Silva sat on the bed in a yoga style and buried herself in the latest design. She got inspiration from a butterfly, and her hair was neatly packed in a bun. The vibrant red crop top she wore added a spark to her eyes, while her snug bum shorts accentuated her figure. Her passion for designing clothes blossomed during her relationship with Ralph, but this passion only deepened after their marriage. This morning, however, she woke up feeling a sense of emptiness beside her. Ralph had left for work without a word and hadn’t checked in with her yet.Feeling slightly displeased with him, she decided to immerse herself in work, finish it, and sell it to one of the customers she met online. Dreams can die when there are no resources to fuel it, it doesn't matter how passionate you are, without the right resources in place, your aspirations will surely dwindle.Ralph still didn’t know about her secret hustle. She wasn’t ready to tell him. She didn’t want to use his name or his influence to b
Ralph was not too blissful about leaving the bed for work. He groaned lazily but was careful not to wake Silva with his distress. He really was not looking forward to going to work or getting his ass all scrunched up in work. All he wanted was to kick back at home and enjoy a stress-free day, a quiet morning spent in bed with the woman he loved. But in a season like this, peace was a luxury he couldn’t afford. Even in her sleep, Silvia held on to him tightly, and he smiled at the feeling of déjà vu, as if that was the only real thing in this moment. As he gently disentangled himself from her embrace, her sleepy murmurs drifted into the air, but he couldn't quite make out what she was saying.He slipped on a pair of shorts and made his way to the gym on the west wing of the estate, a small towel slung around his neck and a bottle of water in hand. Every one of his apartments had a private gym—working out helped him process the chaos. He did everything quickly because today was packed
Silvia was stunned when she heard Ralph's deep voice from the bedroom while still having her hair therapy session. She asked Marie to excuse her for a moment and settled onto the bed, her wet blue gown clinging to her body as if it owned it.The relaxed yet intimidating eyes of Laurent sent chills down her spine, forcing her to look away so she could regain her composure as if he were in the room with her. This man fucking terrifies her.She quietly observed their exchange on live TV, her mind reeling with fear about Ralph. Hadn't he said he was attending a board meeting? So, how did he end up on TV?Marie opened the door, making her jolt in fright. "Gosh, you scared me," Silva said, holding her chest."Sorry I didn't mean to, you have to wash your hair now if not it will have a harsh effect on your scalp and I'm sure you don't want that," Marie informed her, waiting for her to follow her to the bathroom.Silva spent another hour in the bathroom after washing her hair, took her bath a
Laurent settled into the so-called CEO chair at the head of the table, a gleam of malice in his eyes and a crooked smile permanently plastered on his face. With his legs casually crossed on the table, he exuded an air of someone who believed the entire world was at his beck and call.The staff held their breath, as if any loud noise or even breathing loudly might provoke an outburst from him, speaking in hushed tones. No one dared mention the obvious violation of the company's code of conduct. They valued their jobs too much.Unknown to Laurent, tucked away in the dimly lit end of the boardroom, reporters from New York’s top news outlets sat poised with cameras ready, invited by someone who had planned every detail of what was about to unfold.Opening the door in a charismatic manner, Ralph walked stealthily behind Laurent. He leaned down and whispered into his father’s ear, “I hope you walk out of this boardroom the same way you walked in,” patting his shoulder before taking the seat
Ralph sat in the darkness of the empty former boardroom, his mind working while he was silent. The boardroom had previously been used for media broadcasts or press conferences. However, after he had erected a new one with more holding capacity, the room had lost most of its importance. Small in-house teams still used it for their team meetings, for strategizing, since all the equipment still worked perfectly.He let out a deep sigh, resting his knuckles against his forehead. He had invested so much of himself—his strength, ideas, blood, and sweat—into The Royal Association for his father to simply waltz back in and take it all away from him.It was pretty ironic that he was battling with his biological father for the control of a company that would be his someday. Instead of collaborating to improve the business, they were locked in a battle, each vying for the steering wheel in this figurative car.His suspicions? His father was not genuinely back to take control of the company. He
Chapter 88Immediately, Ralph drove into The Royal Association. He could almost feel the unpleasant wind of change. His fingers wrapped tightly around his phone, but that was the only sign of his anxiety. He remained calm on the outside, his countenance blank and reserved. Ten minutes after arriving at the location, Ralph sat in the car, contemplating his next steps. The driver remained quiet, recognizing there was no need to mention that they had reached their destination. The atmosphere was tense like the calm before a storm, and Ralph took this moment to align his thoughts and emotions.“Good morning, Mr Spade,” a security guard quipped the instant Ralph walked past him, and Ralph felt the urge to change his last name soon. It was a stark reminder of the man whose heritage he carried, and he no longer wanted to associate with that dirty past.In the elevator, he hit the top floor button and checked his wristwatch. He was more than thirty minutes late, and that was new, but it did
The weekend flew past like a dream, and as it ended, so did their second honeymoon. It had been fun while it lasted, Silvia agreed as she watched Ralph prepare for work. Getting away to the countryside had been a wonderful opportunity to relieve some stress after the whole issue with Rebecca.Laurent just had to appear out of nowhere and ruin the end of it.“Did you take your work clothes with you on vacation?”Ralph paused, his hands hovering over the neck button on his shirt. “No. Why?” he resumed almost immediately, finishing that up within seconds. “Where did all your suits come from then? Because I don't remember you leaving at any time this past weekend. She raised an eyebrow at him while he held up three ties for her to choose from. After turning down the first two, he draped a royal blue tie around his neck. He returned the rejected ones to his drawer, wore the royal blue tie around his neck.Silvia crawled out of bed, smoothing her hands over her nightdress. She grabbed the
"She's gone," Silvia announced, entering the bedroom and dropping on the bed unceremoniously. Ralph looked up from his phone, twisting away from the table he was seated at. He had not expected to see her so soon, judging by the mood her mother had arrived in."Gone? Gone to where? I hope she didn't think I wanted her gone? Because—""I told her everything," she cut in abruptly before she lost the courage to confess what she had done. She lay on her back, looking up at the ceiling. When Ralph didn't say anything, she assumed the worst."I knew it. I messed up big time. I'm sorry I didn't wait to talk to you first before telling my mom, but she kept asking and asking and I...I didn't know what to do."Ralph abandoned his seat at the bedside table and joined her on the bed. He didn't speak yet, gently turning her to her side and spooning her from behind. She couldn't help the sigh of relief that eased out of her mouth once she felt the weight of his hand around her waist."It is true th
Both of them turned to face the door, but Ralph squeezed Silvia's arm to release some of her stress.“I'll go see who it is. It's probably just your mother, so relax.”It was Silvia's mother, but because of the previous encounter with Laurent, it was best to be safe. Silvia remained at the dining table while Ralph went to see who was at the door.As he opened the door, Silvia's mother unexpectedly pushed her way past him into the house, with the driver following quietly beside her, carrying her bag."Where is my daughter? Where is Silvia?" she shouted, having disregarded all polite attempts of Ralph to push to see her. "Here," came Silvia's voice as she walked up to her mother and gave her a tight hug."I've missed you, Mom. Just calm down, and I'll tell you everything."But she was impossible to reason with. She cupped Silvia's face in her hands, trying to search for the truth in her eyes.“I said, What is going on? What has he done to you this time? Why are you hiding out here? Why