My breakfast made a great start to my day. There were expresso waffles with a mocha drizzle and freshly baked croissants that were buttery and airy that melted in my mouth. I knew that after that breakfast I'd never go back to plain cereal again. After savoring the last bite, I took my plate and silverware over to one of the kitchen staff members. The staff took care of cleaning the dining ware right away and also cleaned the table where I had accidentally left some crumbs.Then I made my way to my room and got ready for the day. I had something in mind compared to yesterday. No way was I going to be in the mansion two days in a row. Besides, Dax had said it was okay to go out with a chauffeur.I made my way towards the bathroom and changed into a beautiful designer dress I found in the closet. The dress was strapless with a ruffled-silk cocktail style that was a few inches above my knees. It was far more revealing than I normally wore, but it was too pretty to not wear.After put
I blinked a couple of times to see if I was having a horrible nightmare. No way was I really seeing my ex-boyfriend.Jason was still as handsome as ever with his sharp jawline and full lips. His hairstyle was the only thing majorly different about him. When we were dating, he had dyed his hair blond and it was a little past his ears. Now it was cut into a classic combed back style that really fit his face shape. He was even wearing a nice suit and tie, which was new. The Jason I knew always hated wearing suits and swore he'd never wear one.What were the odds that he'd come into the same store as me? We hadn't seen each other after our breakup. Though, I had kept his number in hopes of him wanting me back. I was foolish to have thought that way.My heart betrayed me by beating rapidly as Jason came closer into view. I hated that his mere presence had such an effect on me. We had dated for a couple of years. Jason had broken up with me after telling me that things were too seriou
Every eye in the store was on Dax as he placed his hands on my shoulders to steady me. Women all around the store were whispering as they turned to look at him in interest.It was embarrassing that he had to see my tear-streaked face. I didn't want him to see me looking such a mess. I could only imagine how terrible I looked with my makeup utterly ruined.His face held concern for me, and he confidently walked up to a sales staff. The staff member looked utterly stunned to see Dax in the store. She was so caught off guard that she almost bumped into a rack of clothes.He stood up tall and said, "I am just out of a very important business meeting and had to see what this store was like for myself."The worker asked, "Is there anything you're looking for sir?"Other people in the store must've sensed his power from the way he spoke and carried himself. They continued to watch his every move.Dax ended up telling the worker, "No, there isn't anything I'm looking for. Thank you for a
People looked at me with pure jealousy after Dax had left the store. They couldn't believe that their shopping trips were over. Jason and Addison seemed absolutely stunned at what had just occurred. Jason made his way over towards me, but I was done with dealing with anyone in that store. I needed to get out of there before anything else occurred. Even Addison looked ready to confront me for something that I didn't do.I walked out the door with my chauffeur following close behind me. He didn't say anything to me and seemed unsurprised with his boss' behavior. Maybe nothing surprised any of his staff anymore. They were probably used to Dax spending his money extravagantly everywhere he went.My chauffeur opened the door for me, and I climbed in carefully. I checked briefly to make sure no angry customers had followed us. I was just checking, as some of them looked extremely ticked off towards me.The coast was clear and we drove off towards the mansion.I became more and more at
After my talk with Wendy, I still worried about Dax. There was a chance he could lose the company to his younger brother. That made sense but was unfortunate to think about.From what I could tell, Dax was a great CEO. He was always so hard working and made sure to do work even while he was home. I knew he had the office in the mansion to complete additional work even off duty.Why had she decided to tell me this news? It just made me want to have the baby faster, so his job would be secure. The rest of the day passed by quickly, and it had gotten quite late. I checked the clock and it was already around 11:00. It was best to sleep and not have any further thoughts of worry clouding my head.It was hard to fall asleep, so I got out of bed. I put on my robe before quietly making my way downstairs. I doubted anyone else would be up still but felt better having something to cover myself up with.I was shocked to find Dax sitting at the table when I made it to the kitchen. He was in
When my eyes opened, I found myself wrapped into a warm embrace. I tried to recall what had happened. I looked around and saw I was in my bed. I didn't remember getting back here all by myself. Who had put me in my bed? How long had I been sleeping for? Hopefully it hadn't been that long. That's when it all came flooding back to me. I had been very lightheaded and weak before I had fainted. But that wasn't everything that had occurred.A realization hit me when I looked over. Dax laid beside me in my bed and was sleeping soundly.What was he doing here? He could have left me without feeling the urge to stay. It made me a bit flustered that he was in the same bed as me and held me against him like this.This was very cozy and kind of romantic for us. We weren't a couple but his closeness affected my every nerve. I appreciated what he had done regardless. He just kept surprising me with showing other parts of himself that other people didn't see. I was curious if I'd eventually se
When I woke up, I noticed that Dax was gone. I was kind of disappointed that he had left my side. Even his scent hadn't stayed in the bed to bring me comfort. I had expected to see him to stay with me. Maybe I should've enjoyed his company more while I had the chance. I figured Dax wouldn't have left me until he knew I was all better. He probably had his reasons, but it was so sudden.After checking the clock, I had noticed that many hours had gone by. At least I had slept a long while. My body had needed the rest desperately. I was feeling quite better. This surprised me, since I thought I wouldn't get over my sickness. The nausea wasn't even around. At least for the moment it seemed gone.But I wasn't going to push my luck and try to eat anything yet. That would have to wait until I knew I was absolutely over my sickness. I wasn't going back to square one with this. I laid there for a few seconds before I decided to get up and look around for Dax. He had to be somewhere aroun
I finished making my way over to my sister after getting past the security detail man. It was good that someone was looking after me. Dax really made sure that I was always safe wherever I went, which made me more at ease overall.The thought of him looking out for me sent an odd feeling to my chest. I tried to ignore it, since it brought memories back of waking up in Dax's arms.It wasn't something I should keep thinking about. He had left that day without saying goodbye. It almost was like he had never been there, and I had dreamed the whole event. But I knew it was real, as I remembered how warm his body felt when he was that close to me.I quickly focused back on the present and shoved thoughts of Dax away. I needed to distance myself from what had happened that day, since it was the best choice to do. It was too dangerous to get closer to Dax in general.I spotted my sister in her living room. She was expecting me to come over, so I guessed that maybe we would eat together aft
Danica POVDax rushed me into the hospital and talked to a nurse immediately. I was put onto a gurney and taken down a long hallway. I got more nervous as this was finally happening.We got to the delivery room quickly, and doctor was already prepared with his team. The contractions were bringing me a lot of discomfort in my lower abdomen. I wanted this to be over as soon as it could be.I knew my mom had taken hours to deliver me. She said it had been the most pain inducing experience of her life. More nerves started to build inside me at the thought of having to go through that.The fear and nervousness must've shown on my face. The doctor came to my side and looked at me with kindness in his eyes. He spoke in a calm tone and said, "I've delivered a lot of babies in my lifetime, so there's nothing you should be worried about. Everything will be okay."His words gave me some reassurance, but I couldn't calm down. I was worried that something could go wrong. I had gone through too
Dax POVIt was so hard to believe that my own sister-in-law would stoop so low for Jared. In the past, I had never cared for Wendy that much. There was something about her that felt off at times.At least she would never be able to return to my home. I would have to ban Jared from coming back. There was no way that I could trust him ever again either. He may have been behind Wendy's actions. It was if I couldn't trust anyone these days. I definitely couldn't let my guard down quite yet. Things had been quite dangerous. I'd make sure to keep Danica safe for the remainder of her time with me. Almost losing her made me value her even more than I used to.A little after Wendy left, I wanted to offer Danica some comfort after that close call. I had seen that she had gone up to her room and headed there myself.I knocked on her door and she let me in. Danica was lying on her bed, and I looked at her."Would you like some company? I understand if you want to be alone for awhile.""Sur
Danica POVAs the next few days went by, things started to get back to normal. Each day I got less and less anxious. Dax made sure to be around as much as possible and was trying to do some work at home. I was shocked that he had given up being at the office for me.He was really showing off how much he cared for me. I knew he was still feeling terrible that I had been kidnapped. It was easy to see on his face when he thought that I wasn't looking. Part of me wanted to tell him that it wasn't his fault.No one could've prevented that from happening. I didn't want anyone to feel guilt for that. I would try to reassure him as the days went by.The first day back, I had been more nervous than usual. Dax helped a lot that day to calm me down. He made sure to stay around me for most of the day. At one point, he made me popcorn and cuddled me on the couch. I knew he disliked seeing me suffer like that.I was glad to have been back to routine at the mansion after my experience. As much a
Danica POVDuring the car ride, Dax held my hand and glanced over at me often. He seemed very concerned about my well-being which made feel appreciated. We didn't converse while we drove along. I wasn't quite ready to talk again, or my voice would betray me. I still wasn't over the stress of being imprisoned by criminals. It had felt so unreal, almost as if it hadn't happened to me.Dax must've understood that I didn't want to talk and didn't try to press me to say anything. We had comfortable silence in the car. I wanted to thank him for getting me out of that situation, but no words could describe how grateful I was.He had gone beyond what I expected of him. I glanced at him and noticed that he looked at ease now that I was back with him. I had no idea how Dax was so affected by hearing about what happened to me. I didn't like how I had caused him more stress by getting involved in that mess. It made me feel guilty that I hadn't tried to tell him about it before. But back the
Dax POVSweat started to drip down my forehead as he kept his gun locked on me. He gave a sinister grin at me.I stood my ground and wasn't going to go down like a coward. I narrowed my eyes at him and showed him that I wasn't afraid.Was this really the end? My mission was going to be in vain. I had been so close to saving Danica. It would be all for nothing if I died. But I was out of luck, since no one else was around to help me out.Suddenly, there was a shot fired from the doorway. When I looked over, one of my security team members was there. He must've have been quietly following me the whole time. The gangster gripped his leg and went to the ground. He deserved getting shot. My heart wouldn't stop beating. That man had almost killed me. It had been one of the most terrifying moments of my life. I was glad that it hadn't been my final moment.I turned to the staff and said, "Thanks for saving my life. I won't ever forget this."He gave a nod of acknowledgment and kept an
Dax POVI tried to figure out the location of the gangster's hideout for a few hours before I made a breakthrough. There had been rumors about suspicious activity happening at this abandoned facility. A few people had said they had seen some shady looking people around that area within the past few months. All of the accounts from eyewitnesses seemed believable. I had to go with my gut feeling that this was their location.Besides, it was in a location that not many people knew about. Where else would they hiding out in? They couldn't be found by the police. I met up with the security team shortly after discovering this information and shared it with them. I also told them information they should know, "Everyone must keep on high alert when we arrive at the location. These are dangerous individuals we'll be facing."We got into separate vehicles and headed out towards the facility. As I drove along, I was getting more anxious about Danica's wellbeing. What if they had been negl
Dax POVAfter I set the ransom note down, I felt an immense rage come over me. This whole situation was terrible and shouldn't have come to this. Danica was in danger because of this gigantic mistake on their end. I wished this had all been a nightmare. The woman that I deeply cared about was gone. She must've been absolutely terrified. It was too hard to imagine her in such a situation. The thought of her captors made me feel sick.They could do unspeakable things to her. I needed to stop myself from thinking of anyone harming her. It would make me even more enraged. There was nothing I could do yet. I wasn't sure of the location of where she was being kept.Those people would pay once I figured out where they were hiding. They wouldn't know what was coming their way. I had to take them by surprise or else this would all fail.I knew I had to get to her and rescue her before it was too late. I almost lost Danica once and wouldn't lose her for good. She was the only woman I ever
I hoped that what had happened earlier had been a nightmare. I slowly opened my eyes; when I saw that I wasn't in my bed at the mansion, I knew that it had to be real. I felt rope tied around my wrists and ankles and could feel the coolness of the metal from the chair. There was even a piece of cloth covering my mouth. I felt the urge to scream but knew it was pointless. Nobody would be able to hear my cries for help.This was the worst possible situation I could've been in. I never imagined that this scenario would happen to me. How had I gotten caught up in this? Maybe I shouldn't have been so careless earlier. I wished I wouldn't have been walking in that shady area. I knew better than that, but it was too late to blame myself for what had already gone down.I tried to get a sense of where I was by looking around the room. I didn't want to lose all of my hope for getting out of here. It was too dark to see anything to give away where those men had taken me. The one lightbul
Danica POVI continued to walk towards the car and looked behind me. The security detail was still following me and kept glancing around often. He was checking for any signs of trouble, which made me feel relieved. I felt very safe having someone look after me.Not that it looked too dangerous. We were the only two people around the area. I didn't see anyone suspicious around as I made a brief scan of the area.Nothing bad could happen as long as I had this person around. I completely trusted that he wouldn't let anything happen to me. Dax wouldn't let any of his people fail me, especially after Jason had broken into the mansion.I knew Dax still felt guilty about that happening. Neither one of us had brought it up since Jason had been taken away. I hoped nothing else like that would happen again. It was unfortunate that the car was so far away this time. The chauffeur couldn't find an easier parking spot. As I came to an alley, there was a very scruffy looking young man. His ha