by A. Marie
"You won't do anything. You have a weakness now," Vincent spoke. "You also have five seconds to make your decision before I give the call that ultimately ends your sister’s pitiful little life. Five..."
"Four..."
"Three..."
"I will never let this go, Vincent."
"Two..."
“I will kill you!”
"On—"
"Natasha. I choose Natasha."
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
A. Marie is an African-American writer who resides in San Antonio, Texas. She first began writing at a very young age where she realized how much she had a passion for getting her words down on paper. You can catch A. Marie with her nose always in a book or out eating because she is obsessed with all kinds of foods.
You can follow her writing on Wattpad (EroticMarie) or visit her online to find out all of her social media; amarie.carrd.co
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I'd like to thank everyone on Wattpad who are coming on this new publishing journey with me. My love for each and every one of you extends beyond imagination. Thank you for believing in me, supporting me, and never letting me give up on myself. There were times when I was low, but then I would go on Wattpad and read the lovely comments my readers left me, and I'd smile.
I also want to especially thank my team who have made all of this possible for me. Daniela Becerra, who makes me laugh all the time. Zahara Iqbal, who is so talented and has always supported me. Aaliyah Osman, who always gives me the best advice and works so hard to make me a better writer. I'd also would like to thank my friends: Madalyn Cooper, Kayla Harding, Nazifa K., Nayelli Mendoza, and Natalie Hanks.
Last but not least, I want to thank my most supportive friend of all, J. Iris Grace. I really appreciate all that you've done for me which has been so much.
LOVE: BOOK TWO
Chapter One
"I can't look. What does it say?" Avelina asked once she finished pacing back and forth in the living room. Miss Paola was in the restroom with the test. Avelina tried to be patient, but her nervousness and anxiety wouldn't give her a chance.
"Oh, gee," Miss Paola muttered.
Avelina's eyes widened at the sound of that. She quickly stormed over to the restroom. "Am I preg—"
Her heart immediately dropped when saw the test sitting there on the bathroom sink. It was positive.
"Oh, gee," Avelina found herself repeating.
There wasn't just one test that was positive, there were four. She had bought three extra tests just to be safe, and it was a strange sight to see all of them proving what was so hard for her to admit. She was pregnant.
"What do I do?" Avelina asked Miss Paola.
"I don't know! Tell the father," Miss Paola stated as if the answer was the most obvious thing in the world.
Avelina stared at her blankly before nodding her head. She had to shake away her worry as she dusted off the imaginary dirt on her pants. "You're right. You're totally right. I'm going to go tell him and we will come up with a plan together.
Miss Paola smiled. "Go get 'em tiger!"
Avelina walked out of the bedroom and charged down the stairs of the hotel. As she moved, she grabbed her phone and began to dial Adrik's number. He had told her to call him if she needed a ride.
Confusion dawned on her when the phone went straight to voicemail as if he had declined her call.
Shaking away the thoughts, she sent Adrik a text. The text informed him that she was done with Miss Paola and really needed to talk to him.
A frown eased upon her features. He never responded.
She quickly passed the waving receptionist as walked out of the doors to the hotel. Her shoulders fell when she realized that it was pouring down rain.
"Just my luck," she whispered.
Avelina took her phone out of her pocket and shot Adrik another message.
[Avelina: Adrik, it's raining and it's cold. I really need a way to get home. Are you busy?]
She waited for his response for a few moments before giving up. Avelina knew that Adrik worked a couple blocks away from the hotel, so she decided to walk. People were bumping and pushing her with each step she took. As much as she disliked walking, she felt like it was essential to share the news with Adrik as soon as possible.
After the long walk, she finally made it to his office. Avelina was drenched in rain water and her body was shivering just to gain some type of warmth, but she didn’t care.
There was a small clatter of her teeth as she stepped into the building looking like a stray puppy.
"Miss Santos," Zaria let out.
Her eyes were wide as she stared at Avelina.
"Hi, Zaria. I'm just going to go up to see Adrik," Avelina said.
Zaria quickly latched onto Avelina's arm before shaking her head. There was pain behind Zaria's eyes that Avelina couldn't seem to understand. "You can't see him right now.”
"What? Why?” Avelina asked, raising a brow suspiciously.
Zaria let out a sigh before trying to pull Avelina's arm over to sit down, but Avelina wasn't allowing it. She quickly snatched her arm from Zaria's hold.
"Why can't I go see Adrik?"
"I'm sorry. He's given us specific instructions that you can't s—"
Avelina scoffed. "Zaria, it's me, Avelina. Since when am I not allowed to see Adrik?"
She didn't even realize how loud she was becoming until passersby eyed them suspiciously.
"I'm so sorry. I-I don't understand it at all. I'm only doing my job," Zaria explained.
Avelina let out a sigh before looking over at the elevators that seemed so close but far away. "Fine. I'll wait for him.”
She didn’t bother to wait for Zaria's response. She only sat down on the chair and awaited Adrik's presence. Zaria let out a loud sigh before walking away.
-
After many hours of waiting, Avelina finally saw Adrik exiting the elevator. She quickly shot up and walked over to him. A smile came across her face as she stared into his silver eyes.
After planting a kiss on his cheek, her smile grew. "I have something to te-"
Adrik quickly cut her off, “Avelina.”
“What?”
The longer she looked into his eyes, the more she could feel her smile slip from her face. His silver orbs that she used to love peering into because they were filled with such adoration, were gone.
Tears started to fall from her eyes at the realization of what was happening. He was slipping away from her.
"Adrik?" She whispered.
"Go to Brazil. I hope you go and live out your dream. There is no significance that I can find in us anymore. I wish you well, Avelina.”
He began to walk off with his hands in her pocket, but she quickly latched onto his arm. "No. I'm going to stay. I plan on staying with you. Adrik. I love you and there is something that I really need to tell yo—"
"Go, Avelina! Leave, now, please."
She dropped her hold from his arm and glared into his eyes with so much sadness. "Why are you doing this to me?"
He didn't say anything. He walked out of the door leaving her all alone.