Chapter 49

**SCARLET**
That woman was Stacy? No, no. She could be another Stacy, but why was my heart throbbing, sending me a feeling that she was the Stacy that Luke didn’t want me to know?
Everything fits the harder I think about it. She was the exact definition of Luke’s type, except for the wheelchair part.
I didn’t have the right to ask her who she was, so I didn’t say anything further. But I don’t have a good feeling about her. Should I just leave?
“Excuse me, how can I help you?” The woman in the lobby appeared in front of us.
“I’m looking for Luke,” Stacy answered first.
“I’m Mr. Alejandro’s assistant. He’s currently in a meeting.”
“Are you new here? Don’t you know who I am?” She eyed the assistant coldly.
“Do you know what time the meeting will end?” I asked the receptionist nicely instead.
“No, Ma’am. I’m very sorry. Do you have a message I can relay to him?” she asked.
“Miss, I did not come all the way here just to get kicked out by a mere employee,” the woman ranted. “Are you blind, or you just can’t see? I can’t walk. It would be difficult for me to come back!”
“Please, I’ve been asked to hold anyone who does not have an appointment,” the receptionist pleaded, keeping her composure.
“Even though his child is waiting for him?”
“Ma’am?” The receptionist’s eyes grew wide, as well as mine.
Did I hear her right?
“His daughter is waiting for him downstairs! Should I just tell my daughter that her Dad’s assistant is getting in the way?”
My heartbeat thuddingly amplified, and my hands began shaking. My lips parted. His daughter? Her daughter?
Then it was the same Stacy—the woman he was hiding and the woman he couldn’t tell me about.
They had a daughter?
The world stopped spinning for a moment. It’s like someone had ripped my heart out. I couldn’t hear anything anymore. My hands were drenched with cold sweat. I needed to get out of here.
I had no one to ask to come with me to the bar, and I didn’t want to be alone tonight. I thought of calling Katherine, but she was busy, so I called Nate instead. I made sure that she knew I was with her boyfriend.
It was already past nine, and a restaurant near our apartment was the closest place I could go to. Nate came ten minutes after my call, and I told him the truth about Luke and me. He just listened to me and remained calm, though I already saw that he was seething under his breath.
“He lied to me. How could he say he hated liars when he was a liar himself?” I sniveled, then wiped my tears with my fingers.
“I already told you how dangerous this is.” He reminded me of my stupidity. “You’re both at fault. What if that woman did not come to his office today? You wouldn’t find out the truth.” He shook his head in disbelief.
“It was fine with me if she was an ex,” I clarified. “She’s in a wheelchair, so she seemed harmless. I wanted to be blind, but they have a child together. It’s another thing, and I’m just another woman with a complicated relationship with him. You were right. If it’s Luke, it’s impossible.”
And wow. Just wow. I had been in this situation before, but why didn’t I learn? When the son of the devil Raoul forced me into marriage, I turned out to be fucking mistress, and now I ended up being in another twisted situation.
I could still remember what she looked like. She was painfully beautiful. I could still hear her voice in my head. I wished it was just a bad dream, and I wanted to wake up from it. But what I heard was real.
Nate gently patted my back. I cried my heart out. I hate that Nate was always right. He even knew me more than I knew myself. The hard part was I couldn’t resist loving Luke despite everything. I wanted to get angry and call him names, but I couldn’t. He was still in my heart, loving him more even though it really hurt.
“It’s getting late. Didn’t you say your mother is leaving tomorrow?”
“I don’t want to go home.”
“Just bear with it for now. Your mother might be looking for you.”
I nodded. “How are you and Katherine?”
“We’re fine. You should worry about yourself. Come on. Let’s get you home.”

***

Luke was waiting for me in the living room when I arrived at his penthouse. The light was dim, and he was sitting in the darkest part of the room like a shadow. I didn’t expect him to be at home because of the Stacy matter.
He didn’t know that I had come to his office, so he didn’t know what I found out. I wanted to act natural, but I knew I would lose myself.
“What are you doing here?”
“Of course, I’ll be here. It’s my house,” he seethed.
“Okay. I’m going to see Mom and Thomas.”
I walked past him and decided to go to our parents’ room, but I felt Luke’s footsteps behind me. He grabbed my arm and spun me around.
“Why are you home late?” he raged. “Why did I see your friend in front of my building?” His voice was flat but dangerous.
“Ah, Nate? We went out for dinner.” I still couldn’t look at his face.
“At this hour?”
“What’s wrong with that?”
“What’s wrong with that?” he repeated. “We’ve been calling you the whole night, and your phone is off—”
“Am I supposed to answer your calls all the time?”
I looked up at him this time. It’s painful to look at him. He was gorgeous, and I knew he wouldn't be mine.
He scowled. “What’s going on with you?”
“Nothing. Can you let go of me now? I need to see Mom.”
He swallowed hard. “I heard you came to the office today.”
Did he? Of course. Mom probably told him. “Did I? I did not come to your office today,” I denied.
His jaw twitched. “Don’t lie to me.”
I smirked. Don’t lie to me, either. “I really didn’t. I was planning to, but Nate called so…”
His grip on my arm tightened. He gritted his teeth. “You need to be fucked.”
“Excuse me?”
He didn’t let me finish my sentence. He cupped my face, and he crushed his lips on mine, but I kept my mouth closed. He tried using his tongue to open me up. He pressed me against his body with his mouth forcing me to respond.
I moaned in displeasure. I didn’t want to be treated this way. I tried to push him, but he was hard as a rock and needy. I was no match for his strength.
“Hmm… Luke… Stop… Hmm…” I shoved his body with all my strength, and when he finally stepped back, I slapped his face.
“I fucking hate you! Don’t you ever do that to me again!”
His head lifted slowly but in utter astonishment. He touched his face, and he glared back at me.
I had hurt Luke, and I couldn’t stop myself either. I hated him so much for lying and not telling me everything. He knew everything about me; he kept on leaving me in the dark.
“Wait. Did you know?” he asked, his voice tortured.
I ground my teeth. I began to cry. “Don’t ever show your face to me again. I came here for Mom. This is the last time you’ll ever pull your shit on me!” I stormed out of his way.