Only One More!

After leaving the park at the city's west river, to arrive at Reign Real Estate in the upper sector of city central should have only taken an hour or so, but because Isabel and Phoenix insisted on making several stops along the way to buy- what Davina called- 'pointless knickknacks and gimmicks', it took them almost another two hours, by which time, Kim was afraid the place would already be closed and try as she might, she could not get a hold of her acquaintance's phone.

So stressed and with nervous hearts, the two women, dragging along two troublesome brats and Kelvin, finally arrived at Reign Real Estate building.

The neighborhood where the company was set up was pretty high scale in Metropolis City and only villas and mansions owned by VIP's of the A Country business and political scenes owned property in the area.

In fact, on the drive here, Isabel had glanced the house that Brycen and Susan would be living in by the next five or so years. She was very familiar with it as she had of course trespassed on the property countless times in her last life.

The roads were very clean and CCTV cameras could be glimpsed in just about every corner. Many of the properties even had men in black suits and sunglasses patrolling their grounds. It was a very riche sight.

The building that Reign Real Estate was established at was a modern styled court villa with sprawling grounds of greenery, architecture and breathtaking scenery. It gave Isabel the feeling of a resort more than a real estate company.

"Wow! Mommy look, a waterfall!"

Phoenix's eyes sparkled and a huge grin appeared on her face that had been painted with small pictures of rainbows and butterflies- from a roadside bazaar they stopped at along the way- as she raced towards the medium scale artificial waterfall at a side of the building. The multi colored paper windmill that she was firmly grasping in one hand spun furiously as the breeze blew through it.

"Oh! Picture!"

Isabel squealed as she watched Phoenix sit at the edge of the pool at the bottom of the waterfall and skim her fingers over the water's surface, her other hand still holding the windmill that only spun faster as the wind suddenly picked up and blew it.

"Isabel, we're already late!" Davina reprimanded in a tone like a mother scolding her child and true to her childish nature, Isabel pouted and clung to Davina's arm to beg.

"Please, just one. Only one more picture, please Davi."

Isabel put her full charm to work and with her big golden eyes suffused in a layer of glistening tears and a trembling, puckered lower lip, it was hardly a few minutes before Davina gave way.

"You brat!"

Despite her harsh tone, Davina still whipped out the camera she was carrying in her purse and snapped a few shots of Phoenix who was still entranced by the waterfall. Then, completely falling into the pace of the little devil as Isabel whispered in her ear, Davina then pushed Kelvin over and snapped some more pictures with them both, directing various poses and scenes for them to act out together and by their selves.

The twins were complete naturals before the camera; their every glance, turn, tilt of the head and even their subtle expressions made Davina who loved photography and had a dream of joining the field absolutely ecstatic that she forgot herself and the shoot dragged for a more than just a couple minutes.

Standing on the side, Kim felt a little helpless about the situation, but she was so used to following Isabel and Davina's pace all these years that she didn't even bother trying to tell them otherwise as she stood back and enjoyed the adorable feast before her eyes.

In the end, they all forgot about the main reason for their visit and only stopped when the security guard came over to check the situation which looked strangely like trespassing. But, although the man came over with the intentions of being righteously indignant, sadly, the poor sap was no match for Isabel's charm and after only a few words, he was as docile as kitten... or maybe a puppy with the way he was nipping at her heels as they finally decided to approach the company building, hoping that their appointment was still valid.

Amazingly, when Kim checked with the strict looking, bespectacled middle aged woman behind the front desk, she showed them an amiable and apologetic smile.

"I'm sorry, there was a sudden and urgent matter that arrived this evening; the manager is currently in a meeting upstairs and it is unknown when he will be available. However, we were informed of your visit, Ms. Russell and have prepared a catalog of choices according to your requirements to browse through.

If it happens that the meeting drags too long, we will ensure to notify you before the day gets too late and reschedule your appointment. Until then, the manager requests that you please wait for him in the waiting area."

The lady then had another woman lead Kim and co. to said waiting area upstairs while she forcefully turned away the security guard who was looking after Isabel like an abandoned animal, sending him back to his post.

"Calamitous temptress." Davina poked fun at Isabel about the obviously whipped security guard with the way she used to call her in her earlier days of modeling. It had been Davina's way of encouraging Isabel who, back then, had next to no confidence in herself, telling her that she had the possibility of being a calamitous temptress.

Hearing Davina's taunt, Isabel glanced coyly over her shoulder at her friend and fluttered her thick lashes. "Jealous?" She tossed a devilish grin and flicked non-existent hair off her shoulders as it was all held up in a bun.

Davina only laughed, her eyes holding traces of pride as she watched Isabel act arrogant and flaunt her beauty.

This was the way such a beautiful woman should be, not slaving away cleaning houses for potentially dangerous people who could take advantage of her or serving tables at dingy diners just to support a man who didn't even appreciate her.

When Davina joined Sunshine Entertainment, it wasn't to be a manager or broker, but to be a photographer, however, she somehow found herself stuck in the managerial department after less than a year working at the small entertainment firm that was pretty much at the bottom of the food chain.

The day that Davina met Isabel, working her ass off as one of the two waitresses in a crowded diner, it was one of her rare day offs when she went out prowling for inspiration with her camera to relax from her very, very stressful job environment.

The first thing that she thought when she saw the young girl in a faded blue jeans, a plain white tee shirt and an apron with her beautiful dark hair pulled into a high ponytail was 'wow, what a star!'

She didn't hesitate to chat up the beautiful girl who would blush from the slightest compliments, obviously not used to them. She then made plans to invite her out to eat once her shift was over and over a simple, cheap meal at McDonald's at the girl's insistence, Davina found herself faced with her first, life altering decision.

To let this girl go on her way as she was and mind her own business, join the photography contest in two weeks that she was sure to win and take flight on her own, or, stop to help someone obviously in desperate need and put her own dreams on hold with the hope that fate would repay her in the future.

From her position today, it was obvious which road she chose and looking at Isabel and her children and the years they had together and thinking of the possible future looming just before them, Davina felt that being cheap and ducking into that dingy roadside eatery where roaches greet in the open that day was the best decision of her life.

"Right Davi?"

"Huh?"

Looking up, Davina saw that they had arrived at a lounge and Isabel was now walking beside her instead of in front and she had obviously been talking for a while now, but she didn't hear anything.

"Sorry, I was thinking about something, I didn't hear you. What did you say?"

"Between me, who only picked up a puppy-guard, and Kim who managed to snag the big manager of Reign Real Estate, exactly which of us is more of a temptress?"

"Right! She only said her acquaintance worked at Reign, who would have thought it was actually the manager of Reign Real Estate."

Davina put on a teasing drawl and directed a grin at Kim whose cheeks were now blistering red.

"Our relationship isn't like that. I just happened to be around while he was in a tough spot and helped him out, so he owes me a favor." Kim tried to explain but the people next to her were the annoying kind.

Davina and Isabel exchanged 'knowing' glances as they nodded to each other.

"So, she admits that there is a relationship."

"Interesting. Very interesting."

"You two are so embarrassing."

With puffed cheeks, Kim gave a huff and lengthened the reach of her short legs to catch up with the lady leading them toward an elevator as the two people she left behind burst into stifled giggles.

They arrived on the building's second floor. In the large room, many curved couches formed incomplete circles with a meter and a half passage space each and glass coffee tables in the center carrying refreshments and catalogs. Tasteful but simple decorations were placed around the room giving it a refreshing, relaxing and light feeling, once again reinforcing that resort-like image in Isabel's mind.

As they were being led to a seating area at one side of the room, Isabel's eyes were suddenly drawn to movement out on the balcony beyond a pair of glass French doors.

The wind was blowing and the satiny curtains had billowed up, blocking her vision, but once they settled and the situation became clear, without any regard for the six inch heels she was wearing or the mirror smooth floor beneath her feet, Isabel broke into a sprint, her motherly instincts in full drive. At the last second, she just barely managed to grab the waist of the little boy who was about to tip over the rails and fall to his impending doom on the lawn below.

Looking down at the more than ten foot drop, Isabel suddenly had a recall of her death in the last life when she rushed out to save Kelvin and instantly, her entire body that had been pumped with adrenaline grew soft and she quietly sank to the floor as fear washed over he like a tide.

Trembling slightly, she hugged the little boy in her arms who was tightly clinging to her as his shoulders shook and muffled sobs came from her bosom.