I know it's been a long wait, but I spent a lot of time and care on this chapter because this is the last chapter I'm going to be posting until August. I'm leaving for the Virgin Islands tomorrow to spend the entire summer and the reason I won't be able to post is because my home in particular has poor internet connection. But I will be preparing chapters for August and when I return I will post them as soon as possible. Thank you very much for your patience and please enjoy! :)

Chapter 21: Worth Fighting For

Gabriella gazed into my eyes, her own green orbs melting with an adoration I had never experienced before. Tears of joy continued to slip down her cheek as she clutched my shirt between her fingers. She seemed to be glowing, but her skin glowed as radiant as ever. It was then that I realized that my life would change forever. A laughing sob emerged from her lips as she placed her palm over her stomach.

"I'm pregnant."

Troy

Shock as well as astonishment overwhelmed me at the announcement of this news. Just when I thought that my life couldn't get any better, Gabriella was pregnant with my child. After years of praying and hoping for a child of my own, I was going to be a father. Finally, my life was complete with everything I could have ever wanted.

As I sat frozen in awe gaping at my fiancée's flat stomach, she could not tell whether my reaction was positive or negative.

"Um… I found out two days ago. We're going to have a baby of our own, Troy," she whispered nervously.

There were no words that could express my happiness for this miracle. Before Gabriella could drop her shoulders in dejection, I scooped her up in my embrace and spun her around. I felt her lips settle into a grin against mine as I kissed her.

"My God, a baby! This is amazing! How did you find out?"

"I took long enough trying to figure out why I was sick… You would think I'd know that I was expecting after experiencing these symptoms six times before," she giggled.

Overhearing the small commotion, the children rushed in with keen grins, yet unknowing of the reason for our celebration. Raquél, who had apparently helped her mother solve the mystery of her symptoms, eagerly awaited her sisters' reactions.

"What are you so excited about, Mami?" Aquilína questioned curiously, her brown eyes twinkling.

"Well, I know that lately it seems as though Mami's been a little under the weather. But all of this is great because it just means that we'll be adding a new addition to the family. Papi and I are having a baby."

The room fell hushed, then swelled with gasps. The girls surged towards us, belting out coos and squeals and wrapping their arms around our waists. Gabriella laughed as they slipped their palms beneath her blouse, hoping to feel the kick of the barely-existent fetus. We both knelt to their levels to receive adoring hugs and kisses, which officially marked our first memory as a family in our new home.

Before I had ever met Gabriella and her children, my house was never a home until that morning.

Gabriella

My sister and her husband were more than willing to bring the few, valuable items in which I had recovered from the fire. Troy insisted that I lay in bed while he and Oscar carried the large bags full of items into the house. As I quietly watched the television from my bed, Aurelía appeared cradling my second nephew, Miguél Alejo (in profile).

"Ay, ¡que lindo! Let me see my sweet nephew," I exclaimed, extending my arms to her.

The newborn calmly shifted about in his mother's arms, while the pacifier between his lips slowly bobbed up and down. The warm aroma of formula swirled around my senses as he was placed in my arms, and I took delight in the flawless sensation of his skin.

"He's so tiny compared to my babies. You said he was three pounds, four ounces when he was born, right?"

"Yes, he was. But he's gaining weight very quickly."

"Raquélita was the smallest, ironically. The rest were never less than eight pounds," I laughed quietly, then turned my attention back to my nephew. "Eres muy hermoso, Cariño. Tía is going to spoil you with lots of love and hugs and kisses." I kissed Miguél Alejo before carefully passing him back to my sister.

She kissed him three times and giggled, "But not before your Mami does first."

Just then, Troy stepped into the room and smiled once he found my company.

"Aurelía! How have you been since I last saw you?" he asked her.

"I'm great, thank you. This little one has been keeping me busy, but we couldn't be any happier since his arrival."

"Oh, yeah. Oscar looks as if he hasn't had an ounce of sleep in a month."

Miguél's eyes fluttered open, revealing his large brown irises. Now awake, he demanded nourishment and began to fuss. As the room filled with my nephew's famished cries, Aurelía raised her eyebrows as if to point out the reason for her husband's lack of sleep.

"Well, that's what parenthood does to you. But it's all worth it in the end," she said, and dotingly traced the tip of her finger over her son's nose.

Troy rest his palm on the curve of my hip, pulling me closer as we exchanged affectionate gazes. Although the hinting gleam in his eyes told me that it was the perfect time to reveal my pregnancy to my sister, I was not quite ready to make the announcement. I decided that the entire family would have to find out at the same time.

"All right, Hermanita. It's past Miguél's bedtime; pero entretanto, hablaremos más tarde," she said, kissing my cheeks and hugging Troy before leaving to join Oscar.

My younger children plodded off to their bedrooms, disappointed that their newborn cousin had to leave so soon. The seemed to adjust quickly to their new home, which in return gave Troy nothing but relief. Once each child was kissed, hugged and tucked in, we were left to wonder why Chaya remained. She sat planted at the foot of our bed, shifting glances between us as she contemplated in silence.

"Guess what? My wish… It came true," she told us after a while.

Troy lifted Chaya onto his lap and swept her curls over her shoulder.

"Oh, really? What was your wish, Angel?"

"It was the best wish in the whole wide world; not even for toys or money. But I still got what I wanted: A big, happy family. You're my Papi and now Mami's having a baby. We live in a big house with lots of food and warm blankets and dogs that we can play with… That was my wish."

Her short speech was enough to reduce me to tears. I was overwhelmed to learn that my daughter considered family to be the most important part of her life. Nothing made me happier.

"Honey… that's a beautiful wish. Having you and your siblings was the best decision I could have ever made, and I couldn't be any more proud to know that you love your family. Ohh, come and give me a hug. I love you so much," I crooned tearfully, coaxing Chaya towards me.

Eagerly, she climbed into my legs and wound her arms around my neck.

"I love you too, Mami. And I love you, Papi."

"I love you more, Chaya," he said before leaning over to kiss her forehead.

After exchanging a few cheerful "goodnights", I shifted into my side and settled into the pillow, sighing contentedly. My heart accelerated once I felt Troy's palm wander beneath my nightgown to caress my stomach.

"When will you start to show? I can't wait to feel our baby."

Molding my body into his, I gently guided his head into the crook of my neck and shuddered at the warmth of his breath, which tickled my ear.

"In a few weeks. But I'm not so eager to gain weight… I feel fat sometimes," I murmured, growing embarrassed.

Although I had a usually high sense of self-esteem, the thought of gaining weight during my pregnancy threatened to rattle my confidence. Especially in front of Troy.

"Oh, no. I've heard this many times on TV… You're not going to be fat because you're pregnant. Gaining weight to support the baby is a natural process, and it only means that she'll be healthy," he reminded me gently, which left me partially shocked.

"She?"

His eyes flickered towards the door as Raquél wearily strolled by, holding a glass of water in one hand while the other stroked Missy's snout.

"You want a girl?" I asked half-excitedly, half-curiously.

Eagerly, he sat up beside me as if a sudden idea had popped into his thoughts. He grasped my limp palm between his fingers before planting a kiss onto my knuckles.

"Of course! What's better than having a daughter with your beauty and intelligence? And, she may turn out to be a Daddy's Girl."

"Well, why? Why not have a boy and spend time going to games and teaching him football?"

"I'm going to spend time with André once he's old enough. I've always wanted a daughter, Briella. One that I could buy cute dresses for and have tea parties with… But most of all I want a daughter that I can love and protect when she gets hurt. It's not that I don't want a son, but there's just something special about the relationship between a father and daughter that I want to experience," he said, his voice heavy with longing.

Troy now presented me with a possibility that I had no control over. It was apparent that he was desperate for a daughter, but what would he think of me if I was not able to give him what he wanted? As much as I wanted to keep the passionate sparkle in his eyes alive, the fear of disappointing him suddenly wracked me with guilt.

"If you know in your heart that you want a baby girl, then let's hope that God blesses us with one. But I'll be happy as long as our baby healthy no matter what sex. That's all that matters in the end."

"I guess you're right. Still… I'm leaning a little more towards a little girl. I can't stop thinking of how beautiful she'll look with your green eyes," he murmured sleepily, before taking me into his arms once again.

This time, his caress against my stomach seared my flesh.

"Goodnight, sweetheart. I love you," he yawned.

"I love you, too, Troy."

The eventful day had begun to take its toll on Troy, and he quickly succumbed to a deep slumber. With the sting of his touch threatening to burn our baby alive, I carefully removed his palm from my stomach, which automatically wandered up to rest on my thigh.

Although I knew that the road to our big, happy family was going to be a long and treacherous journey, I reluctantly had to accept the fact that our opposite expectations would cause a potential rift in our relationship.

Troy

As I stirred in bed that morning, I expected to wake up to my beautiful fiancée. I reached my arm behind my back to feel the silkiness of her skin, but instead my fingers raked against the cold surface of the duvet. Sudden retching coughs drew my attention towards the master bathroom. The noise sounded terrible, as if someone were choking.

Gabriella! my brain cried.

Frantically, I leapt out of bed and made a dash from the bathroom.

"Brie? Are you okay, honey?" I called to the closed door.

The muffled outcry I heard tore my heart to pieces once I realized that Gabriella was suffering.

"What's wrong? Let me in, baby."

Except for a few short coughs, the opposite side of the door fell silent. I felt the lock twist beneath my grasp on the doorknob and entered, bracing myself for what I was going to find.

Keeled over the toilet bowl she knelt on the floor, heaving the contents of her stomach. Strands of her curls stuck to her moist forehead while her shoulders trembled with fatigue. I fell to my knees beside her and held her hair away from the surge of bile.

"Gabriella, why didn't you wake me?" I questioned calmly, yet my mind raced in a state of near panic.

She didn't reply, but reached for the box of tissues on the edge of the sink and turned her back to me.

"Don't look at me. I'm a mess," she murmured, her voice breaking.

Taking the bundle of tissues from her grasp, I helped Gabriella blow her nose and guided her gaze towards mine. For a moment, I could hardly recognize my fiancée through her pale cheeks and heavy, bloodshot eyes. I was shocked by her sickly appearance, yet she still remained the most beautiful woman I had ever encountered.

"No, you're not a mess, honey. It's just a bit of morning sickness… Come on; let's get you back to bed."

Before I could attempt to lift her off the floor, she hastily turned back and clamped her palms onto the toilet seat to release another gush. After fighting off weakness to brush her teeth, Gabriella silently wound her arm around my shoulder so that I could carry her back to bed.

I found the concerned faces of her two daughters as I placed their mother onto the mattress.

"What's wrong with Mami?" Chaya questioned, anxiety evident in her large brown eyes.

"Mommy's just a little sick, angel."

"Why?" she continued while Raquél knelt to her height.

"Well, remember what I told you the last time Mami was pregnant? Before André was born she had morning sickness, and now that she's pregnant again she'll sometimes get sick just like she did that year."

"So, the baby's making her sick?" she asked.

"No, not the baby. She only throws up when her body reacts to something that might be harmful to the embryo. But don't worry, because it only means that the baby is healthy."

Chaya gazed at her mother in perplexity, hoping to receive a confirmation of Raquél's explanation.

"Ella es correcto, Miel. I'm just sick because I have to support the baby," she said managing a faint smile.

No longer worried, Chaya decided that she would take over the role as caretaker and proposed that she would make her mother breakfast in bed. Before I left for work that morning I wanted to join in on the fun of mixing pancake batter with my daughters.

Aquilína soon wandered into the kitchen, rubbing her eyes to recover from her prior slumber. Once she discovered her sisters covered in flour, she eagerly approached me and tugged on my pant leg.

"Papi, Papi! Is this for us? Can we have chocolate chips on our pancakes?" she questioned fervently.

"Of course you can have chocolate chips. This is everyone's breakfast. But don't put them in Mommy's pancakes because she has morning sickness."

"Oh, yeah—that's from the baby. I remember how sick Mami was the last time she was pregnant… and she puked for weeks, too!" Aquilína exclaimed, wrinkling her nose at the memory.

Chaya and Raquél squealed beside me as they lifted the egg beater machine out of the bowl, which caused batter to splatter all over them.

"Tell you what: I'll add extra whipped cream to your pancakes if you go to the bathroom in the hall and get the blue basin. Take it to Mommy in case she needs it, okay?" I instructed carefully.

Nodding her head in agreement, Aquilína bounded off into the corridor. I turned back to the stove to continue my job of frying bacon and eggs. Raquél glanced behind me, only to notice that my briefcase sat on the kitchen table.

"You have to work on a Sunday? That must really suck," she said.

"It does suck. Especially since I'll have less time to spend with you guys on the weekend. I work all week except on Saturdays."

She came to my side holding a large bowl of chocolate chip pancake batter in one hand, while the other balanced a separate bowl of plain batter. As she started to make the plain pancakes for Gabriella, she nodded knowingly.

"Mami used to work seven days a week—not even taking shorter shifts on the weekend. She hardly used to have time to take us to the movies or the park, but I still wonder why she continued to have babies… I guess my dad was calling the shots the whole time," she murmured, her tone suddenly bitter.

I could see the impression of her mother's disappointment etched in her features. Almost immediately she'd regretted what she said, and shrugged in an effort to dismiss the matter. But I wanted to know why she had those feelings towards her father, especially about Gabriella's past pregnancies.

"What do you mean by that?"

"Oh, no; it's nothing… Forget I even mentioned it," she denied.

"No, no. You brought it up so this must be bothering you."

"Well," she began with a sigh as we set up plates of breakfast together. "We all know that Andre is an obvious cheater, but I can't help but think that Toni wasn't the only one. I guess what I'm trying to say is that he kept having babies with Mami just to keep her busy. Sometimes she worked but she had to work even more when she came home. There were clothes and dishes to wash, toys to pick up, mouths to feed; and I helped her all the time since my dad was too busy 'working' late at night."

"Let's hope that that's not the case. I think that it's his loss for leaving you guys. I'm the happiest man in the world right now because I have a loving family to come home to at the end of the day. And I will never leave because I love you all too much to waste my time on someone else," I said truthfully.

My daughter let out a giggle once I grasped both of her palms and kissed them. Then she hooked her arms around my torso and pulled me into a hug, resting her head against my chest.

Down the corridor, a call from Gabriella broke our embrace.

"Tengo hambre, Troy. I need food!" I heard my fiancée shriek.

Raquél quickly gathered a tray full of bacon and pancakes before rushing off towards the bedroom.

"That's only the first mood swing of the day. Get ready to return home to a psycho later," she laughed faintly.

Deciding that Gabriella's mood swings must not have been as bad as her daughter made them seem, I removed my apron, brushed the flour from my business suit and followed her. Once my fiancée spotted me from the doorway, she eagerly summoned me over to her side of the bed.

"Look at you in your business suit. You look so handsome," she complemented, her eyes gleaming naughtily.

"I have to catch the train soon, so I'm going to need a long goodbye kiss to get me through the day."

Sensing that we would get caught up in a makeout session, Raquél hastily placed the tray onto the nightstand beside the bed, and left the room.

I simply leaned down to trap Gabriella's lips in a passionate kiss, but quickly found myself trapped beneath her. She swung her left leg over my abdomen and straddled me, planting her knees on each side so that it was nearly impossible for me to move. Her actions were excruciatingly seductive, which caused my thoughts to fade.

"A goodbye kiss isn't going to cut it. I want you. Right now," she ordered nearly desperately, her voice heavy with desire.

Before I could convince her otherwise, she grabbed the collar of my jacket and pulled me into a deep, fiery kiss. Her soft tongue gently dipped beneath mine, settling into a winding caress as she snaked an arm across my shoulder.

As much as I wanted to enjoy an early morning lovemaking session with Gabriella, I couldn't risk being late for work. Although my emotions nearly forced me to tear the nightgown right off her body, I reluctantly broke the kiss and sat upright.

"No, don't leave. I want you to make love to me," she whined quietly, almost as if she were a child deprived of a toy.

My chest tightened with guilt as she extended her arms towards me in want.

"You know I want to, but… I can't be late today. My boss expects me to help him prepare for the company presentation and I have to prepare my own documents," I explained apologetically.

Gabriella's shoulders fell in dejection, and she let out a sigh once I fastened the buttons on my jacket. I leaned down to give her a long, departing kiss, which seemed to become a consolation prize rather than an act of love.

"I guess I'll have to get used to this again," she muttered, suppressing a tearful whimper as she sank into the pillow, turning her back to me.

Her mood seemed to shift almost instantly. I began to wonder what other extreme mood swings I had yet to encounter.

"Don't cry, Brie—I won't be gone for long. When I get back home I'll make love to you so much that you'll be kicking and screaming at me to leave you alone for the rest of the night, okay? I love you."

"Okay… I love you, too," she said, managing a laugh.

I pressed three more kissed against her lips before making a quick trip to the childrens' rooms to kiss them goodbye as well.

A sense of pride and integrity overwhelmed me as I ventured off towards the city. Knowing that I now had a family to provide for made my career all the more worthy.

~AFFMB~

The conference room was nearly spotless by the time my co-workers and I had scoured the place. Though I was close acquaintances with many of the employees at the Goldman Sachs Company, the head of management Gerald was not one of them.

I despised him for his obnoxious and cocky attitude, which occasionally caused friction between us. He knew just what to do to push my buttons. That day I was expected to be at my most professional for the Chairman and CEO of the Goldman Sachs Group, Lloyd Blankfein. Luckily, the Vice President/Executive Director of the GSAM Company decided to visit us from Hong Kong. I could never commit myself to leaving my family while I spent my weekends on international business trips.

As much as I tried my best to keep a conversation flowing between myself and the Chairman, Gerald seemed to sneak his way into our discussions in an effort to disagree with everything I said. I realized that I could not escape once he left to check on the other workers.

"So, Bolton… I haven't seen you this early in while. What's going on with you lately?" he questioned while slithering beside me.

After sorting out my documents, the air grew stifled with tension as I came face to face with Gerald's analyzing smirk.

"I've been busy preparing my house for my family," I answered indifferently.

"Ohh, so now you've got a family? Or is that code for 'my chick?' I always thought that you were lonely."

I suspected that he was eager to wear my patience thin, so I circled the edge of the conference table to avoid his provoking remarks.

"I was never lonely to begin with. My fiancée and her children came into my life at the right time. I just chose not to date."

Letting out a chuckle, Gerald folded his arms and nodded in insincere acknowledgement.

"From the pictures I've seen on your desk, she looks pretty hot. But kids? I could never do that—feeling tied down all the time with a soon-to-be nagging wife and bratty kids," he scoffed.

My blood began to boil at his insensitive comments, but I fought to keep my composure and prove to the Chairman that I was not easily fazed.

"It's not about feeling tied down; it's about having unconditional love for a group of people. And her daughters and son aren't brats. I love them just as much as I love her," I replied unwearyingly.

Gerald was also known for his degrading approach towards women, and it came as no surprise that he was obviously single, with no children. Though his masculine appearance and physique could attract almost any woman, his chauvinistic views of a "woman's role" undoubtedly drove them away.

His eyes seemed to gleam dangerously once I mentioned Gabriella's daughters. Then I remembered the recent rumor that swirled around the office about the molestation claims made against him by a thirteen year old girl in 1997. That was when I believed that Gerald was capable of preying on girls half his age, including my daughters.

"Daughters, huh? They must walk around in miniskirts and sit on your lap to get your attention. I know that's the only the reward that come with girls. What are the cuties—sophomores? Juniors in high school?"

The room fell unbearably silent as the other workers paused in their tasks. In the corner, the Chairman and the Executive Director from Hong Kong watched intently, curious to see how I would handle the unethical confrontation. As the head of management at the company, Gerald knew that I could not talk to him the same way I could with my co-workers, and was going to stop at nothing to watch me crack.

Daringly, I approached him while adjusting my jacket so that I could address the slanderous comments he made about my fiancée's girls. Although I was not ready to fight, I was ready to prove to Gerald that his assumptions were disturbingly accurate.

"As a matter of fact, our oldest daughter is a 14 year freshman, and the last four girls are between the ages of seven and two. How's that for a reward? Would you be interested at all in making a move on one of them or my teenage daughter?" I retaliated, my voice cold with cynicism.

Gerald raised both his arms in mock defense, casting back a glance at the watching employees and the Chairman as if to grapple for approval.

"I don't mean to offend you, Bolton. It's not my concerns whether you're playing 'Daddy' to a bunch of little girls. I mean, it's okay if you bribe them just to keep your dirty secret—so long as their mother doesn't find out."

Those became the words that marked the beginning of a dispute. Something inside of me—either my composure or my overall sanity—snapped once Gerald accused me of preying on my own children. He had placed my family under the line of fire, which meant that he had no respect for what I dedicated my life to.

At that moment I could care less about making a good impression on my colleagues and guests, and lunged at him across the conference table.

"You sick bastard! How dare you talk about my family like that?" I bellowed, shaking him violently.

Even as I had him pressed against the tabletop, he suddenly took on the role of a victim and let out an exaggerated yell.

"Help me, Lloyd. This psycho is trying to assault me! This is not the type of behavior your workers should be promoting for the company!"

The throng of stunned workers never moved a muscle, but their eyebrows quickly sloped downward into unconvinced glares. The Chairman seemed to be the most outraged, but I could not tell whether he was upset at me for starting a fight in front of him or in front of the visiting Executive.

"Get off of him, Bolton. Now," he said to me firmly.

As much as I would have enjoyed giving Gerald a black eye, I reluctantly complied with Blankfein's orders. Once I released Gerald, he pointed an accusing finger at me, determined to pit him against me.

"This man needs to be fired for what he did to me! I am the head of management at this company and I deserve to be treated with as much respect as you do."

"That's quite amusing, Anderson. But in order to receive respect, shouldn't you give respect in return?" Blankfein questioned cleverly, folding his arms across his chest in the most authoritative manner.

I smiled on the inside knowing that Gerald had yet to be penalized for his efforts to manipulate the boss because of his position at the company. But I could not let my ego inflate too soon, because my outburst was the worst to occur at the company since six years before, when an employee went on a rampage before jumping from a window of the 30h floor. Exactly one week after the suicide I arrived as an intern to the Goldman Sachs Headquarters.

When the Chairman turned his attention towards me, I found that his hardened stare had settled into an impassive gaze. I sensed that the worst was yet to come.

"As for you, Mr. Bolton. You have been a vital member to our Asset Management group for a few years now and I can't deny that you have an excellent level of professionalism. I've seen how expertly you've handled situations even when the company was at its lowest, but I'm personally surprised that something like this affects you," he began.

"It was completely my fault for instigating a fight, sir. But when I think that my family is in danger, I just can't ignore something like that…"

"Gerald. While you have helped this company recover from its pitfalls, I'm afraid that your oversized ego has ruined your degree of competence. I've received numerous complaints from your employees over the course of this year, and each has accused you of harassing them in the workplace. Now that I've witnessed it for myself, this spells a big problem for me. As for you, Bolton, report to my office after this meeting," he said as he gestured to the other employees to start the conference.

But as usual, Gerald misinterpreted the Chairman's argument. He thought that Blankfein was going to praise him for addressing my "lack" of behavior.

"Oh, I get it. You're finally going to give me that promotion I've been asking for, right? I knew you would come around, Lloyd," Gerald chuckled, and gave the Chairman a pat on the back as if they were lifelong friends.

That was when he decided that Gerald was going to be no part of the conference. It was not hard to convince him that he was too important to be a part of the meeting because he was so "on top of things", and the Chairman let out an equally artificial laugh.

"Yes… In fact, you know what this meeting is going to be about, so why waste your time sitting in a boring meeting when you can spend the rest of your day doing something much better," he said sarcastically.

Gerald was too foolish to realize that he was doing just about everything that was considered unprofessional at the company. It was obvious that he had put his own career in jeopardy.

"You're right, Lloyd. Why waste my time on this when I can do something better? Say, the rest of the week off?" he suggested haughtily, while the Chairman slowly guided him towards the glass door entrance of the room.

He only smiled and gave Gerald a pat on the back as they stood in the middle of the doorway before saying, "You read my mind, Anderson. But you deserve more time to yourself. Why don't you take a few more days off… forever? You're fired."

It was only a matter of seconds until Gerald realized what the Chairman's decision had come to.

"I'm fired? Did you not just see how Bolton treated me? All this was his fault, not mine! You must be out of your mind for thinking that this company will survive without me!" he argued in outrage.

The Chairman hardly seemed concerned and simply waved off his words as if it were a fly buzzing in his ear.

"Yes, I'm sure. But someone else has proven to me that he is capable of tackling your position and doing a much better job than you. Now go back to your office, and clean it out immediately. Or will I have to forcefully eject you from this building?"

"You're making a big mistake, Lloyd. You have no idea how much I've had to cover your ass, and you repay me by firing me? Well, you know what? You'll come crawling back to me when this company goes back down!"

The crowd that stood outside of the conference room gladly parted as Gerald backed into the cubicle offices before storming off to his private office at the end of the corridor.

"By the way, that's Chairman Blankfein to you, Gerald," the Chairman called to him.

He then shut the door and gestured towards the Executive.

"My apologies for the disturbance, Mr. Zhi. And since you already have our undivided attention, Mr. Bolton, why don't you start with your presentation? I'm sure you have excellent ideas that can help us out of this bailout rut," Blankfein smiled.

I began my presentation with more confidence than I had arrived with that morning. But in the back of my mind, the accusations Gerald made about the time I spent with Gabriella's daughters plagued me more than ever.

I began to wonder just how much she trusted me with them in the intimate quarters of our home.

~AFFMB~

"Gabriella? Girls? I'm home," I called from the foyer as I shook the snowflakes from my jacket that afternoon.

There was no one in sight.

To my surprise the first to discover my arrival was my neighbor, who emerged from the living room with my dogs on their leads.

"Why, hi there, Troy," she greeted cheerfully.

Not knowing why she had my dogs on a day when she was not required to take care of them, I slowly placed my briefcase onto the floor.

"Hello, Teresa... Why do you have my dogs?"

"Your fiancée called me over and told me that she needed Missy and Coco to be taken down to the pet daycare. But, my goodness is she a darling! Why didn't you introduce me to her if you knew that she was Boricua like me?" she questioned, emphasizing her point by giving me a gentle smack on the arm.

"Well, I was planning to invite you and Marco over for dinner tomorrow evening. But thank you so much for taking them downstairs for me. The past few days have been really rough for Brie and—"

"Oh, yes. Her pregnancy. She told me all about it. ¡Felicidades, Papá! I wish you two all the best and I know that you will make an excellent father."

Teresa gave me a celebratory kiss on each cheek and made her way into the corridor.

"Me voy ahora, Mami. Mejórate pronto (get well soon)!" she called back to Gabriella before shutting the door.

There was still no sign of the children, so I ventured towards my bedroom to investigate. My heart sunk once I found the empty bed and the bathroom door locked shut. God knows how much suffering she had gone through while I was gone. I was not there to hold her hair back and tell her that everything was going to be okay.

"Gabriella, are you throwing up again? And where are the kids? Let me in so I can help you."

Suddenly, the door swung open only to reveal my fiancée, not hunched over the toilet, no longer suffering, but clad in red laced lingerie. She looked incredible as ever leaning against the doorframe without a care in the world, a mischievous grin playing on her lips. Her tresses were curled and tousled while her skin glowed, causing her emeralds to sparkle in its radiance. Her curves seemed to be endless, guiding my eyes further down her stomach until they paused at the dazzling accessory: a ruby navel ring. Her silence only aroused me more.

"Tell me, babe: When you said that you were going to make love to me this morning, did you really think that I was going to sit here and wait in my pajamas? I just couldn't pass up the opportunity to surprise you when you came home. Plus… I'm in the mood all the time; especially when I'm pregnant," she said, and sauntered towards the door.

The mischievous smirk only became deviously sexy as she twisted the bolt, locking me in with her. For a moment I thought I'd caught a glimpse of an angel. Then I realized that Gabriella had gotten rid of the lingerie.

"It's just you and me for the rest of the afternoon. Should we do this the easy way, or the hard way?" she questioned playfully.

Despite the seductive character Gabriella had put on for me, I saw the presence of our baby through her stomach. Seeing my fiancée happier than I had ever seen her made the reality of the moments we would share as man and wife all the more beautiful. Knowing that my life was a few vows away from becoming complete, I lifted Gabriella in my arms and gently tossed her onto the bed, ready to prove just how much I loved her.

That in itself was worth fighting for.

I had to place Troy in a setting where we wouldn't normally see him and I thought it would be good to show how the workplace affects him when it comes to bosses and obvious enemies, and now we know just how protective he is of his children and Gabriella. Also if you're interested I have a pic of Gabriella's nephew Miguél Alejo in my profile; he's so adorable! Thank you so much for your support and the well wishes some of you have given me over the past few months. Even though I don't post as quickly as expected, I feel the same way about my late updates—it's frustrating but I will most definitely continue writing because it's very important to me. Thanks for reading and lend me your feedback! Until next time, or August!

PasiondeZV