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2024-10-29 19:42:56“I hope you like it here,” Jacob asked.
"Well, at least you didn’t pick the cementary” Christine laughed.
Jacob feigned a laugh, but he couldn’t stop to wonder. He hadn’t met her before; at least he couldn’t recall it. And what did she mean by that? It was the best day of his life. Why is he even sitting with a strange lady in a coffee shop on the same day he got fired and divorced?
“I actually have been to this coffee shop a couple of times before, so I’d give you nine out of ten. I’d have given you a ten if you had picked the club," she smiled.
Jacob smiled, but it was short lived. He wanted to be nice, but at the same time, he wanted to know what she wanted from him.
“Okay, I think I know what you are probably thinking,” Christine said, noticing how much unease he felt. “Who is she? And what does she want?”
“I am sorry, but I don’t know you or what you want from me, and it’s been quite a day for me. I just want to go home. So I’d appreciate it if you"
“You got fired?”
Jacob paused a little; he had a frown appear on his fore. “What?”
“Well, I saw you leave that building, Wilson Corps, with a box filled with random stuff; you were untucked, your tie is sagging, and it is not closing hour already. You were all jumpy when I first met you; it’s all kind of weird but easy to guess.”
“Okay, sorry, who are you, and what do you want again?”
Christine looked at him with a smile on her face and said, “Umm,” She cleared her voice, then continued, “I don’t mean to freak you out.” She finally spoke up.
That’s a little too late, he thought.
"It's just that I have been looking for you for almost a decade now.”
“A decade?” Jacob rested his back a little and asked, "What do you mean?”
"Yeah, unbelievable, but true.”
“Okay, I don’t do well with suspense. So please, just tell me what this is.”
She took a deep breath in and then said, “While you might not remember me, I do know you... In fact, I know you enough to say you have a burn scar on your back from an explosion about ten years ago”
How did she... “How did you even…?” Jacob leaned forward.
“Ten years ago, you saved a girl from a car explosion at Oaklane. She and her friends were coming back from a party when they had an accident. You couldn’t save everybody because, while you were saving that one girl, the cars exploded. The explosion gave you a third-degree burn because not only did you save her, you covered her with your body as the explosion happened.”
"Okay, now I think I know what’s going on... If you are a reporter,”
“I am not a reporter.” she interrupted him. “The girl had a concussion on the head regardless, a couple of bruises, and a few burns. Anyway, it took her a month to fully recover from her wounds and shock from the incident. So she wanted to see you, but you were admitted to another hospital for treatments. She tried to locate the hospital, but again, she wasn’t allowed to see you at that time. Time passed, and she couldn’t stop thinking about you and then tried again, but this time you’ve been discharged, and she has been looking for you until now”
“Holy shit! No way! No fucking way!”
"Yes, Jacob, I am that girl.”
“I am so sorry I didn’t recognize you... It’s been so long, I must have... What the fuck?” Jacob had his first genuine laugh for the day: “How are you? Of course, you are fine. Look at you!”
She nodded. “You bet?”
“I am so glad you are okay. I had forgotten about this, you know. And how did I not recognize you?”
“I didn’t expect you’d given the condition we first met.”
"Umm… Yeah, I barely saw you that day.”
“That’s one of the reasons why it was difficult to find you. I had to get a private investigator to deal with finding you. He finally tracked you to your working place.”
"Oh,” the reality dawned on him again, “if you had waited a day, you’d have missed me.”
“Well, all of that is about to change because, for the past ten years, my family has always wanted to find you, to thank you for what you did.” Christine leaned forward a little. “I especially wanted to say thank you.”
“Trust me, you already did. Nothing beats knowing you weren’t just okay, but you looked for me”
"Yeah," she smiled, “now, that’s not just it.” She reached for a check in her bag and said, "Here."
Jacob collected it slowly. “What is this?” he asked, too shocked to believe the figrue on it.
“It’s all yours…”
“Wait… ten million dollars? You are telling me that this is a ten million dollar check with my name on it?”
“That’s just one of the things we have always wanted to give you.” She laughed. “We even placed a reward for anybody who finds you.”
"Wow!” Jacob laughed, unable to get his eyes off the check.
“Yeah, hundred thousand dollars?”
“I should have found me,” he laughed, and then she laughed.
They both quieted down, and then her mood changed and her voice became calmer.
“Now, my father died recently," she said.
"Oh, I am sorry…”
"It's fine; he had a wonderful life. So umm It’s part of his will that I get married before I have access to my inheritance. He has always been very skeptical about me getting married”
“Okay?”
"Yeah, umm, this probably sounds a bit too early; that’s where I need your help.”
Jacob asked with a squeezed-up face, “what?”
“Listen, I know this sounds stupid, and please understand that I am not big on marriage too. But I promised that if I’d be getting married to anybody, it’d be a man who was willing to die for me even before he got to know me. I have to pick someone I can trust”
“That… that’s something… I don’t know.”
“It doesn’t have to be something serious. Just to get the will before my father’s company gets taken over by someone else”
“That’s crazy”
“I know, but it’s true,” Christine’s face became serious, “if you get married to me, you get a chance to actually run my father’s company for me.”
Jacob couldn’t think of what to say; he leaned back. He now wishes he had ordered at least some water. "Can we take this one step at a time?”
“I’m sorry if I was too forward”
“No, you are not. It’s just that... umm, I am married legally.”
“Oh…”
"Yeah, about that, but she also gave me a divorce paper today.”
“Oh fuck, you’re really having the shittiest day”
“You have no idea,” he said, shaking his head.
Christine looked him straight in the eye and said, “I didn’t know you were married; my private detective must have left it out... but are you signing it?”
“Excuse me,” the waitress said, interrupting their conversation. “Here’s the coffee as you wanted it,” she served Christine.
“Are you sure you don’t want anything?” the waitress asked jacob.
“No Liz. Thank you,” Jacob replied.
"Okay, then,” Liz said, taking her leave.
Christine had a smile on her face. “You didn’t tell me you frequent here too”
“I come here every day," Jacob said, “plus Liz is a nice person.”
Christine nodded in agreement.
"So, um, I don’t think I have an option”
“What?”
“I’d have to sign the divorce papers any time soon, either way... and all of this? It's all a lot to take in. I’d need a couple of days.”
“Good. I’d get you my lawyer whenever you are ready; divorce will be concluded in no longer time.” Christine picked up her phone.
The night started to come back to him. It was his freshman year; he was coming from the initiation party when the accident happened. The car crashed into another. He tried to help all of them, but he couldn't, and in just one explosion, about eight people died from both cars. He had been told that she had recovered, but he didn’t get to see her anymore since then. He didn’t even know how to describe her, but he had always believed that he’d know her should he stumble upon her on campus, except he never did. Her name was also exempted from the news and the college newspaper. And now the reason has started to dawn on him: she’s the child of a very powerful man.
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“It’s your wedding,” Bob said, “not mine?”“Just answer me, goddamn it!” Jacob shouted. “Red or brown tie?” He went to the mirror and placed each on his neck to see which went the best.“That’s not even red, Jacob; that’s like oxblood or something,” Bob said, biting his hot dog.“Really, but Franklin said it's red.” Jacob said as he turned to him, “Are you serious? The best time to eat is now.”“What?” He said with a huge chunk in his mouth, “I am the best man , not the best woman.” The ketchup from the hotdog dropped on his white shirt. “Aagh, fuck.”Jacob turned back to the mirror and sai
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Jacob parked right in front of her house. It felt like yesterday when he and Riley had come to live there. It was the worst moment of his life, and Aunty Jen's too. Jacob had just lost his parents—his father, who was Aunty Jen's brother, and Aunty Jen had just lost her husband too. Losing your brother and your husband in the same month. He was too young to understand the kind of pain his aunt must have faced at that time, but he sure did understand now that he was standing there.“Jacob?” She called, turning to the person who just walked in. “Is that you?”Jacob walked up to her, leaned in front of her on one knee, and held her hands. “Aunty Jen.”“Oh, Jacob,” she removed her hands and held his chin, “have you eaten? You look pale.”She was doing it again. The same thing she did when it was her brother and husband. Jacob shook his head, he wouldn't let her do that to herself. “Aunty Jen, I am fine. I am here because of you.”"Because of me? Well, then you need to eat something first. I
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Every time he thought of it, his lips curled into a smile. Everything was now set for the first time in a long time, except for... Mary. His smile faded into a look of concern. 'That bitch,' he mouthed, 'she's the only one who can break this.'A knock hit his door, and before Victor could say anything, it opened.Charlie walked in with a folder in his hands.“Sir, the plans for the rail contract are a go,” Charlie said, dropping the files on the table and standing at attention.Victor smirked. “Isn't it funny how many unnecessary people we have working on this project? Someone's job is just to check for grammar errors, and yet we still have to pay him.” He signaled for Charlie to bring the files. “You have a few people in your department whose job it is just to agree with you.”“I am sorry about that, sir.” Charlie handed over the folder to Victor, unsure of what else to say.Victor received the folder and dropped it beside him. "And what about Jacob?" he asked. That's what mattered m
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Victor smirked, seeing that he had gotten her attention. “You never asked, did you?”“You are telling me that Jacob was married to Madison King?” Mrs. Prescott said, hoping he’d say otherwise.“Well, you are no stranger to the Kings,” said Victor.“ I never attended her wedding. Rebecca never made a deal about it. She never invited anybody.”“I wonder why?” Victor flaunted a victory smirk. Mrs. Prescott's friendship with Rebbeca King has always been complicated. Everything about that friendship was just for pictures and gossip on the blogs. Two wives of billionaires pose for the camera as best friends
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Chapter 14
"What did you say to him?” Christine attacked him while Victor was having a conversation with another guest. Victor smiled at the guest. “Sorry, if you will excuse me?” The guest nodded and walked away. “What did you say to Jacob?” Christine asked, her voice not as loud as the first time. “I don’t understand what you mean.” Victor looked around, as people were already looking towards them. “But if you haven’t noticed, you are ruining your wedding and ultimately the reputation of the Prescotts.” “You are a full-time asshole, aren’t you?” She shook her head. Victor laughed. He took a step forward. “Listen, Christine. There should be at least sixty people at this wedding. Half of them are investors and, if you must know, nobody cares about gossip more than investors. Funny, I am not even an investor and I already know you argued with Jacob before he left. If I were you, I’d focus on holding on to the little respect this wedding still has left.” “Victor,” Christine poi
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Chapter 13
“You leave,” Victor said. Jacob shook his head with his eyebrows lowered. “What do you mean by leave?”Victor pressed his lips down. “hmm.” He took a step closer to Jacob. “I’d double whatever she has given you,” Victor said. “I’d give you twenty million dollars if you leave now.” Jacob dropped his head. Money…“What do you say, huh?” Victor shook his hands in his pocket. “It could be yours right now.”Jacob raised his head. “Money,” he said. “It’s always about money, isn’t it?” Victor raised his eyebrow and said, “I’d tell you what? Forget about the twenty million dollars. I’d double that. Forty million dollars. It could be wired into your account immediately.” Jacob dropped his head, lifted it, and leaned towards Victor with his eyebrow raised, “If you will excuse me, I have a wedding to finish.” He was about to walk out when Victor called him again. “Everyone has a price.”Jacob nodded, backing Victor, “Well, meet the first person you will know that doesn’t.” He started to walk
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Chapter 12
“Madi” Alex tapped her from behind. She slowly turned to face him. Her face has gone pale from what she just saw. It was one thing to hear about it and it was another to see it. “We are leaving,” Mrs. King said, looking at Both Madi and Alex, “And…”“Lady King?” Mrs. Prescott called, walking up to her.Mrs. King turned slowly, pretending to have a smile on her face. “Lady Prescott?”“I’d love for you to meet Christine and her husband.” Mrs. Prescott looked to where the couples were and they were already swamped by another family. She turned to Mrs. King “Well, when they are a little less occupied.” “And we’d love to,” Mrs. King said, “but sadly, we have to be on our way already.” “Oh, so soon?” Mrs. Prescott frowned. “Yeah, something came up,” Mrs. King forced a smile, “But, hey, I promise I’d come visit you one of these days.”“Are you okay, Madison?” Mrs. Prescott asked. Madi smiled. Mrs. Prescott must have caught her still staring at the couple. At Jacob. “Yes,” she said, "Yes
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Chapter 11
“Mrs. Prescott,” she said as she approached her.Mrs. Prescott, holding a glass of red wine between her fingers, helped close up the gap between them. She also had a smile on her face, one that seemed to have been plastered on it for a while. “Where is your mother?” Mrs. Prescott asked.“I am right here, Lady Prescott,” a voice teased from behind her.Just perfect—a lovely reunion, Madi thought. “I didn’t quite see you there, Lady King,” Mrs. Prescott teased back.The three women soon started to talk about random things from old times. Mostly two women. Madi was more or less just there because she had to; she laughed when she had to and spoke only when she had to. After all, she could not relate honestly to what they were saying. It's always about them talking about knowing each other's kid when the kids were still young, perhaps when the kids grew their first tooth, and when one came to the other's house and something totally not funny—yet they'd laugh- happened. "So, Madi,” the at
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Chapter 10
“It’s your wedding,” Bob said, “not mine?”“Just answer me, goddamn it!” Jacob shouted. “Red or brown tie?” He went to the mirror and placed each on his neck to see which went the best.“That’s not even red, Jacob; that’s like oxblood or something,” Bob said, biting his hot dog.“Really, but Franklin said it's red.” Jacob said as he turned to him, “Are you serious? The best time to eat is now.”“What?” He said with a huge chunk in his mouth, “I am the best man , not the best woman.” The ketchup from the hotdog dropped on his white shirt. “Aagh, fuck.”Jacob turned back to the mirror and sai
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Chapter 9
Jacob sat with his hands clenched together in a corner of the giant sitting room. Different artworks, probably from the eighteenth century, hung on the wall: angry-looking paintings and heavily bearded sculptors of philosophers. But of all the paintings and sculptors, there was one that he could not get his eyes off. It hung slightly at a height of roughly three feet. The painted man had a fierce look that was not so different from the rest of them in the room, except this one was not from the eighteenth century. He looked different, except for the windpipe he held in his mouth. And the face looked like... “That is my father,” Christine said. Jacob turned. She was standing by the door frame. “I did not realize you were there.” “He looks scary, doesn’t he?” Christine said as she stretched a document to him before getting seated. “You know,” she continued, “sometimes I think it’s his fault I never found love. I mean, look at his face.” She laughed, then looked at the portrait.
