[Ralph’s POV]The curtain opened and she stood before me in her white gown and I couldn’t stop staring. My legs acted on their own and I slowly came to a stand as she sauntered towards me, those purple sapphires beaming shyly at me. When she arrived in front of me, she whispered softly, “I look weird, don’t I…?” I found my fingers stroking her cheek lightly as a hoarse voice slipped into the air. “You look beautiful, Juliette.” That feathery skin tinted slightly and she looked down as her hands reached out to touch the collar of my tux. “I like you in midnight blue,” she breathed. A smile touched my lips. “Are you talking about the tux I wore at the church?” “Yes,” she sighed, her eyes on my mouth. “It made my insides tingle. Back then.” Fuck… when did she become this sexy…. Everything that comes out of that sweet mouth just turns me into a sucker for her. She finally looked up at me. “What about me? Do you prefer this dress or the one I wore at the church?” I gazed into the
[Juliette’s POV] Routines were thrown out the window—that was the first major change in the Virtus household. Which felt strange. As soon as I passed through the iron gates that guard the Virtus grounds from outsiders, I felt like a soldier reporting for duty. Immediately (even though I was away for months), I remembered the exact timing for each meal and the chores I was supposed to do at each particular time of the day. However, this time, I was told that I had no schedule at all, just as my life had been all these years at the Lux mansion. Ralph took me to the ends of the plain field—which Margaret had already showed me. But I didn’t mind seeing it again; with Ralph, it was more fun—the way his thick brows knit whenever he saw the stretches of barren land beyond his property, it exuded the alluring charm of a man with great ambitions. That fierce gaze seemed to say: one day, every inch of this flat terrain will belong to the Virtus—just as every inch of the terrains surroun
[Juliette’s POV] “I think it’s a good idea to send our new merchandise to these influencers and content producers,” I said to the Chief Designer of CHERI and her Marketing Director. “Our target consumers look up to them like trend masters. They can help develop the identity of the new line.” I looked through the list of selected influencers and content producers and their bio, as well as the concept of their channels, and said, thinking aloud, “I like that they are not socialites.” The Chief Designer smiled at her Marketing Director and then at Ralph. “We also love Lux Corp’s new direction of affordable quality. So we started this new line.” “Will the consumers find the brand questionable?” Ralph finally asked. Everyone in the conference room turned to him and he calmly explained, “CHERI is an ultra high-end brand To suddenly come up with an affordable line. The average consumer may lose hope with the brand.” “Not if we focus on the quality,” defended the Chief Designer, a for
[Ralph’s POV]Something happened at the meeting with Monsieur Kugerfield. I can see it on her face. I sighed as I continued chewing the roast chicken in my mouth. If I asked her about it, she would either give me an honest answer, or a sarcastic reply—the former means she wants to talk about it; the latter, she wants to whine about it and have me take her side. “How did it go?” I asked, trying to sound concerned for the business sake, but not too concerned because it’s about another woman.A brief pause, and then her face lifted with the brightest smile. “It went well!” Fuck. It didn’t. She caught the look on my face and the smile lessened as she added, “At least that’s what I think.” I swallowed the meat and asked, “What happened?” She stared at her plate of untouched roast chicken and muttered, “He rejected all of them.” Jesus Christ… I need to find something to help her take the steam off. “I see.” Her face jerked up again, this time with the worry and guilt of my men when
[Ralph’s POV]Women are bad drivers—this I don’t believe. As much as I hate to admit it, I’ve seen Jewel take the wheel, and she’s one hell of a driver. But women are bad with guns—this… I’m starting to believe. BANG! “Ah!” BANG!“AH!!!” BANG!“OH MY FUCKING GOD!” I removed my earmuffs and yanked Juliette’s behind her head. “Jesus Christ, Juliette!” I barked at her. I took a quick scan around the area, relieved that we are the only ones around, and then glared at the heiress. “You’re fucking noisy!” I hissed. And fucking erotic! GODDAMN IT. I listened to a few more, I might actually get hard. She was equally pissed. “I’m noisy?” She jerked up her hand that was holding the gun. “THIS IS NOISY!” I shook the headphones around her neck. “You have these! They’re supposed to reduce the noise.” “Well, they aren’t doing a good job, aren’t they?!” she snapped. I took the gun from her and drew in a deep breath to calm my nerves. “I know you’re scared—.” “DAMN WELL I AM.” She sulked
[Ralph’s POV] Fuck… I didn’t mean to tell her that… But it happened. Now I just have to go with the flow. Is this what love is? Is this what Ben means when he said he can’t help it, he just wants Jewel? The daughter of Lux stared at me, at a loss for words. The shine in her eyes flickered with the flame of the campfire, growing brighter with each passing second. Sucking me into a trance, enveloping me with something enticing… warmth? Fear? A connection? One that I’ve longed for, yearned for all these years but never truly found it anywhere… And now, I’ve finally found it. Or have I not? “Juliette….” I heard my voice calling out to her. And an array of purple shades wavered in her eyes. I saw my hand reaching out to her cheeks, wanting to feel that film of silk bathing her skin. “Ralph…?” Her voice breezed through the cold wind. I grabbed her hands and pressed her palms to my face, as though desperate for her warmth. “Life with me will be filled with darkness… so dark you ca
[Juliette’s POV] A few days later… I was perusing the sales reports that had just arrived in emails from the restaurants we invested in, both the local and overseas, when my phone rang angrily. I picked up from my desk and saw Monsieur Kugerfield’s name. Hastily, I accepted the call and replied in a casual tone, “Good afternoon, Monsieur. Have you had lunch—?” “She’s not here again, Julie!” Monsieur barked. “Where zee hell is zat girl!” Immediately, I felt my face fall with knowledge of what had happened, even before hearing it from Monsieur. “She may be running late again, Mon—.” “SHE’S FORGOTTEN! Zat girl!” Monsieur’s accent gets thick and clear whenever he’s driven madly upset. No one has done that for years—Jewel Virtus sure is a heck of a scum. Doesn’t she have a streak of consideration for the elderly? Monsieur can’t take such panic attacks! “I’m sure she remembers, Monsieur…” I tried to stay as calm as possible, hoping that it would reduce his stress. “Don’t say ni
[Juliette’s POV] Shame crawled into the old housekeeper’s smile before she looked away. “Even though she shaved all her hair and eyebrows, she looked like an angel.” “Y-You’re in love with Ralph’s mother?” My shock came out in a whisper that slipped with the winds gushing through us. Margaret nodded. “I’m just amazed by her beauty…. There wasn’t a day when I wouldn’t look at her. But that’s all there is to it.” She chuckled lightly and said, “I’m just a friend to her. And that was quite enough for me.” She paused to turn back to me and continued, “I knew she was here to protect her son. I knew she shouldn’t be here. But I couldn’t say no to her. I had to help her. Because that was the only thing I could do for her.” I took the bony hand that once tried to claw me into my hand and squeezed it gently. “Thank you for helping Ralph’s mother, Margaret. Does Ralph know what you did for his mother?” She shook her head with a weak smile. “He burned all the photos of her after she die