"Wow…" she said with genuine amazement, paying attention to every detail in the room and the man who had stood up, with his shirt unbuttoned at the chest, revealing a bit of his skin. Alice scratched her neck and turned her head, suppressing a yawn. "I almost stood you up, Robert," she said, embarrassed."Good thing you didn't. I was about to pop the champagne, open the gifts, and dance by myself.""Dance?" She took a few steps towards him. "Can you dance?""Is your bedroom door closed?" so the music wouldn't wake Ethan."I think so.""Then, let's see if I can dance." He pulled his phone out of the right front pocket of his trousers and in a few seconds, music started playing behind them. Robert confidently approached her, putting his phone back in his pocket, placed one hand on Alice's waist and raised the other for her to join hers to his. With a half-smile and a lot of enthusiasm, Alice did so, moving closer to Robert, so her head was near his chest and shoulder. He took the first

It smelled faintly of smoke. How could a simple piece of bread in the toaster burn so badly? She couldn't understand it.When Ethan woke up, not crying, just making some noises, Alice responded to his call, leaving Robert in bed. She got Ethan ready, and they went to the kitchen, giving the day off to the lady who did the cooking and cleaning, after tidying up from the previous night. She had slept in Robert's bed! She felt great after that night of sex, and it had been a magnificent birthday. The third gift was still on her bed, unopened because she wanted to prepare breakfast for Robert. Now she realized that was a bad idea; she should have let the lady prepare breakfast before leaving. Now she was in trouble!She took Ethan out of the kitchen and began to disperse the smoke before it set off the alarm. A small piece of bread had gotten stuck in the toaster, causing all the smoke. Exhausted, Alice realized she wasn't cut out for this."I'd better stay rich, or we might starve."She

Robert walked past Noelia, who was only a few meters away from her husband's office. "Wait, Robert," she said, noticing the items in his hands as Robert stopped. She approached him, for Robert did not step back to where she was. "How long has it been since we've seen you?" Her sweet voice carried a tinge of insincerity, coupled with a low tone meant to avoid being heard by her husband. Noelia came from a good family and met Cedric while he was teaching classes at the university, thanks to a part-time job he had while about to graduate. She was just starting university. Falling in love with Cedric was as natural as breathing for her, given Cedric's attractiveness, intelligence, and attentiveness, though he harbored some secrets and was reluctant to open up to others, trusting almost exclusively in his mother. He didn't even maintain close contact with Mr. Graham, his father, since the divorce between his parents happened when he was very young, and his father immediately started anoth

To change things up, they were drunk. After dinner, the two went to chat in the study, but Cedric began to pour one drink after another, until the laughter began, along with the sincere conversations."Where... is Connor's mother?" he asked, sprawled on the sofa, he removed his shoes and socks, turning his body toward his brother. Cedric was in his chair, with his feet on the desk, also removing his shoes. "Connor told me she was still in rehabilitation, but if I remember correctly...""Robert..." he stopped him, not letting his brother continue. "I know you're worried about Connor, but as I've told you, things here can be a bit difficult for him, but it's also because he doesn't put in the effort.""That doesn't answer my question." Occasionally, Robert didn't know when or how to keep quiet, and most of those times were when he was drunk or because he was very interested in a topic. Like at that moment. "Tell me... what happened with Miss Silver?"The door to the study opened just th

He felt a weight on the bed and opened his eyes, the next thing he felt on his face was his son's hand slamming hard into his cheek, followed by Ethan's laughter as if mocking his sleepy father. Alice was watching from the side, still in pajamas, but Ethan was fresh, changed, even combed, wearing nice shoes, and holding a toy in his left hand, which he threw at his father's face, but Alice stopped it before it could hurt him.It seemed like a silent revenge from his son."Are you trying to hurt me?" He asked, taking him in his arms and sitting up. "Good morning, Alice. Have you been here long?" He was very tired and hadn't heard them come in."I want you to take Ethan out for a walk, to the park or shopping, whatever you come up with. He hasn't been out for days, there's no reason for him to be cooped up.""Can't it wait until later?" It seemed she wanted them to leave immediately, and he was just barely opening his eyes to the new day. The two of them seemed to have been awake for qu