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[MADDOX]By the time I left Zara’s home, it was already half past six in the morning. The sun had climbed, and the sky had brightened enough to get a good view of the peaceful neighborhood. It never crossed my mind earlier, but the locality was actually a decent place for people with families. And as if to confirm my doubt, I turned around to read the plate on the house. It belonged to someone with the last name, Stewart.Odd.I was determined to get back to it later when my body wasn’t screaming for a long cold shower and my chest wasn’t tightening at the thought of leaving Zara alone in the house with no one to make sure she slept enough after the all-nighter we pulled.The thought of her still naked under the sheets had my dick throb with blood scurrying down to it all over again.Honestly, what the fuck was wrong with me?I never stayed at any girl’s place ever in my life. It was one rule I followed with passion. One, because the thought of being at a place other than mine never re
[ZARA]“How much time more, Z? We’re already late!” Brandon yelled from outside my room.I pushed another bobby pin through the loose bun that had taken me longer than I’d like to admit.“Coming!” I yelled back, taking another glance in the mirror to make sure my dress looked fine. I picked up my clutch from the bed and dashed out of the room within ten seconds.“Will it kill you to be a bit patient?” I grumbled, glaring at him as I slipped into the heels near the doorway, an arm propped on the wall for support.He only rolled his eyes, not even sparing a glance at me. “Will it kill you to get ready on time for once? I thought puberty would bring some solid changes in your habits. Alas, all nothing but wishful thinking.”“You’re such an ass!” I shook my head, not wanting to get into another argument. Especially not when he already seemed to be on so much edge.It had been a month since I saw Maddox Richmond for what he really was. A top-class, over-the-head asshole who single-highhand
“What the hell was that?” I asked him instead and watched as he exhaled a deep breath and looked in her direction. She seemed to be in a conversation with a few women, her back turned to us.“Isn’t she pretty?” he said in a daze and I smacked him in the head one more time because, well, because he deserved it for keeping it from me.“What the hell was that for?” he snarled, clearly annoyed.“For having hots for a girl that hot and not telling your best friend about it.”“It’s not what you think,” he said almost ruefully, as if he positively believed he wasn’t good enough for her.“What’s the problem? She clearly seems to have a thing for you.”“It’s her family. Didn’t you hear? It’s her cousin’s wedding.”He meant she belonged to a super-rich family, the one he was there to impress.“You give yourself very little credit, Brandon. You’re successful, too. Her father is a client of your business.“Well, that’s half the problem. I shouldn’t even think about her. Her father might be my cli
[MADDOX]“What did you do to piss off a woman that bad?” My younger brother, Nathan, smirked, having the greatest time of his life as he watched me walking out of the shower after that crazed woman soaked me with a fucking red fine.I’d be honest. I fucking didn’t see that coming. When she stepped closer and leaned down as if about to kiss me, I got over my head as usual and thought she was finding it just as hard to resist me as I was to her.Man, was I wrong?But the weird part of the entire fiasco was I couldn’t be mad at her.I mean, sure, I was angry, and it made me furious that she would humiliate me like that in front of so many people, in front of my guests, and I was sure going to make her pay for her acts, but…after seeing her tonight, in that sizzling red dress with a slit running down her thigh, my mind was blown. I couldn’t fucking think straight. It was like another slap to my face, the one that stung even harsher than the time Zara did in my office. It was a brutal remi
“With mom interrogating every single girl down there like she’s picking a suitable wife for you, you can see why it’s a little difficult to consider.”“Is she really doing that?” I cringed. It shouldn’t be surprising to know she was using this opportunity to hunt for a suitable daughter-in-law for her, but I wished she would rest it for the sake of Nathan. After all, it was his day. It should be about him and not me.“I just saw her sitting down with a girl and asking her opinion on marriage and kids,” but he didn’t seem to care because he was laughing his head off.I turned around to face him, letting out a sigh. “I’m sorry, little brother. I’ll tell mom to stop the nonsense right away. It’s your and Nadine’s day. You should both be the centre of attraction. Not me.”“You should have thought about that before provoking that one hell of a woman,” I could see he was still adamant to know what her deal was, why Zara Fisher would pour the entire glass of wine on my head, the brother of t
[ZARA]“I like this one,” after devoting the entire day to checking out one apartment to another, I finally found the one conforming to my suitability. Well, more like my affordability, but you know what I mean.“It’s an excellent choice,” the real estate agent—a woman in her late thirties and hair so red I had to blink multiple times to adjust my eyes—agreed enthusiastically. And even though she had been muttering similar lines for almost every apartment that we had been to, it still made me a little pleased to know that she acknowledged it. “Oh, you should check out the balcony. Wonderful view. It’s open and spacious. You can even put a cute table and some chairs. A perfect setup for morning and evening tea. And the neighbours are also lovely people. You’ll have no problem adjusting,” she gushed out, her chirpy voice getting more and more excited every minute.“Well, it’s a little distant from my workplace,” sauntering over to the balcony and glancing around the animated neighbourho
I frowned. “What do you mean?”“Come on. I’ll show you my cabin. It has an even better view,” with an arm around my back, Brandon ushered me down the hallway and towards his cabin. Though when he opened the door, I wasn’t expecting to come face-to-face with the person in the room.“Armonica?” Shock bolted through me, leaving my eyes wide and mouth open.What was she doing here? Did she come here to give Brandon a hard time? After Maddox Richmond turned out to be her asshole cousin, she was another reason I felt so guilty. Brandon was crushing so hard on her. And by doing what I did, I was afraid I screwed up any prospect of their happily ever after together.To my surprise, however, when Armonica’s gaze landed on me, a wider smile grazed her lips. She shot up from her seat at lightning speed and dashed over to pull me into a hug.Wait. What?Didn’t Brandon say her father was his client? Then what was she doing here?And why the hell was she so happy to see me? Was she OK?Did she forg
[MADDOX]“I’ve got some leads from Europe,” Jade explained through the other side of the phone as I yanked the door of my car open and slid inside, tossing the briefcase in the backseat. “Already booked a flight. Hopefully, it wouldn’t end up with another dead end.”“Jade, whatever happens. If he’s the right person, you know better than to make direct contact,” I told her, clenching the steering wheel tight, hoping she wouldn’t ignore my advice like she often did. “You’re only there to confirm his identity. And once that happens, you’ll leave everything to me. Do you hear me?”“Loud and clear,” she muttered, but I could practically imagine her rolling her eyes at me. Not that I cared. Her safety was more important than anything.“He is dangerous, Jade.”“I know, Maddox.”“If you know that much, then you’ll fucking keep your distance. If he even got the whiff of what we're up to, we can’t even imagine what he would do. He might hurt you. Like he did to—”“Don’t worry about me,” she sig