“What’s up, Ava?” +15 BONUS We rarely talk. Most of the time, it’s just a message here and there. All of them consist of him letting me know he has sent a package and me thanking him for it. I know it’s dangerous, but he’s the only one I can think of to help me right now. I won’t lie. The second note has totally scared the crap out of me. “I need your help, Reaper,” I simply state. There was no need for small talk. Plus, from what I’ve learned about him, he doesn’t like them. It took some time before I finally had the courage to call him. I’ve been debating whether I should go to the police or him. Finally, reason won over. The last time I was in danger, the police weren’t able to help. Reaper knew what was happening the whole time. I reasoned that maybe he would be able to help me catch whoever was after me. “Okay, what is it?” he asks curiously. Probably because I’ve never asked him for anything. “Someone seems to be after.” “Oh, is it about the notes you’ve been getting?” I am shocked, but not at the same time. See? This is why I thought he would be the best person to help me. He was a step ahead of me. “Yes,” I answer. “Do you know who’s behind it, and how do you even know about them?” I crossed my fingers, hoping that he knew. It would be even better if he was in the process of taking care of the problem for me. After all, didn’t he promise me his protection? “I have my sources… I don’t know who’s behind them, but my source tells me that the person who leaves them usually wears a mask and a long black coat. From what he gathered, he thinks it’s a woman.” I try to think about which woman would want to harm me, but I come up short. This past few months, I’ve offended a lot of people, with Emma being the most recent. It was just hard to tell who could hold such a big resentment that they would threaten me. “Why didn’t he stop whoever the person is?” I ask. +15 BONUS I mean, it’s reasonable. If you see a strange person leaving such notes, you stop them “He didn’t think much of it until the second note. That’s when he started getting suspicious” I can’t really blame him. I didn’t think too much into it until the second note, too “What do the notes contain?” “Give me a second. Let me send you a picture.” I snap a picture of them side by side and then send it to him. He’s quiet while he’s studying them. I can’t help but think of how I could get into trouble if the police ever found out. Reaper was still in hiding, and the police were still on his case. I took a risk with him. A risk that could put me in prison for being his accomplice and hiding his whereabouts. In my defense, I don’t really know where he’s hiding, and we rarely communicate, but I don’t think that would be enough to convince the jury of my innocence. “Looks like whoever it is has a grudge and wants to hurt you,” he finally says. “Gee thanks Sherlock” I tell him sarcastically. “I’ve already gathered that…you know, with the whole say goodbye to your loved ones thing” […]
Ava I haven’t been able to get the freaking note out of my head. It’s all I think about. I wanted to believe that it was nothing but a prank, but I’m not so sure. Not when I get a bad feeling every time I read it. I’ve thought about reporting, but I don’t want to make a big deal out of it. It was just one note. What if Cal was right and it turned out that it was just a stupid prank? My phone rings, making me jump. I put the mop down and pick it up. When I see Rowan’s name flashing, I almost hang up, but I don’t. “Hello.” I force my voice to sound emotionless. “Hey, how are you?” he asks, sounding a bit unsure. I swear, I’ll never get used to this version of Rowan. It was just so unlike him. It’s like he woke up one day and was a different person. If he has truly changed, then it’s going to take some time to get used to him. “Did you need anything?” “Yeah. I just want to let you know that I’ll be going on a business trip for a few days,” he informs me, which makes me a bit confused. “Oh, okay, so you wanted me to let Noah know?” Noah was at school. He will be disappointed since he doesn’t like Rowan going on trips, but he’ll understand nonetheless. He pauses before answering. “He already knows, but I wanted you to know too.” I’m a bit stunned. Rowan never used to tell me when he went on business trips. He would leave in the morning and not come back. It’s as I set aside food for him that Noah would let me know that Rowan wasn’t coming back. He used to tell our son, but not me. It was disrespectful. He never cared about that, though. He knew that it hurt me every time he did it, and that’s why he continued doing it. +16 BONUS “I really don’t see how that’s any of my business, Rowan I’m not your wife or your keeper “I try to keep the snappy tone away, but it’s hard. Nowadays, he does something nice, and it just reminds me of the opposite action he took before. It’s hard to forget or move past the memories that are burned in my brain. “I know, but I thought it was a simple
Rowan It’s beca two days since the truth came out, and I still can’t get over the kiss. When I dipped my head to kiss Ava, I expected her to push me away. Worse, to slap me. I can’t deny that I was surprised when she let me kiss her. That surprise soon turned into happiness and joy. I can’t fucking believe that I went so long without her kisses. Her lips were soft, and her mouth is addictive. I could spend my entire life just kissing her, and I would be happy. Again, I say, I was fucking foolish. Every time I denied Ava a kiss when we were married, I thought I was punishing her. I didn’t realize what I was missing out on. For that, I will always be regretful because I missed out on so many things. I’m currently in my office, and I can’t focus for shit. I have business meetings in the next few days, yet the only thing that played in my mind is that kiss. I feel like a fucking teenager all over again. Kissing her and then having her reciprocate was similar to the thrill of getting a first kiss from a girl. It left me excited. I felt like I was on top of the world “What has you grinning like an idiot?” Gabe’s voice interrupts me. I look up just as he drops on the seat in front of my desk. “Nothing” I say, clearing my throat. “That’s definitely something. If I have to guess, then I think it’s something related to Ava I don’t say anything, but we know that he is spot on. “So what happened?” he asks curiously. I debate whether to tell him. Finally I give in. He was my twin. What is the use of hiding it from him? “I kissed Ava and she fucking let me” I tell him proudly. It felt so fucking good. Like I had achieved something miraculous. Those few minutes where she + NOWR Cabe guns at one with happens “That good progress The “7 way then groan Wells was going well until she reminded something I told her and push You see, the thing about berting someone is that when you try to make amends you fight against TheInozes. You fight against the pain. You fight against the scars you inflicted. That’s what happened with Ava yesterday. The memory of my words came back. That, along with the pain that she must have felt when I flung these words at her These two reminded her that I was the enemy. I was the one that hurt and caused her pain. Those To sredsawaning. They warned her that trusting me could lead to more pain. So she did what any same person would do in that situation she asked me to leave What do you tell her?” Ichen’t want to repeat those words, but I did. I told Gabe everything, from how Emma lied and manipulated me. To how I angrily went to Ava’s house and told her those cruel words. When I’m done. Gabe is staring at me with an unreadable expression Toute and schot and an asshole” he says, not mincing words. I run my hands down my face. “‘Don’t I know it” Tim not even going to bother with telling you how wrong you were. The fact that you’re beating yourself up is enough” I don’t even know how she used to stand me. I can’t stand myself every time I think about what I put Ave through. It makes me appreciate her more, knowing she tolerated me for all those years. Not a lot of women would have put up with my shit.
hapter 106 A note The bright light coming through my window makes me open my eyes. Instead of getting up immediately, I just stay in bed for a while as I rub my belly and feel my baby move inside me. I look at the calendar on my bedside table and realize that today I
The bright light coming through my window makes me open my eyes. Instead of getting up immediately, I just stay in bed for a while as I rub my belly and feel my baby move inside me. I look at the calendar on my bedside table and realize that today I just hit the sixth–month milestone. It’s scary to have a baby. The whole journey is filled with uncertainty. I always make sure to thank God each time I pass a milestone with my baby, knowing not all babies get to be born. After saying a small thank–you prayer, I get up and move downstairs. I could always shower later, but right now I am hungry. With everything that happened yesterday, I forgot to eat. Thinking about yesterday brings me to what happened with Rowan. I still can’t believe that I let him kiss me or that I actually enjoyed it. It bugs me so much that I wanted more. I wanted him to deepen the kiss. I wanted him to take it further. I can blame it on the hormones, but we all know that I’d be lying to myself. Rowan hurt me so much. The fact that I wanted him yesterday makes me hate myself just a little bit. I promised myself to move on, yet there I was making out with him in my living room. I want to believe that Rowan has changed, but I just can’t. Even if, by some miracle, he has, don’t you think it’s a little too late for us? Too much has already happened for us to make something out of the mess he created. Taking out the ingredients for breakfast, I get to work. No matter what I try, I still can’t stop thinking about the kiss. For heaven’s sake, why the hell did this kiss affect me so much? I just don’t fucking get it, honestly. I groan in frustration, wishing I could erase the feel of his lips on mine. “What’s got you so frustrated?” Calvin’s voice startles me so much that I let go of the eggs I was holding. “Jeez, Cal, you scared the living day lights out of me,” I say with my hand pressing hard on my beating heart. “Sorry,” he grins. “I thought you heard us, given Gunner and Noah didn’t really get inside quietly.” I turn to said boys to find them munching on the cookies that I had baked yesterday. 1/4 +15 BONUS “It’s okay, I was just a little bit lost in thought. The grin slips from his face. “Are you still thinking about what happened yesterday with Emma?” I just nod my head. It was a lie, but he didn’t need to know that I was thinking about a totally different thing. “What are you making for breakfast, mom?” Noah asks “A fry up” I respond. “Yes!” Gunner pumps his fist up in the air. “I love fry–ups; it’s like having all your favorite
104 Something wrong with me Ava +15 BONUS My brain cells were totally fried. I’ve been sitting here since Calvin left about an hour ago. I asked him if Noah could stay the night at his house today and he agreed. I was still trying to grasp all that I learnt today. It was too much information all at once. I didn’t know how to handle all of it. My phone rings. For a second I think of ignoring, but decide against it. It might be an emergency. I swipe the screen sightlessly. I put the gadget to my ear, but don’t say a thing. My mind was completely blank so I wait for whoever was on the other side to speak. “Ava” she breathes. “Thank God. Are you okay? Travis told me what happened today” Immediately I recognize her voice. Letty. “I’m not sure, honestly” I reply in a whisper. I still didn’t understand how Emma could be so cruel to Calvin and Gunner. I know that she always wanted to carry Rowan’s children, but to reject her own flesh and blood because he doesn’t have Rowan’s DNA is downright malicious. “Travis told me you’re the one that discovered the truth and exposed Emma’s lie” Knowing how a parent’s rejection feels like, I completely understood Gunner’s pain. I took his pain as my own because he r ded me so much of myself. He didn’t choose Emma to be his mother, yet she hurt him as if he was nothing. That pissed me of and broke my heart at the same time. “Yes. It was just by coincidence I guess” “How? How were you able to figure it out” she asks, her voice in disbelief. I don’t know whether it’s from finding out that Emma has a son or it’s from her inability to understand how I came by the truth. “His smile” I breathe. “He’s smiled at me many times before, but there was this day it just hit me 7/6 15 BONUS was young snapped in my head His smile was similar to hers “Cal never said anything before?” “Never but when I mentioned Emma’s name, he completely froze. That gave everything away. Also the fact that he didn’t correct me” It still seems so surreal. I can’t imagine my life without Noah so I don’t understand how Emma was able to live like her son didn’t exist. “Tell me everything” she insists and I proceed to tell her everything from how it started to how we got here. By the time I am done, I’m crying once again. I didn’t want to project my pain, but it was really hard. “I didn’t know where I was going until I was at Kate’s house” I tell her. I had stopped calling her mother a few months ago. “I felt so angry on his behalf and mine. I wanted to do something for him. Something no one did for me when I was little and they treated me with cruel disdain. I wanted to stand up for him and call Emma out on her behavior” It was something I’d prayed for when I was growing up. Other parents noticed how Kate and James treated me, yet they said nothing. Hell, even Rowan’s parents kept quiet and followed their
+15 BONUS Calvin I wait. I wait patiently for her to come back. I didn’t know where she went, but I can take a pretty damn good guess. She was mad; I understand that more than anything. If anyone is pissed off and hurt at what Emma has been doing, then it’s me. She has caused me and Gunner more hurt than I’m ever willing to admit. I hear the door unlock, but I don’t move. I’m not even sure what the hell I am doing here. The boys are at my house with the nanny. For some reason, I feel like I should be here. Ava stops dead in her tracks. “Cal, I didn’t expect you to still be here.” Her eyes were red and puffy. She has been crying; that much is clear. Words honestly fail me. I have no fucking idea what the hell to tell her. “I thought I would wait for you,” I say as she takes a seat. “Where have you been?” I knew where she went after she realized that Emma was Gunner’s mom. That was hours ago. I don’t know where she went after. I’m sure confronting Emma didn’t take almost three hours. “I needed to think, so I just drove around,” she whispers. “Gosh! This is so hard for me. Not only because I love Gunner like my own and it kills me to watch him hurt, but also because I see myself in him.” I don’t know much about Ava. I was about two years ahead of her in school. We weren’t friends back then, and I didn’t pa ention to any girl that wasn’t Emma. Even now, I don’t know much about her. I kept myself closed off. I felt it would be unfair to dig deep into her life when I barely told her anything deep about mine. All I know is that Rowan hurt her pretty badly. Just like Emma destroyed. “Why?” I ask curiously. Because I suffered the same fate as him when I was younger. I was unwanted. For me, it was nuch harder because I was unwanted by both my family and Rowan’s family. I didn’t understand why they didn’t like me. I tried so hard to get them to love me, but they never did. In fact, it got Jorse as I got older.” 1/6 +15 BONUM I didn’t know that about het. Unlike other boys who tried getting close to her so they could get close to Emma, I didn’t I thought their tactic was downright cruel Using one sister to get another was utterly disgusting “I’m soony, Ava.” There was nothing else I could say to comfort her. I don’t even know how to comfort Gunner when was he asks about Emma, so how can I comfort Ava? “It’s okay It was a long time ago, and I’m slowly starting to heal,” she pauses. “In any case, this isn’t about me. I want to know the truth. How did Emma end up being Gunner’s mom?” I sigh. I was dreading this question. Not because I don’t want to tell her what happened, but because I don’t want to remember the painful memories, “Well, you know about my love for her from high school,” I start and she nods. “Yes, definitely. Everyone knew it, just like everyone knew I wanted Rowan.” This was so messed up. We both somehow ended up with the people we wanted, but in the end, it
Mom collapses in the chair after my admission. The heartbroken look in her eyes was undoing Travis, who had been holding me, lets go as if I had burned him. He backs away from me slowly until he’s a few feet away. I know the rest had varying degrees of shock, but they didn’t matter to me right now. Not when my family was looking at me like they didn’t know me. Like I was a stranger. “Please tell me you’re playing a sick joke on me,” Mom pleads. “Tell me you didn’t have a child and kept him hidden from us all these years.” I want to lie to them just so the heartbroken and disappointed look in their eyes will disappear. I know that I can no longer do that. There was no hiding from this. There was no more running from the truth. “I’m sorry. So sorry,” I cry as I stumble towards her. “I wanted to tell you, but I was so ashamed.” I go to take her hand, but she flinches and pulls it away. This is what I’ve been so afraid of. Ava was right. I was the perfect daughter. The one who never made any mistakes. The one that thought things through before, except for that one time. Now their image of me is tarnished. Now they know that I am just like them. Human. The Ace card I had over Ava was gone. 2 I was in the same boat as Ava. I made mistakes that are now hunting me. Sleeping with Calvin remains the greatest mistak y life. “H–How did this happen? When did it happen…did dad now?” Travis asks as he paces, frustration clear in his steps. “Dad didn’t know. No one except Calvin and Molly knew.” I look at the ground, unable to face the look on my mom’s face. “Start from the beginning and don’t leave a single thing out. I want to know why the hell you’ve kept my grandson a secret from his family,” Mom growls, her eyes turning fierce. I didn’t want to rehash the past, but at this point, I don’t think I had any choice. If I didn’t want them to be even madder than they were right now, then I had to spill it. 1/5 +15 BONUS “When Rowan married Ava, I was broken I tried not to let it show. Tried to make you, dad, and Travis believe I was okay because you were all so worried about me. I felt like I was drowning, Mom. Like my world had exploded, and I’d been left with nothing. When I went back to school, I didn’t tell any of you, but I fell into depression. I sit down on the grass, feeling as small as I did back then when I learned that Rowan had slept with Ava. “I was fading away. I didn’t eat, I didn’t sleep, and I didn’t attend classes. In fact, I rarely left my room. Molly noticed this. She started pushing, and when I refused to get better, she threatened to call you guys to let you know. I didn’t want you to know how I was struggling. I didn’t want Ava to find out how tough things were for me.” I was lost in memory. I had so much bitterness and resentment towards Ava back then. I thought if she ever found out how far I’d fallen, she would have been ecstatic. It was probably a year and a
Her fury Rowan Chapter 101 +15 BONUS“Is Noan coming?” my mother asks me.“Not today, mom. I forgot to let Ava know, and I didn’t want to spring this on her all of a sudden,” I tell her as I walk into Kate’s home.It was our monthly get–together. Just like the last one, I didn’t want to be here. The only reason Iwas there was because I’d promised Mom that I would attend.“I’ve missed him so much, and so has Kate. She really wanted to see him.” She pauses. “Now thatshe and Ava are estranged, the only time she gets to see Noah is during these get–togethers.” I wanted to feel sorry for her, but I don’t. That makes me a bastard, sure, but I believe that we wereall getting what we deserved. This was our punishment for how we treated Ava.“Maybe next time,” I say as I walk past her.Mom and Kate have been friends for years. She would do anything for her best friend. The lastthing I want or need is to stand there for almost thirty minutes just listening to how Kate wassuffering.I didn’t need to hear about someone else’s suffering when I was dealing with one of my own.She follows me as I make my way to the backyard. I know Kate’s home like the back of my hand.After all, they’ve lived here for years. This is the same house where Ava and I got married. Thesame house she tried to escape when she found out she was pregnant with Noah.I stop dead in my tracks. Iwho was following behind me, collides with my back.“What the hell, Rowan?” she asks, but I don’t turn around. Nor do I answer.She comes to my front when I don’t answer. My eyes stare at her, unseeing.“Rowan? What is it?”My throat bobbles as I try to form the words.“I just remembered the day I caught Ava trying to escape. Looking back now, I can’t imagine howmy life would have turned out had she managed to escape me.” I tell her.1/5* 15 BOR“Rowan darling. Don’t think about such things. It didn’t happen and we should be grateful to Godfor that ”I sigh, remembering how foolish I had been.“Ava was eighteen and scared, mom. She begged me to let her go because, deep down, sheprobably knew that I would destroy her if she stayed, and I did. I broke her heart more times than I can count. Right now, I don’t know what to even think. Part of me wishes I had let her go becausemaybe she wouldn’t be as broken as she is right now, the other parts is grateful I’d stopped herbecause I wouldn’t have gotten to know Noah or the wonderful woman she is.” The crushing weight that descends on me every time I remember all I put her through is almostunbearable. I should have tried harder; maybe then I wouldn’t have this much regret weighingdown on me.“You’re taking too much on your shoulders, Rowan. Sure, you hurt her, but you forget that we allplayed our roles in breaking her. Both families have a hand in destroying her heart. You’re not theonly one to blame for her broken pieces.” Mom puts a hand around my forearm, trying to comfort me. “Your mother is right.” I turn to find my father standing next to the sliding doors. “We all played our part in hurting, Ava. We forgot that she came into our lives as a tiny baby girl.We forgot how much joy she brought us. We forgot how she used to make us all laugh. We forgotthat she was a girl who needed our love. That is on us. We were the parents, and you childrenfollowed our lead. We shunned her, and so you followed suit. If anyone is to blame, then it’s us. Wefailed as adults and that is on us,” he finishes, clasping my shoulder in a tight grip. 1I know what they said was meant to make me feel better, but it doesn’t. The rest mainly ignoredAva and treated her like she was invisible. I did worse. So much fucking worse, and that shit is allon me.I give them a small smile. I didn’t want to dwell on this for long.Mom must have believed me because she takes my hand in hers.“Come on, let’s go before the others start wondering what’s taking us so long,” she says, pulling mealong while dad follows behind.I internally groan when I spot Emma. I knew she would be here, but knowing and seeing are twodifferent things.2/5+15 BONUS“Hey Ro. I’m glad you came.” Kate kisses both of my cheeks“Yeah” it’s the only response I can master, given that I’m not really glad to be hereShe gets distracted by my parents, and I see that as my chance to slip away.I head straight to my brother.“How are things going?” he asks after the initial greeting.“Terrible” I mumble, remembering the fight between me and Calvin the weekend before.It wasn’t one of my greatest moments, but he just reminded me of the time he used to chase afterEmma. That scared me because I was afraid that he was doing the same to Ava. Regardless ofeverything, Calvin is a good guy. That, more than anything, scared the crap out of me because itmeans that he actually has a chance if he were to shoot his shot.“Any progress so far?” he asks. “None. The only progress is that I managed to piss her off even more.”Gabe sighs. “What did you do?”“I got into a fight with Calvin. Turns out he is Gunner’s father”I don’t need to explain who Gunner is. Noah talks about him all the damn time. He tells everyonethat he is his new best friend.“I’m confused. Who is Calvin?” Gabe asks, looking confused as hell.“Nerdy Cal. You remember him?”It takes a while, butit the moment it downs on him.“You’re shitting me!” he yells. “That Nerdy Cal? The one that used to follow Emma around all thetime.”“Yes, the same one”I still can’t believe it. It’s such a damn coincidence that I don’t know what to think.“What’s going on?” Travis asks as he walks towards us.I look behind him, thankful that Emma hadn’t followed him. In fact, thinking about it now, I 3/5far away from Ava, then I didn’t mind at all.+15 BONUS“Just that nerdy Cal is Gunner’s dad, and Ro got into a fight with him,” Gabe answers.“Seriously?” he asks before turning to me. “Why? Was it because of Emma? Before I can answer him, we hear the front door open and then bang shut. Moments later we hearAva’s clear and angry voice shouting Emma’s name.“Emma?” she shouts again as she walks out of the house.“What’s going on?” I turn to Travis.“I have no idea” We step closer. Our eyes on Ava as she stomps towards Emma, who was standing next to ourparents. Before anyone can do anything or stop her, she slaps Emma so hard that she falls to theground.“What the hell, Ava?” Travis shouts as she rushes to help his sister.Emma, just like everyone else, was shocked. Ava, on the other hand, looked wired. She lookeddownright pissed. As if she was ready to rip someone’s head off.“Shut the fuck up, Travis” she says at him through clenched teeth.“What’s going on, Ava? Why would you attack your sister like that?” Kate asks as tears fills hereyes.She was torn. She didn’t know which girl to choose, so she was waiting to see if Ava had a goodreason before picking sides.This just shows how iside.she’s changed. The previous Kate would immediately take Emma’s“That’s what I would like to know.” Ava snarls and then glares at Emma. “I would like to know whyyou would do that, Emma. Why would you abandon your child? Your own son”We all stand stock still. Maybe we weren’t hearing it right. Maybe Ava got it wrong. There is noway Emma had a child. She would have told her family.“That’s bullshit. Emma doesn’t have a child, and she would never abandon her kid,” Travis defends.4/5Ava laughs as if she had lost her goddamn mind.“That’s what I thought at first, but I am not wrong” she asks*15 BONUSSaid wome was now in Travis‘ arms Clutching his arm like her life depended on it. She had tears streaking down her cheeks and fear in her eyes. She was even fucking trembling. Even with allthat, she didn’t answer.Ava continues while looking at Emma like she in the scum of the earth.“You’re Gunner’s mother, isn’t that right Emma or are you going to continue pretending that you’renot?”Ava delivers the final blow. One that none of us saw coming. A blow that none of us were prepared.for.Today’s Bonus OfferGET IT NOW
Rowan +15 BONUS “Is Noan coming?” my mother asks me. “Not today, mom. I forgot to let Ava know, and I didn’t want to spring this on her all of a sudden,” I tell her as I walk into Kate’s home. It was our monthly get–together. Just like the last one, I didn’t want to
