Chapter 14

I tucked Elena in her blankets and dropped a light kiss on her forehead. I sat besides her and began stroking her hair. She fell asleep almost immediately while wrapping her arms tightly around her new teddy bear.

Aunt Amira's words kept ringing in my ears.

Don't allow him to continue hurting you!

The door opened and Claudius walked in. He flashed me a small smile and l returned it. A brief awkward silence settled between us. It has been there ever since l rejected him.

I badly wished everything could go back to the way it was before when we were great friends. I missed teasing him and laughing with him. I missed my friend.

"Are you leaving already?," l asked him , breaking the tense silence between us.

" Not yet. I wanted to talk to you before l leave," he said nervously.

My heart began to race. I knew what he wanted to talk about but l wasn't sure if l was ready to talk about it again.

" Umm okay," l stammered.

I dropped one last kiss on Elena's forehead and turned off the light. I lead Claudius to the balcony with my heart was still racing madly.

When we reached the balcony , we lapsed into a brief , tense silence again. I avoided looking at him so l dropped down my gaze on the floor.

Claudius cleared his throat causing me to raise my eyes to him. I looked into his steel grey eyes for a moment before looking down at my feet again blushing.

Why did Claudius have to develop feelings for me and then confess them. Now l couldn't look him in the eye anymore. I hated it.

"Jane, l know we have talked about this. But ... I ...," his voice trailed off as a blush went across his cheeks.

If it was on normal terms , l would have laughed at his flushed face but instead , l held my breath waiting for the terrible news.

" l can't stay away from you . l love you and l want to be with you," he continued, his voice nervous.

A shiver swept through me. My hands clutched my night dress tightly as l blinked back tears . It pained me every time but l had no choice but to do this.

" l am sorry Claudius. I don't deserve you," l whispered feeling my heart sank at my words.

I was letting him down again. I knew he was being honesty but l simply couldn't accept his proposal. It was cruel to him.

I was broken and damaged!

I couldn't do that to him!

Claudius lifted my chin so that l was staring directly into his steel-grey eyes. His eyes were full of pain and had moisture in them.

"Tell me honestly Jane. Are you not over that scum bag yet?" he demanded in a firm voice.

My heart skipped a beat at the mention of that bastard. I turned away fuming.

"He isn't worthy it! You are throwing away your live for nothing. You deserve to be happy. If not by me then by someone else," he added in an icy voice.

I turned back to him , furry blazing in my eyes.

"Don't you dare mention that asshole in front of me!," l seethed at him.

A muscle throbbed in his jaw.

"Your reaction clearly shows that he is still haunting you," he yelled back at me.

"You still have feelings for that asshole!," he angrily yelled at me again.

Without thinking , l slapped him hard across the face. Claudius stared at me stunned while holding his reddened cheek.

Angry tears were now flooding my face in torrents.

"How dare you! How dare you suggest that l still have feelings for that scumbag when you of all people knows how much l loathes that bastard. He stole my family's company, sold my parent's mansion, emptied my bank accounts and fled , leaving me with nothing but a child. He destroyed my life! He ruined my family! And you know it , Claudius.

I am working my ass off at the boutique to support my family. And you dare suggest l am still haunted by my feelings for him! Bloody hell! My feelings for him now are nothing but pure hatred. The day l see him again, he will pay a hefty price for playing with my family's legacy," l blurted out angrily.

Claudius gazed at me stunned by my outburst. He moved closer to me and wiped my tears using the pad of his thump.

"I am sorry , Jane," he said before pulling me in for a hug.

I hugged him back and broke down into a sobbing mess. I cried out all my frustrations of the past years on his shoulder , wetting his shirt front.

Claudius patted my hair , murmuring comforting words. After a brief moment , l removed my arms from him and stared at him with puffy eyes.

"I am sorry for slapping you," l apologised whilst sniffing back some tears.

He flashed me a tremulous smile.

"Don't be. I should be the one apologising for accusing you wrongly."

I smiled back at him. He raised his hand and tucked a strand of hair behind my ear. We stared into each other's eyes and silence consumed us again. It was as if everything had ceased to exist save for the loud beating of my heart.

He leaned down and suddenly captured my lips with his own. I stood still for a moment too shocked to even move. Then a thought crossed my mind.

Maybe this was what l needed to move on with my life.

A clean skate!

I closed my eyes and clutched his shirt , kissing him back.

****

I stared at my reflection in the mirror after finishing applying makeup. It seemed like ages ago since l last put on makeup and go out. l was going for a lunch date with Claudius at Rosario restaurant and l wasn't sure how l felt about it.

I accepted Claudius the day he kissed me on the balcony and that was a week ago. We were pretty much busy over the past week and couldn't go on a proper date.

Amira and Lola were delighted to know that l was finally moving on with my life. Only l was aware of the passion for revenge still burning in my heart. I possibly couldn't move on with my life until l get that bastard's ass locked up in jail.

Moving on meant l had forgiven him!

Moving on meant l had accepted the injustice done to me!

No ! I couldn't do that.

The door opened bringing me out of my trance. A smirking Lola came in.

"Your prince charming is waiting downstairs for you," she said in a singsong voice.

"Okay. I will be downstairs in a moment," l answered nervously.

My eyes went back to the much younger version of me staring back at me from the mirror. I inhaled and exhaled. My heart had begun to race again.

I wondered if l was making the right choice . Claudius was a good man but l somehow felt like l was using him. I felt like l was somehow trying to convince myself that Ferracco didn't damage me completely by going out with him.

Lola came behind me and laid a hand on my shoulder. Our eyes met in the mirror. She flashed me a warm smile.

"Don't you dare have second thoughts , little sister. You deserve this too. So don't jinx it thinking back of your mistakes," she told me.

I smiled at her feeling grateful of her comforting presence in my life. I stood up and hugged her tightly.

"Thank you for your support , big sister."

I felt her smiling against my shoulder.

"So you finally accept that l am older than you."

I removed my hands from her and playfully slapped her arm smiling.

"Why do you have to ruin the moment ," l pouted at her.

Lola snapped back her head and laughed. She then laid a hand on my cheek and the earlier playful glint in her eyes vanished to be replaced with concern.

"I pray that everything works out for the two of you. There is nothing that will make me more delightful than having my two best friends married to each other."

I blinked back tears not wanting to ruin my makeup.

"I am scared , Lola. I am scared that something bad will happen," l confided my fears to her.

Lola just patted my cheek grinning. I wish l had half her optimistic.

"You are being paranoid for nothing , Jane. It's rare to come across a gem of a man like Claudius. He loves you."

That's when l realised why l was feeling so guilty ever since accepting his proposal.

I didn't doubt Claudius's love for me but l wasn't sure l loved him the way l should. I still saw him as a friend and nothing else. I didn't feel those butterflies every time l see him. I wasn't eager to check my cellphone for his messages. My heart didn't do a somersault every time he looked at me. Everything was too normal between us.

It was like being with my friend and it was sad!

"I don't think l love him the way l should," l blurted out.

"Love isn't always supposed to be explosive and instant like a wildfire. There is always a kind that develops slowly with overtime. You will learn to love him back," she said.

A smile crept on my face.

"Have you been seeing romantic movies lately," l teased her.

"You know have always been a master of dating. You can come to me for tips anytime," she said with a wink.

"No thanks. That will defiantly land in trouble."

After a few forced dating tips from Lola , l went downstairs . Elena was all over him , bubbling about her school.

Luckily, Amira had gone to the market. Honestly , l couldn't deal with more dating tips from mother and daughter. My head was already spinning with anxiety.

I kissed Elena goodbye and we left. Claudius drove us to Rosalia restaurant in his silver Mercedes. Rosalia was one of those small Italian restaurants that served exceptionally good food. Claudius told me he had discovered it downtown three days ago and seemed very proud for that.

"So how's work?," l started.

Claudius blew out a breath.

"Exhausting but l love it anyway. The pay is good."

"That's great ."

Silence!

When we were friends before , we never ran out of things to say. Either l was teasing him for his singleness or we were busy gossiping about people in our small hometown though l know it was bad but we never seemed to stop talking about it.

Now we were like two strangers sitting next to each other on a bus. The waitress arrived to take down our order. She was a pretty brunette of about eighteen years. I noticed her throwing flirty looks at Claudius.

But Claudius being a gentleman ignored it all. The waitress winked at him before leaving. I was left gasping at her guts.

Claudius shifted in his seat clearly uncomfortable. He threw a worried glance at me and l couldn't help but throw back my head and laughed .

" What!," he asked grinning.

" Seems like you are quite popular with teenage girls, " l teased him.

His smile spread into a wicked grin.

"Feeling jealousy already , huh?," he chuckled.

My mouth gaped open at him in surprise.

" Are you kidding me? She is barely seventeen. Why would l be jealousy of a child?," l blurted out.

He lifted a dark eyebrow. Claudius leaned forward and dropped his voice to a murmur.

"Don't worry , l only belong to you sweetheart, " he drawled.

A different waitress came with our order. We were having steak and red wine. After our lunch date , we decided to take a walk around town. The streets were littered with people.

It was the season of carnival . People were dressed in different attires , swaying to samba and laughing joyfully. Others had instruments like drums and guitars they were playing.

The roads were jammed with traffic. Luckily , Claudius didn't bring his car. We could have been stuck in traffic for hours . He entwines his fingers with mine and we began strolling around town.

"Do you want to join the dance?," asked Claudius , gesturing to the crowd ahead of us , dancing to the samba music.

I burst out into laughing.

" l pretty much sucks at dancing. Mother tried to enrol me in different dancing classes when l was younger until she realises it was a waste of resources. My passion lies in a drawing board as you already know."

" l remembered you having a heated argument with Mr Augusto in his study when you wanted to go to school of Arts."

" You still remember that! ," l cried out stunned.

That was eight years ago when l requested my father to send me to college to purse my passion in arts. My father had refused saying that my fate was to be the successor of Castio construction. I was very hurt that day.

" Of course , l remember. It was my first day working for your father. I was at the door of the study with Mr Roberto Santacruise , waiting to be introduced to Mr Castio. You stormed out of the study crying and shoved me out of the way ."

I felt a blush going across my face as l remembered that day. I had bursted out of my father's study room sobbing and shoved Claudius out of the way , causing him to fall down to the floor in his brand new suit. I had apologised after a week.

" You spent the next three days locked up in your room refusing to speak to anyone, " he continued.

I looked up startled.

" Were you stalking me? ," l chuckled.

Claudius gave me a brief , tight smile.

" I wasn't exactly stalking . l just listened tentatively to anything concerning you."

I scoffed at him.

" In my opinion,that's another definition of stalking."

He threw back his head and laughed.

" l was taken by you the instant you stared at me at the door with those dark eyes of yours full of tears."

I blushed at his words. Claudius clearly loved me. I could see it in his eyes.

A sleek , black Rolls-Royce Limousine stood purring next to a curb across the road. A tall man well dressed in a black Armani suit with dark sunglasses was striding towards the waiting car. A driver dashed forward and held a door open for him.

His dark hair and well built structure reminded me of someone. I quickly shoved the unpleasant thoughts at the back of my head. I was on my first date with Claudius and l didn't want to ruin it.

" Jane!"

Claudius voice jerked me back to reality. I flashed him a small smile to conceal my discomfort of my earlier thoughts.

" What's on your mind?." There was worry lacing his words.

"Nothing."

I wrapped my arm around his waist and dragged him forward.

" Obrigado Rafael."

My heart skipped a beat. There was no way l was imaging this.

I clearly knew that voice!

The same voice that had whispered promises of love and seduction in the dead of the night. The same voice that had declared on the altar to love me till death do us apart. The same voice that ........

I swiftly turned around with my heart racing. The man in Armani suit took off his sunglasses and smiled at the driver. Shock ripped through me, shock so staggering it almost dropped me to my knees.

Blue eyes!

He had the same blues eyes. His face was different but those eyes were familiar. His smile was familiar too. I recognised both.

He slipped into the car and the car swept away from the curb. I sucked in my breath.

Ferracco!