SHAWNA“Are you all ready to go now?" Liam asked my mother and me. It's the morning after the incident with Phoebe.Grandfather had people on guard all night to stay with her so I didn't have to stay with her all night, I'm just on my way to the hospital this morning with Mom.Billy and Jasper have gone with their nanny this morning, they'll go to see their sister in the afternoon. But for now, it's just my mother and me.“Yes, we just finished," I answered him."Let's go then.” He walked out of the house with both of us behind him, we got outside and entered his car, zooming off immediately.“Are you going to a job interview today, Shawna?" Mom asked me when the ride started.“No, why did you ask?" “Well, you're dressed like that." She shrugged.Truth be told, I was dressed in office wear, but I tried as much as possible to make it look casual too. I wore a white pants trouser and a flowery shirt that was mostly black.“I took the heiress position from Grandpa,” I announced. I've be
EUGENE “I like that! I like that!" I grinned at Kyle, who beamed happily at me. I didn't even need to tell him before he knew he was meant to throw them out, and I like him for that. “Look at how helpless she looked, I like how today is just going for her," I grinned evilly. “I know right, let's just go to where you were going, they don't deserve this level of attention, they're low lives and it should remain that way." Kyle wrapped his arm around my shoulder. We walked towards his car and got in, his driver looked like he wanted to say something with how he kept glancing back. “Just spill it already, Frank," Kyle ordered him. “I just wanted to tell you that your brother was in the hospital too, I saw him go in.” He said. My heart skipped a beat when he said that, I felt the pressing need to be there already, I didn't want to go with Kyle before, but hearing that Damien would be there made me enthusiastic. “Really?" I asked out loud. Kyle glanced at me with the sudden shift
SHAWNA Phoebe's excited face when she saw me walk in warmed my heart a lot. I also went straight to her and wrapped my arms around her in a warm hug. “I've been waiting for you Mom!" She said out loud that my mother who was resting her head on the edge of the bed woke up. I broke the hug and looked into her eyes with a smile on my face, the color on her face and skin had returned fully. “I know baby, I'm here now. How are you feeling?" I asked her. "I'm fine now. I want to go home to see Billy and Jasper already, I miss them so much.” She pouted. "We're going to do just that, we'll get you out of here today, I know what it feels like to be stuck in a hospital room,” I said as I caressed her cute, chubby cheeks. "Did the doctor say she can go?” My mother asked with confusion in her voice. "I plan on seeing him in his office now,” I answered her. "Yay! I can't wait!” Phoebe squealed. "I'll go see the doctor now so we can start going home.” I ruffled her hair and stood up. Just
SHAWNA “What do they want this time? Anyways, I'm sure they'll leave when they get tired, I don't have any time at all today." “They look quite determined though, like they'll stay there till you come out even if it's night. I honestly wonder what rubs through their head, what do they want with the heiress now?" Liam asked me back. “That's their headache, not ours. They'll leave when they get tired. How's work today by the way?" I changed the topic entirely. “Everything is going smoothly, I got the best news from you today since I started my company." He smiled. I only smiled back at him, I've not even done up to half of what he has done for me, Liam is one of my biggest supporters and rock, he deserves all the good things in life. “You're closed from work right?" I asked him, seeing how relaxed he looked and his loosened tie. “Yes." “Good, can you please accompany me to my children's former school? I have one or two things to do there." I asked with a smirk on my face. He see
EUGENE I rushed into the house to see my parents pacing around the living room, my dad looked more conflicted. “Mom, I'm here now, what happened?" I asked as I dropped my bag on the couch, my heart was racing wildly in my chest, I knew already that something wasn't right. “Haven't you seen the news already or you've been out gallivanting around? The Lancaster empire now has a new heiress.” My father growled. This is not a trivial issue, my father rarely raises his voice, but when he does, it has to be that the matter is out of hand, there's no other way out at all. "I saw the news, but I don't understand what's going on, why are you both so riled up?” I frowned, "We're still struggling to get the acceptance of Mr Bryan Lancster into our business and he's not budging at all, finding a new heiress who's faceless as we speak will make this hard.” My mother butted in. "And the Lancasters are our only hope at rising again, so we have to get them to be partners with us, how do
DAMIEN I saw them come out of the building and instantly regretted coming out of my car at this point too. The last thing I want to do is talk to Eugene right now. “Damien!" She yelled out my name before I could avoid them, making me cuss it. Her mother turned too but Eugene walked towards me, making her mother come forward too. “What are you doing here?" Eugene asked when she got to me, I wanted to give a snarky comment that whatever I was looking for was none of her business but for the sake of her mother, I swallowed it. “I'm here to see someone,” I replied, trying as much as possible to not sound rude or anything. "Good afternoon, Damien.” Her mother greeted me herself. I didn't know if she was being normal or just because it's me but I answered since she's older and wasn't raised to be rude to anyone. "Good afternoon, ma'am. How's the family?” I asked her politely, pocketing my hands. "We’re all fine, you know, apart from the little setbacks we're experiencing in the
EUGENE I watched as Damien drove away, the window of his car was tinted so I couldn't see him at all, the only thing I saw was the dark window till the car joined the busy road. “What's that about? You didn't have to lie that much, Eugene. I even thought you'd let him know that you were joking before he left, but you didn't, you played on.” My mom said beside me. "I'm doing this for us, Mom. If the heiress doesn't want to be known, I might as well make use of the opportunity to get what we want for a little while." I shrugged. “No, you're not. We'll only end up in a bitter mess if you continue with this. The Lancaster empire isn't just something you can play with, we'll just get ourselves in a deeper mess." She said. "Why are you scared, Mom? This would be so fun, and even helpful to us.” I chuckled and turned around to go into the building back but she dragged me back, stopping me from going in. "No, we're going home now. I'm sure we'll figure something out with your dad,
SHAWNA “Have you seen how beautiful the new boss is? She's so pretty and just what you'd expect the CEO to look like, and her dress sense? Very nice!" One of the employees said to me as I walked into the office building. Did anyone publish anything about me already? But the more I walked further into the building, I realized that no one even seemed to notice me. Surely, if they had seen me, they'd have at least noticed that I was the person they were talking about, right? “She's currently sealing a deal too, I'm sure she must be hardworking and full of luck to have signed a deal on her first day." Another one said the person she was talking to urgently walked off, leaving me alone with her. I stopped by the lady who just said that I have a lot of questions to ask her already. The moment I stopped by her and she looked at me like trash, I knew instantly that there was a problem, she didn't look like she had seen my face. Who then is this new CEO they're talking about?
RAMONI was dead tired by the time we finished the meeting at the company. My shirt clung to my back, and my head was pounding from all the numbers and back-to-back discussions. All I wanted was to check my phone and unwind, maybe see if Phoebe had texted.I reached into my pocket. Empty.My heart skipped.I checked the table, the chair, and even under the folder I’d used. Nothing.“Where the hell is my phone?” I muttered.My uncle, sitting across from me, raised an eyebrow. “Lose something?”“My phone. I had it before we came here.”He shrugged. “Maybe you dropped it at the house.”I didn’t like how quick he was to answer.Still, I forced a calm nod and stood up. “I’ll go check.”The ride back to his place felt like it took forever. My mind was racing. Phoebe. Had she called? Texted? What if something was wrong? My gut wouldn’t calm down.When I got to the house, I tore through every room I had been in earlier. The living room. The guest room. Even the damn kitchen. Nothing.My uncle
PHOEBEThe hotel was breathtaking, with marble floors, chandeliers sparkling like stars, a scent of roses, and money hanging in the air. My heels clicked softly as I followed the receptionist, who wore a perfectly polite smile. My coat was still wrapped tightly around me, hiding the dress Winnie helped me pick out. My heart fluttered with a mix of excitement and nerves.“He’ll be with you shortly,” the receptionist said sweetly, opening a suite door for me. “Please, get comfortable. There are refreshments inside. Make yourself at home.”I gave a shy nod. “Thank you.”The door shut behind me.The suite was luxurious, with soft couches, a large table with drinks and fruit, and dim romantic lighting. I let out a small breath. “Wow…”I walked slowly to the table, brushing my fingers along the glass rim of a wine glass. Red wine. A chill ran up my spine, and I shook it off. Maybe he asked them to pour it before he arrived. Maybe this was his way of setting the mood.I pulled out my phone.
PHOEBEI slammed the front door a little harder than I meant to when I got home.Winnie looked up from the couch, raising an eyebrow. "Whoa. Somebody’s in a mood. What's wrong, sunshine?"I dropped my bag by the door and flopped onto the armchair with a loud sigh. "It’s Ramon," I said, pouting like a child.Winnie immediately perked up. "Ramon? Spill. What happened?!"I buried my face in my hands for a second before looking up at her. "We kissed. Like... really kissed. It was amazing. He kissed me like he needed me to breathe or something."Winnie squealed, hugging a throw pillow. "Oh my God! Finally!""Yeah, it was incredible," I mumbled, my cheeks heating up. "But right after that, he got a call. Emergency at home. He had to leave. Just like that."Winnie’s face softened. "Oh, babe...""I know he had no choice," I said quickly, fiddling with a loose thread on the armrest. "But... it sucks. I’m losing my mind over him, Winnie. I’m slowly going crazy. I want him so bad it hurts."Winn
PHOEBERamon’s eyes burned into me like I was the only thing he could see. I felt my cheeks heat up under his stare, and I shifted awkwardly on my feet.“Phoebe,” he said, his voice low and rough, “I want all of you…every part of you. I’m not afraid of being with you. I’m just... trying to restrain myself.”My heart pounded so hard it hurt. I opened my mouth, but nothing came out at first. Then I swallowed hard and said, "I want all of you, too, Ramon. I’m not scared."Something snapped between us.Ramon closed the space in a single, hungry heartbeat, grabbing me again and crashing his mouth onto mine. This kiss wasn’t soft. It wasn’t sweet. It was rough, fierce, almost desperate, like he had been starving, and I was the only thing that could satisfy him.His lips crushed against mine, demanding and urgent. I could feel the heat pouring off his body as he kissed me like he needed me more than air. His hand slid up, fingers threading into the hair at the nape of my neck, then wrapping
RAMONI tossed and turned all night. No matter how hard I tried, I just couldn’t sleep. My mind kept racing, full of everything Uncle Richard had said... and Phoebe. Always Phoebe.I was falling for her. Hard. It scared the hell out of me, but it also felt so right. I didn’t just like her, I needed her. Every smile, every look, every word she said stuck in my head like glue.When morning came, I dragged myself out of bed, showered, and dressed like a man on a mission. I didn’t even think twice. I was going to see her. I had to.No more running. No more hiding.When I got to the worksite, she was there already, sorting through some papers, looking so focused and beautiful that it made my heart twist. She looked up and blinked like she couldn’t believe what she was seeing."Ramon?" she said, her voice small but full of surprise. "I thought... I thought you weren’t going to be available anymore."I rubbed the back of my neck, feeling awkward and stupid all at once. "Yeah, about that. I’m
WINNIEWinnie stared at me like I had just grown two heads. "What do you mean you don't know if Ramon likes you enough to be intimate?" she asked, her eyes wide.I hugged my knees to my chest, feeling small and stupid. "I don’t know, Win. Maybe... maybe he’s just not that into me. Maybe he sees me like a kid or something."Winnie shook her head fast. "No way. Anyone with eyes can see Ramon is crazy about you, Phoebe. Seriously. He looks at you like you hung the moon!"I smiled a little, but it didn’t reach my heart. "Then why is he so hesitant? Why does he always back away when things get... close?"Winnie opened her mouth to say something, then paused. Her face changed slowly, like she was putting puzzle pieces together."Wait a second..." she said carefully. "Have you guys ever... you know... done it?"I looked down at my lap, my face burning. "No," I whispered.Winnie’s mouth fell open. "Wait. You mean... never?"I nodded, feeling like I was about to sink into the floor."And he kn
RAMONI stood in the garden, massaging my temples and trying to figure out what just happened. I hated seeing Phoebe hurt. I hated that I was the reason for that look in her eyes, the one that made my chest ache. I wanted to run after her, fix it, explain everything better.I had just taken a step toward the house when I heard footsteps behind me. I turned to see Billy and Jasper coming out. Great. Just what I needed right now.They stood there awkwardly for a second before Billy cleared his throat."Hey, man," he said, not meeting my eyes. "We, uh... we just wanted to say sorry."I blinked, surprised. "Sorry?"Jasper shoved his hands into his pockets. "Yeah. For looking down on you. We didn't know... well, we didn't know you were who you are."I sighed, not really wanting to have this conversation. "It's fine," I muttered, even though it really wasn't."But," Billy added quickly, "we still think you're hiding something. And honestly... we don’t think you're worthy of our sister."Tha
PHOEBEThe second everyone was distracted inside, I grabbed Ramon’s hand and tugged him gently toward the garden. I was buzzing with excitement, my heart beating way too fast. I needed a moment alone with him, away from all the heavy stares and questions."Come on," I said, smiling at him. "Let’s get some air."He smiled back, letting me pull him along. The night air was cool and smelled faintly of roses. The garden lights made everything look soft and dreamy.Once we were far enough from the house, I stopped and turned to him, crossing my arms playfully. "So..." I began, raising an eyebrow. "You’re secretly rich, huh?"Ramon chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck. "I guess so.""You guess so?" I laughed, nudging him with my shoulder. "Why didn’t you tell me?"He shrugged, looking a little sheepish. "I was going to tell you... eventually. I just wanted you to like me for me, you know? Not for anything else."I looked at him, my heart softening even more. His voice sounded so honest, s
PHOEBEI felt like I’d been holding my breath the whole night, but when Uncle Richard finally gave his answer, it was like the air rushed back into my lungs.“Well,” he said with a small chuckle, wiping his mouth with his napkin, “the truth is, we’re a wealthy family. Very wealthy. Ramon chose to keep that hidden because he didn’t want gold-diggers. He wanted someone who’d love him for who he is, not what he has.”There was a beat of silence.Then Billy blinked. “Wait… you’re saying Ramon’s been pretending to be broke?”“Not broke,” Uncle Richard clarified with a grin. “Just… simple. Down-to-earth.”Everyone at the table was stunned. I couldn’t help it, I let out the tiniest giggle. Then a bigger one. And before long, laughter started to ripple around the table. Even Jasper cracked a smile. It was like the whole room finally exhaled.I glanced at Mom and made a small, sneaky wink. She caught it instantly. Her lips curved just slightly, and then she gave a quick nod.“Phoebe,” she said