Florence. A groan slid past my lips the moment I stepped my feet into my room. Jolts of pain seared around my joints and ankle as I wobbled towards my bed in the far corner. I never really liked it because it wasn't all that comfy, but right now, I would take that brick of a bed over anything. I sighed the moment I slumped onto the bed. Without wasting any more time, I kicked my feet in the air and flung my shoes from my legs. They'd been hurting throughout the journey back and if I had taken it off a moment later, I wouldn't be exaggerating if I said my toes would come off with it. Tiny tendrils of pain shot up my feet as I moved my toes, a feeble attempt to bring life back to them. I winced every now and then, but it was nothing compared to the hammering in my chest. It'd started the moment Dominique walked in on Blake and I at the gazebo. I had no idea why, but the moment he stepped in, my heart started this erratic beat only I could hear. I saw the anger in his eyes an
Florence. Time seemed to slow to a halt after that moment. I felt my breath hitch in my throat. I found it hard to breathe as the air around me felt choked up. I could feel the air crackling with tension so thick you could slice through the air with a pie knife and cut out a huge chunk enough to go round, but a part of me told me Dominique wouldn't be the least interested in that pie, not even in the slightest and I wouldn't blame him honestly. Something churned in the pit of my stomach. Rage perhaps? I wasn't sure, but all I knew was that I'd had enough of all of his shenanigans and his verbal insult since the day I'd stepped my foot into his house. I wasn't exactly sure which hurt more; Dominique's temper or the fact that Aliyah had betrayed me. Again. Anger bubbled through my veins at the very thought of it. So this was the main reason she was here yesterday. Just to get information. She didn't care that I was genuinely upset with her. She had no care in the world that s
The rain splattered on the sidewalk, licking up the roads and a bolt of lightning flashed briefly from the dark-night sky, shielding everywhere with light for a moment only for the darkness to return. I snuggled closer into my pillow, but the sound of the rain beating down on the old tin roof wouldn’t let me sleep and I turned to the other side of the tiny bed, muttering something unintelligible. Jeezz. Goddamn nature wouldn’t let me catch a breath. I’d exhausted myself the whole day cleaning up the house and doing whatever requests my stepmom and my half-sister tossed at me and this was the time I had to myself before I had to be up by three a.m. the following morning for another round of chores. It was a fucking sickening routine, but it was my life, and there was absolutely nothing I could to change it. No one cared anyway. Grunting, I stifled a yawn, getting out of bed to use the toilet just down the dimly-lit hallway when the sound of a door being slammed stopped me dead in my
FLORENCEAfter my dad was carted into a long black van, I stared for the longest time at the door, inwardly praying that this wasn’t real. That I would eventually wake up and all of this would be a distant memory, belonging only in the dream world. But, my stepmother’s voice sliced through my daze like a sharp knife and I turned to face her, my neck suddenly heavy for my head. “Make sure everywhere is sparkling clean,” she barked as if she was talking to a dog and Jenny shot me a mean stare as if daring me to challenge her mother’s authority. I dared not. I simply nodded, dragging my limbs off from the floor to the kitchen. Jenny met me halfway, landing me a hot slap. For a moment, I stood there, too stunned to speak, my ears ringing loudly. What did I do this time? “That is for being such a loud mouth. If it wasn’t for your stupid speech, those men wouldn’t have taken my dad away.” The way Jenny called him ‘my dad’ like she owned him, one would think he wasn't my dad as well. And I
I packed the last of my things, dragging my feet on the floor. Today was the last I would spend here as dad had informed me a ride was on its way to pick me up and I took one last glance around a room I’ve known for years. It was small, a tiny space I barely slept in, but the room was painted in bright pink–a color that reminded me so much of sunshine and rainbows. That was what my mother was to me until she died. When she took her final breath, a piece of me went with her and was buried six feet below the ground. Heaving a deep sigh, I tried to push the thoughts of my mother away from my head, but they kept coming back, haunting me like a moth drawn to a flame. Why did she have to go? Couldn’t it have been me? Maybe then, I wouldn’t be suffering the way I was now, doing housemaid duties in a house my mother once had a share in. My head swelled with anger at the situation and my fingers bunched together, about to form a fist when a knock suddenly came on the door, interrupting me. Th
I didn’t know who I was expecting to see, but it was definitely not him–the Dominique guy who’d airily walked in that night. He was sitting languidly on the sofa, dressed in blue white-washed jeans and a black singlet that showed off his toned arms, and he looked up as I walked in, a hint of annoyance in his gaze. I could tell he wasn’t happy to see me–not at all. He frowned, his eyes never leaving my body. My face flushed with heat at his intense stare and I was angry at myself for responding that way to a man who’d treated my father like shit. He wasn’t a good man, yes, but he was human and as such, he ought to be treated as one. Whatever had happened to him where he was taken to that made the animosity grow stronger towards me. I was curious to find out, but one part of me–the part that was rational–pulled me back. I didn’t want to get hurt by what I found. Dominique looked at me like he was irritated that I was standing in his pristine living room, and I could tell by the express
DOMINIQUE.It was only when he’d left and I’d reclined to my study that I came into full realisation of what I’d done. I felt like a fool, a tool for use. I shouldn’t have let Mr. Shane go. Worse still, I’d bought into his silly idea of his daughter working for me to repay the money he owed me. How fucked up was that? Years ago when Mr. Shane and I had gone into business, I never thought things would go so awry that it’d end up with him running away with my millions on investment and it had infuriated me to no end. I had to track him down and make him pay somehow. Now, he’d found a way to buy himself out. I hit my fist on the wooden table, muttering a string of curses under my breath. Oh well, his daughter was going to suffer for it. She’d pay for the sins of her father with every sweat and tear used in building the business from scratch. I didn’t care. Someone had to take the fall. Mr. Shane had already informed me through a quick phone call made to one of my bodyguards–the one tha
Florence.I scrunched up my nose as specs of dust wafted through my nostrils. A chill ran down my spine as a familiar sensation worked its way towards my nose. I knew it was coming and I could already picture the outcome. If I didn't find a way to control it, I would sneeze out aloud again, and for the umpteenth time too. The last thing I wanted was to draw more attention to myself. No, the last thing I wanted was for Dominique to hear me. A small part of me couldn't help but think he would have a problem with me sneezing all over the place. Heavens forbid all my germs over his mansion. The moment the sensation in my nose settled, I went on dusting the furniture. I'd just finished with the center table and was currently on the huge bookshelf in the far corner. If I was being honest, Dominique didn't strike me as the kind of man who read books. Because what kind of villain read books? Okay, maybe a couple of them but you get my point. With how stuck up and ruthless he was, I doubted