PMS1: President's Forgotten Wife

CHAPTER 21

CHAPTER 21: SHE HAD BEEN, ALWAYS WILL BE

IT FELT like forever since Jade ventured onto her walk around the island. She's been walking for the past couple of minutes, but until now, she still can't find a place to hang out.

Jade let her feet buried into the sand, making her feel the slight burn consigned to the grave beneath the shallow ones. Her skin lightly turned tan as she let her skin absorb every stroke of the sun that graced her bare skin.

The island was broad. However, it was an excellent place to walk and roam around. The trees are tall and admiringly swaying above her but adding to the accessories that bring more beauty to the surrounding's possession. Even though the sun is high, the breeze is cold, so you will not feel how hot it is. Her eyes pensively stare at the sky as her attention rested on the hordes of birds painting the plain sky with details.

She was kicking the sand while letting her fingers dance along with the movement of the air when something mysterious captured her attention.

Not far away from her is a green building, almost covered with glass. From her perspective, the building looks old and near to demolition. And because Jade was quietly paying attention, it was the oldest building around the island, making it a lot more mysterious. It's not connected with the mansion, but Jade was sure that it was still a part of St. Clair's property.

Without hesitation, Jade immediately walked towards the building but was halted right in front of the door and tried to peek inside before she decided to enter. It was too dusty inside, and Jade couldn't clearly see a single thing. So, instead of staying outside, she decided to open the door and let herself inside.

As soon as she entered, she immediately closed the door behind her and swallowed the new surrounding in front of her.

"Wow." Jade couldn't help but marvel at the beauty before her. If the word 'wow' were enough to describe what's in front of her, then everyone would understand what lies inside the old glass building.

It was a fantasy-like garden with different types of flowers displayed accordingly on other tables. Tall, short, and other plants that crawl on the wall were present. Small stems of flowers with assorted colors and forms surrounded Jade. It was like Jade existed in a fantasy movie where rainbow and colorful pieces of stuff besiege her.

It was like a garden of dreams inside a box of apparent reality.

"Why haven't I noticed this place before? Am I too occupied with other works that I failed to see this when I arrived?" Jade asked herself while still admiring the magnificence before her. Why didn't she see this magical place before? Because she had never attempted to go outside because she has a responsibility to attend.

Slowly, Jade then treads on the wooden floor because she felt like everything inside the place was fragile and one wrong move will shatter anything. But a smile formed on her lips when she thought that no matter how old and abandoned the location looked from outside, the refinement it possesses was daringly lying inside.

It was like time, and a certain period of the moment had scattered a combination of sand, leaves, and withered petals of flowers all around the area. The place was already old, and it smelled weird. However, the fragrance of it and the ancientness of the territory added to the mysterious ambiance of the area, which made the place even more fascinating.

At that moment, Jade wished to be a fairy, like in a fantasy movie where fairies live inside the flowers and fly around like there were no threats everywhere. But her short daydream was shortly disturbed when she suddenly felt her phone vibrate in the pocket of her pants.

Jade took a short glance around her to see a spot where she could sit until her eyes rested on a stool not far from where she was standing.

She took out her phone and saw her mom's caller ID flashing on the screen, enough reason for her to accept the call.

"What?! When do you plan to talk to your mother, you ungrateful one?! If I hadn't called you, you wouldn't have thought of calling or replying to my messages at all! Have you decided to forget about me?!" Her mother's word on the other line.

"I'm sorry, ma. I'm occupied with work and lost track of my personal agendas. I'm sorry." She replied, hoping that her mother would stop sulking from the other line because, at that moment, she just wanted to hear her mother's voice.

When her mom gets upset, Jade will have to cross the Earth to Neptune and back to get her mom's forgiveness. Her mom is grumpy, especially to her because she's the Guevara's unica hija.

"Are you coming home here or not? Because when I told you that I'd disown you, I never get back on my words, young lady!" First of all, Jade can't remember a day where she talked to her mom about her going home. Second, why is her mom getting angry in an instant? Is it not like she did something wrong?

"I do not know?" It's not a safe assurance to give her mom when she's angry, but Jade ended up saying it anyway. She answered, not even sure of what her mom wanted to hear from her.

Her mother was silent for a moment on the other line. Jade thought that the other line has disconnected, but when she looked at the screen, the call was still on-going. But when Jade returned the phone to her ear, she heard her mother's cry.

"Take care of your life. Let's just forget about each other. I don't need a daughter anymore! I'll make Janni my daughter to replace you!" And no doubt when her mom cut the communication off. Jade tried to call her many times, but none of her calls returned by her mother. Only then did she realized the day when Eisen took her phone and, with no permission, checked her privacy.

Jade hurriedly opened her conversation with her mother and saw the two messages she had received two days ago.

"Is Aunt Jena coming home with his son?" She thought until an idea entered her mind. "Aunt Jena only comes home from the Philippines when—"

Jade's fingers swiftly move like the wind when she opened her phone calendar, and her eyes almost dilated when she saw what the note said on the most special occasion she never thought she forgets!

August 23

Mom's 50th birthday

Save the date!

"Jade, you stupid piece of s**t! Of all the things you need to forget, why does it happen to be your mom's 50th birthday?! Urgh! Might as well prepare my coffin!" She admiringly cried out to herself in annoyance.

Why did that have to slip out of her mind? Maybe he was just so tired that she forgot how momentous the occasion is. Now, her mom will disown her by now.

Aside from that, her aunt Jena is finally coming back home with his handsome son; Jade had a childhood crush on him ever since the day he gave her his lunch! Jade can't miss this chance! She hasn't seen the young man for almost a decade now. And she wanted to see him will do her no harm. Besides, what can go wrong with meeting your long-time crush, right?

Jade bit her nails as she thought about how to seek weeks off from Eisen so that she could attend her mother's 50th birthday. She can't miss this chance to be with her family, so she would do anything to go home.

Then an opportunity strikes when she remembered Lewis's recommendation earlier. The man was giving her a two weeks day off away from the island to relax. And just by thinking about it, that was an excellent opportunity to visit her mom.

So, without thinking twice, Jade hurriedly went back to the mansion to talk to Lewis. She will take the proposal offered to her earlier and let Lewis come up with an excuse to tell Eisen why she needs to leave. Jade knew that Eisen would probably not let her go, and that's what she doesn't have to hear at the moment.

As soon as she entered the house, she first found Lewis just coming down from the second floor.

"Miss Guevara, did you go out without even notifying anyone where you'll be going? Where have you been anyway?" Lewis asked as he continued to walk until he stopped in front of the refrigerator, Jade persistently following from behind.

"The one you mentioned earlier about the two weeks day-off?" she started while Lewis took out a pitcher of cold water and poured it into the glass. "Can I go home tomorrow? I need to go home because of— because of some personal matters. I can go, right?"

Lewis frowned, and his expression changed into a smile. But before Lewis could respond, suddenly someone spoke from behind, startling Jade.

"Where are you going? And why are you letting him know first?"

__________

FREEZINGLY DEADLY. That was the tone of Eisen's voice when he saw his wife having a tete-a-tete. He's intrigued by what they might be talking about, so he deliberately eavesdrops. And surprisingly disturbing, Jade wanted to go somewhere, and she's telling it on Lewis instead of him!

He's not jealous! He's mad that Jade, his dear forgotten wife, is planning to leave the place and prefers Lewis to know all about it, and that's what he hated the most.

"I don't think that it would be much of a big deal if your wife decided to tell me about it," Lewis consciously uttered before draining the water from his glass.

"Well, you're not the husband here, so that won't be much of a BIG DEAL, but it is for me because I am Jade's husband!" Eisen shouted angrily. He clenched his fist and breathed in outrage at what his brother's defense is.

Then Lewis ended up giving Eisen a wide grin before answering. "Does it bother you that Jade chose to tell me a wife should be telling her husband? It angers you that you weren't the one she was supposed to be informed of, right?"

"Lewis, this is not the right time to be talking about your unsolicited sarcasm and annoyingly behavior. One more word from your mouth and I swear on my grandfather's name that you'll regret acting like that." Jade's statement was not a question nor a request. It was a command that if Lewis doesn't stop acting like a b***h, then she'll lose her calm again. 

When Lewis didn't say another word, Jade nods her head in approval. "Thank you for stopping. Now, please leave us, and I'll take this matter in my own hands," Lewis left without saying anything, and Eisen took the opportunity to speak this time.

"Well?"

"I' am planning to tell you. It just happened that Lewis was the first person I saw the moment I entered. And I think it's only suitable to inform him about it." Eisen turned her attention to Jade as she spoke. So, Jade was planning to tell him but ended up telling Lewis? Just great.

"Where are you going, and why does it have to happen tomorrow for you to depart?" he asked as he slowly calmed himself. Eisen does not want to shout at his wife because he does not want them to have another misunderstanding because of his anger un-management.

"You should know by now about it because you once peeked into my privacy without my consent." She replied before heaving a deep sigh and continued. "Mom's 50th birthday is just around the corner, and I am planning to surprise her. She's upset with me because I didn't call or text her the other day when she called me. And you should've known about it by now since you were the one who read her messages."

He suddenly remembered the text he had read from Jade's cellphone. No matter how calm his wife's voice is, Eisen knew that deep within, she's still disappointed because he read the messages.

It was their mom's birthday, but he can't remember anything about it.

"How many days?"

"Two weeks."

"Do you need to leave?" he sadly asked. Two weeks is too long. Eisen could not bear not to see the girl.

"You, telling me not to go is not what I want to hear right now, Eisen. You went into my phone and read my messages, and God knows where you've gone through, so you should not be surprised if I wish to take a few days and try to think. I hope you understand my situation because, trust me, I really need to breathe." Jade answered, the color in her eyes almost draining out of her body.

"I just don't want you to leave." And he doesn't want to see her go. Just thinking about it irritated him as pain pierces through his heart. Not this time, not again.

"You have your family with you, Eisen. You're complete again, and I don't want to ruin this opportunity for you to bond with them. Allowing me to go with my family is what you can do for me after making me feel that I don't deserve to have my privacy."

"I'm sorry for what I've done, and I would do everything to get your forgiveness. But, you're part of this family now, Jade," Eisen answered as he reached for her hand. He gently stroked the back of her palm as he looked straight at Jade's gray pensive eyes.

"That's not the point, Eisen. My point is, I want you to be with them without me. We've been together for almost two months, the moment you forgot about the past. But you hadn't made any progress when you were with me. Maybe I was the one who was stopping you from remembering those memories. And allowing me to leave will earn you my forgiveness," Jade took a deep breath before continuing,

"And I badly want to see my family. I haven't seen them in two years, Eisen. Please let me go and see them. You're lucky to have a family like them, Eisen. So, let me remember how lucky I am to have a family I have now."

He understands what Jade is saying. It was okay for him to let the woman leave. But there was only one thing that pierced his heart, which troubled his mind.

"What if you don't come back? What if you'd prefer to stay there? What if-"

Before Eisen could finish, Jade cupped his cheeks against her palms before giving him a wide smile. "I'll be back, and that's a promise I intend to keep. If you don't believe me, then we can make a pinky promise."

Eisen longingly stared at Jade's eyes as if seeking assurance that his wife intends to keep her promise. And there he saw, the severity of her sincerity behind her pensive eyes. 

"Then, let me seal it now." and at that moment, he closed the distance between them my resting his palm on Jade's nape, and drew her closer, letting his lips glide to the softness of her skin.

A simple daring touch was enough to make him feel that tingling sensation that only Jade could only wake up inside him.

Her skin against him was already enough to seal the promise that the woman made— a kiss that made him want to hold on to her tighter, more prolonged. Jade was sincere with her words, and her eyes were honest to tell him that he should never doubt her leaving because his wife has no intention to do such.

Is this the first sign? That finally, Jade has forgotten about the divorce paper and planned to give Eisen another chance? 

Eisen deepened the kiss by pulling Jade closer to him, making his lips create an intensity between them before moving his lips against her. And he knew that deep within him, Jade is the one. She had been and always will be.