LOGINChase“No!!!” I screamed at the top of my lungs, tears trickling down my cheeks. “Father, please!” Cedric shrugged, dangling his phone in my face. “Too bad, son. The call is already disconnected.” “Call him back!” “I could, but I don't want to.” Cedric walked over, pulling a nearby chair in front of me and lowering himself onto it. “Now, what to do with you?” He clicked his tongue, pulling out a pistol from beneath his belt. “The plan was to give you a slow torture. Should I wait until Fletcher sends back pictures of the blown-up plane or end your sorrow right now?” The front door burst open. Adrian stood at the entrance with a gun pointed at my father, flanked by two cops. “The only one whose sorry ends here is yours, Cedric,” he said. “Drop your weapon. You're all surrounded.” Standing to his feet, my father turned around. “You were quick to catch me.” “That's because you finally stepped out from whoever you were hiding,” Adrian replied, looking over to me. “Are you alright,
ChaseThe rest of the week flew by fast, and then the time for Ryker to leave arrived in the blink of an eye. Embracing him one last time, I pulled back.“Get going, or else you're going to miss your flight,” I said.Ryker pouted his lips. “I promise to call you immediately when I land, okay?”I rolled my eyes. “You've said that like a dozen times already.”“I'm just reminding you in case you forgot.”“I didn't, Ryker. I'll watch my phone like a hawk, awaiting your call. Now, go,” I said, pushing him forward, but he didn't budge just yet.“Can I see you get into the car, heading home before leaving?” he asked.“Ryker!”“Okay, okay. It was a joke. I'm going now.”Giving my hand one final squeeze, Ryker turned and walked through the boarding gate. When he was out of sight, I turned around, exited the airport, and climbed into my car.I was just about to rev the car engine when I felt a strong hand reach around me from behind, pressing a chemical-filled handkerchief against my face. I sq
RykerLater that evening, when I got back home from work, my gaze swept across the living room area, searching for any sign of Chase, but he was nowhere to be found.I didn't know whether to feel relieved that I wouldn't have to break the promotion news to him just yet or disappointed because he had promised to get home before me, and I had been looking forward to seeing him.Ascending the stairs into the bedroom, I halted by the door as I saw Chase dressed in a see-through getup, splayed across the bed, biting onto a stem of a red rose, with rose petals scattered across the sheets and scented candles decorating the tabletop.“What is all this?” I asked, drinking in every bit of the sight before me.“I told you we'd pick off from where we left off at my office when I get home, didn't I?” Chase asked in a low, husky voice.“You did, but I certainly wasn't expecting...this.”He leaned back against the headboard, exposing more skin on his leg. “Why? You don't like it?” Sitting at the ed
RykerTwenty minutes later, I stepped out of Chase's office, adjusting my clothes. Turning around, I placed a peck on his cheek. “I'll see you at home, babe,” I said.“Don't be late.” Turning around, I exited his office and headed to my workplace to give Will a piece of my mind. Barging through the front door, I stopped Layla, a colleague. “Where is Will?” “He's in the boardroom with the boss, but no one is allowed to—”I walked out on her, storming into the boardroom amidst the ongoing conversation. “Mr. Jenkins, is there a problem?” Mr. Carter, my boss, asked. “First, you showed up late to work, and second, you barged in without knocking. I hope there's a good explanation for this.” “Yes, sir, there is. I had to save my marriage, which was on the verge of collapsing because of Mr. Will.” Carter folded his arms. “The matter is already being discussed.” My eyes widened. “Already? H-How did you get to know about it?” “Will confessed.” Will looked up. “I'm sorry, Ryker. I didn
Chase“You could be overthinking things, Chase,” Scarlett said over the phone. “Ryker would never do something like that to you.”I leaned back against the chair, rubbing my temple. “I want to believe that, but—”“I know it's hard not to believe the things you saw, but you know Ryker,” she cut in. “Give him the benefit of the doubt.”I heard a knock against my door. “Thanks for the advice. I have to go now. It looks like my next client has arrived.”Hanging up, I answered, “Come in.”The door was thrown open as Evelyn strolled in, pulling a person with a black sack bag over his head along with her.I blinked. “Evelyn, what are you doing here?”“I'm trying to fix your marriage, which should be none of my business, but for some reason, it turned out to be,” she said, lowering the person down onto the chair across from me and taking off the bag from his head.Patting his face, she jolted him awake. “Wake up, Oliver. I didn't drag you away to sleep your ass off.”Opening his eyes, Oliver
Ryker“Oliver, open up! I know you're there!” I called out, banging against the door. The door was pulled back as a sturdy, unkept-looking blonde man with a big belly appeared.Evelyn's face twisted into a deep scowl. “Is he the person trying to ruin your marriage? Hell, Ryker, you can do much better than this.”“What the—No, it's not like that,” I said, then turned to the man. “Doesn't Oliver live here?”He picked his nose. “He does. But who is asking? You? Or the pretty lady?”“Me. I'm a colleague of his from work.”“Oh. I'm Oliver's father, Darrel,” Darrel introduced, stretching out the same hand he had used to pick his nose earlier. “Wanna shake hands?”I shook my head. “Thanks, but we'll pass. Can you let me know if your son, Oliver, is around?”Darrel moved aside. “Upstairs. Second door to your right.”“Thank you.”Brushing past Darrel, Evelyn and I stormed upstairs to the specified location. Standing by the entrance door, Evelyn turned the doorknob and pushed it open.A naked O
Scarlett“Mrs. Scarlett, I've reviewed the documents,” Lawyer Leonard said over the phone. “If you're certain you want to proceed with the inheritance agreement, we can finalize everything today.”“I’m certain,” I replied, staring at my reflection in the vanity mirror. I looked younger, healthier,
ScarlettAfter finalizing the inheritance, I stepped out of the villa with Mr. Hale walking beside me.“We'll arrange the blind date as soon as possible,” he said. “Does tomorrow evening work for you?”“Perfectly.”“The location will be sent to you shortly.”As Mr. Hale’s car pulled away, I turned
ScarlettWe immediately headed out. Durian stood in the middle of the room, his board game overturned at his feet, pieces scattered everywhere. The TV remote lay broken on the floor nearby. Aurelia stood beside him.“What happened here?” I asked, my voice calm, which seemed to agitate them more.Au
Scarlett“You're not your husband's legal wife, Mrs. Scarlett,” the doctor informs me. “So we cannot authorize the use of Mr. Ethan’s medical insurance for your treatment.”My heart plummeted. What?“Doctor, there seems to be a mis–” I broke off, coughing into the blood-stained handkerchief clutche







