The entire flight back home, I couldn't stop thinking about Phyllis' words. She wouldn't tell me more than she already had, reminding me that I had a trip to prepare for. I tried telling her that I had more than enough time, but she wouldn't let up.

Eventually I gave up.

I looked out the window, knowing that I'd be home in a few minutes, and yet I wasn't looking forward to the trip anymore; not with this revelation swimming in my mind. It explained so much, without explaining anything at all.

I'm making no sense.

What I mean is that her revelation explained Olivier's surprise and unwillingness to see her, but it didn't give much about why he would be that way towards her. She doesn't seem to have any animosity towards him- if anything, she seems to be on his side.

So why would he not want to see her?

I had so many questions in mind, and I realized then more than ever that I was even more curious about Olivier's ex-wife. If Phyllis is technically Grace's former aunt, how come Grace didn't seem to know her or Nina for that matter?

I was nudged out of my thoughts by the person sitting next to me. The plane had landed and I'd felt nothing from it. I was so lost in thought that I didn't even realize that I was one of the last people to have to get off of the plane.

I spotted my brother and his best friend as soon as I walked out of the airport. "Hey sis!"

"Hello little brother, hello CJ," I said, hugging them.

"Hey Rose," CJ replied, laughing as he hugged me back.

"You know, you don't actually have to say little," Richard argued.

"Can't let you get a big head and start thinking that you're older," I teased.

"We all know that you're just saying little to make yourself feel better about being the true kid between us. Now that I think about it, it's ok Rosie. You can keep it," he countered.

I glared at him. "Funny."

"I thought so too," he said proudly.

"Can we leave before I decide to disown you?" I requested, making them both laugh.

My brother put my luggage in the back, huffing as he did so. "Did you bring your entire closet with you?"

"Why?" I asked as we started the journey to my mother's house.

"Your luggage is heavy Rose. We're just going to see mom. You did not need to pack that much," he pointed out.

"I know that, but for your information, this isn't my only destination," I informed.

He frowned. "Where else are you going?"

I smirked. "Wouldn't you like to know?"

"Oh come on Rose! You and I have no secrets, remember?" he pointed out.

"That's actually not true and you know it," I countered.

He put his hand to his chest, gasping. "What is this? Are you actually hiding things from me?"

"You're hiding things from her too dude," CJ commented.

"Thank you CJ!"

"Dude, whose side are you on?"

"I'm on the right side, and the right side says your sister's right on this," CJ responded.

"We are talking about this later," Richard told him and he just shrugged.

I laughed. "I don't think mom is going to be ok with us rocking up like this."

"I tried calling her, but once again, it sent me to voicemail," he said.

"This is so strange, and I really hope she's not in any kind of trouble," I commented.

"Well, we'll find out in a few minutes," he replied.

We spent the rest of the trip with him catching me up with everything going on in his life. Their team is rising in their league, which is something he's super stoked about. I was beyond shocked to learn that he and Grace communicate every now and then. Apparently they catch each other up on the latest books and games.

I guess it's a good thing they get along.

That's the only thing I could truly think about the situation. My brother doesn't know that I've already met Olivier (and so much more), but at least he's warmed up to Grace. A part of me would like to believe that that means something.

We pulled up to my mother's house and the light in the lounge was on. We figured we should leave my bags in the car and instead check on her first. We opened the door and we could hear giggling. We followed the sound and almost instantly wished we hadn't.

"MOM!" we both shrieked.

She and her guest jumped in panic. She rushed to grab her gown while my brother shielded his eyes. Her guest was fully dressed, but she was in a costume no child should ever have to see their mother wearing, much less dancing in.

But that's not even the worst part.

No; it was the look on her face, the look in her eyes. Her makeup was beyond tacky, with a lipstick streak running onto her cheek. Her hair was a mess and I couldn't even tell if she had bags under her eyes or not from the amount of mascara running down her face.

"What the hell are the two of you doing here?" she asked us.

"Wow! We worry about you and this is how you greet us? We've tried to reach you for so long, and every time we do, you're always weird on the phone," I told her.

"And now we know why," Richard said, glaring at our mother's guest.

"You clearly didn't get the hint. I didn't want you coming here," she said.

"Maybe I should leave," the man said awkwardly.

"No, stay," she told him.

"So we should leave then?" Richard asked her.

"Preferably," she responded.

Both my brother and I were stunned. "Wow, just, wow."

We stood for a few seconds, hoping she would change her mind, but alas, such did not happen. We both turned and left, undoubtedly feeling the same rage. It was happening all over again, and we'd managed to lie to ourselves, hoping that it wasn't the case.

"That was short. Why do you guys look so angry?" CJ asked.

"Where are you going to stay?" my brother asked me, ignoring his best friend.

"I can afford to stay at a hotel now that I'm confident that my trip here will be even shorter. Please take me there," I requested.

He nodded and took the keys from CJ. What I've always liked about CJ is that he's the one friend of Richard's who never judged us or the situation we were in growing up. Instead, much like now, he was there for my brother and he didn't ask any questions he knew we wouldn't be able to answer.

The drive to the hotel was a quiet one and once we arrived, they helped to get my bags to the bellboy while I went to get a room. Once I had one, the bellboy agreed to take it up while I said goodnight to them.

"We need to t-"

"We're not talking about this, not right now Richie," I pleaded.

He sighed but nodded. I hugged them both before heading up to my room. I wasn't sure what to feel. I headed straight to the bedroom and sat for a while, doing nothing, until I got the spontaneous urge to scream.

Which I did into the pillow.

"Hello?" I said as I answered the phone. I hadn't checked the caller I.D as I did.

"Hello? Did you just hello me? Are you ok?" he asked.

I sighed. "No, I'm not."

"I'm on my way home. I'm at the airport now," he informed.

"Did you even sleep?" I asked.

"I get to sleep on the plane," was his brilliant response.

"That's not even healthy, but I'll let it slide," I replied.

"What's wrong Rose? You're making me panic here," he pointed out.

"It's nothing that can be fixed over the phone. I'll see you when I get back to San Francisco," I said before hanging up.

I switched off my phone because I knew he'd just try to call me again, and I know it was a horrible thing to do, but I really wasn't in the mood to talk, not even to him. I just wanted to be left alone to try and deal with the situation I was in.

I couldn't sleep as I stared at the ceiling. I was overwhelmed by memories and feelings from the past. Before I knew it, I'd turned on my side and started crying. I don't know how long I cried for, but I cried myself to sleep.

When I woke up, I had the headache of the century and it was a struggle to get my eyes to open. The last thing I expected to find when I finally did open them was my boyfriend leaning against the doorframe, seemingly on the phone.

He looked handsome as ever in a pair of dark jeans, brown boat shoes and a blue sweater. He looked visibly upset as he listened to the person on the other end speaking. I looked to my phone and found that it was one in the afternoon.

Given the night I had, I'm not even the least bit ashamed.

"Just get it done Pablo! We're not losing the Mexicans to that fucker!" he said angrily before hanging up.

"I hear such rage at this time is a bad thing," I commented.

"And what time would that be? We can't argue about morning since you're well passed an hour into the afternoon," he said plainly.

I sighed. "What are you doing here? You shouldn't have been here for the next couple of hours."

"I never said which airport I was calling from. I was already connecting to my second flight when I called," he replied, still not looking at me.

"Do I want to know how you found me or how they let you in for that matter?" I asked.

"People will do anything if you pay them, and your brother is the one who told me your whereabouts, even if he was reluctant to do so. I take it you haven't told him about us either," he said, finally turning to look at me. I couldn't decipher the emotion in his eyes.

I was only confident that it wasn't good.

"Only Fabio and Phyllis know about us Olivier," I said.

He frowned. "Why would you tell Phyllis?"

"She guessed it," I lied.

"And just how did she end up conveniently guessing such a thing?" he asked.

"What are you doing here Olivier?" I instead questioned.

He narrowed his eyes at me. "You're pissing me off Rose. I did nothing to you and you've had me worried for the past ten hours. I get here and you're still being bitchy. This isn't like you and I'm concerned about my girlfriend. Now would you like to tell me what's going on, or should I hunt down Richard and make him tell me?"

I'm rarely like this, and I've never been like this around anyone else but my brother, so honestly, I wasn't sure how to react to his concern. When I'm like this, there's a high chance so is Richard, so we stay like this together until we're over it.

"He won't tell you anything," I mumbled as I sat up, leaning on the headboard.

He sighed and came over to sit by me. "Would you rather eat first?"

"I'm not hungry," I replied.

"Do you want to hit me?" he offered.

I scowled. "Why would I hit you?"

"I have no fucking clue at this point in time. I just want my girlfriend back. This she-devil staring at me is making me feel extremely uncomfortable, so I thought she might enjoy hitting me so that I can have my girlfriend back," he said with a small smile.

I couldn't fight off my own smile. "You're a little bit of a moron."

"For you? Any day!" he said, caressing my cheek.

"You know, you were supposed to go and see your daughter first," I pointed out.

"That's true, except she's at a sleepover, and she's fine, while my girlfriend has been possessed by an angry demon. I'd like to think I know my priorities," he joked.

I laughed. "Why are you being so cute?"

He pouted. "Because this is probably the only time I get to be called cute."

"Such a sad man," I teased, making him laugh.

"I take it you're not going to tell me what's wrong," he said knowingly.

I shook my head. "Not yet."

"Alright. Do I at least get a kiss?" he asked. I moved to leave the bed.

"Nope! You invaded my privacy. Such things are not rewarded," I replied before dashing to the bathroom.

"That isn't even a thing!" he shouted from the room.

"It is now!" I shouted back, laughing.

He didn't say anything, so I settled for getting ready to face what was left of the day. When I was done with my shower, he wasn't in the room. I got dressed in a pair of jeans, a plain long sleeved top and some flats. I dried my hair and put on light makeup, not really caring about my slightly puffy eyes, before going to find him.

I couldn't find him in the hotel room, so I left and headed down to the lobby. I found him there talking to the receptionist. I didn't interrupt them, but instead noticed the curious and lustful eyes on him from men and women alike, from different races too.

It made me somewhat proud to know that he's mine.

"I didn't think you'd finish so quickly. I was finding out where we could go to eat," he said as he walked towards me.

"You do realize I know this place like the back of my hand right?" I reminded.

He rubbed the back of his neck, laughing. "I guess I didn't take that into mind. Forgive me."

"Hmm, I don't know. I think I need a little more than an apology," I taunted.

He wrapped one arm around my waist, definitely bringing more attention to us. "Why Miss Kidman, if you want me to kiss you that badly, all you have to do is ask."

"What? I'm the one who wa-"

He shut me up and I could only smile into the kiss as he brought me closer. I realized then just how much I'd missed him and how I was actually glad that he was here. His stalkerish ways worked out in my favour.

"God I've missed you," he said breathlessly.

"Me too," I said before kissing him again.

"We've garnered enough attention. It would be wise for us to leave right now," he said after a while.

I looked around us to find that the looks were now divided between curiosity, jealousy and disgust. "Do you think any of them recognized you?"

"I can't say I know. We can only wait and see if we're in the news. Are you ok with that?" he asked worriedly.

I laced our hands, smiling at him. "It was going to happen sooner or later right?"

"Right, except we haven't told Grace," he reminded.

"Shoot! We can't keep her from seeing it if anything is released," I realized.

"We can only hope that nothing is released then. We'll deal with it as it comes. I'm here with you the whole way and we'll face her together," he said.

I bit my lip, but ended up nodding. "Ok."

"Good! Now I believe we were headed out to eat," he pointed out.

I laughed. "That we were. Let's go."

I picked a place that we could walk to, but I could tell that something was bothering him. When I asked, he finally admitted that he didn't like the circumstances under which he met Richard, so he wanted to do it properly. I ended up inviting my brother to join us.

"You just never cease to amaze me," he told me. He'd texted me saying that he was outside and wanted to talk before coming in.

"I know, but you're the one who said meeting him could change my life, and it has," I argued.

He laughed a little. "Trust you to waste no time in putting my words to use. How long has this been a thing?"

"A little over two months," I informed.

"Are you happy? I mean, the guy was ready to throttle me for your location, so it's obvious he cares about you," he said.

"I'm happy Richie. He's what I need, especially now with mom about to take us on yet another emotional rollercoaster," I replied.

"Alright, I'm sold, but don't tell him that. He needs to believe that he still needs work for my trust," he joked.

"So you approve?" I asked.

"I'll let you know about my approval, but for now I'm on board," he responded.

I knew it was the most honest answer I was going to get from him.

We headed inside and Olivier, the tower of a man he is, stood up and reached out his hand. "I apologize for my behaviour earlier. I was really worried about your sister, and I didn't even formally introduce myself- Olivier Black."

Richard shook his hand before we all sat down. "I know who you are, and I accept your apology. I was blindsided by your worry for my sister since it only served me another blindside."

"Our relationship," Olivier said knowingly, to which Richard nodded.

"My sister is a kind hearted person who sees the best in everyone. She's not always a great judge of character, and granted who you are, you can understand my caution. However, she also has this thing of bringing out the best in people, so I'd like to believe that she does that for you, which can then only mean you're treating her well," my brother told him.

"You know her very well. She chooses to see me for who I am behind the image and rumours, which as you can imagine, means everything to me. I will never intentionally hurt her. We're at the very beginning stages of our relationship, but I'm confident in that she will always be special to me, whatever fate our relationship suffers. People like your sister are very rare and should be cherished," Olivier responded.

Richard put on his poke face, but I could tell that he was impressed. Hell, I was impressed and simultaneously melting on the inside from this man's words as he reached out to hold my hand. My brother's eyes moved to our conjoined hands, before looking back up at Olivier. I knew it was smooth sailing when he smirked.

"I like you," he commented.

I laughed. "So much for making him work."

"I can't help that the man sees you through my eyes sis. That's all I've ever wanted for you. Jeffrey couldn't look past your looks, and Oli here looks straight into your soul. What more could a little brother want for their big sis?" he joked.

"Does that mean I have your approval?" Olivier asked him.

Richard looked around the shop. "You do, because by the looks of things, your relationship will already rattle a few folks, so the last thing you need to deal with is my rejection."

"It was the same at the hotel," I noted.

"It will be like this everywhere we go. I've already been through it before. Most people generally don't care, but there are some who are genuinely bothered by interracial couples. You learn to ignore them," my boyfriend replied.

So we were on the same page then.

I'd already planned to ignore them since I don't see colour with him. I just see the man I'm falling in love with, and that's all that matters to me. I squeezed his hand, smiling at him, and he did the same. I'd missed seeing that smile up close.

"Well then, I'm guessing you're not introducing him to mom on this trip?" Richard noted.

I shook my head. "I can't even stand to be in the same place as her. I want to leave for Miami as soon as I can."

"Miami? Is that your next destination?" he asked, to which I nodded.

"So I take it your mom is the reason why the both of you were so upset?" Olivier questioned.

Richard frowned. "How did you know I was upset?"

"You're a lot like your sister without realizing it, though today I saw how she truly is when she's livid. May that she-devil never come out because of me," my boyfriend joked, making us laugh.

"They say the nice ones are the ones to fear when they're angry, and that couldn't be truer for my sister," Richard teased.

"I resent that, but I'll let it slide because the two of you are actually bonding," I said, making them laugh.

We finished off the rest of our breakfast with them further bonding, which I didn't mind. My brother informed me that he'd be heading back to California, so Olivier said he'd make our arrangements to Miami since he decided to tag along. I learnt that he had to fly commercial because there was a problem with his jet and it was only now flying back to the States.

"We'll talk about this at a much later stage since I know you that well, but we can't just leave her like this," Richard said as he hugged me.

"I know. I'll call Gladys, but I'm not getting involved yet. We both know that she'll eventually come to us anyway," I replied after hugging him.

"Good point. Alright sis, don't mess it up with the big man. I like him and most importantly, I like him for you so be good," he warned.

"Yeah yeah, I can already see your bromance," I teased as Olivier walked back to us.

"The airline was able to get us tickets in the next hour, so we have to leave now if we want to make it," he informed.

I nodded before turning to my brother. "I love you Richie and good luck with your matches."

"I love you too Rosie and remember what I said," he said, smiling.

He and Olivier did that man hug thing before we parted ways. We headed to the hotel to get our stuff and went to check out. Since he's so efficient, he'd already called a cab for us, and before I knew it, we were on the flight to Miami.

It was my first time flying business class, and I'd even forgotten about my anxiety. He caught me up on what happened with his deals, and I could tell that he was really bummed. The worst part was not knowing what I could do to help him.

"So, are we actually staying here?" he asked once we'd retrieved our luggage.

"I don't think so. I mean, I'm not sure what the situation is exactly, so I guess I'll know once we've gone to the hospital," I replied.

He agreed and we caught a cab to the hospital. One thing I can tell you about my boyfriend is that cabs make him uncomfortable. I learnt that he always arranges for a driver everywhere he goes, but given the situation, he just didn't.

And the look on his face told me just how much he was regretting that decision.

I giggled. "You look so constipated."

"We are not doing this Rose," he said, shooting me the side eye.

I laughed to myself for the rest of the way to the hospital. The relief on his face when he arrived made me burst out in laughter, something I received a loving glance for. He told the cab driver to wait for us.

"Do you want me to come with you?" he asked as we headed to the reception area.

"If not, where will you go?" I asked.

He shrugged. "I always have work. I can find a quiet area to work and wait for you. I don't want to intrude."

"Well ok," I agreed.

He asked the receptionist about where he could go and she directed him there. He kissed me before heading that way, while I stayed behind and got information about Mr Reba's whereabouts. I was panicked when she told me that he's in ICU, and she told me where to go.

When I arrived, the old man smiled when he saw me. "My Rose."

"What is wrong with you? Why would you not call me?" I asked him.

"I didn't want you to panic. I'm fine. It was just pneumonia, but now I'm fine," he said before coughing violently. I helped him to sit properly.

"I had to find out from Norma of all people," I scolded.

"That's because she's one of the three people who know. I asked that my hospitalization not be made public because I don't want my family to know. This is how rich old people like me die you know? Your family members find out that you're sick and they all come along to finish off the job so that they can have your money," he joked.

I shook my head, smiling. "Surely your family wouldn't do that."

"You see the good in people. I wouldn't expect you to see the ugly," he commented.

Fair enough.

"How long are you here for?" I asked.

"Martha's fetching me in two days. You just missed her. She's getting my affairs in order so that people aren't suspicious about my absence," he replied. Martha's his wife.

"You had me worried," I said, reaching out to hold his hand.

"I can't believe you came all this way to see me," he admitted.

We sat for the next hour and a half with me catching him up on my new life. I told him about Olivier and I swear I can't remember the last time I saw the gleam in his eyes when I did. He was so happy that I was happy.

"So when are you giving me a grandchild?" he asked.

I blushed. "I don't know if that's on the cards yet."

"You look like a woman in love Rose. It will happen one of these days," he said smiling.

I stayed a while longer and he promised me that he would keep me updated on his health. I kissed his forehead and bid him farewell before I went on the hunt for my boyfriend. I finally found him after a while, and no surprise, he was on the phone.

"Alright thanks! We'll be there within the next thirty minutes," he said before hanging up once he saw me.

"Where are we going?" I asked.

He packed away his stuff before handing me a sandwich and a bottle of grape juice. "How's your friend?"

"He'll be fine. Where are we going?" I repeated.

"My jet's back, and I spoke to my sister, and well, I'm taking you to South Africa like you said you wanted to go."