The Billionaire's Sweetheart

Lucas was already having second thoughts as he drove through the gate to his grandmother's villa, he was about to make a turn and drive out when his thoughts drifted to what had happened earlier in his office.

He was in his office waiting for his assistant Jacob to come in with the status of their proposal to a client when he suddenly rushed in.

"Sir an invitation came for you," Jacob said suddenly trying to catch his breath.

Lucas already knew it was his grandma who sent the invitation, he had been expecting one, and it always came at this time of the year. But this year was no different, he wasn't going anywhere.

"Toss it in the trash," Lucas said to Jacob not even sparing the invitation a glance.

"Sir, please take a look at it. It's different," Jacob responded, fear evident on his face.

Jacob knew how much his boss hated it when he was told what to do, he would have gone ahead and tossed it in the trash if not for the call he had received that told him to make sure that Lucas read the invitation if he wanted to keep his job.

Lucas raised an eyebrow at Jacob's response, and he knew that something was up.

Jacob was about to hand him the invitation when Lucas thought to ask.

"Did my grandma call you?" Lucas asked Jacob who froze on the spot at the question.

"Yes sir," Jacob said, sighing as he placed the invitation in Lucas's hands.

"That's strike two," Lucas replied calmly.

Jacob felt all emotions drain from his face when Lucas replied. He didn't understand what he had done, all he did was obey his boss's grandma.

"I own this company and not my grandma, I am your boss, you need to get your priorities straight if you want to work with me. One more strike and you're fired," Lucas said, with no expression on his face.

"Clear my schedule for the day," Lucas said to his assistant Jacob who was leaving his office with slumped shoulders.

Lucas stared at the invitation for thirty minutes straight trying to figure out what could be so special that his grandmother decided to call his assistant because he had ignored all other invitations and she had never called before.

He gave up and was about to toss it into the trash when the seal broke and something dropped from it onto his desk. Lucas immediately recognized the rings. It was his parents' ring and attached to it, was a note from his grandma telling him to come home.

If there was one thing Lucas knew about his grandma, it was that she always got what she wanted. She knew that an ordinary invitation would not make him come back so she had put his parent's rings to make him come home.

Lucas saw his past flash through his eyes as he stepped into the villa. The last time he was here was five years ago, two years after Mia disappeared.

He was about to go up the stairs when the butler, William appeared out of nowhere.

"Welcome home Master Anderson, Madam is waiting at the other side of the villa," William said, stretching out his hands to collect his coat.

Lucas handed William his coat and continued up the stairs. When he reached the top of the stairs, he saw a portrait of his family, they were all smiling, his grandparents with his parents. His grandpa died before he was born and his parents died when he was seven.

Lucas couldn't remember the last time he saw his grandma smile like that, sometimes he felt she blamed him for their deaths.

He was still gazing at the portrait when he heard his grandmother's voice "I see you got my letter."

Lucas turned to the source of the voice and saw his grandma walking steadily towards him.

"Good times there," Lucas's grandma, Darcy said, gesturing to the painting.

"Happy Birthday Grandma," Lucas said when she was near him.

"Thank you, son," she replied, giving him a kiss on the cheek.

"Come on, we've all been waiting for you," Darcy said to Lucas, guiding him to the other side of the villa.

Lucas wanted to ask what she meant by we but he followed her nonetheless. It wasn't long enough before he knew what she meant. She had invited everyone that he was close to. They were all sitting around a large table that looked like a conference table. It was as if they were here for a meeting and not a birthday dinner.

He looked at his grandma for an explanation but she was already sitting and she gestured for him to come sit. Lucas walked over to his seat wondering what his grandmother had planned.

Almost immediately his grandmother, Darcy clinked her glass of wine.

"Everyone, I have an important announcement to make," Darcy said.

"My grandson, Lucas, will be getting married to Carla Giovanni in the next six months," she said, looking over at Lucas with a smile.

Lucas felt his world stop, there was no way his grandma would do that to him, she knew how much he hated Carla for causing Mia's disappearance. She knew how miserable he was, there was no way she had arranged a marriage between him and Carla.

"No, I would never do that," Lucas said to his grandma as he looked over at Carla who had a frown etched on her face because of his reply.

"Mia is long dead, why can't you marry me?" Carla said, pouting.

"It's simple, I can never love you" Lucas declared causing Carla to bawl

"You either marry Carla or I will withdraw the rights given to you to run the company...or I might as well sell it," Darcy said

Lucas noticed how Carla's bawling stopped immediately after his grandmother said that. He shuddered, wondering just how much she had manipulated his grandmother to do her bidding. He had to think of a way to get himself out of this mess so he said the next thing that came to his mind.

"I am already married. Please stop trying to match me and Carla, I love my wife." Lucas said, causing everyone, including his grandma to gasp. That would keep them off his case for a while.

"Also you can't keep threatening me with the company, you are just the founder, the company is mine," Lucas responded as he stood up.

"Happy Birthday Grandma," Lucas said, kissing her cheek. "Thank you for the rings, they would fit my wife and me perfectly," Lucas whispered loud enough for Carla to hear.

Lucas stood tall, his shoulders hunched with a stoic expression on his face, concealing the emotions within him. He was puzzled, even a little child could see through his lie because he had not even been in a proper relationship since Mia left.

He took one last look at his grandma who was still in wonder from what he said. He glanced at Carla expecting the same kind of reaction but she had a smirk on her face with a sly glint in her eye.

Lucas knew immediately that she had seen through his lie. "I will bring her over for dinner on Sunday, so till then," Lucas said calmly as he stared down at Carla to deter any plans she had in her mind.

Carla's face had fear written over it. She knew Lucas was lying but she did not expect him to bring her over for dinner. Lucas knew he had to do something fast. It was only a matter of time before she found evidence. She was a Giovanni after all.

As he left the room, Lucas couldn't help but think that he had walked into a trap, he didn't want to marry Carla so he lied about being married but he didn't have a wife heck he didn't even have a girlfriend.

How was he going to find a wife? Lucas thought hard as he drove out of the villa.

It was almost Sunday and Lucas still didn't know what to do. He had promised his grandma that he was going to bring his wife to dinner but he needed to find a wife first.

The truth was that he could get any woman he wanted in the country, after all, he was Lucas Anderson, the most eligible bachelor in the country. If he wasn't so hung up on Mia this would be an easy feat for him

Suddenly he hoped that Mia would appear out of nowhere so he would propose out of nowhere and they would get married.

Lucas could still remember the first time he saw Mia as he stared down at the streets through the tall window in his office with a hot cup of coffee, black as he liked it.

He was at a charity event organized by Mr. Giovanni, he didn't want to come but his grandmother told him that Mr. Giovanni had asked for him so he decided against it

Back then, he had liked Carla and her father a little.

"Sorry, I didn't see you coming," Lucas said, apologizing to the girl he bumped into on purpose.

He was trying to create an excuse to leave the room, there were too many people in the room and he was starting to feel a little claustrophobic so he needed to leave.

He looked up to see the girl he bumped into but she was already on the floor picking up the items she dropped.

"Sorry," Lucas said, holding out a hand for her. But she refused his help, only giving him a nod and acknowledging his apology.

"I am Lucas" he continued trying to get her attention.

"Mia," she said, glancing at him.

Lucas was short of words "She was pretty" he thought as she gracefully walked out of the room

He resisted the urge to call her out but didn't want to deal with the looks he would receive from everyone in the room.

Lucas looked around and saw that no one was paying attention to him, even his grandmother, everyone was involved in one conversation or the other, so he decided to follow Mia quietly from behind unaware of the glares he was getting from Carla

"Uhh... all these puny orphans" Carla exclaimed when Lucas left the room, she had begged her Dad to invite Lucas because she liked him and wanted to talk to him but he was talking to that orphan.

"Why does Dad always invite them," she mumbled angrily, thinking of ways to punish Mia.

Lucas continued to follow Mia quietly from behind trying to get to her as fast as he could but he was stopped in his tracks by his best friend Austin.

"Lucas I just got a new game," Austin said while shaking his shoulders

"Yeah, yeah..." Lucas answered back his eyes on the hallway searching frantically for Mia who had disappeared from the hallway

"Where did she go," Lucas said as he released Austin's grip on him. He resumed searching for Mia without paying a second glance at Austin.

"Come play at my house so I can win against you" Austin laughed while calling out to Lucas when he was almost at the end of the hallway.

"You wish," Lucas chuckled, taking one last look at Austin.

Austin was contemplating whether to go after Lucas or to go to the chocolate chocolate fountain. "I'm sure he can take care of himself," Austin mused as he decided the chocolate fountain was a much better option.

Lucas wondered where Mia went, he had reached the end of the hallway and he did not know where else to look for her.

"I guess I am not going to find her," Lucas remarked, his voice filled with disappointment.

"Looking for me," Mia said, her voice laced with excitement as she walked past him.

"Yes, I've been following you" Lucas said without skipping a beat

"Why would you follow me," Mia asks, her eyes popping out amazed at Lucas's reply.

"I wanted to talk to you," Lucas said

"Why" Mia said walking with Lucas following closely behind her

"I wanted to apologise for bumping into you on purpose, I just wanted an excuse to get away from there... '' Lucas was definitely babbling at this point, he wanted to tell her that he liked her that was the reason he followed her even though he was just a kid he knew what he wanted and he wanted Mia.

Lucas regretted not telling Mia he liked her the first time because the next time he saw her was during the charity event a year later or he could have told her but knowing Mia she would have evaded the question like it was the plague. Lucas chuckled at that thought. They were a perfect fit; he was darkness and she was his light.

"Mr Anderson, Mr Anderson...The shareholders are here" Daphne, his receptionist announced as she walked into the office.

"When did they get here," Lucas asked as he turned back and dropped his cup on the table.

"About ten minutes ago," Daphne said calmly as she quietly handed Lucas the brief for the meeting. She was walking on eggshells. She did not want to get her boss angry. He already fired Jacob yesterday and she did not want to be next so she just walked beside him as they headed for the conference room.

"Good morning gentlemen and ladies," Lucas said calmly as he walked into the conference room.

Lucas took his seat in the middle and he was met with impatient eyes staring him down as if questioning him for coming late. He was only giving them a taste of their medicine, they started it first.

"I need your approval to sell our retail store here in Orlando, there is a brief in the folder beside you that comprises all you need to know about it, so read it and sign and that will be all."

"How can you say that's all Lucas? Mr. Wilson asks, raising his voice.

Lucas already expected that kind of reaction from him, after all, he was the one in charge of that retail store. He did not have the patience to deal with his whining today.

"That retail store has not brought in any profit for three months now, I keep spending money to maintain it and I can't do that anymore," Lucas said calmly, not moving an inch from his seat.

"Technically, it's the Company's money, not yours, and I am sure the company has enough money to cover the overhead cost of my retail store," Mr Wilson said angrily

Lucas raised his eyebrows at his statement," You made two mistakes there, It is my retail store and it is my company, and I can do anything I want with it or do you want me to remind you who runs things in this place" Lucas said calmly looking at Mr. Wilson dead in the eye.

Mr. Wilson knew that tone all too well, so he decided to calm down even though he was seething with anger.

"I guess that will be all," Lucas said calmly. He was ready to take his leave, so he stood up and left the conference room to go to his office.

Lucas opened the door to his office only to see Austin sprawled on his sofa.

"Hey man, what's up," Austin said when he noticed him.

Lucas crossed his legs over so he was sitting down instead. "What are you doing here in the morning? Don't you have a business to run," Lucas said to Austin.

"Mr. Workaholic, some of us like to take breaks, the company wouldn't crash even if I disappeared. I came to see if my friend already had a wife" Austin said chuckling

Lucas knew already that it was Grandma who told Austin. She would have asked him to tell her the truth and Austin would have said "Lucas is telling the truth, He is married."

"Grandma told you right, I knew she would, that's why I didn't bother," Lucas said, shrugging.

"What a friend you are, anyways what are you going to do about it? Austin said

"I need to trick grandma and Carla into thinking that I have a loving wife and we are happily married" Lucas said calmly, his eyebrows creased as he continued thinking for a solution.

"Well that fact is already obvious if you can't tell," Austin said as he burst out laughing.

"Oh shut up Austin, I am just going to hire one, a wife" Lucas declared. He didn't even know if it would work, All he knew was that he didn't want to waste his time going on dates with women he wouldn't love.

Lucas glanced at Austin expecting a reply but he was already looking at him in disbelief with his jaw lowered.

"That's crazily stupid, genius," Austin said with a smile, he had expected that kind of reply from Lucas, he would rather hire a wife. That was just your typical Lucas.

"But did you think this through at all, where are you going get the woman," Austin said, laying emphasis on "the woman."

"That I don't know, yet" Lucas replied as he wondered who he was going to choose, he had to choose somebody who Carla and grandma knew nothing about.

"Do you want me to give you one," Austin said, putting his phone on Lucas's face as he scrolled through pictures of different women, asking him to make his choice.

Lucas sometimes wondered how Austin managed to keep his company at the top if he had time to play like this. He was going to tell Austin that none of those women were his type before Daphne interrupted them.

"Sir this is the document containing the list of people that applied to be your personal assistant, they would be coming in for their interview tomorrow" Daphne said as she gave the document to him.

"Hi Daphne, How's your day going," Austin said smiling. Lucas immediately knew where this was going Lucas was trying to flirt again, he does it flawlessly every time.

"Thank you Daphne," Lucas said dismissing Daphne.

"Spoilsport. That reminds me, I don't see Jacob anywhere and why are you looking for a new assistant" Austin said.

"If you must know, I fired Jacob, that's why I am looking for a new assistant," Lucas answered back

"I swear you have a new assistant each time I come to your office, take it easy on them. Aren't you going to take a look at the document" Austin said, pointing to the document.

"I am busy right now, you can make yourself useful," Lucas was busy going through the mail he received from an investor.

Lucas was sure Austin would make a good choice, after all he had a company of his own so he left him with the document and focused his attention on the mail he received.

They were both focused on what they were doing before Austin called out.

"Hey Lucas, only one woman applied and she's pretty, I know you have a rule about how you don't use female assistants but you have to see her profile" Austin said as he handed the profile to him.

Lucas was busy but he chose to look at the profile or Austin would not let him be. Her name was Emma Smith and she was 25 years old. She was qualified for the job but he doesn't hire females, he was about to tell Austin the same thing but that was before he saw her picture.

Lucas was mesmerized, and he knew why, it was her eyes, they looked so much like Mia's. Mia had brown eyes but Emma had blue eyes, Lucas couldn't place it but those eyes held a sense of familiarity in them and suddenly Lucas wanted to know more about her and he had a plan just how to go about it.

"She's the one," Lucas said to Austin who was busy typing away into his phone.

"I am always right, I would have loved to stay longer but duty calls," Austin didn't even spare Lucas a glance as he left his office.

Lucas didn't even bother about Austin because he was probably going to come back in the next two or three days to see him. They were practically brothers at this point.

The only thing Lucas had on his mind now was dinner on Sunday and Emma smith. His entire plan depended on Emma Smith and the interview tomorrow. He was going to ask Emma to marry him during the interview tomorrow, she would say yes and he was going to show her to his grandma on Sunday.

This was it. The plan was set. There were no loopholes anywhere. It was going to be as easy as signing a business contract and Lucas was sure of it.

Lucas leaned back in his chair with a satisfied smirk on his face. The plan was foolproof, or so he thought. Little did he know that Emma Smith was hiding a secret, one that would change his entire life.

"Mum I'm about to leave, wish me luck," Emma said to her mother who was on the other end of the line.

"Sweetie, you don't have to do this for us, I know how much you hate him, we would manage," her mother, Gracie answered back. Emma knew her mum was worried, because she knew what she went through years ago.

"Don't worry mum, I would be fine, there is no way he would be able to recognize me, I am putting on contacts," Emma told her mum to ease her concern.

Emma was wearing contacts, she didn't want Lucas to ever find out that she was Mia, she wouldn't have applied if it wasn't her last resort. She wanted nothing to do with him, but she needed money and a stable job.

"Good luck sweetie," her mother, Gracie answered back. Emma could also hear her mother whisper something to her six -year-old son Jason.

Almost immediately Jason called out to her, "Good luck Aunt Emma I love you," he said in his tiny voice.

Emma couldn't explain the pain she felt when she heard Jason refer to her as Aunt. She had Jason refer to her as Aunt but it always pained her to hear him say it.

"Thank you, Jason, I love you too". Emma said to Jason, then she said her goodbyes to her mother before disconnecting the call.

Emma was feeling confident about this one, dressed in her favorite black pencil skirt, with her white blouse and black blazer, she was going to crush the interview, even though she had been rejected nine times in previous interviews, she hoped for the best with this one.

She got to the company in about thirty minutes, that was one of the reasons she wanted to work for this company because it was close to her house.

Emma stared at the company in awe, it was a tremendously high skyscraper with glass all around it, The name Anderson. Co boldly written in gold. Emma was admiring the beauty of the skyscraper's facade when she felt eyes on her from above, she looked up and was met with the coldest eyes she had ever seen, it was as if he was staring into her soul. They kept staring at each other for more than sixty seconds

before Emma decided to call it quits.

Emma walked straight to the entrance, she was about to push through the revolving doors when somebody collided with her, making her fall, the contents of her bag everywhere on the floor.

"Sorry, sorry, I have an interview here today and I am very nervous," Mr. Nervous said as he bent down to help her with her bag.

"My name is Nathan," Mr. Nervous said, holding out his hands to Emma.

"My name is Emma I am also here for the interview," Emma said to Nathan shaking his hands.

"We can go together," Nathan said to Emma as they both went through the revolving door.

Emma was feeling slightly embarrassed at what just happened, she did not expect that at all, she needed everything to be perfect. She wanted the job at all cost.

Nathan and Emma both arrived at the receptionist's desk, the receptionist, a blonde lady with no expression on her face gave both of them a disapproving look before directing them to the waiting room.

They were a few steps away from the reception when Nathan burst out laughing.

"Did you see her face?" Nathan said amidst laughter.

Emma let out a chuckle. "She had that I hate you bitch face" Emma said

"She was trying so hard that's why it is so funny," Nathan said, trying to imitate her face.

Emma was shocked when she went into the waiting room. There were only ten chairs there, and five people were seated already. She was happy she came early but wondered why there were only ten chairs available.

"Phew...Thank God we came early" Nathan said out loud expressing Emma's thoughts.

Emma looked at the five other people in the room, they were either lost in thought or not paying attention, because since they entered the room not a single one of them had paid them a single glance.

"What did you apply for," Nathan said to one of them sitting beside him but he was ignored, she didn't flinch it was as if she was mute. That little gesture from her made Emma conclude that maybe they were just rude. They were seated for about thirty more minutes before the last three people finally arrived.

Immediately after the last person entered the room, a voice spoke out "Welcome to Anderson. Co you have just passed the first test on punctuality, as you can see there were only ten seats in the room so only the first ten will be interviewed. After that, an official entered the room, she radiated a glow that not most women did not have, she was beautiful. "She's beautiful," Nathan whispered to Emma who nodded in agreement.

"Good morning guys, if you applied to design come with me," Mrs. Beautiful said calmly, as she turned back and walked out of the room.

"I applied to design good luck, Emma," Nathan said calmly as he got up and followed the lady who had come earlier, four other people also went out after him so there were only five people left in the room.

The voice spoke out again, "The remaining five of you who applied for the position of personal assistant will be interviewed directly by our CEO Mr. Lucas Anderson."

Emma felt her heart skip a beat when she heard his name, she didn't expect that she was going to see him again so soon, she knew her disguise was perfect and he couldn't recognize her still she was scared.

Her only worry now was that she was the only girl in the room, she prayed silently that Mr. Lucas Anderson wanted a female personal assistant because that was her only chance of getting picked.

"Mr. Anderson has never had a female assistant," one of the male applicants said, looking at Emma with mock apology. This shattered all the hope Emma had, she was hoping for the worst now.

Mrs. Beautiful came into the room again but this time she had a folder in her hands. "It's time, James Thompson please come with me" Mrs. Beautiful said as she walked out of the room with James following closely behind her.

Emma noticed that each interview took about thirty minutes because each applicant came back to the room in that amount of time. There were only two people left in the room, her and the applicant who had mocked her earlier.

Mrs. Beautiful came again but this time, she had a pitiful expression on her face, and Emma knew instantly that she was about to be dropped. She was sad but at least she didn't get to see him so she was a little relieved.

"Sorry, you've been asked to leave, Mr. Anderson has made his choice," she said

Emma wondered what was wrong with her, she had no idea why they kept dropping her on the spot. She was already leaving the room when she heard the voice again "Emma Smith hold on please Mr. Lucas would like to see you."

Emma immediately panicked, she didn't know how to feel, she was going to see her first love/ employer for the first time in seven years. Her emotions were all over the place but hope crowned them all.

"Emma Smith, come with me," Mrs. Beautiful said with a smile on her face.

"Gladly," Emma said, following her out of the room.

They were both in an elevator going to Mr. Anderson's office when Mrs. Beautiful started talking "You can call me Daphne. I must warn you, answer his questions precisely, don't beat around the bush, he hates that. Trust me when I say he is a good man, You'll surely be considered if he likes you". Daphne said smiling.

They both stepped out of the elevator when Daphne stopped by her desk. "This is my desk," Daphne said to Emma but she already knew that because there was a nameplate with her name Daphne Johnson written on it for everyone to see.

"Mr. Anderson's office is the last down the corridor, Good luck," Daphne said to Emma as she motioned for her to go on.

She felt her heels scrape the floor with every step she took toward the office, her heartbeat was already way past the normal rate, and her palms were starting to feel sweaty, she did not need any fortune-teller to tell her that she was nervous.

Emma stood outside Lucas's office for more than two minutes before she decided to knock, she was feeling very nervous and she needed to calm down before she stepped into the office.

Emma knocked twice, but there was no reply, she was about to go and ask Daphne if Mr. Anderson was really in his office, when she heard a voice call out through the door.

"Come in" The Voice boomed through the walls.

Emma felt her heart stop for a second as she stepped into the office. She looked around, her eyes not missing a thing. A large executive desk was placed in the center of the room, she also noticed the shelves by the side of the room filled with awards, but there were no pictures of family or himself. She wondered what kind of man Lucas had become as her eyes trailed off to the full-height glass window behind the desk where Lucas was standing. He looked majestic as he stared down at the city's skyline. He had always been the center of attraction and that surely had not changed.

"Take a seat, Miss Emma," Lucas said, turning around to face her. Emma was starstruck, he was so attractive now she thought as he walked toward his seat.

"Aren't you going to take a seat," Lucas said, glancing at Emma, which pulled her out of the trance she was in. She rehearsed meeting him again so many times but this was definitely different.

"Sorry sir," she responded, taking her seat which was directly opposite him, they were both staring directly into each other's eyes. He had a stoic face, and his face showed no emotion.

Emma almost burst into tears. She had missed those eyes, she was supposed to hate him but she was failing miserably. Lucas had become so cold. His eyes showed no emotion.

He opened what looked like a file that was on top of his desk. The front page had a picture of her on it and Emma knew immediately that it was her file. Lucas said nothing, he made no expression as he flipped through the pages, and soon anxiety enveloped her, she was scared she would be disappointed by his response when he was done looking at the file.

All of a sudden, Lucas closed the file and was now staring directly at Emma, his eyes showing emotion that Emma couldn't comprehend as she waited for his final blow to her hope.

"Marry me," Lucas said calmly, Emma felt her eyes bulge out from their sockets when he said that. That was not the response she was expecting, she thought he was just going to tell her that she was not selected.

"Excuse me," Emma said after the shock of the question settled in.

"Now why would I do that? You need me and I need you, you need a job and money and I need a wife," Lucas said calmly, his face still stoic.

Emma wondered how he could remain calm, her mind was in a frenzy, and she didn't know what to feel.

"Truth is, I don't use females as my assistants. But if you decide to be my wife for a year, I might just consider that and I would pay you ten times your salary," Lucas continued, his eyes gazing at her, challenging her to say no.

Emma felt distraught, she was more disturbed about Lucas's confidence that she wouldn't say no. "Just who do you think you are?" she said angrily as she got up abruptly from her seat.

"If you want to buy a wife go buy one but there is no way that woman is going to be me" she added, rejecting his offer immediately.

Emma couldn't believe that Lucas would do something like that. Did he think that marriage was business? He used to hold marriage sacred, just what has gotten into him.

"Only you Emma, only you. You are the first and last woman I am going to give this offer to, it's up to you whether you take it or not," Lucas said unruffled by her outburst earlier.

She was about to leave his office, a hand on the doorknob when she thought to ask "Why me?" she asked Lucas taking one last look at him

"You look like someone I know," Lucas said, looking directly into her eyes.

Emma was sure that Lucas didn't recognize her so what did he mean by she looked like somebody he knew.

She was at crossroads, she wanted the job but that would mean that she had to marry Lucas and relive her past that she wasn't ready to face. She just wanted the present, her past had hurt her too much and she just didn't want to go back.