BACK WITH THE BILLIONAIRE’S ONLY SON

CHAPTER THREE: telecoco and a dirty slap

Eva’s POV

Now at home, I watched as Lorenzo’s eyes lit up when he spotted the enormous emerald birthday cake on the table. My little boy was bursting with excitement, his tiny legs propelling him toward the cake. I couldn't help but chuckle as his tiny fingers began to touch the cake, leaving smudges on the icing.

"Careful, Lorenzo," I cautioned, trying to hide my amusement. "We need to take pictures first."

Lorenzo looked at me with those adorable pleading eyes but reluctantly withdrew his little hands from the cake, all the while sneakily smiling and saying, "It's my buffday." His pronunciation was precious, and it made me laugh.

I reached into my purse to grab my phone. It was time to call Gabriella, my best friend since forever. Gabriella had stood by me through thick and thin, from the time my family lost their company to my pregnancy and Lorenzo's birth. We had planned for her to be here for Lorenzo's birthday, but an unexpected work commitment had kept her away.

As I waited for the call to connect, Lorenzo's attention waned, and he couldn't resist sneaking his fingers back toward the cake. I had to keep telling him to stop, but each reprimand only made him giggle mischievously and take another swipe at the icing.

Finally, the call connected, and I put it on speaker. Lorenzo, sensing something interesting was happening, ran to the front of the screen.

"Anty Gabbie!" he shouted, excitement bubbling over as he touched the screen with his cake-soiled fingers. I quickly grabbed his hands and wiped them clean.

"We miss you," I said with a warm smile.

Gabbie's face looked happy and a bit sad. It was obvious that she wanted to be here, celebrating with us.

"I miss you both too," she replied. "I sent Lorenzo a gift. It should be there anytime soon."

"Thanks, Gabbie, I appreciate it," I said, feeling grateful. I turned to Lorenzo who had now gone towards the Tv to watch his favorite animation. "Honey, come say thank you to Anty Gabbie."

Lorenzo answered, running back to the screen. "Thank you, Anty Gabbie!" he shouted.

Gabbie chuckled. "You’re welcome mio amore. Is he watching his Telecoco?"

I rolled my eyes playfully. "Yes, he is. He's so glued to that stuff. Although he said we would go to the cinema today. Hold on, let me ask him."

I went over to Lorenzo, my hopes high that we might do something different this year, especially now that I could afford it. "Do you still want to go to the cinema to watch the original Telecoco?"

Lorenzo seemed lost in thought for a moment, then shook his head vigorously. "No," he replied, his voice a little uncertain.

I frowned, puzzled. "Why, sweetheart?"

Lorenzo hesitated, looking down at the floor. Finally, he spoke, his voice almost a whisper. "I don't want you to slaf a mam."

My heart sank as I realized he was referring to the incident at the mall earlier. I exchanged a knowing look with Gabbie, who had been listening intently.

"What did he say?" Gabbie's voice came through the phone.

I sighed, dreading this conversation. "It's nothing," I replied weakly, hoping to avoid it altogether.

Gabbie, however, was having none of it. "Spill it, now!" Her eyes shined as she waited expectantly for the gist. If there was anything Gabbie loved more than men and food, it was gossip. She was paying rapt attention as if I was giving her the secrets to save to the world from an apocalypse.

I gave up knowing I had no choice and left my son's side to speak privately with Gabbie.

“So…I”

“What’s it?” Gabbie asked impatiently

“Take a chill pill now would you?”

“Okay, okay, I’m listening to you” Gabbie said as she went to sit down on her sofa to steady herself for the gist.

“I met Dante today when I went out with Lorenzo”

“What!” Gabbie’s eyes widened immediately in shock. “Wow!”

“Yea, that was how I felt too”

“So what did you do? Please tell me you gave him some bitchy attitude”

“Well, not exactly”

“Oh Eva,” Gabbie tapped her brown hair. “You’re too dull, you’re too gentle, these are the issues Eva. You need to be more feisty, more—

“I slapped him” I said shutting Gabbie’s talks midway.

“You did what?” She asked surprise evident in her tone.

“Slapped him, he had the guts to tell me that I’m jumping from one man’s bed to the other trying to fix my daddy issues.”

“Oh that’s rude. He deserves the slap.”

“He did, in fact I did more than that. I shouted at him and accused him of k********g Lorenzo in the mall.” I said feeling satisfied that I actually did so.

“That’s so much”

“Well it’s not a total lie, I mean… Lorenzo had walked off and I was looking for him. When I found him he was with Dante smiling with a toy.”

“Oh, does he know?”

“Know what?” I asked confused.

“That he’s Lorenzo’s father” Gabbie rolled her eyes expecting me to know what she’s referring to.

“He doesn’t know and he doesn’t deserve to know. Not after all he’s done to me.”

“I understand you Eva,” Gabbie paused, “but don’t you think Lorenzo deserves a father in his life. I understand that you’re angry and I see your point. But don’t deny the kid the privilege of having a father.”

“He doesn’t need a father Gabbie. He has me” I reply, my tone carrying a hint of annoyance. “Let’s drop this issue please.”

“Okay,” Gabbie said raising her left hand in defeat. “That’s cool.”

“So when are you returning?”

“Next three days, I’ll come see you immediately I return”

“Thanks babe, I love you.”

“Love you too Eva, save some cake for me.”

“Alright then, bye.” I said and ended the call.

After ending the call with Gabriella, I sat there for a moment, lost in thought. I couldn't help but wonder what my life would have been like if I hadn't fallen recklessly in love with Dante.

I looked at Lorenzo, playing happily with his toys, and my heart ached. He was the only good thing that had come out of my relationship with Dante. I had to be strong for him, and I had to shield him from the truth about his father.

FLASHBACK: 7 years ago

It was a stormy night, rain still drizzling outside, and I had thought it was a good idea to spend the night with Dante. I stood by his door, about to knock when I suddenly heard another male voice besides his own. That was odd; it was 10 pm, and I knew Dante didn't like having his male friends spend the night at his place. He always complained about how nasty and disturbing they were.

"Eva?" I heard Dante's voice and then pressed my ear against the door. I wanted to hear why he had mentioned my name. Maybe he was planning something special or saying something special about me to his friend. Dante and I had been dating for two years, and so far, he had been the only man who had taken me seriously.

"I think you've fallen for her, man," I heard a familiar voice say. It sounded like his best friend, Andrew.

"No, man, you know I'm just with her because I need to get my dad's company back."

My heart sank as I listened. What did he mean by his father's company? I kept quiet and tried to listen more.

"Wow, don't you even feel anything for her? You've been with her for two years," Andrew asked.

"Guy, as far as I'm concerned, she's just a spoiled brat who thinks everything should be handed to her. I just want to take back the company her father stole from my family, and then I'm dumping her."

Tears welled up in my eyes as I heard his words. After all this while, his only intention was to destroy my family's empire, and I had been nothing more than a means to an end. I had made it so easy for him; just last month, I had helped him become the major shareholder in a spoken agreement that I would receive half of the shares. As I heard his words, I realized I had been duped. No wonder he didn't want to sign the documents for the transfer of shares. He always had one excuse or another. As he continued his words, I felt a burning anger rise within me.

"Hmmm, if you say…"

Tears ran down my face, my heart shattered into uncountable pieces. I covered my mouth with my hand and ran off so they wouldn't realize I had been there.

I was ruined, completely ruined. But that night was just the beginning. Dante took total ownership of the company. He manipulated several shareholders' meetings to kick us out of our own company, and we lost every business that bore our name. My dad suffered a massive heart attack, and we grew penniless while spending all we had on his treatment.

“Mom, mom, pictures for the cake,” I heard my son say as he shook my thighs and snapped me out of my train of thoughts.

“Okay, sweetheart, let’s go.”

The rest of the day was fun. We snapped pictures with the rest of the cake that Lorenzo managed not to smear. We sang, danced, and played games, but all along, something dreadful remained on my mind.

Dante!

I had a feeling I was going to see him again, and I didn't like the feeling at all.