Chapter 72 OH MY VENUSNINA’S HOME, NEW YORK.“Mum, is there a need to do this?” Jace questioned his mother as they parked the car in front of the house.Venus glared hard at him. “And who are you to tell me what to do?”“That question also applies to you, mum. Xander is not a child; whatever he decides to do with himself is none of your business.”“He is my son, and I will determine what becomes of him. I am not going to have my son roaming around homeless.”Jace cackled. “You make me laugh. Why are you talking like he is a jobless man? He is full grown, mum. Learn to mind your business.” Without warning, Venus smacked him from behind his head. Jace whined in pain. “I really should call the cops on you, mum. What you just did is assault. You are being a threat to my life.”“I would like to see you try. I know this is your way of stalling for time. Someone has been calling you since we drove down here. From how you keep glancing back at it, it’s important. So you had better press that
Chapter 73 Nina’s Real FearsNINA’S HOME, NEW YORK.Nina suddenly shifted away from Xander; gathering herself together took her a brief second. Xander leaned into the couch, staring at her in amusement.“Are you about to give another hormone excuse?” There was a trail of teasing in his words.She shut her eyes tightly, letting out a soft chuckle. “Can we not capitalize on it, please.”Xander raised both hands in surrender. “Alright, mama. Whatever you want. So what did you discuss with Carla?”She leaned further into the couch, stretching her legs out. “Nothing. I mainly asked her why I should go to dinner with your mum.”He laughed lightly. “You are so blunt. So what have you decided?”“Well, to not be rude, I will go to the dinner, and you will have to come with me to get a dress.”“I will gladly do that. Do you want to go now?”“Yes, please. And I would like something nice to eat. My baby wants some.” Nina mused, rubbing gently at her belly.“Okay then. Let me change quickly.”They
Chapter 74 Dinning with the Jackson FamilyJACKSON’S HOME, NEW YORK.Johnson stared at his wife with evident exhaustion in his eyes. Venus can be too extreme when she puts her mind on something. He is still surprised by her announcement. Xander having a woman whose birthing date is near doesn’t sound much like his son. Even if they aren’t so close, he knows the boy like the back of his palm.At the same time, Xander can be unpredictable. He had started a company in the corner of his room without informing anyone until he got his first investor. The turnout had hurt Johnson as he had always hoped his sons would take over the company. To make things worse, Jace joined his brother's wagon, leaving their father to handle everything himself.“You might be disappointed at this point. Don’t you think you are doing too much?” He queried from the chair he was seated on, interrupting Venus's humming session.She cut him a glare. “You are why Xander must have kept something like that away from u
Chapter 75 Market ValueX&J EMPIRE, NEW YORK.“How is the market value that I asked you to check?” Xander asked Lisa while keeping his eyes on the tablet in his hand.Lisa made a sound before responding. “I just sent it to you now. Many are backing out due to the debts the company is owing. The market value is at its lowest, but the clause pays the other money without remaining a dime.”He hummed, nodding his head slowly. “Jace, what do you have on the probability of sales in the next six months?”Waiting for his turn, Jace sat up and passed a document to his brother and Lisa. “So, depending on what we have gathered, the merger would boost the sales tenfold. However, we chipped in the possibility of unforeseen circumstances. Which would bring us to five times the profit.”“Does that mean Nina’s proposal is top-notch?” Xander asked.“Yes, sir. We did market research and had the team conduct a proper analysis and survey. What we got enabled us to have a sketch of the incoming sales.” Ja
Chapter 76 Good MemoriesNINA’S HOME, NEW YORK.Nina turned to the side, letting out a soft yawn. It's been so long since she slept so soundly. Repositioning herself, she felt a protective arm around her. It took her a second for the positioning to register in her heart. She looked up to see Xander’s handsome, sleeping face.A small smile played on her lips. She had been having difficulty sleeping due to excess peeing last night. Her refusal to remain at home and resume office had prompted a bit of discomfort in her body. Even after taking her pills, she couldn’t stop moving around. Xander wouldn’t have known of the ordeal she was enduring if she hadn’t gone to the kitchen to get water to drink and found him in the living room, drinking by himself.He looked distraught when she explained her condition. She assured him it was nothing serious; they stayed quiet for some time and started talking and reminiscing about their time together when they were dating in college. It was always a s
Chapter 77 Dolled UpTHE MALL, NEW YORK.“Why are we shopping again?” As they walked into a clothing store, Nina asked Tania for the umpteenth time.Tania groaned, “Can you just trust me, please? I am trying to get you a nice dress and take you to dinner.”“Dinner? Why is that all of a sudden?”“Just because I want to spoil you! I want to treat my friend nicely. Especially since I want to be your child’s godmother.”Nina laughed. “Like anyone else would ever be the godmother. You know it will be you. Like there is anyone else.”Tania grinned eagerly. “Now that we have agreed on that. How about you try this on?” She pulled out a lovely white dress on the cloth rack, handing it to Nina.“This looks nice.”“Try it out then.”Nina walked into the dressing room a bit reluctant. She wasn’t a fan of changing, but Tania wasn’t a person she could refuse. She wore the dress, and a pleasant gasp escaped her lips. The dress clung to her nicely and didn’t make her uncomfortable. She already loved
Chapter 1 The DinnerTHE TAYLOR’S HOME, NEW YORKButterflies ran free in Nina’s belly, making her the happiest person on earth. It's been so long since she had desired the gift, and it finally came to her when everything seemed to be heading for the rocks. Her eyes lingered on the paper in her hand, and she squealed in extreme delight. It's been days since she kept the news to herself, hoping she wouldn’t let it all out in excitement before the right time. Now that the day had finally come, she couldn’t wait to tell the world. Humming a Beyonce tune to herself, she changed from her outing attire to something more comfortable and headed to the kitchen.“What would you like me to prepare for dinner, ma’am?” Tania, the kitchen help, asked Nina.Nina smiled sweetly at her. “There is no need to worry, T. I will cook myself.”She raised a brow in surprise. “Why, ma’am? There is a lot to cook today. Are you sure you can handle it? Is everything okay?”“Everything is fine. I am just willing
Chapter 2 He is SterileTHE TAYLOR’S HOME, NEW YORK.The silence that followed her announcement wasn’t what Nina expected from the people she considered her family. She looked from one person to the other, her smile fading. Her hands rubbed at her belly unconsciously.“Didn’t you all hear me? I get that, and it is the shock. But this is good news. I am six weeks pregnant. I am carrying the first grandchild of the family.” She said, staring at her parents-in-law.Asher blinked in shock and didn’t know what to say until he felt someone kick his foot under the table, like someone touched by a hot pan. He yanked his hand out of Nina’s hand, hissing loudly.“What did you just say?” He bellowed.Nina stared in evident confusion. “You heard me, baby. I am pregnant. We are having a baby.”Asher got up from the chair, ruffling his hair. He took his time to come up with the right things to say as he kept pacing the room back and forth. Pausing abruptly, he pointed a shaky finger at Nina. “Is t