"Charlotte?" Claire and her mum said simultaneously, their voices filled with surprise."Claire? Are you... wait a minute." Charlotte squinted, a slow realization dawning on her face. "You're Mrs. Smith's troublemaker daughter! How did I not realize that earlier?"Claire's jaw clenched, her expression tightening with irritation, but she forced herself to remain silent. Her mum, however, stood up eagerly, a wide smile spreading across her face. "Oh, my goodness! It's been years!" She rushed forward, her eyes lighting up at the sight of Charlotte, the daughter of the family from the last house where she had worked as a maid.“It's been so long, Charlotte! I almost didn’t recognize you," Claire’s mum exclaimed, her face lighting up as she rushed forward and pulled Charlotte into a tight hug.Charlotte stiffened for a moment and rolled her eyes. "Fancy meeting you here... I almost didn’t recognize you either," she said, pulling back and giving Claire's mum a quick up-and-down glance. A sm
Claire almost choked on her food when she saw his text. She managed to flash a smile and quickly told her mum she needed to use the restroom. Once there, she called Alexander, and he picked up almost immediately. "Why didn’t you answer your phone?" His voice sounded tense over the line. "How do you know I’m at Rico’s Diner? Did Charlotte tell you?" "You still haven’t answered my question. Why didn’t you pick up your phone?" "Well, maybe because I can decide not to. How the hell is that your business?" "You're always so eager to argue, and it seems you've forgotten I have your live location. I see you ran into Charlotte at the diner. Are you worried she'll tell me who you were with?" "I'm with my mum, in case you're wondering. I wouldn’t go on a date, at least not while we're still married." "I see her surgery went well. Good." "Well, now that you know, I’m hanging up." Here’s the corrected version of your text: "So, that means you’re staying out tonight?" "Isn’t t
Tess proceeded to share how she was Alexander’s former secretary and had tried various tricks and tips to get him into bed with her so she could marry him. However, all her attempts failed, and in the end, she was dismissed from her position and given another role within the company. She was still grateful because he could have fired her completely. "I guess he still has a bit of humanity in him," Claire thought to herself after hearing Tess’s story. "That’s how I know he’ll never look at you, even if you try," Tess concluded with a bright smile. This made Claire wonder what her fate with him would be and made her more determined to keep her job at all costs. Her contract would soon be over, and there was no hope of Alexander ever having a change of heart toward her, not that she wanted him to, or so she thought. On their way back to the office, Claire received a call from Alexander, asking her to come up to his office. She excused herself from Tess and took another elevator to
When they arrived home, everything was already packed for their overnight stay in Paris. Claire barely had time to shower and change her clothes due to Alexander’s rush. Once they finally got into the car, she had a quick conversation with her mum over the phone, explaining that she was on a work trip and would be back tomorrow. "If you're worried about leaving your mum by herself, I can send Mrs. Hamptons to stay with her," Alexander said, noticing the worried look on Claire's face. "That would be a great idea if my mum knew I was married to a billionaire, but she doesn’t. So, let's keep it at that. Nice idea, though." They soon arrived at the airport and were warmly ushered to the lounge. It didn’t take long before they were transported by car to the departure terminal, where they would board Alexander’s private jet. Despite knowing how wealthy he was, Claire never failed to be amazed every time. Claire looked around in awe as they settled into the private jet. The interior
Claire was flustered, both from the mistake and from how close Alexander was almost naked. "They look the same, that's why I made a mistake," she muttered, trying to slip past him to retrieve her own luggage. But Alexander blocked her way, leaning in even closer.Her breath hitched from how close he was.“What’s wrong? It’s not like it’s the first time you’ve seen me like this,” he teased in a playful voice enjoying her reaction.Claire gulped while looking everywhere except his face. "Yes, it's not the first time, but please make it the last," she replied, trying to maintain her composure.Alexander’s lips curved into a smirk. “I’ll see what I can do,”She quickly rushed past him, grabbed her luggage, and went back to her room. Slamming the door behind her, she placed a hand on her chest, trying to calm her loudly beating heart.She got into the shower, singing as she washed to distract herself from thinking about Alexander’s broad chest and toned abs. She dressed quickly, wanting to
Morgan looked shocked and quickly dropped his hand from her waist. He moved closer to Alexander, whispering, “What do you think you’re doing? Do you really think I’ll agree to sign this deal after this?” “You’re the one who put your hands on my employee without her consent. How dare you? I came here solely out of respect for the relationship your father and mine built. Even though I know your company is crumbling, and your only hope is to invest in mine, I’m glad I now have a valid excuse not fo save your shorty company now.” Morgan scoffed. "Steele... you bastard." "Thank you for being such a jerk," Alexander replied, his voice cold. He grabbed Claire's wrist, who was still frozen in place. “Let’s go.” As they turned to leave, Morgan’s voice rang out behind them, “Steele! You think I’ll let this slide?” Alexander stopped abruptly, letting go of Claire's hand. Without a word, he grabbed a champagne glass from a nearby table and tossed the contents into Morgan’s face. "That’s
Claire barely slept a wink all night, torn between anger at Alexander for not letting her finish and dreading facing him the next day.The day finally broke, and sunlight streamed through the window. “It’s morning,” she muttered to herself, dragging herself out of bed and into the bathroom for a shower. After getting ready, she paced back and forth in her room for a while, gathering the courage to open the door. Just as she did, she came face to face with Alexander with his hand raised, about to knock."I was going to inform you that our flight got delayed by four hours, so do whatever you want with that info," he said before turning and heading straight back to his room.Claire scoffed, feeling her anger rising. She knew she'd suffocate if she stayed in the suite with him, so she decided to explore the city. It was her first time there anyway. She went back into her room, grabbed her purse and phone, and was already in the elevator when she texted him, "I'll be back an hour before th
Claire was rushed to the hospital by paramedics after the incident. Alexander had called emergency services and cradled her in his arms, whispering, “Claire, stay with me,” over and over until they arrived, ignoring Morgan’s repeated offers to drive her to the hospital.When the paramedics arrived, Alexander stepped back, allowing them to take over. They carefully placed Claire on a stretcher and into the ambulance, and he climbed in with them. As the paramedics treated her head injury, Alexander held her hand tightly, his clothes stained with her blood.She was rushed into the ER at the hospital, and a nurse approached Alexander, asking about his relationship to the patient.“I’m her husband,” he replied sharply.“Come with me, you’ll need to sign some papers.” He followed the nurse, completing all the necessary paperwork. After about thirty to forty minutes of waiting impatiently in the lobby, the doctor who had attended to Claire finally appeared.As soon as Alexander saw the docto
It was already late when Alex returned home. He slipped off his jacket and flung it over the sofa before sinking into it with a deep sigh. His body ached with exhaustion, and he assumed Claire had already gone to bed until he heard faint sounds coming from the kitchen. A frown creased through his brows seeing It was too late for Mrs. Hamptons to still be around.Alex got up and took careful steps towards the kitchen quietly. The sight that greeted him was Claire wearing a short red nightgown that clung to her figure. Her hair was slightly tousled, and her lips glistened as she drank from a glass of water.She noticed him and smiled. "Hey, you're back."For a moment, Alex couldn't speak. He just stood there, staring, his lips parted as though he'd forgotten how to breathe.She looked so effortlessly stunning it was almost painful."Alex?" Her voice snapped him out of his daze."Uh, yeah. I just got back," he said, trying to sound casual but failing miserably."I was worried, so I staye
The news spread quickly on social media: Charlotte Briggs was not Alexander Steele’s real wife. As expected, her father’s company, which was finally getting back on track, took a huge hit. Charlotte was furious as she scrolled through post after post mocking her. People accused her of trying to take what wasn’t hers, calling her a liar for pretending to be Alexander’s wife. Some even said she deserved everything that was happening for staying quiet when the rumors started. Her anger boiled over when she read one comment: “The great Charlotte Briggs lost to a nobody. How embarrassing!”“Ugh!” she screamed, grabbing her phone and throwing it against the wall. It shattered with a loud crash. At that moment, her father stormed into the room. Charlotte jumped to her feet, quickly fixing her short dress and trying to compose herself. “Dad… I…” she began, forcing a nervous laugh, but her father’s furious glare stopped her in her tracks. He cut her off with a sharp slap across her fa
When they entered Alex’s office, Charlotte was already there with her phone clutched tightly in her hand as she tapped her heel impatiently on the polished floor.The moment Alex stepped inside, she sprang to her feet and marched toward him, shoving her phone in his face. "Have you seen this? I told you she’s not worth all the time and effort you’re wasting on her! Just divorce her already!"Alex glanced at the image on her phone, “Where did you get those pictures?” He asked in a low tone and a dismissive expression on his face.“Does it matter?” Charlotte snapped. “What matters is that she’s not faithful to you. Look at this! Another man is kissing her it’s right here, plain as day!”Claire entered the room just then. She tilted her head slightly “Judging from the urgency in your voice, Charlotte, I’m guessing you didn’t know the full story behind this.”Charlotte’s face twisted in anger. “How dare you still act all coy and sly after this?! You’ve been caught red-handed!”Claire cros
The room went silent as the weight of Alex words sank in. Loud gasps soon filled everywhere at the realization of what was happening. It was as if everyone processed their thoughts at the same time. The manager paled, taking a step back. "Sir, I—I didn’t know—" “You didn’t know?” Alex interrupted, his voice cold now. “So you thought it was okay to assault a colleague? Do you have any idea what you’ve just done?” “Sir, I—” “Save it. I don’t want to hear another word from you.” Alex turned to his secretary. “Call HR. I want this man out of this building immediately.” “Yes, sir,” the secretary replied, already pulling out her phone. Alex turned back to Claire, gently taking her hand away from her cheek to assess the damage. "Are you okay?" he asked softly. She nodded, though her eyes brimmed with tears. “I’m fine,” she whispered, her voice breaking slightly. “You won’t have to deal with him again. I’ll make sure of it,” Alex said firmly. He placed a comforting hand
The next morning, Alex checked Claire’s room and found it empty, which immediately set off alarm bells in his mind. Worried, he picked up his phone and called her. A familiar ringtone sounded from downstairs, and he rushed down to find her already dressed for work and sipping a cup of milk at the kitchen counter. "Why are you calling me?" she asked, glancing at him over her cup. "You weren’t in your room," Alex replied, still slightly out of breath. "I couldn’t sleep, so I decided to get ready for work early," she replied with a tired smile. Alex walked over to her, with concern across his face. "Are you sure you want to go to work today? You don’t have to push yourself." "Thanks for the concern, but I’m fine," Claire assured him, though the bags under her eyes told a different story. "I promise." Alex wasn’t convinced in the slightest. "Claire, after everything that happened yesterday, maybe you should take the day off. Rest. You know, process things." She shook her hea
Claire couldn’t stop replaying what happened earlier in her mind during the ride home with Alex. She sighed occasionally, which set the tension in the car and it made Alex curious about what might be going on. Alex cleared his throat noisily to ease the tension that settled between them “I see you’ve got a new intern on your team,” Alex said, attempting to break the silence. “What’s he like?” “Oh, yeah, he’s... cool, I guess,” Claire replied dryly in a short and distant tone. Alex frowned at her dry response. “Any problems with him so far? You can tell me.” He pushed even further. “No problem,” she said quickly, brushing off the question. Alex’s grip on the steering wheel tightened slightly. “You don’t talk to me about your day. Why is that? Do you feel uncomfortable with me?” Claire turned to look at him with a mix of frustration and exhaustion on her face. “It’s not that I feel uncomfortable,” she said after a pause. “It’s just that everything I say would probably soun
The rest of the week went by in a blur, with Claire and Alex continuing their routine of going to work and returning together without raising any suspicions at the office. Claire's manager didn't make her work life any easier with his constant snarky remarks, often delivered with a smirk that made her blood boil. His passive-aggressive comments about her work ethic and position in the company ate away at her patience daily, but she held her tongue. She didn't want to cause any issues for herself or Alex. The last thing she needed was for him to feel obligated to intervene on her behalf, which could only stir up more drama.It was during one of these tense workdays that the announcement of a new intern was made. Claire was in the middle of proofreading a report when her manager strolled in, barely glancing up from his clipboard."Smith," he said with an indifferent tone."You'll be supervising the new intern. His desk is being set up next to yours."Claire looked up, caught off guard.
Tess was on her way home when her phone buzzed with a call from an unknown number. She hesitated, then answered and she was surprised to hear an older woman’s voice on the other end, asking her to meet at a nearby cafe. The woman claimed she had some information about Claire that Tess "would want to know." Tess wanted to ignore but her curiosity piqued, so she agreed to meet her and made her way over.When she arrived at the cafe, she immediately spotted Mrs. Steele sitting by the window. Tess recognized her instantly, having seen her around the company for years. She walked over cautiously, and Mrs. Steele looked up, her expression cold and direct.“You’re” Mrs Steele said and flashed a smile. She gestured to the seat in front of her “Please have a seat”Tess was totally confused as to what was happening but she took her away slowly with the visible confusion on her face.“Judging from your face, you definitely wasn’t expecting to see me here”“Yes ma’am. I thought I’ve heard the voi
Claire gave a polite bow to Alex. “We’ll continue our conversation later, sir,” she murmured, before quickly stepping out of the elevator.“Why are you on this floor?” Alex asked, turning to Tess, who looked startled.“Uh, yes, I just had some files to drop off for you,” Tess stammered.“You can leave them with my secretary and get back to work,” Alex said curtly.“Yes, sir,” Tess replied, hurrying over to the secretary’s desk to drop the files before scurrying away. Claire turned to follow, but Alex’s voice stopped her in her tracks.“Miss Smith, we’re not done with our conversation.”Claire bit her lip, a hint of irritation crossing her face as she turned to meet his gaze. Alex’s expression was unreadable as he stepped into his office, leaving her no choice but to follow him closely.“What were you thinking?” Claire demanded as she closed the door behind her. “She clearly saw you holding my wrist. And we were together in an elevator only you have access to. Then you went and made it