I should have known it was only a matter of time before the world Mark came from crashed into mine.

He laughed with Lily, teased me about my tired smiles, and sometimes looked at me in a way that made me want to believe in love again..

But life never let me keep good things for long.

It was a Friday night, the diner was filled with office workers trying to forget their week in cheap fries and coffee. I was balancing plates on one arm when the door swung open and silence filled the room.

She walked in like she owned the air itself. Her heels clicked sharply against the tiles, her diamond earrings caught the neon light. Her hair was sleek, her lips painted a perfect red that spoke of money and power.

It was Victoria Mogul.

I recognised her from magazines, images from charity galas in wealthy society pages. She didn't need an introduction. And when her eyes found me,they were cold and sharp, my stomach twisted immediately with fear.

"Clara Evans?" she said, her voice was smooth but cruel, and it kept echoing across the diner.

Every head turned. My hands shook as I placed the plates on the table, forcing a smile I didn't feel. "Yes, ma'am. How can I help you?"

She walked to the table, her heels sounding like a bomb timer. "You can help me by staying away from my son."

A loud silence fell. Even the musicbox's broken tune seemed to fade.

I swallowed hard, my throat went dry. "I'm sorry?"

Her eyes looked at me harder, her lips curled into a wicked look and a smile.

"Don't play innocent. Mark may be foolish enough to waste his time here, but I am not. You're a waitress, a single mother living on garbage. You don't belong anywhere near him."

My face went white as whispers rose in the diner. I felt naked, my struggles was exposed to strangers who had always pitied me quietly but never said it aloud.

"I didn't ask him to come here," I whispered, my voice still trembling.

"No, but you didn't stop him either," she snapped at me immediately.

She walked closer to me, her perfume choking me. I was finding it hard to breathe.

"Listen to me carefully, Clara. Whatever fantasy you're building in that head of yours, it ends now. My son will marry a woman of his calibre. Not some poor waitress with an imbecile child weighing her down."

Her words cut deeper than knife. "Not some poor waitress with an imbecile child."

She had turned Lily, my perfectly healthy Lily into an imbecile .

I held the table tightly, forcing myself not to cry. I would not give her the satisfaction.

"I think you should leave," I said, my voice breaking but steady enough to speak.

She laughed very coldly. "Or what? You'll throw me out? This is just a stop on my way home, Clara. But you, this is your whole life. You don't get to choose. You don't get to dream. Remember that."

She didn't wait for my response. She slammed the door as she went out angrily.

I was so shocked that I couldn't move. All eyes in the diner were on me, shame covered me. I wanted to enter the floor, to run out into the night, to hide from the whispers I could hear around me.

I heard Lily's voice in my head, her small, tiny voice asking me, "Mummy, will we ever be happy like the people in movies?"

I fought back tears and forced myself to keep moving, to serve, to smile, to pretend like nothing happened.

When all the customers left, I sank into a chair, with my heart feeling like a sledge hammer was driven into it. I wasn't able to explain my pain.

I buried my face in my hands, my chest rising and falling from my cries..

That was how Mark found me.

He came in late but when he saw me, his face changed instantly.

"Clara?" He rushed to me, kneeling beside the chair I was sitting it. "What happened?"

I shook my head, wiping my tears quickly. "Nothing. Just tired."

"Don't lie to me," he didn't believe me, his hand gently touching mine. His eyes looked into mine. When I couldn't hold back anymore, the truth spilled out.

"Your mother came here," I whispered in tears. "She told me to stay away from you. She said Lily was an imbecile.." My voice choked on the word.

I saw anger flash in his eyes immediately. "She did what?"

I nodded, biting my lip so I wouldn't start crying again. "She's right, Mark. You don't belong here. You have a whole life ahead of you, a family empire to run. Why are you even here?'' My voice was loud with frustration and tears.

I realized I was yelling at him so I lowered my voice. "Leave me alone, Mark. I am just a waitress"

"Don't you dare say that!," he snapped, his voice shaking with anger. "Don't you dare belittle yourself like that. You're more than enough, Clara. You're more than anyone I've ever met."

"Mark, listen to me," I said, my hands shaking as I held his. "If you fight them because of me, you'll lose everything. Your parents won't forgive you. They'll destroy me, they'll destroy Lily, just to prove their point. I can't let that happen."

He shook his head and pulled me closer. "Let them try. I don't care about the money, or the empire, or their plans for me. I care about you."

Hot tears ran down my cheeks. His eyes were so intense, so desperate, like he was drowning and I was the only thing keeping him afloat.

"I don't know if I'm strong enough for this," I whispered to his ears as my tear stained face rested on his shoulders.

"You don't have to be strong alone," he said softly, his forehead resting against mine this time. "Let me fight with you. Let me fight for you."

My heart was beating painfully in my chest. I wanted to believe him. I wanted to fall into his arms and never let go. But his world was wicked, his family was powerful. And I had more to lose than just myself.

I had Lily.

My thoughts ceased when he suddenly kissed me, right there in the empty diner. His lips were soft and they passionately melted into mine.

I thought I had seen wickedness when Victoria Mogul walked into the diner and tore me down in front of strangers. I thought her words were the sharpest blade a woman like me could take.

But I was wrong.

The real wound came a week later. Mark lied to me.

It was a Sunday morning, Lily and I were sharing pancakes I made with our last cup of flour. She had poured syrup on her dress and was laughing at her mess when I saw the news on the the television. .

The bold letters screamed at me from the screen.

"Mogul Heir Engaged to Model Emily Vanclair."

My heart stopped.

Under the headline was a photograph of Mark, my Mark, who had kissed me that empty night at the diner. He was standing beside a woman who looked like she was made from perfection itself.

She was slim, curvy, elegant, and had lips and body type any man would kill for. She was sexy as hell! She wore a white silk gown that accentuated all her curves. Her arm was hooked through his like a leech.

Her smile was flawless, her teeth were the perfect white colour and everything about was stinkingly rich.

I couldn't breathe.

The newscaster kept talking about how Emily Vanclair, international model and heiress, was the perfect match for Mark Mogul. It spoke of their families' long-standing ties, their combined wealth and the "wedding of the century" that would merge their business empires.

And not once, not once, did it mention love. If I was the one he loved, why was he doing this? My knees felt weak and I wanted to faint.

I started shaking as I heard the words, next thing I knew, I began to shed tears. Lily was pulling my sleeve, her small voice breaking through my meltdown.

"Mummy? Why are you crying?"

I turned off the television, quickly wiped my tears and forced a smile that I didn't feel. "It's nothing, sweetheart. Just... nothing."

But inside, my heart was splitting open.

Mark had betrayed me. He lied to me and treated me like some cheap whore, like one of his flings.

When Mark came to the diner that night, I was waiting.

He walked in as if nothing happened, his smile was warm, and his eyes were searching for mine. But I couldn't smile back. I couldn't pretend.

"Clara," he said softly, coming closer to me.

The warmth of breath on my face threatened to melt the brewing anger inside of me. Every fibre of my being wanted him, his perfume made me feel like a gigglish little girl. I wanted him to touch me everywhere.

But I gathered myself together and showed him the blog post of he and Emilyon my phone. I managed to ask him weakly despite my sexual heat in the monent.

"What is this?"

His face lost its excitement as he looked at the headline. "Clara, I can explain..."

"Explain?" My voice was loud with anger and my hands trembed. "Explain how you stood there with her, smiling for cameras, while I was here believing the things you told me? And what was that stupid kiss the other night? Am I just one of your cheap whores?"

"Clara, please." His voice was pleading for my understanding, his hand kept reaching for mine, but I pulled back as soon as they touched me.

"It's not real. It's my parents. They arranged this. I didn't agree to it." he said.

"What does that even mean?'' Anger was boiling on my insides. " You're lying to me. Why didn't you stop it?," I yelled, my tears falling freely now.

"You let them use your life, your future, and you just stood there beside her. Worse still, you lied to me Mark. You lied to me!" I broke down in hot tears and sat on one of the customer chairs. .

"I had no choice. He said in a whisper. "They threatened to cut me off completely, to ruin you if I refused. You don't understand the lengths they'll go to."

"I do understand!" I snapped, raising my voice again."Your mother already came here, Mark. She humiliated me in front of everyone, called my daughter an imbecile. And now this? "So you're scared of loosing your fortune? I thought you said you wanted to fight for our love?''

He didn't say a word. Then I realized that my anger was nothing to him. He used to be a playboy,so he was used to whores screaming at him. So, I calmed down.

"I don't even know why I'm upset. It's not like you proposed to me. I was just too stupid to believe that I meant anything to you." My voice dropped to a whisper again.

"Do you know what this feels like? To be the secret in your shadow while the whole world celebrates your engagement to someone else?"

His face broke down with guilt. "Clara, you're not a secret to me. You're the only real thing I have had in years. Emily means nothing. It's you I..." He stopped talking, it was like his throat went dry.

"You belong in her world, not mine," I whispered in tears. "And one day, you'll realise that. You'll choose her. Because your family will never let you choose me."

His eyes burned with an fierce emotion that frightened the hell out of me. "No! Clara, they can control everything else, but they don't get to decide who I love. Please."

He was begging me like a child that was scared of being punished. The heir to the Mogul Incorporated at my feet like a common beggar. My heart sank.

My knees went weak, and my tears were choking in my throat. But before I could speak, the diner door opened and the devil walked in.

Emily Vanclair.

She was even more beautiful in person with flawless skin, and long legs that carried her like a queen into my small world. Her eyes looked through the diner with mild disgust before resting on Mark.

"Darling," she said sweetly, speaking like she owned him. "There you are. Your mother said I might find you here."

My stomach twisted. The way she said "darling" made me want to run and hide. I felt humiliated by Mark. It because of him that she was ridiculing the diner that fed me and my child.

Mark's face was completely white.. "Emily, what are you doing here?"

"Looking for you," she replied smoothly, ignoring me completely. She sat on the stool beside him, her manicured fingers brushing his sleeve like she already owned him. "We have a photoshoot tomorrow, remember? Vogue wants us on the cover of their magazine as the couple of the year."

My breath stopped. "Couple of the year". It was like someone was pounding nails into my chest.

Finally, Emily looked at me, and the disgust in her eyes nearly made me faint. She gave a degrading little smile. "You must be the waitress or sorry my husband to be's uhm.... cheap hobby."

The room started spinning. My vision blurred with tears, but I refused to let her see me break.

I stood tall, though my voice was shaking when I said, "Your table's that way if you're ordering. If not, you should leave."

Her laugh was sharp, like glass shattering. "You're fierce. I see why Mark chose you to satisfy his urges."

"Emily!" Mark yelled at her angrily. "Don't speak to her like that"

She ignored him and moved closer to me, her voice was low but was loud enough for me to hear. "Understand this, Clara, you'll never win. Men like Mark might play with women like you, but they always marry women like me."

I froze, her words hit every hidden fear I had.

Mark hit his hand on the table, his voice was more serious this time. "Enough, Emily! You don't get to talk to her like that."

She didn't even move. "Then perhaps you should stop giving her reasons to believe she matters."

The silence that followed was suffocating. My heart pounded, my hands kept trembling, and I knew I couldn't stay there another second.

"I have customers," I said faintly, turning away before they saw the tears spilling down my cheeks.

Mark called me, but I didn't stop.

I thought heartbreak came quietly, in the small hours of the night when I lay awake staring at the ceiling, wondering if Mark's love for me was real. 

But I was wrong.

Humiliation came like a hurricane the following week.

It started with my landlord banging on my door at dawn. His face was red with anger, he kept shouting and yelling my name.

I was embarrassed. 

"Clara, I can't take this anymore. The Moguls' lawyers have been sniffing around. They've threatened me with inspections, fines, lawsuits and things I can't afford. I am  sorry, but you need to move out by the end of the month."

I felt the floor shift under me. "But.....I have always paid rent. I have never missed a payment." I said with tears almost forming in my eyes.

"It's not about that." His voice was soft for a moment, but he didn't look at me. "They don't want you here, Clara and I can't fight them. You know how much power they have."

Behind me, Lily was holding her teddy bear, watching us with wide, scared eyes. I wanted to scream, to fight, but the words stuck in my throat. All I could do was nod, my hands kept shaking as I closed the door.

The Mogul's had won. 

By noon, the news had spread in the neighbourhood.

"That's the woman who's trying to sleep with the Mogul heir."

"She's a gold digger, she's using her child  to get him to marry her."

"I heard she has a bad past. I heard she is nothing but evil."

I walked down the street with Lily's hand in mine, my face covered with shame as they stared. When I got to the diner, it was worse.

A group of wealthy women sat in one of the tables, their designer bags sat beside them like trophies. I could feel their eyes on me as I poured their coffee.

"Such a shame," one of them said loudly, her voice filled with disdain for me. "These single mothers will do anything to climb up the wealthy ladder. But it never lasts."

The others laughed at me, and I nearly dropped the pot of coffee I was using to serve them..

My hands were shaking so badly I had to run to the kitchen, where my boss, Mr. Hardy, was waiting for me.

"Clara... I don't know how to say this." He rubbed the back of his neck. "Business has been slow, and now you know I like you. But, the Moguls......you know they are very connected people. They have made calls, Clara. They don't want you working here."

I couldn't believe my ears. "Are you firing me?"

He sighed heavily, but he didn't look at me. "You're one of the best waitresses I've had, but I can't fight them. If I lose their catering contracts, this diner won't survive. I'm sorry."

I stood there frozen, and hot tears burst from my eyes. Mr Hardy didn't know how to console me. He just stood there pitying me.

"You need to go on your knees and beg Victoria, maybe she'll leave you alone." Mr Hardy said quietly.

"I didn't do anything wrong.'' I replied with my tears choking my words. This was too much for me. How would I support Lily?

Why couldn't they leave me alone? They had won. Mark was already engaged to Emily. I was simply the waitress in the shadows that loved a billionaire. 

That night, when I got back to my tiny flat, Mark was waiting outside the door.

He looked tired, I could see dark circles under his eyes, he looked really angry when I saw him at first.  But when he saw my tear-stained face, his anger died down. 

"Clara, what happened?" He reached tried to pull me in but I pulled away. 

"They're destroying me, Mark," I whispered, my voice breaking with tears. My head kept banging from crying all day but I managed to talk to him. "I'm going to lose my job, Mark. They're calling me names and spreading lies. And it's all because of you. I am not a cheap prostitute Mark and you know it"

His face twisted with guilt. "You're not Clara. You're the love of my life. It's my parents, they'll do anything to separate us. But I promise, I won't let them."

"You can't stop them," I managed to say even though my head was banging. "You're their son. You belong to their world and I don't. Your mother is making sure that  I never forget it."

He moved closer to me, and held my wet face with his warm hands. The smell of his cologne made me feel wet down there. I wanted him to move even closer and make me forget it all. 

"Clara, listen to me. They can take everything else from you, but they can't take me. I won't marry Emily. I don't care if they cut me off. I'd rather have nothing with you than everything without you."

I looked into his eyes and my insides melted. I was suffering because of this man and yet I wanted to suffer more because I couldn't control myself around him.  

I pulled him into my arms in a tight embrace. Tears spilled down my cheeks as I whispered to his ears. "Why are you doing this to yourself? Why are you doing this to us?"

"Because I love you," he said quietly but fiercely, the words left his mouth like embers of burning passion. "And I won't let them win."

His forehead pressed into mine, his breath was warm amd smelled of mint, his eyes were burning with the truth of his undying love for me. 

He hands slipped down my hips gently and then slowly under my gown. I drew my neck back to allow him to kiss me even more passionately. 

Then I heard that sweet familiar voice. My insides groaned with the pain of interrupted passion.

It was Lily.

"Mummy, I'm hungry.''

He groaned knowing that Lily had broken a pasionate moment but his face changed to smiles when he saw her innocent face. 

He picked her up. " What would like to eat gummy bear." She chuckled happily as he carefully tickled her side. 

"Cococereal!'' Lily replied giggling happily. 

"Let's go and make you some.'' With that, he carried her into the kitchen. I stood there watching them with a smile on my face. Mark would have been the perfect father for Lily.

I followee them into the Kitchen and watched as he happily poured her a plate of cereal. She was telling him stories of how a bully in her school was punished the school. 

"Are you scared of bullies?'' He asked her in the kindest voice I had heard.

"No, Uncle Mark''. She replied with her mouthful of cereal. 

"Good.'' He said wearing a proud father look. "You don't have to be afraid ever."

Mark touched her face, his hand brushing Lily's hair gently. "I'll protect you and mummy, Lily. No matter what it takes."

"From what?'' Her soft voice asked in a whisper.

Mark smiled. "From everything and everyone that wants to come between me and your mummy". Lily nodded with a smile and gave him the warmest hug ever.

"Thank you, Uncle Mark" Lily replied with beautiful smile. 

"You're welcome gmmy bear. Now eat up.'' He tickled her again. She giggled.

My heart melted. I wanted to believe love was enough. I wanted to believe his promises. But I was scared.

His family wasn't just trying to separate us. They were stripping me bare, piece by piece and I knew they were only starting.  

I knew I loved Mark so much and he felt the smae way about me. I wasn't sure love would save me from his wicked family.

I don't know what this love holds for me and that alone scares me.