Lahat ng Kabanata ng Truth or Dare: My Boyfriend Is a Dad: Kabanata 1 - Kabanata 9

The laughter and amorous tension in the house suddenly ground to a halt, replaced by a deathly silence.Tracy Sanderson was clinging to Alaric Lovell's arm, their proximity too intimate for comfort."You're back sooner than I expected." Looking guilty, Alaric stood up, only to blame me. "You could've called and said you were on your way home! You owe that much to your boyfriend, at least."Ah, so he was aware that he was my boyfriend, not that it stopped him from flirting with Tracy.I snorted. "So, the fact that you have a girlfriend hasn't eluded you, huh? I thought you were having too much fun to remember."Alaric scowled. "What the hell does that mean, Elena? No need to get all sarcastic. Are you seriously throwing a fit when you just got home?"A sense of weariness washed over me. I paid him no mind, scanning the matching cartoon slippers on his and Tracy's feet. Gone were the indoor slippers that had been mine.Oh, Elena, this was such a farce.I set my suitcase down and

My phone vibrated with a message from Alaric. I clicked on it to find a series of voice notes. I tapped on each one, only to hear his breaking voice playing through the phone."Where are you, Elena? I'm worried sick about you.""I was wrong for treating you the way I did last night, but that was my favorite ornament. How could you have smashed it on a whim?""Whatever we said last night was all part of the game. Why won't you believe me? That joke shouldn't even leave a mark on our years-long relationship!"It was hilarious how he thought my lack of trust in him was the problem and not his relationship with Tracy.I replied expressionlessly, "Do you honestly not know what's wrong between us, Alaric? Stop playing dumb. You suck at pretending."No sooner had I sent the message than Alaric called me. "Come on, Elena, don't say that. I'm truly sorry."He sounded like he was on the verge of tears, the plea in his voice amplified by a sense of urgency. "Stop being angry, okay?"Just

Everyone's gaze converged on Alaric, whose face was ashen. It was as if he'd been stripped bare before the scrutinizing crowd, his true colors and form on full display.Alicia and Morgan were grimacing in their seats at the head of the table.The former clutched at her chest, her body swaying dangerously. And Morgan, who'd always been a grounded presence, seemed to embody the terrifying calm before a raging storm.Alaric was shaking violently as he lifted his chin, fixing his bloodshot eyes at me in a menacing glower."Well-played, Elena." He bit out hoarsely, "I can't believe you'd resort to such despicable means to ruin me! Did you look into my time at Franston? Stalk me, perhaps? You even went the extra mile to fabricate these just to destroy my reputation!"Taking a step forward, Alaric pointed at the screen and raised his voice. "We've been dating for five years, and this is the level of trust you have in me? You'd sooner believe these pictures and medical records from God-kn

Leslie called me one day. "Hey, Alaric used the money his parents managed to scrape together to set up a small arts and crafts supply store in the countryside. Should we drop by and congratulate him?"I was watering a pot of calla lilies when I heard this and laughed. "Nah, he's nobody."My studio had become a top-tier design company in the industry and covered projects all over the country. I'd bought a new place and a car, and I had my parents move in with me.A new chapter of my life had begun, and the names that were once synonymous with the hurt I'd suffered no longer riled me up or stirred my emotions.One didn't have to forget to let go of a painful past, but feel neither love nor hate at the casual mention of it. For example, I couldn't care less where Alaric's arts and crafts supply store was or if it was doing well despite catching wind of it.It was only because Alaric had nothing to do with my life anymore.After hanging up, I brought the calla lilies to the balcony.

I thought my run-in with Alaric was nothing more than an insignificant interlude, but a few days later, I got an unexpected call from the police.The officer on the other line said, "Hello, is this Ms. Elena Harlow? I'm calling from the Southside police station."Alaric Lovell had taken his own life in our precinct and mentioned your name in his final letter. Please drop by the station so we can record your statement."I gripped the phone and fell silent for a long while.Alaric had taken his own life, an ending that surprised me, yet somehow made sense.He had been an exceedingly prideful man who'd lost everything, including his dignity. Life had beaten him down one too many times, and perhaps ending his own life was the only escape he could think of.I went to the police station as requested, and the officer in charge of the case handed me a letter. "He wrote this for you."I opened the envelope and saw a letter written on a flimsy piece of paper tucked within."Dear Elena, b