The beginning

The breeze rustling through the trees in the woods bellowed, the night air was a bit more chilly than usual which signifies the slow end of fall and to show that winter was fast approaching. But the cold night did not stop the couple that were sitting on the dock by the river.

The lady had her head on the shoulder of the man, who in turn held her around her waist tightly.

“I promise to keep you safe Mae, he won’t touch you”, he whispered and pushed her hair that was falling across her face back.

The lady gave a smile that looked like a wince then she slowly raised her head from his shoulder and looked at him dead in the eyes.

“I have something to tell you Aaron”, she said with all seriousness and with the blood draining from her face.

Aaron’s heart skipped, he knew that whatever she had to say must be very serious for her to look this scared.

“You are making me scared Mae, what is it?” He whispered and she took a deep breath in.

“I’m pregnant Aaron, he’ll kill us when he finds out”, she paused to let her words sink in.

“I want this baby because it’s a part of you and I love you so much, but then I can’t hide the fact that I am pregnant for long”.

“You are pregnant?” Aaron whispered slowly and she looked at him weirdly.

“Is that all you got from what I just said?”

“You are, no. We are having a baby?!” He said again this time more excitedly.

“Yes, but don’t forget the part of where we’re dead meat to Alexander”, she added.

Aaron looked at her this time with a serious smile.

“I promised you before Mae, he won’t ever touch you. We are running away”.

Mae’s eyes widened.

“Are you crazy?”

Aaron smiled, “probably”.

“We are dealing with a mafia boss here Aaron, could you be serious? We won’t last long before he catches up with us”.

Aaron placed his hand on her shoulder and pulled her in to him.

“We are dealing with a mafia boss I know. But have you forgotten who my daddy is?” He asked in a teasing tone.

Mae rolled her eyes.

“Same daddy you don’t talk to? I thought you didn’t want to be a part of the whole mafia business?”

Aaron clenched his jaw.

“Well, I’m a part of it now. I guess it’s time for some reconciliation, the prodigal son returns”.

Mae gasped.

“No”, she whispered.

“Yes baby, I’ll protect you and our child with everything I have. I’ve got you for life my love”.

Mae’s eyes watered and her hand went to her stomach.

She remembered when she first met Aaron.

** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** **

“You are a very stubborn man I can see”, she sighed resignedly.

All her efforts to make this young man to stop talking to her had failed, she’d hate for another man to die because of her.

The last guy that came close to her was caught in the wrath of the mafia boss in town that had the hots for her, Alexander Quinn. He had wasted no time in putting two bullets in his head and three in his chest, just because he heard that the guy had kissed her.

Mae is just twenty three years old and a very pretty girl, Alexander should be in his mid twenties and was already the head of a mafia gang and also married with a son.

Well, he is technically the the successor of his father but he is as ruthless as his father was and now this ruthless gangster had declared his interest in her to warn off other men.

While she doesn’t like him, he was not giving her much options because other men were scared of him making a example of them.

She couldn’t leave town, she could not afford that. She had no family members, just her and her mother who was late now. Thankfully mommy had a nice little cottage that she had struggled to pay off completely before her sudden death.

“Nope, not stubborn. I go after what I want ferociously”.

Mae shook her head.

“Even if it will cost you your life?” She asked him.

“I would give my life for you”, he answered slowly and she stopped and looked at him, something about him or those words he said made something flipped inside her.

** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** **

Now it all made sense to her, he was not joking about every single thing he said when he was chasing her and she was grateful that she had fallen in love with this man with a pure heart.

“I’m going to freeze to death here”, Mae said with a chuckle and Aaron laughed.

“I’m sorry, let me walk you home”.

Mae shook her head vigorously.

“No no, he came into town last night. You don’t want to end up like…”

She left it hanging, the day she told Aaron about the horrific thing Alexander had done to the last guy she almost went out with and how he made her watch, he was horrified.

She later found out that he was horrified for her and not for what Alexander had done, he then told her that he grew up seeing all these and he also might have some blood on his hands but he hated the life and know the trauma it could give a person.

Point is, she doesn’t want that to also happen to him too.

“Okay let me at least walk you to..” Aaron tried again and she shook her head firmly.

She stood up and dusted off her sweatpants then pulled the hoodie she wore tightly.

“I’m a big girl, I can take care of myself”.

Aaron looked at her, he so badly wanted to be with her at all times. Especially now that he knows she is carrying his baby, he wants to be able to protect her.

But he knows he can’t do that now, not with him being and ordinary person with no power or authority or even loads of money yet.

“Okay baby”, he finally resigned then he pulled her closer and kissed her.

Mae closed her a eyes and allowed herself to get lost in the kiss.

She always does that, just in case that might be the last time they ever get to touch each other again.

Alex have been dropping hints of taking her to the family castle, somewhere in Mexico that she doesn’t know.

Maybe this time around that he is in town he might just take her with him, she haven’t told Aaron about this yet just because she wants to protect him.

She will find a way out of this, they will find a way.

“Stay safe?” He whispered against her lips as he broke the kiss.

Mae nodded and pulled back from him, then she started walking in the opposite direction to her house.

Half way through, she pulled out her phone and saw that she had missed several calls from Alexander.

“Shit!” She exclaimed and quickly texted Aaron about it before clearing everything that have to do with Aaron on her phone.

Mae increased her steps back home and prayed that he had not sent anyone out to look for her, not that anyone knows about her always going to the dock.

Alexander knew she hated water and was scared of large bodies of water, but what he doesn’t know is that she met Aaron and she feels safe with him so that was the best place she knew he would never look to find her when he was in his feelings.

She got home and noticed that her lights were off, she let out a sigh of relief and put in her key in the door, unlocked the door and stepped into the house.

Taking off her shoes by the door, she walked into the house fully with her socks clad feet and dropped her keys into the bowl like she always does.

Then she went into the kitchen to get something to eat, her pregnancy makes her eat a lot now and she doesn’t know if she was to hate or love it.

Just as she opened her fridge she heard a voice.

“Don’t you think it’s rude to ignore my calls?” She knew that voice damn well but it caught her by surprise, she quickly looked for the light switch and put on the light in the kitchen while clutching her chest.

“Jesus Alexander! You scared me!” She exclaimed.

The young man who was seated in one of her kitchen chairs in his three pieces suit, his tie was loosely tied around his neck and his legs were crossed. His hair looks like he had ran his hand through them multiple times.

He uncrossed his legs and leaned forward ignoring her outburst and asked her calmly again.

“Don’t you think it’s rude that you ignored my calls”.

Mae gulped and then put up a front before shrugging.

I didn’t know you were calling, my phone was on silence and I got carried away.

He stood up and walked over to her.

“You got carried away with what?” He asked.

She shrugged again.

“With thinking? The life you’ve put me to and how I must survive everyday is a burden to me!” She exclaimed.

Alex furrowed his brows like he doesn’t understand what she was saying.

She felt like smacking his handsome face, no matter how much she hated him, she couldn’t deny the fact that he was handsome and breathtakingly hot.

If not that he was married already and also the leader of a mafia gang, I would have considered him. Just if he was a normal person like Aaron.

‘Aaron is also like him’ a voice whispered to her.

“But he tries”, she said out loud and Alex looked at her funny.

“What?”

“Nothing! Why can’t you just leave me alone?!” She yelled.

“I can’t, I’m obsessed with you. I think about you all the time”.

“You see, that is the problem. You don’t love me, you’re obsessed with me, you want to have me, nobody else can have me because you want to have me. Like I’m a fucking piece of paper or something”, she yelled.

“You are making life hard for me, life is already hard to me. I have to get up everyday and work to survive, I barely have friends because of you in this town. Do you know how that feels?”

“You don’t want to take my money, I told you that you don’t need to work. I will provide you with everything you need and want”, he said in his husky deep voice and came closer to her, he tried to touch her face and she stepped back.

“Don’t touch me”.

Alexander dropped his hand and his demeanor changed.

“I’ll be leaving town in two weeks, you are following me back to Mexico and it’s not up for debate”.

Mae’s mouth dropped open.

“You are and asshole”.

He shrugged.

“How does your wife even feel about all these?”

“She was an arranged marriage plan, but you? I feel something for you”.

Mae scoffed.

“Wow!”

Alexander looked at her from head to toes.

“I don’t like what you are wearing, you look too cheap. Don’t get me wrong, you’re the prettiest girl I’ve ever seen but I need you to look more expensive”.

Mae could not even respond because her tongue was still tied in shock.

Alexander went back to the chair he stood up from and picked up a briefcase besides it, then he opened it and brought out about ten bundles of cash and kept it on the counter beside her.

“I don’t need your money”, she whispered hoarsely.

“Oh baby, you do. You do need the money”, he replied her with a smirk then he lifted her chin with his hand and kissed her forehead before leaving her still in shock as he left her kitchen and house.

Mae looked over at the money, they were hundred dollar bills. She counted the bundles to be ten.

A hundred thousand dollars! She thought back about her plans with Aaron and smiled wickedly.

“Oh maybe I really do need your money Alexander, I need your money to get away from you”.