Chapter 29

Kia "What are we having?" I asked while glancing across the restaurant.

"Salad or sandwich?" Ava lifted her eyes from the menu while asking me.

"I would go for a sandwich with a cup of coffee," I said.

She twirled the strands of hair around her finger as if choosing between a salad and a sandwich, "Salad?? Umm, no! I think I should also go for a sandwich."

"You are health conscious, aren't you?" I had never focused on my body and my diet, but I was blessed with a pretty body. Ava was undoubtedly gorgeous, but still, she looked fragile and broken. I had never seen her genuine happiness. She looked lonely despite having many people around her. I was craving to ask about her, but in the end, I didn't stand in that position. I had enquired about Vivian because he was the person whom I was here for. I did not care for his family members.

"Yes, I am health conscious. I try to avoid spicy food because I could not digest it properly," she grinned, showing her pearl-white teeth. The server approached our table and put down our food and gave a pleasant smile to Ava. Obviously, how could he resist the gorgeous blonde in his restaurant? Ava smiled at him blushingly and looked at me.

I sipped my coffee. "When will your boyfriend be here?" She had asked me to go shopping. It was her boyfriend's birthday, and she needed my help to choose a gift for him. I didn't know about men that much, but still I tried to choose the best gift for her boyfriend. I chose one of the expensive wines.

She glanced at her watch before taking a bite of the sandwich. "He will be here soon."

I watched the adorable couple who were sitting across our table. "Do you love him?" I asked Ava after seeing those loving people. She must be in love with him. What kind of question did I ask?

"No," she dropped her eyes down and didn't allow me to look into her eyes, "And I don't know if I'll ever fall into love. But to satisfy my mother, I'm trying to date men. I'm almost twenty-seven, women of my age have got married and have a baby. I should have gotten married already," she smiled sadly. "Vivian was only twenty-three when he became a father, and here I couldn't even find a decent man for me."

I felt a twinge of hurt after seeing her sad face. "Have you ever fallen in love?"

She was avoiding eye contact, "Umm, I. I" she bit her lips, feeling nervous, "Yes..." She swallowed.

I quickly placed my hand over hers. "It's alright, Ava," I said softly. "If you're feeling uncomfortable then please don't force yourself. I can understand that." I knew she had a history and perhaps something bad must have happened to her in the past.

"You told me you wanna go to the stationery store," she said.

I had lied to her about the stationery because I needed to meet Lucian today at any cost. And I could not understand how I could find out where he was? I did not have a phone or anything which could help me contact him. My eyes caught the phone on the table.

"Yes, I want to go there to buy some stuff for Harley." I glanced at her phone. "Can I borrow your phone for a few minutes? Because I need to call David first."

"Sure," she didn't hesitate to hand me over her phone, "I got my makeup fixed. Liam will be here in a few minutes." She stood up and walked away.

I sighed and called Lucian. In two rings, he picked up the phone. "Yes, this is Lucian."

"Luc, it's me, Kia," he paused for a moment as if he could not believe it was me.

"Kia, it's you?" His voice was impatient.

"Idiot, it's me, Kia," I scold him, "Why are you behaving like I'm dead?"

"How are you? Where are you? Are you Okay? I haven't heard from you in a month," he got emotional.

Oh my, Lucian.

"I'm okay Luc. Where are you? I need to meet you as soon as possible. I don't have enough time."

"I'm in New York."

"Meet me at Washington square."

"I'll be right there...." I didn't wait to complete him and quickly hung up because Ava was coming toward me. I deleted his number and placed back her phone, sighing.

*********

I didn't take time to recognize the brown-haired man. He was waving his hand at me, and his happiness was undeniable. I quickly reached him and hugged him tightly. "God, Luc. I missed you so much."

"I missed you too, Kia. I have been trying to contact you. I didn't get any information about you, and I was scared out of hell." He clutched me tighter. "I'm feeling so light after seeing you safe and sound."

I slapped his back. "I'm a blood queen. There is nothing to worry about me. You know my killing skills." I pulled back myself, looking into his eyes. "You failed to find me because I have been living with Vivian in his mansion."

His eyes widened due to surprise, "Vivian's mansion?"

I nodded. "Yes, his super cool mansion. I failed to fall for him, but," I held his eyes, "I successfully lure him into my trap."

He frowned in confusion and didn't understand my statement. "What does it mean?"

"Shall we sit first? Because I don't want to break my ankles by four inches."

He nodded and guided me towards the empty bench. "You look gorgeous, Kia. You wear green?" He pointed to my green dress.

I rolled my eyes. "It is just part of my plan. It doesn't mean I like to be a rainbow."

He chuckled and sat down with me.

"How is my Mama?" I asked.

He rubbed his palm together as looking down, "She is good," there was a bit of hesitation in his voice, "She wouldn't be able to sleep without you. She has been worrying about you, Kia. When I met her the last time, she was crying for you. She wants you back as soon as possible."

I grabbed his arm, making him look at me. "Is she doing well?"

"She is good," he winced and carefully took back his arm.

"What's wrong Luc?" I groped his arm, feeling a thin layer of fabric. I quickly rolled up his sleeves and found his wound. "What happened to you, Luc?"

He looked away and didn't want to meet my gaze. "I'm talking to you!! What happened to your hand?"

He rolled down his sleeves back. "Nothing serious, just an accident."

I knew he was lying because he was avoiding my gaze.

"Lucian!! Don't fuck my mind. I know you are lying! Now spell out how you got that?"

"It was Guarin," he closed his eyes for a few seconds as he relaxed. "He has been asking about you again and again. He has lost his mind. He got furious when he found out that you are in New York. Even he got angry at your mother as well. He barged into my house and beat me until I told him about you. But I didn't utter a single word," he smiled faintly, "I am afraid that he may come here at any moment, Kia. I won't be able to stop him this time."

My heart was wrenched. "You've got injured because of me. I should not have brought you into this mess. It ruined your life also, Luc."

"Shut up, Kia. I have no one except for two people in this world and you are my first one. You know I don't think twice about putting my neck in your place. I can do anything for you. I can do anything for your happiness. And it is just a minor wound. It will be healed in a week."

"Oh, Luc" I hugged him one more time, careful of his wound.

"Let's discuss our plan if we are done with our emotional drama."

I grinned at his comment. "I have a better plan."

I had gathered much information about Vivian and his men. His mansion had two exit gates, the first was used by everyone and the second was secret, it could be used in the time of emergency. He also had built an emergency room that was bulletproof, and which would be used at the time of the emergency. The total number of men who had been working around his mansion was six. Two of them were David and Caleb, and the rest were guarding the mansion.

"He has a daughter," I sighed.

Lucian gaped at me, his jaw dropped open. "What?"

I nodded, "Yup. He has an adorable daughter who has won my heart, and that's the problem. I hate being in love with that girl. He is Vivian's blood," I smiled when Harley's face appeared in my mind. "I'm feeling pity for her. She has already lost her mother and now his father."

"I've never seen you so soft, Kia. You are behaving differently. As far as I remember, you hate kids."

I raised my eyebrows as I looked at him, "Let's forget it and talk about our plan."

*********

"How about if I paint it yellow instead of red?" Harley asked me.

I glanced between the two-colors before answering her, "I think yellow suits better." I chose yellow even though I hate that color.

She grinned before grabbing a yellow color and painting the house. "You are good at painting." She had really excellent skills in art. Seeing her painting it didn't look like it was being painted by a six-year-old girl. My gaze fell to the painting again. She had put the right amount of color according to the requirements; it was neither too bright nor too light. The cool smooth texture of the sky and the brilliant color of the house made you think like you felt that moment.

"Thank you," she said blushingly and returned to her painting. "Do you think I'll be a talented painter in the future?"

I picked up pencils and papers she had scattered around the floor. "Of course, you can have extraordinary skills in the art." I paused for a moment, remembering my dream. I dreamt of becoming a doctor, but I had given up because I had no money at that time. "Just make sure to never stop chasing your dream."

She glanced at me briefly, smiling, "I love two things most. The first is spending time with dad and the second is painting. And if I'll get work like painting all day, then it is the best thing to do. So I will never give up on my dream. I'll be a talented painter in the future."

"Hey, girls. What's going on?" Vivian asked while entering the room? He approached us and sat down beside his daughter. "Wow! This is wonderful."

Harley's face lit up with happiness. "Kia has helped me in this painting."

Vivian's gaze fixed on me. There was something that flickered in his eyes that was unrecognizable. I pushed my hair behind my ear. "I was just helping her with colors. There was nothing I did. All credit goes to her." He was burning me through his intense gaze, so I looked away. Why didn't he take his eyes off?

Vivian said nothing and stood up, stepping towards me. I blushed. He bent over the table and the sweet smell of him hit my nose and I felt it was delicious, "So.." He caressed my cheek with his fingers, and I closed my eyes for a moment feeling his velvety touch, "Now you look more beautiful."

Harley's loud laugh caught my attention, and I quickly looked at her. She was laughing at me, but why? I laughed briefly in confusion. I turned to Vivian, who was also laughing. It was the first time I saw him laughing. His laughter was so free and pure, and I found him charming. I quickly brushed off his thought and placed my hands on my hips. "Can you guys tell me why you are laughing at me?"

"Kia, look at your face. You've grown a moustache," Harley couldn't help and continued her laugh.

I went to the mirror and looked at my face. That was the reason he was caressing my cheek lovingly? "Vivian!" Asshole, I cursed him under my breath. He had painted my upper lips blue. Fucking Asshole!! And I was looking funnier than a clown.

They both didn't stop laughing. I quickly grabbed the pot of pink paint and poured it out in my hand and rubbed my hands together. "It's my turn, Vivi," I teased, and ran to him.

He quickly stepped back but couldn't escape from me. I painted his whole face pink, "What the hell!!" He grabbed my wrists stopping me, "Enough!!"

"Oh my gosh, Dad!" Harley's eyes widened before she burst into another laugh. "You are looking cute in pink."

"Pink suits you." I didn't know why I laughed so hard, and I couldn't stop.

Vivian crossed his arms over his chest, narrowing his eyes at me. I clutched my stomach. "Oh God, Vivian." His fair skin was covered with pink, and it made him look like a pretty pink girl.

Vivian continued his staring, and the next moment, his lips graced with a soft smile. I paused suddenly and looked away.

"Both of you are looking great." Harley winked at us.

"Who's left now?" I and Vivian said simultaneously.

"I think I should go to bed first because tomorrow I have to get up early in the morning," Harley said, glancing between us. Her look was innocent and adorable.

I looked at Vivian and passed him a knowing look. He gave me a thumb up and pointed to the colors. I quickly reached the table and grabbed one of them.

Harley giggled as she was running toward the door. "I don't want to become a clown, Dad."

Vivian ran after her, laughing. "No one will be left. It's your turn, sweetheart." He caught her quickly and Harley laughed joyfully, protesting her father playfully.

I didn't know why I liked this moment. I wanted to capture it in my heart forever. Even though Vivian was my enemy, I saw him as my friend. A friend was not a word. I could express what I was feeling for him. If God could save me from that feeling.

I wished I could change history.

Only two days.

After these two days. Either I would die, or I would kill.

*********