Chapter 2 Genesis Connor

• Leona Chase was totally dumbfounded by her son’s requests.
• She was in deep thoughts after she came out of Jordan’s house.
• Samantha was Jordan’s ex girlfriend and she rejected his marriage proposal years ago, breaking his heart. How could Jordan still have his eyes on her?
• Nevertheless, she still wanted to give it a try and called her P.A. to arrange a meeting between her and Samantha quickly.
• Just after she put down her phone, the convoy abruptly screeched to a halt. It seemed like they had hit someone.
• She stepped out of the car, and was about to vent out her anger, when a man holding a sick child came in front of her.
• “Ma’am, I am so sorry. My child is dying, I need to get her to a hospital,” the man implored and his wife sobbed beside him.
• For some reason, she didn’t leave or yell. She felt terrible for the little girl in his arms. She could see the helplessness in the eyes of the poor parents. She understood the pain they were experiencing. She had been there several times. Her thoughts went to her son Jordan, her poor Jordan. Her heart ached.
• “Get into the car,” she ordered before the couple could say more.
• In hospital, Leona Chase watched from behind the scenes as the child was being taken in by doctors and nurses and she saw the couple shed tears like children, even without knowing the condition of the their daughter yet.
• “Shh, we ain’t losing anyone. We are going to be fine. Now you have to be strong for Genesis, for Ava, for me,” she heard the husband trying to soothe his wife.
• She watched them for a while until her phone rang. It was her P.A. She was satisfied with her P.A.’s efficiency in work.
• "Go on," she said in her usual tone, awaiting her update.
• “Samantha Brandon is currently in the Netherlands. I managed to reach her, but she's unwilling to reschedule for an official meeting,” her P. A. reported, and she immediately started feeling a migraine coming on.
• She remained quiet while thoughts raced through her head. If Samantha wouldn’t agree to meet, how else was she supposed to persuade her to marry Jordan?
• “Can you get me in line with her?” That was the only way she could think of.
• “Yes, give me a few minutes,” her P. A. said, and she hung up. She sighed in clear frustration when she remembered she still needed to find Jordan a wife in two weeks.
• Just as her thoughts ran to and fro, she decided to get some painkillers for her migraine before she left for home. So she headed to the pharmaceutical department. As she looked around, her heart ached for the sick and helpless people she saw. But at the same time, it felt light. At least they were getting the help. Not everyone had a cure to their problems.
• As she leisurely strolled down the hallway, something—or rather, someone—caught her eye.
• A girl lay on a sickbed in one of the hospital rooms, the door left ajar. She couldn't help but pause and gaze at her. Though she appeared unwell and somewhat pale, her beauty was ethereal. The more she looked at her, the more she couldn't help but envision her as a potential daughter-in-law. Her beauty alone seemed to meet the standards of their family.
• "I can’t believe you fell sick after graduation. Your mom would be so worried," remarked a girl around her age.
• “I mean, they have your sister to take care of, and now you,” added another girl seated beside her.
• “Guys... they don’t know I am here, and you can’t tell them I am sick,” the girl spoke weakly. Even her voice was sweet to the ears, and she immediately found herself drawn to her.
• “They didn’t make it to my graduation ceremony because of Ava. I don’t want them worrying about me,” she added, her voice trailing off.
• The girls beside her fell silent, their gazes fixed on her.
• “Nate, Tiana and I gathered some money, but that won’t be enough for your hospital bill,” one of the girls said and they all went quiet again.
• “Excuse me, ma'am,” a voice interrupted, snapping her out of her curious stare. She tore her gaze away from the girls and turned to find a man standing before her, holding a carton of pizza. She frowned at the sight of him, a familiar ache returning to her heart. He looked awfully familiar and reminded her of someone she never wanted to see in her life.
• “Can I help you?” he asked, and she stared at him, unsure of what she needed help with. Her eyes flickered down to his hands and then back to the girl.
• “You know her, right?” she inquired, and he looked at her, momentarily unsure. Yet his gaze remained bold, unwavering—much like hers. She wondered if he knew who she was, and what she was to him.
• “Yes, ma’am,” he replied, stealing glances at the guards surrounding her.
• “What’s her name?” she asked, and again he hesitated.
• “Genesis Connor,” he finally answered, a faint smile spreading across her lips.
• “Such a beautiful name.”
• Her phone rang again, and once more, Leona's PA proved to be efficient. The PA picked up the call, and Leona waited for her to speak.
• “I will be putting you through to her, ma’am,” the PA said, and the phone beeped.
• “Yes, Samantha Brandon here,” Samantha's voice came through the other end of the line, and Leona exhaled in relief.
• “It’s Leona Chase,” she simply said and waited for Samantha's reaction.
• “Good day, ma’am,” Samantha replied with a voice that insinuated that she didn’t want to speak to Leona. It was sharp and terrible to the ears, unlike Genesis. What her son saw in her, Leona had no clue.
• “I have been told that you are too busy to schedule a meeting between us,” Leona ignored Samantha's tone. Her son wanted her, and she needed him to get married.
• “Yes, ma’am,” Samantha simply said, and Leona couldn’t help but roll her eyes at Jordan’s choice of a wife. She just didn’t like that girl.
• “Well, let me go straight to the point then,” Leona started.
• “You and Jordan were a thing for a long time, I guess, before you broke his heart and left the city,” she stated the obvious.
• “The universe has given you a second chance, so to speak,” she said in the nicest way possible.
• “A chance at what?” Samantha sounded irritated.
• “A chance to be Jordan’s bride. Before he comes forward with his request, I want to be sure of what you want. Will you be his wife?” Leona asked, and the phone went silent. She hoped Samantha would be the one to end her dilemma.
• “No,” Samantha's voice came strong and firm. Leona knew immediately that she didn’t need more time to think about the request; she knew what she was doing, and she sounded sure of it.
• “Okay,” Leona's voice remained unchanged, as if she wasn’t affected by Samantha's actions. Weakness was never a strong point for her.
• Then she ended the call.
• The pain in her head increased immensely, and she hastened her footsteps to the pharmacy.
• She got the drugs and decided it was time to leave the hospital. She had to pick a bride soon; so far, Samantha was out of the picture. So she had more work cut out for her. Finding a bride wasn’t the problem. Jordan, her son was.
• As she walked towards the entrance, she saw the couples she had brought earlier to the hospital and went closer to them.
• “What are we going to do?” the wife cried.
• “We don’t have such an amount of money. How is she supposed to get a kidney transplant? Even if we sell everything we own, we still can’t raise such an amount,” she cried bitterly, and Leona's heart went out to them.
• “Should we call Genesis?” the wife suddenly asked, and Leona's ears perked up in a strange way. It was the third time she had heard that name in the hospital. It was the same name as the pretty girl she had seen, and she couldn’t help but smile a little at the thought that came to her head.
• “We missed her graduation, Abigail, because we were busy taking care of Ava. She has been through a lot and deserves a little bit of peace before returning home. Let her be for now,” the husband replied firmly, and Leona moved closer to them.
• “But—”
• “Her presence here won’t fetch us the money we need, will it?” he interjected.
• “Connor...” the wife whimpered.
• At the thought of their conversation and the conversation she had just heard from the pretty young lady she saw earlier, Leona couldn’t help but find a connection between them.
• She turned toward the entrance of the building immediately with a smile on her face. She didn’t need the painkillers to ease her pain; that day was a lucky day for her. She made her way to the car while calling her PA.
• “Yes, ma’am...” she responded directly.
• “Get me all you can find on Genesis Connor by morning,” Leona said and entered her car.
• “And I won’t be leaving the country anymore; let the plane have a rest. I found my treasure right here,” she said and dropped the phone.
• A smile remained on her face as the convoy started moving. If things were as she thought they were, then she found her bride after all.
• Genesis Connor