SARAYA’S POV:
I Walked into my father’s home and made my way to the dinning area.
I knew everyone would be impatiently waiting for me by now, it wasn’t my plan to arrive late. I had stopped by the mall to get gifts as a peace offering to my stepmother and granny.
“I don’t know why you’d bring her here,” The disapproving growl of an elderly woman, practically yelling, cut through the walls.
That would be my grandmother, Isla. Even though I’ve never seen or heard her, that grumpy old woman, I could tell from her tone.
I paused at the door. “You should’ve left her there in America and-” . Yep, definitely grandma.
“Stop already, Mother!.” My father cut her words short. I’ve always been curious to know what he thought about Isla’s actions years ago.
My mother had told me how Isla had turned down her request of seeing her son even after she had told her she carried his child and that he needed to know about it before he left for college.
But what did Isla do? She’d told my mother that my father was already engaged, and to be married soon to a woman that can make his future better in a way that my mother was incapable of, due to her poor background. It didn’t matter to Isla if my mother came from a humble respectable home or not.
She wrote my mother a hundred million Australian dollars in check as payment to leave her son alone, claiming she was only with him for the wealth.
“A poor leeching rat” She’d called her.
It was a good thing my mother took that money, I would’ve been so mad if she hadn’t.
Her family was so poor they could barely afford her college application fee, not to mention cater for a baby. She’d even taken a part time job to support her family and studied hard to get through high school on a scholarship, thinking of relying on them for the baby would’ve been foolish.
She was a smart woman. She’d taken the money, travelled abroad with the aid of all her savings and some of the money, invested into the stock market and real estate making over a million USD in the first three years.
But all that money couldn’t mend her broken heart. She had refused to get rid of her old phone number, waiting everyday for my father to call or text her, but nothing came.
Over time, she’d gotten depressed and inclined herself to drinking and smoking as a ploy to keep herself away from reality. Whenever she got high, she communicated to an imaginary Alex who still loved and adored her till her passing away.
“You’ve done enough already! She’s my only daughter, do you expect me to sit back and watch her suffer the loss of her mother alone?” My father yelled.
“Calm down honey, I’m sure mother doesn’t mean it that way. Right mother?” A younger voice chimed in.
That would be my stepmother or Aunt. I wonder what type of woman stepmother is but if that was just her, she sounds nicer than my own grandmother.
‘If I weren’t your only daughter, would things have been different Dad?’ I questioned in my head.
I opened the door and walked in with my head held high. I would never let Isla see me broken. They all cleared their throats and adjusted themselves in their seats the moment I walked in. I had my eyes all on them, watching and noting.
“Good morning everyone ” I let a polite smile dance across my face, popping up my cheek bones.
“Oh, Saraya honey,” Alex got up and gave me a tight bear hug, “Welcome home. Once again I’m sorry about your mother, just think of this place as your new home if you please. Your second home ”
He was only forty three but with a heart of a sixty three years old. Literally. He was diagnosed early last year of Hutchinson — Gilford Progeria Syndrome . A health condition that made him appear ten years older than his actual age.
He had grown fond of me the moment he saw me. A Father would his daughter alright, but mine was mostly because I took after my mother’s looks.
Her oval shaped face, big dreamy eyes, small nose and plump lips shaped in the form of a heart. I only took his eye and hair colour.
“Listen up Everybody,” He cleared his throat and placed a hand around my shoulders with pride beaming all over his face. “This is My long lost daughter, Saraya, whom you all know I had with my then lover in highschool, may her soul rest in peace. She is a part of our family and future Chief Executive Officer to Newman’s empire.”
“What?!” Isla burst out immediately. It didn’t surprise me.
Alex turned to me, paying no attention to Isla’s sudden outburst, “Welcome to the family sweetheart.”
Murmuring slowly erupted in the room with shocked expressions and frowning faces.
“No son,” Isla got up from her seat, “You would do no such thing, over my dead body. I object!”
“Already done Mother. Shall we arrange for a funeral?. Tomorrow at the party I’m introducing her to the world and reliable associates and the day after that, there will be a conference meeting were I’ll officially announce her as my successor and properly Introduce her to our business partners. Now if you’d excuse Us, she’s yet to meet my wife.”
Isla looked like her world had crumbled, orchestrated by her own flesh and blood. She shot me a cold look and stormed off.
“Welcome home dear” My stepmother, the owner of the younger voice I’d heard earlier, walked up to me and gave me a hug before I could even react to Isla.
“Sara, meet my wife Mary. ” My father introduced her.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you ma’am ” I politely responded, not knowing what to call her.
“You have a younger brother, Evan. But he’s umm… ” He glanced briefly at his wife and then back to me, ” asleep right now ”
Something didn’t feel right. All these years I thought I had a sister for a sibling. If their child was a male, why then am I in the spotlight as a successor?.
“I’m sorry about your grandma, she’ll come around soon” he continued, ” come on, let me show you to your room.”
I settled into my new room exhausted from the family drama. It was as big as the one I had back in the states. I gaze down at the bags of gifts that I totally forgot to give in the heat of the family drama.
I let out a sigh.
At least my aunt, cousins and other relatives were excited to see me. I picked up my phone beside me, I hadn’t the time to respond to the calls and beeps-especially his message.
I never really thought meeting him at the club would work this fast.
The screen light came on and two message notifications popped up, one from Gabby and the other from my Mr. Naughty.
My lips cracked up in a smile as I opened his message first.