Max folded the belt in half and pulled it taut, making that awful whipping sound that always meant you were getting punished. Celine swallowed the lump in her throat as she looked at her husband’s face. ‘What are you doing with that belt?’ she asked nervously.‘Before I tell you what this is for. I want you to strip,’ he said while leering at her body, pulling at the belt again.‘Everything?’ she asked while she slid the sleeves of her dress down her arms, exposing her naked breasts. ‘No bra, I see. No wonder I could see your perky nipples through your dress earlier. There’s punishment for that.’‘What? I can’t wear one underneath the dress. It would ruin the look,’ she defended as the dress slid down to her feet. He shrugged. ‘We&rs

In Max’s office, the siblings, Clara, Max, and Jeremy, together with Celine and Sebastian, were sitting on one side. While Tory and Nathan sat across from them, not close together because Nathan was still carrying a grudge, but on the same side of the couch so the kids could see their expressions. Security was summoned earlier to defuse the situation, and the group of men who responded followed everyone into Max’s office to make sure they were available if needed. They were protective when it came to their employers and were ready to jump in. ‘You guys can leave. We can take it from here.’ Clara said dismissively to the guards. She did not want them gossiping about Max’s family because of what they will hear today. They were trustworthy, but since she did not know how sensitive the information would be, she wanted to grant Max his privacy. ‘I would rather one of us stay,’ the guard who had a baseball cap on stepped forward and replied in an insistent tone. Clara looked at him quizz

Victoria was ready to fall in love and to show her parents that she was serious about her life, she is now dating what they classify as a ‘normal guy.’ He was a regular guy from a middle-class family, the son of a soap manufacturing plant owner, very ambitious and driven. From the get-go the guy impressed her father, so he allowed them to be in a relationship. But he didn’t really love her, he wanted to be with her for business purposes only, having her in their family meant they would have the financial backing of her father’s bank to bankroll their business so they could push forward to upgrading their systems into the 21st century. The bank was hesitant to give them a bigger loan because they were not coming up with new innovations for their soap brand. Andrew overhears the guy talking to his friend that she was not putting out and was holding out on him. And because he was getting desperate to get the money to save their business, he planned to create a scandal, by drugging her an

The first week was hectic. Tory and her team came before Fashion Week was even in session, just so she could get a feel of the place, get her designs ready, and get her models fitted with her designs. Her family wanted to fly in her own models, but she didn’t want to be too extravagant and excessive, calling attention to herself. One thing they made her bring from home, aside from the staff and assistants, was her bodyguard, Andrew. She may be in another country where few people recognize her, and her life might not be in danger, but they still need her to take precautions. She was the only daughter of the Manchesters, and they could not jeopardize her safety. They wanted her to take two guards, but she insisted on one or none. Having two men follow her all the time would look suspicious. If she had only one, she could tell that he was her driver and that was more acceptable than security.Tory and h

Andrew was standing in the hallway listening in on their conversation. He tried to keep out of their sight when Avery ran to him and squealed, ‘Dada!’ He scoops him up and apologizes. ‘The boy calls me that because there are no other male figureheads in this house,’ the lame excuse rolling off his tongue did not taste so good. He did not want to lie to his in-laws, but right now, they had no choice. Protecting their secret was at the top of their priorities. It was too early for them to venture out on their own, as he did not have enough saved to give them a comfortable life. The money he saved was good enough to open his business, and wish that everything would go well.‘Dada! Kiss! Kiss! Mama!’ the child chanted. Andrew whispers to the child, which made him giggle and scamper away from the adults.