《ALWAYS AND FOREVER》


 Chapter one

    Kathy Pov


    I bang the door loudly as I angrily walked into my mom¡¯s room and she turned to look at me with an annoyed expression but I was much too angry to care.


    ¡°Youngdy what do you want and why can¡¯t you knock before entering? Have you forgotten your manners?¡±


    She asked, I didn¡¯t even bother to answer.


    ¡°Mom, what¡¯s the meaning of what dad just said to me? Why am I being sold off in the name of marriage?


    ¡°Is that why you barged into my room like that? You should know already, it shouldn¡¯t be news to you since you were here when both of your sisters got married to men the family chose for them and they are both doing well, yours won¡¯t be different my dear,¡±


    ¡°Mom, I am not my sister and besides I am just twenty-three I still have a lot of time, I am not ready for marriage now and as you know I have a boyfriend who I love and I don¡¯t wanna leave him and marry someone I don¡¯t know or care to know about, so please tell your husband to get off my case.¡±


    My family was the worst family on early, right from birth both me and my two sisters were groomed to marry into wealthy families while my brothers were trained to take over the family business, I have four older siblings, two sisters and two brothers I am the youngest, my two sisters Nelly and Nora were both married to ¡®men¡¯ my family chose for them, though they got lucky and are happy in their marriage, my older brothers were both not married yet but the oldest Nelson will be getting married in three months, the only bad egg in the family was my other brother Nathan and me, he didn¡¯t want anything to do with our family and had left when he had turned eighteen, I wish I could have left too, I am neither interested in the family business nor in getting married, I just wanted to live my life but the shocking news my dad just told me this morning is threaten to ruin that for me.


    ¡°Oh, but he is someone you know Katherine, you guys use to be friends when you were little so he is not a stranger,¡±


    ¡°What? Who is he?¡±


    ¡°Remember Max? He¡­¡±


    ¡°What the? Mom, I am not gonna marry him no way,¡±


    I screamed at the top of my lungs, there is no way in hell I am gonna marry Max.


    ¡°Katherine, you can¡¯t drag this family name to the mud, you are well aware that our family is doing good business, and have a great rtionship with Max family and our children marrying will solidify that rtionship, so young,dy get your acts together and do as you are told,¡±


    My mom voiced in her annoying voice that I have gotten tired of, don¡¯t get me wrong I love my parents but I wish they could put their kid¡¯s happiness over material things but that¡¯s not the case, yes my sisters are lucky to find happiness in their arranged marriage but I can¡¯t say the same for myself, cuz firstly I have known Max since we were little and he is a jerk and a bully, I can¡¯t imagine myself marrying someone like him.


    ¡°Mom, if you guys still want me here you better cancel whatever it is you have nned if not you will never see me again I said in angry and turned to exit the room.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have anywhere to go, if you don¡¯t do as we say you will have to part ways with every privilege you enjoy,¡±


    My mom threatened. As much as I would have loved to brush it off as a baseless threat I knew my parent can do it. They did it to my older sister and she came crawling back one week after she left home and ended up getting married, my case will be different though cuz I have been making ns in case this happens though it is not finalized at least what I have with me will carry me until I can find a job and start life aside of my family¡¯s shield.


    ¡°I know what you are thinking Katherine but that won¡¯t work cuz once we collect your id every penny with you will be collected,¡±


    My mother said busting my bubbles.


    ¡°What? But I worked for that, it not your money,¡±Copyright N?v/el/Dra/ma.Org.


    ¡°Is that what you think? Katherine? I thought you are intelligent think about it, get off that horse youngdy, the day you were born into this family is the day you sealed your fate.¡±


    ¡°Mom, this is my happiness we are on about here,¡±


    ¡°Katherine for once be grateful for what I and your dad are doing, we are doing our best do that you won¡¯t suffer at a loss here, your sisters understood when we told them please don¡¯t make this difficult for us, I for one is already stressed out, please don¡¯t add to my stress,¡±


    She gloated out.


    ¡°I am not marrying Max and you guys can¡¯t force me,¡± I replied and stormed out of the room went into my room to get my car keys, and left the house in a fit of anger.


    I drove until I got tired and called my boyfriend toe to get me but like he does most times he said he was busy, I wanted to go over to his ce but he hated it when I go there without notice so I drove myself back to the house cuz I was both hungry and tired. I met my older brother when I got to the house.


    ¡°Hey, Princess where have you been?¡±


    He asked hugging me, my siblings and I were very close even Nelson made sure to keep up with me even after leaving the house. Nathan didn¡¯t live with us either so he may not have known what happened.


    ¡°I went out to get fresh air this house is stuffy,¡±


    ¡°Is that so? You look pissed, what happened?¡±


    ¡°Mom and dad just dropped a bomb on me this morning,¡±


    ¡°What? The marriage,¡±


    Wow nice, he was aware, I quietly removed myself from his hug and pointed at him in disappointment, I thought he had my back but I must have been kidding myself cuz that seems not to be the case.


    ¡°So you knew and you didn¡¯t tell me? I feel betrayed brother, I thought you were on my side,¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not like that Kathy, I am on your side,¡±


    ¡°No you are not, I don¡¯t understand our family is doing well, why do we have to be sold off in the name of marriage? Why do I have to leave the man I love for someone else?¡±


    I croaked as tears gathered in my eyes, I just don¡¯t get why my family feels it necessary for us to marry into wealthy families too, even my brother is getting married in two months to another heiress.


    ¡°It¡¯s not about the money princess it¡¯s about keeping the family line and rtionships and as children born into such families we already sealed our fate,¡±


    He said wiping away tears from my eyes and pulling me back to him and we both walked upstairs into my room where Iid on the bed and he sat down beside me.


    ¡°I will never allow my children to go through this,¡±


    I said with determination, I already knew I wasn¡¯t gonna marry Max and for all, I care my family can take all the wealth and money in my name, my boyfriend is there he will care for me until I can stand on my feet.


    ¡°It¡¯s not that bad if you think about it, I mean I and Jenn fell in love only three months after we were introduced, same with our sisters too, yours won¡¯t be different and Cross is a nice guy,¡±


    ¡°You guys just got lucky,¡± I whispered before what he said registered.


    ¡°Wait, I am not marrying Max but his older brother Cross?¡±


    I asked in shock getting up from my bed.


    ¡°Yeah, it Cross not Max,¡±


    He answered but I wasn¡¯t listening again, Cross was worst than Max, Max is like the smaller devil between the two of them, now I wasn¡¯t even gonna dream If it never, I need to get out of the house, there no way I am gonna marry Cross, I thought already making ns on how to leave without getting noticed.


    ¡°I need to leave now, Kathy, Jenn, and I have some fitting to do and I need to pick her up from her office,¡±


    Nelson said getting up and pecking me on my check.


    ¡°Okay, I will see you soon,¡±


    I replied andid back down when he left, I tried to imagine myself marrying Cross and it just didn¡¯t sit well with me, Cross is someone I knew very well especially during high school, he had been far my senior and had already been in college while I was still in junior high, but he had also been very popr that every girl in our school had known him, especially since his younger brother had been popr too. He was like the devil himself if the Bible description of the devil is to be followed, Cross should fit the description perfectly, though I have not seen him for close to ten years now as he has been away handling his family overseas business, the little I remember of him still fit the devil description, tall, handsome with broad shoulders and sexy lips that every girl had wanted, he had been temptation himself and at a point, he had been my fantasy that was until he showed me his true color and I didn¡¯t need anyone telling me before I let go of those fantasies.


    ¡°I need to leave this house before anything,¡±


    I said to my self standing up from my bed and going to where I kept my valuables, I opened the box and brought out a few cheques, that I had gotten signed and with my boyfriend name written on it, the perfect n already forming in my head, I just needed to speak with my boyfriend, I smiled satisfied with myself andid back on my bed.

 Chapter Two

    Kathy POV


    I spent the rest of the day in my room finalizing my n, I had it all nned out and have called Louis my boyfriend and we agreed to meet up by five pm, I already made sure I got up to eight million checks signed, I smiled mischievously to myself, my parent think they are smart but I am smarter, a knock came on my four and I quickly put the checks and pen away before telling whoever it is toe in, it was the maid.


    ¡°Ma, your mom said to tell you toe down and greet your visitors,¡±


    ¡°What visitor?¡± I wasn¡¯t expecting anyone so I wondered who it was but she didn¡¯t have any idea either by the way she panicked and shook her head.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, go I will be there in a few minutes,¡±


    I told her getting up from my bed I didn¡¯t know her name cuz they were much too many to master a name or sometimes a face except the ones that have been here long, like Zee the head maid. I checked to see if my hair was in ce and my face in order and exited my room. I could hear voicesing from the visitor area as I walked the distance there, I didn¡¯t bother knocking and just opened the door, I looked at saw my dad, mom, and also Max¡¯s parents, it dawn on me then that this shit was real, that my parents were trying to marry me off to Cross, I already concluded that I will y along until I can effectively pull my ns out, I looked around but there was no sign if Cross or Max, so I stepped into the room not forgetting my manners I greeted the elders respectfully.


    Max¡¯s mom, Ellen came over and hugged me I returned the gesture, she is a nicedy, I know that cuz one time my mom had tried to ship me off to college in another country she had been the one to tell her out of it, I am still grateful for that but that doesn¡¯t mean I am gonna marry her son if her son had a little quality that my boyfriend had maybe I would have considered it.Property of N?)(velDr(a)ma.Org.


    ¡°Katherine you have grown so well since thest time we meant, I am d you are the oneing into my family,¡± she said with excitement when she stopped hugging me, I forced a smile and walked with her to where the others were seated.


    ¡°You are wee to the family Katherine,¡± my supposed future father-inw said with a smile, I smiled back though I felt nothing like smiling. ¡°your husband to be couldn¡¯t make it today because he had business to take care of but you guys will meet at the engagement party next week,¡± he added and I turned to face my parent, I am getting engaged next week and I just got the info today?


    ¡°Mom the engagement is next week?¡± I asked in a rather too loud voice but I was way beyond caring, so the reason they told me is that it is so close, now I have less time to carry out my n, what kind of shitty stuff have my parents been doing with my life? I just wanted to scream and tell all of them that I ain¡¯t marrying anyone and that they should all go to hell.


    ¡°Katherine dear, yes the engagement is a week after this that¡¯s in ten days, we didn¡¯t bother you tell you it close because we didn¡¯t want to bother you with the process all you need to do on that day is get dressed and meet your future husband,¡± my mom said sweetly and I wanted to throw up, but I just nodded my head, I have to y along if my n is gonna be effective.


    ¡°Though I am shocked due to the shortness of the notice, I am well aware of your good intentions, and my brother has made me see reasons, so whatever you decide I will dlyply,¡± I said injecting much sincerity so that they will believe me and they seemed to buy it because they were are smiling brightly.


    ¡°That¡¯s good to know,¡±


    My dad said. I stood up and smiled before gracefully excusing myself.


    ¡°If you will excuse me I am meeting with my best friend and she is waiting for me, I will like to go now,¡± I asked politely


    ¡°Yeah sure you can go they chorused and I smiled sweetly at them and excited the room, when I got to the door, I closed it and gave a middle finger before dashing off to my room to get the checks, my bag, and my car keys. I dialed my boyfriend¡¯s number immediately entered the car and told him I aming over.


    ¡°Louis, I am here,¡± I announced when I entered my boyfriend¡¯s house but he was nowhere to be seen, ¡°Louis!¡± I called again moving around to check the bedroom.


    ¡°Hi, Kathy, didn¡¯t know you wereing over,¡±


    Louis¡¯s cousin who has been living with him for over three months said as she walked out of the bedroom, she is a pretty woman who is a bit older than me but we were the same height and almost have the same body type but I am a little bit curvier.


    ¡°Pearl, Hi, I told Louis I aming over, where is he?¡±


    I didn¡¯t quite roll with Pearl but since she is my boyfriend¡¯s cousin I just have to amodate her.


    ¡°He is in the shower, if you will excuse me I was about living the house,¡±


    She said and waved off as she left. I walked into the bedroom and sat on the bed, I would love to join him in the shower but Louis is a private person and hates it when people invade his privacy, I understood him, and love him.


    ¡°Hi, Baby,¡±


    He said walking out of the bathroom, he looked hot with only a bath towel around his waist, his broad shoulder in full disy. My man is hot and I know it, I stood up and went over to him and he showered me with kisses that I almost forgot why I was here in the first ce.


    ¡°Louis, we have to talk,¡± I mused in between kisses.


    ¡°What¡¯s it about babe, can¡¯t it wait? I want you,¡±


    He hummed into my ears and bit it slightly, he rubbed his hard groin on me and I almost gave in but the thought of what we had to talk about brought me back to my senses.


    ¡°Not now, Louis, we have an important discussion,¡±


    I replied pushing him off.


    ¡°What can be more important than us making love babe?¡±


    ¡°My parents are gonna marry me off,¡±


    I announced making him shut up.


    ¡°What did you say?¡±


    He asked.


    ¡°I said, my parents are gonna marry me off, they already nned it, I just found out this morning, by next week, in approximately ten days I will be someone else¡¯s fiancee,¡±


    I disclosed.


    ¡°What? They can¡¯t do that, you are mine, it not like we are still in the stone age, arranged marriage is no longer a thing,¡±


    ¡°It is in my family, I told you, my two sisters got married to men my family found for them, my brother is about to marry ady my family picked for him, I told you are this before remember?¡±


    I said getting worked up thinking about it again.


    ¡°So now it is your turn? I don¡¯t get it can¡¯t you say no? Doesn¡¯t your family know about me?¡±


    ¡°They do babe, they do, but they have never met you, this is why I wanted you to meet them but you always say no,¡±


    I used. I have begged him a lot of times to meet my family but he alwayses up with one excuse or the other.


    ¡°Yes, because I wasn¡¯t ready to meet them, whet will I possibly tell them? My business is not doing so well yet and I have not much to write to my name, how am I going to tell them if they ask me those things and you and I both know they will ask so forgive me for not meeting your parents,¡±


    He said I could already feel his anger in his every word, I didn¡¯t want us to end up fighting that will not be good for us, me especially.


    ¡°I am sorry if what I said offended you, lets get to why I am here, please don¡¯t be angry at me,¡±


    I said in an apological voice.


    ¡°It¡¯s an okay baby girl I can¡¯t be mad at you, now let¡¯s get to business, what do you want me to do? I can go to your parents now if you want,¡±


    ¡°No, not that, I can handle my parents I just need your help in another area,¡±


    I said sitting down and gesturing for him to do so it. ¡°Okay, I will go straight to the point,¡±


    ¡°I am listening,¡±


    ¡°So the thing is I don¡¯t wanna get married,¡±


    ¡°You can¡¯t do that except you are marrying me,¡±


    He said disrupting me, I smiled at his words.


    ¡°That¡¯s so sweet Louis, and yes you are the only man I ever want to marry,¡±


    ¡°Good, now continue,¡±


    He replied.


    ¡°Yes, so I came up with a nice idea, we just have one week to implement it, I have a total of ten million USD to my name and I have written out checks of eight million and with your help, I can gradually transfer it to your name like I said we have one week to do this, I will y along with my parents and before the engagement day or on the engagement day I will take off, by then you will already be at the airport waiting for me and we can leave the country together, eight million is enough for us to start a new life somewhere else and since your business is still not that big you can easily give it up,¡±


    I exined and paused to get his reaction to what I just revealed but his expression was nk.


    ¡°Hey, say something please,¡±


    He whispered something I didn¡¯t quite get. ¡°What did you say?¡±


    ¡°Nothing, I am just amazed at how intelligent you are, you got this all nned out already and I will happily follow your lead,¡±


    He replied standing up and taking off the towel, his hard groin stared at me and I stared back in hunger, my throat suddenly too dry.


    ¡°We can talk about the ns after this, what you just said put me in the mood and I want you now, you are so fucking intelligent and I wanna give you a reward,¡±


    He whispereding over to where I am and lifting me off the chair and tossed me on the bed where I quickly removed my tops and we were on in each like we have not seen each other for months.


    Muchter, we bothy in bed satisfied, his hands on my breast, stroking them gently.


    ¡°So which country do you think we should go to or should we move to another continent? Maybe Africa or Asia?¡±


    I asked loving his hands-on me.


    ¡°I will work that part out and tell you all you need to do is get the money to me,¡±


    ¡°The checks are already here,¡±


    I said and stood up to hand them over to him, ¡°my parent hardly check my spending so before they will know something is up we will already be out of the country,¡±


    I added.


    ¡°That¡¯s good to know, he replied collecting the checks and checking them before dropping them in the locker beside the bed, he pulled me closer and kissed me deeply and I melted into his touch, he is one good lover and knew all my sensitive spot, I always enjoy our lovemaking and maybe that¡¯s why I am hooked to him, I just couldn¡¯t picture myself in bed with another man. We made love again before I left, when I got home I went straight into my room and slept like a baby knowing all my ns are in ce.

 Chapter Three

    Cross Pov


    ¡°Ma, I already agreed to do as you asked, what else do you want me to do?¡±


    I asked my mom, she is being annoyed again, one of the many reasons I jumped on the opportunity to handle the branch office weather than stay back home and be at the main is because my mom is always on my case, at almost thirty my mom still see me as a baby, and I don¡¯t know what to do to change that. I adjusted my suit as I walked to the chair in the hotel room and sat down, my mom calling me so early in the morning wasn¡¯t a new thing, it has always been like that and I am used to it, but I needed to get to work and knowing my mom this call mightst for hours.


    ¡°You were supposed toe with us to see her, but you didn¡¯t show up and we had to make up excuses, you know how much I have to make excuses,¡±


    ¡°Ma, I will see her at the engagement party, no need for us to meet before then, it¡¯s not a love match, I agreed to this marriage idea and that should be enough.¡±


    I said wanting the phone call to end already but till my mom ends it I can¡¯t, my mom is the only woman I can¡¯t say no, that¡¯s how she was able to talk me into getting married, left to me I didn¡¯t think I was ever gonna get married. Dolly, thedy I was currently seeing walked in from the bathroom and nced at me and I gestured for her to leave if she was done, I should end things with her soon, maybe onest bang and I will call it off, the reason shested for three months is that she is so good in bed, if not they barelyst a week as I get tired easily.


    ¡°Boy, you should meet her first don¡¯t you think,¡±


    ¡°Ellen, I am a twenty-nine years old man, I will be thirty in two months, just wanted to remind you in case you have forgotten,¡±


    I said using my mom¡¯s name, me and my parents especially my mom are very close, in fact, everyone in my family is close, we defile what they call the rich people¡¯s curse where the family don¡¯t rte and are there more like business partners or rivals, my mom knew every little detail about me, when she had told me about getting married to a girl found for me initially I didn¡¯t want to do it because I wasn¡¯t interested in marriage generally, but when she somehow got me to agree but that didn¡¯t stop me from living my life and I n on continuing with my life after the marriage, I love fun and most people call me a womanizer and I don¡¯t feel bad about it, what¡¯s the fun in bedding just one woman when you can get hundreds even a thousand, this woman I am marrying better be good in bed or we are gonna have a few issues, anyway if she isn¡¯t good then I am gonna look for more aside, I don¡¯t n on being faithful to a pampered princess who may have asked her daddy to buy her a rich, handsome husband.


    ¡°Ma, I have to go now, I will talk to you soon,¡±


    I said trying to cut off our talk but my mom didn¡¯t have it.


    ¡°Don¡¯t you dare Cross,¡±


    She said with authority and Iplied.


    ¡°Yes, ma,¡±


    ¡°You haven¡¯t even seen your wife to be, you don¡¯t even know her name, how would you recognize her at the party, you guys are supposed to meet before the engagement so you better pick a date,¡±


    My mom voiced, in truth, I have not bothered because I trust my parent to pick the perfect bride for me, but then again I wondered how she looks, I like my woman curvy and beautiful.


    ¡°What¡¯s her name ma?¡±


    ¡°Katherine,¡± she revealed but the name didn¡¯t sound familiar neither did it sound rich or influential it was just a normal name.


    ¡°Do I perhaps know this Katherine?¡±


    I asked, Dolly was giving me some weird looks but I didn¡¯t mind her, she should know her ce, I never promised her or any one of thedies I have been seeingmitments if they ever overthink, it on them.


    ¡°Yes, you do, she and your brother were in high school together and she used toe over to our houses¡±


    My mom disclosed, which means she should be around Max¡¯s age which means l would be five years older than her, wow, just wow.


    I thought.


    ¡°Mom, how old is she?¡±


    I asked wanting to confirm.


    ¡°I think, twenty-three or twenty-four,¡±


    ¡°Mom!!! You got me ady I am seven years older than? What am I supposed to do? Teach her how to live?¡±


    ¡°Just wait until you meet her, you will like what you see,¡±


    ¡°Which family is she from by the way?¡±


    I asked wanting to ce my hand on where she is from and how influential her family is that my parents thought she was perfect for me.


    ¡°It¡¯s Katherine Stevenson, thest child of the Stevenson family, you should know her,¡±


    I was right, a spoilt princess, what did I except.


    ¡°Mom, so I am marrying Kathy? Wow,¡±


    ¡°Yes son, she is the perfect match, I think you have not seen her for a while, she has grown into a finedy and if we don¡¯t make it legal soon another family might snack her,¡±


    My mom said trying to make me see reasons why marrying her was a big thing, yeah I agree that the Stevensons were pretty influential but my family still has more worth though, not wanting to argue with my mom I just let her talk.Copyright N?v/el/Dra/ma.Org.


    ¡°I will send you a photo of her when I get one, in the main time pick a date before the engagement ceremony for you guys to meet,¡±


    My mom said


    ¡°Yes ma, I will let you know, I have to get to work ma,¡±


    ¡°Okay, bye son I love you,¡±


    My mom said and I ended the call with a sigh of relief.


    ¡°Are you cheating or two-timing me?¡±


    Dolly asked I looked up to see her standing with her hands folded in front of her.


    ¡°What do you mean by that?¡±


    I questioned getting up to dress up.


    ¡°You know what I mean, how can you be talking about anotherdy in my present? Talking about marriage? What do you take me for?¡±


    ¡°Dolly, I don¡¯t have the strength to talk right now, you are I don¡¯t have a rtionship, what we have is a fling,¡±


    ¡°What? A fling? We have been seeing each other for over three months,¡±


    She shouted in anger, I rolled my eyes, here ites again, another one overstepping the boundary, there is no finally bang, what a waste it was fun while itsted, time to get off it, I thought putting out my phone and forwarding ten million to her ount.


    ¡°It¡¯s was fun while itsted Dolly, I told you from the beginning I don¡¯t domitment, and you are aware, if you think otherwise then that¡¯s on you,¡±


    I replied pulling on my wrist watching and knotting my tie.


    ¡°Don¡¯t you dare walk out on me Cross, we are not finished here,¡± she let out blocking my way as I tried to leave.


    ¡°We are finished, Get out of my way Dolly, I have work to do,¡±


    ¡°Cross please, don¡¯t do this to me, I love you please, we can make this work,¡±


    She voiced in a pleading voice that made me want to throw up.


    ¡°I don¡¯t love you, I told you before we started, it¡¯s on you Dolly, I never asked you to love me, I am done here and I won¡¯t be seeing you anymore, I sent ten million into your ount you can use it to forget about me,¡±


    I dered.


    ¡°I don¡¯t want your money, Cross, I have money, all I want is you, please, please,¡± She screamed in tears.


    ¡°Let me go, Dolly, this is what I hate, I made it clear, I startedd it when we started, I never did or say anything to make you feel otherwise,¡±


    ¡°I love you please, don¡¯t do this to me, please, I promise I will be on my best behavior,¡±


    She pleaded, falling on her knees and holding onto my legs, I tried to shake my leg off but she was holding on so tight,


    ¡°I looked down at her in disgust.


    ¡°You look so pathetic, right now, get off the ground woman, when I say I am done I mean it,¡±


    I replied shaking off my legs forcibly and walking out of the hotel room.


    ¡°You are gonna regret this Cross, I promised.


    She screamed through her tears as I mmed the door shut and gagged in disgust, women will never change no matter how ssic they look.


    ¡°Can never understand that gender,¡± I muttered under my breath as I left the hotel.

 Chapter Four

    Kathy Pov


    ¡°Hey, love what¡¯s up?¡±Copyright N?v/el/Dra/ma.Org.


    I asked Louis as I got dressed the next morning, I know he hates it when I call him in the morning but I was a bit anxious, admittedly my rtionship with Louis had a little too many restrictions, he doesn¡¯t like me visiting without head up, he doesn¡¯t like surprises, he doesn¡¯t like when I introduce him to people, and lots of stuff like that, but I was okay with it because I know he is a very private person like I expected he wasn¡¯t so pleased with me calling him.


    ¡°I told you I have to work in the morning, you can¡¯t just up and be calling me so early, don¡¯t you have to go to uni or something?¡±


    He scolded.


    ¡°I am sorry, can¡¯t you just spare me this once, I just wanted to know how far?¡±


    ¡°Alright fine, I am doing the first withdrawal this morning, I will make a stop at the bank,¡±


    ¡°Okay, I will let you go now, just keep me informed.¡±


    ¡°Right, bye,¡±


    He said and hung up, I pouted in sadness already missing his voice, my rtionship with Louis started when I met him at a club where I and my best friend went to, after that, Juliet and I sort of fell out because ording to her I was seeing the wrong person, she was just jealous because she didn¡¯t get him instead, I tried to keep talking to her but she told me that if we are to continue our friendship then I should end things with Louis which I didn¡¯t do, so technically, Juliet ain¡¯t my best friend anymoIe, we don¡¯t even talk to each other when we meet on the way, and we do see each other a lot because we have the same circle of friends, shop at the same ce, attend almost the same parties and social gathering, sometimes it hurts to see the person you were once close with as a total stranger, but I try not to let it get to me, apart from Juliet my other friends weren¡¯t all that close to me, so when we fell out I pretty much became a loner, my family don¡¯t know about our fallout though, because I still use her to get myself off some family functions and stuff, sometimes when I say I am going to see my best friend, I go to my boyfriend instead. I smiled at myself in the mirror and walked out of my room, heading to the kitchen to grab breakfast, I hate skipping food especially breakfast.


    ¡°Katherine dear, good that you have not left home yet, you should skip uni today,¡±


    My mom saiding towards me.


    ¡°What? Why mom?¡± I asked with food in my mouth, my mom hates it when I talk with food in my mouth so I was ready to hear an ear full but surprisingly, she just let it slide and sat down with me on the dining table, pouring herself some tea.


    ¡°We have a lot of things to prepare for, besides, it is just the beginning of the semester so it is not like you will be having a test or exam yet, your engagement is in a few days so we have to do some fitting and other stuff,¡±


    ¡°I wanted to argue but then I remembered my n and just nodded.


    ¡°But do I have to skip school? I have a very important ss this morning, I promise I wille back immediately after the ss end, if you don¡¯t believe me, you can have the driver drop me at school and pick me up after the ss, if I miss the ss, it may affect my whole semester result.¡±


    I said, I did have a ss but it wasn¡¯t all that important though, I just wanted to see if I could switch my courses to online ones.


    ¡°Alright dear, you can go but pleasee back early as the designer will be here, she is bringing in some dresses for you to try on,¡±


    ¡°Thanks, mom¡±


    I said and continued eating my breakfast.


    ¡°I am d you didn¡¯t disagree much with our decision Katherine, your dad and I didn¡¯t expect you to give in so easily, but we are proud of you,¡±


    If only they knew, I thought smiling at her.


    ¡°I might be stubborn mom, but I understand that you guys mean well for me,¡±


    ¡°Yes, we do,¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I know, mom, I have to go now see youter,¡±


    I said and made my way out of the house, I got into my car and drove to school, I had an eight-thirty am ss, and I came a little bitte, but the lecturer wasn¡¯t all that strict so I was allowed into the ss, and immediately after that lecture, I went to see the Dean of students, my course wasn¡¯t a major course so I don¡¯t see why I can¡¯t do it online, I am studying psychology, that wasn¡¯t what my parent wanted me to study but I fought hard for it because there was no way I would have done well in business, my patent still doest like my course of study but now that I think about, I feel the reason they allowed me to go ahead with it was because of this marriage thing. I put my query to the Dean and he promised to get back to me.


    While in school I kept checking for a debit alert but I wasn¡¯t getting any, I wanted to call Louis to find out why he still hasn¡¯t gone to the back but I didn¡¯t cuz I knew he wouldn¡¯t like it, when I was done with ssese for, I went back to my car to go back home like I promise my mom.


    ¡°Hey, Katherine, I heard about your uing marriage, congrattions,¡±


    Juliet said walking up to me, this would be the first time she was talking to me this year.


    ¡°Thanks,¡± I said before I would have told her my ns but now that we no longer talk I just kept to myself, I knew even if I tell her she will talk me out of it.


    ¡°Yeah, thank God you finally left that scammer,¡±


    ¡°Who are you talking about Juliet?¡± I asked getting angry, I already know who she was referring to.


    ¡°Louis of course, I just don¡¯t get why you didn¡¯t see through him,¡±


    ¡°Excuse, me Juliet but I won¡¯t stand here while you talk down about the man I love, just so you know, it¡¯s an arranged marriage and Louis is still my boyfriend, I am not gonna break up with him,¡± I voiced out in anger.


    ¡°Wow, my bad, I thought you guys broke up? I can¡¯t believe you are still seeing, why can¡¯t you just see that that dude is up to no good, he is conny and will only use you for your money,¡±


    ¡°Enough bitch, think about yourself instead, I am happy with Louis and I know that¡¯s why you are looking for every way possible to make me leave him so that you can have him but guess what, I ain¡¯t gonna do that,¡±


    I said opening my car, ¡°You still dont get it, do you? Why would I want that kind of a person, open your eyes Kathy and see what¡¯s before you, that man is ying you over, if you would just hear me out I will show you proof,¡±


    ¡°Spare me that girl, just so you know Louis don¡¯t ask me for money, and please don¡¯t ever talk to me again, I can¡¯t believe I once thought of you as my best friend,¡±


    I said and got into my car and drove off leaving her standing there, she looked shocked bet she didn¡¯t know that I will catch her on her deceit, it is true that Louis doesn¡¯t ask me for money, I use to force him to take money from me and when we go out he makes sure to pay from the little he had, how she thought I will believe her lies was way beyond me.


    A message came on my phone and I checked to see that it was a debit alert, Louis has finally collected a million dors from the ount, which means in about eight days we should be done collecting enough, as I dropped my phone, his call came him so I picked it up smiling.


    ¡°Hey, baby, I just got the debit alert, good job,¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I just collected a million but there is a little issue though,¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± I asked, parking by the roadside so that I can listen properly.


    ¡°Withdrawing a million dors daily will call attention so I was thinking if you could just transfer it to me directly, then I wouldn¡¯t have to go to the back,¡±


    I faced palmed myself for not thinking of transfer.


    ¡°Oh my God, I am sorry baby, I should have thought of that, it would have been easier,¡±


    ¡°No, it¡¯s okay, we both didn¡¯t think of it, so for the remaining seven I can send you my ount that can¡¯t be traced so that you will transfer it directly,¡±


    ¡°Okay, darling, once again I am sorry for the stress,¡±


    ¡°Nah, it¡¯s okay, I have got to go now,¡±


    ¡°Alright, I love you,¡±


    ¡°You too,¡±


    He replied and hung up, I smiled to myself and started the car again, I didn¡¯t want my mom to be suspicious so I had to keep to time, I called her.


    ¡°Mom, I am on my way back now,¡±


    ¡°Okay, dear I was about to call you anyway, the designer is here waiting for you, she has all these beautiful dresses, you will love them,¡±


    ¡°I am on my way, mom,¡±


    I said in false excitement and ended the call, I drove off the road towards my house.

 Chapter Five

    Kathy Pov


    ¡°I don¡¯t like this does, mom, it looks a bit too outstanding, I just want a simple dress, something that I can easily walk with.¡±


    I said to my mom as I tried on the dress that was supposed to be for my engagement ceremony, as I can¡¯t n on being there, I just didn¡¯t want anything that will stand out too much, I wanted something that I could easily walk in.


    ¡°Calm down, Katherine, no need for you to be walked up over the dress, we can always change it to the one you prefer,¡±


    ¡°I am sorry mom, I didn¡¯t mean to be rude,¡±


    ¡°I understand, I know the feeling of wanting the perfect dress for your day I have been there before, ¡±


    My mom said encouraging, I mentally rolled my eyes. Her big day she meant, because there was no way that day was my big day because I ain¡¯t getting engaged on that day neither am I getting married, but she isn¡¯t going to know that, not until the day of the engagement when I run off, by the time they realize what has happened I will be very far away from here.


    ¡°Please can you get me a shorter dress, I just want a simple, easy to wear dress, I can get all theplex for the wedding but for this engagement, a simple pretty dress will do,¡±


    I said to the designer.


    ¡°Alright, but I didn¡¯t bring any short dress with me seeing that it¡¯s an engagement ceremony, I will go back and get it,¡±


    ¡°No, no need toe back here I will drop by at your office tomorrow or next to get it, sorry I wasted your time,¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s okay, I also brought your mum¡¯s clothes too,¡±Property of N?)(velDr(a)ma.Org.


    ¡°Mom, is there anything else that I need to do?¡±


    I asked my mom, she was quite busy on her phone.


    ¡°Yes, my dear, there is jewelry testing, shoes, and also I didn¡¯t want to pick the cake color neither the design for you so you have to do all that yourself, whatever you puck is what we will do,¡±


    She exined, I rolled my eyes mentally before nodding my head sweetly, I will do ording to what they say, it¡¯s now on them when they find out that I ain¡¯t actually gonna be in attendance.


    The most part of my afternoon was spent trying out different stuff, and picking flowers and cake design, decorations and so on and so forth, by the time thest event nner left, I was already pretty much exhausted, I wanted to run, but I couldn¡¯t, I had to be as obedient as a kid who wants a gift from Santa, my mom was there throughout everything, it¡¯s felt kind of strange though cuz since I grew up my mom and I have not spent up to three hours together in the same ce.


    ¡°You did well today, Katherine,¡±


    She said when thest person left leaving just me and my mom in the room.


    ¡°I did, now, I am exhausted,¡±


    I said with a yawn.


    ¡°It¡¯s expected from a soon to be bride, anyway I will have the maid get you something in your room so you can go and rest we still have a lot to do tomorrow,¡±


    She said getting up and moving out of the dressing room, I followed behind her.


    ¡°Okay, then, I will go now, mom, I need to rest I am tired, no need to tell them to bring me anything, I am not hungry right now I just need to sleep,¡±


    I said to my mom, she seemed to be pleased with me, so she epted, I left and went straight to my room, made sure to lock the door, before taking off my clothes and diving straight into the bed, it was still afternoon but I didn¡¯t have anywhere to go to, so sleeping and surfing the inte would be how I spend the remaining part of the day.


    I tried to get some sleep first due to how tired I was but sleep seem not to want toe to me, so I opt to surf the inte for a suitable country where I can start my new life, I thought of a country my parents would not expect me to go to, and the only ce that kepting to my mind was South Africa, a beautiful country in Africa, I have wanted to visit there for a long time now, in fact, I loved looking up things about Africa as a whole, they had beautiful countries and amazing culture that I envy, though I really wanted to go to Africa, I still wanted Louis to have a say in it since he was gonna leave his life here and follow me, I felt bad for doing it to him but that was the only way we could be together, I hoped that he understands, I checked my message box and saw that he already dropped the ount number, it wasn¡¯t his ount so I had to call him to verify, he picked up on the second ring, his sexy voice melting me inside, even though he was away from me.


    ¡°Sorry that I called but I wanted to know if the ount number you sent was the one I should send the money to,¡±


    I exined hoping that he won¡¯t be mad at me.


    ¡°It¡¯s okay baby, yes that¡¯s the ount number, you can transfer as much as you want to it, it can carry not only millions but billions too,¡±


    He said, he sounded drunk but it was still afternoon, so he would be at work, he was much too responsible to be drinking in the day, he hardly even drinks.


    ¡°Okay, baby, I will send it, but I don¡¯t think I can see you anytime soon but let¡¯s meet up by the weekend to discuss where we will relocate as I will be busy throughout the week, I will transfer the money tomorrow morning,¡±


    ¡°Alright, take good care of yourself, my love,¡±


    ¡°I will, you too,¡±


    I said and the call ended, Iid back down on the bed in excitement for my future that would be starting soon, I will miss this house, my room, and all the luxury thates with being a Stevenson but that didn¡¯tpare with starting a life with the man I love, just thinking about it and I am already super excited. I n on saying goodbye to my sibling before I live so I am gonna go visit them within the week and take my mom and dad on a date as a farewell gift, I don¡¯t hate my family, I just didn¡¯t want the kind of life they want for me, I wanted to be free to make my own choices and also my own mistakes, they have shielded me for the past twenty-three and it Time to leave on my own, I know that I am still going with their money but there was nothing I could do about that, I wouldn¡¯t leave empty-handed, if only they dould just let me live my life the way I wanted if only they didn¡¯t make me choose to leave, I wiped a few stray tears off my eyes and tried to fall asleep, thinking about my family was making me feel guilty which wasn¡¯t good for me right now because it will only set me back.


    I know that even if I didn¡¯t know Louis I would still have not wanted to marry Cross, how my family thought a man like Cross would make me happy was beyond me, the man was a devil they just didn¡¯t see that, if it were someone else and if Louis wasn¡¯t in my life maybe I would have considered but there was no way I am gonna spend my life with someone like Cross, no way.


    I pushed all thoughts of my family, Cross, and anything else rted to theing engagement and marriage aside and tried to fall asleep while thinking of my new life with the man I love in a peaceful and quiet environment, maybe somewhere in Africa or Asia¡­

 Chapter Six

    Cross Pov


    ¡°I can¡¯t believe you are getting married man, that¡¯s so not you, never expected you to be the first of the two of us to get married,¡±


    Dean my best friend said, obviously, mocking me, he knew how much I didn¡¯t want to get married.


    ¡°Cut it out man, for real,¡±


    ¡°Come on, it¡¯s a good development, at least now you will leave all thosedies for us the single men,¡±


    ¡°What? No way, yes I am going to marry the damn spoilt brat, but there is no way in hell I am leaving all those pussies, just to be with one, I don¡¯t even care about her,¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s bad of you, I am against cheating,¡±


    ¡°Says the one who cheats on his girlfriends,¡± I said rolling my eyes, I may like women but at least my women know their ce at least I make them know where they stand with me, Dean, on the other hand, gather them like trophies.


    ¡°Man, we are different, those women are not legally mine, but this woman, she is gonna be your wife, I am against cheating for real, I ain¡¯t joking,¡±


    ¡°Enough, dude, I didn¡¯t ask you toe just so you can lecture me, I just need a drinking buddy,¡±


    ¡°Chill out, I am just saying, anyway, how does she look? Is she pretty?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± I said without interest, my mom has still not sent her photos, that¡¯s not a problem because I already knew what she looked like, a tiny weeny like teenage girl crossed my mind, my memory of her was somewhat blurry but I could still picture herining about almost everything, each time I met her she always had one issue or the other, ten years must have done a hell lot of things to her but I couldn¡¯t conclude, I tried looking her up, but I didn¡¯t find anyone that fit her look on the, even on her brother¡¯s page.


    ¡°Wait! You don¡¯t know her or how she looks? Man? That¡¯s messed up,¡±


    Dean said, I was starting to regret why I called him here, I should have just had the drink myself, Dolly has been pressing and disturbing me with calls, begging for us to get back together, I didn¡¯t quite get why she couldn¡¯t understand that I don¡¯t want anything with her again,dies are s so high maintenance.


    ¡°Cross?¡±


    ¡°Man, I know her okay, I knew her when she was still a teenager but I don¡¯t know what she looks like now,¡±


    I said sipping my beer.


    ¡°Why don¡¯t you look her up then?¡±


    ¡°Come on Dean, are you high? Do I like I have the time to be looking up a girly that my parents want me to marry? Dude, I am a busy man, I don¡¯t have that time and besides, I will see her at the engagement party,¡±


    ¡°If I were you I will check her up, what¡¯s her name let me help you,¡±


    ¡°Mind your business dude,¡±


    I said getting up, I was tired of him, he wasn¡¯t any fun tonight, I would rather just go to sleep than sit with him.


    ¡°I am off¡±


    I said and walked off, the annoying dude followed me.


    ¡°Are you offended?¡±


    He asked in his annoying voice, I don¡¯t know why I was best friends with him anyway, he and I were so different, I am an heir, while Dean is a self-made man, I envy him a lot, I wish I had broken off my family and started something on my own back then, but I love my family too much to do that, my mom would have cried herself to death if I had left the family, not that I am not proud of how well I handled my family¡¯s business here but sometimes I feel like everything was offer to me on a tter of gold unlike Dean that had to work his way to the top, I had mad respect for Dean and look up to him a lot, he lost his parents when he was young and had lived in foster homes until he came of age,pared to me that had both my parent with me and also was born with a silver spoon.


    ¡°Arent you gonna talk to me? Remember I am going to be your best man,¡±


    He said in his annoying voice entering my car without an invite, the driver looked at me and I told him to carry on, resting my head on the car seat I try to avoid him but the man could be a pest if he want to be.


    ¡°Cross? Are you angry? For real?¡±


    ¡°Dude, leave me alone,¡±


    I said waving him off but he didn¡¯t back out.


    ¡°So when are we leaving for Arizona?¡±


    ¡°A day to the engagement or two days to,¡±


    I said with my eyes close.


    ¡°Okay, does that mean you are moving back home after the wedding?¡±


    ¡°No, way, my wife and I areing back to live her, she doesn¡¯t have a choice, if she wants to stay with her family she might as well tell them she didn¡¯t want the marriage,¡±


    I said, there was no way I am moving back to Arizona just to be with one woman, no my life is in New York, I have lived here by myself for the past ten years and I am used to it if I wanted peace and quietness in this city I know where to go to get it.


    ¡°I should start thinking of getting a wife soon too, I will be thirty-two soon,¡±


    ¡°He said and I looked at him weirdly, here is the one I envy wanting to cage himself in a marriage, I just dont understand humans, I wish we could switch ces so that he would be the one getting married, I mean he is rich too, so spoilt little princess might not have a problem.


    ¡± hmm, wanna marry her in my ce?¡±


    ¡°Thanks, man, but I don¡¯t want, I can get my own woman, this one is yours,¡±


    ¡°Chicken,¡±


    I said and covered my eyes again, I just don¡¯t know what was wrong with me, at the beginning of this week I was fine, even when Dolly that bitch kept disturbing my life I was still fine, but as the week drew to an end and the day to my supposed engagement party drew closers I became less and less happy, normally on weekends I enjoyed myself and party to the fullest but the thought of that freedom been taken away from me left me unhappy, I should just talk to my mom and tell them I wasn¡¯t ready for the marriage yet.


    ¡°Dude, stop I need to get off,¡±N?velDrama.Org owns this.


    Dean said to my driver bringing me out of my thoughts.


    ¡°What up man?¡±


    ¡°Grace,¡±


    He said and I understood immediately, he had a sister, more like a foster sister and she is a pain in his neck always getting in trouble.


    ¡°Okay, man I will see you around,¡±


    He said as he got off, phone in hand already making calls.


    ¡°Sorry I can¡¯te with you,¡±


    I said not feeling bad at all.


    ¡°It¡¯s okay, you need some time alone yourself, you don¡¯t look too fine, just know that being married is not as bad as you think it is,¡±


    ¡°Whatever,¡± I said and my driver kicked off leaving him behind.


    When I got to my apartment I took a bath and tried to get some sleep but I couldn¡¯t fall asleep, I called my mom instead, I needed to speak with her, she picked up on the first ring.


    ¡°Hey, son I was meant to call you but I have been very busy with preparations,¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s okay, ma,¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s going on Cross? Your voice doesn¡¯t sound so well,¡±


    My mom asked already panicking I could feel it in her voice, I really wanted to tell her what¡¯s on my mind, but I didn¡¯t want to disappoint her.


    ¡°I am fine mom,¡± I said instead.


    ¡°I just had a little too much to drink,¡± I added when she wasn¡¯t convinced.


    ¡°Cross, I told you not to drink so much,¡±


    ¡°Sorry, ma,¡±


    I said.


    ¡°Ma?¡±


    ¡°Yes, boy?¡±


    ¡°Do I really have to marry her?¡±


    I asked, I couldn¡¯t keep it in again.


    ¡°Son, I¡­¡±


    ¡°What is the essence of this union mom? I need to know,¡±


    ¡°I didn¡¯t want to tell you this over the phone but since you didn¡¯te home and are noting until the engagement I will just tell you,¡±


    ¡°Okay, I am listening,¡± I said all ears.


    ¡°Well, son, you guys were already promised to each other the day she was born,¡±


    My mom revealed and the tiredness suddenly washed off me, I rose off the bed and started pacing up and down.


    ¡°What? Why am I just knowing this?¡±


    ¡°Son, listen to me will you?¡±


    ¡°You guys should have told me at least,¡±


    ¡°I am sorry, but we didn¡¯t want you to live with the burden from a young age,¡±


    ¡°I am twenty-nine years old mom, I should have been informed, what if I had fallen for someone else?¡±


    I asked trying to control my disappointment, I thought my parent doesn¡¯t keep anything from me and this felt like a blow, a blow from an unknown hand, it hurt and I was disappointed in them.


    ¡°Let me exin son,¡±


    My mom said but I was too upset to listen.


    ¡°No, ma, I gotta go,¡±


    I said and hung up throwing my phone away, just why did they set us up without notice, this just goes to show that spoilt princess might not want this union too, which goes against a lot of things I had thought, I walked to my winery, picked up my favorite wine and ss and walked back to my room all the while pissed with my parent, I filled a ss and downed it at once, they should have told me at least, I would have been more prepared. I needed more information, more answers as to why we were betrothed at her birth when we are not living in the olden days, but I didn¡¯t want to talk to my mom in this state, I will wait till tomorrow when I am much calmer and speak to her, then I will know if I am gonna continue with this or break off the engagement. With that thought, I kept the wine back, went back to my bed, and tried to get some sleep¡­

 Chapter Seven

    Kathy Pov


    I spent most of the week trying out different things and I didn¡¯t have much free time, things didn¡¯t really go as I nned, I was unable to meet up with my sibling as I expected and couldn¡¯t even tell my parent about the date I nned on taking them to, but the bright side of it is that my siblings were arriving three days to the engagement so I decided to treat them all to a meal at our house, I was going to get them their gifts today, its Saturday and by Wednesday I will be out of here for good, I have been able to sessfully transfer the whole seven million to Louis ount and also we have decided to move to Find, we weren¡¯t going to Africa after all, we n on taking the long road drive from Arizona to Mexico, theny low for a while and then go from there to Find I will miss Arizona but I am ready to leave it behind.


    I walked down the stairs towards my parent¡¯s room and held them talking, I wanted to knock but my mind told me not to, it was as if they were having an argument or something, I couldn¡¯t make out what it was, I moved closer and all I could hear was ¡®we should tell her, she will understand,¡¯ that was my dad¡¯s voice, my mom, on the other hand, was talking in a rather too low tone, I was almost losing interest until she raised her voice a little. I moved closer to the door and ced my ear close to it, I was sure they were talking about me but I wasn¡¯t sure what they were on about.


    ¡°Honey, whether we tell her now doesn¡¯t change anything, we barely got her to agree to the engagement and thankfully she has been obedient, you know how she can be so telling her about it will only make her pissed and I can¡¯t deal with that now, when they are married she can find out, I dont know why Ellen thought it necessary to tell her son,¡±


    My mom said I knew it, they were talking about me, I needed to know what it was that they didn¡¯t want me to know before that my dad thought I should know now.


    ¡°What are you guys hiding from me? Dad? Mom?¡±


    I asked as I entered the room forgetting all the manner I had, I hate it when people keep things that I should know from me and find out my parent were keeping me in the dark about something that concerns me doesn¡¯t quite sit well with me.


    ¡°Where are your manners, youngdy? Are you supposed to just walk in here? Aren¡¯t you supposed to knock and wait for a response toe in?¡±


    My mom said but I wasn¡¯t going to answer her until she gives me the answers I needed.


    ¡°Mom, I hate it when you keep things from me and you know it,¡± I said to her then turned to face my dad. ¡°Dad, you want me to know so can you please tell me?¡±


    I asked.


    ¡°Katherine, I didn¡¯t raise you to be disrespectful youngdy, you can just walk in on us talking,¡±


    My mom said and I turned to face her getting super pissed, how dare she say she raised me? She didn¡¯t raise me, she gave birth to me and let other women raise me.


    ¡°Mom, you are mistaking, you didn¡¯t raise me, my nannies did, you gave birth to be alright but you didn¡¯t raise me, dont get it twisted.¡±


    ¡°I paid for everything, I paid them to work so I raised you,¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s what you think, right now I don¡¯t even want to exchange words with you, I know how it always ends, so please if you dont mind telling me what it was that you guys are keeping from me if you don¡¯t tell me I am not going to show up at the engagement I swear,¡±N?velDrama.Org owns this.


    I threatened.


    ¡°You are not the only one who knows how to give out threats youngdy so mind what you say,¡± my mom attacked back, there was no point exchanging words with her because whatever it is, I ain¡¯t gonna stay here after all.


    ¡°Katherine, it¡¯s not so hard, I dont know why your mom feels you shouldn¡¯t know, I will tell you,¡±


    My dad said, I turned to face him.


    ¡°Honey!!!¡±


    ¡°I am telling her,¡± my dad said sternly to my mom which shut out whatever she was gonna say, I stood there expectantly, all the time wondering what it was.


    ¡°It¡¯s simple, you are your husband to be where betrothed when you were given birth to, so it¡¯s not a new decision, ¡±


    My dad said I didn¡¯t understand what he meant, maybe I heard him wrong.


    ¡°Dad, I don¡¯t understand, what do you mean?¡±


    ¡°I mean you and Cross were promised to each other when you were born,¡±


    ¡°What? Why?¡±


    ¡°Well, I don¡¯t know how to put it to you, that you will understand, but it¡¯s was like a pledge between our both families to strengthen our rtionship,¡±


    My dad exined, I was offended, I wanted to scream at them and tell them to go to hell, but I dont know, I just didn¡¯t, even though I needed more exnation I didn¡¯t ask, I just nodded.


    ¡°You should have told me at least when I turned eighteen, this whole thing is taking a toll on me, but I know you guys have my best interest at heart so I am not gonna question you further,¡± I said inkecting as much genuineness as I could frame to my words and my mom¡¯s mouth opened and closed, she looked so surprised, I smiled inside in satisfaction, I guess she was expecting me to shout and yell at them.


    ¡°See, I told you she will understand,¡±


    ¡°I am shocked,¡± my mom saiding close to me, ¡°who are you and what have you done to my daughter?¡±


    She asked, looking me over, I wanted to tell her that it doesn¡¯t change anything, that I wasn¡¯t gonna marry anyone, but I just bit my tongue and smiled calmly at her.


    ¡°Mom, I am a grown woman, I may act like I am stubborn, okay I am stubborn but I know when you have my interest at heart, I will be a fool to throw a tyrant now when I already agreed to the union.¡±


    I said.


    ¡°What a relief then,¡±


    ¡°Yeah, sorry I bashed in I shouldn¡¯t have, I apologized, even I was amazed at myself, acting out the good daughter part must have grown on me, seeing that I am doing it so well, I was dead pissed, but I wasn¡¯t letting it show, there is no need to get them gifts, after all, they dont deserve it, for keeping things from me, I will just save the money for that and add it to what I have as takeaway cash, I thought.


    ¡± Good, so why did youe here in the first ce, I guess you had something to say?¡±


    My mom asked, my dad, left us both and headed out of the room, phone in hand, it was rare to see my dad at home so I expected he had guestsing over.


    ¡°Yeah, I am going to the designer to collect the dress, wanted to key you know so that you won¡¯t be looking for me,¡±


    I said, I also wanted to use the opportunity to meet up with Louis and put finishing touches to our preparations, I already informed him I wasing and he agreed.


    ¡°Okay, dear, you can go, but please be back on time, we still have things we have to do,¡±


    ¡°Alright, mom,¡± I said and left the room, going to my car I drove off towards Louis¡¯s house.


    I didn¡¯t meet him at home so I called his cell, he told me he had some things to take care of and told me not to worry that everything was already in ce, I trusted him so I just went ahead to get my clothes and went straight back home, I was excited for Wednesday and at the same time I was scared but I knew whatever happens I am not going to be in Arizona by Thursday¡­

 Chapter Eight

    Cross POV


    ¡°Dude, hurry up we are going to bete,¡±


    ¡°Let me man, who¡¯s fault is it anyway, I told you we should stay at your parent¡¯s house that way we can get to the venue on time but you choose to be stubborn,¡±


    Dean said from the hotel room and I suddenly had the urge to scream, but that would look bad on an alpha male like me, even though these days I was beginning to lose my touch. it¡¯s officially my engagement day and for some unknown reasons, I am anxious, I am still trying to figure out why we arrived from New York yesterday morning after boarding an over bight flight,


    ¡°I have my reasons alright,¡± I told him eyeing him.


    I am still angry at my parents and almost decided not to push through with the fucked up engagement after all but then my mom kept begging, and as I said before I can¡¯t say no to her, she is the one woman who got be in her hands, she kept calling and calling, using all her skills and after only two days I caved in, but that didn¡¯t mean I was no longer angry, I just didn¡¯t want to taint my family name, since people were already. didn¡¯t invite and I also already agreed to.


    ¡°Did you still try to at least find out about her?¡±


    ¡°I will today,¡±


    ¡°Man? How can you be getting engaged to someone whose face you don¡¯t know? What if she is not so pretty?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, the Katherine I remember has always been pretty, she is just a spoilt little princess, and I dont care much about looks, attitude matter, I hate clingy women,¡±


    ¡°You? Not into looks? You must be kidding me, you that date all the supermodels and got hotdies in town, seriously? Not into looks,¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s not because of their looks, that¡¯s cuz most regr girls are looking formitment and I dont have that on the table and also I don¡¯t date them, we have a fling,¡±


    I bragged.


    ¡°You, my man is evil,¡±


    ¡°I am not, even the so-called supermodels are still looking formitment,¡±


    I added, Dolly was still pestering my life with her calls and texts, I had to block her number yet she still finds a way to call me.


    ¡°But, now dude, you are about tomit, whether you like it or not,¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not like we are getting married immediately though, it¡¯s just an engagement,¡±


    I said even though I knew the possibility of that being true is low, my parents would probably already have fixed a date for the wedding and it would be closer than I think.


    ¡°Keep telling yourself that,¡±


    Dean said.


    ¡°Anyway, about thedy, for real I still feel you should know her face at least,¡±


    ¡°I already told you she is pretty,¡±


    I said truthfully, Kathrine had been one of the most pretty teenagers, I knew back then, she had long curly hair and sea-blue eyes, she would easily pass as a goddess back then, but I wasn¡¯t so sure if my memory of her were urate.


    ¡°Dude, just get your mom to send her photo, we still have enough time,¡±


    ¡°For real? It¡¯s past four pm already and it starts by seven,¡±


    ¡°Yeah that¡¯s enough time, now do it or I am gonna call your mom,¡±


    ¡°Fine,¡±Property of N?)(velDr(a)ma.Org.


    I said picking up my phone and dialing my mom.


    ¡°Son? Where are you I was about to call you,¡± she said as soon as she picked the call,¡±


    ¡°Still at the hotel, I will be on my way soon,¡±


    ¡°You should havee to the house, why are you so stubborn sometimes?¡±


    ¡°Mom, I have a right to be mad, I might do everything you ask but that doesn¡¯t mean I won¡¯t get angry when you offend me, and you know you did,¡±


    ¡°Yes, yes, and I am sorry, your father is too,¡±


    ¡°I called for a reason though,¡±


    ¡°What is that son?¡±


    ¡°Can you send a photo of her?¡±


    ¡°A photo? Of who?¡±


    ¡°I asked you before, a photo of Katherine Stevenson,¡±


    ¡°Oh, okay,ing soon,¡±


    She said and before long my phone beeped.


    ¡°I have sent it,¡±


    ¡°Seen, thanks ma, I will be there soon,¡±


    ¡°Thank you, son, and I am sorry again,¡±


    ¡°Uhmm,¡±


    I muttered and ended the call, I clicked on the photo as Dean walled up to my side, to take a look at her too.


    ¡°Oh my God, she is a beauty, wow,¡±


    Dean marveled.


    ¡°I told ya,¡±


    Even as I said that I couldn¡¯t take my eyes off the phone, the photo before me reflected a goddess, my memory of her didn¡¯t do any justice, where before there was a teenage girl with curly hair and pretty eyes, the woman in the photo screamed, sexy and hot and everything, she had on a smoky makeup that brought out the beauty of her eyes, she had on a blue bump short and crop top which clung to her and revealed her sulent shape, she was golding a ss of sine and smiling sexily at the camera, she looked everything like a seductress.


    ¡°Wow, she is amazing in the photo, what more if we meet her for real? Dude, you just hit a jackpot, your parent went all in for you, aha, to be you right now, about that offer to rece you, can I still get that? Cuz with the beauty I see right now, I dont mind,¡±


    ¡°Shut the fuck up man! And back off,¡±


    I said suddenly getting angry at the attention he was giving to her, I suddenly felt defensive, suddenly wanted to protect what¡¯s mine, okay not mine but souls be mine, suddenly the whole idea of the engagement didn¡¯t seem so bad again.


    ¡°See, I told you, if you had checked her out since we would have known what a beauty she is and you won¡¯t have been battling,¡±


    ¡°I wasn¡¯t battling,¡±


    ¡°Yes, you were, don¡¯t argue, now let¡¯s go and put a ring on this beauty before some else best us to it,¡±


    He said pulling me off the chair, I followed withoutint picking my phone.


    ¡°Wait, where is the party taking ce?¡±


    Dean asked out of no where, he has been busy on his phone for the past ten minutes, his foster sister got in trouble andnded herself in the police department and it had taken more than a couple of hours to bail her out and even though she was out, she still had to report at the station today, which was why he had been talking her into going, but the little bitch be refusing, I just don¡¯t get why that gender was so hard to talk to.


    ¡°At the Stevenson of course,¡±


    I said, ¡°so how far is it going?¡±


    ¡°Not well, she is refusing and I dont know how to talk her into going, she is insisting she did nothing wrong,¡±


    ¡°Well, I told you before to let her go to jail but you won¡¯t,¡±


    ¡°Never, not when I am still here, her mom did so much for me and I can¡¯t just let her offspring go off like that,¡±


    ¡°I understand man, but sometimes, you just have to let her pay for her mistake,¡±


    ¡°Hmm, let¡¯s not talk about me, shall we talk about the princess we are going to meet?¡±


    ¡°No, we shall n¡­¡±


    Whatever I was going to say, dropped off my sense as the car suddenly came to a screening stop.


    ¡°What happened?¡±


    I asked the driver who looked shocked.


    ¡°Sir, I think the car in front of us just hit someone,¡±


    He said.


    ¡°What?¡±


    As I asked I saw the car taking a small turn and zoning off.


    ¡°What the fuck, dude, get that vehicle number,¡±


    I shouted to Dean.


    ¡°Already done,¡± he said as we both got out of the car, very few vehicles stopped and looked and continued right on their way, walking to the front, I saw a girl who would be no more than eighteeny in her own pool of blood.


    ¡°Nax, quick call an ambnce, or call a hospital, we can take her in the car,¡±


    I shouted to the driver.


    ¡°Okay, sir,¡± he said running back to the car, Dean was already on the phone too, I walked close to the girl, and she was still breathing but her breathing was slow.


    ¡°Hey, little girl you will be fine, you just need to hang in there till we get to the hospital,¡±


    ¡°I said as Dean and I moved her into the car, my phone rang but I didn¡¯t pick up, I would answer when I get her to the hospital, right now her life mattered¡­

 Chapter nine

    Kathy Pov


    ¡°Please can you not put too much makeup on me?¡±


    I said to the stylist doing my makeup, it¡¯s finally the engagement day and I am he nervous, I woke up with a bad feeling and I couldn¡¯t shake it off, I silently prayed to God that all my ns go well today, it¡¯s almost six pm which means I have to be out of here Before seven when the party starts, a lot of people were already here, some that I know others that I dont, I meant a few of my rtives already, they were all gushing and ahaing, I tried to y along as much as I could but the more people came to see me the more anxious I be.


    The past few days have been hectic for me, I had to y along with my family, while at the same time trying to put the finishing touch to my and Louis n, thankfully both turned out toe out well, but it left me exhausted, I barely slept through the past couple of day, I had to do a full-body massage and also hard manicure and pedicure. It wasn¡¯t easy at all.


    ¡°Are you guys almost done? It¡¯s taking so long and the guest are all almost here,¡±


    My eldest sister Nora said as she walked him, she was heavily pregnant and looked so good in a blue maternity gown, she got lucky and even though her marriage was arranged her husband loved her even Nelly too is a lucky bitch, I am the only unlucky one among us if I didn¡¯t have Louis I might have been the only one stuck in a loveless marriage.


    ¡°Almost done,¡±


    I said smiling at her.


    ¡°I don¡¯t see Juliet around, isn¡¯t she supposed to be here?¡±


    She asked they didn¡¯t know Juliet and I are no longer in talking tense.


    ¡°She is busy sis, and will get hereter,¡±


    I lied not wanting to go into discussing that.


    ¡°Okay, you look beautiful baby sister but you also look so anxious, don¡¯t worry everything will be fine, I felt this way too when I got engaged and it will even be worst on the wedding day.¡±


    My sister said, the makeup artist put a finishing touch to my makeup before excusing herself, I stared at myself in the mirror, I looked really pretty, and the makeup artist did s a great job, I loved what I saw, my sea-blue eyes were sparking even though I felt dead inside, my eyes were one of my best part, I loved them, such a shame that I won¡¯t have time to show off this look.


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to do this No, I really don¡¯t want to get married,¡±


    I said to my sister truthfully, as I turned to face her, showing all my fears and true emotions.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have a choice, it¡¯s your fate and there is no escape, you know that,¡±


    ¡°I hate it, I am not happy, I have been pretending to be okay with the whole engagement but I am not, I just want to live my life, I don¡¯t want to be tied down in a loveless marriage,¡±


    I cried out, I didn¡¯t know what was going on with me but I needed to talk to someone if only there is someone here to help me tell my parents that they didn¡¯t have to give me away in marriage to a man a barely know so that they can keep their family union. If only my siblings can speak on my behalf, then I won¡¯t have to leave them all behind and go to a strangend, I guess it was the fear of living far away from the home I know that is making me speak up.


    ¡°Kathy, I thought we talked about this,¡±


    My other sister Nelly said as she walked in, she was dressed in an elegant bridal style gown and she looked just as pretty as Nelly, both of my sisters were pretty, in fact, everyone in my family had visuals, even my mom and dad.


    ¡°Yeah, we did and you guys told me of how your marriage turned to one of love, but my case is different, can¡¯t you see, Nel, you know the man I am getting married to, you know how he was when we were younger, so how do you expect me to happily be married to someone like that?¡±


    I asked holding back tears, I won¡¯t cry, I promised myself that I won¡¯t.


    ¡°Kathy, don¡¯t cry, I hate it when you guys cry, I promise Cross won¡¯t do anything stupid, and mom, dad, and our family have never made a bad decision, look at me, and Nora and our brother too, he is happy with Jenn, at first it always like this but when it is done you won¡¯t regret it,¡±


    ¡°Well, they are about to make one mistake though,¡±


    I said, I tried, I really tried to talk to them, to ask for help but they are giving me no choice but to go ahead with my n of eloping with the man I love.


    ¡°Kat, mom and dad knows what¡¯s best, if Cross wasn¡¯t good for you, they won¡¯t have pushed through with it,¡±


    Nelly said but I found that hard to believe.


    ¡°Did you know that I was given to him at my birth? Mom and Dad didn¡¯t just wake up and decide this, it has been done the day I was born twenty-three years ago.¡±


    I said trying as much as possible to get them to listen to me but like my parents, they both thought this was what is best for me.


    ¡°We know, and we are telling you that, if dad and mom didn¡¯t see him fit for this they won¡¯t have pushed through with it,¡±


    Nora said, there was no getting to them, I was just wasting my time, and I had to leave, it was already past six.


    ¡°I have heard you guys, please can you tell the driver to help me, I need to get some drugs are the clinic down the road,¡±


    I said to the maid in the room, she nodded and left.


    ¡°Wait, someone can get it for you, you don¡¯t have to leave,¡±


    ¡°I will go myself,¡±


    ¡°Kathy, don¡¯t do anything stupid, you remember how it turned out for me right? You will be an outcast, even we can¡¯t do anything to help so don¡¯t do anything you might regret, I am speaking from experience youngdy,¡±


    My sister said.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what you are on about, I just need some fresh air and I am gonna get it while I buy the pain relief drug, don¡¯t worry I am not you,¡±


    I said and exited the dressing room, I quickly went off to grab my bag in my room, before walking back downstairs through the backdoor, the whole front door was filled with peopleing in and out of the mansion, I met the driver at the parking lot, even the parking lot as big as it was, was already almost filled with different cars, trust my parents to invite the elites to the engagement, well they are gonna have to deal with the embarrassment, I didn¡¯t care, I just needed to get out of this ce.


    ¡°Can you drive me down to the pharmacy down the street, I need to get some drugs and I can¡¯t drive myself,¡±


    I said to him, he nodded and entered the car, I entered too and sat down, bringing out my phone I texted Louis that I just left the house, we were supposed to meet at his house and leave before morning in a rental car he got, we were not taking many things just a few clothes and snakes since the journey from Arizona to Mexico by road takes over a day.


    He didn¡¯t reply to my text, but I wasn¡¯t bothered since we already talked about it.


    When we got to the pharmacy, I got down and went inside to get the drugs but I went through the other door of the store, and quickly got into a cab, as the cab passed by where the driver who brought me was standing I bent down a little, there wasn¡¯t any need for that though, cuz the driver was busy talking with someone and he wasn¡¯t paying attention to the road.


    My phone started ringing, I checked and saw that it was my mom, I picked up so that she won¡¯t be suspicious.


    ¡°Mom, I went to get some drugs,¡±


    ¡°I heard from your sister¡¯s, but get back soon as we don¡¯t want to dy,¡±Property of N?)(velDr(a)ma.Org.


    She said, I could hear the warning in her tone, but I was bent on not listening to that warning, like is it not when they see me that they can disown me? If they don¡¯t they will just have to adjust to living without me, maybe after a long time has passed them I cane back home, but I will make sure toe back as an established woman and also with enough money to pay back what I took from them.


    ¡°Okay, Mom,¡±


    I said, ended the call, and blocked her line immediately. It took about fifty minutes to get to Louis house because I had to switch cabs so that they can¡¯t trace my movement, and, I got down from the second cab two turns before Louis house, and walked the remaining distance to his house on foot, non of my family knew where he lives so no one would know where to look for me. when I entered the ce was quiet, no one was at home, I tried calling his phone but it wasn¡¯t going through, I decided to wait inside for him to get back, ¡°maybe he went to get something,¡± I thought¡­

 Chapter Ten

    Cross Pov


    It took quite a while to get to the hospital and thankfully when we got there, there were doctors to attend to the girl, Anna, she was able to tell me her name and via her phone, I called her patent, I currently stood at the waiting area with Dean, her parents were on their way and until they get here, we can¡¯t leave, the tike was already past seven pm, my phone would be probably ringing nonstop, but I left it in the car.


    ¡°You should go on ahead, Cross, don¡¯t keep everyone waiting, I will wait till her parents are here then I wille,¡±


    Dean saiding to stand beside him.


    ¡°You sure?¡±


    I asked, Dean, didn¡¯t know his way around Arizona so I was skeptical about leaving him here.


    ¡°Yes, bro, and you might wanna change your clothes, you have bloodstains over you,¡±


    ¡°I will ask them to get me some clothes when I get there, please don¡¯t forget to call me,¡±


    I said as I stood up to leave, he followed me down through the hallway to where we packed.


    ¡°Okay,ter Dean,¡±


    I said as I got into the car, the driver who has been waiting for us started the car and we zoned out of the hospital leaving Dean behind.


    ¡°Your phone has been ringing, you might want to check it, your mom called my line and I told her what happened,¡±


    ¡°Alright, thanks,¡±


    I said and checked my phone, I had over twenty-five missed calls, from my mom, brother, and dad, I called my brother back because I didn¡¯t want mom and dad going off on me.


    ¡°Hey, bro, where are you?¡±


    I asked when Max picked up.


    ¡°We are at the Stevenson¡¯s mansion, we just got here literally, we were waiting for you to show up at home but you didn¡¯t, and we couldn¡¯t reach you until mom spoke to the driver who told us where you guys were,¡±


    ¡°Yeah, bro, I am on my way now, could you hit me up with what¡¯s going on there?¡±


    I asked wanting to grab the atmosphere of where I am headed to.


    ¡°Nothing is going on yet, just a bunch of people moving up and down, you lucky bitch, can¡¯t believe you get Kathrine, that bitch is he hot,¡±


    My brother said, I couldn¡¯t deny it either, she was hot, but saying I was lucky wasn¡¯t right though, cuz as hot as I see her, I don¡¯t think she is my type, pampered kids tend to want too much.


    ¡°That¡¯s what you think, anyway can you help me get someone to get me some proper clothes, mine is currently covered in blood,¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, mom already covered that,¡±


    ¡°Okay, then, I will be there in ten minutes,¡±


    ¡°Alright,¡±


    He said and hung up.


    We got to the house, about ten minutester and I called him to get me the clothes but he wasn¡¯t taking his calls,


    ¡°Could you try and get to it, mom?¡±


    I asked the driver who was patiently sitting in the car with me, I didn¡¯t know him because he started working for my parents recently, he too couldn¡¯t reach her so I just or to risk it and enter the house as I am, the house was filled with people and they were all partying, only a few noticed a blood-stained me, and the looked at me with curious eyes, I didn¡¯t mind as I found my way towards the house, but a security guy stopped me halfway in.


    ¡°Sir, who are you, and why are you here?¡±


    He asked, I guess he didn¡¯t know who I was, so I turned to him to reveal my identity but I could find my wallet which contained my identity card.


    ¡°I am the one getting engaged,¡±


    I said but he seemed not to believe me, because he looked at my blood-stained clothes, and back to my face, I should have asked the driver toe with me, but I didn¡¯t think my ID will be a problem, I tried calling my family again but no one was taking their calls.


    ¡°Sir, I am sorry but you can¡¯t be here, you need to leave right now,¡±


    He said, I wanted to punch him, I understand that he was doing his job but he didn¡¯t even bother to confirm what I was saying.


    ¡°Dude, I just told you I am the one getting engaged, do you have a problemprehending that?¡±


    I asked in anger.


    ¡°Sir, you will please leave now or I will have to drag you out he said already radioing his fellows, I just stood there wanting to punch something or someone, I didn¡¯t want to be here in the first ce, maybe I would have just stayed at the hospital with Anna, maybe that was God¡¯s way of saving me, seriously contemting leaving, I turned around, but someone called out my name stopping my leaving, turned around and saw my brother walking towards me, he wore a suit, that guy never wears a suit, he was always on casual wears and makes fun of me every time because I am almost always on the suit, for once he looked matured


    ¡°I have been trying to reach you but you weren¡¯t taking your calls neither was mym and dad,¡±


    I said as he moved closer.


    ¡°Is he someone you know, young master?¡±


    The security man asked him and once again I felt like delivering a punch to his face.


    ¡°Yes, he is my brother,¡±Property of N?)(velDr(a)ma.Org.


    ¡°Oh, sorry sir, for the harassment,¡±


    Thank God he at least knew it was harassment, but I didn¡¯t bother to acknowledge him.


    ¡°Sorry, we didn¡¯t take your calls we are having a bit of a situation here,¡±


    He said.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡±


    I asked as he guided me towards the main house.


    ¡°Well, Kathy went to get pain reliever and she has note back yet,¡±


    ¡°Who is Kathy?¡±


    I asked wondering who she was and why her noting back from getting drugs should cause a situation.


    ¡°Really? He asked, stopping in front of me and forcing his hands, he looked almost as big as me but I was still bigger.


    ¡°Should I know her?¡±


    ¡°Of course you should, she is the one you are getting engaged with and your wife to be,¡±


    He disclosed and realization dawn on me, so the short form of her name is what he called.


    ¡°Oh, but why is that a situation though?¡±


    ¡°Bro, I can¡¯t believe you are asking me that, he has been gone for a whole hour before we got here and her still not being here by now only means trouble, don¡¯t you get it?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t, wait, you mean she might have run away?¡±


    I asked suddenly not liking the idea.


    ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s what I think but mom said that I shouldn¡¯t say that to her, that Katherine is a good girl,¡±


    He said.


    ¡°Well, why not try to reach her?¡±


    I asked as we walked into a room that I presumed was the guess room given to us,¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s why I am sure she might have run away, she cannot be reached,¡±


    ¡°What? So what am I doing here then? Why didn¡¯t you tell me this when you called so that I didn¡¯t have to waste my timeing here?¡±


    I asked getting angry all over again.


    ¡°Well, the thing is, we just got here then and didn¡¯t know what was going on, most people still don¡¯t know, her family members are still trying to reach her, one thing is the driver that took her is not yet back so they have a little hope even though he too is not picking his calls,¡±


    He exined.


    ¡°Where are mom and dad? I need to speak with them and grab what¡¯s really going on, I hope it is not what I think because, I will really be mad if it turns out that I stopped everything that I was going, got on a ne, and came here for nothing,¡±


    I said trying as much as possible to control my growing temper, no need to be tensed yet, maybe she had something to do or maybe she was stuck somewhere.


    ¡°There are at the other room, you just get changed and I will go get mom, no need for you to go over there yet, and please try to control your temper,¡±


    He said and left, I changed into something new and texted Dean to ask him if Anna¡¯s parents were around yet, but he texted back that there still weren¡¯t, said there was another ident on the way and they were stuck in traffic, I wanted to call and ask him which area but then my mom and brother walked in.


    ¡°Son,¡±


    My mom called, she looked tired and stressed out, almost going into panic mode.


    ¡°Mom? What¡¯s going on? Is what Max said true?¡±


    I asked.


    ¡°Hmm, so we don¡¯t know yet, her driver just got back without her and her family are speaking with him we just have to wait and see,¡±


    My mom said sitting on the bed.


    ¡°Wow, mom? Is this what I came back for? I hope it not, because I will say that I told ya,¡±


    I said, trying as much as possible to keep my cool.


    ¡°I can¡¯t sit here, so if you don¡¯t mind guiding me to where her parents her I need to speak with them,¡±


    I said already walking out of the room, I heard my mom and brother call my name as they followed behind me¡­

 Chapter 11

    Kathy Pov


    I stood by the window looking out to see if Louis wasing but he wasn¡¯t and the time was way past nine pm, I called his cell again but it still wasn¡¯t going through, even when it did go through he didn¡¯t take his calls, I wondered where he was and why he didn¡¯t tell me he would be going out, my phone has been ringing nonstop, and at a point, I considered turning it off, but I needed to reach Louis so I couldn¡¯t turn it off, I didn¡¯t know where he would have gone too, I have been here for over one hour now and still no sight of him, neither is he picking his calls, I was beginning to worry, why didn¡¯t he tell me that he won¡¯t be at home, he should have at least notified me then I wouldn¡¯t have to be worried.


    ¡°No need to panic Katherine, just calm down,¡±


    I said to myself but I couldn¡¯t calm down, we have to leave town today or my parents are going to find me, I called his number again, silently praying that he picks up if not I am going to go into full panic mode, and thankfully, it went through and he picked up


    ¡°Oh my God, Louis where are you? I have been trying to reach you,¡±


    I screamed when he picked up.


    ¡°Sorry, baby but I had to take Pearl to the clinic, I will be back by morning and we can leave,¡±


    He said.


    ¡°What? You know we have to leave tonight, you could have taken her to the hospital, she is a grown woman and can take care of herself or you could also have here with use on Louis,¡±Copyright N?v/el/Dra/ma.Org.


    I sounded insensitive even to my ears but I was way past caring, if my parents find me now, I will be in deep shit, I didn¡¯t care about a grown woman who could have easily taken herself to the hospital


    ¡°Don¡¯t be so selfish Katherine, Pearl is my rtive I can¡¯t just abandon her knowing she is sick, so it either you wait for me or go back to your parents,¡±


    He said, this was the first time he raised his voice at me, we often disagreed and he gets mad at me sometimes too but this was the first time he would shout at me, I felt tears well up in my eyes and angrily wiped them off.


    ¡°What? Louis, for real? You know I risked a lot for this, Pearl was fine until today, I saw her this afternoon when we did that video call and she looked fine, so how is she so sick now that you have to stay with her at the hospital? And which hospital are you guys I cane over to, then we can leave from there,¡±


    I said already picking up my bag.


    ¡°No, Katherine, you stay in the house, do as I say girl, don¡¯t be so fucking stubborn,¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s what you think? That I am being stubborn, well try running away from home, knowing your family can find you in any moment and it won¡¯t be nice one bit, I am fucking nervous right now so forgive me for thinking only about myself, Louis, we had a n, you didn¡¯t bother to tell me you were going to the hospital and I have been calling since, do you know how I felting here and meeting an empty house? How worried and scared I was when you didn¡¯t pick my calls, you don¡¯t know the half of it Louis, so forgive me for not thinking about your sick rtive,¡±


    I let out in frustration.


    ¡°I know, and I am sorry, but there is nothing I can do okay, it either you stay there and I will meet you up so that we can leave in the morning or go back home, it is your choice,¡±


    He said and hung up, I screamed and threw my phone away, I started pacing up and down wondering what to do, my phone started ringing, I checked and it was a strange number, I didn¡¯t think before picking it up and regretted it immediately, cuz the voice that spoke is a voice that I thought I have forgotten after ten freaking years but looks like I didn¡¯t anyway because I recognized his voice, Cross.


    ¡°Don¡¯t you hang up on me youngdy, where ever you are you better starting back home or I will sniff you out and you won¡¯t like what I will do to you,¡±


    He threatened.


    ¡°Who the fuck are you?¡±


    I asked.


    ¡°Don¡¯t y dumb with me bitch, if you know you didn¡¯t want the engagement you would have just said so and not have everyone gather here just so you could embarrass us, I don¡¯t fancy my family being aughing stock, better get your ass back here,¡±


    He said.


    ¡°You can keep your threats Mr. I have no intentions ofing back, I never said I will marry you, neither did we ever meet, so what ground do you have? I don¡¯t have any obligations to you or your family, you guys and my family made your bed and you have toy on it, it not on me, it¡¯s on you guys because I wasn¡¯t informed, I was only told, no force and I don¡¯t fancy people forcing me into doing what I don¡¯t want, have a nice day or a bad day,¡±


    ¡°Bitch if you didn¡¯t cooperate and just told everyone where you stood, then we won¡¯t all be here, I don¡¯t want this either but I agreed to it and I traveled all the way from New York here and you disappear, talk about being irresponsible, what you have no obligations to us? That¡¯s what you think, bitch, the moment you agreed to this engagement, is the moment you chose to be part of it, so you must follow through,¡±


    He said in anger, I didn¡¯t have to be listening to him, no I didn¡¯t have to, I heard my mother¡¯s voice in the background wanting to speak with me, but looks like Cross didn¡¯t give her the phone.


    ¡°I am gonna hang up now, y¡¯all deal with the mess, and clean it up pretty well, of, and tell my mom she should get married to you instead since she is so bent on keeping the family rtionship.¡±


    I said cockily


    ¡°You will regret this, I am gonna find you bitch, and make you pay for this, you better hide well because when I find you, you will wish you were not in this world.¡±


    I heard him say before I hung up, I turned my phone off, I shook off the threats because there was no way he is gonna find me, not when I will be long gone before they even know where I was since Louis already said I should wait till it the morning I trusted him so I will wait, I took off my clothes and makeup andy on the bed to sleep it was hard to fall asleep with so much going on but due to my tired body, in no time I got the sleep¡­

 Chapter 12

    Cross Pov


    She hung up on me, the bitch fucking hung up on me, I stared at the phone in my hand in disbelief, I tried calling it again and the phone has been turned off, I turned to face her parents and mine in anger, I couldn¡¯t believe what just happened.


    ¡°So, y¡¯all telling I came all the way from New York for this? To be humiliated? Mom? Dad?¡±


    I asked, trying but failing so hard at controlling my anger, I shouldn¡¯t direct it towards them but I was pained, I was beyond pained, not even in a million years did I imagine that this, something so embarrassing wille to my family, and here I was, I came all the way from New York and the bitch decided to ditch me, even if it takes moving heaven and earth I will find her and make her pay, the guests were already talking, the event was supposed to start by seven and it way passes nine pm still nothing, of course, they would start talking and before long they will find out what happened, that¡¯s if they don¡¯t already know.


    ¡°Son, calm down,¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t fucking tell me to calm down mom,¡±


    I yelled.


    ¡°Cross, mind yournguage,¡±


    My dad said and I dragged my hands through my hair in frustration before turning to him.


    ¡°Dad? Do you think mynguage is the problem here? Do you know what this might cost our family? The kind of ridicule, this shouldn¡¯t have happened, if y¡¯all knew sue wasn¡¯t in for this y¡¯all shouldn¡¯t have gathered people here, you should have made sure she was okay with it,¡±


    I said turning round to make sure I pointed at every one of them, my parents, her parents, and siblings, they are looked down and shocked, but I didn¡¯t care, please, this was on them, she was right about one thing she said, and yes it was on their parents, but that didn¡¯t mean he would let her get away with it.


    ¡°We will try and find her, please calm down, I understand you are angry and rightly so,¡±


    Her older brother said. I knew him, we met at simr events a hell lots of times, he was around my age, we weren¡¯t enemies but we weren¡¯t friends either, we just greet each other in passing.


    ¡°No one knew she was going to back out, she was in on it, at least that¡¯s what she made us all believe if she had given even a small hint of not wanting this, I swear this wouldn¡¯t have happened, we will find her, just calm down,¡±


    Her mother said almost in tears, but I didn¡¯t let her use her emotions against me, that¡¯s what women always do, they emotionally ckmail you into giving in to their shots only my mom had that power over me, that¡¯s why I am trying very much to avoid her gaze.


    ¡°I am out of here, y¡¯all fix this, but one thing is sure I am going to make her pay for this, she should better pray that I don¡¯t find her first,¡±


    I said making my way out of the room.


    ¡°Don¡¯t do anything stupid, young man, leave everything to her family, they know how best to deal with her, you just go back to New York,¡±


    My dad said, stopping my leaving.


    ¡°Well, it doesn¡¯t look like her parents can handle her, if not we won¡¯t be having this discussion,¡±


    I said bitterly.


    ¡°Young man, watch yournguage, irrespective of the situation on the ground, I will not have you insult me in my own house,¡±


    Her dad said, I felt sorry for what I said, but not enough to apologize, I knew my manners and how to respect people but this whole situation wasn¡¯t normal, so no one should expect me to react any other way, I had every right to be angry.


    ¡°I am out of here,¡±Property of N?)(velDr(a)ma.Org.


    I said and left the room, people were gathered in small groups whispering when I came out of the room to the big living room that was used for events when they saw me, they all sort of went mute, and as soon as I passed, I could hear their voices again, walking aside the mansion, I met people with the same expression, the kind of expression I hated and never wanted to be directed at me PITY, I saw pity in their eyes and it pissed me off, even more, I walked all the way to where the car was parked, the driver looked up when he saw meing, I signaled for him to give me the keys.


    ¡°Don¡¯t give the keys to him,¡±


    My brother called running towards us, I tried to collect the keys from the man but the side seemed to listen to my brother instead of me, cuz he kept the keys back in his pocket.


    ¡°What the fuck is wrong with you? Give me the key,¡± I yelled but he didn¡¯t respond.


    ¡°Cross, I understand how you feel, I feel the rage too, but please don¡¯t do anything you might regret, you are the rational one among the two of us,¡±


    My brother said.


    ¡°I am not going to do anything, I left an injured child at the hospital, I need to go back and see how she is, the only reason I came here is not happening so there is no need for me to be here,¡±


    I said stretching my hands to the driver for the keys.


    ¡°You were the one that hit her?¡±


    Max asked in shock.


    ¡°No, I am not, I mean I wasn¡¯t even the one driving,¡±


    ¡°Aha, that¡¯s true, but let the driver take you, you are in no state to drive,¡±


    He advised, Max who has always been a trouble maker and who always gets himself in shits, told me to calm down, I never thought this day wille but because of one little witch, it did.


    ¡°We will take care of things here, and head home, please don¡¯t leave Arizona without seeing our patents Cross.


    ¡°Fine,¡± I said and got into the car, I am just gonna get to the hospital, get Dean and get the hell out of Arizona, my parents will be fine, Max spoke to the driver and he got into the car and drove me back to the hospital, I met Dean still seated at the reception, I looked around and the girl¡¯s parents were still not in sight, maybe they were speaking to the doctor, I thought. Dean looked shocked to see me.


    ¡°Man? Are you guys done? so fast?¡±


    ¡°No, she ran away,¡±


    I revealed, not wanting to beat around the bush.


    ¡°What do you mean by that?¡±


    ¡°You heard me, the bitch ditched me and ran away, her parents are trying to look for her but I couldn¡¯t stay there, has Anna¡¯s parents still not arrived?¡±


    ¡°About that, Cross, I don¡¯t think they areing,¡±


    He revealed.


    ¡°What do you mean by that?¡±


    ¡°Hmm, it a long story, the doctor came in and said, Anna is pregnant and I think her parent disowned her or something, cuz after you left I kinda called them again but they switched off their phones and when Anna came out of surgery, the only thing she said to me was that, her parents are not gonna show up, that we should have left her there to die, she hasn¡¯t said another word to me,¡±


    ¡°But how is she doing?¡±


    ¡°She is fine, but not talking to anyone, not even the doctors,¡±


    ¡°Great, this night just got worst didn¡¯t it,¡±


    ¡°I am Afraid it did,¡±


    ¡°And I came here so that we can leave but looks like we can¡¯t because there is no way I am leaving a kid with a kid alone when they have no one,¡±


    I said sitting down next to him.


    ¡°We should go talk to the doctor together and know when she will be discharged don¡¯t you think?¡±


    Yeah, sure, and you need to change too, go meet the driver at the parking lot, he will give you something else to wear, I will go see the doctor myself,¡±


    I said as I stood up again.


    ¡°Okay, don¡¯t think about it too much Cross,¡±


    ¡°Think about what? The bitch who ran away? Don¡¯t worry I am gonna deal with her,¡±


    I said in a determined voice.


    ¡°I pity her though, she just got herself in a mess, but take it easy please,¡±


    ¡°Go and change man, you reck of blood,¡±


    ¡°Right,¡±


    He said and left, I headed towards the doctor¡¯s office after asking the receptionist who pointed me in the direction it was.


    ¡°God give me strength,¡±


    I prayed as I walked into his office¡­

 Chapter 13

    Cross Pov


    I knocked on the doctor¡¯s office and she told me toe in, the doctor was a petite pretty woman who would be around herte forties, I greeted her and she told me to sit down


    ¡°You are the guy that brought Anna in?¡±


    ¡°Yes, Doc,¡±


    I said sitting down and looking around the office, it looked like the typical doctor¡¯s office, it looked very clean too.


    ¡°Well, I spoke to the other guy who was with you already, thankful, the impact of the ident wasn¡¯t that strong, but she needs extra care, because the baby is still at a stage where it can easily be miscarried, and Anna really doesn¡¯t want to give the kid up, because that¡¯s the first thing she asked when she woke up,¡±


    ¡°So, what do you advise that I do?¡±


    ¡°Are you the one responsible for her? I thought her parents areing?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t think so, she is kind of like my responsibility now,¡±


    I said I didn¡¯t know why I felt the need to help Anna put, I didn¡¯t even know her but she looked so lonely and weak during our drive to the hospital and hearing that her parents didn¡¯t want her anymore because she got pregnant, made me want to help her more, she looked so fragile, she reminds me of someone I used to know, someone whose memory I buried somewhere in my heart.


    ¡°Well, I advise that she is not left on her own, she may want her baby to live but the urge to end it all is even more strong, the ident might not even be an ident, she might have jumped in front of the car, so keep her close always, and also make sure she eats well, she looks malnourished and that¡¯s not good for the baby,¡±


    ¡°Okay, thanks Doc, can I go see her?¡±


    ¡°Yes sure, but she doesn¡¯t want to speak with anyone, just try maybe she will talk to you,¡±


    She said and I stood up, thanked her and left her office, and headed back towards the room Anna was.


    When I entered her room she was awake and looking around but as soon as she saw me, she closed her eyes.


    ¡°Hey, Anna,¡± I called but she didn¡¯t respond to me. ¡°I know you are not sleeping, Anna,¡±


    ¡°Go away,¡±


    ¡°For real? I saved you, you are not even gonna tell me thank you?¡±


    I asked softly and sat by her bed, she turned towards the other side.


    ¡°I never asked you to help me,¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s not how I remember it though, I remember you begging to live,¡±


    ¡°You should have left me there, I would have been resting in peace now, no, but you had to be nosy, even though I cried for help, you should have left me there,¡±


    She said bitterly, I could feel her crying.


    ¡°Hey, Anna, I am sorry, I am sorry I helped you when you wanted to die, but I just couldn¡¯t watch someone, most especially a child doe,¡±


    ¡°Ism not a child!!!¡±


    She yelled and stood up from the bed, he jumped up and held her back down.


    ¡°I am not a fucking child, if you don¡¯t know I am having a baby too,¡±


    ¡°I know, Anna, I know, I am sorry if I offended you, please calm down,¡±


    I said, holding her down, her whole body shook with pent-up anger, I couldn¡¯t believe I was being so soft for her, wow only my mom could do this, my mom and that other person.


    ¡°I hate my life,¡±


    ¡°No Anna, shots happen but it doesn¡¯t mean you have to hate yourself, you are a strong woman, a brave one, you need to keep your strength for yourself and your baby,¡±


    I said, gradually letting hery back on the bed, she started crying again.


    ¡°I am sorry, I am sorry,¡±


    She kept repeating through her tears.


    ¡°It¡¯s okay, you will be fine,¡±


    I said giving her my handkerchief, she took it from me and wiped her face clean, before facing me again, she looked so scared and young, this felt like Deja Vu, ¡®cut it out, this is not about you,¡¯ I mentally scolded myself.


    ¡°Anna, whatever happened, I am not going to question you but when you feel it okay then you can tell me, but just know that you are no longer alone, you have me now, and the other guy Dean too, you just have to be okay for yourself and your baby, okay?¡±


    I said. I expected her not to answer but she nodded in agreement and whispered something that sounded like thank you before closing her eyes, even with her eyes closed, she looked so tired, she was too young to be going through this, too young to look so tired and done with life, she made me forget my own issues, I stood up touched her forehead to make sure she was okay before leaving her room, I met Dean on the way.


    ¡°Hey, you spoke with the doctor?¡±


    ¡°Yes, and with Anna too,¡±


    ¡°Wow, she talked to you?¡±


    ¡°Yes, she did, she is sleeping now,¡±N?velDrama.Org owns this.


    ¡°Aha, good, so what are we going to do about her?¡±


    ¡°What do you mean, I am gonna stay with her tonight and take her home to my parents tomorrow, she will stay with them until I can have her move to New York with me,¡±


    I said when I came to those conclusions I didn¡¯t know but one thing I know for sure was I am not gonna let Anna end up like her, no way.


    ¡°Wow, I never knew you could be this soft-heartened, wow,¡±


    ¡°Cut it out dude, I am tired,¡±


    I said and headed towards the exit.


    ¡°Stay close to her, I need to make a call,¡±


    I said.


    ¡°Who are you calling?¡±


    ¡°My mom, I am going to tell her that I am bringing someone to her house,¡±


    ¡°Yeah, she should be aware,¡±


    ¡°Please stay close to her, until I get back,¡±


    ¡°Okay, boss,¡±


    He replied in a mocking voice, I wasn¡¯t in the mood for his jokes so I just let it pass.


    ¡°Good, I said and turned to leave, my mind made up that Anna and her baby are now my responsibility.

 Chapter 14

    Kathy Pov


    I woke up with a start, checked the wall clock on Louis¡¯s bedroom and it was some minutes past seven am, I quickly got up from the bed and looked around the house, but Louis was still not around, I couldn¡¯t turn my phone back on to avoid it getting tracked, I should have thought of it getting trackedst night but I was much too nervous, I went to where the house line was kept and dialed his number, it rang and rang but he didn¡¯t pick up, I took the house line with me to the living room sat there and called him again, but still no response, I even went as far as calling his cousin Pearl, she too didn¡¯t take her to call, worried could no longer be used to describe how I was feeling.


    ¡°Come on Louis,¡±


    I said biting down hard on my lips, I fought to keep the tears off my eyes but still a few found their way out, I walked into the kitchen and tried to distract myself by making us breakfast, maybe he will be back before it is ready, I thought.


    The minutes tickled into hours and still, he didn¡¯t show up, at a point, I turned on my phone and called him still no reply.


    I wondered what could have happened or was he mad at me because of how I talked about his cousinst night? I couldn¡¯t figure out anything, I left the room and walked around the house thinking of what to do since he is not showing up, I had to leave, I couldn¡¯t stay here any longer, I had to get out of here fast, but then it dawned on me, all the money that we are gonna use for the move was with him, I had nothing on me except the little money with me in my purse, and that was not gonna be enough for anything, this time I really became worried that something wasn¡¯t adding up, I didn¡¯t like the idea that was beginning to form in my head, I didn¡¯t want it to be that Louis would not do that to me, never as my head was rolling in thoughts my phone rang, I picked up immediately.


    ¡°Hello, Pearl where are you guys?¡±


    ¡°Little girl I am not your mate, add some respect to my name,¡±This content provided by N(o)velDrama].[Org.


    Came her response, I didn¡¯t mind her tone or anything, I just needed to speak with Louis.


    ¡°I am sorry, for being disrespectful Pearl, can you please put Louis on the phone I need to talk to him,¡±


    ¡°Oh, but I can¡¯t, he is in the bathroom,¡±


    ¡°What? What bathroom?¡±


    ¡°Little girl, haven¡¯t you figured it out yet? Are you that clueless, you had the whole might and you still can¡¯t figure it out?¡±


    ¡°Figure what out Pearl? What¡¯s going on what are you talking about?¡±


    I asked with fear.


    ¡°Do I really need to spell it out for you?¡±


    ¡°Stop ying games Pearl, I thought Louis said you were sick? Howe your voice sounds okay and would you please go straight to the point,¡±


    I screamed losing my patience.


    ¡°Don¡¯t shout at me girl, it¡¯s not my fault if you were fooled,¡±


    She shouted back at me


    ¡°What are you talking about? Where are you guys? Where is my boyfriend?¡±


    ¡°I will tell you since you are much too dumb to figure it out yourself, we, me and Louis always left town, you were scammed, we have all the money we needed and we don¡¯t need one little spoilt princess toe with us,¡±


    She revealed, there was no way I am going to believe her, no way Louis would do that to me, but even as I thought it my heart sake to the ground, things just weren¡¯t adding up, we were supposed to leavest night and I am still in the city by now, it way past ten am already, I haven¡¯t and Pearl didn¡¯t sound like someone who was sick, I sat down on the ground.


    ¡°Pearl, can you give the phone to Louis please, I need to talk to him,¡±


    I pleaded hot tears gushing down my eyes.


    ¡°Hmm, you finally found out, baby girl, I am been generous here that¡¯s why I decided to call you and tell you since you keep calling nonstop, anyway after this moment you won¡¯t be able to reach this line or Louis¡¯s line again, I think he left something for you in the bedroom, if you had just raised the pillow then you would have seen it,¡±


    She said and I jumped up and ran all the way to the bedroom, lifting the pillow there was indeed a note more like a short letter.


    ¡°I am guessing you found it, so my job here is done, you can¡¯t go to the police because they won¡¯t have anything to track us with, just so you know Pearl and Louis are not our real name, I should hang up now, my man will soon be out of the bathroom,¡±


    ¡°Your man?¡±


    I asked in confusion.


    ¡°Yes, my man, that¡¯s another little detail you didn¡¯t figure out, Louis is my boyfriend, not my cousin, anyway, now he is fully mine again I didn¡¯t like sharing with you but I had no choice, see you Katherine whenever. Have a nice life, or maybe not,¡±


    She said and hung up with augh.


    Everything suddenly made sense, and I saw how much of a fool, I must have been, the rules, the no calls, and noting to his house without notice, there had been so many red lights, how did I not figure it out, how, just how did I not see through them, I had never liked Pearl but I didn¡¯t think of her anything more than Louis cousin, what a fool I have been.


    I didn¡¯t know what to do, I stared at my phone and the letter in my hands, afraid of what I will find it I opened it, I couldn¡¯t believe Louis would do this to me, I tried calling his number again but it said the number no longer existed, the same thing was said when I called Pearl¡¯s number, I sat down on the floor in the bedroom, letter in one hand and my phone in the other with tears in my eyes, I wished this would all just be a bad dream brought about by my nervous brain, but as I sat there for another ten minutes I knew it wasn¡¯t a dream, I dropped my phone and opened the letter, it wasn¡¯t a long letter like I expected, it was more of a short note written on a big paper, it read.


    ¡°Kathrine Stevenson, thank you for the money, I will spend it well, and for the sex too, hope we meet again someday, xoxo..¡±


    And that was it, nothing else just thanking me for the sex and for my money, what a fool I have been.


    ¡°Kathrine, you foolish girl,¡±


    I screamed, crying out with pain, Juliet had warned me, she warned me, but I didn¡¯t listen to her instead I cut her off, now look at where I am, what am I going to do? I can¡¯t go back home my parents would not take me back, no they won¡¯t, my mom warned me.


    The tears kept pouring and I let them fall, this is all my fault, all my life saving, everything, every penny was with him, the man I thought loved me but who turned out to be just who my best friend warned me he was if only I had listened to her.


    I cried myself to sleep and even in myself, I found myself crying and my thoughts were,


    ¡°What am I going to do? How am I going to survive? How would I face my family?¡±

 Chapter 15

    Cross Pov


    We spent the night at the hospital, one I didn¡¯t want to leave Anna on her own, and also, I didn¡¯t want to be in the same space as my parent, I was still mad at what happened, and the media even got wind of it, by this morning it already blew up, I had to wear a face cap and mask as if I was some kind of celebrity, I hated it, hated to be the center of attention, that¡¯s why I preferred to stay away from my family, cuz my parents and brothers were almost always on the news, in New York I barely made TV appearances unless it is business-rted, I keep my private life off the news as much as I can.


    ¡°You look like you wanna hit something,¡±


    Dean said walking up to me, the hospital finally decided to let us take Anna with us after making sure that we could take care of her, they had wanted her to go into child support but she didn¡¯t want that, and the fact that she was already eighteen had helped quicken the decision to let her go with us, still, we had to sign a hell lot of papers, and also she couldn¡¯t leave Arizona without proper approve, which wasn¡¯t a problem cuz I already apoke to my mum and she agreed to let Anna stay at our house, even when I tood her she was pregnant she still agreed, as for the little witch that ran away has still not been located, ording to mom, her parents said they would find her, but I wasn¡¯t interested in their finding her, I didn¡¯t want anything to do with her or her family, but if I do find her first, I will make sure she never forgets me in a hurry, she should pray, that she is never found or that her parents find her because if I do, she will hate me, no one embarrasses me or my family and goes free.


    ¡°Dude, cut it out or you are gonna scare her,¡±


    ¡°Who?¡±


    ¡°Anna, she looks scared already and your face is not helping here,¡±


    ¡°My face is covered, dude,¡±


    ¡°But I can see through it, look I know you are angry, and rightfully so, but don¡¯t do anything you might regret, it¡¯s her loss for running away from someone like you,¡±


    ¡°I am not going to do a thing, as long as she doesn¡¯t show in my face, as long as I don¡¯t see her, but I can¡¯t promise anything if I do see her, so she should better hide well,¡±


    ¡°You know, I know you are angry, but think about this, even you weren¡¯t ready for marriage, and you wanted out even until yesterday, so how do you feel she would have felt knowing she is going to get engaged to someone she didn¡¯t like and maybe didn¡¯t know, think about it and cut her some ck,¡±


    Dean advised and I eyed him, she would have left before the day of the supposed engagement and saved us all the embarrassment, I wasn¡¯t there when they announced to the guests that the engagement was no longer holding but I could still feel the embarrassment they would have felt, everything would have been avoided, and I wouldn¡¯t have had toe to Arizona.


    ¡°If she didn¡¯t want it, she would have left before the day, she would have at least shown any sign of not wanting it, not yed along and leave on the day of the engagement, and we are both not the same, at least I honored my words to my parents even if I didn¡¯t want to, she should have taken responsibility for agreeing,¡±


    ¡°Yes, you are right but I still think you should cut her some ck, maybe she is in love with someone,¡±


    ¡°Can we stop this discussion, I don¡¯t wanna hear it or talk about it again,¡±


    I said and walked off to where the nurse was helping Anna into a wheelchair and offered to roll her out, Dean picked up her bag and we walked together out of the hospital.


    ¡°Are you sure your parents won¡¯t mind a pregnant strange teenage girl living with them? I can go back to where I have been staying, I promise I won¡¯t harm myself or the baby,¡±


    Anna said in a weak voice.


    ¡°No, Anna, you are staying with my parents, don¡¯t worry, my house is big enough and my old nanny can do a nice job with helping you,¡±


    I replied.


    ¡°For real? I don¡¯t want to be a bother to you, you guys have done enough already,¡±


    ¡°Anna, you are staying with my family and that¡¯s final,¡±


    I said, leaving no room for argument, she gave up and closed her eyes, she looked so young and tired, I wonder how her parents felt leaving a young girl like that to care for herself, no matter what a child does, parents should not and are not supposed to throw their kids out.


    We got to the house, my parents and brother were waiting for us in the living room and as soon as we stepped in, my nanny who took care of me took Anna to the room they already prepared for her, she still looked scared even after I introduced her to everyone, but I know she will get used to it, my family might be Chaotic but they are the best.


    ¡°Son, how are you feeling?¡±


    My mom asked when it was just me, her dad, Max, and Dean in the room.


    ¡°I am okay,¡±


    ¡°I am sorry about what happened,¡±


    ¡°No, you should not apologize, you didn¡¯t know it would happen either, it on the bitch that ran away,¡±


    I said, feeling bittered and angry at the thought of her, I didn¡¯t even know her face all that much so I couldn¡¯t even get a proper version of her in my head, but still, I wanted to crush her.


    ¡°Your dad already spoke with the media and thru won¡¯t spread it beyond what it already is, It turns out she had nned to run away, she didn¡¯t just up and run cuz she was anxious, she nned it all out, all the while ying along, she fooled everyone even her parents, they are all in shock.¡±


    My mom revealed.


    ¡°How do you know that mom?¡±


    ¡°A huge sum of money was removed from her ount, I think about ten million,¡±Copyright N?v/el/Dra/ma.Org.


    Max revealed, and Iughed out loud, so the little devil had it all nned out, well good for her, I hope she knows how to manage though because ten million would be gone like a breeze if she is the extravagant type which I was sure she was.


    ¡°Can we not talk about her again? The engagement didn¡¯t happen, end of the story,¡±


    I said I didn¡¯t want to hear any more things about her, I am going to pretend that it all didn¡¯t happen.


    ¡°Okay, you look stressed, both of you, so if you would go in and shower then I will have the cook bring some food to you, you guys did a good job, and don¡¯t worry I will make sure the girls get the best of everything, she will be the younger sister I never gave you two,¡±


    My mom said and I moved to hug her, I knew I could trust her,


    ¡°Thanks, ma,¡±


    ¡°You are wee darling, it good to have you home,¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry I am staying for the whole of the week,¡±


    I announced.


    ¡°Oh, really? That¡¯s good,¡±


    My mom replied.


    ¡°The both of you get off my face,¡±


    My dad who has been silent all this while said and pushed my mom and me aside as she walked past us.


    ¡°Don¡¯t mind him, he is just Jealous,¡±


    My mom said.


    ¡°You both are too much, I am out of here, can¡¯t stand this mum, son moments, Dean are youing?¡±


    My brother said pulling Dean off with him, they always do that when my mom and I start talking, yeah I am a Mama boy, it¡¯s not my fault I love my mom.


    ¡±


    Don¡¯t mind them, son, they are just jealous, Go take a bath son,¡±


    ¡°I will, but ma,¡±


    ¡°Yes?¡±


    ¡°Can you please not arrange another engagement or marriage, I will get married when I want to,¡±


    She let out a breath and nodded, I knew she wanted to say more, but she didn¡¯t, I walked to my room, took a bath, ate the food that was left in my room for me, andy on my bed, tired, I fell asleep as soon as I hit the bed.

 Chapter 16

    Kathy Pov


    I spent the whole of the week at Louis or whatever his real name was, at first, I couldn¡¯t bring myself to believe that what happened was true, but as the days went by, reality began to dawn on me, I still didn¡¯t know what to do, I had no money with me, for the first two days I didn¡¯t eat anything but I could only starve my self for just a short time, I had to eat and thankfully there was food in the fridge, I survived on them, but still the food avable in the house was fast running out, every day I wake up and think of what I am going to do but nothing seemed to click, I ruined my life myself for believing and trusting a scammer, even when my friends and family told me to stay away, if only I had listened to Juliet, I wouldn¡¯t be in this mess, not like there is much I could do right now, I may be sturbborn but I knew I was spoilt, I didn¡¯t know how to do a lot of basic things, except cooking because my nanny made sure to teach me how to cook not to mention that I love eating, apart from cooking, i hated doing any other works, even if i looked for a job, just how long would Ist?


    I walked to the sitting room with a bowl of ice cream in my hands, I hadn¡¯tbed my hair for days nor had I washed it but I didn¡¯t care, I passed through the mirror and stopped to look at myself, I looked worn out and tired, my eyes were bloody red from crying and my hair was a raggy mess on my head, I tried to brush them back with my hands as hot tears gathered in my eyes again, that¡¯s how I have been living for the past few days crying, sleeping, eating and crying and the circles go on.


    I left the mirror and made my way to sit down, I checked my phone, even though I had turned it off for three days I turned it back on, I had nothing to live again, it would be better if my parents or Cross find me, that way I won¡¯t end up killing myself, but no one called nor texted, every day I check my phone and it always silent, I didn¡¯t want to call them, no I was scared to call them, my mom already threatened to disown me, and my credit cards have already been cut, I found out when I turned my phone on, which means they must have known about the money I removed from my ount, I felt like a loser, I shouldn¡¯t have trusted Louis, I thought he loved me but he turned out not to be, he saw me as a quick way to make money and I foolishly gave that to him easily, I felt fresh tears well up in my eyes and wiped them off.


    I have cried enough these past few days tost me a lifetime, I didn¡¯t know where more tears wereing from, I needed to pick it up ande up with a n, I picked up my phone and decided to call any member of my family, my first stop was Nelson, but he didn¡¯t pick up so I called Nathan instead, he too didn¡¯t pick up, maybe they are both busy, I didn¡¯t want to hear an ear full from my sisters but I had no choice, I needed to speak with someone, I couldn¡¯t continue like this, if I continued like this I might end up killing myself, I called Nora and she picked, I let out a breath of relief begin speaking in a low tone.


    ¡°Hello, No?¡±


    ¡°Kathy? Is that you? Where are you, Katherine?¡±


    ¡°In Arizona,¡±


    I answered sniffing back tears.


    ¡°Where in Arizona? We have been looking for you for one whole week, I shouldn¡¯t even be talking to you, I would get in trouble,¡±


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°Mom, she warned you not to do anything you might regret right? I warned you too but you didn¡¯t listen, if only you have listened to me, Kathy,¡±


    ¡°Nora,¡± I cried.


    ¡°I need to hang up Kathy, I don¡¯t want my husband toe and meet me talking to you, our parents gave out instructions, we can¡¯t talk to you or have anything to do with you, I am sorry Kathy, but you brought this on yourself, I have to go,¡±


    ¡°Nora, please, help me,¡±


    I cried.


    ¡°There is nothing I or the others can do to help you, Kathy, just go beg mom and dad, they might take you back, as it stands now, your name has officially been removed from the family register,¡±


    She revealed.


    ¡°What? So soon?¡±


    I asked.


    ¡°Yes, after mom found out you withdrew a huge sum of money, she was furious and she pressured dad into removing your name, you should go talk to her, Kathy, she is the only one who can help you, I have to go,¡±


    ¡°Nora, pleas¡­¡±


    She hung up before I could finish, I stared at the phone, as tears ran down my eyes, I should have thought it all through, I shouldn¡¯t have trusted Louis so blindly, he didn¡¯t give any sign, didn¡¯t give any hint as to who he truly is but I couldn¡¯t ignore the fact that I looked passed the red lights, there were a lot of them, he didn¡¯t want to meet my parents, hated it when I introduced him to people, hated when Ie to this house without telling him first and so on, there were so many red gs that I ignored, Juliet tried to warn me, even until two weeks ago when I met her in school, she warned me, but didn¡¯t listen, I should have thought of a n B, no I gave up all my resources to Louis.


    I might look like a fool crawling back to my family but I didn¡¯t have a choice, no I would go and see my mom and beg her to take me back, the earlier the better cuz I knew, they wouldn¡¯t let me be in this city, even if I tried to get a job, even if I tried to get back on my feet, no matter how hard it would be, I knew what my mom could do, she would make sure no one employs me, the only way I can breath is leaving the country but I didn¡¯t have any money on me, not even my passport, I had given them to Louis, and I didn¡¯t know where he kept them, whether or not he took them with him, the only way to leave this country is money and I didn¡¯t have any, so that leaves me with going home to my parents as Nora already said my siblings are not allowed to talk to me, my parents did the same to Nora, but they didn¡¯t go as far as removing her name from the family register though, maybe that¡¯s because Nora had left home before her engagement day and she hade back crawling even before the date.


    My own was different, I embarrassed my family and that of Cross, I wondered what his ns are if he finds me, I remember his threats on that night and shivered in fear, what if he finds me first and tries to harm me? I couldn¡¯t put that past him, that¡¯s more reason I needed to see my mom.Property of N?)(velDr(a)ma.Org.


    My mind made up, I dug into the ice cream stuffing my mouth with it, it didn¡¯t taste sweet nor sour in my mouth, it just felt tasteless just like my life, I ate more sniffing back tears and going through what I will say to my parent when I met them, I knew mom wouldn¡¯t want to see me, my dad listens to my mom, if I can get through her them I can get back on my feet, I just have to get her to forgive me.


    I would go over to the house tomorrow, I hoped she listens to me and take me back¡­

 Chapter 17

    Cross Pov


    ¡°Ma, there you go again, I am not listening to you this time,¡±


    I said moving away from my mom, she couldn¡¯t let this issue pass without interfering, I already told her I didn¡¯t want anything to the Stevenson family but my mom said and I quote, ¡®that I should meet up with her father, like why would I do that, if anyone is supposed to meet up with anybody then it should be them, they should be apologizing for the shame they caused my family, even after my dad gave an Iffical statement, the press and media still talked about it for the whole ifst week, my mom being the peace maker she Is, She has been disturbing me about going to the Stevensons for the whole week and I refused but she wasn¡¯t relenting, I am scheduled to leave for New York tomorrow as I am taking Anna for a checkup today, she is doing well, she has gotten used to my family, not totally though but better than the day she first came in, I am going with my mom since I signed as her caregiver the day we left the hospital, I had to go and sign so that mom can take over her care since she can¡¯te with me to New York, I already nned for her to go back to college after the baby is born, she is a nice kid, just that she mixed with the wrong crowd. Dean already went back to New York, his foster sister got in trouble again,


    ¡°Cross, listen to me will you? Our family owes them,¡±


    ¡°I still don¡¯t understand how and what we owe them though, is it rted to why she was betrothed to me?¡±


    ¡°No, it not,¡±


    ¡°Ma, exin,¡±


    ¡°Well, you guys were promised to each other when she was born to strengthen our family bond,¡±


    ¡°What bond mom? What¡¯s the reason there is a bond in the first ce? As far as I know, we have no business dealing, neither do owe them any financial debt,¡±


    ¡°We use to, Cross believe it or not when you were much younger, if it wasn¡¯t for the Stevenson we would have gone bankrupt, we almost did but they helped us, so no matter what their little daughter did, it doesn¡¯t change the fact that we still owe them,¡±


    My mom said, I still didn¡¯t see how we owe them, okay they once saved us, but that doesn¡¯t give them the right to embarrass our family, I have helped a lot of businesses too, so it is not that much of a big deal.Property of N?)(velDr(a)ma.Org.


    ¡°Okay, so ma, what do you want me t0 say when I meet him? Cuz I don¡¯t know what I am supposed to say,¡±


    ¡°Nothing, just say your greetings and he will tell you why he asked to see you,¡±


    She said I didn¡¯t know what to say to her, how do I just go to someone¡¯s house and just greet and wait for him to tell me why he wanted to see me, it doesn¡¯t make sense.


    ¡°Mom, I am not going, if you want, you can go on my behalf, I don¡¯t owe them anything, I don¡¯t want to ever step foot in that house, mom, I told already so please, let me be,¡±


    ¡°You are so stubborn I don¡¯t know what to do with you anymore,¡±


    ¡°Mom, I always listen to you, and you know that, but not in this case, please, can we not talk about this again?¡±


    ¡°I know what you are thinking but that¡¯s not it, her family already punished her by removing her name from their register, so whatever he is going to say it has nothing to do with marriage so son,¡±


    ¡°No ma, and do they have to disown her? What¡¯s with parents and neglecting their kids, the same thing Anna¡¯s parents did, I don¡¯t like it, I know she deserves it but still that¡¯s not the best way to deal with her, but anyway not my business, I don¡¯t wanna have anything to do with that family and that¡¯s final, we are runningte for the hospital, can we go already so that I can leave tomorrow as scheduled, I am tired of Arizona,¡±


    I said going upstairs without waiting for her reply, I went to Anna¡¯s run and told her toe out, she looked much better now, this was the first good deed I must have done this year, Anna and my mom just be the only women who can manipte me, I could do anything for her and I just didn¡¯t know how she had much hold on me, ¡®yeah that¡¯s what you think, she does too,¡¯


    My mind said, I brushed it off as Anna walked out of her room, smiling, I liked seeing her smile, she is a pretty child and very smart too, she adjusted to my family real quick and everyone liked her too.


    ¡°I am gonna miss you Cross, can¡¯t you stay for some days more?¡±


    She said as we both walked back downstairs.


    ¡°I can¡¯t Anna, I have work to do and I have been off for a whole week, I am the boss and the office can¡¯t run smoothly without me, Don¡¯t worry I wille and visit and I will also make sure you can travel so that you can alsoe over to New York,¡±


    I said patting her shoulders.


    ¡°Thank you for everything Cross, for giving me a new life, I will forever be grateful to you and uncle Dean,¡±


    She said, she calls Dean uncle but calls me by my name, when I asked her, she said I am closer to her age than Dean when I pointed out that we had an elven year¡¯s gap between us, she said I looked younger than my age, and that I am the nicer of the two of us if only she knew who I was outside of Arizona, she wouldn¡¯t say I am nice, but I didn¡¯t want her to know that though.


    ¡°You are wee, and do take care of yourself and my godchild alright?¡±


    ¡°Yes, I promise,¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t make him the godfather, Anna, he is too stubborn,¡±


    My mom said still sucking, Anna justughed and went off to wait for us in the care.


    ¡°Mom, you are the only rich woman I know that always pout and suck,e on,¡±


    ¡°If you just do as I say, I won¡¯t be sucking,¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s go, mom,¡±


    I said pulling her along. We met with the doctor it didn¡¯t take much time, my mom still didn¡¯t let me get off, she kept talking and talking even Anna had enough and plugged in her headset, I didn¡¯t give in to her, there is nothing that she will say to me that would make me go see the Stevenson, we dropped mom off at a hair salon and I took Anna to the mall to get somethings she needed and by the time we got back to the house it was alreadyte and I went straight to bed, praying for the day toe fast so I can go back to freedom and leave as the alpha male that I am.


    ¡°So you choose not to let me have what I want?¡±


    My mom said the next morning as I made my way out of the house.


    ¡°Mom, don¡¯t worry I will talk to him over the phone when I am much calm and no longer angry with them but for now, I don¡¯t know how I will act if I meet him, or his wife.¡±


    I said I knew I wasn¡¯t going to call, no way, but I had to let her think I will if not she would not let me hear the end of it.


    ¡°Much better, I am going to kiss you, son, your dad couldn¡¯t be here to see you off, he has a meeting with the mayor this morning,¡±


    ¡°Alright, Anna, take care of yourself, mon you too, and tell Max to get his act together,¡±


    ¡°Take care Cross ande visit let your promise,¡±


    Anna said waving before climbing back upstairs, teenagers would always be teenagers they all have some removable attitude.


    ¡°Mom, please take care of her will you? She acts like she is strong but I feel she is still not totally fine,¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about her she will be fine, just take care of yourself and not dwell on what happened here,¡±


    She said hugging me.


    ¡°I will ma, I love you,¡±


    ¡°Love you too son,¡±


    She said and I entered the car and the driver zoomed off towards the hospital, as we drove past the streets, I thought I saw someone that looked familiar but she was gone in a sh just I thought I might have imagined it.


    ¡°Just let her go, it¡¯s been ten years already,¡±


    I thought to myself, I should really let her go but she didn¡¯t want to be forgotten as she crawls up my mind even when I don¡¯t think of her, no other woman I have met so far measured up to her, Ginna¡­

 Chapter 18

    Kathy Pov


    I stood in front of our mansion and for the first time I didn¡¯t know what to do, I didn¡¯t know if I should knock or just walk in, I felt like a total stranger, I gathered up myst drop of confidence and walked up to the gate, the giant gate looking so big and scary for the first time ever, I had on a in T-shirt and faded pair of jeans that I got at a cheap price at the market, it would be the cheapest thing I have ever worn, I didn¡¯t bother to do my makeup and my hair was packed up in a messy bun, I looked miserable even to my eyes, I walked close to the gate and before I could knock, the security man came out, he looked shocked to see me, but quickly got over it and ushered me in, I guess he didn¡¯t know yet that I am no longer part of the family, I didn¡¯t remember his name as I wasn¡¯t good at remembering people¡¯s names.


    ¡°Are my parents home?¡±


    I asked in a rather tiny voice.


    ¡°Yes, your mom is home but the dad is not, he left for a meeting a while ago,¡±


    He disclosed and I shook my head in understanding biting my lips and wondering if I should just go back ande some another day when my dad is around, my mom is harder to talk to but I was already here, I mustered up the courage and went up towards my mom¡¯s home office where she is most likely to be at this time of the day, I met her secretary on the way and she too looked shocked to see me, she didn¡¯t say anything to me though, she nodded and walked passed me, I said a silent prayer and I knocked gently on my mom¡¯s office and opened the door when she told me toe in, she was busy with herptop and didn¡¯t lookup.


    ¡°Maria, I want you to prepare food for about fifty people, I am having people overter,¡±


    She said without looking up, she thought I was the chef.


    ¡°Mom, it is me, Katherine,¡±


    I said and she looked up at once, her expression changed immediately, I got scared.


    ¡°What are you doing here? Who let you into this house, o thought I made it clear that you are not allowed toe close to any of the Stevenson properties?¡±


    ¡°Mom,¡±


    ¡°I am not your mom youngdy, you seize to be my daughter the day you brought shame to this family, so if you would excuse me,¡±


    She said going back to her work.


    ¡°Mom, I am sorry, please forgive me,¡±


    I said tears starting to drop down from my face.


    ¡°Just give me one more chance, please mom, please, I don¡¯t have anywhere else to go,¡±


    I pleaded, but it was as if I wasn¡¯t talking, cuz she didn¡¯t answer me, instead, she picked up her office line and dialed a number.


    ¡°What did I tell you about letting strangers into this house? Do you want to be out of a job, I want you toe here and remove the person in my office right now before I do something that I might regret,¡±


    She said harshly on the phone, I have always known my mom to be harsh but what I didn¡¯t expect is how she was talking right now, she sounded like a different person.


    ¡°It¡¯s all your fault, mom, I know I messed up big time, but please give me a second chance


    I said out loud and yes it was all my fault, I should not have trusted Louis, I should have listened to my parents, now that I had time to think about it, and engagement isn¡¯t marriage, I could have just gone ahead with the engagement and get out if I felt I couldn¡¯t live with Cross, maybe I would have had more time to n, maybe I would have seen through Louis them.


    ¡°Mom, please, I know I offended you a hell lot, I am sorry, please don¡¯t throw me out please, please,¡±


    I cried dropping down to my knees.


    ¡°You should have thought of the consequences of your actions before you decided to elope, why are you back a weekter, crying and begging, I thought you had it all nned out, you took eight million from your ount and fled, leaving our family to face shame and embarrassment, don¡¯t tell me eight million finished in a week?¡±


    She said standing up from her seat to walk around me, I covered my face with my hands, tears gushing out.


    ¡°I am sorry Mom, I am sorry,¡±This content provided by N(o)velDrama].[Org.


    ¡°So you ran away and blew up eight million in a week,e on, I thought you had sense at least,¡±


    ¡°I didn¡¯t blow it up, it was stolen from me,¡±


    I said in tears.


    ¡°Stolen? By who? The man you nned to run away with? You got scammed? Serve you right,¡±


    She said with a wickedugh.


    ¡°Mom,¡±


    I cried.


    ¡°I am not your mom, you are no longer part of this family, for your information, your name has been removed from the family register and none of your siblings are to have anything to do with you or they will be cut off too, and trust me no one of them want to be cut off so you are on your own,¡±


    She said with an evil smile that I have never seen on my mom.


    ¡°No..¡±


    ¡°I am not your mother, you ungrateful bitch, now get out of my face, I don¡¯t want to ever set my eyes on you, you ingrate,¡±


    I held unto her trousers as she made to leave and begged shamelessly.


    ¡°Mom, please, don¡¯t do this to me, I have no one else to go to, I am sorry please don¡¯t throw me out, I won¡¯t make it, I will do, please, please,¡±


    I pleaded but she shook her trousers off, just as the security came in.


    ¡°Throw her out and don¡¯t ever let her in here, she is not wee neither is she a member of this family, do I make myself clear?¡±


    She said and the two men nodded. I ran over to where she was and held unto her again begging but she beckoned on the men toe to get me.


    ¡°Mom, please, don¡¯t do this to me, mom, please I beg you,¡±


    I pleaded, but she didn¡¯t listen to me, I sat back down in tears, I couldn¡¯t even me her, it was all my fault, I brought this on myself, she warned me, I knew what she was capable of doing, I knew my mom had the final say in this house, still, I stepped on her words, as the men got closer, I stood up by myself and threw my hands up in the air.


    ¡°I will leave on my own, you don¡¯t have to drag me out, can I at least go and get some of my things?¡±


    I asked, I had some money in my room, if I could just get in there I can use that for some days, I should have done that beforeing to see my mom, but I hadn¡¯t thought of it.


    ¡°There is nothing there that belongs to you, every piece of you have been wiped out, even if you go in there you will meet an empty room,¡±


    She disclosed, I felt it them, it Dawn on me then, that indeed I have been wiped out of my family.


    ¡°Alright,¡±


    I said wiping my tears, I am just going to leave this ce, get myself some drugs and feed myself overdose of it, I knew I won¡¯t survive, not when I barely knew how the real world works, my fate was sealed, I am going to die by my own hands at a young age all because of my foolishness as I made to leave my mom¡¯s voice stopped me.


    ¡°You know, the only way you can redeem yourself is to get Cross to marry you, of he agrees then you cane back if he does not, then you are on your own forever, don¡¯t worry, I won¡¯t stand in your way, I don¡¯t know you anyway,¡±


    She said and turned her back on me as the security men who had once been part of my security too led me out of the home that had once be my home too, I looked up at the room that used to be mine, which I could no longer ess and the tears just kepting on their own¡­


    I had no choice now, I thought, it either I end my suffering or I go to Cross and beg, I didn¡¯t want to do thetter though, death seemed better than begging him, I already knew he


    would not ept me, so there is no need to push my luck, I am just going to leave for the few short days I can survive and end it all, I thought as I entered the road without looking, the noise of a car horn brought me back to my senses but it was much toote¡­

 Chapter 19

    Cross Pov


    What the fuck?¡±


    I screamed as the car came to a sudden stop, making me hit my head against the car seat, I looked up wondering why the driver suddenly stopped.


    ¡°What happened?¡±


    ¡°Sir ady, she..¡±


    He seemed to be in shock, I looked up as the saiddy fell to the ground, I panicked that moment, fearing he might have hit her but I couldn¡¯t remember hearing the car hit something.


    ¡°Did you hit her?¡±


    I asked as I got out of the car, he followed, he didn¡¯t hit her though, she might have fainted from the shock, great now I have to cancel my flight again andnd at the hospital for a second time within two weeks, remind me not toe back to Arizona, at least he didn¡¯t hit her, I helped carry her and told him to get on the car, a few people were watching us but no one came to help, as expected, I checked her pulse to make sure she was okay, she seemed to be normal but I wasn¡¯t a professional so I couldn¡¯t really tell.


    ¡°Please hurry up dude, I don¡¯t want someone to die on me,¡±


    ¡°There is a hospital in this area so I will drive straight there, I didn¡¯t see her getting on the road, she wasn¡¯t supposed to cross u?til the red light show, I don¡¯t know why she entered the road,¡±


    The driver said, he seemed shocked and out of it.


    ¡°Forget that and concentrate on driving,¡±


    I advised, checking again to be sure she was still breathing, she looked familiar to me but I couldn¡¯t pinpoint where I have seen her before, maybe she lived around our house, I don¡¯t know. We got to the hospital quicker than I thought and I quickly carried out, the doctors and nurses on the ground knew their assignment and collected her from me immediately, by the time they came out about thirty minutester, I was already scared that I might not have checked her pulse correctly and assumed she was fine when she was not, I already called the airport to cancel.


    ¡°Doc? How is she?¡±


    I asked as soon as the doctor walked up to me.


    ¡°She is fine, thankful she didn¡¯t hit her head hard when she fell, what happened to her?¡±


    I let out a breath of relief at his words.


    ¡°She jumped in front of our car, it didn¡¯t hit her but she copsed,¡±


    ¡°Oh, she is okay, but she looks depressed and in shock, do you perhaps know her or her rtives?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t, I can ask her though,¡±


    ¡°Yeah, but she didn¡¯t say a word when I asked maybe she will talk to you,¡±


    The doctor said pointing me in the direction of where her room is, I felt Deja Vu as I walked into her room, this was the same as when Anna was in the hospital, just that the hospital was different.


    ¡°Hey,¡±


    I said as I walked into the room, she had her back against me, I didn¡¯t know if she was sleeping or not.


    ¡°Hey, I was wondering if you could give me a number I can call so that they can know you are here,¡±


    I said gently, I have been using a rather gentle voice since I got to Arizona that I may pass out as a nice person, the only time I raised my voice was because of that little witch that brought me here in the first ce, the thought of her made me angry over again, I calmed myself, there was no reason to be angry anyway, she got her own share of the mess she made, though I doubt she will feel it since she took a huge sum of money with her, I hoped we don¡¯t meet though, cuz heaven helps me.


    ¡°There¡¯s no one to call, you can go, thanks for bringing me here, I will leave on my own when I gather enough strength,¡±


    She said, she still didn¡¯t turn to my side, great another abandoned one, is it some kind of new trend that I don¡¯t know about? I wondered.


    ¡°Hmm, then where do you leave? I can drop you off,¡±


    I offered, wondering why I didn¡¯t just leave as she said, I could still make it to the airport in time to get to New York.


    ¡°No need,¡±


    She said finally Turning to face me, when our eyes met, the expression on her face changed before she whispered in fear.


    ¡°Cross,¡±


    She stood up immediately like she had seen a ghost, moving towards the other side of the bed, I wondered why she looked so scared to see me and how she knew my name.


    ¡°How do you know my name?¡±


    I asked, even as I asked her face, no I mean the face that I had seen before shed in front of my eyes, it was her, but she looked different here, so vulnerable and weak, as I remembered who she was all the sympathy I earlier felt for her washed away, it was her, the little devil.


    ¡°Katherine? Is that you? Well, well, well, of all the ces I thought we might meet it never urred to me that it would be here and in this kind of situation.¡±


    I said folding my hands together and essing her, she looked worn out and looked nothing like the elegantdy whose photo I saw before, she looked leaner and a little unkempt.


    ¡°I am sorry, please you can leave now,¡±


    She said.


    She must be kidding right? If she thinks I will just leave after everything she made me and my family go through them she must be kidding herself.


    ¡°You are joking, right? I warned you, I told you that you should hide well, but here you are looking like a scared little cat who lost its way,¡±


    ¡°I am sorry, I will leave now, just pretend like you never saw me,¡±


    She said starting to leave the hospital room, I grabbed her and she looked at me in shock and fear, well good to know she is scared, cuz she should be.


    ¡°I told you I should not find you first, but you walked my way instead, and you really think I will just let you walk off like that?¡±


    I asked as she tried to get her hands off but I held on tight.


    ¡°Let me go,¡±


    ¡°No miss, you have to pay for the shame you brought to my family, no one causes my family embarrassment and go free, I warned you not to show up in my face,¡±


    ¡°I am sorry for what happened, please let me go,¡±


    She pleaded.


    ¡°Wow, so you can say please? Where is the feistydy who answered the callst week? The one who told me it was on me, that I should clean up the mess she made?¡±


    ¡°I said I am sorry, just let me go, please, I won¡¯t show up in front of you ever again,¡±N?velDrama.Org owns this.


    ¡°Bitch you go nowhere until I say so,¡±


    ¡°Fine!!! Do whatever you want, if you wanna kill me then do it, no one cares anyway,¡±


    She said giving up, she gave up too soon, I wondered what happened to her, she looked worn out and tired of life, just like how Anna had lookedst week but she looked worst than Anna, and Anna had my pity, she didn¡¯t, all I felt for her was hatred.


    ¡°What happened to you though?¡±


    I asked finally letting her go, she looked like she was going through a lot even without me making her miserable.


    ¡°It¡¯s none of your business,¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I agree, but I wanna know anyway, I like seeing you suffer, you look like you are going through hell even without anything from me,¡±


    ¡°Shut the fuck up,¡±


    She cursed and I burst outughing.


    ¡°Bitch, you yed a dirty game and I don¡¯t know what happened but I think the game didn¡¯t quite go as you nned, did you get scammed?¡±


    That¡¯s seemed to be the only reason, I knew her family already disowned her but I didn¡¯t think she will feel it since I thought she was already out of the country, so the only reason she would still be here is that she got scammed. I liked the thought of that, if she didn¡¯t have a penny with her then she must be out of options already, I smiled in satisfaction.


    ¡°Did you get scammed, little witch?¡±


    ¡°I am not a witch and it none of your business,¡±


    ¡°But you are a witch though, just answer the question, looks like that¡¯s what happened anyway, you got yed,¡±


    I saidughing, I knew I should take her out of the hospital before the doctorse and see us talking.


    ¡°Fine, yes I was, I was scammed, I am penniless, I have no one too, I am all alone so you can do your worse, I don¡¯t care anyway,¡±


    She said in a screaming voice. I didn¡¯t know if she was intentionally screaming to draw attention to herself or if she genuinely didn¡¯t care.


    ¡°Stop screaming bitch, this is a hospital,¡±


    I said covering her mouth with my hands, she bite my hand and I took it off.


    ¡°Are you mad?¡±


    ¡°Yes, I am, so leave me alone,¡±


    She said walking off.


    ¡°No way,¡±


    ¡°Then do whatever you want with me then,¡±


    She said turning around again.


    ¡°Well,e to New York with me and I will do just that,¡±


    I said and watched the color wash from her facepletely¡­

 Chapter 20

    Kathy Pov


    ¡°What did you say?¡±


    I asked even though I heard him perfectly the first time, I didn¡¯t trust him, was he going to make mee with him and then kill me? Or he was just mocking me, this wasn¡¯t the Cross that I remembered though, he has changed a lot in both appearance and the way he talks, the Cross I knew before would have told the driver to bring me to the hospital and maybe got on a taxi to get to the airport.


    ¡®Well, he didn¡¯t know who you were,¡¯


    My mind said and I agreed but still, he looked more approachable and was even talking to me.


    ¡°I saide with me to New York, on second thought don¡¯t, I don¡¯t need to deal with you anyway, you are not having the best time of your life right now so that¡¯s enough punishment,¡±


    He said.


    ¡°Why? Don¡¯t you want me to suffer more?¡±


    ¡°Well you are suffering right now, and it doesn¡¯t look like it will get better for you any time soon, do you even have a ce to sleep?¡±


    ¡°None of your business, so can I go now?¡±


    ¡°Hmm, yeah, right after you clear your bills,¡±


    He said smiling again, I knew he was mocking me, wanted to do nothing than to punch him in the face and spit on him, I hated him so much but I didn¡¯t have any money on me, the little I had was what I used to get the clothes I am currently wearing, when the car had stopped in front of me, for a moment I thought the end hase and even though I had been a seed, I had weed it, I was surprised when I woke up at the hospital, I didn¡¯t recur getting here, and when the doctor had asked for my family, I told him I didn¡¯t have any but when he insisted I just kept mute and he left only for someone else toe in and that person turned out to be the reason I am in the mess, yes he was part of the reason, even though it is my fault if my parents hadn¡¯t given me away to him at my birth, then I wouldn¡¯t have had the n to run away, I won¡¯t have been here, but even as I thought that it felt all wrong even to me, I got myself into this, no one else did.


    ¡°I don¡¯t have any money with me,¡±


    I let out as he made to leave, he turned back to face me with the same wicked smile.


    ¡°Yeah, you are penniless I remember, but I don¡¯t care,¡±


    ¡°Please help me,¡±


    I said out of desperation, I wasn¡¯t used to begging but right now I didn¡¯t have much of a choice and I didn¡¯t have insurance either, my whole existence was a nightmare that I tried to get out of but I couldn¡¯t.


    ¡°So you can say please? Where is the girl that told me offst Wednesday?¡±


    He asked folding his hand in his chest.


    ¡°Please,¡±


    I pleaded.


    ¡°Why should I help you?¡±


    I couldn¡¯t answer that, I just stared at him, he seemed to be thinking of something, before he nodded.


    ¡°Okay, I will help you, on one condition,¡±


    Oh here ites, the devil alwayses up with conditions to help someone.


    ¡°What¡¯s the condition?¡±


    ¡°Nothing, I am not going to help you,¡±


    He said and walked out of the hospital room, leaving me standing there in shock, I got back to my senses and ran after him.


    ¡°Please Cross, I am begging you,¡±


    I said when I caught up with him.


    ¡°No,¡±Copyright N?v/el/Dra/ma.Org.


    He said still walking off, he was stopped by the doctor who had treated me earlier.


    ¡°Oh, you guys are leaving now?¡±


    He asked while looking at a file.


    ¡°Yes Doc, thanks for your help,¡±


    He replied to the doctor.


    ¡°Well, she should not be left on her own, she might look okay now but she fainted not only because of the shock of the almost ident but also because her body is weak, madam you might wanna consider taking a break from anything stressful,¡±


    The doctor exined I nodded in agreement even though I knew there was no helping me, except I beg Cross to allow me toe with him to New York there was no telling what will happen to me if I stay on my own, the food at Louis house was almost gone and I had no money to restock, the electricity was cut this morning due to unpaid bills, I had that on me too, Louis had been the worst kind of man in existence, he made sure to leave me helpless,


    ¡°Thanks, Doc, we will leave now,¡±


    He said suddenly taking my hand and pulling me along with him.


    ¡°Are we not supposed to pay before we leave?¡±


    I asked, struggling to keep up with him as he dragged me along.


    ¡°My driver got that covered,¡±


    He said, his voice seemed to have changed, he sounded even more pissed.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡±


    I asked looking around.


    ¡°A cameraman is watching, the doctor might not have recognized us but the man with the camera did and he was gonna start filming,¡±


    He exined as he dragged me into the car before he told the driver to head out of the hospital, of course, the news about the engagement that didn¡¯t happen must have circted but I didn¡¯t know about it because I didn¡¯t turn on the inte or the television.


    ¡°Where are we going to?¡±


    I asked looking around.


    ¡°To where you have been living since you ran away.


    ¡°No,¡±


    ¡°Yes, you have a lot to answer for and I already missed my flight so we can as well talk until I can get on the ne and leave the city, I don¡¯t want to go back home, my mom is a pest,¡±


    ¡°Your mom is better than mine, at least she didn¡¯t disown you,¡±


    I said, wiping off tears that formed at the thought of the words my mom had said to me.


    ¡°You deserve it though,¡±


    He replied.


    ¡°I know,¡±


    I looked out of the window of the car, thinking of what I will do next, nothing seemed toe up, I only had one option no matter how I look at it, and that was to beg Cross to take me with him, marry me so that I can get my position back with my family so that I can have the power I need to find Louis and deal with him. I needed to marry Cross to achieve my goals even if it means dealing with a loveless marriage, love didn¡¯t exist anyway, I thought it did but no, it didn¡¯t, I was w fool to have ever believed that love existed and I paid I huge price for it.


    ¡°Are you going to tell me the directions to go or are we going to keep driving in circles?¡±


    He asked to bring me out of my thoughts.


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to go back to that house, can we find somewhere else to talk?¡±


    I requested expecting him to say no, but he agreed to my surprise.


    We stopped by a park, he told the driver to wait in the car while we went up to the quiet area of the park, it was still school and hours so the park was pretty much deserted. we found a spot and sat down.


    ¡°So what happened to you?¡±


    He asked.


    ¡°My boyfriend ran away with all the money I took from my ount,¡±


    I said, there was no point beating about the bush anyway.


    ¡°Wow, that¡¯s nice,¡±


    He said in a mocking voice, he liked the fact that I was suffering, I couldn¡¯t me him much though, he had a right to be.


    ¡°Now, I am broke and alone cuz like you know my parents don¡¯t want to have anything to do with me again.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I heard that, have you spoken with them at least, I am not sympathizing with you just asking a question.¡±


    ¡°Yes, that¡¯s where I wasing from.¡±


    He stood up.


    ¡°Hmm, good to know you are having a taste of what you prepared, you made your bed soy on it,¡±


    He said and I knew he was going to walk out now, he was my only hope, if he left right now then I am as good as gone, so I did something that I never thought I would do in a thousand lifetime, I knelt in front of him.


    ¡°Please, Cross, please marry me,¡±


    I pleaded.


    ¡°Are you out of your mind?¡±


    He askedughing at me.


    ¡°Why will I marry you? When you left me hanging at our engagement a few days ago?¡±


    ¡°I know what I did, and I¡¯m sorry, I didn¡¯t think it through, please, help you me, you are my lost hope, if you don¡¯t help me I might die, I am not used to a hard life, I can¡¯t lie about the fact that I was spoilt from birth, I wasn¡¯t groomed for a hard life, these past few days have been hell for me, please take me back and I will do anything you want,¡±


    I pleaded, I knew I was digging myself in a hole but I didn¡¯t have a choice, it was either this or I will have a hard life, life with Cross looked easier than life on the streets of Arizona.


    ¡°Anything?¡±


    He asked, I didn¡¯t have much to give or life so I nodded.


    ¡°Yes, anything,¡±


    I said¡­

 Chapter 21

    Cross Pov


    ¡°Anything?¡±


    I asked again.


    ¡°Yes, anything,¡±


    She replied, she looked like she was hopeless for real because that would be the only reason she is begging me to take her back, I thought about it hard, I didn¡¯t have anything to ask for now, but I think if I think hard enough I will figure it out.


    ¡°Well, I was going to marry you anyway even though I didn¡¯t want the marriage either, so I will think of something and you said anything right?¡±


    She seemed to be rethinking her options, I waited for her to go back on her words but she nodded in agreement.


    ¡°I wanna hear it again, I will record it just in case you decide to pull a fast one on me,¡±


    I said as I brought out my phone and tapped on the video record.


    ¡°Now say it again from the beginning while looking at the camera.¡±


    ¡°Do I have to? It looks childish though,¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s not up to you to decide little witch,¡±


    ¡°First of all I am not little, secondly I am not a witch,¡±


    She answered.


    ¡°How old are you?¡±


    ¡°Non..**¡±


    ¡°Okay, no need for the deal then, live your boring broke life,¡±


    I said locking my phone and walking away from her, she wanted something from me yet she can¡¯t answer basic questions, the kind of begging they have a bad mouth.


    ¡°Wait, I am sorry, I will do as you say,¡±


    She said running to me and grabbing my hands, I shook her hands off.


    ¡°First of all do not touch me without permission,¡±


    I said in a harsh tone


    ¡°Okay, I am sorry,¡±


    I brought out my phone again.


    ¡°I am twenty-three years old,¡±


    ¡°Young, okay, now introduce yourself and say exactly what you said before,¡±


    I said focusing the camera on her face, she took a deep breath and started talking


    ¡°My name is Katherine and I promise that if you marry me and help me get my ce back with my family, I will do anything you say, and do whatever you ask of me,¡±


    ¡°Do you swear?¡±


    I asked and she looked at me with her cat-like ocean blue eyes, she had great features but her eyes were the best of them all, I could look into her eyes all day and not get tired.


    ¡°Okay cut it out Cross,¡±


    I mentally scolded myself, she wasn¡¯t my type and even if I did agree to marry her, it would just be for the public eye, I don¡¯t n on consummating the wedding or whatever, and we aren¡¯t going to share the same room, why I am even thinking like I already agreed? I questioned myself.


    ¡°Do you swear? Katherine?¡±


    ¡°Yes, I do,¡±


    She said after a few seconds.


    ¡°Okay, then we have a deal, but one thing is sure, we are not going to consummate our wedding and our marriage is going to just be for public eyes and also if you ever file for a divorce then you are not going to get a penny from me, I am going to have mywyer prepare a prenup.¡±


    I said and she nodded, she looked happy with my decision that for a moment I considered rethinking but I hadn¡¯t told her what I wanted in return so I could use that option in my favor anytime.


    ¡°Okay, hit your parents and tell them we are getting married,¡±


    I said and she looked shocked.


    ¡°Really? Just like that? You are agreeing?¡±


    ¡°Hmm, yes, should I do something else?¡±


    I asked, the look of shock wasn¡¯t leaving her face.


    ¡°What?¡±


    I asked.


    ¡°You are just not acting like the Cross I know,¡±


    ¡°Bitch you don¡¯t know me,¡±


    ¡°Aha, yeah, I am sorry,¡±


    She apologized again.


    ¡°Better, now go talk to your parents and I will do the same with mine,¡±


    ¡°But my parents are not going to wee me back, my mom told the security men not to let me back into that house,¡±


    She revealed I couldn¡¯t understand her parents though, in as much as she did something really bad, there are many other ways to punish her than disowning her, I shook off the thoughts, it wasn¡¯t my business how they chose to deal with her and she didn¡¯t deserve my pity.


    ¡°Okay fine we will go together to your parent¡¯s house and then I will leave you there and go tell nine,¡±


    I said.


    ¡°Okay, thanks,¡±


    She answered.


    I couldn¡¯t believe what I did, what I just agreed to but as we called together back towards the car, I knew I did it and wanted to take back my words but, hey it will be fun, I didn¡¯t have much going on in my life now so this might just add some spicy to it, at least, Dolly and her likes can stay off me for a while, wait the fuck a moment, does that mean no more pretty models? No way.


    ¡°Just a little extra information little witch, even if we get married, you don¡¯t interfere with my life, understand?¡±


    ¡°Yes, I understand, I am not going to, I just need your help to get my life back so that¡¯s it, I am not asking anything else from you,¡±


    She stated.


    ¡°Good,¡±


    I said and walked ahead of her to the car, the driver looked as if he was beginning to panic.


    ¡°Dude, can you take us back to the house you took me the first day we met?¡±


    I asked and he nodded, he seemed to finally realize who she was but he didn¡¯t say a word, just got in the car and drove off towards her family house.


    When we got there, the security men at the gate didn¡¯t look happy to see until they saw me, I told them I had an appointment with the owner of the house and they let us both in, we were directed to the guest area, I think, but I wasn¡¯t sure, the mansion was huge, it was even bigger than my family house.


    ¡°I thought I made myself clear that you are not allowed back in** Oh Cross, you guys came together?¡±


    Her mom said changing her words as soon as she saw me, she looked like the older version of her daughter, I got to say, this family had the looks.


    ¡°Yes, good afternoon ma¡¯am,¡±


    I said in politeness, my parents thought me enough manners even though I forget them sometimes.


    ¡°Wow, that nice, have seat, what can I offer you?¡±


    ¡°Nothing, ma¡¯am I just came to talk to you about your daughter,¡±


    ¡°Aha, My husband has been trying to reach you but your parents said you were leaving for New York today, it is so surprising to see you here, but unfortunately, my husband is not yet back,¡±


    She exined and I nodded.


    ¡°I get, but I can talk to you right?¡±


    ¡°Yes sure, go ahead,¡±


    ¡°Okay, I just came to let you know that, we talked and I decided to go ahead with the marriage, she told me what happened and in all honesty, I would have done the same if I were in her shoes so there is no need for you to cut her off,¡±


    I said sounding strange even to my own ear, what the fuck is wrong with me? Am I losing my touch, why am I defending her? I thought.


    ¡°That¡¯s so good to hear, and of course if you say so, I will dly agree, this is good news, I don¡¯t know what she said to you but if you think she deserves a second chance then she will get it,¡±


    Her mom said she was happy with the development.


    ¡°Yes, ma, but one thing though, we don¡¯t need a big engagement party like the one if before, you can just make an announcement, no need for a morous engagement,¡±


    ¡°Okay, okay,¡±


    ¡°Thank you, I am going to go talk to my parents, I can leave her here with you right?¡±


    I asked and she nodded, I spared a nce at the little witch and she looked shocked again, I don¡¯t know if that¡¯s part of her normal expression or if it was what I said that made her shocked.


    ¡°I will go now, and my parents will get back to you,¡±


    I said and left the two of them in the room, I went back to the car and the driver took me home, my mom didn¡¯t look surprised to see me when I told her that I was marrying the Stevenson daughter she didn¡¯t even look surprised.


    ¡°Ma? How did you know already?¡±


    I asked.


    ¡°Kathrine¡¯s mom called me, though I didn¡¯t believe her when I saw you, I just knew it was true,¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t look happy about it though,¡±


    ¡°Are you kidding me? I am happy, I am just wondering if it was because I pressured you that you agreed to marry her, and how did you even find her?¡±


    She asked.


    ¡°Mom, don¡¯t worry I know what I am doing and also she came to find me,¡±Property of N?)(velDr(a)ma.Org.


    ¡°Aha, okay so does that mean we are going ahead?¡±


    ¡°Yes, ma, but no more morous engagement parties,¡±


    ¡°Okay, okay, you are the boss,¡±


    ¡°Where is Anna?¡±


    ¡°Oh, she went out with Max,¡±


    ¡°Aha, okay,¡±


    ¡°I need to go share the good news with my friends,¡±


    She said and ran with her old legs back into the house. I walked behind her wondering if I was getting myself in a mess.

 Chapter 22

    Kathy Pov


    Even after Cross left, I still couldn¡¯t get over the shock of how fast things turned, like one moment I was sure he was gonna say, no, but the next moment hees up with so weird reasons to why he will help me, I still didn¡¯t know what he wanted in return of helping me but what was even more shocking was how he defended me in front of my mom, I couldn¡¯t believe what I was hearing and that those things wereing from him, I still didn¡¯t like him or trust him but I was thankful.


    ¡°What did you say to him and how did you even meet him?¡±


    My mom asked bring me out of my thoughts, I looked over to her and she was watching me with curious eyes, she looked like a total stranger to me, I still can¡¯t believe it was so easy for her to cut me off.Property of N?)(velDr(a)ma.Org.


    ¡°I just told him I was sorry and asked him to give me a second chance and he agreed,¡±


    I said, there was no need for her to know the rest part, that was between me and Cross.


    ¡°Just like that?¡±


    ¡°Yes, just like that, he knows I am human and that I make mistakes, I can¡¯t say the same for you guys though, the people who are supposed to be my family.¡±


    I said, I couldn¡¯t hold back the words.


    ¡°You are to be med for everything, Katherine, I warned you, did you go and meet him at the airport?¡±


    ¡°No I didn¡¯t, I, his driver almost knocked me off, I wasn¡¯t looking, and he took me to the hospital,¡±


    ¡°Aha, whatever happened, you are one luckydy, you can go back to your room and rest, but don¡¯t think it all over because you got him back, you still have to pay for stealing from the family,¡±


    ¡°But I didn¡¯t steal, it was my money,¡±


    ¡°Yeah, your allowance, which means you are not getting any for the rest of the year, how you spent eight million within a week is still a mystery to me,¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s none of your business ma,¡±


    ¡°Oh, you are back to being sassy, you were begging a few hours ago,¡±


    ¡°Yes, and you didn¡¯t listen and you are supposed to be my mom, I thought the family was unbreakable, I thought no matter what I do my family will have my back but it just took a little mistake on my side for you to throw me off when all through my life you have been making mistakes with me and I have forgiven you ever time, those times when you missed important school events, those times when I had to celebrate my birthdays and other holidays with just my siblings and the nannies, yet I forgave you but you can¡¯t do the same for me? It tells a lot about how well you value me, mom,¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t speak to me in that manner youngdy, I can still walk you out of my house, I did everything I ever did for you so that you and your siblings can have the best of everything, and you chose to pay that back by embarrassing our family, I couldn¡¯t let you taint the name your father and I have worked so hard to build all these years,¡±


    She responded.


    ¡°Yeah,¡± I said chuckling, ¡°I will soon leave anyway, so don¡¯t worry, the remaining time I have to stay here I will be on my best behavior and also avoid you as much as I can, thanks for giving birth to me, that¡¯s the only useful thing you have done for me,¡±


    I said and walked off to my room, ignoring her outburst, I opened the door and everything was still intact which means my mom had lied about emptying my room, I wonder if she also lied about getting my name off the family register. Either way now that I was back, I had to set to work, I agreed to marry Cross because I needed money and power to be able to do what I n to do, I am going to make Louis and Pearl pay for what they did to me, as for my siblings, I don¡¯t think I can talk to any one of them now, I know I made a mistake but for them to have let my mom cut me off just like that hurts so bad, my dad and I have never been close so I didn¡¯t expect him to have my back but at least I thought my siblings will turn out I thought wrong, the only person willing to help me was the same person I was running away from, it didn¡¯t change the fact that I still hated him, still hated to be married to him but at least, I had a little respect for him. He may not be the bad guy that I painted him to be, even if he was bad, he was still better than those I called my family.


    I took a bath andy on my bed, for the first time sincest week Wednesday, I had a good sleep.


    Over the next couple of days, it was preparations for the engagement party, and then the engagement itself, this time only a few people were invited, and the wedding was set to be a month after the engagement, it would have been earlier but Cross had a few things to take care of in New York, so after the engagement, he went back to New York, I had to get myself a new identity card and international passport because I couldn¡¯t find the ones I have given to Louis even after turning his whole house upside down, my family still didn¡¯t know what actually happened because I didn¡¯t tell them, I kept to myself most of the time and only came out when I was needed to make a choice regarding the wedding-rted preparations.


    My siblings came by but I didn¡¯t talk to any of them, they couldn¡¯t just throw me off and expect me to wee them back with open hands they lost all the trust I had for them. Nathan tried to exin himself, but I didn¡¯t give him a listening ear, even Nelson called me back and I told him to fuck off and never to call my line again, if he had answered my calls maybe I won¡¯t have had to beg Cross to take me back, maybe I wouldn¡¯t have had to marry him. I specifically told Nora to never address me as her younger sister because she hadn¡¯t acted like an older sister when I had needed her, after the way, I treated the others, Nelly had not bothered to reach out to me, we just see each other in passing, I wasn¡¯t ready to make up with any of them.


    I stood staring at my wedding gown exactly one monthter, and I still couldn¡¯t picture myself as a married woman, I didn¡¯t feel any of the excitement soon to be brides are supposed to feel neither was I excited for my wedding night, Cross already said we are not gonna consummate it, which was okay for me, I wasn¡¯t ready to give myself to anyone, not after what Louis did to me, I have tried to track him down even went to Mexico but I didn¡¯t get any clue as to where he went, it was as if he disappeared off the face of the Earth, I gave up when I remembered that Pearl had told me that Louis wasn¡¯t even his real name, so he might have gone back to using his real identity while spending my money, I just hope he stays off forever because if our parts ever crossed I will make sure I kill him or at least make him twice the pain he made me feel.


    I shook off thoughts of him and stared at the dress in front of me, it looked gorgeous and elegant but I didn¡¯t feel like it was met for me.


    I haven¡¯t seen Cross since after the engagement but I heard he flew in three days ago, but we didn¡¯t meet, I didn¡¯t have a bridesmaid because I was much too proud to ask Juliet to do it, so Anna a girl who lived with Cross¡¯s family had been asked to do it, Anna seemed like a pretty nice girl but we haven¡¯t really had time to talk, not to mention she was pregnant too, I wondered who the father of the child was, I couldn¡¯t ask because we were not close, but my mind kept thinking it either Cross or Max.


    Ellen, Cross¡¯s mom surprised me the most, she had weed me with open arms and even his dad had been weing, they had not even scolded me about the embarrassment I caused their family, but I had apologized anyway and they had epted without hesitating which made me wonder if Ellen had been my mom if she would have listened to me.


    A knock on my door brought me back to the present.


    ¡°Yes,e in,¡±


    I said turning around to see who it was, it was one of the maids.


    ¡°Ma¡¯am, your mom said to call you, the hairstylist is here,¡±


    She said.


    ¡°Okay, I will be right there,¡±


    I responded she left the room, I took one more look at the dress and left my room, walking down the staircase, I looked around the house, by this time tomorrow, I would be a married woman, married to a man I had zero feelings for, not that I n on falling in love with anyone ever again, which made the marriage even more doable, I wasn¡¯t looking forward to ever getting married to anyone, the only person I thought I would spend the rest of my life with turned out to be a fraud.


    I looked around the big mansion again and it already felt like I was out of ce here, soon this would not be my home again, as I will be moving to New York with Cross, I liked the idea of a fresh start in a new city so I was looking forward to that at least¡­

 Chapter 23

    Cross Pov


    ¡°Bro, get your ass up and go take your bath, it¡¯s your wedding day,¡±


    Dean said shaking me out of sleep.


    ¡°Fuck off dude, let me sleep,¡±


    ¡°Get your ass off the bed, you are going to bete,¡±


    ¡°What time is it?¡±


    ¡°Hmm, five am,¡±


    ¡°What the fuck Dean? the wedding is by ten am and that¡¯s five hours away, so let me sleep,¡±


    I said, covering my head with my pillow but he took the pillow away and poured a ss of cold water on me.


    ¡°What the fuck dude?¡±


    I asked getting off the bed and giving him deadly stares, I knew I shouldn¡¯t have let hime but he was the only close friend I had, so he had toe, Max who would have filled in as a best man is off attending some weird ass show in South Asian, he wasn¡¯t even going to be around for my supposed wedding.


    ¡°Now we are awake, time to get ready, early to rise, early to**¡±


    ¡°Get the fuck out, I hate you dude, Katherine might not even be awake yet, and she has more preparation to do, leave me alone,¡±


    I said cutting him off, he smiled which made me even angrier


    ¡°Really? You haven¡¯t even rehearsed your vows, I don¡¯t wanna see you stammering on stage,¡±


    ¡°Dude, let me be or I will punch you, I said walking off andying on the dry side of the bed, but the dude was bent on making me angry because he poured water on me again.


    ¡°What is wrong with you? It¡¯s not like it a real wedding, I am not even a real groom, it¡¯s just for show, you are the reason I am so fucking tired, you and Max pushed me into having a bachelors night, Kathrine didn¡¯t even have a bridal shower and now I am hangover, let me sleep it off,¡±


    ¡°That was two nights ago, I didn¡¯t know hangoversst for days? And also that¡¯s because Max won¡¯t be around for the actual wedding so he celebrated in advance,¡±


    He said.


    ¡°Whatever still doesn¡¯t change the fact that you guys pushed me to have a bachelor night when Katherine didn¡¯t even do a bridal shower.¡±


    I said. it made me look like I am excited about the wedding but I wasn¡¯t, those two had talked me into doing it and I still regret listening to them


    ¡°That¡¯s because she doesn¡¯t have friends and she is still angry with her family, I saw her at the engagement, and dude, she is pretty but you can see the sadness in her eyes,¡±


    He said, and I guess he was right, she looked lonely and sad that I had almost felt bad for until she told me to fuck off, that bitch would never change.


    ¡°Well that¡¯s her business, she messed up and got what she deserves, she should be happy she got a second chance,¡±


    I said moving over to the sofa.


    ¡°You try and be nice to her, I know you are not gonna treat her like a real wife but at least be nice to her, you are obviously the only person closest to her now, like it or not, she might act sassy with you but I am sure she is grateful to you for giving her a second chance because if you have not her family might have thrown her out for real,¡±


    He said.


    ¡°Whatever, just let me sleep in peace and don¡¯t disturb me,¡±


    I warned, just as Iy on the sofa my mom entered my room,Property of N?)(velDr(a)ma.Org.


    ¡°Wakie wakie, groom boy,¡±


    She said in a sing-song voice and I resisted the urge to curse in her presence.


    ¡°Not you too mum, please, let me sleep, all I have to do is take a bath and get dressed, it won¡¯t take hours,¡±


    ¡°You are getting married in a few hours stop acting like a child, now get up and get moving,¡±


    My mom said hitting me with the cloth in her hands.


    ¡°Mom, leave me alone,¡±


    ¡°You can sleep all you want when the honeymoon starts, now get yourzy ass off and go take a bath so that we can prepare, we don¡¯t want to bete, the priest isn¡¯t a very patient man,¡±


    ¡°We are not going on any honeymoon, after the wedding, we are just going to New York, I ain¡¯t going anywhere else,¡±


    ¡°What? No way, the both of you are spending a month-long in Dubai to get to know each other and maybe make some grandbabies for me,¡±


    She said excitedly.


    ¡°Mom, dream on, Anna is pregnant, she will give you a grandchild soon, I am not ready to be a dad yet,¡±


    I said in all seriousness, Anna was officially adopted as a member of our family after Mom and Dad tried to talk her parents into taking her back and they refused, saying they didn¡¯t want her shame to taint their name, I felt like punching her father when he said that, I couldn¡¯t even believe what I heard from them, but at the end of the day it is their loss because Anna became a part of our family and she is happy now, everyone including the staffs liked her and she wasn¡¯t even problematic.


    ¡°Of course she will but I want one from my first child too,¡±


    My mom said.


    ¡°Sorry, mom Anna¡¯s child is all you get for now,¡±


    Anna and my mom hit it off, they were like besties and all, and they both have the same effect on me, I can never say no to them, which was bad for me.


    ¡°Crosse, when are you getting up?¡±


    Speaking of the devil, I thought as she walked in, she has started to show and she had that pregnancy glow with her, she was one of my proudest decisions this year, she calls me Crosse and it was annoying but I like it.


    ¡°Not you too Anna, I thought you will be on my side,¡±


    ¡°Not when I am the chief bridesmaid,¡±


    She answered, she was picked as a chief bridesmaid because Kathrine said she didn¡¯t have anyone else to do it, when my mom had suggested Anna I had said no but Katherine had epted.


    ¡°You guys are pest and I hate all of you,¡±


    I said getting off the sofa.


    ¡°We love you too,¡±


    They chorused


    ¡°All of you get out of my room,¡±


    I screamed as I walked into the bathroom leaving them in my room, they all burst outughing and before long the room was silent, I peeped through and saw that they had all left, on my own I started rethinking my decision, so far, there was nothing I was gaining from this, yeah, I told Katherine I would tell her what I wanted in return but nothing havee up, I have everything I wanted so I didn¡¯t know what to ask for, again, this felt like I was tying myself down, getting married wasn¡¯t so easy, even if we are not a real couple, there are too much expectations from our family, my mom already started talking about grandkids yet I wasn¡¯t even nning on sleeping with Katherine, racking my fingers through my hair, I thought maybe I should just pull a Katherine and leave too, that would be the perfect pay back for what she did to me, but I didn¡¯t have the mind to do it to her, I quickly took a shower and came back to my room, I wore a singlet and short since it wasn¡¯t yet time to leave the house, I was about to leave the room when my phone rang, I didn¡¯t know who owes the number but I picked up anyway.


    ¡°Hello, who is this?¡±


    ¡°Cross, it¡¯s me, you weren¡¯t picking my calls so I had to use a different number,¡±


    ¡°Dolly? I thought I told you not to call me again?¡±


    ¡°Cross, please don¡¯t do this to me, please, I know you don¡¯t love her, I know you are marrying her because of your family but don¡¯t do it, please, don¡¯t leave me for her, I promise I am a better choice than her,¡±


    ¡°I am hanging up Dolly,¡±


    I said and made to end the call.


    ¡°I am pregnant,¡±


    She said loudly and I burstughing, she must think I am stupid to believe her lies.


    ¡°Dolly,e on, I know you can¡¯t have babies so don¡¯t lie to me that so low, you don¡¯t love me, you are just obsessed with how well I give it to you, and the fact that you can show off to your friends about me, but hey, I am getting married and I am not interested, I know you don¡¯t like kids and you do everything to prevent you from having one, and I also know you harvested all your eggs so don¡¯t lie,¡±


    I said mockingly. She became silent.


    ¡°What,? Did I make you speechless?¡±


    I asked.


    ¡°I promise you that you will regret this Cross, you will regret not**,¡±


    I ended the call, cutting off whatever she was going to say, and blocked the number immediately.


    ¡°Okay, now that¡¯s a reason to get married,¡±


    I said to myself as I walked downstairs to ask for an early breakfast, it might not be easy to get married but it feels like Katherine is the safe choice because there is no chance that she will get attached and fall in love with me because she hated me, and also she just got heartbroken and robbed so I know she will not want to have anything to do with love, a safe option, and I am going to take it¡­

 Chapter 24

    Kathy Pov


    I stared at my wedding dress again, I have been standing there and watching for about twenty minutes, lost in my thoughts, after today, there is no going back, after today, I will be a married woman whether I liked it or not, loveless marriage to a man who has been turning everything I know about upside down, I didn¡¯t know what I expected before but it most certainly wasn¡¯t the way he was behaving, he called me two days ago, he had been drunk anyway but still he asked how I was feeling, I had not known how to respond to him. My dress is a beautiful white dress with sea blue Pearls that catches my eye, I traced my hands through the beautiful dress trying to get my head around everything, I stared at the pale simple band that was around my fingers, I liked the fact that it wasn¡¯t anything extra, by the end of today I will have another band. ¡°You can do it, Kat,¡± I said to myself. ¡°Kathrine? Have you dressed already?¡± My nanny asked walking into the room, my old nanny hade around for the wedding and is the only one that I have been speaking with, by the end of today, I will be out of this house, and I don¡¯t n on returning, not anytime soon. ¡°Not yet nanny,¡± I answered smiling at her. ¡°Kathy, your siblings are worried about you, why aren¡¯t you talking to them?¡± ¡°Nanny, can we not talk about it? I am not in the mood for this, I just want this day to be over before it starts,¡± ¡°I understand Kathy, I won¡¯t force you to do anything you don¡¯t want to do but know that they love you no matter what, get dress my dear,¡± She was wrong though, they didn¡¯t love me, they preferred to remain on the family good book than help me, they are all just here for the family name, no one cared about me or each other, I won¡¯t be surprised if they end up fighting each other for an inheritance, I don¡¯t care though, I am not gonna have anything to do with them, after I get married I n on starting my own life in New York and live the most of every moment. I put on the dress, I already had my makeup done, I asked the makeup artist to do light make up for me, Anna would arrive anytime now, she is someone I can talk to too, and kept mepany throughout the wedding rehearsals, even though we barely talk but at least the silence is alsofortable. ¡°Kathrine?¡± I turned as my older sister walked in, I looked at her and went back to dressing. ¡°Kathy? Until when are you going to give us the silent treatment? You know what you are doing is not fair, you are making us the bad people when it is all your fault, stop ying the victim card already, you knew what will happen so why are you mad at us for a decision you took by yourself? Why do we have to suffer for your actions?¡± I didn¡¯t bother to answer her, I had nothing to say to her, victim card? I wasn¡¯t even ying any card, I was just going along with what they did, they decided I wasn¡¯t worthy of a chance and now they suddenly think I will up and startughing with them. ¡°You are not going to say a thing? You are just going to keep quiet? What did I expect? You have always been a selfish bitch, only thinking about yourself,¡± She said, I didn¡¯t know why she was getting worked up by the fact that I ain¡¯t talking to them, they didn¡¯t want to have anything to do with me so why are they getting mad for doing the same. ¡°Nora, just let it go already,¡± My older brother said as he, his wife to be and Belly entered my room. ¡°She is being insensitive, it been over a month already, we don¡¯t deserve how she is treating us, our parents don¡¯t deserve it either, she messed up not us,¡± She said and I rolled my eyes. ¡°Can you all please leave? I need to get dressed,¡± I said I didn¡¯t owe them any exnation nor did I have to listen to them. ¡°Is that all you have to say, Kathy? Really? You are being selfish like Nora said,¡± Nelly said. ¡°I don¡¯t know why you guys are bent on getting a reaction from me I don¡¯t expect anything from you guys, I don¡¯t owe you any exnation either, Nora, you were the one I called when I was going through hell, you were the one that told me never to call you so that you won¡¯t get in trouble, I did as you asked so why do you keep saying I am ying a victim card, I never spoke to you like your requested, please leave me alone, it¡¯s my wedding day, please I don¡¯t wanna get angry today, please you all leave my room, my bridesmaid is here and you guys are blocking the entrance.¡± I said, pointing at the door where Anna stood, probably contemtinging in or not, they made way for her and I told her toe in, which she did, she greeted them before sitting on my bed awkwardly. ¡°Please leave, I need to get dressed,¡± I said to them again, this time they listened and all left leaving me and Anna alone. ¡°What should I help you do? I am new to this,¡± She said and I smiled. ¡°Help me with the zipper,¡± I said. ¡°You look beautiful, Crosse is lucky to have you,¡± Sheplimented. ¡°Thanks, you are beautiful too.¡± I replied. She helped me get dressed and about an hourter I was in the car heading to the church to get married to a man who didn¡¯t care about but who helped me, I may not love him but at least I respected him, I hope he does the same to me¡­Copyright N?v/el/Dra/ma.Org.

 Chapter 25

    Kathy Pov


    I stared down at my hands, my heart racing as we got closer to the chapel that we were using for the wedding, I felt like throwing up, I was that nervous, I couldn¡¯t even pinpoint why I was nervous, but I was, my hands were sweaty and I felt chills, maybe I was making a mistake by marrying Cross, maybe I should have tried and worked this out myself, maybe I would still be able to make it. ¡°Hey, are you okay?¡± Anna asked, she was in the car with me, she looked so pretty with her baby bump, I always loved to be a mother but I have never thought about it much, now that I was getting married, would I get pregnant and give birth too? ¡°Cut it out Kathy, this is not a real marriage,¡± I mentally scolded myself, Cross already said we weren¡¯t gonna sleep together so I am not going to have his baby. ¡°You are nervous right?¡± ¡°Yeah, a little,¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know what to say, but it will be fine, I kind of understand how you feel, but Crosse is a nice guy, so you don¡¯t have to be scared,¡± She said. ¡°How do you know how I feel? Have you been married before?¡± I asked out of curiosity, I thought she was young and might have gotten pregnant in school, maybe she just had a babyface. ¡°No, but I almost married the father of my child when my parents started pressuring me, but I decided not to do it because I felt it wasn¡¯t right, we were both too young and he wasn¡¯t ready neither was I, I haven¡¯t told anyone else this, so please don¡¯t tell them,¡± ¡°I won¡¯t,¡± I replied. ¡°Thank you,¡± ¡°May I ask how old you are?¡± ¡°Sure, I am eighteen,¡± ¡°I thought as much, how do you know Cross and his family?¡± ¡°Hmm, Crosse is my Savior,¡± ¡°How?¡± I asked. ¡°Well, he helped me when I almost gave up, him and uncle Dean, it hasn¡¯t been long them though but they have helped me, they have my hope and a family,¡± ¡°That¡¯s nice,¡± ¡°Yes, they are all nice people, so you should not be scared or nervous,¡± She said holding its hands, I smiled at her, if only she knew him well, she would not be saying this, but as I thought that, another thought crept into my head, what if I am the one who doesn¡¯t know Cross, what if I have been wrong about him all these while because of a misunderstanding? I didn¡¯t have much time to dwell on that because we arrived at the chapel, people were already there, my family snd everyone else invited, my mom only cane to make sure I cane and went back inside, my siblings also came by to say hi, but I still gave them the silent treatment, I stayed in the car away from the crowd until it was time for me to make an entrance, my dad came by the car door and knocked, I hadn¡¯t spoken with him since I came back to the house a month ago, I wondered how we will be able to walk to the aisle together with so much awkwardness between us. ¡°It¡¯s time Katherine,¡± He said when I didn¡¯te out of the car, I tightened my hands into a fist, took a deep breath, before stepping out and holding on to his hands. ¡°You look so beautiful, dear,¡± He said I was too shocked to respond, my dad has neverplimented me, not even when I did well in school, it felt so new and surreal. ¡°Thanks, Dad,¡± I finally said after a while as we both walked towards the entrance of the church, as I expected the media were there, and they were taking loads and loads of photos, I didn¡¯t want to appear as an unhappy bride so I tried to smile as much as I could. ¡°You know, I am not mad at you, right? And whatever you do you will always be my little girl, your mom and I wants the best for you and all our children that¡¯s why we feel this is what is right for you, I was so sad when you ran away but I wasn¡¯t mad at you, I was just disappointed when your mom told me you came by, I told her to go look for you, but before she could do that, you already came back with Cross, I hope you sorted out your feelings, my dear, if you want out now, I can drive you,¡± I may not show it enough but I care for you and your siblings and always want what¡¯s best for you, even if you think it a wrong idea,¡± My dad said, and I stopped to stare at him, the shock wasn¡¯t enough to describe how I felt since I knew my dad, this was the first time he has said something like this to me, I felt the tears well up, I should have gone to see him instead of my mom, but right now it was toote to turn my back on this marriage, that would be selfish and mean, Cross would never forgive me, and I won¡¯t be able to leave with myself either, not when I am the one that begged him for this, this time. ¡°Thanks, Dad, that¡¯s the sweetest thing you have ever said to me, but I am okay, I am gonna marry Cross,¡± He smiled proudly at me and I smiled back just as they announced that the bride should enter. ¡°Are you sure?¡± ¡°Yes, Dad,¡± ¡°Good girl, now let¡¯s get you married,¡± He said as he lead me towards the alter where Cross, his best man, and Anna stood, I saw my siblings all pping and my mom too, she looked happy and even had her phone out taking pictures, I don¡¯t know if I can ever go back to the rtionship I used to have with my siblings but I hoped, I can one day talk to them again, but for now, I just knew I can¡¯t, I held unto my dad, smiling as much as I could, as I walked closer to the man I might be spending a long time with, even if it not forever, because I don¡¯t see us going on forever, but I think we will stay together long enough for me to get back on my feet, long enough for me to pull my revenge on Louis and Pearl, long enough for me to fix my emotionally drained heart. My dad handed me over to him, and we both turned to face the priest who blessed us and helped us exchange our vows, and we both exchanged rings, our family and the crowd pped and cheer when the priest pronounced us husband and wife. ¡°You may now kiss the bride,¡± I heard him say, I looked at Cross, and he had a spark in his eyes, I wondered what it was. ¡°Should we kiss, or should we just pull a trick?¡± He whispered asked as we moved close to each other. ¡°What?¡± I whispered back. ¡°Nothing, I just wanted to be sure you won¡¯t kick me if I kissed you,¡± He said and before I could reply his lips captured mine, sealing our Union, I could hear the cheers and p but I was too busy melting into the kiss I thought I would not like, he pulled off and smiled at me, I was too dazed by how well he kisses, that I couldn¡¯t make out what he said after. The rest of the day and event went pretty fast, we took photos with our various family before we all moved to the reception hall where everyone eat dinner and toasted to our happiness, I could say I wasn¡¯t much present thorough out the ceremony because most of the time I was locked up in my head thinking about nothing in particr. ¡°I need to use to restroom,¡± I whispered to him over the music, he couldn¡¯t make out what I said, because he bent over bringing his face closer to mine, I no Ed away in shock. ¡°Are you okay?¡± He asked, I nodded and gestured with my hands instead, which he understood, he stood up to go with me but I told him I could go alone, I needed to breathe fresh, I stood up and walked to the restroom, did my business and came out, checked to make sure my makeup was still in ce, I was about to leave when a woman¡¯s voice stopped me. ¡°You think because you guys are married then he is yours?¡± ¡°Hmm, who are you?¡± I asked, I didn¡¯t know thedy and couldn¡¯t remember seeing her before. ¡°I am the woman who is supposed to be in that areas, who is supposed to be marrying the man you just married, but don¡¯t you worry, I am going to get him back, just enjoy it while itsts, because it won¡¯tst forever, I will take back what¡¯s mine,¡± She said, and before I could get over what she said and ask her the questions that were running through my mind, she left the restroom, I tried to follow her, but when I looked out, I couldn¡¯t find her, I looked around but still could not find her, I walked back towards the party, wondering who she was and why she thinks I stole her man, I decided that I would ask Cross about it when we were both alone, I joined him back on the stage and the rest of the events went by smoothly¡­N?velDrama.Org owns this.

 Chapter 26

    Cross Pov


    ¡°Hey, are you okay?¡±


    I asked her as she came back from the restroom but she didn¡¯t answer me, she just sat down.


    ¡°What happened?¡±


    I asked again.


    ¡°Please dont ask me, go ask the woman who is supposed to be your bride,¡±


    She said in a low voice but knew who she was talking about, as I looked around, I saw her among the guest and stood up.


    ¡°I aming, and when Ie back we are leaving,¡±


    I said to her and left.


    ¡°What do you want Dolly? Why are you here in Arizona? Why can¡¯t you just take a hint and fuck off?¡±


    I asked as I dragged Dolly to the other side of the reception hall, away from people, I had seen her when she came in but had ignored thinking she will behave herself but I was wrong, she spoke with Katherine, not like I had to exin to her but she hadn¡¯t looked happy with the confrontation, I knew instantly that Dolly had spoken to her.


    ¡°Let go of me Cross, you are hurting me,¡±


    ¡°I told you to stay the fuck away from me so why are you stalking me? And what did you tell my wife?¡±


    I asked, I couldn¡¯t believe I was already addressing Katherine as my wife but that¡¯s what she was anyway.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t tell her anything that is not true, I told her we had a thing, and it is true, you broke things off with me when I wasn¡¯t even ready, you can¡¯t just up and toss me aside and expect me to leave while you are happily married, it doesn¡¯t work that way,¡±


    ¡°I didn¡¯t break things off with you, we never had a thing, what we had was a fling, you were aware, I never asked you for anything, we had an affair, affairs don¡¯tst, I never told you anything neither did I give you any false hope, so if you know what¡¯s good for you, you better get the fuck out of this ce before I do something that might not end well for you,¡±


    I said in anger, I just don¡¯t get which part of everything that I have been saying that she didn¡¯t get, I wanted to shake her to get her senses back.


    ¡°I refuse to be tossed aside, you have to take responsibility for my feelings for you,¡±


    She replied, I couldn¡¯t help it I busted outughing, moving away from her a wall a few distances beforeing back to stand in front of her with a stern face.


    ¡°Dolly, listen and listen real good because I am not going to repeat myself, I don¡¯t care what you feel, I don¡¯t care how you feel, what I do know is that I want you out of my face, or if I decided to act the way you are making me, you are gonna lose everything, including that precious career of yours, so while I am still nice for the veryst time, get the fuck out of my life, and don¡¯t you evere close to my wife say anything to her, I have warned you,¡±


    I said making sure she saw how serious I was, it would only take leaking one of her many unholy deeds for her to lose a lot of deals which will shout her up for good.


    ¡°What are you going to do? Release our sex tape?¡±


    ¡°What? I don¡¯t have any of those, I don¡¯t do that kind of shits, so get off my face, I have warned you already, this is thest time I will speak to you,¡±


    ¡°I fucking hate you Cross, and I hope she knows that you are a fucking monster, you don¡¯t deserve her or any woman, you don¡¯t have respect for somen, you use us to do your binding and toss us aside when you want, your kinds should never be happy, and I will be back for sure to show you that you are just another male who feels over-entitled,¡±


    ¡°The feeling is mutual Dolly now fuck off before I change my mind.¡±


    ¡°You are worst than a monster, I wish people would see through you and see the kind of evil human you are, you are not even supposed to be called human,¡±


    She said and Iughed.


    ¡°You know all that so why are you still following me? Don¡¯t you think you should be running it I might do something bad to you, ?¡±


    ¡°Shut the fuck up, I am out of here, but I wish you would experience the kind of pain I am feeling now,¡±


    She replied and walked off, I didn¡¯t even bother to turn back and watch her, I went back into the reception hall, looking for my mom, I found her with a group of women who I knew were her friends.Property of N?)(velDr(a)ma.Org.


    ¡°Mom, I will like to leave now, I am tired so Kat and I will go ahead,¡±


    I said pulling her from the women and Boeing in apology.


    ¡°Oh, okay, your wife looks tired too, you guys tried a lot today, I am proud of you son,¡±


    She said hugging me.


    ¡°Okay then, will be heading home first,¡±


    ¡°Home? Not home, we booked a hotel for your first night together, why will you go home when it will be filled with people, you guys need time together as a couple, it¡¯s your wedding night,¡±


    ¡°Ma!! I never asked you to do that, I am fine with going home and sleeping on my bed tonight, it¡¯s nothing special,¡±


    I said making sure the other women didn¡¯t hear thest part, they were already looking and straining their ears to hear what I and my mom were talking about.


    ¡°No way, wedding nights are special and yours won¡¯t be anything different alright, now go to get your wife while I go tell the driver to drop you guys off,¡±


    ¡°Fine, you are such a pest,¡±


    I said giving in, I hoped the hotel at least have a big sofa or a big bed, we were not gonna spend the night doing what my mom expect us to do, that wasn¡¯t part of the marriage deal Katherine and I had, I already have the papers, I will have her sign it soon before we leave for New York, my mom insisted on us going on a honeymoon,ter gave up when even Kathrine had said she didn¡¯t want a honeymoon.


    ¡°You love me,¡±


    She responded and I rolled my eyes before adding an ¡°unfortunately¡±


    ¡°Please can you tell Dean that I am off, I can¡¯t seem to get a hold on him,¡±


    I said, I couldn¡¯t find a best friend and supposed best man, I haven¡¯t seen him since after the toast.


    ¡°Sure, dear, do have a good rest, and also walk on making me some grandbabies,¡±


    My mom said and I rolled my eyes.


    ¡°Whatever mom,¡±


    I said snd left her there to go look for my wife, I can¡¯t believe I have to call her that, I found her sitting alone where I left her, she had that sad and distant look I havee to apany her with, I couldn¡¯t tell if that how she always have been or if whattt happened to her had turned her to the sadist, over thest few weeks I have tried to learn little details about her but I couldn¡¯t do much on the inte, although her family were sometimes on the news and, she mostly wasn¡¯t seen, even her social media had few photos of her and he didn¡¯t see much there either, she just posts photos of her with either an emoji or a two-letter word, she saw me watching her and waved smiling weakly in my direction, this was the first time she had smiled at me, I wondered what happened when I left her to confront Dolly, she had been upset, and I expected her to still be, I turned around and it dawned on me that she wasn¡¯t smiling at me beither was she waving at me, she was waving at the guy beside me, I didn¡¯t know why I felt upset but I did, whoever he was I didn¡¯t want him near her, walking up to her I pulled her up.


    ¡°We are leaving now,¡±


    ¡°What? I need to speak to my friend,¡±


    She said pulling her hands off, and pointing In the guy¡¯s direction, I turned back and saw him smiling which made me even more upset.


    ¡°You are not serious, if you don¡¯te with me right now, I¡¯m leaving you here and you cane on your own,¡±


    I said walking off, I didn¡¯t look back until I got to where our car was parked and got in only then did I look and saw that she had followed behind me, she got into the car and we drove off to the hotel in silence. I couldn¡¯te up with a legit exnation as to why I acted the way I did, I should have allowed her to talk to her friend, it not like we were a real couple so why did I act that way, I couldn¡¯te up with an answer but I promised myself that I would never do that again, she could meet whoever she wants to meet and I would not stop her, and I want her to do the same, I will make her sign the document before we leave, I just hope I won¡¯t be the one to break that boundary, there is only one woman for me and I lost her ten years ago, no other woman would take my heart, no one else, not even my new wife¡­

 Chapter 27

    Kathy PovN?velDrama.Org owns this.


    When we entered the hotel room first thing I noticed even in my anger was the decorations on the floor, they went all the way to the bedroom, I wondered who did it and why they bothered me. Covered in pretty red roses and a candle light that formed a part down to the bedroom, I followed the part and the bed was covered in roses formed into a love shape, with inscription HAPPY MARRIED LIFE, the decorations were beautiful, but it would have been better if our marriage was based off love, but it wasn¡¯t so I didn¡¯t see the point of it, I bet it Cross¡¯s mom that did this, becsuse she is the only who will be able to pull this kind of thing up, not to mention I thought we were all going to their mansion but Cross had told me during the car ride that his mom insisted on us going to an hotel for our privacy, that¡¯s the only thing we talked about in the car, I was much to angry to even reply him, at least the bed was big, and I could easily use the pillows to build a barrier, I didn¡¯t fancy sleeping on the couch and I know Cross won¡¯t let me have the bed either, I could use some sleep right now as I am dead tired, I walked back to the sitting area of the big hotel suite as Cross walked in.


    ¡°Fucking hell mom,¡±


    I was pissed with him so I didn¡¯t react to what he said, I thought we agreed we won¡¯t get into each other¡¯s business but he couldn¡¯t even let me say hi to Jordan who I haven¡¯t seen in a while and might not see in a while again. Jordan and I graduated from the same high school but then his family moved to Asia so I lost contact with him, I saw him earlier when the events started and have had it in mind to talk to him when I was free, but Cross ruined that, I don¡¯t know why I even listened to him.


    ¡°About what happened earlier,¡±


    He said.


    ¡°Yes?¡±


    ¡°Whatever Dolly told you, it not true, I never nned on marrying her, she is just looking for attention,¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s none of my business, I thought you were going to talk about the way you ordered me out of the party, I lost the chance to reconnect with a long lost friend because of that,¡±


    I said eyeing him, he didn¡¯t even look remorseful which angered me the more, I wondered how he would feel if I had done the same to him.


    ¡°What¡¯s the use of reconnecting with him? Bruh, you just got married and we are leaving Arizona soon, so there is no need,¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s not for you to decide, alright? It¡¯s none of your business just like whatever it was between you and thatdy is none of my business,¡±


    I said moving over to where he stood and collecting the bag he dropped, which contained what I needed for the night, before proceeding to try and take off my gown, but it looked like the zipper was stuck.


    ¡°Agreed, but we were in public and we just got married, I don¡¯t want the gossips already having what to say about our marriage only a few hours into it.¡±


    He replied.


    ¡°What are you even saying? It¡¯s a wedding reception and Jordan is a guest so how am I meeting w a guest gonna cause gossips, the only reason I followed you was that I didn¡¯t want to create a scene but please let¡¯s stick to the original n, stay off my business and I will do the same,¡±


    I said still struggling with the gown, I felt him behind my back before his hand touched mine where I held the zipper, I jumped.


    ¡°Hey, I was only trying to help you, no need to run away, I don¡¯t bite, at least not if you don¡¯t want me to,¡±


    He said dragging me back to where he stood, he helped with the zipper while I held my breath, as soon as I felt the zipper open I quickly left his side.


    ¡°Take a chill pill, you are not my type,¡±


    He said, I felt offended, I am every man¡¯s type, not to brag but I know I was beautiful, and I have a nice body too, a get a lot of advances too from different kinds of men, so if I am not his type then he may have weird taste in men and judging by thedy that approached me in the restroom I wasn¡¯t surprised.


    ¡°If I am not your type and thatdy before at the restroom is, then you have very poor taste in women, why am I not surprised?¡±


    I said and walked off to the bathroom to take off my makeup and take a shower, he said something that I didn¡¯t hear and I didn¡¯t bother to ask him because I wasn¡¯t interested, I just wanted to sleep. When I came back he had already taken off the clothes he wore at the wedding and only had on a per of shorts on, I stared at his broad muscr shoulders, and my mouth suddenly ran dry, I gulped and tried to regain my lost senses, he had a nice body and I would be a wood not to react, it is normal to react when you see something nice, isn¡¯t it? I kept staring and wondering how long he spends at the gym to have such a nice and fit body type.


    ¡°Cut it out, Katherine,¡±


    I mentally scolded myself, as I walked into the room.


    ¡°If you are done staring, can youe and sign this?¡±


    He asked and I blushed in embarrassment, he caught me staring and ogling at him, but what was he even on about? I thought we already signed all the papers.


    ¡°What else am I signing? I thought we already did all of the paperwork?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, but this is the agreement between the both of us so that you will know where you stand with me, there are a few Dos and Don¡¯ts,¡±


    He answered, I sat down in front of him and picked up the papers he kept on the table, I couldn¡¯t even make out what they were, I was super tired, all the stress from the past couple of weeks was already telling on me.


    ¡°Can I do this after I rest? I am fucking tired and I can¡¯t read the letters properly,¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t need to read it you can just sign,¡±


    ¡°You are not serious, why will I sign what I didn¡¯t read, what if you are trying to sell me into very? I will read it after I rest and sign, don¡¯t worry I won¡¯t back out I already signed the difficult ones this one won¡¯t be any different.¡±


    I said, still flipping through the papers, trying to make out what it said, but my poor visionpound with fatigue didn¡¯t help my case, I closed it in surrender, if he doesn¡¯t agree then he can sign it himself.


    ¡°Okay, fine, you can do it tomorrow, but you have to sign before we leave Arizona,¡±


    ¡°Yes, sir, so can I go and sleep now?¡±


    I asked, getting up.


    ¡°Sure,¡±


    He replied and I headed to the bed, already dreaming ofying on it and dozing off.


    ¡°Can you try not to snore? I really hate being woken up by snores,¡±


    I said, turning back to face him and he gave me a disgusted look.


    ¡°I don¡¯t snore,¡±


    ¡°Well, almost all guys do, I just wanted to let you know, I might kill you if I wake up to you snoring,¡±


    I added.


    ¡°I don¡¯t, and don¡¯t worry, I ain¡¯t sleeping on the same bed with you, I will use the couch,¡±


    He said, I looked at the couch and wondered, it didn¡¯t look bad so I didn¡¯t argue, at least he is trying to be a gentleman.


    ¡°That¡¯s better, please make sure to turn off all the candles, I hate to be woke by the fire rm too.


    I said and walked into the room without waiting for his reply, pushing all the roses to the floor, Iid on the soft bed, I was much too tired to think of anything, and decide to leave of the thinking for after I have gotten enough rest, I sighed and went off to sleep¡­

 Chapter 28

    Kathy Pov


    ¡°Ma, I thought we already talked about this? I already told you no, I mean not just me but Katherine also said she doesn¡¯t want a honeymoon, stop pushing mom,¡±


    Cross said as we sat in his parent¡¯s vi two days after our wedding, we didn¡¯t leave the hotel until this morning, and Cross had nned on us leaving for New York today but turns out his mom had other ns, she was insisting that we go a honeymoon which I had earlier declined but she wasn¡¯t relenting, and had even gone as far as buying ne tickets to the Bahamas and even hotel booking, she said and I quote ¡°what¡¯s a wedding without a honeymoon,¡± that if we don¡¯t go now we might regret in the future, I so wanted to tell her that she is forgetting that our marriage wasn¡¯t a love match and that we might not even be married for long and if Louis the snake had not run away with my money I won¡¯t even be here, but I just kept quiet while the two of them went on with their argument.


    Cross made me sign a contract that stated that I shouldn¡¯t interfere with anything that concerns him, in New York, we are just gonna be more like roommates with a legal binding, I didn¡¯t mind any of his rules because it gave me the freedom I needed, I already applied for a change of course so I am going to be taking a course on interior designing when I resume Uni in New York, everything that was on the contract favored me well except the part where I don¡¯t get a penny from him if I ever file for a divorce, I wasn¡¯t bothered by that anyway, so I signed it.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know why you are being so stubborn it just for one week, you will thank meter for this,¡±


    ¡°Mom, there is no need, Katherine say something,¡±


    He said turning to me, I didn¡¯t know what to say so I just kept staring at them.


    ¡°See, your wife wants it to, I am sure you are the one that talked her into not going in the first ce,¡±


    ¡°Mom, she didn¡¯t say anything,¡±


    ¡°Just agree already, you know she won¡¯t back out until you do,¡±


    His dad who has been silent the whole time said, I noticed that his dad is a very quiet man, he has a lot inmon with my dad, but I think he is nicer.


    ¡°I am not giving in, no way, mom have talked me into doing lots of things and I am not doing this, I have been neglecting the office for too long,¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s why you have reps and assistants, I don¡¯t see anything wrong with you taking a week break to be with your new wife, when your mom and I got married, we took a whole month, and back then we didn¡¯t have this much money,¡±


    His dad said and I watched Cross roll his eyes, his parents had him cornered, I felt I should help his course but before I could form the words, he agreed, what a mom boy.


    ¡°Fine, you guys won, we are going,¡±


    ¡°Yes, now make sure to make me some grandbabies,¡±


    His mom said in her excitement, I wanted to bark outughter that set in my stomach but I didn¡¯t, who the fuck gave her the idea that we are going to be making babies, I mean we spent two nights in the hotel and we didn¡¯t consummate our wedding, she can keep dreaming though.


    His dad walked off with his mom tracing behind her husband in excitement, Cross turned to face me when it was just the both of us, he looked annoyed.


    ¡°What?¡±N?velDrama.Org owns this.


    I asked getting up from the chair and carrying my bag.


    ¡°I made a mistake marrying you bitch, it¡¯s not like I am gaining a thing from this, I am losing my freedom and I hate it, I should have left you at the hospital when you told me to leave or I should have left when I found out who you are, heck I should not have listened to your pleads now I am stuck with you, I don¡¯t want you and most certainly don¡¯t want to be forced to go on things called honeymoon vacation,¡±


    He said, his expression dark, he looked just like the Cross I remembered from ten years ago, the one who scares me, but right now, I wasn¡¯t even scared, I was pissed off on my own, I didn¡¯t want this either, yes, I begged but he didn¡¯t have to run it in my face, I shouldn¡¯t even be angry, just let him do whatever he wants.


    ¡°Dude, I don¡¯t know what crawled up your panties and got it twisted but the feeling is mutual, remember? I almost ran away because I didn¡¯t want this, if my n had gone as I wanted then we won¡¯t have been here, and talking of the honeymoon if you don¡¯t want to then you don¡¯t have to go, you tell your mom you don¡¯t want it and stand by it,¡±


    I said I wonder why he is taking it out on me when he could just tell his mom no and stand by it.


    ¡°If you had at least said something she would have relented,¡±


    ¡°Tish! Do you think what I say will change her mind? Dude, you need to start telling her, no, if not you might end up giving her those grandbabies, but not by me though, I ain¡¯t gonna have your child,¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t wanna have a child with you either, don¡¯t delude yourself, I am doing you a favor by marrying you, you are just a charity case,¡±


    He said, walking off, but wait, was that supposed to make me feel down? He is crazy, really crazy if he thinks what he just said would affect me in any way. We still had to stop by my parent¡¯s ce, my dad wanted to see us, I followed behind the angry moron who couldn¡¯t man up and say no to his mom.


    When I got to the car he was there and still angry, I didn¡¯t even look at him, I got into the front seat with the driver who didn¡¯t look pleased by the turn of events but I didn¡¯t mind him because I didn¡¯t want Cross¡¯s mood rubbing off on me, I was already on my way to recovering from the depression I suffered thest few weeks and I didn¡¯t want to ruin that again just because my supposed husband can¡¯t man enough and say no to his mom.


    ¡°Is that where you are going to seat?¡±


    He asked and I nodded, and brought out my phone and plugged in my earpiece, Ipletely zoned out every other thing he said.


    When we got to my parent¡¯s house, my mom wasn¡¯t at home which I was thankful for because I wasn¡¯t ready to forgive her for disowning just like that, my sibling have all retired to their respective homes, I still wasn¡¯t talking to them, the only person that I was cool with right now was my dad, and he was the one I never got along with all my life, we use to hold each other, but the words he said to me on the wedding day, I felt those, he cared about me even though he barely shows it, snd thinking about it now, everything added up, my dad had my back even though he never shows it.


    ¡°Dad,¡±


    I greeted him when we entered his home office, he looked up and smiled at me.


    ¡°Good to see you Katherine dear, and you too Cross,¡±


    He said and stood up to hug me and Cross, we sat back down and he offered us something to drink after which he handed over a heavy envelope to Cross who looked puzzled.


    ¡°What¡¯s this dad?¡±


    I asked.


    ¡°It¡¯s a property in New York, my wedding gift to the both of you,¡±


    ¡°Sir, you didn¡¯t have to,¡±


    Cross said, but he collected the big envelope from dad, at least he had manners.


    ¡°Just think of it as a bribe and make sure not to hurt my daughter, she is the baby of this house, she might be stubborn andcking in lots of ways but she has a good heart and is a risk-taker as you already know, I know your marriage is not a love natch but you guys can take time and get to know each other and build a rtionship and you will be surprised how beautiful it will turn out to be,¡±


    Dad advised, and we both nodded, I couldn¡¯t argue with him, not when he was showing me a different side of him I never knew existed until my wedding day.


    ¡°Thank you so much, dad,¡±


    ¡°Anything for you dear, anyway, I waited for you guys toe to do that I can give you this, I need to go now, I have a very important meeting with the senate¡¯s and I can¡¯t keep them waiting, do have a great honeymoon and happy marriage life,¡±


    He said. We thanked him and left the house, when we got back to the car I was tempted to tell Cross that he gained something from me after all but I just left him, the dude was still sucking because of the honeymoon vacation and I didn¡¯t want to piss him off more.


    ¡°Katherine,¡±


    ¡°Yes?¡±


    ¡°We are going to the Bahamas for the honeymoon,¡±


    He disclosed.


    I didn¡¯t reply just got out my phone and started browsing the inte for things to do to keep me busy for one whole week¡­

 Chapter 29

    Cross Pov


    I stared at her as she bounced towards the exit of the airport where the taxi taking us to our hotel was parked, we literally just had an over five hours flight and she look so cheerful and blissful, I didn¡¯t know what was running through her mind, she hasn¡¯t said a word to me since we got on the ne from Arizona, and even after wended, she waited for me to get off before she did, I didn¡¯t recur our contract stating that we don¡¯t have to talk to each other.


    ¡°Kathrine, slow down,¡±


    I said when she started moving faster but she didn¡¯t stop, she just kept moving until she got to the car and entered.


    ¡°What the fuck is wrong with you? I told you to slow down, what if this isn¡¯t the car we are entering? Don¡¯t you know it is dangerous to walk off on your own?¡±


    I asked in anger as I entered the car, I couldn¡¯t believe she doesn¡¯t have themon sense to know what she ought to do and not to do.


    ¡°I thought you said not to talk to you, and also I am not dumb, I heard when you spoke with the driver and also heard what he said that would be used to identify him, and I also saw him take ournguages from the carriage, so stop acting like my dad, you are not,¡±


    She replied, licking her lips, those lips that were badass kissers, I could still remember the kisses we shared briefly on our wedding day, the one at the chapel and also at the reception.


    ¡°No, no, Cross, don¡¯t go there, she is not your type, remember?¡±


    I mentally scolded myself.


    ¡°I never said you shouldn¡¯t talk to me,¡±


    ¡°Well, you didn¡¯t have to say, you acted like it, so I have given you your space, I don¡¯t want to be reminded that I am a charity case and that you are doing me a favor by marrying me,¡±


    She said, I knew I shouldn¡¯t have said those words to her but I had been pissed off by my mom forcing me intoing here and by the fact that she didn¡¯t join me in refusing, when she knew I didn¡¯t want it if she had said something instead of just sitting there my mom would have given up but still that wasn¡¯t enough reason to say those words to her andpound with the fact that her dad just practically gifted us an estate in New York as a wedding gift, I hadn¡¯t expected.


    ¡°I am sorry about what I said, you don¡¯t have to feel that way,¡±


    ¡°I never felt it though, I just didn¡¯t want to talk to you and besides, you did gain something from marrying me after all, so we are good, I don¡¯t want the estate so you can keep it as payment for helping me,¡±


    She said and plugged in her earpiece again, she had the habit of plugging in her earpiece each time she doesn¡¯t want to talk to me or respond to me,


    ¡°Such a witch,¡±


    I muttered to myself. I didn¡¯t know what I would be doing for the whole of the week we will be here in the Bahamas, I looked out through the window, the view was amazing and weing, at least I have the view, I could go diving, at Cat ind, though we were headed to Nassau paradise and there were a hell lot of adventures things to do to keep my mind off things, not like I had anything in mind, I was okay apart from the fact that I just realizedte that marriage meant my freedom is gone, even when I say it not a real marriage I couldn¡¯t see myself going back to living the way I used before, and if my marriage with Katherine doesn¡¯t work out, my mom would probably link me up with anotherdy who could be worst than Kathrine, which is one of the reasons I epted her when she pleaded with me to give her a second chance, the devil I know is better than the angel that I haven¡¯t seen, Katherine is safe even though her safety still cost me my freedom.


    ¡°Wow!!! It¡¯s beautiful here,¡±


    She said and I looked back into the car to see that she has taken off the earphone and was staring out of the window.


    ¡°Yes, it is and it is even more beautiful at night,¡±


    I said, I have been to the Bahamas quite a few times, the first time I came here was for my parents fifteen wedding anniversary, back then I was a witty fourteen years old, I came back again when I was eighteen, with her, the only woman who owned my heart, although we had gone to a different ind, San Salvador, we broke up after that, and reunited again only for us to break up all over again, the thought of her made me sad, I wondered where she would be and if she had forgiven me, pushing all thoughts of her to the back of my mind I looked out of the window again, thest time I came here was for business, the man I came to see had been on his honeymoon and I needed him to sign a few papers so I had brought it all here to the Bahamas.


    ¡°Have you been here before?¡±


    She asked.


    ¡°Yes, a few times,¡±


    ¡°With who?¡±


    ¡°Do I have to answer that? It¡¯s stated in our contract that you should mind your bu¡­¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I remember, sorry I asked,¡±


    She said cutting me off.


    ¡°First time I came with my parents, then with my ex and finally for business,¡±


    I revealed, she didn¡¯t reply and we sat in silence all the way to our hotel, the hotel itself was located close to a beach and the scenery was a beautiful sight.


    ¡°Wow, this ce is beautiful, I can live here forever, I am so d I came, I should have thought of vacationing here ever since,¡±


    She said in excitement getting out of the car, she didn¡¯t even wait for the driver to drop off theirnguage and just went ahead towards the beach, I paid the taxi driver and he help offload ournguages which were then picked up by the attendant at the front of the hotel, I looked back and saw my wife in the far distance taking pictures of the beach on impulse, I took out my phone and took a picture of her, as soon as I did I started questioning why I did it, but I didn¡¯t delete the photo because it looked pretty, I called her name to tell her toe back but she didn¡¯t hear me.


    ¡°Please our room number is 207 so you can keep ournguages there I need to go get my wife, ¡±


    I said to the attendant who was growing impatient with standing there, he nodded and headed towards the hotel, I walked towards where she was standing taking photos, her long curly hair was free and flying in every direction the wind took it, she had taken off her shoes and was barefooted, she turned to face me and smiled brightly, her ocean blue eyes matching perfectly with the color of the ocean, one thing I couldn¡¯t deny was the fact that Katherine was beautiful, she had a nice figure that had shrink during the times she put herself through hell now that she was getting herself back, she was starting to look like the woman I saw on the photo on the night of the engagement that didn¡¯t happen.


    ¡°I have been calling you and you seem not to wanna listen to me,¡±


    I said, out loud, shaking off the thoughts of her that were finding their way into my head, no matter how beautiful she is, I won¡¯t step over the boundaries I set myself, no way.


    ¡°I am sorry, I didn¡¯t hear you, I was much too absolved in the beauty of this ind,¡±


    She said.


    ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s beautiful,¡±


    I replied looking at her, she was so beautiful that she almost didn¡¯t look real.


    ¡°Cut it out Cross,¡±


    I scolded myself.


    ¡°Cut what out?¡±


    She asked and I realized I said it out loud.


    ¡°Nothing,¡±


    I replied.


    ¡°Okay,¡±


    ¡°We should head inside, we can do all theseter,¡±


    ¡°No, I wanna watch the sunset,¡±


    She said stubbornly, did she really have to make us fight all the time, why couldn¡¯t she just listen for once.


    ¡°Kathrine, how old are you again?¡±


    ¡°Hmm, why are you asking me that again? I thought I told you before and it is also in our wedding register, I guess,¡±This content provided by N(o)velDrama].[Org.


    ¡°Answer me,¡±


    I demanded.


    ¡°Twenty-three why?¡±


    ¡°Then why do you act like a kid?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t understand what you mean, how do I act like a kid, I thought we passed the insults?¡±


    ¡°No, I genuinely want to know, because why else will you never listen to what I say? We just got here and we have one whole week I am sure you will see the sunset before we leave, can¡¯t you just listen to me without disagreeing for once?¡±


    I asked my voice raising more than I intended but I couldn¡¯t help it, she brings out the worst in me.


    ¡°You can say those without shouting you know, I can hear perfectly well,¡±


    ¡°I wasn¡¯t shouting,¡±


    ¡°Yes, you were, and also I listen, I just wanted to see the sunset, you keep making me look like the bad person here, you can go in without me you know, save yourself the trouble, you don¡¯t have to deal with this adult baby if you don¡¯t want, no one knows us here so we can pretend not to know each other,¡±


    There she goes again.


    ¡°There you go again, Katherine, I am not trying to pick a fight with you, I should be the one acting the way you are acting, the way you act so indifferent, I know you don¡¯t like me one bit, seems like you even hate me, I don¡¯t like you either but while we are here, at least can you listen to me?¡±


    ¡°Fine, lead the way,¡±


    She said closing her phone and picking her shoes up, ¡°what kind of a crazy bitch is she?¡± I thought as I walked in front of her, and why can¡¯t I even mind my business, let her do what she wants, but I know I can¡¯t do that, I promised her dad I will take care of her even if I can¡¯t love her and I will do that, I already knew it wasn¡¯t going to be easy with how stubborn she is but I am going to try, I just hope I don¡¯t lose brain cells trying to do that¡­

 Chapter 30

    Kathy Pov


    I singsonged into the room, having the best time of my life despite the moron who couldn¡¯t say no to his mom disturbing my life, but I was d he didn¡¯t tell her no, I have had so much about the Bahamas but never have I thought it would be this beautiful, I have always felt it was I overrated, how wrong I have been, the ce is beautiful, from the airport way to our hotel in the Nassau Paradise, it was beautiful with tall trees and elegant buildings, the ocean right next to our hotel, the view, everything was just so heartwarming, I was so lost in the view, I wish I lived here, I would go sightseeing every day and I will take a bath in the ocean and sunbathe in the sun, it would be heavenly and I only had one week to enjoy it, I already made up my mind that I wille back here soon and spend at least one whole month.


    ¡°Hey, Katherine,¡±


    He called when we entered the room, okay this looks better than a normal hotel room, it looked more like a mini apartment


    ¡°Yes, what is it?¡±


    ¡°Can we try and just coexist?¡±


    I don¡¯t understand him one beat, he keeps changing, and making me look like the bad person, he should just be strict and not have anything to do with me, he literally just called me a kid a few minutes ago now he wants to make peace, he should just pick a side, and stop confusing the hell out of me, I don¡¯t fancy been made to feel guilty, I literally just felt insensitive at there, when he called me out and said I never listen.


    ¡°I am perfectly fine with how we are now though,¡±


    I replied, looking around the spacious room with beautiful decorations and a perfect view of the ocean.


    ¡°I am not, I promise your dad I will take care of you, I don¡¯t want to break that promise,¡±


    Oh, this is what it is about? My dad?


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to, I can take care of myself, you can just ignore me,¡±


    ¡°God, why are you so stubborn?¡±


    There he goes again, I just left him standing there and went into the bedroom,pared to the hotel in Arizona, this one had a smaller bed, but it was still bigger than my bed at home, and there was only one, why didn¡¯t he book a room with two beds, then I remembered his mom paid for these, thankfully no love flowers and candlelight this time, I still didn¡¯t see how we will manage and stay in this bed together maybe he would sleep in another room because the sofa here was small, but his luggage was here, maybe he wanted me to settle down before he left but I went back into the sitting area and saw him taking off his clothes, leaving on only his shorts exposing his broad shoulders to my face, I took a step back, could he at least give a warning.


    ¡°Are we sharing the same room?¡±


    I asked my mouth watering at the sight of his delicious looking abs, Louis had abs and a nice tanned body but it was nothingpared to this masterpiece in front of me, no not at all, if I thought Louis was hot, which he had been, not gonna deny that fact even if he turned out to be a scammer, but Cross was ten times hotter than Louis, in fact, they couldn¡¯t bepared, I couldn¡¯t take my eyes off, I am gonna get myself in trouble if I keep looking at those.


    ¡°Yes, we are, I see no point in going to different rooms when we can share,¡±


    He said, picking up his own suitcase, and walking to the bedroom where I just came from, I followed behind him and watched him bring out the content to ce them in the wardrobe.


    ¡°But I thought you said we won¡¯t be sharing a room? Why would we sleep in the same room here and go back to New York and sleep in separate rooms?¡±


    ¡°About that, I changed my mind too, we are sharing a room and I am scrapping that off the contract.¡±


    ¡°What? You can¡¯t do that, I don¡¯t want to be in the same room as you, I could get in t¡­¡±


    I paused.


    ¡°Get in what? Don¡¯t worry, we stayed in the same room for two days and nothing happened, it won¡¯t be different here,¡±


    Yeah right, that¡¯s what he thought, with this kind of body, he must be kidding, I swear I already want to touch and feel if those abs are as solid as they looked, I want to trace my hands over them and use my ton¡­ ¡°Stop it!!!¡± I screamed to myself inside my head, hoping he won¡¯t catch me checking him out again


    ¡°Yes, there was a big sofa, and you slept there remember? This sofa looks so small, I won¡¯t even fit not to talk of you,¡±


    I said.


    ¡°We will share the bed,¡±


    ¡°Oh lordy,¡± the voice in my head said. I shushed it.


    ¡°Can¡¯t you pick a side though?¡±


    I said instead.


    ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    ¡°I mean choose if you wanna be okay with me or if you want me off your face because you keep switching and it is confusing me, one minute I am to mind my business, and the next minute you want us to coexist, I don¡¯t know what you really want from me, we have been barely married for two days and it already feel like we can¡¯t even decide where we stand.¡±


    I replied, sitting down, I was massively tired even though I loved the trip but flying can be exhausting, and I was feeling jetg.


    ¡°You know what, why don¡¯t we rest today and we can continue this talk in the morning, I will leave if you want me to, but I will prefer if you don¡¯t because I won¡¯t want to leave you on your own,¡±


    ¡°Are you scared that I might run off?¡±


    ¡°No, I know you won¡¯t but I don¡¯t want to take any chances, I promise your dad and I want to keep that promise, I am tired so I will like to rest,¡±


    He said moving out of the room to the bathroom area, I carried my luggage and emptied out the contents, and stuffed them in the empty wardrobe, he wants us to coexist, so I am going to give that to him, he didn¡¯t act like how I thought he was or might it be I had misunderstood him? Ten years ago he hadn¡¯t been this understanding, he had been one big asshole that left me on that dangerous road that night, despite how much I begged him to not leave me there, he had zoned off in his bike leaving me on my own, again, I was kind of at fault for going to a party when I was only thirteen and everyone there had been way older than me, but I was fully matured and looked almost the same as the girls who were at least five years older than me, I had wanted to have fun with the big boys and girls, but it had backfired when the cops hadnded at the party, apparently, some of the boys there were using drugs, some were arrested ording to what I heard the next day.


    Cross had been there and had been the one to help me escape because if I had been arrested it would have been bad for both me, my parents and everyone at the party because I was underaged, but half way home we had a fight and one thing lead to the other he left me there in the middle of nowhere at eleven pm, I had begged and begged but he didn¡¯t listen, I thought he would but he got a call that changed his mood from bad to worst and he had zoned off leaving me standing there, lost, I had walked for almost twenty minutes before a kind woman hade by and helped me home, after that night I hadn¡¯t seen him again until we met at the hospital, I hated him since and when I found out he is the one I am marrying you could have imagined how I felt, I have legit reasons to hate him but maybe he changed, maybe he wasn¡¯t the unreasonable teenager any more, maybe I could try and coexist with him like he suggested, there is no harm in trying and besides I need his help if I am going to be able to find Louis and make him pay, I know I won¡¯t get my money back but at least, I can make him pay by exposing him so that another youngdy won¡¯t be fooled like I did.


    ¡°Why are you standing there and looking like you are lost?¡±


    He asked swinging his fingers across my face, I snapped out of my thoughts.


    ¡°None of your business,¡±


    I replied.


    ¡°Agreed,¡±


    ¡°Why are you being nice to me?¡±


    I suddenly asked.


    ¡°I don¡¯t understand? Am I being nice?¡±


    ¡°Yes you are, a lot of things doesn¡¯t add up,¡±N?velDrama.Org owns this.


    ¡°Like what?¡±


    ¡°Like you are so different from how I remember you, first of all, you are, I mean you epted to marry me when I ran away and embarrassed our families.¡±


    ¡°Thank God you know you did,¡±


    He said.


    ¡°Of course I know but what is surprising is I wasn¡¯t expecting to you ept me back so easily,¡±


    ¡°It wasn¡¯t an easy decision though,¡±


    ¡°Yeah but it wasn¡¯t what I expected either, and for me, it was easy, easier than begging my mom to forgive me and take me back,¡±


    ¡°What did you expect?¡±


    ¡°Well, you left me in the middle of nowhere when I was just thirteen so forgive me for thinking the worst of you, anything could have happened to me that night,¡±


    ¡°About that, I don¡¯t have anything to say,¡±


    He said moving away from me, his demo changed when I mentioned the night, I wanted to ask why he looked so wary bit I know he wouldn¡¯t answer me so I sucked it up and went to take a bath when I came back he already ordered dinner, we ate in silence.


    ¡°I asked the attendant for extra pillows so you can make a barricade if you want,¡±


    He revealed, I looked across the bed and indeed there were more pillows, I didn¡¯t say anything to him and just went ahead and made a bridge with the pillows, as soon as I hit the bed, I fell asleep almost immediately¡­

 Chapter 31

    Kathy Pov


    I woke up the next morning with much excitement, I hurriedly took a bath and ate breakfast while waiting for my ¡®husband¡¯ to sluggishly get up and do those things too, but the moron, yeah I am stuck into calling him a moron in my head for a long time, I hope he doesn¡¯t find out though, so the moron was stillzing around in bed, I woke up to find myself in his arms, and had hurriedly removed myself, it was me who left my side of the bed so I couldn¡¯t call him out on it, thankfully he wasn¡¯t aware, I n on having fun and making the most of this one week, I picked up my phone and googled the best ce to visit in Nassau and I wrote down the ces that caught my eyes, I know I can¡¯t visit all but I would try, I hoped he wille along but if he doesn¡¯t I will go alone, can¡¯t miss out the fun because of a boring husband.


    He finally got out of bed by nine am and went to take his bath and while he was there I ordered breakfast for him.


    ¡°Nice of you to think of feeding me,¡±


    He said sitting down to eat.


    ¡°I am only paying back a favor,¡±


    I responded, he ate in silence while I went through my phone, checking out the various locations.


    ¡°So what do you n on doing today, I know you look excited already.¡±


    He asked when he was done eating.


    ¡°I have listed a few locations I will like to visit,¡±


    ¡°I know you would have, do you want me toe with you or would you rather go on your own?¡±


    ¡°Of course I want you toe with me,¡±


    ¡°Really?¡±


    ¡°Yes, I thought about what you said and there is no reason for us not to coexist, it¡¯s not like we have a feud between us, at least not anymore, so yeah I will like you toe with me, it won¡¯t be fun on my own,¡±


    ¡°Alright then, when do we leave?¡±


    ¡°Right now, I have been waiting for you to wake up since five am,¡±


    I let out getting up and carrying my cross bag, he followed behind me, when we got to the entrance of the hotel, we walked up to one of the taxis before he asked me where we were going to.


    ¡°Where are we going?¡±


    ¡°Our first stop is festival ce,¡±


    I said in excitement.


    ¡°You googled it?¡±


    ¡°Yes, and I also wrote them down, from festival ce we would go parliament square then to bay street and so on,¡±


    I revealed, he nodded in approval, so I told the taxi driver to go on ahead, it took about thirty minutes or an hour to get to festival ce and the ce was filled with tourist, we walked to a few different ces, I found a hair salon and ran towards it.


    ¡°Hey, where are you running off to?¡±


    He called, I stopped running and turned to face him.


    ¡°I am just going to get my hair straightened out and trimmed,¡±


    ¡°No, don¡¯t do that,¡±


    ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°Your hair is beautiful as it is,¡±


    ¡°I know and it can also be beautiful when I straighten it and get a trim, I have done it before,¡±


    I said still going towards the salon.


    ¡°I like it better like this, don¡¯t straighten it,¡±


    He said stopping me, I wanted to argue and tell him to back off my case, but then I remembered that I have decided to be civil with him, and truth be told my hair looks better when it is in its naturally curly state, so I agreed.


    ¡°Alright fine, I won¡¯t, now let¡¯s go to the next stop which is the square,¡±


    I said and followed the directions my map told me, he followed behind me.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t know you would listen to me, wow, feels nice to have you listen to me,¡±


    He said, I ignored him, I should have gone ahead and trimmed it. I thought rolling my eyes, we got into another taxi that took us to the parliament square, the ride there was fun on its own, the driver seemed to be a fan of the kpop boy band BTS and yed their songs all through the way, I am a huge fan of them too, so I felt so honored to meet a fellow ARMY, when we got to parliament square, I made sure to tip him well.


    ¡°I see you like BTS,¡±


    ¡°Yes, I do, don¡¯t you?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, they are good, Max is a huge fan,¡±


    ¡°Wow, really? That¡¯s so nice, remind me to meet up with him, I didn¡¯t know,¡±Copyright N?v/el/Dra/ma.Org.


    Now I wish I married Max instead, but the thought didn¡¯t sit well with me though.


    ¡°Yes, ma,¡±


    He said as we walked into the square.


    ¡°Wow,¡±


    I let out in amazement, the ce was huge and had a statue of one of the Queen¡¯s, I couldn¡¯t remember who it was I am bad at history.


    ¡°I know right? This ce is amazing, it was originally built in 1815 and it is used for important functions such as the Supreme Court and also th¡­¡±


    ¡°Thank you, sir, I don¡¯t wanna hear the rest of it,¡±


    I said cutting him off, it was boring.


    ¡°Tish, dummy,¡±


    ¡°Whatever, so who is the statue at the entrance?¡±


    I asked out of curiosity, as we walked around the huge ce.


    ¡°Wow, you don¡¯t know the queen?¡±


    ¡°I know it¡¯s a queen but which one is it, I am bad at history,¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t let the locals hear you they will be mad at you,¡±


    He said. I didn¡¯t believe him though.


    ¡°Tell me already, or do you not know too, well I can always browse it,¡±


    I said walking off.


    ¡°That¡¯s Queen Victoria, the statue was built in honor of her,¡±


    ¡°Oh, you could have just said that instead of ying with me, anyway let¡¯s go to the next ce, I don¡¯t like staying in a ce that makes me feel dumb,¡±


    I said walking out, he followed behind me,ughing at me.


    ¡°What¡¯s so funny?¡±


    I asked when he kept onughing, he pulled me to a stop in front of the statue and pointed at it, I looked and didn¡¯t notice at first, before I noticed the name boldly written on it, color me stupid, I thought getting his hands off me and walking off, he could have just pointed it out in the beginning.


    ¡°Aren¡¯t you going to take a photo?¡±


    He asked and I stopped walking again, the dude was bringing out the worst of me, I wanted to smack him for making me act like a fool.


    ¡°Yeah, true, can I take one with the statue?¡±


    I asked instead, resulting in only cursing him in my head.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, but let¡¯s take it if someone shouts that means we shouldn¡¯t have, and if they don¡¯t mean it is allowed,¡±


    He replied bringing out his phone, I posed in front of the queen and he took a few pictures of me before passing the phone to me, I took some of him too and gave the phone to a man who was passing to take photos of the both of us.


    ¡°Thank you so much,¡±


    I said to the man when we were done and he went on his way, I gave him back his phone.


    ¡°Where is our next stop?¡±


    ¡°I still have Bay street, Straw market, and Fort Fincastle,¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s go over to bay street first we can then go to Fincastle from there, I am hungry,¡±


    He said pulling me along, we went through to bay street, I found a lot of ces where they sold jewelry, I bought a few for myself and also got one for each of my sisters and brothers, mom and dad, even though I still wasn¡¯t talking to them, I would give it to them when we makeup, I also bought for his mom, dad and Anna, I got him a bracelet and he epted it withoutints.


    ¡°Progress,¡±


    I thought as we went over to the local restaurant to eat.


    ¡°Have you tasted rum cake before?¡±


    He asked.


    ¡°No, what is that?¡±


    He pointed in the direction of a stall and pulled me along with him, when we got there he spoke with the seller who brought the rum cake out and sold some to us.


    ¡°This is Tortuga rum cake, there are others too but this is the most popr, try it,¡±


    He said feeding some to me, I tried it and couldn¡¯t conclude if I liked it or not, but I like the gesture though.


    ¡°Taste good right?¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡±


    From Bay street we took a walk to Fort Fincastle where the Queen¡¯s staircase was located, he told me to just look from afar without climbing but I stubbornly refused, on the ground that he wanted to deprive me of gaining the experience of climbing the staircase, after a little argument he agreed.


    ¡°Aren¡¯t youing?¡±


    ¡°No, I will sit here and wait for you,¡±


    ¡°No, way, what if I lose my way?¡±


    ¡°You can call me then,¡±


    ¡°Come on, please?¡±


    I pleaded and he finally agreed, which Iter regretted, it was easy to climb the stairs, we bought souvenirs and even took photos at the top of the staircase, buting back down was hard as fuck, I got tired and stopped walking.


    ¡°I warned you to remember?¡±


    ¡°You never told me why, you just said I shouldn¡¯t climb, next time be more direct,¡±


    ¡°Okay, bye,¡±


    He said walking off.


    ¡°Are you leaving me here? What kind of a husband are you?¡±


    I shouted at the top of my voice making sure the others around could hear me, I saw men carrying their spouses, he should do the same, they walked because he came right back, I smiled at him.


    ¡°Don¡¯t you dare smile,¡±


    He said bending down, I didn¡¯t think twice before hopping on his back.


    ¡°Hold on tight or you might fall,¡±


    He said as he started descending from the stairs, I held on to him. When we got down he dropped me off.


    ¡°Thank you, dear husband,¡±


    I teased and he eyed me.


    ¡°Are we going somewhere else?¡±


    He asked, as much as I would love to continue, I was too tired.


    ¡°No, that would be all for today, I am freaking tired, let¡¯s go back to the hotel, I had so much fun today already,¡±


    ¡°Okay then,¡±


    He said. Hailing down a taxi who took us back to the hotel, I immediately went to take a bath and after that, I went to bed, my whole body was tired but I had fun, the moron said he had something to do and left the hotel room, I didn¡¯t bother to ask him as I was much too exhausted, the only thing I could think about was sleep, which is what I did¡­

 Chapter 32

    Cross Pov


    I watch her y in the waters, she looked so excited like a child who was on holiday in Santand for the first time, she has been that way for thest two days, she smiled every moment, I might not have liked the idea of this whole honeymoon in the first ce but looking at her right now, I am d I let my mom talk me intoing, she looked nothing like the girl I met at the hospital, a few weeks ago, in fact, that memory seemed to have faded away, it seemed like a long time ago, I smiled as I remembered the look on her face when she had woken up in my arms this morning, even though she had made a barricade, she had been the one to leave her side of the bed so she didn¡¯t say a word, I liked having her sleep in my arms better than I thought, in fact, I never thought I would like it.


    ¡°Are you sure you don¡¯t wannae into the water, it¡¯s so fresh and smoothing, you are missing a lot,¡±


    She called, I waved at her to continue, we have been okay for thest two days, contrary to what I thought, she is really fun to be with, she has a lot of things to say about different things, and her point of view is always different, we visited quite a several ces the day before yesterday and she had been nothing but fun, she spent the whole of yesterday indoors and had onlye out at night when they started disying different fireworks, I had wanted us to go over to cat ind but she had been so tired that I couldn¡¯t bring it in me to drag her along and I didn¡¯t want to go alone so I spent most of my yesterday at the gym in the hotel while she slept.


    My phone buzzed in my pocket and I brought it out to see my mom was calling me on a video call, my eyesnded on the bracket she had bought for me, it fitted perfectly and I liked it.


    ¡°Yeah, I have been expecting this call,¡±


    I muttered picking it up.


    ¡°Hi son, how are you and your wife doing? Are you enjoying your honeymoon?¡±


    She asked her face so closed to the camera that I could see her wrinkles.


    ¡°Ma, could you remove the camera from your face a little? All I see are your winkles,¡±


    I said and I could hear herining to someone before she moved the camera.


    ¡°Must you remind me that I am old?¡±


    She asked with a frown.


    ¡°You are not old, you are forever Young mydy,¡±


    ¡°Such a flirt, anyway where is your wife?¡±


    I turned the camera so that she could see her in the pool, the miss was busy sshing in the pool like a kid who just learned how to swim, I smiled and turned the camera back to my face.


    ¡°I see you guys are having fun, aren¡¯t you happy that I convinced you to go? Look at that smile, see I know what you will like but you always say no only for you to enjoy it, now give me some credit,¡±


    ¡°No credit for you,¡±


    I replied.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, you enjoying yourself is all the credit I need, plus grandbabies,¡±


    ¡°Keep dreaming mom, why did you call me?¡±


    ¡°Tish, as if I need a reason to call my son,¡±


    ¡°Yes, you do,¡±


    I said, she always does except when she wants to bother me which is also a reason, so she always has a motive of calling.


    ¡°Fine, Anna,e share the news with this grumpy brother of yours, I don¡¯t like him right now,¡±


    She said and left the camera, I smiled, a momentter Anna sat in front of the camera, she was glowing, pregnancy looked good on her, I wondered how Katherine would look when she is pregnant.


    ¡°Okay dead that thought,¡±


    I mentally scolded myself, while smiling at Anna.


    ¡°What news do you have for me, Annie?¡±


    I asked, she pulled out a photo, I couldn¡¯t make out what it was.


    ¡°What¡¯s that?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s a scan photo, I finally went and checked the gender of the baby,¡±


    ¡°Oh, so what are we expecting? Another beautiful princess like you or a handsome boy like me?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s both,¡±


    She replied, I didn¡¯t understand what she meant at first but got the info a few secondste.


    ¡°What? You are having twins? Wow, that¡¯s so good to know, are you okay? Are the babies okay? I know mom will be super happy, do you need anything? I can tell m¡­¡±


    ¡°Crosse, one at a time,¡±


    ¡°Sorry I got super excited,¡±


    ¡°I know, I am so lucky to have you and your family, I don¡¯t know what I would have done without you guys,¡±


    ¡°Hey, you deserve the best always remember that,¡±


    ¡°My parents don¡¯t think so,¡±


    ¡°Their loss Annie, their loss, you are a good girl and deserves all the love, and also my parents are your parents now remember?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡±


    ¡°Are you alright? What about the baby? What did the doctors say?¡±


    ¡°We are all fine, and the babies are growing well, the doctor said, he expects everything to continue smoothly,¡±


    She replied.


    ¡°That¡¯s good to know Anna, take care of yourself and call me if you need anything alright?¡±


    ¡°Yes I will, where is our wifey?¡±


    ¡°She is in the pool,¡±


    I looked around but she was no longer in the pool, I scanned everywhere around the pool but I couldn¡¯t see her.


    ¡°She was in the pool but no more, I have to go, Anna, I will talk to you soon, I need to find my wife,¡±


    I said and ended the call, I stood up from where I had been sitting and went around the areas of the pool but she wasn¡¯t anywhere around, after looking for over fifteen minutes, I decided to call her number, but she didn¡¯t pick up, I was beginning to panic, where could she have gone to? Could she have gone back inside the hotel? Why didn¡¯t she let me know?


    The thoughts ran through my mind as I walked fast into the hotel and to our room, I hoped she was in there when I entered, I met her sitting by the window, I let out a sigh of relief.


    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell me you wereing here? I was looking for you everywhere and you weren¡¯t taking your calls,¡±


    ¡°I didn¡¯t want to disturb you,¡±


    ¡°Disturb me? How?¡±


    ¡°You were on call, and you didn¡¯t seem to notice me, so I came inside knowing that you wille when you are done,¡±


    ¡°Still you could have told me, I have been searching the whole pool area for the past twenty minutes for you, do you know how worried I was when you didn¡¯t pick up, please don¡¯t do that again,¡±


    I let out sitting down on the sofa beside her, she looked pissed or maybe I was overthinking things, but she didn¡¯t look as excited as she was earlier.


    ¡°Did something happen?¡±


    ¡°No, why do you ask?¡±


    ¡°Because you are not looking happy, you know you can talk to me right?¡±


    I said, pulling her hands and wrapping mine around it, we have grown close thest two days, not close as in close but close enough for me to hold her hands.


    ¡°Are you the dad of Anna¡¯s kid?¡±


    She asked and I was too shocked to reply, why would she think that? And is that why she was displeased?


    ¡°I am sorry, I forgot, it is none of my business, you don¡¯t have to answer,¡±


    She said pulling her hands from mine and getting up, I dragged her back to the seat.


    ¡°Hey, she is not carrying my baby,¡±


    ¡°But I heard what you said,¡±


    ¡°What did I say?¡±


    ¡°You asked if the baby would be as beautiful as her or as handsome as you, I thought you were the daddy, don¡¯t get me wrong, I just felt I should have been aware,¡±


    ¡°Anna is my adopted sister, and she was already pregnant before we met and she is only eighteen, how would you conclude that she is carrying my kid?¡±


    ¡°Sorry, I shouldn¡¯t have, but eighteen is not that far from twenty-three though,¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s a five years difference, Katherine, I twenty-nine which means it would be an eleven years gap between us,¡±


    I said, wondering why we were having the discussion in the first ce, why would she even think the kid is mine?


    ¡°Age is just number,¡±


    ¡°Well, not in this case, Anna is my little sister, we may not be blood-rted but that¡¯s what she is,¡±


    ¡°I am sorry, I shouldn¡¯t have thought that,¡±


    She said, she looked truly sorry.


    ¡°Were you jealous?¡±


    ¡°No, I wasn¡¯t,¡±


    ¡°Are you sure? You look like you were,¡±


    ¡°I wasn¡¯t,¡±Copyright N?v/el/Dra/ma.Org.


    She said pouting, her rosy lips popping out, I bent over and ce a kiss on her lips, she gasped in shock which made her open her mouth and my tongue dived into her mouth, pulling her closer to me, she sighed, surrendering to the kiss and kissing me back, I pulled out searching her face before iming her lips again, she has to be one of the best lips I have kissed and trust me I have kissed a hell lot of women, I got back to my senses and realized who it was that I was kissing, I pulled away from her.


    ¡°I am sorry, I shouldn¡¯t have done that,¡±


    I said, but she didn¡¯t reply, she just got up and left me in the sitting area, I let her be, I shouldn¡¯t have done that, I should have remembered who she was.


    ¡°She is your wife,¡±


    The voice in my head said.


    ¡°Yes, I know but still,¡±


    ¡°Still nothing,¡±


    It said. I shook it off and went out for a walk to clear my head, when I got back, I met her in the same spot I had met her when I came looking for her.


    ¡°Hey, would you like to go out and grab dinner?¡±


    I asked.


    ¡°Sure, where is that?¡±


    ¡°Where the fireworks wereing from yesterday,¡±


    ¡°For real? Count me in,¡±


    She replied.


    ¡°About what happened earlier,¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s okay, it not like we did something bad, and I liked it, so no harm done,¡±


    She answered.


    ¡°Okay,¡±


    I said, I didn¡¯t know how else to respond, I liked it too but us engaging in things like kissing is overstepping the boundaries I had set and the whole contract, thinking about the contract again, it was pointless, we were married, so why can¡¯t we be like normal couples, it doesn¡¯t have to be a love match, I will run it over with herter and if she agrees then that will be another part of the contract that we will be ripping off¡­

 Chapter 33

    Kathy Pov


    ¡°I am going to get myself in trouble,¡±


    I thought as I woke up, with Cross¡¯s hands around me, once again I am the one who left my side of the bed, why can¡¯t I just stay where I am, why do I always want to hug him in my sleep, I gently tried to remove his hands from around me but he pulled me closer and held me a little tighter, making it impossible to move without waking him, thinking about it now, it was totally not my fault alone, even if I move from my side of the bed, did he have to hug me so close, he could just push me off.


    ¡°Both of us are sick,¡±


    I muttered trying again to get off his arms.


    ¡°Yeah, I agree, that would be the only reason why I like waking up with you in my arms,¡±


    He muttered back, great he was awake.


    ¡°You are awake? Now let go of me,¡±


    ¡°No, it¡¯s not yet morning, why are you such an early riser?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s past five am already,¡±


    ¡°Still too early, not like we are going to work or anything, lets sleep for a little longer,¡±


    He said pulling me closer.


    ¡°Okay, five more minutes,¡±


    ¡°Good,¡±


    He replied, pulling me closer, we stayed like that for more than two hours, I had so much to think about, what I wanted to do, it was fun being with Cross like this, he was so not what I expected and I think I am getting used to being with him, not that I was catching feelings in any way, but I felt he was bing my friend, I hope we don¡¯t go back to quarreling and disagreeing. I already applied for a change of course and I will be resuming sses as soon as I got to New York, and my life will be busy, I wonder how it would be like living with Cross in New York, will he be the way he is now or will he change, I know we talked about not meddling with each other¡¯s business, but when I heard what he said to Anna I admit that I felt somehow, I couldn¡¯t describe how I felt, but it was enough to make me sad, and also the kiss we shared, I know he apologized after but what does it mean, does that mean our marriage is going to be a real one, with the stuff rted to marriage and all, or did he do it just because he wanted to, and now I wasying in his arms, what does this mean too? I wanted answers but I didn¡¯t want to ask and also didn¡¯t want to overthink,ying in his arms I couldn¡¯t go to sleep, one week ago if someone had told me we would be like this, I would have shut the person up for being a blood liar but here we were as if we have been like this for a long time.


    ¡°Enough Katherine, stop overthinking,¡±


    I mentally scolded myself, closing my eyes and wishing the moron will wake up, I considered pitching him but decided not to, I don¡¯t want his troubles as early as it is.


    ¡°Good morning beautiful,¡±


    He muttered, finally waking up.


    ¡°You think I am beautiful?¡±


    ¡°Of course you are,¡±


    ¡°Wow, that¡¯s a first, you surprise me every day,¡±


    ¡°I have something to tell you about, but it will beter when we get back, for now let¡¯s go have some fun,¡±


    He said getting up from the bed and lifting me with him, my hair was messy, I tried to fix it while wondering what he was on about, what did he want to talk about.


    ¡°Where are we going to today?¡±


    ¡°Cat ind,¡±


    ¡°What? Where is that?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s around here somewhere, so go take a bath and we can eat and be on the way,¡±


    ¡°Yes sir,¡±


    I said getting off the bed, and going to pick up my toiletries.


    ¡°And Kathy,¡±Property of N?)(velDr(a)ma.Org.


    ¡°Yes,¡±


    ¡°I like the way we are now, can we keep being friends?¡±


    He asked and I stood there looking at him, he didn¡¯t look like he was joking, even I love the way we are now, no bad blood between us.


    ¡°Will you apologize for leaving me on my own that night?¡±


    I asked.


    ¡°Sure, I am sorry Katherine, I was angry that night and something came up that further ruined my mood, but I shouldn¡¯t have left you there,¡±


    ¡°Can I ask what came up?¡±


    ¡°No, please, I am not ready to talk about that just yet,¡±


    ¡°Okay, then I ept, so friends?¡±


    I asked stretching my hands out for a shake to seal our new friendship, he took my hands and dropped a kiss on the both of them.


    ¡°Now we are good, so go brush your teeth you have horrible morning breath,¡±


    He said, I perceived my breath, eyes him, and ran off, here I thought we just became friends and he is getting on my nerves again, he will remain a moron for that.


    When I got back from the bathroom, he already ordered breakfast, I waited for him to take his own bath and we are together before leaving our hotel, we boarded a taxi that will take us to the other ind, as we made to leave the hotel, I suddenly felt like I saw someone I know, I turned around and yes indeed, I saw someone that looked like Louis, no that was certainly him.


    ¡°Stop the car, stop right now, stop!!¡±


    I said and the driver came to a hurried stop, I got off the car.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on? Where are you going to?¡±


    Cross asked but I didn¡¯t reply to him, I just ran off in the direction where I saw Louis, but when I got there, he was no longer there, I looked around the area but I couldn¡¯t find him.


    ¡°Hey babe, what¡¯s going on?¡±


    Even with my distorted thought, I couldn¡¯t help but think of what he just called me, he called me babe, wow, but then the reason I came out Dawn in me again.


    ¡°I saw him,¡±


    ¡°Who?¡±


    ¡°Louis,¡±


    ¡°Who is Louis?¡±


    ¡°My boyfriend, I mean my ex-boyfriend, I am sure I saw him, I need to just look around, I am sure he is still here somewhere,¡±


    I said looking around, but I couldn¡¯t find him.


    ¡°Hey, calm down, are you sure he is the one? It could be someone else that looks like him, besides what do you want with him? You are already married,¡±


    He said. I stopped looking and faced him.


    ¡°I know I am married, don¡¯t worry that¡¯s not why I am looking for him, he fucking stole from me, I want my eight million back and also I wanna kick him in the dick, that¡¯s why I am looking for him, forgive me if doing that means I am forgetting I am married,¡±


    I let out in anger.


    ¡°I am sorry, that¡¯s not what I mean,¡±


    He apologized but I didn¡¯t listen to him, I just walked off back towards our hotel, I didn¡¯t feel like going out again, if only I had seen that bastard earlier, then I would have acted fast, he is here in the Bahamas eating my money, he got away this time but next time I will make sure he doesn¡¯t.


    ¡°Where are you going to?¡±


    Cross asked walking up to me.


    ¡°To the room,¡±


    ¡°I thought we are going out?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t feel like it going again,¡±


    I said and walked away leaving him there.

 Chapter 34

    Cross Pov


    I followed behind her as she walked angrily back to our hotel room, the turn of events happened so fast I didn¡¯t even have time to breathe, one moment we were in a car going to have fun and the next she was stopping the car so fast and jumping out, and all because she saw someone that looked like her ex, I understand her to need to find him but at the same time what are the chances that he is the one she saw? And my statement about her being married I knew I shouldn¡¯t have said that bug I¡¯m still it the truth, I had to pay the taxi driver even though we were no longer leaving so I walked to where he was still parked.


    ¡°Hey, man, sorry change of ns, we are no longer leaving but I can pay you for your time,¡±


    I said bringing out some cash from my pocket, but he declined.


    ¡°Your wife looks like she needs your attention don¡¯t worry about the money,¡±


    ¡°How do you know she is my wife?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s a silly question, the both of you are wearing a wedding band and also you are here in the Bahamas, a ce known for honeymoon vacation.¡±


    He pointed, I honestly didn¡¯t realize I still had on my wedding ring, totally didn¡¯t remember, I haven¡¯t taken it off since we got married except when I take a bath.


    ¡°Thanks, man, I will go now,¡±


    I said and he waved me off, he is a kind man, most people would be missed for the time wasted and would certainly have demanded pay. Going into the hotel and down to our room, I also wanted to meet the Louis guy and deal with him for putting her through so much, a man that can¡¯t even work for himself but choose to leech off a young woman going as far as streaming from her, that¡¯s some kind of low I never see myself sinking to even if I had not been born into a wealthy family, I don¡¯t see myself doing that to anyone not to talk of a woman, I wish I will meet the guy and make sure to leave a few, no not a few a lot of pouches on his face that he would have to go for weeks or forever with a facemask because I will make sure to leave a huge mark on him, hopefully, I cany my hands on him.


    ¡°Katherine?¡±


    I called as I entered put hotel room, I expected to find her on the sofa like I did the other day but she wasn¡¯t there.


    ¡°Katherine?¡±


    I called again but still no response, maybe she didn¡¯te here, where could she be then? I thought as I turned to leave the room.


    ¡°What do you want,¡±


    Came herte reply, I turned to see hering out of the restroom, she looked like she had been crying, her eyes were red and watery, she wiped them with the towel she held and looked at me warily, all the excitement I have seen her with the past few dayspletely gone, ¡°fuck that Louis¡¯ I thought walking closer to her.


    ¡°Were you crying in there?¡±


    I asked


    ¡°It¡¯s none of your business,¡±


    She said walking past me to seat on the sofa, okay that wasn¡¯t necessary, I thought we already passed that, why was she bringing that up again, I thought we agreed to be a team, or maybe I shouldn¡¯t care anyway, maybe I should just let her be, she sorted herself out before by herself, she can do it again, I could just walk out of here and go for that diving that I wanted, but I couldn¡¯t instead I walked towards her again.


    ¡°I thought we passed that already, why are we back to it again? I thought we agreed to be a team?¡±


    I asked walking to her, it was really easy to forget why I married her in the first ce because suddenly I wanted us to be more than just another public couple, suddenly I wanted us to have the things other normal couples do, I know I can¡¯t give her what is most important but I wasn¡¯t scared because I know she is not going to give me that too, which is why it will be easier for us than any other couples, the fact that we don¡¯t expect each other to give one another love, but then again maybe it is only easy for me and not for her.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think I can, I don¡¯t think I can ever trust anyone to truly be on my side, to truly be my friend or my team, the person I trusted the most turned me into a fool, and today I just got reminded of it, I am doing the same thing all over again, easily falling into the routine of thinking you and I can actually make a team, I should, we should stick to our original n, stay off each other¡¯s business, let¡¯s just go back to New York, I suddenly don¡¯t want to be here again, I am not thinking straight,¡±


    She let out, I could feel unshed tears in her every word, I understand how she felt and why she was saying those things, her heart practically just got ripped off a few couples of weeks ago, and not just that he also stole from her, which made it worst but still, she shouldpare us to what she had with the other guy.


    ¡°So, you are going topare this to what you had with your ex? Is that it? I understand you feel this way but what I don¡¯t understand is why you let the past define your future, why would youpare him to this? I haven¡¯t promised you a thing, neither have you, we agreed to be friends, at least that¡¯s what I thought, I am not deceiving you by making you think I love you when I don¡¯t either are you doing the same, so how are they both the same and also about trust? You can trust me,¡±


    I replied.


    ¡°I am sorry,¡±


    She whispered she finally let the tears drop, I walked up to her and sat down close to her pulling her hands and holding on to them.


    ¡°It¡¯s okay, we can do this together, we can find this guy together and make sure he pays for what he did, I will be your team,¡±


    ¡°For real?¡±


    ¡°Yes for real,¡±


    ¡°With no feelings attached?¡±


    ¡°Sure, with no feelings attached,¡±


    I answered, she looked at me like she had more to say but she didn¡¯t, instead she pulled closer and pecked me on the lips before moving back shyly.


    ¡°What was that for?¡±


    I asked pulling her closer.


    ¡°A thank you for not being a jerk,¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t you think I deserve more than that?¡±


    I asked as I leaned in and imed her lips with mine, she didn¡¯t struggle just kept into the kiss.


    ¡°Wow, that was intense,¡±


    She said when we pulled apart.


    ¡°Wanna see what else I can do?¡±


    I asked ying with the strap of her dress.


    ¡°There is more?¡±


    ¡°Of course,¡±


    ¡°That will be us getting in trouble and stepping over the line,¡±


    She said.


    ¡°Yeah, and don¡¯t you want that?¡±


    ¡°Nah, I don¡¯t like getting in trouble,¡±


    ¡°Are you sure, because I could have sworn you like getting in trouble a lot,¡±


    ¡°You got it wrong but I don¡¯t mind a little water testing though,¡±


    She said, she was driving me crazy deliberately, I couldn¡¯t hold the fact that I wanted Sher again, I wanted her, wanted to know how she would feel under me, I am a full-grown man and I have been celibate for almost two months now, it a normal reaction, Kathy is one hell of a beautiful woman, whatever that possessed me into thinking I can be around her and not want her must-have faded off because I craved that body and I can¡¯t deny it anymore.


    ¡°You wanna test just how well we can be together? Then I will show you.


    I said and kissed her, I urged her mouth open with mine and she let out a sigh and melted against me opening for me as my tongue slide into her wet warm mouth, tracing her lips and tongue with mine, her soft moan of pleasure heightening my want.


    I pulled her even closer until she was practically on me, my hands on her waist, hers around me, kissing her with much want, she was there with me kissing me right back, the kiss grew heated by the minute, at this rate we are gonna end up in bed together, and I so wanted that to happen, I moved my lips to her nape and she arches back, giving me full ess, I suckled and bite her softly, she let out a moan, I reimed her lips, exploring every part of her mouth, and she was there with me, kissing me right back, we pulled apart for a short moment to catch our breath only to dive on each other again, already thinking of how to take this to the next level, I blushed my hands under her dress but a cell phone in the room rang breaking us apart, she quickly got off me fixing her dress while breathing heavily, I cursed at whoever distracted us, I wanted to find the person and shake him or her.


    ¡°It¡¯s your phone,¡±


    She said pointing at my pocket and indeed it was my phone, God helps me if it was my mom, I am gonna scream at her, but it wasn¡¯t my mom, it was my Assistant at the office, I told him to only call when it is urgent so whatever he called for must be urgent.


    ¡°Hey, Alex? What¡¯s up?¡±


    I asked sitting up properly.


    ¡°Good morning boss, sorry if I disturbed you,¡±


    I wanted to say yeah you disturbed me a lot.


    ¡°No, that¡¯s okay what is it?¡±


    I asked instead.


    ¡°Mr. Reuben wants the finalized details of the deal, I told him you were off town but he seems not to want to hear and is insisting, so I have faxed it to you so that you can go over it again, I don¡¯t want to send an unfinished work,¡±


    ¡°Good, when is he expecting it?¡±


    I asked already going to where myptop was kept.


    ¡°He said before today ends but I told him to wait until tomorrow morning and he agreed,¡±


    ¡°Okay, no problem I will get back to you before six pm,¡±


    I responded opening myptop.


    ¡°Okay, sir,¡±This content provided by N(o)velDrama].[Org.


    He replied and the call ended, I looked up at Katherine who was trying to pretend not to be curious but I knew she wanted to ask me what was going on.


    ¡°I am sorry we can¡¯t continue, I have to work, but we are not done,¡±


    ¡°Is it urgent?¡±


    ¡°Yes, some impatient businessman wants answers and I can¡¯t say no,¡±


    ¡°Alright then, I will let you work, I will just go for a walk and be backter,¡±


    She said.


    ¡°And we will continue from where we left us when I am done?¡±


    I asked, hoping for a yes, and I got a yes, I smiled at her before opening my mail, I had a lot of files to go through which might take the rest of today, kissing goodbye to my diving at Cat ind, I dived into work instead, and like I expected I spent the rest of the day on it, I barely stopped for lunch and dinner and Kathy was the one who made me stop to eat, she made sure not to disturb me which I was grateful for, I couldn¡¯t finish all the work until well into midnight, and when I was finally done, I sent them back to Alex before dropping a text for him as it was toote to be calling him, I went to bed at exactly past two am, tired as fuck, I pulled my sleeping wife closer to me and fell asleep¡­

 Chapter 35

    Kathy Pov


    ¡°Wow, it¡¯s so beautiful,¡±


    I said looking at the firework disy, it was ourst night in the Bahamas and I suddenly didn¡¯t want this to end, but it was going to end because we have an early flight back to New York tomorrow, I had a great time here and lots of memories that I have stored away, and I am going to remember for a long long time and also, I found a new friend here, our time here is by far one of the best days of my life, excluding the part, I messed up yesterday, I wish I hadn¡¯t done that but he said it okay, even though we didn¡¯t get to go to Cat ind again, I promised myself that if we celebrate one year together then I will bring us back here and make sure he does everything he wanted, but I am not really sure we will still be together by this time next year, maybe we would go our separate ways.


    ¡°Enough¡± I scolded myself allowing myself to get back to enjoying this moment, who cares what tomorrow brings when we have today, whatever the next day will bring, I will face it head-on.


    ¡°Can¡¯t believe we are leaving tomorrow,¡±


    I said still watching the fireworks, they were lighting up the deal night and everything sparkled.


    ¡°Yeah, me too, the week went so fast, but you had fun right?¡±


    ¡°Of course I did,¡±


    ¡°Though I feel bad that you couldn¡¯t go for that dive that you wanted,¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s okay, that¡¯s not on you, I had work to do,¡±


    ¡°But, I was the reason we couldn¡¯t leave in the first ce,¡±


    ¡°Yeah, but we would have still returned because Alex would still have called me and it would have been much more disappointinging back after almost getting there, so it¡¯s not your fault, I can get a dive somewhere else,¡±


    He replied, why is he always right, he always has the right words to say, made me admire him and also feel bad for how I fbouvht he was insensitive and not worthy of me, I watched him work his ass off till way past midnight yesterday and he didn¡¯tin one bit, and when he got to bed, he had pulled me close and kissed me on the forehead, whatever I thought about him before was he wrong, he wasn¡¯t the monster I thought he was, he was better than anyway I have known, not that I know a lot if men but at least he beat Louis head on, in fact I shouldn¡¯t even beparing because they arepletely different, now that I think about it I don¡¯t know how I could have fallen for his deceit and his fake love, I must have been blind, I wasn¡¯t in love with Cross neither was he in love with me but we had better than Louis and I ever had, I will admit the sex was good and I enjoyed every bit of it but thinking about the letter or note he left made me hate every bit of it.


    ¡°Are you sure? Or are you just trying to be a strong alpha male about it?¡±


    I teased.


    ¡°I am every bit of an alpha male but if it really meant so much I would have gone for it this morning,¡±


    ¡°I doubt that though, you slept till three pm in the afternoon,¡±


    ¡°Let me have the final words will you? I can¡¯t with all thedies in my life always having an upper hand against me,¡±


    He replied.


    ¡°Okay, now that you pleaded I will let you off,¡±


    I said and turned to face him as he slipped his hands into mine, I smiled brightly.


    ¡°So? Wanna continue where we left off yesterday?¡±


    He asked, changing the topic and I blushed at the memory of what happened yesterday morning, I tried to forget about it throughout yesterday and the whole of today but here he was reminding me of it again, he wants us to continue where we left off too.


    ¡°Hmm,¡±


    ¡°Are you thinking about it,¡±


    ¡°Yes, try and convince me,¡±


    ¡°That I can do,¡±Property of N?)(velDr(a)ma.Org.


    He replied and covered my lips with his, I was fast getting used to his intense kisses, he doesn¡¯t kiss slowly no, his kisses always starts intense making my feet cross, I melted into the kissing letting myself enjoy every moment of it, I wanted more, I wanted to feel him over me, his hand doing the things he promised.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go to our room,¡±


    He whispered and I followed him without thinking twice, I wanted him as much as he wanted me and there was no holding back.


    He backed me against the door, iming my lips in an intense kiss that went different than the other kisses we have shared before, he was an intense kisser buy this went a lot higher than our other kisses, his tongue demand entrance into my mouth and I opened for him, he dived straight in exploring every part of my mouth while his hands moved all over my upper body, I moaned as my feet turned to jelly, I wanted him so much that it hurts, how did heck did we get to this point, I couldn¡¯t tell but I knew I wanted him.


    ¡°I want you, Kathy,¡±


    He whispered and I moaned in response, he dragged me towards the bed with him, his lips left mine for a moment and he took off my dress, his eyes fell on my breast, and space between my thighs got wetter, his lips met mine again briefly before they settled on my nape, I let out a heavy want filled moan as I arched to give him more ess.


    ¡°Kathy, tell me you don¡¯t want this now because I don¡¯t think I can stop myself after now, I want you so fucking much, I ache to be inside you,¡±


    As he said it, he grind his arousal against me, I could feel his hardness and it made my mouth run dry, I suddenly went tasty, I leaned up on my tiptop and kissed him, he seemed to be shocked but that didn¡¯tst long, did he really expect me to be able to say no with the way he was staring at me?.


    ¡°I take that as your answer,¡±


    He said as he pushed me on the bed before taking off his clothes, I watched him while taking off mine, we were both soon naked, his throbbing arousal seeking for my attention, I moved towards the edge of the bed, and touched it, it jutted with my touch, and he moaned out my name, I like the way he said it so I held on to it harder, ying with it, before tasting it.


    ¡°Oh, my God, Kathy, you are driving me insane,¡±


    He said and I smiled in satisfaction before taking his full length into my mouth and sucking hard and fast, his moans encouraging me.


    ¡°Okay, that¡¯s enough woman, I want to be inside you when I release,¡±


    He said pushing me back onto the bed andying on top of me, his mouth feeding on my breast as he spread my legs apart, I opened for him, wanting to feel him inside me.


    ¡°Protection,¡±


    He whispered.


    ¡°I am on the pills and I know I am clean,¡±


    ¡°I am too,¡±


    He whispered before slipping a finger over my wetness, I moaned as his finger, no make that fingers entered into my wetness, I arch to give him more space.


    ¡°As much as I love to y more Kathy, I wanna be inside you so bad,¡±


    He whispered and raised my legs, he positioned himself in my entrance, and before long he was inside me, I couldn¡¯t get used to his size at first but with a few thrusts, I got used to it, I noticed he was trying to take it slow when he wanted it faster, so I moved, he moaned staring into my soul.


    ¡°Kathy?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s okay, don¡¯t go slow for me, I promise I can keep up, I want you hard and fast, I know you are holding yourself, please don¡¯t, I can deal with rough,¡±


    I said teasingly as I moved again.


    ¡°You sure?¡±


    He groaned, the guy was too concern to a fault.


    I answered by moving again, he took one of my breasts into his mouth as he began moving inside me, hard and faster, I did my best to keep up with every of his movement as pleasure washed over me and through me, the intensity of his love making was overwhelming, there was nothing I couldpare to it, I let myself take everything he was giving and also have him as much as I could, urging him on, lifting myself to meet his and every thrust.


    He let go of my breast to hold my legs higher to give him more ess and he was thrusting in and out faster, harder and driving me to the world beyond, our climax hit us together and we both screamed out in pleasure.


    When we were done we bothid in bed exhausted.


    ¡°That was intense,¡±


    He said, pulling me closer to him, he dropped a heartwarming kiss on my forehead and I fell asleep in his arms in total satisfaction, this was the perfect way to end our one week here, I didn¡¯t regret giving myself to him one bit.


    Sometime in the night, I was woken by his kisses and I gave myself to him again and again, each better than the former, the more we did the better it became, and it was even better knowing that I wasn¡¯t having feelings for him if this is what just sex felt like then I don¡¯t want love ormitment, I just want to be able to feel how I feelying in his arm after each round.


    The next morning we were on the ne back to New York and back to starting our life together, I hoped from the depth of my heart¡¯ that our days be as they were in the Bahamas, so many beautiful memories and the best been the night we consummated our wedding, a memorable night, that will live in my heart for a long long time¡­

 Chapter 36

    Cross Pov


    ¡°Are sure you don¡¯t want me to at leaste with you just for today?¡±


    I asked as we sat in the car on our way to the school.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to, I can find my way around myself, and also this is not the first time I am switching majors,¡±


    ¡°What? What were you studying initially?¡±


    ¡°Business but I gave that up for psychology, now I wanna do what my heart really wants me to do and that¡¯s interior designing, don¡¯t worry I won¡¯t go missing,¡±


    She said strapping on her seatbelt.


    ¡°Wow, what ady, I guess you would have already been graduating, I hope you don¡¯t change your mind again,¡±


    ¡°I won¡¯t don¡¯t worry, this is what I want to do for real,¡±


    ¡°Okay, I hope you have everything you need?¡±


    ¡°Yes, I do,¡±


    ¡°Okay if you say so, let¡¯s go then,¡±


    I replied as I zoomed off in the direction of the school.


    ¡°I will see youter in the day, you promised to rest after you get home, so better keep that promise,¡±


    I said as we made a stop inside the New york school of interior design, we got inte at night yesterday and I had tried to stop her from going today but she said she wanted to and that she can rest when she gets back, she barely slept the night before, and God save me I couldn¡¯t have enough of her so she didn¡¯t sleep muchst night either, but she said she was okay, and I didn¡¯t want to look controlling but I told her to make sure to rest when she gets back home and she agreed.


    ¡°Hmm, can I get some extra cash?¡±


    She asked stretching out her hands, I n on getting her own credit card today.


    ¡°Sure,¡±


    I said handing her some extra dors, she added them to her purse looking at me.


    ¡°What? Why are you looking at me like that?¡±


    ¡°Aren¡¯t you gonna ask me what I need the extra money for since you have already given me some before?¡±


    ¡°No, it will be rude to ask,¡±


    ¡°For real? Then I am just gonna be asking you money for no reason,¡±


    She said.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry I am getting you a credit card today then you can do whatever you want with the money, and also your dad got you covered,¡±


    I revealed.


    ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    ¡°The estate is worth more than you can spend, and since we are not going to live there I n on making lots of money from it for the both of us, so you can be as extravagant as you want mydy,¡±


    I exined, she didn¡¯t look the least surprised.


    ¡°You knew?¡±


    ¡°Kind of, but I have to go now,¡±


    She said as she opened the door to leave, I held onto her dress.


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°Are you just going to leave? Like that?¡±


    ¡°Hmm, am I supposed to do something?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡±


    ¡°Like what?¡±


    ¡°Something like this,¡±


    I said pulling her in for a kiss, I am in deep shit, I thought as my mouth traced hers in a warm soft kiss, I shouldn¡¯t be doing this but here am I being the one to initiate it.


    ¡°Wow,¡±


    She said licking her lips when we pulled apart.


    ¡°See youter, have fun and call me if anything goes wrong.


    ¡°Alright bye,¡±Copyright N?v/el/Dra/ma.Org.


    She said getting out of the car and walking off into the wall of the school, she didn¡¯t look like a neer in New York, not at all she mixed perfectly with it, and she even knew where the school was located, clearly not her first time in New York but even I lost my way a few times when I newly came to leave here so I hoped she can adjust better, I drove out of the school towards my office, I haven¡¯t been here for two whole weeks and I know I had a lot to cover but hey, I am use to it, this is where I can shine better. And just as I thought, there was a bunch of papers to sign and a hell of other things to do to keep me busy throughout the day.


    ¡°Man, it so good to have you back in New York, I almost thought you are noting back,¡±


    Dean said in greeting as he entered my office, I stood up to greet him with a handshake and a shoulder bop


    ¡°Why will you think that?¡±


    I asked sitting back down as he took his seat too.


    ¡°Well, for one you didn¡¯t call me, and also you didn¡¯t even bother to tell me you were going on a honeymoon, you just disappeared, I almost thought your mother had been joking when she told me you headed to the Bahamas for your honeymoon,¡±


    ¡°I did call you but you didn¡¯t pick up, not that, your phone was practically off, and when we got to the Bahamas we were much too busy that I hadn¡¯t had time to call again and I was just away for one week,¡±


    ¡°Wow, busy, I see, busy doing what?¡±


    ¡°Come on man, of all the things I said, is that what you picked up?¡±


    I asked eyeing him.


    ¡°Yes, that seems like the most important part right now, so what were you guys busy doing? I thought you said your marriage is just for show, so howe you already got busy, did she seduce you? I knew it that you can not resist a beautiful woman not to talk of a beautiful woman who is your wife, so how was it?¡±


    He finally paused.


    ¡°So, you think I am gonna answer all those questions of yours? Think again, and also there are a lot of fun things to do in the Bahamas but your sick head only think about unholy things,¡±


    ¡°And did you or did you not do those unholy things I am thinking about?¡±


    He asked with a knowing smile, I resisted the urge to punch him at least once.


    ¡°That¡¯s none of your business,¡±


    ¡°Well, I guess that means you did, so how was it?¡±


    ¡°Not gonna share information of my private life with you, so better give up,¡±


    ¡°Okay, but I can tell you mine though, it¡¯s been bothering me all week,¡±


    He said suddenly growing serious.


    ¡°What is it?¡±


    ¡°I slept with her,¡±


    ¡°Who?¡±


    ¡°You know who,¡±


    I didn¡¯t know who he was talking about, the dude had a lot ofdies going in and out of his life and he have slept with all before so I wasn¡¯t sure why that will bother him, but then again there is onedy though,


    ¡°Holy fuck! Grace??¡±


    I asked in shock.


    ¡°Yeah, her,¡±


    He responded.

 Chapter 37

    Cross PovProperty of N?)(velDr(a)ma.Org.


    ¡°What? Why? I thought, I, I don¡¯t even know how to fucking respond to this, what the fuck happened? Dude,¡±


    Did I ask, of all thedies his sister? Okay not his sister, they are not blood-rted, her mom raised him, for about ten years or so and he saw her as his sister, or maybe not.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what came over me, I lost it for a moment and it happened, now she is not talking to me,¡±


    ¡°Dude, this is bad,¡±


    ¡°I know, and it has been bothering me all week, I couldn¡¯t even get a hold of you, you were in the Bahamas having the time of your life,¡±


    ¡°How did it happen though, you have never told me you fancied her, or was it a weak moment gone wrong?¡±


    ¡°I can¡¯t exin it alright, I came back to New York after your wedding and met her in the house alone crying and drinking, all I wanted to do wasfort her but I went too far, she didn¡¯t seem to have a problem with it, she went as far as saying we were both adults and that I didn¡¯t have to feel bad, I apologized and she left, and since then I haven¡¯t been able to get a hold of her, she blocked my number and when I called her with another number, she ended the call as soon as she noticed it was me, I don¡¯t even know what to do, she has a court hearing in two days and I still can¡¯t get a hold of her,¡±


    He exined.


    ¡°Wow, this is intense, but I am sure she will show up, Grace might be everything wrong but she isn¡¯t one to shy away from something, just give her time,¡±


    I advised.


    ¡°I hope so, I want her to be okay before the stuff that happened she said she was going to get her life back together, you have no idea how happy I was, now I don¡¯t know what to think, she has been through so much and the thought that I added to that is not sitting well with me,¡±


    He said.


    ¡°I understand how you feel, you just have to give her time, she knows what¡¯s best for her, I believe so, just make sure to let her know she got you whenever, I don¡¯t have to tell you that for real, you already do so much for her, I am sure she will pull herself back together and reach out to you, what about you though?¡±


    ¡°What do you mean,¡±


    ¡°I mean are you okay? Grace aside,¡±


    ¡°Yes, I am fine, just that I don¡¯t see myself looking at any otherdy all I think about is her, I think she bewitched me or something,¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s just your guilty mind, and about my wife and me, we de¡­¡±


    ¡°Wow, she is a wife now, that¡¯s nice, I knew something would happen, you were on about a marriage for the show, and now not up to a weekter, you are going the ¡®my wife way,¡±


    ¡°Okay, dude shut up, at least I am not the only one who can¡¯t keep my hands away from a woman I shouldn¡¯t be touching,¡±


    I said, I didn¡¯t know how he would take my joke and considered apologizing right after I said it but he butters ourughing.


    ¡°Okay, that hits but yeah we are both in this together, and the fun part is, I don¡¯t regret what happened,¡±


    He replied, I felt the same, I don¡¯t regret what happened with Kathy and me and how I shifted the focus only after a week, I liked having her with me in bed, I liked how she felt beneath me and on me, I liked the fact that she wasn¡¯t shying away from me.


    ¡°Neither do I regret what happened with Kathy,¡±


    ¡°So? Does this mean the contract she signed is none and void and also does this mean all the otherdies are in the past or are you going to keep up your fling lifestyle?¡±


    ¡°Contract has been forgotten, I ain¡¯t a cheater so yeah otherdies gone too, until we call it to quit, and we are a real couple but more like friends with benefits, I don¡¯t love her neither does she live me and I have no ns of falling for her neither does she,¡±


    ¡°You sound so sure, as sure as you were when you said the marriage won¡¯t be real, but just a week into it and it on friends with benefits with you proudly showing off your wedding ring, I will bet my whole fortune that in the next three to four months it would be a love thing,¡±


    He replied.


    ¡°That¡¯s not gonna happen and you know it,¡±


    ¡°I use to know but times change, a hell lot of things have changed, you changed too, I did, I use to just see Grace as my little sister and closest I had to a family but now I can¡¯t look at her that way again, if anyone had told me that will happen I would have punched the person, so never say never dude, especially not with that wife of yours, she already got you around her fingers, it won¡¯t be long before you are head over heels for her,¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not going to happen, man, this was unavoidable but falling in love is not gonna be possible, ten whole year¡¯s nothing happened and she ain¡¯t gonna change that,¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s just watch and see, don¡¯t say I didn¡¯t tell you,¡±


    I knew it won¡¯t happen, the only woman I have ever loved and lost, Ginna, she is the only one my heart has ever beaten for, no one else, if she shows up right now whatever hots I have for Katherine might fade away, I have tried to fall for other women in the past but it never worked, I gave up and choose to deal with women who didn¡¯t want anything to do withmitment at least that¡¯s how they appear at first until they start demanding for more and I wall away without feeling anything, it wasn¡¯t my fault that my heart only opened for one woman.


    ¡°Have you heard from Anna?¡±


    He asked changing the topic, I dly smiled and nodded.


    ¡°Yes, and she is having twins,¡±


    ¡°Wow, that¡¯s nice, is she doing okay? What about the babies?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I asked and she said the doctor said they are all fine and she was glowing thest time I talked to her,¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s another thing that has changed too, Anna, she came out of nowhere and she got you wrapped around her fingers too, dude just admit it, you are a sucker for the women in your life,¡±


    He teased.


    ¡°Look who is talking, you are no different from me man,¡±


    ¡°Yeah, maybe that¡¯s why we are friends because we have nothing else inmon, but for real though I wish everything will work out fine, I am seriously considering taking a break from work and just traveling around, maybe that will give her space because each time I go home and know she is somewhere there but not talking to me, I feel bad all over again.¡±


    He revealed I didn¡¯t even know she moved in with him, they use to live apart.


    ¡°You guys moved in together?¡±


    ¡°Yes, sometimesst month, she had issues with her renter or something.¡±


    ¡°I see, but don¡¯t worry though, she will be fine,¡±


    ¡°I hope so,¡±


    He replied.


    ¡°I just thought I would stop by to say hi, I have something to do so I will be off now,¡±


    He said getting up, we exchanged a handshake and he left, leaving me with my work again, I expected Kathy to call me but she didn¡¯t which means she really knew her way around New York, I let all thought of other stuff go and concentrated on finishing the work I had on the ground¡­

 Chapter 38

    Kathy Pov


    I spent the whole of my day trying to get settled in school, the fact that I switched majors means I am starting from the bottom but I wasn¡¯t bothered by that, I have always loved interior designing and I know I can keep up, going to the various offices was draining but it didn¡¯t bother me either, in fact, I enjoyed every moment of it, everyone I met so far were nothing but nice to me, I even met some of my course mates and exchanged numbers with a few, my sses officially starts next week as I was taking the week off to help me adjust to my life in New York, I had a lot of things to do, I had to go shopping for clothes and a lot of necessities as I didn¡¯t bring any of my things to New York except the ones that went with me to the Bahamas, the thought of Bahamas brought out a big smile on my face, I had a great time there especially the night before we left, I blushed at the thought of it as I waited for the cab the would take me back home, my legs hurt from walking up and down even my whole body hurts too and I was sleep deprived, I haven¡¯t slept well in thest two nights, my husband was hell of demanding and I couldn¡¯t even say no either because I wanted him just as much, how I thought I could stay with him and not want him was beyond me, anyway I couldn¡¯t wait to get home and get some much needed, sleep, I didn¡¯t need to wait for long because the cab pulled up in front of me, I got in and gave him directions, resting my head on the car seat, I dosed off.


    When I opened my eyes again we were at the entrance of the house, the house was nothing I expected, when we got inst night I expected the house to be more of a bachelor style but surprisingly, it had a lot of homey touch and feel, I paid the cab man and exited the car, dragging my tired ass into the house, I didn¡¯t know my way around the huge house, I wondered how the moron, yeah I am still going to call him that in my head, I wonder how he lived here all by himself, it wasn¡¯t as big as our mansion back home in Arizona but it was still huge for one person to live in, I checked the time, it was past two in the afternoon, I was both hungry and tired, I didn¡¯t know which to treat first, I couldn¡¯t order something because we¡¯ll I used up all the cash with me, New York is freaking expensive, so I had to locate the kitchen if I was going to eat, been in the big house alone was hard, I heard a noiseing from the lower part of the house where I felt the kitchen would be located, maybe the moron was home, I traced the noise, that sounded like sh of kitchen knives and spoons, I expected to see Cross there but I was met with the wondering eyes of an olderdy, who should be around herte forties or early fifties, she looked at me expectantly and I greeted her.


    ¡°Hi good afternoon, I thought Cross would be here, sorry if I disturbed you,¡±


    I said turning to leave the kitchen.


    ¡°Are you Cross¡¯s wife?¡±Property of N?)(velDr(a)ma.Org.


    She asked and I turned back and nodded.


    ¡°Yes, I am,¡±


    ¡°Oh, nice to meet you, you look younger than I expected, sorry I didn¡¯t recognize you, I am the cook,¡±


    He had a cook who thinks I am younger than she expected.


    ¡°I look younger but I am actually in my twenties, I am twenty-three, nice to meet you too, do you live here?¡±


    ¡°Yes, I do, I live in the staff quarters,¡±


    ¡°Oh, but I didn¡¯t see anyone yesterday, sorry we came in at night though,¡±


    ¡°I wasn¡¯t around yesterday but the cleaner was, maybe she was already asleep when you guys arrived, there are five us who work here, there is Steven the gardener, Kris and Save who are the security men and also Mrs. Betty who cleans, her daughter alsoe by sometimes but she is in school right now, and also there is me, my name is Nora, I will call the others toe and say Hi when you have rested,¡±


    She introduced, she had the same name as my older sister, I still haven¡¯t spoken to anyone one of my siblings, I should soon.


    ¡°Nice to meet you, Nora, I am Katherine and I have an older sister who bears the same name as you, thank you for the warm wee and I hope we get along,¡±


    I said.


    ¡°Oh, of course, we will as long as you are not the bitchy kind of woman,¡±


    She replied, I decided that I liked her, she wasn¡¯t scared to say what was on her mind.


    ¡°I can be stubborn but I am definitely not bitchy,¡±


    I responded with a tired and hungryugh, I could swell the aroma of Pasta in the air which heightened my hunger.


    ¡°Good, I am pretty stubborn too, You look like you are hungry? I already prepared lunch so you can go freshening up ande back down to eat or you can choose to eat first, whichever you want.¡±


    She invited me, the aroma from the kitchen was already driving me crazy, I can always wash up after I eat, so I walked into the kitchen and sat down.


    ¡°I will eat first because if I go upstairs I don¡¯t know if I will have the energy toe back down, I am so hungry, I didn¡¯t know my way around New York enough to get lunch and all I had for breakfast was tasteless scrambled eggs that my husband made,¡±


    I exined remembering the taste of the food I eat this morning, I couldn¡¯t even turn him down because he looked like he genuinely went through a lot to prepare that simple breakfast, I could have made some myself but we were both runningte so I managed to eat from it.


    ¡°I can understand, Cross is a bad cook, a disaster in the kitchen, but his muscles and handsome face make up for his shorings.


    ¡°Yeah, I totally agree,¡±


    I said, looking at her expectantly, she understood the assignment and went to get me food, the aroma of the pasta was mouth-watering and when I took a bite, it tasted heavenly.


    ¡°This taste so good, wow,¡±


    Iplimented giving her a thumbs up she smiled and went back to what she was doing after telling me to eat gently, I ate in silence while she busied herself with cleaning the kitchen, I was thankful someone was here to serve me food and save me from dying of hunger because there was no way I would have pulled myself up and made food this good maybe I would have settled for snacks until the moron gets back home.


    ¡°That has to be one of the best meals I have ever had, thanks again Nora,¡±


    I said when I was done eating, I moved my tes to the sink and started washing them but she came and drove me away.


    ¡°Do not touch anything in my kitchen unless I tell you to, do you understand?¡±


    She asked and I looked at her in shock, I was just trying to be a nice girl, but she looked serious though.


    ¡°Yes, ma¡¯am,¡±


    I said and she smiled.


    ¡°Now go wash up and rest you look like you can fall asleep here,¡±


    ¡°Okay, thanks again,¡±

 Chapter 39

    Kathy POV


    I said and headed up into the room Cross and I had used the night before, it was the only manly part of the whole house with boring brown color and ck blinds, it was so palepared to every other part of the house, I went into the wall in wardrobe took one of his shirts out and ced it on the bed, I then made my way into the bathroom, turned on the water until the bathtub was filled, I added my scented bathing gel and foamed it up before slipping in, the coolness of the water helped in smoothing my weak bones, I stayed in the bathtub for more than thirty minutes before getting off and washing myself cleaning, going back into the room, put on the shirt which looked like a mini gown on me and fell on the bed, contrary to what I thought I couldn¡¯t fall asleep, I tossed and turned for more than twenty minutes before giving up and picking up my phone, I browsed through the photos we took when we were in Bahamas, they were all lovely , I dropped a few of them on my social media ount with the caption.


    ¡°Honeymoon,¡± I was bad at giving captions which is why most of my photos either had one or two emojis or a two-way word, my older sister dropped a heartment, I felt bad for not talking to her, so I decided to call her since I was bored and couldn¡¯t sleep


    ¡°Hi, No?¡±


    I said when she picked up.


    ¡°Kathy, I wasn¡¯t expecting your call, how have you been? I am sorry for what I said on your wedding day, none of it were the intention,¡±Property of N?)(velDr(a)ma.Org.


    She said.


    ¡°It¡¯s okay, No, I am sorry I kept you guys at arm¡¯s length I was just disappointed that¡¯s all, but it¡¯s all fine now,¡±


    ¡°And I am sorry for how I acted when you called that day,¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s okay, it¡¯s all in the past now, how are you and the kids?¡±


    ¡°We are fine and you? How is it like being married?¡±


    ¡°So not what I expected, but I am doing good,¡±


    ¡°Aha, that¡¯s good to know, we were all worried,¡±


    ¡°There is no need to be though, I am fine now,¡±


    ¡°Thank goodness, I saw your photos and they look so fine and you look like you had fun,¡±


    ¡°Yes, I did, ¡±


    I replied yawning, the sleep was finallying in.


    ¡°That¡¯s good to know, where is Cross?¡±


    ¡°He is at work, we got back to New York yesterday and I went to the new school today, my sses are resuming next week as I am gonna use this week to settle into my new life,¡±


    ¡°Alright, it¡¯s so nice to hear from you, it was so not easy being on your bad side, I missed talking to you Kathy, Nelly too, she came by the other day and she was in tears,¡±


    She revealed, I felt bad all over again for being a bad bitch but it was expected, I am human and I was hurt by the way they acted when we were close before.


    ¡°I will call her after I get some rest, right now, I need to sleep, I just felt I should talk to you and let you know I am doing fine, I saw the way y¡¯all were looking at me on my wedding day but I was still too angry with you guys to say anything to you but not anymore,¡±


    ¡°Thank God, it wasn¡¯t easy one bit, even mom felt it, I hope you cane and visit in Arizona soon Kathy,¡±


    ¡°I will try No, I have got to go, I need to sleep,¡±


    I said with another big yawn.


    ¡°Alright dear, talk to you some other time,¡±


    ¡°Okay bye,¡±


    I said and the call ended, Iid back on the bed and closed my eyes this time the sleep came quick.


    When I woke up again it was already dark in the room, I used my hands to find my phone and turned on the Torchlight, before looking for the switch to turn on the room light, I checked the time and it was almost seven-thirty in the evening, I slept for five hours straight, still feeling dazed from sleep I made my way to the downstairs, Cross wasn¡¯t anywhere around.


    ¡°So he isn¡¯t back from work by this time, maybe he is pulling an all-nighter, how hard is it to call and let me know,¡±


    I said to myself as I made my way towards the kitchen, I was hungry again and hoped Nora had kept something for me to eat, if not I am gonna have to make do with the snack that I didn¡¯t eat in the afternoon, thankfully there was food on the dining table with a small note written and kept on it which read.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t want to wake you, so I left something for you to eat when you wake up,¡±


    I smiled at her handwriting, the olddy was a nice woman and reminded me a lot of my nanny, I opened the tray and found another mouth-watering dish of Curry and rice, I smiled, sat down and ate every bit of it, before going over to the kitchen fridge to get some chocte, I remembered what she told me earlier about not touching any stuff in the kitchen so I made sure she wasn¡¯t around before I took the chocte and headed back upstairs to the room, I ate the chocte knowing that it was unhealthy but still I eat it, all the while waiting for my so-called husband to either call me that he won¡¯t being in tonight or show up, but neither of those happened, I contemted calling him but pride took the better of me so I didn¡¯t call him and opt to watch movies and catch up on some BTS rted stuff that I had missed, before long I was sleepy again, I tried to stay awake till he calls ores home but the sleep won¡­

 Chapter 40

    Cross Pov


    I was finally able to finish all the get off work by after eight in the evening, my dad that went on about me having assistants and all, he needed to see the number of works that were left for me in just a short time that I was away, I stretched my body in tiredness, Katherine still didn¡¯t call me, I wondered if she did everything she had to do and got back home okay, I wanted to call her but I remembered I told her to call me if anything goes wrong since she didn¡¯t call means everything was okay, I didn¡¯t want to appear clingy, I hated the thought of that.


    I picked up my coat andptop bag as I made my way out of the office, it was already sote that almost everyone else have left the building execpt for a few people that were pulling an all nighter, I said hello to all and wished them go night before leaving the officeplex, I was so tired and feeling jet-legpound with the fact that I haven¡¯t gotten up since I got to the office, I stretched my legs more as I got to where my car was parked, got in and drove home, the house was silent when I entered as expected, I have been living here since I moved to New York ten years ago, even though I was hardly around I had people who kept it clean and homey for me, Nora, the cook, she always act like she is my mom or something, she is always on my case if I don¡¯t eat I would be in trouble, that sometimes I wonder if I was the one that employed her but she was a good cook and also a great adviser, and there is also Steven gardener, the security men Save and Kris and also the cleaningdy Mrs. Betty, they were all like a second family to me and always made sure I had the best when I was at home, now that Katherine was around and I am going to be more at the house I know I can count on them to deliver.


    Moving upstairs, I entered my room, the room was dark with only the bedsidemp on, I could make out the figure of the sleeping woman on my bed, my wife.


    ¡°At least she is home and sleeping,¡±


    I whispered to myself, I had expected her to call at least once during the day but she hadn¡¯t.


    ¡°You finally remembered toe back?¡±


    She asked in a sleep-filled voice, she was wearing my t-shirts that looked like a gown on her, can¡¯t believe she is already robbing me of my clothes


    ¡°Yes, now go back to sleep,¡±


    I said taking my eyes off her body, the temptation to pull that t-shirt off her was too strong for me to handle.


    ¡°Don¡¯t tell me what to do, I have been sleeping all afternoon,¡±


    She replied getting up from the bed and pping her hands which brought the light on, she looked at me judgingly.


    ¡°What? Why are you looking at me like that?¡±


    I asked dropping my coat and bag.


    ¡°Really? You don¡¯t know why? You arete, I hate it when someone walks in at night and wakes me up from sleep, why are you sote dude?¡¯


    ¡°Why are you being salty? I had a lot to do, did you miss me that much?¡±


    ¡°I didn¡¯t quite miss you, I didn¡¯t even notice your absence,¡±


    ¡°Are you sure? I can see through you though,¡±


    ¡°Go and bath already, you reck of sweat and tiredness,¡±


    She said rolling her eyes, I did as she said when I came back she wasn¡¯t in the room.


    ¡°Where did she run off to?¡±


    I asked myself looking around upstairs, I saw hering from the kitchen with a tray in her hands, I walked back into the room and put on a robe.


    ¡°Okay, I don¡¯t you if you are a healthy person or a risk-taker like me, I bought you two choices from the goodness of my heart, a healthy night snack and also some curry and drive that Nora made earlier,¡±


    She said dropping the tray containing the food on the mini table in the room, she sat down on one of the chairs looking at me with those ocean blue eyes.


    ¡°You met Nora already? I thought she wasn¡¯t around, I asked Betty this morning and she told me she was away to see her kids,¡±


    I said taking my seat.


    ¡°I think she came back today because I met her in the kitchen when I got back from school, I haven¡¯t met the others though, but she promised to introduce us,¡±


    ¡°Aha, how was your first meeting?¡±


    I asked, looking at her for any sign of difort, Betty can be harsh, even Dean doesn¡¯t get along with her, but I didn¡¯t see any sign.


    ¡°It¡¯s was okay, she is nice,¡±


    ¡°Betty is everything but nice,¡±


    I replied, choosing to eat the curry instead as I was super hungry.


    ¡°A risk-taker, nice, she is much to me though, she offered me lunch and even made me dinner and left it with a note, the only time she didn¡¯t seem nice was when I watched the dish I used, she told me not to touch anything in the kitchen without her permission,¡±


    She revealed.


    ¡°That¡¯s more like the Betty I know, she doesn¡¯t like the crowd and hates it when you mess with her domain which is the kitchen, and she treats me like a kid and always scolds me when I don¡¯te home, Dean can¡¯t even stand her, they don¡¯t agree, so I am surprised that she is nice to you,¡±


    I told her.


    ¡°Well, I am charming so no one can resist me,¡±


    I couldn¡¯t argue with that, she was indeed irresistible, the thought of what Dean and I had talked about filtered into my mind, I wondered if that could happen, truly, Katherine had some kind of hold on me, she made me do things I didn¡¯t usually do, and also she makes me bend my rules, I am an organized person until it has to do with her, could she break the heavy metal that reced where my heart used to be?


    I thought looking at her


    ¡°Why are you looking at me like that? Don¡¯t you like the food?¡±


    ¡°I do I am just making sure you are alright,¡±


    I lied, before concentrating on the food again.


    ¡°You could have just asked me, anyway I am fine and I had a tiring but great day, I am officially a student of New York school of interior design and my sses officially starts on Monday next week as I am taking this week to rest and get to know the town and also do a lot of shopping, I need a hell lot of things, and also a car to go around, I can¡¯t keep taking a cab back from school and I don¡¯t want you driving me either,¡±


    ¡°There is a car you might like in the garage,¡±


    I replied.


    ¡°Okay, car issue solved, I need a driver¡¯s pass in New York to drive right?¡±


    ¡°Yes, you can go get one tomorrow, it¡¯s quite easy you just have to bring the right IDs,¡±


    ¡°Okay, another thing is money, things are freaking expensive here, I used up all my money before I could say, Jack,¡±


    Sheined


    ¡°Wee to New Yorkdy,¡±


    I replied smiling at the look on her face.


    ¡°I couldn¡¯t get you your card today, but you can make use of mine until I have gotten yours, buy whatever you need,¡±


    ¡°Alright, and again, I hate the color of the walls in this room, so boring, can we change it?¡±


    ¡°No,¡±


    I said in total refusal.


    ¡°Why? It¡¯s so boring and pale,¡±


    ¡°I like it like this, you can pick another room if you don¡¯t like it and do whatever you want with it,¡±


    ¡°Oh my gosh, you don¡¯t need to sound so rude about it, I was just asking,¡±


    She said and I realized I was being rude unintentionally, I dropped the spoon I held and faced her.


    ¡°I don¡¯t like it when people mess with my stuff, you can do everything else you want but don¡¯t mess with my stuff, okay? I don¡¯t mean to be rude or sound rude,¡±


    I said.


    ¡°Alright, it is your house, you are the boss, I forgot my ce for a brief moment,¡±


    She responded getting up and making her way out of the room before I could stop her.


    ¡°Way to go, man,¡±


    I said suddenly not in the mood to eat, I took the tray of food and went to dump it in the kitchen sink beforeing back upstairs, I looked in the room opposite mine, she wasn¡¯t there.


    ¡°Katherine?¡±


    I called walking to the other room, it was locked, so I knocked softly, I didn¡¯t mean to make her angry or sad, I just didn¡¯t like the thought of her changing things here.


    ¡°Kathy? I know you are in there, please open the door,¡±


    ¡°Go away, I don¡¯t want to talk to you,¡±


    Came her reply.This content provided by N(o)velDrama].[Org.


    ¡°Kathy, open the door, I am sorry for what I said, alright? Kathy?¡±


    I called knocking but she didn¡¯t respond, I stood there and kept knocking.


    ¡°What part of go away don¡¯t you understand?¡±


    She asked as she finally opened the door after more than ten minutes of knocking.


    ¡°Every part,¡±


    ¡°You are a pest,¡±


    She answered eyeing me, I pulled her out of the room and carried her up into my arms.


    ¡°Put me down, you crazy man,¡±


    She struggled to get off my arms but I held her tight.


    ¡°No way, I am used to sleeping on the bed with you, so even if you are mad at me you still have to share a bed with me,¡±


    I said as I made my way into my bedroom with her in my arms, she stopped struggling after a moment.


    ¡°Good girl,¡±


    I said as u dropped her on the bed.


    ¡°You are a confusing man, I swear to God,¡±


    She said folding her hands against her chest,¡±


    ¡°Kathy, don¡¯t tempt me tonight, I am tired and need to sleep,¡±


    I saidying close to her and pulling her into my arms.


    ¡°Tempt you? That¡¯s thest thing I wanna do, I wanna punch you instead,¡±


    She replied, I pulled her closer in response and dropped a kiss on her forehead.


    ¡°Get some sleep Kathy we will talk about it tomorrow, alright?¡±


    ¡°Fine,¡±


    She responded snuggling closer to me. We were both crazy, yup that¡¯s what it is, because why else will we be fighting over little things?¡±


    The thought stayed in my head as I fell asleep¡­

 Chapter 41

    Kathy PovThis content provided by N(o)velDrama].[Org.


    ¡°Do you have sses this weekend?¡±


    Cross asked as I brushed my hair, I turned to face him, he was putting on his wristwatch, he looked so handsome in his ck trousers, matching ck shoes, and a in white sleeve, his hair was brushed up in a wavy style that made him look so hot, yup my husband was a hottie and I couldn¡¯t help but drool.


    ¡°Are you going to answer me or are you going to stare at me all day?¡±


    He asked and I rolled my eyes before going back to getting ready.


    ¡°Why? Wanna take me out on a date?¡±


    I asked yfully, I knew that wasn¡¯t it, we have been together for almost two months now, we were cool, but we have never been out together, we did every other thing normal couples do aside from the dates and the ¡®I love you,¡¯ Cross has been nice to me, he wasn¡¯t what I thought he was, yes he was kind of controlling and annoying but when I call him out on it, he apologizes and tries not to do it again, my life has pretty much been going well since I moved to New York, even at school I made a few new friends, unlike when I use to live in Arizona without any friends after Juliet and I fell out, now I had people to hang out with, I talked things over with Juliet and we are cool but we weren¡¯t as close as we were before the Louis incident, but at least we were no longer in bad terms, we sometimes call each other.


    ¡°Yes, we haven¡¯t gone out together since we got married.¡±


    Cross said bringing me out of my thoughts.


    ¡°Wow, that¡¯s really it?¡±


    I asked in shock, I wasn¡¯t expecting him to actually say yes.


    ¡°Yes, why do you look so shocked?¡±


    ¡°Is it not obvious? Because I am shocked, you are asking me out on a date,¡±


    ¡°Why is that a shocker? You are my wife,¡±


    ¡°I know, but,¡±


    ¡°But nothing, if you are free then, we are going on a date,¡±


    ¡°Aye, Captain,¡±


    I said raising my hand in salute, he just shook his head, I never pictured marriage to Cross would be like this, we were friends and he helped me adjust to my new life, to the extent that I have even forgotten about Louis and his betrayal, every day with Cross hasn¡¯t all been rosy, we had our ups and downs, quarreled and stop talking to one another, but in the end, we always makeup, it was so different from what I had with Louis or any other man, It¡¯s not like Cross was perfect but at least, he wasn¡¯t anything like what I expected.


    ¡°Good girl, now please hurry up, or we are going to bete,¡±


    ¡°I am done,¡±


    I said as I carried my bag, I had a test this morning and had prepared for it all night, Cross had pulled an all-night with me too, another thing I found interesting and amazing about him, he was always ready to help and never let me feel alone, when I had to go all the way to Florida for a coursemate¡¯s wedding, he hade along with me withoutining, or when I had my periodsst month and had been hit with cramps from hell, he had stayed upte with me and did everything to make mefortable, he made it so easy to love him.


    ¡°Wait, the mudafucking up,¡±


    I thought suddenly stopping on my tracks, Love? No that can¡¯t be, I like him but I don¡¯t love him, there is no way I have fallen for him, we have been married less than three months.


    ¡°What is it?¡±


    He asked stopping too, then I realized I had said it out loud.


    ¡°Nothing, I just remembered a part that I am supposed to read but I didn¡¯t,¡±


    I lied resuming walking.


    ¡°You can just check it out in the car, or when you get to school,¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡±


    I said as we both walked downstairs to the kitchen where breakfast was already served, trust Nora on that.


    ¡°Good morning Nora,¡±


    I greeted as I sat at the table.


    ¡°Morning darlings, how was your night?¡±


    ¡°Fine and yours?¡±


    ¡°It was okay, I see you are ready to leave,¡±


    She said going back to what she was doing, I froze when Cross sat next to me and ced his hands around my shoulders, it wasn¡¯t the first time he did it, in fact, it was one of the things I have gotten used to but the thought that had entered my head a few minutes ago made me react that way.


    ¡°What? Why are you so shocked?¡±


    He asked picking a slice of bread from the te.


    ¡°I am not, I guess I am just tensed because of the test since it my first since I got in, I don¡¯t wanna mess it up,¡±


    I lied again, the test had nothing to do with my present dilemma, not even one bit, I prepared for it and I am confident in passing, it¡¯s the fact that I might have unknowingly fallen in love with Cross, which would be a disaster.


    ¡°Don¡¯t be nervous, you studied and I know you are smart, you will do well,¡±


    He said with food in his mouth.


    I picked on my food while looking at him, he seemed not to mind because he continued eating, could It be that I have fallen for him for real?


    I thought.


    ¡°You know, you might wanna eat your food instead of eating me out with your eyes,¡±


    He said calmly with a smile that was filled with masculine pride.


    ¡°I am not eating you out with my eyes, I can barely see you, my mind is in school,¡±


    I said as I started to eat.


    ¡°Liar,¡±.


    ¡°You guys, eat in silence,¡±


    Nora scolded like a mom, I smiled at her, she has been nothing but kind and helpful, she made sure to cook and also made sure we ate and ate healthily, I know she gets paid but still she deserves some des, I don¡¯t talk much with the others yet based off the fact that I am always busy and mostly see them during weekends but they all were kind to me.


    ¡°It¡¯s not me Nora, it¡¯s Kathy,¡±


    Cross used.


    ¡°Eat in silence Mr.¡±


    I scolded as I tried to force myself to eat, the food just wasn¡¯t doing it for me this morning, I spared a nce at Cross who was looking at me.


    ¡°What?¡±


    I whispered not wanting to be scolded by Nora again.


    ¡°You were frowning, are you okay? If you are not ready, you can just call in sick and take a makeup test when you are ready,¡±


    ¡°No, I am fine,¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t seem like it though,¡±


    ¡°Leave me alone, and mind your business,¡±


    I muttered under my breath but he seemed to have heard anyway.


    ¡°Alright, I will let you be since that¡¯s what you want, I was just looking out for you,¡±


    He said as he stood, he sounded annoyed.


    ¡°Are you done eating?¡±


    I asked, looking at his unfinished food.


    ¡°Yes, I lost my appetite, the energy here ain¡¯t for me,¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not that deep dude,¡±


    ¡°Wanna tell me what this is about? I am trying to help here,¡±


    ¡°I already said it¡¯s nothing,¡±


    I said with my voice slightly raised, I don¡¯t know why I was making the situation even worst, he didn¡¯t really do anything to me.


    ¡°Fine, suit yourself, meet me in the car if you still want us to go together unless you don¡¯t wanna ride with me and take your car?¡±


    He added.


    ¡°You can go, I will drive to school,¡±


    I replied.


    ¡°Really? Okay, suit yourself,¡±


    He said and left, I knew I shouldn¡¯t make an issue out of this, but I was confused right now, Falling in love was thest thing on my mind, I have a hell lots of things ahead of me, and to top it all, if I am indeed in love with him, then it just going to be me in it because I know he wasn¡¯t and will never fall for me.


    ¡°I just hope I am overthinking,¡±


    I muttered to myself, I sat there even though I was no longer eating, I wanted him to leave before I did.


    ¡°Where is Cross?¡±


    Nora asked.


    ¡°Off to work,¡±


    I replied wiping my mouth clean before standing up to leave.


    ¡°I thought you guys were going together,¡±


    ¡°Yeah, but something came up,¡±


    I said and excused myself before she could ask any further questions, I went back upstairs and stayed there until I heard Cross¡¯s car leave, then I went back downstairs, got into my car, and drove to school, as I expected the test was super easy but my mind was troubled, one by the fact that I made Cross and I fight even though he was just looking out for me and also the main reason was the more I think about it the more it became clear that I had developed some kind of feelings for Cross that may not be healthy for me, it made me moody throughout the day.


    ¡°Hey, Kathy, the guys are having a hangout wannae along?¡±


    Arina, a pretty girl who was from Russia asked.


    ¡°No, thanks Arina, I am not so fine, I just want to go home and rest,¡±


    ¡°Oh, I noticed, you have been so quiet today, must be the stress from studying,¡±


    ¡°Yeah, Arina!¡±


    ¡°Uh?¡±


    She asked, I didn¡¯t want to talk to anyone but I couldn¡¯t get my head around the fact that I might have fallen for Cross, yes I liked him and admired him but that couldn¡¯t be love, right? Arina stared at me in expectation but I couldn¡¯t form the words to ask what was in my head.


    ¡°Nevermind, I am just going to go home,¡±


    I said deciding to keep it to myself.


    ¡°Alright take care of yourself,¡±


    Arina said and left, I stood up walked to where I parked my car, and drove myself home, when I got home I went straight to our shared room, took a bath, andid in bed.


    ¡°You are not in love with him,¡±


    I tried to convince myself, but it didn¡¯t work, I couldn¡¯t figure out from where or when my feelings for him changed either, I justid there for the rest of the afternoon not even bothering to go down and eat lunch, I didn¡¯t even have an appetite to eat, I still had to apologize to Cross when he got back from work, there was no reason for me to have acted the way I did earlier, it¡¯s not his fault that I can¡¯t understand my feelings¡­

 Chapter 42

    Cross Pov


    I tried to get my works done without thinking about what happened earlier at home but it just kepting back to my mind, I wondered what I did to make her upset, one moment we were cool, and the next we are fighting, I couldn¡¯t help but think that I said something that might have offended her and instead of staying to find out I left her at home, some kind of husband I am, my mom would probably beat me up if she hears about this.


    My birthday wasing up this Friday and I wanted us to spend the weekend together, I already rented a cabin house in fingerkes, right now I don¡¯t know if that¡¯s gonna happen again, I really wanted us to go out, I tried thinking back to our discussion to find out where I went wrong but nothing clicked, I just couldn¡¯t pinpoint what pissed her off which made me moodier,tely, we have been peaceful and coexisting just fine, I have gotten used to having her around, her in my bed every waking moment, I just didn¡¯t like the thought of us fighting, I looked up as my secretary walked in.


    ¡°Sir, the clients from Dubai just called that their flight was dyed so they can¡¯t make it today,¡±


    My secretary Jane said. I have been waiting for them to arrive and they haven¡¯t even left their country, wow.


    ¡°Sir?¡±


    I heard Jane call and remembered I haven¡¯t given her an answer.


    ¡°That¡¯s okay Jane, just make sure to check up on them regrly and make sure they get the best when they finally arrive,¡±


    ¡°Okay, sir,¡±


    ¡°What about the files I asked for earlier?¡±


    ¡°I dropped them on your table, see them,¡±


    She said showing the files to me, I didn¡¯t know when she dropped them, well because I wasn¡¯t in my right mind.


    ¡°Okay, thanks, you can go,¡±


    ¡°Okay, sir,¡±


    She said and went back to her office, now that the clients I was expecting from Dubai weren¡¯ting in today, I didn¡¯t have much to do, my mind went back to my wife, she would probably still be in school or would have gotten home, it was already past two pm in the afternoon, I really wanted to know how she was, I tried calling her line but she didn¡¯t pick up, which means she was still pissed, I hated fighting with her.


    ¡°That¡¯s why you should have stayed and demanded she tells you what¡¯s up,¡±


    I scolded myself, dropping the file I had been trying to work on, I picked on another, and it went on for hours, after trying and failing to concentrate, I decided to just ditch work, I called up Dean and told him to meet at our usual spot, told my secretary I was off for the day and left.


    ¡°What¡¯s up? Calling me in the middle of the day for a drink is so unlike you,¡±


    Dean said when he entered our usual drinking bar, I beckoned on him to seat down, he did after taking off his watch.


    ¡°I just needed to clear my head and I don¡¯t like drinking alone, you know that, and besides, it¡¯s after five so it technically evening.


    ¡°Yup, so what¡¯s up? Trouble in paradise?¡±


    He asked.


    I called on the waiter to serve us some drinks before looking at Dean who was watching me with curious eyes.


    ¡°What?¡±


    I asked.


    ¡°I should be asking you, what is going on, you look moody,¡±


    ¡°Katherine and I fought,¡±


    ¡°Oh, trouble in paradise then, what caused the fight?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, I have been trying to figure that out but nothing, I can¡¯te up with what I did or said that offended her,¡±


    ¡°You could just ask her though,¡±


    ¡°I did okay, I asked but she said nothing was wrong yet she didn¡¯t let me take her to school and she was certainly upset when I left home, called her while I was at work and she didn¡¯t take her calls,¡±


    I said taking a big gulp of the alcohol the waiter served.


    ¡°Honestly, I can¡¯t help you, I don¡¯t understand that gender either, the one I know is not helping either when she wants to show up, she does, and when she doesn¡¯t want to, she doesn¡¯t, I was surprised to see her yesterday after she ghosted me for one whole month when I asked all she said as she is an adult and can take care of herself like I never said she couldn¡¯t though, I tried talking to her and shepletely shut me out, I am this close to shopping her ass,¡±


    Deanined, I knew he was talking about Grace, she is more stubborn and hard-headed than Kathy, in fact,pared to her Kathy is an angel, I can¡¯t imagine myself having to deal with someone like Grace, the few times we have met she was cold and unfriendly to me.


    ¡°You guys still haven¡¯t made up?¡±


    ¡°I just told you she just came back after ghosting me for almost if not more than a month, the only reason she showed up yesterday was that herst and final court sitting is in two days and we have to go see herwyer together.¡±


    He said frowning, Grace was really doing the most to Dean, he was all gangster and alpha male until she shows up.


    ¡°Look who is talking,¡±


    The voice in my head whispered and I couldn¡¯t deny not when her not talking to me could keep me in such a bad mood, I couldn¡¯t deny that the little witch had a hold on me.


    ¡°I hope this will be her final for real and hopes she doesn¡¯t end up in jail,¡±


    I said.


    ¡°I hope so too, honestly, I can¡¯t let her go to jail, she won¡¯t make it and she will hate me for life and I can¡¯t live with that,¡±


    He answered he looked genuinely worried.


    ¡°You love her don¡¯t you?¡±


    ¡°Of course I do, I watched her grow remember?¡±


    ¡°No, I don¡¯t mean like that, I mean like you love her as in romantically,¡±


    ¡°No I don¡¯t, I mean she is important to me, and I don¡¯t see her as a younger sibling any longer but I am not in love with her,¡±


    ¡°Are you sure? Feels to me like you are head over heels for her,¡±


    ¡°I am not, I am just concerned for her, not to mention her family helped me a lot so technically I have to pay back,¡±


    ¡°If you say so,¡±


    I said not buying what he said, dude was in love with her and I was super sure.


    ¡°What about you? Are you in love with your wife?¡±


    ¡°No,¡±


    I replied almost immediately, I wasn¡¯t in love with Katherine, I can never fall in love with her or anyone other woman, I respected her and liked her but that¡¯s it.


    ¡°Are you sure, because right now you are acting like a man in love to me,¡±This content provided by N(o)velDrama].[Org.


    ¡°I am sure,¡±


    ¡°Alright, if you say so,¡±


    He said and we sat and drank in silence, even if I wanted to I couldn¡¯t love Kathrine, there was only one woman I have loved and my heart went with her when we broke up ten years ago and that¡¯s Ginna, no other woman has been able to make me feel, not even Katherine.


    ¡°Have you heard from Anna recently?¡±


    Dean asked breaking the silence, I was grateful for the distraction as Anna is a safe topic, the thought of her made me smile, so far she has been doing great and was scheduled to go back to school in less than four months, her due date was almost close.


    ¡°Yes, I spoke with herst night before I went to bed, she is fine,¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s good to know, I have not been able to keep up with her thest time we spoke was two weeks ago and she wasn¡¯t so fine then,¡±


    ¡°Yeah, she okay now, mom said she is doing better than she did when she was pregnant with me,¡±


    I exined, he shook his head in understanding and we were back to silence again, we didn¡¯t say much but his present calmed me down a lot, by the time we finally parted ways at about nine pm, I made up my mind to apologize to Katherine when I get back home, even though I still didn¡¯t know what I did to offend her because I was a little tipsy, I called a cab instead of taking my car.


    When I entered the house it was silent, I went straight upstairs, hoping she was in our shared bedroom ans thankfully she was there sleeping so peacefully, I silently left and went to take my bath in the other room to avoid waking her up, when I came back, I walked up to the bed and sat on the edge on her side, she had a frown on her face even in her sleep, I felt bad for being the reason she was sad and unhappy, I wanted her to always be happy and have that healthy smile I havee to know her with, I gently touched her smooth face and she let out a sigh in her sleep, I expected her to wake up but she didn¡¯t, she just held on to my hands and went right back to sleep, I smiled and continued tracing a part on her face with my fingers, she had a perfect face, long earshes, lips that looked just as it tasted, thoughts of her lips and I bent down to drop a kiss on them.


    ¡°What have you done to me?¡±


    I whispered staring at her, she must have done something to me, that¡¯s the only exnation as to why just looking at her, pecking her made me feel so fulfilled and satisfied, could do be that I love her? There was no way that would be it, I would know if I feel love for her, it¡¯s just the alcohol confusing me, I don¡¯t really feel a thing for her, she turned in her sleep and opened her eyes, staring at me almost as if she didn¡¯t recognize me or something¡­

 Chapter 43

    Kathy Pov


    I woke up to his touch, I had slept off waiting for him, I opened my eyes and there he was, his hands in mine and the other on my face, I just kept looking at him.


    ¡°Why did you take so long toe back home? I have been waiting for you,¡±


    I finally said sitting up.


    ¡°Sorry baby, I needed to clear my head,¡±


    He called me baby, does that mean we are cool?


    ¡°I thought you weren¡¯t going toe back home today because of what happened earlier,¡±


    I said as I stood up, rubbing off sleep from my eyes, when I saw his missed call that afternoon I had called back but he didn¡¯t pick up, so I felt he was mad at me for not taking his calls.


    ¡°Why won¡¯t Ie home,¡±


    ¡°Are you drunk?¡±


    ¡°No,¡±


    ¡°You sound like you are though,¡±


    ¡°I am not, I just had a few drinks with Dean,¡±


    ¡°Oh,¡±


    ¡°Yeah, are you still mad at me?¡±


    ¡°I was never mad at you,¡±


    ¡°But earlier today,¡±


    ¡°I am sorry about that, I promise it¡¯s not you, it was all me,¡±


    ¡°Uh, I thought I said something to piss you off,¡±


    ¡°You didn¡¯t, I am sorry I reacted the way I did,¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s okay, I am d we are good,¡±


    He said releasing my hands, he took off the robe and got on the bed naked yup, he sleeps naked and I liked it, I liked having his naked body against mine, he yanked me off the bed and ced me on top of him, I let out a surprised scream.


    ¡°Shush, don¡¯t scream,¡±


    ¡°You surprised me,¡±


    ¡°I am happy we are cool, I honestly don¡¯t wanna fight with you, I don¡¯t like fighting with pretty girls especially one that is my beautiful wife,¡±


    Okay he was definitely drunk, no way did he just call me pretty, wife, and beautiful in one sentence, yeah he does tell me I am pretty once in a while but right now, he sounded drunk.


    ¡°Dude, how did you get home so drunk?¡±


    ¡°I am not drunk, I am tipsy, my alcohol tolerance high and I took an Uber,¡±


    ¡°Well, okay but you are acting like you are pretty drunk,¡±


    ¡°We are going to fingerkes for my birthday,¡±


    He announced, the kind of wife I am, I didn¡¯t even know his birthday was close.


    ¡°Is your birthday this weekend?¡±


    ¡°Yes, and you didn¡¯t know,¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t know mine either,¡±


    I replied, I knew he wouldn¡¯t know mine but I still felt bad for not knowing his.


    ¡°I know yours, you are July Fifteen,¡±


    He responded pucking me slightly, he was right about my birthday and now I felt even worst for not bothering to know his.


    ¡°I am sorry, I promise I will keep it in mind and make sure to n your birthday events next year,¡± ¡°if we are still together,¡± I added thest part in my head, I didn¡¯t even know what will happen in a year time, would we still be married? Or would we separate, I have never thought of our future, now thinking about it, I wondered if we have one, and on that thought, there is also the thought of a baby, would we have a child together, what¡¯s going to happen to us in a year time, the thought was running through my head so much, it felt choking, I couldn¡¯t imagine not being married to him next year, I liked being his wifeBelongs to ? n0velDrama.Org.


    ¡°Okay, snap out of it,¡±


    He said snapping his fingers in front of my face which brought me out of my thoughts.


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°You were thinking so hard, I am not offended that you didn¡¯t know my birthday, you can make it up next year,¡±


    He said, and my head added, ¡°if we are still together,¡±


    ¡°Okay fine, you are being extra sweet to me, are you sure you are not drunk?¡±


    ¡°I already said nody, if I am drinking, would already be sleeping,¡±


    He said, smiling at me, even his smile feels drunk, he pulled me down and our lips met, I melted into his touch, he pulled off and smiled at me, I smiled back.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go to sleep, I have work tomorrow and it¡¯s alreadyte,¡±


    He said cuddling close, he was definitely drunk because he was acting extra sweet with me, his snores made me smile, he never agrees that he snore bit he does, every night and surprisingly I don¡¯t find it offensive.


    ¡°Because you love him,¡±


    The voice in my head whispered.


    ¡°Shut the fuck up bitch, I don¡¯t,¡±


    I replied back, there was no reason to debate whether I fell for him or not, I am not going to disturb myself with that, I am just going to go along with everything and see how far it goes, right now I can at least agree with myself that I liked him and admire him a lot, he was kind, never thought I would address Cross as kind but after listening to everything he had done for Anna even after I left like that on our engagement day, I decided only a kind person could do that, not to mention he always makes sure that everyone around him were okay, the Cross I knew or the one I thought I knew ten years ago was different from the man he is right now, he even told me to forget about whatever Louis did to me and that he will give me back the money if I wanted but I didn¡¯t have a use for it, honestly if I had known this, I would have just followed through with the engagement without running away, but everything that happened was for a reason.


    ¡°Are you not gonna sleep?¡±


    He asked and I looked to see that he was awake and staring at me.


    ¡°I will,¡±


    I replied and closed my eyes, he pulled me closer and dropped a kiss on my forehead and I fell asleep to his breath against my skin.


    ¡°Are you going to hurry up or do you want to spend the whole day on the road? New York traffic is no joke and you know it, I want us to get past the busy side before it gets too busy, so hurry the fuck up,¡±


    I heard Cross say from downstairs, he was being dramatic as I literally just came upstairs to grab my charger, we were headed to fingerkes, that¡¯s what he called it, for the weekend, it was his birthday tomorrow, and he wanted us to celebrate it together in a Cabin house, I was much excited about this trip and have been awake since three am and thezy ass man had slept till after five.


    ¡°You are such a tease, I just went to collect my charger, anybody who hears you will think you were ready before me,¡±


    I said as u hit out of the room towards him, he had on a pair of jeans trousers, and a in white tee, for the first time he was wearing sandals instead of his signature shoes or sneakers, he looked extra hot.


    ¡°Whatever, let¡¯s go,¡±


    He said, I followed behind him and we drove out of the house towards the city, it was still early on Thursday morning and although people were already out, it wasn¡¯t busy like what I havee to know about New York.


    ¡°I wanted to ask though, why are we leaving today and not tomorrow?¡±


    ¡°Because tomorrow is my birthday and I want to wake up and not have to stress about moving about, I want to enjoy a quiet calm weekend with my wife,¡±


    She said without looking at me, my poor heart did a little flipping.


    ¡°A, that¡¯s so romantic,¡±


    I said dramatically, I didn¡¯t want to dwell on how it made me feel.


    ¡°Let me concentrate,¡±


    ¡°Yes sir,¡±


    I replied and we continued the rest of the journey in silence.

 Chapter 44

    Cross Pov


    ¡°Wakie, wakie, birthday boy,¡±


    Was what woke me up from sleep the next morning, we got to our cabin in Skaneateleske, yesterday early, and had time to explore before we retired for the day, we went to the Charlie major nature trail on a bicycle, Katherine hadined all through the way, and kept cursing at me for making her suffer, I had a feed dayughing at her being angry because she was cute, I expected her to sleep in because even after we came back I didn¡¯t let her sleep until the early hours of today, she was an early riser which I wasn¡¯t, I hated waking up early.


    ¡°Are you going to get up or do you want the candle to burn out¡±


    She asked and I opened my eyes to see her holding a cake, wondering where she got it from, I sat up on the bed.


    ¡°Good morning princess, where is the cake from?¡±


    I asked rubbing my eyes to clear off sleep, I nced at the time and it was already past nine am.,


    ¡°I went out and got it from a shop down the way,¡±


    ¡°What? That¡¯s risky, you don¡¯t even know your way around here,¡±


    I scolded, I should have known when she left but I was too busy sleeping.


    ¡°It¡¯s fine, I already saw the little bakery yesterday, and it wasn¡¯t hard to locate now make a wish and blow off the candles,¡±


    Shemanded and Iplied without arguing further, I pped my hands together and made a wish before blowing out the candle.


    ¡°Happy Birthday Cross,¡±


    She whispered before kissing me on the lips and then my cheeks, she spooned some cake and urge me to open my mouth, I did even though I don¡¯t like cakes, I didn¡¯t want her to feel bad since she worked for it and was thoughtful enough to get it, she also eats from it.


    ¡°Thank you, princess,¡±


    I said wiping my mouth clean with a paper towel.


    ¡°You are wee, I made breakfast,¡±


    She said getting up from the bed, the cabin was a single room apartment with a tiny living room, tiny kitchen, and also a tiny restroom, it was cozy and honey despite its small state.


    ¡°Go take a bath so that we can eat or are you going to spend your birthday in bed? And also your mom called I told her you were still sleeping,¡±


    She disclosed.


    ¡°Okay, I will call her back when I finish taking my bath,¡±


    I said as I walked into the mini bathroom and took a bath and brushed my teeth by the time I came back, I met my phone ringing but before I could pick it up.


    ¡°Right, I better call her back or she will be mad,¡±


    I said picking up my phone and dialing my mom¡¯s number already preparing myself for another ear full, first I didn¡¯t pick her call, and again I let her second call go unanswered, Arizona was three hours behind New York which means it was still early in Arizona and the nagging woman has already called twice, she always does that on my birthdays and God help me, she mostly scolds me and tells me to do what¡¯s right, thank God for this time she wasn¡¯t going to nag me to get married because I was already married.


    ¡°Happy birthday baby boy,¡±


    She said when I picked the call.


    ¡°If that¡¯s all there is,¡±


    I mouthed rolling my eyes.


    ¡°What did you say?¡±


    ¡°I said good morning ma, and thank you,¡±


    I lied.


    ¡°I called before and your wifey said you were still asleep and that you guys are having a weekend getaway,¡±


    She said excitedly.


    ¡°Ma, why are you so excited, and why are you up so early, it¡¯s basically six am back home,¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not too early to wish my son, stop misbehaving, anyway I will forgive you because for once you are doing what¡¯s right,¡±


    ¡°Whatever ma,¡±


    ¡°Okay, I will let you go back to your wife, just know that I expect one thing from you before the year runs out,¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s that?¡±


    I asked even though I already had a clue if what she wanted and damn well, I was right.


    ¡°Of course a baby, a baby news will be the best present you will give me for giving birth to you,¡±


    ¡°Ma!, cut it out will you, Katherine and I just got married and we are just getting to know one another, a baby should not be the main issue here,¡±


    I said, lowing my voice so that Katherine won¡¯t hear what I was saying, she was out on the balcony.


    ¡°A baby is perfect at any time,¡±


    My mom stubbornly responded and I fought the urge to hang up on her, I just kept quiet and listened to her rumble on and on.


    while I was on the phone with my mom, I watched Katherine set the table on the balcony, she wasn¡¯t good at lots of things but cooking wasn¡¯t one of them, the few times she had cooked even Nora had agreed that she was good which is why Nora allows her in the kitchen.


    ¡°Mom, I have to go, Kathy is waiting for me, we have to eat breakfast,¡±


    I said cutting my mom off after she has been going on for a while.


    ¡°Alright, enjoy your day and don¡¯t forget all I said, and say hi to your wife for me,¡±


    She said and hung up without waiting for my reply, I walked to the balcony and sat down opposite of her, she smiled at me, the atmosphere, the beautiful woman in front of me all felt right, I couldn¡¯t imagine a better way to spend my thirtieth birthday, this was perfect and I am d that I decided to bring us here.


    ¡°This tastes delicious,¡±


    Iplimented while eating.


    ¡°I know thanks, but eat in silence,¡±


    ¡°Kathy! Nora has influenced you,¡±


    I used but she justughed and continued eating, I ate in silence too, not wanting to be on her bad side,¡±


    ¡°Thank you for the food and the cake,¡±


    I said when we were done.


    ¡°You are wee, so what are we doing today?¡±


    ¡°I wanted us to take a look around the whole ce as there are a lot of things to see here, and by evening make a campfire, it¡¯s been a while I have gone camping,¡±


    ¡°Sounds like a lot of fun so count me in, sorry I couldn¡¯t get your present, I will give it to you when we get back home,¡±


    She said as she stood up to clear off our tes, I joined her.


    ¡°It¡¯s okay, this is really enough, at least this year I had someone to celebrate with,st year I went to work and my birthday andter went for a drink and that was it,¡±


    ¡°Well, that¡¯s one pro of being married then,¡±


    ¡°Yup and another is that I get to do this,¡±


    ¡°Do what?¡±


    She asked turning to face me, I pulled her closer to me and imed her lips with mine in an intense nerve-wracking kiss, her ability to melt into my touch every single time always heighten my wanting her, even though I had her all through the night before I wanted her again.


    ¡°No, we can¡¯t, we have to get moving,¡±


    She said pulling off and licking her lips, that didn¡¯t help either.


    ¡°Pretty please, it¡¯s my birthday,¡±


    I shamelessly begged but the little witch shook her head in refusal.


    ¡°I know it¡¯s your birthday, but still no,¡±


    ¡°I have been a good boy,¡±


    I persisted but today wasn¡¯t my lucky day.


    ¡°No, you have not,¡±


    She replied walking away from me to where our clothes were kept, I watched her as she changed into a flowery pink gown, she removed the rubber bands she had on her hair and let it down, her hair was another part of her that I liked, though her eyes were still my favorite.Belongs to ? n0velDrama.Org.


    ¡°Are you going to get dressed or are you going to stand there all day drooling?¡±


    She asked, I eyed her and went to dress up too and we were out of the cabin and going towards the downtown.


    ¡°Where are we going to?¡±


    She asked after a while, ¡°I thought you had that figured out,¡±


    I said still sucking at her refusal.


    ¡°Come on, don¡¯t be a kid, you just turned thirty,¡±


    She joked.


    ¡°Whatever, we are going to Gallery fifty-four, I want to check out some artwork there, then afterward we can go anywhere you want,¡±


    ¡°Ohhhh, I want us to go for a boat ride,¡±


    She disclosed and I nodded in agreement.


    We spent most of the day exploring the town and making new memories, and when we got back we went boating, it was fun having someone around me on my birthday, now we sat around the campfire talking about anything and everything, it was fun and a refreshing change of a ten years pattern, thest time I had someone with me for my birthday was eleven years ago when Ginna and I had gone camping, we newly started dating then, we broke up before my next birthday, even though my mom always tells me toe home for my birthday, I always refuse. these days I hardly thought of Ginna, Katherine upied my mind for most of the time, and surprisingly, I didn¡¯t mind, I watched her as the campfire danced over her pretty face, how I thought we wouldn¡¯t be able to make a match was beyond me, she was wide for her age and even though she annoys the hell out of mine, she was the sweetest person I have ever met, and it would be so easy to fall in love with her if only I had a heart.


    ¡°I will be right back,¡±


    She said getting up and heading towards the back of the Cabin before I could ask where she was off to, I waited for her to be back but after five minutes, I stood up to go check on her.


    ¡°Kathy? Katherine?¡±


    I called as I walked through where she went but there was no sight of her.


    ¡°Maybe she went into the cabin,¡±


    I thought out loud, but before I could walk back, I heard her scream and turned around.


    ¡°Katherine?¡±


    I called but she didn¡¯t answer me, I got scared and walked through the woods, I wondered what she wanted to get from the back of the cabin in the first ce, I looked around walking towards where I heard her scream.


    ¡°Katherine!!!¡± What the fuck, you scared me,¡±


    I yelled as I found her, I yanked her into a tight hug, she looked both scared and shocked.


    ¡°Are you okay? What happened?¡±


    I asked as I pulled back checking to make sure she was alright, I looked around but there was no one in sight, I wondered what made her s team and on top of that she looked frightened out of her.


    ¡°Are you okay?¡±


    I asked again looking her over.


    ¡°I am fine,¡±


    Came the soft whisper, I let out a sigh of relief.


    ¡°Please don¡¯t do that again, do you know how scared I was?¡±


    I asked pulling her back in for a hug.


    ¡°I am sorry,¡±


    ¡°Hey, big girl, don¡¯t cry, let¡¯s go back inside,¡±


    I said pulling her along but she couldn¡¯t move her leg, that¡¯s when I checked her leg and saw that it was bleeding.


    ¡°Katherine!! What the fuck?¡±

 Chapter 45

    Kathy Pov


    ¡°Oh my God,¡±


    He said looking down at my legs, I tried to move them away from the trap but it caused me more pain.


    ¡°Don¡¯t move, it will only get worst, you are just gonna have to bear the pain while I pull it off,¡±


    He said bending over to my foot, he gently started to move the metal of my leg it was he painful and I bit down hard on my lips to prevent me from crying out.


    ¡°Okay, done, now let¡¯s get you inside and see what we can do about the bleeding,¡±


    He said as he gently carried me up and made his way back to the cabin with me in his arms, I held on to him holding back the tears that threatened to drop any one moment.


    ¡°I will be right back,¡±


    He said as he dropped me on the chair, he was being extra careful and I felt thankful to him, he went off into the room in the cabin and came back with a first aid box.


    ¡°We are lucky there are supplies inside, so I am going to dress your wound and by tomorrow morning we will go and see a doctor,¡±


    He said. I nodded in agreement not like I had much of a choice.


    I sat quietly as he worked on fixing my leg, it hurt like fuck but I bore the pain, I should have thought about it before going, but I had listened to the poor cat cry all evening, and all I wanted to do was at least help him, and I followed the sound of crying.


    ¡°All done, now can you please tell me why you went all the way to the woods,¡±


    He said packing up the materials he used to disinfect the injury, I sat face down, not answering him.


    ¡°Well? Miss?¡±


    ¡°I heard it cry,¡±


    I whispered softly.


    ¡°What¡¯s that?¡±


    ¡°A cat, it has been crying all evening and I thought I could go get him and at least feed him,¡±


    ¡°You should have told me, I would have helped, now I didn¡¯t see any cat though, neither have I heard any crying,¡±


    ¡°Well, I didn¡¯t find it, and I was going back when I stepped on the trap,¡±


    ¡°Please don¡¯t ever wander off like that again, it wasn¡¯t funny looking for you, and then finding your leg bleeding, I thought the worst has happened, my mom or your parents will kill me if anything happens to you so for the both of our safety please be careful,¡±


    ¡°I am sorry,¡±


    ¡°Nah, you should apologize to your leg, because of your carelessness, she is hurting,¡±


    I looked at my leg now wrapped in ster, it was still painful but not as painful as earlier.


    ¡°This is just temporary, I would drive you to town right now but it¡¯s quitete but if you want to, I can,¡±


    ¡°No, let¡¯s do it tomorrow, I am sorry I ruined your birthday,¡±


    I apologized.


    ¡°Nah, it¡¯s fine, I still had fun, and this has to be one of my best birthdays,¡±


    ¡°And I ruined it,¡±


    ¡°You didn¡¯t, now stop ming yourself okay? I need to go put off the fire, I will be right back,¡±


    He said and went out, I sat alone in the cabin staring at my legs, I should have at least gotten a torch, but I hadn¡¯t expected the back of the cabin to be dark, to be honest, I did move away from the cabin a lot, so the light didn¡¯t get there, but then again, who sets traps near where people live? Cross came back inside and went up to the mini kitchen, he came back with a ss of milk and gave it to me.


    ¡°Thanks,¡± I said and down the milk.


    ¡°Alright, baby let¡¯s get you to bed,¡±


    She said and carried me up again, he dropped me on the bed and proceeded to take off his clothes, I watched him with eagle eyes.


    ¡°Don¡¯t look at me like that girl, you are in no condition to deal with the consequences,¡±


    He warned and I looked away.


    ¡°Let¡¯s sleep and by tomorrow we will get your legs fix alright?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± I replied as he got on the bed too and pulled me to him avoiding touching my injured leg, he let out a breath and kissed me on the lips.


    ¡°Gets some sleep princess,¡±


    He whispered, even though I was still feeling pains, I went to sleep to the sound of his soothing voice and his rough hands against my back.


    The next morning, my husband who was ate riser got up before me, and woke me up after he had already taken his bath, he helped me take a bath even though I told him that I could manage, the injury wasn¡¯t that big and it was less painful, but he didn¡¯t let me, he even wanted to feed me until I shouted on him, and as early as seven am we got to the hospital, the doctor we met was super friendly and made meugh while he stitched my leg, he also praised Cross¡¯s first aid skill, he gave me some drugs and we were on our way back to the cabin, Cross had suggested we go back home but I refuse because I still wanted us to enjoy our weekend, ording to the doctor it was a minor injury so I could do everything that I use to do, I just have to be careful.


    ¡°Yeah you¡¯re making me a girl with love, oh my my my, oh my my my,¡±


    I sang along to the lyrics of the song that was ying in the car.


    ¡°And here I thought you were in pains,¡±


    ¡°I am but this song is helping me with the pain,¡±


    I answered.


    ¡°Yeah, right,¡±


    ¡°Remind me again why I married you instead of Max?¡±


    ¡°Because I am more handsome and more manly,¡±


    ¡°No, Max is also an eye candy too,¡±


    ¡°Ha, he never stood a chance though, you were mine from the day you were born,¡±


    ¡°Ah, I forgot that part, it would have been better if I got Cross instead,¡±


    ¡°Are you for real? Why just because he also likes BTS? I like them too but not as much as you guys,¡±


    ¡°Are you jealous?¡±


    I asked poking him on the shoulder, he took his eyes off the road for a moment and gave me a proud smile.


    ¡°Why would I be, when you are mine?¡±


    ¡°Eww, pride,¡±


    I said and he started tough, hisugh was contagious as I joined him.


    ¡°I am happy it¡¯s just a minor injury,¡±


    He said when we stoppedughing and I nodded in agreement.


    We spent the rest of the weekend exploring Fingerkes, and I had so much fun even though my husband was a pain in the ass and made me sit down every opportunity he got, he didn¡¯t let me do anything although the trip, I still had fun, and I wished from my heart that we remaining like that, that we will be happy together for a long long time¡­


    After the weekend getaway to fingerkes, Cross and I grew even closer, I saw him in a greater light, he was caring and attentive and cared about the little details that I might not care about, I finally decided to agree with myself that I have fallen hopelessly in love with him, it was so freaking hard not to love him, even after we returned, he didn¡¯t let me away from his sight, I didn¡¯t go for sses throughout the week and took online ones instead and he stayed at home with me even when I told him that I was fine and could manage, I finally came to school for the first time in two weeks and found out that I had a project that will be due by the end of the month, which was just fifteen days away and what more is that I had a partner, I didn¡¯t know most of the people in my ss as some mainly take online courses and unfortunately my partner was one of those that onlye to school for projects and I haven¡¯t met her before, but I got her number from the roaster and was going to call her immediately I got home.


    ¡°Hey, Kathy?¡± How have you been, I didn¡¯t see youst week,¡±


    Sophia a coursemate I met on the first I resumed said as she walked up to me, I liked her because she helped me during my first week here, we weren¡¯t really close but we talked once in a while.


    ¡°Yeah, I had a little issue but I am fine now how have you been?¡±


    ¡°Good too, I just want to invite you to my birthday party it¡¯s next weekend,¡±


    She said extending the incite which I collected from her with a smile.


    ¡°The location is written on it and you can being a date, I hope to see you there,¡±


    ¡°Of course, thanks for the invite, I will be there,¡±


    ¡°Good, okay I have to see the dean of students so I am off,¡±


    She said as she waved and said good bye and I waved back.


    As I walked to where my car was parked, I saw someone family get out of a ck Lexus, I knew who it was before he raised his head, it was no the than the man who had betrayed me and made away with my eight million, my passport and Identity card.


    ¡°Louis,¡±N?velDrama.Org owns this.


    I whispered as our face met¡­

 Chapter 46

    Kathy Pov


    I stared at him, and he stared right back, he looked different, but in a good way, not like I expected him to suddenly be less good-looking or attractive in fact he was even more handsome now and like always he had great fashion sense, he looked well mannered too, no wonder he could fool me. like no one will ever believe he is a scammer and a thief, not when he looked that clean and handsome, but like the saying always goes, ¡®never judge a book by its cover,¡¯ I made the mistake of judging by how he looked and paid for it.


    It¡¯s was like we were having a staring contest or something, he neither acknowledged nor said any words, for a moment I thought he would pretend not to know me but the fact that he was standing there and looking at me, the initial shock on his face were gone and he didn¡¯t even look sorry or regretful, remembering how he left me stranded about four months ago, I clenched my hands into a fist and approached him, he smiled, the mudafucking son of a bastard smiled, like he should be on his knees and begging to be spared, but the psycopath was smiling, and as I walked closer he opened his arms, I stopped walking for a moment, I couldn¡¯t believe his audacity, Angry at his reaction to seeing and also with the pent up hatred for him, I walked up to him, fist my hand up and gave in a punch that took almost all my strength, he staggered back and held his stomach in pain and before he could gain his bnce back, I kicked him in his groin and he bent over in pain and I took a step back to watch him winch in pain in mild satisfaction, I wanted to do more but people were starting to stop and look and I hated attention but I couldn¡¯t just let him get away, he has to taste a little of how his betrayal made me feel, I liked watching him groan in pain and wanted to do more, cause him even more pain.


    ¡°Bitch, have you gone mad, do you have a death wish?¡±


    He asked through his pain, I moved back closer to him andnded a p in his face,¡±


    ¡°What the fuck? Are you crazy?¡±


    He yelled getting up and holding my hands, his mistake because I used that opportunity to give him another hard kick in his groin, he tumbled over letting me go, I pped my hands and moved my face closer to him as he rolled in pain, the crowd was getting bigger and some were taking pictures and making videos but I didn¡¯t care, my face mask covered my face so unless someone who knows me gives my identity away, I am safe.


    ¡°This is littlepared to what I will do to you if you ever show up in my face again.¡±


    ¡°Have you gone mad?¡±


    He yelled in pain, Iughed, good thing I wore these boots today they really dide in handy, I originally didn¡¯t want to wear them because of my injury that had not healed properly but they went so well with my today look that I couldn¡¯t do without them and now, I know fate knew what will happen today, the perfect shoes for this job, I smiled in satisfaction.


    ¡°You have the audacity to be smiling? You wanna die by my hands?¡±


    He roared and I kicked him again, I felt pain from each kick too but I didn¡¯t mind, it was littlepared to what I was inflicting on him.


    ¡°Ahhhh,¡±


    He growled.


    The crowd of on Lookers was getting much but no security men were in sight, I figured if he is about to get off the ground he might do something to me so I kicked him hard again.


    ¡°Fuck you Bitch, he said pulling away and moving back from me, satisfied with the amount of pain I have given him, I took a step closer to him.


    ¡°Trash like you are not meant to be moving freely but I will let you pass because I don¡¯t want to get stained dealing with you but like I said before, don¡¯t ever show up in front of me because I can¡¯t grantee that I will be this nice,¡±


    I said and kicked him again before walking off without looking back, I could hear his growl of pain.


    ¡°Come back here bitch,¡±


    I heard him yell but I justughed and continued towards my car, he deserved more than that but I am just going to leave it at that, getting into my car, I drove past him, he had managed to get up and was walking towards me, I had the urge to run him over but choose not to, I let out a satisfied breath when I finally left the school environment, I couldn¡¯t wait until Crosses back home so that I can tell him about what happened, I am sure he will be proud of me, I don¡¯t know where I got the courage to beat Louis up came from, becausepared to my five feet six inches petite self, he was over six feet tall and had broad shoulders, I caught him off guard which was my advantage, I felt like I just checked something off my bucket list, something I didn¡¯t know I had written down.


    I felt proud of myself, I didn¡¯t even feel any form of regret, now I could get what happened behind me and focus on being happy with my husband, if for one thing Louis disappointment, gave me my new found happiness, if Louis had not left me stranded, then maybe I would still be with him now or maybe we would have broke up already, I don¡¯t know how my life would have been, maybe I would have still be blinded, but thank God he choose to leave with the money because that brought me back to the man that I was met to be with, the man that I was made for, I wanted to scream and let it all out that I was in love with my husband, but I didn¡¯t know what his reaction will be, maybe he is in love with me too or maybe he just like me, but whatever it is that he felt, at least I was happy with him and maybe if I am lucky enough, a baby would already be forming in my womb, I touched my Belle at the thought, I hadn¡¯t seen my flow this month but I didn¡¯t want to believe that it is what I thought yet, I don¡¯t even know what Cross reaction will be if truly I was pregnant, we haven¡¯t discussed about a baby yet, but I know he like kids because of the way he always ask Anna about how she was feeling and made sure to call her almost everyday to check on her, how I thought such a caring man was evil was beyond me.


    I killed all thought and concentrated on getting home, it took a while to get home due to New York City traffic, when I finally reached the house, I went up into our room straight, I was so tired that all I could do wasy on the bed and sleep off.


    When I woke up again, it was evening, my feet hurt which made it clear that what happened earlier today hadn¡¯t been a dream, I did meet Louis and I did beat him up, I let out a satisfiedugh and patted my legs and whispered sorry to them, I went and took a bath, before going downstairs, I met Nora in the kitchen and she greeted me with a smile.


    ¡°I saw youe in and thought you will want lunch but when I went up to your room to get you, you were asleep and I didn¡¯t want to wake you up, you looked tired even in your sleep,¡±


    ¡°Thanks for not waking me up Nora, I really needed that sleep, the stress is getting on me, and I still have a project due by month ending,¡±


    I said as I sat down at the dining table, remembering that I had to call my project partner, I excuse myself and went back upstairs to get my phone, I dialed her number whileing back down, she picked on the second ring, she had a nice voice.


    ¡°Hello, you are on to Marilyn, may I know who I am speaking with please?¡±


    Her voice echoed over the phone.


    ¡°Yes, Hi Marilyn, my name is Katherine and I am¡­,¡±


    ¡°Oh, my partner,¡±N?velDrama.Org owns this.


    She said cutting me off, I nodded before realizing I had to talk because she can¡¯t see me.


    ¡°Yes,¡±


    ¡°I was going to call you soon, thank God you did,¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I wanted to know how your schedule is and when and where we can meet to discuss how we will go about this since we don¡¯t have much time,¡±


    I said and waited for her response, ¡°thanks Nora,¡±


    I whispered to Nora when she dropped my food in front of me, she smiled and went back to what she was doing, my mouth watered at the sight of the food and I wanted to eat immediately but then I had to finish my call and Marilyn, I liked her name was talking now.


    ¡°Sorry, can youe again please, I didn¡¯t quite get what you said,¡±


    I said apologetically.


    ¡°Alright, I said that I work most of the weekdays which are why I take online sses, so it going to either have to be the weekend or my day off, I will prefer if you pick my day off though because I am also busy during the weekend,¡±


    ¡°Oh, when is your off day if I may ask?¡±


    ¡°Wednesday,¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s the day after tomorrow, okay that¡¯s cool,¡±


    ¡°Yeah, we can meet up on Wednesday, but then the materials, could you do the favor of picking them out, I don¡¯t mind whatever you choose I will go with it,¡±


    ¡°Okay, that won¡¯t be a problem,¡±


    ¡°Aha, thanks a lot, what a relief, I have been worried that my partner might be some nonchnt or as busy as I am, thank God I got someone understanding, I am sorry if I leave most of the work to you, you see my job takes most of my time but I really want this degree, it has been a long term goal of¡­,¡±


    She rumbled on and on and I concluded that she is a talker, thank God we were not gonna meet much because she might think I am a snub when I don¡¯t match her energy.


    ¡°That¡¯s not a problem,¡±


    I said cutting her off after listening to her go on for over five minutes.


    ¡°Thank you, I will talk to you again,¡±


    She said and I dropped the call before I remembered that I have not asked her about the kind of material we will be using, but then again she did say she will go with what I choose, so dropping my phone, I descended on the food, with how hungry I was it was gone in minutes.


    ¡°You must have been really hungry, do you want more?¡±


    Nora asked and I shook my head no and smiled at her.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t eat lunch so that¡¯s why but if I eat more than this, I am afraid I would add more weight and I don¡¯t want that.¡±


    ¡°You young people and your fear of adding flesh, at least you eat at all, some don¡¯t even eat good food and choose to survive on leaves,¡±


    She said shaking her head in disapproval, Iughed at her expression.


    ¡°Nora, it¡¯s veggies not leaves and it¡¯s healthy, but I like food so I can¡¯t survive on those, but that doesn¡¯t mean I have to be a glutton, thanks for the food,¡±


    I said getting up, she had already taken my te back to the sink so I just washed my hands and wished her goodnight before going back upstairs, I decided to wait for Cross to be back before I sleep, I had a lot of exciting gist for him, I checked the time and smiled, he will be back in less than three hours¡­

 Chapter 47

    Cross Pov


    ¡°Sir,¡±


    ¡°Yes?¡±


    ¡°You have a dinner party with the executives this evening, Mr. Andrew¡¯s party, it is already past six pm, I was wondering if you forgot, you have to be there by at least seven pm, the party starts at six pm which means you are already runningte,¡±


    ¡°Oh, my bad, I did forget, I didn¡¯t even remember it was today, thanks for reminding, could you get me a change of clothes while I freshen up?¡±


    ¡°Sure sir,¡±


    She said and left, I quickly drop the file I had been working on and closed myptop, moving over to the restroom in my office, I took a cold shower, by the time I was done, she was back with the clothes I needed for the party, it was more of a small get together and meet up, like I hoped she made the best choice, not to brag, I had a whole ass wardrobe in my office and ites in handy in times like this when I forget an important event, not like this was really important, it was just the executives, I would give anything not to be there, but sadly I had to.


    ¡°You can go home, I will go alone,¡±


    I told my assistant, sometimes shees with me and sits and wait until I am done but I didn¡¯t want her to go through that stress again.


    ¡°Yes, sir,¡±


    ¡°Alright, thank you, goodnight,¡±


    I said as I made my way out of the office.


    I don¡¯t fancy meeting with executives, they are just a bunch of old ass men eating off my hard works, but they were already shareholders even before I entered high school, some were there before I was born, so I had to respect them although they gave me many reasons to dislike them, I have never missed out a dinner meeting with them, except the one they did when I was in Arizona, for my wedding, some of them did show up for my wedding, those men, they never show up for shareholders meeting in the office and expecting me to brief them on what¡¯s up with thepany at each meeting if not that, they want me to meet up with their marriage-age daughters and I have turned down quite a few.


    Thest time I had a meet up with the executives, was about eight months ago and one of the old men had talked about hooking me up with his daughter, the said daughter was a model who was on the news almost every week for the wrong reasons and I had politely but firmly said no to his offer if my dad would only let me buy off the shares they have, but my old man valued loyalty, I already know they were going to bug me about going ahead to get married after turning down their many offers and I am just gonna tell them to have it out with my dad because I married thedy they choose.


    Every time, one of the men throw a party and they are all invited including me, they call themselves the elites and since my dad was more or less one of them, I had to be dragged along because he couldn¡¯t make it, the first few parties had been hellish but I got used to it real quick, now going to such parties, I already had a pattern, I go there, throw a few toasts, tell them how thepany is doing and excuse myself, I didn¡¯t want to go to today¡¯s party one because I didn¡¯t tell Katherine I will be going somewhere and two because I wasn¡¯t feeling good about it, but I had no choice, it would be disrespectful to decline, ording to my dad, he holds the men on such high regards that I wonder why they fall so short of my expectations.


    I made my way to my car, dialing Katherine¡¯s number, but like always the crazy woman didn¡¯t pick up, she had the habit of not taking her calls, even when I have told her a hell of a lot of times to keep her phone close to her, it was only after six and she would not be asleep yet so that she is not picking will be either she is studying or watching a movie with her phone abandoned somewhere.


    I called her cell a few more times before giving up, I am going to give her an ear full when I get hometer.


    I entered the hotel and went straight up to where the dinner usually takes ces when Andrew is hosting, I have been here so much the past ten years that the hotel management and staffs were familiar with me, of course, it was a five-star hotel, these men would do nothing less, the dinner party was more like a gathering to show off just how much money they have made over each other, not like some kind of friendly get together, they call themselves friends but I don¡¯t see them like that, they were more like rivals disguised as friends.


    I wish I could turn it down but even though I am the head here my dad still owned thepany, if he says they stay then they stay, I honestly wanna leave my own life sometimes, be like Max, who doesn¡¯t care about the family¡¯s business, but I couldn¡¯t, I already chose to carry this cross and I have to carry it to the end when my dad had asked me if I could take over the running of the New York branch, he had given me enough time to think about it, I had only been twenty then and freshly out of business school, but when they break up with Ginna had happened I took the offer and ran to New York to restart life.


    ¡°Gentlemen,¡±


    I greeted when I entered, they all stopped talking to wee me, we exchanged greetings, there was something different about today, there were younger people, about four of them, I know two, one was the son of Gary who is one of our biggest holders and the other is son inw of Jonas, who is currently the managing director of his father¡¯spany like me, I have met him a couple of times but I can¡¯t say we are friends because I didn¡¯t like people like him, who was too arrogant and noisey for my liking, but I do say hi to him when we meet, I didn¡¯t get why he was here though, because his father inw was the one I had business with, he didn¡¯t work for his father inw, he came from an elite family and was the sole heir which made even more arrogant, thest time I had seen him, he was been thrown out if the club for molesting ady, he was a flirt even though he had a wife and kids, another reason I disliked him.


    Anyway, the other two men in the room were faces I haven¡¯t seen before and they both look about my age.


    ¡°We thought you weren¡¯t going to show up today,¡±


    Gary said, he looked drunk already, the long table was filled with different expensive drinks that if when sold would feed a family of ten throughout their life, did I forget to mention the dinner party wasn¡¯t necessarily a dinner party but drinking gets together, these men had money and don¡¯t think twice before spending, I may have been born into wealth but dad thought me how to value money which none of the men here had, I wondered how my dad got close to them but then, ording they put a lot of money when he started thepany, my dad was different from them, a lot different, apart from the four younger guys the others were well over fifty, some in theirte sixties yet they partied like they were teenagers, I had no right to judge their lifestyle but they give me no reason to.


    After exchanging greetings, we talked about business, they praised the way I have been handling thepany and how far I have brought it and talked about my marriage which they said was a disappointment since ording it would have been better if my dad had let me marry one of their daughters, I justughed it off. I got to know who the other two young men were they were new billionaires who were mixing up with the old money to seal up their state as billionaires, funny right? Yeah, I found it funny too, like why would they choose to mingle with these men, when I am looking for ways to stop seeing them.


    ¡°Okay, gentlemen, the main highlights of today¡¯s event just arrived,¡±


    Andrew announced and I wondered what that might be, looking around, I was shocked when a punch ofdies entered, okay that¡¯s new, we have never haddies around during these parties so why the sudden change.


    ¡°Gary? What¡¯s going?¡±


    I asked Gary who was sitting closest to me.


    ¡°This is for you Cross since you are now off the market and have to stick to one woman, we thought we might help you get off tonight with a change, you know eating one particr food can be boring,¡±


    He said and I couldn¡¯t believe my ears, I looked around and thedies were all young women in the twenties or early thirties, I looked away in disgust before looking back again, thedy in ck looked familiar, no, there is no way it would be her, no, it can never be. ¡°Ginna?¡±


    I called getting up from my sitting, she looked at me before looking away, I doubt if it were her but there was no way I would miss her up with someone else, even though she looked more mature and had on heavy makeup, could still recognize her.


    She sat with Andrew who ced his hands on herp, I saw red and wanted to go over there and punch him hard but then I remembered Ginna wasn¡¯t mine anymore, in fact, she hasn¡¯t been mine for a long long time, I took the drink that had been sitting in front of me and downed it, I filled the ss again and drank it all, before long I was in my fourth and then fifth, one of thedies sat close to me and ced her hands on myps, I removed it and gave her a disgusted look, she shifted away and threw her attention to the other young man whose name I had forgotten, I downed a couple of sses more, I needed to stop, but watching Andrew y with Ginna made me sick, what happened to her? How did she be a hooker, I have imagined her in different scenarios but never once as a hooker, she had been going off to college when west saw each other so why was she here now as a call girl.


    ¡°I see you got your eyes on that one,¡±


    Gary said to me pointing at Ginna, I realized then that I have been looking at her, I looked away and shook my head no.


    ¡°I need to leave Gary, it was nice meeting with you guys,¡±


    I said, drank the drink in my ss, and stood up to leave.


    ¡°No, no, you are in no condition to drive, you are drunk, and you can¡¯t leave all these beautifuldies, we prepared a room here for you, you can rest there,¡±


    Andrew said.


    ¡°How do you want him to stay when you got the girl he wants,¡±


    Gary put in.


    ¡°No, I don¡¯t want her, I just want to go home, you guys can have all of them,¡±


    I said.


    ¡°Alright, you can have her,¡±Property of N?)(velDr(a)ma.Org.


    I heard Andrew say but my head was spinning, I remembered I hadn¡¯t eaten since breakfast which was over twelve hours ago, drinking on an empty stomach bad idea, the room was spinning and all I remembered was the men talking about me going to a room.


    I woke up the next morning to a banging headache.


    ¡°Katherine, could you get me water?¡±


    I asked, with my eyes still close, I tried to reach out for her but she wasn¡¯t there, maybe she was already awake.


    ¡°Whoever Katherine is, she is not here,¡±


    A voice that didn¡¯t belong to Katherine but which I knew since it has been engraved in my heart for so long said.


    I opened my eyes and she sat there just staring at me.


    ¡°Ginna? Why are you in my room?¡±

 Chapter 48

    Kathy Pov


    I woke up the next morning, with a startle, I had fallen asleep while waiting for Cross, I didn¡¯t even know when he came in, I looked over on the bed and he wasn¡¯t there and the bed didn¡¯t look like he has been there, I got up from the bed and rubbed my eyes, I looked around the room and there was no sign of him.


    ¡°Maybe he is downstairs,¡±


    I said out loud with a yawn, but then the possibility of that being the case was low because Cross was ate riser, I can count the few times he had woken up before me, and even those few times I always wake up to find him our room, to confirm my thoughts, I went downstairs to look for him, I didn¡¯t find him, I decided to go check the car park for the car he took to the office yesterday, I left home before him but I knew the SUV was his favorite, and like I expected the SUV wasn¡¯t in the parking lot, which means he didn¡¯te home.


    He could have just called to say he wasn¡¯ting home, I thought as I walked back inside to look for my phone, I tried remembering where Ist used it but nothing was clicking, I turned the bedroom upside down looking for it, before giving up and going back downstairs.


    ¡°Hi, Good morning, Betty, can I borrow your phone?¡±


    I asked Betty the cleaningdy.


    ¡°Good morning Kathy, sure,¡±


    She answered putting her hands in her cleaning uniform and handing her phone to me, I dialed my number it rang, I ran upstairs to be sure it was there but I didn¡¯t hear the ring out.


    ¡°Fuck! I forgot to remove it from silent after ss yesterday, well I have to remember where I kept it or I will be phone less for the rest of the day,¡±


    I said out loud walking back downstairs still trying my number, I gave up after a while and just decided to call Cross with Betty¡¯s phone, he picked on after I called him three times.


    ¡°Cross? Where are you?¡±


    I asked as soon he picked up.


    ¡°At work,¡±


    He groaned, he sounded like he just woke up so how is he already at work, I checked the time again and it was a few minutes past six am, there was no way Cross would already be at work, I know my husband, so he is definitely lying.


    ¡°Why are you lying Mr., It looks like my call woke you up, so howe you are already at work?¡±


    I asked, he mumbled something I couldn¡¯t quite make out.


    ¡°What did you say?¡±


    I questioned.


    ¡°I said that I am at work, why the fuck would I be lying?¡±


    He asked grumpily, I wondered why he was so in a bad mood and decided to just ask the question that has been singing in my head.


    ¡°Why didn¡¯t youe homest night?¡±


    ¡°I had things to do,¡±


    Came to his response, wow, things that didn¡¯t have a name, and he couldn¡¯t even call to tell me.


    ¡°The least you could have done is call me that you won¡¯t being home, then I won¡¯t have had to wait up for you,¡±


    ¡°The fuck? I called you over ten times yesterday and you didn¡¯t pick up, so how is it my fault, and also do I need to tell you when I aming or going?¡±


    Okay, his voice sounded harsh, I admit that it¡¯s my fault for not thinking that he might have called but he didn¡¯t have to be so pissed for asking why he didn¡¯te home, not like we were quarreling before.


    ¡°Dude, I don¡¯t know what crawl up your boxers and got it twisted but can you not take it out on me? I was just being concerned,¡±


    I said.


    ¡°Mind your fucking business, you seem to be forgetting your cetely, you are crossing the line,¡±


    He answered, his voice even harsher, I was certain that he had a little too much to drink and was suffering from a hangover, so I didn¡¯t take his words seriously.


    ¡°Are you drunk Cross?¡±


    I asked in a lighter tone.


    ¡°Why will I be drunk on a weekday?¡±


    He replied with the question his voice even more upsetting, which got me pissed, here I was trying to look out for him and he is making me look like the bad person.


    ¡°You sound like it because you are acting strange, all I did was ask why you didn¡¯te back home, if you don¡¯t want me to care about you all you have to do is say it, you don¡¯t have to be so unreasonable, my bad for trying to look out for you, I promise it won¡¯t happen ever again, I am sorry,¡±


    I said and hung up, I gave Betty who had been eavesdropping on her phone, and matched back upstairs in anger, fuck him for being such a prick, all he had to say was the reason he hadn¡¯te home yet he decided to make me feel shitty, all the happiness I have been feeling for the past couple of weeks suddenly drained and I was left feeling sad even as I took my bath and got ready for school, I just wanted toy in bed all day and sleep off the bad dreams but I had to attend ss since my semester exams wereing and also I had to go get the materials we needed to design our project, I was meeting Marilyn tomorrow and the materials needed to be ready before tomorrow so that we can work on it together.


    I went to the kitchen for breakfast even though I didn¡¯t have any appetite, I still needed to eat, when I got to the kitchen, my phone was sitting there on the dining table where I had left it yesterday after my call with Marilyn, mentally scolding myself for being so forgetful, I picked the phone up and checked, he did call a good number of times so he had a right to be pissed, but that didn¡¯t mean he should tell me to mind my business, I thought we passed that already, I went through my text and saw that he left a text saying he will be homete, but nowhere in the text did it state that he won¡¯t being home, so why didn¡¯t hee back homest night? And why did he have to lie about being at work? The thought ran through my mind as I forced myself to eat breakfast and also as I drove to school, even during sses.


    My phone rang while I was eating at the school cafe, I felt hungry during my first ss and decided to grab a bite before my next, I picked it up expecting it to be Cross but it was my mother-inw.


    ¡°Hi, mom,¡±


    I greeted, injecting as much fake happiness as I could muster, I didn¡¯t want her to hear my sadness through my voice.


    ¡°Hello my dear, how are you doing?¡±


    ¡°I am fine ma, and you?¡±


    ¡°Fine too, where is your husband?¡±


    He is at work and I am at school,¡±


    I replied.


    ¡°Oh, how are studies?¡±


    ¡°Fine ma,¡±Property of N?)(velDr(a)ma.Org.


    ¡°Oh, okay, I hope he is nice to you? If not I can send my boys to be him up,¡±


    ¡°Yes he is, there is no need for that,¡±


    I replied even though I wanted to request for her to send them, I knew she was joking.


    ¡°Alright, I just wanted to check on you guys, tell your husband I said hi, and take care of yourselves,¡±


    ¡°We will,¡±


    I said and she hung up.


    My mother-inw always made sure to check up on us and she was fastly bing my favorite person, she was kind, not your regr kind of rich woman, she was down to earth and made everyone around herfortable, my mom can¡¯t rte, my mom hasn¡¯t even called me once since I got married, I don¡¯t see us fixing our broke rtionship anytime soon, the only time we have spoken was when I called my dad to wish him a happy birthday and she had been there.


    The whole of the day went by in a blur, I couldn¡¯t say I was present most of it because I was lost in my thoughts, Cross didn¡¯t call back and when I called him, he didn¡¯t take my calls, I wanted to apologize for not taking his calls but when he kept ignoring mine, I just turned off my phone and dropped it in my bag, I expected what happened in school yesterday to be the main topic around campus but surprisingly, no one talked about it, it was as if it never happened and I dreamt it but my legs still hurt which is why I am wearing a pair of sandals today, so there was no way I would have dreamt it, even though I was shocked no one asked me about what happened, I was happy too because I didn¡¯t know how I would have been able to deal with the stares and attention.


    Now at the mall where I was getting what was needed for the project, I started on not really seeing what I wanted, I have up after a few tries and just decided that I would check for them online and make a choice, I headed back home, not really feeling like myself, I turned on my phone when I got back home expecting him to call but he didn¡¯t, instead it was my sister Nelly who called, to tell me my oldest sister had given birth to a baby girl, I was happy for her of course I was, but then that reminded me of the fact that I might be carrying my own child but, in my case, my husband didn¡¯t love me and might not even want our baby, I told Nelly I wille home to Arizona after my semester exams and I nned on calling Nora once she gets discharged.


    Yesterday I was so sure of myself that this is the life I wanted, that this is where I was meant to be but in just a couple of hours I wasn¡¯t so sure anymore, maybe I overdid it, maybe I overthought about it, maybe I deluded myself into thinking me and Cross would be happy together, well reality check came really quick, I am reminded once again of the kind of a marriage this was and my ce here, I should keep that in mind and do away with my feeling, but then it was easier said than done.


    Disturbed by the possibility of being pregnant, I decided to go get pregnancy test kits just to be sure, I made my way out of the house, got into my car and drove down to the clinic near our house to get them, I got three different brands and headed back home, I wanted to wait till morning to check but I was much too anxious so I went upstairs to our restroom and peed on the stick, I closed my eyes as I waited for it to read, I opened my eyes slowly to check, I was both scared and excited but then disappointment set in when the test kit only showed one line, I did it a few times again with the other brands and they all have the same negative result, I washed my hands disposed of the kits properly so that Cross won¡¯t see them and went toy down on the bed, I stared up at the ceilings as tears welled up in my eyes, just how fast does the night change, this time yesterday, I had been happy and satisfied but now here I am feeling lost and lonely, the tears escaped from my eyes as I could no longer keep then in, I let them fall free, and fell asleep with tears still in my eyes¡­

 Chapter 49

    Cross Pov


    My day was going horribly, first I woke in a hotel room with my ex, and then I fought with my wife, and worst of all I have a major hangover to deal with and I needed to work, nothing could beat this.


    Waking up to seeing Ginna didn¡¯t go as I expected, first she was colder not the sweet loving girl I knew and loved, then when I asked her if anything happened between us, she said she did the job she was paid to do and no hard feelings, that had been all shade of wrong, and when I ask her what happened to her she told me to mind my business which I did alright, I was still amazed at how we met after nearly eleven years, and then there was Katherine, I left the hotel as soon as I had woke up to Ginna and left for work immediately, and when I had gotten here I had fallen asleep again and Kathy¡¯s call had woke me up but she didn¡¯t let me exin and just hung up on me, we will fix it when I get back home, right now I had to concentrate on my work.


    ¡°Thank you gentlemen men, I hope we will be seeing more of each other,¡±


    I said as I rounded up another meeting.


    ¡°Yes, we will, But you need to rest Cross, you look like you will copse anytime soon,¡±


    Reuben one of the men I had the meeting with said and the others in the room agreed.


    ¡°I will, I n on going home after our meeting, thank you for your concern,¡±


    I answered and lead them out of my office, going back to my desk, I found that Katherine had been calling me, and was going to call her back when my phone rang.


    ¡°Hello, Cross speaking, who is this?¡±


    ¡°Hi, Cross, it¡¯s Ginna,¡±


    ¡°Oh, what¡¯s up!¡±


    I asked, I gave her my number but with the way she had behaved I thought she won¡¯t call, but I guess I was wrong.


    ¡°Nothing really, I just wanted to say Hi and to tell you that I saved your number,¡±


    ¡°Oh, alright, that¡¯s good,¡±


    I said I didn¡¯t know the words to use, I was still shocked by our sudden meeting.


    ¡°Cross?¡±


    ¡°Yes?¡±


    ¡°I was wondering if we can meet up?¡±


    I wanted to tell her no, I liked my life now and didn¡¯t want toplicate it but this was Ginna, the only woman I have ever loved, so I couldn¡¯t say no to her, I also wanted to know what happened to her, and why she ended up doing the kind of job she was doing.


    ¡°Sure, I was just about to leave the office, let¡¯s meet up at the Cotte¡¯s restaurant if you know where that is?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡±


    ¡°Good, I will meet you there in twenty minutes,¡±


    I said and the call ended, I thought of calling Katherine but then, I figured it would be better to just talk when I get home than talking over the phone, so I go off work and headed to the Cotte¡¯s restaurant and bar instead.


    ¡°Hey,¡±


    I greeted when I got there, Ginna stood up to hug me, she looked different than she did yesterday, more like the Ginna I knew, she didn¡¯t have on heavy makeup like yesterday and was wearing a pair of faded jeans and crop top, her natural beauty which was one of the many things that had made me fall for her back then was on full disy.


    ¡°I thought you won¡¯t show up,¡±


    She said as I sat down.


    ¡°Why? I told you I will,¡±


    ¡°Yeah I know, but you didn¡¯t back then,¡±


    ¡°I did,¡±


    ¡°Yeah, but it was toote when you did,¡±


    ¡°Ginna,¡±


    ¡°I am sorry I am bringing up the past, ¡±


    ¡°No, it¡¯s okay,¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s being so long Ginna,¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I know right, I never thought we would meet again, but here we are,¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡±


    ¡°I see you are now based in New York?¡±


    ¡°Yes, and it¡¯s been long, I left Arizona ten years ago and have been in New York all this while, what about you Ginna? What happened to you? Why did you be a¡­,¡±


    I couldn¡¯t even get the word out of my mouth.


    ¡°A what? a hooker? I am not,¡±


    ¡°But yesterday,¡±


    ¡°That was a one-time thing, I needed the money and the girls I had been squatting with had talked me into going with them, I really needed the money so I had to, it¡¯s just that once, not gonna happen again,¡±


    She exined and I let out a sigh of relief, I didn¡¯t like the thought of her being a hooker but then why was she short on fiance and why was she squatting?


    ¡°What happened? How is your mom?¡±


    ¡°Mom died, six years ago, her cancer got worst and we couldn¡¯t afford the drugs and treatment anymore,¡±


    ¡°I am sorry for your loss,¡±


    ¡°Nah, it¡¯s fine, it¡¯s been over six years now, I don¡¯t feel it anymore,¡±


    ¡°Why are you squatting?¡±


    ¡°Isn¡¯t that obvious? Not everyone is lucky to be born rich and no matter how we work, we may never meet up to demand.


    She replied and I felt stupid for asking her such a question when the answer was obvious.


    ¡°I am sorry Gin,¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s been so long seen I heard that you were the only one that called me that,¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡±


    I replied, it was awkward, I just didn¡¯t know what to say to her, I had so many questions but I didn¡¯t want to say anything that might offend her, she looked so sad and alone and I felt guilty for not trying to find her, and make sure she was okay, all these while I thought she had be the doctor she said she would like to be, all these while I had pictured her as a doctor in a smart white coat, but this was different.


    ¡°What about you? What have you been up to?¡±


    She asked after a long silence.


    ¡°I am the managing director of ourpany here in New York, have been working here for over ten years,¡±


    I said, I didn¡¯t feel proud about it though, I didn¡¯t have to work myself up from the bottom, no, thepany was handed to me, most college graduates would go for an internship but I had been handed a whole asspany, yes I have done great with it but still.


    ¡°Wow, that¡¯s nice, getting a job right after college, to be you,¡±


    ¡°Did you go to college?¡±


    ¡°Do I look like I didn¡¯t?¡±


    ¡°No, I don¡¯t mean it like that,¡±


    ¡°I did go but had to drop out because I couldn¡¯t meet up with anything, I had to care for my mom and our daily cost of living was nothing to write home about so I had to work too,¡±


    She revealed, she must have gone through a lot, I have always known her family didn¡¯t have much, her dad was never around and it has always been her and her mom, things were okay when they left Arizona, but back then her mom just got diagnosed, so yeah it would have gotten harder for them, I felt sad thinking about all she had to go through.


    ¡°Are you married?¡±


    She asked pointing at the ring on my finger, which I have never removed since Katherine and I got married.


    ¡°Yes,¡±


    I replied, watching her but she just nodded.


    ¡°I thought as much, dont worry, nothing happened between usst night, I just helped you because you were super drunk and I needed to sleep too, we just shared a bed nothing more,¡±


    ¡°Aha, thanks,¡±


    I said and once again we were both silents.


    ¡°I have to go now, I have to get to my job,¡±Property of N?)(velDr(a)ma.Org.


    She said getting up, I checked the time and it was past seven pm.


    ¡°You work at night?¡±


    ¡°Yes, at a nightclub not far from here, it was good to see you again, I hope we see each other soon,¡±


    She said, stretching out her hands for a handshake, I took it.


    ¡°I hope so too if you need anything you can call me,¡±


    ¡°Anything?¡±


    ¡°Yes, anything,¡±


    ¡°Okay, I will hold you up on that,¡±


    She said picking up her purse, I paid the waiter for the drink we had and followed her out.


    ¡°I will drop you off,¡±


    ¡°No, no need, please, I am too embarrassed right now, thanks for the offer,¡±


    ¡°Alright,¡±


    I said I didn¡¯t want to make her ufortable by insisting.


    ¡°Thanks,¡±


    She said and left, I watched her go until she turned the corner into the busy streets of New York, going back to where my car was parked, I got in and drop towards the house to face my wife, I was honestly not ready to exchange words with her which I knew was gonna happen, I have been gone for a whole day and even spent the night out, she was going to talk, I just hope I can keep calm and not fight with her.


    ¡°You finally remembered you have a home?¡±


    Katherine asked when I finally got home, it took quite a while to get home due to traffic.


    ¡°Yes,¡±


    I replied not wanting to pick a fight with her, she looked upset.


    ¡°Why are you not asleep yet?¡±


    ¡°I was, I just woke up when I had your car, so where have you been since yesterday?¡±


    ¡°Work,¡±


    ¡°Work? Do I look like a kid to you Cross?¡±


    ¡°No, you don¡¯t, I was at work and that¡¯s all you get from me,¡±


    ¡°Aha, yeah, where you going to say the truth before?¡±


    ¡°What truth? I was at work, I don¡¯t have to exin anything to you, you are not my mother,¡±


    ¡°I am your wife!¡±


    She yelled.


    ¡°Wife? You are forgetting your ce again woman, wife, yes you are but you don¡¯t have a right to question my whereabouts, I can do whatever I want and I won¡¯t have you doubting my words,¡±


    I shouted right back all my resolve to be calm going off the roof, who the fuck did she think she is to ask me such a question or did she forget our kid of marriage just because I have been ying house with her?.


    ¡°I wasn¡¯t doubting your words I am saying you don¡¯t need to lie,¡±


    ¡°, I wasn¡¯t lying though,¡±


    No, I wasn¡¯t, even the dinner meeting was work-rted but she wasn¡¯t going to listen.


    ¡°Yeah, I know, sorry,¡±


    She said and went upstairs.


    ¡°Wow, that was short and unexpected,¡±


    I thought at loud, we have fought for longer, and she always had the final say-so why did she give up so easily?


    When I got upstairs to our room, she wasying on her side of the bed with pillows as a barricade, I wanted tough but I knew that will upset her, so I gently took off my clothes, went to take a bath, and went to sleep on my side of the bed, we didn¡¯t talk to each other when we woke up the next morning, but as I got ready for work, she suddenly came into the room and shouted my name.


    ¡°Cross!!¡±


    ¡°Yes, what?¡±


    ¡°You said you were at work?¡±


    ¡°Not again Katherine, I thought we left that yesterday,¡±


    ¡°Yes, but then I find out you were lying after all, and I was right,¡±


    ¡°What are you talking about?¡±


    I asked, I honestly didn¡¯t want a fight, it would ruin my day and I didn¡¯t want to go to work upset.


    ¡°Do you mind exining this?¡±


    She said raising the magazine she had with her at me.


    ¡°Exin what?¡±


    ¡°You said you were at work, so what¡¯s this?¡±


    She asked throwing the magazine at me, the front page had a photo of me at the dinner party with the executives and also a photo of me with Ginna.


    ¡°Who is that woman Cross?¡±

 Chapter 50

    Kathy Pov


    ¡°Cross? Who is she?¡±


    I asked and waited for his answer, I want to see how he is going to get himself out of this, he lied about being at work the photo already proved that to think I was going to apologize to him for overreacting but then this said it all, he was a lier and by the picture a cheat too, the fact that his expression didn¡¯t even change, he didn¡¯t even appear to be sorry for being caught, he just kept staring at the photo.


    ¡°Are you going to answer me or are you going to keep staring at the photo? Are you doubting if you are the one in the photo? It¡¯s you, and a woman going into a hotel room and also you and her yesterday, now let¡¯s talk about being at work all day,¡±


    I said my anger increasing with each word.


    ¡°I owe you no exnations,¡±


    Was all he said, I actually knew that¡¯s what he was going to say, yeah that and also the mind my business part.


    ¡°Cross, really? That¡¯s what you are going to say? You owe me no exnation, my husband pictured going into a hotel room with another woman and he didn¡¯t return home that night and the next day, he was pictured with the same woman and he doesn¡¯t have an exnation for me and I am supposed to be his wife,¡±


    I said bitterly, this wasn¡¯t supposed to hurt so much but it did, it hurt more than it did when u found out who Louis really was, hurt more than when my family disowned me, I felt my heart burning and my throat went dry, the tears that dried up yesterday suddenly threatening to return.


    ¡°I don¡¯t owe you an exnation, and don¡¯t wait for it, that I have been ying house with you doesn¡¯t mean you should forget your ce and the reason I married you, I don¡¯t care about what you think,¡±


    He replied.


    ¡°ying house? We are married in case you have forgotten,¡±


    I shouted.


    ¡°Keep your voice down bitch,¡±


    ¡°I am not going to keep anything down, you are going to tell me who the fuck she is and why you went into a hotel room with her, did you sleep with her?¡±


    The thought of it made me angry, the thought of him in bed with another woman, I never thought of him as the type who cheats but maybe I was wrong again because I was always wrong, I am a bad judge of character.


    ¡°Believe whatever you want, don¡¯t bug me with it,¡±


    He replied, his answers were parts of the reasons I got even more pissed, his refusing to answer my questions rather he keeps using the not my business phrase, I honestly want to hit something or someone.


    ¡°So that¡¯s it? That¡¯s what you are going to say? Why because our marriage is not real? But what we have is a real marriage, we got married in a chapel, you made vows, the ones you are failing to keep, and why the fuck are you wearing that ring if you know you are not going to keep to the vows you made?¡±


    I asked, the tears almost dropping, I held them him, no way was I going to let him see me cry, no fucking way.


    ¡°Like I said, I owe you no exnation,¡±


    He repeat, going back to getting ready for work, I couldn¡¯t believe his confidence.


    ¡°Cross? Is this the real you? Have you been pretending all this while? Mind my business? I thought we passed that? How did we get here? What¡¯s going on? Why the sudden change?¡±


    I asked, I just couldn¡¯t wrap my head around how we got back to this point, we were doing fine, we were happy and now suddenly we are not.


    ¡°I am off to work, you can get to school on your own,¡±


    He replied and left me standing there in the middle of our room, I angrily wiped off the tears in my eyes and calmed myself, he wasn¡¯t worth my tears, no man was worth my tears, I wish my mom woulde see this, I wish I could show them, I wish my sister will see this, when I told them that he was wrong for me they doubted it, now look, but then again, I got into the marriage myself, and as always, I am the one with bad lucks, and maybe I forgot that maybe I thought I could be happy too, for once, I thought I found a ce I belonged but looks like the universe wasn¡¯t in for my happiness, since this is how he wants us to be now then so be it, my mind made up, I started moving my stuff in our shared room to the room at the far end, I wasn¡¯t going to share my space with him no more.


    After moving all my personal belongings out of the main bedroom, I took a bath and left home without eating breakfast, I only had one ss after which I will be meeting Marilyn, the materials I got arrived yesterday and I had loaded them in the car when the came, was going to show them to her, we had to designer a mini house, which I have asked to be made already and it will be avable by Friday, the n was already drafted out on my system and all we had to do was follow it in designing the main thing, since it was our first project, it didn¡¯t need to be perfect, that¡¯s what the lecturer had said, I n on telling Marilyn toe over to the house next week Wednesday so that we can do it together and I can submit it in school.


    I called Marilyn on my way out of the school and she picked up almost immediately.


    ¡°Hey, Marilyn,¡±Belongs to ? n0velDrama.Org.


    I greeted when she picked up, I wanted to go home first because I was super hungry but I didn¡¯t want to be reminded of the sadness in that house, and also I didn¡¯t want Betty or Nora to ask me what¡¯s going on, Nora heard me and Cross fight this morning, and she saw the photos too, I didn¡¯t want their pity stares, so I decided I will grab lunch at the ce Marilyn and I were going to meet.


    ¡°Kathy, I was about to call you, can we meet up at my ce? Sorry, I can¡¯t leave home, I can give you directions,¡±


    ¡°Alright cool,¡±


    ¡°Aha, thank God, I will send it to you, it¡¯s not hard to find, what do you like? I can make it for you to make up for all the stress that I am putting you through,¡±


    ¡°Nah, it¡¯s fine, I am not a picky eater, anything would do,¡±


    I replied, happy that she thought of feeding me, we talked some more before she hung up and sent me directions to her house, it took me over one hour to get there because I had gone to the wrong address the first time and had to go back.


    ¡°Hi, Kathy, you are much prettier in person, oh my gosh,¡±


    Marilyn greeted me when I stepped into her apartment, she was so not what I expected, she was a woman who would be in herte thirties or early forties, I expected someone younger by the way she talked.


    ¡°Thank you,¡±


    ¡°Come on in girl, you are wee to my home,¡±


    She invited me, I stepped into the house and was amazed by how homey it was, I expected a much younger person so I had been expecting a girl¡¯s house, but this was a home, I couldn¡¯t keep it in so I asked.


    ¡°I am sorry to say but you are much older than I expected,¡±


    I voiced out.


    ¡°Yeah, I know, I am forty-seven old and have three kids two sons, one is twenty-three and the other is twenty and a daughter too who is eighteen years old, they are all not around right now because they are visiting their dad, we are divorced, I know I am an oldie, that¡¯s why I decided to go for a school that offers online courses, it¡¯s being a long term goal of mine to get a degree in interior design, so even though I am old, I still want to get it, betterte than never,¡±


    She revealed and I felt bad about what I said.


    ¡°I am sorry if what I said offended you, I didn¡¯t mean for it to,¡±


    ¡°Nah, I am not offended, don¡¯t be sorry, it¡¯s perfectly fine, and you are much younger and beautiful than I expected,¡±


    ¡°I am twenty-three years old,¡±


    ¡°I see, you are the same age as my oldest son, do you have a boyfriend? I can link you up with my son, he is a good and handsome young man,¡±


    She said, now ying matchmaker, I raised my left hand which had been covered with my sweater, and showed her my ring.


    ¡°Oh, sorry, my bad, used you are married, these days it¡¯s hard to see young people who marry early, I should have found you early, what a lucky man your husband is,¡±


    She said I wish my husband thinks the same but sadly he doesn¡¯t give a fuck about me.


    ¡°I made fried rice, let¡¯s eat first before we start?¡±


    ¡°Yes, please, I am hungry,¡±


    I said, relieved that she didn¡¯t ask me about my husband, she led me to her dining room where we both eat and then we started off with what brought me there, we spent the next couple of hoursing up with different ideas on how we wanted the mini house toe out as, it was surprisinglyfortable to work with Marilyn despite our age gap, she was fun and very weing, by the time we were done it was way passed six pm.


    ¡°Thank you for today Marilyn,¡±


    I said as she saw me out of the houseter that evening.


    ¡°No, thank you, I am so happy that I got someone who I can talk to and who understands me,¡±


    ¡°You are weing, everyone will get along with you,¡±


    ¡°Not my daughter though, she hates me and thinks I am controlling,¡±


    She revealed shaking her head.


    ¡°I think all daughters are like that, I think the same of my mom but I don¡¯t hate her, and I am sure your daughter doesn¡¯t hate you,¡±


    I said.


    ¡°I hope your husband won¡¯t mind that I kept you till this time, if you want I can talk to him and tell him you were with me,¡±


    ¡°No, no need for that, he knows,¡±


    I lied, I hadn¡¯t told Cross about Marilyn, I mean I would have if only he had given me a chance to but we haven¡¯t been talking and he wasn¡¯t even around, I didn¡¯t even tell him what happened with Louis and I bet he won¡¯t even care, he doesn¡¯t give a fuck about me anyway.


    ¡°Okay then, I will see you on Wednesday,¡±


    ¡°Sure,¡±


    I said and got into my car, I drove out of her estate towards the main road, I honestly didn¡¯t want to go home, the energy at home made me sad, just two days ago that house has been my best ce but suddenly I wanted to be anywhere but there.


    ¡°You always fall in love with the wrong people,¡±


    I said to myself, I wish Cross had shown this side of him three months ago, then I wouldn¡¯t have gotten into him.


    ¡°It¡¯s your fault still, you knew the kind of marriage it was, you should have known this would happen,¡±


    I said, talking to myself because there was no one else I could talk to.


    I got home by some minutes to nine and as I thought, Cross wasn¡¯t home, my first thought was, he was with her again, I tried looking up the woman but I couldn¡¯t find anything on her, she wasn¡¯t a model either was she a public figure, I wished I had a way of contacting her, to at least tell her that the man she was dealing with was somebody¡¯s husband.


    I couldn¡¯t sleep with my head imagining Cross in bed with the unknown woman, the image kept ying in my head, I stayed awake hoping he would return home but he didn¡¯t, the tears I thought I won¡¯t share, came out on their own and once again I cried myself to sleep¡­

 Chapter 51

    Cross Pov


    Once again I found myself sleeping outside my home, I just didn¡¯t feel like going home, not when Katherine was there and acting like a crazy woman, she won¡¯t believe whatever I say even if I tell her nothing happened with Ginna, and I didn¡¯t want to exin either, I didn¡¯t owe her anything, and whatever had gotten into me that made me change the contract we signed, I guess it off now because right now, I just wanted to be a free man, not trapped with a woman I didn¡¯t even like, yes I admit that we were okay before but right now, no we are not, our marriage is just going to be what I wanted it to be from the beginning, a paper marriage only.


    I didn¡¯t have much work to do today at the office so I n on leaving early, I had n to meet up with Ginna, but because of the article that was released, I told her toy low, the first thing I did when I got to work that morning called her to not bother to go back to work, someone might recognize her and harass her, and I didn¡¯t want that, not when she hadn¡¯t done anything, at first she had repeatedly said no but atst I was able to convince her to listen to me, and she had agreed, I sent her some money and told her I would help her get amodation so that she doesn¡¯t have to share a house or squat with anyone, we have beenmunicating since then.


    ¡°Dude? You forgot I exist,¡±


    Dean announced as he entered my office, I didn¡¯t know he wasing over and hadn¡¯t seen him in a while.


    ¡°Sorry man, I have been busy,¡±


    I said, getting up to wee him.


    ¡°I see, may I ask with what?¡±


    ¡°Work of course what else will I be busy with?¡±


    ¡°Many things, let¡¯s say, women?¡±


    ¡°Stop,¡±


    I said sitting down.


    ¡°Why? I saw your photos with the pretty woman, who is she by the way and how did Katherine take seeing you with her? I was shocked though, I thought you were happily married,¡±


    Dean said, I wanted to tell him to get lost but he was my friend, my only friend at that.


    ¡°She is an old friend and Kathy had been mad, she still is,¡±


    ¡°Dude, what¡¯s going on?¡±


    ¡°Nothing, nothing going on, I went to the usual meeting with the executives, they had over women, and one of them was Ginna, I got dru¡­¡±


    ¡°Wait, did you just say Ginna? Your ex-girlfriend?¡±


    ¡°Yes her,¡±


    ¡°What? She is a hooker now?¡±


    ¡°Watch what you say, dude, she is not,¡±


    ¡°Sorry my bad, do what happens now? I know you still have feelings for her,¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know man, I don¡¯t know,¡±


    ¡°What do you mean you don¡¯t know, forget everything I have been saying, you have a wife, you should do away with whatever feelings you have for your ex and focus on your wife,¡±


    He said.


    ¡°Dude,¡±


    ¡°I am warning you not to do anything to hurt Katherine, she doesn¡¯t deserve it, Ginna or whatever she is, itss history and should be left there, don¡¯t ruin your home for her,¡±


    ¡°I haven¡¯t done anything, why all the warning? And besides Katherine and I aren¡¯t a love match, I don¡¯t give stuck about her.¡±


    I replied, I didn¡¯t want to have this conversation, I already wish I met Ginna again before I got married to Katherine, I haven¡¯t even done anything yet and my best friend is already warning me.


    ¡°You married her, slept with her, you made vows to her and until this ex turned up, you have been happy with her, dude, think about it, don¡¯t make the mistake of treading your present life for a past life you hoped you had, I mean, you don¡¯t really know this new girl, she just showed up, she is aplete stranger,¡±


    ¡°She is not a stranger, I know more than I know Katherine and besides, we aren¡¯t even doing anything wrong,¡±


    ¡°Okay, but how do you n or how did you exin to your wife about her?¡±


    ¡°I didn¡¯t tell her anything,¡±


    ¡°Cross!¡±


    He yelled.


    ¡°What is it?¡±


    ¡°Have you lost your mind? Are you really going to be like this? Dude, I don¡¯t support you in this, just know that,¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t owe Katherine any exnation and besides even if I exin she won¡¯t believe me because she thinks I lied to her,¡±


    ¡°Why would she think that?¡±


    He asked, I honestly didn¡¯t want to tell him because I knew he wouldn¡¯t believe either but those intense eyes staring at me made me spill.


    ¡°The things, I spent the night out,¡±


    ¡°You slept out?¡±N?velDrama.Org owns this.


    He cut in.


    ¡°Can you let me finish please?¡±


    ¡°Fine, talk,¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I spent the night out, I had a little too much to drink and spent the night at the hotel, when she called the next morning I told her I was at work, which was true because I left the hotel early, but she didn¡¯t believe, we had a fight and the next morning we got the photos which further cemented her doubts,¡¯


    I exined.


    ¡°So, did you sleep alone in that hotel room?¡±


    He questioned, I let out a breath and shook my head no.


    ¡°Let me guess you slept with Ginna,¡±


    ¡°I didn¡¯t sleep with her okay, I was drunk, I can¡¯t even remember but she said nothing happened,¡±


    I replied.


    ¡°Okay, so what are your ns on to fixing things with your wife?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t have any, I haven¡¯t been home for three days now, I don¡¯t want her nagging me,¡±


    I replied.


    ¡°Why haven¡¯t you gone home?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t want her to nag me okay, I like peace,¡±


    I said, wanting this discussion to end.


    ¡°You are going to do what? Let that woman live alone in your house while you go about with your mistress?¡±


    ¡°Dean, stop please, Ginna is not my mistress,¡±


    I said I didn¡¯t like the thought of making the woman I love my mistress.


    ¡°But she will be, except you n on divorcing your wife to be with her, which I don¡¯t support,¡±


    ¡°Dude, right now, I don¡¯t have any ns okay,¡±


    ¡°Alright it¡¯s up to you, I am out of here, I don¡¯t like the energy around you right now, better fix things Cross, or you might end up regretting and I won¡¯t hesitate to tell you I told you so, goodbye,¡±


    He said and zoomed off my office before I could stop him, after he left, I sat there thinking about what I really was going to do like he said, Katherine was my wife and Ginna was my past but the problem is Ginna and I had a history that I haven¡¯t been able to forget for ten whole years, and Katherine and I have just been married for a little over five months, not to mention I had no feelings for her, my thoughts got cut off by the ringing of my phone, I picked up immediately when I saw the caller.


    ¡°Hey, Gin, what¡¯s up?¡±


    ¡°Cross, can you help me? I need a ce to stay, the girls I have been leaving with suddenly decided to move and I am stuck,¡±


    She said, I wanted to ask her to use from the money I sent her to stay at a hotel but I decided to not, I guess it would be best for her to move in with me there were lots of empty room at the house.


    ¡°Sure, you can move in with me,¡±


    I said, without thinking twice, I don¡¯t see a reason why she can¡¯t.


    ¡°What? Are you sure that¡¯s okay? Will your wife not be mad? I don¡¯t want any issues,¡±


    She voiced.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry Ginna, I will talk to her, you can spend the night at the hotel today, and by tomorrow you can move in,¡±


    ¡°Alright, if you think it¡¯s okay,¡±


    ¡°Yes, it is,¡±


    I said, she thanked me and the call ended, I picked up my bag and headed home to face my wife, I had to at least tell her.


    ¡°What did you just say Cross? Who is moving in with us? Your ex-girlfriend whom you are still very much in love with and you want me to say yes,¡±


    Katherine yelled, she was talking too loud and it got me pissed again, I don¡¯t know why she can¡¯t talk normally without yelling, I had gotten home and met her studying, I found out that she moved her things from our shared room and didn¡¯t bother to ask her, I just told her I had something to tell her, I told her about Ginna and who she was and here we are.


    ¡°Well, it¡¯s not like I am asking you, I am telling you, it¡¯s my house and I will do whatever I want and invite whomever I wanna invite,¡±


    I said.


    ¡°I am your wife! I am supposed to have a say in this and I don¡¯t want her to live here,¡±


    ¡°Excuse me? I agree you are my wife, but don¡¯t you remember our agreement? Stay the fuck away from my business and Ginna included, she is staying here and that¡¯s final, if you don¡¯t like it then you can move out,¡±


    ¡°Cross! If she moves in here then we are over,¡±


    ¡°We? There never was a we, you begged me to marry you which I did, you know this is not a real marriage and furthermore, if you leave here you don¡¯t even have a ce to go, without me your parents will chase you out, leaving will means going back to


    ¡°And you think the world revolves around you? Well think again, if thatdy moves in here just know that our marriage is over,¡±


    ¡°Bitch, you don¡¯t have anywhere else to go,¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s what you think right? Well let¡¯s wait and see, I am not going to be here with you and that woman, you have to make a choice,¡±


    ¡°Really, you are going to ask me to choose? Bitch you already know who I will choose and it¡¯s not you.¡±

 Chapter 52

    Kathy Pov


    ¡°What? You would choose her over me?¡±


    I asked trying as much as possible not to give him any reactions.


    ¡°Don¡¯t make me answer that, you wouldn¡¯t like my answer,¡±


    He said he wasn¡¯t even looking at me, he was looking everywhere else but at me, which was okay because I didn¡¯t want those eyes on me either.


    ¡°Dude, I already know your answer so it won¡¯t be a new thing, guess what? I am used to people not choosing me, so it won¡¯t hurt like you think it will,¡±


    ¡°Is that so?¡±


    He asked, I actually wanted tough at him but I just kept it in, I didn¡¯t want to give him any reactions, he didn¡¯t deserve it, he would choose her over me? he was justing home for the first time in three days and he dared to tell me, his mistress will be moving in with us, and that¡¯s the only reason he even came back because if not I am sure he wouldn¡¯t havee back to this house, well, like I told him, if she moves in here then we are done, I ain¡¯t gonna sit and watch the son of a Bitch do such to me, even my dad never did that to my mom, I grew up with my both parents, now I am thankful that the pregnancy test came out negative, I won¡¯t want my child born into this kind of a home, I was raised in a home where even though my parents were never around but they were a team, and never ever fought, that¡¯s the kind of home I want for my kids too and for a short moment I thought that this was it, I thought I found it.


    ¡°I don¡¯t care if you choose me or not, I admit I fell for your pretense and actually fell in love with you but I got back to reality real quick, mmed with reality before I was in too deep, I am thankful for that, but one thing is sure, I won¡¯t be here while you bring your mistress in alright?¡±


    I said and mentally patted myself for how calm my voice was, I am not going to lie and say it doesn¡¯t hurt, it does, these past few days has been hell for me, I cry myself to sleep and wake up crying too, I tried not to but I couldn¡¯t help it, the only time I wasn¡¯t crying was when I was in school or when I am doing the project and videoing calling Marilyn, we grew close in thest two days, she was on temporary leave from work due to a minor ident she had, so she had more time for our project, we had ns to meet up tomorrow too, she has be my first close friend since I came to New York.


    ¡°You seem so sure,¡±


    ¡°Why? You thought I would be crying and beating myself? Like you said our marriage is not even a real one so why should I kill myself? When me dying will only profit you, yes I admit that I have feelings for you but just give me a few more days or maybe weeks and whatever I feel for you now will be off,¡±


    I replied.


    ¡°I don¡¯t care what you feel, I don¡¯t even want to hear it, it¡¯s on you if you fell for me, fix it yourself, but just know that Ginna ising here, you can move out if you want,¡±


    ¡°And you think it¡¯s going to be that easy to get rid of me?¡±


    ¡°Why? You said you wanna move out or are you going to go cry to your mom and dad? Let me remind you, they were so quick to get your name off the family register, and you think they will ept you back?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s low Cross, but it doesn¡¯t get to me, if you think you can hurt me with words then think again,¡±


    I replied, his words did hurt, but he was wrong, if I want out and decided to go back home my dad will be there for me, but I wasn¡¯t going to move back with my family, even if u do end up leaving, I don¡¯t want them to see me as a failure, my other sisters both had luck, I don¡¯t want their pity stares, which is one of the reasons I have been avoiding Betty and Nora, if ever I am going back home, I won¡¯t go back as a failure no, I will stay here in New York, graduate and make a name for myself, that my family won¡¯t even think about my failed marriage.


    ¡°I can do even more bitch, I can go even lower, so watch what you say,¡±


    ¡°On a second thought let her move in, let her,¡±


    I saidughing,ughing was better than crying or being sad, that¡¯s what he wants to we but I will not give him that, if he wanted trouble he was going to get it double, I ain¡¯t gonna leave my home for any mistress so, if she moves in I can be petty, I will give her hell.


    ¡°Don¡¯t even think of doing anything stupid, I will throw you out,¡±


    He said, and I actually busted outughing, I couldn¡¯t keep myself fromughing, the dude really thought it was that easy.


    ¡°Cross, whether you like it or not, we are married, if you wanna be with your mistress you should consider being on my good book then maybe I can set you free so you can be with her because let her move in, let her do whatever she wants, if we don¡¯t go our separate ways, she will only remain the other woman,¡±


    I said.


    ¡°Stop calling her my mistress, that¡¯s disrespectful and she is not your mate,¡±


    ¡°Then what should I call her? My husband¡¯s other woman? It¡¯s pretty much sound the same to me,¡±


    ¡°You crazy woman, if only you would just get it that nothing is going on between Ginna and me then we won¡¯t be having this discussion,¡±


    He said and I resisted the urge to scream and bite him, he really took me for a fool, I don¡¯t know who it was but someone has been making sure that I know that Cross was with her, going as far as sending receipt of the money sent to her, he sent her three million, that¡¯s a lot for some one who ims there is nothing between them, and to crown it all whoever sent those sent a message saying I should count my days here, also sent me a photo of the saiddy, and I agree that she was pretty but I am prettier and curvier than her, I feel it¡¯s her sending those, just to make me mad and jealous, I don¡¯t know what she hopes to gain from that, I wanted to tell the moron but I know he won¡¯t believe me so there was no need.


    ¡°Cross, don¡¯t even bother denying it okay, there are proofs of your affair everywhere,¡±


    ¡°What proof? Photos taken by attention-hungry bloggers?¡±


    ¡°Hmm, yeah that and also the three million you sent her among other things,¡±


    ¡°How do you know that? Have you been following me about? Are you spying on me? Have you lost your mind?¡±


    ¡°Why will I do that, anyway, I don¡¯t wanna have this conversation anymore, I have an early morning ss tomorrow and I need to sleep, you can tell your mistress she is wee but whatever she sees, she has better bear it,¡±


    I said and left him standing there, he kept calling for me toe back but I didn¡¯t listen to him, I went up to the room I have been using, closing the door I rested my back on it as the tears that I have been hiding let loose, this whole thing was going further than I thought, if thatdy moves in, I don¡¯t think I will be same seeing her being all over Cross, or them being in love, this shit only happens in movies, never have I thought I would experience it in reality, and I was much too young and unprepared for this, I didn¡¯t even know what to do or how to act.


    ¡°Open the door Katherine I am not done talking, you don¡¯t walk out on me while I am still talking, open the fucking door,¡±


    Cross said banging on the door, I locked it and went toy on the bed, he can stand there all night long, I don¡¯t care, I have said all I want to him, well not all but if I say more I might end up begging him to love me, begging him to choose me and stay with me and that would be shameful, begging for love is a shameful act I am never going tomit.


    Despite his constant knocking on the door, I went to sleep without answering, he left a text on my phone and I didn¡¯t bother to read it before deleting it, I didn¡¯t want anything that would hurt me so early in the morning, I woke up early, earlier than I use to I took my bath got dressed, and left the house before he woke up, I didn¡¯t want to see him in the morning, that would ruin my day, even more, I drove around for a while before going for ss, ever since the incident with Louis, I always made sure to look around for a sight of him but so far, he hasn¡¯t shown his face yet, I hope it stays that way, the day I met him again was the day I started having problem in my home, he was a stroke of bad luck I didn¡¯t want toe across again. After ss, I went straight to Marilyn¡¯s house, we worked on our project together, she was weing as always, I had fun with her and really forgot my issues for a while.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on girl?¡±


    She asked when we sat in silence after we were done, I looked up at her wondering what she was on about.


    ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    ¡°Are you okay? You look sad, don¡¯t get me wrong I don¡¯t know you much butpared to thest time you were here, you look like you are going through something, see you are frowning right now,¡±


    She said calmly, her calm voice made my eyes water, I wasn¡¯t used to people asking me what¡¯s going on, I was always a loner, at home when my siblings left, in school when Juliet and I stopped being friends and here in New York, the only person that used to be there was no longer there.


    ¡°Hey don¡¯t cry, it will be fine, I don¡¯t know what¡¯s going on but I promise, it¡¯s will turn out fine,¡±


    She said hugging me, I cried while in her arms, she didn¡¯t ask any questions and just let me cry it all out after which she made a drink for me.


    ¡°I am not going to ask, but if you need someone to talk to I am always here,¡±


    She said and I smiled weakly at her.N?velDrama.Org owns this.


    ¡°Thank you, Marilyn, I am so grateful,¡±


    I said meaning it, she did so much for me and she just doesn¡¯t know it.


    ¡°No need for thank you among friends, just don¡¯t keep things in okay?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡±


    I replied, she saw me off to my car, I already knew Cross wasn¡¯t going to be there when I get home so I didn¡¯t bother to go home directly, I went to a small carnival that was being organized and watched the performances, I stayed until about ten pm before I drove home, when I parked my car, I was surprised to see him standing there, looking at me with dead res.


    ¡°Where the fuck have you been and why haven¡¯t you been taking your calls?¡±


    He barked¡­

 Chapter 53

    Kathy Pov


    I just stood there staring at him, I couldn¡¯t believe him, he had the nerve to ask me that, I could say the same for him, he was the one who hasn¡¯t been around so why did he think he could ask me where I have been.


    ¡°And you think I am going to answer you?¡±


    ¡°What the fuck Katherine? Do you know how scared I was that something had happened to you? And you weren¡¯t taking your calls either, at least learn to answer your God damn phone,¡±


    He cursed, I rolled my eyes and made to pass by him, he stopped me with his hand, I shoved at him.


    ¡°Get your hands off me, why were you calling me? why does my staying outte have anything to do with you, you don¡¯t care about what happens to me remember? I am not your business, so don¡¯t fucking act like you give a fuck about me,¡±


    ¡°Katherine!!¡±


    He barked.


    ¡°Cross!!¡±


    I shouted right back, he looked around before pulling me by the hand and dragging me into the main house with him, I fought ticket his hand off me but he held in too strong, he was stronger than me.


    ¡°Let me go,¡±


    I shouted but he didn¡¯t listen, so I bite his hand, he screamed and let go, I stepped away from him and watched him winch in pain, for a moment I felt bad but when I thought of all the pain and tears he had made me go through these past few days, I decided he deserved it and even more.


    ¡°What the fuck?¡±


    He said after the pain subsided.


    ¡°I told you to let me go, it¡¯s not my fault, I was defending myself from a threat,¡±


    I said stepping further away from him when I saw the look on his face, he was angry and looked scary.


    ¡°What? A threat? I am a threat to you?¡¯


    He asked moving close to me, his voice lower now, I shifted back, even more, I knew he would not hit me but I wasn¡¯t so sure, better safe than sorry, he looked really scary that I realized this was the first time I have really seen him angry, the other times were just preview, he looked like a sounded lion and if he attacked me I would be powerless against him, I move even further away until my back was touching the walls of the staircase.


    ¡°Please don¡¯te closer, just let me be okay, I don¡¯t owe you any exnation either, don¡¯t act like you care about me,¡±


    I said, my voice shaking, and I looked down to see that my hands were shaking too.


    ¡°Kathy!¡±


    He voiced taking a step closer.


    ¡°Please, don¡¯te near me,¡±N?velDrama.Org owns this.


    I said in a much calmer voice and made to walk past him, but he held me back.


    ¡°Leave me alone,¡±


    I shouted, I was really scared of how he looked and avoided his gaze.


    ¡°Kathy, look at me,¡±


    ¡°No, let me go,¡±


    I said, dragging my hands, but he pulled and held my arms.


    ¡°No, you can¡¯t walk out on me like you did yesterday, you are going to tell me where you have been,¡±


    He replied, I tried to shake my arm off but he didn¡¯t budge.


    ¡°Let me go, I am not saying a word to you, leave me alone,¡±


    ¡°Do you know just how long I have been waiting for you toe back home? And you think I am going to let you off without telling me where you have been? Then think again.¡±


    I startedughing.


    ¡°Now, you know how it feels to be the one waiting, well guess what, I have been there Cross, I have been there not just once, I sat at that window for three nights waiting for you toe back home, and those weren¡¯t the first either, and you know what makes it more painful, you never came, so I went to bed each of those night with tears in my eyes,¡±


    I replied and I pitifully began to cry, I hated myself for being so weak in front of him.


    ¡°Kathy, hey, don¡¯t cry,¡±


    He said hugging me, at first I melted against his hug but then I realized and pushed him off.


    ¡°Have you lost your mind?¡±


    I shouted at him.


    ¡°No,¡±


    ¡°Then don¡¯t act like you care about me, or is this a new strategy to get to me? Are you trying to be nice to me on purpose so I won¡¯t be bad to your mistress?¡±


    I asked bitterly, he was acting like he gives a fuck about me so that he could manipte me.


    ¡°Stop it, stop calling her my mistress, she is not,¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t give a fuck, just leave me alone,¡±


    I said, walked past him and climbed upstairs, walking fast into my room, I wasn¡¯t fast enough because he caught up with me before I could enter the room and carried me up, I dropped my purse and pped him on the face but he didn¡¯t drop me down.


    ¡°Let me go you moron,¡±


    I shouted but he didn¡¯t, instead, he turned and walked back towards the room we used to share, hitting him even more on the chest, I didn¡¯t want to be in the same room with him.


    ¡°Put me down, Cross or I am going to bite you again,¡±


    I added, he finally did put me down when we entered the bedroom and I immediately started walking back out, he blocked the door and locked it.


    ¡°Let me out of here Cross, what the fuck is wrong with you?¡±


    ¡°No,¡±


    ¡°No? Why? What do you want from me? Why can¡¯t you just let me be? Do you enjoy seeing me sad this much? You want to cause me even more pain, fine, bring it on,¡±


    I said throwing my hands in the air.


    ¡°Do your worst Cross,¡±


    I added and moved closer to him, he grabbed me and kissed me, at first I was shocked, then realization came and I struggled against him, but he held me firm and continued kissing me roughly, after struggling without sess for a while I finally gave in and let him kiss me, I realized just how much I missed his kiss, how much I wanted us to go back to being what we used to be, it brought tears to my eyes, his mouth went softer when he realized that I had given in, he eased off the kiss and let me go and I stood there defeated, i looked up at him and let him see my weakness, let him see that I didn¡¯t stand a chance against him, he pulled me back and imed my lips again, this time the kiss was softer, I kissed him back, he picked me up andid me on the bed, before taking off his shirt, I knew what he wanted from me, I knew I shouldn¡¯t let him have me as that would make things even worst for me but I wanted him so much, missed him so much, love him so much that it would hurt either way, he came back on me, kissing me, taking off my clothes, and every thought were off the window, I let him have me, and even while at it I could feel the sadness that has be my new friend, I fell asleep in his arms, it¡¯s felt like home but sadly, I knew it was temporary, he was just using me to quench his hunger¡­


    *****


    Cross Pov


    I watch her sleep, I couldn¡¯t say I regretted what happened, no, I missed having her in bed with me, missed talking to her when I got home earlier and I hadn¡¯t seen her, I waited for her toe back but she didn¡¯t, I honestly got scared especially, when it was past nine and she wasn¡¯t taking her calls, the worst part was I didn¡¯t even know where to start looking for her, she had left before I had woken up and while I was in the office I couldn¡¯t do a thing because I was having an inner battle with myself over our fight, we didn¡¯t have to be fighting, Ginna wasn¡¯t mine and hering back into my life shouldn¡¯t be a reason to fight with Katherine, there wasn¡¯t even an issue so I wondered just why we were fighting, I admitted to myself that I missed her and came home when I knew she would already be back from school so that we could talk it out and makeup but she hasn¡¯t been home, I waited patiently, and even called and texted her no, response.


    I got off the bed and walked out of the room, going down to the kitchen, I went to the fridge got out a beer, and sat down, I knew I shouldn¡¯t be drinking sote but I needed it, Ginna and I had spoken while I was waiting for Katherine, she told me she would dly stay anywhere else if it means Katherine and I not having an issue, that she didn¡¯t want to be a reason my marriage crash, I told her that wasn¡¯t the case but she insisted that I makeup with my wife, which I was already going to do, I admit that I was wrong for saying those awful things to her and telling her off, staying away from the house too, I still want Ginna to move in here with us, and I told her that too, I just needed to make Katherine see reasons with me and know that there was nothing going on with us, I am offering to help her, I didn¡¯t even know how I felt about her anymore, I still liked her quite alright.


    ¡°Cross,¡±


    Nora said walking into the kitchen, I immediately regretteding in here as I knew I was about to get a lot of scolding.


    ¡°Nora, I am just grabbing ate-night drink, I didn¡¯t mess anything up here,¡±


    I said showing her the beer.


    ¡°Yeah, you didn¡¯t but you are messing up a lottely, you make that girl cry and that¡¯s bad of you,¡±


    She said sitting on the other chair.


    ¡°What are you doing awake Nora?¡±


    I asked taking a sip of my drink, I didn¡¯t want to acknowledge what she had just said.


    ¡°I couldn¡¯t sleep so I thought ofing here to bake,¡±


    She replied, and I nodded, took thest sip of the beer, got up, and disposed of the can.


    ¡°I am going back to sleep, Nora, don¡¯t stay up toote,¡±


    I said, my back already on her.


    ¡°Cross?¡±


    She called when I was almost out.


    ¡°Yes, Nora?¡±


    I answered turning back.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what¡¯s going on and I know it¡¯s not in my ce to ask but I just want to say whatever it is, can it not make Katherine cry? She is fragile, more fragile than you think and whatever has been going on has had a lot of effect on her, she barely eats and cries a lot, even though she tries to hide it, I am saying you should stop making her cry, I hope you understand, I have a daughter and would be mad if I find out she is going through what Katherine is going through, I am sorry if I step out of my ce, but I wanted you to know,¡±


    She said, I could feel she meant every word she said, I stood there staring at her for a moment before nodding and leaving without a word, I went back into our room and she wasn¡¯t there anymore, she must have woken up while I was downstairs and gone back to the room she is now using, I thought if going there to wake her up and bring her back here but I decided not to, it was better to let her be, Iid on the bed thinking of how best to handle this without messing it up, I already made the mistake of letting Katherine cry and I didn¡¯t an on doing it again, I fell asleep with the thoughts¡­

 Chapter 54

    Kathy Pov


    I woke the next morning thinking all that happenedst night was a dream but the tenderness of my private areas was proof that it did happen, Iid in bed, not feeling like living the house or going to school, I didn¡¯t have much to do in school today as the project was taking more of our time in school, I had semester exams soon too, I looked around my room trying to make sense of what happenedst night, but as much as I thought about it, I couldn¡¯te up to anything. When I had woke upst night and I was alone, I had felt like the biggest fool in the whole world by letting Crossy his cheating hands on me, I felt ashamed of myself for not being able to tell him no and had left the room quietly and came back here, my body had been too exhausted to overthink which is why I was doing the overthinking now, I felt like he was trying to either get on my good side again or he was trying to manipte me into believing and trusting him again, I wasn¡¯t buying any of his shit anyway.


    I got up from the bed and walked up to the window when I heard him leaving the other room, I stood there watching and before long I saw him walk up to his car, he was dressed casually and didn¡¯t look like he was going to the office.


    ¡°Maybe he is going to see her,¡±


    The tiny voice in my head whispered and I couldn¡¯t shake it off, I felt my eyes water again and cursed at myself for being such an idiot, why was I letting one man ruin my life? I had a lot of things to do and have a whole life ahead of me, I am just twenty-three, so why was I letting a man ruin my life for me? All because I love him, all because I am married to him, if he can walk out of our marriage and be with his ex-turned mistress then why can¡¯t I go about my life? Why do I have to let myself get hurt by his actions?


    ¡°You are more than this Katherine, you are not weak, don¡¯t let Cross make you weak, if it¡¯s to walk away then do it,¡±


    I said out loud to myself, wiping my tears as the car drove out of the building into the streets, I stood there for a short moment before going to take my bath, I came back to the window, then I remembered that I haven¡¯t called my older sister since she gave birth, so I went in search of my phone, I saw that Cross has given me quickly a lot of miss calls and texts, I rolled my eyes and deleted then, before calling my sister, she sounded so happy to hear from me, and I apologized for not calling her told her I was busy with school, she said she understands and I promised to go visit during the holidays, the call ended after I spoke with her husband, after the call, I went back toy down on the bed and slept off with my mind nk.


    I woke again to the sound of banging on my door, thinking it would be Noraing to remind me to eat, I got off the bed and opened my door, bad hide because the reason behind my dilemma stood there, I stared at him absentmindedly expecting him to say what he wanted but he didn¡¯t say a word, I wondered why he didn¡¯t go to work and I admit that my heart kinda felt a little less painful knowing that he didn¡¯t go to see thatdy, but that didn¡¯tst, the thought that the fact that he didn¡¯t go now doesn¡¯t mean he won¡¯t see her again killed any little joy I felt.


    ¡°What do you want?¡±


    I asked after about five minutes of just staring.


    ¡°You have lost a lot of weight, you haven¡¯t been eating properly,¡±


    He said in response, okay that cut me off guard and I almost fell for his shit bit then I remembered this might be his new strategy, I rolled my eyes and walked by to my bed leaving the door open, it was up to him toe him or get the fuck out, he chooses the former.


    ¡°What do you want?¡±


    ¡°Have you eaten breakfast? I went out and got you something,¡±


    He said raising the bag he had with him, I wasn¡¯t even moved because I wasn¡¯t hungry, food wasn¡¯t doing it for me these days like it use to, I just ate to survive not because of anything else.


    ¡°What do you want?¡±


    I asked again, I needed him out of my space, but the dude was making himselffortable on the sofa in my room and she dropped the food he had with him on the table, I didn¡¯t even bother to take a look, I just wanted him gone.


    ¡°Can you say what you came here for and just leave? I will like to be alone,¡±


    I said.


    ¡°Why did you move your things out of our room?¡±


    ¡°And you think I will answer you? Think again,¡±


    I said in response, the audacity as if he didn¡¯t know why.


    ¡°Why did youe back herest night? I just went downstairs briefly and you left before I came, I miss having you close to me when I sleep.


    He said and I concluded that he was a shameless moron, how could he say such things after all he did, how can he sit there asking all these questions causally after all that happened? I wasn¡¯t the problem here, he was.


    ¡°Are you not going to talk to me, Kathy? I am trying to work things out between us here, we shouldn¡¯t be fighting,¡±


    ¡°Yeah, right,¡±


    I said in my head, I choose not to talk to him and just let him talk, get bored with the no response and leave but the moron didn¡¯t want to leave.


    ¡°Kathy? Nothing happened with Ginna, nothing is going on with her, I am just helping an old friend, and she doesn¡¯t want us to have an issue because of her, so I am trying to fix this,¡±


    He said so that¡¯s why he was trying to make up with me? Because she requested, if she had asked him for something else he would have done it too? And he expects me to take his words for it? Nothing happened between them, yeah right. I thought, eyeing him, he really took me for a gullible fool.


    ¡°Are you going to say anything?¡±


    ¡°Yes, get out of my room,¡±


    I said pointing at the door.


    ¡°Kathye on, why are you acting like this? I am trying to fix things here,¡±


    ¡°Fix what? I thought you said it¡¯s not a real marriage? I thought you said you don¡¯t owe me any exnation, so why are you exining now that I don¡¯t want to hear about it? Why are you suddenly trying to fix what¡¯s not even real? Does make sense to you?¡±


    I asked.


    ¡°Kathy,¡±


    ¡°Katherine, my name is Katherine, only people that I am close to calls me Kathy and you are not one of them,¡±


    I warned.


    ¡°But we are close, I am the closest person to you right now,¡±


    He said and I wanted to at leastnd a p in his cheeks to wake him up from his delusional world.Property of N?)(velDr(a)ma.Org.


    ¡°We are not close, you must be kidding yourself, boys, I don¡¯t even wanna talk to you, how do you think you are the closest person to me,¡±


    I replied, I just wanted him gone.


    ¡°I am your husband!¡±


    He said a little loud, I resisted the urge tough in his face, the dude was so funny like he suddenly remembered he was my husband?


    ¡°Ayy, so you finally remembered that? Boya, where you not the one that has been going on about us not being married for real? Dude pick a side already, stop confusing yourself, or did I do better than she does? Is that why you suddenly want to buy my favor because you realize that you needed someone who can perform?¡±


    ¡°Katherine!!¡±

 Chapter 55

    Kathy Pov


    I red at him not saying a word.


    ¡°Katherine!¡±


    he yelled again.


    ¡°What?¡±


    I barked in response, I knew I was been petty but the moron didn¡¯t give me a choice, he should have just stuck with his original n of being on my bad side, I was getting used to it, and I didn¡¯t like this his new strategy, it was confusing me.


    ¡°I am sorry okay, I messed up, I did and I know I am at fault for not trying to clear things instead I was beating around the bush, I should have just told you what happened that night and why I didn¡¯te home, and everything about the photos, I promise nothing happened with Ginna and nothing is going on, can we just stop fighting and go back to how we use to be?¡±


    ¡°You think I am stupid? Why? It wasn¡¯t working like you expected so you are changing the n? Please I am not a fool, I don¡¯t buy whatever you are trying to project, I honestly do not want to have this conversation, I don¡¯t care what¡¯s going on, oh wait, yeah, I cared, I got hurt, I am still hurting but guess I am getting better so please don¡¯t ruin this for me bying here to confuse me, just gonna remind you again that you said our marriage ain¡¯t a real one so there is nothing to fix, just go about doing your own thing and I will be doing mine, when you get tired of it, bring the divorce papers, and I will sign them.


    I replied, it hurt talking about divorce but I think it was inevitable, and it was gonna happen, it¡¯s going to hurt but I will get through it just fine.


    ¡°Why are you talking about divorce? I didn¡¯t even mention anything like that, I already told you that I am sorry, yes I know I said that our marriage ain¡¯t real, I wasn¡¯t thinking then, can¡¯t you just let me off the hook this once?¡±


    He asked in a pleading voice, he sounded so sincere that I found myself almost believing him.


    ¡°Wow, I have to admit that you are really good, you are good at this, I almost fell for it but guess what, I didn¡¯t, so just stop it,¡±


    I replied, I honestly didn¡¯t want to continue our conversation so I stood up from the bed, went over to my wardrobe, put on a gown, and decided it would be better if I just leave the house, going back to the bed, I picked up my phone and my purse that wasying in the bed and made to leave the room but the moron moved faster and locked the door.


    ¡°Cross, let me go,¡±


    I shouted.Property of N?)(velDr(a)ma.Org.


    ¡°No, not until you hear me out, not until we make up, I am not going to spend another day fighting with you Kathy, that¡¯s not how I want us to live, so you have to hear me out!¡±


    he said. He was talking nonsense at this point.


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to hear anything alright? Is that so hard to get? I have no interest in whatever you want to say, leave me alone for fuck sake!¡±


    I responded trying to get off again but he didn¡¯t let go, I hated that he was stronger and could hold me down.


    ¡°Kathy, I am sorry about all I said, I know I messed up and said so many hurtful shits to you but I promise, I didn¡¯t do what you think I did, even though I say that our marriage isn¡¯t real, it¡¯s means a lot to me, you mean a lot to me Mrs. Salvador,¡±


    He said and I red at him, his words hurt more than when he insulted me, what? I mean so much to him? That had to be the biggest lie ever told and I will be a fool to believe that.


    ¡°¡±ckmailer, I know what you are doing, and I am not going to fall for it,¡±


    I said, pushing him off and throwing my purse at him, he caught it and dropped it on the floor, I threw my phone at him too, but he didn¡¯t let it get to the ground, the idiot caught it and set it gently on the table close to the door.


    ¡°I am not ckmailing you, I just want us to be okay again, Ginna is not a threat and I can prove that to you, she won¡¯t be moving in here with us again, I am sorry I didn¡¯t think of you before making that decision,¡±


    He revealed and apologized, he sounded so sincere that I wanted to believe him, but I was scared, scared that I might be right, scared that he might just be doing all these to get on my good side.


    ¡°How do I believe you?¡±


    ¡°Let me please, I will show you,¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t believe you,¡±


    I said weakly, I knew I shouldn¡¯t give in to what he was saying but he sounded so sincere, I wanted to give him a chance.


    ¡°You promise that nothing happened with you too?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡±


    ¡°You said you will choose her over me,¡±


    I reminded him of the words he had said that had hurt me so bad.


    ¡°I am sorry, I wasn¡¯t thinking straight, Ginna is my past, and you are my present,¡±


    ¡°Why should I believe you?¡±


    ¡°Because you love me,¡±


    He said, he sounded so sure.


    ¡°But you don¡¯t love me,¡±


    I replied voicing out my biggest pain, the fact that he doesn¡¯t love me


    ¡°I can¡¯t lie and say I do, but I am willing to make this work if you give me a chance,¡±


    He said and that I could believe if he had said he loved me I would have pped him and left but he said he would learn which means he really wants to give us a chance, so I decided to give him that chance.


    ¡°Fine, you get your chance,¡±


    I said and he hugged me¡­

 Chapter 56

    Cross Pov


    ¡°Aha, finally,¡±


    I said pulling her close, I didn¡¯t know just how much I missed her until I held her in my arms, I couldn¡¯t sleepst night with her in this room, I thought about it and decided I didn¡¯t like fighting with her, I didn¡¯t have to love her to care for her, and I did, I cared for her, so I decided not to go to work today, and spend the day with her, I went out to get her something as a form of a bribe but she hadn¡¯t even looked at it, she had looked at me with so much hate and sadness that it made me feel bad for everything that I had put her through these past few days.


    ¡°I still don¡¯t like you Cross,¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t like myself either, I am sorry for what I said okay, it won¡¯t happen again,¡±


    ¡°You promise?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡±


    ¡°And there is really nothing going on with your ex? I know I shouldn¡¯t bring her up again but I can¡¯t help it, she is the woman you love and I feel helpless,¡±


    She said, I pulled her back into my hug.


    ¡°Ginna is not a threat Kathy, don¡¯t worry, I promise I am only helping her as a friend, and whatever I feel for her, I am sure it in the past, she doesn¡¯t even see me that way again, I owe her a lot Kathy, and I can¡¯t neglect her now,¡±


    ¡°And nothing happened that night?¡±


    ¡°Nothing,¡±


    ¡°What about the photos? And why didn¡¯t youe home that night?¡±Property of N?)(velDr(a)ma.Org.


    I exined everything that happened that night to her, how it happened, without leaving out a single detail, she was more understanding than I thought she would be and I felt stupid for acting out and not just talking it over with her in the first ce.


    ¡°So, you will get her a house of her own and help her through and that¡¯s all?¡±


    ¡°Yes Kathy, I owe Ginna,¡±


    ¡°You said it before, can I ask what it is about?¡±


    ¡°I can¡¯t share the details right now Kathy, but I promise it¡¯s all in the past.


    I said, Ginna went through hell when she was with me, my parents never liked her and didn¡¯t approve of our rtionship, which is why we dated mostly in secret, I hated it but back then I had been powerless, she went through so much then, and I felt like this was the perfect time to make up for everything, for not being there with her when she needed me the most, when she had lost our child, she had called but by the time I got there it was toote, she already lost our kid and she had looked at me with so much hate, that has been the beginning of the end for us, we broke up two weekster and never got to makeup, I never got to ask her to forgive me because she left before I got the chance to, I wasn¡¯t ready to tell Kathy all these so I just hugged her closer.


    ¡°Alright, you can tell me when you are ready to,¡±


    ¡°We are good now?¡±


    ¡°Yes, but,¡±


    ¡°But?¡±


    ¡°Nevermind,¡±


    She replied.


    ¡°Tell me please?¡±


    I persuaded.


    ¡°You won¡¯t choose her over our marriage? I know I shouldn¡¯t ask but I just want to know, I don¡¯t wanna go through that again, it wasn¡¯t nice at ¨¤ll,¡±


    ¡°I won¡¯t,¡±


    I replied. I am just going to help Ginna get her life back in order and I am going to work on making my marriage with Kathy work, Ginna would be mad if I did something stupid because of her, even though I still had feelings for her we can never go back to what we used to be, might as well live with what I have.


    ¡°Okay, that¡¯s enough hugs, get off me dude,¡±


    She said pushing me off.


    ¡°I will just check those out,¡±


    She added pointing at the stuff I got for her, they were things I knew she enjoyed and mostly filled with choctes.


    ¡°Choctes,¡±


    She let out when she opened the bag, I smiled and went to seat with her, it felt so good to be with her like this, she eat in silence and I watched her with satisfaction, it would be so easy to love her if only I could let myself do, but sadly I can¡¯t control my feelings, I didn¡¯t even know them, I thought I did but I don¡¯t, I don¡¯t have control over them either.


    ¡°I met Louis,¡±


    She said, I tried to remember who it was she was talking about but I couldn¡¯t. She said, I tried to remember who it was she was talking about but I couldn¡¯t.


    ¡°Who is Louis?¡±


    ¡°My ex,¡±


    She responded and it finally clicked.


    ¡°The one who you almost ran away with, that stole from you?¡±


    ¡°Yup, him,¡±


    ¡°For real? Where? When? Why are you just telling me this?¡±


    I asked.


    ¡°Really? You weren¡¯t around remember? I waited to tell you that night bug you didn¡¯te back home and since then we have not been on talking terms which is why you are just hearing it,¡±


    ¡°I am sorry,¡±


    ¡°Stop saying sorry, it¡¯s okay,¡±


    She said with a smile, it felt cool seeing her smile at me like that again after not having her smile for days


    ¡°So what happened?¡±


    I asked. I should have been there for her when she needed me not here now asking her what happened a couple of dayster, I felt guilty even though she told me not to be.


    ¡°I beat him up,¡±


    She said proudly, I resisted the urge tough, I didn¡¯t want to piss her off but she looked so small that there was no way she would have beaten a grown-ass man up.


    ¡°You look like you don¡¯t believe me?¡±


    She said eyeing me.


    ¡°No, I do, where did you meet him?¡±


    ¡°At school, it was a coincidence I think, and I gave him a few punches and kneeled him twice in his areas,¡±


    She revealed in a super proud voice.

 Chapter 57

    Cross POV


    ¡°Wow, and he didn¡¯t do anything back? You should have called the cops on him instead,¡±


    ¡°He didn¡¯t get the chance to do shit and I didn¡¯t think about calling the cops,¡±


    She replied going back to eating her choctes.


    ¡°Don¡¯t eat too much of those on an empty stomach,¡±


    I warned, I knew she hasn¡¯t eaten because I asked Nora before I went out, and even when I came back.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I have a high chocte tolerance level,¡±


    She answered.


    ¡°Is that even a thing?¡±


    ¡°Yup, it is, so back to Louis, he hasn¡¯t shown his face since and I told him if he does that he would get even worst, he had been too shocked and in pain to do anything, and I drove off before he could get himself back together,¡±


    She disclosed.


    ¡°Okay, that¡¯s a one-time thing, next time just call the cops okay?¡±


    ¡°Yes, and my older sister gave birth,¡±


    She revealed, once again something I also missed because I was being an asshole.


    ¡°For real? That¡¯s so cool, Anna is due soon too, so many babies in the family,¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I know right? I n on going home after my exams,¡±


    ¡°Oh, it exam seasons no wonder there are books everywhere in the house,¡±


    ¡°Yup, and I hate studying but I have to,¡±


    ¡°Where were youst night?¡±


    I asked after we sat there in silence for a while, the question had been burning in my mind, I really wanted to know where she was.


    ¡°With Marilyn,¡±


    She responded, once again I didn¡¯t know who she was.


    ¡°Who is Marilyn?¡±


    ¡°My project partner and new friend,¡±


    She revealed I didn¡¯t want her mingling with the wrong crowd and the fact that she stayed upte with this Marilyn didn¡¯t tell well of her.


    ¡°Not to sound overprotective but are you sure it safe to be around her? I am not trying to control you or anything, I just don¡¯t want you mixing with the wrong people,¡±Owned by N?velDrama.Org.


    I said, I tried to put it in a way that won¡¯t offend her, thankfully she got the message as she smiled at me, I missed her smile so much.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Marilyn is perfectly okay, and not to mention she is twice my age and have two grown-ass kids,¡±


    She revealed.


    ¡°And she let you stay out sote?¡±


    I couldn¡¯t help but ask.


    ¡°No, I left her house early, I just didn¡¯t want toe back home to an empty house so I went to a night carnival and watched their performance beforeing back home, I was shocked when I saw you, I honestly didn¡¯t think you will be home,¡±


    She replied.


    ¡°Okay, if you say so, you seem to like her a lot,¡±


    ¡°Yes, she is so nice and easy to talk to, and she makes the best food too,¡±


    She revealed excitedly.


    ¡°She sounds interesting, I will like to meet her too,¡±


    ¡°Alright, you can, you just need to make out time, I am going to see her this weekend so that we can finalize our project,¡±


    ¡°Okay, how about your leg?¡±


    I asked remembering she had an injury that hadn¡¯t healed properly before our fight, I felt like a shitty husband for forgetting.


    ¡°It¡¯s fine, perfectly okay, and doesn¡¯t hurt anymore,¡±


    She replied showing her leg to me and wiggling them.


    ¡°That¡¯s good to know,¡±


    I said and she smiled at me.


    ¡°Will you move back into the main room with me? I don¡¯t like us sleeping apart,¡±


    ¡°I will if you ask nicely,¡±


    She answered, I collected the bowl of chocte from her, and lifted her onto myp, held her waist, she stared at me wildly, I kisses off the chocte on her lips, she tasted like chocte, the best chocte I have ever tasted.


    ¡°Please?¡±


    ¡°You needed to work harder than that,¡±


    She teased, I kissed her again.


    ¡°How about that?¡±


    I asked after we pulled apart.


    ¡°Convincing, but stillcking but I will just let you owe me, so yes I will,¡±


    She finally agreed, I kissed her again, leaving kisses all over her face and she giggled in response.


    We talked a lot throughout the day and spent the night together after we moved her things back to the room together, I was happy and d we were back on good terms and promised myself that whatever happens, I won¡¯t make the same mistake again, and making our marriage work became one of my top goals. The times few by and everything was going just fine.


    I helped Ginna get her apartment and also helped her get a job, things were looking good for her too, Kathy was busy for the rest part of the month, she had exams and spent most of her time studying, but we still make out time for each other and I made sure to help her as much as I can, stayed upte with her and even helped her revise, we had ns to travel home to Arizona to visit her sister who gave birth and our families after her exams, I couldn¡¯t say I was in love with Kathy, bit I liked her a hell lot and seeing her happy made my day, everyday waking up with her was amazing, I knew it won¡¯t take so long for me to fall for her, Ginna and I cleared things up about our past and she told it she didn¡¯t hold me countable for what happened that night, that it was just ill fate, she said she had been mad at me but that was a long time ago, I nned on telling Kathy about it tonight, and also telling her about that other stuff, she had her final papers today and I was going to surprise her.


    ¡°Aha, finally, after this I am not reading until next semester,¡±


    She let out as she sat in the car, she looked stressed but still, she glowed.


    ¡°You did well, and I hate to say this but this is just the beginning,¡±


    I said patting her back.


    ¡°That didn¡¯t help, I shouldn¡¯t have gone back to school,¡±


    She cried dramatically.


    ¡°What would you have done then?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, maybe work as your secretary,¡±


    She replied.


    ¡°As much as I like that, I don¡¯t think I will be able to get any work done if you are my secretary,¡±


    ¡°Tish, killjoy,¡±


    Iughed at her expression as we left the house.


    ¡°Call me when you are done,¡±


    I said kissing her when we got to the school.


    ¡°Of course, I love you,¡±


    She said smiling at me, she had formed the habit of telling me she loved me a week ago, I liked hearing her say those words, but I couldn¡¯t say it back, at first I apologized, but she had told me not to, that she would wait for me, I really wanted to say them back, but I didn¡¯t want to say what I didn¡¯t mean so I held back.


    ¡°See youter,¡±


    She said and got out of the car, and walked off without looking back, I sat there watching her, my phone rang, bring back to where I was.


    ¡°Hey, Ginna,¡±


    I said as I picked up the phone.


    ¡°Cross, help!!¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s going on Ginna? Ginna?¡±


    She didn¡¯t say anything else before the phone hung up, I tried calling her again but she didn¡¯t take her calls, afraid that something might have happened to her, I drove towards her house instead of the office¡­

 Chapter 58

    Unknown Pov


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to do this, I can¡¯t do it,¡±


    The bitch said and I rolled my eyes, she was acting out again and I hated it, she was always doing stupid things, going off the goal and we didn¡¯t have that much time, I didn¡¯t, she could act out, she is not the one at risk if been arrested, she had all her papers intact, I needed to leave this city soon, I didn¡¯t get approval beforeing here and the police here always ask for means of identification, if they find out I am using a fake ID I might get in trouble.


    ¡°Come on Ginna, why are you doing this again, it¡¯s not that hard, we need the money, so don¡¯t act out, don¡¯t ruin this for us,¡±


    ¡°I am not ruining anything, I just don¡¯t want to do this anymore, I can¡¯t, I can¡¯t ruin Cross life over my greed, he is a good man, I made a mistakeing here to get revenge on him, he didn¡¯t do anything to me,¡±


    ¡°A good man you say? A good man that didn¡¯t show up when you were bleeding and losing your child with him? If it wasn¡¯t for me you would have died that night before someone else finds you, and what more, a good man that couldn¡¯t even show you off to his family? A good man that left you broke and he didn¡¯t even bother to look for you when you guys broke up, he knew you were still in lots of pain and you had financial issues with a sick mother but he didn¡¯t show up, didn¡¯t bother to look for you, you know if he had tried he would have found you, and just maybe your mom would not have died, think about it Ginna,¡±


    I said frustrated with her, just a few goodies the stupid guy had given her and she already forgot why we were here, I wanted to kick something or someone.


    ¡°I don¡¯t care, I just don¡¯t want to do this anymore, Cross and I talked, he didn¡¯t know those things would have happened, and he tried to look for me,¡±


    She replied, I couldn¡¯t believe how gullible she was, thedy was stupid and I couldn¡¯t even think of what to say to her, starting to think I made a mistake by choosing the wrong partner for this again, but when I found her in Mexico, she had been so determined to ruin his life, so full of vengeance that I had thought she was the one for the job, it was like fate when I met her in Mexico, I had been wondering in different city and had ran into her in a pub, where she was working to pay off her debts, his shended in that was beyond me, we had talked and had thanked me for helping all those years ago, I asked her about the dude that didn¡¯t she up and she had told me she didn¡¯t know about him anymore, I helped her locate him and found out he was someone I knew, so we had bothe up with the n to ruin his life, I had then used the money left with me to pay off her debts and we both came to New York together, I didn¡¯t want to do anything much, I needed the money and she wanted revenge but now she stood before me like a love sick teenager afraid to hurt the one she loved, I made a mistake making her meet him and continue meeting him, that was my mistake, now the bitch was back in love with this dude and scared to hurt him.


    ¡°You are making a mistake Gonna, think about the purpose you came here,¡±


    I persuaded them that¡¯s all I can do, my hands are tied, I can¡¯t even leave this house much for fear of being arrested, I needed her to cooperate so that I can get what I want and leave.


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to do this anymore, Cross has been so good to me, he gave me a new life, I don¡¯t see why I should keep doing this, I don¡¯t see why I should ruin his happiness, I want out,¡±


    Her choice of words pissed the hell out of me, she wasn¡¯t thinking straight.


    ¡°What? Do you remember where I brought you from? Have you lost your mind? You want out? You have got to be kidding me, Ginna, we started this shit together and we are not going to stop until that bitch and the idiot you still have feelings for both go down, I don¡¯t want them happy,¡±


    I barked,dies are always so stupid, she wasn¡¯t the first foolishdy I have met and she won¡¯t be thest, unfortunately for me, but I need to get her back on the game, the peanut the fool she is in love with is giving her is not even enough for the both of us, and I needed that money to get out of this country, I needed a fresh start somewhere far away, I walked up to where she was standing, she moved an at, but I moved closer, and patted her on the back softly, I knew the best way to get her back on track, it worked every time.Property of N?)(velDr(a)ma.Org.


    ¡°Listen Ginna, you need to get back on your game, don¡¯t let the peanuts he give you to make you lose focus, okay, let¡¯s say the revenge thing is not walking but we have a bigger goal, you have a bigger and better goal, and you have the man at your feet, we can use that, don¡¯t be fooled to thinking he will continue giving you peanuts forever, you need to get the man, that¡¯s your new goal right? Do you want to be with him again? That¡¯s why you want out now?¡±


    ¡°No, u I admit that I still love him but that¡¯s not why I just don¡¯t want to do anything to hurt him,¡±


    She answered and I resisted the urge to scream at her, I shouldn¡¯t scream, she would only get scared, I needed to talk to her calmly.


    ¡°You havee this far, don¡¯t be deceived by small favors, can¡¯t you see, if we keep them apart, you get the man, and get more money from him, then you can pay off your debt that you owe me and you can be happy in love with the man, he already has feelings for you, you know he does right? If you don¡¯t know then I am telling you now that he still feels something for you, no man will do this much for a woman that means nothing to him, so if you want him enough you can still get him, it all depends on you, you can be happily in love with him, don¡¯t you want that?¡±


    I asked as softly as I could, I needed her to cooperate, once I get the money that I need I will be off and she can continue her life however she wants it, I smiled when she nodded in agreement.


    ¡°See, that¡¯s not so hard, we get the photos, get thedy out of the way, you get to be with your man and I get my money, everyone lives happily ever after, don¡¯t you agree Ginna?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡±


    ¡°Louder?¡±


    ¡°Yes, I agree,¡±


    She repeated and I smiled, we were back on the line, back in business, I know howdies think, and how to get through them, easy.


    ¡°That¡¯s my girl, now what are you to do again?¡±


    ¡°Get him here and seduce him while you take photos,¡±


    She repeated and I nodded in approval, as she picked up the phone, rehearsed her line before dialing our loverboy¡¯s number, I sat down on the couch and told her to put it on loudspeaker, sheplied and the fool picked up as expected.


    ¡°Hey, Ginna,¡±


    I heard him say.


    ¡°Cross, help,¡±


    Ginna said and I told her to end the call after a few seconds which she did, I pped.


    ¡°Good job, now we wait for him toe over, warning, do not mess this up, whatever you do here today will determine if you get the happily ever after you now want, and determine my getting my money,¡±


    I said, she nodded, as I picked up my camera and made sure the lenses were okay and everything was in order, time to do some real business, if it doesn¡¯t work I have n B, although I have been saving that n B for the future, if this doesn¡¯t work then the future will be now, but I know it will work, a jealous woman always and always will do crazy things and I am betting on that¡­

 Chapter 59

    Kathy Pov


    I smiled as I left the exam hall that morning, waving at everyone I passed by, I was looking for Marilyn I wanted to say goodbye to her and also ask her a question before I leave she came around during the exams and have also been a great motivation for me, she has finished earlier than I did and had signaled that she will wait for me, I looked around for her but I couldn¡¯t find her anywhere, hoping that she would be her car, I walked towards where she usually parks her car.


    Life has been so goodtely that I was d that I gave Cross a chance, he has been the best, simply the best, I couldn¡¯t ask for more and everyday I fall more in love with him, to the extent that I could no longer keep it in and decided to always tell him and he didn¡¯t reject my love for him, I knew he was killing him self and walking on himself too, but I told him he could take his time, handle whatever it was he still felt for his ex and just don¡¯t over work himself, I know I shouldn¡¯t be so rx knowing my husband loves another woman but like he said and I trust his words, nothing was going on between them, he still contacts her though, I haven¡¯t met her in person yet so I couldn¡¯t really tell what she was like but by the way Cross talks about her, I feel she must be someone cool, I still get news if Cross does something for her, I get it someone make sure I find out, they always send texts and receipt to me but that didn¡¯t bother me anymore because Cross always tell me what he was going to do for her, like when he got her a job, when he rented her an apartment and also when he got her a car, I knew about it so when those textses I just overlook it, whoever it was clearly didn¡¯t know that my husband wasn¡¯t keeping things from me, I found Marilyn in her car and I smiled brightly at her.


    ¡°Hey baby girl, how did it go?¡±


    She asked and my smile got even brighter, I studied so hard for the exams, it had be hard and exhausting but it was worth it in the end.


    ¡°It went better than I thought, now I can rest,¡±


    I said feeling extremely proud of myself, I smiled when I thought of Cross, he would be proud of me too.


    ¡°That¡¯s good to know, so what are you going to do during the breaks?¡±


    She asked and I just couldn¡¯t hide my smile, it just kept getting better and better.


    ¡°I am going off to Arizona with my husband, we n on spending sometime with my our family.


    I informed.


    ¡°That¡¯s nice, I hope you have a good time there, I don¡¯t have anywhere to go right now so I will spend the holidays working and then, I might go camping with my daughter if she says yes,¡±


    She said with a smile, I kind of felt sad that I couldn¡¯t keep herpany, and it made me wonder if that¡¯s how my parents are too, wanting to spend time with us and yet not getting that time, even the thought of it made meugh because my parents were the ones who never made out time for us, we had all the times in the world but they were always busy.


    ¡°I hope she makes out time for you,¡±


    I said.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about me, I know how to have fun on my own too, you just have fun okay?¡±


    She responded. I nodded with a smile before something came to my mind.


    ¡°Thanks, I wanted to ask you a question though,¡±


    ¡°Yes, what is it?¡±


    ¡°Hmm, I don¡¯t know how to put this,¡±


    ¡°Just ask, if I can answer I will, if I can¡¯t I will get someone to help,¡±


    She replied, I was shy to ask, it¡¯s not like I didn¡¯t know how to put it, I bit my lips trying to get the words out.


    ¡°Okay, so the thing is, I wanted to know, you see, I,¡±


    I stammered.


    ¡°Just say it out, Kathy,¡±


    ¡°Okay, here it is, how soon can you know if you are pregnant?¡±


    I voiced out covering my eyes in shame, I honestly wanted to know because I have been having the symptoms, and I thought maybe I hadn¡¯t done the test well before, and I still haven¡¯t gotten my period, which was over three weekste.


    ¡°Why are you ashamed to ask? It¡¯s simple though, howte are you?¡±


    ¡°More than three weekste,¡±


    ¡°Oh, then have you done a test? Because it will show already, for most women, they will know as early as a week plus, right now it is more than a week so it will show,¡±


    She said calmly.


    ¡°I did, but I think I didn¡¯t do it well,¡±


    ¡°Oh, let¡¯s go do it all over again,¡±


    ¡°Okay, I will just text my husband not to bother toe to get me,¡±


    I said texting Cross, he didn¡¯t respond so I felt he would be busy, Marilyn drove us to a pharmacy and we got the kits, and she drove us to her house where she helped me do it properly, I realized I had done it wrongly the first time, don¡¯t know how I didn¡¯t notice, now I stood waiting for her to tell me what it was, I was both scared and excited, scared that it might be negative and excited that it might be positive, I wanted it to be positive so bad.


    ¡°Okay baby girl,¡± Marilyn said and I felt my heart skip a beat.


    ¡°What is it, Marilyn?¡±


    I asked anxiously.Property of N?)(velDr(a)ma.Org.


    ¡°Rx, don¡¯t be tensed, it¡¯s not good for the baby,¡±


    She said and I got up in excitement and shock.


    ¡°I am pregnant?¡±


    I asked to confirm.


    ¡°Yes, you are,¡±


    ¡°Oh my gosh, I am going to be a mom¡±


    Cross and I made a new life, and I was excited to share the news with him¡­

 Chapter 60

    Cross Pov


    I drove into Ginna¡¯s apartment and quickly got off the car, I had been trying to call her but she wasn¡¯t taking her calls, I knocked on her door calling her name, she didn¡¯t answer, I imputed her password and step into the house, it was quiet.


    ¡°Maybe she is not home,¡±


    I said as I walked towards her room calling her name.


    ¡°Ginna?¡±


    ¡°I am here,¡±


    Came her weak reply and I rushed into her room, she stood there looking so scared, I wondered what happened and why she wasn¡¯t taking my calls.


    ¡°Ginna, what happened? You scared me,¡± I tried calling your phone after you call but you weren¡¯t picking, are you okay?¡¯


    I asked, looking around the room, she was alone, she had tears in her eyes.


    ¡°I am sorry I called you, I went to the gym and when I came back, there was a man there, I was so scared that I had called you, but he already left now, I don¡¯t know who he is,¡±


    She exined.


    ¡°Oh God, I should havee earlier, but I wasing from Kathy¡¯s school so it took a while to get here, are you hurt anywhere?¡±


    I asked examining her, she hugged me and started crying.


    ¡°Hey, it¡¯s okay, he can¡¯t harm you,¡±


    I said patting her back.


    ¡°I was so scared, I thought he was gonna kill me, but he just left,¡±


    She revealed, I wondered who it was and why he choose to make my Ginna scared, if only I knew who it was I would have not left him alive, no one messes with my person.


    ¡°It¡¯s okay baby girl, you are fine now,¡±


    I said wiping her eyes, her eyes were so pretty even with tears, I knew I shouldn¡¯t be doing it but I leaned and ced a kiss on her forehead, I wanted to reassure her that she wasn¡¯t alone.


    ¡°It¡¯s okay,¡±


    I said again, she nodded, looked up at me, leaned in, and kissed me, she kissed me on the lips, I was shocked, I didn¡¯t expect her to do that, I drew back in shock.


    ¡°Ginna, you shou**¡±


    I couldn¡¯t finish the words because she walked up to me and she kissed me again, this time a little more intense, and even though I knew I shouldn¡¯t do this, even though I knew I should pull off I let her kiss me, and then I was kissing her back, my hands found their way to her waist and I pulled her to the bed with me, the kiss grew even more intense, but the voice in my head kept ringing Kathy¡¯s name, I shouldn¡¯t enjoy kissing Ginna again but I did.


    ¡°We shouldn¡¯t be doing this Ginna,¡±


    I said pulling off her and getting off the bed, but she dragged me back down and imed my lips again, I found myself melting into her kiss and kissing her back, I couldn¡¯t stop myself.


    I took over the kiss, our lips mating like we were never apart, she tasted just like she did ten years ago, the only difference was her kiss was now more mature, and bolder, I flipped over and she was straddling me, the kiss soon grew even more heated, my hands all over her body, her in my hair, I took a break from her lips kissing her nape, she arched back giving me more assess to her nape, I ced my hands under her dress, and she raised her hands as I took it off, my hands found their way to the strap of her bra and undid them, her breastid freely between us, I could feel her heartbeat against mine as our lips met again.


    ¡°Ginna, we shouldn¡¯t be doing this, I am married,¡±


    I let out, pulling her off me on the bed and getting up, I walked away from the bed, I must be losing my mind, I couldn¡¯t believe I am turned on right now and considering sleeping with Ginna, this wasn¡¯t right.


    ¡°I know, but you want me, as much as I want you, and you said before that your marriage to your wife is not even a real one,¡±


    She said taking off her shorts, as she walked up to me in just herce panties, I shook my head as she got close to me, and kissed me again, her hands tracing my back, she ran her hands over my body, and gradually started removing my buttons, all the while her lips were locked in mine, this was wrong, this was so wrong, Katherine didn¡¯t deserve this from me, was all I could think about while I let Ginna take off my shirt, she eased off our kiss, smiled at me and she ced a kiss on my chest, I let out a breath.


    ¡°Ginna, we shouldn¡¯t do th***¡±


    ¡°Shush, let me, you want this, we both want this, why are you holding yourself? Your wife would never find out, I want you so much that it hurt, I can¡¯t have you fully again, why can¡¯t you just do this for me? Do me this favor? I ache for you Cross,¡±


    She said, as her hands moved over to my pants, I admit that I had the hots for her, I could feel the heat each time we met and I tried to limit our meeting in person, this wasn¡¯t right, I should never have done this.


    ¡°I am sorry Ginna, I can¡¯t do this, I have a wife, and I can¡¯t cheat on her,¡±


    I said stepping away from her and putting my shirt back on, I already felt shitty.


    ¡°What about me? What about me Cross, what am I to you?¡±


    She asked, she was pissed.


    ¡°You are my friend Ginna,¡±


    ¡°Friend? Just friend? I am the woman you love,¡±


    ¡°No, use to love, I don¡¯t love you anymore Ginna, that was in the past,¡±


    ¡°You still love me, as much as I love you, so why can¡¯t we be together? You don¡¯t even love your wife, so why is it wrong for two people in love to be together,¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t love you, and I am not having this discussion Ginna right now, I am out of here, you seem not to be your right mind now, let¡¯s just pretend what just happened didn¡¯t happen, I don¡¯t want to ruin my marriage with my wife, neither do I want to ruin our friendship,¡±


    I said as I made to leave, I couldn¡¯t believe that I almost cheated on Katherine with Ginna, I wasn¡¯t a cheat, even while I dated a lot of women, I always ended things with one before moving on to another, I never had two women at the same time, but I just did, I might not have slept with Ginna but I did touch her and I had to thoughts to, God I am so stupid, I can¡¯t let Katherine find out about this, I can¡¯t imagine how she would feel, I didn¡¯t want to hurt her.


    ¡°Then why the fuck did you do that?¡±


    The voice in my head questioned loudly as I made my way out of Ginna¡¯s apartment, she followed me and blocked my leaving.


    ¡°Ginna,¡±


    ¡°No, Cross, you have to tell me now, I am not a fool okay, I love you, you owe me,¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t owe you anything, what are you talking about, Ginnae on,¡±


    ¡°I lost my child because of your negligence, I might never have a child again because you didn¡¯t show up when I called, I might have died that night, you owe me so much, Mr. Man,¡±


    ¡°Where is thising from Ginna? I don¡¯t owe you anything, we talk about this, why are you bringing back the past?¡±Owned by N?velDrama.Org.


    I asked getting frustrated, it was almost past ten and I still haven¡¯t gone to work, I didn¡¯t have much to do at the office but I didn¡¯t want to be here either, I didn¡¯t tell Kathy that I wasing here and now, I kissed another woman, not just kissed her, I almost slept with her, I don¡¯t know how I am going to bring myself to tell her, she is going to hate me, I just know it, if I don¡¯t tell her and she finds outter, she is still going to hate me, I should have known better than to kiss Ginna, I shouldn¡¯t havee here in the first ce, now I wondered if anything really happened or if she just lures me here for this.


    ¡°One question, did something really happen here, was there ever any Intruder here or did you n it just to get me here?


    ¡°I am not going to let you live me Cross, you are mine,¡±


    She said instead of answering my questions, I facepalmed myself wondering how I didn¡¯t see thising.


    ¡°You have lost your mind Ginna, have you been drinking?¡±


    ¡°Do I look drunk to you? We just kissed, did you taste any alcohol on my lips?¡±


    She yelled and yeah, she wasn¡¯t smelling alcohol neither did I taste any alcohol on her lips either, but the thought of our mouth mating made me feel like the worst person on Earth, there was an innocent woman back home whom I promised to be faithful to and here is a woman I used to love and till a few moments ago though I still loved, but that wasn¡¯t the case, I didn¡¯t love Ginna anymore.


    ¡°Ginna, I don¡¯t know what hase over you but if you keep behaving like this, then I have no choice than to cut ties with you, I am sorry if you misread my actions, I don¡¯t feel anything for you anymore,¡±


    ¡°You are lying, you told me you can¡¯t love any other woman, you love me, please tell me you love me, tell me you will divorce her ande to me, we belong together Cross, you and me,¡±


    She let out suddenly breaking down in tears.


    ¡°I don¡¯t love you Ginna, I am sorry, now we can¡¯t even be friends anymore, because I don¡¯t want what happened to repeat itself again, I have a wife and she means the world to me right now and making our marriage work is all I want,¡±


    ¡°You are going to regret those words Cross, I will make you regret it, I will make you regret choosing her over me,¡±


    She voiced out wiping her tears, she suddenly looked like aplete stranger, someone I didn¡¯t know at all, and it dawned on me that I didn¡¯t really know this woman standing here, I knew eighteen years old Ginna but Twenty-eight old Ginna was aplete stranger to me.


    ¡°I am sorry,¡±


    I said once again, she stepped away from her door and I opened it to leave.


    ¡°You will regret this Cross,¡±


    She voiced, and I felt Deja Vu, these same words were said to me a few months ago, Dolly said the same thing, I haven¡¯t heard from her again since, it just made me realize one thing, this was the second time I was choosing Katherine over someone else, and it became clear to me that she was all that matter, and that I wanted to be with her, as I walked in a trance towards my car, I couldn¡¯t help be feel like I have done the worst, my phone rang as I got into my car, it was my wife.


    ¡°Hey, babe, I am calling to tell you that you don¡¯t have toe to pick me up from school, we finished early and Marilyn took me in her car,¡±


    She said in a happy voice, God I have been a fool.


    ¡°Babe?¡±


    She called when I didn¡¯t reply.


    ¡°Alright, I will meet you at home,¡±


    ¡°Cool, I have something for you,¡±


    She disclosed excitedly.


    ¡°What¡¯s that?¡±


    ¡°Nah, it¡¯s a surprise and I will give it to you when you get home,¡±


    ¡°Okay, I have something to tell you too,¡±


    ¡°Okay then, see you at home, I love you, bye,¡±


    She said and ended the call, she told me she loved me, I wondered if she would still feel the same if I told her what happened with Ginna, would she be able to forgive me and look past my mistake, I had to tell her, and I n to tell her, I didn¡¯t want her finding out any other way, even if she ends up hating me, I deserve it, but I am not going to let her go, I can¡¯t do that if she leaves me I don¡¯t think I can carry on¡­

 Chapter 61

    Kathy Pov.


    The thought on my head throughout the rest of the day was, how was Cross going to react to the news of us having a baby, we haven¡¯t talked about having a kid before, but I don¡¯t see him having any problem with it, he was excited for the birth of Anna¡¯s twin which was due next week which is why he wanted us to be in Arizona when she gives birth, we were leaving for Arizona by Friday, so much have changed since I got married and left Arizona, I have changed a lot too, maybe gotten more mature, and now I am going to be a mom too, Marilyn had asked me if I could handle both a child and a career, and honestly, I haven¡¯t thought much about it, so I just told her I will go with the ride, if it gets too much for me then I will pause school and concentrate on being a mom, I can always go back to school anytime.


    I called Cross already that I was home and he didn¡¯t have to go pick me up from school. I went to meet Nora in the kitchen, I wanted to cook something for Cross myself, feed him and then tell him we are going to be parents, I still needed to do a scan to further confirm but we had done it multiple times and Marilyn had said it was hundred percent sure that I was pregnant, I could already feel the symptoms anyway, I wanted Cross to be there when we do the scan.


    ¡°Nora,¡±


    ¡°Hi dear, I thought you will take a rest, so you want lunch now?¡±


    ¡°No, I am not hungry, I wanted to inform you that I will like to make dinner for my husband myself, so when it¡¯s time for dinner, I will do it, what¡¯s on the menu today?¡±


    ¡°Steak, and sweet potato fries,¡±


    ¡°Okay, just don¡¯t do it without me,¡±


    ¡°Alright, I made cake don¡¯t you wanna try it?¡±


    She asked, but I rejected, I wasn¡¯t hungry yet, or rather I was much too excited to eat.


    ¡°No, thanks Nora, I need to rest,¡±


    I said as I walked back to my room, Cross said he will be back early, Iid down on the bed, with my hands on my still t tummy, I imagined myself getting bigger with our child, I didn¡¯t know having a child could make one feel like this, I have always known that I wanted to be a mother someday, but never in a million years did I think it will happen when I am twenty-three, I have always thought maybe when I am thirty and above, and I never imagined Cross will be the dad either, in fact at the beginning of the year I didn¡¯t even know I was going to be married and didn¡¯t even dream of it being with Cross, the thought never crossed my mind, now here I am, expecting my first child, indeed life was unpredictable, and even though I couldn¡¯t predict what would happen I hope that only good and happy things would happen in our lives, I fell asleep to the thoughts.


    I woke up to my phone ringing, I checked it and the number calling wasn¡¯t familiar to me, I picked up anyway, thinking it must be someone I know who changed the number.


    ¡°Hello?¡±


    ¡°Katherine, it¡¯s me Pearl,¡±


    The person on the other end replied.


    ¡°Pearl? I don¡¯t remember any Pearl, may I know where you know me from?¡±


    I asked, I couldn¡¯t remember someone I know by that name.


    ¡°I know you might have forgotten but I am Pearl, we know each other through Louis,¡±


    She revealed and it finally clicked.


    ¡°What do you want from me Pearl? Why are you calling me?¡±


    I asked, my mood suddenly getting ruined.


    ¡°Rx, I am not the enemy here, I am trying to help you,¡±


    ¡°What do you mean Pearl? Go straight to the point, I don¡¯t have time for all these,¡±


    ¡°I can see you are just as disrespectful as always but I didn¡¯t expect anything else, I am still going to tell you anyway,¡±


    She replied.


    ¡°Tell me what?¡±


    I inquired getting curious, I wanted to know how she got my number too.


    ¡°How did you get my number in the first ce?¡±


    ¡°I got it from Dn,¡±


    ¡°Dn? Who is Dn?¡±


    ¡°Oh, sorry, you know him as Louis, I got it from Louis, his real name is Dn,¡±


    She revealed I couldn¡¯t believe for all the months Louis and I dated I hadn¡¯t known his real name, I didn¡¯t even know anything about him as all the things he told me turned out to be made-up lies.


    ¡°But, Louis or Dn doesn¡¯t have my number,¡±


    ¡°Oh, but he does, and he is going to call you soon, which is why I am trying to help you here,¡±


    She said.


    ¡°Help me with what? And how did Louis get my number?¡±


    ¡°That I can¡¯t tell you, but he has something on you and is nning to use it to get money from you again,¡±


    She revealed. I really didn¡¯t want to believe what she was saying but she got my number, only a few people did, and I didn¡¯t see a reason why she would call me just to lie against her boyfriend.


    ¡°What are you guys nning again Pearl? Haven¡¯t you done enough?¡±Exclusive content from N?velDrama.Org.


    ¡°Little girl, I am just trying to help here, Dn and I separated a long time ago, he went about squandering the money he got from you by himself, and I didn¡¯t see him again until recently, he had used up all the money and he said he was nning on how to get more from you which is why he was in New York, and he has another woman working for him, I don¡¯t know her so don¡¯t ask me, I am just trying to warn you not to make the same mistake twice by giving Dn your money again,¡±


    ¡°Why are you telling me this? I thought you hated me,¡±


    ¡°Well, I don¡¯t like you but I can¡¯t let Dn keep robbing people, anyway I have done my part, just be careful, and bye,¡±


    She said and hung up before I could ask any further questions, I called the line again but it was off, I tried a few more times before giving up, I wondered what it was that Louis or Dn had that he wanted to use to get money from me, I couldn¡¯te up with anything, the thoughts were still running through my head when my phone beeped in my hands signaling an iing message.


    I clicked on it, expecting the usual kind of message, I was used to this number, it was the one that always asnd details of what Cross does for Ginna, I wanted to delete it without checking but, at the same time I was curious to know what he did for her, and I shouldn¡¯t have checked, I should have deleted because as I clicked on it, my throat suddenly went dry and all the blood drained from my system, I felt myself floating, I dropped my phone and cleaned my eyes, I must be hallucinating, there was no way that was real, no way Cross would do such a thing to me, I picked up my phone again wishing that I had saw wrongly but then, my eyes were right, they were photos of Cross, with that woman, photos taking of them making out, of them on a bed, the angle the photos were taking from didn¡¯t quite show their faces, but I would know my husband with my eyes closed, and these photos, whoever sent it, just turned my happiness to sadness, still having little doubt, I flipped through the photos and the more I looked the more nauseous I got, and to further make it worst whoever sent the photos sent another text.


    I clicked on it hurriedly and it read, ¡°Just so you are doubting the photos and thinking they are Photoshopped, I am sending a video,¡± and a few secondster another message came, I clicked on it and it was indeed a video, I dropped my phone, and buried my head in the pillow to resist myself from screaming, I was going crazy, my whole head suddenly ached I didn¡¯t want to open the video because I already knew what was there, but I did anyway, I yed the video, it didn¡¯t have any sound, but I saw Cross and that woman, and yes they were making out, I couldn¡¯t watch anymore, I stopped when he took off her shirts and threw my phone away as the tears fell from my eyes, I couldn¡¯t believe it, Cross yed me for a fool, he has been cheating on me all these while with her, all these while and he had been smiling in my face and being all perfect.


    ¡°God, I am so stupid,¡±


    I cried out, I should have seen thising, I should never have believed him, he did all this today and still talk to me on the phone, he had been at her house when I called him, I got up from the bed, walked up to the window and back to the bed, I didn¡¯t know what to do or how to react, this was beyond me, I never knew I would experience this no pain I have ever felt in this world prepared me for this, I never saw iting, never.


    ¡°I should have known, I should have known better than to trust him, he lied to me, he has been lying to me all these while, I am such a fool,¡±


    I said out loud, this wasn¡¯t it, this wasn¡¯t what I wanted, I can¡¯t deal with this much betrayal, my heartfelt like someone opened it up and poured chili powder in it, I could feel it burning, my whole body activity, and I couldn¡¯t feel my dry throat, I was drowning in this mystery, I was losing my mind.


    ¡°Oh, my God,¡±


    I said, as I went over to where my phone was picked it up, I got another message and it was from the same number, I clicked on it, I was already experiencing hell, nothing can make it worst, absolutely nothing.


    ¡°I hope you like my present,¡±


    The text read, I texted back while saying it out loud.


    ¡°Who the fuck are you?¡±


    I waited for a reply toe but after five minutes, I knew whoever it was, wasn¡¯t going to reply, I dialed the number but it was switched off, I threw my phone in the bed, my head pounding, my whole body was hot and I suddenly became feverish.


    ¡°Was this it? Was this what Pearl had been talking about? Is this what Louis has been nning?¡±


    I asked myself out loud trying to make sense of the whole situation but it just didn¡¯t make sense, if this was it then how did he n on getting money from me like this? This must be her then, the woman Cross was cheating on me with, she must have wanted me to know to make me jealous and it worked, I wasn¡¯t going to stay married to someone who cheats on me behind my back and act like the perfect husband in my face, I wasn¡¯t going to stay married to him, not when he didn¡¯t love me and didn¡¯t even care about my feeling either, he didn¡¯t even respect me as a person if he did, he wouldn¡¯t have done this to me, I was going to give this marriage my all, love him even though he didn¡¯t love me back, but now I see that I have been the fool, staying with a man who didn¡¯t love me and who had no ns of ever being faithful to me, I can¡¯t do it, I can¡¯t stay married to him, I will wait for him toe back, there is no way i am spending another night in this house, no way, I am going to leave Cross, I am getting a divorce¡­

 Chapter 62

    Kathy Pov


    I sat on my bed sad and feeling stupid, I never imagined my life could get worst but the universe really had a way of bringing me back to the reality that I can never truly be happy for once, I thought I would be lucky but maybe not, but this hurts more. Iid in bed wishing for it all to be a bad, bad, dream but it wasn¡¯t, each time I open my eyes, it just didn¡¯t go away, I got up from the bed and walked out of the room, going over to my car, I thought of driving to his office and giving him a piece of my mind right there, but I couldn¡¯t, I didn¡¯t want the humiliation thates with doing that, so I went back upstairs to the room, I couldn¡¯t even cry, it was as if the tears that came with the initial shock was all the tears I had left, I just continued staring around the room, with no form or directions, all my mind could think about was leave this house, but I couldn¡¯t leave without first confronting the bastard cheater, I needed to see his reaction.


    A knock on the door put a temporary stop to my emotional torment.


    ¡°Yes,e in,¡±


    I said, and Nora walked in, I remembered then that I had told her to let me know when she wants to make dinner, I didn¡¯t want to do it again right now.


    ¡°It¡¯s dinner time, just said I should remind,¡±


    She said.


    ¡°Oh, okay, I will be there in five minutes,¡±


    I answered I didn¡¯t want her to ask me questions because she can be nosy sometimes so I decided to go ahead and make the dinner while waiting for the cheater toe back home.


    ¡°You look tired, are you sure you don¡¯t want to sit and I will do the cooking?¡±


    Nora asked for the Fourth time since I came down to the kitchen.


    ¡°No, Nora, I am okay, I got this,¡±


    I said, forcing a smile in her direction, I honestly should take her advice and leave the kitchen but I didn¡¯t want to go back to the room and sit lonely, it make me think and I didn¡¯t want that.


    ¡°Can I ask you a question instead,¡±


    I asked, and she nodded.


    ¡°How does your husband cope with you working away from home?¡±


    I asked, I wanted anything to distract me from the things going on in my head and I have always wondered how Nora¡¯s husband takes her working away from home, she only goes home once in a while.


    ¡°We are divorced, I am currently single, so I can work, and my kids are all grown, whenever I leave here, I either go to visit them or go see my friends, my husband and I have been divorced for quite a while now, we were only married for five years, I never remarried but he did, and I am happy for him,¡±


    She answered smiling, I couldn¡¯t help but think about what I will do after Cross and I go our separate ways, I already know he would end up remarrying, and I already know who that will be, it hurt to think about it but I was sure about it, I wonder if he would at least be there for our kid, I didn¡¯t mind taking care of her on my own though.


    ¡°I am sorry to ask, but why did you guys divorce? Did he cheat on you? I am sorry I am asking all these questions,¡±


    ¡°No, it¡¯s okay, and he didn¡¯t cheat on me, he was a good husband, but we just weren¡¯tpatible enough and had too much misunderstanding, and we decided to separate, we are still cool though,¡±


    She said, her story was totally different from mine, my husband was a cheat and a liar, and there is no way we can be friends after we separate, I am going to request full custody of our kid, I don¡¯t want her growing up to a cheating bastard as a father, I concluded, my child would not grow up with a man like Cross no way.


    ¡°Hey, my dear, are you okay?¡±


    Nora asked and I realized I had tears in my eyes, I quickly wiped them off and smiled.Owned by N?velDrama.Org.


    ¡°Yes, I am fine, it must be the onions,¡±


    I replied ming the onion she was slicing, we cooked in silence, I did everything I could to stop myself from thinking about what happened, I kept checking the time though, and with each passing minute, I got more anxious and upset.


    By the time we finished cooking it was already past six pm, I ate the little I could force myself to eat, just so my child won¡¯t starve, and went upstairs to the room, I made up my mind to end this as calm as I can, I wasn¡¯t going to shout or scream or curse at him, I am just going to tell him that I was done with the marriage, I am going to go home, spend the holidays with my family ande back to New York to continue schooling, until maybe when my baby is ready to be born, then I can pause school to start motherhood, I am going to move on from Cross and live for my baby and me. My mind made up, Iid on the bed, I kept checking the clock and expecting to hear the sound of his car entering the house but I fell asleep and when I woke up it was already dark outside, and he wasn¡¯t back.


    ¡°He told me he would be back earlier, did he really go back to get another round beforeing home to his naive wife?¡±


    I asked myself out loud as I made my way out, I checked the car park and his car wasn¡¯t there, I then moved on to the garden, I needed fresh air, and I needed to get my thoughts in order, the garden was built-in and had soft lights, I sat on the bench, ced my phone on the table and looked up at the night sky through the opening in the garden, everything was so bright, almost everything because right now, my heart and my whole world had this darkness, I felt lost in it, I checked my time again and bite back tears, it was almost ten pm, he hasn¡¯t even bothered to call and tell me he wouldete.

 Chapter 63

    Kathy Pov


    I voiced bitterly, no matter when he gets here, I am going to wait for him and if he doesn¡¯te home tonight then I am going to leave the house by morning and I am never going to set my foot here again.


    I had his caring at ten minutes past ten, I heard when he greeted the security man who told him I was in the garden, I had seen him when I came to the garden. A few momentster, I looked up to see him walking into the garden, usually, when I see him, I would run to him and give him a hug, at least that¡¯s what I have been doing for the past two weeks, but right now, I just sat down watching him walk up to me.


    ¡°Kathy, what are you doing out here? It¡¯ste,¡±


    ¡°Thank God you know itte, why are you justing back?¡±


    ¡°I am sorry, I had an emergency meeting and I couldn¡¯t get off on time like I wanted, let¡¯s go inside,¡±


    Liar, I wanted to scream, but I stopped myself, the staff quarters were close to the garden so if I confront him here they will all hear us, so I got up and walked back inside, not bothering to wait for him.


    ¡°Kathy? Are you okay? What¡¯s going on?¡±


    He asked when he walked into the room, he had the audacity to ask me what¡¯s going on, the man was unbelievable.


    ¡°I want a divorce,¡±


    I said calmly, I wasn¡¯t ready to shout or create a scene, no.


    ¡°What? What did you say?¡±


    He asked and I took a deep breath, reminding myself that I promise not to scream or make a scene, taking another deep breath, I looked up at him and said each word at a time and loud enough for him to hear me.


    ¡°I Said I Want A Divorce.¡±


    ¡°What? Kathy, no¡­, why¡­? Why¡­? So suddenly¡­? Kathye on don¡¯t do this,¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to shout Cross, I am giving you a way out here, I am tired of this so I want out,¡±


    I said, looking away from him.


    ¡°Way out? I don¡¯t want out,¡±


    ¡°But I do, I want out, I don¡¯t want this marriage anymore,¡±Property of N?)(velDr(a)ma.Org.


    ¡°Katherine, don¡¯t do this, please tell me what I did wrong and I promise I will fix it, please don¡¯t leave,¡±


    He said and I felt myself growing hot with pent-up anger.


    ¡°I want a divorce Cross, I want my life back, I don¡¯t want to keep living a lie, I am done, I am going to leave this house tomorrow and I will be sending the divorce papers across to you, I have made up my mind,¡±


    I said, walking over to sit down.


    ¡°Are you going to at least tell me what I did wrong? We were cool this morning and suddenly you are talking about a divorce, Is it because I didn¡¯te home on time? I already told you I am sorry, something came up that needed urgent attention, ¡±


    He said, and I let out a burst of sadughter, he expects me to believe his shit? Expect me to believe he was at the office, I bet if I had gone to his office he won¡¯t have been there., I was hundred percent sure he wasing from her house, I didn¡¯t need any prophet to tell me that and it made me so mad that he could look and me and just lie in my face, I wondered just how much he has been lying to me all these weeks.


    ¡°Kathy, talk to me.¡±


    He said, softly moving closer to me, I got off the bed and stepped away from him.


    ¡°Are you fucking kidding me right now?¡±


    I shouted, all my resolve to not shout flying out of the window.


    ¡°Then tell me what I did, why do you suddenly want to walk out of our marriage, we were doing so well, I thought we were,¡±


    ¡°I thought so too until I find out you have been deceiving me and doing shits behind my back, God, I am such a fool,¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s this about Kathy?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s about you Cross, it¡¯s about you and your mistress,¡±


    ¡°Kathy, please, not that again, I told you before, and I thought we have passed this, Ginna is not my mistress, in fact, she is nothing to me,¡±


    He replied and I couldn¡¯t believe him, I held my head trying to calm myself, he was such a liar, he was such a devil, he was good at this.


    ¡°God¡­ You are such a liar Cross, how can you look me in the face and lie? Why? Just why do you lie so much with such a straight face?¡±


    ¡°Kathy? What is this about? Please tell me,¡±


    He asked and I realized he was going to pretend till the end, I wanted this to end so I picked up my phone clicked on the photos, and gave them to him.


    ¡°There you have it, are you going to deny this? Can you exin this too? How does this happen and she is not your mistress? I must be dumb then, oh, just so you know there is a video too, whoever did it make sure he left no doubt in my mind, so you were saying again?¡±


    I asked, looking at him, he looked shocked and out of words, like he hadn¡¯t been expecting it, he didn¡¯t know he was being taped and all his shady deeds were being recorded.


    ¡°Kathy I can exin,¡±


    He said and I burst outughing, theughter filled with sadness.


    ¡°Exin? Exin what you say? Cross? How do you exin this? How do you want to exin what¡¯s going on right now? It¡¯s you, you are making out with another woman, whom you im is not your mistress, okay, I am listening, exin,¡±


    I said, sitting back down and folding my hands I wanted to hear what he had to say and hear how he was going to deny this, I wanted to see him make stupid excuses for himself and after that, I am going to shove it in his face and walk out of here, I don¡¯t mind going to a hotel to spend the night, there were loads of them in the city¡­

 Chapter 64

    Cross POV


    ¡°It¡¯s not what you think it is Kathy, please listen to me, I beg you,¡±


    I said, for the first time in my life I was scared, scared of losing someone, scared of being alone again, I should have seen thising, I couldn¡¯t believe Ginna had what happened at her house taped, which further confirms the fact that she had nned it all along, but no matter what I say to Kathy she wasn¡¯t going to believe me and I don¡¯t me her, something did happen, but I didn¡¯t go all through to the end.


    The whole day, I had been thinking of how best to tell Katherine what happened with me and Ginna without losing her, I didn¡¯t even work and had wanted to get home early to tell her because I didn¡¯t want to keep it away from her but then, there had been an emergency that needed my attention and I hadn¡¯t been able to leave the office when I wanted and to make it worst, New York traffic made it even harder to get home on time, and by the time I finally did get home, Ginna the evil bitch I thought I knew, the one I thought I loved had sent Kathy the photo, she really did say she will make me regret not choosing her, I do have regrets right now but not because I didn¡¯t choose her but because it took me so long to realize what has been before my eyes all these while, the fact that the only woman I want to be with is my wife.


    ¡°I already said exin, I will like to hear your excuse,¡±


    She said stretching out her hands, she looked too calm, I was used to Kathy shouting or screaming when things don¡¯t go her way, but this, this side of her, I didn¡¯t use to it, which scared me the more.


    ¡°Kathy, I know what you see, and I know it will be hard for you to believe me but please, I promise nothing happened, it¡¯s just, I just, I didn¡¯t sleep with her okay,¡±


    ¡°Why are you lying to yourself, or should I request for the bastard that sent this to me to send the full video? You are lying and you know it, you know what? I don¡¯t even care, I don¡¯t want to hear anything you have to say, this marriage wasn¡¯t meant to happen in this first ce and now, I am going to end it, it¡¯s been a rollercoaster these past six months with you and I can¡¯t say I enjoyed it, but at least I learned something from being married to you and it is that no one should be trusted and I shouldn¡¯t make the mistake of believing in people just because I love them, I am getting a divorce and I don¡¯t want you anywhere near me, you can keep the datate and whatever there is, I am not collecting anything from you, I don¡¯t even need child support, I will do my own thing, just give me my freedom by making this divorce a quick and easy one, because I am doing you a bigger favor here, you get to marry the love of your life,¡±Exclusive content from N?velDrama.Org.


    She let out and all I could make out from everything she has been saying was that she talked about child support, which means, no it¡¯s couldn¡¯t be, or was that it? Why will she talk about child support if that¡¯s not it?


    ¡°Kathy? Are we expecting a child together?¡±


    I asked waiting expectantly for her to answer, she seemed to realize she had said something she didn¡¯t want to disclose and I wondered since when she knew we were going to be parents and why she choose to keep the news away from me.


    ¡°Kathy? Is that it? How long have you known and why didn¡¯t you tell me?¡±


    I asked gently, I was already on her bad side, I didn¡¯t want to say anything that would make her angrier than she already is.


    ¡°That¡¯s doesn¡¯t matter anymore, it¡¯s doesn¡¯t matter right now not when you are the one that messed it all up Cross,¡±


    ¡°Kathy,¡±


    I called moving to her.


    ¡°Don¡¯t fuckinge near me, you cheating bastard,¡±


    She shouted and I stopped walking, she was looking at me with so many emotions on her face at the same time, and none of those emotions were pleasant, she looked angry, sad, and disappointed at the same time and I am to me.


    ¡°Is that what you wanted to tell me when I get home?¡±


    I asked I can¡¯t believe I let Ginna ruin my life with her schemes, this was supposed to be a happy moment but now it is ruined, for the first time in a long long time I felt tears gather in my eyes, this was painful.


    ¡°My child is mine and you have no right over her,¡±


    ¡°We are having a daughter?¡±


    I asked, this should have been good news shared in a happy mood but because I couldn¡¯t make out what I wanted, I ruined that, ruined what is supposed to be the most beautiful moment of my life.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know the gender yet, but let¡¯s get one thing straight, I am having a child, not we, by the time she will be born, we will already be divorced and you might even be married to the love of your life already,¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t love her, I don¡¯t want to be with her, you are the one, Kathy, you are the one I want to be with,¡±


    ¡°God, you are such a liar Cross, you are such a cheat, I can¡¯t believe that I love you, I feel like a fool for loving you, and that¡¯s why I am going to leave you, you don¡¯t deserve me Cross,¡±


    She said and all I could do was look at her helplessly.


    ¡°I know you won¡¯t believe me but I love you, Katherine, you, you are the one I love, no one else,¡±


    ¡°Shut the fuck up, just shut up please, ahhhh, don¡¯t lie to me, don¡¯t do anything that would make this even worst than it already is, don¡¯t tell me you love me because you know you don¡¯t,¡±


    She screamed throwing everything in front of her at me, I didn¡¯t even bother to dodge them and just let everything hit me, I deserve more than that for what I did.


    ¡°Kathy,¡±


    ¡°Do you enjoy doing this to me? Do you enjoy seeing me suffer like this? Seeing me act like a possessed woman? What did I ever do to you to deserve this? Tell me? Cross, just tell me?¡±


    She let out, her voice going louder with each word, I could only bow my head in shame, this was all my fault, I should have gotten my acts together, should have told her I loved her earlier but how was supposed to tell her that when I wasn¡¯t even sure about how I felt? How did I even let Ginna kiss me, why did I let it happen, why did I kiss her back, all these wouldn¡¯t be happening if only I didn¡¯t delude myself into thinking I still had feelings for Ginna, if I didn¡¯t act all weak in the face of a woman, Katherine wouldn¡¯t be sad and we would have been happy about the news of our unborn, but I went ahead and ruined things, not just with Katherine but with Dean too, since that incident at the office thest time, he hasn¡¯t talked to me or even answered the phone and I hate to say this but his words came to hunt me because I regret everything right now, regret keeping ties with Ginna.


    ¡°I am sorry Kathy,¡±


    ¡°Sorry? Do you think sorry is going to fix this? You think you can just do whatever you want ande with the sorry, it workedst time, it¡¯s not going to work now, this time I am not going to let you manipte me into believing your lies,¡±


    ¡°Kathy, please, I am sorry,¡±


    ¡°Stop saying you are sorry,¡±


    She shouted, and I got scared that she was over-stressing herself as she had to hold the table for bnce, her face strained, I moved closer to her to help her but she stopped me.


    ¡°Don¡¯te near me,¡±


    ¡°I just want to be sure you are okay,¡±


    ¡°Stop acting as you care, you don¡¯t mean it, you are just ying a part, I know deep down you are mocking me,¡±


    ¡°I am not, I care about you, I promise, Kathy, please don¡¯t leave me, please, I don¡¯t want you to leave, I want us to be together, you are the woman I love, I will fix this I promise, just don¡¯t give up on me now,¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t see how this can be fixed, or do you wanna erase what I saw? Or do you want me to pretend I didn¡¯t see anything? I will be stupid to do that, and no matter how you think of me, I am not stupid,¡±


    ¡°I¡­ Kathy¡­ I just don¡¯t want you to leave me, I will need down and beg, do whatever you want, just don¡¯t leave me, I don¡¯t want a life without you,¡±


    ¡°You got a chance to Cross, and you messed it up, I am tired of this, I have been stressed up already, I don¡¯t want to talk about this again, I just my life back to normal, and I don¡¯t want you anywhere near me, just leave me alone,¡±


    ¡°Kathy, I can¡¯t lose you, I can¡¯t,¡±


    I fought back the urge to cry.


    ¡°Please leave alone, I beg you, you have done enough Cross, I am much too young to be going through all these shits that you keep throwing at me, I can¡¯t bear it anymore, I don¡¯t want, I can¡¯t look at you the same Cross, I just can¡¯t, and you are not telling me the truth either, I don¡¯t even know what to believe anymore,¡±


    She let out, with tears running down her eyes, I realized that I had lost her, that no matter what I say, there was no going about it, she turned and left me standing in the room, my whole world breaking into tiny pieces and it was all my fault, it was all because of me, I let myself be used, I should have listened to my heart, I didn¡¯t even know I still had one, I should have listened to Dean, I went out of the room, to the room I knew she would be, I stood there for a while before heading off to the winery, and grabbed a bottle and ss, I needed alcohol to be able to sleep, I couldn¡¯t bring myself to go knocked on the room she was in, I heard her crying when I stood close to the door, I felt guilty, I was guilty, throughout our short period of being married, I have made her cry so much, I understand why she hated me and wanted me gone out if her life, I just wish she would give me a second chance, scrap that I already used my second chance, I wish she would give me ast chance, I would make sure not to make any mistakes again, I drank as I thought of how I am going to clean up the mess I created, throughout the day I have thought of it but then I didn¡¯t know Ginna had ns, now I knew she did and that she was nning to ruin my life while I had been doing my best to make up to her for not being with her in the past, I wondered what more she had in store, because I doubt she would back out, she sent those photos to Kathy for a reason which she had aplished and I was sure she would not stop there, I made up my mind to go see her the next morning and tell her to fuck off my life forever¡­

 Chapter 65

    Kathy Pov


    I thought I had gotten tougher and stronger and that I won¡¯t tear up again but it turned out that to was far from being the strong woman I thought I was because I cried myself to sleep and woke up with tears in my eyes, I was sick too and had to throw up when I woke up, I understand the sickness was due to my pregnancy but, this much sadness and loneliness wasn¡¯t because I was pregnant no it was because that¡¯s what it is, that I am sad, that my life wasn¡¯t going the way that I would have wanted it to go and the universe wasn¡¯t showing mercy on me, I felt like I was feeling all the sadness in the word, my only friend andpanion was my unborn baby, Iid in bed with nothing to do, willing myself to get up and at least eat, but I didn¡¯t have the will not the strength to, so I justid there, wishing for the hundredth time that I was having a long unpleasant dream, that I will wake up andugh it off and move on with my life.


    ¡°Kathy?¡±


    I heard the reason for my sadness call, I didn¡¯t bother to answer him, I wasn¡¯t ready for another exchange of words, he was just going to keep lying to me, and to make things worst, I almost believed himst night, if the image of him kissing her hasn¡¯teback to my mind, I would have believed him when he said he loved my, but I couldn¡¯t, not with the image of him making love to another woman the same day, was in my head, he made love to her and is confessing love to be on the same day, I might be foolish for him but not to that extent no.


    ¡°Kathy, please, you have to eat,¡±


    I heard him say, and ignored him still, I wish he would just leave me the hell alone, I didn¡¯t want to see his face nor talk to him because seeing his face only reminds me of the both of them together, I should admit though, that this wasn¡¯t the reactions I expected, I didn¡¯t expect him to exin neither did I expect him to be wanting me to forgive him, I expected him tough in my face and finally reveal his true self but this, this wasn¡¯t it at all, but that didn¡¯t make it any less painful, infact it was even more painful, he said he didn¡¯t love her then why was he kissing her, and why was he pictured taking off her dress, the thought of them together made me nauseous again and I got up and ran to the restroom, by the time I came back, I didn¡¯t hear him again.


    ¡°He finally left,¡±


    I said emotionlessly, it didn¡¯t make me feel better that he left either, few minutester, I heard the sound of a car, went to the window and watched him leave the house, so much for wanting the best for me.


    ¡°Maybe I should just leave this house,¡±


    I thought but I didn¡¯t want to leave just yet, I will go home to Arizona and while there, I will ask my dad for a loan that I will pay back which I n on using to start my life here in New York, I still had to finish school, I can work online as there are tonnes of online paying jobs these days, I needed a long-term n and I will do that while at home, I didn¡¯t want my family to find out about my failed marriage just yet, I just didn¡¯t want their pity neither did I want Mom to tell me again just how much of a failure I was, there was so much to do back home, as my older brother is getting married and also Nora¡¯s given birth, I just hoped while I am home, everyone will be preupied enough not to notice my sadness because I don¡¯t think I can pull off a fake smile for three whole weeks without the sadness showing, which got me thinking if I can just skip going, but I new I couldn¡¯t, it would be the first time that I am seeing my siblings together in a while and I didn¡¯t want to miss it, Nathan has finally returned home which was great news because since he left, we haven¡¯t seen much of each other, ording to Nora, he just showed up and said he was back for good, he didn¡¯t say anything about where he has been or what he has been up to and ording to her, so far he is doing good and I wanted to see him in person, we haven¡¯t talked in the phone because I was still mad at him for not taking my calls when I needed him the most and for not been around for my wedding, I missed when we used to be each other best friends, which is why I was going to go home and spend the with them, and maybe just maybe the time with them will ease my sadness and loneliness.


    Cross and I were supposed to go together but now I wasn¡¯t sure if he would go or if I wanted to us to go together, I just couldn¡¯t stand his presence, I went back toy on the bed after standing by the window for almost ten minutes, I knew that I needed to eat something but I had zero appetite and the nausea I was feeling wasn¡¯t helping either, if I ate anything the way I am know that I will end up throwing up, I closed my eyes and let my mind go nk, not thinking of anything, I fell asleep.


    I was woke up by the sound of banging on my door, I got up too quickly which was a bad idea as I became nauseous again and ran to the bathroom to throw up, by the time I was done, I had only little strength left, I checked the time and it was past eleven am, I needed to eat, not just for me but for the baby as well, I got up from the bathroom floor.


    ¡°Kathy, please open the door,¡±


    I heard Cross say when I stepped out of the bathroom, I hadn¡¯t heard when his car came back and didn¡¯t know he would be back so early either.


    ¡°Kathy, I promise that I will leave you alone after you eat something, I just want you to eat, I don¡¯t want to disturb you or do anything else, just eat something, please?¡±


    He said, I had to give it to him, I knew why he was concern, I knew it was because he found out about the baby, would he have acted different? If there hadn¡¯t been a baby? Would he still have cared? There was not way to answer that, I shouldn¡¯t have said anything about the baby but it hade out on their own and I couldn¡¯t take what I said back.


    ¡°For the baby¡¯s sake,¡±


    I said to myself as I opened the door, he stood there with a tray of breakfast and choctes, and by the way they looked, I knew that¡¯s what he went out to get earlier, I remembered thest time he had done that two or three weeks ago, it had worked then but he must be crazy if he thinks it will work this time too.


    ¡°Can Ie in?¡±


    He asked, but I shook my head and collected the tray from him and before he could say anything else I locked the door on him.


    ¡°Please if you need anything just call Nora, I am leaving so that you can be free to leave the room, I am going to see Dean and I might not be back so early, you can have all the time you want Kathy, just know that I love you and that I can wait for you, I won¡¯t give up on us,¡±


    He said, I rolled my eyes at his deration of love, I would have believed him if he had said it before I saw those pictures but him getting exposed and now saying he loves me seemed so fishy that I couldn¡¯t believe him, there was no way I would believe him.


    ¡°Kathy? Can you at least answer me please?¡±


    He pleaded.


    ¡°What?¡±


    I croaked and realize I have lost my voice and all these while I thought I had been talking I had been talking inside, I cleared my throat and answered again.


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°I love you,¡±


    He said, oh he was pushing it and boy it wasn¡¯t working, I just walked back and sat on the bed with the food, I ced aside the chocte and concentrated on eating the healthy food, it took quite a while to finish the food because I wasn¡¯t hungry and had to force myself to eat as much as I can all for my baby. After I was done eating, I went to take a bath, I had the car leave while I was in he shower so I knew he was gone, once I was done taking a shower, I got dressed, I needed to visit an hospital to further confirm that I was really pregnant, I was about to leave for the hospital when my phone rang, wondering who it was and being sceptical about taking calls from strange numbers after all that has been happening, I decided to ignore the call, I wasn¡¯t ready for another dose of shocking things that might further ruin my already horrible situation but then my phone beeped signaling an iing message from the same number, I checked.


    ¡°Hi, it Ginna, can you pick your call, I wanna talk to you,¡±


    The text read, the bitch had the audacity to text me, did she think I would be scared of her or something, and what did she want to say to me? That I should move out or what? I was still thinking of what she had to say to me when my phone rang again, thus time I picked it up.


    ¡°What do you want?¡±


    ¡°Hi, Kathy, I figure you will like to talk to me so I am offering to meet up, I have a lot to say to you too,¡±


    She said and I regretted ever thinking that she was cool, she sounded like those wicked women in movies wanting nothing but to make their fellow women miserable.


    ¡°What makes you think I have something to say to you?¡±


    I asked feeling proud about how my voice sounded.


    ¡°Come on, there is no need to pretend all is okay and rosy, I know you saw those photos, I don¡¯t want us to talk over the phone, I will send you an address, don¡¯t worry it a cafe, so you cane by and we will talk, trust me, you will be happy that you met me, if we have this talk,¡±


    She replied.


    ¡°I don¡¯t have anything to say to you, and I don¡¯t want to hear anything from you either, don¡¯t fall me again.¡±


    I said.


    ¡°Even if you don¡¯t have anything to say to me, which I doubt, I have a lot to say to you, there are a lot of things you need to know about me and Cross rtionship, things I know Cross won¡¯t tell you so you might wanna take this invite of mine, cuz I know you will have a lot to ask, I am being helpful here.¡±Owned by N?velDrama.Org.


    She said.


    ¡°Fine, let¡¯s meet up but it will be at a ce I choose,¡±


    I responded, I needed to see here, I couldn¡¯t let her bully me from afar, I will meet her and give her a piece of my mind, I don¡¯t even care what she has to say about her rtionship with Cross, I got out of the house got into my car and drove to an hospital after texting the location¡­.

 Chapter 66

    Cross Pov


    ¡°Hey man, what¡¯s up?¡±


    Dean said walking up to me at our regr bar, it¡¯s been a while I have saw him and I didn¡¯t even think he would show up, as I thought he was still mad at me but when I called him, he said he was on his way and indeed he came, I stood up to shake his hands and sat back down nursing my drink.


    ¡°What¡¯s up? You don¡¯t look happy, did something happen?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, it did,¡±


    ¡°Okay, spill,¡±


    ¡°Kathy wants a divorce,¡±


    I disclosed, I hated even saying the words, it tasted bitter in my mouth, I couldn¡¯t imagine my life without Kathy.


    ¡°Okay, so why are you sad about that? I thought that¡¯s what you wanted right?¡±


    ¡°No, that¡¯s not what I want,¡±


    ¡°Hmm, so what did you do?¡±


    ¡°Why do you assume I did something?¡±


    ¡°Isn¡¯t it obvious? Why else will she want a divorce if you didn¡¯t do shit, cut to the chase Cross, what happened?¡±


    ¡°Something happened with Ginna and it got to Kathy,¡±


    ¡°What happened? Did you sleep with her? Dude I warned you¡±


    ¡°I didn¡¯t sleep with her, I didn¡¯t but Kathy won¡¯t believe me because of those damn photos,¡±


    ¡°So what happened, what photos? Speak up dude,¡±


    ¡°I will if you will just stop interrupting me,¡±


    I said I was already drowning in sadness, and any little thing can piss me off, fallen asleepst night had been hard, I didn¡¯t sleep much and the alcohol didn¡¯t help either, waking up early despite not getting enough sleep had made everything worstpound with the fact that Kathy still wasn¡¯t talking to me.


    ¡°Okay bro, what happened?¡±


    I told him everything that happened without leaving a single detail out, I could tell by his change of expression when I told him what happened with Ginna that he wasn¡¯t pleased either and I couldn¡¯t me him, if he had told me he did something like that I would have told him off too, but that didn¡¯t mean that his expression didn¡¯t hurt, he was my friend and was supposed to be on my side not judge me.


    ¡°I think this is where I should say the ¡®I told you so thing,¡±


    He replied when I was done talking, I felt like throwing my ss at him but I resisted, he was right, he did tell me.


    ¡°I was a fool,¡±


    ¡°Yes you were, and you were going on about her being important and going as far as saying you will pick her over your wife, so what¡¯s stopping you now? She is giving you an easy way to be with the woman you love or you im to love, why the sudden change? You should be happy,¡±


    He let out, I could tell he was being serious which made me angry.


    ¡°Dude, I don¡¯t want to be with her, I wanna be with my wife, and u didn¡¯t ask you toe here just so you can rub it on my face, I asked you here cuz I need advice, not someone who wants to judge me, I need a friend, not a judge,¡±


    ¡°Well, this friend warned you, and this friend has no advice for you because if you had taken the advice that this friend has given then we won¡¯t be having this conversation, I told you not to do something you will regret and barely a monthter, it happened and you want my advice? I don¡¯t have any for you,¡±


    ¡°Then why the fuck did youe here?¡±


    I shouted, pissed beyond words, I saw red, he shouldn¡¯t have shown up here if all he was gonna do is judge me.


    ¡°I came because I felt you needed my help, but right now, you don¡¯t need anyone¡¯s help, you made a mess yourself and you should clean it up, man up, give her what she wants,¡±


    ¡°I can¡¯t do that, can¡¯t you see, don¡¯t you understand? I can¡¯t let Katherine go, she is my life, she is the woman I love,¡±


    ¡°Wow,¡±


    He said pping.


    ¡°You finally figured that out, good, good, but too bad it came a little toote, you already messed it up,¡±


    ¡°Are you even my friend? Do you enjoy seeing me miserable? I don¡¯t get it, why are you mocking me, I already know I messed u but I wanna clean up the mess I made and you are the only one I had to talk to without judging me, I guess I was wrong, I am just going to leave,¡±


    I said to him, I couldn¡¯t believe how he was acting, I knew that I messed up but not to this extent that my best friend is mocking me, if that¡¯s what he was going to do, I may as well leave and handle this on my own, I didn¡¯t want my family to find out I fucked up and ruined my marriage if not I would have talked to my mom or dad, but they aren¡¯t gonna be proud of me and I might skip some details with them but with Dean, I can let it all out, I guess he wasn¡¯t the one I should be talking to.


    ¡°Sit your stubborn ass down you stupid boy,¡±


    He said holding my hand as I made to leave.


    Do you think you are in the position to get mad and leave? You should take everything that is thrown at you for messing up, so sit down and let¡¯s talk,¡±


    He added.


    ¡°You weren¡¯t ready to listen to me or help me, I am not God you know, I don¡¯t know everything, I am human, I make mistakes and this was one, I wanna fix it but I don¡¯t know how to go about it and my wife wants to leave me, I don¡¯t want her to so I need someone to tell me something to do to fix it, not someone who will judge me if you are going to help just let me leave.¡±


    I said still standing.


    ¡°Honestly dude, no one can give the best advice at a time like this, I won¡¯t lie to you, I am disappointed in you,¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s obvious and even I am disappointed in myself, I thought I had sense but turns out I don¡¯t,¡±


    ¡°Good to know you know, so now to my only advice, don¡¯t sign those papers if you still want her,¡±


    He advised.


    ¡°What papers?¡±


    ¡°Seriously dude? I mean the divorce papers she gave you,¡±


    ¡°She hasn¡¯t given me no papers, she just told mest night,¡±


    ¡°What the fuck? Then you still have a chance, I thought she already gave you court papers,¡±


    ¡°No, we started having issues just yesterday,¡±


    ¡°Figures so here is the thing, you throw away whatever pride you have, all those alpha male and macho male shit, just throw it off and get on your knees and grovel,¡±


    He advised.


    I nodded listening attentively, I already decided to do away with pride so that wasn¡¯t the hard part here, is convincing her was.


    ¡°And don¡¯t you go about talking about how you didn¡¯t sleep with her, we know you didn¡¯t but Kathy isn¡¯t going to believe that, so instead of pushing that, just ept it and beg, she loves you so if you do things right you might win her back,¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know Dean, I will do anything to get back on her good side, I love her so much that my life will be meaningless without her in it, her and our kid,¡±


    ¡°You guys are pregnant? Wow, that was quick,¡±


    ¡°Yes, and she was going to tell me but then these while shit happened,¡±Owned by N?velDrama.Org.


    ¡°Then the more reason to beg and make sure you don¡¯t repeat the same mistake,¡±


    He advised, we talked some more and I found out he was going through some shits with Grace too, but at least his was better than mine, by the time we parted ways and I headed home, my head was a little less Crowded.

 Chapter 67

    Cross Pov


    When I got home, I didn¡¯t meet Kathy at home, and no one was in the main house, so I had to check up at the staff quarters, where I met Betty who told me that Kathy had left as soon as I left the house and had note back, I felt she would have gone to see her friend Marilyn, maybe she needed someone to talk to like I did, my talk with Dean even though the dude had been an asshole the whole time helped a lot as my head was a lot clearer and I could at least think straight, I went back to the main house, hoping she woulde back soon, I sat in the living room hoping to meet her when she gets back before she goes up into her room and locks herself in, but I was so tired and sleep deprived that as soon as I sat down I fell asleep and was woke only the ringing of my phone, I checked call and it was Ginna, I wondered why I hadn¡¯t blocked her as I ignored her call, bit she called back when the call ended, I picked up wanting to tell her to fuck off.


    ¡°What do you want from me witch?¡±


    I asked, I hated that I had bern so stupid and blinded by the past to have thought Ginna was a good person, jokes on me for being such a fool.


    ¡°That¡¯s not how you talk with your wife to be, Hi love,¡±


    She said and I bite my lips to prevent myself from saying the first words that came to mind, she has a lot of nerve calling and saying such things to me.


    ¡°What do you want Ginna? Have you not done enough damage? Can¡¯t you just let me be? What do you still want from me?¡±


    ¡°I want you, easy, but you are ying hard to get, I grew up not getting what I want, but not anymore as I n on getting everything that I want,¡±


    She said and I rolled my eyes, she was such a joker.


    ¡°I don¡¯t have time for this right now, so will you just fuck off?¡±


    I asked moving the phone off my ears to cut her off but her next words stopped me.Exclusive content from N?velDrama.Org.


    ¡°I am meeting up with your soon to be ex-wife,¡±


    ¡°What do you mean by that?¡±


    I asked getting off the chair.


    ¡°Well, she contacted me and asked us to meet and you know me, I was much too d to meet up with her, she seems to want to know more about our rtionship and I n on telling her, so you wannae and see?¡±


    She askedughing.


    ¡°Don¡¯t go near Katherine, don¡¯t go near my wife,¡±


    ¡°Hey, you seem to forget when I said she was the one that asked to see me, I am just being polite,¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t believe you bitch,¡±


    ¡°Whatever, I just wanted to let you know my love, you know I hate keeping things from you,¡±


    ¡°I am not your love so fuck off that imagination if yours,¡±


    ¡°Oh my gosh, did you forget how I tasted against your lips, I know you wanted me too so stop pretending, I felt it you know, you were so hungry for me that if that little wench hadn¡¯t been a part of your life we would have been happy together, I want her out,¡±


    She said.


    ¡°Ginna, I don¡¯t love you and I don¡¯t want to be with you, whatever happened with us was a mistake, a mistake that I shouldn¡¯t have let happen, now even if Katherine ends up leaving me which I hope she doesn¡¯t, there is no way I am going to be with you, I rather die single than be with you, get that and get it clear,¡±


    ¡°We will see about that my love,¡±


    She said and hung up.


    I didn¡¯t want her talking to Katherine, she was already upset, she might say more things that would further ruin my rtionship with Kathy, things that won¡¯t be true but Kathy will believe them anyway because of those damn photos and the video, I dialed Kathy¡¯s number, it rang but she didn¡¯t take her call, I tried again a couple of times more but she still didn¡¯t take her calls, I called Marilyn instead.


    ¡°Hi, Cross, what¡¯s up?¡±


    ¡°Hi, Marilyn, is Kathy with you?¡±


    ¡°Oh no, sorry dear, but I am at work and I haven¡¯t seen her today, by the way, I know she has already told you so congrattions,¡±


    She said It takes a couple of seconds for me to realize the reason she was congratting me.


    ¡°Thanks, Marilyn,¡±


    I said after realizing she was talking about our baby, of course, Kathy would have told her, the two were pretty much close despite their huge age gap.


    ¡°You are wee dear, anyway, o haven¡¯t seen her, did something happen?¡±


    ¡°No, not really, I didn¡¯t meet her at home and you know Kathy, she never takes her call so I wanted to check if she is with you, anyway thanks,¡±


    ¡°Oh, okay, maybe she went out to get something, you know pregnant women are unpredictable and this happens to be her first so we don¡¯t know what to expect yet, my advice is to try and cope with her and treat her right, you don¡¯t wanna mess with a hormonal woman,¡±


    She advised. I wanted to tell her I already did, that I already messed up.


    ¡°Thanks, Marilyn, I am gonna let you get back to work now,¡±


    ¡°Alright, take care,¡±


    She replied and the call ended, I called Kathy again but she still didn¡¯t take her calls, I guess she didn¡¯t want to talk to me and I decided that whatever she ends up hearing from Ginna, and whatever she might think I wasn¡¯t going to let her go, I was going to hold on to her until she forgives me, even if it means I would spend the rest of my life doing just that¡­

 Chapter 68

    Kathy Pov


    As I sat at the restaurant waiting for her to show up, I thought of what I wanted to tell her, I wasn¡¯t the one who reached out so I didn¡¯t know what to say to her, what does one say to her husband¡¯s mistress? I didn¡¯t even know how to react to her yet, I will just wait to find out when she arrives, Cross has been calling my phone nonstop since about three hours ago but I didn¡¯t bother to take his call, I hadn¡¯t bother to go back home after I finished at the hospital and had just went around town, going into the hospital earlier for a proper test alone hadn¡¯t been exciting and the doctor confirmed that I was indeed pregnant and the fact that it was still in the early stages I shouldn¡¯t stress myself much or do anything hard to avoid a miscarriage, but the thing is I was already stressed, I know I should try and reduce stress and not meeting Ginna might help but I was too curious to not here what she had to say, I decided that whatever she says I won¡¯t let it get to me much, not matter how hurtful it maybe and I would go back home to Arizona and heal, I am just here to hear what she has to say and also put her in her ce, tell her my mind even though I didn¡¯t know what I was going to say just yet, I checked the time it was almost six pm, I told her to meet me here by five pm but she was an hourte, I looked around hoping to catch a glimpse of her but she was no where to be seen, I thought maybe she decided not to show up, maybe she thought it was best not to me up with me after all, I decided to wait for a few more minutes before I leave, my phone started ringing, once again the caller was Cross, I ignored it.


    ¡°I am sorry I amte, it took a while to get here, can I order a drink for you?¡±


    She asked in a rather polite tone that gave me conflicted feelings, I just nodded, I didn¡¯t know what to make of her, looking at her, the photos I have seen of her didn¡¯t do her any justice, she was beautiful and was dressed morously,pared to my casually and understand dressed self, she looked like a runway model, I know that I am pretty too but right now I wasn¡¯t looking my best so I looked shabby beside her right now, I felt stupid for not at least trying, getting those thoughts off my head I looked at her directly in the eyes.


    ¡°So what do you have to say?¡±


    ¡°Hmm, I will take a drink first but I must say, you look nothing like I expected, Cross must have been sleeping when he married, oh my bad I forgot your marriage is a match made, an arranged marriage,¡±


    She said sassily, I couldn¡¯t believe Cross had told her the kind of marriage we had, well I guess that gave her the strength she needed to talk shit about me but I wasn¡¯t going to let her talk me down


    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter the kind of marriage Cross and I have, the point still remains that I am his wife, and I don¡¯t know who you are,¡±


    I said, proud of how my voice came out calm and unbothered despite how disturbed I felt inside.


    ¡°I am the woman in Cross heart, and you know that,¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t, because as far as I know, my husband loves me, and he told me that even before I left home today,¡±


    I said with a smile, I could tell what I said got to her but she was good, the upset was off her face in seconds that anyone won¡¯t have noticed but I did.


    ¡°And you believe him? Didn¡¯t you see the photos or the videos? Did he manage to convince you that they were fake? Then you must be gullible because there is no way those are fake.¡±


    ¡°What photos are you talking about? The ones where you guys were making out? Oh, I saw those,¡±


    ¡°Why are you acting so tough, Cross already told me you broke down and was crying and baffling your eyes out and I can even see evidence of that,¡±Belongs to ? n0velDrama.Org.


    She said and I resisted the urge tough out, she was obviously lying, because even though I did cry, Cross didn¡¯t see me cry, except he made things up for her and was ying the both of us.


    ¡°Is that what you wish I was doing? Guess what I am not moved and the reason I even looked stressed has nothing to do with your adventure with my husband and everything to do with the fact that I just concluded my semester exams, in fact, I don¡¯t even care what you do, it¡¯s not going to change the fact that you will always be the other woman who my husband clearly wants nothing to do with, which is why you called me here, you want to say hurtful things to me just so I can feel at least the pain you are feeling, I understand the drill girl, but guess what, nothing you say can bother me,¡±


    I said, I couldn¡¯t believe I was saying all those and it seem to be taking effect on her so I didn¡¯t mind even though it felt like someone else was saying those words through me.


    ¡°Cross told me you guys are getting a divorce and after that, we will be together, you will be the forgotten woman soon,¡±


    She replied and I could only look at her with pity, she must not be as clever as she looked, she was in fact kind of stupid if she thinks that was met to hurt me.

 Chapter 69

    Kathy Pov


    ¡°Hmm, sorry to ask but how old are you again?¡±


    I asked, feeling the need to know.


    ¡°Twenty-eight, why do you want to know my age?¡±


    She was older than I thought, she must be aging backward because I thought she would be around my age or at least twenty-five, she had great genes.


    ¡°Hmm, I asked because you are acting like a teenager blinded by love, in your case a past love, I will be the one to break it to you that what you and Cross had was in the past and I am his present and future, the earlier you know that, the better for you,¡±


    I said, she didn¡¯t need to know that I n on divorcing Cross, I just wanted her to feel exactly how she wants me to feel.


    ¡°Cross and I are so present bitch and you are the only reason we can¡¯t be together, he was so responsive to my touch that if your thoughts hasn¡¯t crossed his mind then we would have happened and we have always been good in bed together and because of you that didn¡¯t happen,¡±


    She used, but I could only make out a few of the things she was saying all that went through my mind was that it didn¡¯t happen, Cross hadn¡¯t been lying, they kissed but he didn¡¯t sleep with her.


    ¡°So nothing ever happened with you both aside from the kissing? I should have known,¡±


    ¡°What do you mean? It¡¯s happened bitch, we were so good together, he felt so right,¡±


    She said changing her words and I concluded that she was indeed childish and that she wasn¡¯t as woke as she looked. I had an upper hand on her and she wasn¡¯t even a match for me, Iughed to myself, finding out that nothing happened with them did feel nice but it doesn¡¯t change the fact that Cross almost slept with her, so I wasn¡¯t going to take it lightly with, I was going to make him suffer.


    ¡°Why are you smiling to yourself? Are you insane?¡±


    She asked and Iughed out loud.


    ¡°I guess so, so is this all you have to say to me? I need to head home, my husband has been calling nonstop,¡±


    I said showing her my phone, she frowned which made me happy, I don¡¯t know why it did, but I felt good, she hade here to say things to me that would hurt me but the tables turned and I know she wasn¡¯t expecting it, I sent a thank you to whatever spirit possessed me to talk as calmly as I did which had thrown her off bnce.


    ¡°Cross and I almost had a child together, but I lost my baby, unfortunately,¡±


    She revealed, okay that got me, when did she mean? Was it in the past or was it recent, I figured if I asked her that she might lie just to get an upper hand and I didn¡¯t want to give her that, it would be better to treat her like it didn¡¯t matter.


    ¡°Oh, sorry for your lost,¡±


    I said.


    ¡°And do you know what the most painful part of it is?¡¯


    ¡°What?


    ¡°I found out you are the reason it happened,¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    ¡°It happened because of you, you ruined all of my ns, you are the reason my life is so messed up, I never knew who you were but you were already stealing from me, you are the other woman here Cross was mine from the beginning and if you hadn¡¯te in the picture then all these shit won¡¯t have happened, Cross and I would have been married a long time ago, I had ns but you ruined them all,¡±


    She used me, and I couldn¡¯t even understand what she was going through, I mean I didn¡¯t even know her this was the first time we are meeting in person so how did I ruin her life? At the same I was confused was a small world because I was beyond confused.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what you are talking about Ginna, I don¡¯t know you before so how did I ruin your life and your ns? When I didn¡¯t even know of your existence until you shows up in New York, please don¡¯t use me wrongly,¡±


    ¡°I know what I am saying, so better shut the fuck up, it¡¯s all because of you, you ruined all my ns and I ended up losing my child and my chance at a bright and easy future, I worked hard to get that child but I lost it because of you,¡±


    She was getting more and more aggressive and loud and the people in the cafeteria were beginning to look at us, I didn¡¯t like the attention.


    ¡°Ginna, you are creating a scene and I don¡¯t even know what you are talking about, do you mind throwing more like on this? When did I ever make you lose a child?¡±Owned by N?velDrama.Org.


    I asked, and she looked around, she was about to say something when her phone rang, she ignored it at first but when it continued ringing, she just picked up, the person on the other end might have said something frightening to her cuz she paled before she stood up and hurriedly left, I made to go after her but was stopped by the waiter who demanded pay, before I could pay her, and go aside, she already left, I looked around but didn¡¯t see her.


    I wondered who had called her and why she looked so paled and also why she thinks I ruin her life, if course I couldn¡¯t get answers to all these until I see her again, I decided that I will request for us to meet again and texted her while in my car, she didn¡¯t respond so I just drove home hoping that she would, I had a lot of questions that needed answers, I didn¡¯t even know they almost had a child together, I figured it must not be recent going by her saying that I ruined her life before we met, even as I drove home the thoughts were still in my head, I tried to remember if I had met her before by ident when I was younger but nothing came up, I thought if asking Cross about it but at the same time I didn¡¯t want to talk to him, now that I know he didn¡¯t actually sleep with her, I might go easy on him which I didn¡¯t want, if only Ginna would agree to see me before I leave for Arizona, then maybe I would clear my mind about the things she used me off which were not true, deciding that I will try calling her again when I get home, I drove towards my house with every intends to avoid Cross, even if he didn¡¯t sleep with her, he still messed with her which I couldn¡¯t just forgive like that, it will make me too easy and he might do it again, I was going to hold on to my anger and make him suffer, I decided, when I got home I met him sleeping in the living room and I sneaked passed him and locked myself in my room, sent Ginna a few more text, took a bath and went to bed hoping she will respond before I wake up, I was so tired that I fell alseep as soon as I hit the bed¡­

 Chapter 70

    Kathy Pov


    I was woke by Cross¡¯s voice, it took a while to get up and I went to open the door without thinking, only when I had opened the door did my mind begin to process that I wasn¡¯t supposed to be talking to him, it was toote and I couldn¡¯t just shut the door in his face.


    ¡°What do you want?¡±


    I asked eyeing him


    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you wake me up when you got back? Didn¡¯t you see my calls?¡±


    ¡°I saw them and choose to ignore and I don¡¯t recur us talking about telling each other where or when we areing back home,¡±


    I said wanting him gone so that I can go back to sleep.


    ¡°Kathy, can you please not do this?¡±


    ¡°Do what? I haven¡¯t done anything here, you are the one that woke me up from sleep, and bet you I am so fucking tired so please,¡±


    ¡°You should have woken me up when you got home, I was worried about you,¡±


    ¡°Are you sure? Or were you worried Ginna spilled your secrets the more because I met her, and I guess she might have told you since you told her we are getting a divorce,¡±


    ¡°Yes, she spoke to me and said you contacted her, but I never told her we were getting a divorce, we are not getting a divorce, I am not going to let that happen,¡±


    ¡°Wait, she said I contacted her? She is a liar then because she was the one that contacted me, not the other way around,¡±


    I said, that woman must have a degree in lying because she was good at it, how could she tell Cross I contacted her when in fact she was the one who called me wanting to meet up so that she can tell me about her and Cross rtionship but then all she did was y victim and using me of something o didn¡¯t do, I already knew I shouldn¡¯t trust her words but I still wanted to know what she meant by what she had said, that looked like the only genuine thing she had said to me the whole night because she was really saddened by it and that much emotions can¡¯t be faked.


    ¡°She told me you did, which was why I tried to stop you from meeting her because I know she was just going to feed you with more lies, lies woven to drive us further apart but you didn¡¯t take my calls,¡±


    ¡°I had to hear what she had to say and if you don¡¯t have anything to hide then you won¡¯t want to stop me from meeting her,¡±


    I replied messing with him.


    ¡°I don¡¯t have anything to hide Kathy but it¡¯s Ginna, she might make things up and you will believe her,¡±


    ¡°Why would you think I will believe her if it¡¯s not believable? I am not that gullible Cross, you may think I am stupid but I am not,¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t think you are stupid Kathy, it¡¯s just that, after those photos of what happened, you might believe everything else she tells you, but I can assure you that they are not true,¡±


    ¡°Let me be the judge of that, okay, can¡¯t you just let me be?¡±


    ¡°I want to but I can¡¯t,¡±


    ¡°Whatever, can you leave now?¡±


    I asked wanting to close my door but he held on.


    ¡°Cross!!!¡±


    I shouted getting pissed.


    ¡°Have you eaten?¡±


    He suddenly asked, I didn¡¯t remember to eat but he didn¡¯t have to know that.


    ¡°That¡¯s none of your business,¡±


    I replied.


    ¡°Kathy, as much as I don¡¯t want to say this but can you please think about the well-being of our baby, please?¡±


    ¡°Oh my gosh,¡±


    I said silently feeling horrible for not thinking of our baby, I should have thought of her and eaten something.


    ¡°I am still not used to being pregnant, can you get me something to eat?¡±


    I requested, I would have gone to get it myself but I wasn¡¯t feeling like going to the kitchen as the different smell of food there might make me throw up.


    ¡°I guess, can you please try to remember?¡±


    ¡°I am sorry,¡±


    I apologized.


    ¡°No, don¡¯t be, I should be the one apologizing to you, I am the reason you are going through all these,¡±


    ¡°Good to know you know, can you please get the food, I don¡¯t want to go to the kitchen


    ¡°Sure, I will be right back, just don¡¯t shut the door on me please,¡±


    ¡°I won¡¯t, I said to get the food right?¡±


    I said leaving the door open and going back to sit by the window, it was alreadyte and the lightsing from the various houses in the estate was all that I could make out, I checked my phone hoping that Ginna had replied to me but still there wasn¡¯t a response, and I was going to leave for Arizona tomorrow, if she didn¡¯t meet up with me then I am going to have to ask Cross instead, but I will do that when we are in Arizona, I texted her that I will be leaving by eleven am that if she wants to still talk to me it has to be before then.


    ¡°I got something for you,¡±


    Cross said as he walked into my room I got out the window and went to sit on the couch and he dropped the tray of food In front of me.


    ¡°Thanks,¡±


    I said and ate in silence, the silence was however broken by the sound of an iing call, I checked and it wasn¡¯t mine, and pointed at him.


    ¡°It¡¯s your phone,¡±


    I said, he seemed to be lost in thoughts and had not heard the phone ring, I wanted to ask him what he was thinking about but then I didn¡¯t want to have a conversation with him yet if I do I might forgive him so easily.


    ¡°Cross? Your phone is ringing, are you even here?¡±


    I said a little loud which snapped him out of his thoughts, he seemed to have been pretty deep in them As he stared at me in confusion, his eyes had so much sadness in them that for s moment I wanted to tell him that we will be okay, but then he looked away and answered his phone and the moment was gone.


    *Mom? Why are you calling sote?¡±


    He asked and ced the phone on the loudspeaker.


    ¡°Shut up, do I need a time to call my son?¡±


    ¡°Ma? It¡¯ste,¡±


    ¡°I know, I just wanted to know if you guys are stilling over tomorrow,¡±


    She said and he turned to look at me as if asking for my answer.


    ¡°Son? Are you still there?¡±Belongs to ? n0velDrama.Org.


    ¡°Yes, mom, the thing is¡­ Mom I¡­¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t tell me you have changed your mind, Anna would be disappointed, she has been asking for you none stop and she can¡¯t even use her phone now because the doctor requested for it to be taken away,¡±


    ¡°Mom, I am¡­¡±


    ¡°Mom, we are stilling, don¡¯t worry,¡±


    I said cutting him off and collecting the phone.


    ¡°Oh goodness, I thought you will already be sleeping that¡¯s why I didn¡¯t bother to ask of you, how are you doing my dear?¡±


    ¡°I am fine, mom and we will see each other tomorrow, I have something to tell you,¡±


    I replied, she seemed to be very excited as she let out a whoop whoop, I could hear my father-inw in the background telling her to keep it down.


    ¡°That¡¯s good to know darlings, your husband was stammering and I thought you guys changed your minds and he was trying toe up with an excuse, Anna really wants to see him and she looks like she is going to give birth any moment now,¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry we will be there before that, our flight is eleven am and we already booked it sincest week, Cross would be hurt if he miss her giving birth,¡±


    I replied, looking at him, his eyes were on mine too, and he looked like he was going to cry, did he really think I will deprive him of going home? I wasn¡¯t that evil, I mean I am not evil at all, just those sad-looking eyes and I already want to assure him but I need to clear something first.


    ¡°Cool, I will let you guys get some sleep and will be expecting you guys tomorrow, thank you baby girl, and have a good rest, I should go tell Anna that you guys are stilling, it will put her mind at rest too.¡±


    ¡°Alright, see you tomorrow,¡±


    ¡°, Okay,¡±


    She said and left the phone without hanging up, after listening to her excitedly tell her husband that we were stilling, I ended the call myself and handed his phone back to him.


    ¡°I thought you changed your mind,¡±


    ¡°Why will you think that? We already nned on leaving and my bags are already packed,¡±


    I said pointing at the luggage at the side of my bed, I expected him to be the one to pull out but then I knew how much he wanted to be around for when Anna gives birth which was why I was sure he will still go but as at before I spoke with Ginna I had wanted to go alone but after the talk with Ginna and what she had identally spilled I decided that his offense weren¡¯t that huge that I will punish him that much, and I wasn¡¯t going to divorce him, he didn¡¯t cheat on me technically since ording to Ginna¡¯s word thoughts of him made it not happen which was a plus for him but he still has to pay for kissing her, the thought of the kiss brought back the image of them kissing, and I shook my head to get the thoughts off.


    ¡°Are you okay?¡±


    He asked.


    ¡°Yeah, you should leave, I wanna sleep,¡±


    I replied getting off the couch.


    ¡°Can I stay here with you? I don¡¯t want to be alone, I can sleep on the couch, I just want to be with you,¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to be in the same space as you Cross, just leave me alone,¡±


    ¡°Kathy, please, can we talk about this, I know I messed up and I admit it but please don¡¯t give up on me, don¡¯t give up on us, I want our family to be together, I don¡¯t want to leave apart from you,¡±


    He pleaded.


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to talk about it, you said you will give me time, just let me be okay? I still have a lot to sort out, I still have a lot of questions,¡±


    ¡°You can ask me, I promise I will tell you everything without leaving out any details, just please don¡¯t shut me out,¡±


    ¡°Fine, you can sleep here but not on this bed, and I will ask those questions when I have finished sorting them out, and you already promised to be honest with me, bear in mind that I have had things from Ginna, things I choose not to believe because of her she is, but that doesn¡¯t mean I will believe everything you say without verifying, once beaten twice shy, I can¡¯t let you fool me again,¡±


    I replied, if Ginna doesn¡¯t answer me before morning then there was no need for us to meet again, I will get all the details I wanted from Cross instead.


    ¡°Thank you, I will just go get my beddings,¡±


    He said leaving the room in a hurry, and he was back in seconds, I watch him prepare the couch where he was passing the night and wondered if he was going to befortable sleeping there, not to be a devil I decided to just let him share a bed with me.


    ¡°You can sleep on the bed, I don¡¯t want your mom thinking I am not treating you right when we get home tomorrow but don¡¯t you dare take off your clothes, and don¡¯t you cross the line,¡±


    I said making a barricade with the extra pillow andying on one side of the bed.


    ¡°Thank you, Kathy,¡±


    ¡°Keep your thanks because this doesn¡¯t mean we are cool, I am just looking out for myself here,¡±


    I answered and closed my eyes.


    ¡°I love you, Kathy,¡±


    He said, I was slowly getting used to him telling me that, but I didn¡¯t want to let myself believe it as believable as it sounds, he may not have chosen Ginna but that didn¡¯t mean he really loves me, he might just want to make up so much that he chooses to use the words he knew I wanted to hear from him the most¡­

 Chapter 71

    Unknown Pov


    ¡°What did I tell you about making a rash decision Ginna?¡±


    I shouted at her, she has been hiding from me since yesterday when she had gotten back from seeing Katherine even though I had warned her not to make any rash decision but the bitch was been led by her emotions and by the fact that the man she wanted to reject her and if I am not careful, she will make a decision that will get us both in trouble.


    ¡°What would you have me do? If I don¡¯t get Cross how am I supposed to get money from him, you are the one that suggested the y that lead to us having issues, if you had just let me be Cross¡¯s friend then we would still have been getting money from him, I don¡¯t know what you are thinking when you decided we should do that,¡±


    She replied. I couldn¡¯t me her either, I knew I made a mistake too I had been betting on the fact that Cross still had feelings for Ginna, I didn¡¯t know the bastard would pick his wife over her if I knew I would have stuck to the original n and waited until I had better ns, Cross wasn¡¯t even talking to Ginna which means the change we have been getting from him will stoping in which is why we needed toe up with a better n but so far all this bitch have done was make the situation worst.


    ¡°I know, but you don¡¯t have to make it worst by contacting Katherine,¡±


    ¡°I thought she would get jealous and leave early but she made me jealous instead, I want her gone, I hate the sight of her, you shouldn¡¯t have told me what you did, at least I never saw her as a threat before that but you went ahead and told me,¡±


    She used, more mistakes I made, I should have kept that information about her being the reason her ns of tying Cross down years ago with a child failed, I just happen to know and thought that will help my case which is why I had told her but nothing was working the way I wanted and I was fast running out of options and the only way was that I see now was to use my n B which I have been keeping but first I have to get this bitch in check, she was going out of hand.


    ¡°And you think confronting her will solve anything? Aren¡¯t you using your head? Your going to see her and acting the way you did only made you look ok desperate to her and also the fact that he choose to be with her over you, so you just have to set your emotions aside and think with your head, you have already lost Cross, there is no way for you so now let¡¯s s focus on getting money from them, that¡¯s the new goal or do you wanna lose both ways? You can easily get a lot of things with money but not with love so keep those emotions aside, for now, we need a n and I already have one but I can¡¯t even tell you for fear of you misusing the information,¡±


    I said, I couldn¡¯t get on telling her and he not ruining my ces so I wasn¡¯t going to let her on to it but she would y a part too, I just have to figure out where shees in.Content is property of N?velDrama.Org.


    ¡°What would you have me do then? You are the one that said I should seduce Cross, you were so sure he was in love with me, but that hasn¡¯t been the case now we lost, it¡¯s all your fault, you are the ones bringing the ideas, stop ming me for your mistakes, I just want that woman gone, I want my man back,¡±


    ¡°And you think the way you are acting will get you guys back together? What part of giving up on that feelings aren¡¯t you getting? Or do you wanna lose both?¡±


    ¡°Whatever, I don¡¯t have any interest anymore, just get whatever you want from her, from the both of them and I will get what I want, I have enough money to pay you anyway, for want Cross and I am going to get him,¡±


    She replied and I resisted the urge to scream at her for being so stupid.


    ¡°Can¡¯t you see there is no way? You wanna pay me back, hello, have you forgotten the interest rate? If you can get me the ten million now then do it, I can use that money and move on, can¡¯t you see I am doing this so the both of us can gain? You wanna be like this then pay me my money and I will leave you to do what you want, bear in mind that I am not collecting half of it but the full money,¡±


    ¡°You have been feeding off me, I got you everything including the identity you are now using which got the police off your neck, is that not enough payment? How can I still owe you ten million?¡±


    She asked and Iughed, she must be really stupid to think all those counts.


    ¡°I will pretend not to hear all you just said, so are you willing to give me money or should we move on?¡±


    I asked daring her to say shits, if she said anything else that offends me, I will run her dry and leave her hanging without a penny to survive on and go about this alone, she wasn¡¯t helping much anyway.


    ¡°Fine, what do you want me to do? And also it better be today cuz they are going back to Arizona,¡±


    She replied and I smiled before what she said sunk in, the foolish woman.


    ¡°And why are you just telling me this?¡±


    I shouted, she was keeping things away from me and I have warned her not to.


    ¡°I am sorry, I thought there weren¡¯t going to, Cross told me about itst week and after the stuff that happened I thought they won¡¯t be going again but she texted me yesterday,¡±


    ¡°She sent you a text?¡±


    ¡°Yes, she wants us to meet and talk about what we had been saying before you called me, and she said she was leaving for Arizonater today,¡±


    She disclosed.


    ¡°Are they gonna stay long? Do you know about that?¡±


    ¡°Cross mentioned it will be for two weeks, I think, something about someone close giving birth,¡±


    ¡°Not long but enough time to fix our ns and make sure we don¡¯t mess it up, so let them go,¡±


    ¡°So, I shouldn¡¯t meet up with her?¡±


    ¡°No, in fact, I don¡¯t want you to ever meet up with her, let them go and have their little time together and we will be waiting to strike when they returned, don¡¯t worry I will handle her myself and get us something much to make up for all the stress they have put us through okay? We are a team and they are the enemy, Cross is your enemy, do you understand?


    ¡°Yes,¡±


    ¡°And we are going to make them pay,¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡±


    She answered.


    ¡°Good girl, nowe here,¡±


    I said pulling her close for a kiss, she responded immediately to my touch, we have been going at each other since the day that idiot left her wanting, no one could me me for taking her, she might be stupid but she was a desirable woman and I had a thing for pretty women, I saw this as a good way to pass time, once our business is done I will move on without her, I don¡¯t need her around for a long time anyway¡­

 Chapter 72

    Cross Pov


    ¡°Are you okay? Do you need anything?¡±


    I asked as we sat on the ne going back home, but she ignored me like she has been doing since our earlier conversation at home, at least she agreed to go home with me, and she was going to stay with my parents too, I had been surprised when she had said that, she had even told my mom about how she knew how much I want to be home before Anna gives birth, I had been already looking for excuses to give but she had saved the day, I had expected her to be madder at me after she met with Ginna, but the reverse was the case, even though she wasn¡¯t talking to me right now, she spoke to mest night and even let me share a bed with her, which was progress and also she sat in the car with me on the ride to the airport and didn¡¯t shout at me when I touched her either, and she hadn¡¯t talked about divorce, all she had told me this morning was that she didn¡¯t want our parents knowing we had a fight which I was okay with, I didn¡¯t want them knowing either.


    ¡°Could you request a second pillow for me and I will like to sit by the window,¡±


    She finally said and I got up from where I was without thinking twice, and also got the air hostess to give us additional pillows.


    ¡°Anything else? We are taking off soon,¡±


    ¡°Nothing, just don¡¯t talk to me, I need enough time to get my acts together so that I can act like we are both cool when we get back to Arizona,¡±


    She replied I couldn¡¯t tell if that made me sad or happy, on one hand, I was happy she was at least giving us a chance, on the other hand, I was sad that she has to pretend to be cool with me. I wanted us to be cool, I wanted us to be back the way we were before this whole thing happened, the way we were at the beginning of the week, I knew I was pushing it, I had spoken to Dean this morning while she had been taking her bath, and I had told him everything that happened and he said it was better than nothing, and that I should not let her feel alone, keep telling her I love her, which wasn¡¯t so hard to do, but each time I tell her and she ignores me, I feel a stab of pain, I wondered if that was how she felt when I hadn¡¯t been saying it back to her.


    Last night, I had watched her sleep and have decided that whatever happens, I must keep her with me, she said she had a lot of questions and I was ready to answer them and tell her everything, there weren¡¯t secrets anyway, I just choose not to share with anyone, my parents didn¡¯t know that Ginna and I almost had a child together but Dean knew and Max knew too, and I made up my mind to tell her too even if she doesn¡¯t ask that, I would have told her on the day this whole issue started anyway, as we sat in the ne taking off, I ran over everything resolution I had madest night and hoped by the time we return to New York we will be a couple again, this time, we will be in love.


    ¡°How long is the flight to Arizona?¡±


    She asked and I looked at her, d she was the one talking to me first, she must have been watching me, she looked away when our eyes met


    ¡°About six hours or less, I think five hours and thirty minutes to be precise,¡±


    I answered my heart doing a small happy dance just as it had done when she let me share a room and even the bed with herst night, those little things that I might have overlooked before suddenly were so important.


    ¡°Okay, not long,¡±


    She replied.Belongs to ? n0velDrama.Org.


    ¡°Why aren¡¯t youfortable?¡±


    I asked in concern, I would take us back home if she is ufortable and call them back home in Arizona that we can¡¯t make it, I am sure everyone will understand but I don¡¯t want her ufortable.


    ¡°I am, just that this is my first flight, and I am kind of scared, I don¡¯t want anything to go wrong,¡±


    She exined and I wondered what the heck she meant by that because this was clearly not her first flight, heck we have travelled by air a couple of times since we got married, let¡¯s not talk about the flights she took before we met.


    ¡°What? That¡¯s not true,¡±


    I said after long consideration.


    ¡°Yeah, if you just let me finish what I was saying,¡±


    She replied and I realized I cut her off, well technically, I didn¡¯t because she was the one that stopped talking on her own but I wasn¡¯t about to point that out, not when I still have a lot to be forgiven for.


    ¡°Sorry, my bad,¡±


    I apologized wondering what my previous year self would think of me right now apologizing.


    ¡°I was saying it is my first flight while pregnant and I don¡¯t know what to expect,¡±


    She said and it all made sense finally and she had valid reasons, but I did a couple of research and she was go to travel.


    ¡°I googled itst night and a few women do feel nauseous during the flight which is why I had requested that the flight attendant added more waste bags just in case you wanna throw up, you can tell me when you feel like it,¡±


    I answered, she seemed to be satisfied with my answer but she didn¡¯t say a word, just nodded and turned her head away from me as the ne finally started moving in the air, I closed my eyes and silently prayed that we only made happy memories in Arizona, fix our rtionship, and stayed together¡­

 Chapter 73

    Kathy Pov


    ¡°Cross, can you tell him to stop? I feel nauseous,¡±


    I let out, gripping onto Cross¡¯s hand, I had been happy that I didn¡¯t feel sick during the flight here but I guess it camete cuz I was about to throw up in this car if the driver doesn¡¯t stop soon.


    ¡°Hey, stop the car,¡±


    I heard Cross say and the car came to a stop by the roadside, I rushed out just in time as I emptied the contents of my stomach.


    ¡°Hey baby girl, are you okay?¡±


    Cross asked standing beside me and patting my back.


    ¡°Do I look okay to you?¡±


    I shouted at him, removing his hands from my back in annoyance, spit out, and eyed him.


    ¡°I am sorry, I don¡¯t know what to do or say,¡±


    ¡°Fine, get me water,¡±


    ¡°Can you get us water please?¡±


    He asked the driver who looked like he wanted to be anywhere but here, I rolled my eyes when Cross handed the water over to me, I washed my mouth with it before drinking some and handing the empty bottle over to him, I left him there, I didn¡¯t care what he did with the waste, I just wanted to rest my head as my whole body suddenly became too weak.


    ¡°I am taking you to the hospital,¡±


    He announced when he joined me in the car.


    ¡°No, I just need to rest, just take me home, I am fine,¡±


    I responded, closing my eyes.


    ¡°But you look so pale,¡±


    ¡°This is normal Cross, better get used to it, if I say I am fine, it means I am fine, don¡¯t push it, I am pregnant not dying,¡±


    I replied my voice was kind of harsh but it wasn¡¯t my fault, me it on early pregnancy hormones.


    ¡°Alright,¡±


    He replied and the car started again, I fell asleep a few minutester and only woke up when I heard voices, I opened my eyes and realized we were already at their mansion.


    ¡°You guys are here,¡±


    Anna said excitedly when we entered the house, she tried getting up from where she sat but it took a while because of her big tummy, it was bigger than her, a lot bigger than I was now scared of how big I might get too, I subconsciously rubbed my tummy, as I watched Cross run to her side and hugged her, she looked really happy to see him and him to see here that for a moment I got jealous, the jealousy faded away when she directed her smile to me waving at me, she looked young but she was super brave because I don¡¯t know if I could have handled pregnancy while I was at her age not to talk of twins.


    ¡°They came, finally,¡±


    Ellen, Cross¡¯s mom said as she entered, she looked beautiful as always and stopped to hug me.


    ¡°How have you been my darling?¡±


    ¡°Fine ma, and you, you look so pretty,¡±


    ¡°Thank you, wee, I have been waiting for you guys, I see the lovers met already,¡±


    She replied as we both turned to the two who were talking in whispers.


    ¡°They seem to have a special bond,¡±


    I couldn¡¯t resist saying.


    ¡°Yes, no one would think they didn¡¯t know each other a year ago, Anna has be a vital part of this family that I can¡¯t remember how it was before she came,¡±


    She answered.


    Let me get you something to eat so that you can rest, those two would be fine on their own.¡±


    She said pulling me along with her.


    ¡°Cross didn¡¯t even acknowledge your presence,¡±


    ¡°He will, Anna has a lot to tell him, so how have you been?¡±


    She asked as she dragged me along to the kitchen, I wanted to tell her I wasn¡¯t hungry that I just needed sleep but the woman wasn¡¯t even giving me a chance.


    ¡°How is school, and life in the busiest city in the world?¡±


    ¡°Everything is fine, and I am fine, school is cool too,¡±


    ¡°Good, so you said you had something to tell me,¡±


    She said as soon as I sat down, she was quick.


    ¡°Yes, but I need to rest first, I think my husband will want to be there when we talk,¡±


    I replied.


    ¡°Fair enough, I will feed and let you go and rest,¡±Belongs to ? n0velDrama.Org.


    ¡°Thanks, I haven¡¯t seen dad around, and Max too,¡±


    ¡°Dad went to see a business partner, he is handling w new deal and he will be back soon as for Max, he and Anna quarreled and he left,¡±


    She revealed.


    ¡°But why?¡±


    ¡°Anna wanted him to be around too but he said he was going to South Africa and she had gotten mad at him, I don¡¯t know the full details because she is not Tell ng me they had a lot of bad energy before he left,¡±


    ¡°Wow, I will be mad too, I am still angry at my brother for missing my wedding,¡±


    I replied, I understood Anna perfectly well cuz I felt the same when Nathan had not turned up for my wedding.


    ¡°They will be fine, they will make up when he returns, I feel there is more to this but I don¡¯t want to think about it,¡±


    She said, I didn¡¯t understand what she meant and she didn¡¯t give me room to ask any further questions as she served me dinner, I like one thing about her, despite all the avable helps, she still decided to feed me herself, my mom won¡¯t even know where the tes are, not that I am saying my mom was a bad woman but still. Okay, I will stop.


    Cross showed up with the heavily pregnant Anna a momentter, he finally remembered his mom and went to hug her.


    ¡°You look a lot prettier now Kathy,¡±


    Anna said to me as she sat down.


    ¡°Thanks, I would say the aame, you are so beautiful but, you look so big too, I am scared,¡±


    ¡°I know right, but I don¡¯t feel big and the doctor said I am going to have a normal delivery, I had a healthy journey considering it¡¯s my first time,¡±


    ¡°Wow, you aren¡¯t scared?¡±


    ¡°No, not at all, why should I be,¡±


    ¡°To be you,¡±


    ¡°I am not alone, so there is no reason to fear,¡±


    She replied, I wish I could be as bold as she was.


    ¡°Wow, you are so brave, respect,¡±


    I answered, I still have over eight months away but I was already scared.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I was like you at the beginning,¡±


    She repliedughing, even seeing herugh made me scared that she might pop.


    ¡°You are pretty Anna,¡±


    ¡°Thank you,¡±


    She answered and we both looked back at the mother and son who were still talking, Cross seemed to have a special rtionship with thedies in his house, he had the same expression he had when he had been talking with Anna, I wondered if I will ever be the attention of those stares, he imed to love him but he has never looked at me like that like he was doing right now with his mom, everyone could feel the love he had for her.


    ¡°Don¡¯t get jealous,¡±


    The voice in my head whispered.


    ¡°I am not,¡±


    ¡°You are not what?¡±


    Anna asked and I realized I said it out loud.


    ¡°Aha, I am no longer hungry,¡±


    I answered as Cross walked to where I am.


    ¡°Mom, Kathy needs to rest, she has been stressed so muchtely,¡±


    He said cing his hands on my shoulders and helping me up.


    ¡°Alright, the maid already prepared your room,¡±


    His mom replied as we left the kitchen.


    ¡°Kathy, thank you,¡±


    He said when I got out of the shower, I couldn¡¯t remember doing anything for him so I just stared at him puzzled.


    ¡°For what?¡±


    ¡°For Everything, foring home with me and for letting me stay here with you,¡±


    ¡°Hmm, I don¡¯t think I have a choice here, we are married and are expected to share a room, it will call for questions if I stay in another room, so yeah, and abouting home, I have to because my brother is getting married remember?¡±


    ¡°I know, but still,¡±


    ¡°Whatever you say Cross, I am tired,¡±


    I said getting on the bed after putting on a baggy t-shirt, it was still early in the evening but I wanted to sleep.


    ¡°You know, you are the only one I know who acts this way,¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t understand, how?¡±


    ¡°Like, you are mad at me but you are not showing it, you just cool with me and talk to me as you normally do, and it scares me,¡±


    ¡°Okay, what do you want me to do? Kill you? I can¡¯t do that, as for being mad at you, well, I wanna sleep,¡±


    I said changing my mind, I wanted to tell him I wasn¡¯t mad at him anymore but it was too early.


    ¡°I need to go talk with Anna, she said she has something to tell me, I will be back,¡±


    ¡°Okay,¡±


    I said closing my eyes.


    ¡°I love you,¡±


    He said and left when I didn¡¯t say anything.


    ¡°I love you too,¡±


    I whispered when the door closed¡­

 Chapter 74

    *****


    The next couple of days were quite busy in the house, everyone was so hyped for Anna giving birth, she was moved to the hospital today since her due date was Friday which was the day after tomorrow, I could finally visit my family after four days of being in Arizona, it¡¯s not like I couldn¡¯t go since but I didn¡¯t want to go alone and Cross had been busy taking care of some work rted stuff,pound with the fact that I was weak for the first two days, now sitting in our shared bedroom, I texted my older sister that we were ok our way, we were all gonna meet at my parent¡¯s house and they were already there, Nathan included since he has been living with our parents since he returned, I didn¡¯t know what to expect from our meeting, thest time we had all been in the same room was when Nathan had said he was leaving and since then the four of us have never been together at the same time, we use to be so close, and I wondered if we could go back to the way we were.


    ¡°What are you thinking about that you are frowning?¡±


    Cross asked as he walked into the room, he looked better than he did when he was in New York even though his dad had given him work to do as soon as we arrived, he looked less stressed and smiled each time.


    ¡°About meeting my siblings,¡±


    I replied.


    ¡°Why will that make you frown? Shouldn¡¯t you be excited to see them again?¡±


    ¡°I should but, I don¡¯t know,¡±


    ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°We weren¡¯t on good terms thest time we met, remember? Before our wedding?¡±


    ¡°Oh, that? I thought you guys talked it out,¡±


    ¡°Yes we did, but it was over the phone,¡±Owned by N?velDrama.Org.


    ¡°What difference does that make? I don¡¯t get you?¡±


    ¡°The thing is we were really close before, what if we are now awkward? I don¡¯t think I will like it,¡±


    I replied truthfully, since the day we talked about meeting up that has been my fear, what if we are now more like strangers to one another?.


    ¡°You guys are siblings, no distance can change that, take me and Max, for instance, we are so different and we don¡¯t see each other all the time but when we do meet, it will be like we were never apart, that¡¯s how sibling are, nothing can change that,¡±


    He answered.


    ¡°I hope so, honestly I am scared.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s gonna be just fine, that aside though, how are you feeling? I am sorry I have not been paying much attention to you since we got here,¡±


    He said and I wondered if I have been living wrong for thest four days because he has been attentive in every way, making sure I eat, making sure I take a rest, making sure I didn¡¯t need anything, calling me every hour when he isn¡¯t here, if that¡¯s not attentive then I don¡¯t know what is.


    ¡°Why are you looking at me like that? Like I said something wrong,¡±


    ¡°Well, I am trying to remember if I got the meaning of attention wrong because you have been giving me a lot of attention,¡±


    ¡°Aha, not as much as I want though,¡±


    ¡°Crazy, how much more?¡±


    ¡°More than this at least, I have a lot to make up for, I know you might still not want to talk about it right now but Kathy, I wish we don¡¯t go apart,¡±


    He said, I have been having thoughts, thinking about what questions to ask him but so far, aside from the unanswered question that Ginna had left in me and those photos I had nothing elsee up, and I know I have forgiven him, it was hard not to see the way he had been treating Anna and everyone around since we came back, especially Anna, his mom has confirmed it that Anna glowed better when Cross was around and it was true, the girl only had good things to say about Cross too, she calls him savior sometimes, and the way he had helped her in setting up the nursery for the twin, I had no doubt that he would be a good father to our child, my only fear was what if I give him the chance and he does something again, will I be able to handle it? Or should I just give up now?


    ¡°Kathy?¡±


    ¡°We will talk about this when we get back Cross,¡±


    I replied getting up from the bed and grabbing my bag.


    ¡°Okay, I love you,¡±


    He said and I choose to ignore him, he has been saying it a lot since we got here, even in the presence of his parents, the first time he had said it in his mom¡¯s presence she had screamed and had been so happy and had requested for payment from her husband, apparently, they had a bet onto how long it will take for Cross and me to fall in love, and he had lost since he said a year or two, she had said within three months and the moron had agreed that he fell in love with me within that period, of course, I didn¡¯t believe him but I didn¡¯t bother correcting him, there was no need.


    ¡°Will I ever hear it back from you?¡±


    He asked in a low voice when I was about to leave the room.


    ¡°Cross, not now,¡±


    ¡°Sorry, let¡¯s go,¡±


    He said and went ahead of me, making me feel bad, I wanted to tell him but I was scared of making another mistake, so I couldn¡¯t be med totally for not wanting to give in.


    ¡°Well, I guess it¡¯s time to makeup, I can¡¯t keep this up,¡±


    I said to myself, deciding to have that talk with himter tonight, I was tired of acting like I was mad at him when I wasn¡¯t, Ginna never replied to my text so I am just going to talk to Cross and whatever he says I will decide then whether to believe him or not, I already know the answer to that though¡­

 Chapter 75

    Kathy Pov


    ¡°Oh my God, Katherine, it is so good to have you here,¡±


    My sister Nora screameding to hug me, all the awkwardness I thought I would feel vanished and a warm feeling took over my body, I didn¡¯t know just how much I missed my family until I got to our mansion and the first person to wee me was Nora, the others starteding out too and we exchanged hugs, I looked around for the one I haven¡¯t seen in a while.


    ¡°Where is Nathan?¡±


    I asked when I didn¡¯t see him.


    ¡°He went out, said he will back soon, he left about ten minutes ago,¡±


    Nelly exined.


    ¡°I hope he is not trying to hide from me? He has a lot to answer for,¡±


    I said as we all entered the house.


    ¡°Nanny isn¡¯t here anymore so where is Dad? And mom?


    ¡°They are in a meeting, and will be out soon,¡±


    Jenn my brother¡¯s wife to be said, she looked pregnant to me but I didn¡¯t ask because we weren¡¯t really close, Cross looked like he wanted to be anywhere but here, he looked lost.


    ¡°Are you okay?¡±


    I whisper asked him.


    ¡°Yeah, just that I am practically a stranger here,¡±


    ¡°Tish,e on it¡¯s just my siblings, they won¡¯t bite, what more, you are my husband,¡±


    I replied touching his face and smiling, he smiled back.


    ¡°Ohhhh, I see love in the air,¡±


    My sisters echoed, and I smiled at them shyly,


    ¡°Who was the one that didn¡¯t want to get married a little while ago? Is she the same person I see right now?¡¯


    Nora asked teasing me.


    ¡°Yes, she is okay, marriage is hard, I can¡¯t deal with this moron sometimes, but I admit it¡¯s also fun too,¡±


    I replied.


    ¡°That¡¯s the thing girl, it is like that, there are ups and downs but at the end of the day it is enjoyable, no marriage is perfect, the both of us can¡¯t deal with our own morons at times,¡±


    She added to which both Nelly and Jenn agreed, the men in the room begged to differ saying that the women were harder to manage and slowly the conversations started going into different areas, it was fun and there was no awkwardness like I had expected.


    ¡°Baby girl?


    There was only one person who addressed me like that, well except my husband who was sitting by me, I looked up at the entrance and there stood my brother, he looked so different from thest time I saw him, he looked more mature and overall more handsome, he didn¡¯t look bad at all, I got up from where I sat and walked up to him.


    ¡°Kitty cat,¡±


    ¡°You traitor,¡±


    I said hitting him when I got close to him.


    ¡°You betrayed me,¡±


    ¡°I am sorry Kitty,¡± he replied hugging me, I hit him even more,


    ¡°I missed you so much, why didn¡¯t youe around?¡±


    ¡°I am here now Kitty,¡±


    ¡°I am not Kitty cat, my husband will beat you up if you call me that,¡±


    I threatened pointing at Cross who stood up and walked to me.


    ¡°You are my Kitty cat and your husband can¡¯t do anything about that,¡±


    He repliedughing, God I missed him so much, I hugged him again telling him just how much I missed his presence, and he said the same, ignored Cross, and sat with him as the conversations started over again.


    My parents came out a littleter and we all sat and talked, my mom and I still had some bad blood between us but at least we could tolerate each other, it was so nice to be with my family again in the home I grew up in, I actually hoped Cross and I could spend the night here but the possibility of that happening became none existence when Cross phone rang and he went out to answer it, when he came back he apologized to everyone in the room and said he had to leave.


    ¡°Where are you going to?¡±


    I questioned.


    ¡°Anna went intobor and is asking for me, you can stay with your family and I wille pick you up tomorrow,¡±


    He said.


    ¡°No,¡±


    ¡°What do you mean no?¡±


    ¡°I aming with you,¡±


    ¡°But you just met your family after a while, don¡¯t worry, you can be with them a little longer,¡±Exclusive content from N?velDrama.Org.


    ¡°I can alwayse back, not to mention I aming again for Nelson¡¯s wedding, Anna needs us so let¡¯s go,¡±


    ¡°Kathy,¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t argue young man,¡±


    I warned as I went to grab my bag and bid my siblings and my parents goodbye and walked past him to the car.


    ¡°You are a stubborn woman,¡±


    He said when we were in the car.


    ¡°Yeah, we have been knew,¡±


    I replied and we drove towards the hospital in silence.


    We went straight to the hospital, we got there just in time, Anna was about to be moved to the delivery ward and she looked scared and so young.


    ¡°Anna, you will be fine okay,¡±


    Cross said hugging her hands, even he looked scared too.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know Crossie, can¡¯t we go home, I wanna go home,¡±


    She said crying, Cross looked from me to his mom but I didn¡¯t have anything to say, I was scared too.


    ¡°Anna, we will go home soon but we have to go home with two shining babies, and to do that you have to work hard, don¡¯t worry we will all be here,¡±


    His mom said patting her back as the nurse in charge came in, they ced Anna in a wheelchair and we followed as they drove towards the delivery room.


    ¡°Can youe with me Crossie?¡±


    Anna requested, I didn¡¯t think that would be possible but the nurse or probably the doctor in charge asked Cross if he could cope to which he said yes and he was directed to an area where he changed.


    ¡°Are you sure you won¡¯t copse in there?¡±


    I asked out of concern, dude looked scared but he was trying to be brave.


    ¡°I have to, Anna needs me there,¡±


    ¡°Wow, I must say, I am jealous of how much you care for Anna,¡±


    I said and I meant it, it¡¯s was so endearing to watch at the same time it made me jealous, he stopped what he was doing and held my hands, I let him, his hands were cold and shaking, man the dude was scared.


    ¡°You don¡¯t need to be jealous Kathy, I care about Anna, and I care about you too, I love you, okay?¡±


    ¡°Yeah,¡±


    I answered.


    ¡°Be fast they are waiting, I added walking away, but he drew me back.


    ¡°Wh¡­¡±


    Whatever I was going to say was stopped by his mouth on my mine, I hadn¡¯t expected the kiss so it came as a huge shock to me, at the same time it just reminded me just how much I missed his touch.


    ¡°Okay, enough, Anna is waiting,¡±


    I said pulling off and licking my lips, he smiled and quickly wore the hospital gown and pulled me along with him, I watched him follow Anna into the wards, in a little over eight or seven months he will have to walk into those wards again, but that time it will be with me and touched my tummy as Ellen came to stand close to me, Max who had snubbed her giving birth and traveled to South Africa was on the phone even though it was the middle of the night there, his mom ignored himpletely and I had to keep him informed, the dude was almost losing his mind all the way in Africa and kept cursing himself for leaving, I wanted tough in his face but was too scared to, my father-inw came in a littleter and together we waited to hear good news.


    Anna gave birth an hourter, I told Max who had been on the phone all this while, he let out a heavy sigh and I told him I had to hang up to attend to my husband, he thanked me and said he will call back soon, I told him he shouldn¡¯t have left in the first ce and he agreed that he had been a fool, well I guess both brothers were, a few moments after I ended the call, the door to the delivery room opened and a traumatized looking Cross was first to leave the wards, he looked like he had seen death and had fought to survive I ran to his side and held him in an embrace.


    ¡°They are so beautiful,¡±


    He said and began to cry, his mom joined him too.


    ¡°You did a good job,¡±


    ¡°No, Anna did, she was so brave, she deserves the best,¡±


    ¡°Yes, she does,¡±


    The doctors came out a littleter after both Anna and the babies had been cleaned, we were told Anna was resting as she had been exhausted from the delivery, both babies, a beautiful boy, and girl were healthy and that we can see them when Anna wakes up.


    The rest of the week went by really fast, Anna was discharged two dayster and she brought home with her two of the cutest humans I have had the privilege of meeting, it was joy all through the house, Cross being the proudest, well that was after he got through the trauma of witnessing her delivery, Max cut short his trip and was scheduled to arriveter tomorrow, he couldn¡¯t stay away anymore and wanted to meet the new addition in the family.


    ¡°What are you doing here alone?¡±


    Cross askeding to seat with me on the balcony of our room.


    ¡°Nothing, I just wanted fresh air, there is too much chaos going on inside the house,¡±


    I replied, there were a lot of rtives as Anna¡¯s kids were going to be named the day after tomorrow, it didn¡¯t look as if Anna wasn¡¯t part of the family as a lot of close rtives of the Salvadors were already in the house, in fact, they have beening and going since she gave birth and the media even carried the news of her giving birth, Anna, of course, was showered with lots of attention and she has been all smile since she got out of the delivery room, a proud little mommy as Cross called her.


    ¡°What are you thinking about?¡±


    Cross asked and I shook my head.


    ¡°Nothing, just marveling at how epting your family are,¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I know right,¡±


    ¡°Uh-huh,¡±


    ¡°So,¡±


    He said in a more serious tone.


    ¡°So what?¡±


    I asked when he didn¡¯t say anything further.


    ¡°You said we were going to talk about us when we get back from seeing your parents but we haven¡¯t been able to, seeing how busy everyone has been and honestly the suspense is killing me, I can¡¯t bear it anymore,¡±


    He replied.


    ¡°I have nothing to say,¡±


    ¡°What? Why? I thought you said you needed time to sort the questions you had for me out, I promise you that I will answer them without leaving out any part, please?¡±


    He pleaded I haven¡¯t had much time to think about what was going on with Cross and me, in fact in my mind and head, we were cool, I couldn¡¯t even remember much how and why I was mad at him, oh I remembered he almost cheated on me but, I had forgiven him already and the thoughts were no longer there and the image of him kissing Ginna even though I still cringe at the thought of it, they didn¡¯t hurt anymore.


    ¡°Kathy,¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know okay, I don¡¯t know if I should ask or If I should just let the past be in the past and move on to the future,¡±


    ¡°But you will always be curious, won¡¯t you be? It¡¯s better to ask and know it all now, hit me with it all Kathy and I promise I won¡¯t give anything, I don¡¯t want to hide anything from you.¡±


    ¡°Alright, did you and Ginna almost have a child together?¡±


    I asked and he froze¡­

 Chapter 76

    Cross Pov


    I froze, of all the things I had thought Ginna had talked to Kathy about it never crossed my mind that it will be about the kid that we almost had.


    ¡°What? Is that too hard to answer? That¡¯s what I wanna know though, it¡¯s okay if you don¡¯t want to tell me,¡±


    She said and stood up to walk away, I held her hand.


    ¡°Hey, don¡¯t go, of course, I will tell you, I don¡¯t want to keep anything from you anymore Kathy, if this is what you wanna know then I am going to tell you,¡±


    I said and she sat back down looking at me expectantly, I didn¡¯t even know where to start from so I decided to just go from the beginning.


    ¡°Ginna and I met when I was Eighteen and she was sixteen, she was working a part-time job at a tub my friends and I always visited, we didn¡¯t hit off immediately though because when we met she had been dating one of the boys, but they broke up and we started dating three monthster, that was about eight months after we met, but then mom and dad didn¡¯t like her and didn¡¯t want us to be together so we were forced to only meet in private, she was the one I went to the Bahamas with, but when we returned from that trip, she told me she was pregnant, I didn¡¯t know what to do or how to react, back then I was almost rounding up college and my dad was already talking about me going to New York, so when she told me she was pregnant, my ns were simple, I will take care of her and the baby in private until I can move to New York where we will get married in secret and love as a family, then when the time was right I will finally tell my family that she was the I want to spend my life with,¡±


    I paused looking at her but she didn¡¯t show any kind of emotions and was just looking at me as if urging me to continue, I wanted to know how well she was taking what I was saying but I couldn¡¯t tell by her expression so I just continued.


    ¡°But nothing went ording to ns as she lost the baby, she hated me for it and we broke up about two weekster just before my graduation and she and her mom left town and I never heard from her until we met at the hotel in New York this year,¡±


    I finished looking at her.


    ¡°Okay, that was quick and pretty much not what I expected, but then my question is how do Ie into all of this? I didn¡¯t know her, so where do Ie in?¡±


    She asked, I didn¡¯t know what she met, I knew she didn¡¯t know Ginna, while Ginna had gone to the public school in her neighbor Kathy had gone to a private school and there was no way they would know each other.


    ¡°I don¡¯t understand, you don¡¯te in except this year,¡±


    ¡°No, Ginna mes me for ruining her ns at a better life, although she didn¡¯t get to finish what she had been saying because she got that call but she clearly was ming me for the loss of the child and her chance at a good life,¡±


    She revealed and all I could do was think, I couldn¡¯t remember where she came into all of that and why Ginna thinks she has a hand in the list of our child, I thought back to that night almost eleven years ago when it had happened.


    ¡°Oh, shit,¡±


    I said out loud as it finally clicked.


    ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°Remember that night when you came to the party?¡±


    ¡°What night?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t you remember? You went to a grown-up party and you were only thirteen I think, The night I left you alone on that road, the reason you hated me so much?¡±


    ¡°Yes, I do, I remember, what about it?¡±


    ¡°Remember I got a call that night while we were arguing?¡±


    ¡°Yes, and you left after that, leaving me to my fate,¡±


    She replied bitterly, I couldn¡¯t me her, I felt bad for leaving her on her own there but Ginna had needed me and Kathy had been acting like a spoilt little brat, I was tempted to roll my eyes at the memory but I remembered just how serious this conversation was.


    ¡°I am sorry Kathy, but that night was the night Ginna lost our kid, I don¡¯t know how she knew I was with you that night because I never told her that, but that might be the reason she mes you,¡±Content is property of N?velDrama.Org.


    I revealed.


    ¡°Wow, as much as I feel bad for her for losing a child, it not totally true that you were with me the whole night though, remember you were at a party? So it¡¯s not my fault, I wish I can meet her again and tell her that,¡±


    She said with a pout, I didn¡¯t want her meeting Ginna, but I wasn¡¯t going to tell her that, I will let her decide.


    ¡°Any other thing you wanna know?¡±


    I asked, my heart beating fast, I wanted to know where we stood so bad, she looked so rxed that I didn¡¯t know what it meant.


    ¡°Did you guys sleep together?¡±


    She asked.


    ¡°No, it didn¡¯t happen,¡±


    I answered truthfully, I still felt ashamed of the fact that I had been so weak that it might have happened, of course I didn¡¯t expect her to believe me because those damn photos says otherwise but I looked at her and waited for what she will say.


    ¡°Okay, that¡¯s all, you are forgiven,¡±


    She said and I couldn¡¯t believe my ears, I must have heard her wrong.


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°I said, it¡¯s fine, you didn¡¯t sleep with her but you fell into her seduction and almost did but you didn¡¯t, which is cool because if you had, I won¡¯t have forgiven you because I hate sharing what¡¯s mine,¡±


    She replied and I could only stare with my mouth open, that was it? She wasn¡¯t mad at me? She believed me?


    ¡°Why are you looking at me like that Cross? It scaring me,¡±


    She let out.


    ¡°I am just confused, that¡¯s it? Does this mean you are not gonna leave me? And you are not mad at me anymore? You believe that I said?¡±


    I asked bewildered, I hadn¡¯t expected her to believe what I said, I just let her know because she said she needed answers, I expected her to tell me that I was lying but she believed me.


    ¡°Yes, I am not mad at you and yes I am not going to leave you, you didn¡¯t do anything wrong, well excluding the part where you made out with her, that shit hurt but I am fine now, besides you should know already, I let you sleep in the same room as me and we have been sharing a bed since we got here and I let you touch me.¡±


    ¡°I thought you were just going with the act,¡±


    I said, I honestly thought she was doing those things because she didn¡¯t want our parents finding out we have issues, I never thought it because she has already forgiven me.

 Chapter 77

    Cross POV


    She rolled her eyes at me as if I have lost my mind, maybe I have indeed lost it because how can I dream of this? Of her forgiving me already.


    ¡°I am a bad actress Cross, why haven¡¯t you figured that out yet? I can¡¯t pretend to save my life, and why will I be acting when we are alone Cross? Do you really think it that easy to unlove someone?¡±


    She asked and it was like a wake-up call, all her actions since we got to Arizona should have told me, even before we came here, she let me share a bed with her, and whole we have been here, she has been nothing but supportive, I should have known but I was much too busy being scared that she was going to leave me that I hadn¡¯t read any meaning into all the things she has been doing.


    ¡°Are you going to cry or something? I didn¡¯t mean to make you cry,¡±


    She said looking at me oddly.


    ¡°Oh my gosh, and I have been dying slowly all these while thinking you n on leaving me after all this is over, I hated the day ending because it means we have to leave Arizona soon and you will leave me,¡±


    I let out sincerely, letting her see my fears and how weak I was when ites to her.Belongs to ? n0velDrama.Org.


    ¡°I am sorry, I didn¡¯t mean to make you feel like that, I just, when Ginna identally let on that she was manipting me the day we met I already concluded that I wasn¡¯t going to leave you, I just didn¡¯t want toe as easy and gullible, I guess I was scared,¡±


    She voiced, I stood up from where I sat and pulled her to me hugging her close and breathing in her refreshing smell.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to be sorry my love, I understand you and I promise I won¡¯t do anything to make you regret giving this chance, God, I am so happy,¡±


    I said lifting her and twirling her around.


    ¡°Cross, put me down I might be nauseous and throw up in your face,¡±


    She said pping my shoulders, I dropped her and captured her lips in a lovely kiss, trying to convey my emotions into it, she was there with me, kissinge back, my whole body was filled with joy in that moment, everything finallye back to how it should be.


    ¡°I love you Katherine Salvador,¡±


    I whispered when we pulled apart., looking at her lovingly and letting her see everything


    ¡°I love you too Cross,¡±


    She replied and my joy was full, I nted another kiss on her lips sealing our love, I smiled happily at her, I never knew I could experience this much happiness and fulfillment just because of one human but here I was, everything suddenly became bright, and it was all because of one woman, the woman standing in front of me andughing brightly, my wife, the one I intend to be with forever and always, I kissed her again and despite her earlier protest I picked her up and twirl her around again.


    ¡°I love Kathy, I love you now, I will love you tomorrow, forever and always,¡±


    ¡°I love you too Cross, but you have to put me down or,¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, we will manage, can you say it again?¡±


    ¡°Say what?¡±


    ¡°You know what, don¡¯t tease me,¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what you are talking about,¡±


    ¡°Come on wifey, just say it already,¡±


    ¡°I love you?¡±


    ¡°Is that a question or a deration,¡±


    ¡°Maybe, do I love you?¡±


    ¡°Of course you do and you know it, and you know what makes it even more beautiful?¡±


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°I love you too, my beautiful, radiant, and brilliant wife,¡±


    ¡°I love you too, my gorgeous, kind and sweet husband,¡±


    She replied and I kissed her again showering kisses over her face, wondering if I deserved this much happiness.


    ¡°Oh, my God, I can¡¯t take all these sweetness anymore, oh lordy,¡±


    My mom suddenly said from inside our room and we both turned to see her walk into the balcony, I wondered just how long she had been there listening in on our conversations.


    ¡°Ma? What are you doing here and how long have you been there?¡±


    I asked worried that she might have heard when I talked to Kathy about Ginna, I don¡¯t want my parents finding out.


    ¡°Long enough to know that we made the right decision to get you two married because you guys are meant to be together,¡±


    She answered and she was right, Kathy was the woman meant for me, the reason I waited all these years without falling in love with someone else, I looked at my wife and she was smiling shyly almost hiding behind me like a teenager caught making out.


    ¡°Mom?¡±


    ¡°Yes, son?¡±


    My mom replied turning her curious eyes to me, I already know she was going to like the news I was about to pass on.


    ¡°Kathy and I are expecting a baby,¡±


    I disclosed pulling my wife closer to me, okay I should have thought of it and maybe covered her ears because my mom screamed so longer I bet half of our neighborhood would have heard her.


    ¡°Mom, keep it down,¡±


    I said as Kathy smiled from ear to ear, she looked happy and I promised myself that I will keep it that way and make sure she never had to shed a tear of sadness.


    ¡°Let me be okay, I wasn¡¯t expecting this day to get any better, my other son ising home, my baby girl is now a mom and now my oldest and my daughter-inw are going to be parents too, I feel fulfilled, oh my gosh,¡±


    She said getting emotional and wiping her eyes.


    ¡°Hey, mom, don¡¯t cry,¡±


    Kathy said going over to hug her, I stood there watching the both of them with a feeling of total wholeness, this has to be the perfect life, the perfect way of living and as I watch them interact, as my mom asked her questions and they talked as they walked into the house leaving me in the balcony alone, I promised myself that this would be how it will be from here on, I wasn¡¯t going to do anything to jeopardize this happy feeling, never¡­

 Chapter 78

    Kathy Pov


    ¡°Hey, baby? What are you doing?¡±


    Cross asked as he walked into our room, I smiled brightly as he kissed me softly.


    ¡°Taste so good,¡±


    I replied as he pulled me off where I sat and ced me on hisp.


    ¡°What¡¯s up with my favorite girl today?¡±


    ¡°Hmm, nothing, I have just been here missing you so much,¡±


    I replied holding his face, we have been living in utter bliss for the past one month we have been in Arizona, yes we stayed for over a month, sadly we were leaving by Sunday which was just two days away, I have to return to school while Cross has to go back to work, even though thepany has been running smoothly without him, he still needed to be there, a lot have happened this past one month, my siblings and I got closer again, I made up with Juliet who was gonna move to New York soon, Nelson and Jenn finally got married after the many postponement, Nathan got back in terms with our family, Anna and Max made up even though they were still having fights, Max was returning to South Africa soon since he has toplete what took him there, and Anna¡¯s twins were doing just fine, the best of everything was that me and Cross have be even closer, I couldn¡¯t imagine how my life would be without him, everyday waking up was a blessing, even though he still had to help his day handle some business he made out time for us and we have gone out a lot of times and today was one of those days too.


    ¡°What are you thinking about baby?¡±


    He asked rubbing my back.


    ¡°About how lucky I am to have you and how blessed it is to be part of our family,¡±


    I said and kissed his nose.


    ¡°I think I am the lucky one here,¡±


    ¡°I guess we are both lucky and we have our parents to thank for giving us that luck because as much as I didn¡¯t like how we started and almost ran away, I am d that we got married Cross,¡±


    I said sincerely, the fact that I had thought Cross wasn¡¯t good for me, my parents knew best after all which is why I made up with my mom and had asked her to forgive me for being so insensitive, surprisingly, the woman had not been angry with but had embraced me and wished me the best, I told her that she already gave me the best.


    ¡°Are you ready to get back to busy life mydy? Vacation is almost over,¡±


    Cross said and I pout in sadness, I didn¡¯t want us to leave Arizona, I loved it here but we had to.


    ¡°I wish we can stay longer,¡±


    ¡°Yeah, me too but we have to leave, now go get ready, we have an appointment to catch.¡±


    He announced getting up with me still in his arms and setting me on the ground, still holding my waist.


    ¡°I can only get dressed if you let me go Mr.¡±


    I whispered after we stood there for more than two minutes with him holding on to me.


    ¡°That¡¯s right,¡±


    He said finally letting me go.


    ¡°I will be back in ten minutes then we can leave,¡±


    He added giving me a peck before he left, I twirled around smiling bright, I held my tummy where our baby was doing well, we were going to see the doctor and have our first scan today, it was part of our outing, we couldn¡¯t do it all these while because it has been busy for us, and we barely had time together during the day, I couldn¡¯t wait to meet our baby for the first time, I already took a bath when I woke up so all I had to do was get dressed, I looked for an easy and very casual outfit because these days I wanted morefortable than fashion, I settled for a pretty dress, and denim jacket, less than ten minutester my husband was back and asking me how long I am going to take to get dressed.


    ¡°You know, you haven¡¯t even been gone up to five minutes,¡±


    I said to him rolling my eyes as I applied mild makeup.


    ¡°Whatever mydy, I am eager to meet our baby,¡±


    ¡°Me too, but where did you go to?¡±


    ¡°Oh, I went to tell Mom we were leaving, so now let¡¯s go meet our princess,¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s might not be a princess though,¡±Owned by N?velDrama.Org.


    I answered as I picked up my bag and he lead us out of the room.


    ¡°Yeah, but you were the one that put those ideas in my head so let me keep saying that, and if it turns out to be a prince, then we start saying, prince,¡±


    He replied.


    ¡°Crazy, but I agree,¡±


    I said as we made our way to where the cars were parked and before long we were on our way to the hospital, the same hospital where Anna had given birth, we already booked an appointment, so we were going to be meeting the doctor as soon as we got there, I was anxious to meet our baby and excited too, I figured I might be around two or three months pregnant but I couldn¡¯t really tell so I am looking forward to finding out today, I touched my tummy where I felt the baby will reside, and whispered.


    ¡°We are going to meet soon baby,¡±


    To which Cross answered ¡°Yes angel, we are finally meeting,¡±


    I smiled at him and we drove the rest way in blissful silence.


    ¡°You have a healthy baby, growing nicely and having the time of its life,¡±


    The doctor said as he moved the monitor over my tummy, I looked at the screen and all I could make out was a dark shadow moving, and that movement and the heartbeat I felt was enough to bring me to tears, I couldn¡¯t believe it, it was so surreal, I couldn¡¯t believe I was going to bring someone to life, I held onto Cross¡¯s hand and looked up at him, he smiled at me and whispered.


    ¡°I love you,¡±


    ¡°I love you more,¡±


    I replied and turned back to the screen where our baby was moving and as the doctor said having the time of her life.


    ¡°Do you wanna know the gender?¡±


    The doctor asked and I looked up at Cross as we both chorused no, we didn¡¯t want to know the gender until the baby was born, maybe we wanted to keep calling it a she while clowning ourselves that it might be a he.


    ¡°Understandable, most soon to be parents prefer to be surprised, from the shape, seize and how developed it is, and other factors, you are about two months and three weeks gone, the risk of miscarriage at this rate is low but we can¡¯t write it offpletely so, you have to be careful not to stress yourself and just overall try to keep your body and mind in shape, bearing in mind that whatever goes on with you affects your baby,¡±


    The doctor advised and we both listened intently. I had nothing to worry about, well aside from school which was going to start soon but I don¡¯t n on stressing myself with that as I n on mainly taking online sses, Cross and I already talked about it and we both agreed that that would be best.


    ¡°Thank you so much doc, we will do our best to follow everything,¡±


    ¡°Yes do that and we will have a healthy delivery, I reckon you will not be in Arizona for the birth?¡±


    ¡°Nothing is decided yet doctor, mighte back here for the birth since all our families are here,¡±


    Cross replied to the doctor who nodded.


    ¡°Okay, that¡¯s good to know, take care of yourself, my dear,¡±


    She said and I nodded with thanks.


    ¡°Thank you doc,¡±


    Cross said as the doctor rounded up the check-up and I was free to wear my dress, we were out of the hospital earlier than we expected and Cross suggested we go around town which I happily agreed to¡­


    ¡°That was a mind-blowing experience earlier,¡±


    Cross voiced as we sat by the beachter that afternoon after going around town, window shopping and just doing anything and everything, I had so much fun today, the beach was almost empty, well the part we were was, it was a private beach and not much people were seen around at this hour, the cool wind blew around creating a serene atmosphere.


    ¡°I know right, that has to be one of my best moments if not the best,¡±


    ¡°I think that¡¯s my second best moment, the first been when I decided to marry you, and the third been when I met Anna,¡±


    He replied ying with my hair.


    ¡°I felt her heartbeat and all I could think about was do I deserve this? Do I deserve you and our baby, I just couldn¡¯t help but think about that, and I decided that even though I might not deserve it, I am going to work hard so that I will be deserving of this much happiness,¡±


    I said with much sincerity.


    ¡°You deserve all the happiness in the world baby,¡±


    ¡°Do you think we would have met again if I had seeded in running away?¡±


    I asked, the thought alwayses to my mind once in a while, would I have found this much happiness if I had run away with Louis or Dn? How would my life be right now?


    ¡°I guess we will never know, let¡¯s just be thankful that fate thought we were meant to be together too,¡±


    He answered, and I agreed, we sat there on the beach having small talks and making little ces on how our little family is going to be after the birth of our baby, it was the moment in my life that I won¡¯t exchange for the world, and when we both held hands and walked towards our car to go hometer that evening, I promised myself that whatever I do, I will always be grateful to my family giving the opportunity to be happy and also to myself for letting myself forgive and be happy and most importantly, to Cross who gave me a chance and gave me happiness, I knew life wasn¡¯t always going to be a bed of roses but whatevere my way from here on, I am not going to hide from it and I am not going to give up this life, this happiness for anything, which is why when I get to New York, I was going to try and contact Pearl and asked for Dn¡¯s contacts, even though I have not told Cross about it yet, I will tell him, I n on settling anything we still had inmon and break free from himpletely, but in doing so I already decided within myself that I wasn¡¯t going to let him ride on me a second time, I wasn¡¯t going to give him my money, never¡­

 Chapter 79

    Cross Pov


    ¡°Can¡¯t you stay a little longer Crossie? I don¡¯t want you to leave,¡±


    Anna protested.


    ¡°Anna, I have to work and Kathy has to go to school, don¡¯t worry we wille back during weekends,¡±


    I said pulling her in for a hug, she wasn¡¯t convinced though because she kept protesting.


    ¡°I don¡¯t trust you on that, that¡¯s what you said thest time and it took me almost giving birth for you to show up, I don¡¯t want the next time we meet to be on my kids¡¯ graduation,¡±


    She exaggerated, I rolled my eyes as my beautiful wife and my mom walked in, I smiled at my baby, she looked stunning and had a bright smile on, every day she gets even more beautiful and every day I think God and my parents for bringing her to my life, she was everything.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on here?¡±


    Mydy asked, and Anna pulled off our hug and went to hold Kathy instead.


    ¡°She doesn¡¯t want us to leave, she is being a crybaby, s mom who is a crybaby,¡±


    I teased.


    ¡°Leave her alone,¡±


    Max said entering the room, he was also leaving too which made Anna even sadder, I had tried talking him out of going back to South Africa but it had not worked, he said he needed toplete what he started, Anna didn¡¯t like him leaving and going so far neither did I and my parents but that was what he wanted and we were going to allow him to do it.


    ¡°Says the one who teases her and makes her cry,¡±


    I replied.


    ¡°I don¡¯t make her cry, do I, Anna?¡±


    He asked her.


    ¡°Don¡¯t talk to me, I don¡¯t know who you are,¡±


    Anna responded, and I burst outughing.


    ¡°What¡¯s funny?¡±


    My mom asked giving me a dirty look, she too didn¡¯t want any of us to leave, she even tried talking to Dad to let someone else run the New York office while Kathy and I return home to Arizona permanently, but I didn¡¯t want that, I was used to New York and no matter how much I wanna stay here in Arizona, I couldn¡¯t think of staying here permanently not to mention Kathy has to finish school, okay that wasn¡¯t an excuse but still.


    ¡°Anna, we wille visiting soon and you cane and visit too,¡±


    Kathy said, I smiled at her as she hugged Anna.


    ¡°I have to believe you, mom, it¡¯s back to being just the two of us again, you are my only true best friend,¡±


    She said walking to our mom.


    ¡°But it¡¯s not just the two of you though, there is dad, and the twins too,¡±


    Max said.


    ¡°I agree,¡±


    ¡°Still doesn¡¯t change the fact that mom is my only true best friend, the both of you especially Max, you guys are bad, I don¡¯t like you,¡±


    ¡°Bruh, you love us,¡±


    ¡°Unfortunately, pleasee visit soon, I am going to call and disturb you guys every day,¡±


    ¡°Of course, we will,¡±


    Max and I chorused.


    ¡°I am gonna miss you guys a lot, thank you for everything Crossie and Maxie,¡±


    ¡°No please don¡¯t call me that, my name is Max,¡±


    Maxined, he didn¡¯t like the nickname Anna gave him but I was different, I like her calling me that, my baby sister was cute.


    ¡°Let it be Max, it suits you,¡±


    I said to him.


    ¡°No it doesn¡¯t, I hate it,¡±


    ¡°This is why I don¡¯t like you, Max,¡±


    Annained, my mom came to the rescue before they could start their usual bickering, they were always fighting but they both have the closest bond, Max hade running to Arizona from South Africa right after she gave birth and has been doing papa duty withoutining, which was a surprise because Max wasn¡¯t the domestic type, he was as much of a sucker for Anna as I was.


    ¡°Okay, enough people, the travelers are going to miss their flights, and Anna you need to rest before those cuties wake up,¡±


    Our mom said.


    ¡°Okay time to go wifey,¡±


    I said to Kathy pulling her to me as Anna pouted again, I knew she was gonna end up crying when we leave but like I promised her we were going to be more regr in visiting so she is gonna get used to it soon.


    ¡°Bye Crossie, I love you,¡±


    ¡°I love you too Anna, take care of yourself and my godchildren,¡±


    I said hugging one-sided while still holding on to my wife who joined the hug.


    ¡°I will you take care too and call me when you guys get home,¡±


    ¡°We will,¡±


    I said as we made to walk out of the room.


    ¡°What about me? Don¡¯t I get any I love you and hugs?¡±


    Max asked.


    ¡°Get it from thosedies in South Africa,¡±


    Anna said and left the room, we all followed herughing as Mad grumbled behind us, Anna had to go with the twin nanny to check on them so she bid us goodbye and went up to the kids¡¯ room, me, my mom together with Max and Kathy went out of the house to where the cars were parked.


    ¡°Remember all I told you, my dear? Don¡¯t stress yourself and don¡¯t let this guy out of your eyes,¡±


    My mom said to Kathy for the hundredth time and I had to resist rolling my eyes.


    ¡°Mom, she has heard you, thank you,¡±


    I said and helped Kathy into the car and got on the other side, Max was going to leave after we do, he said he had something to do before he goes, I didn¡¯t bother to ask him since his flight wasn¡¯t until eleven am unlike ours that was by eight-thirty.


    ¡°Alright, see you guys around,¡±


    I said as the driver taking us to the airport started the car.


    ¡°Come visit soon,¡±


    ¡°We will, mom,¡±


    Kathy said as they waved at each other.


    ¡°She looks sad,¡±


    She voiced when we left the house and Iughed, my mom always look that way whenever we were leaving the house.


    ¡°She is used to it, Anna is the one I am more worried about but she will get used to it too,¡±


    ¡°I hope so,¡±


    ¡°She will, now Mrs. Salvador, it¡¯s time to go live our life together, how do you feel?¡±


    ¡°I feel happy and at the same time sleepy, I woke you early,¡±


    ¡°You are an early riser so why are youining about waking up early?¡±


    I asked drawing her close to me, she rested on my shoulders.Exclusive content from N?velDrama.Org.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know it might be the pregnancy hormones,¡±


    ¡°Oh, that, well you can get some sleep while we get to the airport and finish up during the flight,¡±


    I said patting her back softly.


    ¡°Feels good,¡±


    She whispered snuggling closer.


    ¡°I love baby girl, and I can¡¯t wait to be with you now and forever,¡±


    ¡°I love you too, I am going to be with you forever,¡±


    ¡°Sounds like a n,¡±


    I said and kissed her as the car zoned to the airport, our lives were gonna be so great in New York I just know it¡­

 Chapter 80

    Cross Pov


    ¡°You finally decided toe back to the base family man?¡±


    Dean said in greeting as he worked into the house, I didn¡¯t go to work because I wanted to spend some time with Kathy, but the crazydy ditched me and was out on a date with Marilyn, she picked Marilyn over me, which had sucked and I had wined and pouted but she said she had to go see her and say hi, I had no choice than to suck it up and stay home, which is why I had called Dean who showed up four hourster.


    ¡°It¡¯s good to see you too man, even though Anna said I should not talk to you again for noting to see her,¡±


    I replied getting up from the chair to wee him.


    ¡°Aha, Anna, I called her this morning and she is still angry at me but I told her I wille to see her soon, she wanna meet Grace too but Grace doesn¡¯t wanna meet her, she doesn¡¯t like people,¡±


    He replied sitting on the chair opposite me and grabbing a ss, I poured him wine.


    ¡°How is she though? How are you guys?¡±


    ¡°She is fine, I guess but still doesn¡¯t talk to me much except when she was in a good mood but it is better than before and she is seeing her therapist again, she hasn¡¯t gotten into any troubles recently so I can say there is a lot of progress,¡±


    He answered.


    ¡°That¡¯s good to know, I hope she gets back on her feet and does things right,¡±


    ¡°Yeah me too, where I¡¯d your wife? And why are you sittingzily at home doing nothing?¡±


    ¡°My wife ditched me and I stayed home to be with her but she choose to go out with her friend,¡±


    ¡°Boo, sorry, but really I am happy you have been able to work things out between you two, I have never seen you look as happy and contented as you are right now talking about her,¡±


    ¡°Yeah, you can say that again and the fact that she gave me a chance is still surreal for me, I am so thankful though, and I won¡¯t even take her for granted,¡±


    I replied, it¡¯s been really blissful, from the time we spent in Arizona to getting back here, the whole ofst night we spent talking and making ns for when our baby will be born, at the beginning of the year, I never thought I wanted to be married or have family and all I can think of is my family, the family that Kathy and I are gonna make together, just the thought of it can fill my whole day and I won¡¯t get bored, and as Kathy would say, I am thankful to our parents.


    ¡°Now you make me wanna go start a family too, but unlike you, I am not so lucky when ites to women, in fact right or should I say for a while now I haven¡¯t been with any woman,¡±


    He said and I took a step back from thinking about my own and looked at him, this was the first time Dean was talking about starting a home and he looked genuine.


    ¡°What about Grace?¡±


    ¡°What? Grace is off limit, can¡¯t go there, she still isn¡¯t cool with me after what happened,¡±


    He said shaking his head, but I disagreed with him, I think they were a perfect match, he knew her better than anyone else just like she did with him and they had the hots for each other.


    ¡°Are you sure? I think you guys will make a great couple,¡±


    I voiced.


    ¡°Nah, dude, you are just programming your happiness and lovey-dovey moments with your woman on me, let¡¯s not talk about this okay?¡±


    He said and I respected his wish.


    ¡°So, have you spoken with her again?¡±


    He asked after a long pause.


    ¡°Who?¡±


    ¡°Her, I mean your ex, what¡¯s her name again?¡±


    ¡°Ginna?¡±


    ¡°Yes, her, have you spoken to her since?¡±


    ¡°No, I blocked her and do not want to have anything to do with her again not after what happened, she lies a lot, I don¡¯t want to do anything that will ruin this happiness I have now,¡±


    I replied, I had made sure I won¡¯te across Ginna again, I blocked her and made sure she couldn¡¯t contact me or Kathy again there was no way I was going to let here back into my life and ruin itBelongs to ? n0velDrama.Org.


    ¡°Cool, though I did meet her once,¡±


    ¡°Where?¡±


    I asked.


    ¡°At the club, I took Grace out to get some fresh air when she asked and I met her there, she didn¡¯t know who I was, she was with this guy, she moved on from you pretty quick because the guy looked loaded and they were all over each other,¡±


    He revealed.


    ¡°Good for her, maybe she finally found her match, at least,¡±


    I said, if only she could stick with him and not mess it up too, despite everything that happened I didn¡¯t hate her and wished she could have a good life, I hoped she can find happiness too.


    ¡°Yeah, so let¡¯s talk business, I have a few ideas to talk to you about,¡±


    He said changing the topic to something we both like and had inmon.


    ¡°Alright, bro hit me,¡±


    I said replied, we spent the rest of the morning discussing business and by the time he left after two, I went to prepare lunch for my wife hoping that she will be back in time, I wasn¡¯t great in the kitchen so I had help from Nora who spent most of the time telling me to leave her kitchen, Ddaeng, but I didn¡¯t leave I told her I wanted to feed my wife so she spared me, my day went pretty much great, the only thing missing was my beautiful wife and I couldn¡¯t wait for her to get back home so I could cuddle with her¡­

 Chapter 81

    Kathy Pov


    ¡°I am home,¡±


    I announced as I walked into the house and before long my husbande running from upstairs, the dude dramatically raised me and twirled me around.


    ¡°Finally, I thought you were going to spend the whole day there, I was almost going to call her but decided not to since I don¡¯t wanna be an over clingy husband,¡±


    He voiced, I smiled at him and gave him a peck.


    ¡°Good boy, I had a lot to talk about with Marilyn and we went to get our nails done too,¡±


    I replied showing him my fingers, he held them and kissed them.


    ¡°Pretty, I made lunch,¡±


    He answered proudly.


    ¡°Really? Nora let you in the kitchen?¡±


    ¡°Yes, she helped too,¡±


    ¡°What did you make?¡±


    ¡°Spaghetti, meatballs and sauce,¡±


    ¡°Ohh, sounds delicious, let¡¯s go check it out,¡±


    I said as he walked with me into the kitchen, Nora smiled and greeted me.


    ¡°Your husband worked hard for the meal, he did a good job,¡±


    She revealed.


    ¡°That¡¯s cool, I can¡¯t wait to taste it,¡±


    I said sitting by the table, he sat next to me smiling brightly while serving me.


    ¡°This taste so good, you get a reward for this,¡±


    I said when I tasted the food, it did taste good, I kissed him softly and gave a thumb up, he smiled happily.


    ¡°That¡¯s such a small reward though, I even burnt my hand while cooking,¡±


    He revealed.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, you get more rewards when I am done eating,¡±


    I whispered so that Nora won¡¯t hear, not that she would have anyway because she was at the far end of the big kitchen, looked like she was baking something, the woman was always baking.


    ¡°Sounds like a good n, I can¡¯t wait,¡±


    Cross said and kissed me softly again.


    ¡°Eat up baby,¡±


    He added spooning more spaghetti and sauce into my te, I smiled and continued eating, being pregnant increased my eating and I loved it.


    ¡°So, how did your day go?¡±


    I asked wiping my mouth clean with a paper towel.


    ¡°Boring, Dean came by and left, I was missing you so much that I had to cook to take my mind off it as I didn¡¯t want to disturb your time with Marilyn,¡±


    He said with a pout.


    ¡°Uh-huh, my baby, I am here now, you can have me to yourself,¡±


    I said as I picked up the tes I used and dumped them in the sink, I quickly washed them beforeing back to him.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go to our room so that I can reward you for lunch,¡±


    I said pulling him along with me.


    ¡°Yes, mydy,¡±


    He golfed, we went up into our room, I backed him against the door kissing him while he took off my clothes, and before long we were both naked and on each other, I spent the rest of the afternoon rewarding him¡­


    ****¡±¡±


    ¡°Are you sure you can get to school yourself? I can drop you off before going to the airport,¡±


    Cross said while walking me to my car, we have been back in New York for over two weeks now and life has gone back to normal, a good normal, magical and sweet in every way, Cross was a doting and protective husband, he was flying to California for some business but wanted to to go drop me off at school first which of course I refused, I wasn¡¯t sick, I was just pregnant.


    ¡°I can get to school just fine Mr. Just take care of yourself and call me when you get to California,¡±


    I answered kissing him before going over to open my car.


    ¡°I don¡¯t wanna go without you, can¡¯t you just skip school ande with me?¡±


    He whined.


    ¡°No, no, go inside, I love you and will see you when you get back, it¡¯s just a two days trip, I am notfortable traveling right now, remember what the doctor said right?¡±


    ¡°Yes, you are not to stress yourself,¡±


    ¡°God, now let¡¯s keep to that, see you,¡±


    ¡°You act as if you want me gone, are you nning to throw a party and invite your friends while I am gone?¡±


    He asked and I rolled my eyes as he walked to where I was.


    ¡°Just go inside already Mr. I have to get to school,¡±


    ¡°God, I am going to miss you, I hate being away from you,¡±


    He said pulling me for a hug.


    ¡°Me too, but it¡¯s just a two days trip, so we are going to be fine,¡±


    I said patting his back.


    ¡°I love you and I am going to call you every minute,¡±


    He said dropping kisses all over my face.


    ¡°Of course, you have to,¡±


    I replied.


    ¡°Okay, time to go, I love you,¡±


    I said pushing him off after onest kiss.


    ¡°I love you more,¡±


    He replied and stole another kiss, I got into my car and shut the door before he could stop me again, I watched him wave at me through the side mirror and I as brave as I was acting in his presence I was already missing him but the trip was one he couldn¡¯t miss, it was a huge deal for him, I cleared my head off all thoughts and drive carefully to the school while listening to my new favorite boyband Tomorrow by Together new song, it was a bomb, Lovesong.


    My phone rang as I got to the school parking lot and I brought it out to see that it was the number again, the number that has been calling all week.


    ¡°Hello? Who is this and what do you want from me?¡±


    I asked as I picked up the call, whoever it was wasn¡¯t saying anything as it has been for the whole week, I was beginning to think whoever it was is just bored and looking for ways to entertain himself or herself because they don¡¯t say a word and just hang up each time, I expected the person to do the same like they always do but this time they said something.


    ¡°Hello Katherine, it¡¯s been a while, how have you missed me, my little princess?¡±


    The caller asked, the voice sounded familiar but for some weird reasons I couldn¡¯t remember where I heard it before.Owned by N?velDrama.Org.

 Chapter 82

    Kathy POV


    ¡°Who are you?¡±


    I questioned


    ¡°Why mydy? Have you forgotten about me so quickly? It wasn¡¯t long ago that you were in my bed screaming for me to fuck you harder I can still remember clearly how you scream that you want more,¡±


    ¡°Louis? It¡¯s you? What do you want from me?¡±


    I shouted as I realized who it was that have been disturbing my line, how he got my number I couldn¡¯t make out but I remember Pearl telling me he had my contact, he hadn¡¯t contacted me all these while so I had thought she had been lying, turns out she wasn¡¯t.


    ¡°Calm down mydy, we have a lot of unfinished business remember? I can still remember our reunion months ago, although it wasn¡¯t the wee I expected,¡±


    He said I knew he was talking about when we met at my school.


    ¡°And I remember telling you not to show your face near me again, what do you want from me Louis or might I say, Dn?¡±


    ¡°I see you have done some research, good, yes, you have something I want and I have something you would not want the public to see, so I am calling to offer you a good deal that will leave the both of us satisfied,¡±


    He echoed.


    ¡°What nonsense are you going on about Louis? I don¡¯t have time for your shits,¡±


    ¡°I see you still have that bad mouth of yours, well good for you, I am only here to do business,¡±


    ¡°Cut to the chase moron, I have a lot on my te this morning, I need to get to ss so it either you talk or get off my phone,¡±


    I barked.


    ¡°Alright, I will let you go to ss, I will call you backter, and you better not block me or avoid my calls as doing so will annoy me and you know I hate getting provoked,¡±


    He said and ended the call before I could say anything else, I needed to get to ss so I just picked my bag and got out my car, almost running into the ss, I got there just in time before the lecturer was in, even though I was in ss I wasn¡¯t there because through out the lecture all my mind could think about was what Louis meant by what he said, what kind of unfinished business did we have, I knew I shouldn¡¯t let it bother me because he didn¡¯t have anything he would use against but at the same time, Pearl had said he had something and with the way he was talking I couldn¡¯t shake it off, I listened as much as I could and was d when the lectures were finally over for the day, I left the ss immediately, got into my car and drove home, by the time I got home it was already past three pm in he afternoon, Cross didn¡¯t leave until ten am so I doubt he would be in California already, I was expecting his call seeing that he hasn¡¯t called means he wasn¡¯t there yet, I took a bath and ate lunch, all the while checking my phone, I was expecting Louis to call back too, and the waiting made me anxious, I wanted to know what he had, I fell asleep while waiting for either Cross or Louis to call and was woke by the ringing of my phone, I picked up without checking the caller.


    ¡°Hello, princess, I guess you are free now?¡±


    Louis¡¯s voice echoed over the phone and I got up from the bed, with sleep clearing off.


    ¡°Go straight to the point Louis, what were you talking about?¡±


    ¡°You will hear it soon, there is no reason for the rush,¡±


    He responded.


    ¡°I do not have time to y a word game with you, so you better start talking,¡±


    I replied pissed.Belongs to ? n0velDrama.Org.


    ¡°Okay, since you wanna do business, let¡¯s talk business,¡±


    ¡°Huh? I don¡¯t have any business with you, Louis, stop deluding yourself,¡±


    ¡°We will see about that princess, just so you know, the pain you inflicted on me thest time we met took quite a while to heal and I treated myself with money and you have to pay me back,¡±


    ¡°You must be out of your mind Louis, honestly,¡±


    I replied, wondering why I thought he really had something in the first ce, it was clear he needed money and was just looking for ways to get it from me which I wasn¡¯t going to fall for, by the way, I know better than to do that.


    ¡°Yeah, you can say that, because if I wasn¡¯t then you won¡¯t be talking right now without feeling half the pain I felt, I must be out of my mind to let you walk away untouched after you almost left me impotent with people watching but I am a forgiving man so I will let you off but you are going to pay from my treatment, if not your husband will get twice what you did to me,¡±


    He said, it got me scared for a moment, only for a moment.


    ¡°You can¡¯t do anything Louis, you are nothing and I am not going to give you my money,¡±


    I replied.


    ¡°You will, in fact, you will beg me to take your money when I tell you what I have,¡±


    ¡°What the fuck do you have Louis? Get it out or get the fuck out, pick a fucking h***¡±


    Whatever I was going to say was cut off by his next words never in a million years would I have thought that would be what he had, never, my head spinner as I reimagined his words.


    ¡°I have our tapes, a lot of them,¡±


    Those words kept reying in my head.


    ¡°Are you not going to say a word? You don¡¯t believe me? I just sent you a photo,¡±


    He said and I moved my phone from my ears and checked it was a photo of me without clothing on, my legs spread apart, it didn¡¯t show my face though.


    ¡°You believe me now? So you better do as I say or this will hit the,¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s it? That¡¯s what you have? Fuck you, Louis, that doesn¡¯t prove anything if you can¡¯t even prove that it is me,¡±


    I said, willing myself not to give in to his maniption, he was doing this to get money from me and I will be a fool to fall for it, that photo can be anyone else too.


    ¡°Oh, bitch, you think that¡¯s all? I have more from where that came from, more with your face on it, I am sending more right now,¡±


    He replied and I felt sick¡­

 Chapter 83

    Kathy Pov


    ¡°Why are you doing this Louis? Just why? Haven¡¯t you done enough? You stole from me, left me with nothing, now you are back? How can you be so inhuman?¡±


    I asked, I couldn¡¯t believe how evil the man I once thought I loved was, how can he be so heartless? Why didn¡¯t I see through him? Now he was back in my life using the intimate moment that we shared in the past, moments that I didn¡¯t even know was been captured, he was filming me with motives and I didn¡¯t even know, I felt used, felt vited, felt angry, but at the end of the day there was nothing much I could do, I knew what he wanted.


    ¡°What do you want?¡±


    ¡°You know what I want Kathy princess, of course, I want money, as you might have known the one I got before is almost running out and I have suffered enough, I can¡¯t suffer more so, you do the needful or else these shits will hit the tabloid in no time, you know I just have to give them the photos with your face shown and your reputation and that of your families, I mean your parents and your husband¡¯s family¡¯s reputation, everything, I am not asking for much, I am not really greedy,¡±


    He said with mock concerncing his voice, I felt nauseous.


    ¡°So you are ckmailing me? For money? How can you be so greedy and uncultured? Why can¡¯t you work like your mate? Scamming me wasn¡¯t enough now you wanna ckmail me to and this time with our intimate past, I wasn¡¯t even aware I was getting filmed how could you do that to me? How could you invade my privacy?¡±


    I yelled at the phone.


    ¡°You better lower your temper, you know I hate being shouted on, I just sent you a video, you will make a good porn star, even though I am the one who fucked you I still get turned on by our tapes, one thing I can never deny is that you were great in bed, no wonder you can trap that fool, anyway, I sent a video, check it out, bearing in mind that there is more where thates from, every of our time together, every time you screamed for me, every time you begged for more, all, I wonder how your husband will look at you after he sees those videos of you begging for more, remember? How you beg?¡±


    ¡°Shut the fuck up, you son of the devil shut the fuck up, you are ao evil,¡±


    I yelled I couldn¡¯t take it anymore, he was right, I was a fool, I did beg him, I begged him to fuck me countless times, I felt ashamed thinking of those times, but he was at fault, he always left me hanging until I beg him, almost every time we slept together, now I know he had a motive, this was why, God, I didn¡¯t even know what to do and the jerk wasughing at me, he was having fun doing this to me, I knew I said I won¡¯t give him money but if he had all those tapes as he said, then I might not have any choice because I don¡¯t want anyone to see those things, photos? That was easy but if the videos, if he truly had them hit the, then the loss might be too big for me, how will Cross see me? Will he still be married to me? What about my family? How am I going to face them?


    ¡°Aha, it finally entered, the video is in, you can check now,¡±


    I heard him say and moved my phone from my ears, hands shaking I clicked on the video, I dropped my phone as my hands flew to my mouth, hot year gathered in my eyes, he did have, he wasn¡¯t ying around, he had videos, the one he set was of me sucking him off, he did well to hide his face but mine was showing, I felt disgusted watching it and stopped.


    ¡°What do you want?¡±


    ¡°I already told you, money, you are loaded, your family is rich, your husband¡¯s family too, do it won¡¯t be hard,¡±


    ¡°How much do you want? Name your price I can¡¯t take this madness anymore, just name your price,¡±


    I requested, the worst price he will request will be fifty million and although I didn¡¯t have up to that with me, I can get it soon, I just wanted him to leave me alone.


    ¡°Five hundred million dors,¡±


    He voiced, at first, I thought I might have heard him wrong.


    ¡°What did you say?¡±


    ¡°You heard me, princess, five hundred million or I am selling these to different media house, think about it, I can make more but I am just being nice for old time sake,¡±


    He answered, I hadn¡¯t heard him wrong, he really said five hundred million, where did he expect me to get that impossible amount of money? He was really heartless.


    ¡°How do you expect me to get such a huge sum of money? Are you out of your mind? Five hundred million? That¡¯s an impossible amount of money that I can¡¯t even raise in two or three years and you want me to pay such a huge amount?¡±Exclusive content from N?velDrama.Org.


    ¡°I told you not to raise your voice in me, you are making me angry, yes I want five hundred million, so you better get it ready, you just have two weeks or I am selling off, don¡¯t do something stupid because it might cause your families more than that and you know it,¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t have that kind of money, don¡¯t you get it? I don¡¯t,¡±


    I said, as I struggled to stay sane, this was beyond me, breathing was getting hard, I breath in and out to steady myself, but even that didn¡¯t help much.


    ¡°Well, you have to go look for it, I am not a very patient man, I have other things to do so I will be off now, you can get back to me through this line, from seven pm every day, bye-bye princess, don¡¯t miss me so much,¡±


    He said and hung up even when I told him not to, I couldn¡¯t believe what was happening, I so wished for it all to be just a horrible dream I was having because I was missing Cross but no matter how I blink and pinch myself I just couldn¡¯t wake up from the horrible dream, five hundred million? Where am I going to get such money from? Even if I sell off my shares and ask for my inheritance, I still can¡¯t raise that much money on my own, that was Impossible, even if I ask for help what will I tell them I wanna do with such a huge sum of money? Louis was unbelievable, he was mad, he was everything but at the end, of the day it was all my fault, I should have listened when Juliet tried to warn me multiple times but I was foolish enough, I believe my stupid heart that I was in love with him and that he loved me too, I should have seen all the red gs, he had been so secretive and so unpredictable, but I hadn¡¯t seen those shining red gs, how do I deal with this?


    I thought pacing up and down in my room, my phone rang and I calmed myself thinking it was Cross, but it still wasn¡¯t him, this number have called before but I couldn¡¯t remember who it was, I picked up anyway.

 Chapter 84

    Kathy POV


    ¡°Hello?¡±


    ¡°Katherine, it me Pearl,¡±


    ¡°Oh my God, Pearl,¡±


    I voiced, I hadn¡¯t expected her to be the one, no wonder the number was familiar, I had tried calling her a few times but there was no response so I had given up and deleted the number.


    ¡°By the tone of your voice, I am guessing Dn already called you?¡±


    ¡°Yes he did Pearl, he wants me to give him money, an impossible amount of money, I don¡¯t even know what to do?¡±


    I said before thinking if I could trust Pearl, what if they were working together? I mean he just ended our call and she is already calling, I didn¡¯t want to be made a fool of by the two of them again.


    ¡°Don¡¯t give him money Katherine, talk to your husband instead, even if you have the money don¡¯t give it to him, if you pay him now he will keeping back for more, just tell your husband,¡±


    She advised and I decided to believe her, give her the benefit of doubt but there was no way I was going to tell Cross this, what if he asks for the video Louis sent? Would he still look at me the same? I couldn¡¯t bear to see him look at me differently, I couldn¡¯t risk it.


    ¡°I know what you are thinking Katherine but I am telling you that it will be best not to give him anything, I will do my best to help, I still have ess to him, I will try and made if I can I can delete those things, he shouldn¡¯t have had them in the first ce, I feel so bad for the role I yed in all of this,¡±


    She let out.


    ¡°Why are you helping me Pearl? I thought you hate me,¡±


    I couldn¡¯t resist asking, we never got along and her offering to help me so suddenly still felt surreal.Owned by N?velDrama.Org.


    ¡°I am trying to make things right Katherine, back then I didn¡¯t know what I had been involved, I wanted a family and security and Dn have me that, at least I thought so then but now, I have finally experienced true happiness and now I regret everything I want to make things right if I can, that way I can be happy for real,¡±


    She revealed, she sounded sincere.


    ¡°He is requesting for what I can¡¯t even give, five hundred million, that¡¯s what he wants,¡±


    I disclosed.


    ¡°That bastard, that¡¯s an impossible sum of money, his greed keeps increasing, God, I can¡¯t believe I yed a role in this, I am sorry Katherine,¡±


    She apologized.


    ¡°It¡¯s okay, at least you are trying to help me, can we meet up at least?¡±


    ¡°No, I can¡¯t, if he finds out I am talking to you, he will be mad and his anger is worst than you think it is, let¡¯s just keep talking through the phone,¡±


    ¡°Okay, I understand,¡±


    ¡°Talk to your husband Katherine, don¡¯t give Dn your money, don¡¯t let him use you again,¡±


    ¡°I can¡¯t, I don¡¯t want Cross to see those videos, what if he hates me? I can¡¯t live with that Pearl, I can¡¯t live with him hating and looking at me with disgust,¡±


    I reply as I started crying.


    ¡°Don¡¯t cry girl, we will find a way but you have to tell him if he loves you he will understand, you guys were dating then, it was in the past, just don¡¯t keep things from him, yet will make it worst, him finding out you kept things from him, don¡¯t do that Katherine,¡±


    ¡°Okay, thank you so much, Pearl,¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s nothing, I will call again but for now talk to your husband,¡±


    She advised and our call ended, I felt some kind of peace despite everything, talking with her felt like I was talking to a friend, it felt like how it used to feel when I talk with Marilyn, I thought about what she said, and decided she was right, keeping things from Cross will be worst, even if he ends up hating me I had to tell him, but he was all the way in California and wouldn¡¯t be back until the day after tomorrow, as if on cue my phone rang with his name shing on the screen, I tried topose myself and act like all was well as much as I could before taking the call.


    ¡°My love, sorry I didn¡¯t call you, I got into a meeting as soon as Inded, how are you baby?¡±


    He asked and I replied, we talk for a few minutes more, nothing much just our usual sweet-talking, I missed him so much and wanted him to be here with me.


    ¡°Baby, I need to rest, I will call you tomorrow after my meeting, I have a seven am meeting tomorrow,¡±


    He said and yawned, he sounded tired, I wanted to talk to him more but I didn¡¯t want him tired.


    ¡°Alright,¡±


    ¡°I love you, baby,¡±


    ¡°I love you too Cross,¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to hang up but I have to, I hate being apart from you, I want you with me,¡±


    ¡°Me too,¡±


    I replied, I wanted to tell him but I didn¡¯t want him to be bothered by that since the meeting he was having was an important one, I decided I will wait until he gets back to tell him.


    ¡°Cross?¡±


    ¡°Yes, baby,¡±


    ¡°When you get back, I have something to tell you,¡±


    ¡°Can¡¯t you tell me now?¡±


    ¡°No,¡±


    ¡°Is it bad?


    ¡°Not really, I will just tell you when you get back,¡±


    ¡°Okay baby,¡±


    He said and yawned again.


    ¡°Get some sleep Cross I will talk to you tomorrow, I love you,¡±


    ¡°I love you more,¡±


    He said and went silent, a few momentster I could hear his snores, I let out a softugh and listened to him sleep for a few moments before I hung up, Iid on the bed willing myself to fall asleep without thinking, I needed to rest, Iid my hands on my tummy and apologized to my little one for all the stress I caused her today because of my stupid past, because of my past foolishness, I fell asleep to my baby moving with me¡­

 Chapter 85

    Cross Pov


    ¡°Wifey? I thought you will be home? I am here and you are not around, where are you girl?¡±


    I asked as I sat in the bedroom, I decided to return from my trip a day before I was scheduled to as I finished my meeting in the early hours of today so I decided to juste home since there was nothing else for me to do there, I was hoping to meet Kathy at home since it was past time for sses, I wanted to surprise her but she wasn¡¯t here when I got back and Nora said she did return from school but left a while ago, maybe she went to visit Marilyn or she went to get something.Exclusive content from N?velDrama.Org.


    ¡°Oh my God, I didn¡¯t know you wereing back today, I am actually at the hospital,¡±


    She disclosed and I shut up from the bed, okay that didn¡¯te to my mind.


    ¡°What? What happened? Why are there? Why didn¡¯t you call me? Are you okay?¡±


    ¡°One question at a time Cross, I am fine,¡±


    She said, I wasn¡¯t convinced, her voice didn¡¯t sound like she was fine, I hurriedly put on my shirt while still on the phone with her.


    ¡°Which hospital are you in? Send the location,¡±


    ¡°No, babe, there is no need for you toe here you just got back, you need to rest,¡±


    ¡°I will rest when I get back with you, now don¡¯t make me ask again, just send it,¡±


    I said with authority, ain¡¯t no way I was gonna sit here and be worried while she was alone at the hospital, I wondered if this visit had something to do with what she had to tell me, I have been wondering all day since I got up from bed, even during my meeting, I just hope she was okay and our baby too.


    ¡°Okay, fine,¡±


    ¡°I will be there soon, wait for me, I love you,¡±


    I said getting out of the house into my car, I was still feeling tired from not getting enough sleepst night and the y ride to New York but my wife and kid were more important than sleep.


    ¡°I love you too,¡±


    She replied, I didn¡¯t like how she sounded, it made me scared, I drove towards the location she had given, it didn¡¯t take up to fifteen minutes to get there, I met a receptionist at the front desk and ask for directions to the doctor¡¯s office, but she said I had to call the person I was here to see since she wasn¡¯t an inpatient.


    ¡°Hey babe, I am at the front desk where are you?¡±


    ¡°Oh, I had to go do a scan, ask for directions to the scan room,¡±


    She voiced, she sounded scared.


    ¡°Okay, please the scan room?¡±


    I asked thedy and she pointed me in the direction, I almost walked fast towards it, I met her at the reception, she looked so lonely and scared, my heart hurt at the sight, at least I was here now, what if I had not decided to return? I will be at the hotel probably sleeping while she was here looking so alone, I knew she wouldn¡¯t have called and would have acted like it¡¯s nothing big when she tell me about it.


    ¡°Kathy,¡±


    I called and she looked up and smiled at me.


    ¡°You came,¡±


    She let out as I walked up to where she was seated, did she think I won¡¯t?


    ¡°Of course I did baby, I told you I am on my way, are you okay? What happened?¡±


    I asked hugging her close.


    ¡°I am okay, but our baby might not be, I have done the test but the results are not yet out and also I have done the scan to be sure,¡±


    She let out tearing up.


    ¡°What happened?¡±


    I asked softly wiping the tears off.


    ¡°I felt headache when I woke up this morning and took some painkillers and went to school but throughout when I was in ss I wasn¡¯tfortable and when I got home, I decided to rest thinking I overstressed myself but when I woke up, the difort was worst and o saw spots of blood when I went to pee so I came to the hospital,¡±


    She exined, I admit that I was scared too but I couldn¡¯t let her see that, it won¡¯t help if both of us are scared, I just hope that our baby was fine and it¡¯s just a norm.


    ¡°When will it be your turn?¡±


    I asked pulling her closer, just then a doctor walked up to us and told us to follow him, I helped her up and we both worked into the room where the scan will be done, Kathy¡¯s hands were cold and she looked so scared, I wish there was a way of taking all her fears.


    ¡°Doctor? Is our baby okay?¡±


    I asked thedy who was in charge, unlike the first scan we had done, thisdy was quiet, too quiet, her silence increased my fears.


    ¡°I can¡¯t say much sir, I will forward the result to her doctor and he will be the one to exin,¡±


    She answered, that didn¡¯t do anything to help and Kathy was almost crying.


    ¡°When can we meet this doctor?¡±


    I asked anxiously.


    ¡°Right now,¡±


    ¡°But is our kid doing okay?¡±


    ¡°Yes, at least for now, you have to see the doctor and have a word to get the full details, I can only say so much but don¡¯t worry, everything will be fine, at least if you do the right thing,¡±


    She responded, I couldn¡¯t figure out if I was being too nervous or she was just being rude to us, so I thanked her and helped my wife up, we went together to where the somewhat rudedy had shown us, it still took some time to be able to speak with the doctor, when we finally met her, she smiled at us.

 Chapter 86

    Cross pov


    ¡°You look too tensed, that¡¯s not good for the baby my dear,¡±


    The older-looking woman said she was much more friendly, and hearing her words helped reduce the tension I was feeling.


    ¡°Doc, is my baby okay?¡±


    ¡°Yes, very okay, there was just a little bit of restraining and the baby wasn¡¯t doing good for a little while but it all good now,¡±


    She exined and I let out a sigh of relief and looked at my wife who whispered words that I could imagine to be ¡®thank you God¡¯s


    ¡°But what caused the bleeding then?¡±


    She asked and I turned back to the doctor who smiled at us again


    ¡°That is pretty normal for some women, it¡¯s normal to get a few spotting and has nothing to do with why the baby was restless which was what lead to your difort,¡±


    ¡°Could I ask why the baby was restless? Might there be a reason for that?¡±


    I asked.


    ¡°Yes, a lot of can cause that, first is using painkillers that are too strong and not advisable during pregnancy,¡±


    ¡°I did take painkillers, I had a headache when I woke and took some aspirin,¡±


    ¡°Oh, Aspirin is okay, drugs ibuprofen is what should be avoided, did you take anything else apart from this,¡±


    She asked and Kathy shook her head no.


    ¡°Then, maybe the mostmon fact is stress, did an event happen recently that made you stressed?¡±


    ¡°Yes, yesterday I was stressed, could that be it?¡±Content is property of N?velDrama.Org.


    ¡°I am guessing so if you are strained it will affect the baby that is why we advise that you take things lightly and not overstrain yourself especially during the early and thete days of the pregnancy, stressing yourself is not good for the baby, you should take a break,¡±


    The doctor said, Kathy and I both nodded, I wondered what had happened that had stressed her, could it be school? Or was it rted to what she had to tell me?


    ¡°Thank you so much, Doc,¡±


    She said and I realized the doctor was done.


    ¡°Doc, she still goes to Uni is it advisable for her to continue seeing that she is easily stressed?¡±


    ¡°Of course, she can go to school, she just had to take everything easy, it¡¯s still the early stage and so cares, care, care, she can still go about her normal life, it¡¯s not an illness, she just has to eat well, stay fit both physically and mentally and she will be going to go, and since this is her first pregnancy, she should exercise more to keep the baby and herself in shape,¡±


    She advised, we thanked her again and we left the hospital together.


    ¡°Are you okay Kathy?¡±


    I asked as I helped hery on the bed, she looked down and sad even though the doctor had assured us that our baby was doing fine and it got me worried, throughout the ride from the hospital she hadn¡¯t said a word to me and I didn¡¯t like her silence but I left her alone thinking she was still in shock over what happened.


    ¡°Yes,¡±


    ¡°But you don¡¯t look fine, the doctor said the baby is doing okay but you still look so sad, what¡¯s going on?¡±


    I asked holding her hands, she looked up at me as tears gathered in her eyes again.


    ¡°Hey, baby, don¡¯t cry, it¡¯s okay, I am here now, I know you must have been so scared, sorry I wasn¡¯t here earlier,¡±


    I said wiping her tears but she shook her head.


    ¡°It¡¯s my fault, it¡¯s my fault the baby was in distress,¡±


    She cried.


    ¡°Hey, no it¡¯s not, don¡¯t beat yourself because of that, okay? It¡¯s not your fault and thank God she is fine, we just have to be careful and do as the doctor said, she is fine now that¡¯s what matters,¡±


    ¡°No, it¡¯s my fault, I am sorry Cross, I am so sorry,¡±


    She said at this point she was crying uncontrobly, I pulled her in for a hug patting her back, pregnant women were known to get overly emotional so I felt it was her hormones that were making her cry more.


    ¡°Shush, baby, it¡¯s okay, it¡¯s fine, you don¡¯t need to be sorry,¡±


    I pursued but the more I tried the harder she cried and at some point, I got scared all over again.


    ¡°Kathy? What happened? Is there something you are not telling me? What¡¯s going on?¡±


    ¡°I messed up so badly Cross and I am sorry, please don¡¯t leave me,¡±


    She begged, why will she think that I will leave her, I was so confused, she was crying hard again and wasn¡¯t even listening when I told her to calm down and tell me what happened.


    ¡°Kathy!!¡±


    I was forced to scream, she stopped crying almost immediately, looking at me, she looked so scared and shocked that I regretted shouting but she didn¡¯t give me a choice, I pulled her in for a hug.


    ¡°I am sorry baby, I didn¡¯t mean to yell at you and I am not going to leave you, so just calmly tell me what happened okay?¡±


    I requested hoping she would listen, I was anxious to know what happened and why she thought me finding out will make me leave her, nothing in the world will make me leave her, just one day without her and I couldn¡¯t stand it, how am I supposed to stay a life without her, it wasn¡¯t possible, she was stuck with me for life.


    ¡°I am sorry,¡±


    She voiced.


    ¡°What are you sorry for Kathy? What happened? Talk to me,¡±


    ¡°I was stupid and now he is using it against me,¡±


    She let out, I couldn¡¯t for the life of mine figure out what she was talking about.


    ¡°What do you mean? Who is using it against you and what is being used?¡±


    I asked calmly.


    ¡°It¡¯s Louis, he has our tape,¡±


    She disclosed. Louis? Tapes? I thought, not getting what she meant.


    ¡°What do you mean? Who is Louis?¡±


    I asked then it clicked.


    ¡°Oh my God, Kathy? Is it that Louis? Did you meet up with him? When?¡±


    I asked feeling my temperature rise, I didn¡¯t like the thought of Kathy meeting Louis and seeing that she was crying I knew it wasn¡¯t nice stuff.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t meet him, he called,¡±


    ¡°How? How did he get your contact?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡±


    ¡°So, why are you being sorry,¡±


    ¡°He has it Cross, he has our tapes, lots of them he filmed us while we slept together and is ckmailing me with them, jam so sorry Cross please don¡¯t leave me,¡±


    She said crying, but I wasn¡¯t even hearing everything she was saying my mind was stuck at the part where she said he had their sex tapes, I felt lightheaded.


    No, please no, anything else but those¡­

 Chapter 87

    Kathy Pov


    ¡°What did you say, Kathy? He has what? I didn¡¯t quite get you the first time and I am sure I heard wrong,¡±


    He said and I shook my head.


    ¡°You didn¡¯t hear wrongly Cross, he has them, Louis has our sex tapes,¡±


    I replied in a low voice filled with shame, as I watched his expression change in horror, I knew this was going to happen, I knew he was going to hate me and leave me, I shouldn¡¯t have told him, I shouldn¡¯t have listened to Marilyn or Pearl, I had spoken to Marilyn earlier today and she had said the same thing Pearl had said, they both advised me to tell my husband about it and not give Louis the money he was asking for, not like I had that kind of money anyway, plus the emotional stress had almost cost me, my unborn child, I felt sorry towards my baby for putting her through this much stress, waking up to that difort and seeing those drops of blood had been hell for me, I had been so scared that I might has lost the baby and the doctor requesting for a scan after asking me questions had increased that fear, when Cross had called I hadn¡¯t wanted him to be there to hear the bad news but he had insisted oning, the wait to find out what happened had been hellish, I didn¡¯t want to relive those moments ever again, thankfully our is still okay, and here I am again with another moment I wish didn¡¯t exist, the moment Cross hate me.


    ¡°How do you know he is not just talking? Just to get money from you because I know that¡¯s what he wants,¡±


    Cross asked and I kept my eyes down, I didn¡¯t want to look at him and see the disgusted look, I can¡¯t take it.


    ¡°He has it, he sent photos and a video,¡±


    I responded shamefully.


    ¡°Oh God, you mean he filmed you guys having se¡­, I don¡¯t even bring myself to say those words what kind of w person were you dating Kathy?¡±


    ¡°I didn¡¯t know he was a horrible person I was a fool,¡±


    I replied, hoping against all odds that Cross will still be with me and wishing he doesn¡¯t request to see the photos.


    ¡°Can I have a look at what he sent?¡±


    He asked and my heart leaped in fear, this was it, this was what I was scared of, he was going to hate me, he hasn¡¯t even seen the photos and he can¡¯t look at me again, what more if he sees them? God, I didn¡¯t want any of this, I just want it all to go away, I wanted Louis erased out of my life.


    ¡°No Cross, please no,¡±


    ¡°I just want to see,¡±


    ¡°You are going to hate me,¡±


    I whispered, but he stretched his hands requesting for my phone, I had no choice but to give it to him, I opened my bag and handed the phone to him and he silently unlocked the phone


    ¡°Where should I look?¡±


    He asked after a moment and I stood up with shaking hands to show him.


    ¡°What the fuck?¡±


    He let out when I opened the photos, I wanted to collect the phone from him and throw it away, but he moved away from where I was and went through the rest, I stood rooted there waiting for him to be done, I already knew how this will end his silence was enough proof, this was going to end badly and I am going to be hurt, I shouldn¡¯t have told him, I should have kept it to myself.


    ¡°Cross, say something,¡±


    I begged in a tiny voice that could barely be heard, he looked up at me and I bow my head down, I didn¡¯t want to see it, the look of disgust, it will kill me to see him looking at me with disgust.


    ¡°Cross?¡±


    ¡°How much is he requesting?¡±


    He asked. That wasn¡¯t the question I was expecting.


    ¡°Five hundred,¡±


    ¡°Five hundred thousand?¡±


    ¡°No, Five hundred million,¡±


    I revealed, I already knew his response before he said them.


    ¡°What the fuck? Holy shit, what kind of a demon is he? Five hundred million dors for something he filmed illegally? That¡¯s an impossible sum of money that no one will ever willingly part with, is he even for real?¡±


    He asked, his voice rising with every question.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what to do Cross, I didn¡¯t know I was being filmed, I never thought he could do much to me,¡±


    ¡°Well, I guess you never truly know people then,¡±


    He replied, he wasn¡¯t even looking at me, he had his hands over his face, I could feel my fearsing to pass, I could feel him slip away from me with every word.


    ¡°Cross,¡±


    I voiced after a couple of minutes with no words said between us.


    ¡°Gimme a little time toe to terms with this Kathy, okay?¡±


    He said and hot tears gathered in my eyes again, he needed time? my worst fear was finally confirmed I knew he wasn¡¯t going toe back to me, I knew it, I lost him and it¡¯s all my fault for being so stupid, I am the problem here, I did this to myself.Owned by N?velDrama.Org.


    ¡°Okay,¡±


    I whispered giving in to fate, maybe it wasn¡¯t in my destiny to ever be happy, because every time I think I can be happy something horrible alwayses to take my happiness away and just this year, it has happened multiple times still it hurt, it hurt because this time I was at fault, this time my past came to hurt me if only I had listened back then, Iid on the bed when he left and cried myself to sleep, even in sleep everything was horrible, I had a terrible dream where I couldn¡¯t pay Louis the money and he released the photos and videos, Cross divorced me and my parents and everyone I know left me, they couldn¡¯t stand me because of the shame I brought to them, and I couldn¡¯t even me then, I felt like trash too, it¡¯s looked so real that I cried out of sleep.

 Chapter 88

    Kathy pov


    ¡°Hey baby girl, it¡¯s fine, I am here with you,¡±


    I heard Cross say as he hugged me close, I didn¡¯t know when he came back into the room and wasn¡¯t expecting to even be there when I woke up, maybe I was dreaming this, because when he left earlier he didn¡¯t look like he wasing back, I heard the car leave but I never heard ite back in, I opened my eyes and got out of his embrace, opening and closing my eyes to make sure I wasn¡¯t dreaming it.


    ¡°It¡¯s not a dream? You are here?¡±


    I asked to be sure.


    ¡°Darling, why won¡¯t I be, I told I was going out to clear my head and I came back after,¡±


    ¡°I thought you hated me now, I thought you weren¡¯t going toe back to me, I thought I had lost you,¡±


    I cried, I seemed to be crying a lot and felt ashamed.


    ¡°Now why will you think that Kathy? I love you and that¡¯s never gonna change, it will take more than a few even if it¡¯s a lot of photos and tapes from your past rtionships to make me stop loving you, nothing can stop me, and we are a team remember,¡±


    He said. Now I was sure I was dreaming because there was no way that he still loved me, not after he saw the video of me sucking another man off, I got off the bed and ran to the restroom to wash my eyes.


    ¡°Hey, are you okay? Talk to me, Kathy,¡± you are scaring me,¡±


    He saiding after me.


    ¡°I am dreaming and I am going to hate it when I wake up and you already left me, I can¡¯t hope for you to still love me, it will be selfish of me, I can¡¯t ta**¡±


    ¡°Oh Katherine, shut the fuck up, you are not dreaming, why will I leave you over something that is not your fault? Do you think that little of me woman? I hate to admit but you guys were in a rtionship and you loved him and must have thought he did too, what if it had been me? With my past rtionship? Will you leave me just because a crazy ex brings a video of us? Baby, you forgave me for cheating on you and here you think I am going to leave you because of something that happened in the past, it¡¯s not your fault so better stop ming yourself for that bastard¡¯s shit, it¡¯s on him for being a prick, not you, the bastard should be the one ashamed and not you, you did nothing wrong, well except loving the wrong person which is still not your fault.¡±


    He let out, I couldn¡¯t believe what I was hearing, he still loved me, he doesn¡¯t me me and won¡¯t leave me, could I believe those things, am I allowed to be happy that he still choose to be with me? I don¡¯t even know if I deserve it but I wanted to ept it, wanted it to be real so bad, it will break me if I woke up and find out this was a dream.


    ¡°Look at me Kathy, look at me,¡±


    Hemanded and I looked up at his eyes, they didn¡¯t carry the hate and disgust I was scared it will carry, his eyes, they didn¡¯t hate me, they were looking at me like they still cared for me, still loved me, and were worried for me.


    ¡°Kathy, I love you, that¡¯s not going change okay? Do you get me? You are not dreaming and we will find a solution to this together because we are a team, we fight together, okay? I am not going anywhere, I am not going to leave you,¡±


    He assured which made me start crying again but this time I wasn¡¯t crying because I was sad, I was crying because I was happy.


    ¡°Hey don¡¯t cry,¡±


    He consoled, hugging me.


    ¡°I love you Cross, I don¡¯t want to ever lose you,¡±


    I let out through my tears.


    ¡°I love you more my crybaby and I am never going to leave you or let you go, don¡¯t ever think of that again, it hurt so much that you didn¡¯t believe in me,¡±


    ¡°I am sorry, but when you said you needed time toe to terms with it, I thought that was the end, that you were going to leave me,¡±


    ¡°You silly woman, I only had to clear my head as it was too much for me to handle, that didn¡¯t mean I was gonna be gone for long, I wasn¡¯t even mad at you, I would be insensitive to be mad at you over something that happened in the past, I realized you might be feeling down and need me close so I came back but you were asleep and I didn¡¯t want to wake you, then you were crying in your sleep, I am sorry I left, I shouldn¡¯t have,¡±


    He said wiping the tears off my eyes with his hands, he ced a soft kiss on my forehead.


    ¡°God, I don¡¯t know what to say,¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t say anything, just don¡¯t me yourself, and for the sake of your health and that of our baby will you stop crying, please?¡±Exclusive content from N?velDrama.Org.


    ¡°I think crying has more to do with my hormones, I can¡¯t even help it.¡±


    ¡°I figured, but it¡¯s worrying, I can¡¯t stand to see you cry, makes me sad,¡±


    He said hugging me again.


    ¡°But what am I going to do Cross? I don¡¯t have the money he is requesting for and I don¡¯t want to give him any money either but I know Louis, if he says he will release it to the public then he is going to do it, I can¡¯t stand the shame, I just can¡¯t,¡±


    I told him, voicing out all my fear.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, we are not going to give him any money, we will find a way okay? Don¡¯t stress yourself because of that, if he calls you just give me the phone, or better yet you can get a new phone and give me the one you are currently using, I will be the one to talk to him, it¡¯s about time he paid for all the shits he has been doing,¡±


    He responded, his words gave me so much assurance, I leaned into him and he hugged me close.


    ¡°I love you, Katherine, don¡¯t ever doubt that okay?¡±


    ¡°Okay, and I love you more, thank you,¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s get you to bed, you have cried too much today and need to rest, I am going to make sure that bastard pays for making you cry,¡±


    He added, and lead me to the bed, Iid down and he did too, pulling me close, I held onto him thanking God that I still had him that I didn¡¯t lose our baby and I didn¡¯t lose him¡­

 Chapter 89

    Cross Pov


    ¡°Baby, are you ready?¡±


    I asked waiting for Kathy toe downstairs


    ¡°Almost,¡±


    She replied, I rolled my eyes and sat back on the chair, she had woken up before I did but I was ready and she wasn¡¯t, I wanted her to switch all her sses to online except when she had projects or exams, I didn¡¯t want her stressing herself anymore and also I didn¡¯t want that bastard showing up at her school because he already knows she schools there, it would be safer for her to be at home, the estate security won¡¯t let any stranger without a proper means of identification pass, I n on handling the bastard myself, he won¡¯t see what wasing for him, I am just going to wait for his call.


    ¡°I am ready now, let¡¯s go,¡±


    She saiding out of our room, she looked better than she did two days ago when she had told me about what the bastard did and what he wanted from her, I had been in shock and that had led her to believe I would leave her, like that¡¯s ever going to happen, see her cry and doubt me had hurt so bad, thankfully she was on her way to recovering, I made her stay home for two straight days without going anywhere, of course, I stayed with her and would have today again but I have a minute and she had to go switch to online sses.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡±


    She said as she got to where I stood.


    ¡°Alright wifey, remember what we talked about right?¡±


    I asked holding her hands as we both walked out of the house.


    ¡°Yes, and I promise I won¡¯t do anything that will break my promise,¡±


    ¡°Good,¡±


    I said as we drove to her school.


    ¡°Call me once you are done and I wille pick you up, don¡¯t go anywhere on your own okay?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡±


    ¡°Just yes?¡±


    ¡°Yes, darling,¡±


    ¡°Good, nowe here let me give you a goodbye, see you soon kiss,¡±


    I said pulling her to me and nting kisses all over her face before kissing her on the lips.


    ¡°I love you, my angel,¡±


    ¡°I love you too, my prince charming,¡±


    She responded, I smiled as she got off the car and walked up towards the lecture hall, I watched her until she disappeared into the crowd of students before starting the car and driving towards my office, I haven¡¯t been there muchtely, I didn¡¯t really have much going on there so I delegated most of the little things and spend the time with my wife, my secretary even told me that getting married changed me and the changes were healthy.


    ¡°Sir?¡±


    ¡°Yes?¡±


    ¡°Ady is here to see you, she doesn¡¯t have an appointment but she said she has to see you,¡±


    My secretary disclosed, I wondered who it was, I wasn¡¯t expecting anyone so no one came to mind, I have been at the office for close to four hours and so far I haven¡¯t been able to do anything as my mind keep going back to what happened and thinking of how to solve the issues, I haven¡¯t been able toe up with one and it was frustrating, I promised Katherine that I will find a way and it¡¯s been three days and still nothing seem to have clicked, the best possible way to handle the shit without parting with money.


    ¡°Sir?¡±


    My secretary called again, I realized I haven¡¯t given her an answer.


    ¡°Just bring her in,¡±


    ¡°Okay, sir,¡±


    She said and left, only a few minutester, my office door opened again, I looked up to see who it was and frowned when I realized who it was, I stood up, I hadn¡¯t been expecting it to be her, in fact, her thoughts haven¡¯t crossed my mind in a while.


    ¡°Ginna? What are you doing here?¡±


    I asked sternly, I wasn¡¯t going to be gentle with her because she doesn¡¯t deserve it.Exclusive content from N?velDrama.Org.


    ¡°Hi, Cross, I heard you are back in New York so I decided to stop by, is this how you wee an old friend?¡±


    She asked sitting down without waiting for me to tell her, what a ride human she has be.


    ¡°Friend? You call yourself my friend? What the fuck do you want here, I don¡¯t have time to y word games or exchange fake pleasantries with you,¡±


    I replied.


    ¡°Well, guess you haven¡¯te back to your senses, I thought you might have and I was willing to give you a second chance,¡±


    ¡°What are you talking about Ginna? Have you lost your mind?¡±


    ¡°No, contrary to what you think I am in my right senses, I can save you from your present predicament if you will just do as I say,¡±


    She said, folding her hands, I had the urge to scream at her to get the fuck out.


    ¡°What predicament are you talking about?¡±


    ¡°Well, you know already, I heard it through the grapevine that your wife is being ckmailed and I am here to offer help,¡±


    I just stood there staring at her wondering how she knew about that shit because she wasn¡¯t even close to anyone Kathy and I knew, expect, no, it can¡¯t be, there is no way, no way is Ginna working with that bastard Louis, but that¡¯s the only way for her to know.


    ¡°Ginna? How do you know that?¡±


    I asked, hoping she doesn¡¯t give me more reasons to hate her.


    ¡°Well u heard from a friend and I can help you, that friend is asking for a lot but I can do it and you just have to pay a little fee,¡±


    She responded confirming my thoughts that she indeed knew Louis and there is a possibility that they might be working together, I mean Ginna taped the mistake that happened between us and this guy was also ckmailing with a tape.


    ¡°Ginna, get out of my office while I am still talking nicely,¡±


    ¡°Wow, calm down, I am here to help don¡¯t be so hostile to a helper, I am your only hope here,¡±


    She said still sittingfortably.


    ¡°What is it that you want?¡±


    ¡°Now you are talking, it¡¯s simple, let¡¯s go back to the way we used to be ten years ago and I will delete every photo and videos Dn has, of course, you have to divorce your wife, I am the only woman made for you,¡±


    She responded and I decided she had to have a mental issue because why else will she think I will ept what she just said, I just ignored her and dialed security.


    ¡°You are going to regret turning me down a second time Cross, I am going to watch you and your family get destroyed,¡±


    She yelled as the security I had called dragged her out, I didn¡¯t pay attention to what she was saying because I knew she couldn¡¯t do anything to me or my family, I will fight her and also Louis, that bastard. My phone rang a few minutester while I was still trying to calm my anger


    ¡°Hello?¡±


    I said picking up the call expecting it to be the bastard, but it was a woman¡¯s voice instead.


    ¡°Please, I wanted to speak to Katherine,¡±


    She voiced, I told Kathy to tell her friends she got a new phone maybe she forgot.


    ¡°I am her husband, may I know who is speaking? So that I can tell her, I am with her phone.¡±


    ¡°Oh, just tell her Pearl called,¡±


    ¡°Oh, Pearl? She told me about you,¡±


    ¡°Really? Then I am guessing she already told you what¡¯s going on so I can talk to you right?¡±


    ¡°Yes, you can,¡±


    I said listening to her.


    ¡°So, I told Katherine I am going to do the best I can to help her and I think I have found a way to delete those photos from Dn¡¯s phone without him knowing,¡±


    She revealed I wanted to ask her who Dn is, then I remembered Kathy said it was Louis¡¯s other name or real name.


    ¡°May I ask what your ns are?¡±


    ¡°Yes, I scheduled a date with Dn, he is a heavy drinker and I n on using that against him, plus I know his passwords, I just need help, I need people on the ground, my boyfriend offered to go with me but Dn doesn¡¯t like him and he will be suspicious, I don¡¯t know if I can get some security just in case Dn decides to be violent,¡±


    She exined I couldn¡¯t tell if I can trust her words, I mean going by what Kathy told me, Louis and Pearl scammed her together, do how am I supposed to believe her words? But I didn¡¯t have a choice though because I don¡¯t want those tapes on the inte, j wanted it gone so even if it sounds unbelievable I am just going to give it a try.


    ¡°When and how are you nning on meeting him and can I meet you?¡±


    ¡°No, I can¡¯t meet up with you or your wife, I will be in danger if Dn finds out I betrayed him,¡±


    She replied.


    ¡°But why do you want to help? When you know you might be in danger?¡±


    I asked wondering why she was willing to risk her safety to her Kathy.


    ¡°I told your wife before, I want to make amends, I want to make things right so that I can truly be happy,¡±


    She responded, her words carrying so much sincerity.


    ¡°Thank you, then you can tell me where and when you n on meeting him and I will send my security to you,¡±


    ¡°That will be nice, I already set a date we are meeting tomorrow evening, I just had to get him drug enough and be able to delete it for life,¡±


    ¡°I can¡¯t thank you enough,¡±


    ¡°Please not yet, not until I have sessfully deleted those photos and videos,¡±


    ¡°I have another question though,¡±


    I voiced, it has been ringing in my head since she stated her reasons for calling.


    ¡°Yes please?¡±


    ¡°How would you know if he just have those tapes in one phone? Maybe he would have copies,¡±


    ¡°No, I know Dn, he never does things like that, when I say I know what I am saying, I mean it, everything is on the phone, Dn doesn¡¯t care much about technology so creating multiple copies of that won¡¯t even cross his mind,¡±


    She exined.


    ¡°Wow, you must know him so well,¡±


    I couldn¡¯t help saying.


    ¡°Yes, I do, we were together for almost two years,¡±


    She revealed.


    ¡°I need to go now, I will text you when I am ready and call you once I seed,¡±


    ¡°Okay Pearl, good luck,¡±


    I said and the call ended, I decided I have had enough for today, I picked up my bag and car keys and told my secretary I was out for the day, I am just going to drive to Kathy¡¯s school and wait for her to be done so that we can go home together, she was more important than work right now, and making sure that she was safe was my utmost priority, I didn¡¯t want any harming to her or our unborn kid, if this gets too out of hand, I might just have to take us all back home to Arizona¡­

 Chapter 90

    Kathy Pov


    I stood up panicking, Cross and I were waiting for Pearl call together and it was taking so long toe up, she had called this morning and Cross had sent men to the location that they were meeting at, the men were there hours before she would meet Louis, Cross had told her about it two days ago and also told her Ginna had stopped by the office, finding out Ginna worked with Louis hadn¡¯t shocked me, I don¡¯t know but I sort of guessed it but I wasn¡¯t so sure so I hadn¡¯t spoken about it, when Cross had told me what she asked for I had the urge to go look for her and beat her up and bring her back to her senses but Cross had said there was no need to call her out or interact with her, he said she was sick in the head.


    ¡°Can you sit down Miss? You moving up and down is not helping,¡±


    Cross said I stopped walking about.


    ¡°Don¡¯t me me, okay, I am anxious and also I am a Mrs., not a Miss. get it right,¡±


    I scolded even though I was worried sick.


    ¡°Yes ma¡¯am, now sit down, it will turn out fine, we got this baby,¡±


    He assured and I forced a smile, I knew just how worried he was too, we have been waiting for Louis to call again but so far he hasn¡¯t called not even once since after that talk we had the day he ckmailed me, he seemed to be taking his time calling and I didn¡¯t like his silence and had been leaving in panic even after Cross told me about Pearl¡¯s n.


    ¡°Are you going to keep walking about mydy?¡±


    Cross asked for the hundredth time, I told to him and gave him a disgusting look, he knew how much I was worried, he shouldn¡¯t be making fun of me even if it¡¯s just to cheer me up and make me forget what was up.


    ¡°Leave me alone, I can¡¯t stay put, not with Pearl not calling, it¡¯s been over four hours Cross, I told you this will not work out,¡±


    I said feeling tears gather in my eyes again, what did I ever do to deserve all these? I know, I know I was stupid but that shouldn¡¯t be reason enough for the universe to punish this much, if, for anything, Louis is the one who deserves to be punished.


    ¡°I knew I should have gone with the men, but I couldn¡¯t leave you here on your own and Pearl said the bastard knew me and would sense something was off if I am there, I am sorry that I can¡¯t do anything for you, my love,¡±


    He said getting up to hug me.


    ¡°It¡¯s okay, I understand, it¡¯s just that I can¡¯t keep calm until I hear from Pearl,¡±


    ¡°She will call don¡¯t worry,¡±


    They seemed to have amunication spirit because the phone started ringing immediately he said that I hurriedly picked it up and when I saw the caller was Pearl, my heartbeat increased as I clicked receive hoping to hear good news and also expecting the worst.


    ¡°Hello? ¡±


    ¡°Hey, Katherine, it¡¯s done, you are free from that bastard and I am got home safely, I couldn¡¯t call you until I was out of there, tell Cross he can call his men to leave, I left through the back gate so they may not be aware,¡±


    She said as tears gathered in my eyes.


    ¡°Oh my God, Pearl, I don¡¯t know what to say, you saved me from shame, I don¡¯t know how to pay you for this,¡±


    I said bursting out in tears, I couldn¡¯t believe it was finally over, Cross collected the phone from me and continued speaking with Pearl.


    ¡°I did what was right, tell her she owes me nothing,¡±


    ¡°Thank you so much, we are grateful for this,¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s fine, one more thing, he might call to request for the ones he sent her before when he finds out the ones he had was gone, don¡¯t fall for it, he is cunny but stupid, he will definitely call,¡±


    ¡°We will not, Kathy¡¯s phone is with me, so nothing can go wrong,¡±


    Cross said to her while looking at me.


    ¡°Okay then, tell her that I wish her well, I have to go now, my boyfriend is waiting for me,¡±


    Pearl said.


    ¡°Thank you so much, Pearl,¡±


    I let out holding back tears.


    ¡°It¡¯s all good Katherine, take care of yourself,¡±


    ¡°I will, you too,¡±


    I responded and the call ended, I looked up at Cross, he smiled and opened his arms, I ran into them, as I let the tears lose, I wasn¡¯t crying because I was sad I was crying because I was a relief, when Cross had told me Pearl¡¯s n I had so much doubt that it would work, but thank God it did, we just have to wait for Louis¡¯ call, I have going to have a field dayughing at him, he thought he was smart.


    ¡°I told you it will walk out just fine and you didn¡¯t believe me,¡±


    ¡°I believed you, I just wasn¡¯t sure that much, I didn¡¯t want to hope,¡±


    ¡°Now it worked out just fine all we need to do now is get back to living our lives like this whole shits never happened and you have to stop crying at every time, scared the heck out of me,¡±


    He said cringing, Iughed out loud.


    ¡°I am a hormonal woman, okay, crying is a norm until I drop this,¡±


    I said pointing at my tummy, he ced his hands over them and smiled at me.


    ¡°God, I am so happy right now, and you and our baby are my happiness, I love you both so much,¡±


    ¡°We love you too, thank you foring into my life, thank you for loving me even with all my imperfections,¡±


    ¡°No, I should be thanking you, you called for me remember? I was almost going to leave Arizona and you had to jump in front of my car and I hadn¡¯t even recognized you, and then you were asking me to marry you,¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I had been desperate,¡±


    ¡°I am thankful for that day, thankful that I epted your offer, thankful that we gave each other a chance,¡±


    ¡°Yes me too,¡±


    ¡°I love you,¡±


    ¡°I love you more,¡±


    I replied and he imed my lips are in a soulful kiss that spoke of love happiness and the start of a great life ahead of us, I went to sleep in his arms feeling safe and secured knowing that he got me¡­


    ****


    I woke up the next morning to the ringing of s phone, my phone, I got off the bed naked and collected the phone, my heart skipped a beat before I remembered the issues were resolved this call only proved that indeed those photos and videos were gone forever and I had Pearl, someone who I thought I hated and who hated me, indeed we never truly know people, I went back to the bed and woke Cross up.


    ¡°Cross?¡±


    ¡°Yes, baby, ¡±


    He answered waking up immediately.


    It¡¯s him Cross, it¡¯s Louis,¡±


    I revealed showing him my phone, he got up and collected the phone from me, he looked at the number and handed it back to me.


    ¡°What?¡±


    I asked as the phone continued ringing.


    ¡°Pick it, I know you have things to say to him, you just put it on loudspeaker,¡±


    ¡°What? Fine,¡±


    I said but before I could pick it the call ended, I waited for it to ring again, it did a few minutester and I picked it up immediately, made sure to put it on speaker.


    ¡°Hello, princess, you missed me, right? You have been waiting for my call,¡±


    Louis¡¯s voice echoed over the phone, I rolled my eyes.


    ¡°In your dreams right? You better wake up from that dream Louis,¡±


    ¡°Always so sassy, one of the things I admired about you,¡±


    ¡°What do you want Louis? Why are you calling me again?¡±


    I asked tired of his nonsense talks, Cross was having a field day ying with my breast and it was making me lose concentration, I wanted this call to end so that I can enjoy the moment.


    ¡°You know, we talked about it, now stop ying a dummy or it might get me angry, by the way, those photos and video I sent, mind if you send it back to me? You know I have more so, send the ones I sent back to me princess,¡±


    He said and my heart leaped with joy. He said it, he said the words, which confirmed the fact that those tapes were indeed gone, he must take me for the naive girl he knew before, even if Pearl hadn¡¯t told us already there was no way I would have sent the tapes I had a k to him, not when I was thinking straight.Content is property of N?velDrama.Org.


    ¡°Louis, you are a fool, do you understand?¡±


    ¡°Princess, don¡¯t make me angry, do as I say while I am still talking nicely or I won¡¯t be held ountable for my next line of action,¡±


    He let out, I could tell he was losing his shit and felt peace knowing he was going through it, Cross and I exchanged a look and he signaled for me to give him the phone which I did immediately.


    ¡°Say what now bastard?¡±


    Cross asked in a harsh tone that I have never heard him use not even when he was mad at me.


    ¡°Huh? Who is this?¡±


    I heard him ask to which Cross let out a curse word before telling him he is my husband, Louis went silent for a while before he talked again.


    ¡°Okay, we might not have met before but dude, your wife and I have some unfinished business and I would like to speak with her if you don¡¯t mind,¡±


    Louis said, I couldn¡¯t believe he dared to say those words to Cross, that man was unbelievable.


    ¡°The heck you will, now listen to me and listen very well, I am letting you go now because I am in a good mood but don¡¯t you ever call this line again if you don¡¯t want to spend the rest of your miserable life behind bars,¡±


    Cross warned, I knew he meant every word, Louis startedughing, I could feel the pain in hisugh, dude hadn¡¯t expected what got to him, o had Pearl to thank for all of this, I wasn¡¯t going to forget that.


    ¡°You will regret this Katherine, I promise you, don¡¯t think it¡¯s over yet, and watch your back,¡±


    He threatened and ended the call, Cross and I exchanged looks, he saw the fearing my eyes and pulled me to him.


    ¡°Dont give what he said a thought baby, he can¡¯t do anything to you, not when you have me,¡±


    ¡°I know and I trust you,¡±


    ¡°Good, we won baby,¡±


    ¡°Yes, we did, I can¡¯t believe it all over,¡±


    ¡°Me too, which is why I want us to go outing this weekend to celebrate,¡±


    Cross said and I smiled excitedly kidding him.


    ¡°Where?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know yet but where ever you went baby,¡±


    ¡°Alright, I have some searching to do,¡±


    I let out in excitement, this was it, this was the kind of life I wanted, the kind of life I deserve, a life filled with happiness andughter.


    ¡°I love you, my husband, thank you, thank you, thank you,¡±


    I said kissing him all over his face, heughed.


    ¡°I love you too my sassy, little wifey,¡±


    ¡°I am not little, I am five-seven,¡±


    ¡°No, you are five, five and a half,¡±


    ¡°No, I am not,¡±


    I argued.


    ¡°Okay, sounds fake but let me agree, but still you are little,¡±


    ¡°Whatever, I am hungry go get me breakfast,¡±


    Imanded.


    ¡°Yes, mydy, one healthy breakfasting up,¡±


    He said kissing me and getting off the bed, he was out of the room in seconds after putting on a shirt, I sent a silent prayer of thanks to the heavens for giving me a chance to truly be happy¡­

 Chapter 91

    Unknown Pov (Louis)


    ¡°What the fuck?¡±


    I yelled throwing the phone off, I lost, I fucking lost and it was all my fault, I was yed, Pearl that wench, she yed me and ruined all my ns, and they knew, the bastard and Katherine knew, which means they were working with Pearl, I never thought of that, never thought Pearl would betray me.


    ¡°I told you it won¡¯t work now see yourself?¡±


    The bitch Ginna let out, I looked at her with all the anger that was in me, and she raised her hands in surrender.


    ¡°Bitch avoid me if you don¡¯t want my aggressions to be transferred to you, fucking avoid me,¡±


    I yelled at her.


    ¡°Don¡¯t yell at me, this is my house and I won¡¯t let some losere at me, I will send you parking,¡±


    ¡°Shut the fuck up, it might be your house but you owe me so much so I practically own this house,¡±


    I replied she must be stupid to forget she owes me money, just the way Pearl was stupid enough to y puppet for Katherine and her bastard husband, she would get what she wanted and I will enjoy watching her beg to be let go, the bitch thinks she can y me and get away with it, I should have known she had a motive when she called me for meet up but Pearl was someone I trusted, okay now used to trust, she was with me for so long when I had left her stranded I felt bad but of course, it didn¡¯tst long because I only care about myself, maybe that¡¯s why when we met again I let my guards down around her and even told her my ns not knowing she would ruin it.


    ¡°Fuck you Pearl,¡±


    I yelled again.


    ¡°Shut the fuck up loser, I told you not to yell,¡±


    Ginna responded.


    ¡°Don¡¯t tell me what to do, you are one fucking loser too, I don¡¯t see how we are different, you had a simple job to seduce one man and you failed,¡±


    ¡°Mind the way you talk to me Dn, mind the way you talk, or I might throw you out for real and don¡¯t evene up with the dept or whatever shit because just one call to the police and you will spend the rest of your life behind bars, you know what I mean right, I am the only person on your side now so you should do well not to make me angry or I might leave you too,¡±


    She said and as much as I hated to admit it what she said was true.


    ¡°Fine just don¡¯t fucking get on my nerves too, I am not in my right mind right now,¡±


    I replied, I was running at a loss at all points and she had the upper hand right now, with the fact that the new identity I got turned out to be one of an escaped criminal who was wanted, made things even worst for me, I couldn¡¯t even leave the house right, which was why I needed Katherine to get me that money but Pearl had ruined that n, when I called earlier I was going to ask her to send ten million instead of the impossible five hundred million I greedily asked for the first time, I shouldn¡¯t have asked for that much but no one could me me, the Stevensons and the Salvadorsbine are worth billionaires and they could have easily parted ways with five hundred million, that was what I thought initially.


    ¡°You know this is all your fault from all angles,¡±


    ¡°How do you mean?¡±


    ¡°Let me break it down for you, first you got someone you haven¡¯t seen in almost a year involved, you should have known people change, but no you told her all your ns and even told her your passwords when even I don¡¯t know,¡±


    ¡°I didn¡¯t tell her now, she knew then from before, I don¡¯t change passwords, I will forget the new ones,¡±


    I responded. How was I supposed to know that Pearl had changed and that she still remembered my password?


    ¡°Secondly, you should have at least made copies of those, you don¡¯t keep everything in one phone, there is a drive for a reason, if you had other copies then we won¡¯t be in this situation right now,¡±


    ¡°Again, I don¡¯t have the time to do those, I don¡¯t like keeping things in multiple ces when I can have it all in one, trying to remember where I kept it is a struggle I don¡¯t like facing,¡±


    ¡°Well, see where that hasnded you? If you had copies we won¡¯t be having this discussion,¡±


    ¡°True,¡±


    I replied seeing sense in what she was saying, if only I had been smart enough to have copies, then I would still have Katherine begging me not to release them now I had nothing.


    ¡°Thirdly,¡±


    ¡°There is more?¡±


    I asked feeling my headache, I held my hand to calm it down but the banging was getting out of hand, and listening to Ginna go on about what I should have done to avoid this situation made it worst.


    ¡°Yes, there is more, and this is more important, thirdly, you asked for too much, I told you so but you greedily went ahead to ask for a whopping five hundred million dors, we targeted a time Cross wouldn¡¯t be in town so that the bitch can send the money before hees and stop her but you went on and asked for a huge amount of money that she couldn¡¯t live on her own, if you have asked for something lower then maybe she would have sent it before Cross got back.¡±


    She used, yes I knew I asked greedily, I regretted it after I found out her bastard husband returned earlier than nned, then before I could call to take back my words the police were on my tail because of the fucking identity that I had to hide for days I couldn¡¯t leave the house or call when I could finally leave I went to see Pearl who deleted the whole thing from my phone while Iid passed out from drinking too much,


    ¡°I know that already, no need to rub it in, and besides I didn¡¯t ask for too much they are picking rich, my only mistake is letting Pearl in on my ns and I will make her pay,¡±


    I vowed, if Pearl thinks she can get away with betraying me then she didn¡¯t know me after all.


    ¡°See, that¡¯s not your problem now, that shouldn¡¯t be what you are thinking of, you are deviating from the main topic here,¡±


    She scolded, I eyed her.


    ¡°Go straight to the point, I don¡¯t have a genius mind to figure out what you are trying to say here,¡±


    ¡°I am saying that you can deal with Pearl or whatever her name ister, but right now, we should focus on the Salvadors, I want revenge and you want money, we can get both, I already have a n, I just need your help to implement it and in doing so you can get the money you want,¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s this n of yours and how will it fetch me money,¡±


    I asked with interest, I needed the money, I needed a brand new start, this time I wasn¡¯t going to strander the money as I did before.


    ¡°It¡¯s simple Kidnap,¡±


    She let her and I looked at her with my mouth open.


    ¡°What did you say?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s simple, we kidnap Katherine and have Cross pay a ransom to get her back, you can take the money I don¡¯t need any of it, all I want is revenge,¡±


    She said with a fierce that kind of scared me.


    ¡°What kind of revenge are we talking about here? You are not going to kill someone are you?¡±


    The bitch must be mad if she thinks I will help her murder someone.


    ¡°Oh, don¡¯t worry, not someone known, I am just going to get back at her, an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, and a child for a child,¡±


    She let out, she was insane.


    ¡°What are you nning to do? I might con people of their money but I have never been involved in real crimes that involve bloodshed neither have I ever kidnapped someone,¡±


    ¡°Are you a coward Dn? Don¡¯t you see this is the only way to get you that money, I hate to admit this but Cross loves her and he will pay any amount to get her back, so you have your chance to be greedy all you want, I just need to get my hands on Katherine, she has to feel what I felt when I lost my baby because of her.¡±Exclusive content from N?velDrama.Org.


    She said bitterly, I began to wonder if I would be better off just leaving this city and going on to someone else, just let that wench be because Ginna looks like she was out of her mind and out to kill, I didn¡¯t want blood on my hands.


    ¡°You are going to kill her or her child? Does she have a child?¡±


    I couldn¡¯t help asking.


    ¡°You are so slow Dn, she is pregnant and if you are not going to join me, you can leave right now as you are of no use to me, I will get better hands to help me do it,¡±


    She let out, okay he couldn¡¯t leave right now, first, he didn¡¯t have any money with him, secondly, he won¡¯t make it to the center square before the police round him off, he looked at the madwoman and thought of what she was offering, he didn¡¯t have anything to lose, Katherine or her kid wasn¡¯t his problem, if he would get money out of it then why wouldn¡¯t he do it so long as he doesn¡¯t get blood in his hands.


    ¡°I can pick her up but I am not going to kill anyone whether unborn or born,¡±


    ¡°Yes, leave the blood to me, okay, does that mean you are in?¡±


    ¡°Yes, but you have to pay me for picking her up, I don¡¯t do free duties,¡±


    ¡°Of course, I will pay,¡±


    She said smiling wickedly, the woman was no good and I took her for granted before, she was a demon, out for blood, I couldn¡¯t me her though, she had gone through a lot, first having her n of being married to that bastard years ago ruined by the unexpected death of her unborn kid which had been her license to the marriage, ording to her though, I didn¡¯t know the full details, but I knew she deliberately got pregnant to secure her ce in the Salvador family but that won¡¯t down when she lost the kid and also she had to move out of town with her family and she had carried the resentment of how Cross had abandoned her and not looked for her to her which is why when I found her and told her about Cross getting married she hade to New York with me to seek revenge only to fall in love with the moron again and once again the moron didn¡¯t want her, she was a woman out for blood.


    ¡°So when do we start? I need to get out of this city as soon as possible,¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I got everything under control, you just need to wait for me to give the signal within the next few days, Cross won¡¯t see what¡¯sing for him,¡±


    She said with determination.


    ¡°So long as I get paid, I am okay, I don¡¯t give a fuck what you do with her afterward,¡±


    ¡°I am not going to harm her, no, that won¡¯t be satisfying, I am going to give her an injury so deep that she won¡¯t forget in a long time, losing a child can make someone go mad you know,¡±


    She replied.


    All I could say was Katherine was in deep trouble, I thought of Pearl whom I n on dealing with after all this is over, I will wait for her to forget about what she has done before I strike, she won¡¯t see iting, for now getting my money is all I wanted¡­

 Chapter 92

    Kathy Pov


    ¡°Are you sure you don¡¯t want me toe and pick you up?¡±


    Cross ask as I got off the clinic,¡±


    He drop me off this morning before going to work but I had finished before time and I called him that he shouldn¡¯t bother toe and pick me up because initially, he had nned toe and pick me up after I¡¯m done. it¡¯s been over two weeks since the incident with Louis and so far life has been so good to me, Cross has been an angel, I¡¯m so grateful to be married to someone like him I won¡¯t have asked for someone better.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry baby I can go home by myself and we will see each other at home, I love you,¡±


    I said waving over a cab that was close by, it drove towards me, I told him where I was going and entered the cab.


    ¡°I love you too baby, I will be home early,¡±


    ¡°Okay, I will wait for you, I am already in the cab,¡±


    ¡°Good, so what did the doctor say? I am sorry I couldn¡¯t go with you today,¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s okay, you have things to do, I understand and the doctor said the usual, the baby is fine, I am fine, I just need to eat more, rest more and exercise more, which is what I have been doing,¡±


    ¡°You are doing well,¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s because I have you with me, I would have been a mess if you were with me, you do most of the stuff,¡±


    ¡°No, I don¡¯t I wish I can do more,¡±Owned by N?velDrama.Org.


    ¡°Well, you can help carry the baby after she is born,¡±


    ¡°Of course, I will,¡±


    ¡°I trust you,¡±


    I responded, there was a peaceful silence between us for a while.


    ¡°I have to go, baby, I love you,¡±


    He announced, I knew he was busy but even so he still make out time to be around me, if it was avoidable I know he won¡¯t have gone to the office today, he has gone with me to every of my appointment sincest week, I had been to the doctor a total of three times with the past two weeks due to some difort, the doctor had said it because it my first and I had to go to the hospital regrly for a short period, today she had said the baby was okay and that I didn¡¯t have to show up till my next appointment which was a month away, I was pleased by the news because Cross and I nned on going home to Arizona for a while


    ¡°Love you too,¡±


    I said and the call ended, I kept my phone inside my purse, I suddenly felt sleepy, must be because I didn¡¯t get enough sleepst night, my husband was to me, not that it was all his fault, pregnancy hormones were acting and I have be more sensitive and wanting, I smiled at the memory of Cross waking up to me sucking him off, he had been shocked and impressed, and had taken over, I smiled weakly as I got even more sleepy, I looked at the front seat where the driver was, he was wearing a facemask so I couldn¡¯t make out his face. I told him I wanted to sleep that he should wake me up when we get to my house, he gave a one answer okay, and I closed myself letting the sleep take over me.


    ****


    ****


    When I woke up again, I was in a room on a bed, wondering when I got home and hise I didn¡¯t remember getting on the bed I opened my eyes, I must have slept longer than I thought because opening my eyes I couldn¡¯t see clearly, I tried to raise my hands to clear my eye, that¡¯s when I noticed that my hands were tied, I panicked, trying to free myself, which resulted in me finding out that I had been blindfolded, fear engulfed me, just then I heard voices from outside of the room I was in.


    ¡°Anyone there? Hello?¡±


    I called and the door to the room I was in opened, someone walked in, by the movement I guessed it was a woman because of the sound of her heels.


    ¡°You are finally awake,¡±


    She voiced confirming what I thought, her voice was familiar,


    ¡°Who are you and what do you want from me? Why am I being tried?¡±


    ¡°Oh, don¡¯t worry, you will find out soon, I just need that moron toe back first and he is taking forever again, he can never do something right for once,¡±


    Sheined, even though I fear, I knew I had to do something, who was she and what do they want from me? Who was the man that she was talking about? God, I didn¡¯t like this and hoped that I was dreaming, thest time I could remember was falling asleep inside the cab I boarded, could it be that, oh no, no please, I have to wake up from these dreams, this couldn¡¯t be real, I struggled, trying to free my hands, the bed I was tied to felt soft, must be a hotel or a house, and there was no horrible smell.


    ¡°Let me go please,¡±


    I pleaded after a while of struggling, it was real, I was here, blindfolded and tied to a bed in a room with an unknown woman who was waiting for an unknown man, I don¡¯t remember offending anyone who might have felt the need to** wait the fucking minute, it couldn¡¯t be, right? No, a man and a woman, could it be them?


    ¡°Ginna? Is that you?¡±


    I asked but she didn¡¯t respond.


    ¡°Why did you bring me here? What do you want from me? Is Louis the man you are waiting for? What did I ever do to deserve this from you? I barely even know you, just let me go please,¡±

 Chapter 93

    Kathy pov


    I pleaded but she still didn¡¯t say a word, I knew she was still in the room and could hear me, why she didn¡¯t say anything I couldn¡¯t tell, I struggled again trying to free myself but it was no use as whatever they used to tie my hands wasn¡¯t bulging, I wondered how I could have slept through it all and not wake up, I wasn¡¯t ab heavy sleeper, so what could have happened? Could it be that the reason I felt sleepy inside the car was that it was drugged, oh God, my baby, what would happen to my baby if I had indeed inhaled some drug? I remembered I didn¡¯t feel sleepy until I got into the cab, I should have checked properly before I entered, also the driver, could it be that? I remember he was wearing a facemask, the more I thought the more scared I became, And not knowing why I was here and how long I will be left like this made it even worst, I tried talking to thedy whom I assumed was Gonna a few more times but she didn¡¯t respond to me, so I just kept calm and waited I fear, after about a while, I heard footsteps from aside the room again, my heart started beating faster, as the door open, and the one that arrived spoke, it confirmed my fear that it was indeed Louis, I don¡¯t really know Ginna¡¯s voice that much because we barely have talked apart from the phone call and the time we met at that cafe, but Louis¡¯s voice was one I knew and remembered.


    ¡°I am back,¡±


    He said but the other person in the room didn¡¯t answer, maybe she wasn¡¯t here again, but I couldn¡¯t remember hearing her leave.


    ¡°Are you wearing those damn headsets again Ginna?¡±


    Louis yelled, I had been right, it is indeed Ginna and she hadn¡¯t been hearing what I was saying because she had her ears covered, I should have thought of that.


    ¡°Oh, you are finally back?¡±


    ¡°Yes, why are you listening to loud music with that damn thing again, it will damage your ears,¡±


    ¡°I didn¡¯t want her disturbing me,¡±


    I listened to their conversation waiting for them to say something to me or at least untie me, but they seemed to have a misunderstanding because Ginna was yelling, she didn¡¯t sound pleased, my eyes and hands hurt from where they were tied.


    ¡°Why the fuck would you bring her? I thought we had an agreement, you moron,¡±


    ¡°I didn¡¯t have a choice, she was there, I got angry when I remembered how she betrayed me and when I approached her she acted as if she was untouchable so I decided to deal with her.¡±


    Louis exined at first I thought they were talking about me but then I realized it wasn¡¯t me because Louis never approached me nor did I betray him.


    ¡°Oh no Pearl,¡± I whimpered in fear, hoping they weren¡¯t talking about her.


    ¡°I don¡¯t have any business with her Dn, you can do whatever you wish just know I ain¡¯t cleaning up after you, my business is with the bitch over there,¡±


    I heard her say I knew they were finally looking in my direction.


    ¡°Well, I don¡¯t really have a business with her, I just need the money, my business is with that bitch that betrayed me, I am going to teach her a lesson she won¡¯t forget in a hurry,¡±


    ¡°Go and bring her in, I think they can bond here, I will like to watch, by the way, did you get what I asked for?¡±Owned by N?velDrama.Org.


    ¡°Yes, the pharmacist was looking at me weirdly and I had to exin to him that I was sent to get it, what do you want to use it for?¡±


    ¡°None of your business, go get her while I untie this one,¡±


    Ginnamanded, it seem as if she is the boss here and not Louis as I had earlier thought, just what did she n on doing with me? I just hope helpes before it is toote, I thought of my husband, would I have slept long enough for him to already know I am missing, what could he be doing now, and would I see him again? The thought bought tears to my eyes, I heard Ginna move to where I was and a few momentster, the blindfold was removed, it took a while for my eyes to adjust to the room, I looked around, the room was painted white, the bed I was on, a table and a chair was all there is in the room, it wasn¡¯t a hotel like I thought and it had only a tiny window at the far end of the big room.


    ¡°What do you want from me Ginna?¡±


    I asked hoping she will free my hands too but she didn¡¯t.


    ¡°I told you already, no need to rush, you will find out soon,¡±


    She said smiling and left me there.


    ¡°Why are you doing this? Just why? What have I ever done to you?¡±


    ¡°Shut up bitch or I will tie up your mouth,¡±


    She warned as the door opened again and Louis entered carrying Pearl, she was out of it, he dropped her side me andughed.


    ¡°Watch over them, I will be back shortly,¡±


    Ginna announced leaving the room, Louis went over to sit on the chair Gonna had been using without saying a word to me.


    ¡°Louis? Why are you doing this?¡±


    I asked.


    ¡°Shut up,¡±


    That was all he said in response.


    ¡°What do you want from me again Louis? Why are you doing this, leave me alone, let Pearl go too, we didn¡¯t do anything to you,¡±


    ¡°Shut up bitch, I am not the reason you are here, though I am going to make some cool money from it your business is with thedy that just left, I just did as I was told since money is involved, I am going to get the money I would have gotten if that bitch next to you hadn¡¯t betrayed me, the only person I have a personal business with here is that bitch, by the time I am done with you Pearl you will regret betraying me,¡±


    He said, I looked at Pearl, she hasn¡¯t gotten up since she got here, I hoped she was okay, he must have drugged her as he did with me, I didn¡¯t know what to do as Louis refused to talk to me after that, no matter what I said, I gave up after a while as I needed energy for myself and my baby, I hoped whatever happened that my baby, me and Peak will leave this ce alive, I hope Cross would find us before it is toote¡­

 Chapter 94

    Cross Pov


    I got home a littleter than I expected, already anticipating growling for not keeping to my promise ofing home early, I tried to call Kathy though, but she didn¡¯t take her calls, it was nothing new as I was used to her not taking her calls, I went straight to our room ready to see her pout and frame anger, I opened the door but she wasn¡¯t in our room.


    ¡°Baby?¡±


    I called going over to the restroom, she wasn¡¯t there either, the toon looked just like it did when we left this morning, I know because I was thest person to leave the room, I went downstairs to the kitchen thinking she might be there with Nora but no one was in the kitchen, I went to the garden where she usually goes to cool off, but again she wasn¡¯t there.


    ¡°Where is she?¡±


    I asked myself walking to the staff quarters, the possibility of her being there was low but since I couldn¡¯t find her anywhere in the house I had to check, I met Kris and Betty there.


    ¡°Betty, have you seen my wife?¡±


    ¡°No, sir, she hasn¡¯te back home,¡±


    She informed. that couldn¡¯t be possible because when I spoke to herst she was in a cabing home.


    ¡°Are you sure Betty, maybe she came in when you weren¡¯t around,¡±


    I asked dialing her number again, she still wasn¡¯t picking up.


    ¡°I am sure sir, she hasn¡¯t returned since you guys left, maybe she went to see a friend,¡±


    She suggested. I should have thought of that but Kathy always tells me when she is going to visit her friend, she didn¡¯t tell me this time, maybe it escaped her mind, I thought dialing the number of the only friend I know she had Marilyn, she picked up on the second ring.


    ¡°Marilyn good evening,¡±


    I greeted politely, Marilyn has been a good friend to my wife and she gave her a lot of advice concerning her pregnancy, she was like a mother figure just like Nora was.


    ¡°Hello, Cross, how are you, my dear,¡±


    ¡°I am fine, I was wondering if my wife is at your ce, she is not taking her calls,*


    ¡°Oh, no, I am not even in town,¡±


    ¡°Is that so? Okay, thanks, maybe she went to get something, she isn¡¯t home,¡±


    ¡°Probably, just wait for her and extend my greetings,¡±


    ¡°I will, thanks,¡±


    I said and ended the call, I was already getting worried, where would she have gone to that she wasn¡¯t back yet, going by what Betty said she never came home, I decided to not panic and wait for her to show up, I went back to our room, took a shower and tried to at least eat, but I gave up after eating only a little, I decided I would eat when shees back, I went back to the living room expecting her to show up any moment.


    After waiting till six pm still, no trace of her I got worried for real, if only she was taking her calls I won¡¯t have been this worried but she wasn¡¯t picking up her calls and it was past six pm, I had already spoken to all my staffs and all of them had the same thing to say, even the security man at the gate said the same thing, she never got home, so far all I know is that she told me she was in a cab going home and she never got home, it was gettingte, and she still wasn¡¯t here, I called her line again for what would be the hundred and something time but still no response, I didn¡¯t know what to do, I couldn¡¯t report her as a missing person because it was too early for that and the police might not take it seriously, I dialed Dean¡¯s number after pacing up and down with nothinging in, I needed help or I was going to go mad.


    ¡°Hey man what¡¯s up?¡±Owned by N?velDrama.Org.


    He asked.


    ¡°Dean, I can¡¯t find my wife,¡±


    ¡°What? What do you mean you can¡¯t find her?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know man, she went to the hospital and I was supposed to go pick her up but she called me that she was done early and can get home herself, as at when we spoke she was in a cab, I told her I wille home on time but I couldn¡¯t leave work until four and when I got home she was nowhere, I have tried calling her over a hundred times and she is not taking her calls, I have a bad feeling about this and I am about to lose my mind,¡±


    I said pacing up and down.


    ¡°Hey, calm down, have you tried calling her friends? Maybe she went to see them,¡±


    ¡°She only has one friend in New York that she visits and Marilyn is not in town,¡±


    ¡°Oh, God, I am on my way, have you called the police?¡±


    ¡°Not yet,¡±


    ¡°Please do, I will be there in fifteen minutes,¡±


    He said. I heard him talking to someone in the background before I ended the call, I dialed the estate security first, I didn¡¯t want to involve the police yet, I tried calling her again, this time her phone wasn¡¯t reachable, this increased my panic mode, what if something has happened to her? Dean got here exactly Fifteen minutester t as he had promised, he came with Grace, I just greeted and ignored her, I wasn¡¯t in my right mind, I ran everything I knew over to him, he said it will be best if we talk to the police do we called them and they said they were on their way too.


    ¡°Sir, the estate security chief is here,¡±


    Kris said, I quickly got up and went out to meet him, we exchanged greetings shortly and he followed me back inside, he was just about to start questioning me when the police arrived, I just used the opportunity and told them at once.

 Chapter 95

    Cross pov


    ¡°Is there anyone who you might think has a hand in her disappearance?¡±


    The police asked, at first I wanted to say no but I couldn¡¯t rule it out so I told them everything about Louis, and Gonna, and how he ckmailed us and how we were about to get out from it, after narrating everything, the police left saying they will look into it and get back to us by morning, for me, the morning was too far but my hands were tied, not like I could turn down the whole of New York looking for her, I would have if it was possible but I didn¡¯t even give a lead as to where she went. They asked me for a description of how Lois looked like I couldn¡¯t say because I haven¡¯t met him in person before but I did tell them everything about Ginna, it was toote to get the CCTV close to the hospital so they said they will check it out the next day and left, the estate security also promise to check their CCTV footage of the past twelve to twenty hours if she dide back, I thank them and they all left, leaving Dean Grace me and my house staff, I told the staff they go turn in for the night as it was way past nine pm before the police and security men left, they bid goodnight and left, they all looked worried, I turned to Dean.


    ¡°Thank man, I owe you,¡±


    I said but he didn¡¯t respond, he was looking at me like he had something to say.


    ¡°What is it?¡±


    ¡°I know you are going through a lot right now, with Kathy¡¯s disappearance and I shouldn¡¯t say this but I have to say it because I can¡¯t keep it in,¡±


    ¡°Say what?¡±


    ¡°Howe I am finding out what happened from you while you were telling the police? I thought we were friends?¡±


    ¡°I am sorry, I just didn¡¯t want to bother you with it man, you have your own life and I didn¡¯t want to drag it, even my family didn¡¯t know just me, Kathy, and the three other people involved, including Kathy¡¯s friend Marilyn,¡±


    I said I didn¡¯t think I needed to tell him which is why I didn¡¯t but now that he was talking about it I felt I should have told him.


    ¡°And you couldn¡¯t even at least tell me that they were working together?¡±


    ¡°Dude can we not talk about this now? I can¡¯t deal with this,¡±


    ¡°No, we**¡±


    ¡°Dean stop it will you, can¡¯t you see the man isn¡¯t in his right mind, can¡¯t you be considerate? Shut up if you don¡¯t have anything else to say, you are embarrassing,¡±


    Grace let out cutting Dean off, this was the first time she was talking since they came in.


    ¡°I am sorry, I didn¡¯t mean to be insensitive, I just had to say what¡¯s on my mind,¡±


    ¡°Well, you choose the wrong time, moron,¡±


    ¡°I am sorry,¡±


    Dean apologized again and I nodded, I couldn¡¯t me him, I will say the same too if I were in his shoes.


    ¡°Thanks, Grace,¡±


    I said to Crave who nodded.


    ¡°It¡¯s fine, let¡¯s just concentrate on finding your wife okay? Don¡¯t worry she wille back safely,¡±


    ¡°I hope so,¡±Owned by N?velDrama.Org.


    I said helplessly, we stayed upte till past one am, I expected Kathy to show up but she never came, I fell into a worried, restless sleep at about two am in the morning¡­


    The next morning I was out of the house before Dean and everyone else was up, I went straight to the estate security and asked them how far it went, they didn¡¯t have anything for me, as the CCTV didn¡¯t capture her returning,


    ¡°This means she never returned to the estate, I am sorry sir,¡±


    The guy said.


    ¡°No, it¡¯s fine,¡±


    I said but I wasn¡¯t fine, this just proved the fear that I had all through the night, something bad has happened to her, I didn¡¯t even know where to start from, no one has called and I didn¡¯t hear about any ident, so it definitely wasn¡¯t an ident, I couldn¡¯t rule out Louis that bastard¡¯s threat anymore, what if he had her? I am going to kill that bastard of it turns out that he was the one that took her, I drove back to the house, the other already woke up.


    ¡°Man, where did you go to?¡±


    Dean asked.


    ¡°To the security office, but they don¡¯t have anything, she didn¡¯te back, between the hospital and this estate something happened to her and I don¡¯t know what,¡±


    ¡°Calm down,¡±


    ¡°I can¡¯t calm down, don¡¯t tell me to calm down, my wife is out there somewhere and you say I should calm down? She is pregnant dude and she hasn¡¯t been doing well which is why she has been visiting the hospital, I should have gone with her, I shouldn¡¯t have let her go alone, it¡¯s all my fault,¡±


    ¡°I understand man, but nothing is going to get done if you keep ming yourself, what happened has happened, let¡¯s see what we can do to get her back, I already called the police and they will be here in a few moments,¡±


    ¡°Thanks, man,¡±


    I said and entered the house, going upstairs to take a cold bath in hope that it will cool me down but it did nothing, not when I kept thinking if what could be happening to Kathy right now, would she be waiting for me toe and save her? God, I hated this feeling, when I came back downstairs, the police were already there again, together we went to the hospital where she had gone, we were able to locate the CCTV footage and indeed she got into the taxi, the cab was traced and was found abandoned in an old junk house with Kathy¡¯s stuff inside proving that she was indeed kidnapped, the police tried looking for lies as to who drove the car and came up with nothing, I took them to Ginna¡¯s house and like I expected it had been vacated after that the police went back to their office and I drive back home dejected.


    Later, the police called and said they put out an emergency hotline with Kathy¡¯s identity in case anyone has a lead they dered her missing and sent everything to the local media and everywhere, after that, there wasn¡¯t anything else to do than to wait, for either the kidnappers to call or they get a lead, I didn¡¯t like the idea one bit, but I had no choice, I thought of calling home and telling them what was happening but decided against it, I didn¡¯t want them to worry, I just hope I can handle this and get Katherine back to me.

 Chapter 96

    Kathy Pov


    ¡°Good morning, it¡¯s time to start,¡±


    Ginna announced as she entered the room that Pearl and I have been kept, Pearl was still not awake and I was beginning to worry for her, I tried waking her up when they had untied me to give me foodst night but she didn¡¯t respond, at least she was breathing fine, I hope she wakes up soon.


    ¡°What do you want from me Ginna?¡±Owned by N?velDrama.Org.


    I asked eyeing her, it wasn¡¯t as if I was scared of her, she was the one scared because if she wasn¡¯t she won¡¯t have had me tied if only I could take off this damn piece of rope.


    ¡°You find out real soon, but first the conversation, you remember? We were having one the other day,¡±


    She replied I remember what she was on about.


    ¡°What about that?¡±


    ¡°You wanted to know how you ruined my life remember? Well, I will tell you just how I am going to ruin your own life, don¡¯t worry, you will make it out of here alive, I don¡¯t have any ns of killing you but then after I am done with you, I damn well sure you will wish you were dead,¡±


    She said pushing the chair close to the bed where Iid and sitting down with an evil smile


    ¡°Do your worst Ginna, I am not scared of you,¡±


    I let out


    ¡°Oh, but you will be, I can guarantee that you will be scared by the time I am done with you,¡±


    She said putting a little fear in me, she had the upper hand, what would she do to me?


    ¡°Just let me go, I don¡¯t owe you anything until you showed up in New York, j didn¡¯t know you existed, I don¡¯t even understand your need with me, why do you hate me so much when I don¡¯t even know you?¡±


    ¡°You ruined my life, you ruined everything, you are the reason I went through hell, the reason all my ns failed,¡±


    She yelled hitting her hands on the bed.


    ¡°And how did I do all these? Just how?¡±


    I asked if she meant the day she lost her baby, then she had the wrong person, yes I was with Cross that night but it was only for a while.


    ¡°If only Cross hadn¡¯t been with you, if only he hadn¡¯t had the hots for you and gone out of his way to go to that fuck ass party then I would have had my baby and I would be loving my best life right now,¡±


    She yelled.


    ¡°What do you mean? I don¡¯t understand, Cross didn¡¯te to pick me up at a party, yes he came but we left when the police showed up and,¡±


    ¡°Shut the fuck up, don¡¯t fucking lie, I was with him that night when his mom called, and he said he had to go get you, what the fuck were you doing at an adult party, because of you, I lost my baby, I told Cross not to go but he left, he always did, I hated you, you are the reason for everything, the moment you came in the picture Cross changed, he acted like nothing was going on between the both of you but I knew something was going on, but I ignored because I thought I had the upper hand since I was carrying his child and you were still a minor,¡±


    ¡°Cross and I didn¡¯t have any rtionship, in fact, we didn¡¯t even talk to each other, the only time he talked to me was when he helped me with his bike and I begged him for it, I think you got this all wrong, you got the wrong person here, I am not to me for you losing your child, once again I didn¡¯t even know you, I didn¡¯t even know Cross had a girlfriend and that she was you and I certainly didn¡¯t know you were expecting his baby, don¡¯t lie on me,¡±


    I yelled with all my strength, she was making things up just to me me, Cross and I in a rtionship? Where did she get that from? I was a minor and Cross was already twenty then, he would have gone to jail if he had anything to do with me, he didn¡¯t even care about me and left me there in the middle of the night, I know he apologized and said he sent someone to get me that night and I wasn¡¯t angry at him anymore.


    ¡°Shut up, bitch, that¡¯s the truth, why else did he run out that night after hearing you were at a grown-up party?¡±


    ¡°I think you got the wrong person, Cross and I weren¡¯t even close, he didn¡¯t talk to me,¡±


    Why was she so sure all these happened, I mean Cross was already in college while I was still in Junior high.


    ¡°Where you or where you not with him that night eleven years ago?¡±


    She barked.


    ¡°I wasn¡¯t, he came to the party, and we did leave together but he left me halfway and ran off leaving to myself at midnight in a desk lonely road if he had a thing for me as you im, why did he do that? Why didn¡¯t he take me home, yes I heard from him that you lost you, baby, that night but that¡¯s not my fault, it has nothing to do with me, I don¡¯t know what your grand n was but I didn¡¯t ruin it, I didn¡¯t see Cross again until after Louis ran away with my money and left me homeless if anything Louis is the one you should be med because if he hadn¡¯t run off with my money, I won¡¯t have married Cross and maybe you would have met him,¡±


    I yelled, I knew I hated the thought of that happening, no way I would picture Ginna as Cross¡¯s woman but if Louis hadn¡¯t done what he did I am sure that is how it would have yed out.

 Chapter 97

    Kathy pov


    ¡°I don¡¯t fucking care, what happened with you and Louis or what happened this year but all I know is that you are the reason I suffered for ten whole years, the reason my mom died because I couldn¡¯t pay for her surgery, if I had married Cross I would have been able to pay and mom wouldn¡¯t have died and the most painful, you are the reason I lost my child, I am going to make you pay for taking away a chance to live a morous life and killing my love ones,¡±


    She used.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t do it, why can¡¯t you just listen? I didn¡¯t do anything, I didn¡¯t kill anyone,¡±


    I yelled at her.


    ¡°Shut up bitch,¡±


    She shouted opening the can she had with her, she walked up to me and held my neck trying to force my mouth open, I realized, she was trying to make me drink whatever it was that was in the can, and tried to resist her but she had more power and I was tied, the substance which turned out to be juice entered my throat, I tried not to swallow fearing that it might be poison but she forced me to swallow.


    ¡°If I were you I would stop fighting and just ept my fate,¡±


    She said after making sure I swallowed it and closed the can.


    ¡°What did you just give me to drink,¡±


    ¡°Something,¡±


    That was all she said and she left, I tried to get myself to throw up but it didn¡¯t walk, I cried, prayed to beg the Lord to send help¡­


    ¡°Pearl? You are awake? Pearl? Can you hear me?¡±


    I asked as she rolled, she opened her eyes and shut them before opening them again and holding her head, I sensed she might have a headache from sleeping for so long, she looked around as if trying to grab her environment, and her eyes widen when theynded on me.


    ¡°Katherine? What happened? What are you doing here? What am I doing here? How did we get here?¡±


    She asked in a rather weak tone, she looked so different from the woman I knew before, she tried to get up but fell back on the bed holding her head, I felt she was trying to remember what happened, I waited and watched.


    ¡°Dn, it¡¯s him, I met him and we had a confrontation, I left but he followed me and covered my face with something, that¡¯s all I can remember, I didn¡¯t know you were here too,¡±


    ¡°Yes, Pearl and also Louis is not working alone,¡±


    ¡°I know, there is a woman, maybe another one of his victims who is stupid enough to let him talk her into doing this with him, I can¡¯t even hate her because I was in her show before,¡±


    She said, her voice still weak.


    ¡°She is not a victim Pearl, she is like the boss here, and she is not a stranger,¡±


    ¡°What? She is someone you know?¡±


    ¡°Yes, my husband¡¯s ex,¡±


    ¡°Oh, so what are we going to do, and why are you tied while I am not?¡±


    I was about to answer when the door opened, Louis came in carrying takeout, heughed at the sight of Pearl.


    ¡°Oh, Pearlie, you are finally awake my dear, dear friend,¡±


    He let out.


    ¡°What the fuck are you doing Dn, you have lost your mind, I told you to stop but you are rather going even deep, kidnapping is not a petty crime Dn, you willnd in jail,¡±


    She yelled at him.


    ¡°Calm your tits now Pearlie, our girly over there doesn¡¯t know me as Dn, it Louis and more so I have to be caught tond in prison and I won¡¯t be caught so it¡¯s all good, it¡¯s a one-time thing that would never have happened if you had not betrayed him,¡±


    Louise yelled back at her, I could only watch, I didn¡¯t even know what to say nor did I have the strength to say a word, I was awake throughout the night thinking of how I would leave this ce, all I needed was for Pearl to wake up and thankfully she was awake, I thought of Cross too, I knew he would already know that I was missing and would be beating himself up for not going to the hospital with him, I wanted to see him, I missed him so much, I criedst night until there weren¡¯t any tears left, I still didn¡¯t know what Ginna had in stock for me, she hadn¡¯t shown up yesterday again, only Louis came around and left, until this morning.


    ¡°Dn, you are going too far, you need to stop now, this is not the right way,¡±


    Pearl said trying to get through to Louis, but I knew it was hopeless talking to him, he wasn¡¯t going to change, I have spent most of the time here trying to get through to him.


    ¡°Shut the fuck up, you don¡¯t even know what I would do to you Pearl, thatdy there might make it out of here alive but I am not sure you will do the same, just don¡¯t provoke me or I might just kill you here and now,¡±


    He yelled at Pearl who took the hint and shut up.


    ¡°I wonder when the bitch will give the go-ahead to make the fucking call, I need to get out of here,¡±


    He said out loud, I knew he wasn¡¯t talking to either of us but to himself, so they nned on getting money from Cross, so it was all about money, I should have known.


    ¡°All these for money Dn? Haven¡¯t you done enough? Just let her go, she doesn¡¯t deserve this or anything you ever did to her,¡±


    ¡°I said shut the fuck up,¡±


    Louis yelleding to where Pearl was andnding a sound p on her face, I felt the pain from where I sat.


    ¡°One more word from you, just one more word,¡±Owned by N?velDrama.Org.


    He warned, Ginna walked in a momentter, and she brought with her the juice she had forced me to drink yesterday, the sight of it made me gag, please don¡¯t let her give me that stuff again.


    ¡°Dn, stop shouting, you want to attract attention there?¡±


    She scolded.


    ¡°Then let me make the call already, it¡¯s been three days, when are we going to make the call?¡± He yelled ignoring her earlier warning, so I have been here for three whole days? I thought it was two.


    ¡°Fine, moron, make the call, I will just increase her dosage,¡±


    She said pointing to me, Pearl and I exchanged looks, she looked as scared as I was, what the heck was she giving me to drink? Was she drugging me? What did she hope to achieve with it, I didn¡¯t feel any difort yesterday aside from my baby moving, I just hope whatever it was wont harm, my child.


    ¡°I am calling your beloved husband, he must be worried sick,¡±


    Louis announced.


    ¡°Shut up and just make the call,¡±


    Ginna responded.


    Hello, hello, I know you have been expecting my call, you know who I am don¡¯t you?¡±


    Louis said, I couldn¡¯t hear Cross¡¯s voice, I wanted to scream his name but that would only make him more worried so I kept quiet, hoping they can trace this call and find us in time¡­

 Chapter 98

    Cross Pov


    It¡¯s been three days, three whole days, and still no news of Katherine, I was slowly dying inside, I felt like this was all my fault, I was the one that brought Ginna back into her lives, and Louis that bastard came with Ginna if only I had not associated with Ginna, the police went over to Ginna¡¯s house again but they didn¡¯t find anything, they have long dered them as suspects, they didn¡¯t call, if they called I would have given them all the money they requested for just so they can give me back my wife but no call, nothing, my living room was filled with people again, Marilyn, Dean, Grace and the police officers, they showed up earlier today and had been here for a while, we have been going over all the stuff we have gone through before to see if we left out anything but there was nothing, nothing at all, there was no clue as to where they might have taken Katherine, and until they called we couldn¡¯t even make any move, it was furstrating and nerve wrecking, if these people weren¡¯t around me maybe I would have lost my mind already, three days have never been so long and unproductive.


    ¡°Cross, man, can you calm down, sit down, you are going to get high blood pressure at this stage and it won¡¯t be good, we will find her so please, calm down,¡±


    Dean said pulling me down, it¡¯s not like I want to be on the edge, I just can¡¯t help it.


    ¡°I am going to get sick if we don¡¯t get a call today,¡±


    ¡°We will get the c***¡±


    His words were cut off by the ringing of a phone, my phone, I hurriedly picked it up.


    ¡°Hello?¡±


    ¡°Hello there Mr. Salvador, I have got news for you,¡±


    ¡°Who is this?¡±


    ¡°You should know already, the one who is got your beloved wife, she is hearing crying, okay now looking at me with deadly eyes but still crying,¡±


    ¡°Louis? Did you really think you will go free after this?¡±


    ¡°Yup and you are going to help me, if not you might not see your wife again,¡±


    ¡°What do you want?¡±


    I asked, everyone in the room was listening to our conversation.


    ¡°You know what I want, money,¡±


    ¡°This is about the money, you moron? Name the fucking price,¡±


    I yelled at the phone.


    ¡°Calm down, I was just getting to that, you see there is no need to rush, here is the thing, I am not going to be greedy, so let¡¯s say, get me hundred million dors and we are good, his about that?¡±Belongs to ? n0velDrama.Org.


    He asked, I honestly wanted to get to him through the phone and beat him up that he wouldnd in the hospital for weeks if not months.


    ¡°You got it, now when do I get back my wife?¡±


    ¡°Your wife is fine even though I don¡¯t know what that crazy woman is nning, so long as I get my money, I am good, I don¡¯t have anything against her, I just want the money and well Ginna provided the opportunity to get the money,¡±


    The idiot was just rambling on and on but I could make out a few things from his words, this was all Ginna¡¯s n and she wasn¡¯t doing it for the money like Louis, which made me wonder just what she was nning on doing, I knew a hundred million was a hell lot of money but I didn¡¯t have the time to bargain, I wanted my wife back safe so I could part with it.


    ¡°When do you want it?¡±


    ¡°As soon as possible, but one thing be sure, do not get the police involved as I can¡¯t guarantee the safety of your wife if the police are involved,¡±


    He said and I looked at the faces of everyone in the room, the police were here and I wasn¡¯t going to go there on my own, I have seen enough to know it was always better to get help.


    ¡°I am not stupid okay, of course, where should I bring the money?¡±


    ¡°I will text you the address,¡±


    ¡°Sure but can I speak to my wife, just to be sure she is there with you,¡±


    ¡°Sure thing,¡±


    He responded, three was a few moments of silence, then I heard him telling her to mind what she says and stuff, I wanted to kill him through my phone if only I could do that, a momentter I heard Kathy¡¯s voice, I almost wept at how tiny and down the sound.


    ¡°Kathy, baby,¡±


    ¡°Cross, get me out of her please, she is going to kill my baby,¡±


    That was all she said before the bastard collected the phone, shouting at her in the background.


    ¡°You heard her voice now do the needful,¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s she doing to my wife? You better not hurt my wife¡¯s or kid or the both of you are not going to**¡±


    ¡°Rather than making threats why not do the needful and get her out of here before that happens, I have no hands in that though just your crazy ex who might I see is still obsessed with you,¡±


    ¡°What the fuck are you doing Dn?¡±


    I heard Ginna¡¯s voice yell before the bastard ended the call, I looked around, everyone looked worried even the police officers.


    ¡°What am I going to do?¡±


    ¡°Not you, we, we are going to do this together and get your wife back, now that the call hase through, the first thing to do is track the location of the phone, it might not be much use since it might be a burner phone but if they are stupid enough to use an actual phone then, we are game on,¡±


    The investigator said and the officer nodded in agreement, they went to work immediately and two hourster, they came up with a location, the officers and Marilyn leftter in the evening, with Marilyn promising toe to visit when Kathy is back and the office turning up tomorrow with more teams to be at the location before the time of the exchange, I hoped everything will go smoothly, Dean and Grace once again spent the night at my ce, having them around made me feel less alone and it was uplifting¡­

 Chapter 99

    Cross POV


    The next morning, I was up early, I didn¡¯t want to waste any time, the n we had seemed good and easy enough, I wanted my wife back, this morning I had to call my parents ad hers, I couldn¡¯t keep it from them anymore, they deserved to know what¡¯s going on with us, I called my mom first.


    ¡°Son, what¡¯s going on, you never call me,¡±


    ¡°Mom, it¡¯s Kathy, she has been kidnapped,¡±


    I revealed as the tears started again, I couldn¡¯t just seem to get the tears froming.


    ¡°What? When did that happen?¡±


    ¡°About four days ago,¡±


    ¡°And you are just telling me, Cross what did you think you are doing? Why didn¡¯t you tell us as soon as it happened?¡±


    ¡°Mom, I am sorry, I didn¡¯t want you guys to worry,¡±


    ¡°Well, we would be whether you tell us now orter, what did I tell you about keeping things to yourself?¡±


    ¡°I am sorry mom,¡±


    I replied, I felt guilty for not telling them sooner, I should have listened to Dean and just told them.


    ¡°Are you okay? Have you had any information? We will be in New York before the day ends,¡±


    My mom said I didn¡¯t want theming over which is why I hadn¡¯t told them, I didn¡¯t want them to know just how much I messed up and dragged Kathy into my mess, all these won¡¯t have happened if I had just listened and not have anything to do with Ginna,¡±


    ¡°Mom, you don¡¯t have toe,¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t say nonsense, do you have any information on her?¡±


    ¡°Yes, we do and they are requesting for hundred million,¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s huge, do you have enough?¡±


    ¡°I do but the police,¡±


    ¡°Okay, you got them involved good, your dad wants to talk to you,¡±


    She said as I heard my dad¡¯s voice in the background before he took the phone.


    ¡°Son, be strong okay? Don¡¯t do anything on your own, okay? We will be there soon, I am calling people, don¡¯t make the mistake of going there alone,¡±


    My dad advised.


    ¡°I am not going alone dad, I can¡¯t risk that,¡±


    ¡°Good, do we know who it is?¡±


    That¡¯s the part I was scared of the most, Ginna had been someone my parents didn¡¯t like, now I realized it had nothing to do with her background and everything to do with what they saw in her that I was too blind to see, I can¡¯t believe I kept that woman in my heart for so long, she was the devil, I didn¡¯t want my parents finding out that I let here into my life again, my mom was kind but never with Ginna, my parents saw through her but I never did, Ginna didn¡¯t love me for once, she lived the money and the thought of being associated with the Salvadors name.


    ¡°Yes, dad,¡±


    I said honestly, they were going to find out anyway, I felt ashamed, felt guilty.


    ¡°Who my dear?¡±


    My dad was extra calm, and for some reason, it gave me some sort offort.


    ¡°Ginna,¡±


    I revealed, my dad didn¡¯t know who that was so I told them everything, not leaving out a single detail even Louis involvement, I didn¡¯t tell them about the sex tape and the photos taken of me and Ginna though, those were my and Kathy¡¯s secret, I didn¡¯t want my parents to know that the call ended after my parents told me to keep them posted, and they will be in New York through the next avable flight, I hoped by the time theye back, Kathy would already be back.


    When I stepped out of my room, I met Grace who was leaving the room she uses in the house, she and Dean decided it would be bad for me to be alone so they both decided toe to live here for the time being, although she doesn¡¯t talk much, she has been a major help, voicing her opinion most logically and simply that she entered my respect, I felt stupid for once thinking she was no good.


    ¡°Hey, man, how are you doing today?¡±


    She asked waving at me, she was super pretty, but my wife was prettier.


    ¡°Hi, I feel horrible and lifeless,¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I understand to some extent, I felt that way when everything I had and lived was taken away from me but there is a bright side though, you can get your family back, I know it will be fine,¡±


    She assured and I nodded thanking her.


    ¡°Where is Dean?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, we had a little misunderstandingst night and he angrily left, oh, he is back,¡±


    She said pointing at him as he entered the house, he frowned at her before turning to me with a look of concern, I knew my situation was serious but I also really wanted to know what was on with those two because they were acting suspiciously.


    ¡°We are leaving by five pm right?¡±


    ¡°Yes, that¡¯s the time he picked,¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s cool, we had got this covered, the men and security are already getting ready, don¡¯t worry we will get your wife back,¡±


    He encouraged, Grace, excused herself, and left, leaving just me and Dean who hissed when she exited.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on Dean?¡±


    ¡°With who me? Nothing,¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t lie, you are clearly mad at Grace and it is showing, what happened?¡±


    ¡°She got a new boyfriend,¡±


    ¡°And?¡±Content is property of N?velDrama.Org.


    ¡°And nothing, I don¡¯t like the dude, he is not good for her,¡±


    ¡°And you are?¡±


    ¡°I never said I was good, I wasn¡¯t talking about me, I was talking about her, that dude ain¡¯t good for her and she is not listening,¡±


    ¡°She is a grown-ass woman and she can make her own choices,¡±


    ¡°I know that okay, but that doesn¡¯t mean the choices can always be right,¡±


    ¡°You are just mad that she is with someone else,¡±


    ¡°I am not,¡±.¡±


    ¡°Okay, let¡¯s get my wife back and I might help you get your woman back to you,¡±


    ¡°She is not my woman,¡±


    ¡°Dude, keep telling yourself that.


    I answered and left him to get ready, I prayed that by the end of today, my wife would be with me, another day without her would be hellish¡­


    ¡°Please don¡¯t wander off on your own, we don¡¯t know if they have a gun or not, do let¡¯s follow instructions okay?¡±


    The officer in charge asked and I nodded, I couldn¡¯t risk making any mistake and putting the safety of Kathy at risk, we were here at the location waiting for the moron, I already called him and he said he would be here soon, but he wasn¡¯t even hereafter over one hour, I don¡¯t know what to feel about that, did he change his mind?


    ¡°Why is it taking so long though,¡±


    I couldn¡¯t help asking.


    ¡°We can¡¯t really tell but if we wait for another hour and he doesn¡¯t show up, then we will go in,¡±


    He replied and I nodded, anxiously waiting.


    ¡°We are going in,¡±


    The officer announced after over one hour, I couldn¡¯t even function because I kept thinking of what might have made him not shoe up, did he find out there were people out here with me? Could that be it?


    ¡°I sent some men in,¡±


    He said again and we waited another twenty minutes.


    ¡°We have to wrong location, what the fuck? How did that happen?¡±


    He yelled into the phone giving out instructions, I just sat there dumb, the wrong location? Then where the fuck was my wife?


    His phone rang again and I listened as he talked to the person on the other end.


    ¡°This is this ce but our man just turned himself in to the police,¡±


    ¡°What? Why? Where is my wife then?¡±


    ¡°She is here and he is saying the woman wants to kill people that he doesn¡¯t kill,¡±


    ¡°Then what are we waiting for? Let¡¯s go,¡±


    I said getting out of the car, if Louis wasn¡¯t here anymore which means Ginna was alone, it would be easier to deal with her, God how I wanted to kill that woman with my bare hands¡­

 Chapter 100

    Kathy¡¯s Pov


    I woke up to strong pain, my whole lower abdomen hurt, I looked around the room for Pearl, she wasn¡¯t there, where could she have even, I saw her before I went to sleep, fearing for her safety, I tried to get up but the pain was getting out of hand, my whole lower abdomen hurt and my baby was in distress, I tried to shout and call for help but I couldn¡¯t get much out as I was weak from struggling with Ginnast night, she hade after they both left after talking to Cross and had tried to force me to drink whatever she was giving e, I didn¡¯t know what it was but I knew what she was doing, I figured it out, she didn¡¯t have a problem with me but my baby, she was trying to kill my baby, I couldn¡¯t let her do that even though she had seeded in giving some of that stuff again.


    I looked around the room wishing for a miracle toe by.


    ¡°You are awake?¡±


    Louis said entering the room, he didn¡¯t look happy or anything like he was after the call with Cross, maybe he and Ginna fought again, it was clear to me they had conflicted feelings and were not agreeing with a lot of things.


    ¡°I am in so much pain, can you help me?¡±


    I cried, my voice weak.


    ¡°I can¡¯t, that bitch is crazy and out of her mind, she almost killed Pearl, she is a madwoman,¡±


    He said and I realized he was scared, he liked sacred out of his wilt.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on Louis? What¡¯s happened to Pearl? Where is she?¡±


    I asked in a panic


    ¡°She is fine okay, I didn¡¯t let her do it but she is in a bad stay, I don¡¯t want a hand in any of this anymore, this has gone far beyond me, I can¡¯t take this anymore, heck now I don¡¯t even want the money anymore, I don¡¯t do this, I don¡¯t kill people, I don¡¯t share blood, I am not as bad as that but she is out for blood,¡±


    He wasn¡¯t talking to me at this rate but to himself, he was fighting with himself and I took the opportunity.


    ¡°Let me go, let Pearl and I go and you can meld this, it not toote yet,¡±Exclusive content from N?velDrama.Org.


    I said calmly, as calmly as the pain could let me, I couldn¡¯t even move any part of my body without feeling a rush of pain, it was like a cramp but a deeper and more painful kind of cramp, I want inbor, it couldn¡¯t be that I was still too early, way too early to be inbor, it was that stuff she gave me to drink that was causing this.


    ¡°I can¡¯t do that, she is going to kill me, I don¡¯t want to die for anyone, this wasn¡¯t even what I nned, all I wanted was the money, I didn¡¯t sign up for this, I didn¡¯t know this was what she had in mind, she is crazy, I should get out of here but I need the money, your husband is on his way already, once I get the money, I am out, I am noting back here, I will just tell him where to find you, I just wanted you to know that I don¡¯t have a hand in killing your kid, it all your husband¡¯s family,¡±


    He said getting up.


    ¡°Please don¡¯t leave me here, please,¡±


    I pleaded but he didn¡¯t listen, he was gone a momentter leaving me on my own, the pain reduced a little but I still felt ufortable, I needed to get out of here on my own, I couldn¡¯t stay here any longer, I slowly got up and walked to the door hoping that it would be open and it was, it was as if he silently said I should leave if I could, I opened the door and ran out, as much as my strength could carry me, however, when I got to the front door, it was locked, I realized he didn¡¯t leave the door open for me to leave but he must have left it open because he knew I couldn¡¯t leave, I tried opening the door but it wasn¡¯t moving, I looked around, hoping to find something to open the door or another way out but nothing, no other way out, nothing could get the door open.


    ¡°Bitch, did you really think you can escape?¡±


    Ginna askeding at me in anger, when she got to where I stood half bent in pain and helpless, she pped me twice, dragging me to the room despite my pleads for her to be gentle, she didn¡¯t take me back to the room I came out from but to another room, a much bigger one, she pushed me into a chair, have me another p, I couldn¡¯t fight back even if I wanted to, I didn¡¯t have strength, I couldn¡¯t do a thing.


    ¡°He is on the way to get you but I have to make sure the job isplete, you are not going to birth this child, no, I am going to watch you losing it and I am going to enjoy every moment of it, let¡¯s get this party started,¡±


    She said and pped me on the face, again, then punch me on my tummy, the pain that shot through me made me roar wanting to just die and end it all.


    ¡°What do you hope to achieve from this Ginna? From killing my child? What did my child ever do to you? How can you be this heartless,¡±


    I yelled, as another round of pain came pushing back down on my knees, I could feel myself losing my baby every moment and there was nothing I could do about it, I felt hopeless and helpless.


    ¡°I lost everything, it¡¯s only ideal that you do too since you are the cause of my every problem, Cross was my pass to a better life, I was going to marry him and get enough money from him but you ruined that and then I find out that you guys got married? After everything? I had a goaling to New York, yes I deviated a little thinking I will get him back since he still had feelings for me but you ruined that too, you can never be happy, no way,¡±


    She said each of those words while still pouring whatever awful chemicals it was that she was pouring, the stuff was helping my course either, I looked down and saw that I was bleeding.


    ¡°Oh God, no, please no,¡±


    I cried begging God to keep my baby, I couldn¡¯t stand losing my child, I just couldn¡¯t, why can¡¯t they find me already? Ginna burst outughing, she was satisfied with whatever she was doing.


    ¡°Yes, finally, it is happening, yes, yes, yes,¡±


    She said happily dancing, I felt hot tears fall out of my eyes as the pain increased even more.


    ¡°Somebody help me please,¡±


    I yelled, begging the universe to be on my side for once and save my baby.


    ¡°Katherine?¡±


    I heard Cross¡¯s voice, he was here, he finally found me.


    ¡°Cross,¡±


    I cried, he was in a few momentster, the first thing he did was run to a knee beside me.


    ¡°Cross my baby, I am going to lose the baby,¡±


    I cried out, feeling her slowly going away, the most painful part was I couldn¡¯t even do anything to stop it.


    ¡°Katherine, why what¡¯s happening? Why is there so much blood?¡±


    He asked, he was confused too, Ginna¡¯s evilugh got him turning around, I held onto him, willing him to help get me to the hospital instead.


    ¡°Cross, please, save my baby, please,¡±


    I pleaded, she responded and carried me up, but then Ginna ran to the door and locked it before Cross could get to it, she smiled and threw the key out of the window, I knew then that it would be toote and I was going to end up losing my child, Cross, on the other hand, dropped me back down and tried to open the door while cursing at Ginna who just stood thereughing out, I felt trapped in the pain but what was going through much more pain was my heart, the pain of losing my child, of never getting to meet her and show her just how much I love and adore her.


    ¡°All these won¡¯t have happened if you had just chosen me, no one again you choose her over me, and I couldn¡¯t sit and do nothing if she was going to be happy while I am not then I had to do something to make sure she felt just as much pain that I did when I lost my own child because of her,¡±


    ¡°What the fuck are you even talking about? How is Katherine responsible for the death of a child that never existed, you are lying and you know it, you were never pregnant, I don¡¯t know what happened that night but you know you weren¡¯t pregnant,¡±


    ¡°Is that what you think? I was pregnant, I was and that baby was my lifeline, my key to achieving all of my dreams, I made sure of it and took the test over and over again, so don¡¯t make me out to be a liar, I was pregnant.¡±


    She yelled at Cross, who was still trying to get the door open.


    ¡°Okay, fine, let¡¯s say you were pregnant but was the baby even mine? Or were you trying to pin another man¡¯s kid on me?¡±


    ¡°What? You were the only man I was seeing and you know it, the only man I loved and if she hadn¡¯te between us we would have been happy,¡±


    ¡°Thankfully not, I will rather die alone than be with an evil woman like you Ginna, you are going to rot in jail,¡±


    He said and the door finally opened from the outside, two men or more walked in and grabbed Gonna while she yelled, I looked down at my body as more blood came out of me, it was toote for me.


    ¡°I told you, you are going to regret leaving me for her and you thought I was joking, well guess what, an eye for an eye a tooth for a tooth and a child for a child, watch how painful it gonna be losing you, baby, without having any power to do anything,¡±


    She yelled at Cross as the police cuffed her, that was all I could remember as the pain became too much to bear, I couldn¡¯t take it any longer and felt it would be better to let go, it this was my end then at least she got caught¡­

 Chapter 101

    Cross Pov


    ¡°Doctor, when is my wife going to wake up? It¡¯s been over four days,¡±


    I asked the doctor, who didn¡¯t seem to have an answer, hearing that our baby was no more was the sadness thing I have ever heard, it brought me down on my knees, I cried my eyes out that day for the chance u had and lost, if only I had gotten to Katherine earlier, we wouldn¡¯t have lost our baby and my wife wouldn¡¯t still be asleep after four whole days, that day had been the worst days of my life, first having to watch the peramedics work on Kathy and bring her to the hospital, to waiting for the doctor toe and give me news and when the news finally came my worst nightmare had been confirmed, they couldn¡¯t do anything to save our baby as whatever Ginna had done couldn¡¯t be undone, in that moment, I felt like killing some one, felt liking making Ginna pay for everything with her blood, she has been arrested, that was all I knew for now, Louis who had turned himself in at thest moment had told the police everything and I knew they would both be going away for a long time but that wasn¡¯t satisfying for me, no, I wanted them to suffer, especially Ginna, I wanted her to suffer as much as she put Katherine and even Pearl through.


    Pearl had been found in a pull of her blood and had been brought to the hospital with Katherine, she had been unconscious when they arrived at the hospital but thankfully she was stable now, Katherine was the only one left, she had been sleeping for nearly four days now, I didn¡¯t know just how long she nned on sleeping, I wanted her back with me.


    ¡°Your wife is doing fine and she will be up soon, we hope,¡±


    ¡°Thanks, doc,¡±


    I said and left his office, it was the same thing he said yesterday, they have done their best, I could only just wait and hope, I just really wanted the miracle to happen soon, I wanted her up but at the same time, I was scared, it had hurt so bad finding out about the loss of our baby, how much more would it hurt Kathy when she finds out, I quietly walked back into her room and took my seat beside her bed, she was still sleeping, my family left earlier, they have been in and out of the hospital a lot and I go tired of seeing their concern and worried looks, I just didn¡¯t want them seeing me like this so I had told them not to show up and I will call them when anything happens.


    ¡°Kathy baby, it¡¯s time to wake up, I don¡¯t like it here without you, it¡¯s so lonely and sad, please,¡±


    I pleased holding her hand, it was warm, I ced a kiss on each of her fingers, silently begging her to wake up.


    ¡°Cross?¡±


    I heard my name and looked up to see her staring at me, at first I thought I was hallucinating but then she called my name again.


    ¡°Cross,¡±


    She said weakly, it brought tears to my eyes.


    ¡°Katherine, baby, you are finally awake, oh thank you, God,¡±


    She tried to get up but I held her down.


    ¡°Don¡¯t stress yourself too much justy still, the doctor will be here soon,¡±


    I said as pressed the inte that summoned the doctor, they were in her room in a few minutes, I stepped aside and let them do their job, everything was going fine ording to the doctor, we went to get some tests and scans done and why the time we returned, she was quite and not saying anything.


    ¡°Kathy? Honey? Are you okay?¡±


    I asked helping her get back on her bed, she didn¡¯t answer me as if she didn¡¯t hear me.


    ¡°Katherine? Are you okay? Should I get the doctor?¡±


    ¡°I can¡¯t feel it,¡±


    ¡°Feel what?¡±


    I asked confused.


    ¡°I can¡¯t feel it, I can¡¯t feel the baby Cross, there is no movement,¡±


    She let out, oh God, I was hoping she wouldn¡¯t think about the baby, at least not for today, how do I tell her that the baby is no more.Exclusive content from N?velDrama.Org.


    ¡°Cross, get the doctor, my baby, something is wrong with my baby, she is not moving,¡±


    She cried rubbing her tummy, I moved closed to her hugging her.


    ¡°I am sorry sweetheart, I am so sorry,¡±


    ¡°What do you mean you are sorry? Go get the fucking doctor,¡±


    She yelled going into a rage, I ran out instead of calling through the inte as I did before, my mind didn¡¯t even go there until I met the doctor, he came back with me after beeping his colleagues, when we got back to Katherine¡¯s room she was in an even worst state.


    ¡°Doctor, you are here, my baby, she is not moving, I can¡¯t feel her,¡±


    ¡°I am sorry ma,¡±


    ¡°Oh not you too, don¡¯t tell me sorry, do something,¡±


    She yelled at the doctor.


    ¡°I wish there was something we can do but there is nothing, your baby was already dead on arrival,¡±


    The doctor blurted out to her, I couldn¡¯t believe it, how could he just tell her like that? I walked past him and sat beside Kathy, she wasn¡¯t looking okay at all, she held my hands tight.


    ¡°It¡¯s not true, right? Cross, it¡¯s not right?¡±


    ¡°I am sorry Kathy,¡±


    ¡°No, Cross, no, please tell me you are lying, tell me it¡¯s all a joke, I can¡¯t take this please, doctor, my baby is fine right? Right? Cross, my baby, our baby is fine right?¡±


    She cried looking from me to the doctor and back to be, I couldn¡¯t even reassure her, get tears brought mine back.


    ¡°I am so sorry baby,¡±.


    ¡°No, no, no, not my baby, I want my baby back, give me back my child, I can¡¯t take this, please, Cross please talk to the doctor, my baby,¡±


    She cried, losing control and going into full panic mode, more doctors came in and pushed me aside as they tried to keep her down, she was crying so much, I felt only pain, I was hopeless and I couldn¡¯t even do anything to help her, I didn¡¯t realize just how worst it would be for her, I hadn¡¯t thought about it, my eyes watered again.


    ¡°Son, it¡¯s going to be fine,¡±


    My mom saiding to stand beside me holding my hands, I didn¡¯t even know when she got in but I hugged her taking all the love and strength she had to offer.


    The doctors came out a few momentster, I rushed to meet them.


    ¡°We sedated her for now, the news wasn¡¯t pleasant and she needs a lot of time to get used to it, she would be up again in about two hours, we don¡¯t want her to sleep for long as she just woke up, keeping an eye on her and showing her she isn¡¯t alone is all you can do to help her now, she needs all the love and affection, losing a child is usually worst on the expectant mother,¡±


    The doctor disclosed I was half paying attention, I just wanted my wife to be better again, I wanted us back the way we used to be before all these unfortunate things happened to us.


    I sat with my mom in her hospital room waiting for her to wake up, even after two hours has passed, she still didn¡¯t show any sign of waking up, getting scared that the doctors might have caused her to sleep again.


    ¡°Mom, it¡¯s been over two hours and she is not up, I am scared,¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry son, she will be up soon, her body still needs to rest, see she is up already,¡±


    My mom said, I looked at Kathy and found at staring at me.


    ¡°Kathy,¡±


    I called, happy she was awake again and at the same time worried that she might start crying again, I went to her side and held her hands wishing that the sadness in her eyes would just go away.


    ¡°Cross, we lost our baby, and it¡¯s all my fault,¡±


    ¡°No baby, no it¡¯s not, it¡¯s not your fault please don¡¯t me yourself,¡±


    ¡°I am so sorry,¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s fine, we are going to be fine, okay, we will be just fine,¡±


    ¡°I wish we didn¡¯t lose, I wish she was still here,¡±


    ¡°Me too, but just think about it, she is in a better ce now, okay, and watching over mommy and daddy,¡±


    ¡°You think so?¡±


    ¡°I know so, I love you, baby,¡±


    ¡°I love you too, what happened to Pearl? She was beaten too,¡±


    ¡°She is fine, she has been discharged, Louis and Ginna has been arrested, your parents, Anna, your siblings, and Max all came, Marilyn came to see you too,¡±


    I informed patting her hair softly, relief that she was taking this better than the first time.


    ¡°I will leave you guys, I need to tell your dad and siblings she is up, they are all worried, Kathy, don¡¯t be too hard on yourself, you did just fine and it will get better okay?¡±


    ¡°Yes, thank you, Mom,¡±


    Kathy replied to mom who left leaving just the both of us.


    ¡°Were you worried much?¡±


    She asked me touching my face, rxed into her touch, happy to finally have her back with me.


    ¡°I was, I thought I might lose you too, I wouldn¡¯t have been able to bear it,¡±


    ¡°You are not going to lose me, you are stuck with me for life,¡±


    ¡°Cool, I love you, honey,¡±


    ¡°I love you more, can youy close to me?¡±


    She requested and Iplied immediately,ying close to her and holding her.


    ¡°Cross? What would happen?¡±


    She asked, I didn¡¯t know how best to answer the question as I wasn¡¯t sure too, u didn¡¯t want to lie to her either.


    ¡°Honestly Baby girl, I don¡¯t know but I know one thing, we are going to be fine, we got each other and our family, we will get over this just fine,¡±


    ¡°I believe so too,¡±


    ¡°Good,¡±


    I hugged her closer.


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to fall asleep, I have been sleeping for so long, but still I am feeling sleepy,¡±


    She revealed, I kissed her forehead and looked at her, staring at those Sea blue eyes that I knew so well and fell in love with.


    ¡°You can sleep baby, I will be here watching you, I am not going to leave your side,¡±


    ¡°You promise?¡±


    ¡°I promise,¡±


    ¡°I love you Cross,¡±


    ¡°Love you more Kathy,¡±


    I replied and pulled her closer, she fell asleep a few minutester and I watched her until I too fell asleep¡­

 Chapter 102

    Kathy Pov


    It took a while for me to adjust to the life without my baby, no I couldn¡¯t adjust, I still cried at night, I still med myself and I don¡¯t think I will ever get over the feeling of loss, Ginna had been right about one thing, she left an unforgettable wound that time was doing nothing to heal, not even seeing Ginna and Louis getting sentenced helped no, it¡¯s being over four months since the incident but it was still fresh in my memory, especially when I think about the fact that I would have been huge with child now almost getting ready for delivery.


    ¡°Baby?¡±


    Cross called, Cross, he has been an angel, my only constant aside from our family, we were still in Arizona and I didn¡¯t n on returning to New York anytime soon, I had trauma, for me New York was a bad ce where I only had bad memories, here in Arizona I could at least befortable, I had my both families and also Anna¡¯s twins, they were a source of joy to me, a glimpse of what it would have been like if my baby had been able to make it.


    ¡°Yes?¡±


    ¡°What are you doing here alone?¡±


    He askeding to sit beside me, holding me close, I rested my head on his shoulder staring at the night sky.


    ¡°I just wanted to enjoy the night sky, I didn¡¯t know you were back,¡±


    ¡°I am, I don¡¯t like it when you are alone,¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry Cross, I am fine, I promise,¡±


    ¡°I know, I still don¡¯t like it,¡±


    ¡°How did your day go?¡±


    I asked changing the topic, he was overprotective, I understood him but still sometimes I wish he could just stop worrying too much about me, I am fine now, yes I still felt sad from time to time, that¡¯s because I am human and it¡¯s happened but I don¡¯t dwell in it for long, I think if my family and everyone that loves me and is cheering me on, I draw strength from them and my husband.


    ¡°Good, but I missed you,¡±


    ¡°I did too, m day was eventful, the twins were so active and Anna wasn¡¯t home earlier, she took a day off and left me and Mom with the kids, it was fun but tiring,¡±


    ¡°But you lived it? I can tell from your eyes,¡±


    ¡°Of course I did,¡±


    ¡°You will make a great mom my love,¡±


    He said and tears gathered in my eyes again, would that ever happen again? Will I ever be able to get another baby? I don¡¯t know why I feel the maker won¡¯t want to give me another because I didn¡¯t treat the one he gave me the first time better, what if he doesn¡¯t? Would I be okay? Would my husband be?¡±


    ¡°What are you thinking about baby? Don¡¯t be sad please,¡±


    ¡°I am not sad, I just had a tiny thought, would we get the chance to be parents again?¡±


    ¡°Of course, we will, I know we will and this time our baby is going to be born and we will be one happy family,¡±


    ¡°I hope so,¡±


    ¡°I know so my love, we can do it,¡±


    ¡°I love you Cross,¡±


    I said looking into his eyes that were filled with so much love and understanding.


    ¡°I love you more baby, we will be just fine,¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡±


    I whispered and we spent a few more hours looking at the sky before retiring to our room for the night¡­


    I stared at the stick, still not believing what I was seeing, this was so hard to believe even though I have done the test for the third time even after confirming at theboratory, still, I couldn¡¯t believe it, But this looked so real, the test couldn¡¯t be wrong all seven times, theboratories won¡¯t give out inurate results, I was sure of that, so I am allowed to be happy again, I walked into the room, leaving the lists I used in the restroom.Belongs to ? n0velDrama.Org.


    I sat down on the sofa in our room as tears of joy streamed down my eyes, My husband walked in on me at that moment, he looked so worried running over to my side.


    ¡°Kathy? Are you okay?¡±


    He asked, I couldn¡¯t get any words out.


    ¡°Baby, what is it? You look so pale, please talk to me,¡±


    Cross pleaded holding my hands, I was still in shock, I had just done the test, I didn¡¯t actually expect any of it to be positive, but it did, it turned out positive, I didn¡¯t know how I should put it to him that we are having another baby.


    ¡°Kathy, please, you are scaring me,¡±


    ¡°Cross,¡±


    I cried, hugging him, he pulled me even closer, patting my back and telling me it will be fine and that we were going to be fine, I started crying even harder knowing that the universe and the maker have decided to smile at us once again.


    ¡°Kathy, don¡¯t cry, we are fine, we are going to be just fine, okay?¡±


    ¡°Yes, Cross, it will be fine, we are going to be fine,¡±


    I said pulling out of the hug and smiling through my tears, I kissed him softly, caressing his face, he let me.


    ¡°Wanna tell me what¡¯s going on sweetie?¡±


    ¡°Yes, I will tell you, so this morning, I felt like taking a test, I wasn¡¯t feeling any symptoms like thest time but I knew I waste, so I went to get the test done, I did and I am on,¡±


    I let out, he looked confused as fuck, just staring nkly at me, I smiled, he didn¡¯t understand.


    ¡°What¡¯s on?¡±


    ¡°I am pregnant Cross, we are going to be parents,¡±


    ¡°What? How? I mean, is that possible? Sorry, of course, it is possible, we have been active, just I wasn¡¯t expecting for us to get so soon, oh God, I am talking nonsense,¡±


    He said and kept quiet for a moment.


    ¡°We are pregnant, and I did the test in three different Laboratory to be sure and all the test reports are the same, I just did a kit test myself and it fucking the same,¡±


    I said, I saw tears in his eyes, my husband, he wasn¡¯t just sharing small years, no he was crying, like fully crying, his crying brought his mom and Anna to our room, they both looked scared and concerned.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on? Why is Crossie crying so hard?¡±


    Anna asked moving closer to where we sat, I smiled at her and at mom too, mom seemed to understand and ran to hug me.


    ¡°What¡¯s going on here?¡±


    Anna and Max both asked in unison as Max walked in, followed by dad, since everyone was here, I may as well share the good news since my husband was still crying so much.


    ¡°Everyone, Cross and I are pregnant,¡±


    I announced, the whole room suddenly lighted up with cheers and happy sounds, hugs were exchanged, everyone happy for us, my mother inw being the happiest, she busted out crying, her son¡¯s had to console her too, I saw my father inw wipe his eyes too, they left us after a while, I called my family and told everyone the good news, they were all so happy for us.


    Cross opened his arms when it was just the two of us and I ran into his hug, yes, we got another chance and I knew this time, we weren¡¯t going to make any mistakes, I sent a silent prayer of thanks to the maker for giving us another shot at Parenthood and promised that we won¡¯t do anything to mess it up again.


    ¡°Thank you Katherine Salvador for everything,¡±


    ¡°No, thank you Cross, you are the best,¡±


    ¡°You too, I love you,¡±


    ¡°I love you more,¡±


    He responded and hugged me tighter¡­

 Chapter 103

    Cross PovContent is property of N?velDrama.Org.


    It was a delight to watch my wife grow bigger and bigger with our baby each day that turned into weeks and then months, we returned back to New York temporarily, spent just two weeks, and went back home to Arizona, we both decided it was better to start a family back home in Arizona, Max who had been the runaway kid soon became the new me as dad instructed him to go learn how to run thepany, of course, the poor guy didn¡¯t want to, I couldn¡¯t me him but after talking to him, he decided to eventually go but he firmly told Dad that he had no intentions of running thepany so even though I was back home in Arizona, I still had the major post there and still went there for important meetings and business dealings, Katherine and I moved out of the mansion as I didn¡¯t want to keep leaving in my parent¡¯s house, I wanted a home for us, and we both got a beautiful, not so bigger but homey house in a calm environment in Arizona, everything was just going fine for us, this wasn¡¯t the life I nned but was definitely the life I needed, being with my wife and soon our kids is everything.


    I walked into our room at the mansion, yup we still had a room here ande here often, I saw my wife sitting and walked towards her, I didn¡¯t like how she looked.


    ¡°Katherine? What¡¯s going on?¡±


    I asked running over to her side, she raised her head to look at me and I got scared, she looked so in pain.


    ¡°Baby, what happened?¡±


    I asked kneeling in don¡¯t of her, she grabbed my hand and held on tight increasing my fear.


    ¡°It¡¯s time,¡±


    ¡°Time? What time?¡±


    I asked confused.


    ¡°Time, the baby ising,¡±


    She revealed.


    Okay that got me on my feet and loving but I couldn¡¯t raise her, she was literally two times bigger than me, she yelled at me when I tried to and I ran out to call my parents who came running in, thank God we were at the mansion today, I would have been helpless, my mom and brother who hade home for the weekend helped her get into the car, while Anna and I went to bring the things we had prepared for the delivery, mom had had us have two one at our home and one here in the mansion.


    ¡°You just can¡¯t tell when the baby choose toe, the doctors are not always urate,¡±


    She had said and that turned out to be true because we weren¡¯t expecting until next week.


    ¡°My Crossie is going to be a dad,¡±


    Anna said as we both rushed out to where the car was already running and waiting for us, I loaded everything into the booth and hugged Anna who couldn¡¯t go with us to the hospital as she had to look after her twins.


    ¡°Come back smiling big brother,¡±


    ¡°I will baby girl,¡±


    I said and got in the car with mom, Max, and Kathy, Max was driving and Mom was trying her best to help Katherine rx as much as she could, it was working, until she grabbed my hair, I hadn¡¯t expected it.


    ¡°Wifey that¡¯s painful, let go,¡±


    I cried in pain.


    ¡°No, don¡¯t let go, Kathy, Cross bear the pain, okay, you can do it,¡±


    My mom said and Kathy grabbed even harder, I guess I might just go bald before we get to the hospital, we got there in less than Fifteen minutes and we were made to wait outside thebor ward after we signed the papers, a few minutester, the doctor came and asked me to scrub up, I did immediately, it wasn¡¯t my first rodeo so I knew the drill, I got in there, and held onto Katherine¡¯s hand.


    ¡°I love you, baby, you can do it,¡±


    I said, remembering I said those exact same words to Anna over a year ago in these same words, Anna¡¯s twins were grown babies now and I wished and prayed my babies will be born safely too. God answered my prayers cuz two hourster I became a dad, of not just one bit two beautiful little princesses, I cried as the doctor guided me to cut the umbilical cord of both babies, my joy was full, I looked at my wife who was so tired and wondered just what in the world I did to deserve such amazing woman and our kids, I still had my parents to thank for this, they were the one that brought Katherine my way and gave me a chance at this happily ever after.


    After the babies were dressed, we were moved to a private room, the same room Anna had used when she gave birth, everyone stopped by to say Hi to the newborns and congrattions to us, then I called Dean and Marilyn to give her the good news, speaking of Dean, dude was crazy over his ex foster sister but he didn¡¯t want to admit it, he said I betrayed him by moving back to Arizona and left him in New York to suffer knowing Grace hates him, I justughed at him and told him to do the right thing by her, I hope he does because I know Grace was just as in love with him as he is to her.


    ¡°You did do well in there,¡±


    My wife said bringing me out of my thoughts, she did all the job, I just held her hands.


    ¡°Are you kidding me, baby? You did all the work, what did I do in there other than holding your hands and staring stupidly?¡±


    ¡°Holding my hands and not fainting is a good job, you gave me a lot of motivation, thank you,¡±


    ¡°Well, I learned, I should be the one thanking you for the best present ever,¡±


    ¡°I love you Cross and I will give you the world if I have to,¡±


    ¡°I love you more Katherine, you are the only world I need, you and our kids,¡±


    ¡°Good, because you are all we need too,¡±


    ¡°I love you,¡±


    ¡°And I love you,¡±


    I said and kissed her.

 Chapter 104

    Kathy Pov


    ¡°What did I ever do to deserve you and our little ones? This is too much, I couldn¡¯t have done anything to deserve this much joy and happiness,¡±


    Cross, let out. we were in our baby¡¯s nursery putting the twin to bed, exactly two months after their birth, they were healthy and growing so beautifully.


    ¡°You deserve it all My love, even if you think you don¡¯t, you do,¡±


    ¡°God, I am so blessed,¡±


    ¡°We too,¡±


    ¡°I love you, My baby,¡±


    ¡°I love you more, now shush, we need to get these little ones to sleep I want their dad all to myself until they wake up,¡±


    These passed two months have been both fun and hectic, for a kid it would be hard but there were two of them, I wonder just how Anna could take caring for two kids, sometimes it gets do overwhelming, sometimes it will be so easy but most time it not, thank God I had more help and so did Anna, if not I don¡¯t think we could have done it on our own, Anna gave me lots of lessons, my mother iw, sisters and mother did too, they all had experience, I had so many people to help me but still hubby and I didn¡¯t get any alone time during these two months, the time we get, we end up just fallen asleep, that¡¯s why I nned on us going out to night, just the two of us, I was able to talk to my mother iw and my mom and got them to babysit for the night while my husband and I go out and they both happily agreed, my rtionship with my mom got even better during my pregnancy, I understood her more and knew she might not show it but she loved me so dearly and wants me to have the best only, which I got, yes, I got everything thanks to her.


    ¡°Hmm, that sounds nice, but they will wake up sooner than we think, I don¡¯t think we are getting that alone time soon,¡±


    ¡°Of course we are, we are going out, I got our moms to keep the babiespany while we go out, they are watching them for the night, I want you all to myself tonight,¡± oh, they are here,¡±


    I said running out to hug both of my moms, yeah, it felt super nice having two very supportive moms, Ellen was rubbing off on my mom so much that she had changed from her cold demo to a cheery woman, my dad even said that¡¯s how she had been when they newly got married but trying to make sure our family doesn¡¯t go bankrupt and stuff had hardened her I understood that now and love her even more.


    ¡°Mom, mom, thank you, I and my husband will leave now,¡±


    I said dragging Cross who wasining that he wants to change his clothes out, not like we were going to be needing those clothes.


    ¡°Alright, dear have fun,¡±


    My mom said.


    ¡°And make more babies,¡±


    My mother-inw added, Cross and I both shouted not now as I dragged him away.


    ¡°Where are we going to?¡±


    Cross asked as we got into the car, I told him I was driving and he had reluctantly agreed.


    ¡°You will see when we get there.


    It took us about fifteen minutes to arrive at our destination.


    ¡°We are here,¡±


    I said to my husband who had his eyes closed, he opened them starting at me.


    ¡°Wow, I thought we were going on a date or something, this isn¡¯t a date?¡±


    ¡°It is you moron, don¡¯t you remember?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t, would my love remind me?¡±


    ¡°Sure, this used to be Kennedy¡¯s pool house, remember? We were at a party here, the police cane and you dragged me away from here,¡±


    I reminded him, I picked this ce because it had some kind of memory for us, when I found out they now used the pool house as a sort of vacation home, I decided it would be the best ce to spend the night.


    ¡°I remember,¡±


    ¡°Now, get off the car and stop sucking,¡±


    ¡°I am not,¡±


    ¡°Yes, you are,¡±


    I said and got off the car, he followed behind me, I smiled knowing his face would light up once we get inside, I made sure of it, the inside was decorated with flowers and scented candlelights the kind my mother inw did for our wedding night and it did, once I opened the door and he stepped in his whole sucking ended, he mouthed a wow.


    ¡°You like it?¡±


    ¡°Yes, when did you n all these?¡±


    He asked pulling me in and backing me against the door.


    ¡°Last week, we barely have time for each, and I wanted you to myself least for tonight.¡±


    I said cing my hands on his chest and moving them around his body in a seductive way.


    ¡°Aha, very thoughtful,¡±


    He said as his lips captured mine, I melted into his touch, he carried me up and into the room I prepared, well let¡¯s just say we didn¡¯t get to sleep until way past midnight.


    ¡°You know, back then when I saw you here, talking with that idiot, forgotten his name, he was touching you so inappropriately, I almost wanted to give him a good beating, then the police showed up and I haven¡¯t met him again.¡±


    He said as we paid in bed in the early hours of the next morning, I couldn¡¯t remember who he was talking about because I didn¡¯t know most of the people at the party that day.


    ¡°I never knew that,¡±


    ¡°Yeah, you don¡¯t know a lot of things,¡±


    He replied.


    ¡°Like what?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it, some things are better left in the past,¡±


    ¡°Okay, Cross, speak up, I wanna hear it,¡±


    I said sitting up and folding my hands.


    ¡°Really?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡±


    ¡°Fine, I liked you a lot back then but you were so young I felt stupid and like a perv,¡±


    ¡°What? Really? That¡¯s a lie, you barely even spoke to me and each time our part crossed you always frown at me, ignore me and act like I am a stain or something,¡±


    I responded, there is no way he liked me, that would be confirming what that crazydy who in fact got sentencing she deserved said. Yup, she was sentenced to fifty years or so in prison, Dn too but he got lighter sentencing because he turned himself in, okay that¡¯s not what¡¯s on the ground.


    ¡°It¡¯s not babe, I liked you but you were young and I had a girlfriend but that didn¡¯t stop me so I did what I could to stop those feelings if I knew you were mine from the beginning I would have not let you be,¡±


    ¡°What would you have done? I was just thirteen,¡±


    ¡°I know, I wouldn¡¯t have done anything horrible, maybe stake a im, make sure everyone knows you are mine,¡±


    He replied, I liked the thought of that and wished that happened, it would have been heavenly or maybe not, everything happens for a reason so maybe this was the best way.


    ¡°I am yours now,¡±


    ¡°Yes, you are and I am going to hold onto you forever,¡±Exclusive content from N?velDrama.Org.


    ¡°Of course, that has always been the n,¡±


    ¡°I love you, forever, Mrs. Katherine Salvador,¡±


    ¡°I love you more, my husband, my everything,¡±


    He opened his arms and I got in without hesitating, loving how perfect my life is now and knowing it would be like this for a long, long, time.


    The End


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