Attraction, desire, and sinfully beautiful, Mika Santana is a devil with the face of an angel. Despite her tragic past, she's never given up her ruthless pursuits for success and vengeance which leaves little to no room for matters of the heart. But...
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The neutral tones of the furnishing, fixtures, and artwork brought a new day kind of feeling. For a new beginning. Most importantly, new prospects. The white cushion sofa carries two toddlers waiting for their mother while slamming their toy trucks together. Two rectangular chalkboards are covered in pink chalk displaying all types of beverages.
A green-eyed two-year-old tug on my arm, shaking it as whimpers leaves his lips. A frown mars my forehead as I glance down at the toddler, clutching onto my hand and his baby shark. I couldn't put my finger on why he was sobbing, but I couldn't be a bitch to a child.
That verdict varies on my mood.
Kneeling, I wipe the tears streaming down her soft chubby cheeks. "What's wrong, munchkin? Did you lose your mama?"
The toddler chews on her fingers, gently nodding her head. "She says five minutes, but now she was gone."
Emotion is what makes us human. That's what separated us from robots, computers, and other AI waiting to take over. I am human, but the very concept of emotions seize to exist within me. Guilt, pain, sadness, happiness, worry. My soul is a black, dark, brooding void, an area with no return.
This toddler lost her parents, and if I am being honest...
I fucking couldn't care less.
What does that say about me? Who knows? But I could easily walk away from this child without batting an eyelash. Though today, I woke up on the good side of the bed, so I decided to do the toddler a favor.
"When was the last time you saw Mama?" I ask, darting around the coffee shop for a disheveled mother.
She pounds her feet against the marble floors to get my attention. "By plants."
I shrug. "Let's go look for her."
Frowning as I glance at the length of the line, I ditch my spot to roam around the shop with someone's child. I tried to search for a mother losing her marbles, but apparently, this toddler disappearing must've been their dream. Multiple rotations around the shop later and still no mother.
Jesus, where did she go?
"Stop her! She's trying to steal my baby!" A shrilly, vanity, ear-shattering scream fills the coffee shop, countering the blasting pop music.
My face scrunches up in aggravation as I pivot on my heel to face an angry, beetroot face mother stomping over. Am I really getting commended for doing a good deed? The logic isn't making sense here.
"She ran up to me while I was waiting in line," I assert, meeting the enraged woman halfway. Might as well save her the energy. "We've been looking around searching for you. I don't have any interest in your daughter, so why spew out lies?"
She forcefully snatches her daughter from my grip, clutching her close to her hip. "That's hard to believe," she scoffs, rolling her eyes. "My daughter is the perfect prey for you."
