Chapter 42HEADLINESROWAN PRIEST SEEN LEAVING WORK EARLY AFTER BEING AWAY FOR A WEEK WITH FLU.DAMIEN PRIEST ROWAN PRIEST’S YOUNGER BROTHER HAS GONE CAMPING AND WILL BE OUT OF THE PUBLIC EYE FOR A COUPLE OF WEEKS.ROWAN PRIEST LOOKS HEALTHY AND BACK AT WORK. NOTABLY GRACE PRIEST HAS BEEN ABSENT FROM CLASSES WHILE HER HUSBAND WAS SICK WITH FLU.IS THERE TROUBLE IN PARADICE? POWER COUPLE MARCUS STANLEY AND DIANE CRICKET SEEN IGNORING ONE ANOTHER AT THE MET AFTER PARTY.==============GRACE PRIESTPOVI bite my lip as I watch the news. It took me seconds to see that’s not Rowan.Should I say something? It’s been over a week and all the lessons I took to make Rowan cakes, pies, and muffins. I couldn’t deliver any of them.Andre won’t let me see Rowan. He said Rowan needed his rest, but no matter how many times I’ve begged and even though they said Rowan would be back at work but no matter how many times I’ve paused the scene and pressed play it’s still looks like Damien and not Rowan. Ho
Chapter 43 – Hannah’s planTwo weeks laterHannah SmithPOVMy hands wrap around the steering wheel as I try to call Rowan once again, he must be with her. The bitch! She must be making Rowan ignore me. There’s no way Rowan would just throw me away for her. What happened to the video I sent her before they got married, did Rowan get it before it could get to her? He would have said something if he did. So, she just ignored it? Did she ignore it because she’s after his money? She ignores his cheating for his money.My blood boils. My entire body trembles with anger. Why would he like her and not me. I'm hotter. I'm so much hotter than her. Grace is nothing but an innocent naïve little girl. She can’t satisfy Rowan the way I can. I want nothing more than to wrap my fingers round her neck and squeeze the life out of her. Watch as she dies before my very eyes.Rowan is mine. I was with him long before she was around. My Rowan! He met her while he was fucking me. And I’m supposed to take t
Chapter 44 – Rowan wakes up.Rowan Priest (Dream)POVI stand in front of the mirror getting ready for my wedding day… I remember the first time I saw Grace, seeing her shivering from the cold, the fear yet determination in her eyes, was admiring. Grace isn’t like any woman I’ve ever come across, she’s weak yet strong at the same time. She’s maintained her smile even through the good, the bad and the ugly. She’s seen the worst of the world, yet she’s maintained her innocence and naivety, it’s one of the many things I admire about her.When she’s over talking, I don’t have to talk myself out of putting a bullet in her head, the way I have to with Gunner. The way I have to with almost everyone in my life. When Grace and I got married in Vegas I saw her in a new light. I’ve wanted to do nothing more than protect her, keep her innocence. I almost went back on everything and let her go free, yet a selfish part of me wanted to hold onto her. Let some of her light brighten up my darkness.
Chapter 45Rowan PriestPOVI frown… I look up from the document Andre just gave me. I look at him. “What is this?”“While you were in a coma, I got to thinking, you remember how we were trying to find Grace’s parents…” he reminds me.I nod. “What does this have to do with you doing a DNA on Grace without her permission?” I ask him.“She doesn’t even know those people aren’t her real parents, so I couldn’t out right ask her to give me her hairbrush now I, could I?” he asks sarcastically.I sit up in my bed, ignoring the pain in my side. “Who did you test it against?” I ask.He looks away from me. “Me…”I frown. “You?” I ask.He nods, he finally looks at me. He looks embarrassed, his face is slightly blushed. “I couldn’t shake the feeling that she might be my father’s illegitimate child. She looks so much similar to Angelica, I just had to be sure…” he says softly."This is accurate?” I ask.He nods. “She’s not my little sister…” he sounds disappointed.I look over at him. “Did you wan
Chapter 46 Damien PriestPOVI see my father sitting in the garden of Rowan’s compound. I make my way over to him sitting beside him at the table.“What’s going on? What are you doing here?” I ask."Your mom’s inside talking to Grace, I needed some fresh air..." he says softly.“What’s going on with you. You look like someone stole your favorite toy.” I tease him.“I’m just thinking about what would have happened if we had lost your brother. What would have happened if you didn’t arrive on time. We’d be mourning your brother right now.” He sighs messing his hair up by running his fingers through his hair.“But we didn’t lose him. We got a scare for sure, but he is fine…” I remind him.“The day I married your mother, I made a promised that this life wouldn’t come in the way of our family time. That none of our children would suffer the fate that a lot of other family members have faced. I feel like I didn’t keep my promise…” he says softly.I look over at him. “You didn’t break your p
Chapter 47 Rowan PriestPOV“Rowan the police have been looking into Miss Smiths disappearance…” Andre says walking into my bedroom.I sigh… I got home about an hour ago and I’ve been lazing around on my bed waiting for Grace to return from class.I’ve yet to see her, I can’t stop myself from feeling excited. The excitement is bubbling inside of me ready to explode. I’ve never felt this excited for anything in my entire life. I haven’t seen her in what feels like a lifetime.No one can blame me for being excited.“Uhm Rowan?” Andre calls out to me.I look over at him, I let out a cough, slightly embarrassed that my mind wandered. “Right Hannah. If Damien cleaned up nicely nothing should lead to Romano, though I think it would be best just to check. Also get Gunner to clean up Hannah’s plotting against Grace. I don’t want anything leading back to Grace…” I order. I didn’t want Grace being connected to Hannah. I didn’t want to dirty Grace’s reputation or her innocence by having that wo
Chapter 47 – Part 2My eyes snap open and I sit up straight… I blink a couple of times to see my brother in front of me.I frown. That was a dream? It felt so real…It felt so real. Now I want to see Grace pregnant with my child to experience that joy and happiness I did in that dream.“We have a problem.” He glares at me.“What happened?” I ask.He looks troubled. “Someone is looking into Angie’s death. They’re now investigating a murder and not a gas leak like before…” I don’t miss how my brother says my deceased wife’s name with distain.I slide my feet off the bed. My feet slide into my slippers, and I stand. “Have you informed Andre of this as well?” I ask.He shakes his head. “He’s busy with something you gave him…”I nod, I walk up to my brother and place my hand on his shoulder. “I think it would be best if we don’t get involved this time. It hurts to say this, but there are people targeting us right now. Trying to cover this up will lead to them right to us. If the police are
Chapter 48 – Let’s have a baby…One month laterRowan PriestPOVOkay so it's official Grace is avoiding me. She won't eat with me. When I invite her do things with me. She comes up with excuses not to. When she sees me coming down the hallway she'll run away. I have no idea what's going on with her.I don't know why she'd want to avoid me. Is it because I didn't tell her about me getting hurt? Since the day I came home I haven't seen her.I don't know what's going on with Grace. Do I just call her out on her behavior? Would that be wrong of me?I don't know how to approach her. With Angie of I did that she'd bite my head off. Angie hated me just dropping in and dragging her around.I haven't been with Grace long enough to know how she'd react.Would she be upset and leave me?Fuck it I'm just going to see her. I miss her.I miss the way she smiles when she's being silly. The constant rambles. The way she looks at me I'm awe.I miss my Grace.I get up from the sofa and make my way up