Se connecter(Amara)“Rayner, stop! Stop!”He doesn’t listen.He just keeps dragging me across the beach, the cool breeze whipping against my skin.“Rayner!”The scream rips from me as I finally yank my hand from his grip.He pauses.Then turns to face me.“What do you think you’re doing?” I point behind us. “You were supposed to drop me off at the hotel. So what makes you think you can just take me anywhere without my permission?”“Why?”His eyes stay on mine. “You want to go back and wait for when Lorenzo finally comes to join you?”“What?”My brows pull together.“What rubbish are you talking about?”“It isn’t rubbish, Amara. It’s the truth.”His jaw tightens.“If I hadn’t bumped into Lorenzo last night and mistaken his room key for mine, then he would’ve been the one in the room with you. Not me.”My stomach drops.So that’s what happened.That’s how Rayner ended up in my room.But…I still don’t understand.Why was Lorenzo assigned the same room as mine?A strange uneasiness settles in my ches
(Rayner)“Have Nathan know that we won’t be meeting as planned.”The command I gave Stefan replays in my head as I step hard on the gas, following closely behind Lorenzo’s car.I need to know exactly where they’re going.Exactly where Lorenzo is taking her.“Rayner!”Stefan’s scream rips through the car.He’s been clutching the handle since I started driving, screaming his lungs out every few seconds.But I don’t stop.I just keep driving.I can’t lose them.I won’t.********We stand in front of the tall building, Stefan beside me.“Isn’t this…”His voice trails off as recognition flashes across his face.My eyes narrow.It’s one of our buildings here in Beverly Hills.But what could they be doing here?I need to know.I turn and signal to Stefan.He immediately understands.Go find out.He leaves and returns barely a minute later.“A meeting?”My brows knit together as he explains.“Since when did Lorenzo start working for Eleanor Foods?”The question sits heavily in my chest becaus
(Amara)We arrive at the venue for the meeting. Lorenzo and I take our seats just as the door opens again and the investor walks in, his secretary and several members of his team following behind him.“Mr. Alfred.” I rise slightly and extend my hand.He takes it with a smile. “Good to see you, Miss Roosevelt.”“You too.” A smile finds my lips.As I pull my hand back, his gaze shifts past me. Recognition immediately flashes across his face.“Lorenzo!”His voice brightens as he steps forward and pulls Lorenzo into a hug.I blink.You can tell instantly that they know each other.He pulls back, keeping a hand on Lorenzo’s shoulder.“Good to see you, man,” he says in Italian, a language I can understand well enough. “What are you doing here?”Lorenzo chuckles.“Here for some work. Besides, how could I leave you here all alone?”They both laugh, looking completely at ease with each other.For a moment, it feels like they’ve forgotten everyone else in the room.Before Lorenzo finally gestur
(Rayner)“You’re in my room.”Stefan’s voice drifts behind me as I adjust my cufflinks.“Why?” I turn to face him. “Is there something you’re hiding that you don’t want me to see?”The question leaves me, and I watch something flicker across his face before he quickly schools his expression. A scoff follows.“What could I possibly be hiding?”“Right?” I press my lips together. “Then why didn’t you answer my calls?”I start walking toward him, and he instinctively takes a step back.“You didn’t tell me your room number before leaving. You said you had my luggage checked in.” He nods. “So why did I end up in the same room as hers?”I throw the key card at him.He catches it.I lean closer.“Do you know what’s worse?” I seethe. “I walked in there completely unaware and suddenly looked like a fool in front of her.”My fists tighten.Last night flashes through my mind.The way I acted whenever she got close.The way I kept putting distance between us.The way every second in that room felt
(Amara)A soft groan slips from my lips as I wake.“Argh…”I curl into the bed and squeeze my eyes shut.What the—Then the memories hit.Fast.My entire body stills.My eyes snap to the space beside me.Empty.No Rayner.No one.For a second, my breath catches.Then I sit up slowly, dragging my knees to my chest, a hand running through my tangled hair.His voice echoes in my head.“You’re drunk. You should go to bed.”My stomach twists.No.No, no, no.The memory doesn’t stop there.It keeps coming.Me leaning into him.My fingers brush slowly against my lips.The kiss.The things I said.The things I admitted.Heat rushes to my face.“Oh my God…”I push off the bed abruptly.I start pacing.Back and forth. Back and forth.My breath comes too fast, too shallow.Then another memory crashes in.His hands on me.The way he held me still when I wouldn’t stop moving.I freeze mid-step.Silence swallows me whole.My mind spins so fast I can barely breathe.The images keep coming.The words
(Stefan)The name flashing on my screen catches my attention again as I struggle to steady myself.Rita.I wonder why she’s calling at this hour, but I should probably answer.Excusing myself from Rayner, I stagger away even though I can barely hold myself upright. I make it to the side of the hotel building and slide my finger across the screen.Before I can answer, a hand suddenly grabs my arm and pulls me into a corner.For a moment, my breath catches.Then my eyes land on her.Rita.A small smile curls onto my lips.She’s not just calling.She’s here too?A quiet chuckle escapes me as I wonder whether I’m already imagining things or if she’s actually standing in front of me.Then her voice cuts through my thoughts.“You and sir Rayner’s here? What are you guys doing here?”Her voice is low, almost a whisper.I don’t answer.I just stare.She grabs my arm and shakes me lightly.“Answer me, will you? I saw you both at the club bar. Did you both just come here to party? And…”Her eye
(Isha)I can’t take it anymore.It feels like everyone is against me. Like they’re all standing on the same side… and I’m the only one left out here.Alone.Hated.But Nathan… he was supposed to be different.I thought seeing me like this, seeing me being sent away, would change something in him. I
(Amara)“Felix Reid,” I say, stepping up to the front desk. “I’m here to see Felix Reid.”The constable behind the desk looks up at me, his expression neutral, almost bored.“Give me a moment.”I nod and step aside, my fingers curling tightly at my side.He flips through a register, scribbles somet
(Amara)My eyes open slowly, settling on the blank stretch of ceiling above me.For a few seconds, I just blink.Lost.Confused.Where am I?Then I feel it.Warmth.A hand wrapped over mine.My breath catches slightly as I turn my head—and my gaze lands on him.Rayner.Everything in me stills.Then
(Rayner)“I had no other choice. She was getting in my way with Nathan.”My hand grips the steering wheel tighter as her words replay in my head, over and over again.Then another follows.“Besides, what’s so wrong in trying to help them get back together?”My blood boils.A sharp groan leaves me a







