The world was too dark, so dark and cold that she didn't want to wake up, but something was pushing her to open her eyes, and when she finally did the headache was unbearable. She was in the back seat of a parked car and looked to the side, recognizing Andrew. “What did you hit me with?” Valeria complained, but Andrew didn't smile, he was too scared. “You fainted. Luckily you were already with me, but I don't want to imagine what would have happened if you had been alone,” Andrew muttered. “How do you feel?” “My head hurts a lot and... everything is spinning,” said Valeria trying to sit better, but it seemed that all her strength had left her. Andrew took one of her hands and caressed it with a comforting gesture while Valeria tried to recover. The whole story between Nick, Miranda, and her came to her all at once, and she felt a horrible tightness in her chest. “The conversation with Nick didn't go well, did it?” asked Andrew, and Valeria shook her head, feeling that lump in her

Valeria thought twice before leaving the elevator, but she couldn't miss work just because she was angry with Nick. After all, she had to keep the word she had given Andrew to finish her collections. Besides, it had been two days since Nick had gone to work. He hadn't called her, hadn't come looking for her, and she had preferred to keep a safe distance rather than have another confrontation like that with him. Nick hadn't believed in her, he had preferred to believe in Miranda's lies and manipulation. That's why he was still with her in the hospital. Valeria went into her cubicle, closed the door, and pulled down the blinds so she wouldn't have to deal with anyone. She knew that everyone in that company was aware of her argument with Nick and that more than one was having a blast because of it. She looked at her cell phone screen, but there was only silence. Nick wasn't going to call her until she apologized to Miranda, and she wasn't going to apologize to that witch. More than t

  Andrew Davies threw his head back, sitting in the chair behind his desk in his office at Davies Inc. He had stopped by to pick up Valeria's test results more than three hours ago, but since then, he had only stared at the envelope on the table, unable to find the courage to open it. If it turned out that Valeria was not his daughter, the disappointment would be enormous for him. But if it turned out that she was, then he would start the longest and hardest war of his life to get her back since he was convinced that Valeria would not forgive so easily what he had done to Lisa, or the way he had always been absent from her life. “Damn it, Andrew! How could you make so many mistakes?” he reproached himself out loud. Valeria wasn't the only one who would get hurt. What would the twins think if they found out they had a younger sister? He closed his eyes for a second and reached for the envelope. He started to tear it open when he heard footsteps and voices outside his door and only m

Miranda looked at that document with frustration. It was of no use to her and she had paid a considerable amount for it. The night before, Nick had come back to see her. He had fought with Valeria and kicked her out of his apartment, but as happy as that made her, Miranda knew it wasn't enough. With results like those Valeria could make Nick realize his mistake. He had to get her out of his life at once, with no chance of return! She dialed the number of the clinic employee she had bribed to get the results, and the man answered her right away. “I need you to change those results,” she growled without even saying hello. “Where it says Negative, I want you to put Positive.” “That will cost you more,” the man replied. “How much more?” “Triple.” “Triple? That's too much money!” Miranda complained. “And I sell myself for money, sweetie. I'm not a charity,” laughed the guy, and Miranda grunted with discomfort. “Fine, but I'll expect it in fifteen minutes in my mail!” “As soon as y

Valeria fell in the middle of that circle of surprised and shocked people, and her first instinct was to curl up into a little ball. But she was naked. Naked, exposed and vulnerable in front of all those people, and that wouldn't change. The cold of the air conditioning hurt her skin, and her cheek was pressed to the floor as her tears flowed uncontrollably. Never in her whole life had she felt so humiliated and so helpless. God, Nick had thrown her naked on the foyer floor! In front of everyone! How could he be so cruel? How could he be so inhuman? She felt her whole body begin to tremble as she heard laughter, murmuring, and sounds of pictures. She cringed with a sob and it was as if her brain suddenly disconnected from reality. This would become public. Her pictures, naked, humiliated, and outraged on Bennet Designs’ floor would travel the web. They would probably go viral within hours and she would forever carry the stigma of being the whore that Nicholas Benner had kicked out of

Valeria couldn't remember the last time she had bowed her head to anyone, and this time she was doing it in the middle of an unfamiliar crowd, because although she couldn't hold back the tears, she didn't want those around her to see her crying either. Luckily everyone was lost in their own worlds on the bus, wrapped up in their own problems. She got off six stops later, in front of an office building, and entered without hesitation. She rode the elevator up to the floor occupied by Davies Inc. and stopped at the reception desk, wiping her face. “I need to speak to Mr. Davies, please,” she asked as politely as she could. The receptionist looked her up and down and apparently didn't like the way she looked or how haggard she looked. “Do you have an appointment?” Valeria sighed but kept her cordiality. “No, miss, I don't, but it's because I'm here for an emergency. I know Mr. Davies will see me if you announce me, please,” she begged, feeling a lump in her throat. She needed to see

“Girl, are you sure about this?” Emma asked sadly. Valeria had tried so hard to get ahead in life, especially having such a big responsibility as taking care of Alice, that it broke Emma's heart just to imagine that all that effort had been in vain. “Yes, friend, I can't go on without working. You know that in the restaurant you don't earn much but at least it's something... and I already realized that I won't be able to work in the fashion industry again... at least not in this country,” answered Valeria hugging her legs on the sofa. “And you haven't heard from Mr. Davies?” asked Emma with curiosity. “He could help you get a job. He said he would help you.” Valeria swallowed hard and looked down. “The truth is that I don't want to contact him anymore, Emma. I've been thinking about it a lot and however I look at it, my relationship with him is ruined.” “Why do you say that, Val?” “Because if that paper that Nick showed me is real, it means that Andrew deceived me, he set me up..

Valeria closed her eyes for a second and her head bumped against the wall on which that row of seats was supported. She had slept, eaten, and waited in that chair for almost a week. Alice was very sick. The fever had taken five days to break, and Valeria could no longer remember when she had stopped crying. Her thoughts were dull and too painful. Although Alice's fever had finally gone down a little, she was still in danger, and Alan seemed as devastated as she was. The hospital bill was getting higher and higher, but she didn't care, even if she had to sell herself into slavery to save her little girl, she would do it without hesitation. She heard the shrill ringing of her cell phone and sighed before answering it. Both Oli and Lazlo called her every couple of hours to check on Alice's health. They were the only people in that company who cared a little about them, and she was grateful for that. Oli had a beautiful heart and Lazlo was a very tender boy, just right for her. They had

Elliot and Richard looked at each other as if their father had hit them with a baseball bat. It was almost easier to believe he was sleeping with Valeria and that they might actually have a sibling from them than to believe they'd always had one without knowing it. “You're kidding, right?” Elliot asked with a somber look on his face, and Andrew denied. “But how? Wh-when?” Richard stammered. “Well, the ‘how’ I don’t need to explain, do I?” Andrew sighed and turned to the small bar he had in the office. “But as for the ‘when’ we'd better sit down.” The twins fetched a couple of glasses and let their father pour them some whiskey to take the edge off. “Believe me, I had no idea Valeria existed until I met her and realized that her mother was the same woman I'd had a relationship with many years ago,” Andrew said, sitting down in a chair across from them. “And apparently her mother told her that her dad had died, so she doesn’t know anything either. Elliot shook his head uncomfortabl

The three Davies men swallowed hard when they heard Oli say that. The girl had an angry, pained expression on her face that was more threatening than any insult, and next to her, Lazlo looked rather uncomfortable as well. Andrew ushered her into the office, and Oli saw the twins come in as well. “Are you sure this concerns them as well?” she asked Andrew. “I don’t keep secrets from my children anymore, so you can speak freely.” “Mr. Davies, do you have any ties to Miranda Jones?” Oli blurted out without a drop of tact. “Her parents are my work competition... but beyond saying hello, no, I have no other ties to her,” said Andrew Davies earnestly. “Did you have a paternity test done for Valeria's pregnancy?” she asked again. Richard was getting upset. “Miss, is this an interrogation?” “Yes, that's exactly what it is,” Oli replied. “Did you have it done or not, Mr. Davies?” Richard let out a grunt of discomfort, but his father put a hand on his shoulder, it was obvious that Oli c