‘What the heck?’ Mason thought as he recalled how Sierra shut the door in his face.“Did she really reject me?”He couldn’t believe ‘Stella’ would do that to him. When they were dating in secret, Stella used to cling to him which he loved about her. But things went awry when she announced her pregnancy the day before he planned to leave the town where they met.Stella was only 18 years old then, and he was yet to succeed in his father’s business. It was a crucial time for Mason and the news of having someone pregnant before marriage would greatly affect his position in the company, thus; he suggested aborting the babies, which ultimately caused a rift in his relationship with Stella. He couldn’t chase her when she ran away, which broke his heart. And years later, he received an email from Stella. It was more like a letter that contained the summary of her life after they got separated. In her email, Stella mentioned the twins and the names she gave them. Mason kept the email and treat
“Mom?”Paris’ tiny voice broke the tension in the air. The little girl was rubbing her eyes as she trudged to Sierra. “Gabby is hungry. I came to get him the milk,” she said and yawned.“Oh. Right, I’ll prepare his milk now—Ah!” Sierra screamed when she realized the baby bottle was destroyed. She looked up and glared at Mason. “Look what you’ve done,” she told him and opened the door. “I don’t have time to entertain any guest, especially an unwanted one so, leave.” She pushed him out of the door like last time. “Don’t ever come back here again.”Paris stared at the door after Sierra drove out Mason. She was curious who the man was but looking at how stressed Sierra seemed to be, the little girl didn’t ask.“Honey, you should go back to bed. I’ll find the extra bottle for Gabby so he would stop crying.” Sierra kissed Paris’ forehead. “Go ahead. Babies need to sleep more to grow up,” she said and gently ruffled her hair.“Mom! I’m not a baby.” Paris pouted. “Don’t you want me to help? I
“What is he talking about?” Sierra muttered to herself while crumpling the note. She stared at the flowers, contemplating whether to throw them away. Sighing, she went to the kitchen to get a glass where she could put them.“Mom, can I ask you something?” London watched as Sierra arranged the flowers in the glass. When Sierra hummed and nodded in response, he spilled his question she didn’t expect. “Since when do you have a boyfriend?”“London, honey—” Sierra halted when she saw Paris trying to carry Gabby out of his crib. “Oh my! Put him down!” Sierra sprinted from the kitchen to the living room to save Gabby. “Paris, what do you think you’re doing?”Paris fidgetted her hands while trying not to cry. The girl could tell Sierra was mad, and she knew why. “I… I’m sorry!” The little girl cried, joining Gabby. “I just want to play with Gabby outside his crib. Wah!”“Yes, honey. Shhh. Come here.” Sierra ushered Paris to come to her and rubbed her back. “It’s okay, honey. Gabby is still a
‘New boyfriend?’ Caleb frowned at London’s choice of word. “Little boy, did you say your mother has another before, except for me?”“It’s London, not 'little boy'.”Caleb nodded his head. “Yes, London. You have a unique name. I’m Caleb, by the way.” Caleb extended his hand for a shake as he introduced himself. “I’d love to introduce myself to you the other day, but something came up and I wasn’t able to. I hope this sudden visit doesn’t bother you, London.”London shrugged. “It doesn’t really bother me. But Mom doesn’t look happy with the flowers you sent,” he said and pointed at the kitchen table where Sierra left the glass with flowers in it. “If she does, she would have put them in the vase instead,” the boy continued.“Is that so?” Caleb turned to Sierra to ask. “You didn’t like the flowers?”Sierra’s eyes twitched. She would have thrown them away if she didn’t like them. “I don’t have a vase to put them in. Should I just throw them in the bin instead?”Caleb seemed unconvinced by
Caleb automatically clenched his jaws when he heard that some other guy was eyeing Sierra, which was unacceptable. He couldn’t wait to find out more about this man who dared to come after Sierra when he was not around. Just then, Caleb noticed London and Paris looking at each other knowingly with mischievous grins on their faces. He quickly asked them, “Alright. Tell me. What do you guys know about this Mason guy?” London was the first to answer. “Well,” he started slowly, as though savoring the moment of suspense. “Let me put it this way… Mason is totally smitten with Mom! He proposed to her in the most dramatic and romantic way you can think of! I mean, he took her out for a picnic under the blue sky, with a bottle of champagne and candles all around. Then he made her walk across flower petals just to get to him and presented her with a gorgeous diamond ring like out of a fairytale movie!” Paris couldn’t help but add in some details, too. “And not only that! He also wrote Mom a lo
“Thanks for the lunch,” Caleb said as he flashed his gentle smile at Sierra. He was sincerely grateful to share a meal together with her again. “Don’t mention it,” Sierra replied. “You moved the boxes for me anyway,” she added. “The boxes you sent.” “Cut me some slack. You might like what’s inside once you check.” Caleb lifted his hand and caressed Sierra’s cheek. “Call me when you need anything. I will come to you right away.” Sierra nodded her head, contrary to her thoughts, hoping that she wouldn’t see Caleb again. “Take care,” she smiled and walked her to the door. “Bye.” Caleb grinned as she stepped out of the house. “See you around,” he said and winked before turning his back to her. “See you around,” Sierra mimicked while making a face. “Who wants to see who again?” Rolling her eyes, she returned to the kitchen to wash the dishes. She needed to do the chores quickly while Gabby was still asleep. After cleaning the kitchen, Sierra took a quick shower and joined in with the
The weather started nicely in the morning. A gentle and warm breeze put a place on everybody’s face, except for one — Sierra.“Mom. Are you sick?” Paris asked after observing Sierra for a few minutes now. “Your face is pale as snow,” she added.Sierra shook her head. “I’m fine, honey. Just couldn't sleep properly last night.”After meeting Caleb again as her neighbor, Sierra stayed up all night wondering why fate was being too harsh on her. She wouldn’t have to worry about falling in love if it wasn’t Caleb, but that guy still had a place in her heart. No matter how much she denied it, Sierra knew she couldn’t resist Caleb any longer. And she feared for that day to come. She had to take care of the children, after all.“Is it about love?” London mumbled from behind. He noticed how distracted Sierra was in the last few days. At first, he thought maybe it was because of their finances. But having some men coming over to visit, the boy concluded that it was romance-related. “Mom, if you
“So, she’s been skipping meals every day to save food. I see now why she’s become thin,” Caleb mumbled after hearing what the kids had to say. “And what did you guys do to help her? You didn’t just let her starve, did you?”London frowned. “As if she would listen to my opinion. You should be familiar with how stubborn she can be. I tried to talk to her about it but she insisted that she’s on a diet.”“She did?” Paris joined in. “But mom’s so skinny that she doesn’t need a diet.”“Silly,” London flicked his sister’s forehead. “Of course, she’s lying. She wouldn’t admit it even if her stomach continue to make noise.”Caleb clenched his jaws. “I told her to come to me when she needs help.” He knew how hard Sierra worked back in the day when she was supporting herself in college. “I never imagined she would end up with a life like this,” he muttered. “Alright, kids. Since I’m here now, you don’t have to worry about your mom. I will take care of her while you take care of yourselves.”Pari