Jaxon was still surprised to see that she arrived early. The driver had texted him when he picked her up, but nothing prepared him for the beauty he was looking at in front of him.She had curled her hair, she looked even prettier in makeup. He fought everything in him that wanted to know the fragrance of her lipgloss.The dress, he had underestimated her. He thought she'd pick the longer dress, but she went for the shorter one.He loved it, the way he outlined her curves and showed her smooth thighs. His eyes moved to her hands as they clutched her purse. She also had her nails done. It thrilled him that she had put in effort for the night. Maybe he was having an effect on her after all.Most importantly she hadn't forgotten the necklace, it lay on her chest just on top of her cleavages. "Someone really went all out for this." Serena's voice interrupted his thoughts."Someone else was also very expectant, she arrived on time." He scoffed."I keep to time, I don't like to delay peop
Jaxon waited for her to finish her wine, as she made for the bottle, he took it first. He tried to fill her glass but ended up pouring it on the table.He dropped it carelessly and it rolled off the table and shattered on the floor. Serena stood up and walked to his side this time, but he held her and kept her from stepping on the glass."Are you hurt?" She asked with concern in her eyes, he was holding her waist, so they were just an each away from each other's faces.A waiter came into the room in a hurry as he heard the sound of the glass. Serena withdrew from him and adjusted her dress.Jaxon tried to collect himself again. He had to get his hands on something, he helped the waiter with clearing the mess."I'll be back." He said as he disappeared into the room he had come out from when she arrived.He had spilled the drink and dropped the bottle intentionally, so she could stop drinking. He talked to the manager of the place and settled all the bills.Serena was sitting in a chair
Serena had waited for Jaxon to go back inside his room before retiring to her bed. She felt angry and stupid. He had told her he was staying with his relatives the first time they met. She supposed he did not know where she lodged at the time.Now, she had every right to believe they hadn't met by chance. He knew where she was staying, he had probably been watching her from his room.He had been following her that day. The thought of it was creepy. Had she been involved with a stalker?Remembering the previous night, she winced as she lay in her bed feeling sorry for herself. A lot of thoughts streamed through her head, she wasn't sure what to think. If he was a bad person or had ulterior motives, he had her right in his palms.She stared at her phone screen for a while, then opened his chat. There wasn't any new message from him. She had told him they weren't going to see each other, so she had expected him to text or insist on seeing her if he liked her.She hated that she had fe
He wasn't himself, no one had ever made him feel this way. Jaxon had been on his balcony since morning, just staring at the other side of the hotel.He had given himself different reasons why he wasn't supposed to have any feelings for Serena but a part of him burned to leave the room, go out in town, and search for her wherever she might be.He knew she wouldn't be in her room since she mentioned going to a concert and she would be leaving first thing in the morning the following day.He distracted himself with music throughout the day. He couldn't bear it anymore by evening, so he went to the other wing. He knew her room number, so we went straight up while ignoring the glances and stares from female hotel attendants and other female passers-by.He knocked on the door and got no response. Could it be that she had been out all day till that time? He looked away as a hotel attendant passed by. The stare she gave him wasn't the regular one of women trying to flirt with him. She looke
Her neighborhood was just like she had left it. Young boys playing soccer on the field, teenage girls giggling as they strolled into the busy part of town, bending their waist with so much force just so they could gain the attention of the boys.Serena chuckled as she watched a group of girls from the cab. She remembered when she was just sixteen and she used to be proud of being the one the boys wanted. She never accepted any of them, except one though. He was hot and nice, he would buy cupcakes and ice cream for her each time he came around. Hadley ate most of it. He was her first kiss, she had fantasized so much about it since every girl loved to talk about it.She didn't want to have her first kiss with just any boy, but she thought Andre was the right guy. So she followed him to the cinema one day with Hadley in the front row just for company. Hadley knew to comport herself in situations like that, so they hardly noticed she was with them. Thirty minutes into the movie, Andre's
Hadley sat on the settee sofa as she watched Serena play with her hands on her bed. She had gone to the Cress' house with muffins to welcome Serena, only for them to be back in her studio apartment.Serena hadn't said a word to her since she asked her to let her follow her back to her apartment. So Hadley just let her stay on her bed. Serena sat on the bed with her knees folded, her arms wrapped around them and her face buried against it."What's going on?" Hadley sat up and faced her direction. She was testing her patience by remaining silent. "I can't do anything if you remain quiet like this, you have to talk to me." Hadley moved to the bed and placed her hand over her best friend's shoulders."I'll be staying with you for a while," Serena said quietly."Oh yeah, I can see that, all the story you skipped before that. Let's begin with that." Serena sighed, "My aunt's husband was arrested for fraud.""Oh shit. Was she arrested too?" Hadley's eyes widened in surprise. She swung her
Filling Hadley in on every detail of her trip was inevitable. As soon as she got back from her neighborhood with the rest of her belongings her Aunt had dropped off with their neighbors, Hadley gave her a "spill it" stare while they ate dinner.There was no leaving out Jaxon, Jaxon was what she enjoyed the most out of her trip and Hadley loved to hear boy gossip. She lived for it.She squealed with excitement when she told her of their makeout session in his car. As Serena narrated the story, she wished she could live the experience a second time. But she was back to reality and her everyday reality wasn't the prettiest. It was taking an ugly turn. One where she couldn't spend her time daydreaming about a guy she met on a vacation."Can I see the necklace?" Hadley's cheeks flushed with excitement. Serena nodded and signaled with her mouth full of potato salad that she'd show her after they finished with their food.When she got it out of the box, it gleamed and caught every bit of li
Her hair was packed in a messy bun, as she stared back at her reflection in the mirror. She was wearing a big white sweatshirt with Los Angeles written across the chest level in black letters. She didn't like the way she felt, she was confused, and she felt out of track. Hadley had helped her arrange her stuff in her (their) small apartment. She felt grateful for the gift of a best friend. Hadley had tried arranging the room to fit both of them. It had been two days since she returned from Mareco.Hadley had taken a day off work so they could shop for groceries and stock the house. Despite Hadley's understanding, Serena couldn't let her pay for everything. She was aware she would be broke as hell before the next month, but the least she could do was help around with basic things.Hadley had left for work early enough so she was alone in the house. She had been on her laptop staring at blank documents and scrolling through the internet, searching for job opportunities.She didn't fe
Serena managed to get through the event without feeling intimidated. Jaxon made sure he didn't leave her side for too long. He introduced her to his parents as his girlfriend, he was so proud of it.They had received her warmly, contrary to what she had expected. She was surprised to see his brother, he was calm, handsome and soft spoken. She had imagined him to be a viscous, stubborn, shorter man.He smiled at her when she put her hand forward for a handshake. It wasn't the best of smiles, but for someone who was in some sort of rivalry with his brother who happened to be her boyfriend, he gave her a warm reception.Jaxon's father was just as she imagined, like the clips from the news, he was funny, but he still had that wall around him, like he was a small god and unapproachable. He had complimented her dress and told her he'd heard of her wonders and he was happy to see her.His mother on the hand was the sweetest soul, she hugged her and was surprised to hear the college she gradu
He had seen her on the dress before but it didn't look as elegant as this, he wiped his face with a handkerchief to be sure he wasn't getting teary. She had curled her hair into magnificent waves that dropped to her shoulders.Her shoulders gleamed under the bright chandelier that hung on the ceilings of the stairs. She flashed her radiant smile at him, his heart melted again. She was wearing the emerald green version of the blue heart necklace which was paired with complementary earrings.It seemed like she was taking forever to come down the stairs. He resisted the urge to meet her where she was and lift her in his arms down the stairs.It felt like prom night again, but with someone he actually loved. She finally met him at the foot of the stairs and placed her manicured hands on his jacket and straightened the collar. They heard a gentle cough from behind and separated. Uncle Jeff came from the living room and handed her her coat. “I expect that you won't catch a cold with him,
“I'd like for us to have an official date, not just reconciling in the middle of a launch like this, it's so busy around here, but first I'd like to invite you to my inauguration party this weekend” Jaxon leaned in to whisper to Serena.Serena's eyes darted from left to right and she looked up at him. She didn't expect him to say that. “Inauguration party?” “Yes, you know, corporate stuff, I'm sorry it's going to be a lot bigger than this and all of that formal shit, but I'll be by your side. I want you by my side.”“I…I don't know, I'd love to…but,” she began but he hushed her before she made any excuse.“I'm desperate right now to be honest and I can go on my knees for you not to refuse me. Did I forget to tell you or has Hadley told you?”“Told me what?” Serena asked confused.Jaxon’s mood shifted to a more solemn one, “I heard you found out who your…real mum is.” Serena nodded and kept on paying attention to him, the information wasn't something to bother her again. “And she happ
Serena loved her experience in Florida, the person she had stayed with was the most hospitable person ever. She showed her around herself, she made sure she always had something to eat. She even waited for her at the airport during her arrival in Florida.She took her to the most exciting places, met new sane people. She fell in love with the most mundane things and she had a lot of fun.It was quite sad that everything had to come to an end but she was excited for what was coming. Hadley was going to launch her restaurant in the coming week so she left Florida during the weekend.Uncle Jeff and Aunt Mabel were so happy to see her. They had celebrated New Year without her. She immediately went to Hadley's house to see her, her brother and mum had come to Rhode Island for the launch too.Serena remembered when she used to crush on Hadley's brother. Hadley had been so against it, that they almost fought. He had more tattoos now and Serena already heard he had a girlfriend, so there was
“Serena, Hadley is here!” Mabel called Serena from the front door. Serena screamed with joy like she'd been for her since forever. She wore her indoor slippers and ran down the stairs.“Oh my God, Hadley,” she hugged her until they both fell on their knees and were lying on the floor of the front door. Mabel looked at the hilarious sight, it felt good to see them like this again. It was like they were sixteen and about to resume high school again.“Come on girls, you're making fools of yourselves in front of the neighbors.”“Hey, the neighbors,” Hadley jumped to her feet and gave Serena a helping hand, “is Gavin still around?” She grinned.Serena tapped he arm lightly, “all you know how to do is ask after your men, you wouldn't ask how I'm doing before you move into your men.” She joked.Serena carried Hadley's small travel bag inside the house. Hadley came behind her and shut the door. She took off her shoes at the small passageway just before she entered the living room. Mabel gave
Jaxon wondered why she demanded to meet him in person. She'd been trying to contact him for days and the assistant he assigned to her had been bugging him.He finally decided to spare some time for her. He arranged a meeting with her at a cafe close to his office. He made sure it was during busy hours when people would be around in case she wanted to try something funny.She had the effrontery to be late, he kept on checking his wristwatch for the time. He ordered coffee and sipped it bit by bit as he watched the people walking into the cafe through his shades.A few people still managed to recognize him, some of them pointed at him discreetly. It was amusing how he had turned from nobody to somebody and everyone wanted to identify with him. He didn't like having bodyguards around him, so he still had to deal with pushing some people off by himself.Anybody would rush at him, for business proposals, for food, money, assistance. He didn't know how to explain to them that he wasn't a wa
Serena chose to ignore her presence and sat down beside her Uncle who was seated alone at the breadth of the rectangular table. Aunt Mabel sat opposite her, next to him while Amora sat beside her sister. They were having fried turkey with rice and salad. Serena allowed Aunt Mabel to dish her food and she began eating. She expected them to say something about why this woman was with them. They didn't say anything until they finished eating.The normal tradition was to watch sitcoms together anytime they had a meal at the dinning room. Aunt Mabel would be the first to sit in the sitting room, Serena would join her while Uncle Jeff would come in last.Aunt Mabel always slept halfway into movies, Serena and Jeff would binge watch movies together until Uncle Jeff was tired he'd take her aunt into the room while she either continued watching more shows or she'd retired to her room.That was when they ate together, but on other nights when she had her meal in her room, she'd just watch stu
Serena began speaking after the waiter left. She had given the restaurant a four star review for both of them.“I know my place, Jaxon. Our worlds are totally different and you have a lot going on. I should be the least of your worries. Whatever you have going on with your brother, you should resolve it. Family is more important, focus on that. You might regret it so much if you lose any of them. It can happen at anytime, any minute, so please, take care of yourself. I'll always remain grateful to you for getting my uncle out and giving us our house back, but you see, it makes us even more indebted to you. I don't think any further affiliation with you would be good.”Jaxon sighed, “I'm not asking you for anything. It's just..”“My uncle still has to work for your company to make sure everything is returned, doesn't he?” Serena asked him, he sighed, they both knew the answer.“It's not like he's working for the replacement of the funds, I'll figure it out, but it's not like you're s
She wore a teardrop pearl necklace that sitted well on her chest suiting the V-neck blouse she'd chosen to wear her black mini skirt with. It was nothing grand, she reminded herself.She had picked the venue and made sure to come twenty minutes late. She walked into the cafe and didn't have to look around too much to find him. He was punctual, all these things he was doing to repent.He had shades on, but she could tell him apart even if there were several men wearing the same suit he wore. He looked nice in a suit. She laughed in her head, he still became the corporate guy he dreaded so much - because of her, she was reminded by another of her thoughts. Shut Up- she told it back.Lemons - he had started using that bath wash again or he intentionally used it to remind her of the first time she met him. She maintained her stoic expression. He wasn't exactly smiling at her as well, but he looked good, seductive as always in whatever he wore. He would be the center of attraction in his