Lola Coker doesnât pray very often. Yet she made a sloppy sign of the cross, touching her forehead, chest, and shoulders before springing up from her chair and walking past the door, tiptoeing to the entrance of the storeroom which was close to the kitchen. The store roomâs door was left slightly ajar, letting Mariaâs sweet voice and laughter filter out of the room. Lola gulped and paused to listen in, careful not to lean on the door and make a noise.âYeah that, I remember...â Maria said and laughed into the phone. âYou wanted turkey on the menu. I wanted us to try the chicken stripes. How could I forget?.âAt first, the one-sided conversation from Maria on Lolaâs end made no sense. But slowly, Lola could vaguely guess what they were on about. âA dinner? lunch? HmmmâŠhave they known each other that long?.â Lola thought.âThe girls?.â Maria asked suddenly.âGirls?.â Lola concentrated once again. She and Aria? Is he perhaps..someone they know?âThey are having breakfast..â Maria cont
âSister-in-law?.â Xena repeated with a frown. Biancaâs head was lifted proudly and she wondered what exactly it was that made Bianca so sure that she would succeed at her ridiculous mission of becoming Noahâs wife. Bianca smirked, she could see the confusion in Xenaâs eyes and it pleased her. That confusion was all that she needed. She waved a nearby waiter who carried a tray of drinks over just as Xena suddenly moved closer to her and whispered. âWhatever schemes you are planning would fail. I would never let my brother get married to a murderer like you.â Then she stepped back with a broad smile on her face.The waiter had arrived but Biancaâs hands which had reached out for the drink hung in mid-air shaky and unsteady, with the wineglass in her hand. MurdererâŠHer eyes shut tightly as sudden images of blood on both of her hands flashed before her. Unexpectedly, the wine glass she was holding fell off her shaky hand, breaking into tiny bits the instant it came in contact with the f
âAfter the party. Everyone should stay back and spend the night at the mansion. You can leave after the meeting.âSpend the night?âOkay, Father,â Andy responded and looked at Ava who shrugged. It was okay by the older couple. The Sanchez Ancestral home was where they lived anyway. Lola looked at Noah. The man was staring right back at her, he could sense the reluctance she had against the old manâs sudden announcement.âGrandfather.â Noah abruptly spoke out and pulled the attention of everyone at the table to him.Grandfather Sanchez sighed. Then he put on the most stoic expression that a patriarch of the Sanchez family could summon before looking up at his grandson who he knew was about to make a clashing comment to disregard his instruction. âWhat is it?.â He asked.âYou see... âNoah started. âLola doesnât look too well. Iâll have to take her home so she can get some rest. How about we return for the meeting first thing in the morning?.âLolaâs face flushed as she stared down at h
Lola and Noah stood awkwardly in the living room as the door closed behind them. They were still fully dressed in their party wear. âWill go get changed.â Lola hastily said, breaking the quietness in the room. When they had been in the hall with the other people present, it had been easy to face Noah casually, but now, with just him, facing Noah made Lola feel so nervous. She heard no reply from Noah so she moved in the direction of the bedroom door. Lola stopped abruptly when shortly recalled that her clothes had been carted away by the familyâs servants to the penthouse when she had moved in with Noah.âFuck!.. what am I supposed to change into now?.â She murmured to herself. There was probably nothing of hers left in there right now.As if guessing Lolaâs thoughts, a deep voice spoke up from behind. âSome of your clothes are still in the closet, check them out, there should be something.. suitable.ââOh. okay.â âLola.â Noah suddenly called and Lola stopped. Her right hand was onl
Five cold showers and even more pain.âWhat the fuck..â Noah groaned as he fell next to Lola on the bed unstable.Despite Rosewoodâs chilly weather at this time of the year plus the cold water shower treatment applied on his body barely twenty minutes ago, Noah started to feel his body get hotter and his lower member slowly rose once more.âMmmm..â The girl on the bed moaned out from her sleep again and Noahâs eyebrows furrowed. Lola had been moaning out quite often and shifting on the bed too frequently in the past hour which was unusual of her. The scent of jasmine in the room got stronger and Noah knew that it was not coming from Lola. Lolaâs jasmine scent was subtle and mild but this.. It was simply too strong.At this moment, Noah did not need to be told to know that something was off. And that thing, whatever it was, had something to do with the potent jasmine scent in his room. A scent that was not only affecting him but also, the drunk moaning woman on the bed.At this sudden
âI will take responsibility.âA voice that Lola had come to grow familiar with spoke up from his position on the leather couch. Lola stiffened and held the part of the blanket that covered a generous part of her body closer to herself. She tore her eyes away from the red patch on the bed. From his words, she knew that he must have also seen it. A twenty-two-year-old virgin. What did Noah Sanchez think of her? Pity?. Is that why he offered to take responsibility for her? Did Noah feel pity for her?Ignoring the pain between her legs, she got off the bed wrapped the blanket more tightly about her body, and pretended not to have heard him say a word.Noah held his breath. Lolaâs silence was killing him and it made him more anxious than ever. Was she mad at him?.. Of course, she was.He stood up from the cushion, no longer able to sit still, and simply crossed the distance between them. The woman on the bed hurriedly shifted before he could reach her. She took some steps back just before
âI donât want another contract with you Lola. Letâs do it properly this time, no contracts between us. A sincere relationship...âNoahâs words to her before her departure from the mansion had Lola choking up with tears again in the backseat of the vehicle that Noah had provided to take her back home. âStop the car,â Lola ordered in a barely audible voice. The vehicle immediately came to a stop and halted at a park close to her apartment. Tony, who she had not seen in a long time was watching her from the passengerâs seat. He sighed and reached over to the back seat of the vehicle, he reached for the Kleenex box and handed it over to the teary woman in the backseat. âThe weather is chilly maâam.â Lola mumbled a grateful âthanksâ and accepted the tissue box from him, She wiped her face with some pieces from it and returned the box to its initial position. âI will take a walk from here.â Lola declared and gathered her stuff from the backseat, which included her little purse and a bag
âMiss Sanchez..â the designerâs assistant called with a slight bow and extended Xenaâs phone to her once more. âYou have another call maâam.â the young woman said.âThank you,â Xena said politely and received the phone. She picked up the call on its last ring while the designers worked on fitting the ropes of her corset from behind.âXena.â Tylerâs voice called out from the other end of the line breathlessly. âWhy would you pick the call up and hang up? Are you still mad at me?.âXena scoffed. âIsnât it amazing how you only manage to remember me after one whole week mister? What if I was already dead from our little scheme? You deserted me in the wild to suffer and ran home to a loving shelter.â She accused, her voice starting to rise. The designers continued with their work unconcerned with their clientâs screaming.Tyler held a hand up to his forehead at the other end, helpless at Xenaâs exaggeration of the whole matter while his other hand remained on his carâs wheel. âIâm sorry duc