تسجيل الدخولBELINDA
"You're famous, sweetie. Congratulations."I barely opened my eyes."What's going on? Was I on the tabloids in your dreams?""You haven't seen it?" I sat up at the sheer shock in Amanda's voice. What on earth could I have done to become famous at the crack of dawn? As far as I could remember, I hadn't killed Darian."What's happening?""I'm sending you the video link on Instagram, look at it right now.""Okay," I said, saying bye and hanging up. I quicDARIAN“Her current gig is fine. She doesn't need anything more!”“Darian, you’re really starting to get under my skin,” he said, his voice turning cold. “Let Belinda make her own damn decisions about her life.”“She’s happy at Night. That was her dream anyway.”“Why don’t you just admit you’re terrified she’s going to slip through your fingers!”“I’m not even—” I started, but he cut me off.“You’re scrambling, man! You’re scared to death she’ll become famous and fly right out of the cage. You’re doing shit you would never normally do. Don’t make me come down there and slam your head into the nearest wall just to knock some sense into you.”Just as I was about to hang up on him, he yelled, “Fix my phone and my socials. Or I swear to God, someone’s getting hurt.”He was the one who slammed the phone down on me this time.My eyes drifted back to Belinda’s photo. She was smiling. She looked innocent. Luckily, I was the only one who could see the heat
MARCUSAfter my brother left, I headed inside. He was clearly scrambling; I’d never seen him quite like that. He looked calm enough on the surface, but his eyes looked like they were holding back an explosion.I wondered if he’d ever get over his trust issues, if he’d ever give his heart permission to love someone again.I sat down at the table.“What’d he say?” I brushed off Luke’s question. Orders came from the top, after all. My brother had said, “Don't tell them.”“Work stuff,” I said, reaching for my tea.He gave me a skeptical look but didn’t push it. “I’m saying we should drop a hint about this wedding business to Mom. Otherwise, these two are never getting together,” Rose said.“I think we should leave Mom out of it,” Luke countered.I agreed; getting her involved wasn't a good idea. After the Tina incident, my mother had stopped trying to have a say in my brother’s life.“I think our sister-in-law has a point. Why are you objecting?” I sh
BELINDA"You're famous, sweetie. Congratulations."I barely opened my eyes."What's going on? Was I on the tabloids in your dreams?""You haven't seen it?" I sat up at the sheer shock in Amanda's voice. What on earth could I have done to become famous at the crack of dawn? As far as I could remember, I hadn't killed Darian."What's happening?""I'm sending you the video link on Instagram, look at it right now.""Okay," I said, saying bye and hanging up. I quickly opened Instagram. When I saw the number in the notifications, my eyes practically popped out of my head.Could I have actually killed Darian? Were these people following me out of female solidarity?My account had crossed seven hundred thousand. Did someone leak naked pictures of me or something? What the hell was going on?I opened Amanda's message and clicked the video link.The song I sang last night swelled from the speaker, and the stage appeared on the screen.I loo
DARIANThe moment she stepped onto the stage, I pushed the noise of the entire crowd into the background. The corner I was sitting in had a perfect view of the stage. I was shrouded in darkness. I don’t know if she’d discovered this spot before, but her gaze found exactly where I was sitting.She couldn’t possibly see me. But she was looking as if she did."Welcome," she said, letting her eyes wander over the people. "It's a pleasure to see a bigger crowd every week."She was wearing a black, skin-tight, shimmering dress. While she stood facing the stage, the dress looked completely modest, but I had seen the deep low-back detail as she walked up..."Let’s have a great time," she said, turning back to the orchestra. The deep plunge of the back of her dress was fully revealed.A thunderous applause broke out. I don’t know how she managed to carry every dress so well with that tiny height of hers, but it was getting on my nerves.She sang a few upbeat songs in a row. Then she took a sh
BELINDA My last words must have hit the mark because he finally stepped aside. "Go then, you little insolent stool! If you try to run, I’ll find you. You know that." "I won’t run," I said. "You know that. You’re as sure of it as your own name. But you’re threatening me just to satisfy your own ego." "Go," he said, shooing me away with his hand. As if he couldn't stand me for one more second. I wanted to smash his face in. He really had a spectacular way of managing to be both the guilty one and the one acting superior. I didn't say a single word. I took my suitcase and Paspas and walked out of the room. Just as I was about to turn the corner in the hallway, the spite inside me won, and I turned back. I got right up in his face and gave him a smile. He looked stunned by my sudden 180-degree change in attitude. I slammed my knee right into his balls. "Fuck!" "Fuck *you*! You animal!" I left him groaning in
BELINDAI felt like a walking corpse, both tense and on the verge of losing my mind from anger.After storming out of Darian's room, I hurried to my own. I stripped off my clothes without stopping and bolted straight for the bathroom.Sex?Just sex?How dared he say that looking right at my face? I turned on the water and sat in the bathtub.Son of a bitch!Egotistical, arrogant prick!This time, the reason my temper flared so quickly wasn't my height or anything. It was flat-out Darian himself.It was my fault. It was my own stupidity to think he'd change his mind when he finally made a move after all that time.A loud noise broke out outside. He was pounding on the door like a debt collector.As if there was anything left to collect or give!I sank into the bathtub. I was sure he was foaming at the mouth because he couldn't get in with the door locked.Something knocked over. I jumped out of the water at the sight of Paspas stic
DARIANEven as I walked into the restaurant, I had no clear idea why I was there.Each time I saw the places she went to for work, I felt like throwing her over my knee and spanking her ass. Because that was the only way she’d learn!The best option was to strike a deal with her.Yes. That was prob
DARIAN“No wonder she got picked up for prostitution,” I muttered while staring at the photo on my phone. The places she went to for “work” were complete disasters. I wouldn’t step into them even if they paid me to drink there.I was grumbling when Luke walked in. “What are you muttering to yoursel
BELINDA“What are we doing, Mop?” I asked my cat, who was staring at me like an idiot.“Miaaow!”“You’re right, I don’t know either. But I have to do something. I don’t even want that bastard’s sins anymore at this point!”“Miaaaowww!”“I know you’re drooling over the guy, but tough luck. We can’t
BELINDA Oh my God.He’s kissing me.A friend once said unexpected kisses are the best kind. Screw that. I swear she was right.Nothing—nothing—had ever felt like this. When I compared it to the excitement I’d experienced before, this one multiplied everything by ten, maybe a hundred.At first, I f







