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 is

want him

own, I nodded, "I would prefer it if he

she leapt off the bed and pulled the basket from under the bed which was filled with the

it for a bit and then held out a thick

heart gave a painful pang as I knew what was in her small fist

"Wear this.

lucky

her

around the black stone that had half of its piece back somewhere in Black

"It's yours.

keep it to

slammed the shining black rock in my

it to me and I'm

give it back to

a losing battle when I

nodded and

I want you to

on her bottom lip and regarded me with a suspicious look and said, "Give it to me, I'll

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

now she held out her palm in a silent demand as she moved on her knees so she was behind

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

between the thread and my neck before she accidentally choked me as the thread wasn't too long and the broken rock came to settle on the

who would

that resembled a human heart, not the one 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 one place to another because of the stalker that didn't let

makes you look the

announced as she came

a tight hug, just then I heard my

my phone and focused on my daughter as I

my cheeks between her palms and brought my

fierce as she said, "You

will always be

blinked the tears away and said, "So are

and in return she kissed the corner of

"I love you."

you too,

pulled back and

face and I

and I

I kissed her

"Good night, baby"

asked, "When will you

"Soon."

"Good

the bedside drawer and made my way toward the bedroom

"Yes, baby?"

boy be my

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

will be

up to her shoulders,

asked me about her father, I had to ignore her questions or make up a lie that I didn't want to tell

would interrupt and answer her vaguely but always painting her father in the light that

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

knew that he had impregnated

I was pregnant when he threatened me and told

know even now that he

the truth and if I had gotten the chance to tell him the truth, if we hadn't been interrupted and he hadn't

now I didn't even know how he would react when the wounds inflicted by me had festered for so long that whenever

unlocked my phone, I knew it even before I opened the message

I wasn't prepared

be there in the next ten

Don't wear any panties."

feel half naked so I wasn't going to

and made my way toward my mother's bedroom to check up on her before

I decided to wait for him downstairs

I can help

a daughter from her mother in the name

in the corridor but it wasn't the case as I stepped out of the elevator on the ground

inwardly as people started to take notice of me when I came into the entrance