Novels by Stephanie Okpowe

Fuck!Did I sleep in?Tell me I didn't fall asleep on your couch “I was about to take you to the bed”No, no The kids?They left an hour agoSharon stood up from the couch, the blanket that was covering her pooled beneath her feetThen she felt a chill run through her spine “You can't leave princess, it's raining”“ You can't just manufacture names for me all the time—”“This is Italy, I can do whatever I want”His figure dwarfed hers, he wasn't going to let her leave. And somehow she felt like she didn't want to leave Sharon pushed him aside and ran straight for the door. She could hear his footsteps behind herShe unlocked the door and felt a cold wind wash through her. The rain was heavier than she thought Luca slammed the door back, and his arms wrapped around her shivering body“You'll catch a cold”He was too close, he could probably hear her heartbeat. He was bent slightly, so his nose could nuzzled her ear. She felt his lips brush her neck At this rate, she was going to

Arman finally opened his mouth to say something “You have my permission to leave, but keep this at the the back of your mind—”He moved closer to her“I'm not the one chasing you”Those were the last words he said to her, those were the words that rang in her head as she took a cab home. she wasn't going to sugarcoat anything, and tell herself she was the victim. Arman needed to know the kind of person she was. He needed to know that everything he saw her go through was karma at work She wronged her best friend, and she was getting punished. And Arman was never going to overlook all her flaws and sins, and accept herThe only thing she could do was continue her phase of revenge against Donald Pavilochenki.It wouldn't heal her broken heart, but it was sure as hell going to break his in return She was going to hit him below the belt, and target something he had struggled to uphold so dear—His family name The Pavilochenki's had dirt on the Grays, it was only fair that the Grays

Claire looked up at Arman, trying to deny that she heard what she just heard“What?”He continued to wipe her forehead.“Why the hell would you do that?”“Arman sighed, and closed his eyes”“Like you said, I need information from you. I won't get any if you're too traumatised to speak, will I?”“I guess not”They sat in silence for a moment “So this is your lucrative hobby”“Yup, are you surprised?”“NoBut I heard from an informant that you quit”“Well, I needed another means of paying my bills, someone got me fired from my very legitimate job”Claire was ranting, but she did seem angry, infact she sounded somewhat amusedDid you really stab him in the eye— because of me?Her tone was a little more serious Dddd You just want to hear it from the horse's mouth, don't you?”“I guess”Arman paused“I— was pissed off, that the management of the club would treat you like you were expendable—”“But I am expendable, that's all I've ever been. Even to you—”“Fuck Claire, I didn't save you s

Claire's legs clung to the metal pole firmly. Her face was masked, and she had just dropped her coat. She could see the lustful looks of the many men encircled round her, she could hear them whistle and hoot in excitement But her mind was somewhere else, and get heart was wrapped around the palm of a man she knew she could never ever haveShe twirled around the pole, and felt the friction on her thighs. It burned, but she was accustomed to it. But then, she felt a wave of nausea taken over her. She felt her grip loosen against the pole, and her head began to acheThe after effects of her drinking spree were beginning to hit her But instead of feeling concerned, the crowd cheered more. Bunch of sick morherfuckers thought it was part of the show.Claire felt her knees give way, and soon, she was lying helpless on the stageThey could've taken her out, but instead—They began to bid on her In the crowd, there were a lot of disgusting rich men who enjoyed the show so much, they decid

“Coffee please”“Is that all sir”“Yes”“You know you could just make coffee in your house Unless of course your motive isn't breakfast—”Arman kept a straight face“Don't employees get sanctioned for chasing customers away?”“Your coffee will be here soonSir”Was Arman really going to pretend that what happened between them a few days ago didn't happen?Not that anything happened, she just felt that he cared or something But she was beginning to look at things like these from the lens of a person that had been broken several times before And Claire was broken—Arman saw her, thought she needed help and offered to help her. There was nothing to it. He would do the same thing for a random waitress, or an old lady, or an underpaid construction worker But then, when she came to clear the table—She found a wad of cash under his trayHe had already zoomed off before she could confront himWas he trying to offer her financial support because he saw her get caught up in the rain for wo

“You're certain you saw Sharon Gray”“Yes”“That's impossible”Palmer fished into his pocket, and brought out a bunch of pictures. He placed it on the table in front of him Donald picked them up, one after the other and examined them “That's Sharon alright”He placed them back on the table “You creep, you actually bought a camera to take pictures of her”“For evidence”“These pictures are a little too much for evidence. You just want to take them home, glue them to your walls and fantasize about killing her someday”“It's a respectable hobby”Donald sighed Sometimes I wonder how you ended up working for my grandfather in the first place But—Donald took a closer lookShe's a catch, I don't blame you Palmer swiped back the pictures and put them back in his pocket If she's here, then I'm very certain that Luca's here too His secretary's alibi makes sense now—Donald's investigating Blake's parentage, and Mr Hillary Gray's affair brought him to Italy. They wanted to make contact