Were you mine?

Chapter 35 Aftermath

Jake's POV

Surprisingly enough there was no breaking news or humiliating headlines doing the rounds.

I sat up on my bed, rubbed my eyes and looked at the clock again.

The bottle was in the bed beside me, the duvets stained because it must have spilled.

There was no way I could have fallen asleep had I not drunk a little.

The door bell rang.

My legs shook as I went ahead and answered it.

It was Rosa.

She pushed me and got inside , locking the door behind her.

" Do you have any idea what you did last night? Do you have any idea whose party it was? Do you have any idea whose wrong foot you stepped on , Jake? ”

She looked angry and disappointed.

" Look, I am sorry I messed up last night. Don't try to shove it in my face again and... ”

I ran my fingers through my hair, trying to fix them.

" Jake! You have been mourning your ex-girlfriend as if she was dead. She willingly left you. It happens. People leave. People break up and they move on. You are acting like a big baby... a psycho. Did she ever feel the same for you? She didn't even look back while she left you. And here you are losing your mind after her, picking up fights with heiress and baronesses. Ridiculous. It's absolutely ridiculous, Jake. ”

" Yeah! They are rich! So what? ”

I tried to ignore her, going back for my bottle.

Rosa literally snatched it from my hand.

" Rich? They are not rich, Jake. They are filthy rich. So rich, they have entire team managing their finance. They make or break this country's economy. If Kings and queens still roamed our nation, they would be called royalty. They literally own everything, Jake! Everything! Even our industry! ”

Rosa's words hit me like a cold slap.

It was kind of impossible for me to grasp that kind of power. I stood there, unable to muster a response. Her gaze softened for a brief moment, then hardened again.

"Jake, you need to get yourself together. This is the real world. People don't wait around for you to catch up. And last night... last night was a disaster."

I could only sigh and look around.

She sighed as well, shaking her head. "You need to change your ways,Jake!You better, Jake. Before it's too late."

***

At the Rodgers Mansion

( Third person point of view)

" I have never felt more humiliated in my entire life, like I did last night! What kind people is she associating with? ”

Elizabeth fumed in her chair as she leaned back.

She had not gone back home and neither did Mercy or Phill.

Elizabeth paced back and forth in her lavish office, the morning sun,seeping through the blinds, casting long shadows across the room. Her anger was palpable, radiating off her in waves. She looked scary.

"I will not let this slide," Elizabeth declared, slamming her hand on the desk. "This kind of behavior cannot go unpunished."She picked up her phone and began dialing. The first call was to the head of Channel 5 News.

"Listen to me carefully," she said, her voice cold and intimidating.

" Oh, Hi Elizabeth! What luck! Me receiving a call from you! ”

Came the enthusiastic response from the other side.

"Look,I don't have time to drag this. I don't want a single word about the party fiasco on your station. Name your price."

" Oh Lizzy! Now... Now! We are old friends aren't we? Even though those pictures are worth millions, what's that in front of your family image? Isn't it? ”

After a brief negotiation, she hung up, satisfied. The next call was to another news network, then another. Each conversation ended the same way...a promise of silence in exchange for a hefty bribe.

Finally she sank back in her chair and rang the bell with impatience.

The maids came scurrying immediately.

" Get me my goddam coffee... NOW! ”

They looked scared for their lives.

She sat down rubbing her temple with her thumb.

After gulping down the espresso like it was water, she pulled out her phone again and made the next call.

She dialed the number of her most trusted henchmen, Dominic.

"Dominic, I need you to do something for me. It's urgent," she said, her tone brokering no argument. "I want you to find everything there is to know about this guy named Jake. I want his past, his present, his family, both living and dead. Leave no stone unturned."

Dominic's voice rang crystal clear through the phone, reassuring her of his commitment. "Consider it done, Mrs. Rodgers. I'll have my men on it immediately."

Elizabeth hung up and turned to face the mirror.

"We'll see how long this Jake can stay hidden," she said, a sinister smile spreading across her face as she adjusted her hair.

"By the time we're through with him, he'll wish he never crossed paths with us."

" And damn, that Mercy! I will have to do something drastic to scare the shit out of her! She just quit that world of makeup and f*cks! If she isn't willing to follow in her mother's footsteps and rule the world, I might as well fix her marriage and get rid of her.

Better than bringing more disgrace to our family! ”

She turned around scribbling on the table with the pen, rubbing it so hard that the ball came off and ink splattered all across the wooden surface.