Chapter 1
Big Reveal
He was one of the last people that she expected to walk into her office.
Ava shot to her feet, lines of surprise drawn across her face like some map. She was very much angry to see James Carter standing in front of her. Some years back, he had been the cause of her problems and she didn't like the fact that her enemy was coming to her.
That was not how it was supposed to happen. Her enemies needed to stay the hell away from her. After all she had gone through.
"What the hell are you doing here?" Ava wanted to know. One hand hovered over the receiver in its cradle. If James has nothing sensible to say to her, then she'd quickly call the guards.
"Hello, Ava."
"I asked you a question, James. What the hell are you doing here?"
"I came to see you, Ava. It's been a while."
"Is that all?"
James hesitated. Then he said, "No."
"What?"
"There is something you have to know, Ava. And I really think it is high time I let you know."
Ava looked at him for some moments. She wondered what it could be. What did he have to say to her after all these while?
James had been the personal secretary to Damon Blackwood back when she was married to him. Ava wasn't sure if he still held that position. After all, Damon had divorced her and left her to rot and suffer on her on.
"Can I at least have a seat?" James said, when he saw that Ava wasn't about to say anything else.
"No," Ava said, lifted her hand from the receiver and folded her hands across her chest. "You don't get to have a seat in my office, James. You either talk, or you leave."
And she sat down in her executive swivel chair, leaving him standing on the other side of her black and gold lacquered ivory table.
James sighed and nodded his head in understanding. "Ava, I am here because I have had a change of mind."
"A change of mind?"
"Yes. What happened to you should not have happened. You didn't deserve to be treated that way. You deserved better because none of it was your fault."
Ava said nothing. She waited for him to go on with his speech.
"It was all your sister's plan, Ava."
"What are you talking about?"
"Lily? It was her all along. She drugged you the day you both went to the bar. And... I... I was the one who helped carry you to Damon's room."
Ava stared at him. She knew there had been some foul play involved in the whole matter but she wasn't sure who and who were responsible for it.
Now here he was, in flesh and blood, spewing out a confession regarding his involvement in the matter.
"See your sister was the one who actually drugged you. But Damon had no idea that you were actually the one in his bed that night. Because why? You both are identical twins."
Ava said nothing.
"He slept with you and that sexcapade wasn't a secret matter to some people. Victor had to force him to get married to you because it would save the face of the company and make Damon a worthy replacement for his father."
"Wait, is this the same Victor I know?"
"Damon's uncle, yes. He oversees the company."
"Well, he can go to hell."
"I know you tried to make that marriage work but Damon was already too in love with your sister, and he wanted no one else. Then you tried telling him about it. But you made one silly mistake."
Ava scoffed. "And what was that?"
"You told Lily about it first. She had to tell Damon that you planned the whole thing just so you could get married to him and have some claim to his wealth.
"Damon began to resent you with every fiber of his being. Lily didn't want to lose his attention, so she played her cards right. You know the rest."
Yeah, she did. Damon told her to eff off and that he never wanted to see her face anymore.
"Does he know about the pregnancy?" James ventured to ask.
Ava's eyes turned hostile. She didn't want anyone asking about her pregnancy. She had kept it but that wasn't an information she would like to give to anyone. Especially James who had been responsible for her predicament.
"He doesn't know anything," Ava said.
Without asking her permission, James sat down in the chair. He looked ready to break something to her.
"Ava, I want to help you in any way that I can. I am also here to ask for your forgiveness. I know that it has been five years already, but I could not live with the guilt. If only I knew what was going to happen, I wouldn't have wanted anything to do with it."
Ava scoffed as if she didn't believe him. "I doubt that. People like you just need the money. Pretty sure my sister paid you for the performance, didn't she?"
James said nothing and Ava confirmed her suspicions. She shook her head and leaned forward, her hands resting on the table. "What did you hope to get by coming to my office, James? All the way from the States?"
"I did my findings and realized that you'd soon be heading the new branch in the States. You'll be coming home, Ava. And if you have any hard feelings towards them, I'd like to clear my name."
"But I wouldn't have even suspected you."
"Yeah. But your sister is a b***h. And I wouldn't be surprised if you wee planning something against her."
Ava thought about what he had said. "This isn't just about me, is it? This is also about you. You aren't just feeling guilty for what you did to me. You've been treated worse as well, haven't you?"
James sighed, and said, "Yeah. But that's a long, brutal story. When you're back the the States and if you ever make up your mind, call me." He slid his card across the table and got to his feet. "I am the only one who can help you, Ava Winters. And if I were you, I'd take it."
