****************
CHAPTER 13
Raphael may not have been happy that he failed to get her number, but it was a step. He was itchy inside. He wanted to meet Skai quickly.
A glance at his phone and the time made him frown. No, she wouldn't bother meeting him at this hour.
It was 11:35 p.m.
Suddenly, a thought spurred in his mind and he quickly swiped his phone, bringing out his Ace's number.
"Hello, Boss?"
"I have an assignment for you," Raphael began. "Check the company's employee's file and our business partners associated with it and see if you can find someone with the name Skai."
A subtle frown appeared on Ace's face. "Got it, sir. On it."
"Good. Oh and order a new phone for me and get a registered line too. Have it placed in my secret study room. Mention this to no one, understood?"
"Yes sir."
"And get it done before noon tomorrow."
"Understood."
As soon as the call ended, Raphael heaved a deep sigh. He had no idea he had been holding in his breath while he dished out his orders, paving the way for him to meet Skai.
On the other hand, Ace found it all strange with his request but having no say in the matter, he sighed as he got up from bed and tried to do everything he was asked to do.
"I really hate how his shift in personality makes life difficult for me," he grumbled, opening his laptop and getting to work immediately. "One minute his mood is cool and indifferent; at another it is unbearable and fun at times."
He shook his head. Heaven knew it was by their grace he could keep up. Often, he felt like he was working for two people.
Little did he know that was the case.
********
The hours skipped by and soon, it was dawn the next day - the start of the weekend. Not having to go to work, Skai rose a bit later than usual, stretched on the bed and picked up her phone after saying a few thanks.
She may not have been the churchy type, but she recalled her roots.
A soft smile spread on her lips when she was done, and quickly unlocked her phone screen to stare at the image of a much older version of herself.
"Mom, good morning."
She blinked back the tears that threatened to form in her eyes, sucked in a deep breath to keep her emotions at bay, and went through her messages on WhatsApp.
To her surprise, she saw a single text from Kiera. Skai thought that with her actions the previous day, her friend would have bombarded her with a series of calls and messages asking her what happened.
The only message she got was, 'Hey babe, we need to talk. Meet me at El Castia at 3 p.m.' kind of response.
Skai rolled her eyes, her mind drifting away, giving room to her thoughts on what her friend intended on talking about.
'It isn't about Damien, right? No. It is. I bet it. I am sure she is wondering why I reacted that way.'
Skai shut her eyes.
She could understand Kiera but what she could not understand was why she couldn't control her emotions when it came to Damien. Was it that she needed to release that rage or what?
Quickly, she texted back, not wanting to prolong this meeting further.
Skai: How about we meet at 2 p.m.? I need to go grocery shopping, return, and make dinner.
Just as she was about to put down her phone, the sound of the message notification aroused her attention.
'I see Kiera is not sleeping.' she mentally noted.
No sooner had Skia thought about it than her eyes met with a different name. Her breathing ceased instantly, her mind going blank as she stared at her phone screen and the message waiting for her reply.
"Storm."
Skai's brows creased slightly. Any message coming from that name meant trouble, but at the same time, the longing in her chest could not be abated as she itched to know what message he sent.
Perhaps this time they were…
"We'll be hosting a company dinner. Do with this information as you please."
Skai's eyes darted downward. Below was the invitation to the dinner.
Just as her fingers clicked on the file and glanced through, another message notification popped out on her screen.
"Shane. It never ends."
Already knowing what kind of message to expect, Skai clicked on it, her eyes scanning through.
"I bet brother has reached out to you, but you know what's best; not showing up for the party and embarrassing Jayden's family further. No one wants to see you there. Not even father."
A single tear fell from her eyelid as she read the message over and over again.
For as long as she could remember, Skai recalled that this was how things had been in her life. After the death of her mother, her family practically shoned her.
'Father would like to see you there.' How she'd love so much to hear or see such messages once in a while, but while her brothers treated her like she did not matter, her father was worse.
She cleaned the tears from her eyes, left WhatsApp, and froze the app to focus on other things.
Even after twenty-five years of her life, one would have thought she'd be used to it by now, but anytime it happened, it felt like she was thrown back to the very beginning.
"Since I am not wanted there, I do not see a need to be present either way."
With that, she got up from her bed and made her way to the restroom to freshen up and returned when her phone started ringing.
"Kiera?"
Swiping up on her phone screen, she connected the call and was instantly met with an eager voice from her friend.
"Hey love, morning."
"Morning to you too. How do you do?"
"I'm okay. You got my message."
"And I left one too," Skai responded with an indifferent tone, much too quickly than expected, before Kiera got a chance to scold her.
"I saw. Can't you push things to 3?"
"No. 2 p.m., it is. Except you wish to go with me shopping."
"No!" Skai furrowed her brows. Why was Kiera acting up? It wasn't like they hadn't done that before and the meeting was her decision.
"I uh…" Kiera felt like face-palming at her stupidity The reason for the outing was an arranged meeting for Damien and Skai. She couldn't afford to ruin things now.
"I huh… Can't. I am engaged this evening. Fine, 3 PM it is."
"Okay. Are the girls coming?"
"No. Just you and I."
"Alright." For the next few seconds, they did not speak until Skia brought up the mighty elephant in the room. "Is this about Damien?"
"Huh? Who now?"
"The guy… your Mr. Hot and handsome from my birthday wish list."
"Oh… uh, yes and before you diss this out, I need you to calm down. That's why I want an outdoor meeting. Fresh air, relax you rmind and we can talk."
Skai released a deep breath. Kiera was making it harder than she thought. It was her decision, they didn't need to force her into accepting him or anything.
"Fine. Till then."
"Okay love. Have a nice day."