LOGINThe sickening lump that had formed in my throat made it harder for me to breathe, and I could feel tears stinging the back of my eyes. I raised my hand to cover my mouth as I tried to blink away my tears. A few people gave me confused and funny looks as I quickly marched past them towards the exit of the mansion.
I didn’t know where I was going, but I felt very relieved when I made it out into the gardens. After navigating my way deeper into the garden to the side of the mansion wher“Rowan, don’t you think that this band is so good?” Francesca asked as she clung to his arm to pull him closer. I quickly turned on my heels and walked away without saying another word.Without anywhere to go and no one to spend my time with, it felt only natural for me to return to the sanctuary of my bedroom in the suite. It was already quite late in the evening by the time I returned. I felt quite relieved to get away from my role as a third wheel in Rowan’s and Francesca’s relationship. I closed my eyes and let out a sigh while I wondered why I had to get swept up and caught in a situation like this. I quickly took a shower before lying on the bed as I waited for sleep to overtake me. After such a physically and emotionally exhausting day, I truly expected to fall asleep without any problems. To my distressing surprise, sleep evaded me, and I found myself feeling extremely restless as I lay on the bed with only the soft light leaking in from the window."Stop t
"What time is the party starting this evening?" Rowan asked out of the blue. The surprise on Francesca’s face must have mirrored mine at Rowan’s unexpected question. For a moment, it truly sounded like he was interested in attending the party, even though I had not said anything about it."It starts at 8:00 p.m., but I was thinking that we could have dinner before attending. There’s no reason for us to appear right on time," Francesca quickly replied, and I could tell that she was extremely happy that Rowan was finally coming around."Sounds good," Rowan replied in agreement. My eyes widened even further, and it took all my effort not to gasp in surprise at Rowan’s agreeable attitude. I wondered what had happened to bring about such a change, but I had to admit that it did make things easier for me. Francesca quickly went on to advertise how great the party was going to be and just how much we were going to enjoy ourselves while Rowan listened to her patiently, mak
When I met his gaze, I felt my stomach take an uncomfortable turn. I couldn’t help but wonder what exactly I had walked into and what kind of business he was busy dealing with his friends.“So, what kind of business were you...” I asked but couldn’t bring myself to finish my question when Rowan narrowed his eyes suspiciously at me. It felt like I had wandered into uncharted waters and it seemed extremely likely that I was about to drown.“Do you seriously want to know?” he asked after a moment of thought. Rowan’s lips curved into a beautiful smile that seemed so innocent yet filled with mystery and dark secrets.There was a part of me that wanted desperately to know, but there was also a part of me that felt scared of the truth. What if what Rowan was about to tell me was something that I dreaded to hear?“You said that I am now fully a part of the family. What does that mean?” I asked in a shaky voice as I tried to remind myself to remain calm.
Quite surprisingly, it wasn’t hard for me to find the group of men that the maids had been chatting about. I slowly peered in through the door that opened into quite a large open space where a group of tall men dressed in suits seemed to be engaged in serious conversation. It didn’t take me long to spot Rowan among the group; however, when I was about to call out to him, I found myself halting because I could feel the tenseness in the atmosphere. Whatever was happening didn’t seem to be a friendly gathering among friends. I managed to slip in silently, but as I made my way closer to Rowan, one of the men spotted me.“What are you doing here, young lady? Did you perhaps get lost?” one of the men asked as he suddenly grabbed my wrist and pulled me towards him. I could tell from the look on his face that he didn’t like the fact that I had walked in on their event uninvited, and that he wasn’t at all worried about my well-being. The man’s loud, booming voice caught the attentio
“I’m sure that he’ll turn up. You’re the one who invited him, after all,” I replied as reassuringly as I could.“I’m not so sure about that. Rowan doesn’t really like to come along with me to parties, and he’s never accompanied me so easily. That’s why I need your help,” Francesca said as she leaned slightly towards me from the opposite side of the table.It occurred to me that perhaps Francesca had the misconception that Rowan and I were close because we were step-siblings due to our parents’ relationship and marriage. However, the truth was very far from that. Regardless of my intentions, I wasn’t at all confident that I could talk Rowan into attending the party, even if I tried my absolute best.“Listen, it’s not like I don’t want to help you. It’s just, Rowan and I aren’t that close. I mean, I only just got to know him not so long ago before our parents got married, so I’m not sure if I’ll be able to convince him to come to the party,” I told her hones
I had never been on a cruise before, and under normal circumstances, I was certain that I would feel excited about the opportunity to experience something new and potentially fun. However, standing behind the two of them as we waited to board the cruise only gave me a twisted feeling in the pit of my stomach. There was a big part of me that wished I could just turn and run away, but regardless of what I thought, my legs were rooted to the spot."Let’s go to our room first, and then we can go sightseeing on the dock. Are you hungry? Let me know if you’re hungry because the restaurant here serves awesome seafood," Francesca said before flashing me a warm smile."That sounds like a plan," I replied, returning her smile.Ever since stepping out of the car, I noticed that Rowan had not said a word, and it seemed like his mind was elsewhere."Rowan, is everything all right?" Francesca asked him, echoing what was on my mind."It’s nothing," Rowa







