George met Rina days later in front of the building, where she sat idly in her car by the sidewalk, waiting for him. It had been intentionally five days of not accepting their offer because Rina had to let them know that she wasn't hungry for whatever proposal they had to give her. She earned more than enough already at Pages of Claire, so her acting under Scottsdale Entertainment was more of a win for them than for anyone else. That was because their movies would gain more trajectory since working for Claire already made her a popular face everywhere in the world. People shopped the brand and Rina was the brand's face for a whole year. She knew her worth and where Scottsdale was concerned, she wasn’t going to bother hiding any of it. George rapt her window with his knuckles and Rina motioned for him to get out of the way so she could alight the car. The breeze rustled her hair as she donned her dark shades, and walked beside George, striding into the building. She knew packing her
The meeting had taken shorter than the board had planned, because Rina had come prepared, with a list of everything she wanted. George took the fore, flaunting his bargaining power as he refused to settle for nothing else apart from what they had come with. In the end, Rina had gotten it, along with a job as a second lead role in a series that was beginning the following day. They’d had to adjust the schedule to work around Rina’s time because she also had a job with Claire, which was pretty much important. So, that meant she would have to travel to Hong Kong at intervals. The scenes that starred her had to be kept till she was back.On their way out, striding down the hallway, Kayla came out of nowhere and blocked Rina’s path. She was furious and didn’t even bother hiding it. Well, there was no need to as no one else was in the hallway, and she had chosen a spot the cameras couldn’t get to. “Will you be fine?” George asked when Rina nudged him silently to leave. She nodded, and Geo
Rina met the rest of the team the following day on set. She arrived there in her new sports car and strolled inside in her thigh-high boots and a little black dress. Her newly dyed blonde hair gave her the chic look she'd been looking for, perfectly matching the excitement bubbling inside her. She hadn't been on set in almost five years, since she left acting to focus on her family. She could feel the tingles in her fingertips as she stepped into the set, a location upstate. The minute she was inside, everyone noticed her all at once. The director came up to her, as Rina’s assistants, along with Ginny, flanked her on both sides. The director, a charismatic middle-aged man was over the moon to have Rina on his set, and he expressed it in a thousand words. “When I brought the script to Scottsdale, I didn’t think I was going to be getting you, since…you know… But you are here right now, and I just can’t believe it.”Rina didn't know him so this had to be his first production. "I'm honor
On her way back to the villa after spending the whole day on set, Rin toyed with the idea of calling either Igor or William to come drive her. She felt exhaustion all around her, and her fingers slid off the steering at intervals, sleep threatening to overtake her. Pulling over to the side of the road, Rina leaned back into the headrest and took deep breaths. She reached for her phone to call Zayn, but suddenly, there was a rapt on her window. She looked up to see Finn smiling down at her, and Rina couldn't resist the groan that escaped her lips. Finn had been trying his best to get back with her, and it was getting borderline obsessive. He was everywhere, from her set to the parking lot, telling her that she wouldn't be able to get married to Zayn if he took her away from him. He boldly flaunted the restraining order without a second thought, and at that point, Rina was seriously considering the possibility of it being a mental illness. Everyone in the country feared Zayn and didn't
Zayn had decided to stay back in his mansion that night, as he had a flight to catch early the following morning. Or at least, that was what he made himself believe. But the truth was that he caught himself thinking about something he shouldn't have, and it had rattled him. A few hours before he returned to his mansion, he was at the office trying to close for the day, when he thought about going to get Rina from her set. He hadn't done it once since she started shooting, intentionally because he thought he needed to give her enough space so as not to make her think there was anything more than the contract between them.Even though it was true that it was practically impossible to hide their sexual attraction, the air always sizzling with tension anytime they were next to each other, Zayn still fought his feelings hard. Sitting there in his office and thinking about how refreshing a ride with her would be, even thinking about stopping at his favorite food truck so they could eat unde
Rina was on set the following day, just hoping to get through it so she could go see Finn to have a proper discussion, as they had agreed the last time he accosted her on the road. Perhaps, informing Zayn was important, but Rina didn’t want him to get involved in something like that. It could get Finn upset, and knowing how fickle-minded and obsessed he was right now, Rina didn’t doubt the possibility of her ex-husband releasing the tape if he saw that Zayn was involved. She was distracted during her scenes, but after a while, pushed it to the back of her mind. It was supposed to be the last day of the first part, and the director had still not said anything about there being a second part. The reviews for the trailer were already great, as Rina’s name was always flooding the comments. Still, it wasn’t enough to make a decision. They just needed to get through with the premier first and then, see what happened. After her last scene, where Rina tried to get Zico’s attention, having a
Zayn attended the premier with Rina, but even though she was right beside him, he could feel her attention slipping away every minute. Although she was still angry about his question the last time, she still hadn't given him any reasonable reply, but he had noticed how sneaky she was. Usually, Rina left her phone lying anywhere, often with Zayn going up to her room to get it to her when he realized it. But in recent times, she had it on her, always texting away even during dinner. Sometimes, he saw worry lines stretch out on her forehead, and at other times, she tried to mask it with a smile. But Zayn knew her well enough to be able to tell that something was up. His mind went back to Jada’s visit, and even though he didn’t want to believe her, Rina had sure changed. Zayn had promised himself that he wouldn’t use his connections to find out anything about Rina, as he believed she would always tell him anything he needed to know. It irked that he had to keep to his words and do absolu
Back at the cinema, Rina waited for the credits to roll before picking up her bag and walking out of the hall. It was the perfect facade she needed so no one would question her whereabouts. Walking out to the red carpet, gratefully devoid of a crowd since most of them were inside, Rina walked out to the front and ordered a ride. She had come with Zayn in his car and even though she knew there was no way he was going to leave her there without sending another car over, Rina didn't want him or the driver knowing of her whereabouts. Finn was beginning to get overbearing, making audacious threats now. The last time, he had appeared in Hong Kong to see her at the brand’s building, with a sinister smile and dark eyes. He had absolutely nothing to lose, as he had made quite clear that day, but Rina’s reputation would be on the line. No one could see them together, especially now that she was to get married to the most powerful man in the country. That alone had drawn a lot of attention, and
The mornings sun was up and lovely. Rina looked outside her bedroom, wondering how her life had become this way, especially after she had reminded herself of many reasons why she shouldn't get romantically involved with any man because of what she had faced in the past. But here she was contemplating how she was going to make the most of her relationship with Zayn. She couldn't deny the passion that she felt after kissing him and knew that lying to herself was useless at this point. If she could turn back the hands of time, she probably wouldn't have taken that offer, but now she had no choice but to live with it. Pretending that they had never kissed was the coward's way out which she didn't want to take. She prided herself on being an adult who could make her decisions and stick to them but right now she didn't think she fit that category because of every emotion she felt in the last few minutes. Something was wrong with her and it was her duty to find out.Tired of hiding inside
Nathan paced his room when he heard people talking about only one person. Imagine the audacity of his brother to become the talk of the town. So much was happening all at the same time and he couldn't help the intense anger coursing through him. There had to be a remedy to the nonsense that he was facing right now. How they expected him to be happy with their union befuddled him. "How's the plan going?" He asked his Intel."Great, sir. They are still in the dark. We can't strike now because they might easily find out. Just give me a few days to sort some things out." Nathan didn't have the luxury of time like she thought he did, "I don't care about what more time you need. I need you to be quick at getting answers!" He barked, "Surely that's not too much to ask of you, is it?!" "No, sir." A docile response erupted. Meanwhile, the newly wedded couple were having fun at the top of the roof. "Right... I see what you mean about having a grand wedding. This has been trending on the blo
Rina inspected her dress in the mirror as she twirled around, appreciating how put together she was. She looked every inch of a blushing bride and felt like the world was a better place. No one would ever know that this was a contract marriage with how Zayn had gone all the way out to act like he was head over heels in love with her. Given the unusual circumstances, she had completely forgotten that anything of that nature existed and tried to find a means of dealing with the man in the present. He looked like he was enjoying himself. On cue, her phone rang, which she picked up instantly. "Hey." She answered breathlessly, before clearing her throat to reduce the awkwardness. Heaven forbid that she showed that she was thinking about him. Who knew what he could be thinking and how that was going to affect her? "Hi... I called to ask how things are going on your end. You didn't tell me anything about your dress. Is it up to your taste?" Zayn asked, making small talk just to hear her
"I don't think I have missed coming home like in this few days. I could have almost pulled out my hair if help hadn't arrived at the time it did." Rina muttered as their home came into her line of vision. She was still trying to get over the shock that she had been kidnapped and had no powers to save herself if not for this man who had come at the right time and now she could finally have some breather. Zayn chuckled at her relief, yet refused to speak because he wanted her to let out everything that she was feeling. Some people who bottled things up ended up getting destroyed by the time they tried to process things on their own. "I don't think I can thank you enough for everything that you've done just to get me out of that hell hole." Rina continued her speech as she shuddered. If he had arrived just a few minutes late, she would have been dead meat.Zayn reached for her hand and stroked it in reassurance. "I'm certain that it mustn't have been an easy thing for you to handle, bu
Rina trembled at the thought of losing her beauty, especially at the hands of Kayla, her archenemy. She would never understand what she had done to warrant such treatment from someone who she had never offended in any way, shape, or form, but had decided to be a pain in her ass. "You don't want to get caught by the cops and serve a jail term, do you?" She threatened Kayla who looked unperturbed, yet filled with vengeance and cascaded with cruelty. She was sure that, at that moment, no one could stop her from misbehaving. "Don't come an inch closer!" Rina warned out of fear as Kayla cackled, relishing her victim's cries. This was exactly what she wanted from her and it was a lovely sight to behold. "Aww, poor Rina. I hope you can live with the consequences you brought upon yourself. I know that you must have been through a lot but here is my verdict. No one is going to save you from me. Absolutely no one, no matter how much they try. The earlier you get this into your head, the bett
Rina had told herself over and over again that the last thing she would let Kayla elicit from her is fear and tears, especially what happened the last time with her losing her reputation in the country. It still stuck to her like glue – the aftermath, everything she’d had to go through. And now, it was happening again, sneaking its arms around her and threatening to pull her under. But Rina held her ground, refusing to let it overwhelm her again.Despite how scary the gun looked, being waved in her face, Rina tried to calm herself down, to think through the situation at hand and try to find a way around it. Swallowing, she counted to ten in her head, then smiled disdainfully at Kayla. “You are still the same child from many years ago, do you know that?”“Your psychoanalysis isn’t going to work on me.”“But think about it. We were nineteen, with huge dreams and bright smiles, walking through those doors knowing we’d just gotten scouted into the movie industry. You were scared. I saw th
Rina sat beside Marco as he navigated the traffic, trying not to feel nervous about what was going on. Her mind swirled with all the discoveries she’d made in the last twenty-four hours, wondering how to move on from that point. Everything she had grown up to believe was shaking at the very root and now, she was left with whispers and ghosts, not even certain which of them existed and which didn't.Marco turned left and shot her a look. "You don't seem fine. Do you want to pause for a minute and take it all in?" He glanced at his watch and then back at her. "We can spare a couple of minutes."Rina swallowed. “I want to get this done as quickly as possible so I can return to my life.”"Return to your life?" Marco struck Rina as someone who the Jones family would employ as their lawyer, with his grey hair, impeccable suit, and glasses sitting on the bridge of his nose. She recognized all the brands he was putting on, but it made sense that he was earning a lot of money from managing the
Zayn sauntered through the high gates he had grown behind, steeling himself for what was going to happen in there. He hadn't been careful enough when it came to this, only discovering mere minutes ago before his father's call came in. This was the reason he always said feelings never ceased to complicate things, and yet, he had fallen victim to it. Zayn should have known better. If he hadn't been so occupied with trying to make sure Rina was fine, even though he knew that was an excuse to be around her, perhaps, he would have noticed this development before it got out of hand. Now, he was left with the task of salvaging it, but his brain wasn't working in that direction. Zayn was worried about Rina, despite everything. He had whipped out his phone on his way to his father's house to call her, but changed his mind mid-way, deciding to call Susan instead when he was done with this little issue. He tried to think about a way out of this, his mind reeling and his eyes darting around the
The moment the call dropped dead, Rina pulled herself off her bed, wincing slightly as she moved to the bathroom. She had a quick bath, and part of her was grateful that Zayn had decided to leave for his mansion. If he had remained in the villa, she wouldn't have been able to do what she had in mind. Zayn's clear instruction rang in her head, but Rina shrugged it off as soon as it occurred to her. She used her anger as her ammunition – anger that she had fallen in love with Zayn when she shouldn't have, anger that she had given herself a false hope that he would come around and admit his feelings knowing fully well that the great Zayn Graham doesn't give two fucks about love and whatever it came with. Walking out of the bathroom, Rina sauntered into her walk-in closet and pulled off something simple from the hanger – a pair of black wide-legged pants and a matching button-down shirt. Pairing it with white heels and a black tote bag, Rina applied light make-up on her face, almost unno