Adele turns her way to her daughter's school,,
The taxi ride to the school is a haze of anger and humiliation. By the time she arrives , the bitterness has settled deep in her chest.
The dismissal plays on a loop in her mind. She folds her fingers into punches tightly on her sides, forcing herself to breathe.
When the bell rings, children pour out in a chaotic stream, their laughter and chatter a stark contrast to her turbulent thoughts.
Adele scans the crowd for her daughter_ Trixie, but the minutes stretch, and her anxiety grows.
When most of the children are gone, she marches into the building, her heels echoing in the empty halls.
Trixie's teacher, a petite woman with a nervous smile, greets her at the door. "Oh, Mrs. Richards, I didn't expect to see you."
"I didn't see my daughter, is she still in here?" Adele demands, her voice sharper than intended.
"She was already picked up," the teacher says, blinking in surprise.
"Picked up?" Adele's stomach drops. "By who?"
"The young man, she said was her father." The teacher says emphasising on the 'young man'
She looks at Adele , her face obviously criticising her. As if thinking *How can that young man be your daughter's father?!*
Adele freezes.
Her husband doesn't know where Trixie goes to school, so how comes. "How can you just let a kid go with anyone! My daughter doesn't even know how her father look like! So there's no way she said he is her father!"
"Mrs. Richards, Trixie was really happy to see the young man , and she said he was her father, she clung on him refusing to let go, even the young man said it himself that he was the father."
"Young man... you... What did he look like?"
The teacher hesitates, then describes him: dark-haired, tall, gray piercing eyes, strikingly handsome, with an easy smile that could charm anyone.
Adele's blood boils.
Ricky!
"How could you let him take her?! Oh God!" Adele snaps, her voice shaking.
"He said he was her father," the teacher repeats weakly. "And Trixie confirmed it."
Adele doesn't waste another word. She storms out, her heart pounding as fury wage war inside her.
Ricky has crossed every line now! She screams in her head.
She knows she won't find them now, not before he decides to bring Trixie back himself.
~
"It's nearly 7 p.m. when Ricky's sleek car pulls up in front of Adele's apartment building.
It's a modest, two-story complex with a row of small balconies and a simple brick exterior.
The paint is slightly faded, and the outdoor lighting casts a dim glow over the narrow parking lot.
It's not run-down, but it's far from luxurious, just a quiet, functional place where tenants come and go.
Hearing a car outside, Adele opens the door immediately,
Trixie bounds out, her face lit with joy, clutching a stuffed bear she didn't leave with.
"Mommy! Look what Ricky got me!" She exclaims, her excitement cutting through Adele's rage.
"Inside, Trixie," Adele says tersely, her eyes fixed on Ricky. Her daughter hesitates, sensing the tension, but obeys.
When the door closes, Adele turns to him. But before she even say a thing... Ricky speaks. "Adele, am sorry, am sorry I know I shouldn't have taken Trixie from school without your permission, and worse without telling you that I picked her up. I kn..." before he can say anymore words, Adele cuts her.
"I've been entertaining your nonsense for long now and am telling you this for the last time Ricky. Take your stupid little games to people your age! How dare you do that!!" she spits, her voice trembling with suppressed fury. "Who do you think you are, taking my daughter without my permission?! You are just a stranger to both my daughter and I, so for the last time, stay away!" She adds.
Realising that Adele is being her usual self again_ harsh and nagy. Ricky leans casually against the car, an infuriating smirk firmly placing itself on the side if his lips.
"She had fun though," he says, as if that excuses everything.
"You think this is a game, don't you? Next time I see your face around me or my daughter am going to sue yo..." The words die mid-sentense.
Her fists clenching at her sides, she knows that suing Ricky won't do anything, they have money, his father and the mother who is a mayor have power over her.
Ricky realising her uneasiness and a flash of helplessness, his smirk falters, his expression softening. "Adele am seriously sorry. I shouldn't have done that. I just missed her, I wanted to spend some time with her, let her enjoy some time out like a normal kid should." Ricky says honestly, explaining his true intentions why he picked Trixie up from school.
~
...Three months.
It's been three months since Ricky found himself entangled in something he never expected, not just with Adele, but with her daughter, Trixie, as well.
It all started as a joke. A harmless little game.
Ricky had met Adele for the first time at his father's company, but not because he was there to help his father with the work.
No, work has always been the last thing on his mind.
He had strolled into the office that day with one goal, to give his father a hard time about paying for yet another luxurious vacation.
Because that's who Ricky was. Spoiled. Carefree. Reckless.
To him, life was simple.
Money solved everything. And his parents had a lot of it.
No effort, no struggle, no consequences.
If he wanted something, he got it. If he got bored, he moved on. The future didn't exist in his world.
He lived in the 'now' because everything would always be taken care of for him.
At least, that's what he thought. Until he met her.
Adele was different.
She was the kind of woman who could silence a room without trying, who carried herself with a quiet strength that made her stand apart.
She wasn't just beautiful, she was untouchable. Unmoved. Untamed.
And worst of all? She was immune to him.
Ricky had never been turned down before. He was used to women throwing themselves at him, eager for a piece of his wealth, his charm, his name.
He had it all, looks? Check. Money? Check. The confidence of someone who had never heard the word no? Absolutely.
But Adele?
She didn't look at him that way.
The moment he saw her, something inside him shifted.
He wasn't sure what it was at first, only that for the first time in his life, he wanted someone, not for a night, not for fun, but for something he couldn't quite put into words.
And that terrified him. Especially because, that someone is untouchable. Not a person he could get whenever he wanted_ like he is used to.
And Yes_ she is older than him. Way older, but that was the last thing that ever appeared in Ricky's mind.
All he cared about was that, he saw a lady, and for the first time_ she made him really want someone in his life, some one to treat with respect and keep forever.