Suppressing a loud yawn, Sia whipped around in her bed as she stirred from her sleep. The radiant morning sun sends a soothing glow down her body through her glass walls.
Sia rises from the bed and stretched her coiled limbs. In the process, she emits her repressed yawn. Only this time, it dances off her lips louder than it should have.
The first thought or rather event that replayed in her mind was Silas’s impromptu proposal. Well, she can’t outright call it impromptu to Silas ’cause he never does things without giving it a great deal of thought.
Silas must have thought about it. His unreserved confession about his obsession with her tingles every pore of her body with worry…fear even.
Though Sia seems to act all strong and confident the young, frail, naïve girl she is still lies underneath. Sure enough, that’s why Silas keeps coming back. Trying different strategies to see the one she’ll fall for.
The one she will accept. Now that she has rejected him and his proposal Sia wonders, and imagines what Silas will resort to.
Violence?
More seduction or accusation?
The first and the last guess sparks her inside with tension. If he resorts to violence will she be able to face him?
He already accused her of jinxing his brother…her husband. As is, the only restraint chaining him now is the lack of evidence.
Sia can’t shake off the knot her stomach is gradually twisting into at the thought of Silas. It’s sickening her to face different enemies.
One who pretends to love her yet wants so desperately to confiscate the family’s property from her and the other she doesn’t know or has seen.
Sia’s mind is all but a jumbled mess, however, she has drawn an obvious conclusion deep within her.
It’s time she makes her debutante.
Swinging her feet to the floor, she fits into her penguin flip-flop and gravitated to the washroom for her morning routine.
In matter of minutes, she rounded up for work, latching on her bag and phone, she zoomed off.
Briefly, she informed Michelle about her decision to make her debutante.
Clasping her palm to her chest, Michelle exhaled. “I’m glad you’ve finally decided to do it.” Leaning forward she whispered, “It’s time everyone knows who wields power. I’m happy.”
Her words piled up Sia’s confidence. Yes, it’s time people get to know who the widow is and it’s time they know who the famous anonymous is.
It’s time for Lucas to know that she fulfilled her words to him six years ago.
“look me in the eye Lucas and tell me it’s over and it’s a game!”
Her words reverberated in her ears. The words she said to confirm the bitter truth he just verbalized. Sia had hope that when he matches his eyes to hers and see the sorrowful tears oozing from her eye fissure, that Lucas will retract his words.
That he’ll fall to his knees and take back every word he said but disappointment bathe every fiber of her being when he held strong on his words.
It was nothing but a game. She was but a game to him. But now, time has done her well and she played her games too. Though the medley of pains and regret and guilt that roved through her made playing her own game difficult.
Nevertheless, she did it. She upheld her words. But during her debutante, Lucas will know she’s behind it all.
While at the office, Sia summoned Liam and Rebekah, her trustees. Liam’s eyes feast on Sia hasn’t whittled.
Still, he can’t figure out why he’s drawn to Sia. Why they have a similar reaction to fire. It’s weird and it has been sitting in his mind all day, every day yet no answers pop up.
“Have a seat.” She gestured for them to settle on the seats across her.
Lacing her hands together she jutted her chin on her hands before, cluing them in on the essence of their meeting.
“It’s time I show my face to the people. To the country. To this company. It’s time they know I’m the widow.”
Liam dropped his shoulders at Sia’s words. He knows it’s time Lucas will know his ex-lover is the widow. The time to know she’s the weevil in his beans.
“In that regard, I’ve decided to hold my debutante tomorrow. So I expect you to organize the reporters and paparazzi at my place tomorrow for the interview.” She beamed a smile at them and Rebekah nodded as Liam was a bit lost for words.
His eyes homed in on her mole. It’s not the first time he has seen it but it’s the first infrared images floats through his mind.
He has seen it somewhere but where? Liam wonders.
Dismissing them, Sia beeped Estrella in a call to share the news with her.
All the while they’ve been friends, Estrella has known Sia to be discreet. She bottles up her identity.
Something every girl out there, Estrella inclusive, will pounce on and scream to the world who they truly are.
“Hey, hey!” Sia chirped when their call connected.
She heard Estrella guzzle a breath and chuckled. She knows her inquisitive friend already sensed the enthusiasm in her tone.
“Yeah, yeah. What’s good, girl?” Estrella said.
“Guess what?” Sia excitedly chirped, leaning on her table.
“Jake proposed? Jake fucked you? Aww. Tell me he did!” Estrella rambled.
Pursing her lips, Sia rolled her eyes. That would have made a good guess ’cause Jake kissed her, prolly the best, savage kiss she’s had in a long time, but it’s on the contrary.
“Far from it.” She said waving her hand.
“Oh, guess I’m getting bad in my conjectures lately. Old age.” Estrella rattled on, earning a laughter from Sia.
“To save your strength, I’ll say it,” Sia muttered playfully. “I’m making a debutante tomorrow.”
“Debutante? Are you a caged princess who makes a debutante to meet her prince charming?” Estrella asked.
“I’d have said yes, but I’m not a princess but a widow.” Sia gushed, half beaming. “It’s a tradition in the Monson family for the new ruler to make a debutante so people will know they’re now the head. So tomorrow I’ll hold mine and the country will know, I am the widow.”
“Wow. That’s a weird tradition. Are we in the medieval era?” She teased. “I’m happy for you. At least, I won’t be pulling back in telling people who you are. Congrats, girl.” She hummed.
“Thanks, girlfriend…”
“Then after the debutante, you’ll marry again.” Estrella chirped.
“Okay, that’s enough. Bye.” Sia spat and hung down the call.
**
By the time Sia rounded up at the office it was already nightfall. As instructed, the media already lay in wait for her debutante tomorrow and all the employees of the Monson group are waiting to see the widow.
Apparently, the richest woman in the state. It’s an honor to Sia and she’s over the moon about it.
While driving home, Sia and Liam got stuck in traffic as it’s rush hour. She was scrolling through her feed, reading every comment people dropped on Monson group’s website and social media handle. The news about her has spread like fire.
Sia pared her eyes off the phone to look through the window to see how the traffic is moving when her eyes cut to something.
In a distant is Lucas bustling from a confectionery store with two little girls in his company. The girls were giggling unruly when Lucas hunkered down and whispered something to them.
‘He knows the girls too? How?’ She mused, unable to cut her eyes elsewhere.
Lucas held them tightly in his grip as they trod down the sidewalk.
Sia flapped he eyes twice, thrice when she noticed that Lucas was walking perfectly though his leg was covered with a Band-Aid. His hands flexed unbridled and he held no sling.
‘I thought he was hurt?’ Sia pondered, still watching him until he disappeared outta sight. ‘Was that a pretense? So he could avoid…holy crap! Lucas was never hurt. It was…all a trick!’ She flared her eyes as the answers hit her.
“If Lucas lied about this…what other secret does he hide? And besides who are the girls to him?” Sia hummed under her breath.