Aiden asked in haughty derision, "Wait, so you broke off with Lombriz; your wife from the past six years, just because she quit her job as a teller in a bank?"
"What are you an idiot?" Sarah remarked.
"Will you two lovebirds please let me finish!?" Vincent shouted. He then took a deep breath and elaborated, "Well, if she quit a job she didn't like, I would have been fine with it, but she went back to being a stripper all over again after all these years. She doesn't even think twice about making out or twerking in front of other men despite the fact that she's married and has a young daughter. So I raised my daughter all on my own and never asked Lombriz for anything. The main reason I even tried to make this work was because of Alice. She needs parents who she can rely on and call her own. I wanted to give her a normal childhood. So I took full responsibility. But then when I left her alone with Lombriz two days ago because of one of my concerts, Alice was crying and to keep her quiet Lombriz gave her a brandy!"
"WHAT!?" The three of them shouted in surprise.
"Yeah, that's what was my last straw. When I returned home, Lombriz was unconscious drunk whereas Alice was puking all around the house with no one to even take her to the hospital."
"What happened after that?" Olivia asked Vincent with a gleam of concern in her eyes.
"Alice was fine, and everything came out of her system so she was okay after the medications prescribed by the doctor. But that girl means everything to me... she is the love of my life... I would give her everything I have, I would even give her the world. I guess I have to quit my two jobs if I want to make my daughter happy."
Sarah placed her hand on his shoulder and said, "Vincent, I know this is not the right time to say this but that bitch was never capable of being a mother. She was a stripper at a club... playing around and goofing off. Old habits die hard. Never in my wildest dreams would I ever believe that the girl was willing to change."
Aiden added, "Now when I look at it, it just feels like Lombriz was using you the entire time. I mean, look at the facts here. She came back to you after all those years and tried to get back together with you. When Sarah told you that she was pregnant, not once did you ever think whether you loved her or not. You just got married for the sake of the child and kept relying on the fact that Lombriz was willing to change. The foundation of any relationship is unconditional love, not compromise."
"I have nowhere to go! All the property and land that I own in Vegas go to Lombriz in case of a divorce! And I have to quit my jobs so that I can take care of my daughter!" Vincent buried his head in his hands and cried out with tears in his eyes. Sarah and Aiden ran out of words to console him.
At that moment, Olivia finally spoke, "How about you don't have to go through any of that?"
Vincent rose his head and asked in perplexion and his eyes flashing red from all the tears, "Huh? What do you mean?"
Olivia proposed an idea with an earnest expression on her face, "How about we give you a hand in helping you out? It's obvious that you suffered a lot. As much as I despise you, I really admire you for the way you took care of Alice. She's a well-cultured and hardworking individual. Clearly, she didn't get that from her mom. So, if it's okay with Sarah, Aiden, and Samar---"
"Then why don't you and Alice live with us?" Suddenly a voice called from behind. Again, it's a familiar one. The one who wasn't a part of our group until we reached our adulthood. The man who even beats Aiden when it comes to romance. The man who was Aiden's best friend by fate. The man who sacrificed a lot for his woman. Samar Anand......