LOGINShare
FORTY FOUR
Last Updated:
2024-10-29 19:42:56One, two, three seconds passed before Ray exploded. "You what?" his hand moved before his mind registered what he was doing. When Duke staggered back, Ray realized he'd punched him. "Why the fuck would you make Alexis clean bathrooms? Isn't there staff who were hired to do that?"
"Listen man..... "
"I am going to walk away from this conversation before I give in to the urge of throwing you off that balcony" he pointed to the double doors that led outside. "I'll be back tomorrow. You better hope Alexis calms down or you will be the one out of a job"
"You can't fire me. This is as much my business as it is yours"
"You don't have to remind me that. I can't fire you but if the Rutherford Princess decides to take all our clients, it would be y
Related chapters
BROKEN PROMISES FORTY FIVE
He hovered over her desk waiting for her to arrive. She wasn't late. Office hours started at eight in the morning and it was 7:20. Any other day, Duke Copeland would be in his office, going over that day's schedule or coming up with new ideas on how to manage his clients. But today he couldn't bring himself to concentrate on anything. He'd tossed and turned all night long. When it was apparent he wasn't going to fall asleep, he got up and poured himself a glass of whiskey then started pondering about how he was going to apologize to Miss Rutherford.Christ. When had he become such an idiot? The moment she'd walked in his office he'd taken one look at her and decided she was trouble. Mr. Lachlan had called to ask if he could hire her and anyone who knew Vincent Lachlan knew that it was beneficial to have him owe you a favor. Hiring Miss Barret meant Mr. Lachlan owed him one.
BROKEN PROMISES FORTY SIX
"I swear I didn't know Princess. You have to believe me""How do you expect to do that when this is your company? Surely you had to know Jerkface had hired me. Or that Vince had sent me here""I agree that I should have known. But I was busy the week you started here. Your mother...." he stopped realizing that he was about to tell her he'd helped her mother decorate her house."What about my mother?""Nothing. I just mean that she can tell you how innocent I am."She tried to push him away but he wasn't going to move until she listened to him. And since talking was a waste of time when he used other means to persuade her. "No. I don't believe you. H... How.... W.... What... " Ray sm
BROKEN PROMISES FORTY SEVEN
She was avoiding him. Ray realized as he saw Alexis rushing to the elevator to catch up with her friends. He was glad to find out that Donnie was a cool laid back guy but what made him happy was that the guy wasn't interested in Alexis. He should have been ecstatic but he'd seen the way Duke looked at Alexis, with longing and admiration. Normally, Ray wouldn't do anything. Today was not normal. Especially when Alexis did everything she could to avoid talking to him. He knew he shouldn't have said those three little words.He hadn't meant to say them out loud. However, when she'd gotten on her knees, that was all he could think about. How much he loved her and how much she needed to know that. But clearly, that had been a mistake because every time Alexis saw him approaching her, she'd go the opposite direction or pretend to be busy. This morning they'd both stepped out of their apartments
BROKEN PROMISES FORTY EIGHT
They sat down, getting straight to business and Ray realized his mistake a little too late. He was so focused on talking to Alexis that he forgot she wanted to take their business away from them. But in his defense, he thought she'd forgotten about the stupid advice he'd given her. From the way she charmed Axel, it was clear she hadn't forgotten anything. By the time the meeting ended, Axel was half in love with Alexis and he knew without a doubt that if she went through with her plans, he'd be the first client she poached. There was no doubt Axel would follow her to the end of the earth. What was Copeland doing when all that went down? The moron was too busy admiring her to notice what was going on. At this rate, they really would be out of business. Shit. Note to remember, never invite Alexis to another meeting. Like ever.As Axel stood to leave, Ray held Alexis' elbow when she tried to
BROKEN PROMISES FORTY NINE
Alexis looked at all the flowers surrounding her and groaned. It was so like Marjorie to go and overdo something. She was the one who'd called asking why Ray thought other men were courting her, courtesy of him calling her to ask who they were. Of course, Alexis had denied everything at first but after an hour of nagging, she'd given up and told her friend why she'd lied. She wanted Ray to chase after her. Plain and simple.Connor hadn't worked for her time or affection. She had been so in love with him -at least she thought she was - that the second he'd kissed her she had agreed to be his girlfriend. And maybe that was why he took her for granted and cheated. Because she had been too easy. Isn't that what they said? Nothing that comes free holds it's value? In his eyes, she'd been willing to do anything for him. Even pay for hi
BROKEN PROMISES FIFTY
Leaving?Fear and disappointment washed over her. Had she overdone it? Was he tired of chasing her already? "You're leaving?" he must have heard her panicked expression because he sat down and pulled her onto his lap."For business. I'll be back after a week or so""Oh," she sighed. That one word holding so much relief."You didn't think I was giving up. Did you?""No, not really""Have a little faith in me, Princess. I don't like that I said it out loud because you could use it against me whenever you want to but I won't ever give up on you. I will chase after you every time you run and be sure that I will catch you. However long it takes. Okay?"
BROKEN PROMISES FIFTY ONE
Ray bounced his knee up and down in pent-up frustration. His flight was delayed for two hours. That was two more hours he should have been with Alexis. Two more hours he should have spent kissing her but he was stuck in an airport lounge. There was a lady working there who'd made passes at him several times and he'd had it. One more pass was all it would take to make him do something he'd never done before. Tell her to go screw herself.He was anxious to get back but what worried him was how Alexis would react. He'd picked up his phone a million times to call her but stopped himself last minute. He thought giving her time to miss him was the right thing to do. He was wrong. Henry had called him and according to Marjorie, her friend had been sad but after a few days, she'd started being mad at him. He had been instructed to go back home bearing gifts, expensive ones at that if he wanted he
BROKEN PROMISES FIFTY TWO
Alexis caught a glimpse of someone stomping off angrily and pushed Copeland away before their lips touched. Was that Ray she saw? Impossible. He hadn't called her to say he was coming and even if it was a surprise he would have made an appearance. She'd spent last night tossing and turning, wondering why he hadn't contacted her. She imagined how different this weekend would have been had he been there with there. She had planned to spend the whole day in bed shutting out the rest of the world but Copeland had shown up and convinced her to spend the day with him.They were friends. In the last two weeks, they'd spent a lot of time together since the other employees were wary of her. And while he was fun to be around, she really missed Ray. Copeland could make her laugh all he wanted but Ray made her happy. She hadn't realized until then how different those two things were. Whenever she was
Latest chapter
BROKEN PROMISES BONUS
Five years later "Natalia Catherine Lachlan, what are you doing?"Startled, she gasped and dropped the bowl full of flour, on the floor. "Nothing. I promise I didn't do anything""Then why is your face covered in flour? And what is that in your hair?""It wasn't my fault mommy. Jamie told me to do it"Alexis would have laughed but Talia needed to be taught a lesson. She was always blaming her little brother for everything she did even when it was clear she was the one who'd committed the crime. Ray and her grandfathers had spoiled her rotten. She had been folding the laundry when she
BROKEN PROMISES EPILOGUE 2
"That doesn't make sense""It is clear how much your boyfriend loves you and no matter how many times I've tried to scare him away, he wouldn't budge. He is so much like his father that I want to punch him every time I see him""You're such a bully. Why do you have to take your anger out on Ray? Your problem is with Vince. Not his son""But I don't want him to marry you even though he really is the right man for you. You're making Vince a part of this family. It's frustrating honey""I think you're getting old since you don't remember that Vince is Jasmine's husband." she didn't even want to understand what he was talking about so she let him be. If they started arguing about Ray, they'd never leave the house. Changing the subject she ask
BROKEN PROMISES EPILOGUE 1
"Wow you look like a princess""You forget that she is a Princess" Jazz bumped her mother smiling. They'd gone all out with the dress, a dazzling beaded bodice on flounced tulle ball gown that made her feel like the princess they kept calling her and the makeup was kept to a minimum. Her shoes were a pair of embroidered ivory lace heels that completed her look. She couldn't begin to imagine what they'd done with the venue.Ray had insisted on getting married in a church which was funny because normally the brides were the ones who did that. Not the bridegroom. But this was the man who loved her and wanted to make all her dreams come true. To him, that included giving her a church wedding. He really wasn't like any other man she knew, excluding her father of course. Last night he'd insisted on not s
BROKEN PROMISES SEVENTY EIGHT
"True" he replied straightening from the bed to stand in front of her. Slowly he took off his clothes, starting with the jacket then the bow tie. As he untucked his shirt, he noticed how her breathing had hitched and decided to give her show. Which was pure torture for him because he could see her glistening center from where he stood. Spread out and ready for him. But he was never one to back down from a challenge, especially if it involved her so he unbuttoned his shirt with trembling fingers. Inwardly rejoicing when he was one less button away from being naked. Then came his belt, pants, and boxers which proved to be difficult since he still had his shoes on. Alexis tried to close her knees together but he knelt between her to stop her, not wanting to lose sight of that wet pussy and kicked his shoes off while cursing because the action was taking too long. He snapped his head up when he heard her giggle.
BROKEN PROMISES SEVENTY SEVEN
"Ray" Alexis breathed, letting out air she hadn't known she'd been holding. It took a lot of effort on her part to keep a neutral expression on her face. A few minutes passed as she just stood there staring at him, afraid of blinking in case he was an apparition. When she was convinced that he was real, she let her shoulders sagged in relief. At that moment she wanted to do a lot of things like hugging him or kiss him or slap him but her body wouldn't move. She was frozen in place not actually believing her eyes. It was him. He was there, standing in front of her looking dashing in a tuxedo suit. Her breath caught in her throat and she wondered if this is the same man she'd seen in that orange jumpsuit. There was no trace of that man at all. The beard he'd had from days of not shaving was gone. The Ray standing in front of her was different and dare she say happy? But why would he be happy? Shouldn't he still be mad at her? And when did h
BROKEN PROMISES SEVENTY SIX
"Lexi you have an hour to get ready. Red or black?" Jayden barged into her room announcing. He had two gowns on either hand, holding them up for her to see."Did I miss something?""Yeah. Dad needs you to accompany him to this event he has to attend so hurry up""Really? Why can't mom go with him? I don't feel like going anywhere" she grunted letting her head fall back on the pillow. The police had told her that Copeland was the killer but it would take them a few days to let Ray go due to the amount of paperwork that needed to be signed. Add the fact that most government officials were on holidays, they'd said a week at most. She didn't know if he would come to see her or if he'd keep being mad at her. God forbid he went to see Odessa first. The thought of them together made her pull the
BROKEN PROMISES SEVENTY FIVE
"We found photos of you and your girlfriend, together and apart. It looked like he had been stalking you for a while. We also found the clothes he had worn when he'd killed ConnorGrey. They were hidden in his closet and the DNA matched. We're still investigating but all I can say for now is that your business partner was obsessed with your girlfriend. It happens when people think they're in love but by killing Mr. Grey, Duke Copeland had taken his obsession to the next level. There's no saying what he would have done to Miss Rutherford hadn't she ran from him. These kinds of cases are a bit hard to solve because we never really know when the perpetrator's behavior escalates. Most stalkers start out innocently. It's always to keep someone they love safe or just wanting to know the person's every move. Until they feel betrayed or something snaps inside them. Then they s
BROKEN PROMISES SEVENTY FOUR
She swallowed. How did he know about her apartment? Did Ray tell him? "Thank you. That was really nice of you""Anything for you my little bird," he said taking a bite of the bagel. It was the second time he'd called her that. She didn't want to know why he kept calling her 'little bird'. If she asked too many questions, she'd spook him. So she kept her mouth and ate her breakfast. Alexis was so busy trying to find a way out instead of actually eating, that she missed her mouth and spilled coffee on herself."Crap," she said standing up. Copeland did too."Don't worry. I'll get you something to clean the mess with" he said hurrying to the kitchen. She couldn't stop him this time so she did the only thing she could think of. Ran out the door barefoot. There was an elevator but she kn
BROKEN PROMISES SEVENTY THREE
Alexis paced back and forth in front of her bed fuming. She should have taken her mother's advice and pulled Odessa's hair. That damn woman was everywhere. She'd left home willing to give Ray a chance to explain himself. She was so ready to listen until she saw Odessa, sitting there and talking to him like she had every right to. But then again it was her fault, wasn't it? She'd served Ray on a silver platter when she'd told Odessa she could have him.Even so, she didn't think Ray would fall for her tricks. They'd signed the divorce papers. So then why did he keep seeing her? Wasn't there a rule about not keeping in touch with exes or something? Dammit. Why was she letting that woman get to her? Her intention hadn't been to fight with Ray. She had carried the ring in the hopes that he'd get down on one knee and propose the right away after th
