Mystery girl

PROLOGUE

Everything felt right. The wind blew through the concealed window which caused the curtains to move in a rhythmically pattern. The dim light in the dingy hotel room casted a clear picture of their intertwined silhouettes on the adjacent wall.

The continued to tap lightly against the building roof as she held him close like letting go was not an option.

Normally, she would be scared of the sound of thunder but there was something comforting about him being close to her. Something serenading about his body pressed against hers. Something almost magical about him moving in and out of her, his breath warm against her face.

They tore at each other’s clothes, like their naked bodies was all they both needed for life to be complete again, like it was all they needed for life to be worth living… again.

She felt his hands traveled through her body, she could not stop the soft moan from escaping her lips as he touched her

She felt him enter into her again, this time harder than he had done the first time. She could hardly think of anything else but yet again she couldn’t stop thinking about everything.

Nothing made sense at that point, her Mom who she thought would be with her forever had been diagnosed with Cancer. She was unsure of what to do next? The thought of watching her mother die was unfathomable but yet again what could she do to stop that from happening?

A drop of tears fell from her eyes but she quickly brushed it off. That night she had promised herself that she would not worry about anything, that she was just going to stay there in the present  with the stranger who she had met earlier at the club. The stranger who was somehow going to make all her pain disappear.

And it begins....

Raya Bridges stood in the midst of the large crowd completely frozen with a dinner tray in her hand. She was unsure of what to do or say. What was supposed to be just another day at work had gone very unexpectedly.

“My dear, please consider my offer, marry my son Raphael.” Fredrick Renolds said again.

“Uhm… Uhm… I… I” Raya stuttered. The whole scenario felt so surreal to her, she could not understand why Fredrick Renolds who happened to be the wealthiest man in West Hartford would want her as his daughter in-law.

She had never met him in person before now, she just met his son about an hour ago at the parking lot where she had gone to bring in some things needed by the catering unit.

“You don’t have to give me a reply now… this is my card, I would be waiting to hear your decision.” The man said, handing her a business card with an address on it. Parkview estate, one of the places in West Hartford, a pauper like Raya could only dream of visiting. Raya took the card from him.

“Okay sir.” She managed and before she could say anything else he and his bodyguards had already turned to leave.

There was mumbling amongst the crowd. The girl has no status, why would Fredrick Renolds want his son to marry her? Some asked.

Who is this mysterious girl and why is the wealthy Fredrick Renolds suddenly interested in her? Others wondered. Raya wished she had the answers to their questions because she was also as confused as the rest of them. Why would the most influential man in the entire town want his son to marry her, the daughter of a nobody?

She could not answer the question so she went about her day trying to push the scenario out of her mind.

BACK AT THE RENOLDS’ MANSION

“Brittany has only been dead for just  two years and you want me to get married to another woman?!” Raphael asked his father while furiously pacing the study.

There were stacks of books on the shelf, mostly books about the  American constitution , his father used to be one of the most sought after lawyers in the country before he decided to quit and start up his own winery.

“Two years is a lot of time Raphael, the girls need a mother figure in their lives and you need someone who would love you, someone you would love just as you did our darling Brittany.” His father said calmly, sipping from a whiskey glass.

“I am not going to replace Brittany!” Raphael replied, completely disgusted by his father’s insensitivity.

He does not understand, none of them do, Brittany was… is the only woman for him, when she died in the car accident his willingness to fall in love died along with her.

She was his first love. They met on a rainy day during his second year of college. Immediately he saw her. He could not take his eyes off her. She was perfect. He knew he needed her in his life, so he went after her and they eventually started dating and got married.

Brittany was the first and only woman he had chased so shamelessly like getting her to marry him was his life's mission.

“Think about the girls Rapha, they are still young, it’s hard to grow up without a mother.” His father said as he took another swing of whiskey.

“ I am doing the best I can.” Raphael whispered more to himself than anyone else.

He never in a million years thought his Brittany would die so young, he never thought he would have to raise Maddie and Mackenzie all by himself. They were supposed to do a lot of things together, tour the world, watch the twins grow, build a life together and then she died… just like that without any warning.

“I have looked into her background, that girl Raya is a good fit for you and my granddaughters, it’s time to move on Raphael, enough sulking.” His father counseled, patting Raphael’s shoulder lightly.

Knowing his father Raphael suspected that his interest in Raya had more to do with her potential to give him an heir than anything else.

His father had been really hard on Brittany when she was not able to bear a male child who would carry on the family’s name, he became more annoying when it was determined that she would have to get her tubes tied because she would risk dying if she tried to get pregnant again.

Brittany had taken all his father’s abuse in stride and now that she’s dead, the man wanted him to marry someone else and dishonor her memory?

Raphael pushed his father’s hand off his shoulder and walked out of the room. He is not going to marry the girl and that is final regardless of what anyone says or does.

***

The rest of the day continued normally for Raya, and as always her day ended with her next to her mother's hospital bed.

“Hi mom.” Raya said to a frail looking woman in a light blue hospital gown. The hospital room looked soulless and empty with its blank walls and beeping machines.

“My Ray of sunshine, how are you ?” The woman replied excitedly, raising her head a bit.

“How was work today?“ the woman added, stifling a cough.  Her leukemia was getting the best of her, her head was fully shaved, she looked rail thin and very nice pale.

Raya sighed, this was not the mother she used to know,  growing up her mother had been so full of life and energy, she remembers her chasing her down the hall, complimenting her as she tried out her prom gown. Kathleen Bridges is now a shadow of herself because of the cancer that seems determined to take her down with it.

“How was your day Raya.” Her mother asked again, taking her out of her daze.

“It was… weird.” Raya replied, everything that happened with Fredrick Renolds earlier seemed like a dream now, if not for her friend Andrea who was constantly reminding her about it she would have accepted that she had imagined it.

“How so?”

“I don’t know… remember the man I told you we were going to serve today?” Raya asked.

“Yeah the wealthy man with the widowed son?” Her mother urged.

“Yeah, Fredrick Renolds. He asked me to marry his son.” Raya said a bit flippantly.

“What did you say his name is?“ her mother asked, going completely pale, she looked anxious like she was about to faint. She stared with her eyes wide open.

“Mom are you alright?“ Raya asked.

“What is his name?” her mother asked more anxiously.

“Fredrick Renolds. Why?” Raya asked.

“No no no. That man… that man is…” her mother started to panic.

The heart monitor she was connected to started beeping faster than Raya had seen it beep before, her mother was shaking uncontrollably, it looked like she was having a seizure.

“Doctor!” Raya yelled as she ran into the hallway to get one.

“Miss, you would have to wait in the waiting room, we would do all we can for your mother.” The doctor said,