“Don't you like the scenery? Everywhere looks beautiful,” Malcolm sparked up a conversation, not wanting to make every moment they were spending together boring as they walked out together. He was so glad that she chose to walk outdoors with him, and there seemed to be comfortable clothes waiting for her to change into which Malcolm had prepared already after he went out. “I do not know. I think it is cool,” she answered, feeling so bored by a conversation with a man she really wanted to be away from. “You seem to not know a lot of things that you like,” Malcolm pointed out, having noticed her attitude towards having things she liked from their few conversations. He wasn't even sure she had a hobby. All her life, she had always done things she had to do, and not things that she loved doing. “What else is left of someone who has lost herself alongside her memories?” Zoe muttered sarcastically. Those words suddenly made Malcolm, and he didn't like to hear her speak like that. He wa
Zoe had been sitting in front of the dresser in the suite for many minutes, carefully rubbing a night lotion into her face in bits, her mind drifting into random thoughts that were quite hazy in her mind. Through the mirror, her eyes traveled beyond focusing on her image as it landed on Malcolm, who was sitting comfortably on the couch, seemingly busy with work, his eyes fixed on the tablet that was placed on his lips. Her mind went back in time to almost an hour ago, after she had unexpectedly kissed him when they were both lying on the sand, and his reaction after she separated from him and stood up, confused her a bit as she struggled to process if she had seen rightly. For as long as she could remember, she didn't think she had ever seen Malcolm in that way before. She saw him flustered! ‘He was flustered? But why? Their lips touched more than twice even if it wasn't pleasant, but still, he was the one that initiated it. And if they were truly dating, they would probably have
Zoe's body froze to a spot as she raked through her brain for what she could do, and the only thing that came to mind wasn't worth the pain. However, she found herself rolling fiercely away from his body, and towards the floor, pretending to have mistakenly dropped off the bed. “Ah!” Her loud wimp scolded her and reminded her of how foolish a decision she had made just to escape from such a stifling atmosphere, and Malcolm woke up just at the moment, his eyes jolting open to reality. “Are you okay?” Concern and worry hovered around his voice as he rose from his sleeping position to check up on, but the way in which she jumped up from the floor and flashed a smile at him startled him a bit, which made him wonder if everything was fine with her. “Hi, Good morning,” she didn't wait for him to reply, before she strode away from his sight in mortification, while nursing her pain as she entered the bathroom. ‘Shit!’ she yelled inwardly as she stood in front of the mirror in the bathroom
Did you bring your drugs along?” Malcolm walked out of the bathroom, suddenly remembering during his shower time that he had not seen her use her drugs since he came back and since they traveled. “No,” Zoe muttered, as she sat in front of the dresser which she had been glued to for minutes, straightening her hair over and over again. “Are you feeling better now? Should we go purchase new ones for you?” he suggested, not wanting to ask her why she had not been taking them as expected. She could get mad if he tried to be possessive about it, and he was not willing to bargain the peaceful atmosphere between them for anger. “I have always been fine, you know. But u do use them,” she turned to look at him, as her lips pulled into a thin line.“Have you been remembering anything or having glimpses of your memories these days?” Malcolm inquired slowly and gently, like he didn't mean to ask so directly as he walked out of the dressing room, already fully dressed. “Are you hoping I don't r
“I don't know what you would like, so I got you this,” Zoe turned to Ivy as she passed her own package to her, whose face was frozen in a mask of astonishment, with confusion dancing in her eyes. She didn't understand what was going on. She suddenly walked into the dining room the next morning in an unexpected manner, with extremely expensive gifts with her, as she placed each package in front of each person that she had gotten it for. For Irina, it was a limited edition diamond necklace she knew she had been struggling to get, and for Isla, she purchased a limited edition luxurious bag from the brand she figured was her favorite. For Ivy, it was a limited edition tweed dress, and for Audrey, it was a stunning, expensive auctioned heel that was worth more than the prices of the others. However, she had all of them with their mouths agape, with a silent gasp escaping their lips like a whisper of surprise.“You got us gifts,” Ivy's eyes furrowed with disdain even if she was so elat
Martin sat across from Zoe at the opulent restaurant they agreed to meet, his eyes filled with so much concern and worry about her, as he tried to carefully teeter around asking her too many questions. He was quite surprised when he had received her call to meet him, when it was a fact that they had spoken the day before, even if it was just for a few minutes. He had been waiting for her call all day. “How are you doing, Zoe?” he began, his voice soft and gentle, as his delicate eyes rested on her, observing the slightest change in her demeanor. He was bothered that she was trying to be strong even when she would have been disheartened if she saw the news about something she was trying to hide from the world. However, he was quite relieved that the sudden announcement of ANCLAIR and MEL-CO was all everyone could talk about. “Not so great, if I would not lie. How about you? I hope I'm not taking much of your time?” She looked up at him, her eyes studying to know if she had not m
Malcolm had been restless all morning since he arrived at work, and his workers were at the receiving end of his anger and frustration. He was unable to sleep since he received the news from Sinclair that Zoe could come back home, and it had him so bothered if she had been informed too about it.‘What if she decided to leave? What if she left and acted like she didn't know him? Would their relationship just end there?’ He thought all night, and still couldn't keep the thoughts away as he carried out his job in the office. He shifted uncomfortably on his office chair so many times, with a nervous tic crawling up his body, the more his eyes darted unconsciously to his phone, for what felt like the hundredth time, as if Zoe would call anytime soon to slam those words in his ear. His mind raced with worry as his thoughts spiraled him into anxiety, with each vibration or notification from his phone sending a jolt of nervous energy through his body, only to be met with disappointment as
“I heard that you have refused to return home,” Malcolm hit off the conversation with Zoe, breaking the silence that had been hanging in the air ever since he entered the room. He was curious to know what was going on in her head, and why she was being so unpredictable. “Yes. Any problem with that?” She tilted her eyebrows at him as she tore her gaze away from what she had been scribbling on paper since he entered. “I thought that was what you wanted initially,” a confounded look danced in his eyes as he stared at her with questioning eyes, in case she cared to explain her reasons before he asked why. But he knew she wouldn't talk more than what she was asked. “Well, I don't want that anymore,” she darted her eyes back to what she was doing. “Why? Are you really planning to get married to me?” There was a hint of anxiety in his voice as he spoke, wondering what her answer would be. She had been mentioning the marriage part and making new memories with him so casually for days n
The air in Malcolm's office was filled with so much tension the moment he let his sister, who had come to momentarily disrupt his schedule, in. It had been days since they saw each other, ever since the unfortunate incident that almost cost her life. He had been expecting that she would come to see him after the information he had gotten about what she had been up to for the past few days, and unlike before, he didn't even give her the chance to speak first, before he lashed at her. “Do not come and shout in my office like you have been going around doing!” He warned gravely as soon as she stormed into his office, with all of her entirety quivering uncontrollably. “You know well that I should not keep calm at all!” She glared at him, “You of all people, know that I deserve to rant. At least if you treated me like trash, I should have one thing for myself!” “Why, in the name of everything sane, do you keep running back to fight with them?!” he demanded, his words seething with ange
Malcolm Meyer sat on the plush leather armchair in the living room of his new home in a faraway estate from the city that whispered wealth in every detail, from the vaulted ceilings which held huge modern diamond five-tier chandelier whose lights art reflected on the ebony floors of the huge mansion, to the floor-to-ceiling windows and perfect walls that were lined with first editions arts and rare artifacts.For the first time in what felt like an eternity, he allowed himself to sink into the quiet of his living room right after he returned from work and took a warm bath, instead of retiring to his room as usual. As he swirled the colorless wine in the wine glass he was holding and took a slow sip at each unconsciously calculated rhythm, his thoughts could not help but drift to the one person he had seen by chance earlier that day at a conference meeting. And even though they didn't get the chance to talk, and he just got to watch her from afar, he was relieved that she had risen f
Dressed in a white silk robe that blinked and waved smoothly in the direction of the wind, Irina Meyer lounged on the chaise longue in her private suite at Le AVARSON wellness resort, as she basked in the lights of the sun's rays that seeped in through the wide, floor-to-ceiling windows. On her right was a crystal glass filled with freshly pressed grapefruit juice on the side table, and right before her face was a fashion magazine which she buried her eyes in, as her right hand occasionally flipped to the next page. However, her mind was barely on what she was reading. It was deep in the thoughts of the confrontation with Andre earlier in her room that morning, and the words she hadn't expected that she would say to him. Though she felt a little guilty that she had smacked him hard with the bitter truth, her face scrunched up with the unwillingness to go and appease him as she continued to enjoy the peaceful repose of her environment. Irina was just beginning to let the peace of t
The door to the room slammed open with a crack like thunder, and Andre emerged from his room, his face a storm of furrowed brows and clenched jaws. The sound of his shoes clacked so hard as he strode down the hallway that led to Irina''s room, his breath coming out in uneven huffs, and his hands balling into fists at his sides. There was a wild urgency in his eyes amid a simmering frustration that seemed to radiate off him like heat, as he burst into his mother’s room without knocking. Irina, who was in her dressing room while getting ready to step out for an anniversary event, was visibly startled by the noise of the abrupt entrance in her room, as she rushed out instantly to see what the ruckus was all about. “Mother!” He called sharply, “Who else had been to that room?!” He demanded heavily, his voice heavy with anger and anxiety. “What do you mean?” Irina scrunched her eyebrows up in confusion, as she stared at him with questioning eyes, almost stumbling against the large s
Sitting slumped in his high-backed chair, with the city skyline stretching out beyond the window behind him, Andre’s hand rested heavily on the armrests of his chair, his chest rising and falling in shallow, controlled breaths, even if the storm that was brewing inside him was anything but calm.He had gotten yet another rejection. Another blow to his pride. He had poured days into crafting the new proposal, painstakingly aligning every detail with the vision he thought Malcolm wanted for their flagship company. And yet, the same words were delivered to him again. “It doesn’t fit our strategy.”The words rang in his ears, colder than the polished marble of the boardroom where they had been uttered, and he swore he almost punched Malcolm right at that moment in his face. He made him feel like a fool again! He effortlessly dismissed his proposal yet again. “You have to be very cautious. Though Malcolm is sitting back, he is watching you with his might! Do not make mistakes. Just wai
“You want to find out the truth too, don't you?” Zoe stared at the cryptic and blunt sentence that flashed in her eyes as soon as she slipped her phone out of her purse, when it sounded with a soft chime signaling the arrival of a new message. She had just stepped out of her car after they arrived at the underground parking lot of the mall, when she received the message that had her pausing on her tracks. Her heart skipped a beat and a cold shiver traveled down her spine immediately she read it, as her head turned sharply to the left and right, to see if the person who sent the message was somewhere around her. ‘Who could have sent this?’ She wondered, her eyebrows furrowing high in worry, as she tapped the screen on her phone, ready to reply to the message and ask who the person was. However, she restricted the urge to do that, cautioning herself that it was not the time for impulsiveness, as she slipped the phone back into her bag, straightened her blazer, and made her way t
Zoe returned home late in the night after a long day at work, had her bath, and changed clothes, before she went to the most quiet place in her house, which was tucked away in the farthest corner of her house, while carrying a bowl of neatly cut fruit in her hands, shortly after she went over some office papers in her study desk. Though feeling tired and stressed out with her entire body extremely sore, she knew she just had to visit the room to do a review of the last discovery she made. Turning on the light in the room, she moved to the wall by her Eastside, and instantly raised the white veil she had pulled over the series of photographs which were pinned in neat rows and newspaper clippings. Each was marked in red. Some had the letter ‘X’ written on it boldly and definitively, while others had circles drawn around faces in the pictures, and were connected with taut strings of thread that crisscrossed like a chaotic spider’s web.Carefully, Zoe sank onto the plush armchair that
Seated in her new office, which was a masterpiece of modern elegance, was Isla, whose aura of calculated grace radiated strongly in every corner of the room. Rather than the usual custom-made suits she usually donned to the office when she was still the CEO of Hila jewelry, she was wearing a stunning turquoise blue dress, with its off-the-shoulder design this time around, revealing her delicate collarbones which were adorned with a simple but exquisite diamond necklace. However, regardless of how stunning she looked, her face was bunched into a disdainful mark, her left fingers tapping rhythmically on the table and her mind momentarily lost in some other place, as her eyes constantly darted to her phone which was before her. Barely a few minutes later, while still seething uncontrollably, her phone began to ring, and she quickly snatched it from the table. Instantly, her lips, which were painted in rich, pepper-red lipstick, curled into a smirk, as a hint of malice instantly flicke
ZOELVA’s luxurious structure, erected tall, reflected the shining bright lights of the afternoon sun from the east, with its luxurious designs radiating across the core and surroundings far and beyond the huge city. Inside, shoppers went from floor to floor, wandering wide corridors that were lined with top-tier brands, with staff moving around to guide and direct everyone in the most orderly manner. Groups of families made their way to food stands, their laughter and shouts mingling with the savory scents of sizzling burgers, crispy pizza, and sweet, sticky treats. On another side, fashion enthusiasts, elites, and socialites were gathered around numerous designer boutiques, their eyes fixed longingly on the glossy displays of haute couture, while others anticipated getting their hands on the most sophisticated top-notch tech devices. Amid the crowd’s awe and excitement and the hubbub of purchasing endlessly and engaging so many sections in the mall, a moment of stillness fell int