Annie The Hard Knock Life Novels & Stories

He leans close and toys with my bra strap, then he moves in closer and whispers. "Lose the skirt." I ignore his warm breath on my shoulder as I unzip the skirt and wiggle it off my body. I'm standing half-naked now, biting my lip so I can distract myself from the tears overflowing my eyes. Mr. Robinson laughs. "Just look at yourself, Anne. You're my puppet now. You wanted a 'different life' and ran away from stripping. Yet you end up being my maid just for the good pay, and here you are asking for more money, ready to do anything. I guess money is your weakness after all. Here you are doing tricks for treats...isn't that what you had said?"

That was when Anna, for the first time in her life felt what it truly meant to be alone. She stayed out of town for a couple of days, staying in trashy motels. Soon she’d learned to pickpockets. Anna was a beautiful woman in a rather sorry condition, the strangers she ran into took pity of her, and their pity distracted them long enough for her to sneak a hand into their pockets or purse. It was easier said than done at first, but then she’d gotten good at it. Very good at it. She changed motels often, always, she paid in cash. Anything she bought she paid in cash. Once, she found a job, but once her belly had started to show, so much that she couldn’t conceal it, she left. Changed locat

Gracie had asked Anita as she walked towards where she had stood waiting for her. Her mood had said it all, she wasn’t happy even behind the fake smile she wore, Gracie had seen through them Getting inside the car,she asked again “What’s going on? Aren’t you happy to be out of jail?” She said facing Anita. Anita, who couldn’t hold back anymore, broke down crying as she explained everything that had happened to her in the last few days. “Why did life choose to be unfair to me? Why?” She screamed out, unable to hold back the pain that she carried.

he pointed out. “Your boy might be, but not my daughter,” I replied quickly. What was that? Anne was only making a mistake once, and that already defined her as a bad girl? Very different from Peter, who even had a criminal record, my daughter had trophies on the shelves in her room. “Annie is going through a phase, we've all been through similar things,” I reinforced my thought. “Well, I got married at 16 to my ex-husband, so I didn’t go through phases like that…” Nancy stammered.

Before I could pull back my red and swollen hand, Ivor trod right over the same spot. "Eleanor, is this the upbringing you received?" Three pairs of eyes bore into me as I blew gently on my throbbing hand and staggered to my feet. "Jeff, Ives, this has nothing to do with El. I wanted to help, but I didn't realize the lid would be so hot. Don't blame her. She didn't do it on purpose." They always said that children from poor families had no choice but to grow up quickly. Whenever they scolded me, they would talk about how Rhianne endured countless hardships in my place.

Grace stood alone in the living room. The baby stirred upstairs. The clock ticked loudly. And for the first time that night— The weight of what she had done settled properly on her chest. Anita’s Room Anita sat on the edge of the bed in darkness. She had not turned on the lights. One hand rested over her stomach. The other wiped tears as soon as they fell. She hated crying. Especially alone. Especially because of truths she already knew. Jackson loved her. That had never been the problem.

"I suddenly became Rebecca Grayson, the shadow of Anita Rodriguez and I must admit that at that point in my life, I hated Annie very much. She had everything I wanted, the love, the respect, the money, absolutely everything! Micheal made sure she was put on every fashion magazine, fashion show, runway shows and TV programs and that skyrocketed her career like crazy." "Of course, I felt jealous of her cause she always tried to bring me everywhere with her out of pity that my career wasn't doing as well as hers and that was when I earned the nickname of being her sidekick. While I was with Anita, I learnt a lot about the real world of fashion. Anita is the greediest and most deceitful human I

Anne wanted to walk away, but Teddy wouldn't let her go. "Don't make me use force on you, Anne. Do not pretend like you don't know we are real mates. I'm not happy you're like this, but you have to be strong. Even Charlotte was rejected by Jack; she lost her baby and she's still strong and willing to live. How about you, who haven't experienced any of that and are a strong she-wolf by birth? You should sit and eat your food and do not try anything funny with me again. I'm being calm with you because you're my mate."

She wore her scars as a badge of harrowing survival. "I was never a person to them," Annie testified, her voice steady despite the hundreds of cameras clicking in unison. "I was a ghost. I was a collection of replacement parts for a sister I was never allowed to know. I committed fraud. I deceived the man I claimed to love. But I did it because I was raised in a house where love was a transaction and loyalty was a contract. I was wrong. I was so very wrong."

she said, her voice steady and unyielding. Mrs. Ava, regaining her composure, scoffed. "And what do you know about business, Annie?" she asked, her voice dripping with condescension. "Do you want this company to go down without a trace because of your husband’s mistakes?" Annie didn’t answer immediately. She stood still, her eyes locked on Mrs. Ava’s. The tension in the room was almost unbearable as everyone waited for her response. Finally, Annie took a deep breath. "What I know," she said softly but firmly, "is that this company wouldn’t exist if it weren’t for John. And you all know it."