Lisa jerked out of her train of thoughts, grabbing her phone almost immediately. Looking at the caller’s ID, she sighed, deliberating whether to pick up the call or ignore it. Just then, a soft rap came on the door.
“Who’s that?”
“Dinner is ready, ma.” A maid’s voice sounded from outside.
She sighed. “I’ll be down in a bit.” She replied without bothering to open the door. She then returned her attention to her phone and put it quietly on her ear.
“Hello, Dad.” Maybe because she was a bit tired, her voice was crackly as she fought back tears from her eyes.
“I saw the news. You handled it quite well. I am proud of you.”
Even if he couldn’t see her, she smiled wryly with a ‘hmm’. She had not expected him to say anything less but somehow, in her heart of hearts, she had hoped he would ask after her. Even if he didn’t mean it.
“The Chinese agency called.”
“Oh! Did they?” After the press release, she had been so tired and had gone straight home. Sally was yet to update her.
He grunted. She could tell happy he was. Maybe, it was worth it after all. “I want you to know that I am grateful. Thank you for all you do for this family. I guess handing over the company to you this soon was a good choice.” He laughed; a low rumble that used to make her smile when she was little. But that was years ago. Now, she couldn’t tell if it made her smile anymore. Maybe, because she was all grown now.
“I have to go now, Dad. Give mother a kiss for me.” All she wanted to do now was take a long rest to help her clear her mind of all that had happened.
“Oh! By the way, it's going to be your mother’s birthday in a week. Don’t tell me you forgot.”
She slapped her head silently. “Of course not, Dad.” Of course, she did forget. She had been knee-deep in handling all of Raymond’s shit that she even forgot her own mother’s birthday.
“We are throwing a party. I want something the media would talk about even after one month gone.”
She rolled her eyes. Her father sure loved extravagance. “I’ll tell Raymond.”
“Are you okay?” he finally asked; only that the question came too late. She had been expecting him to ask her that since the beginning of their dry conversation.
She nodded anyway. “Sure. I am just a bit tired. I just need to take a nap.” She was long used to the façade; to the wall, she had had to build around herself.
“You know you can talk to me, right?”
And tell you what? That I am lonely? Or that I have a husband who lays any woman he comes across? “I know Dad.” She feigned a tired yawn. “I just need some sleep and I’ll be back on my feet.”
“That’s my girl.” She could swear he was wearing one of his signature grins.
“I’ll talk to you later, Dad.” She ended the call swiftly, letting her frail body fall back on the bed. She bit her lower lips while blinking away the tears in her eyes. She was not going to cry.
You are a strong woman. She chanted her mantra. Heads high, chin up, and…smile.
Doing a few breathing exercises to calm her raging emotions, she arose from the bed, took a quick shower, and changed into her favorite teddy bear pajamas. Nobody knew of her obsession with teddy bears. Well, except…
She shook her head quickly like a child who withdrew his hands immediately after realizing he had just touched a flame. It was one topic she would never go back to again. One topic that was buried inside a box in her heart and the keys, thrown far, far away.
Anyways, she walked down for dinner. The plates were set for two without question and the head chef stood on the ground, ready to serve her.
“Good evening, Ma’am.” She greeted gingerly.
Lisa smiled. “Evening, Sonia.” One thing she had learned over the years was not to transfer her aggression to anyone else. Be it the maids, her employees, her Personal Assistant, her chauffeur, or even the sluts she knew Raymond was sleeping with. She had learned to bear her cross herself.
She allowed the woman to push out a chair for her and push it back in when she was seated. She then busied herself with her phone while Sonia served the food. Against her wish, she took a glimpse of the empty chair at the head of the table. It had always been empty except for a few times Raymond was home. Somehow, she had gotten used to it. Even the maids too must have gotten used to it but they still set the table for two every day out of courtesy.
She ate her meal quietly, even though the bacon was tasteless in her mouth like she was chewing rubber. When she was filled, she took a large gulp of water before leaving the dinning, leaving the maids to clean up after her. Reaching her room, she walked straight into the study. She dialed Sally to send over the necessary documents and began furiously typing away on her keyboard. That was her.
Whenever she was not stuck in her large office, she was home, locked away in her study and typing away furiously, signing off documents. It was a regular routine she was getting used to. She didn’t have a friend; she only had a circle of rich socialites. Well, it was common for people of her caliber to belong to such circles.
When Lisa finally looked up from her computer, the skies were already dark. She massaged her aching neck with her palm. How did it get dark so quickly? Or was she the one too engrossed in her work for a long time that she didn’t notice when it was dusk? She walked out of the study, her delicate bare feet looking all glorious as she walked. She headed downstairs to grab a cup of milk. Despite that she was old enough, she never went to bed without a warm glass of milk; one she made herself.
The house had become quiet when she reached the kitchen. The maids had retired for the night, or they were around somewhere, trying not to disturb her. Since they only had to serve her, she, most times, let them retire early. Grabbing a cup of milk, she returned to her room, and only then did she recall she had to call Raymond. For a brief send, she debated if to call him or to ignore him but then, she couldn’t afford him to miss the party because she didn’t inform him on time. Moreover, to the outside world, they were still the perfect, ideal couple every couple wanted to be like.
Sighing loudly, she dialed his phone. She didn’t want to think of where he was now or what he was doing at the moment. After all, he had houses scattered all over the city from which he could pick anyone he wanted and spend the night. He didn’t answer immediately and just when she was about to end the call, he picked up his phone.
“Yo! Wifey. Do you miss me already?” His unstable voice carried an underlying tone of mockery. There was distant loud music playing in the background. She could tell he was in a club; a private room, maybe—and very drunk.
Lisa rolled her eyes. “Dad called me earlier.” She broke the news. “Mother’s birthday is next week. They’ll be throwing a party.”
He groaned like someone in pain. “You need money? I’ll tell my secretary to give you a card later.”
“I don’t need your money. I only need you to show up and not embarrass me.”
He didn’t reply to her. He groaned loudly instead, followed by a long string of curses.
Then, she realized what was going on.
At first, she had thought the female moans she heard were from the loud music or from the people around. She scoffed at the realization. Her beloved husband was fucking a girl—no, a whore—while talking to her on the phone. She chuckled dryly. What was she expecting from a man who showed up to his own wedding in a pair of pants stained with pre-cum that wasn’t his wife’s?
“Raymond!” Her inner demon was threatening to unleash itself but soon realize it was fruitless as he didn’t answer her. Not like he would anyway. She was about to hang up when his voice came from the other end, breathing hard like someone who just ran a marathon race.
“Drop the details with my Personal Assistant. I will be sure to be there on time.” She could imagine the satisfied smirk playing on his lips. Angry beyond words, she hung up on him, threw her phone on the bedside table, and slipped quietly under the cover.
Raymond kept his word and showed up early for Lisa’s mother’s birthday party. Lisa had returned home that evening and was quite surprised to see him home, sitting comfortably in the sitting room. Perhaps, because she was used to having the big mansion all to herself. “You’re back.” He greeted and she hummed in reply, caught off guard by his gentlemanly attitude. “Don’t stare at me like you have seen a ghost. I promised to come, didn’t I? Well, I am here.” He turned to the maid nearby. “Quick. Take madam’s things to her room and set the table for two.” His gaze returned to her, “We’ll be having dinner together.”Lisa looked at him in surprise. Well, that was Raymond North. One minute, he was the guy who slept around with nearly all the ladies in town, and the next, he is back to acting all loving like the best husband ever. She chuckled dryly when the maid left to carry out his bidding. “Are you okay?”The smug smile on his face irked her. “What? Isn’t it what you wanted?” “You d
Lisa’s brows furrowed. Now, she was really curious about the gazes she got. Plus, Belinda’s naughty smirk irritated her. “Did something happen?”The other ladies exchanged known glances as if deliberating if to let the cat out of the bag. On Belinda’s face was a dirty smirk, like she was about to face an enemy. Now, Lisa had no doubt there was trouble. “Oh! It’s actually nothing. I just got an exciting piece of information. Would you like to hear it?”On a normal day, Lisa would have turned it down without a second thought. Belinda was no bearer of good news, but now, with nearly everybody’s gaze on her, she was indeed willing to hear whatever piece of information it was. She nodded, swallowing the lump in her throat.Belinda didn’t rush. She raised her glass to her lips to take a sip of wine, her face still carrying the dirty smirk. “Well apparently, your beloved husband was seen seconds ago fucking one of those girls on a black uniform; whoever they are.”Lisa froze. Of all the ex
Belinda watched Lisa leave hand in hand with Raymond, her face nearly tearing up in anger. How could she not tell! The bitch had done it just to infuriate her!Her glass fell from her hand, scattering into a million pieces as they hit the floor. Around her, the other ladies were dead silent, but it seemed like their every eye movement was intended to mock her. She hated this! Hated the feeling of being at the losing end. Hated to be mocked by these low-life socialites who were not even up to her level. “I’ll see who dares to leak a word of this to the public.” She threatened, her eyes glaring daggers at them. Maintaining her graceful poise at this point was hard for her but suddenly remembering that she might be watched by one of the nosy reporters, she quickly adjusted her expression and turned to the lady who had whispered into her ears earlier. “Are you sure of what you saw?”The lady stuttered. “I-I don’t know. The man looked so much like her husband.” Even if Lisa had proven
Lisa let out a tired smile. It was supposed to be her mother’s birthday! How the hell did it turn into some sort of meeting? She approached a tall table with a smile. She didn’t dare show the fatigue on her face. She reached out and grabbed a glass of wine from one of the waitresses. It reminded her of Belinda’s words earlier. The thought of receiving wine from the same whore who slept with her husband barely hours ago irked her. “There she is.”Lisa jerked out of her reverie, turning to see her mother approaching her. “Hey, mom.” “Lisa…”She rolled her eyes. “Did dad come complaining to you again?”She shrugged. “Maybe. He said you left without meeting all the people he wanted you to meet.”Lisa took a large gulp of wine before replying to the woman standing opposite her. “All the people literally meant ninety-nine percent of your guests. You should know dad by now.”She nodded with a smile. “What do you think? I knew he wouldn’t stop bugging me till I came here to talk to you.”
Lisa was fuming by the time she got to the office. Even her entire staff could feel it! Their boss wasn’t the usual smiling boss but they had never seen her this mad. “I demand an explanation!” She barked at Sonia. First, it was Raymond who had gone out right after dropping her home and didn’t return for the entire night. Not like it was the first time, but she had a hard time pushing the picture of him in the arms of another woman behind her. “I am so sorry, ma.” Sonia was frantic. She prayed she wouldn’t lose her job. “The driver only reached out to me this morning to take a leave. I have tried reaching him since but—” “I am two hours late for the meeting. I lost a contract worth billions of dollars. Will your excuse make up for that?” She growled at the quivering lady, ignoring the warnings of her heart to calm down. Her entire body was bursting with anger and she needed an outlet. Her chauffeur provided her with one when he didn’t show up at the usual time to pick her up to
Lisa leaned on the door of the car as it slowly drove down the highway. It had become like a little tradition for her to lean by the window each time she sat in it. Perhaps, it was Raymond’s senseless behavior that caused it. If he had been kind enough not to fill her schedule with his reckless act of ‘love making’.She sighed loudly, her eyes traveling to the rare-view mirror where she found her assistant staring at her. The minute she caught her eyes, the lady quickly turned her head and pretended to be busy on the phone. “You have something to say, Sonia?” Although Lisa could tell what the poor girl had in mind, she needed some kind of distraction to keep the sorrow that was threatening to swallow her whole every single time. “N-nothing ma.” Sonia swallowed hard, her every action showing how scared she was. It was not easy to forget how angry her boss had been barely hours ago.Lisa sighed. “You pity me, don’t you?”Sonia broke into a sudden fit of cough. It wasn’t exactly what
What now?! Lisa wasn’t sure she was ready for just another bad news when her assistant broke it to her. Lexi Conglomerate just got awarded the contract she was in a hurry to get. It wouldn’t have been painful if the CEO of Lexi Conglomerate wasn’t Mr. Thompson.Mr. Davis Thompson; her company’s biggest rival.The same man that was behind the downfall of her company many years ago when her father was still CEO. Up till that moment, she didn’t understand why he was after her company.Was it some sort of unsettled grudge between him and her father? Why didn’t any of them let her know about it?She shrugged, laughing wryly. “I guess that explains it.” The Cops appearing within seconds after the accident, the delay, arresting her driver because they knew she couldn’t drive.Gosh! Why didn’t she think of it from the start?Sonia swallowed, not knowing what to say. From their interrupted conversation in the car, her boss obviously hated being pitied. “Find a cab. We’ll have to head over t
Sonia arrived at the North’s mansion just in time to pick up her boss. Raymond had sent his driver to drive her to work. “How’s Old Brent doing?” Lisa asked her assistant. Old Brent was her chauffeur.Sonia shook her head. “We may have to start looking for someone else, Ma’am.”Lisa nodded. Poor Brent. “Make arrangements for that.” This was business and they needed not to waste time. Moreover, she wasn’t expecting Raymond to lend her his driver till Old Brent was back on his feet. “Are you ready?” Sonia asked. Although she and her boss didn’t share an entirely close relationship, there were some certain things she could speak to her about.Lisa smiled. Of course, she knew what Sonia meant. No doubt, a semi-large crowd of news mongers will be awaiting her arrival at the office. She had to face them anyway; not like she had a choice. Anything but speak up for him again. She nodded with a cheerful smile, “Of course. What makes you think I’m not?”Sonia shook her head before entering