I had been staring at Luke's face while he was sleeping for a few minutes. Last night was undoubtedly the best night of my life. Luke and I hadn't just made love, we had broken all the barriers between us, and our actions last night made it clear that we really did need each other.
He looked so calm and peaceful as he slept. I lay my head on his shoulders and inhale his scent; a mixture of coconut and probably an expensive perfume. I hear him breath and stretch. "Have you been up?" He asks
"Yes." I respond as I hug him. He returns the action and holds me.
"How was I last night, did I hurt you?"
"No, no." I say looking at him in the eyes, I cup his jaws, "You didn't, I know you would never hurt me intentionally." He smiles and checks his wristwatch. "You had your watch on this whole time?" I chuckle.
"I'm a businessman. Time is money— but that d
"I know you were calling Luke because you wanted to ask him for money. Don't you dare ask my husband for money, mother." I say, moving closer to her. "I know you too well." I say , handing her a napkin. "I'll make sure you never get a dime from him."Her hand meets with my face in less than a second. I frown but recompose my self. I avoid eye contact with her."For God's sake Natalie, is this how you speak to your own mother? Please, have some respect! Fear the Lord." She says as she flips her hair."Did your fear the Lord when you sold your only child for money? Please, mom. Drop the act. You aren't one to talk. Don't be a hypocrite." I say and turn to leave. At this point I wanted to cry. I was at the verge of breaking down. It was evident that I meant absolutely nothing to my mother and she was willing to go far to get whatever she wanted, even if it meant making my life a living hell.
We had gotten to Shoreditch before nightfall and I lay here, in my bed, thoughtless. Luke had gone to his study to sort out some business related issues and had promised to bring our dinner to my room as soon as he was done.I get down from my bed and tip toe to my bedside mirror, and I unconventionally stare at myself when my eye falls on my neck. I touch it and tilt my head to properly get a good view of it. It was a love bite. There's a knock on the door. "Come in." I say, turning to look at the door. It's Emmanuele."Madam?" She says. I get down from the stool and walk to her, my arms crossed. "Yes, Emmanuele, what is it?""Well, Mr. Carrington is on the phone and he doesn't seem all that happy- he broke a vase." She says and I gasp. Immediately, I rush past her and head downstairs.Reaching down, it's quiet and I see Luke standing by the bar, his back facing me. He has a glass
"I really do not have the strength, nor do I have the time to exchange words with you and remember," I get up, walking to her. I continue, "You will give me the respect I deserve as Luke's wife and as the lady of the house. Do you get that?" I spit, a sudden surge of anger filling me.She claps and laughs. "I've been with Lucas for years. I know everything about him, what he likes and what's good for him." She points at me, "And you're definitely not it, Natalie!" She yells, anger and jealousy evident on her face.Luke enters the room before I'm able to speak."Laurel!" He yells and she turns to look at him. She tries to hug him. He doesn't let her. "Don't you ever speak to Natalie that way, ever again. You will give her the same respect you give me and you will speak to her with respect. Understand?" He says harshly. I want to smile, but I don't.In a split second, she begins to cr
"What the hell are you doing here?" I ask, panicking. I rush to the door, my hand over my mouth as I lock the door. He is sitting on the couch, his legs crossed."Aren't you happy to see me, Natty?" He asks, while I stand there, h orrified, trembling at the thought of Luke walking in on us. He gets up and gets dangerously close to me. I stand still, my hands behind me, on the wall. He holds my waist and my body is resting on his. I close my eyes, "Please, I beg you. Leave me alone." I push him and move to my bed. He comes close again and cups my face in his hands, "You can't tell me you didn't miss me, didn't think of me. . ." He continues, "I apologize for coming so late my love, but I'm here now. Let's leave now." He raises my chin up and we share an eye lock. My eyes are watery. He leans in for a kiss and I do not resist— instead, I kiss back.Somehow, Rocky and I find ourselves kneeling on the floor. I am crying, my han
Two days later..I pace around the living room anxious, as I await aunt Ruth's call. My legs are hurting in my Louboutin heels but I ignore. Luke had gotten me an iPhone, a gesture he believed meant that he now trusted me completely.Luke had gone to work, and the house was as quiet as usual. I hadn't seen or heard from Laurel for a few days and I couldn't deny the fact that I was worried if she was alright. The Laurel I knew would have been pissing me off everyday, continuously.Aunt Ruth's text comes in and I read. I had asked her to reach out to Rocky and José respectively. I had to know exactly what he intended to do so I could stop him on time.Aunt Ruth; Child, for the love of God tell your husband who Rocky is! I have just spoken to Rocky and he wasn't even keen on telling me anything and was even extremely rude to me.I text back; No, Aunt! No, please, I can never ever tell Lu
With shaky hands, I dial Rocky's number. I tiptoe to the door, trying to ensure that no one is eavesdropping. I lock the door and rush back to Luke's chair. I call the number and wait for him to pick up. It takes forever, but he eventually picks up and as I hear his voice, my eyes close automatically and it's as though I've become mute."Hello?" He says on the other end. "Hello?""I don't know what your plan is—"Natty, it's you, my lo— I interject, "Stop it." I demand.I get up, "Don't refer to me as that!" I bark. "I'm calling to warn you, Rocket." I call his full name, "Leave Lucas and I alone, please. Let me be at peace for once, I beg you.""No! No! No!" He yells back immediately. "You're not saying that because you want it, you're saying so because of your mother and that arse you call your husband. Come on, Natalie! You should be smarter than this. You are!"
I wake up, my head dripping with sweat. It was a dream. A bloody nightmare. I look beside me to find Luke fast asleep, still naked. I heave a sigh of relief. I tuck my hair behind my ear as I reach for a glass of water beside my bed. The jug is empty."Bloody hell." I whisper. I get up, trying to move around as quietly as I can so I do not wake Luke. I'm by the bathroom door, near the coat rack. I pick a white robe from the coat rack and put it on. I walk back to the bed and cover Luke properly with the duvet.I drop the jug on the kitchen dining as I enter. I tie my hair in a messy bun. I open the fridge and scan for anything edible to eat. I grab the jug of milk inside and a bar of snickers. As I close the fridge, I shriek in shock as I see a figure in the dark. The figure walks slowly towards me as she plays with her red hair. It is Laurel.I'm relieved, "You know, you really do have a problem." I say as I walk to the dinin
"Mrs. Carrington?" I hear, accompanied by kisses, wake me. I giggle, turning to the other side of the bed."Wake up." Luke says. "Noooooo!" I reply as I use the pillow to cover my face. He removes it and drags the duvet off my body. I gasp, getting up immediately, "I'm naked!" I try grabbing the duvet from him but he's not having it."Fine." I say as I get up, heading for the bathroom. He drags me back and gives me a back hug. I hold his hands in front, as I place kisses on each of them."I'm so tiny, compared to you." I say"Exactly. The perfect fit." We move to the window opposite the right side of the bed and the sunlight falls on us."The weather's so nice today, I feel like going for a run and having a picnic by the lake." I say, caressing my ring."I want to do anything you want to do, my love."I break the hug, turning to f
9 YEARS AGO. . ."Why are we running, mommy?"Lily asks, tired.Jack has a frown on his face as he waits for his mother to tell yet another lie."We're not running away, sweetie. We're just moving to somewhere much safer""Safer? Mom! We didn't do anything! Why do you and dad keep making us run from place to place? Dad's innocent so shouldn't have to run or hide!" Jack yells, tired of moving endlessly."We don't have another option, son. Please, no arguments, we need to get going and meet up with your father!"Jack gives up, but he's not satisfied. Anna was young, so she didn't quite understand what was going on or why they had to run continuously. But as for him, he knew what was going on, at-least, to an extent.Almost a two hour trip, Ava Hugh-Gray and her two children reach their destination. As so
Bloody hell! I wanted to give her a befitting reply, but I couldn't. I needed to get an explanation from Luke first. I open the study, hoping to find him there, but he's nowhere to be found. I walk back and forth, trying to dial his number again. This time, there's no service on my phone, and out of frustration, I smash the phone on the floor. Realizing I must've scared my poor child, I caress my stomach as I move to pick the phone up. Suddenly, my mind goes back to the day I almost fainted here, in the study. I touch the spot where the phone fell, and I remember that I'd felt something there that day. There was something under the rug, under the floor. I move the rug out of the way, and like I assumed, there was indeed, something under the rug. A hidden compartment. I open it up and there's a box inside. I open the box and begin to go through it's content. Pictures of a family. Pictures of a young girl, probably around age 5 or 6. There's a few white papers inside and I op
The time Lucas gave me to leave the manor was almost up, but I had one last trick up my sleeve. Wearing my lingerie and night robe, I adjust my ring. I wanted to make Luke remember our bond—what we shared, physically, emotionally and sexually. This was the only way I knew how to. I leave my bedroom, with aunt Ruth and Lydia rooting for me.I enter Luke's room. It was my second time being in his bedroom. I'd never gone there before, because we mainly made use of my bedroom and the study. I was always curious about his room, but never thought to satiate my curiosity.The room is too dark. I can still see, but it is extremely dark. His room is huge, way bigger than mine. The room is almost empty, except for the bed, a few paintings I recognize as Van Gogh's. There stood a tall library by the far corner of the room. I move there. I don't have the time to carry out an inspection, I just needed to find Luke. I take out my p
He finally steps down from the stairs and we are face to face. I look away, closing my eyes as soon as I see his red watery eyes. Next thing, I'm being dragged by him up the stairs. I don't utter a word. He flings me into what I suppose is his room rather violently. I want to scream at him, and remind him that I'm carrying his child in my womb, but I ignore. "I can explain." is the first thing I'm able to say.He begins to shake, as he points his finger at me. "How many times did it happen?" I try moving closer to him, but he barks at me, almost making me tremble. "If you woul—he interposes, "Shut up!" He continues, "You are so loose, Natalie. You. . . are. . .no less than a prostitute." He says, leaving me stunned and heartbroken."Lu. . . Lucas." I whisper, unable to control the tears rolling down my eyes. I gasp as he begins to throw things around. "I know it was wrong, I know I should've told you the very first time I saw him
Nice meeting you again, Mr. Carrington. We met at the Richardson soiree? I'm the Senator's daughter in law." Lydia says, and I'm beyond shocked."Daughter in law?" I repeat."It's a pleasure. Please, do make yourself comfortable here- I know you're my wife's close friend."She nods, "Yes, Natalie. It was documents alone. I just had to sign some papers there was no wedding.""But still, you should have told me, Lydia, I mean I would've come over to you.""Excuse me, Ladies." Luke says before he leaves.I hurriedly drag Lydia to the sofa, so we can sit and discuss. "You have to make sure David doesn't come here." Is the first thing I can say. I couldn't risk having David or the senator around, especially when Rocky was still present in the house.Lydia nods, "I know- I came alone, and I come in peace. I just needed a getaway, Natalie.
It's almost seven in the evening and aunt and I had gone into the manor. I am on my way to the room to check on Luke because he wasn't in his study. I'm in the room and I scan the room but I don't see him around until I hear the shower running. I bite my lips in excitement as I remember my plans for Luke and I earlier this evening. I take off my shoes and tiptoe into the bathroom smiling. My smile disappears in no time as soon as I notice something odd. There was someone else in the shower with Luke. A woman. I slide the door open."Luke." I state, disgusted at the sight before me. He turns, alert. I can see the confusion on his face. I caress my temples in annoyance as I walk out. I quickly wear my shoes and I can hear Luke shouting at his companion as he rushes behind me."Natalie, I swear! I thought it was you, my love, you have to believe me!" He says, holding my arm. I jerk it off as I turn around. I scoff as I see Laurel wa
NATALIE's POV."I can explain." I say, as I try to hold my balance. This was it. This was what I feared would happen. He makes his way into the room, but I am unable to make out the expression on his face, heck I can't even look at him. Aunt Ruth is by the corner, shivering with fear."I wanted to tell—"I'm sorry for bringing it here, but it belongs to me, I have a gunroom and there's a bit of a situation, but I've got it handled." He says and I look in confusion. What was he talking about?"What situation?""There's no cause for panic, everything's under control. I've doubled the security.""What's going on, Luke?""Bart's on the run." He says. In a split second, I'm engulfed in fear as horrible memories come flooding back. "His first instinct would probably be to return here."I gasp, shocked, losing my
JUDITH's POV"My goodness, Francis. All you ever do is complain, please. I think you should concentrate on getting healthier, not nagging about things that shouldn't bother you."Francis coughs, and I continue brushing my hair as I admire myself in the mirror. Francis was a talker and it irritated me, deep into my bones. I did marry him for his money, but I had love for him. I mean, he fathered my daughter, my only child."How dare you ask our son-in-law for money, do you not have any shame?" He asks, sitting up. I could tell he was getting stronger by the day. He still spent most of the day sleeping, but whenever he woke, he was always stronger than the day before.I wear my diamond earrings, "You gave me these on our 9th year anniversary, do you remember? You spoilt me silly that I didn't even need to ask to be spoiled." I get up, "You gave me that life, Fra
LUKE'S POVNatalie and I are outside, beside our car. She looks tired and pale, something I'd noticed for the past few days."Are you ready to go?" I ask her and she nods. I place my jacket over her shoulders. She gives a small smile and I begin to talk to her about the party. I want to know why she had on such a stern face and a cold tone with Senator Jackson but I realize that she's completely zoned out. She's a bit shaky, and when I realize she's about to fall, I hold her as tight as I can."Shit!" I yell and the chauffeur comes out. "To the manor, as fast as possible!" I say to the chauffeur, panicked.I try to wake her numerous times, but she doesn't respond. However, she's breathing. "You have to hang in there, my love." I say as I reach for my phone to call Doctor Ava. She says she's on sick leave so she would be unable to make it. However, she'd send in another Doctor.We are at