Novels by Great Pen Lord

Morning arrived faster than I had hoped for it to. I was standing before my mirror, looking at the interview details that were open on my phone, as I was also remembering the words Serena had said to me. Take the interview, she had urged me, which made choosing something for myself feel more frightening than choosing her.The years I spent at the university had taught me how to stay alone, but I came home realizing that one person could make me forget that completely. I picked up my bag, slipped the folder from last night inside, and took my leave before I convinced myself out of going. For once in my life, I wanted to get into the interview room as Maya Thompson and nothing else.I expected the officer to be bigger than how I saw it, but everyone inside took the project very seriously. They asked me about organization, communication, pressure, ideas, and I gave answers without uttering the name of Serena once. I paused before giving the only answer that felt honest to the woman acro

Serena’s words stayed between us as music still went on downstairs. My gaze remained on her, while trying to understand how she could ask me to build something that is meant for myself after she made me feel that being close to her was the only thing that mattered.My fingers were still wrapped to hers, but I had taken my mind somewhere else. “What exactly are you asking me to do?” I asked quietly, with Serena leaning back, protecting the stitches that remained above her eyebrow, while looking at me softly. “I am asking you to have a life that would belong to you, Maya, even if I am lucky enough to be part of it.”The answer from Serena somehow caught me off guard because I had expected her to convince me to accept Velvet. Rather, she was allowing me to want something that is outside the walls she had used her hand to build. I removed my hand and offered hers and rubbed my palms together. Suddenly, it dawned on me that I had spent years running from my feelings for her without makin

The very first thing I realized when we got into Velvet was that nobody looked surprised to see me beside Serena anymore. People’s eyes slid to the stitches above her eyebrow, as if the two of us were something they expected to see together. Serena noticed it too, though she adjusted her jacket before moving ahead without a word.“You’ll be staying close with me tonight,” Serena murmured while touching my wrist as we moved toward the private event area. “Not because I think you need protecting, but just because I really want you here.” I stared at her injured face, remembering the promise she had made to me yesterday, then nodded because I finally realized she was keeping it.The event hadn't started yet at the club, but it was already busy. Serena’s staff carried folders between rooms, checked guest lists, and also prepared the private section. Claire moved through everything on her own with the calm confidence of someone who had done it many times before.Watching Serena work at the

I stared at Serena waiting for the answer that her silence refused to give me. Her thumb moved across my knuckles, but her eyes remained fixed on mine as if she clearly knew what I feared. Claire was not outside our relationship anymore and I needed to know what that meant for me.“Unfinished means there is a discussion I should have had with her some time ago,” Serena asserted to me. She shifted carefully against the sofa. “It doesn’t mean I want her back,” I watched her face while looking for guilt instead of hesitation. “Then have it,” I said while forcing my voice to stay steady. “I am not going to ask you to avoid someone just because she had some history with you.” Serena’s voice had softened. In the conversation we had explained that Claire was not simply an ex who still appeared whenever she wanted. Claire had handled Velvet’s private events, bookings, guests, and arrangements for years, including while she and Serena were together, and that meant that the relationship ended

I woke up to Serena as she was moving carefully around her bedroom, and for a short moment I forgot about the stitches in her eyebrow. Ethan had indirectly left me to spend the night with her.I remembered Ethan leaving, Serena promising she would not hide me, and her final words about everyone at Velvet knowing where I stood. I pushed myself up as she turned from the mirror and the small wince she tried to hide made my chest tighten.“You’re supposed to be resting,” I uttered while watching her reach for her black jacket. Serena paused with one arm through her sleeve before giving me a look that usually ended arguments.“I am resting,” she replied to me while adjusting her jacket, “I’ll just be doing that somewhere that needs me.”I moved closer to her and said, “You’re not going back to work. Serena touched the edge of her band

“Maya, there’s something you need to know about Serena,” Ethan's voice of Ethan was quieter than it had been, and the words felt heavier.My fingers remained locked around Serena while she was watching my brother from the couch, with her face suddenly stripped of the little amusement she managed to recover.“What is it?” I asked, moving forward. My brother didn’t answer immediately, while Serena shifted against the couch cushion, pressing just one hand against her temple. Her movement reminded me that she was still injured, but Ethan's face told me that this was not about the injury.Serena slowly reached for Ethan’s arm. “Ethan, don’t,” she said with her fingers resting right against his sleeve like she knew what he wanted to say. Ethan looked back at her hand, then looked back at me, and there was something in his expression.