Lana Reign Buena Ford took a deep breath, inhaling the fresh, and slightly chilly air through her nose. She smiled. She was alive and on her way to being divorced from her abusive husband. Danny Buena Ford thought she was too afraid to actually do it. He thought he could keep her scared and under his thumb, but she had proven him wrong and she planned to stand her ground. He wasn’t going to bully her into changing her mind about the divorce. It was as good as done in her mind. She turned to smile at the man walking beside her as they headed towards the stairs that would take them to her second-floor apartment. “You look happy,” Xyrus said, leaning down to kiss her nose. “I am happy. Thank you so much for everything. Without you, I could have never done this,” she said, climbing the stairs. “I’m glad you agreed to take Laura’s help. She is an excellent attorney. Your asshole husband has met his match with her,” he grumbled. She giggled softly as she nodded her head in agreem
Akira Montereal strolled to his office, a file folder tucked under one arm with a coffee in her other hand. He watched her, studying her and grinned. “What are you grinning at?” she asked, looking down at her blouse.“You.”“Why? Am I unzipped? Do I have something in my teeth? Why are you looking at me like that?”He shook his head, laughing. “None of the above. You look different—happy.”She blushed and set the coffee down in front of him.“Drink your coffee. You’re delirious.”“No, I’m not, and thank you by the way.”“You’re welcome. How did it go on Friday?” she asked, setting the file on the desk before taking the seat across from his desk.He took a sip of the hot coffee, nodding his head. “It went very well. I was a little worried she would back out, but she did it. She signed and seemed to be very happy about it. We spent the weekend celebrating,” he said with a smile.Akira was grinning. “Good. I’m glad.”“You’re happy,” he repeated.“I’m always happy.”He shook his head.
She studied his features and could see he was truly sorry. It made no sense to her.“Xy, why are you sorry?”“Because, I cost you your job.”Her head slowly moved back and forth. “You didn’t cost me my job. Danny storming in there and causing a scene was wrong. He had scared everyone long before you arrived. Please don’t be sorry. It isn’t your fault in any way. I’m so grateful that you showed up when you did. It could have ended very differently for me.”“I wish there was something I could do. I can help you look for a job,” he volunteered.She smiled and leaned forward, giving him a soft, warm kiss. “You’re too good to be true,” she whispered.“I’m real and I’m yours.”She couldn’t stop smiling. He was a dream come true. He was too good. How had the man remained single for so long? The women of the world had no idea what they were missing out on. She had no intention of ever letting them find out.“I’m glad we met. I know I wasn’t the friendliest person in the world those first
Waking up with Lana would never get old. Her back was to him as he curled around her, protecting her as she slept. She’d come home with him last night after a night out together. He loved their sleepovers and only wished they could make it a more regular thing, as in she moved in with him. He knew she loved her place, but his afforded them a lot more room, privacy and most importantly, security. He always felt like they were exposed at her place. Anyone could walk up to her front door and knock. He wanted to be able to protect her and the high fence and gate around his place seemed much more conducive to keeping Danny and other bad guys out. She moaned softly. “You’re awake.”He kissed her bare shoulder. “I am.”“You get up so early.”He laughed. “You’re usually the first one up.”“Now that I don’t have a job, there’s no reason to get out of bed before seven.”He kissed her shoulder, moving her hair away from her neck and kissed her there. “I can give you a very good reason to ge
“Are you out there? " Akira asked as he stepped out of his office. “I am, unless you need me for something else?” he said, pausing at her desk. She shook her head. “Nope. I’m about ready to leave myself. I think this day should be noted on the calendar, we are both out of here by five.”He chuckled. “Do you have a hot date tonight?” “No, I don’t. I have a date with my TV. I have some catching up to do on my favorite shows before all the fall premieres start. I’ve neglected my shows.”He threw his head back and laughed. “I don’t think they’ll notice. It’s called having a life and dating.”“Maybe, but I’m fully invested in the lives of my favorite characters,” she quipped. “Got it. Well, have a fun night watching TV,” he said with a grimace. “Oh, I suppose you have a hot date?”He shrugged a shoulder. “I am going to dinner with Lana and she’s always hot, so I suppose you could say I have a hot date.”“You are so sprung. If I knew how to do the whip sound, that would be inserted
Her heart hurt. She hated sending Xyrus away when all she really wanted to do was get lost in the safety and comfort of his arms. He was solid as a rock and never seemed to get angry with her. She knew she was a pain in the ass. Canceling on him at the last minute was inexcusable. She kept trying to work up the strength to go out with him but couldn’t bring herself to do it. She couldn’t lie to his face and that was exactly what she would have to do if she had to spend any time with him. He deserved an explanation. She couldn’t do it. She grabbed another pair of jeans and shoved them into her suitcase that was already too full, tears streamed down her face as she did so. Life was never easy. “You can’t take it all, Lana Reign,” she mumbled to herself as she tried like hell to do just that. She’d refrained from buying a lot of clothes. With her lifestyle, the goal was to pack as quickly as possible and to fit as much into a single suitcase as possible. With one last longing look a
The first thing he did when he opened his eyes was roll to the side and reach for his phone on the bedside table. Through bleary eyes, he stared at the screen, hoping to see a missed call or a message or two from Lana. It had taken every ounce of self-control not to text her last night. Around eleven, he had sent her a simple goodnight text, hoping for some kind of response. He got nothing in return. He closed his eyes, trying not to let the disappointment get him down. She was still working through some stuff, he told himself. He’d give her space. He got ready for work, wishing like hell they could repeat yesterday’s morning routine. Once he grabbed a breakfast sandwich, he headed out the door. Work would keep him busy and his mind off Lana. “Yeah, right,” he muttered, checking left, then right before pulling into the street. Nothing kept his mind off Lana. “Uh-oh,” Akira mumbled under her breath as he walked by. “I’m fine,” he said, and kept moving into his office. She follo
She'd made a spur of the moment decision to get off the bus in some small town outside of Baguio City.. She couldn’t bear the thought of traveling another twelve hours on that bus. Maria was a lovely seat companion, but she was going out of her mind. It didn’t matter where she got off. There was no set destination in her mind. Lana had walked down the dark country road, not afraid of being mugged in a quiet little place like the one she’d chosen to spend an undetermined number of days in. Maybe that had been her mistake in the past, she mused. She’d been trying to hide out in large cities, thinking it would be easier to blend in with hundreds of thousands of people. It was time to change things up. She looked around the area and saw a few houses here and there with large parcels of land for each house. It was a quiet, rural area without the hustle and bustle of city life—or taxicabs.The kind man at the gas station where the bus had dropped her off told her of a motel abou