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FLAVIA'S POV
"It's a good thing we are meeting at your office today because I was beginning to think you wanted to scam me." Louis my new client said as soon as he entered the office. I am excited about the prospect of having a new client and I am glad that he finally made it for our appointment but it's so upsetting that he showed up late. I hired this office for just an hour and he already wasted forty five minutes. "You are late." I pointed out. "That's funny, I am the one paying you, so I can decide to show up anytime I like. Anyways, show me what you have put together." He sat across from me and if not because I need the money so much, I wouldn't have worked for him because he is so obnoxious and randy, just like I remembered and I am even more upset that he can't remember me or maybe he is just pretending not to. "Well, this are the designs I was able to come up with, have a look." I turned my laptop to his direction, so that he can see the samples I came up with. "This is a joke right?" I stared at him flustered about what he is talking about. "Of course it has to be a joke, you don't expect me to like any of these nonsense right?" He asked and my blood boiled, why will he refer to my work as nonsense. "I beg your pardon, are you suggesting that you don't like any of them?" "No, I am not suggesting. I am telling you that I fucking hate them, everything here looks cheap and below my standard, do I need to remind you that I am a billionaire and my wedding needs to be massive and the talk of the town for months?" Oh gosh, I hate the fact that I am in desperate need of money. "Well, maybe if you have given me a budget, I would have known how big I should go." I pointed out because at this point, I am honestly confused. I hate that he is making me feel incompetent, I mean I know I haven't planned a big wedding before but I can do it, I am really good at my job, so he has no right to bullshit my efforts. "I said there is no limit, go fucking wild." "Look Mr Frederick, you have to be specific because my wild might be small compared to you and saying unlimited budget is not helping me and don't forget that the wedding is in two weeks, so the earlier the better." I explained because the unlimited budget is driving me crazy and I really don't know how large I should go with the planning. "Fine, what about fifty." Is he pulling my legs because what the hell does he mean by fifty? "You mean fifty thousand dollars?" "Don't be ridiculous Miss, I mean fifty million dollars. Let's start with that and see how far it can go." I have never seen that amount of money before, by the time I am done with this wedding, I will be made for life. I will probably be a millionaire, I will finally be able to pay my house rent and I can also set up a proper office space for my business. Oh my goodness, I am so happy. Now I have more reasons to tolerate his bullshit till after the wedding, I am finally going to have financial freedom. "Okay that's fine, I will work on the designs again to fit your budget and I will get..." "Excuse me." He interrupted just as his phone started ringing. I watched as he struggled to get his fat body out of the chair and I couldn't help but wonder how he got into the chair in the first place. "Hey honey, I have been trying to reach you for days?" He said as he started pacing around the office. "Well I am glad you are okay, how have you been?" It's hard to believe that the same guy that has been so rude and arrogant to me is the same guy talking sweetly over the phone, well I guess he just doesn't like me just like I don't like him. "When are you coming back because I am with the wedding planner and she's driving me crazy with her bullshit, you should be the one handling this." I guess he is right about that, I will prefer to deal with her than with him. He is too annoying for my liking. "What, what do you mean by you are not coming?" "That's a joke right? The wedding is in a few weeks, you can't do this?" I know it's wrong but I am getting anxious and I really wish I could hear what she's saying to him. "You can't do this to me Emily, please. The wedding can't be off." Off? Did he say off? Hell no, I am just about to be a millionaire, there is no way I will lose this opportunity, oh God I really need this money. "Please, you can't leave me Emily, the wedding has to go on. Emily, Emily Emily. Fuck." He cursed as soon as the call ended and that's when it became clear that I just lost my opportunity but at least, he is a billionaire, so he should be able to compensate me for all the wasted effort. "Ummm, sorry. I have to go now." "Oh no Mr Frederick, you can't just leave like that. We just finalized on the fifty million dollars, so you have to make some deposit." I mean he can't just leave without paying me anything, I rented this office space because he insisted on knowing my office and I have spoken to a few vendors already, what am I going to tell them now? "Are you blind, deaf or plain stupid? I know you listened to my conversation but just in case it wasn't clear enough,my fiancee just broke up with me. So what deposit are you asking for, am I going to get married to myself?" I was about to reply when the door flew open and the security guard stepped in. "Miss Flavia, you guys have to leave now. The owner of the office is back." Shit, he should have just called me aside instead of saying it in front of Louis. "This is not even your office, I guess I was right after all. You wanted to scam me, well your gig is up, the wedding is off."FLAVIA'S POVI smiled... genuinely at him.“That’s amazing,” I said, leaning forward slightly... “You have come to the right place. We are going to make sure your mother has the best and most memorable birthday ever.”Desmond’s smile widened, slow and satisfied. “I love the sound of that. That’s exactly what I was hoping for...”“Great,” I said. “Then let’s start planning.”I reached for my notebook... flipping it open like muscle memory had taken over. Work mode always grounded me... structured, predictable, and safe. It was the only place where things made sense.“So,” I continued, pen poised. “Do you have a theme in mind? Or a location?”Desmond blinked... He actually blinked like he had no idea what I was talking about...Then frowned slightly. “Do I really need to get involved in the planning and decide the theme? What does that even mean?”Jaz and I burst out laughing.I shook my head. “Not really. Usually, someone close to the celebrant helps with that. Your wife or girlfriend,
FLAVIA'S POVBy the time I got back to the office... my head was a mess. A complete, chaotic mess.Every unasked question was screaming inside my brain, every follow-up question that I wasn’t allowed to ask felt like an itch I couldn’t scratch and the more I tried not to think about Louis’ answer... my ex... the louder it echoed.His ex was back, she was the one that has been calling him incessantly and she was the person he saw at the beach. She was the reason he suddenly changed and became so absent even when he was present.And just like that, a thousand invisible puzzle pieces scattered across my thoughts...I parked... stepped out of the car, and left the basket of food inside. I didn’t need to take it to the office, after all it was empty. The moment I walked into the office, Jaz was already pacing.“Thank God you are here,” she said, checking her watch. “The new client will be here in five minutes...”She didn't look worried though... instead she looked excited and maybe a lit
FLAVIA'S POVI was still sitting on his lap when I got the pass...My heart was pounding and my breath was trapped somewhere between my lungs and my throat, my fingers curled lightly into his shirt like if I let go, I might lose my nerve... or worse, lose him...He wanted one question but honestly... I had too many. A whole lot of questions.I have had too many sleepless nights, too many half-answers and too many moments where his eyes drifted somewhere else while his body stayed with me.. .I wanted to know everything, every single thing from who had been calling him nonstop? What happened at the beach? Why did he start acting like he was carrying something heavy he wouldn’t share? Why had he been truly late to our date the other day? Why did he smile at his phone like that when we were on our date? Why did it feel like there was a version of him I wasn’t allowed into anymore?I wanted to know every lie, every omission and every truth he swallowed before it reached his lips but I cou
LOUIS'S POVI watched her long after she said it’s fine. That was the thing about Flavia ... when she said those words in that soft, controlled voice, it almost never was...She started picking at her food instead of eating it... Her laughter dulled and her shoulders weren’t as relaxed against my chest anymore ... The warmth between us faded, slow and quiet, like a sunset you didn’t notice ending until the sky was already dark...And it was all because of one call... one stupid, badly timed call.It hurt more than I expected, it hurt because minutes ago, we were laughing, she was smiling like nothing in the world weighed on her and for a moment, it was almost like everything was back to normal again. Everything was perfect just before the stupid call came in.Emily had already hurt me once... She disappeared two weeks before my wedding... leaving me scrambling, humiliated, and exposed. And thanks to her actions, Flavia had stepped in then, she covered my mess and shame. She stood besi
LOUIS'S POVI watched Flavia like a man standing on thin ice, listening for cracks.The basket hit my desk with a soft thud, not angry, not gentle either... It was just … placed carefully but she didn’t look at me right away, she didn’t sigh and she didn’t even bother to accuse me like I expected, she just stood there, her fingers were still curled around the handle of the basket for a second longer than necessary, her face was calm in a way that made my chest tighten...I was desperate for her to say something, anything ... Yell at me, question me, smile or curse me, anything as long as she just don’t stay quiet because silence had always been the most dangerous sound between us.My mind raced, replaying the last few minutes on a brutal loop. I was practically confessing to Tommy a while ago, then there's the call and it was on speaker which means Emily’s voice was echoing loudly in my office just before Flavia walked in and honestly, the way I had panicked and cut the call short the
LOUIS'S POVDriving to the office felt like punishment and every red light, every slow car and every second alone with my thoughts made it worse.I felt horrible, not just because I cheated, not just because I lied straight to my wife’s face but because I made Flavia feel bad for asking when she was absolutely right. I cheated on her, with my fucking ex.The irony of it made me sick.She asked because she felt something was wrong... and she was right. And instead of owning up to it, instead of protecting her the way I swore I would, I turned it around on her and made her feel stupid, insecure and I went as far as making her apologize for my mess.I tightened my grip on the steering wheel... If Flavia ever found out the truth, she would leave me especially after what I did last night. There was no doubt about that.Things between us were already strained, already fragile and he safest thing right now... the only thing... was to lie. I hated it. God, I hated it and to think I had alway
FLAVIA'S POV After my call with Jazmine, I brought out my laptop and started looking for a nice building to rent for my office space. I mean, one of the reasons I decided to accept the contract deal with Louis is so that I can have money to set up a proper office space for my business and even tho
FLAVIA'S POV The silence in the car wasn’t the comfortable kind, it was thick, drawn-out, and padded with all the things neither of us wanted to say. His hands rested lightly on the steering wheel, his knuckles relaxed albeit the tension simmering just beneath the surface.I watched the city blur
FLAVIA'S POV I woke up feeling annoyed and very frustrated, after having little or no sleep last night thanks to Louis and all the awful things he said to me last night... First, I didn't want to go to the so called event with him but he practically forced me.Then he embarrassed me at the event b
FLAVIA'S POV I never knew flowers could feel like landmines. The orchids on the marble kitchen island were a soft shade of lilac, delicate and perfectly arranged. I reached out instinctively to adjust one of the petals, only slightly because it looked like it was leaning the wrong way."Don’t touc







