✿ Reid's POV

I curse under my breath when neither of them answer their phone.

“What the heck, Hernan?!” I thread and hand through my hair in frustration.

Iʼm about to head out into the garden when I hear my fiancée's laughter coming in the direction of the...

“The great room?” I mutter and make a beeline there.

I spot her before either of them sees me.

“Ew what? No, no. You canʼt approach her like that. Sheʼll end you” She laughs, almost out of breath with Hernan looking a bit sheepish. “Forget the rich accent and dig deep into your Latino roots.” Then she says something in Spanish before giggling. “Cʼmon, youʼre not even trying at this point—Reid?”

I blink and Hernan turns his head towards me.

“Hey man” he smiles as Aileen stands from where sheʼs seated. “You okay?” he adds when I donʼt respond or show any reaction.

“Weʼve gotta go” I simply say and step up to them, taking both of Aileenʼs hands in mine.

“Go? Where?”

“No time to explain—”

“Woah, woah, hang on bro” Hernan speaks out. “Look I get that sheʼs yours and everything, but weʼre kinda in the middle of something very important and it canʼt happen for me without her.”

“Yeah, my love cʼmon. Please? We wonʼt be long. After weʼre done here I go wherever you want me to go—”

“But we donʼt have time!” I snap; not meaning to. And the moment Aileenʼs hands fly away from mine when she jumps back, I know this will all go wrong if I donʼt keep my emotions in check.

“Woah, woah, dude, relax” Hernan steps forward and puts a little space between us, his hand lifted at my chest. “Whatʼs going on with you?”

“Yeah Armani. Whatʼs wrong?” Aileen asks, ignoring Hernanʼs act and getting closer to me. “Youʼve been acting a bit off.”

I flex my jaw and hand her the papers in my hand.

“Whatʼs this?” she asks as she takes them from me... Hernan stepping closer to her to read above her head.

“Is this your... contract?” Hernan asks. And then with a chuckle, “Should I even be here for this?”

“No, no. This isnʼt our...” Aileen trails off and meets my eyes... unease already in hers. “Armani, whatʼs this? And Iʼm going to need you to tell me what exactly is going on.”

So I swallow, and tell her everything about how this ship was going to sink if we didnʼt get out now.

✯✯✯✯✯✯

✿ Aileen's POV

“What?” I hear Hernan go.

I just remain still in shock.

What?!

I can't believe my eyes as I look at the papers in my hands.

“Armani, this isnʼt what we agreed on!” I canʼt help but exclaim, my heart racing. “There was no money involved. What I asked was for you to just help me secure my family's land!”

“I know, Lee. I know that. But now it looks like I paid you a whole lot to pretend to be my fiancée,” Reid replies, frustration etched on his face. “And this is exactly what they wanted!”

“Why would they do this?” I ask, wishing I didnʼt know the answer to that.

“I cannot believe this,” Hernan says, his fists clenching.

“Theyʼve always had a way of twisting things to their advantage” Reid sighs. “But weʼre going to clear this up. All of it. I promise.”

“But... Armani, what if itʼs too late?”my voice is laced with doubt. “What if everyone already believes them? What if—”

“No, no, no. Just stop” he cuts me off. “My love, we canʼt let them win,” Reid said firmly. “I love you. We have to fight for what we have. Our relationship is very real, and I wonʼt let anyone come between us and destroy it.”

“But...” my heart races uncontrollably and I swallow the lump in my throat.

“But nothing. Weʼre going to be alright. We just have to figure out how to prove that our arrangement was never about money.”

I shudder.

“So you want us to tell them?” I ask, barely above a whisper and surprised Reid catches it.

“No. Weʼre not going to tell them anything. Itʼs irrelevant now. What we feel for each other is anything but a lie. Weʼre not saying anything to anyone about anything. Okay?”

“Saying anything about what?” Ashaʼs voice comes from the doorway and we all turn to look at her. “What are you not going to tell them?” she repeats, biting the glazed donut in her hand. “Youʼre not scheming without me, are you? Because Iʼd never forgive you.”

“No weʼre not. And itʼs nothing, Ash” Reid replies.

“Mm...” she hums as she chews and then swallows, “Except I donʼt believe itʼs nothing because Lee looks like sheʼs about to drop dead any second now.”

I blink and try hard to fix my face.

“You okay, hon?” Asha smiles.

“Sheʼs fine. Just tired” Reid answers for me, taking my hand in his and giving it a squeeze.

“I think sheʼs more than capable of answering for herself, lover boy. Relax” Asha teases, moving closer to us. “Lee? Everything okay like Thor here is saying?”

But for some reason I canʼt move.

Everything we have... after all this time...

It was all at risk of being over. And I knew for a fact that my heart wouldnʼt be able to take it.

“Lee?” Ashaʼs tone changes and I see the frown on her face. “Hey, whatʼs going on? Why are you so pale all of a sudden?”

That gets Reid to look at me, his concern for me replacing all other emotions at the moment.

“Sheʼs fine. She just needs to sit down for a second” Hernan talks this time.

Somehow I snap out of my daze and shake my head, dropping a hand to my stomach.

“No, no, Iʼm fine. I donʼt need to—”

Asha gasps loudly and I see her eyes lock onto my hand on my stomach.

“Youʼre pregnant?!” she screams her question and I blink hard.

“What?”

Asha begins to grin.

“Youʼre pregnant, Lee!”

“What?” I repeat, turning to look at Reid who was staring down at me with a mixed expression on his face. “No, no. Iʼm not pregnant. No oneʼs having a baby.”

The look disappears off Reidʼs face and he adds a, “Yet.”

My heart soars but the feeling doesnʼt last, as we hear the door swing and  Antoinette walks in with Chelsea supporting her. I feel Reid tense up beside me and when Asha turns to look at who it is, I raise a hand to my forehead, then to my chest, as if itʼd steady my heart that was beating out of control.

“There you all are” she smiles and nods her gratitude to Chelsea who smiles in returns and leaves. “What are you all up to?”

“Nothing,” Reid replies a little too fast and too loud that the matriarch arches a brow his way. Reid exhales and clears his throat. “Sorry. Weʼre not up to anything, Grams. I just came to get Aileen but Hernan wonʼt let me because sheʼs helping him with something.”

“But weʼre all done now and bro,” Hernan speaks up immediately as he steps behind us both and touches our shoulders, “youʼre free to take your lady away.”

I force a small smile on my face and Antoinette chuckles as she nods.

“Very well—”

“Wait, why are you three being weird?” Asha cuts her grandmother off.

“Weird? Whatever do you mean?”

“Grams, these three are being very weird. Weirder than usual” Asha crosses her arms then meets my eyes, “Lee, are you sure youʼre not pregnant?”

I open my mouth and a loud “What?!” that definitely doesnʼt belong to me flies out.

I look over Ashaʼs shoulder and Portia Daltonʼs standing there.

Oh God.

She looks at her son.

“You got her pregnant?”

“No, Iʼm not—”

“This... is why you beat up Clayton?”

“What?!” Asha tries to smile but is quick to read the room and bite her lip.

“This girl is why you left your brother half—”

“He is not my brother!” Reid bellows.

I jump a little and find myself pushing back, close to Hernan. Reid turns to look at me, immediate regret in his eyes.

“Hey, Iʼm sorry” he whispers, touching the side of my face as he tries to reel his anger in.

I nod and look back at his mother who looks like sheʼd drop dead any moment now.

“Reid—”

“Look mother—”

“Iʼm not pregnant” I cut him off.

Reid looks at me and I sigh, “Iʼm really not.”

He gives me a small and somewhat pained smile and I direct my gaze at Asha.

“I am not pregnant” I say with a serious face.

“Okay, okay. My bad” she smiles.

“But what you are is a shameless prostitute” I hear Anika before I see her walk in with Eros, Ellen, and a heavily bruised Clayton.

Oh he can throw more than a punch.

For a split second I was proud of the man I was in love with. He wasnʼt going to let anything bad happen to me. But the feeling quickly subsided and was replaced by fear. Because honestly, his fists werenʼt going to get us out of this one.

“You have got some nerve to still be here after everything, Lee” Clayton chuckles and winces as he does.

“Keep my fiancée’s name out of your mouth, Clayton. Or I swear youʼll be sorry.”

“No this tramp is the one who deserves to be sorry after everything sheʼs done!” Anika glares at me.

Reid takes a step forward and Iʼm quick to hold him back.

“Stop. Please” I whisper.

He flexes his jaw and releases his clenched fist, allowing me to slip my hand in his and intertwine our fingers.

“She needs to leave. Sheʼs nothing but a liar” Maeveʼs voice rings out and before Reid does anything I tighten my grip on his hand.

“No. Just calm down. We wonʼt get out of this if we let them get to us. Please” I whisper.

Reid closes his eyes and exhales.

“Ellen, control your daughter” he says calmly. “Or I will be forced to—”

“Thatʼs enough!” Eros lets out and suddenly Reidʼs rage didnʼt seem that bad. “That is enough. Enough of this charade, boy!”

“Eros!” Antoinette scolds. “What has gotten into you?”

“You should ask him. Because that boy there, is no son of mine.”

“Eros” Portia frowns and I look up at Reid whose facial expression I couldnʼt read.

Antoinette looks away from her son and at her grandson.

“Sweetheart? Whatʼs going on?” she asks. “Your father has never been this way with you. What—”

“Because heʼs been feeding your son nothing but lies and Iʼm sick of it!” Reid frowns.

Eros turns away from Portia whoʼs trying to calm him down and glares at Reid.

“And Iʼm sick of the type of man you have become!”

“A man in love?” Reid questions. “A man whoʼs willing to do anything for the woman he loves?”

“Oh cut the crap, Ben” Clayton scoffs. “You didnʼt do what you did for love. Youʼre not that person.”

“Youʼre a fool to think this plan of yours was going to last” Eros adds, “And youʼre an even bigger fool to believe this woman here loves you and not the millions youʼre going to give her.”

“Millions? I—”

“Enough!” Antoinette barely raises her voice but commands everyone into silence. “Eros, thatʼs enough. Clayton, Anika, not another word.” Then she turns to Reid. “Reid? Tell me whatʼs going on. Please.”

But the silence stretched. And the palpable tension that hang in the air made my stomach churn. Reidʼs grip on my hand tightened this time, and I knew, with a sickening lurch, that the carefully constructed facade weʼd built was about to crumble.

“Gammy,” he begins, his voice strained, “thereʼs something we need to tell you.”

Antoinetteʼs brow furrow, a premonition of trouble clouding her eyes.

“Okay, my sweet boy. What is it?”

My own heart hammers against my ribs. I meet Antoinetteʼs gaze, my voice barely above a whisper.

“Itʼs nothing” I let out.

“What?” the old woman goes.

I shake my head, refusing to look at Reid.

They werenʼt going to understand. More than half of the people in this room wanted me gone. And even if Antoinette were to understand, it wouldnʼt be today. Or tomorrow. Or the next. And I wasnʼt about to find out if I could live with Reid Dalton.

'Cause I knew the answer.

And I canʼt.

“Itʼs nothing, maʼam. Seriously. Nothing” I smile at her.

“Wait, wait. No. Now itʼs definitely something” Asha makes a face, then looks around before looking back at Reid and I. “Seriously guys, whatʼs going on?”

“Nothing Asha” I say with a tiny laugh, “Seriously. Itʼs—”

“Stop” Reid interrupts me.

I finally look up an meet his eyes.

“Itʼs okay” he whispers down to me.

But I shake my head. The stakes were high. Too high.

“But Reid—”

“Stop manipulating my son, you little tramp!” Portia shoots at me and Antoinette returns the glare.

“Annabelle, control yourself” she says calmly but with such authority.

Antoinette turns to me.

“Please let my grandson speak, Aileen.”

And I immediately know if I lost her support, it would all be over.

“Go ahead my sweet boy.”

But Reidʼs eyes are on me.

“Reid?”

Watching me, quietly.

“Benjamin” Antoinette touches his arm and I turn my head, my gaze falling to the polished floor.

It takes a little while before I hear home speak.

“We... we werenʼt exactly honest about how we got together.”

I look up and see a flicker of surprise, then a hint of something colder, touch Antoinetteʼs eyes.

“What do you mean?”

Reid squeezes my hand, his knuckles white.  He hesitates, a flicker of fear crossing his face before he plasters on a reassuring smile.

“Gammy, we... we started with a... a little misunderstanding.”

“A misunderstanding?” Antoinetteʼs voice sharpens, laced with confusion. “What kind of misunderstanding?”

But before Reid can elaborate, Eros speaks up.

“A lie!”

“Eros!”

“No mother. Thatʼs enough! Iʼve had it with you spoiling this boy rotten.”

“It wasnʼt a lie.”

Eros turns to his son.

“Seriously? Youʼre going to stand here, in front of the only person in this room who actually believes you, and continue this lie?”

“Eros, just let him...”

He shakes Portiaʼs hand off his arm.

“Iʼve said this and I am going to say it again... you are no son of mine” he shakes his head and turns.

“Eros—”

“Okay!” Reid lets out. “Alright! You want the truth? Fine.”

Eros turns.

“It wasnʼt a misunderstanding. It was a lie. My lie...” he squeezes my hand even more than thought possible, “... and I roped Aileen into it.”

“With a contract.”

“Shut up Clayton” Ellen scolds.

“A contract?” Antoinette frowns. “What contract?”

“This” Eros speaks out.

“Thatʼs not it—”

“Quiet!” Antoinette shoots and holds out her hand to her son. “Lemme see that, Eros.”

The silence that drags on as Antoinette reads the contract is deafening. Then she speaks up.

“What... what is this, Reid?”

“A fake, Gammy. I swear to you. I—”

She holds up her hand and Reid stops. Then she looks at me.

“Is this true?”

I shake my head.

“Itʼs not what it looks like. There was no money involved. I just asked him to—”

“So there was really a contract?” Ellen asks.

Clayton, his smirk oily and unsettling, steps forward.

“Looks like the catʼs out of the bag, Ben.”

He ignores his cousin and looks at his grandmother.

“Gammy, Iʼm sorry okay? But then I fell in love with her. I am in love with Aileen. And she loves me. This is all—”

“Why?” Antoinette asks, cutting Reid off.

“What?”

“Why did you do it?”

“To get Anika away from her fiancé” Eros answers.

And behind him, like vultures circling a carcass, Anika and Claytonʼs faces are twisted with a mixture of triumph and barely concealed malice.

“Youʼd stoop as low as to hire a prostitute to pretend to be your fiancée so you can deny an innocent woman her chance at happiness?” Eros shakes his head.

“He wasnʼt right for her, okay?!” Reid yells.

I catch Anikaʼs eyes glitter with a vindictive light and a feigned look of wounded innocence.

“Oh Reid...”

“But I donʼt care about that anymore” heʼs quick to shut her down. “I donʼt. I choose to be with Aileen and you and I will never happen.”

“So you two lied?” Antoinette speaks up, and I almost forgot she was there. “This was all a lie?”

“A misunderstanding, maʼam, I promise” I speak up.

Portia scoffs.

“Well your little 'misunderstanding' is a bit more… lucrative than you let on, girl.”

My blood runs cold.

“No, no, I swear. This is a forgery. I have never taken anything from your son!” I cry, my voice shaking with anger and fear.

“And you will never because this little charade of yours has been exposed. Youʼre not getting a dime from my son” Portia glares at me.

“Good. Because I donʼt want your sonʼs money. Iʼve never have, and I never will. I love him. And all I want is for you to not take that away from us, please” I whisper the last part.

Reid turns to his grandmother.

“Gammy, please listen to me. This is a lie,” he says, a hint of desperation creeping into his tone. “Yes I asked Lee to pretend to be my fiancée but the contents of this contract is a complete and utter fabrication!”

Eros scoffz, his face contorting with disbelief.

“You still think weʼre that gullible, Reid? After all the sacrifices weʼve made for this family, you think weʼll believe your pathetic excuses? That what? She would just agree to pretend to be your fiancée without asking for anything in return?”

Antoinetteʼs face etches with growing horror and she looks at her grandson, her voice trembling.

“Was, or was there not a consideration?”

Reid hesitates, his gaze darting between me and his grandmother. He opens his mouth, then closes it, as if struggling to find the right words. 

“Yes, Grams,” he finally says, his voice strained. “But itʼs... itʼs nothing like that. Thereʼs an explanation.”

Portia, seizing on his hesitation, pounces.

“Of course thereʼs an explanation! That little gold digger forced him into it! Sheʼs been after his money from the start!”

Anika, playing the injured party to perfection, dabs at her eyes with a handkerchief.

“Oh, Reid... how could you do this?”

Clayton, adding his voice to the chorus of accusations, chimes in. “It's all there in the contract, plain as day. Millions of dollars to play the part of your fiancée.  A business transaction disguised as love.”

Eros, his face now purple with rage, rounded on Reid.

“You made a fool of your entire family!”

Reid, his eyes filled with a desperate plea, looks at me.  Then, he looks back at his father, his voice barely a whisper.

“No, Dad. Itʼs not... Look I didnʼt mean to, okay?”

“You didnʼt mean to deceive your family and still be putting up an act?” Clayton asks.

“I—”

“You nothing,” Eros adds.

Reid threads a hand through his hair in frustration.

“Okay. I admit it was all a lie. A act. But that was at first. Iʼm in love with her. Weʼre in love and Iʼve proposed to her. Just last night. And I am going to marry her.”

“But from what I saw on the night of your... would it be second fake engagement party, thatʼs a strange way to love someone, donʼt you think?” Eros says calmly.

I make a face.

“What?” I ask and look at Anika who looks a bit flushed.

I crane my neck to look up at Reid.

“What—?”

“Nothing. Itʼs nothing” he tells me.

“You owe this girl nothing but donʼt you think she deserves to know about you and Anikaʼs encounter?”

“Encounter?” Asha asks, confused.

“What is he talking about, Armani?” I whisper.

“I saw the two of them in my office last night...”

“We kissed” Anika jumps in and it now registers that Iʼve always hated her voice.

“Okay, shut up Anika” I shoot at her and she steps back a bit.

“Hey, nothing happened, okay? She kissed me but I stopped it as quickly as it began. Anika is my past. You are my future. And—”

“YOU EXPECT ANYONE TO BELIEVE THAT?!” His father is screaming now. “When all you have done to us for the last nine months is lie? You lied. You lie about everything and nothing that comes out of your mouth is honorable or true.”

“This is not a lie, Dad!” Reid barks back.

Suddenly Antoinetteʼs face ashes and she clutches at her chest, her breath coming in ragged gasps.

“This...” she whisperers, her eyes filled with a profound sense of betrayal. “No.”

I could see it. The shock, the accusations, the sheer weight of the lies, were too much for her frail heart to bear. 

She gasps, her eyes fluttering closed, and falls to the floor, unconscious. The room erupts in chaos.

“Mother!” Eros cries, his face contorting with fear.

“Oh no, no, no!” Portia exclaims, but her voice not lacking genuine concern.“Ellen get help!”

I catch Anika with a triumphant gleam in her eyes, as Reid pulls away from me to his grandmotherʼs side.

“I just knew something wasnʼt right” she shakes her head.

“And now look what youʼve done!” Maeve shoots at me.

Clayton, shakes his head.

“I told you, Uncle Eros. This whole thing was a mistake.”

Reid was still bent at his grandmotherʼs side,  his voice choked with panic.

“Grams! Grandma, wake up. Please.”

Eros glares at Reid and I, his voice trembling with rage.

“Oh youʼve really done it this time, Reid.”

“Dad I—”

“If anything happens to my mother,” he snarls, his voice laced with ice, “you two will be held responsible. I swear to God, youʼll pay for this.”

✯✯✯✯✯✯

Eros Daltonʼs face is a mask of grief and rage as he kneels beside his unconscious mother, his voice a low growl.

“Someone call a doctor! Now!”

My mother doesnʼt miss the opportunity.

“This is her doing!” she shrieks, pointing a trembling finger at Aileen. “This gold-digging harlot has brought nothing but trouble since she slithered into our lives!”

I catch Anikaʼs  eyes gleaming with malicious satisfaction Iʼve come to despise, as she nods in agreement.

“Sheʼs right! We always suspected something was off about her.”

Clayton, ever the sycophant, echoes their sentiments as he hovers nearby, looking like heʼs concerned.

“Itʼs clear as day.  Sheʼs only after the Dalton fortune.”

But from the gleam of ambition in his eyes, he’s already calculating how this benefits him.

I try my best to ignore the accusations swirling around. My focus at this moment was solely was on my grandmother. As I kneel beside her, my heart hammers against my ribs in terror. Her skin is ashen, her breathing shallow. 

“Grandma,” I’m whispering, my voice thick with fear. “Please… please wake up.”

My father turns to me, his face a mask of pure hatred.

“If anything happens to my mother,” he’s snarling, his voice laced with ice, I will hold you personally responsible, Reid. You and that… woman.”

My own guilt is a crushing weight. I know I’m to blame for this. My lies, my stupid, selfish deception, are what’s brought us to this point.

My voice chokes with emotion.

“Please… please wake up.”

Hernan, whoʼs been standing silently, watching the unfolding drama with growing alarm, finally steps forward, his face grim. He’d seen the terror in Aileen’s eyes, the way she was shrinking back, trying to disappear.  And he knew he had to do something. He knew he had to get her out of here.

“Mr. Dalton,” Hernan says, his voice surprisingly calm, “With all due respect, sir, this is not the time for accusations. Your mother needs medical attention, and everyone needs to remain calm.”

My father looks at him.

“Stay out of this, Hernan. This is a family matter.”

“Well your son is my family too. Plus it also happens to concern Aileen,” Hernan counters, his gaze meeting my fatherʼs. “And as her friend, I wonʼt stand by and watch her be unfairly targeted.”

Maeve sneers. “Friend? Thatʼs rich. Sheʼs nothing but a user,  just like I always suspected.” Then thereʼs a pause. “Wait a minute... you were in on this too?”

“I donʼt know what youʼre talking about. But I do know Aileen. And I know that sheʼs a good person who doesnʼt deserve any of what you people are doing to her.”

Clayton chuckles.

“Of course he was in on it. Heʼs known all along. Good friends indeed.”

“Must you keep disappointing your mother?” my mother adds.

I see Hernanʼs jaw tightening. He steps closer to Aileen and offers her a silent gesture of support. He can see the fear in her eyes, the way she’s trying to make herself invisible. Wishing the ground would just open and swallow her up.

“Aileen,” Hernan says gently, “Come with me, wonʼt you?”

Aileen hesitates, her gaze locking on me with a silent plea for me to do something, to defend her. But I’m frozen, paralyzed by guilt and fear.  I can’t meet her eyes.

Seeing my inaction, Aileen’s shoulders  slump. The last vestige of hope in her eyes flickers and dies. I see the tears welling up, but she’s blinking them back, refusing to give them the satisfaction of seeing her break.

She straightens her shoulders and meets Hernan’s gaze.

“Thank you, Hernan,” she says, her voice barely a whisper.

Hernan nods, offering her a reassuring smile. He takes her arm gently and leads her away, out of the great room and into the relative quiet of the hallway. But just as they reach the door, my father’s voice, laced with menace, is cutting through the air.

“Clayton,” he’s barking, his gaze fixed on Aileen’s retreating back, “Call the police. I want her arrested. For harassment.”

I catch Hernan’s grip on Aileen’s arm tighten. He knows he has to get her out of here, now.

Hearing my father’s command, I finally snap out of my daze. My head jerks up, my eyes widening in horror.

No.

I can’t let them do this to my Aileen.

But before I can intervene, before I can say a word, my uncleʼs placing a hand on his brotherʼs arm, his gaze calm but firm.

“Eros,” he’s saying, his voice low but carrying an undeniable weight of authority like his motherʼs, “thatʼs enough.”

My fatherʼs face is still contorted with rage as he turns to his brother, his voice trembling. 

“No way in hell, Mick. Sheʼs... sheʼs responsible! Sheʼs the one who... who—”

But his brother cuts him off with a look that silences him.

“I know that, Eros. But letʼs not do anything weʼll regret,” he says quietly. “Not until we know whatʼs happening with Mother.”

My fatherʼs anger is still simmering and heʼs hesitant. But then he reluctantly nods. He was the oldest but he did listen to his younger brother.

I watch Hernan lead Aileen out of the great room. She glances back, a single tear escaping and tracing a path down her cheek. I know, with a certainty that chills me to the bone, that our lives has just irrevocably changed.  And I was the one who did it.

I canʼt believe Iʼm watching her go.

A huge wave of despair washes over me.

I was trapped. Caught between my love for Aileen and my duty to my family.

I knew I had to protect her, no matter what. Even if it meant sacrificing my own happiness.

But the thought of never seeing her again, of losing her forever, is a pain so sharp, so intense, it’s taking my breath away.

Thank you for reading!
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Ciao
~the_atticwriter