Zoey's POV
"Take off your top." Xavier demands as he pushes his bedroom door shut.
"What?!" He's not being serious is he? I slowly back away from him hitting the back of the bedpost. "No. I'm taking off anything. This was not apart of the contract."
"Forget the contract for a moment, just take off your top. We don't have much time." The man looks down at his watch before quickly taking off his shirt. "The sooner you get this over with, the sooner it will be over."
Earlier
I hop into the passenger side of the sleek red car just as Xavier purred it to life. This morning was kinda a bustle for me, seeing as I overslept through the alarm and had to litera
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Zoey's POV I swallow the bile now building in my throat as I stare over at Xavier standing there in his immaculate white attire. He really looks handsome, especially with those tattoos and stud earrings. Oh gosh. "Right, darling?" He smiles taking tiny steps as he walks over to me. I nod trying to get my brain to function properly as I stare in his hypnotizing green eyes. The man stops in front of me staring back into mine. Using his cold thumb he runs it across my bottom lip, sending familiar surges in my belly. "You have something on your lip darling," Xavier says, plopping his thumb in his mouth. My breath
Xavier's POV I walk over and sit on the bed beside her. I drop my head back on the velvet duvet, inhaling the rich scent. I remember the first day I got this room as a kid. It was like a prison… still feels like a fucking prison! Heaving a short sigh, I look over at Zoey. She stares ahead, seemingly lost in own thoughts. This whole taking her top off was to get us to pretend to have sex. My sister will be up here to check up on me, I don't want to appear like some wimp. I don't want it to look like I am upset because I am not even close. I wanted to punch that man so hard and, besides, running off made me look like some pussy. I don't want to be the fucking pussy of the family. That slot is already filled by my punk ass stepfathe
Xavier's POV Holding on to the last strand of sanity and restraint I have, I spin to face the sad excuse of a man as my lips turn up in a wide smirk. I know that he is trying to unravel me so all my logic and rational thinking will fly out the window and I'll make a fool out of myself. "Why hello to you too,Father." Bringing the cup of cold liquid to my lips I take a sip. I smirk at him over the brim much to his dissatisfaction. "You should try the punch dad. It's known to cure jackasses like yourself." His blue orbs grow even colder as he practically seethes in his own skin. Something that happens whenever he gets angry.
Zoey's POV Dear Diary, My parents died thirteen years ago. I became an orphan then my aunt put me up for adoption a month later. That's the story. The story of how the orphan girl came to live with the powerful Martinez family in upper Manhattan, New York. ~~~~~~~ "The winning word is antediluvian," the judge spoke into the microphone. Swallowing the bile in my throat, I looked out at the crowded auditorium. Great. I certainly didn't remember the seats being so full. I'm gonna screw this up. I sighed with relief when I caught the encouraging smile and huge thumbs
Xavier's POV "I need you to find out about," I loosen my strip tie as I stare out at the Seattle skyline. "Zoey's ex-fiancé, Troy Sinclair. I think he's the one who might have abused her a year ago. If he did, when you find him, I'd like for us to have a long chat." My head turns from the window when my office door bursts open revealing the one person I rather not see right now. Iwatch as the man crosses the threshold and enters the room, banging the door shut behind him. "Call me the second you find anything," I bite out before hanging up. Turning away from the picturesque view of Seattle with both of my hands buried inside my pants pockets, I face the man I loathed for years, who's now standing in the middle of my office. "I'm sorry, b
Zoey's POV "You're seriously not gonna tell me where we're going?" I ask incredulously as the corner of my lips curves up in a small smile. I like this feeling; being around him carefree, not walking on eggshells and worrying about screwing everything up with the utter of a single word. "Nope." Xavier spares me a smile, his bright eyes returning to the dark road ahead of us seconds later. He chuckles lightly after, helping to ease my anxious mind. I'm not sure if I'm nervous because I'm completely clueless about our date or because I'm going on it with Xavier Danvers, the man who is paying me to be his phony fiancée. This is gonna take a lot of getting use to, if we decide to continue...
Zoey's POVI dash into the next available stall like a mad woman and slam the door shut behind me. I immediately turn my nose up at the repulsive smell of rancid vomit and urine lingering in the stale air.I instinctively lock the tiny stall door, although it provides no assurance that my potential 'stalker' was not out there in the crowd waiting on the right time to pounce.Taking deep breaths I try to calm myself ignoring the murmurs from the other occupants. The need to relieve my bladder is long gone but just to be on the safe side, I put the stained toilet to good use.After exiting the stall minutes later, I set down my bag and phone on the cold counter and examined myself in the large bathroom mirror. To say I lo
Zoey's POV I freeze at his sentence. My skin grows hot as the question rings in my ear. Did he just said what I think he said? If he didn't I might be going crazy. "Hey," Xavier whispers, easing me off his chest so I can face him, "can you please say something? I fucking hate silence." I open my mouth but quickly snap it shut, not really sure what to say. "You know what. Don't answer, forget it. The last two minutes didn't happen." His voice holds neutrality and his face morphs into something I can't decipher. I can't tell if he is angry, sad or annoyed. "Xavier..." I begin to explain. How do I exactly? It was a simple question that needed a simple answer. I
Zoey's POV 6 months later "Thank you," Taking the glass out of Alex's hand, I examine the cold beverage. The water on the outside that runs down my bare hand sends a shiver up my spine. It is weird how she still sticks with me after all these months, after I straight up lied to her face for so long. She was the only one who actually reached out to me after though. I explained everything and we both agreed to forget about it. I haven’t seen her brother since that night, which is not really much of a surprise since he clearly disapproved of my pregnancy. He doesn’t care about the baby. He only sends handsome loads of money, along with the full ten million dollars I was promised, but I refuse to accept anything from him. He needs to learn that money can't fix everything. "It's the pasteurized stuff." She gives me a reassuring smile. Plopping back down on the lounge chair, she swirl in her own drink. "I made sure of it." I smile softly, thanking her again. I am just hyper conscious o
Xavier's POV I look over at the two beautiful women standing in front of me. A look of extreme guilt rests on both of their faces. "Does this have anything to do with what you wanted to talk about later?" I direct the question to Zoey, already knowing the exact answer: Yes, it does. Alex cast her eyes to the floor before quietly excusing herself, leaving Zoey and I alone in the long hall. She folds her slim arms across her chest looking down at the floor. "Come with me." I turn on my heel and walk to the nearest room so we can have a private conversation. What she said about thinking she was pregnant has been eating at me. She looked so hurt when she told me it was nothing. I guess that's why she has been avoiding me the entire week. She wants a child. If I'm being completely honest, I really do not want a kid right now. I have so many things to think of and balance. Having a kid would not be healthy for the both of us. I would need to give him or her all the love and support
Zoey's POV I groan looking at my reflection in the mirror. My hair is combed neatly in a sleek low ponytail and a light layer of makeup settle on my face. Twisting my body sideways I look down at my belly. I gently rub it. It's growing but it hardly shows; it just looks like I am a bit bloated. It has been a week since I came back here and my symptoms are getting worse. I have frequent headaches, my breasts are a bit tender and I am a little fatigued and more nauseous than usual. I have an appointment tomorrow though that I have to go to with Xavier. He'd been asking questions but I just shut him down every single time. I can't bring myself to tell him, this past week especially, after what happened last week. He has a right to know, that's why I plan on telling him tonight when we get back from this engagement dinner. It is his kid regardless of our situation. I step into a pair of flats and grab my purse from the bed. I was just about to leave when I see Xavier standing at th
Zoey's POV I try to suppress the disappointment and the dull pain in my chest, clutching it until I can hardly breathe. The newfound pain gnaw at my throat, coming out in the form of a silent cry. Beads of salty water carelessly fall from my eyes tainting my cheeks. I sniff, trying to control it, as I slowly slide down the bathroom door and unto the cold floor. A new wave of emotion struck my heart sending a chill through my entire body. I can hardly hold it back anymore. My soundless sobs rock my body as my shoulders convulse, forcing more tears to stream from my already blurry eyes. I can feel the hot tears dripping on my blouse and hands. I squeeze my eyes shut silently letting the tears weld there. I'm so stupid! How could I have been so stupid?! I lean my head back against the wall for support, an excruciating pain jab at my chest. My hands immediately falls to my belly, rubbing my it in a circular motions, whispering comforting words to our unborn child. How could he do
Xavier's POV I roll my eyes at Natasha who staggers through the doorway of her father's secret hoard of liquor. The strong scent of vodka, mixed with the cool air, takes over the foyer almost immediately. What the fuck is she even doing here? "Finally you made it," she slurs, hiccuping as she gives me a once over. Her eyes then flicker to Zoey. She clicks her tongue and raiseher eyebrows. "This should be fun." I look behind me at Zoey. She just rolls her eyes and stand her ground. I smirk, turning back around. I swear, if she so much as lets a letter slip from her mouth I'll fuck her up real bad. My mind automatically goes back to the day when I wake up in my office drunk and angry beside a naked Natasha. I grimace. Even now I can't remember what happened. Knowing this vindictive bitch though, she'd try to ruin my life every possible chance she got. Drunk or not. I roll my eyes once more taking in her drunken state. "Uh, babe, can you go up to our room? I need to have a w
Zoey's POV It's over. It's finally over. I squeeze my fiance's hand lightly as he gently tugs me through the small crowd filing out of the courtroom. The eagerly awaiting paparazzi and media outlets on the concrete step quickly run up to meet us, flashing their cameras and shoving microphones in our faces. Xavier's bodyguards quickly spring into action, trying to make a safe walkway for us to get to our car. "Right this way, sir." One of them guide us while the others tried to form a semi-circle to separate us from the thick crowd. I press the dark shades to my face in order to protect my eyes from the blinding flashes. General and personal questions are thrown my way but I ignore them. Do these people have, like, no chill? I feel extremely queasy as I absentmindedly hold my slightly puffy belly. I don't know whether it is due to the fact that I have morning sickness or that I have to relive my awful experience in that unpleasant courtroom, or maybe the fact that I'm basically
Zoey's POV My chest heaves in silence and burns painfully as tears flow freely from the corners of my eyes. All different scenarios play out in my head, but not one has a happy ending in which I walk away alive. "Okay." My voice comes out croaky, conveying the exact opposite of the emotion I am trying to portray. I hold my hands up in a form of surrender, trembling slightly from the awful thought of being put down from behind. "Just don't shoot, alright?" I slowly turn around, ready to face the bruised, unforgiving face of Troy, but stumble involuntarily when I saw Matthew a foot or two away aiming a gun directly at my head. I swallow instinctively and cast my eyes away from his, breathing heavily. "Go ahead then! Isn't this what you always wanted?!" My eyes dart back on him, not caring about the tears falling heavily from my already puffy eyes. "Go ahead and blow me to pieces! How dare you befriend me. How dare you try to come between Xavier and I?! You have some nerve—" "Go."
Xavier's POV "Look Dad, I don't have time for this bullshit! I need to find Zoey." I stop and look sharply at him. My fiancée has been missing for over an hour now, and this hedgehog wants me to talk about personal problems. He always finds a way. He will find a way. He's coming for me. Her words and frightened face haunts me every single moment I breathe. I really didn't have time for this shit. "So, like, stop following the fuck behind me." "You called me 'Dad'." He sighs, looking at me in disbelief, shoving his hands in his pants pockets. A smile slowly crawls on his face. Oh for fuck's sake! I look at him incredulously, shaking my head, then clasp my hands together shaking them at him. I try to reason with him. "My fiancée, the love of my life, is fucking missing, so do me a huge favor and get lost." I hols onto the railing and continue to climb the stairs. "Shouldn't be too hard, you've been doing it your whole life." "I just need to talk to you," I hear him yapping be
Zoey's POV Complete darkness. That's the first thing that I notice when I open my eyes. Hissing, I feel a sharp pain jolt through the back of my head as small white flashes of light dance around my vision in the dark. Everything hurt too much. It feels like a ticking bomb exploded in my head. My eyes burns painfully and I feel like throwing up due to a lack of fresh air. Slowly, my memory starts to drift back to my conscious mind, even though random bits and pieces are missing. Where the hell am I? I inhale deep, greedily gasping for clean air, only to breathe in the same hot, stale breath. The air becomes stuffy as my sweat and tears mingle before running off my face. There's something over my head! I reach out to grab the thick un-breathable fabric from my face, but my hands are bound to a sturdy object. Grunting, I pull at the rope, jerking around to loosen the grip, but it does not budge— not once. I, tiredly, close my eyes, fearing to take my last breath as life effortles