All Chapters of For Better or Buisness: Chapter 101 - Chapter 110

ELAINE Words are like barbs. Sometimes you don't know when they sink in and stick. The moment the ladies left the room I got out from where I was hiding and finally let out a sigh I didn't know I was holding. The secrecy from earlier between Nik and Serena and the way they were discussing them gave me an inkling that something was up. The thin lady must be an ex, or someone who was once interested in Nik, in whatever capacity I don't know. I managed to rub my wet hand over my straight hair to make sure that there was no fly always and finally stumbled out of the toilet. Just outside Serena had come to the lounge also, probably looking for me and we almost bumped into each other on my way out. “Babe,” she called out in her soft voice and I managed to croak out a smile. “You look like you have seen a ghost, are you sure you're fine?” She followed her initial question. “Hmn hmm” I nodded rapidly, and made to leave when I noticed that the men had moved to the

ELAINE. We were seated in the car alone and the smell of alcohol and cigar coming from him just made me even more irritated. If the smell of the vices he engaged in earlier weren't any clear confirmation that he was in a foul mood, the angry set line of his mouth, and the hard way he gripped the steering was another indicator. I debated with myself for a while if going down the route of arguing with him was going to yield anything, but I couldn't shake this feeling off. “She is an old acquaintance..” He looked towards me as if trying to gauge my reaction. “I did not ask,” I fired. “But it's here isn't it, it is right here in the room with us. It is the reason you have not spoken one word to me all night.” I closed my eyes, trying to tamp down all the feelings that were raging inside me. “You know what, this shouldn’t matter, ours is a marriage of convenience anyway. You don’t have to act like you owe me certain information about the people you fraternize with” “What th

“What happened to your face?” I watched him from my position at the vanity and dropped the under eye cream I was applying unceremoniously so that it was the only sound in the room. I could sense that he was going to shut down before he even did. “Nothing.” He shrugged. My eyes followed him as he pulled off his shirt which looked rough, another indication that he was in a fight or squabble. “Who hit you?” I asked instead. Obviously the black eye and bursted lip was an indication that someone did. “Someone disgruntled I know from the past.” He avoided my gaze as he spoke, and chose instead to begin to undress before going straight into the bathroom. I know that I should leave it but somehow the unnecessary secrecy only served to make me even more worried. I swallowed my next words and completed my night routine. It was usually simple; wear my hair in a silk scarf, because it was better for hair health, cleanse my face after brushing my teeth, and then apply my under eye cream, my

Nik. She was crying. I had sworn over and over never to make her cry, but she was lying right beside me and trying to hide her tears from me and I feel like shit. I don’t even know why I froze when she made her proclamation earlier. It startled me yes, but maybe I could have handled it better than I did. I fisted the sheets hard, trying hard to resist the urge of reaching to her and pulling her back into my arms. I hate seeing her hurt, I hate it even more when I’m a the one hurting her like right now.I lay there for what feels like an eternity until her shoulders stopped shaking and she started sniffing, indicating that the tears were ending before I finally released the sheets. My conclusion was reached far too quick because she just started another bunch of tears. *******I needed to punch something, someone or myself. It also didn’t help that I was working on 3 hours of sleep. I read the document in front of me, focusing solely on the black ink but my mind was replaying

ELAINE. I adjusted the strap of my bikini and stared at the man beside me with pity. “Here” handing him a sunscreen in a stick formula so he could apply over his exposed areas. Today was the only day since we got to South Korea that we were just lounging and resting. Turns out that I’m the partner that likes to explore and cram a thousand activities on vacation, while he is the one who thinks it’s an opportunity to rest and reset in a new location. What’s the point of coming down here if we are not going to explore? So with his one and half leg we had been doing a food tour through South Korea. I am so lucky that this trimester didn’t have nausea in it, and I’ve been able to eat to my satisfaction albeit with my antacid close by because I’ve been having the worst heartburns. I watched him apply the sunscreen grudgingly and my heart swelled in warmth. This semi naked man with ripped chest and abs, tanned skin and a face that could equal a Greek god was mine. I don’t know when