Every day, Lance made it easier for me to forget our tragic past. He gradually resurrected the old me, who was fierce, strong, and determined. Staying on the island for an expanded time wouldn’t be a problem, but Lance has an empire to run, and I have some things to accomplish, too!
After spending a few weeks on the island as star-crossed lovers, I decided it was time to focus on Lance. I was putting his things away when I came across a journal among his possessions. I didn’t know how to express it, but the journal bothered me, and I kept staring at it as I packed his belongings. My hand moved slowly to touch it as my curiosity kicked in. When Lance walked into the room, I leaped to my feet, and his eyes widened when he saw the journal in my hand. He caught me redhanded, so lying my way out would be damn useless!
“Can you tell me what this is?”
As he approached me, his jaw clenched, and he tried to take the journal from me, but I refused. He said, “You’re not supposed to read that one.”
“That’s right, but I already did,” I informed him, and he just stared at me. “When she told me to include those photos, I was suspicious that something was wrong. I was bothered that she interfered with my job,” I said.
Lance closed his eyes and replied, “She was obsessed with me, Alexa.”
I shook my head because it was difficult to believe everything that he said. For several weeks, he didn’t mention knowing her! Layla was worse because she even asked me about him. All along, she knew Lance’s identity beforehand!
“Alexa, please let me explain,” he requested.
“For what? The damage was already done,” I snapped at him.
“She’s my father’s mistress, and they have a son,” Lance announced.
“Layla and your father?”
“Yes,” he replied.
“Hold on. I don’t understand. If Layla is in love with your father, then there’s no way she would try to ruin your company, and of course, you!”
“She has all the reasons to do so. My father kicked her from their love nest, her baby died, and Dimitri seemed to favor you lately.”
“Wait. Are you acquainted with Dimitri?” I couldn’t help but asked when he referred to Dimitri’s voice casually. “Could it be that both of you connived each other to trick me?”
“No, it’s not like that. Dimitri is innocent. I asked him for a favor when I learned that you worked for her, and that’s it!”
“What about the vacation? Did Dimitri informed you beforehand?” I hoped that my suspicions were wrong, but they turned out to be accurate. “Whoa, I can’t believe you, guys! Was it enjoyable to play with my emotions, Lance? All this time, I thought it’s genuine!”
“Alexa, what are you talking about? Of course, it’s genuine!” Lance insisted.
“I don’t think so,” I refused to take in his poor excuse of an explanation. “You lied to me from the very beginning!”
“My intention was good, Alexa. Can’t you see that I’m trying my best to win your heart again?”
“You succeed in winning my heart, Lance, but right now, you break it again! Little by little, you crushed it once again!”
“Alexa, please! Stop being childish and be reasonable!” Lance increased his voice when I refused to listen to his explanation. “Could it be that you are her source? You bargained with her, right?”
“I have to do it for the sake of my family,” he replied.
My world came crashing down around me when I realized Lance had chosen his family once more. I screamed at him for duping me into thinking that we were destined to meet again. I thought it was fate that brought us together, but it turned out to be something else! My hatred for him, which I had felt when he first betrayed me, resurfaced once more. “I should have known better than to put my trust in you!” Before storming out of his room, I told him that.
“Alexa!” He called out to me, but I didn’t return his call and continued running away from him.
Tears clouded my vision, and I sobbed uncontrollably because of my disappointment and his betrayal. He couldn’t possibly hurt me again, could he? He was a ruthless and depraved person! It wasn’t the first time he put his family ahead of me, and it would continue to be that way for the rest of our lives. I concluded that between Lance and me, there was never going to be a future.
I turned on my phone for the first time since arriving on the island after I regained my composure. I looked through my phone book and dialed his number when I found it. “Dimitri,” I whispered his name.
“Alexa, what’s wrong with you? Are you crying?” He asked worriedly.
On the other end of the line, I could hear him express his concern for my well-being. “I’m fine,” I pretended.
“No, you are not fine at all,” he insisted. “Tell me where you are right now, and I will come and get you,” he offered.
I hesitated for a moment before telling him where I was, but then I remembered that the man on the other end of the line was none other than Dimitri, the man who had stepped in to help me when I needed it the most. He assisted me in getting up, and I will be eternally grateful to him. “I’ll let you know as soon as I can,” I promised.
I chose to control my emotions over my desire to get away from Lance as soon as possible. I expected full honesty from him, especially when we had a troubled past, but he dared to lie again. I could hear his footsteps coming into the room as I was washing my face with cold water.
“Alexa, please accept my sincere apologies. I can’t let her ruin everything for us!”
“Then, what’s next, Lance? Why did you let her control you in the first place? It was your father’s affair, and he should be the one to clean up his mess!”
“I know that, but as his child, I had to do whatever I could to assist him. That’s how family works, don’t you agree?”
“You should have told me ahead of time, but why did you keep it hidden from me?”
He insisted, “I’m just waiting for the right timing.”
“You already know there’s no such thing as proper timing!” Although I was sorry that he was torn between kinship and romance, my rage was stronger, and I had no choice but to act on it. “Perhaps, this is our end. There’s no way we can be happy forever if you can’t trust me with menial things, Lance. You asked me to be your wife, but you can’t trust me! How do you expect it to work?”
“Baby, I’m just doing this to keep you out of trouble! I promise not to do it again,” he assured me.
I shook my head in response. When it comes to his family, he’s more loyal to them than to me. It has always been that way! “Let’s just stop now,” I told him.
“Baby, no! I can’t live without you, and you know that!”
When I heard the overused line, I couldn’t stop myself from slapping him. “When we made love for the first time, you said those words to me, but what happened, Lance? After you broke my heart, you were living fine for five years! Don’t you dare use that line to me again!”
“I’m willing to leave everything to be with you, Alexa. If you can’t co-exist with my family, I will choose you this time,” he declared.
For a moment, I stared at him. He looked sincere. His eyes told me that he was really sorry.
However, I was too stubborn to let it slide. We already talked about being truthful to each other if we wanted to keep our relationship working.
“Alexa, please,” he continued to beg for my forgiveness.
“I forgive you for lying. However, I can’t go on in this kind of relationship, Lance. Sooner or later, things will become toxic between us. I don’t want to hate you forever, so please just let me go. You are a free man now. You can do anything you want,” I stated.