LOGINEVELYN."So tell me what happened?" Alex asked, leaning against the table behind him. The kitchen was a lot darker because it was well into the night and the only source of light was a bulb turned on in the corridor to the left. I looked around his house and there was still this familiar homely scent that trickled up my nose as I walked further in. I finally came to a halt when there was a safe distance between us.Safe in the sense that those feelings and emotions I once felt for him didn’t come fluttering in my chest and stomach. I wasn’t entirely sure I’d be able to control myself around him. Seeing tonight had completely thrown me off guard and made my knees weak.Alex was different now, he had grown a full beard that made him nearly unrecognizable. But there was that voice of his that was still registered in a part of my brain after so many years. That even if he had completely lost his face, as far as he was able to speak, I would know without a doubt that it was him. But that
KAYLA.My eyes were fixed on the swaying transparent curtains as they drifted alongside the winds that flushed through the cabin windows. I was lying across the bed when the morning shore scent breezed through my nose mixed with the chef's early breakfast aroma.Milan was as different from Seattle as it could possibly be. The breeze from the sea was cold and the sights were more beautiful. There was a traditional bustling vibe you got and the feeling of community when you drove into the city.Having spent a majority of our vacation days on the beach however, Josef and I had become accustomed to the diversity and enchante of the place. Enchante, because most people would argue that Milan was just as much of a city of love as Paris was.I parted my eyes open after an adrenaline-filled night and my hands softly traced the edges of Josef’s skin. When I lifted my gaze, it was immediately met by his eyes which were already open and he scoffed lightly. "Hey, sleeping beauty." He croaked wi
NICHOLAS."We think we might have located the car that she left in,” The sheriff sauntered into my living room. I sat at the edge of the couch, my head buried in my palms but the moment I heard his voice, I got up immediately.“Hazel took a cab to the train station and I think she might have gotten on it.” He added. My hands balled up in a fist. It had been twenty-four hours since Hazel went missing. I didn’t want to hear where she got off. I wanted someone to find her.I charged at the sheriff in a fit of rage, pinning him against the wall."I want you to fucking find Isabella!” I roared. “I don't want to know how you do it or whether or not she went on a fucking train, I just want you to find her and bring her back to me!" Fear stilled in Joe’s eyes and he pushed a lump down his throat.I let go of him and he dusted his shirt. He’d never seen me this angry. Hell, I couldn’t remember the last time I was this angry. "Is that understood?" I let out a deep breath but before Joe could r
EVELYN."Oh my God!” I got out of bed. For a good ten minutes, I pounced around every post and corner of the house until I burst through the front door, my hands running through my hair.I couldn’t believe what Nicholas was telling me. That Agnes was dead…and Hazel was missing. It wasn’t possible. I heaved in a breath, an attempt to fill her lungs with fresh air. The news was so sudden."Hold on, for how long has this been going on?" My voice was shaken, ridden with guilt as my arms fell to my hips. "It's been three weeks. " He replied. It was also three weeks since I left Seattle and it turns out a lot had happened in those three weeks.“Do you have any idea where she could have gone?" Nicholas asked me which was why he called in the first place. He thought she’d been with me. But Hazel wasn’t. She hadn’t even called me."If she's with you Evelyn just tell me.” He damn near begged and I shook my head as he could see me. “She’s not with me, Nicholas. She can’t be with me.” I said. Th
EVELYN."So this is one way of you when you were thirteen," Dylan’s soothing voice went through my ears as he pointed at a photo in the album he held in his hands. I took a seat next to him, taking off my kitchen mitten. I’d been making cupcakes, his favorites.I remembered how Jenna would always make fun of his sweet month. Dylan hadn’t changed, he was cheesing in excitement when I brought out the recipe book. The oven flames cackled at a distance from where we sat down. I had about an hour or so left."You had just started a new school here, I remember,” He squinted, fighting through his already foggy memory. But he was trying his best."I remember this one!" I pointed to the book and he nodded with a smile. "Ah yes, this was when we newly moved and our neighbors hosted us for dinner. They were so friendly and their boy used to come around to help but I think it was only because he wanted to see you,” Dylan chuckled.“That boy used to have the biggest crush on you,” He looked up at
NICHOLAS."What are you saying, Giselle?" I asked her, looking down at my phone that rang for the one millionth time. Linda looked up in my direction. "You sure you don't want to get that?" She asked and I turned down the volume immediately. "It's my maid, Anna.” I said. I had no idea why she was calling me when I had other workers in charge. I put my phone away, standing in front of Giselle so she knew she had my full attention. It’s not every day you find out you had a kid on the way and in my case, I had also found out I lost said kid.All in the span of a day. I had a whiplash thinking about it. Most especially why would she keep it away from me?But I took pity on her. Giselle’s eyes were filled with tears as she sat forward. She was going through a lot, her mind flooded with flashbacks as she sat there, agitated."She came into my house and said she needed some things and then we got into a fight when I told her I was done and Donna…” Her voice broke. She replayed that night in
HAZEL. "I can explain."My stomach knotted as I scrolled through the now viral article, hundreds of comments came in by the second. Fuck! All I thought about in that moment was Giselle."This is bad. This is really bad." I hyperventilated while Evelyn stood in front of me, her arms crossed while s
HAZEL."Come this way,”“He’s waiting for you.” The waitress led me towards the table. I clenched the velvety scarf I had around my shoulders, finally taking a seat opposite Nicholas Vaughn. The whole restaurant was empty, that could only mean he’d bought out the entire place.My heart dropped to m
GISELLE.Days after the breakup, the paparazzi still swarmed outside my house, trying to get as many pictures as they could. BILLIONAIRE EX WRECKED FROM BREAKUP—they’d be right. All the headlines the media pumped out, not one of them mentioned my name but they would be right.I hadn’t left the apa
HAZEL.I was 17 the first time Elijah hit me.It was the morning after prom, after the day he’d conceded three goals and lost his last match as the school’s star quarterback. But mostly, he was angry that I danced with my friend, Aiden. "What more do you want from me?" He yelled. I crouched beneat







