The chains of the past that bind us

Chapter 1: We meet again

"Alessandria, it's time for the board meeting to begin." My secretary Adele says while handing me the paper work for today's meeting.

"Alright, let's do this." As I take a deep breathe in and out, I step into the room full of ten people staring at me.

"Hello everyone, my name is Alessandria Collins, and I am the owner of Dating unlimited. My company is about women who are single and have an event coming up and need a man to attend them. However, with my company the men are specifically tailored to their tastes. It is guaranteed to make every woman happy. I need all of your support for the company to succeed." Then everyone claps and as the meeting continues, my phone suddenly starts to buzz from a text and I see it's my new best friend Chloe.

"Hey girl, are you still willing to come to my house for my birthday tonight?" She asks.

"Of course me and Kaitlyn will be there. I am still in this meeting but after the meeting I will get in the shower and head straight there." I text back.

"Awesome! I can't wait!" She replies.

"Also don't forget you have to bring that fiancé you keep talking about." I tease her. I mean she always talks about him and how quick they got engaged due to some family obligations. So I'm pretty intrigued on how they fell in love as she says. Once the meeting is over I head back to my office, and I grab my car keys to head out.

Honestly I'm happy for Chloe, but it just reminds me of Cole, and what he said to me. It's been 2 years since I've seen him or heard from him, he tried to call everyday for two weeks. Then I changed my number because it was too painful to hear one more voicemail or text from him. As I drive back home to my apartment in Brooklyn New York, I immediately get into the shower and change. As I grab her present I head to Chloe's place, I realize that I'm running late and I run inside.

"Alessandria! Hi oh my gosh, it's so nice to see you!" She yells while giving me a big hug. As I hug her back, I start to smile and sit her present on the table beside me.

"Hi Chloe! Happy birthday! Have I missed anything?" I ask while looking around. I mean just wow, I knew she came from a wealthy household but her house is huge!

"No not really, Kaitlyn is already here, and everyone else is just people my mother and family invited to celebrate." Then I decide to cheer her up and pat her shoulder.

"Don't worry about it, all you need is Kaitlyn and I, plus that fiancé you've still not introduced to us yet."

"Correction, you were late and Kaitlyn has met him, but of course you can meet him here he comes now!" She says while pointing to someone behind me.

"Hey babe, I'm sorry I had to take a call for work. Is this the friend you were telling me about?" Suddenly my body shivers, I could never forget that deep dark soft voice. As I turn around quickly in disbelief, hoping that it would just be my imagination, there he was.

"Baby!" Then she showers him in kisses and she hugs him hard. "This is my other best friend Al-" Then he suddenly cuts her off.

"Alessandria?" Then the electricity runs through me as our eyes connect. Suddenly I was pulled back to earth when Chloe speaks again.

"Do you guys know each other?" She asks then I suddenly look away.

"I know of her company, my advisor have been trying to convince me to invest in her company." He said with a smile on his face.

"I see, you must be Cole, Chloe's fiancé that she speaks so highly of. I appreciate the offer I truly do, however I wouldn't want to take advantage of Chloe's fiancé." Suddenly he extends his hand out to me and he smiles at me.

"Well I'd still like the opportunity, and I look forward to speaking more with you." Then I regrettably shake his hand and it brings me back to the days, where we would hold hands wherever we went like teenagers.

"Alessandria? Are you alright...?" Chloe suddenly comes over I snatch my hand away from his.

"Yea I have to go to the bathroom. Can you tell me where it is?" I ask.

" Baby, can you show her where it is?" Then he walks with me upstairs to the restroom.

"So you disappear and then you ignore me." He says while covering up the bathroom door.

"Excuse me I have to pee." I glare at him.

"Oh really, I seriously doubt that, I'm pretty sure the only reason why you came up here was because you were avoiding me." He smirks while teasing me.

"Wow you are so conceited, have you ever realized that maybe not everything is about you. Fine you're right I don't have to use the bathroom anymore." As I turn away from him, he drags me into the bathroom and pins me against the door.

"So you're telling me after all of the time you feel nothing?" Suddenly he puts his arms around my waist and brushes my hair behind my ear.

"Stop..." As I start to blush, he intertwined his fingers into mine, and he kisses me passionately.

"I missed you...Alessandria. Why did you leave?" He whispers to me.

"Stop this! Look Cole you obviously have moved on and I'm just now starting to be happy again after you! Why can't you just leave me alone!"

"I can't! Princess..." He says while kissing my hand.

"It was agonizing to watch you leave that day in your car. When I went to the house that night, I thought you'd be there to at least say goodbye, and when you cleared all of your stuff out I felt so empty." Suddenly he hugs me tightly.

"Cole..." I can't miss him. I cannot fall for his games and his traps. If he truly missed me why didn't he fight for us? Why did he just give up on us, and now he is engaged to my best friend.

"I missed my princess, and I missed holding you like this. Why does it have to be this way?" As a tear falls down my cheek I ask myself the same question.

"Cole, what do you expect me to say? Did you expect me to say that I love you? That all I do is think about you and you inhabit my dreams every night. Well it's true you're right Cole. I can't stop thinking about you, and everything we had together. That doesn't erase what happened, and it doesn't erase the feeling when you betrayed me." I look away and the tears just won't stop.

"So you have to stop this. Your fiancé is downstairs waiting for you. I will be down momentarily." As I try to slide past him he lifts my chin towards him.

"I could ask you the same you know. Did you think that just because I agreed with my mother, that means I didn't regret it? I still loved you, even now I still love you! I've been looking for you since you left me that day. I've been longing to see you since that day to tell you I was sorry and that I was wrong. The only reason why I said I'd marry and have the child my mother wanted was because I just wanted to come back to you!" The suddenly rage took over me and I couldn't take it anymore and I shove him away.

"You could've refused! You could've said no! You could've came home to me and talked to me about it! I wanted you, and I fought with your mother for years just for us!"

"Wait...you knew...?" Suddenly a silence became very loud, and we just stared at each other.

"How do you feel now?" He asks while getting closer to my lips.

"I feel nothing." As I lie to him, he suddenly starts to kiss me and grips my ass.

"Mmm nnn~!!" Then I just feel that spark between us like the last two years never happened. Suddenly he inserts his tongue into me and his cups his hand around my breasts.

"Ah...Cole!" Then he slides his knee in between my legs, and I can't help moving my hips against him.

"You say you feel nothing and yet your hips are moving against me." Then he kisses my neck and then I can't help to twitch from the feeling.

"Ah...Cole...more!" Then he lifts me up onto the sink and slides my panties to the side under my dress.

"Tell me what you want princess." Then he starts to tease me and lick my c**t slightly.

"Stop...calling me that ahh...!!" Then he stops suddenly and looks at me from in between my legs, and I can't help but blush hard.

"Don't tease me..!! I-I want you Cole..."

"Yes princess as you wish." Then suddenly, just before he could insert his d**k inside of me,, we hear a knock at the door.

"Is everything alright in there Alessandria?" As Chloe knocks on the door I shove Cole off of me and fix my panties. Then I turn off the lights and open the door.

"Yes I'm completely fine! I just felt a little sick since I haven't eaten since early this morning before work." Then I quickly close the door behind me and I walk downstairs with her. I cannot believe that just happened. I told myself I could never fall for his trap or lies again! Never mind that I need to focus on Chloe's birthday!

"There you are girl you disappeared on us!" Kaitlyn yells at me and I cover my ears.

"Loud as usual. Well I had to get myself together, you know why." Then I glared at her slightly.

"Alright, now where's Cole so we can continue the party." Then he hugs her from behind and grabs her waist.

"I'm here babe. Happy birthday." As they laugh I turn towards Kaitlyn and try to hold back the tears.

"I'm sorry girl, I didn't know Chloe was seeing him. I'm just as shocked as you are." She whispers to me.

"It's fine, I'm going to head home, just tell Chloe I had a bad headache and needed to go home for a bit." Then as I sneak out, my old friend Liam comes up from behind me and hugs me.

"Alessandria, are you okay?" He asks looking concerned.

"Why does everyone keep asking me that! I'm fine okay!" Then he wipes a tear from my cheek and pulls me closer to him.

"You're not okay are you? I know you saw Cole." Then I wrap my arms around him and cry into his arms. Then he covers me so no one can see that I'm crying.

"I'm sorry, I thought I was over him, and I just want to go home." Suddenly Cole comes over and separates us.

"Is there a problem over here? You two are being very loud." Then I snap back at him and grab Liam's arm.

"I apologize for us being so loud. It's been so long since I've seen my love Liam." Suddenly I see Cole's face smile, but I can tell underneath it that he's actually pissed.

"Oh you're a couple? That's wonderful to hear. How long have you guys been together?" Liam asks with a malicious undertone in his voice. Oh god I need to get out of here and then I see Liam grip my waist.

"We have been together for a year right honey?" All I can think is well I'm f****d.

"Um...yes. I'm ready to go back home now babe." I reply trying to inch towards the door.

"Aww already? Are you really leaving already?" Chloe asks while heading towards us. I cannot believe this is happening!

"My love isn't feeling well so I'm taking home. Come on my love." Suddenly Liam picks me up like a princess, and then kisses me on my lips and carries me out the door. As we leave I can see Cole glaring at us, and I can't help hiding my face in Liam's chest.

"Hey Liam, can I ask you something?" I turn to him in the car.

"Yea? What is it?" He replies while driving to my apartment.

"I know you lied for me because you know what happened between Cole and I."

"Yes of course. I meant what I said Alessandria, I love you, and I have for the last year." Then we pull up at the apartment and I grab my things.

"Liam, I didn't know you felt that way about me." Then he lifted my chin up towards him.

"You don't have to answer me now. I will always be by your side." As he kisses my head goodnight, I go back inside just to cry in bed. I can't believe that this happened tonight. First I realize my best friend Chloe's soon to be husband is my ex Cole. Then I almost had s*x with him at the birthday party in the bathroom. Finally let's not forget my friend Liam has had feelings for me this entire time.

This has to be a bad dream, and when I wake up this will be all one bad dream. Tomorrow I'll never have to see Cole's face ever again.