14
She was startled. “You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to, but if you ever get into trouble, please call me.” I will always be available to you.” She said this with a gentle smile .
I nod, relieved that she didn’t push any further.
“I need to clean up a few things; do you you’ll be okay?” Emily inquired.
I nod, not wanting to distract her from her work.
I heard footsteps behind me after she left. I only knew one person who walked around with that much rage.
“Woman, stop undressing on my counter.” He stated.
I turned to face him, my bruise visible. He looked at me, then at my bruise, his eyes flashing from anger to surprise, then back to anger.
“What in the world did you do?” He inquired.
“What have I done?” Oh, Andrew, that’s hilarious.” I responded
“Never mind, I don’t mind.” He hissed.
“Oh no, this is your fault,” I said, pointing to my bruise.
” Last time I checked, I never hit you; as much as I despise you, I don’t hit women.” “However, you’re making me reconsider.” He stated.
“This happened because of you and whatever you do for a living.” I spat
He raised an eyebrow in concern.
“Why are men following me around and attempting to beat me up because they believe I am your girl?” I inquired, my tone irritated.
He approached me and grabbed my jaw. He was hurting me, I winced.
“You’re not my girl, and you mean nothing to me.” He hissed.
Something about the way he said it made all of the hairs on my body stand up, and my brain went into defense mode. His grip on my jaw was becoming too tight, and I was terrified for a fraction of a second. I was afraid he’d hurt me more than the men in the alleyway had.
He saw my face for that fraction of a second, and something inside him changed. He let go of my jaw and began to walk away.
“I know I’m nothing to you, just like you’re nothing to me. But I get annoyed when three men try to beat me up in an alleyway, claiming they need to hurt you by using me. I don’t care what you do, but I stay out of it. I’m not here because of you; I’m here to see your damn sister.” I yelled.
He came to a halt, turned around, and looked at me with skepticism.
“How did you get out of that with only a bruise?” he wondered.
“You don’t have to worry about that; you just have to make sure the rest of the world knows that me and you are nothing, and that I could never feel anything for “you.” With a smirk, I said.
I stepped away from the kitchen island and began looking for Dalia. I despised Andrew; I could deal with him, but what I couldn’t handle was other people thinking I could be with someone like “that.” He would not sully my reputation. I wasn’t just another of his whores.
Dalia was playing in her room upstairs when I arrived.
She had a pink room with many stuffed dolphins. She had posters of her favorite singer and a few photos of what appeared to be her father holding her when she was a child. I didn’t t want to ask what happened because I was afraid it would be bad, so I just told myself he left them.
“Hello, Princess!” I exclaimed with glee.
“I missed you, Avaaaaaaaaa!!! Dalia yelled.
“I missed you as well!” I said while hugging her.
“I missed playing with you; I love Andrew, but he can’t play with dolls.” She stated
“Oh, that’s what we’re going to do today?” I inquired .
“YESSSSS!” she exclaimed.
“All right, princess, whatever you want.” Giggling, I said.
I’d missed Dalia; she was such a lovely little girl, and I knew she’d be nothing like her brother when she grew up. Andrew was neither kind nor patient, whereas she was. Andrew was selfish and horrible, while she was generous and happy.
After a few hours, I put Dalia down for a nap. I went downstairs after closing her door. I was taken aback to find Veronica in the kitchen. I never saw her again because of her long hours.
“Hello, Veronica,” I said, smiling. I was delighted to see her; she was stunning for her age and one of the nicest people I knew.
She looked up at me, her eyes filled with concern. When I saw her concern, I became concerned as well.
“What’s the matter?” “Are you all right?” I said
“I’m concerned about Andrew.”She stated
“Why? “Is he all right?” I inquired.
“I forgot my purse this morning, so I came home and realized it was in the kitchen.” She stated
My heart sank; had she seen Andrew hurt me and heard what I said? Even if Andrew deserved it, I didn’t want to lose my job because I was disrespectful to him.
“And I saw Andrew standing in the doorway, and I had never seen him so angry; he heard me and stomped out, driving faster than I had ever seen him drive.” She shook her head. “Ava, I’ve seen Andrew angry before, and I know what he’s capable of, but he was so angry I was afraid he’d hurt himself.” She was on the verge of tears when she said this.
“What exactly do you mean?” I said as I walked over to her to console her.
“I just have a feeling he’s going to do something stupid and end up hurting himself.” She stated.
“He won’t, and he’ll be fine.” He probably just needed to let off some steam.” I attempted to console her.
“T-Thank you very much, Ava.” She stammered through her words.
“You’re welcome”. I said
“I’m going back to work now because I’ve been away for too long.” she said as she walked out of the kitchen.
I responded to her words in my head as soon as she left. Why was Andrew so upset? Did I really make him so upset? I really hope not.
I had no regrets about what I said to him, but I did not expect it to have such an impact on him. I didn’t want him to hurt himself for the sake of Dalia and Veronica.
After a few hours, I became concerned because it was 6 pm and neither Veronica nor Andrew had returned. I asked Emily what I should do, and she said that Veronica sometimes comes home late, and Andrew has his own house where he goes when he’s in a bad mood. Emily offered to look after Dalia, but I didn’t have anything planned at home, so I just told her I’d stay here until Andrew or Veronica returned.
I cooked dinner for Dalia and then gave her a shower . I started tucking her in after the shower.
“Ava?” Dalia inquired.
“Yes, Princess,” I said.
“Would you mind singing me a song?” She inquired.
“Hahaa, I’m terrible at singing, but I’ll give it a shot, Princess.” “What would you like me to sing?” I asked
“Ummmm, I’m not sure.” She responded.
“All right, I’ll sing you… all of me.” I said
She looked up at me with her twinkling eyes while I was singing. She fell asleep during the second verse, so she must have liked my terrible singing voice .
When Dalia fell asleep, I went downstairs to the kitchen and waited for Andrew or Veronica to return home.
“Get up”
Andrew’s POV
I got out of my car and made my way to the front door, noting that Ava would be working today. I despised her with all my heart, but I couldn’t hurt her because my mother loved her and Dalia was growing fond of her , much to my frustration. I entered the house, smelling Mac and Cheese. I mentally thanked Emily for making the Mac and Cheese because I knew it was Dalia “It was not only her favorite, but it was also mine. I just didn’ t feel the need to tell anyone.
When I walked into the kitchen, Dalia was sitting on a stool, eating Mac and Cheese. Just seeing her made me happy. I adored her; she was the only person I truly cared about. I approached her and began tickling her.
“Ahhhhhhhh,” she laughed.
“I’m going to get you,” I declared.
“Stwapppp It,”she exclaimed between laughs.
I kissed her on the cheek as I looked down at her.
“Bwothhhhww,” she said solemnly.
“Yes Dalia?” I responded as I picked up her fork and prepared to feed her.
“Why are you mwean to Ava?” She stated
My face fell, and just thinking about her made my mood worse.
“Who told you I was mean to her?” I inquired, trying to conceal my rage.Contentt bel0ngs to N0ve/lDrâ/ma.O(r)g!
“She did, and I know you a-are, be nice to hew, I like her, be nice or no more play time,” She stated.
I had to use every fiber of my being not to track down Ava and scream at her, who did she think she was, telling Dalia lies?