Zoe’s POV
“Happy birthday, dear,” Mum said as she placed the box in front of me on the dining table. “Sorry, it coming late but with this that will never happen again.”
I eyed the box instead of looking at her.
“Come on, open it up.” She pressed.
I sighed, still keeping eyes on the box and not at Andrew who was still right in front of me. Mum did not need to force him to be here if did not want to. It made the situation even more awkward.
I placed a tentative hand on the pink ribbon that tied the lid closed before tugging on it. It fell away and it lifted the lip and peeked inside. It was a white box with the image of a flip phone.
My eyebrow almost disappeared into my hairline. “A phone?”
Mum jumped a bit, obviously happy with my reaction. “Come on, check it out, everything has already been set.”
I discarded the white box and pulled out the phone. I could have giggled, it was so darn shiny. “Oh my gosh.” I could not explain my excitement.
“Now you can call your new friend,” Mum said.
My smile faltered at the mention of Sandra and mum miraculously seemed to notice.
“She did something, didn’t she?” Mum asked, her voice suddenly fierce.
“You don’t have to rub it in.”
“No…” Her voice became soft and regretful. She pulled out the seat beside me and sat. “What happened? Does it have anything with your little tumble down the stairs.”
I was unresponsive. It was just too painful and humiliating to relay to her.
She took my hands in hers. “If you don’t want to talk about it…”
“It is a long story,” I told her.
She only smiled. “Okay honey, I understand.” She got up and walked away from me.
“Mum,” I called after her.
“Yeah,” She paused.
“How do you know Sandra’s father?” I asked.
She turned around to face me. “It is a long story.” She threw my words back at me but her expression was still soft and her voice, so warm as though she was fondly reminiscing. She looked like a mother now and that gave me a bit of peace with a feeling of unexplainable foreboding.
“Mum,” I called again, pulling her out of her reverie.
“Yeah,”
“I love the present, thank you,”
She smiled widely than I have seen her smile in a long time.
“Andy?” Mum called him and for the first time, he raised his head.
“It has games.” She winked before going on her way.
And I could have sworn, I saw the corners of his lips raise a little. Maybe Louis was right and just the thought of him made me smile too.
Sandra’s POV
“What do you want?” Louis snapped at me, not bothering to keep his voice hushed.
I looked around quickly hoping that no one heard him. When it looked like we were still completely alone, I answered his question. “How is she?”
He rolled his eyes, “You don’t need to act like that with me.”
“No, really, I am worried.”
This time he glared at me. “Cut the crap,” He spat.
“I know what I did but I had no choice,”
“They forced you at gunpoint then?” He quirked a dark brow.
“Is she okay, please?”
“What do you think?” He asked flatly
“Please…”
He raised a hand to stop me. “You got what you wanted, you ruined her reputation and hurt her.”
I was tempted to tell him to look at who was talking but bit back the retort.
“Now leave her alone or else…” His threat hung in the air as he started to walk away.
I knew I had made a big mistake and the guilt was eating me alive. I needed to see her but why the hell was he the one threatening me to stay away from her? What was up between the both of them.
“Or what?” I said in a whisper but the library's air carried it to his ears.
“I’ll let your bitchy besties know that there is more than one charity case in this school,”
Minutes after he had left, I stood there, aghast. Louis Rodriguez knew!?
YOU ARE READING
Craving For Her
Romance"You are nothing but a whore like your mother!" He had snarled and left her with crutches in the rain. That was the last thing he had said to her years ago. Now she was back in his life as his secretary... or was she? **** After a high school relati...
