Ellise slowly opened her eyes, groggily. She blinked, a smile tugging at her lips as her gaze rested on the sight of her husband asleep with her in his arms. Gently, she moved his arm away from her body and put on a robe over her night dress. She brushed his hair away from his forehead and pressed a lingering kiss to the top of his head. "I love you" she whispered softly in order to avoid waking him up.
Sparing him one more glance, she stepped into the bathroom. After she'd taken her bath and gotten dressed, She quietly left the bedroom.
She didn't want to wake him up since he hadn't been getting any sleep lately. As soon as she stepped into the sitting room, she found Nadine sitting on the couch with a scowl on her face.
"I know what you did" she spat, rising to her feet.
"I know what you did, yesterday" she growled.
Ellise's eyes went blank and she stared at her, feigning ignorance.
"I don't know what you're talking about" she said.
"Oh really? Just by merely looking at you, I know that you were rolling around in the sheets with Alexandre" she spat.
Ellise smirked.
"What? Are you jealous?"
Nadine scowled and gritted her teeth.
"No, I'm not. I think you're the one who's jealous. You're jealous because I'm actually carrying your husband's heir. You seduced your husband last night so you can get pregnant too. Too bad, you're such an infertile gabbage. You're just wasting your time, hon. Do you think he's stupid enough to tell you everything? He's the father of my child and he obeys whatever I ask him to do. You can go ahead and rot in your self pity party, hon" she said and strolled off.
Don't let her get into your head.
She's just messing with you.
Alexandre is yours all yours.
Remember last night...
Ellise's subconscious kept giving her reasons why she shouldn't listen to her.
So, she followed her heart and pushed the hurt aside.
....
Valentino returned home from the office, feeling sick. He undressed and took a cold shower. He changed into comfortable clothes and reclined on the sofa, in the living room. The door bell rang and he let out a groan before dragging his limbs to the door. It was Noelle.
The brilliant smile on her face faded as soon as she saw how terribly ill he looked.
"Oh God, Val what did you do to yourself again?" She said, closing the door behind her and cupping his cheek.
"Since when have you been feeling sick?" She asked and he rubbed his temples wearily.
"It started earlier, at the coffee shop. I feel like something wasn't right with the coffee" he rasped, swaying a bit on his feet. She led him to the bedroom and laid him down on the bed. She slowly placed the back of her palm on his forehead, wincing when she noticed how badly he was burning up.
"You have to go to the hospital, Val. You're burning up badly. Your fever doesn't look like it's going to break any time soon" she whispered, brushing his hair away from his face.
He sighed, his heart heavy with grief. He didn't want to be told that he was suffering from a dreadful disease or ailment. With how badly his whole body was aching, he was worried.
"Noelle, I'm terrified. I don't want to die. Not yet.... I still have a lot to do" he said.
"Am I in your bucket list?" She asked and he wheezed out a chuckle.
"Initially, you weren't, but I added you recently" he admitted, shutting his eyes.
She cracked a smile as her thumb stroked the side of his face. "You know I like you a lot. It surprises me too. We're both broken in our own ways but we're still standing strong. You're becoming more than a friend and a shoulder to lean on to me. I've lost so much but you're one of the people I don't want to dream of loosing you. So, will you be my boyfriend?" She asked, picking up his car keys. Seeing how much pain he was in, Noelle had tried to distract him.
He stared at her, wide eyed.
"Wow, this is kind of ridiculous. First of all, isn't that usually supposed to be my line?" He rasped.
She grinned and leaned down to kiss his lips. Then, she brought him to his feet.
"Give me an answer, won't you?" She breathed, placing his arm around her shoulder to support him. He leaned heavily on her, his breathing strained. Noelle was trying not to panic because one of them had to be clear headed enough to find a solution.
"Yes" he wheezed and she smiled. His head was beginning to pound harder and his dizziness was worsening considerably. So, he squeezed his eyes shut. A warm liquid seeped from his nostrils and his heart sank.
"Noelle--" he rasped, when they walked out the door.
"Sh! Don't say a word. Save your strength, please" she breathed.
"I--I think I was poisoned" he croaked and her heart squeezed painfully. His knees buckled and her heart began to race.
"Val, please stay with me. Don't close your eyes, please!" she sounded so frantic and scared. She managed to get him into the car and slip on his seatbelt. Subsequently, she turned on the ignition and hit the gas.
"There was this woman in the coffee shop.... she had blond... platinum blond hair... She.... I think she..." Valentino was struggling to speak now and Noelle was at the verge of tears.
"Please stay awake, okay? Stay awake!"
Valentino closed his eyes as his breathing became even more shallow, his hands trembling hard.
"Val! Val! Can you hear me?!" Noelle cried, her vision blurred with tears.
His eyes rolled to the back of his head as it all went black.
....
"Hello, Alex"
"What do you want this time, Nadine?" Dre sighed, rubbing his forehead.
She chuckled.
"This is not about what I want but what you have done. Your wife's mother is in the hospital because of you. I warned you, didn't I? And- oh.... it's just a tip of the iceberg, honey"
She said and the line went dead.
Dre stiffened on his chair, his blood running cold.
He hurried out of his study.
"Dre, what's wrong? Where are you going to?" Ellise asked from her position along the hallway.
He refused to look at her.
His eyes were wide and his breathing was uneven
"I just- I need to-"
"Dre, you're scaring me" Ellise said.
Without looking at her, he hurried downstairs and went to his car. Wide eyed, Ellise watched as he drove off.
'What did I do this time?
What's going on?' Ellise thought. Her phone suddenly rang out.
It was Elvis.
"Hey" she said, smiling.
When he didn't reply, she grew worried.
"Elvis?"
She heard shuffling in the background and she could here him in the background. He sounded like he was hyperventilating.
"Elvis? What's wrong? Where are you?" She asked, making her way down the stairs in a hurry.
"At the hospital" came his muffled reply.
"What happened? Are you sick?" She asked, opening the door to her car.
"No, My wife-"
'Oh God.
No, not this.
Please, let it not be so bad' she thought.
"She's in a coma. She- she was involved in an accident. It was a hit and run. They- they don't know if she's going to make it" he choked
"Oh my God. I'll be there right away" she said, turning on the ignition with her heart pounding hard against her chest.