LOGINRyder sighed and set the glass down on the counter. “You have to follow me to Mexico, because you are my wife. You need to be there.”Victoria raised an eyebrow at him. “Why do I need to be there?”He sighed and walked out of the kitchen and began to head upstairs. Victoria followed behind. “Because you are my wife.” He said. “You said that already.” She countered. “I said it again because you looked like you missed it the first time.” He sighed, as he got to his room door.For a moment she stood still contemplating if she should enter. Then she decided walking into his room was no big deal. So she stepped in. “Um, Ryder, but Mexico?”“Yes. It’s a country.” He said sarcastically, tugging off his tie.Victoria’s eyes tracked the movement, and she did her darn best to look away. “I know it’s a country. I mean—” She pressed her fingers to her temple. “Victoria.” He sighed and turned towards her. “I have to meet the partners we need to expand Tecna. They’re traditional
Victoria was in the hospital, for her grandma's evening visits."Seven more days." The doctor had said.Miranda had received this news horribly and wallowed as she did her crossword. "Seven days. Seven. Whole. Days.""Grandma, I heard you the first time.” Victoria said.“Shush, I'm lamenting." The old woman sighed dramatically. "Do you know how long seven days is?"Victoria settled into the chair beside the bed and responded. "Yes. It’s about a week."Miranda frowned at her. "Don't be so insensitive to my pain!""It's genetic. I can't help it.""Seven days in this place." Miranda gestured around the hospital room like she was describing a war zone. "The food is still an attack. The nurses are always in my busy. The woman in the next room snores like a freight train every single night!”"You should be happy." Victoria said, ignoring all her exaggerated complaints. "You're leaving. A month ago we didn't know when that would happen.""A month ago I was unconscious. The bar was
“And the winner of the CEO election is....”The representative paused, and looked dramatically around the room.“...Mr. Ryder Lake!”The board members erupted into passionate applause. All except Mr. Bannerman who grudgingly clapped for the announcement. Rita held the tablet so tightly it almost cracked. Rocco remained impassive as Ryder stepped forward and addressed everyone.“I’ll keep this short because I know none of you came here to listen to me talk.”A few people laughed, but Ryder did not even crack a smile with them. He went on, voice monotonous. “Now that I’ve sevured my seat, we will move on with the expansion project at the original timeline I proposed, not the adjusted one.” He looked at no one in particular. “Anyone with questions or objections can book a meeting with Sam.”Although he said that, there was no room for argument. “We have work to do.”That was it.The applause started again. But the board members looked a bit uncertain. Most were hoping that af
Victoria broke into a cold sweat. She had simply charged in, staged all of this, to get revenge on Rita. She hadn’t told him the plan, but expected him to be delighted in the end.Had she made a mistake somewhere.“No. I don’t know what I’ve done...” She answered honestly.Ryder took several steps forward, and she instinctively took several backwards until her back hit the balcony's railings. He stopped a hair's breadth away, eyes focused on hers suddenly softened. “You’ve basically helped me win the election later.”Victoria let out a sigh of relief. Still she felt a tad bit uncomfortable by the way he stared intensely at her.“Yeah, that was nothing.” She said with an awkward laugh.Ryder shook his head and began to pace around the balcony. “It isn’t nothing. For years, Rita has been prancing around with her holier than thou act, while playing dirty to bring me down. What you did today has knocked her down from my path. I...” He suddenly stopped walking, then turned to h
YESTERDAY “Daniel, once you drop me off at the penthouse, can you please do something for me?”Victoria looked up at her bodyguard expectantly. The man’s expression didn’t shift even for the tiniest fraction. “I’m at your service, ma'am.”Victoria observed the man for a moment. Ryder had told her Daniel was his most trusted man. So she decided to directly lay out what she was thinking.“Rita, my husband’s sister was here. I think she’s still inside. I want you to follow her throughout today, and watch where she goes. If you see her doing anything that is...” She paused to find the right words. “...unproblematic, I need you to capture it on video. Or even photos.”Daniel, although unsure of what she was insinuating, nodded, ready to carry out orders. “Yes ma’am.”Victoria first went Julie’s place — her old apartment — while Daniel went out to follow Rita. She sat on the couch with folded arms, while she thought over her hunch. When she had run into Rita in the store, the wom
“You left me alone with our son!”The moment the woman screamed this, Rita sprung out of her seat. The chair scraped against the floor, resounding in the silent hall. “What did you say?” She bellowed.The woman was unmoved by the menace in her voice, and continued to ignore her, eyes on Arthur.“You told me you divorced your wife! That she was unbearable!”“Shut up!” Arthur’s body locked up with both rage and fear. “You’re a liar! I’ve never met either of you!”“Really?” The redhead woman seared forward. “Oh, but I have proof! I have several of our sex tapes!”Arthur’s face blanched, as he staggered, clutching the tablecloth for balance.“Ack!”Rather than steadying himself, he yanked the cloth with all his weight.Plates, glasses and half-finished cups of coffee crashed onto the marble floor. The floral centrepiece toppled over, scattering roses across the floor.With a startled cry, Arthur crashed flat onto his back. All the food came toppling on him, staining him from h







