Azalea's POV"Can I come in?" Noah asked as he popped his head through the door after a soft knock."Yeah, sure," I said, rising from my chair briefly out of courtesy."You can sit," he added."Thank you," I replied, settling back into my seat, smoothing my skirt beneath me. "Do you want me to do something for you?" My voice came out slower than I intended, cautious, curious.He smiled, the kind that made you feel like you were the only person in the room. He pulled out the chair opposite mine and sat, leaning in slightly."When was the last time you went for a checkup?"My eyes flicked around the room, searching for something to focus on. The desk lamp. My sketchbook. Anything. I tried not to blush, I tried and failed. "I don’t know," I said finally, my voice barely above a whisper.“C’mon,” he laughed, light but earnest. “You know you’re supposed to get checked regularly, right?”His concern softened something in me. His gaze wasn’t just medical, it was layered with worry, warmth, t
Ace’s POV"I told her to be my girlfriend just to make you jealous," I admitted, the words hanging in the air like something rotten.Even I cringed. “Ugh,” I groaned, dragging a hand down my face. “I almost gagged just saying that.”What the hell was I thinking?Seriously, what exactly was going through my head back then?Note to self: never, ever let jealousy drive decisions. Ever.She gave me that look, the one that made it clear I had just said the dumbest thing in the history of dumb things. Like I was some annoying ad that kept popping up when she was trying to work.A buzz pulled me from her glare. I checked my phone. A message from Abigail: It’s all done.I smirked and looked at Lea.“You can check your phone,” I said, tilting my head. “The tabloids, it’s all gone. Scrubbed clean.”She didn’t even flinch. Just crossed her arms and said flatly, “Gone from the internet, not from people’s memory.”I blinked. “Can you be grateful for like… ten seconds?”“You should be grateful inst
Ace’s POV"I told her to be my girlfriend just to make you jealous," I admitted, the words hanging in the air like something rotten.Even I cringed. “Ugh,” I groaned, dragging a hand down my face. “I almost gagged just saying that.”What the hell was I thinking?Seriously, what exactly was going through my head back then?Note to self: never, ever let jealousy drive decisions. Ever.She gave me that look, the one that made it clear I had just said the dumbest thing in the history of dumb things. Like I was some annoying ad that kept popping up when she was trying to work.A buzz pulled me from her glare. I checked my phone. A message from Abigail: It’s all done.I smirked and looked at Lea.“You can check your phone,” I said, tilting my head. “The tabloids, it’s all gone. Scrubbed clean.”She didn’t even flinch. Just crossed her arms and said flatly, “Gone from the internet, not from people’s memory.”I blinked. “Can you be grateful for like… ten seconds?”“You should be grateful inst
Ace's POVDring Dring.For the fifth damn time, my phone rang.“Christ!” I muttered through gritted teeth, blindly reaching for it on the nightstand.Abigail. I groaned louder when I saw the caller ID. I’d told her specifically— no disturbances today. She was supposed to handle all the office affairs.“What do you want?” I snapped, my voice rough with sleep and annoyance.“Sir, I think you should check your phone. There’s a not-so-good blog post about you,” she said hurriedly.“What do you mean?” I pushed the phone away from my ear to glance at the time. 7 a.m.? “What kind of blog post?”“I– I can’t say. Just check it,” she stammered. It sounded more like a desperate plea than a request.“Fine. I will check it.” I ended the call with a sigh, dragging my heavy body up from the bed.*What could possibly be so urgent that she had to wake me up like this?*I opened my news feed, where all blogs and breaking updates hit first, and froze.My jaw dropped.What the hell?!Sleep vanished from
Azalea's POVI called Lara the moment I got in the taxi. She picked after two rings and by the time I got home, she was already waiting in front of my apartment.Tell me why I shouldn’t love this woman."What happened to you?" she asked, eyes scanning me as I fumbled with my key."That guy is freaking me out.""Who?""Ace, of course," I said, yanking the door open. "I hate him.""You mean today?""When else? Obviously today. Just a few hours after our meeting.""Okay…""He came to my workplace, Lara.""Wait, he came to your workplace? What for?""To take me somewhere. Said he wanted to talk.""And you followed him?""Do I look like I had a choice? He kept saying ‘get in, get in’! All those eyes on me and he was sitting in his car like he owns the fucking planet.""So, where did he take you to?""To a clinic. For a paternity test.""Are you kidding me?!""No, I’m not," I threw my bag on the couch. "I'm annoyed. I'm literally boiling inside."Lara looked at me, wide-eyed, like she was t
Ace’s POVYup, I was finally insane.I just couldn’t get my mind off the little drama they had performed during the meeting.Why were they smiling at each other like that?Did she like him too?Was that how easy she was?Shit!I took a slight glance at the lady sitting beside me. She had shifted uncomfortably after I had told her to get in.“Why should I?” She had asked, but seeing how impatient I was, she had finally given in.I had never waited for a lady like that in my entire life, and now I just did that.I waited for about three hours, my eyes were stuck on the door and I prayed she would come out soon, without Noah catching a glimpse of me.I didn’t know why I was worried about that, but I was.“Is this the time you normally close for work?” Had I asked that out of curiosity? No idea.I just knew I was feeling angry. Very angry. Why would a pregnant woman be allowed to work in the first place?Damn! She wasn’t even carrying my baby. I didn’t know why I was freaking out about i