It was past 3 pm, and I was busy prepping ingredients for dinner when I heard my phone ringing. I rushed out to pick, thinking it was the delivery guy."Hello," I answered immediately. Jared's voice filled the receiver, cold as ever and devoid of any affection."Don't wait up for me," I heard him spit out. I was about to ask what he was up to when he hung up on me.I don't even know why I bother with him anymore; we have been this way since the very first day of this prison called marriage, but it still hurts each time he gives me a cold shoulder.I was confused, wondering what to do since he wasn't even going to be home for the special dinner I was prepping.But then an insane idea popped into my head. I knew it was a terrible idea, one I would pay dearly for, but it was his birthday, and he deserved some special homemade meal.Dropping the phone on the counter, I quickly rushed into the kitchen to whip up something really quick for him. I made his favorite creamy pasta and some cho
I woke up a few days later only to realize that I was on the hospital bed, bruised in many places more than I can count. Dad will always say, "You better die a Long than to live as a Steele." He almost got what he wanted. "Thank God you are okay," I heard Emily's voice from behind with a loud thud; she dropped the bag she was holding and ran to hug me. "Ouch," I cried out in pain. "Sorry, sorry, I'm sorry. Thank God you are fine," she said, drying the tears that formed in her eyes. She informed the nurses that I was awake, and the doctor came around to run a check on me. "She will be alright, no major concussion; she should be out of here in weeks." "Thank you, doctor," she said as he walked out of the room. "Did Jared come to see me?" I asked Emily. "You should focus on your health first, honey, please," she begged, gently patting my hand. I forced a smile; she kissed my forehead, smiling when Dad walked in. "Mr. Caine, Mrs. Caine," Emilia greeted, faking a
It has been Six months after the divorce and the accident, I decided to move on with my life. I was working as one of the directors at Emerald Events, a company that does event management.I recently brought back a contract worth five million dollars from Kentucky; my boss, Louisa, has treated me as a big contributor to the company. After lavishing me with rewards, she even gave me a seven-day vacation, adding it up with my annual leave.I finalized my divorce a couple of months ago; ever since that incident at his house, I had never set eyes on that bastard. Even while in divorce proceedings, he just sent his lawyer to settle things like I was some rag he was too eager to discard.I thought letting the case drag on for long would make him realize and maybe come back to me, but I was just delusional.Jared never had any sort of feelings towards me; for all I know, this charade called marriage was only a transaction to him.I was packing up my stuff to leave for my vacation. "Knock kn
I was enjoying the night; it was the best night ever since I married and divorced Jared. I was glad I attended the party. It was the first time someone was putting that witch in her place.Once it comes to her disgrace, I would always take the front row any day, any time.I turned to see those deep eyes looking at me, and with the roll of his Adam's apple, the thrilling moment of that night felt like a film replaying before my eyes. I can't help but tense my legs.He is just like a dose of venom, always waiting for me to fall into an irrevocable abyss.Leila was embarrassed, her gaze at me even more malicious. But she refrained from saying anything further and clung to his arm awkwardly.Probably unable to tolerate her, he excused himself to go back to the dance floor. This time she did not follow him. As his figure completely vanished, her ladylike demeanor instantly collapsed. She furiously looked down on me and scolded:"Samantha, have you no shame? You have been with numerous men
It felt like my tender heart was being grated by a thin wire, making my body tremble with pain. I felt lightheaded, unable to move, and couldn't comprehend what was happening. My breathing pace increased; I was slowly losing it. I hate remembering that painful night; I always end up having a panic attack each time I remember it. But today was worse, what Leila said must have triggered it and also made it worse. I staggered back and rested on the wall. My gaze fell on Jared who was busy speaking with some guests. He smirked at me, his gaze hinted a faint sense of amusement yet his eyes were cold. I felt a cold shiver run through my body and I froze, scared out of my mind. I heard the door of the bathroom open, I turned and my eyes met Kent's eyes, His brows furrowed. "Are you blacking out?" He asked. But I was in no position to talk, hence I was just looking at him. "Come with me," he said as he led me outside, and I quietly obeyed him without making a fuss. I sat
"pass the book" "Do you have to go? Spend the vacation here; I promise I will make it worth it," Emilia begged, making baby faces at me. If I hadn't known her, I would have fallen for that, but not anymore; I wish to go as far away from New York as possible. After the banquet drama at the Longs Hotel, I made up my mind to leave and get away from New York. "You will be busy with work; besides, you don't want to get on Eloise's bad side." I smiled, taking the book out of her hand. "Uuugh, I should quit my job. Will you stay then?""That won't work either." I zipped my suitcase while she fell on the bed, making a fuss. "Now, we are all parked," I said, smiling heartily. "Promise me you would call me every day." "I will call you every single minute until you get tired of my calls." I hugged her tightly. "You better," she hugged me tightly like I was leaving already. "I will come to drop you off tomorrow then," she announced, checking the time. She took her bag and car keys and t
I nodded without a thought, staring at his pinkish-red lips like I was hypnotized. I had no idea why he had this effect on me, but I always lost myself around him. I couldn't wait any longer; I had to take a bite before I lost my mind. I stood on my tippy toes to take his lips in a kiss, but the ringing of my phone startled me. I pushed him away, breathing heavily. I can't believe how wild I am acting lately. I was so ashamed of myself, hence my eyes were glued to the floor, and I couldn't look him in the eyes. "You should leave," I said to him. Before he could respond, I shoved him out of the door and shut the door. With my back on the door while clutching my racing heart. I walked absentmindedly and I fell on the couch, still clutching my bathrobe. "What happened to the plan to stay away from him?" I scolded myself. I shook my head. "Calm down." I calmed myself, since we didn't go far again, all was well. I picked up my phone to check who called earlier, and as I had suspecte
The reason why humans are seen as higher beings is because they can control, to a large extent, their desires and thoughts. Even though I secretly crave Kent's touch and wish to spend more time with him, the words I typed were entirely different. It was fun while it lasted; he gave me more orgasms than Jared could ever dream of giving me in two years of marriage, but I had to put an end to it all. "This is for good," I chanted a couple of times, trying to convince myself that I did the right thing. But why does it feel painful? My eyes were beginning to sting. "Tomorrow I will be out of here and will forget all about him," I whispered to myself. I didn't sleep quite well; I kept tossing and turning on the bed while trying to calm the raging storm.I guess that's why my body aches all over. But it would all end today, out of sight, means out of mind; this will pass once I'm far away from New York City. It was a couple of minutes past 7; I was already running late. At this point
"This is the second time I've asked him. The first time was on the sea, the night before we returned home. We were scattering flowers on the sea, commemorating Amelia.At that time, it was merely a probe; as for his response, I did not hold too much expectation.But today, it's different.He is about to marry me.I certainly hope to hear him say that he loves me and holds me in his heart.Not simply tying me to his side.Yet, as I anticipatively looked up at him, the expression on his face gradually faded. He leaned over to pick, up his phone, which was lying on the floor, and then softly said to me,"Sam, I am quite afraid to fall in love with you because I don't know when I might lose you."I tightly held his neck and rasped,"That's not going to happen. As long as you stay with me, I will never leave you. Kent, if you love me, please tell me. Because in my heart, your love for me is more important than this marriage certificate."A low and husky laugh came out from his mouth, and
After hearing my confession, Kent emitted a sigh from his throat and lowered his head to kiss me deeply, his movements growing more intense. I was tossed around by him, my instincts leading me to call out his name, breathlessly,"Kent, Kent...""I'm here.""Kent, I love you.""How much?""Very much, very much."In the depths of my emotions, my deepest feelings spilled uncontrollably from my lips. I wrapped my arms around his neck, professing my feelings to him in this way.It wasn't until over two hours later that he finally let me go. I practically slumped onto the bed, drained of all strength. He didn't move either, simply laying on top of me, his broad body effectively entrapping me within his reach.Suddenly, he said,"Sam, let's get married.""What?" I spat out. His words took me aback, dumbstruck. For a long moment, I doubted whether I heard him right.With both hands on either side of me, Kent leaned in close to my ear, repeating his words with added seriousness,"I said, Sa
Ben's surprising marriage proposal left Emilia completely stunned, sitting stiffly on her bed.After recovering from her initial shock, she hurled a pillow at him."Get lost. Who told you I am going to marry you?"He grabbed her hand shamelessly and shoved the ring onto her middle finger."If you don't want to marry me, then I'll marry into your family. After all, our child should not be fatherless.""You! Get away from me, you jerk! I truly don't love you!""It doesn't matter, as long as I love you."They continued to bicker with each other. I felt a mix of concern and happiness. Kent pulled me away, standing me by the wall to catch my breath. I glanced back at the ward's door.I asked Kent, "Is Ben serious about this?"He glanced at me, smiling without smiling: "Would it be bad if the two of them ended up together?"His comment left me speechless.Yes, the best outcome right now would be for them to end up together. Get married formally, giving the child a legitimate opportunity to
Ben's words froze me to my core. My mind was blank. All I wanted to do was to punch the daylights out of the jerk standing before me.Before I could raise my hand, to hit him, Kent strode forward. With one leg, he kicked Ben in the stomach, then lifted him and shoved him against the wall. Looking pissed off. “Ben, if you don't explain yourself regarding Emilia’s child, I swear I'll beat you to a pulp. Believe it or not”? He barked at him, ready to pounce on him again. “The child may not be mine either. Besides, she just got out of a relationship before hooking up with me...”My stomach churned in disgust, I wanted to tear him into shreds“huh!” I spat out. “Eh...” Kent said the moment he heard him spew out that trash from his mouth. Before I could reach for him, Kent landed a punch square on his face. Ben swerved aside, spitting out a mouthful of blood along with a tooth.Fear gripped him, and he spoke no more. Squatting in the corner, holding his mouth, he continued to glare at u
Unfortunately, it was too late to cover up. I had already seen the scene inside: a woman leaning against the sink, her dress still on, but it had been completely lifted. Her beautiful and toned bottom was sticking out high, and a man behind her was holding her waist, having a grand time.And at that moment, I could see the woman's face.Hayley Caine.I was too stunned to speak.Although the Caine family wasn't deemed a particularly significant name in New York, they were at least at the upper-middle level.Hayley has always been the darling daughter cherished by her family. Dad adored her to the bone and tended to her every request; otherwise, he wouldn't have forced me to divorce, giving Jared back to her back then.But what was happening now?How could such an entitled young miss, who could have anything with a mere wave of her hand, be willing to degrade herself in such a risqué environment, willingly being played by an old man?How did she fall to this level?And right at that mom
He then plopped down onto the couch, casually pulling the internet celebrity onto his lap, leaned forward, and planted a kiss on her.The internet celebrity squirmed and played hard to get, her coquettish voice capable of making a bull go into heat:"Stop it, Ben, there are so many people around.""You little temptress, don't you just love it when I show you affection in front of everyone? Come, let me touch you.""Ben, you're so bad, hmm..."The two carried on their flirtatious display as if nobody else was present. I was dumbfounded.Had Ben overdosed on some sort of drug today? As I was mulling over this, Emilia roughly slammed the microphone onto the coffee table walked over to Ben, and asked,"Mr. Ben, what's the meaning of bringing a lady here?"He responded with a smug smile and a deliberate fondling of the girl's chest. “What else could it mean? Just having some fun. Why do you care?"Emilia scoffed, "If you want to have fun, then get out. We don't need to watch you have fun.
Kent's blunt question made my heart flutter, yet I forced a coy laugh, raising my fist, and pretending to hit him lightly."Should I castrate you?"He held me close, nibbling my earlobe, and replied with a sly smirk, "Nah. If you do that, how could you still be a happy woman? In the end, wouldn't it be you who loses out?"His arms wrapped around my waist as his face turned serious again,"I have no recollection of the incident. I was already framed when I woke up. But I think others in the Long family may not know about my feud with Jared, but Jared himself knows. Given Jared's character, do you think he would let me sleep with Leila?"He glanced at me with a mischievous smile."Moreover, Leila is so fond of me. If I truly had slept with her, do you think she wouldn't chase after me from one end of the world to the other, forcing me to take responsibility?""... Kent, why are you so full of yourself?"This time, I genuinely laughed. His analysis was spot on. When the Long siblings m
Kent took my phone, removed the SIM card, and handed the phone back to me."Don’t worry, he can’t control you now. Later, we will take these items back for investigation. Don't use this SIM card in the future; I will buy a new one for you.”“Okay.” I quickly said. My panic gradually stabilized under his soothing words. In the following time, we rummaged around the room, but we didn't find what we were looking for.Just when I thought we really couldn't find it, he found a safe in a deep drawer of the wardrobe.The safe was, of course, locked with several layers. Although we didn't know what was in it, we were sure that it must contain some important things."I can't open it without tools; let's take it back first.""Okay."In the end, we both left with the safe and Jared's monitor. Due to the time constraint, we didn’t go home but put the things in the car and went straight to meet up with Ben.Ben hadn't arrived when we got to the venue; we placed an order while waiting for him to c
To this day, I vividly remember the words that Jared said to me."Who he is may not matter, but what if... what if he has always been by your side, observing you, admiring you, and ready to invade you again at any moment? Sam, in that case, would you still not care?"Thinking about this, I shudder all over, feeling uneasy and mostly fearful.Over the years, I have lost much, even having very few friends left, let alone male friends.Jared's words planted a deep seed of fear in my heart, which, bit by bit, sprouted and grew, yet I found myself completely at the mercy of where it developed.This feeling, it's just too awful."I really can't imagine who amongst my acquaintances would be ruthless enough to do this to me. Kent, this person, I must find them out, or else I fear I won't be able to have a peaceful sleep in my lifetime."Immersed in my own emotions, leaning against his warm and comforting chest, I naturally spilled out all my thoughts. As I spoke, I even played absently with h