Luis gently took my hand and placed it on his arm.My eyes swept over his appearance, a smile of admiration on my lips. My brother looked breathtakingly handsome in his black tuxedo. It was hard not to notice him when he looked so gorgeous tonight. His sleek, black hair was swept back, but a few strands fell onto his forehead, giving him a bad boy look. As usual, his eyes looked serious and domineering, but it only added to his mysterious appeal, which women liked.“Your hands are cold,” he whispered. A frown made its way to his forehead as he reached for my icy-cold hands. “Are you okay, Lily?” he quietly asked me.I nodded in response. After a moment of hesitation, I added, “I'm just a bit nervous,” I told him truthfully.He gave me a soft, reassuring smile as he squeezed my fingers. “You shouldn't be. This is your party, and you don't have to be scared of the guests. Just smile and be yourself,” he told me.With my hand on his arm, Luis and I walked together. We pulled to a stop w
He was having difficulty breathing, he thought to himself while looking at her in startled puzzlement. For a moment that seemed to go on forever, his world stopped turning. He could not believe what he was seeing.Is he drunk after consuming two glasses of wine? Was his imagination going wild again, and were his eyes playing tricks on him? Rapidly, he blinked, thinking that doing so would set his vision straight. But after several seconds of doing so, Lily remained standing at the bottom of the stairs, looking like a smooth porcelain doll with a sweet smile on her lips while more than a dozen men flocked around her like bees, as if she were a delightful piece of honey.Still unable to recover from shock, he stared at the beautiful hue of her eyes. He found himself captivated by the most unique eye colors he had ever seen in his life. The left eye shone like a green gemstone, while the other sparkled noticeably, reminding him of the color of a blue lagoon.Her eyes confirmed who she wa
Despite the jealousy boiling inside him, all he could do was watch the man kiss Lily before he pulled away from her so others could take their turn dancing with her. He was still seething with unrestrained fury when another man emerged from the crowd and made his way to her. Claiming her dainty hands, the second man placed them around his neck, and his hands slid onto Lily's narrow hips. They danced together as a soft, relaxing song played from the orchestra.They looked so happy together that a deep frown carved its way onto his forehead. He'd never seen her so happy as she looked now. The bright smile on her lips surpassed the glowing chandeliers adorning the ceiling.After the song ended, the man leaned closer, kissed her on the cheek, and then moved aside to join the watching audience. As if on cue, another well-dressed man wearing an expensive tuxedo came to dance with her.Grey counted how many men Lily danced with afterward. There were seven in total. But until now, he still w
I wasn't able to sleep that night. Though I was tired from dancing with my six brothers, attending to the guests' needs, and being introduced to them afterward, sleep refused to come to me after I went to bed. Sprawled on the bed, eyes wide open, my gaze remained glued to the ceiling while my mind replayed the events of the party, beginning with seeing my ex-husband in the crowd. Isabelle had fallen asleep beside me on the large bed. I wanted to sleep too, so my mind could rest, but despite trying so hard, I failed miserably.There were hundreds of questions racing through my mind, but I possessed no power to answer them all. My eyes fluttered closed. But even with my eyes pressed together, I could still see Grey staring at me with savage fury in his hazel-green eyes. But before I saw the fury emerging from them, there were other emotions present.Betrayal. Pain. Loss. Defeat. In the blink of an eye, those emotions disappeared. Fury replaced them.How could he look at me th
Tearing my gaze away from him, I shifted my focus to Dylan's grave and knelt on the ground to clear the dry leaves scattered in front of his tombstone. While doing so, my mind prayed nonstop for my ex-husband to leave immediately. Just knowing he was standing only a few meters away from me was enough to fill me with unease and discomfort. Unless he left, I would never feel inner peace.Heaving a sigh, I forced myself to forget he was here, but it proved to be useless. Just like the lyrics of my favorite song go, "Forgetting him was like trying to know somebody you never met.” I finally stopped trying. Instead, my eyes traced the name written on the tombstone. As it always did whenever I saw the name deeply carved into it, a heavy weight fell on my chest.It had been years since Dylan died, and yet I still wished he was here with me. I missed him so much that it hurt like hell to think I'll never hold him in my arms again.The sound of thunder shattered the silence inside the cemetery.
Sharp lightning carved through the sky, followed by the deafening sound of thunder. The rain began to pour, and I ran to my car before it could completely drench my clothes. I didn't look back to check if Grey had followed. I just wanted to escape from this place quickly.Opening the car door, I climbed inside and closed it behind me. Without a moment's delay, I turned the engine on and maneuvered the car out of the cemetery's parking area.The tears I'd been trying to suppress broke free. They trickled down my flushed cheeks and slipped further down my lips, where I tasted the saltiness.I was far from the cemetery now, but my mind was still on the man I left behind. Why does my heart still race like crazy and my pulse skitter every time I see him? Why does it still hurt inside even though I told myself I don’t love him anymore? Those questions were simple, and yet I couldn't answer them on my own.I continued to drive in silence until my tears finally stopped. Instead of returnin
Grey Gabriel Bradford couldn't believe his eyes. Lily was standing at the door of the restaurant. He rapidly blinked, wondering if she was just a figment of his imagination. He couldn't shake her from his mind after meeting her in the cemetery that morning, and he badly wanted to see her again.Could she just be his hallucination? he wondered, his eyes still locked on the upscale door. Still, after blinking, the woman who occupied his thoughts the whole time did not disappear at all.Annoyed, he watched the couple follow the waiter to their table. Clearing his throat, he straightened in his seat and forced himself to look away. It must have been his thoughts of Lily that summoned her to the place where he was.He was actually glad to see her, but not like this. She was with a man who was obviously her date. Despite trying to ignore them, it still secretly hurt like hell.No man would ever want to see the woman he loved going out with someone else, especially when he could see that sh
“I want a divorce, Natalia,” Grey told her, his gaze piercing through her sharply as though he was trying to execute her in his mind.Natalia stood frozen in place, too shocked to speak a word. Knowing her legs would collapse if she didn't sit down, she slumped onto the long sofa inside her room.“This marriage was doomed to end in misery from the very start. Let's not make ourselves even more miserable by prolonging our suffering,” he continued. Each word coming from his lips was like a knife stabbing her chest.She felt her whole world turn upside down. Despite doing her best, she couldn't keep him after all.Natalia swallowed deep and hard. Tears burned her eyes, but she did her best to suppress them. She wasn't going to cry in front of Grey! Never!Frozen like a statue, she slowly raised her eyes to him. “Why?” she asked, surprised that she had spoken the words in a surprisingly calm manner. “Is it because of Lily that you don't want me anymore?”“We both know that is not the reas
**ONE YEAR LATER**Days had turned into weeks, weeks had turned into months, and the months had turned into a full year, but the bouquet of flowers, boxes of chocolates, and romantic letters never stopped coming. Not even for a single day in the entire year.With the amount of effort Grey had put into his courtship, it was hard not to soften and fall for him even more—especially when he visited home every single day to continue what he called “courtship service,” which included being a gardener, a car repairman, an electrician, a plumber, and sometimes a cleaner.I once told him it wasn't necessary for him to do anything like that since we are in modern times. Men no longer woo women and their families by doing house chores, but Grey was stubborn and wouldn’t stop. He told me it was his way of showing respect and dedication to me as his wife, so I allowed him to continue what he was doing and just enjoyed the moment while he was at it.After his ceaseless dedication, Grey's hard work
A few seconds later, the soft voice coming from the bed made Grey and me abruptly pull away from each other so we could look at the bed. We both saw our son looking at us. My heart jumped, and I immediately went to Dylan’s side and grabbed his hand.“Mama.” It was the first word that came from his lips. The sound of his voice made my heart swell with joy. Despite being away from me for years, he had never forgotten that I was his mother. I was so happy that tears welled in my eyes. From looking at me, Dylan’s eyes shifted to his father. He opened his small mouth and, in a soft voice, mumbled, “Papa.”Grey's throat moved as he swallowed hard. I could tell by the way he sucked in a deep breath that he was trying to contain his emotions. “Yes, my little boy, papa is here,” Grey replied, his voice thick with emotion as he spoke. Crossing the small distance between him and the bed, he gently pulled Dylan into his arms. He was trying his best not to burst into tears, but his eyes clearly sh
“For our children, Lily,” he replied, looking me straight in the eyes.For our children… Yeah, for Isabelle and Dylan… But was that enough reason for me to stay? I thought to myself, wanting to actually hear him say that he wanted me to stay with him because he loves me.Grey continued, “I know if you leave, you will take the children with you, and God only knows how long it will be before you return here so Dylan and Isabelle could be with me again. I know I could visit them anytime if you're in Europe, but it wouldn't be enough for me because I want to be with them all the time… I want them to have a complete family, which I never experienced in my life.” His eyes filled with even more emotion as he said those words.Even though I never experienced having an absentee father and an abusive stepmother raising me, I knew that it wasn't easy. To say it was hard was an understatement. Perhaps ‘hell’ would be the right word to describe the situation.Grey had the luxury that everyone want
The room was quiet and still, and for a moment, I thought I was alone. However, when I opened my eyes, I saw that my whole family was inside the room. The only one missing was my grandmother, Leilani, who I bet wasn’t allowed to leave the house considering the time of the night. Slowly, I got up from the sofa. As I did so, I cast a brief glance at the wall clock and was actually surprised to see that it was past three in the morning, which meant I had slept for a straight two hours. Feeling refreshed despite the short hours of sleep, I felt somewhat relaxed, and as the rollercoaster events of last night rushed into my thoughts, I realized how surreal it felt, as though what had happened was only a dream.My gaze surveyed the room, looking for Grey, but he was not inside Dylan’s room.“Lily,” my mom called after she finally noticed I was awake. Everyone in the room looked at me, and they all wore the same worried expression on their faces. I bit my lower lip at the sudden rush of guilt
Grey said nothing. I expected he would snap and lash out at me for keeping the truth from him all this time, but his silence was the reaction I didn't expect. The lack of reaction on his handsome face filled my chest with tension. I would rather see him angry and furious than see that blank expression on him.I held my breath, waiting for him to say something, but even after a minute passed, he didn't open his lips. The only sound I could hear was the hum of the monitor and the thunderous sound of my heartbeat as I prayed he would express how he felt.Please speak… Get mad at me… Lash out at me… Those were the words I wanted to tell him, but I couldn't let them escape my lips.The silence that seemed to go on forever was shattered when he finally opened his lips. “Why did you keep the truth from me, Lily?”His achingly soft voice left a sting in my heart. I bit my lower lip, folded my hands in my lap, and kept the tears from falling down my cheeks as I replied, “It was the best thing
The police finally arrived. Too tired to even move, I stayed in my place. I didn't know how long I'd been seated on the ground until I heard footfalls approaching behind me. Without looking back, I knew it was Grey. I just knew it was him.“Lily?” His soft voice confirmed my assumption, and he pulled to a stop beside me, kneeling on the ground. I raised my tear-streaked eyes to him and saw panic and fear shining through his hazel-green eyes.“Is Dylan alright?” The words barely emerged from his lips. He looked at me with a wretched expression on his face. That must have been the same look on my face when I first thought Dylan was gone.“He's still weak, but Dylan is alright, Grey,” I replied, warm tears flowing down my cheeks in abundance.Grey slumped beside me. The weight he seemed to carry heavily on his shoulders disappeared as he let go of the breath he wasn't aware he was still holding. His hands covered his face, and he stayed that way for a while.“Grey?” I called weakly, wond
Ash landed on the floor, groaning in pain, blood leaking from the grievous wound in his right shoulder. He thrashed and cursed under his breath as he struggled to stop the bleeding, but the pressure he applied wasn't enough to stem the crimson liquid from flowing.All the while, my hawk-sharp eyes remained fixed on him. Just in case he tried to attack or escape, I'd shoot him—not in the shoulder this time, but somewhere more fatal so he wouldn't be able to move again. My fingers were cold and shaking, yet I didn't move the gun away from him for a second, fearing he would take the chance to grab the weapon from me and reverse the situation.“Untie yourself, Grey,” I told him. My eyes remained locked on Ash as I removed the ring from my finger and tossed it to where Grey was seated. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw him pick up the ring, push the button, and the dagger popped up. He began to cut the rope with the small dagger. “Damn, how did you manage to cut the rope with this?” he mu
The shot reverberated inside the room, mingled with the sound of my own horrified scream. I closed my eyes and waited for the pain to strike. I even expected blood to flow from my injury, but there was nothing. Counting a few more seconds, still nothing happened. No wound and no pain. Reluctantly, my eyes opened, and I found Ash looking at me with a sinister grin on his face. The terror he saw in my expression pleased him in a horrible way. He crossed the distance between us and pressed the muzzle of the gun against my temple.The moment the cold, hard metal touched my skin, terror swelled inside me until it grew to the size of a monster. I could barely breathe. Without looking in Grey's direction, I knew he was feeling the same way, watching the gun pressed against my temple. The deafening sound of my heartbeat resounded in my ears, and I wondered if the two men could hear it too. Perhaps they couldn't at all, but I felt as though the world had stopped turning, and the only sound I c
My lips began to tremble. The deafening sound of my heartbeat resounded in my ears. This isn't happening, I told myself as my gaze remained locked on Natalia's dead body, which resembled a pale mannequin. She sat upright on the sofa, her long hair cascading down her shoulders and falling to her lap where her fingers were crossed. She looked alive and dead at the same time. I even tried convincing myself that it wasn't her, that it was just a mannequin, but I couldn't fool myself.I swallowed deep and hard. My eyes snapped shut. I counted to ten, then opened my eyes again, but she didn't disappear, which I had expected. She looked so real, and the thought alone sent shivers down my spine because I knew I would end up just like her if I didn't escape from my captor.“Holy shit,” Grey hissed under his breath in pure disbelief as he finally managed to get up and followed my gaze. “It's Natalia… It's not a mannequin like I thought at first,” he added, confirming my biggest fear. I was stil