Chapter 4

Five Years Later

“Look at you. We just came home from New York, and yet you’re already drowning in your work,” Adrian teased me.

He came closer to my desk. I stood up to give him a hug.

“You know I really miss Los Angeles, but work can’t wait. There’s a problem with one of the lands I want to buy to build my new clothing store branch.” I went back to my chair and massaged my temple.

Meanwhile, Adrian sat on the edge of my table.

“Let me guess… someone outbid you?”

I nodded while still massaging my temple. “And of course… it’s Arzhel.”

He raised his eyebrows. A teasing smile spread across his face. “Does he even know you’re home?”

I sighed.

We had literally landed thirty minutes ago from New York, and the first message I received from my secretary was that the owner of the land I wanted to buy canceled our deal because someone offered a higher price. And of all people, why did it have to be Arzhel?

“I don’t care about him. All I want is my land,” I said irritably.

“Then talk to him. Tell him to give you the land,” he suggested.

I rolled my eyes. “Why would I do that? I already paid the owner. It’s mine. He can’t just take it back!”

“And if he refuses?” he asked curiously. “Are you ready to deal with Arzhel?” His voice was more serious and concerned now.

I froze for a moment. Years of memories with Arzhel flashed through my mind. Almost all of them were bad. When we finally divorced, the first two years were like hell for me. I had to work while raising my daughter. And I took care of Adrian’s son too.

Adrian’s girlfriend had died after giving birth, and as payment to Adrian for letting us stay in his home, I offered to help him raise his child, Chris, who turned out to be a sweet little boy. Adrian helped me financially to start my dream company. I owed him a lot.

“Of course I will be fine. He’s no longer part of my life. And I already moved on a long time ago,” I told Adrian.

He just closed his mouth while nodding, as if he was not convinced by my answer, and funny enough, I felt the same way. I was not convinced that I had really forgotten the man who captured my heart for more than a decade.

I set aside that thought. Today wasn’t about my feelings. Today was about my business.

Adrian and I still hated Arzhel for what happened five years ago. It had ruined both our reputations. No matter how many times I tried to build my career, every once in a while, the past still haunted me. I lost count of how many investors I lost every time they found out that I was Arzhel’s ex wife, the woman who had been in the headlines. The woman who they thought was a cheater. Coming back here in L.A. to expand my career was like a gamble. But I would not back down easily. I would show him that I was no longer the weak wife he once had.

I grabbed my coat and bag.

“Where are you going?” Adrian asked.

“I’m going to see Mr. Lowell. I want my land back.”

Adrian sighed. “And lunch with the kids?”

I froze. How could I almost forget? The kids came first, always.

***

The restaurants in the area were all full, so I had no choice but to sit in Arzhel’s favorite restaurant. It was the only place that had an available spot for us.

“I like the food here, Mommy,” Arriana, my daughter, said. Her eyes were shining.

She was like her dad when it came to food. They had the same taste buds that I could never relate to.

“You want more Caesar salad, baby?” I asked her.

She shook her head. She looked so full, just like Chris, who was smiling with his cheeks stuffed.

I paid the bill. I really needed to get out of here because I hated how much this place reminded me of Arzhel.

We went to the parking lot.

Before getting in my car, I saw a familiar figure of a woman. She was facing away from me, so I could not see her face yet. She looked like she was talking to someone on the phone. After a few seconds, she turned around. I froze when I saw that it was my stepsister. She waved her hand to someone and put on a wide smile.

“Arzhel,” she shouted excitedly.

My stomach dropped. I slowly followed her gaze and saw him, Arzhel. He removed his glasses and looked at Veronica with a quick smile. He looked more mature now. I could see some beard and mustache on his face. His muscles had become even more visible, and I could see them under his black shirt.

Arzhel glanced around, his eyes stopping near my car. Before he could see me, I already went inside. He could not see me because of my tinted window, but I could clearly see him. My stepsister was trying to get his attention by acting cute. I rolled my eyes. She never stopped flirting with my ex husband.

Arzhel started to give his attention to her, and I scolded myself when I realized that I had been staring at them for too long.

I looked away and looked at my daughter, who was just beside me.

She was looking outside. I followed her gaze. She was looking at Arzhel and my stepsister. It made my heart ache. She did not know that it was her father outside, flirting with her aunt.

She always asked me, “Mommy, why does Chris not have a mom? And why do I not have a daddy?” I could not even count how many times she had asked that question, and every time she did, I never had an answer, just a million excuses to change the topic.

I fixed Arriana’s hair and kissed it. I did the same to Chris, who was just sitting beside her.

“Let’s go,” I told the driver.

My phone buzzed.

Mr. Lowell. I suddenly remembered about my land.

I sighed. I needed a calm mind before I talked to him. Or else, I would burst.

“Ms. Analia,” he sounded as if he didn’t do something wrong.

I didn’t greet him.

“Your secretary must already have told you about the land?” he continued, but this time, he sounded a little shy and apologetic.

It didn’t erase the fact that I was mad at what he had done. Before I could stop myself, my CEO mode kicked in.

“Yes, Mr. Lowell, and I don’t think it’s such a professional move,” I said irritably.

I heard his long sigh.

“I’m really sorry, Ms. Analia. Mr. Theron wants the land-”

“But I already paid you, and we already sealed the deal,” I cut him off.

“Yes, yes, you’re right, Ms. Analia,” he sounded sincerely apologetic.

I sighed. He was making it hard for me to get mad, but what he did was wrong.

“You must have heard about Mr. Theron. He’s a powerful billionaire. A big portion of that land was actually a gift from his father, and now he wants it for his business. It’s hard to refuse him.” Of course I knew Arzhel very well. “He threatened me. Either I accept his offer to buy it, or he will take the land without giving me any cents.”

I clenched my jaw. So this was really Arzhel’s fault.

“I’m really sorry, Ms. Analia,” his voice almost cracked.

I massaged my temple. I released a long sigh. It seemed like I needed to handle Arzhel myself.

“I’ll go to your company so we can process the termination of the contract.”

After that, I ended the call.

I closed my eyes and breathed. I really wanted this land. Its location was ideal for my new store branch. It was a busy location, with a lot of people going there, a perfect location to build a clothing brand.

As soon as I arrived at Mr. Lowell’s company, I went straight to the receptionist. His secretary was already waiting for me. She was able to recognize me right away.

“This way, Ms. Analia.”

I followed her. We went in the direction of the staircase. There was an elevator beside it. We got in. She pressed the fifth floor.

“He just went to an emergency meeting, but it will be done within ten minutes.”

The secretary said and left us on the sofa outside Mr. Lowell’s office.

I saw Chris yawning. He sat back and closed his eyes, while Arriana was busy playing with her doll.

I took my phone and read some emails. Better to be productive while waiting.

I didn’t know how many minutes passed, but when I looked beside me, Chris was already asleep, and Arriana was nowhere to be found. I looked around. I couldn’t see her.

I stood up and left Chris for a while to look for Arriana.

I walked near the staircase, hoping but worrying that she might really be there and end up hurting herself.

The staircase was empty, but then I heard something break from the sixth floor. It sounded near the staircase. Seconds later, I heard someone crying.

It sounded like Arriana. I rushed up.

Arriana was standing, crying, and seemed frozen. I could only see her back. I noticed the scattered glass vase on the floor. I rushed toward her. I faced her.

“Are you okay, baby?” I said, panicking as I scanned her body for any bruises.

She instantly hugged me. When someone moved and stood up behind her, that was when I realized that she was not alone. I noticed the collected big pieces of glass. Maybe that person set them aside so they wouldn’t hurt my daughter.

I stood up to meet the eyes of that man.

“Thank-”

I paused when I realized it was Arzhel. He was looking at me like his gaze could kill.

“Seriously?” he asked in disbelief.

I frowned.

He looked at Arriana, then back at me.

“That’s your daughter? And you just let her roam around and almost get hurt?” His voice was raised. “You never changed, always irresponsible.” He said those with sarcasm.

It made me boil inside. He had no right to raise his voice in front of me, not even in front of my daughter. And for God’s sake, five years, and he still never forgot the past.

I was about to snap at him, but Arriana stepped forward and reached for his hand.

“You’re still bleeding, mister,” she said with her cute little voice while sobbing.

That was when I noticed the blood dripping from Arzhel’s finger.

I panicked deep inside, worried that he was in pain, but before I could react, he took a handkerchief from his pocket and wrapped his finger.

I silently scolded myself for almost worrying. Maybe it was just normal to feel that way, since he got hurt from helping my daughter. Right, not a big deal.

Arzhel leveled himself to Arriana’s height.

“See, all good,” he showed his wrapped finger to Arriana and flashed a quick smile.

I froze. I never saw him smile after our marriage, when he became cold and distant. But the image of him smiling when he asked me to marry him was still in my mind. Seeing that smile now reminded me of the unmistakable features of Arriana that she got from her father. The eyes. The nose. The lips. You could clearly see it everytime Arriana smiled.

“You can smile now,” Arzhel continued as he stroked Arriana’s hair.

Arriana slowly smiled, and I saw how Arzhel froze for a moment.

He looked at me with emotions I couldn’t name. Confused? Shocked? In denial?

He let go of Arriana’s hair.

He stood up, now with his poker face. He removed the handkerchief from his finger and put it inside his pocket. Then he fixed his coat.

“I’ll ask someone to clean the broken vase. Don’t touch it.”

I didn’t have the chance to respond because he left right away.

I looked at Arriana. She followed Arzhel with her eyes. She looked so disappointed that he already left.

I sat to level with her eyes, then brushed her hair with my hand.

“Are you okay?” I asked, smiling.

She nodded and flashed a smile, which made her look like the happy mini version of her father again.

Then it hit me. Arzhel probably noticed that Arriana looked unmistakably like him, and it might have confused him.

‘If that’s really mine, I’ll take the child away from you.’ Arzhel’s words from years ago echoed in my mind.

What if Arzhel recognized Arriana as his daughter and took her away from me?