Blackmailed For Love

I sat down on the sofa and opened the first box of the two in the soft overhead light coming from above the tv console.

I peeled the soft tissue that glimmered in the dim light and looked at the dark purple silk nestled in there.

With hesitant fingers I picked up the silken fabric, it unfurled in my hands as I let it drop down in front of me.

It was a sleeveless and a backless dress with a slit up to just below the waistline.

I would be half naked in this dress but still the thought of wearing it lit up a spark of anticipation deep inside my lower belly.

The other box had the same colored heels with red bottoms.

It took me twenty minutes to get ready as I didn't do much except to put Band-Aids on my nipples as the dress won't allow me to wear a bra and my nîpples poked through the fabric as if begging for attention and applied a natural shade of pink lip gloss.

I looked like a virgin trying to be a seductress.

I shook my head at my own thoughts as I stepped out of the bathroom, 1 faltered when my eyes met dark greys.

My daughter was sitting up in the bed and she was looking at me with wide eyes and a curious tilt of her head.

"Anna…"

"Mama, you look beautiful."

My heart squeezed with love at her words.

I walked to her, concentrating on not falling face first because of the heels I was wearing, it was safe to say I wasn't used to such type of footwear.

"What are you doing waking up? I thought you were asleep."

I said as I sat down on the bed beside her.

"I was."

She said with a silent Duh at the end.

I bit down on my bottom lip as my lips twitched, but she slipped closer to me and said, "I had a bad dream."

I cupped her cheek and pulled her on my lap, uncaring of the expensive silk.

Cradling her against my chest, I smoothed her dark hair back and asked, "Talk to me.

What did you dream about?"

"Someone was taking me away from you."

She replied, her voice small and a slight shaking entered in her voice.

My arms tightened around her.

And I said, "No one is going to take me away from you."

2 "Promise?"

I pressed a kiss on her head.

"Promise, my little angel."

She looked up at me and asked, "Where are you going?"

I didn't know the answer to that myself, but I replied, "Dinner."

Her brows lowered and her grey eyes turned inquisitive.

"But we had pizza."

I tapped her nose.

"Yes.

But I am meeting someone."

"A boy or a girl?"

For some reason I didn't lie to my daughter.

"A boy."

She made a thoughtful face and asked, "Is he your boyfriend?"

I shook my head.

he

want him to

a thoughtful pause of my own, I nodded, "I would prefer it if he was

leapt off the bed and pulled the basket from under the

held out a thick black

a painful pang as I knew what was in

"Wear this.

lucky charm,

her grey eyes

black stone that

"It's yours.

should keep it to

picked up my hand then slammed the shining black rock in my palm and closed my

gave it to me and I'm

give it back to me when

battle when I

nodded and said,

want you to

she bit down on her bottom lip and regarded me with a suspicious look and said, "Give it to

too, instead of putting it on I'd have left it out in the apartment somewhere

demand as

put the threaded rock in her palm and she swiped my hair aside, then her small fingers got busy as she tied

she accidentally choked me as the thread wasn't too long and the broken rock came to settle on the hollow of

everyone who would just look

that we drew as children but with jagged edges and veins running inside it, crystal clear and shining but now I only had smallest broken part of it, the other half and the bigger part was left behind in the cottage on the Aaron estate when I accidentally dropped it while trying to pack all the things I could get my hands on which didn't matter later when I had to run from

makes you look

as she came

just then

my daughter as I said with a pout, "I thought I was already the

palms and brought

fierce as she said, "You

will always be the

away and said, "So are you, my little

in return she kissed the corner of my

"I love you."

you

pulled back and ruffled

a face and I

down and I tugged the blanket over

down, I kissed

"Good night, baby"

asked, "When will

"Soon."

"Good

way toward the bedroom door when her soft voice

"Yes, baby?"

this boy be my

scratch and I swallowed the knot in my throat as I said, "Go to sleep,

will be back

blanket up to her shoulders, Closing the door, I

her father, I had to ignore her questions or make up a lie

my mother would interrupt and answer her vaguely but always painting her father in the

thought that I was purposely keeping her away from her father which was in fact a

never knew that he had

pregnant when he

even now that he has a

the truth and if I had gotten the chance to tell him the truth, if

know how he would react when the wounds inflicted by me had festered for so long that whenever his eyes landed on me they were resentful, cold

myself straight and unlocked my phone, I knew it even

wasn't prepared for his

there in

Don't wear any panties."

so I wasn't going to obey his insane

his text and made my way toward my mother's bedroom to check up on her before I turned

I decided to wait for him downstairs because I didn't want him anywhere near

if I

Kristian was, would he intentionally force a daughter from her mother in the name of his revenge? I locked the door behind me and slipped the key

in the corridor but it wasn't the case

as people started to take notice of me when I came