyes approached Eric who at the time was browsing through his phone responding to messages which seemingly came pouring in. "Hello sir" greeted the waitress "can I get you something to drink?" Eric lifted his eyes off his phone for a second and his eyes met with this blonde waitress waiting to take his order with a bright smile on her face. He gazed at her for a few minutes and had forgotten she had asked a question.  Oh, those blue eyes he thought to himself as he smiled back at her. Can I get you something to drink she asked again? Eeeer….yes he stuttered as he began looking through the menu and finally responded " what will be your take on a hot summer day?" She was quick to respond and said passion fruit and pineapple punch.  Ok, he responded, I will take that Sandra, as he quickly ran his eyes through the name tag pinned to her t-shirt. She had a loose bottom and Eric could not resist peering through her shirt and having a deep sigh as she replied "coming right up" and sauntered away. 

She returned with his drinks and she took his order for lunch. Once done, he sat for a few minutes contemplating if it was wise for him to ask for her contacts. It seemed to him as inappropriate as he had just met her. What if she has someone in her life? What if he was not ready for anything serious as he still felt flushed after his breakup with Rebecca? He was still deciding on what to do when a call came through his cell phone. He had forgotten his 2 pm appointment with Mr. Rakesh the director at Oceans motor vehicle. Good gracious he spoke out loud as his receptionist Mary informed him about his appointment. Although he was not one to be late for meetings or an appointment., this was one mistake he has just made. He quickly asked for his bill and hurried away.

All through the afternoon, Eric could not keep his mind steady without wandering about Sandra. She was beautiful and looked flawless. He just wanted a feel of her even if it was just for one night out. He knew he was not ready for any kind of commitment and he resolved within himself to speak to Sandra the next day.

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Sandra knocked off from work and hurried to the train station to get a ride home to her apartment. She was almost late. "Damn" she exclaimed as she walked down the street. Her boss Robert has a penchant for being petty most of the time and on this occasion, he had asked her to rearrange the glass shelf before leaving for home.

As she got on the bus, she felt drained. Work was stressful these days especially as they had fallen short of one staff member who was away on sick leave. She was contemplating taking the day off and not attending her dance class that evening. She picked up her phone and dialed her dance instructor, Scott. "Hi Mr. Scott, I am afraid I won't be able to come in this evening for my dance lesson but promise to put in extra work tomorrow". No problem replied Scott will see you tomorrow then.

As she got off the train, Sandra said to herself I will just soak myself in a warm bath for a few minutes before going to bed. She got out of the tub just in time as her phone rang…."hello mum she mumbled ``how are you ``'' not doing so well her mum responded. What's going on Sandra questioned with heightened fear she always got anxious after her father passed away last summer. With the knowledge of her mum being alone she wished she could go back home to Arizona, to be with her mum but always remembered she needed to work and send money home to support her brother who was still in college. " I can't find Roxy, " continued her mum. I thought I had kept the front door locked, but when I came in from my room. I realized she was gone. Sandra knows fully well how her mother loved Roxy, especially after her father's demise, she was her companion. Oh, no gasped Sandra, have you tried looking down the street? I do hope she doesn't get knocked down by a car. She decided to get a grip on herself in order not to heighten her mothers fear of what could possibly happen to Roxy. I will just put out a notice now her mother responded and will talk to you later.