CELESTINE's P O V‘‘It's finally time to put a stop to things after such a long time...’’ Arnold said as he led the way into the living room, where we had just finished eating dinner, and he asked me sit on the couch before he switched on the television using the remote control.I frowned in bewilderment and moved my attention to the large screen, where I waited for something to start playing. But I averted my gaze over to my husband when I noticed that he was looking at me rather than the television.He nodded his head, gesturing for me to have a look at the screen. ‘‘Just wait for it…’’I heaved a sigh as I leaned my back against the seat and concentrated my focus on the television. At that very moment, a headline suddenly appeared on the screen.‘‘Victor Wheeler, the President of the Wheeler family, had abandoned his wife and one of his daughters, and he had even been responsible for the deaths of his in-laws. Additionally, he was the one responsible for the death of Karl Smith. Ho
CELESTINE's P O VI flinched as the first rays of morning sunlight pricked my eyes. When I opened them, the first thing that met my gaze was my husband sound asleep in the bed next to me. I was encircled by his arms, and the blanket was covering our bodies.My eyes raced across to his features, and I couldn't help but flash him a fleeting smile. I stared at the contented look on his face as he slept. So beautiful… I hope that our next babies, who will be just as gorgeous as our first, will carry on his or her father's good looks.The mere thought of that had my cheeks start to heat up. It's hard for me to think that Arnold made such a difference in my life. To agree to become his wife brought on the most wonderful thing I've ever experienced. My heart still beat twice every time I looked at him.After making the decision to wait a little while before waking Arnold up, I cautiously drew myself away from him and got out of bed. I walked to the bathroom, where I showered and hummed to my
CELESTINE's P O V‘‘Sir, Mr. Wheeler had already been escorted to the police station by the officers early this morning...’’ Jason informed us as he was driving up to the location where Victor was brought. The car that he’s been driving were followed by two other vehicles closely behind us.While I was waiting for the car to arrive at the police station, my heart was racing and thumping really quickly. I was experiencing a mild sense of unease.From the beginning, it was always a goal of mine to see Victor Wheeler held accountable for everything that he had done to me, to my mom, and to my mom’s parents. Would it be possible for me to reach my goal now?My hands were clasped together and I was rubbing my fingers anxiously. I was worried that none of these things were real and that they were all just illusions.Arnold turned to look at me, and reached out to take my hand in his.When he noticed that I was looking back at him with an expression of helplessness in my eyes, he grabbed hol
CELESTINE's P O V‘‘Miss Wheeler, I'm sorry to tell you but you’re not permitted to bail out your father at this time...’’ The police officer tried to explain to her, but she grimaced the entire while, and all I could see was Leina's face instead of Enid's.‘‘Why can’t I bail my father out?’’ she roared. ‘‘How could you possibly arrest him for no reason at all? Could you just take someone based on what you saw in the news? You know that I can sue you for doing this to my father!’’‘‘Miss Wheeler, there’s a lot of evidence pointing Mr. Victor Wheeler, and none of it is fabricated in the slightest!’’‘‘What do you mean by not fabricated? That was all fake!’’ she snarled, slamming her hand down on the table in exasperation. Her expression was one of great rage. ‘‘Let me bail my father out! His lawyer is here, and want to talk about the details!’’‘‘Please calm down first…’’ the officer seemed like he’s getting out of patience, but he’s still talking to Leina in a calm manner. ‘‘You have
CELESTINE's P O VI was sitting at the patio at six o’clock at night, still waiting for Arnold to come home, but unfortunately Jason told me over the phone that he’s still in the hospital with Leina, and my mind was racing after hearing that news.I kept glancing down the gate, expecting to see the familiar figure of my husband jogging toward me. My phone burned a hole in my pocket, but I didn’t want to call him. I wanted that it was him who would inform me what’s going on.The street was illuminated by street lights, and the sound of cars here and there driving by caught my attention. It’s not until I saw the gate open that my heart began to race.But to my chagrin, Jenny strolled in with a concerned look etched into her features.‘‘How could you just watch your husband carry your sister away?’’ Her remarks caused me to let out a deep sigh as I glanced down at the pregnancy book that was sitting on my lap. ‘‘Why the hell didn't you stop him?’’‘‘How did you know?’’ Instead of giving
CELESTINE'S P O VFollowing Jenny's departure, I mustered up the nerve to give Arnold a call.His voice was raspy from too much exhaustion, but he managed to say, ‘‘I'm still doing some important things…’’ At eleven o'clock, he's still keeping himself busy for Leina? ‘‘Take some rest now. Don’t wait for me to get home…’’As soon as he hung up, I was overcome with a feeling of betrayal and bereavement in my heart.He didn’t apologize from his action earlier. In addition, there was not even an explanation.I brushed away my tears as I glanced down at my belly and tenderly stroked it with my hand. ‘‘Thank the good Lord, I still have you with me...’’After taking a few slow, deliberate breaths, I pulled myself up from the mattress, and exited the room. I used the elevator to go down, and started walking in the direction of the kitchen. I didn't have dinner earlier since I was under the impression that Arnold would arrive home sooner than expected.My senses were greeted by the aroma of fr
ARNOLD’s P O V‘‘But even so… you ought to have informed Celestine of your plans...’’ Louis still disagreed with what I've done, and as I've said, there are good reasons for my actions. ‘‘It's understandable that you could assume Leina had anything to do with Enid's death; nonetheless, I'm curious as to why you didn't mention this to your wife. Have you given any thought to the possibility that she may become depressed and believe that you have not moved on from Enid yet?’’‘‘My wife knows exactly how I feel about Enid, and she understands me completely...’’ I pointed out. "And everything that I've done to Leina was part of my plan since I am well aware of how smart she is now. She’s been putting up a lot of barriers recently. To earn back her trust, I need to act as if I've always thought of her as Enid and show to her that I'm doing everything I can to make up for the sacrifice she’d done for me…’’My friends were speechless as they continued to listen to what I had to say.‘‘There’
AUTHOR's P O VAfter talking to Leina, Enid headed to the restaurant where Arnold was waiting. She felt uneasy after Leina's confession, but she brushed it off, and enthusiasm took over when she finally noticed that she had arrived to the location where she's going to eat lunch with Arnold.‘‘Arnold!’’ She couldn't contain her excitement as she hurried over to the table where she spotted Arnold seated.Arnold gave her a small smile in return, and then he stood up from where he was sitting to pull a chair over for her. ‘‘What do you want to order?" he asked, his eyes scanning her lovely face, but it's unfortunate to say that he has no feelings for the young woman.After the waiter brought the food that Arnold had ordered, they started to eat lunch.‘‘Are you thrilled that the wedding is finally here?’’ Enid's question came out of nowhere, and her hand that was holding the glass of orange juice stopped mid-air. Even though they haven't set a date for their wedding just yet, they are alr
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