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11. Things aren't what they seem to be
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2024-10-29 19:42:56"Hello, this is Anne. Are you okay Mr. Maxwell?" She couldn't connect what he was saying to her. I shouldn't have come back from where? Maybe he wasn't calling me. The phone disconnected, he had already hung up.
She wondered what might have happened to him but decided not to worry about it. She was packing their belonging to move out to the new apartment.
There was a picture in one of the small boxes she had hidden. This box contained her private and valuable items. Each item had a memory that she cherished. She took out the picture and looked at it for a long time. It was her mother. She wondered how it felt to have a mother and how it would have been if she was still around.
She was still thinking about her mother when her phone rang. She looked at the screen and it was Luke's number again. What does he want this time? She wondered. She picked up the phone and pressed the receive button.
"Hello, is this sister-in-law? I
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It had been eight hours in the same room without talking to each other. Megan thought it was over now. How could I have forgotten to lock the door? She was now afraid of losing everything she had worked for for the last two years. How could she explain that invasion earlier by Luke? Why didn't he call? She looked at the man lying next to her, how will she explain who Luke was? She remembered how two years ago things had changed between them when his mother rejected her without giving her any chance to prove herself and her love for Luke. Things had turned bitter forcing her to move to another city where she knew no one and had nothing to call her own. She had wondered along the streets and in companies in search for a job and a place to live until she met Jason Wynne, the CEO of STARWOOD TELECOMMUNICATIONS. Jason who listened to her story was compassionate and kind and offered her a job and accommodation. He also gave her some money to help her get settled. A year later he fell in l
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"wow!!, what's that smell? Mmmh..." He traced the smell, pointing with his nose to the dinning table. The table was set with four serving dishes and two tureens. "Did Luna prepare all this, I thought she did not know how to cook." He wondered. The food smelled delicious and he could tell the cook was an expert. He opened each dish. He could not wait any longer. He sat down and served himself. He started eating enjoying the taste of the food and taking time to allow his tongue to absorb the taste fully. He had not eaten something so delicious in a long time. "Having a great time?" He turned to see Luna looking at him. "Haha, just enjoying the meal. Since when do you know how to cook? This meal is delicious, have you been attending cooking lessons?" " I would love to learn in future but today someone else prepared the food." She sat down without waiting for the next question and served herself. "Who cooked?" He asked curiously. "Sister-in-law di
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Tears blurred her vision as waves of anguish washed over her almost drowning her in despair. She remembered how Jason had helped her and how her life turned for better when she met him. She also thought of how Luke had treated her when they dated and how he had loved her. He was her first love, how could she forget that. Her heart ached.She thought of running after Jason but her knees gave way and she fell on the floor and covered her face in distress and sorrow. She wasn't sure what Jason will do next. She was afraid of losing her job and going back to the streets, yet she wanted to have Luke too for herself. In a moment she became more interested in securing her future than she was on what was best for her.Moments later she stood up and wiped her tears. She had found a solution to her problem. What if she went back and pleaded for forgiveness from Luke? She could have both love and a secured future. She thought of the life sh
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She looked at him not knowing how to apologise and make it look genuine. She knew it all depends on how well she could act. "Have you lost your voice just now, I thought you wanted to explain yourself?" His voice was cold and tensed. "Luke, I Know how much I have wronged you and I can't tell how you must have felt. I should have told you everything when we met yesterday but seeing you for the first time in two years made me forget everything else. A lot happened when I left and I was out on the streets with no place to stay or food to eat. In my desperate moment, I met Jason who helped me out and took care of me..." "So, that's how you pay him? " He was getting annoyed. "Luke please..." The door bell rung interrupting her abruptly. Luke opened the door to find Anne standing there. His eyes were drawn to her beauty, she wore nothing expensive but her simple look captivated him. She looked immensel
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" Megan, meet Anne, my wife. She will be moving in soon after we have made everything official. Anne, this is Megan." He took his time to observe Megan's face. Her face turned pale, she turned and stared at him with a painful expression. " What do you mean, your wife? How could you?" She turned to Anne and with an angry voice shouted " you little bitch..." She was going for her hair when Luke intervened. Anne was in shock with the woman's accusations and she opened her mouth to protest but words failed her. Luke became angry by Megan's behavior, " I will see you another day Megan, you are upsetting Anne..." " Upsetting her?" She could not hold her anger any longer. She turned towards Anne, " what about her, isn't she upsetting me? Luke grasped her elbow and escorted her outside. He shut the door and walked a few steps out of earshot before releasing her elbow. "Megan, two years ago when we broke up, I searched for you every
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At first, a week from moving in seemed so far away that Anne paid no attention to it. She had not foreseen any difficulty because to her it was only a contract and it would be easier to pretend she was working for that one year. She had unpacked in their new house and made sure everything was in the right place to make it easier for her father. Finally the day arrived. Early in the morning, Anne was woken up by the light coming through the window to her room. She opened her eyes lazily wishing that she could continue sleeping a little longer. She sat on the bed,stretched her body and yawned. Today her life will change, she will be a married woman. It didn't matter that it was a contract marriage, but she will be known as Mrs Maxwell. She felt conflicted, at first she had thought that the marriage will be less complicated but after her encounter with Megan, she knew she was in for a hard time. She pulled herself up and walked into the bathroom. Few minutes later, she came
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All the way no one talked or even glanced at the other. It was dead silent, everyone in their own thoughts. Anne was confused by her own feelings. She was afraid of the decision she had taken yet there was no turning back. A year now seemed like ten. She wondered what kind of man Luke was. One moment he would seem to be full of compassion and the next he was serious and grumpy. Today he didn't seem to have any feelings. He was just there, no expression, just there. "Who are you really?" She let her thoughts wonder. "Well, I'm Luke Maxwell to start with" Anne turned to him surprised, did she just say that loud? As if answering her, Luke turned and said "don't think too much, it's not like it's a real marriage." She fell silent not knowing what to say. The awkwardness tormented her. She was relieved few minutes later when the car stopped in front of Luke's apartment. He carried her suitcase inside as she followed him
A YEAR'S CONTRACT : Mr billionaire's wedding 19. I still love you
Throughout the day, Luke did not get a chance to go out from work, it had been a busy day. He was doing some of the work when his phone started ringing. Seeing it was Megan calling, he hunged up the phone and continued with his work. She kept on calling but he didn't pick up any of her calls. An hour later, the door to his office flew open and Megan walked in. She was totally drunk and staggered to his desk. He stood up abruptly and furious because of the disturbance. His secretary came running after Megan. "Sorry sir, I tried stopping her but..." " Get out." He barked. She left apologizing remorsefully. " What do you still want Megan? What do you want from me that you can't say it when you are not drunk?" He asked. "You have made me like this. I told you I still love you, I have nothing to do with him. It has always been you in my heart. I have left him, I have left everything for you. We are meant to be together. Why do you want to marry her and not me? What does she have that I
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Anne's pov The locket felt cool against my skin as I fastened it around my neck. It was a weight I didn’t know I needed—a piece of the past I was now willing to carry. It didn’t absolve my mother of all the years of silence, but it was a start. A fragile bridge between us. As I stood in front of the mirror, staring at the small silver pendant resting above my heart, I wondered what came next. My life had been a series of unpredictable events ever since I signed that contract with Luke. What had started as a desperate deal to save my father had led me to uncovering the hidden legacy I never asked for. And now, it seemed I wasn’t just navigating the complexity of love—I was also running from shadows. A knock on the bedroom door pulled me from my thoughts. Luke stepped inside, his eyes catching on the locket immediately. He walked over and gently lifted it between his fingers, examining the delicate piece. “It looks good on you,” he said quietly. I smiled, though it didn’t quite re
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Days passed since the envelope had arrived. I couldn’t shake the feeling that my entire life had been built on lies and shadows, but at least now, I had a semblance of understanding. My mother had sacrificed everything to keep me safe, but the safety had come at a cost—a lifetime of absence, of missed moments that could never be reclaimed.I stared at the letter again, its edges already worn from the number of times I’d read it. Luke had caught me with it more than once, but he hadn’t pressed me to talk. He had always been good at giving me space when I needed it, even though I could tell he was worried. Finally, one evening as we sat together in the quiet of our home, I broke the silence.“She didn’t have to disappear,” I murmured, more to myself than to him. “She didn’t have to let me go like that.” Luke looked over at me, his expression gentle but filled with understanding. “She thought it was the only way to protect you.”I nodded, my fingers tracing the outline of the wax s
