•CAMILLA•I released a long sigh as I took off my shoes while on the phone with Lucius.“Do you know how illegal this is? Nico is my son and Santino’s. If you want to see him, as you state, you haven’t signed away your parental rights–which you never had. You must call him as well.”“His name is Nico?” he asked, and I exhaled.“Yes, but that’s not the point. He’s Santino’s child as well, and this is disrespectful to him to put a claim on the head of his child.”“I will call him and tell him I want my family back. I don’t want this to get to court or get ugly, so I would appreciate it if he got out of my way.”“It doesn’t work like that, Lucius.” I walked to my bedroom and sat on the couch. “You can’t expect everything to stop because you had an epiphany that you want your family back.”“I love you, Camilla, and I loved you before finding out you’re not Alisha. I had been trying to find you before you came back to New York. Do you think I would’ve let you go if I found out you were car
•LUCIUS•“Wait a minute,” Kyle chuckled. “Are you telling me you’re selling Airbyte to your ex-wife?”“No, I’m giving it to her freely.” I sipped my bourbon and smirked. “She wants the company, so she should have it.”Kyle chuckled. He was a friend and a business partner for the past five years. I usually went to see him when I wanted unhinged advice.He said whatever came into his mind, and I liked he didn’t pretend just so I would like him.I also needed to clear my mind and avoid going home for a few hours. They discharged my mother from the hospital, and I avoided a conversation about her collapse.Since it was technically my fault, I wanted to avoid her for some time.“There’s no way you’re giving Airbyte to the same woman who lied to you, faked her pregnancies, and blackmailed you.” He shook his head. “You must be joking, Lucius. You can’t give away your decade of hard work to her!”“Airbyte barely brings in any money, and it’s still registered in my father’s name. What will happ
•CECILIA•“Is something wrong?”I looked at Asher as he walked into my room and scoffed. “Close the bloody door.”“What’s wrong?” He asked, leaning toward me.I was pacing in my room, thinking of what to do with Casey after she had the guts to threaten me after squandering the money I had given her.“It’s Casey. I don’t know what to do with that girl. Can you believe she came to the house yesterday, threatening to tell Camilla everything if I don’t give her the money we agreed on when she impersonated Camilla?”“What did she say?”I rolled my eyes and sighed. There were things I didn’t want to tell Asher, and no matter how infatuated he was with me, it wouldn’t be appropriate to tell him I wanted all his father’s inheritance for myself.“She said she’ll tell Camilla that I wanted her to impersonate her because I want to get rid of her from the Ross companies.”“After everything you’ve done for her and her bedridden mother, she wants to betray you?” He scolded. “I should’ve known she w
•LUCIUS•“Are you sure the report is accurate?” I asked my financial advisor after he ran me through the financial status of Airbyte.“Yes, Mr. Hall, the report is accurate. Airbyte’s financial losses top fifty million dollars over the past quarter, and failure to retain current clients and attract new ones could result in twenty percent staff reductions before year’s end.”I leaned back in my chair in my office and exhaled. “Three accounts pulled out, and they were our major accounts. We are left with only minor accounts that barely generate any income.”“I think you need to sit with your marketing team and figure out a way to bring new clients. Maybe you should brainstorm new ideas and strategies to sign more accounts before the company makes less money than it spends on its expenses.”I looked at Keith and sighed. He was right, but I didn’t know how I would execute the plan he gave me.My mind was all over the place. I was thinking about Camilla and her child and how I was going to
•CAMILLA•In the morning, when I woke up, it was as if nothing horrible had happened last night.I took a shower, dressed in one of my best outfits, and called Louis, my secretary from the Ross and Banks company, to find out if any pending meetings needed my attention.“I spoke with John Hales from Hales Logistics, and he said he would call you directly to discuss the new contract amendments.”“Alright, that’s all?”“Asher sent a complaint to the company about our payment delays. I told him you would call and talk since –”“What did he say?” I interrupted her. I guessed Asher didn’t want to talk to me.“He said I shouldn’t mind—he will wait until the company sends payments to shareholders.”Asher was in charge of dispatch, and since he was my brother, he had to be involved.“That’s good. Next time he calls to complain about our payment system, please tell him to read our email updates to shareholders. He can’t expect payment whenever he wants.”“Yes, Miss Ross. I’ll do that.”“Thank y
•LUCIUS•I didn’t believe it when Brandon and Nevada showed me the pictures of the boy. I thought it was coincidental that he looked like me.But there I was, looking at my direct replica down the aisle in the grocery store. Camilla couldn’t see me, and neither could he.They were laughing and having a good time. I thought of how bad I would feel if I ruined their fun time, but I needed to know if that was my son.So, I picked up my cell phone and called my mother first. I wanted her to be the first one to know that after she drove me to send Camilla away; she was already pregnant with my son.While on the phone, I followed behind Camilla and the little boy at a far distance so they wouldn’t suspect anything.“Hey, Lucius. I was looking for you, honey. Where are you? I thought you weren’t working today.”“I’m at the grocery store in Manhattan, looking at Camilla shopping with my son. She didn’t tell me she was pregnant when she left, Mother. You told me she was barren, remember? So te