Take My Breath Away

Carlos' nostrils flared and his expression darkened. He was like an angry bull responding to the color red. He picked up the bill, crumpled it, and said through gritted teeth, "You asked for this."

'Holy crap! Why do I have to tick him off?'

She regretted having said that and ran towards the bedroom as fast as she could. But she was a little wobbly from the sexy time. Before she could open the door, he pulled her into his strong arms.

"Hey lighten up. A hundred dollars is all I can afford..." Tears streaked her gaze. "Carlos...Mr. Huo...come on." It felt just like old times—he banged her hard as if he never knew fatigue. He never slowed down, never cared if she was enjoying herself. He'd waited too long and would not be kept waiting.

Debbie really wanted to slap herself. 'I shouldn't have said that.'

"I have to prove myself to you," said Carlos. Any man would be humiliated when his woman said he wasn't good at it. Carlos was no exception. It was worse for him, because he was proud. He must be the best at everything.

"I'm sorry, old man. Please... Mmmph..." He kissed her hard, passionately, and she was unable to say another word.

That night, he did it again and again and pushed inside her harder and harder.

Outside, it was placid. The moon was high in the night sky and lit up the whole world. It was a tender night; the moonlight, diffused by the shades, shone on their entangled bodies, glowing with love.

Stephanie finally got to Carlos' bedroom at 11 p.m. She knocked, but got no answer.

She pushed the door open and was greeted by darkness. The lights weren't on. She flipped the switch, only to find the bedroom empty. Carlos wasn't here.

She caught a glimpse of the tidy bed, with its 100% long-staple cotton sheets, 270 thread count. It hadn't been slept in. That was when she grew suspicious.

'When did Carlos leave? Where is he?'

Unlocking her phone, she called him, but it went straight to voicemail. It must be off.

'I wonder when he'll be back?' she thought.

Debbie didn't know what time Carlos finally stopped and how she got to bed. The sun was high in the sky when she finally woke up. Piggy, who was dressed neatly, was playing with her toy on the bed.

When Debbie opened her eyes, Piggy called out, "Mommy."

"Hmm... Piggy, what time is it?" Debbie reached out for her phone, but to no avail.

Piggy didn't know how to tell time, but she knew figures. She grabbed Debbie's phone and read the numbers on the screen, "One zero two one."

Hearing that, Debbie instantly sat up. "Oh my God. You must be starving. Don't worry. Mommy's cooking now." When she tried to stand, her legs shook, and she put a hand to the nightstand to keep from falling.

"I'm full. I ate. Uncle Carlos ate too."

"Really? Who cooked? Where's Uncle Carlos?" And that was when Debbie realized that Carlos stayed overnight.

"Buns, porridge and dishes. A handsome uncle."

'A handsome uncle? Was he Frankie?' Debbie wondered.

"Who got you dressed?" Although Piggy knew how to put on a dress, she couldn't zip herself. This dress fastened from the back.

Piggy simply answered, "Uncle Carlos." Carlos even picked out this beautiful dress for Piggy himself. Was there no end to his talents? He might not have wanted a daughter, but he sure showered her with affection.

Debbie was rendered speechless. 'Carlos is really a good dad.'

In the afternoon, Debbie and Piggy were at the park. Piggy was going to ask for help with one of the playground toys when Lucinda called Debbie. "Hi Debbie, how's it going with Carlos?"

"Um... Not as bad as we were. Why?" Actually, she didn't know how to describe her current relationship with Carlos. They weren't together, but they certainly weren't apart.

"Is that so?" Lucinda's voice rang with confusion.

"What's wrong, Aunt Lucinda?"

"Here's the thing. Your uncle Sebastian told me that ZL Group had placed two big orders with his company. Is that something to do with you?" Lucinda asked. Not like they minded, of course. To Sebastian and Lucinda, the ZL Group did them a huge favor by bolstering their business like that. They didn't have to—they had so many other choices of who to go with. They figured Debbie might be behind it.

'Wow! Carlos is nothing if not efficient, ' Debbie thought. While keeping an eye on Piggy, who was on the slide, Debbie said with a smile, "My scandals hit Uncle Sebastian's company pretty hard. Their stock took a beating. So I..." Last night, she told Carlos that the Mu Group had suffered a lot because of their relationship, and asked him to do something to help Sebastian.

But Carlos made no promises. He just said, "It depends." She'd almost forgotten about it, and hadn't expected him to do something so soon.

Debbie didn't finish her sentence, but Lucinda was no one's fool. "Oh really? You aren't even back together with him, and you're asking him for favors? What if he thinks you are after his money?" People who hung around with Debbie all knew that Carlos had amnesia.

"Don't worry, Aunt Lucinda. He won't. It'll be fine," Debbie coaxed.

"Good to hear it." Lucinda was worried about Debbie, and felt helpless at the same time. "Oh by the way, Sebastian mentioned something to me. James Huo bought a house. It's not even in this country. It cost him almost a billion dollars." She lowered her voice and added, "If you want to find out more, ask Sebastian."

James had a ton of money, so a house like that didn't set him back too much. But Debbie could tell from Lucinda's tone that something was off. "Don't get Uncle Sebastian involved. I'll meet him later to discuss it. I have my own people on it."

"Debbie, you..." Lucinda was not convinced yet.

"Don't worry, Aunt Lucinda. I got this."

"All right then. Need to go! I have a meeting. Don't be a stranger." Piggy was going to Lucinda's kindergarten next month.

Colleen also planned to send Justus there as well. In order to give the two kids a better environment, Curtis poured some money into improvements.

"Got it. I'll take Piggy to see you when I have time," Debbie said with a laugh.

After hanging up, she decided to call Sasha. "Hi Sasha, where are you now?"

"Y City. Debbie, I'm screwed. I got pregnant! What should I do?" Sasha yelled.

Debbie was taken aback by the news for a while. Then she laughed out loud and answered, "Why are you so upset? Congrats! Does Jared know?"

Jared's and Sasha's parents knew about their relationship and wanted them to get married as soon as possible. But Sasha wanted to focus on her career first.

She hadn't expected that she'd get pregnant now.

"I haven't told him yet. I'm not sure if he'll be happy or if he even wants the baby." They'd never discussed children before. She didn't know how Jared would react.

Debbie rolled her eyes. "You can't just abort the baby because he doesn't like it.

Send him a text message or call him. See what he says."

"Okay." Then Sasha added, "Deb, why are you calling?"

"I'll visit your mom tomorrow. Are you coming with me?"

After a short pause, Sasha said, "How about I come home with you first? I'll tell Jared about it after that."

Debbie was confused. "Okay, but what are you afraid of?"