LOGINThe morning after the legal notice shook Parkinson & Rowe to their core, the office at Hemmingway International hummed with a potent mix of tension and confidence. Jullian arrived early, sleeves rolled, laptop under one arm, and fire in his step.Grace met him at the door, a takeaway coffee in each hand. “You didn’t get much sleep, did you?”Jullian took the coffee and kissed her cheek. “Sleep is for the uninvested cupcake.”She arched a brow. “And how invested are you?”He grinned. “Deep enough to bury Parkinson & Rowe.”Inside the boardroom, Annabelle, Morgan, Oliver, and Bradford sat around the long table, the air thick with anticipation, while Camilla poured tea with the calm grace of someone who had navigated high-stakes boardroom drama for years.“Morning,” Jullian said, connecting his laptop to the screen. “I’ve got what we need.”Morgan leaned forward. “What did you dig up?”Jullian’s fingers flew across the keyboard. A grainy video appeared on the screen, Nathan Caldwell, si
The next morning, Annabelle strode into the Hemmingway International office with a singular purpose, to put an end to Parkinson & Rowe’s theft and secure their company’s reputation. The tension from yesterday’s revelations still loomed, but today, they were armed with a plan.Morgan sat in the boardroom going over the files he had received from Oliver. The moment she stepped inside, all eyes turned to her.“What’s the update?” she asked, setting her handbag down on the table.Oliver cleared his throat. “IT confirmed that Patrick Walters accessed the Kensington Project files three days before he left. We have time stamps proving he copied them onto an external drive.”Morgan let out a low curse. “That son of a..."Annabelle raised a hand to stop him. “It’s exactly what we needed. What about Jullian?”“He’s already on it. He called me early this morning and said he’s digging into Parkinson & Rowe’s past dealings. Apparently, this isn’t the first time they’ve been accused of stealing des
Annabelle Hemingway stood at the head of the long conference table, her hands pressed firmly against the polished oak surface. The tension in the room was palpable, a suffocating weight pressing down on every executive seated before her. Across from Annabelle sat Morgan Hemingway, her husband and CEO of Hemingway International, paced with barely contained frustration.“What do you mean the Kensington Project designs have been leaked?” Annabelle’s sharp voice cut through the uneasy silence.The room shifted uncomfortably. Oliver Blackwood, the man in charge of the project, cleared his throat. “We received confirmation this morning that another firm that Parkinson & Rowe had submitted a nearly identical blueprint to the city planning board.”Morgan stopped pacing and turned on his heel. “That’s impossible. We locked down those designs. Only a handful of people had access.”Annabelle’s eyes narrowed. “And now one of those people has sold us out.”She exhaled sharply, crossing her arms.
Grace walked into the office a little later than usual that morning, the soft hum of conversation stopping the moment she stepped onto the floor. Heads turned, eyes widened, and people exchanged nervous glances. It was as if everyone had collectively agreed to hold their breath.Jullian, walking beside her, smirked. “That’s quite the reaction.”She gave him a pointed look. “Not everything is about us.”He shrugged. “True. But in this case, I think it might be.”Grace sighed, adjusting the strap of her handbag. “Or, something’s gone horribly wrong.”Grance sensed something was wrong, and as if right on cue, Olivia appeared, looking frazzled. “Grace! You need to come to your father’s office. Now.”Grace’s stomach tightened. “What happened?”Olivia exhaled sharply. “It’s Peter.”Jullian’s smirk deepened. “Ah, so it is about us, then.”Grace shot him a look before turning back to Olivia. “Okay, what’s he done this time?”“He submitted an incomplete financial report to one of our biggest c
The tension between them was electric, humming in the quiet space of the living room. Jullian’s hands moved to her waist, warm and steady, his fingertips barely pressing into the fabric of her dress. Grace tilted her head back, breath shallow, as she watched him through half-lidded eyes.“Are you sure?” His voice was rough, laced with restraint. If she was going to give him her first, he was damn-straight going to make it perfect and memorable for her. Grace’s lips curled in a slow smile. “You ask me that like I haven’t been waiting for you to do this.”A low growl rumbled in his throat before he closed the distance, capturing her lips again in a kiss that was nothing like the playful ones before. This one was hungry, insistent, and filled with all the tension that had been building between them for months.She melted into him, pressing her body against his, revelling in the feel of hard muscle and warmth beneath his shirt. His hands skimmed down
That afternoon, after leaving the coffee shop, grace headed back to the office. Grace was buried in reports, checking numbers and ensuring everything was in order. It was a part of the job she usually enjoyed, seeing the details aligning and the balance sheets making sense. Then, looking at the one clients set of financials, something was off. Something didn't feel right. A tight knot formed in her stomach as she flipped through the latest financial reports. The numbers didn’t add up. There was a discrepancy, big enough to send a cold wave of panic down her spine.She double-checked, then triple-checked. "Damn it." she whispered under her breath. “Peter!” she called, her voice sharper than she intended.Peter rushed in, looking slightly flustered. “Yes, Miss Jones?”She thrust the reports at him. “Explain this. These figures don’t match the ones we finalized last week.”Peter hesitated. “Well… I, uh… there w
The pandemic had put a strain on everyone internationally. The Jones/Hemmingway family, fortunately, had enough resources to keep them going, even making up food parcels for the more under-privileged ones and dropping them at their doorsteps from time to time.Since no one was able to move around f
After a week of being in hospital, Tamara was eventually discharged. Glenda was charged with murder and endangering patients and her license to practice medicine was revoked.Getting back to her mother's place felt so amazing. She could finally get some proper, well-deserved rest. Instead of being
It had been a long six and a half months for Tamara. Lying in bed most of every day just watching the Tele. Guests frequented the home and kept her company. Her parents-in-law stayed just down the road intermittently as they wanted to be there for Tamara and Frederick.At seven months of gestation,
Tamara was released from hospital, but there were strict conditions. She would need plenty of bed rest and to have a well-balanced, iron-rich diet. They moved in with Ruby and Chris, Tamara's parents, so that they could help take care of their daughter. "Mom, are you sure this will be okay?" Fred







