Love is Blind//Sequel to We're Forbidden

Chapter Twenty

Only a couple of months had passed since Philip was born and so much had already changed. John had moved in with the Hamiltons a few weeks ago and was staying in their spare bedroom. Alexander was happily surprised to find that they all were getting along almost like a family. Every day John helps Eliza take care of Philip while he's at work. One calm Saturday morning, someone knocked twice on the front door.

Alex was the only one home, so he answered the door himself. He found himself face to face with a woman in a dark red dress, who was standing on his doorstep, crying. Alex wasn't quite sure what to do, so for a couple of moments, he just stood there, staring at her.

The woman stared back at Alex and sniffled before muttering, "Can I please come inside?" Alex wordlessly nodded and showed her into the living room, where she sat down on the couch and wiped away a few of her tears.

Alex sat down next to her and tried giving the woman a small smile, hoping to cheer her up a bit. "I'm Alexander Hamilton, what's your name?" he asked politely, still gazing at her. She turned her head to meet his eyes and Alex noticed that her eyes were dark brown.

"Maria Reynolds, but I already know who you are," she spoke up. Her voice was soft and delicate and Alex couldn't help but feel bad for her. "I've heard people talking about you, they say you're a nice man. So I was hoping you could help me?"

Alex slowly nodded. "What do you need?" Maria sighed wistfully. "My husband has been treating me really badly for the past couple of years and I want to leave him, but I don't have the money or anywhere to go," she explained to him sadly.

Alexander thought about it for a moment. Surely it wouldn't hurt to let her take a little money, right? He broke the awkward silence by asking, "Would you like some tea?" Maria nodded wordlessly, staring at her hands that sat folded in her lap.

Alex got up and hurried into the kitchen then started making tea for them to share. Almost ten minutes later when the tea was finally done, Maria was still sitting on the couch in the same position, staring at the wall. Alex sat back down beside her and passed over a hot cup of tea.

Maria gave him a grateful smile and took a small sip. She looked pleasantly surprised and looked at Alex. "This is really good," she said kindly, taking another long sip. Alex grinned before setting his cup down on the coffee table.

"So tell me more about what's wrong?"

Maria sighed and her face fell. "My husband, James, has been abusing me for the past couple of years." She pulled up her sleeve to reveal a series of bruises and dark spots all across her arm. Alex almost gasped at the sight.

He frowned and thought about what he might do to help. Maria sighed sadly and stood up, heading for the door. "I'm sorry for wasting your time," she told him, sounding disappointed.

"Wait! Don't go," Alex stopped her. "I'm sure I could give you some money or something like that," he suggested, smiling slightly. Maira turned around and her face lit up.

"Thank you so much!" she exclaimed, her face slightly red. Alex nodded, and flashed her a quick smile, before hurrying down the hall towards his office. He opened the door and started rummaging through his desk for some money.

He grabbed enough money to help Maria before walking back down the hall towards her. Alex handed over the money and couldn't help but smile a little when he saw how happy and relieved Maria looked.

"Hey, I mean, maybe you could even stay with us for a while. Until you get back on your feet," Alex offered. Maria's eyes widened and she shook her head frantically. "You can't be serious," she exclaimed. "Do you mean it?"

Alex nodded. "Definitely." Maria walked over to Alex and wrapped her arms around him in a tight hug.

"How can I repay you?" she asked, stepping away so she could meet Alex's eyes. Alex shrugged. "Don't worry about it. I'll tell you if I think of anything."

Maria smiled before leaning forward to hug Alex again.