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.

angel, he is

want him to

pause of my own, I nodded,

as she leapt off the bed and pulled the basket from under the

rummaged in it for a bit and then held out a thick black macrame cord

was in her

"Wear this.

lucky

said, her

black stone that had half

"It's yours.

keep it to

then slammed the shining black rock in

to me and I'm loaning

can give it back to me when

battle when I

and said,

you to go

down, instead she bit down on her bottom lip and regarded me with a suspicious look

The thought had crossed my mind too, instead of putting it on I'd have left it out in the apartment somewhere hidden but

she held out her palm in a silent demand as she moved on

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

the thread and my neck before she accidentally choked me as the thread wasn't too long and the broken

would just

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

makes you look the

daughter announced as she came

a tight hug, just then I

I said with a pout, "I thought I

palms and brought

eyes fierce as

always be the

said, "So

return

"I love you."

love you too,

back and ruffled

and I said, "Now,

laid down and I

I

"Good night, baby"

"When will you

"Soon."

replied "Good night,

drawer and made my way toward the bedroom door

"Yes, baby?"

be my new

and I swallowed the knot

be

she turned away and pulled the blanket up to her shoulders, Closing the door, I let out a

daughter had asked me about her father, I had to ignore her questions or make

her vaguely but always painting her father in the light that would leave room

I was purposely keeping her away from her father which was in fact a truth is

never knew that he had impregnated

pregnant when he threatened me and told me

didn't know even now that he has

him to tell him the truth and if I had gotten

know how he would react when the wounds inflicted by me had festered for so long that whenever his

my phone, I knew it even before I opened the message icon that it would

wasn't prepared for his

there in the next

Don't wear any panties."

naked so I wasn't going to obey his insane

my mother's bedroom to check up on her before I turned toward the apartment

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

I

intentionally force a daughter from her mother in the name of his revenge? I locked the door behind

no one out in the corridor but it wasn't the case as I stepped out of

to take notice of me when I