chapter Three.

Renna's POV.

I groaned in pain, as I felt rays of sunlight hitting my heavy eyelids.

The discomfort prodded me to push my eyes open but as soon as I did, a sharp groan escaped my lips and I quickly squeezed them shut almost immediately as a heavy pound of pain hit me hard on the forehead.

I slowly reached out to feel whatever I was lying on and it was a warm, floppy bed. Then it suddenly struck me, this was far from being my home.

The events of the previous night suddenly came rushing back to my head in a heavy rush.

I could remember telling Hayes that I wanted a divorce, and leaving his office wandering through the cold street before passing out.

If I could recall everything that happened then it only meant one thing...

I wasn't dead, I survived through the cold street of New York.

That was such a relief.

But then, just when I was about relaxing back to take a deep breath, a loud bang screeched through my head.

Where was I?

Totally ignoring the loud bang in my head, I proceeded to force my eyes open, I couldn't help the painful yelp that escaped my mouth as the sharp rays of sunlight surged into my eyes.

My head felt like the location of a band conference as I strained my eyes to catch a glimpse of my surroundings.

A few seconds into my misery, my vision became a lot clearer, I could make out a few things around me now as I spun my head around frantically.

It was a hospital ward, and I was lying on the bed.

Who could possibly be responsible for all this?

Almost immediately, my ears sharply caught the rustling key sound at the door.

Someone was coming in.

I quickly recoiled back to the bed, pretending to still be unconscious.

I could hear heavy footsteps parading the room, and from my instincts, I could tell there was more than one person in the room now.

"Oh thank goodness, there is no swell from where she hit her head," I heard a thick voice say.

The voice sounded surprisingly familiar and not so familiar at the same time, just like the voice I had heard in my head before I passed out in the street, but whoever it was, sounded genuinely concerned about my situation.

"Her illness isn't letting her respond to treatment, it's a good thing there's no swell, we can't afford more complications." Came another voice.

This one sounded strictly familiar, one I could get a hold of.

Doctor Ralph.

I held in my breath so tightly, my eyes squeezed shut as I continued to lay lifelessly on the bed.

Cold silence suddenly set in, I couldn't feel their movements anymore neither did they speak any more word, but I could tell that they were still in the room.

"Your brows are twitching kitten, you are awake." I nearly jumped out of my skin as his words sounded through my head.

I couldn't believe my damn brows gave me away.

Slowly and shamefully, I pushed my eyes open.

Standing tall over me, was a strikingly familiar man, well-bodied and heavily hung; traces of gray hair laced in his perfectly trimmed beards, he looked a little aged, but hot all the same, exuding an aura most younger men wouldn't.

My steady gaze on him became clear and a sharp gasp escaped my lips in sudden realization.

Hold on! rephrase; this isn't just any random man.

This is Landon Thomas; Hayes's uncle and biggest rival.

A big threat to Hayes.

He's been on Hayes neck for reasons best known to him.

The business deals that Hayes wanted, he took them; Hayes best staffs, he bought them over; the best housing estates perfect for business, he took he got them before Hayes even blinked; Hayes's popularity within and beyond the country, he took over so well that no one remembered if Hayes was still in existence or not.

He was always after everything Hayes set eyes upon, what you'd perfectly describe as pettiness, despite being a lot older.

At some point, I disliked him so much for making my husband extremely restless, coupled with the fact that he always tried to flirt with me at the slightest given chance.

"Hey, kitten." He winked.

"You." I gritted, my frown deepening.

He took a step closer towards the bed and I recoiled back.

"Don't come any closer!" I flared up.

"Relax, you are out of danger," he spoke really gently, but the smirk at the corner of his lips never left.

"Doctor Ralph." I turned towards the only person I could trust in the room. "How did I get here? And what is he doing here?"

"He brought you here; said he found you passed out on the street."

Landon slowly turned him. "Give us a minute, please."

He nodded, turning to flash me a warm smile before walking away.

"What do you want?" I growled at him, making sure not to hide my displeasure with his presence.

"C'mon kitten, I saved your life, you should be nice to me at least." He whined teasingly.

"Don't call me that." I spat.

"Fine, does Mrs Campbell sound better?"

"Not that either," I mumbled, my voice barely above a whisper. "Hayes and I are getting divorced."

He was unusually quiet for a while, and when I looked up to his face, he had a wide smile plastered all over. "Well, I guess that changes everything then."

"What does that even..."

"Marry me."

"What?"

"I will offer you a life every single lady on earth will be jealous of, kitten, the world will be at your feet, including your ex-husband, all you have to do is say yes."

My gaze on him lingered for a minute, then I bursted into laughter.

Surprisingly, he kept a neutral face even as I laughed, which meant that he was serious.

"Hold on; you're not joking?"

He shrugged in response.

"You truly can't help but go after everything he has huh?"

"That's a wrong impression of my sweet self, Hayes just happens to fancy the things that I fancy." He shrugged.

"Well, I hate to break it you, but I won't be the pawn in this game of yours, not because your offer isn't tempting, but sadly you've got the wrong person."

He twitched his brows in confusion.

"I don't mean anything to Hayes, you must know that the marriage was a sham for his inheritance, he won't bat a lash if he sees us together."

"I won't be so sure about that, if I were you." He stood to his feet, the ridiculous flirtatious smirk never leaving his face.

"And oh, I will take that as a yes."