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

you want him to

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

my lap and then I watched as she leapt off the bed and pulled the basket from under the bed which was filled with the few toys she had gathered

held out a

a painful pang as I knew what was

"Wear this.

our lucky

said, her grey eyes

closed her fingers back around the black stone

"It's yours.

keep it

and picked up my hand then slammed the shining black

and I'm

back

losing battle

and said,

want you to go

lie down, instead she bit down on her bottom lip and

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

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

and she swiped my hair

the thread

who would just look in my

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

makes

announced as she

just then I

my phone and focused on my daughter as I said with

cheeks between her palms and brought my

fierce as she said,

be the

the tears away and said, "So are you, my

kissed her nose and in return she kissed the corner of

"I love you."

love you too,

back and

and I

down and I

down, I kissed

"Good night, baby"

"When will

"Soon."

"Good

and made my way toward

"Yes, baby?"

boy be

suffered another scratch and I swallowed the knot in my throat as I

will be

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

ignore her questions or make up a

of the time, my mother would interrupt and answer her vaguely but always painting her father in the light that would leave

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

knew that he had

I was pregnant when he threatened me

know even now that he has

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

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

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

I wasn't prepared for his

there in

Don't wear any panties."

dress already made me feel half naked so I

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

here soon so I decided to wait for

I can

what kind of man this Kristian was, would he intentionally force a daughter from her mother in the name of his revenge? I locked

the corridor but it wasn't the case as

notice of me when I came into the