“Got a big test tomorrow?” she questioned when minutes had elapsed from them gawking at each other.
He had grinned at her, and that was when she experienced the first devastating effect of his dimpled cheek.
“Something like that,” he had replied shortly.
Folding her hands across her chest, she had bestowed him with a smile of her own. “A straight-A student, I see.”
Chuckling, he shook his head. “Most definitely.”
She had found him irresistibly handsome with his jet-black hair, and smoky gray eyes that could eat a girl whole. She thanked him for helping her and teased him some more about studying. They spoke for a bit on trivial things.
Unable to resist, Kaiya then asked him to dance, and he reluctantly agreed. Everything had seemed so magical. They shared their first kiss that night; it had been like a taste of heaven. He had asked her out, and she had all but fallen over him in her rush to answer in the affirmative. Their relationship built up after that.
Kaiya came back from her trip down memory lane to hear her cellphone ringing. Quickly, she finished cleaning up and rushed to her room. She snatched the phone from her bedside table and grimaced a little when she saw who was calling.
It was Marcus - her friend with benefits. Forcing cheerfulness into her voice that she didn’t feel, she answered the call. He was calling to see if she would be available for dinner in Torque. Kaiya appreciated his efforts although unwelcomed; she politely declined his offer.
Marcus, she suspected, was beginning to get too attached. She was afraid that he was starting to get the wrong ideas of being in a relationship with her.
They had met at one of her family’s charity dinners since he worked for Finn as a real estate agent. She was lonely, he was sexy and saying all the right things. One thing had led to another, and they had ended up in bed. And so, whenever she wanted to scratch the itch, she called him, and they hooked up. Twice now, he had called her up to go on a date.
“No, Marcus, I can’t,” she said and placed her phone back on the bedside table.
Years ago, she had sworn that she was done with emotional entanglements. Never again would she be caught in such a disastrous web. She made a mental note to break things off with him before his thoughts of them dating went too far.
Once bitten, twice shy.
***
Kaiya!
Tyler’s mouth curled into a grimace as he remembered the girl who had haunted his dreams for the past eight years. When he made the decision to move back home to Montreal from British Columbia after he got the contract, the first person who had made her presence known in his mind was Kaiya. Not only had she plagued his dreams then, but his thoughts as well. Although every time he thought of Montreal or the place was mentioned to his hearing, Kaiya always came to mind. But getting the contract which saw to his evident return to the place where he had grown up had only heightened it.
He had envisaged different scenarios of how their first meeting would be after so many years. He had, however, never expected an audience when he walked into her dance school the previous day. He recalled walking into the place and seeing the perplexed faces of Jalissa, Katherine, and another pregnant woman who looked like a younger, darker version of Katherine. Katherine’s stare had seemed different, though; it had appeared haunted, but he wouldn’t bother trying to decipher what it meant. It was none of his business. He no longer cared what Kaiya’s parents thought of him.
Sighing, he strode to the living room’s window and stared out into the quiet street. Montreal had changed a great deal from the time he hastily left the place eight years ago. Memories flooded him as he remembered when he departed as a scared and lonely teenager.
After he left Montreal and moved to Vancouver, British Columbia, he started University. Although it was hard to leave his daughter at first, he quickly found a routine with his daughter’s mom, Lena. The thought of his late best friend and how she was tragically taken from them always got him wracked with guilt. If only…
He shook his head. It was best to dwell on good memories, not painful ones. Like the wonderful news of his mom who was now ten years sober and his perfect support system.
Thankfully, against all the odds, he had graduated, got mentorship, and through it, he had begun to get contracts from real estate developers. As the demand grew for his architectural expertise, he went into the construction and design end of real estate and eventually became a real estate developer himself. A few smart investments later, and he was now a self-made businessman; investments that made him part of the elite. He had a wonderful daughter; his mom was clearheaded, and he got one of the biggest contracts of his career that would bring him millions. He had a lot to be thankful for despite his poor background. At the moment, he believed he had everything he needed in life. That was the reason he was beginning to reconsider accepting the contract with Finn; Anderson Realty. As a matter of fact, he was beginning to wonder if moving back to Montreal was a good idea.
Tyler turned away from the peaceful view outside and took a sip from his mug of coffee. He knew the reason he was beginning to have second thoughts about his decision. It had something to do with the teenage girl who had grown into a very beautiful woman.
Everything about her seemed perfect. From the dark tresses on her head pulled back in a slick ponytail, to the heart-shaped face, startling brown eyes, pouting lips, and slim physique, she was out-and-out stunning. He had braced himself knowing he would see her eventually, but the effect of just a glance at her was still devastating to his senses nonetheless.
His mouth curled with cold distaste. Beautiful outwardly but a cold heart within. She didn’t deserve any reaction from him, and he was pissed that he had gawked at her for minutes on end when she came into the lobby.
He had gone there in the first place to set things straight since he was sure they would be seeing each other because of his daughter. Instead, he had gotten himself seared by her beauty and animosity.
It was by accident that he found out that his daughter had been registered by his mom for ballet lessons in Kaiya’s dance school. Finn Tremblay, his new business partner, had mentioned to him the name of Kaiya’s dance school, Just Dance, in passing, and then it had clicked that his daughter was registered there.
Gritting his teeth, he had picked up his phone to call his mom to cancel the registration. Then he had paused because his mom would have wanted to know why the change in plans and she would have become suspicious of his motives. She knew only what he had told her about his past with Kaiya, and he wanted it to stay that way in order to avoid being questioned repeatedly by his mom and breaking his darling daughter’s heart because she had been very excited to continue her ballet lessons.
Seeing the best recourse was to have a chat with Kaiya to ensure that his daughter was in safe hands, he had decided to go to the dance studio. He didn’t want the daughter he loved so much to be treated differently, simply because of their shared history.
The scene flashed through his mind like it just happened a few minutes ago.
