CELESTINE's P O V‘‘Are you hungry?’’ Arnold asked with a smile as he turned the key in the ignition and started the car. ‘‘I'll take you out to lunch somewhere where you can get something very good. What took place today is something that deserves to be celebrated...’’I shook my head. ‘‘Let's go home…’’ I don’t believe that this is something that we ought to celebrate. Even his mother wasn’t in a good mood too. In addition, I'm still exhausted from the journey we took from Staten Island. ‘‘I'm sure your mom is feeling a lot of pain right now. Let’s go home and comfort her…’’Olivia was really harsh to me, but she didn’t do anything that would destroy me. She had her mind manipulated by Leina and Ada, and as a result, she wrongly believed that I was the bad daughter, which is why she acted in such a way toward me. According to what Cynthia had previously shared with me, her mother did not have any ill will against anyone.When I heard Arnold laughing, it snapped me out of my trance-l
CELESTINE's P O V‘‘How did you like it?’’ Arnold questioned as he watched me take a bite out of one of the dishes.‘‘It’s delicious…’’ I commented, nodding my head.Arnold’s dark eyes brightened at my reaction, his lips parted in a smile. ‘‘You have to eat more. You haven’t eaten much at lunch…’’I experienced a mild sense of unease. I was unaccustomed to other people showing concern for me.After taking another three bites, I decided to inquire about Olivia. ‘‘How’s your mom?’’‘‘Don't worry too much about her…’’ He said while adding additional food to my plate. ‘‘She went out with dad and Cynthia. Julian also went along with them. I’m sure her mood will get better soon…’’‘‘They went out…?’’ It took me a little surprised to hear that. I thought Olivia would have locked herself in the room and refused to see anyone. ‘‘Why didn’t you go with them?’’They all went out to comfort his mom, but why did he chose to stay here. With… me?Arnold's laughter caught me off guard. ‘‘If I were to
ARNOLD's P O VI was sitting at the edge of the pool, my head lowered as I stared at my hand that was injured from cooking dishes for Celestine, when I heard the door open to the pool area. When I looked up, I was slightly surprised to see her here. It was the very first time that she went here while I was having my night routine of swimming.‘‘Hey, what are you doing here?’’ I asked with a smile, and leapt to my feet in a hurry to approach her.She walked towards me with a blank face, and without uttering a single word, she grabbed my left hand in hers, and opened my palm.My palm had a horrible scar that looked like the twisted body of a centipede. It was long and thin, and following an excessive amount of time spent submerged in water, the large blister began to tear.‘‘I'm fine…’’ I mumbled shortly while attempting to get away from her grip on my hand, but she resisted my efforts and instead gazed up at me with fury evident in her eyes.‘‘Are you an idiot?’’ She asked incredulousl
CELESTINE'S P O V‘‘This vacation abroad will serve as our honeymoon...’’ While we were climbing the stairs, Arnold mumbled something into my ear.‘‘Who is interested in spending their honeymoon with you?’’ I snapped, picking up my pace as I ascended the next flight of stairs.‘‘You’re my wife…’’ he said as he continued to tease me. ‘‘If you don’t go on a honeymoon with me, then who do you want to go with?’’I paid him no attention while purposefully pounding the ground with my feet.‘‘Sean told me that he only treats you as a sister, therefore you shouldn't even consider him…’’ he added, and I came to a complete stop and glared at him.‘‘You better stop or I won't accompany you on this trip...’’ I said, and the smile that had been on his lips gradually disappeared.I averted my gaze from him and continued to walk till I arrived at our room, with Arnold following close behind.‘‘You’re sleeping on the couch tonight!’’ I ordered before I opened the door, and I couldn't help but smile t
CELESTINE's P O VWhen I awoke in the wee hours of the morning, I frowned when I saw that Arnold was holding me captive in his arms. I was able to recall telling him to sleep on the couch, and I even watched him nod off before I was able to close my eyes and go to sleep. He neither coerced me nor came over to approach me.When exactly did he fall asleep here in the bed holding me in his arms?The sound of his regular breaths could be heard coming from above my head, and I could feel his hand resting on my waist. Because of the close stance, in which my back was pressed against his chest and his hand was wrapped around my waist, I suddenly felt very uncomfortable.I couldn't help but bit my lip as I reached out to take his hand, delicately removed it from my waist, and then set it down with a little touch. I slowly got up, and out of the bed, picking up my phone on the night stand before dashing towards the bathroom.I turned on my phone immediately the moment I closed the door. Before
CELESTINE’s P O VA brief conversation I had with Uncle Karl earlier revealed that he will be providing me with a significant piece of data in the coming days. I intended to make the most of this opportunity to deliver a powerful blow to Victor.However, I was going on a trip now. Thinking of this, I felt not wanting to go at all. But the whole thing had been arranged by my father-in-law, and If I refused…I frowned as I gazed through the glass walls at the airplanes taking off from the runway. I was confused as to why I was experiencing some mild irritation.Within the periphery of my vision, I caught a glimpse of Arnold coming over and taking a seat in front of me. ‘‘It sounds like you're not too excited about this vacation, Am I right?’’I didn't turn my head to face him, but my frown deepened as I listened to what he had to say about his observation towards me.‘‘If you don't want to go, we'll just stay put...’’ he added, and I was speechless for a moment before I slowly turned to
CELESTINE's P O V‘‘I’m begging you, please… go to the ward first and wait for the procedure to be finished...’’ The head nurse begged us to hear her out. ‘‘This operation will not be ending anytime soon. With so many people surrounding the door, it will affect the operation inside…’’‘‘Okay…’’ William nodded and motioned for everyone to go in the ward including Ada and Victor. ‘‘Let’s go…’’Olivia was pushed by her private nurse to the deluxe VIP ward. The room was quite spacious and there several sofas where we could stay and wait for the operation of Leina to finish.Cynthia and I sat next to each other, and Ada, who had been sobbing, was directed by her husband to seat across from us in the opposite direction.Julian and Arnold remained standing, still trying to comfort Olivia, while William sat on the other side, worrying about his wife’s condition nervously.The passage of time was extremely sluggish, and no one dared to talk, which made the atmosphere increasingly awkward.Afte
CELESTINE's P O VThe four of us didn't have any other option but to leave the hospital. We were making our way down the corridor in the direction of the exit, when I heard Arnold's phone ringing,‘‘Yes, Jason…?’’ he answered the call right away, but then he grimaced, stood still, and slowly turned to look at me. ‘‘Alright, I'll be there in a minute!’’Cynthia and Julian made a halt too, and waited for him to tell us what’s the problem.‘‘I’m going to the office right now…’’ he announced, reaching out to brush away some tendrils of my hair from my face. ‘‘You should head home with them, okay?’’I did nothing more than nod my head while keeping my eyes fixed on the ground.‘‘Be good, and wait for me to come home…’’ he patted my head gently before he nodded at Julian and walked to the exit. Jason had already arrived to pick him up.‘‘Let’s go, Celestine…’’ Cynthia said, but another phone rang, and it was mine this time.It was Uncle Karl.I walked to the side and answer it, and after ta
JULIAN’s P O VAunt Olivia insisted that Cynthia must first complete her education, and give birth to our child before she allowed us to get married. And I felt worried about Cynthia because I was aware that she was waiting for this moment. Even though she wasn’t voicing it out, I could sense that she was expecting me to propose to her, for us to build our own family, but Auntie asked me not to let Cynthia know about our agreement.After seven months, Cynthia gave birth to a healthy baby boy who she gave the name Mark Julian. And while I was occupied with the expansion of the business that Arnold had requested me to handle, Cynthia continued her studies.Finally, Cynthia graduated and I’ve never been so proud of her. I believed that as a result of all of the things she went through, she got more matured. She never complained about the fact that I did not offer her marriage.When it was time for Cynthia to get her graduation present from me---it’s not exactly a graduation present, but
CYNTHIA's P O VAt this moment, tears were beginning to run down my face. I couldn’t keep them at bay. Now that it was almost certain that I’m losing this baby.I may not know a lot about pregnancy, but I knew that bleeding was a bad sign.As soon as we entered the emergency room, an array of questions and answers ensued, and I answered them to the best of my ability, while my parents and Julian were listening attentively. Julian refused to let go of my hand even when I was wheeled back toward a room and directed to strip for an ultrasound.The nurse stopped Julian when he was about to enter the changing room, insisting that he wanted to help me change into a hospital gown. ‘‘I can help her, Sir. Just stay with her parents outside…’’Julian did not immediately follow the nurse after initially hesitating, but he did so eventually. Soon after, he began to loosen his grip on my hand before leaving completely.My parents sat in a chair along the far right wall, and Julian stood a few feet
CYNTHIA's P O VTWO MONTHS LATERI groaned as I sat up in bed and stretched my arms. A quick look at the clock that was sitting on my nightstand revealed to me that nightfall would arrive sooner. How long have I been dozing off?These past few days, my normal pattern of sleeping has been thrown off. Simply put, I was mentally and emotionally exhausted to the point where I lost track of time because of it. Even though my parents, Arnold, and Celestine regularly checked on me every once in a while, one of the harmful things I'd been doing was spending most of my time alone in my room. This was another habit I'd gotten into.They have been monitoring the media, calling people and giving them orders, as well as discussing the situation with the authorities. They would act wary every time I descended the stairs, as if they didn't want me to hear about those fucked up news again.I never heard from Julian again after that day. I was aware that his wedding took place last month, but none of
CYNTHIA's P O VNothing could have prepared me for the crushing agony I experienced when my mom told me that Julian had departed without even alerting me, or even bidding farewell to me before he flew back to France. Nor could anything have prepared me for the profound sense of loss that caused my heart to tighten, leading me to believe that it was going to cease beating altogether.Even though I was aware, on some level, that he was meant to return and marry her, the fact that he did still hurt. How could he? How, after making love to me? After I had already given him everything? After stroking my hair until I fell asleep? After spending so much time gazing at me with that breathtaking smile? How could he love her and marry her still?There was a painful lump that was lodged in my throat, and it was making it difficult for me to even breathe. In addition to this, I had to fight against my tear ducts in order to keep from crying in front of my family because of him. In total honesty,
CYNTHIA's P O VThe moment the door to the Maxwell villa opened, I was met with a resounding slap across the face from my irate mother.‘‘Aunt Olivia…’’ When she raised her hand to slap me again, Julian attempted to stop her, but she instead hit Julian which caused my eyes to widen in shock.‘‘Don't address me like that, you have no connection to any of us anymore!’’ she said through gritted teeth, a threatening tone was used as she glared at him.It appeared as though everything around me had come to a stop. I blinked back the tears that was on the verge of falling down my cheek. ‘‘Mom…’’Did Arnold tell her about us?‘‘What are your intentions with regard to my daughter?’’ She asked Julian while completely ignoring me. ‘‘Do you intend to take him as your mistress?’’‘‘No, I…’’‘‘There is no future for the two of you, and even if you leave the woman who will soon become your wife, I won't let you have my daughter!’’ And she smacked his face once more, which prompted me to push her aw
CYNTHIA’s P O VJulian grabbed the shower head, turning on the water. He pointed it at me and he made sure to let it pour all over my body, until every inch of me was soaked. ‘‘I’ll take it that it will make you behave…’’‘‘Uhmmm…’’ I agreed mindlessly, not really listening to a single word he uttered, for I was too busy gawking at his dripping wet physique. I could feel my lids becoming heavy, my veins burning under my skin as pure sexual desire course through them.Unwittingly, without even noticing it, I kneeled in front of him, coming face to face with his semi-hard shaft, but before I could even touch it, he grabbed my shoulders firmly. ‘‘Get up before I fuck you again…’’‘‘But I want you to fuck me again…’’ I protested with a pout, still resting on my knees.He chuckled amusedly, lightly shaking his head. ‘‘Come on, Cynthia, we’ve got to go…’’But I didn’t listen, I remained still.Julian decided to bring his arm under my armpits and pick me up against my will, laying small kiss
CYNTHIA’s P O V‘‘Do you think that somebody was listening to us?’’ I inquired anxiously as fear began to course through my veins.Julian gave a dismissive shake of his head before rising to his feet and reaching for the bathrobe that was still hanging on the door of the bathroom. ‘‘No, the rooms are soundproofed. You stay here...’’ he covered himself and left the room.But I couldn’t mind my business in a situation like this. I rolled out of bed and took a fluffy bath towel, wrapping it around my body before following him towards the living area.From the other side of the slightly open door, I could hear a feminine voice. ‘‘Uhmm, Hi… I mean, good morning. I was wondering if you saw Cynthia---’’I rudely pushed Julian out of the way and came face to face with Stef, who let out a sigh of relief upon seeing me.‘‘Oh, Cynthia… I was worried about you!’’I smiled at her and placed a kiss on her cheek. ‘‘Well, as you can see, I’m good…’’ I then stepped closer to her so that she would be a
CYNTHIA’s P O VI completely let myself go, carelessly giving up on trying to hold myself up and completely leaning against his tall, manly frame. ‘‘Oh, fuck…’’ I moaned as I gripped his hair and pulled on it, moving his head and craning my neck so that our lips would touch. I immediately opened my mouth, allowing his tongue to slip inside.Julian added a second finger into my tight canal, starting to thrust harder. ‘‘You’re such a sexy little thing, aren’t you...?’’ he pulled his hand away and brought his fingers which were coated in my juices, to his mouth, sucking them clean before he picked me up and walked back to the bedroom, letting me fall onto the bed, and then followed me immediately.I pushed him down onto the sheets and got on top of him, hovering over his rock hard member. ‘‘Do you want me…?’’ I inquired in a hushed tone as I took both of his hands in mine and placed them on my waist.He nodded with his mouth agape, looking up at me with full of desire and appreciation.‘
JULIAN’s P O VThere was something unbelievably intimate about waking up next to someone, especially when that someone was the one you love.Strips of golden sunlight shone into the room and Cynthia managed to wrap herself around most of my thin sheets.I woke up with my arm lay across her stomach and her head was tucked into my bare chest. We hadn’t bothered dressing ourselves after last night’s events, as we had already seen every inch of each other.Also we were exhausted, that we had drifted to sleep after another heated kiss.Cynthia stirred slightly, which brought me back from recalling what brought us here, and buried her head further into my chest while placing a hand onto my torso.But all of this felt so wrong, since everyone around see us as cousins, and in addition to that, I am already getting married.But then, why did last night feel so right? And why did her touch alone light my body on fire?I knew that my old self would think otherwise, but Cynthia and I couldn’t hap