GIOVANNI I couldn't help the smile on my lips as the plane touched down at ABQ International Airport. I have been away from Kim for a month now and I couldn't wait to see her. I patted the carry-on bag that held the necklace I won at an auction in Las Vegas as I went through security checks. I don't know if Kim is going to like it.I spotted Rossi at the arrival and he led me to the car waiting outside the airport. “How was your flight boss?” Rossi asked as we walked to the car that one of my bodyguards held open for me. “Boring and burdensome.”“How was your meeting with Mr. Boss?” I scoffed, running a hand down my face. “Profitable. But the man is greedy as fuck. If not because he can get Dominic off my back, I wouldn't have partnered with him.” “We have no other reason to partner with him apart from that. Dominic is torn in the flesh.” I sat in the car and waited for Rossi to sit beside me so I could ask the one thing that's been bothering me. “How is everything on the ranc
KIMWe drove for a long time, a really long time.I don't know what time it is or where we're going. As soon as I entered the van, the guy put a black hood over my head. He didn't tie my hand or drug me to sleep like when Jake kidnapped me.They even offered me water from time to time, which I was sceptical about drinking at first, but soon, I relented when I felt thirsty. My baby had to survive. I tried to keep my hand over my stomach nonchalantly rather than protectively so that they wouldn't know of the baby. Not that they will know, I mean… my stomach is undeniably flat. I don't know who kidnapped me, but it will be weird to say these guys are nice.After a long time, the car stopped moving, and I heard the sound of the door opening and closing, followed by heavy footsteps.The chilling wind hit me when the door to my side slid open. The guy who was sitting beside me climbed down and gently pulled my arm to help me down from the van.I felt my knees buckle as soon as my feet t
KIMI saw the eyes that I long for. Nathan's blue eyes stare across from me in the darkness. Everything else in that space was black, very black, so that they merge into the darkness, making it impossible to tell what they are. But I knew something was there, stopping me from reaching out to Nathan. I open my mouth, calling out to him, but no words come out, no sound is made.I tried again and again, but no sound came out. The only sound that was heard in that dark place was the frantic beating of my heart. Nathan stood still, not moving, not looking away from me. His expression was neutral, stoic, cold—something I had long forgotten. I couldn't remember that Nathan used to look like this—cold and expressionless. All the memories I have of him were him either laughing, smiling, smirking or teasing me. I have long forgotten he used to be cold, expressionless and emotionless. I tried to move, to walk closer to him. But with each step it seemed like the room stretched further, prolon
KIMIt was just another day in Albuquerque. The smell of roasted chilli filled the airThe early morning air was crisp and cold, making people pull on their sweaters to cover their bodies well. I was walking around the local supermarket making a run for groceries on behalf of Maria before heading into the mall to shop for autumn and winter clothes. After walking around the supermarket for a while, I began to feel tired. My legs became too numb and I leaned on one of the shelves to support myself for a while.This has become the norm these days, and I have been dreading going to the hospital for a check-up. I dread what the result will be. What if they say I'm terminally ill or something? Or that I have cancer that has metastasised? Or something about how soon I will be dying?I don't want to know what's happening to me and I fear that it's something that may threaten my life.After resting for a while, I pushed myself to continue shopping around the supermarket until I was done. An
NATHAN The look on my dad's face says it all. Giovanni is the man who has been giving me sleepless nights for almost 12 months now. Come to think of it, his sudden appearance matches Sassy’s and the others. But why? What was his target?My company? My wife?I feel my blood run cold at the thought of him with Kim. I don't know where Kim is, but I'm sure he has a hand in what happened at the hotel that night. The room was booked under a fake name, and the transaction was traced to a foreign account that belonged to a 60-year-old Indian woman. When the footage came in—Ethan was able to get the footage out, but not until he landed a clean punch to my jaw. He says he has been wanting to do that. Of course, I let him do itWhen the footage came in, there wasn't really anything suspicious about it. Kim came in for dinner with Giovanni at the same time Sassy brought me in. And she happened to see me and followed me to the floor I was on. But when we interrogated the cleaner, they said
NATHAN I don't know how I have been living ever since the divorce. The days blur together into night. Weeks blur together into months. The sun rises and sets, and it feels like I'm just a spectator rather than a living being. I felt empty, hollow, and an indescribable emptiness had opened up in my heart the moment Kim walked off.I had buried myself into work like a maniac. I overwork most of my staff, rejecting every project idea until it is fine-tuned to my level of perfection. I can't even begin to count how many employees I have either fired or suspended. When I said the abyss was comforting, yes, it was for a few days, maybe weeks. But then it became unbearable. The darkness, the coldness. I yearn for Kim's warmth, her laugh that stirs up my heart, her smile that does something to me. I yearn for her touch, her voice, her gaze on me. I yearn for her hands around me, her presence that fills my space, I want Kim. I have never wanted something so much in my life. The days tha