He made her voice happy, "No, Mom. It's just that returning here brought back those restless nights."
"Ignore what occurred here. There is no other way to proceed. Rafa, may God prosper your endeavor."
"Mommy, thank you." She darted subtly at her back when she felt a soft movement and found Alexus standing with his eyes on them. She cleared her throat, "I appreciate you giving me this chance, Alexus."
Rafaella looked at the man after her mother said something. She was worried Alexus had overheard what she had said—observing the shape of his grin subtly as he approached her mother.
Did he hear what I said? She pondered.
"Thank you for having the time with my mom," she said firmly as Alexus walked to the front door together. "I'm sorry to say this, but I can't ignore what you’ve said after seeing my mother. I agree that she’s okay to be here for now. Don’t worry; I will continue to send Mrs. Woods what I can spare."
"And you think your mom's simply thinking about money?" He said in a sarcastic tone.
She believed he punched her at that.
"Please. That's all I can ask you. Give me some time to be stable before she can join me.”
Alexus said, "I considered her my mother even before I married you, and it became formal after that."
"Believe me; I appreciate it,” her voice insisted. “Thank you for everything, Alexus….”
His mouth parted in a smile. "Finally, I heard you call my name. Not tough at all, right?" He was mocking her.
She swallowed and smiled. "By the way, I thought we could go to Las Vegas and close the deal after you talk to the lawyer. Doesn't it take a two weeks process?
"Why the hurry? You walked out, looking rushed. Why?" His cheekbone was fragile now.
"I just need that divorce form as soon as possible," she replied jokingly.
"I questioned you over your haste after losing a loved one. You can't be with another one, can you?"
"I want to remind you that the presence of a new individual is not of concern to you. Our union was a lie from the start, to begin with."
His attention was focused on her, and she was unsure whether or not she liked what she saw.
A furious shadow covered his ocean-blue eyes.
"Who is the helpless guy you've saved for this occasion?"
She threw up her chin and strained as he brought his hand to her waist. Her mouth was not far from his.
"You are hiding something from me, and I can smell it, Rafaella. Does this new one deserves your love or not?"
His breath was warm and faintly flavored with wine. Her ears picked up the echoes of her heartbeat as her lips began to dry up. She stepped away from him, hoping her legs would be enough to sustain her.
She firmly said, "I have no idea what you're referring to. Think the worst of me if it makes you happy. As usual, you don't believe anything I say."
"I still wait for your honesty. Be at ease. I'm not going to stop you. And relax. You'll understand." His lips instantly shut.
She smirked, "You want my honesty. When I return to my hotel room, I look forward to a happy, loving hug from my dear someone. How's that for telling the truth?"
He regarded her with an emotion-controlled gaze. "You're such a liar," he snarled with scorn.
She replied with a lovely smile and said, "Alexus, thank you. I'm expecting you to say that. I could say that you haven’t changed after all these years.”
"You can't expect me to accept anything you claim as if your action is normal. I'm amazed that you are quite different from the women demanding a divorce. He must be affluent because you aren't chasing anything due to even the alimony part."
"The situation is fine and has nothing to do with financial issues. He is a wonderful person who has given me real happiness. He is nice, smart, and attentive, and he loves me. In other words, he represents everything that you are not."
"And he loves you too," he added sarcastically.
"Yes. I adore his adorable sister as well."
"You seemed to enjoy swiftly establishing a nice family. And since he cares about you so much, did he permit you to come here and approach me alone?"
"He knows who you are and knows he can trust me."
A chill ran down her spine as he took her hand. She could see the sensation of a breeze as it altered the charmer's pipe's seductive song. She was still, unable to shift her eyes.
"He wanted to go with me." Her dry lips made it difficult for her to talk. "I won't allow him as it's not the right moment to accompany me."
"If I were in his shoes, you couldn't have stopped me," he said. "Do you love him that much?”
"Of course I do. My favorite quality in him as he felt the same way," She replied kindly and then changed the subject. "You're going to Las Vegas tomorrow, right?"
He snorted, "Certainly, you won't think I'm pining for you; it seems that way. Tomorrow, I'll get the specifics."
She beamed. "Then everything settled then. I trust you can make the process speedy. I have to go now. I've already been gone longer than I expected. I'll call you tomorrow during lunch if that's okay."
"There's no need to be in a hurry. I can drive you back to your hotel."
She seemed to stumble for a little moment. "I think it would be much better to take a cab. Please let me use your phone."
"That is not necessary if you insist on leaving right now." He moved to an intercom and pushed a button while observing, his gaze soaking up the feminine features exposed by her ribcage-baring white blouse as she placed her shoes back on and swung her purse strap over her shoulder.
"Tim? Bring the car to the front spot. A woman in a white shirt will show up shortly. Take her wherever she needs to go."
Rafaella smiled at him before walking to the door.
He started to feel heavy and depressed in his chest. She left his life once more—this time straight into the arms of another man—five years after he had been denied the chance to say goodbye. It wasn't a pleasant visit that brought him back to the pain of yesterday.
He had vowed to put his wife's affair in the past, but when he saw her again, the pain quickly returned.
She said, "Alexus, I appreciate everything, especially which concerned my mom.
“As I’ve said, she’s like a real mother to me. There’s nothing to be skeptical about having here with me. I want to ensure that she is safe from any attack of what happened then.
She beamed and straightened up. "So, I suppose that's everything for now.”
He bowed with a blank facade. "Take care of yourself, Rafaella."
ALEXUS pondered whether he believed she was in his home as he glanced at the closed door. He removed his tie from his neck and walked directly to the wine bar.
Rafaella's reappearance in his life after all these years astounded him. He had believed that she would be lost from his life forever. He made a valiant effort to persuade himself that he no longer cared or valued her. Despite his little success, he continued to work diligently in between rounds of court appearances and physical rehabilitation. He didn't think about her for a whole week, wondering what she was doing or if she was connected to someone. He was relieved that his uncertainty was over.
He poured scotch on the crystal glass while his hand was somewhat trembling. As he turned around and started back down the corridor, the limp he was trying to cover became more noticeable, and the agony in his thigh flared up. He needed to relax in the whirlpool for a while.
As he was walking past his office, the phone rang. He turned to the door and knelt in a chair before taking up the phone.
"Latimer."
"I heard you have company tonight."
Before responding to his sister, Alexus took a sip of scotch while leaning back and closing his eyes. "I see. Sandy called you right away," He said. He could not hide the sarcasm from his voice. Women spread gossip like a fire.
"Why not. On her birthday, you left her alone and did not even bother telling her not to wait for you. You shouldn't treat your girlfriend that way."
"Stop talking nonsense, Marla. She is aware of my surprise visitor. Be less theatrical."
"Sandy comes from a stellar family. Good contacts and a decent family. Her behavior might improve if you treat her with the respect she deserves."
"What happened to your prior decisions? You used to be siding Rafa."
"I used to enjoy your ex-wife," Marla explained with a twitch at the corner of her mouth. "But abandoning you for another man like that is beyond my understanding." "Marla, my wife. Who gave you the impression that she left me for another man, by the way? As I believed during our divorce proceeding, I learned that all of her outward infidelity was a deception. Back then, she never cheated on me, which I blindly believe." "God, oh God!" Marla exclaimed in shock. "What a big lie! Is that what she claimed to be when the video clearly showed that she was-" "Cut that crap, Marla. I don't want to hear any of that nonsense. Save her from your bias. You are unaware of the specifics." "Now what? Are you siding with her because you were in bed with her for less than an hour?" His face was etched with anger at what his sister had said. "Marla, watch what you say. Because the divorce was not public, so Rafa is still my wife. And let me add that I shouldn't have trusted that video. I slept wit
Christ! Quietly, Alexus whispered. For some reason that he couldn't understand, he sensed that Rafaella was lying when she claimed to be his sweetheart. What other lies remained? To make his point, the attorney raised a finger. "We need to show he wasn't the only one to have a sexual encounter with her." "Are you saying that the only way to get a divorce is to turn her into a whore?" Alexus gave David a stern look while seeming irate. "Yes, something like that to prevent her from receiving anything." He mumbled under his steely exterior, "David, I'm not buying that. I'm sorry, but I disagree with you regarding my wife's reputation. Her lack of promiscuity is too much. No way." Marla intervened, saying, "Alex, try to be objective. She is with someone else, as you just stated. Then perhaps she wants you to end things soon so she can wed." "Whatever. I want it done well without putting her down, "Alexus answered. "Perhaps I can get her to agree to anything before I go and file it in
She turned to face the man in the elevator. He looked back at her, and an idea crossed her mind. When she told Oscar he was her lover, she overheard him chuckling. He confronted Oscar, whose ears grew pink, and then strolled away to demonstrate his point by coming to her side and bringing her closer to him. When she overheard him speaking to someone on his mobile phone, she realized he was gay. He grinned broadly as he extended his hand to her. Rafaella hoped that her steadfast relationship would enable her to escape the terrible circumstances she had found herself in. She had no idea why she had a stalker all of a sudden. As he held the elevator door, Luigi reassured her, "Complete discretion." Starting with that hallway encounter, she and Luigi became best buddies. After she unexpectedly called him for security protection, he became her excellent buddy and was ready to assist her and treat her like a VIP at his friend's business. As she and Luigi started to stroll down the thickl
"If they haven't already left the hotel, that is," Alexus remarked dryly. "My life is in chaos every time she's here," he said grimly. "So you would prepare that you don't see her around?" Alexus opted not to respond, but his demeanor was anything from happy. "How come you got married to her in the first place?" He gave him a scathing glance. He could not talk about his relationship with Rafaella without feeling regret, especially what went wrong after their marriage. "I've previously questioned whether the events in your marriage are still impacting you. Your current state of agitation proves that everything in your life is spiraling out of control. Since you engaged me to take care of your injury five years ago, I have only learned a little about your marriage. And most often, when you're angry and complaining about how foolish you are." Alexus let out a long sigh. "I wed her by proxy just a few days before she became 18." "What?" He gave him a stern look. "For this reason, I
Alexus jerked from his reverie when he felt a hand gripping him on his shoulder and met the eyes of his Physical Therapist. He didn't realize tears were falling down his face. He quietly ran his palm on his face to wife it. "Are you alright?" Timothy enquired. He studied the distressed CEO intently, a look of worry on his face. He took a deep breath and shook his head. He was watching the emergency entrance with concern. "Did you hear anything from the doctor that examined her?" "No, and that only makes it worse. I'm going insane while waiting here, anticipating the worse." "Alex, you can't be acting like this. Be upbeat and consider the children's feelings." "What, children?" He inquired, appearing perplexed. Timothy stared at him and shook his head. He realized Alexus was not in the right mind to handle another issue. AFTER MIDNIGHT, the surgeon informed Alexus that his wife's procedure had been completed and was a success. Within twenty-four hours, she was supposed to be awa
"I don't dispute that. But Alex, it's just for fundamental gratification. Not enough for me to want to wed him." "Well, that's your issue, and I'd rather not be part of that. And never claim you wanted to be my fiancee because you love me. Then we have a different outlook on loving someone." "Alex-" "Sandy, no. Enough already. As you know, I am still married and would like to try it again with my wife." "Even when she betrayed you many times?" Hoarse laughing was heard coming from Alexus's mouth. "She didn't, in my opinion. And I chastised myself for assuming the worst. She might have, but I still want her back." "You're nuts!" "Spare me this name-calling, Sandy. Have a good time. Bye." And as if nothing had happened, he pocketed his mobile phone again when he saw Timothy enter the room. Timothy patted his shoulder and grinned at him, saying, "I'm happy you look better than the last time I saw you. Guess what." "You tell me, and stop seizing me with your eyes," he stated. He w
He commented, "That was quick service." Lance grinned, "Most folks here know me. One of my clients owns the business. " "Good business you have, but not to what you did though I wouldn't mind now that the hazy side of my messy problem started to put some light," he stated, veiling reference to what Lance said. "My sister told you why I wanted to see you, so I guess you knew. But make it brief and to the point because I don't have much time now." "So much the better, as I prefer it that way," Lance nodded. "But first, I wanted to apologize for waiting until today to meet you though I expected this moment when you discovered what I did. You'll learn I did not file your petition, which grounds my practice. I thought you would learn the truth quickly, and it bothered me, but I was waiting for you to confront me first." "Why?" At last, he asked that question that made him wonder overnight. "I was waiting for you to retract your decision." "Why would you think I will?" "I was aware of
"You have a dual face. Since when do you know?" "From the start." Marla pushed her chair aside and took a seat once more. Marla's action roused her, but Alexus leaped to his feet, his leg yelling in protest. But this time, he focused on the suffering and invited it—anything to prevent him from encircling his sister's neck and strangling her to death. He positioned his hands on the table straight to keep them steady and bowed toward his sister. "Would you mind explaining why this would be your first time saying it? Why did you think I wasn't entitled to know about my children?" "Your children?" Surprised, Marla repeated what her brother had said. "How can you be sure those kids are yours?" "Don't try to poison my mind now, as I know, even without a DNA test, that those children are mine. Don't you dare question my claim? Or else you'll find yourself on the street empty-handed." The anger he couldn't control caused a blood vessel to pulsate in his face. As she thought about Alexus