Chapter 2:
1496 Words
Chapter 2:
In the VIP area, Sergio was sitting next to Flora, trying to understand why she had been so distant with him since the start of the evening.
'You don’t look quite yourself,' he asked, worried.
'Don’t worry about me. I’m fine. Just a few little worries, but I’ll be alright,’ replied Flora.
‘Is there any way I can help you get over your troubles?’ he asked, pretending to want to help her.
‘Sorry, but I don’t need your help,’ she replied sarcastically.
Sergio was deeply unsettled by Flora’s sarcastic reply. No woman had ever spoken to him like that before. He was desperate to unravel the mystery surrounding Flora’s mood.
She seemed very intelligent, and he knew his life would be in danger if she ever discovered his true past. He was already asking himself all sorts of questions about Flora.
Perhaps she was a cop who had infiltrated the party to obtain top-secret information about him? Or was she aware of his turbulent past, which could be the reason for her strange behaviour at the party? He was determined to get to the bottom of Flora’s true identity.
Discovering Flora’s true identity—or at least what she was hiding—could be a good way to understand her thoughts, and Sergio was determined to find out. Flora was the kind of girl who was far too intelligent to spend time with me, and he couldn’t stand seeing her with me any longer.
Deep down, he saw her as a girl who was very clever, curious, with a strong-filled nature and a detective’s instinct that irritated him. She was definitely not the woman he’d dreamed of, the complete opposite of myself, very dreamy and easily manipulated. Later on, Sergio found me discussing with his friend and business partner and was a little bit jealous.
' Marc Anthony, I get the feeling you’re trying to steal my fiancée—watch out! he exclaimed, clenching his fist and smiling.
'No, no, my dear friend. I’m simply chatting with this lovely lady who, truly doesn’t leave one indifferent. We were talking about her law studies. She would make not only an excellent lawyer but also a lovely wife,' replied Marc Anthony, admiring my beauty, charm and also intelligence.
'I am a lucky woman and I could never thank Heaven enough for bringing this charming man into my life.There’s no doubt he’s the man of my life' she said, a broad smile playing on her lips.
' You’re both going to make me blush. Let’s raise a toast to the love between Helena and Sergio. You’re both absolutely lovely,’ Marc Anthony replied, raising his glass.
I was truly delighted with how things were turning out, but I was rather worried about Flora’s absence during these happy and very important moments in my life. With my glass of champagne in hand, I went to find Flora on the yacht’s balcony, but, surprisingly, Flora was no longer there. My concern for her grew, and I began searching the entire boat for her, unsuccessfully. One of the crew spotted her walking down the corridor leading to the boat’s cabins. I searched every cabin on the boat from top to bottom and eventually found her in Sergio’s cabin, looking for more information about him.
'My dear, what are you doing in Sergio’s cabin?' I asked, surprised.
'Sorry, I got lost and ended up here,' she replied, her heart pounding.
'But do you realise you’re prying into the affairs of the kindest person on earth? Why are you doing this? And what has he done to deserve this? Answer me, for goodness’ sake' ! she demanded, furiously.
' Sergio isn’t who you think he is, the billionaire you’ve fallen in love with. He’s a despicable and shameless man, and I wanted you to know that before you marry him. Don’t you dare marry him, I beg you, Helena,’ she said, crying.
'You’re nothing but a piece of filth. You’re trying to steal my billionaire boyfriend, aren’t you? I understand everything now. You’re secretly in love with him and you don’t even dare admit it openly, but know this: Sergio is mine and I have no intention of sharing him with anyone,' I retorted in a rage.
I stormed out of Sergio’s cabin in such a rage that I knocked over a tray of champagne glasses. As for Flora, she left Sergio’s cabin, taking his diary with her, which she took the trouble to hide in her bag. It contained all of Sergio’s most despicable secrets. Sitting at the yacht’s bar, I was in a right state. I was torn between believing my best friend and ditching my billionaire fiancé, whom I’d only just found, or going back to him as if nothing had happened.
Flora hurried back to the party and found me drowning my sorrows by downing one whisky after another. She couldn’t bear to see me in such a state and tried to persuade me to go back to our hotel. I was unresponsive to Flora’s pleas. I didn’t know what to do. I didn’t know which way to turn. Above all, I didn’t want to lose Sergio’s love—and, above all, his colossal fortune!
Chatting with friends, Sergio had no idea what was going on. Alerted by a waitress, he rushed over to see what was wrong. He found me in tears, my make-up running down my face and reeking of alcohol.
'What’s going on here? He asked Flora.
'Helena has just lost her father. She’s really upset by this sad news', she replied, pretending I just lost my father.
'Her father?” he exclaimed, surprised.
'Yes, her father,” she replied
'And to think I was just about to meet him? How sad,' he said, feigning sadness.
Flora led me into a cabin on the yacht. I was exhausted and had a hangover. Lying on the bed, I rambled on, saying whatever came into my head. Flora felt guilty for having told me all those things about Sergio. She had pulled the trigger that could lead to a complete break-up between me and Sergio . And to think that the worst was yet to come if she revealed the deepest secrets from Sergio’s diary. She didn’t want to relive the horrible scene I had put her through. She was torn between telling me the whole truth and keeping it for her.
A few minutes later, Sergio entered my room and found me lying on the bed, fast asleep. Flora was sitting by my bedside. Sergio approached me and stroked my forehead, trying to cheer me up even though I was asleep.
After this tender moment between me and Sergio, a gloomy atmosphere suddenly descended when Flora and Sergio’s eyes met. There was animosity in the air. It looked as though they were ready to come to blows. There was no doubt about it: there were buried secrets that Flora was on the verge of revealing, but she was making an effort to keep her mouth shut. Instead, she glared at him as if she were ready to spit in his face. She wanted nothing more to do with him, given the heavy burden of his past. She couldn’t stand him for a minute longer.
This man had kept secrets too heavy to bear, secrets that could tarnish the relationship I was trying so hard to build with him. For his part, he was aware of how Flora felt about him. Although he didn’t love her enough and thought she was playing detective, he had the impression he’d seen her somewhere before, at least once in his life, but couldn’t remember where. There was this sense of rejection that arose every time he tried to get closer to Flora. She was aware of it, as she knew his true identity.
She just wanted to wait for the right moment to reveal everything to the public. Flora still couldn’t stand Sergio’s presence in the room and went back to the party for a drink to banish the disgusting image of this man who had been ruining her life for years.
I finally opened my eyes again in the cabin and Sergio was rather delighted to see me smiling.
‘You’ve finally woken up, darling,’ he said, amazed.
'But what happened?' I replied, surprised.
'You don’t remember anything?' he asked, surprised.
'Yes,' I replied.
'You were in a state of shock over your father’s death and you started downing whisky one after the other.' I felt as though I’d lost you,’ he said, with a look of despair in his eyes.
‘I don’t remember that incident, I’m sorry,’ I replied coldly
I was clearly suffering from memory loss following the recent incident. Flora could hardly bear to see me in that state, and Sergio felt even less able to cope. He called Dr. Francis, a university friend of his, who examined me at his clinic
in Amalfi.
- Writer
