Sebastian.In hindsight, taking Elena to that fundraiser probably wasn't the best idea I had ever had. The short-term gain of keeping Vanessa, Kevin, and Charles quiet about the whole situation wasn't worth the long-term pain of seeing another scandal I was involved in on the news.So long anonymity. "You fucker. How dare you lay your hands on me.""I could tell everyone about your real wife, the mother of your son."Every time I thought about the short conversation Ryan had with himself whenever I punched him, I wanted to cringe and annihilate myself.Cameras out, videos being recorded, Kevin carrying Elena out with some of my security details on them, the emptiness in my chest even more empty without her.It was unacceptable.Wanting to marry her because I needed someone for Romanov was acceptable. Wanting to tell her everything about myself and the business was not.It didn't matter that she might be the only one to understand and comfort me. It was simple wrong.I allowed her cud
Elena.Trying to outsmart a man like Sebastian would always be futile, no matter what anyone did.He kept his devices under lock and key, to be opened with only special passwords.Not his name. Not his son's name. Not even Rachel's name."What kind of business are you involved in?" I whispered under my breath as I grazed the edge of the wooden desk at the other end of the room, hidden beneath tons of clothes.Everywhere was quiet. Too quiet for me. Sebastian had decided that taking Jaden to the field outside to discuss the ring he found was best for all of us.I didn't want to know much about his dead wife nowadays. Wasn't the best sort of conversation when one had sex.I knew the risks of what I was currently doing. But too much was on the line. Elliot's threats would ruin me, and by extension, Sebastian.If anyone asked, I was currently doing him a favour.I dropped to my knees, pulling open the drawers to the desk one after the other. Files, contracts, and neatly arranged stationer
Elena.Hours after I left the mansion with a parting smile and a promise to bring Charlotte to visit her grandparents, Elliot showed up at the front of my door."What do you want?" I held the door open, confusion etched across my features.It wasn't like he couldn't visit me. He wasn't friends with James, and I lived with James."I can't get enough of my little niece, so I decided to visit." He walked in, instantly going for Charlotte, who giggled at the cartoons I had on. "I've been thinking of getting one of these soon.""Children are not toys to just be gotten. They're a gift for the worthy....and you're..." I stared at him, gesturing to his whole self. "You.""James got blessed with one of them. He's not better than me."I shrugged, content with watching him just play with Charlotte. But when he turned to me, I sighed."Did he do that to you?" He asked.I knew what he was referring to. A punch mark on my shoulder that I had been careful to cover with makeup when I left the house.
Elena.No one actually thinks they are a bad person.I was playing the game for the long run."There are two options. Get me in on your husband's business and everything it entails, or provide the money and diamond you and James stole from the office."A tough call.I could never be able to provide those.In my defence, I had a good reason for shooting James and inadvertently causing the destruction that followed. I had good reasons for staying away from my dad and Evangeline.When I made attempts for them to end James's life quietly, they had refused.Blackmailing me shouldn't be an option in their lives.The blackmail wasn't something I could tell Sebastian, not when I made a deal with Ryan already.I should have told Sebastian from the beginning. He would have handled the situation in a way that I never could, with poise and dignity. Then again, if I had done that, Elliot wouldn't be able to care for James anymore.I adjusted the tablet in my hand. Between learning how to use devic
Elena.I had no idea how on earth I was supposed to follow a man who was using a car to get to his destination, with a group of people tailing him already.But I knew I had to do it. Even if it was the last thing I did.**Sebastian's face had leached of colour. "That was days ago." He said, his voice low. "People tell their kids stuff all the time. Just to get them off their back.""Did yours? Because until you needed me for some sort of deal, I wasn't more than a nanny to your son to you."He flinched. "Look. I shouldn't have said what I said, but I'm very protective of... Jaden, he's my son, especially after what happened to Rachel. You know, as well as I do, how a child would feel if something happened to someone else he cared about.""So what would happen years after you're done with me?" I couldn't change the sting from the memory. "Once I can be disposed.""You would never be disposed." He raked his hands through his hair, successfully destroying the sleek back look. He was cl
Sebastian.If Elena was to be described with one word, it was stubborn.The novelty of being our little argument at the estate faded quick when she insisted on coming with me to wherever I was going to.The way we had left things moments ago gnawed at me, and it was quite possible I would go insane if nothing was done about it.I gave in.I was happy that I finally got an audience with Adrian Romanov, but all I could think about was Elena.I stared at her as we walked through the door of the apartment complex where we were supposed to meet. She wore a simple black gown that flared out at the waist side and ended at her knees, but she glowed in a way that made it impossible to look away.I traced her features with my eyes, soaking in the curve of her lips and the way her features came together to birth a beautiful being. When she gave me a little smile to show her support, my heart dipped.Where people smiled with just their mouth, Elena smiled with her eyes. The way the corner of her
Elena."My old man's name is Adrian Romanov too. He wants to meet you, and only you."Adrian Romanov's words played a loop in my head like a broken record. Two days after we met and I was yet to find the pause button.Even now, as I watched the kids play, I sensed the torment from Ryan when he couldn't come close to me since Sebastian stayed home and by my side a lot.I also sensed something else from Sebastian. An hostility I never knew he had until now towards Ryan.We'd returned after his conversation with the Russian lord, my heart a vigorous drum in my chest, my blood vibrating in my veins. It was like he had something important he wanted to ask, yet kept himself at a distance. "Does he plan to hurt you too?"Yes.Ryan would stop at nothing to hurt me or the kids if it meant he would have a chance to get some time with his precious James. But I needed his help with Elliot.I'd always been the good girl. The one who loved her parents and hoped for a healthy marriage like theirs w
Elena."Hey."I had my arms wrapped around myself, unshed tears glistened in my eyes. "I'm sorry you had to see me like this, but... I didn't want... Charlotte..."My lips trembled in an effort to keep the wobbly smile I had on."Fuck whatever happened." He was by my side in an instant, his eyes scanning my exposed body for any sign of injury. "What happened now? Did Ryan..."His words hung in the air. I could see the way he struggled with himself mentally."It's Charlotte father." I swallowed hard. "My first husband, James Miller. The hospital called and said he was admitted after a car accident. He's..he's..." I choked on a sob I didn't want to slip out.I guess I didn't need to finish my sentence before he understood what I was trying to say. But I didn't expect sympathy from him - his wife crying over her first husband - or anyone in this estate. I expected rage."Come here, sweet girl." The rough crack in his voice was unexpected.He opened his arms, and I didn't hesitate to ste