“AFTER THE HEAT”

After the heat, Marius lay himself down on the soft sofa, feeling drained. He stayed in that position for a few moments before getting up and dressing himself. He didn't say anything because, truthfully, he couldn't think of anything to say.

He felt guilty.

He thought about Sam.

He knew that once Sam found out about this, she would be hurt and even angrier with him. But why should he dwell on that? She had already left him, after all. She hid their child from him and kept them away. So now he had a reason to be angry too.

Marius let out a heavy sigh.

That's true. He harbored resentment towards Sam. But, as much as possible, he didn't want to nurture that anger in his heart. Because he loved Sam, and despite everything they went through, there was no other woman he wanted to be with but her.

"I don't want to admit to myself that my decision to let my heart fall for you, Sam, was wrong. But when I feel the pain of it all, that's what I want to do," he whispered as he glanced at Lena, whom he left lying on the sofa.

He didn't feel anything for the woman in those moments. Had his heart become numb from what happened?

He shook his head and grabbed the sling bag from the accent chair. He was leaving before Lena could wake up. Not for any particular reason, but he wasn't in the mood to talk to her. Besides, he wasn't sure if he would come back here again. He thought, Why would he stay silent for just one woman when he could indulge all those who chased after him?

He chuckled at his own thoughts. Then he exited the apartment and headed for his car. He got in and drove away from that place.

*****

Marius released a heavy sigh at that memory. It had been several months since it happened, and it hadn't repeated itself. As he had said, he wasn't content with just one woman. Instead, he indulged anyone who approached him. But, of course, he always practiced safe sex. That was something he couldn't forget.

He was in that state of mind when he heard soft but consecutive knocks on his office door. He knew who it was. His assistant, Terence. As expected, Terence was the one who opened the door.

"Sir, someone sent this for you," he said, handing Marius an envelope.

Marius's eyebrows furrowed immediately as he stared at it. Then he accepted it and looked at the face of the man in front of him.

"Who is this from?" he asked, opening the envelope.

He already knew what it was. But because there was nothing written on the back, the pounding in his chest intensified even more.

"It was just brought up by the guard at the entrance. They said a woman gave it. No name was mentioned," Terence replied.

Marius started to feel a knot in his stomach. "Which guard? Please call them, have them come up; I want to talk to them," he ordered, taking out from the envelope a card that was obviously an invitation.

Just as Terence turned away, Marius read the entire invitation card.

Get ready for cake and fun! MJ is turning 1!

The card was read, followed by the date and location of the party.

He was still in that state when there was another knock. He signaled for them to come in, and once again, it was Terence who entered. But this time, he was accompanied by someone else. A younger lady guard, it seemed.

"Are you the one who brought this up?" he asked.

The lady guard nodded. "Yes, Sir Marius," she replied respectfully.

Marius controlled himself to release a heavy sigh, and he managed to do so.

"She didn't mention her name," he clarified.

The woman shook her head. "No, sir. And she also left in a hurry."

"Did you recognize her?" Marius asked again.

"Yes, Sir. I remember her face aside from being incredibly beautiful, Sir Marius."

Marius couldn't miss the sharp admiration in her tone. That's why his suspicion that his lady guard was referring to Sam grew stronger. To confirm his suspicion, he decided to show the woman a photo of Sam on his cell phone.

"Look closely. Is she the woman you're referring to?" he asked.

"Yes, sir, she is," she replied.

At that point, Marius couldn't contain the breath that seemed to have gathered in his chest. Then he signaled to both of them to leave him alone. They quickly complied.

When the two left, Marius weakly pressed his fingers against his forehead. He didn't expect this. Besides, he had no news about the girl. In truth, he should be happy. He would finally get to see his child.

"MJ," he muttered.

Whether it was a girl or a boy, he had no idea. There was no picture of his child on the invitation, something he believed Sam did intentionally.

After all, where have you seen a birthday invitation without a picture of the child celebrating their birthday? Especially for a first birthday.

"If you're doing all this to hurt me, then you've already won," he added with a voice full of resentment as he stared at the picture of Sam still on his phone's screensaver.

*****

"Marius called me. He asked about Sam. What's going on, Andrew?" Lana asked when she called her husband.

"Let's talk when I get home, Sweetheart. I'm driving right now," Andrew replied to her.

Lana raised her eyebrows quickly. "You're coming home already?" she asked, glancing at the large grandfather's clock in the corner of their living room. "It's only past two! That's unusual!" she added with a delighted laugh.

"I have a surprise for you and Andrea. I'll probably be home in fifteen minutes. So please get dressed, okay?" he added.

Lana didn't ask further to avoid nagging Andrew. When they hung up, she also moved to do what he wanted. She went upstairs to check on their child, who was playing with the nanny.

*****

"What are we doing here?" Lana asked when she saw them enter the gate of an exclusive subdivision.

Andrew didn't answer; instead, he just looked at her and smiled kindly.

Seeing her husband's reaction, Lana didn't insist further. The truth was, she could wait anyway. It's just that her heart was beating too fast for an inexplicable reason.

When Marius stopped the car in front of a large and modern house, Lana opened her mouth again to ask a question. However, any plans she had in mind were halted when she saw from inside the car that the tall gate opened, revealing a handsome and well-built man who seemed familiar to her.

She wasn't sure where she had seen this man before, but he looked really familiar to her.

"Hello, he's been waiting for a while now. Actually, the table is ready," the man greeted us as Andrea's eyes immediately locked onto him after he greeted me.

"Thank you, Calum. Wait, I'd like you to meet my family. This is Lana, my wife, and Andrea, my eldest," Andrew said.

Lana accepted the handshake from the man Andrew called Calum. Then, it was Andrea's turn.

"She looks like her aunt," he said, staring at the child's face.

Lana raised her eyebrows. She felt they were getting closer to the truth. And she was not mistaken.

As they were being led by Calum, the cries of a child filled the entire household. Lana's chest tightened because of that.

"Daddy, isn't that a baby crying?" Andrea asked her husband.

Lana remained quiet, her gaze shifting until she spotted a familiar figure with their backs turned in the kitchen. Automatically, her eyes narrowed, and she took large strides toward the figure, calling out, "S-Sam?"

She could barely hear her own voice because her heartbeat was louder than anything else. Then, as the woman turned to face her while carrying a little boy, Lana couldn't contain her emotions any longer. Neither could she.

She quickly approached Sam and hugged her tightly. "What happened to you? We've been looking for you for so long," she said as she let go of the hug and looked at the child Sam was carrying.

Tears immediately welled up in Sam's eyes. "I'd like you to meet Marius de la Vega, Jr.," she replied instead, referring to the child in her arms.