vLUCIEN’S POV**I stand in the dimly lit parking lot, my breath forming small clouds in the chill of the early morning air.It’s three in the morning,and I’m feeling anxious and exhilarated.Lucas and Liam, stand beside me, their expressions mirroring the same mix of emotions I feel.The last few days has been exhausting trying to discreetly send our message to the headquarters without raising suspicions or alerting the wrong people.The three of us have been through so much together, and tonight is no exception.I glance at Lucas, his tall and sturdy frame and he meets my gaze with a faint smile, he looked anxious too, clenching and unclenching his fist.Liam, on the other hand, fidgets nervously, running a hand through his unruly dark hair. He is trying so hard to hide it but I can see the anxiety etched on his face.Despite our fears, we knew exactly what to do."Are you ready?" I ask softly, breaking the silence that envelops us.Both of them nod, their expressions unwavering. I ca
v*LUCAS’S POV**I glance across the room at Lucien, my mind racing with what to say about Camilla. I open my mouth to speak stuttering slightly, "I'll have to figure it out somehow," I admit, my gaze fixed on Lucien.He furrows his brow, looking confused “Figure it out? What do you mean?" Lucien asks.”Taking a deep breath, I respond, "I mean I want to talk to her, understand where her head is at. I need to know if she wants to stay, who she wants, and what's going on in her mind right now."Lucien leans back, his expression serious. "Honestly, Lucas, I think we should just let Camilla go. She's been through so much in such a short period. It's a miracle she's holding it together.And, let's face it, everything she's going through is because of us. If we never came into her life, she wouldn't be facing all these difficulties," he says.Nodding in agreement, I admit, "I've been thinking about it too. But, Camilla is avoiding me. Did you see how she acted when I entered the room? It's l
WillowThe coffee shop is packed.Way more packed than it needs to be on a Sunday afternoon. What happened to church?I’m waiting in the long line, smothered by the litter of other people waiting to be attended to when the ‘baby shark’ song blares through the room.Inwardly, I cringe. Trying my best to bite back the swell of mortification, I pull the roaring device out of my purse, pressing the silence button on the side.Ugh.I make a mental note to change that.And no, I didn’t just wake up one morning and decide I’d love to have the kids tune alert me every time I get a call or notification, but that’s what happens when one looses a bet to Kenzo Wesley. I love my boyfriend, lord knows I do, but in all the years we’ve been together, I’ve lost every single one of our random little bets, forgive me if I’m bitter about how the bastard always wins.People shoot me weird glances, but I shrug them off, moving further up the line. I missed the call, staring at my phone screen, my mouth t
WillowThe sight of him sobers me up.He stands immobile, hands shoved in the pockets of his dark slacks. That’s Luciano for you, dressed to the nines in fitted Armani, even while idling the busy streets of Boston on a Sunday afternoon. Something about it has to corners of my lips twisting.I try to move past him, offering another apology, but he gets in my way. Wordlessly shoving himself in between me and my current path.I look up at him, a bite to my voice, “Is there a point to all this?”He’s unbothered, unnaturally calm as his eyes rove over every inch of me, starting at the top of my head, lingering on my face and moving down to the pointed tips of my black heels. “You’re crying.” He states.I scoff, “Oh, you don’t say. I had no idea it was that obvious.” I move to step past him again, but just like before, he blocks my path. I light up like a fuse, all my patience diminished.“What the hell are you doing? Can you let me through?”He doesn’t respond immediately, just patiently
CHAPTER THREEWillowIt’s a blur of designer, expensive jewelry and the finest champagne.I’m getting sick of it all.The fundraiser is packed with people pretending like they actually give two fucks about endangered whales. Yeah they showed up, dropped off fat checks that would never put a dent in the fortunes they owned. But all this is nothing more than another elaborate event held for the multiplication of the money they just let go of.It’s a playground for broker deals.There isn’t any regular in sight. The ball room is flooded with the richest men and women in America, each of them gathered here under the pretence of saving the earth, but only actually bothered about strengthening and spreading out their oil rigs and fuel ports all around the world.“Cheer up, Love.” Kenzo says, his hand settling on my hip, “You might scare the potentials away.”I try not to stiffen, or pull away from the bastards touch. It’s been about three days since the afternoon I caught him fucking my bes
CHAPTER 6I try as much as possible to hide the shock from my face. His intense gray eyes never break away and I understand. He is joking with me. It has to be.I place my hand on my stomach as a laugh erupts from my throat."God, you really got me there, for a second I thought you were being serious," I say to him as I wipe off the imaginary tears.With his hands in his pocket, he still stares at me. I wait for him to say something but he only stared."Are you serious?" I ask, and he only shrugs in response."Why would I marry you?" I ask seriously this time."Because it would also help you," He says before he settles beside me."Are you even listening to yourself?" I ask as I watch him place his hands inside his hair."Yes, Willow, my ears are fine, and my brain is still connected to my mouth, you heard what I said, Marry me," I repeats again.He never seems to stop amazing me."How did you know I was here in the first place? You left just a while ago," I ask and he gives me no repl
The little lights from behind the curtain find their way into my eyes as I open them. I can hear Kenzo's light snoring beside me. Last night was the perfect definition of hectic and not doing a second did I want to spend too morning here.I pull the blanket on my body as I make my way to the bathroom. I had to escape here before he wakes up. If he calls I would tell him I just went for a short vacation but I intend to not come back here for at least a monthI take a quick shower before I dash into the room to start packing up. I just grab a few essentials after I dress up in a black romperI glance one more time at Kenzo before I grab my things. The white platinum card on the white marble beside the table stares back at meI hesitate at first whether or not to take it, but a slight change in position on Kenzo's end makes me dash out of the room with the card in my handsI shove it into the back pocket of my white Gucci bag. Dad would find it an abomination if he finds out that I was d
"Water! Water!" I say in between coughs. Beth handed me the jar beside her and I poured it in my glass cup by myself."Perhaps my question caught you off guard?" He ask and I nod."I will answer that question later but first tell me, how is work?" I ask to distract him."Oh speaking of that," He startsBull's eye!"We will go over to your branch next week, we ought to make sure you are doing a good job there," He says before he bites into his sandwich. He glances at the untouched glass of cranberry before him."For how long?" I ask."Three to four months perhaps, we might leave before the current telecommunication project is over," He says before he leans into his chair."I will be expecting your arrival, and mum how about you?" I ask hoping to drag more time till I am done.By now, I am sure, Beth has already caught on to my plans."The hospital is fine, but of course will be visiting with your father, for support," She says before she glances at him.I think romance died in the nine