CHAPTER 4 I'm Not His Mummy
Narda's POV
The bread in my hand felt like a brick. I stood in the middle of the aisle, holding it against my chest like it might answer the questions swirling in my head.
Who was he?
His face haunted me. Every time I blinked, it was there again… his dark eyes, that slow, hungry look he gave me before our mouths crashed together. The way he said her name like it belonged to me.
"Katrina" I whispered.
Like I was her.
I didn't even know his name.
God, I didn't even know if we… if I really…
"Narda!"
I jumped, nearly dropping the loaf of bread.
Mia stood in front of me, one hand on her hip, the other waving in front of my face like she was swatting a fly. Her thick braids were piled in a bun on her head, and she had that look. The one she wore when she was about to get into my business.
"You okay?" she asked. "You've been zoning out since you came in."
"I'm fine," I lied.
"No, you're not." She stepped closer, eyes narrowing. "You didn't come home last night. I was about to file a missing person's report You know."
I gave a weak laugh. "I'm sorry. I… I went out."
"Out?" She leaned in, suddenly all ears. "Where? With who?"
"I was just… I needed to clear my head after everything I found out with Max. So I went to that club on Hillstone."
Mia's eyes went wide. "You went clubbing? Alone? You, Narda 'Miss Goody too shoes '?"
"Don't make it such a big deal Mia," I muttered, already feeling my cheeks flush.
Her eyes narrowed. "Wait. You didn't come home all night. You're red in the face. You're acting all dazed and guilty." She gasped. "Oh my God."
"No, Mia…"
"You finally did it, didn't you?" she whispered, grabbing both my arms and shaking me. "YOU. HAD. SEX.!!"
I looked around wildly, but thankfully the aisle was empty. "Would you keep your voice down?"
She squealed and jumped a little. "With who? Wait… tell me everything. I'm living for this."
"I don't remember any of what happened," I muttered.
Her grin faltered. "Wait, what?"
"I don't remember much after I got to the club. I had too many drinks. I just… I woke up in a strange room. Naked." I paused. "Besides him."
Mia blinked. "So you blacked out?"
I nodded slowly.
She whistled. "Damn, girl. You guard that virginity for 25 years, then hand it to a total stranger and worst of all you can't even tell of your first experience?"
My stomach twisted.
"I don't even know if it really happened," I whispered. "But I felt… sore. Down there. Like… like something definitely happened."
Mia's jaw dropped. "Holy crap."
Before she could say anything else, our manager, Mrs. Acosta, came marching toward us like a freight train in heels.
"What are you two doing standing here? The shelves won't stock themselves!"
"Sorry, ma'am," we both muttered in unison.
"Narda," she barked, "go to the bakery section and bring in the fresh bread. And hurry. The customers are already asking."
I nodded quickly and scurried off, still clutching the loaf I had forgotten to shelve.
The bakery was tucked behind the small grocery mart, warm and always smelling of sugar and yeast. I grabbed a fresh tray of bread and began loading it onto a trolley, the smell making my stomach grumble. I hadn't eaten since… when? Yesterday afternoon?
As I pushed the trolley down the aisle, my thoughts kept drifting.
That man.
His hands.
His lips.
Why did it feel like I knew him, even though I'd never seen him before?
I crouched and started placing loaves on the lower shelves, my movements slow, automatic. I wasn't really focused on work. My body moved, but my mind was replaying those fragments of the night. His mouth against mine. His whisper—"I've missed you." Like he'd seen me before.. The way he held me like I was precious.
Like I was someone else.
Even called me by a different name
But then I hear a tiny voice shouting as it could carry.
"Mommy!"
I ignored it and kept on doing what I was doing.
Until tiny arms wrapped around my waist from behind.
I froze.
Wait, What?
I slowly turned.
A little boy clung to me, dark curls flopping over his forehead, big brown eyes staring up at me like I'd just come back from the dead.
"Mommy," he said again, more sure this time, hugging my hips tightly.
I stared at him, heart pounding. "I… I think you've mistaken me for someone else, sweetheart."
"No!" he frowned. "You're Mommy."
Oh dear God.
"Mia!" I called out, panic creeping in.
She peeked around the shelf, curious. "What now?"
I pointed helplessly at the child. "He's calling me Mom."
Mia walked over, eyes wide. "Well, you do look like him a bit."
"Mia!" I hissed.
She held up her hands. "I'm just saying."
We both crouched, and I tried again. "Hey, sweetheart. What's your name?"
"Liam," he replied proudly.
"Well, Liam," I said gently, "I'm not your mom, okay? Maybe she looks like me, but I'm not—"
"Liam!"
A voice, sharp and commanding, sliced through the air.
My chest locked.
I knew that voice.
Mia turned too, frowning.
A tall man strode down the aisle toward us, his shoulders wide, steps confident. His eyes locked on the boy… Liam.
And then on me.
I stopped breathing.
It was him.
The man from last night.
The one whose bed I woke up in.
The one whose hands had touched my skin like I belonged to him.
He didn't say a word. Didn't blink. Didn't acknowledge me. Just scooped up the boy into his arms like it was the most natural thing in the world.
"Let's go," he said.
"But that's Mommy!" Liam cried, pointing back at me.
His arms tightened around the boy. "That's not your mother."
My chest squeezed.
And just like that, he turned and walked away.
No glance back.
No explanation.
Nothing.
Just… gone.
"What the hell?" Mia whispered.
I couldn't speak.
My mouth was dry. My heart was racing.
My body remembered him. My skin ached with the ghost of his touch. My lips burned.
That man. That stranger.
He was Liam's father.
And Liam… thought I was his mom.
Mia's voice cut through the fog. "Do you know him?"
I turned to her slowly.
"The man I gave my virginity to."
Her jaw dropped.
She blinked once. Twice.
"Bloody hell," she said.