The trauma of losing Riley makes it hard for Valery to love. That is until Derrick reappears to claim her heart. When things seem to be moving smoothly, a force from their past in the form of Ryan (Riley's twin), returns to throw her into space. Will Valery overcome her fears and experience true happiness, or will she choose the easy way out and give up on love?
"Lily, do not cling to the door. Aunty dislikes that." Valery steadied herself behind the steering wheel, occasionally stealing glances at her niece to ensure she was not playing with the locks.
She smiled, seeing the six-year-old pick up the stuffed frog, which had been ignored a while back. They loved the Muppets. Although Miss Piggy was her favourite, Lily adored Kermit the Frog.
It was only a short time until they reached the mall. Valery slowly followed the other cars through the entrance, quietly peering around for a good place to park. Once she found her spot, she reeled over, initiated the brakes and turned off the engine.
"Come, little Kermit." She opened the door for Lily.
A few steps forward, Valery recalls leaving the grocery list behind. "Lily, stay right here!" She said sharply and ran back to the car.
"Where the hell did I put it." Valery combed hastily through the front seats. She hated handling pieces of paper, yet her elder sister refused to get a small notebook for the grocery list, no matter how many times she nagged about it. "Ha! Gotcha." Valery bent down to pick up the neatly folded sheet beneath Lily's seat. Lily had been holding on to it earlier, glaring at the letters as if she understood what they meant.
All was well when Valery locked the car and turned around; that was before she saw Lily walking towards the entrance on her own, not minding the road. Struck with fear and obviously out of reach, Valery yelled- waving her hand, telling Lily to stop while she dashed towards her. A car was approaching rather recklessly down the narrow road.
Worried she won't make it on time, Valery tried signalling the diver to slow down, but it was useless. The driver had drowned the car's insides with loud music and was also not paying much attention.
Out of nowhere, a figure swooped in and grabbed Lily out of harm's way, frightening the child, who did not understand what was happening.
Shaken by the ordeal, Valery ran faster and grabbed Lily, who was put down by her saviour.
"WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU!!! WHY DIDN'T YOU LISTEN TO ME!! ARE YOU A DODO BIRD? WHY DO YOU LOVE RUNNING INTO DANGER LIKE THIS!" Valery panicked.
"Excuse me, but the fault is yours for not keeping a better eye on her." The stranger called her out on her mistake. "Had I not seen her earlier, that bastard would have run her over and not even looked back. "
Valery sighed, forcing out a breath of relief. "You're right. I should have been careful. It's okay, baby, don't cry. I was wrong to have left you like that. Come to Aunty. I'm not angry, okay." She tried to comfort Lily.
Valery reached out, slowly grabbing Lily's hand and pulling her closer to hug her. Then she rose to her feet to address their helper. "Thank you very much, I...I... Derrick?" she stammered after getting a proper look at the man. It took him not less than a second to confirm it, recognizing her as well.
Derrick's eyes widened as his lips curved upwards. "Violet. I mean Valery," he said, not knowing how to process this rush of mixed feelings coursing through his veins.
(Three hours later.)
*Music in the background*
The song played repeatedly, intoxicating Valery's mind as she drove on the highway. She was a massive bowl of emotions until it got sour, and she wanted them to disappear.
Derrick had accompanied her to shop for groceries that afternoon and spent about forty minutes with her in a coffee shop. Lily was treated to cheesecake and chocolate milk, which made her forget about the incident.
Valery was still determining how it would all end, exchanging contacts and acting friendly again. Nothing had changed about Derrick; he was taller, a bit bulkier, and more handsome, but he still had those eyes that once made her heart flutter.
'I know it ain't easy, giving up your heart.'
Valery sighed as the song spelt out the obvious.
Lily's little feet ran into the house as soon as the door was shut. Her mother and baby brother should be waiting for them inside. When Valery put the bags on the counter, Jennifer was in the kitchen, preparing the stew with the few ingredients at home.
"You took your time," Jennifer said.
"I bumped into a friend along the way, and your daughter nearly gave me a heart attack." Valery chose to leave out the crucial details. There were days she wished she did not have to tag her niece along, and Jennifer felt it. At least Kofi was yet to crawl and get on her nerves as much. But that's how kids are; sometimes, they can't be controlled or coaxed into staying out of harm's way. You just have to step up as an adult and be ready to shield them with your life.
"I'm heading home." Valery sorted herself out with a bottle of water.
"Stay and have supper with us. My husband will be an hour late, and you know I hate eating alone."
"That's why you have children, Jennifer," Valery said, holding a mischievous smirk.
Jenny pursed her mouth, resisting the urge to throw a ladle at her younger sister. "Someday, when you get out of this no-dating phase and have to raise two beautiful kids like mine, I will be there to throw shades back at you. Mark my words, Val." Jennifer pointed her saucy wand at the offender, who gladly laughed at her pains. "Seriously, you're not going anywhere, so strap Kofi to your back and come help me finish." She stirred the pot of stew.
"Okay, big Sis, but know I won't be here till Eric comes home," Valery said on her way to the living room where Kofi was lying in his rocker.
Supper turned out great; they even got a glass of wine over a TV series they enjoyed watching. Valery ended up staying till her sister's husband returned from work.
She got to her apartment roughly at ten and hopped into the shower. Wearing nothing underneath her morning coat, Valery sat on the bed with a phone in hand, going through her messages to see if any surprises were waiting for her. Sure enough, there was.
A text from Derrick, asking her out on a proper date...
Arlen, "Luca... On the first day I laid eyes on you, my world saw light...but to fall in love with an alpha who wants me dead, how cruel can the heavens be?" Luca, "I bound a rope around your wrist and dragged you across mountains as my prisoner. Yet in truth, you are the one holding my heart hostage." Luca Beaumont has to take a different captive when he fails to kill Arlen Braddock, the immortal heir of Ingram. What he does not know is that the omega he kidnapped, Julius, is not who he says he is. The journey back home is shrouded in unforeseen circumstances that challenge Luca's views about this mysterious omega. As five kingdoms wage war against demons, he slowly learns that the outcome hangs on the omega's neck. Will the first son of the Beaumont house willingly surrender the captive to his Clan when he crosses the line between love and duty?
Eliana was framed by her best friend and her fiance into sleeping with a boy toy in the club and getting impregnated by him. Five years after she had given birth to twins, she returned home and worked under the Moran Group, where she met the CEO-- Maurice. Maurice was a brilliant businessman who did his job well. But in order to stay under the radar, he lived a double life. One as Maurice, and one as Preston. Fate brought the two together again, roping them in on an exciting love story. It all became more complicated when Eliana faced Preston, the man she had slept with before, once again. Now that she was being pursued by two men, how could she ever choose? When would Eliana uncover the secret of Maurice's identity? When was Maurice going to know that he already had two children of his own? How would Eliana face this man when the truth came to light one day? Come and find out.
My boyfriend called, "Baby!" as he jumped out of bed and scrambled to pull his pants off the ground. "Please, I can explain my love." Shutting my eyes, I inhaled deeply and tried not to cry when I realized that my dream of the man not being my boyfriend had been dashed. "What?" I asked, "What do you want to explain?" How did you lie about having a business meeting while you were in bed enjoying yourself with my best friend, even though I told you I was in serious pain, is that it?" I stood there, my heart pounding, and tears streaming down my face...
My name is Katia, and I am just trying to survive until my fated mate arrives. Which may be easier said than done. Rejectection is the last straw. Whispering my acceptance of his rejection. I run through the pack house, out across the manicured lawn into the forest. "I'm sorry, my sweet girl," I say to my wolf. I'm sorry you have been stuck with me and have had to suffer everything I have. She whispers," it's not your fault, Katia. We came to a cliff with a waterfall. The hurt keeps pounding at me. I need it to stop. My sweet girl, and I just want peace, I keep running and leap off the cliff. Spreading my arms wide, with tears streaming down my face, I fall, not making a sound, waiting for sweet oblivion where we feel nothing ever again. "I love you, my sweet girl! Until we meet again, "My wolf replied just before we hit the water, "I love you too, Katia. I have never regretted a moment with you." The Snow Moon pack is having their last barbecue of the summer next to the waterfall on their land. The adults are laughing and joking while watching the pups play. The alpha, beta, and gamma are swimming with some of the older children and playing a game of Marco Polo. Someone yells, "Oh my goddess, someone just jumped over the waterfall!" Everyone is frozen as they watch what looks to be a child falling arms spread wide, no one makes a sound. The small body hits the water like a plane crashing into the side of a mountain. The alpha, beta, and gamma, spring into action, swimming towards the area the person went under. The alpha is screaming his wolf is going crazy repeating, "Find her. Find her...find her!" They dive and the beta surfaces with a small person in his arms. Alpha takes the girl from his beta, laying her on the ground. The men are shocked by what they see. She is covered in scars and injuries. Her body is twisted and broken. The Beta asks, "Who could have done this to someone so defenseless?" Alpha drops to his knees, repeating, "MATE...MATE...MATE!"
On her wedding day, Khloe’s sister connived with her groom, framing her for a crime she didn’t commit. She was sentenced to three years in prison, where she endured much suffering. When Khloe was finally released, her evil sister used their mother to coerce Khloe into an indecent liaison with an elderly man. As fate would have it, Khloe crossed paths with Henrik, the dashing yet ruthless mobster who sought to alter the course of her life. Despite Henrik’s cold exterior, he cherished Khloe like no other. He helped her take retribution from her tormentors and kept her from being bullied again.
After three years of loveless marriage, Kira was slapped with divorce papers. She has shown him her unrequited love throughout her entire marriage with him, but he decided to turn blind eyes all because of his lover. Distraught and heartbroken, Kira choose to sign the divorce papers with bitter heart. But then and there, she promised herself that when she's back, he will come crawling to her, but she will make him pay for hurting her. Join Kira as she transform to a wealthy heiress and soared as the CEO of a multi-billion-dollar empire, a remarkable healer and make her ex-husband pay!
Janice, the long-forgotten legitimate heiress, made her way back to her family, pouring her heart into winning their hearts. Yet, she had to relinquish her very identity, her academic credentials, and her creative works to her foster sister. In return for her sacrifices, she found no warmth, only deeper neglect. Resolute, Janice vowed to cut off all emotional bonds. Transformed, she now stood as a master of martial arts, adept in eight languages, an esteemed medical expert, and a celebrated designer. With newfound resolve, she declared, "From this day forward, no one in this family shall cross me."