Kayla woke up to vibrations from messages blowing up her phone. She turned repeatedly in her bed. The vibration wouldn't stop—that was more messages than she'd received over the month. Pushing through her sleep-fogged brain, her eyes drew open and she reached for the phone on the nightstand to see what the messages were for.New month's wishes from nearly everyone she knew, including Corey. She threw her head back, rolled her eyes, and snorted. Not like she cared about the new month. She frowned, not buying the kinds of text she saw. Troubled, she melted in the bed, pretending to cry. Sonia was informing her about Nora's surprise party Jerome was planning, saying they began the meeting on that very day. Samuel also reminded her of the American Football coming up. It was his first match; he wanted her to come along with Anthony.Ugh! How in God's name was she supposed to convince Anthony when she failed to convince him of Sonia's housewarming party? She'd have to face her family because
How and when did she fall asleep? Kayla opened her eyes, adjusting to the sunlight beaming through the glass walls and stinging her eyes. Her mind refreshed last night's memory. Anthony's condition, Sledge's restlessness, and how she laid awake waiting for him to come out. The last thing she recalled doing was cleaning his puke. She winded up in the sack. Nature could not get beaten.Who tucked her in a duvet while she was asleep? If not Anthony, who did? Her eyes landed on Sledge, who lolled nearer to the couch she laid on. She flashed him a smile and stroked his head, the perky dog getting playful, nibbling her hand. Sledge was out of Anthony's room, which meant Anthony was fine, too. But where was he?Kayla pushed the duvet aside and sat up, perusing the living room with her eyes. Her eyes caught a neatly folded paper on the coffee table. She reached for it and unfolded it. It was the shortest, but friskiest letter. ‘Next time you sleep in the living room, I'll spank your ass hard
The question threw Kayla into defense. “I remember everything that happened in my drunkenness. I can tell you everything that happened if you want me to. Giovanni celebrated his winning with his lawyers, I had to join them. I had soda, only soda, not alco—”“So you're going to look me in the eye and lie to me?” Graveness and rage resonated in the gruff butterfly-soft of his voice. Anthony couldn't soften the harshness of his emotions yet. Srymium told him of the celebration at the restaurant. For the soda… she lied.Tears nearly dribbled off her flooded eyes at the accusation, but she blinked them back. Defending herself was pointless, it deepened the raw emotions in her. Her eyes wouldn't mind raining tears. She wouldn't defend herself anymore. She'd cry if she did because he wouldn't believe her. “I got drunk on alcohol. Because I couldn't carry the weight on my shoulders. Is that what you want to hear?”After a moment of silence, “Sit in the chair, legs on the armrests. I want to w
“For Jerome to trust Nora's surprise party on our hands, we must make sure everything goes as planned. And the first step to achieving that is… no one tells a thing to Nora.” Sonia glanced at Imani.Imani, understanding Sonia's glance, said, “Mmm-mm, lips sealed, I'm telling nothing to Nora.” She gestured as if zipping her lips.“It’s been fifteen minutes since we started waiting for the event planner in this fucking restaurant, Sonia. How much longer do we have to wait?” Kiran was getting impatient.“She’d be here in… maybe five minutes,” Sonia guessed.Kiran snorted and rolled her eyes, piqued.Imani, who sat next to Kayla, squinted in confusion, gazing at Kayla's neck. She bunched up Kayla's hair and raised it, effectively earning Kayla's attention. “Do you know you've got a deep wound on your nape?”“I know. It's been there.” Kayla discovered it from the day she woke up with amnesia. The day after the night that Alfred's men stalked her. She caught sight of it while making her dre
Kayla's eyes widened at the sight of the ghastly creature seizing her on the floor. The Lava-eyed creature’s fierce eyes drilled into hers as he hissed at her. A vampire? Impossible. The lava eyes flashed a vague memory across her mind. It felt like déjà vu. It was a dream. She'd been dreaming this whole time… this couldn't be real. Kayla became hyperventilated as panic crushed her.“Wake up, Kayla, wake up,” she repeated.The vampire perked up and made a swipe at her, clawing at her face. She shrieked in pain, crawling backwards on her feet and elbows, but the vampire caught her on the neck and threw her across the room. Kayla hit the door and landed hard on the floor.With her eyes shut, she cried out. The pain felt real. It felt nothing like a dream, yet she cried and begged herself to wake up, trying to absorb the pain, blood spilling out of her wounded face.The pain was more than she could bear and her stomach was hurting, which got her cuddling her stomach. She remained on the
The morning headache again? Kayla rolled onto her back and placed a hand over her forehead. “Fuck,” she whispered. Easing her eyes open, she darted her eyes around as reality slammed in. Her brow furrowed. Wasn't she supposed to be at her house? Jerking up, she moaned and fell back on the bed, then pressed a hand on her forehead with her eyes closed. She rolled onto her stomach, whimpering.She sprang up only a few seconds after she fell on the bed. The impulsion to puke sent her rushing to the bathroom without taking the headache and dizziness into accounts. She flushed the toilet where she threw up, then went to the bathroom sink, washing up her face, and, of course, her disgusting mouth. Looking at her exhausted self in the mirror, she still tried to make out how she got to Anthony's house.She'd driven to her house last night—that was all she remembered. Sighing and running her hand through her nape, she stopped at a point that made her brow furrow. She looked at the spot in the m
Panic, sadness. These feelings were full-on over Kayla’s appearance as she hurried out of her car and scooted into Anthony’s house, panting. Why did her nature decide to cause her pain tonight? The thought of having disobeyed Anthony and the consequences made a pool in her eyes. She was insanely afraid, flooded by her emotions. Of all the places she could have overslept, why Corey’s place?Running past the foyer, Kayla squelched as chills rushed through her spine, her eyes locked fearfully on Anthony. He sat on the couch, stroking Sledge’s back as Sledge laid on his legs. Her fear ebbed and pity replaced when her eyes fell on a vial on the floor. He was still on medication. For how long would the illness last? Would he ever get better? What illness was it?“You overstayed your time outside. Where have you been?” Anthony knew where she’d been. Her explanation would soothe him better. He’d been out of his temper from the moment Srymium told him that Kayla went to Corey’s house again. Th
It was dark and chilled as the wind graced the atmosphere. Night settled in. People hung around in the parking. Kayla could tell a great number of them were guests from the way they dressed. Stepping out of the car, nervousness like a gust of wind blew her over. She tried to conceal her feelings and avoid jumping out anxiously to people's sight.How would she stand and endure the death glares and mockeries of people who knew her wrongdoing and detested her? If she could survive it at KR anniversary, maybe she'd survive it here. Her attention was called when Anthony offered the crook of his hand to her. This time she didn't hesitate like she did during the anniversary. She looped her hand through his, rather feeling comfortable holding him.The hostess and host standing side by side of the ceremony room entrance, ushered them into the room where the birthday was taking place. Ates brothers had plenty of acquaintances. As a result, there were so many guests in the room. Just as expected