Two

Cole Parker lived at Sunshine, one of the most luxurious penthouses situated right in the heart of the city. It took Ava about a thirty-minute drive before her arrival.

She parked and stepped down. Right behind her, in the shadows, a dark, sleek car also halted.

Ava had no idea she was being followed; although if she had been paying attention, she might have noticed, but all her thoughts were on meeting Cole.

She rode her way up to the last floor and rang the doorbell, but no response came. Considering how late it was, she figured Cole was probably asleep, so she tried again.

This time, the door swung open, revealing Cole, who was clad in a bathrobe, his blonde hair slightly disheveled, and his eyes appearing tired.

Ava's lips curled into a smile.

She didn't know she could even smile amidst all this, but somehow, seeing Cole, she felt all her problems had suddenly disappeared. Gone. Dead to the world.

She felt safe and secure, like nothing was impossible as long as she was with Cole.

“Hi, did I wake you?” She asked innocently, “I’m sorry, I didn't mean to. I called and texted, but…”

“Ava, what are you doing here?” He inquired, voice cold, cutting off the rest of her statement. “It's midnight and…”

“I know. I know.” She interrupted, tucking a few strands of hair off her face, “And I'm sorry. I had a good reason for coming here at this time, and I promise I'll explain everything. Can I come in?”

Cole hesitated, swiftly glancing back into the dark room. “Ava, this is a bad time.”

Ava paused.

Why was Cole acting like this? The Cole she knew and fell in love with would have already offered her a seat and asked her what was going on.

“Cole, please let me in.” She pleaded, “I’ll explain everything.”

“Look, Ava…”

“Honey, who is it?” A feminine voice asked, followed by footsteps.

Panic instantly materialized on Cole's face, while Ava's jaw slightly dropped in disbelief, and her eyes widened a bit.

It can't be.

The lady finally emerged from the darkness and wrapped her arms around Cole, her sparkling red hair illuminating the dark night.

“Hi,” She smiled at Ava, who quickly took three steps back as though she had just seen a ghost. “Who are you?”

Ava began to tremble, her big eyes flickering to Cole, who had exactly the look of someone that has been caught cheating.

It can't be.

The red-haired lady tilted her head up at Cole. “Baby, who's she, and what does she want at this time of night?”

“Nothing.” Ava finally found her voice, albeit it didn't sound like hers. “Sorry, I came to the wrong building. Please, enjoy your night.”

Her hand clutching the bag tightly, she scurried onto the elevator, then rode to the ground floor. It was only when she got into her car that she finally broke down in tears.

She cried her little heart out for a long, long time.

This is officially the worst day of her life. As if being told that she was going to be married off to an emotionless robot wasn't enough, Cole, her comfort, the only human being in the universe who understands her and makes her feel like home, is also cheating on her.

What on earth has she done to deserve any of this?

When there were no other tears left to trickle out, she finally sat up and stared into the dark night.

What on earth was she going to do now? She had hoped that Cole would crash at Cole's place until he came up with a solution. He has always been the one who comes up with solutions whenever a problem arises.

Looks like she's gonna have to deal with this one herself. One thing was for sure: she wasn't going back to that house.

Never. No way in hell.

So she drove to the nearest motel. Cole kept calling her phone and dropping numerous texts, so she turned off the phone.

All she needed right now was a good night's sleep. She will have more time to think about her problem with a clear head in the morning.

She was lucky to find a room. She checked in and had a really cold shower before passing out on the bed.

The loud banging on her door woke her up the next morning. She groggily got off the bed and made her way to the door.

“Coming,” She mumbled, yawning in the process.

She froze, her eyes widening in horror upon opening the door.

Marc stood there in the doorway with a smile on his face.

How on earth did he find her?

“Hello, Miss Ava.”

On reflex, she hurried back into the room and made to slam the door on his face, but he stuck one foot in, stopping her from doing so, then gently pushed the door open.

“What are you doing here?” Ava demanded, eyes hard and cold, lips trembling as she took several steps away from Marc.

“Your father has asked me to carefully escort you back home.” Marc replied politely.

“I'm not going anywhere.” She quavered, “Now get out!”

“Miss Ava, please.” Marc pleaded, “Come with me.”

“Get out! I'm not going anywhere with you!”

Marc pressed his lips together. “I'm afraid I have no choice then.”

“What…”

Before Ava knew it, Marc had already closed the space between them and scooped her to his shoulders.

“Hey! Let me down! Let me down right this instant! Let me down!” She kept yelling at the top of her lungs, kicking, hitting, and flailing, “Let me down! I said to let me down!”

With Ava on Marc’s shoulder, he made his way out of the motel. Ava finally gave up and accepted her fate. There was no way she could slip free from these hard, muscular bones.

Ugh, she felt like such a big fool, pathetic, humiliated, and utterly devastated. How could she think her father would just let her escape like that?

Richard Summers has eyes and ears everywhere. Wherever she goes, she will be found within a few hours.

“My clothes, my phone.” She muttered.

“Don't worry. They'll all be retrieved.” Marc reassured her, carefully placing her in the passenger seat of the car. “I'm so sorry about this, Miss Ava.”

“I understand.” She said in a husky voice, laced with utter despair and painful acceptance.

“Thank you.”

Then Marc shut the door.