CHAPTER 19 : Gone Rogue...Nicky looked at him with bulged eyes but Jeffrey's twinkling blue ones made her nervous and look away."And...And why would you think so?" She stuttered, evading giving an answer. He shrugged thoughtfully."I dunno, but it kinda feels like it. You don't talk to me except you're forced to. You avoid me everytime we meet up at Rick's. You don't hang with me like you used to. And if we cross paths, you avoid contact and put some kind of....odd distance between us." He paused."Nick, you look away anytime you're with me....like you're doing right now." He noticed and playfully raised her chin with a curved finger.Nicky could feel it slipping. Gazing up at his pleasant features, she could feel her resolve slipping away.... And his finger on her wasn't helping at all.She slowly drew away."Fine. Maybe you're right. But it's best for me, you and Ricky if I just continue this way. Please, don't take it the wrong way." She murmured and made to leave but he gently
CHAPTER 20 : His Stunning Flower...Arian couldn't sleep a wink throughout the night. He kept turning and tossing in bed, tangling the sheets over and over again. Long before his alarm clock and the family's age long butler came into the room, he was fully awake, admiring the phone he forgot to return yesterday.The colorful pouch brimmed with energy. The designs were girly but in a way, mature. Untamed curiosity or plain idleness made the young master go through every inch and breath of the phone. Or, was it that subtle power of dominance a third generation French aristocrat naturally had that made him think it not rude to intrude? Anyway, it was easy because there was no lock on it. Period.At the end of it all, Arian concluded it was new as there wasn't much stuff on it. Not to seem...uhm, critical, by pertaining to a certain gender ...but typical of teenagers, the gallery was filled with tons of pictures!Selfies upon selfies of no actual event!!They all caught the young ma
CHAPTER 21 : His Stunning Flower (2).And number 9; Screw number nine! Arian wasn't leaving until the jerk had gotten a freaking broken nose! Why was he so mad?! He fumed, awaiting a pass.Well, there wasn't enough time for the young master to figure out why because Bianca FINALLY returned a pass! Natalia, who was dusting dirt off her clothes didn't see the ball coming.The crowd gasped and sat at the edge of their seats. There was no way she was gonna dodge the ball without getting hurt! Before Arian could miss a heartbeat, the JERK was faster and pulled her away. Unfortunately, they lost their footing and crash landed, tumbling over each other on the hard floor until they stopped. Everyone let out a scream!Elva, Nicky, Jeffrey, Ricky, the officials and a large crowd flew to them in a second. The first aid team also came. Leonardo was cradling Natalia tightly with his other hand shielding her head. They tried to stand but chuckled and ended up slumping back down again. Ricky
CHAPTER 22 : Caring..."I...I didn't...Leo, I...I'm sorry for..." She stuttered an apology but Leonardo cut her off with a smile. He didn't want her to feel bad."Well, your vegetarian meal is here. Bon appetite!" Nicky devilishly crowed, trying to lift the atmosphere and it worked!Leonardo groaned miserably, staring down at the tons of vegetables appearing at every corner of his plate and compared it with the corn chips and ketchup Natalia ordered for herself. Nicky and Elva were done with theirs and ordered some Danish pastry for dessert to wait up for them.Elva was fanatical with the sweet cake covered with icing, containing apple and nuts. Sweetness! She glowed and dug into it."Hey, would it be okay if Leonardo comes with us to the movies?" She looked at Nicky for permission. "Of course! The more, the merrier!" Nicky nodded gleefully and turned to him. "So, would you?" Leonardo looked up from his soup, grateful for the distraction. "Uhm...I dunno. Isn't it your girls night o
CHAPTER 23 : Lord Of The Friggin' Game!The young master stepped out of his car outside the Argent's manor. Immediately, a smartly dressed valet rushed over after him and drove the convertible, which was causing insane chaos outside, into the underground parking lot after bowing in greeting. But Arian didn't seem to notice him or the maids subserviently lined up outside to welcome him back home. His mind kept drifting between Natalia Kendall and Nicky Winterfield.Yes, they were two different people with different reasons for being distant. However, slightly the same were they when it came to the cold treatment. In one case, Nicky took on a more physical frontier. But in the other, the smiley face was the real emotional tease!Girls? Arian couldn't help sighing in resignation as he made his way to his room upstairs. He was in a hurry to step in, slam his door shut and go back into the peaceful quiet of his own world. He stepped out of the elevator and hurried by the restricted li
CHAPTER 24 : The Californian Beauty."Oh my!" Jeffrey heard her coo, taking in a sharp breath. "Isn't he lovely!""He sure is! Got that from me." Sir Campbell smugly chipped making Jeffrey roll his eyes. He focused on his phone ignorant of the mighty scoff he'd let out which silenced the entire room.His father recomposed himself and cleared his throat. "Jeffrey, I want you to meet Felicity... She's going to be your new mother.""It's a pleasure finally meeting you, Jeff! I've heard so much about you and can't wait for us to get along." She cheerfully beamed.Jeffrey raised his head and shot her a hard glare, ultimately taking a good look at her.The Californian beauty was a stunning shoulder length bottle blonde with black eyes that shone brighter than crystals. And oh, she had an exquisite aura....weighing the amount of priceless pearls she had on. Meanwhile, the new Madame, Felicity Campbell, was thrown off guard by the look on her step-son's face!"Firstly, you don't get to call
CHAPTER 25 : Spellbound With Each Other (1)...The same thing happened the next morning at the Campbell mansion. The young Campbell bumped into the new Madame, muttered a greeting, denied her invitation to breakfast and drove off to nowhere in mind.Jeffrey's personality found it difficult being cold and indifferent, so running away was his best option.After cruising around town aimlessly and spending hours at his mom's grave, he drove to Rick's and met Arian there as well. Thankfully, it saved him the trouble of giving a double story time!"You what?!" They simultaneously blurted out in shock."Have a new mother." Jeffrey casually replied."So, you have a new mother?" Ricky's head was still trying to wrap around the whole revelation. Arian looked like he wanted another confirmation too."Wow. I've been speaking in Hindu all the while, huh?" He snapped, throwing a dart which landed at the bull's eye perfectly."Well, forgive us but it's a lot to take in. It's been almost....what...de
CHAPTER 26 : Spellbound With Each Other (2)...Natalia had never been a night crawler all her life! Every royal duty the princess had ended by six and by nine, she was required to be in bed. But now, her night was just beginning and she was nervous!From one end of the hall to the other, club rock blasted so loudly with the beat so crazy! The crowd was ecstatic, dancing under the dim lights of disco balls and hazy fog, and tipsy out of their freaking minds. The whole underground club was wild!Natalia nervously held on tightly to Leonardo as they made their way down the stairs into the insanity. Suddenly, she lowered her gaze feeling uncomfortable with the looks she was getting.Was it that awful to be so pretty? No one kept their eyes to themselves any more. And to make matters worse, Arian was right there staring and she couldn't stop herself from staring back.It was slowly becoming an addiction. He was slowly becoming an addiction. Natalia chastised herself at that thought and f
CHAPTER 185 : Final Epilogue. ( Beverly Hills, California. ) "What are you doing?!" She bulged her eyes and moved away. "What?" Arian sheepishly groaned. "Don't 'what' me! You know what I mean!" She stated, playing their usual nightly 'what' game.....which usually followed the same pattern. Arian seductively wrapped his arms around her and pulled her closer. "We have the rest of the night to ourselves." He deliciously bit his lips and swept down to capture hers.But Natalia stepped away. "I need to check if the twins have yanked their heads off already." She tried to escape but Arian blocked her. "You're just coming from the nursery." He sexily pouted and Natalia almost gave in. She shook her head to reject the temptation. "I think it's time for Adrian's milk." She tried again but Arian easily caught her. "Adrian's asleep and his milk isn't until midnight. So..." He kissed her and slowly
CHAPTER 184 : Epilogue (2). ( Beverly Hills, California. ) "By the way, where is Jake?" Elva curiously asked. "He had some work to do and promised to be here this evening." Naomi answered. Natalia had set up a special committee of her most trusted ministers to hold the Empire for a few days. Jake was among the members so he had a little delay. "I really admire you." Naomi continued, taking the attention away from herself. "Being an Empress, a wife, a mother, a philanthropist and also a role model, all in one package!" She dramatised. "It's no wonder you haven't changed much with three kids! On the contrary, it made you hotter. I'm just expecting my second child but I feel like a granny!" Nicky joked and fondly rubbed her huge baby bump. "No! You're not a granny. You're my mommy." Louisa raised her head and pouted.The girls giggled when Nicky blushed. "It's no wonder you don't miss Jeffrey whenever he goes away on b
CHAPTER 183 : Epilogue. ( Beverly Hills, California. ) "How was your night?" Arian kissed Natalia as Adrian rubbed baby drool all over his face. Natalia stretched lazily and closed her eyes. "Stressful." She pouted. "I know, right? This champ is quite a handful at night.'' He tickled Adrian who hung on his neck like King kong. "Da-da! Da-da!!" He squealed happily which echoed arouund the room. "As if you weren't a handful yourself." She scoffed and turned away, pulling the duvet closer around her. It made Natalia a little jealous that Adrian hadn't yet learnt to call her mama. In fact, Dada was the only word he knew! Arian noticed it and chuckled, pulling her back to face him. As usual, he was shirtless wearing only sweatpants. Some habits were just so hard to break! Not that Natalia was complaining though. It made her husband look uncontrollably sexy! Adrian grinned down at his mama in his diapers. Fa
CHAPTER 182 : The Seal Of Their Love. ( Astheria, Australia. ) Still sitting on the floor, Naomi slowly arranged her things inside a cardboard box. She shivered a bit because she was still wearing her clothes. But Naomi didn't care. There was more important things to be done than caring if she had gotten a cold by wearing her wet clothes for so long that it'd dried still on her. A knock sounded on the door. "Please go away. I'm a little busy." Her hoarse voice sounded. Naomi knew the visitor wasn't on an official business. If the Empress or the royal assistant needed her, they'ld have easily sent an email. And so far, they hadn't. Naomi couldn't blame them though. She felt embarrassed and hated her family's history. And after everything they had done to the Santianas, she couldn't bare to look at anyone anymore. After a while, the knock sounded again and this time, the person walked in without consent. Naomi didn't bother to l
CHAPTER 181 : Where's Naomi? ( Astheria, Somewhere in continent Australia. ) ( Hours Later. ) "She's not in danger but I still recommend a lot of rest. You can see her. Just make it as quick as possible." The aged doctor whispered and walked away. Elva Thompson and Jake Buniz nodded before walking into the Royal study. They found Natalia leaning on her desk, gently running her fingers over her grandmother's diary. Louis had kept it safe like he'd promised. "You should be resting. Doctor's orders." Elva let out a small frown in displeasure. "I'm fine." Natalia curtly said and stood up. The thick sweats she was wearing matched with her pale skin. She returned the diary to one of the drawers and faced them back. "Tell me. The casualty report?" She ordered. "We lost a good number of our men while the rest are being taken care of." Jake reported. "And Max?" Jake lowered his cold eyes in hes
CHAPTER 180 : The Battleground (3). ( In The Carribean Ocean.) The Mob boss snickered which sounded like something made in hell and back hugged Natalia, erotically pulling her closer. Arian fought the impulse to take a step and lunge at him! He was purposely riling him up to draw him into the sensors! "Tsk! Don't make her feel bad!" He clicked his tongue. "You were smart, my love. But sentimentality was all I needed to sneak into your lives.... And you gave it to me." He nuzzled her hair and possessively trailed kisses down her neck. Arian's insides cringed feeling his control slowly snap while Natalia's self hate increased each passing second. "Let her go!" Arian snarled, running out of patience and clenched his fists. "And you expect me to ask 'Or what?'." Leonardo cocked a cocky brow. "Look around you, fool! We ain't in some shitty movie. This is my turf! I run this freaking game!" He viciously barked. "What do you want?" A
CHAPTER 179 : The Battleground (2). ( In The Carribean Ocean.) Meanwhile, the automatic doors trapping Arian De' Argent in the hallway reopened after the lights had suddenly turned off and returned after five seconds. Arian turned to continue the search for his love but stopped when Naomi froze....and then fainted. He hastily caught her before she could crash land. "Hey, hey!" He called seeing her drowsy eyes. "What..." The French heir froze on his interrogation when he saw four darts pierced into her pretty brochette and a fifth one stuck on the skin of her neck. Naomi had thrown herself in front of Arian when she noticed the danger he was in without thinking. Arian pulled them out and tapped her lightly. "Hey, stay with me, okay?" The timid spy tried to nod but the snake venom was working tremendously fast, already at the second stage of the symptoms which was total paralysis. "Hey!" Arian yelled. "What?!" Max yelle
CHAPTER 178 : The battleground (1). ( In The Carribean Ocean.) "Who do you want to go first?" He casually, but deviously asked. The gunshots continued more fiercely and through the cameras, Natalia and the few in the room could see the gory battle going on. As observers seeing the whole battle ground, anyone could bet that Astheria had an upper hand! "The only game we'll be playing is the one you'll be losing." She seethed in confidence. Leonardo coldly smirked which gave her goosebumps for some reason before placing his hand on a screen which scanned his fingerprints. "Good evening, Master. How may I be of service?" The voice of an artificial intelligence echoed from thin air. "Ava, place the fortress on lockdown." He ordered. "As you wish, Master." A moment later, metal doors sprung up trapped everyone in. Those who were fighting outside couldn't get in and those who were in couldn't get out. Natalia's heart skipped a be
CHAPTER 177 : Let's Play A Game, Shall We?... ( In The Carribean.) "Something is wrong." Jake Buniz stated, pacing restlessly around the communication tent. The geniuses among the little battle squad was in the same tent, doing what they did best with the gadgets and devices in there. They were all dressed the same with silent and serious features. "She should've made contact by now." The Captain of the army continued. "Let's think more positively. It could be that Naomi hasn't yet located the Empress.... Even though it's not really a positive thought. However, you above everyone else knows how shady these Kelions are. There's still a few hours till midnight. We should give her a little more time." Max offered, more relaxed than his superior as as he typed away on a computer. "I trust my instincts. And right now, something doesn't feel right." Jake stopped behind him and leaned over with a hand on his chair and the other on the table.