Nicholas"Shit! Eliana." My stomach constricted into a tight ball. The thought of her in the presence of Gavin had my brain freeze for a moment."Relax; Gavin wouldn't dare hurt her. He knows she's important in his stupid plan." Allan stood, placing his hand on my shoulder and making me step aside."She is out there," I pointed at the door, then continued, "right now, with him. What if he just snaps and decides to..." I couldn't finish up the sentence because the next words jammed in my throat."I'm calling her," Rob stated, fishing his phone out. Their relationship seemed to grow stronger with every passing day, given the fact that she had chosen to stay with him.I watched as he placed his phone against his ear, triggering the waiting game. Tapping my foot on the floor, I began counting the seconds. When she didn't pick up, my adrenaline just shot up. Without a word, I turned for the door, my vision kind of tunnelling before me."Nick wait!" Allan called, stopping me right in front
Eliana"I want to be left alone," I said when the guestroom door was knocked."Open up, Ellie; it's me." Allan's voice drifted inside."If he's there, I will close the door on your face," I warned, dragging my feet."If you mean Nicholas, he left without a word as soon as you closed your bedroom door." I closed my eyes, taking a deep breath to stop emotions from taking control over me. The Nick I knew would have followed me, but to hear he had already left? I couldn't pretend that it didn't make my chest ache."Come in." I stepped aside when I opened the door as Allan stepped in."He is hurting, Ellie," he said, his words making me swallow thickly to soothe my drying throat."I attached the chip to his SIM card slot," I uttered, deciding not to comment on Allan's previous statement."For real?""Haven't you seen anything from your end?" I asked, sitting on the bed."I was a little caught up," he rubbed his neck sheepishly, avoiding eye contact."I understand. Catching up with friends
NicholasI covered my head with my pillow when my phone rang somewhere on the bed. The ringtone felt like it was playing inside my ears, tormenting my banging head. I almost shouted "hallelujah" when it stopped, only for it to ring again after a few seconds."The fuck is wrong with some people?" I groaned, wondering why the person hadn't just left a simple voicemail instead of being stubborn. The only way to stop the disturbance was to grabble on the bed for the phone with my eyes still closed. When I finally found it, I blindly pressed on the screen, hoping it would end the call."Why in the hell aren't you answering my calls? Been calling since 8 and you just let it ring, are you ignoring me?" Allan went all loud, shouting over the phone like a madman, while I struggled to cover my ears. It wasn't enough, though, because I heard everything. I was pretty sure the phone wasn't on loudspeaker, even though Allan was clear."Shut up," I weakly responded, with my eyes still closed."Wait,
"Please, dad, stay with me," I breathlessly whispered, cradling my father's head on my lap."I-I..l-ove..." My father sputtered, gagging on his own blood as he attempted to speak."Ssshhh," I soothed, blinking back tears."I know you love me, but right now, I don't want you to strain. The medics will be here soon." I didn't know who I was trying to convince—my dad or myself. I wasn't stupid; I could see his eyes beginning to close while his face began to pale."Muum! What's taking too long?" It was a miracle I could still speak coherently. My mother was pacing frantically, her phone on her ear, trying to get through to the emergency call line. She ran towards us, her stilettos clicking on the wooden floor."Help is on the way; the ambulance will be here shortly. Honey, I need you to look at me; don't you close those eyes on me." She knelt beside us, placing the phone on the floor."El...iana." He called, spitting blood from his mouth. My mother worked on pressing his bullet wound with
Eliana (Three Months Later)"Are you insane? How can you be getting married barely three months after dad was shot and killed? Have you forgotten you nearly died too?" I snapped at my mother, shooting up from the couch as if I was possessed."Weren't you the one who kept on worrying about me staying alone? About getting a person to protect me? Well, this is me doing just that," my mother calmly replied, uncrossing her legs as she remained seated. Her nonchalance on the matter did not sit well with me. It reminded me of how oddly calm she handled my father's death."But I didn't hint at you getting married! The case hasn't even been solved yet; dad's killer is still at large, and you're...you know what? I'm leaving." I wasn't dressed up, but the last thing I wanted was to stay anywhere near my mother at that time. She was betraying my father in the worst possible way, yet she didn't seem bothered at all."So you do not want me to be happy. You want me to stay miserable for the rest of
ElianaNicholas sat beside me in the restaurant, much to my dismay. "You haven't touched your food, Eliana; is it not to your liking?" he asked nonchalantly, his deep voice making me fidget. I threw a glance at him, only to find him staring openly at my lips. I always bit my lower lip when I was nervous, an action that had the man's eyes openly devour me, or maybe I was just overthinking."I'm not hungry," I curtly replied, chuckling nervously. I directed my eyes to my plate when my mother and her fiance looked at me."Why don't you tell Ellie how we met?" My mother sparked up a conversation, making me scoff inwardly. I wasn't interested in knowing about their love lives; heck, I didn't even want them to get married."Of course!" Robert seemed delighted as he put his fork on the side of his plate. I visibly tensed, my grip on the wine glass tightening."Relax; you'll break the glass." Nicholas whispered beside me, his voice making my heart leap."She came to my office in need of my se
NicholasThick tension settled amidst Eliana and me in my Silver Mustang. I kept on throwing glances at her, and each time I would catch her looking at me, only for her to pretend she wasn't. Lowering my gaze, her creamy thighs peeked under her dress that had ridden up slightly. I remembered the way her smooth skin felt against my hand. I turned quickly, staring at the road ahead, careful not to get distracted."He is a good man," I started, trying to ease up the tension and rid my mind of getting glued to her inviting thighs."And your mom...she is good for him. I only met her today for the first time, but it was crystal; she makes him happy," I added when she turned to face outside through the window.She let out a loud sigh before talking. "Of course, it's good enough to start dating a woman who tasked him with investigating her husband's murder.""There's no need to be sarcastic. Your mother deserves happiness; she needs to be loved and taken care of." I earned a warning glare fro
ElianaI went upstairs the minute we got into the house for a change of clothes. I still couldn't believe that he had volunteered to stay with me. As I ascended the stairs to go back to the living room, where Nicholas was, I felt like I shouldn't have accepted his offer. I was scared, though, of being alone at night in the same house where my father had been murdered."I didn't know what you liked watching, so..." Nicholas referred to the TV with a slight shift of his hand. He was going through a list of movies on Netflix, his muscular back right in front of my hungry eyes. He was still standing, but he had removed his jacket and his boots. His biceps had my hands itching to touch them. To trace every tattoo on them while he grunted in pleasure."I figured since we'll be here for a while, why not enjoy a movie and get to know each other?" His calmness made me question my racing heartbeat. His presence alone made my legs jelly."I'm not really a fan of watching. I prefer reading novels