All Chapters of The Betrayed Heiress: Chasing Her Back: Chapter 11 - Chapter 20

"Jaime, is that you?"I looked at the owner of the voice and my smile fell immediately. Laura was standing in front of our table, with a look of fake surprise etched on her face. She wore a red dress that showed off her figure, her golden hair falling in waves down her back. "Oh my God," she gasped again. "I can't believe I'd run into you guys here of all places."I didn't know if she was airheaded or just an evil witch.My guess was the latter because she was pulling off the coincidental meeting too well. Laura had known they were coming. But how?My gaze shifted to Jaime who had turned into a statue. Did he tell her? "Aunt Laura!" Sara jumped up from her seat, excited. "What are you doing here?""Sara, sit down," I said quickly, but Sara was already reaching out to hug Laura. "Can aunt Laura sit with us? Please?" Sara looked at me with wide eyes. "There's an empty space before Daddy."I opened my mouth to say no, and to tell Laura to leave immediately but Sara was looking at me

I moved through the morning routine in autopilot. Sara's uniform needed straightening, the collar kept folding wrong. Micheal sat on a chair by the door, carefully lacing his shoes with focus.Alba bustled around the kitchen, packing lunches into colorful boxes. She'd prepared sandwiches cut into triangles, apple slices and juice boxes. "Sara, stand till," I said, adjusting her collar for the third time"Okay." Sara muttered. I paused. That was the fourth one word answer this morning. It was strange for Sara who always had something to say, this morning she was too quiet. "What's wrong, sweetie?" I asked, searching her eyes. Sara shrugged. "Nothing.""Sara."The six-year-old crossed her arms. "Why did we have to leave last night?"My hands froze on her collar. "What do you mean?"I already knew what she meant but a part of me hoped I was wrong. "At dinner," Sara muttered, shattering my hope. "Why did we leave so fast? I wanted to keep talking to Aunt Laura, she was telling me ab

I closed my eyes and muttered, loud enough so he could hear. "My mother. She's been texting me."The silence that followed is heavy. Jaime knows the history concerning my family's feud with me. "What does she want?" His voice is careful. "My grandfather's 80th birthday." I searched for emotions in his eyes but he was guarded. "They want me to come."He sucked in a breath. "Why didn't you say anything, Alessa? This is huge.""I know but I don't want to go." I pulled my knees up to my chest, feeling defensive. "They disowned me, remember? Five years ago. When I chose you over them."My words held no bitterness. I was merely reminding him of the fact that these people couldn't be trusted. "But this could mean they want to reconnect and fix things." Jaime held my face in one hand. "This is your chance to have your family back, Alessa."I shook my head, knowing my family too well. "It's been five years, Jaime. If they wanted to fix things, they had plenty of time."He opened his mouth t

We walked through the massive front doors into the foyer. The marble floors were gleaming, and the crystal chandelier overseas caught light and threw rainbows across the walls. The sound of voices comes from the formal living room and my mother guided me there. The moment we entered, all conversations stopped. They were all here. My father was standing near the fireplace, a glass of scotch in his hand. Julien sat on one of the leather sofas, looking bored. My grandfather was sitting in his favorite armchair, and scattered around the room were various uncles, aunts, cousins, and business partners I hadn't seen in years. And they were all staring at me. The silence was heavy. I could feel their eyes taking in every detail of my body. I forced a smile and walked toward my grandfather. "Happy birthday, Grandpa."His face lit up when he saw me. "Alessandra! Come here, girl!"He stands with the help of his cane and I met him halfway, wrapping my arms around him. "You look lovely," h

"I don't think I should-"Jason cocked his head. "It's just a little past seven thirty, you can't be thinking of leaving now, are you?"I couldn't help it. A small laugh left my lips, he was still as perceptive as ever. I used to hate how easily he could tell what I was thinking, now it was amusing."It's a school day." I told him, giving him a look. He should understand better since he was a parent himself.Instead, he simply shrugged. "I'm sure you've arranged for them to be taken care of."He took my hand before I could protest. "Allow yourself to have some fun, Lexi."I gasped as he twirled me around and then tugged me into his chest. I had to tip my head back to be able to stare at his face. "See?" He smirked, a playful look playing on his face. "Lossen up." He took my hand and placed it in his shoulder, then held the other hand. We started swaying to the music, and I relaxed against him. "I heard you got married." His expression grew more serious. "Congratulations."I smile