Chapter: BENDED KNEESThe eggs on Jessica’s plate had gone cold. She kept pushing them around with her fork, unable to bring herself to take a bite. Her eyes were puffy from barely sleeping. Every time she closed them, she heard Avery’s voice again in her head. “Grandpa said I’ll be spending more time here.”Janet reached across the small dining table and lightly touched her daughter’s hand.“Sweetheart… are you alright?”Jessica forced a smile that fooled no one. “I’m fine, Mom. Just tired.”Joseph looked up from his newspaper. “Did Ethan say something yesterday?” His voice was calm. He always knew when something was wrong.Jessica dropped her gaze. “It was… nothing.”Joseph frowned. “That didn’t sound like nothing.”Before she could answer, the doorbell rang.Jessica’s fork froze mid-air. Janet’s head snapped toward the hallway. Joseph stood, walked to the window, and peeked through the side curtain. He inhaled slowly.“It’s Ethan.”Jessica’s heart dropped. She wasn’t ready to socialise with th
Terakhir Diperbarui: 2025-11-26
Chapter: FEAR FILESThe families moved slowly toward the front doors of the Mitchell estate, the night air cool against their skin. The courtyard lights glowed warm and golden, softening the edges of everyone’s strained smiles.Avery clung to Jessica’s hand, swinging it as though the night had been nothing but fun. “Mommy, can we come back again?” she asked, half-asleep, half-excited.“We’ll see, sweetheart,” Jessica murmured, brushing a curl off her daughter’s forehead.Charles stepped forward. “Thank you again for coming, Jessica. It meant a lot to the family.”Jessica forced a polite smile. “Of course. It was… nice.”Eleanor hugged Avery tightly. “Goodbye, darling.”Avery giggled. “Bye Grandma! Bye, Grandpa!”William patted her back gently, leaning on his cane. “Sleep well, little one.”Ethan stood behind them, trying to look relaxed, but his fingers wouldn’t stop tapping against his thigh. Jessica noticed. She didn’t comment.She knelt, fixing Avery’s slightly crooked hair bow. “Say goodbye
Terakhir Diperbarui: 2025-11-25
Chapter: EXTENDED ROOTSThe Mitchell estate still had its tall windows glowing against the evening sky. Jessica stepped out of the car, smoothing the front of her dress while Avery clutched her hand tightly. The air smelled faintly of pine and wood polish which gave the environment an elegant, distant, and far too familiar scent. Ethan stood by the grand doorway, his hands tucked in his pockets, trying to look casual but looking every bit as nervous. Behind him stood his parents, Charles and Eleanor, and the man with a walking stick, William Mitchell.Ethan’s smile faltered, then steadied. “Hey, Jess. Thanks for coming.”Jessica felt Avery’s grip tighten. Joseph and Janet flanked her, both standing a little taller than usual.Charles stepped forward first, extending a hand to his friend Joseph. “Joseph, my old friend. It’s been a long time.”Joseph clasped it firmly, his voice low. “A very long time. The last time we met, our kids were tearing each other apart.”Charles’s jaw flexed, but his tone stayed
Terakhir Diperbarui: 2025-10-23
Chapter: LAKE COMOIt was late in the evening, and the house was quiet except for the annoying ticking of the clock in the living room. Avery was already asleep upstairs, after a long day of being a menace. Jessica sat curled on the couch with a mug of tea that had long gone cold, her laptop open but forgotten. The glow from the table lamp cast gentle shadows across the room, brushing over family photos on the shelf.She scrolled absently through old pictures of her and Avery in Italy, bundled in coats, laughing by the canals. Her chest tightened at the memory. The house felt too still, too heavy with what-ifs.Then came a knock at the door.Jessica frowned, glancing at the clock. 9:47 p.m.Her stomach sank knowing that hardly anyone visited at this hour. She reached for her phone, opened the security camera app, and froze.Ethan.He stood on the porch in his work clothes, tie loosened, sleeves rolled to his elbows. His hair was slightly tousled, his expression unreadable. For a brief moment, she
Terakhir Diperbarui: 2025-10-22
Chapter: STORM'S COMINGThe evening light slanted through the half-drawn curtains, drawing gold lines across Jessica’s bedroom wall. She sat on the edge of her bed, the cream envelope resting heavy on her lap like a decision she didn’t want to make. Her thumb kept tracing the raised letters of the Mitchell name, over and over, until the motion felt like punishment.The door creaked softly. Janet, her mother, stepped in, her voice low. “Still thinking about it?”Jessica didn’t look up. “Thinking, regretting, overthinking. It’s one of them or maybe all?”Janet smiled faintly and sat beside her, the mattress dipping slightly. “You’ve been staring at that thing for almost an hour.”Jessica sighed, setting the envelope aside. “I’m scared, Mom.”“Of what?” Janet asked gently.“Not the trip,” Jessica said in a quiet voice. “Of what it means if I say yes.” She picked at the corner of the envelope. “Every time I start trusting him again, he proves and gives me reasons why I shouldn’t.”Janet watched her daugh
Terakhir Diperbarui: 2025-10-09
Chapter: JINGLE BELLSThe hum of orchestral music filled the air in Jessica’s studio, was alive with colour, bolts of silk spilling over tables, the scent of fabric glue and coffee blending in the air. She leaned over her sketchpad, pencil gliding quickly as she murmured to her assistant, “Tell Maya to adjust the hemline by half an inch on this dress.”A knock followed almost instantly.“Ma’am,” her assistant said from the doorway, slightly breathless. “There’s a man here. He says his name is Mr Ethan Mitchell, and he is here to see you.”Jessica froze. Her pencil paused mid-stroke. “Did you say...?”“Yes, ma’am. Mr Mitchell.”A dozen emotions formed in her chest. “Goddamn it. Send him in,” she muttered, her tone cool, clipped.Ethan stepped inside, looking oddly out of place among all the pastels and chiffon hanging around. His suit was dark, his presence heavier than the air itself. “This is a nice setup, Griselda.” he mocked, scanning the mannequins and the photos pinned to the mood board. “You’ve
Terakhir Diperbarui: 2025-10-08
Chapter: SUBPOENA The office felt wrong the moment I stepped inside—too quiet, too still, like the building had been holding its breath for these past few days since I had fired good men and women. I keep my head down and grip my bag against my side, walking faster than usual.Ever since the night with the bodyguards… ever since Alex dismissed me, brushed me aside, and let Tatiana answer his phone… I’ve tried to keep my distance. To make sure things are safe and professional.No small talk that keeps us in the same room for too long. I was working hard to make sure we stuck to work matters only.As I reach the elevators, the glass doors hiss open behind me. I don’t need to turn to know who walks in, his perfume is unmistakable. Alex Blackwood.I shift slightly, just enough to make room without drawing his attention. When he approaches the elevator beside mine, we share the briefest nod that is stiff, formal, painfully polite.We don’t exchange any “Good morning.” Or a pleasant smirk. Just cold profe
Terakhir Diperbarui: 2025-11-26
Chapter: INTERCEPTI slipped into the back seat of the dark Rollys Royce car, my shoulders tense, my hands trembling around the straps of my handbag. The lights in the cars interiors flickered on softly, and I felt exposed, like the pale in my cheeks and the redness in my eyes were suddenly on display for everyone in front of me to see.The driver, calm and middle-aged with steady eyes, looked at me through the rearview mirror.“Ms. Stone,” he asked gently, “everything okay back there?”I forced myself to sit up straight even though my chest felt tight.“Yes,” I lied quietly. “Just a really long day. Please just take me home.”He nodded. “Of course, ma’am. Let’s do that immediately.”But the moment we pulled away from the curb, the air in the SUV felt like it thickened around me even though there was the air conditioner was on. I stared out the window, watching the streetlights blur into smeared streaks of lines. My thoughts kept spiraling—Alex’s cold voice, the argument, Tatiana’s name slipping from hi
Terakhir Diperbarui: 2025-11-25
Chapter: STRAY DOGPapers were scattered everywhere: notes from the meeting, HR forms I had received earlier in the day, and my own disorganised items. I moved slowly like a tortoise as I packed my things, slower than usual, my hands still unsteady from everything Martin had said.His voice bounced around in my mind. “Watch your back, Miss Stone.”I closed my laptop quickly so I could get out of this building. That’s when my door opened like a ghost had come in. I jumped like a scared cat scattering my things once again.Alex stepped inside without knocking, his tie still knotted firmly, jacket open, sleeves rolled halfway like he’d been fighting staff members or someone's partner somewhere else in the building. He stopped when he saw my face.“Damn, long day?” he asked, voice low, unreadable.I nodded. “You could say that.”He folded his arms. “How did it go?”I looked down at my hands. “It went....” I hated how weak that sounded. “They accepted the news gracefully.”He narrowed his eyes. “That
Terakhir Diperbarui: 2025-11-19
Chapter: KARMA'S SHADOW“Alex… so you won’t be attending the meeting?”My voice sounded like a child in need of her father’s help, even to my own ears. I stood near his desk with my folder pressed to my chest, trying to hide the twist of anxiety forming inside of me.Alex didn’t bother looking up at first. He just fastened his cufflinks with that annoying, cold look he was born with. “No.”I walked closer. “But these are the last two names on the list. We should both be there. You can’t leave me now after we started this together.”He paused long enough to give me a single glance, one of those looks that said he’d already decided and nothing I said mattered. The corner of his mouth moved faintly. “You’ll be fine.”He turned away and added, almost casually, “You should be used to firing people by now.”The comment punched the air out of my lungs. My body stiffened, swallowing hard. “That’s not something you ever ‘get used to,’ Alex.”He shrugged, completely unbothered by whatever was happening in my li
Terakhir Diperbarui: 2025-11-17
Chapter: TEACHER'S PET“So about your daughter,” she said, starting even though he had warned her not to. “She’s such a sweet girl. You didn’t tell me she looks just like you.”Alex sighed in frustration but didn’t respond. His hands stayed fixed on the steering wheel, knuckles pale against the leather.“I don’t talk about my family with people from work,” he said finally with a distant voice.Chloe frowned, glancing at him. “I wasn’t asking for details, Sir. I...she actually seems like a good kid. You must be proud of her every day.”He finally looked at her, sending a quick, sharp glance that made her pulse skip. “Well she’s the only part of my life that still feels like mine,” he said with a low voice, colder even. “And that’s exactly why I keep her away from my world.”The words hung between them like fog.Chloe studied him, the hard line of his jaw, the way his eyes stayed locked on the road like the conversation didn’t deserve any attention from him. “But she’s part of what makes you human,” s
Terakhir Diperbarui: 2025-11-13
Chapter: MORNING FACEA blast of music shattered the silence in my new room, causing me to sit upright in bed within seconds with my heart pounding, pillow half over my head. A heavy beat thudded through the walls like there was a marching band attacking the compound.“What the hell is that?” I managed to voice out with a rough voice.Before I could fully open my eyes, Alex’s voice came through the speaker system, sounding loud and active for how early it was in the morning.“Rise and shine, Stone. Your breakfast will be ready in fifteen minutes. If you’re not down by then, I’ll assume you’ve died in your sleep and send the chef to drag you out.”I groaned, dragging the blanket over my face. “You’re insane!” I muttered into the pillow but the music only got louder the more I complained. “Unbelievable,” I grumbled, fumbling to find the speaker’s off switch but there was a knock at the door that stopped me completely.I looked around, hair sticking out in every direction. “If that’s you, I swear...” T
Terakhir Diperbarui: 2025-11-12
Masuk
