Chapter 151

Aria’s POV

After taking the check, I stood there watching as Markus, smirking, told his driver, “Let’s go.” Markus rolled up the window as the car drove forward, curling around the circular driveway and then disappearing out into the street.

With the limousine out of sight, the entire thing felt so surreal. I might have thought I had some kind of fever dream, except for the check in my hand. $5 million proved it was real.

Walking into the house, I still felt rattled. Isabella was in the kitchen, helping the kids with their homework as they all sat at the kitchen table.

“Mom!” William called, spotting me first. He hopped off the chair and rushed to my side for a hug. Joe was next.

Isabella smiled at me, “Welcome back.” My closest friend, she only needed a moment or two to realize something was wrong. Her face fell, but, not wanting to alarm the kids, same as I hadn’t, she smiled again when they came back around to face her. “Come on and finish up here while I talk to your mom.”

“Okay,” William and Joe said, downtrodden as they dragged their feet back to the table.

Isabella and I moved to stand just outside of the room in the hallway.

“What’s going on?” Isabella asked.

Wordlessly, I showed her the check.

“Holy shit!” she shouted and then covered her mouth with both hands. “Sorry, boys,” she called. “Don’t use that language.”

“Yes, Aunt Isabella,” said Joe from inside the kitchen. Though he and William immediately started snickering.

“What is that?” Isabella said.

“Do you mind sticking around?” I asked her.

“Of course. Do you need me to watch the kids?”

“No. I want the company, honestly. When the kids are done with their homework, why don’t we take a walk? I need to get out of here.”

Being in this house, with this check, imagining that limousine pulling up out front. It’s more than I can handle right now.

“Okay,” Isabella said. She pointed at the check. “What are you going to do with that?”

For now, I folded the check neatly and tucked it into the pocket of my jeans.

Isabella looked at me as if I’d grown a second head. “I wouldn’t even want to touch that, if I were you.”

It was a lot of money, but since I was going to eventually give it back anyway, it still didn’t feel real.

When the kids were finished with their homework, we all threw on our coats and walked down to the neighborhood park. While the kids run around the playground, Isabella and I claim a nearby park bench, so that we can keep an eye on the kids but also talk.

“Markus was parked outside of the house when I came home today,” I said.

Isabella’s brow drew together. “No one rang the bell.”

“He must have the house watched then, enough to know all of our cars and our routine. He was waiting for me.”

The knowledge unnerved me. I knew this wasn’t the last time I was going to be approached.

“Are they watching us right now?” Isabella asked. We both looked around.

I didn’t see anyone who looked out of place, but unless someone was being obviously creepy, I wouldn’t know what to look for.

“I don’t know,” I admitted with a nervous sigh.

“Does Liam know?”

“I haven’t told him. It all just happened, and I came inside.”

“You should tell him.”

I had to. Not only did he deserve to know that his father was watching us, but also that he was trying to bribe me. Who knew what measures Markus would resort to next? This felt like only the beginning.

This was a man who was purposefully working to tear about Liam’s company just to bring him back in line. My $5 million check was a peace offering in comparison.

Liam and I needed to get on the same page about this, so that we could plan our next move.

Then I remembered hearing Joanna’s flirty voice coming out of Liam’s office. Maybe he was already making plans of his own.

I patted the check in my pocket.

Within a week, Liam and I had to have our long conversation about our relationship, how it started, and where it’s going. If Liam wanted to leave… If he wanted to be with Joanna…

$5 million wouldn’t be a bad going away present.

I shook my head, hating how Joanna and Markus had both clearly plotted to put doubts in my head about Liam. I hated that it was working.

I had no reason to doubt Liam. Until I heard him say otherwise, I would assume that he still wanted to be with me.

“Markus said the money was compensation for marrying Liam and having Joe,” I continued, filling in Isabella on all the gory details. “He said I wouldn’t have to leave Liam, just divorce him.”

“Be his mistress?” Isabella asked. Her own righteous outrage was rising on my behalf.

“That’s what he said.”

“What a piece of sh—” Isabella covered her mouth much quicker this time. “Sorry,” she said.

None of the other parents or kids seemed to notice, not within direct earshot.

After telling Isabella the rest, she said, “So let me get this right. You have one week to decide if you want to keep this money or divorce Liam?”

I nodded.

Isabella snorted. “Old guy’s probably watching his bank account, waiting for that check to pull.”

“I’m not going to cash it,” I said.

“I know you aren’t,” Isabella replied. “But you know what’s going to happen when he realizes you aren’t?”

“Everything is going to get worse,” I said.

“Exactly. You have to talk to Liam about this, as soon as you can.”

“Mom!” Joe said, running toward us. William was hot on his heels. “Mom! Aunt Isabella! Can we have some ice cream?”

“Ice cream?” I asked. This was a public park, with no permanent vendors.

“There!” Joe said, pointing to an ice cream truck that was pulling into the parking lot. All of the other kids were running to their parents too. Some were already forming a line.

“We did all our homework,” William pressed.

Isabella and I looked at each other.

“They really were very good,” she told me.

“Alright,” I said. “Ice cream it is.”

“I’ll wait here. Hold our spot,” Isabella said. I knew she was on a diet and didn’t press her.

Instead, after thanking her, I walked with the kids to stand in line for ice cream. At the front of the line, they both asked for cones.

“With sprinkles!” Joe insisted.

“I don’t want sprinkles on mine,” William said.

Joe stuck his tongue out at William. “Be jealous then.”

William glared at Joe. “No one likes sprinkles.”

“I do!” Joe said.

“Boys,” I chided lightly. I couldn’t have them arguing and put a stop to it, but it did warm my heart a little to see them acting so much like brothers.

Eventually, the ice cream man handed a cone to each of the kids. I gave him some cash and he gave me change.

“Let’s get back to Isabella,” I told the kids.

William and I stepped to the side to allow the next person in line to step forward. Joe, however, turned all the way around.

He was so focused on his ice cream cone that he didn’t looked where he was going and walked straight into the stranger behind us, smashing is ice cream – and all those sprinkles – into the man’s pants just above the knee.