ALEXANDER'S POV Immediately Kevin's call ended, my phone rang again. For a split second, I thought it was Kevin about to spit more venom, but when Rubby's name lit up the screen, I couldn't help the small smile that tugged at my lips."Hey Rubby," I answered, leaning back into the couch."How are you doing? I just thought of calling you now.""I'm so sorry Alex," she started, her voice soft and tentative. "I had no idea that Nolan was going to show up, I didn't...""It's okay, dear," I interrupted gently; the frustration in her tone was quite evident. "Honestly, I'm not mad; I understand stuff like this happens; my parents could be worse at times, so it's fine, okay.""For real? You are not mad?" She asked sounding a little surprised."No, not at all," I replied with a chuckle.For a second there was a pause on the line, and I heard her exhale gently as though she were relieved."I still feel bad about it, though; they even offered him the meal you prepared.""Rubby common, I alread
RUBBY'S POV Alex drove me home hours later promising to pick me back up for dinner. I waved at him till I could no longer see his car; for some reason, I couldn't help feeling like a giddy little child. As I got to my room, I caught a glimpse of myself in my mirror and couldn't help but giggle, I was grinning from ear to ear. To make it worse, I felt as though I was floating on air as I remembered how hard we laughed and how gently he rubbed my arms.Suddenly I found myself smiling again, my face aching from the effort.Get a grip on yourself, Rubby, I muttered to myself before sinking in on my ever-ready bed.Evening came sooner than I had expected, and I heard the honk of his car; he no longer pulled into the driveway to avoid being embarrassed by my mom. I rushed downstairs, ignoring my mom's voice, who was asking where I was headed dressed like that."You look stunning," he complimented when I stepped out of my apartment. I had carefully chosen a dark green dress that hugged my
RUBBY'S POV When Alex finally pulled back, I caught my breath forcing myself to meet his gaze. His eyes were reassuring and warm, it made me feel safe and protected. But then, out of the corner of my eyes, I noticed Kevin. He seemed to be playing a different kind of game. He had his phone raised subtly, the screen angled towards us; my chest tightened when I understood what he was doing: he was taking a picture.I hesitated for a second as I looked at him with the corner of my eyes. His smirk widened as he lowered the phone slipping it back into his pocket as if nothing had happened. I got pissed but I decided against calling him out, at least not there and then."Rubby," Alex's mother called, pulling my attention away from Kevin; she was even softer now and called my name as though she had been familiar with me. "It's been such a pleasure having you here tonight; you are most welcome to come by anytime; our home is always open to you.""Thank you," I replied smiling politely."You'
ALEXANDER'S POV I had fallen a thousand times, but when I finally gained balance it was fun.The soft glide of ice under my skateboard was soothing; the rink wasn't too crowded, just a few scattered couples and groups of friends enjoying the cool evening air. For once, I wasn't thinking about work or the endless problems piling up in my life. Instead, I was wholly focused on her.Rubby skated ahead of me like a pro; she was showing off, and she knew it. Her laughter rang out as she turned to face me, skating backwards like it was her second nature. "Common on lazy ass, keep up," she teased her cheeks flushed from the cold."I'm trying!" I called back struggling to maintain my balance. I had no flair for ice skating and she was clearly enjoying every second of my clumsy attempt to stay upright."Wait up, I might end up on my face again," I finally confessed. I had been proud for some time now, boasting that I could meet up with her, but it was obvious she had lived all her life on t
ALEXANDER'S POV Whatever it was she had seen had shaken her to the core; I had a sinking feeling that our perfect evening was about to come crashing down.The sound of the phone clattering on the ground echoed louder in my head than it should have. Her face was pale, and she stared at nothing, something was terribly wrong, and whatever it was had already formed a pit of dread in my stomach.I bent down gently to pick up the phone, my hands trembled slightly as I turned the screen towards me.I saw nothing at first, but at a closer look, I saw a frozen video with a familiar face plastered across it like a splash of buttered cake, confirming my earlier fear.It was Mirabelle.I swallowed hard as I pressed play.Mirabelle's voice came out loud, cruel and filled with venom."You all think I have it easy because I'm a public figure? Because of my extravagant lifestyle? No, I don't; in fact, for the past few days, I've been fighting depression; I've been trying hard to stay happy. Do you k
ALEXANDER'S POV "Rubby please," I called out, running this time to catch up with her.For one second, she didn't stop; she didn't turn. She kept walking fast as though she had any location in mind, I knew she was devastated, so it was likely that she was just moving without knowing where she was headed."Rubby, please let me explain now, you are not in the right state of mind to walk like this; please listen to me; I should have told you everything; I shouldn't have omitted some things, but I...."A taxi screeched to a halt in front of her, without hesitation, she flung the door open and slid inside."Rubby, please don't do this, please," my words came out in a rush, and I found myself gripping the car door."Let go please," she ordered gently."I'm sorry, Ruby."She stared at me in the eyes for almost fifteen seconds. "Thank God we didn't go deep; there is absolutely nothing to say again; the arrangement is cancelled; I will go deal with Nolan myself. Don't forget to throw the ring,
RUBBY'S POV I sat curled up against the door my arms wrapped tightly around myself as the car sped through the streets. My body shook as I sobbed quietly, why was I so unlucky?First, it was Nolan, after three years of obsession, now it's Alex, just when I thought I was getting happy, but he had just seen me as a toy too all along.But why was I so hurt? I knew this wasn't real; I knew from the beginning that what Alex and I had was nothing more than an arrangement; it was just a contract. It was purely built on convenience not feelings. So why do I feel as though my heart has been ripped apart? Why Is my heart this hurt? I even felt worse compared to when I found out about Nolan's infidelity.But it's just an arrangement, why does it hurt so bad? I whispered."You talking to me?" The driver asked."No, no," I replied and sniffed, wiping my tears angrily and scolding myself.You know better than to let yourself get attached, Rubby, I whispered again to the hearing of the driver."Are
MIRABELLE'S POVI lay on the big bed in Alex's penthouse, my silk robe draped loosely around me and a satisfied smirk playing on my lips. I had him exactly where I wanted him, in my palms and I was ready to milk this situation for all it was worth.I was furious when Kevin sent that photo. Why would he go as far as kissing her? After his parents found her worthy, I couldn't sit still; it was the only way to get him to stop whatever arrangement it was he had with her.I looked at the pregnancy result sitting pretty on the nightstand and laughed softly, My golden ticket.I quickly adjusted my expression when I heard the door creak open, allowing my eyes to glisten with unshed tears as Alex walked in. He looked totally exhausted, dark circles under his eyes, and small wrinkles forming at the corner of his eyes.Good, I muttered to myself, he has been thinking and worrying about me and his baby, of course, that's if the baby is his."Hey babe, how are you feeling today?" He asked taking
RUBBY'S POV "I honestly do not know," Alex replied rubbing his temples."It's been years now, yet I've not been able to prove that I am innocent. That is why, I am so scared whenever you are around him."I reached out for his hand. "You don't have to be. I know what I want.""Thank you," he muttered and blinked continuously."It's okay. You should learn to cry in my presence."He nodded, biting his teeth hard, and still forcing back the tears."How is your Dad? I should come to see him soon."I curled up against him. "Yeah, Dad is fine. He would be happy to see you. I've been lying to them that everything is fine. Act like it whenever you see them okay?""Okay, understood." We lay in that position for a very long time. He stroked my hair gently, till I felt sleepy again."I will go to my family house tomorrow; I need Dad's saliva. I want to check by myself if Mom is saying the truth now."I raised my face. "Are you sure about that?"He nodded."I think since you doubt Annie, you sho
RUBBY'S POV I knew I should have walked away; I should have picked up my pride and left while I still had a sense of control, but how could I with the way he looked at me, like he had been waiting for me the whole time to be able to break down? Still, I could have asked him to stop after the first kiss, but the way he touched me shattered every wall I had built around my heart. He was so fragile, as though I had his heart in my hands, what would you have had me do?"Alex...." I whispered breathlessly.His hands glided to my waist but began trembling when he held me. It was like he was scared that I might disappear or get mad if he held me tightly. But that was the exact reason I had brought that gift in person. I was needy, desperate to be held by him, desperate to be handled right.He kissed me like he was starving, like he had been dying of thirst and I was the only drop of water left in the desert. "Easy," I muttered when I meant the opposite. I wanted so much for the whole dra
KEVIN'S POV I hissed and stormed away through the hallway with my fists clenched so tight that my nails dug into my palms.They both followed me till we were far away from the study and then Josh ran forward and blocked my path."Why would you say such things to him," Josh shot at me."Do you care?" I fired back. "How did you even find your way back into this house?""It's my father's house still," Josh answered."No, I wasn't talking to you," I turned to face his mom, whose face held no expression. "I was talking to you, how did you find your way back here? You must have leveraged his Dementia to sneak your way in.""I won't sit here and watch you talk to Mom like that," Josh fumed."I think the right phrase is "your mom," not the way you said it."My mom flinched at the statement I made but didn't move from the spot still; she folded her arms and stared at me as though she regretted my very existence."You want the seat so desperately that you openly let him know you plan on killin
KEVIN'S POV My knuckles turned white as I drove violently home. I had never been this embarrassed and disgraced all my life.How dare he? How dare that old man who is suffering from Dementia?I slammed my fists on the steering wheel continuously as I drove. "Mom," I muttered. How does it feel to have a favourite child, huh?All of a sudden she shows up, and the chairman talks such nonsense."Mr Wolfe!" I shouted as soon as I entered the house I bumped into Alex's mom who sat totally unbothered by the whole situation."Oh, it's a pity; some people can't even relate to what a mother's love means," she muttered.I knew she was referring to me. Though it hurt, I couldn't show how deeply those words wounded me.I turned to leave, but she blurted another disgusting word."I would rather be a devil than choose which child to love."I stopped abruptly and turned to her. "If you are talking to me, come say to my face, you coward. You should be ashamed of how much your son hates you. Look,
RUBBY'S POV Alex ignored my question and went ahead to open the box I had gotten him."Drop the act. Have you been drinking?""Wow," he gasped when he opened the box. I had gotten him a not-so-expensive watch. He had only one. Though that was the least of his worries, I figured out he needed another one. I had carefully chosen that watch with Dad the first time we made love. "Rubby, this is so expensive, you shouldn't have.....""I would have done more, I just......""Rubby this is too much," he interrupted. "Oh, my goodness. Thank you so much."I smiled. "I figured you had only one, so..." I couldn't complete the sentence; my cheeks had heated up.His eyes lingered on mine, making my cheeks heat up even more."You look stunning today, I.....""Alex, have you been drinking?" I asked again. I had almost forgotten and allowed myself to be brainwashed by his seductive eyes."Help me put it on," he muttered and gently removed the watch from the box."Whenever you are done dodging the qu
ALEXANDER'S POV My Jaw dropped, and my whole body stiffened as they walked to the podium. I turned to look at Josh who even looked more confused than I was. So was Kevin.It was game over. Mr Wolfe had always thought I wasn't his son, he had always seen me as a bedwetter, so I stood no chance against his sons. For me I thought, the battle was over for me, and for Josh too. "Good morning everyone," he greeted. We all stood in respect before he signalled us to sit with his fingers.I stole another look at Josh, who seemed to be speaking with his mother with his eyes; he didn't understand why she was there, though I knew it was against Kevin."I am sorry for keeping you all waiting, I had to settle some issues at home before stepping out." Turning to Kevin, "Congratulations, son, I heard the board members voted in your favour."Kevin nodded in response, a wide smile spreading across his face."Good. Standing before you all here this morning, I reject Kevin as the CEO of my hard-earne
ALEXANDER'S POV "Alex, Alex," the secretary called after me."What is it?" I turned sharply. "I know all this is Kevin's plan, but asking for the transfer of ownership is far. What if it's really signed in his name?""Why do you care?" I asked."Because Kevin can go any length to make sure he sits there. It's only for your own good if you allow him to sit there for the time being while you work underground to be sure the ownership is transferred to you.""Do you think I care?" I asked again."But.....""You have no right whatsoever to speak to me. If you believe I'm innocent, it would have shown in the vote charts, but it didn't.""I.....""We are done conversing," I said, but then someone else called me."Alexander." I turned to see Kevin walking towards me, while Josh followed suit."Why are you running with your tails between your legs?"I smirked. "You are the dog here. Because if you aren't, you wouldn't be so scared of meeting your father and asking him to sign the transfer of
ALEXANDER'S POV It was the second time in the month that I woke up with such head splitting headache.I held my temples with both hands as I stood up to clear the mess I had created the previous day."What happened?" I muttered and paused to enable me to recall what had happened the previous day."Oh," I exclaimed in realisation. The stunt Kevin had pulled, and the heartbreaking words Rubby had said to me.But my brain kept reminding me that I was forgetting something."What else?" I grumbled.I shrugged my shoulders when I couldn't remember, and continued cleaning the mess I had made.Midway into my cleaning services, my phone buzzed.I stared at it for a moment trying to recollect when and how I had seen that number, because it looked oddly familiar, till the call ended.Not even up to twenty seconds, it started ringing again, I was pushed to answer the call this time."Have you forgotten the board has a meeting today?" That was Kevin's voice, but that wasn't his number."Are you s
ALEXANDER'S POV I waited for Rubby, I couldn't leave, not after what she had said."You are still here?" Rubby asked when she got back from the doctor's office.I nodded without saying anything."Just leave me alone already. Staying with you has caused more chaos than I thought possible. Just go, please.""Rubby it's not me. I'm not the one bringing the chaos, it's.....""Alex, my life has been peaceful till you came in; go already; I miss myself."My eyes clouded. "That's a mean thing to say.""I will be leaving already, the doctor said I was free to go. And please do not come after me if you really love me. Grant me this one request."I sat like a statue and watched her pick her things till she walked away. Suddenly, my heart felt so heavy and cold, as though a bag of frozen water had been kept in it.Moments later, I found my legs. "Fine, if that's what she wants," I muttered and headed for my car.I tightened my grip on the steering wheel as I drove; Rubby's words kept ringing in