N. B: Hi, guys! Lovely to have you here. I apologize if along the line you find the plot cringe or the characters weird and cheesy. I just wanted to put it out there that I wrote this book a couple years back and I was a baby writer. But I do hope you enjoy it.
🔹️🔹️Adrien Russell🔹️🔹️ "All good, Martin?" I asked my middle-aged driver as he checked the car. He came to my side of the window and I rolled it down. "We might need a mechanic to repair it sir. It's not my cup of tea." He informed guiltily while holding the umbrella over his head. I nodded in understanding and sighed as I ran out of luck with the network in my mobile too. "There's no network here. Is there any place nearby where we can stay for the night?" I asked him. He thought for a second then answered. "There is a lodge across the street sir. But it isn't very classy." "That's okay! Let's just go there." I stepped out of the car and Martin immediately held the umbrella over me, letting himself drench in the heavy rain. "Hey!" I pulled him under the umbrella along with me so he could cover both of us. He looked confused and flustered by my actions, making me chuckle. "I ain't the only one who could catch a cold, am I?" He turned his eyes down with an awkward smile and then led the way to the lodge. It required us to walk for nearly seven minutes- give or take, to reach the lodge. I asked Martin to book two rooms on my name and he did. The lodge was not the kind of one I have stayed in before as Martin said. But I obviously do not expect a five-star hotel in case of such emergencies. I don't mind staying here for a night since the weather was at its worst. "Isn't that Adrien Russell?" I heard a girl in a group of three whisper. I did not look towards them but continued to listen. "Yes. That is." Another whisper followed. "God! He is so handsome." Their girly squeal made me smirk and I turned away from their sight. Soon, both Martin and I settled in our respective rooms and I released a heavy breath. I've had a tiring day. The exhaustion in me heightened as soon as my eyes fell on the bed covered with off-white sheets and I didn't remember to lock the door. Turning on the heater, I removed my dress shirt and stretched my body. Right when I was about to call it a day, the door of my room banged open. I turned around in a snap with wide eyes and they fell on a womanly figure. Her long brown hair covered most of her face as she leaned on the door and breathed heavily. "Excuse me?" I called. She pushed her hair back and opened her eyes. When her face came into my sight, my jaw dropped. There stood a beautiful girl looking surprised and worried. Her eyes met mine and my heart literally skipped a beat when I looked into her hazel-colored orbs. My eyes travelled down her body on its own. She was all drenched and her clothes stuck to her body like a glove. It took me quite some time to take my eyes off her curves. I looked back at her face and a sense of satisfaction crossed me when I saw her ogling at me. Well, my body. She looked back at my face as I crossed my arms over my chest and raised an eyebrow. That's when she snapped out of her thoughts. "I- I am really sorry." Her voice was like honey being poured in my ears. "Actually, I am in a bit of trouble and I barged into your room to hide." She said awkwardly. "Trouble?" I frowned. "Yes. There a-are some g-goons chasing me." I saw a glimpse of fear crossing in her eyes. My frown deepened and I picked up my shirt from the bed and put it on. Before I could ask her anything further, the door of my room was banged hard. The girl gasped in fear and moved aside. She looked at me with helplessness and pleading in her eyes. "Open the door!" A manly voice echoed. "Please" She whispered inaudibly and I moved towards her. I pulled her behind the door and opened it enough for my head to sneak out. "Yes?" I annoyingly asked the man in a tight black t-shirt with scars all over his visible skin. "We are looking for a girl who is of almost this height." He showed her height with his hand. "Perhaps you saw someone in a blue blouse and jeans? She came into this wing a few minutes ago." He asked in his disgustingly sore voice. I let out a frustrated sigh and rubbed my temples before looking at him. "It's past midnight, buddy. Why do you think I will be roaming around in the hallways instead of sleeping peacefully on such a freezing night?" I scowled at him. "I did not see anyone like that." With that, I shut the door on his face and looked at the trembling fine woman beside me. "You can sit down if you want to." I insisted and she seated herself on the bed. She was visibly shivering so I increased the temperature of the heater and passed her one of the towels kept in the closet that she wrapped around herself muttering a 'thank you'. "I am sorry to bother you. I'll leave as soon as the way is clear." She sounded guilty as she said. "It's okay." I sat beside her, a little away and skeptically asked. "Why are they after you? If you don't mind me asking." After a minute of thought, she sighed and answered. "They are loan sharks." Her answer pretty much surprised me but I was no one to judge her. I didn't intend on asking anything further but she herself broke the silence. "It's not that I am running away by not returning their money. But the man I am indebted to, has unfairly increased the interest rate and expects me to pay him an amount I am incapable of at the moment. When I refused, he sent his men after me." She explained herself and I stayed quiet not knowing what to say. "How did you end up in this lodge with them after you?" I asked after a few moments. "I came from Brooklyn to attend a friend's wedding tomorrow, but had to stay here for the night because of the weather. I had no idea that they were following me." She sighed and rubbed her temples. What the hell is the security of this place up to? How could some random goons enter the lodge and they know nothing about it. I made a mental note to file a complaint against this. The very next second I realized that there was pin drop silence maintained in the hallway. Maybe the goons had left. "I guess they are gone." The girl beside me worded my thoughts. I nodded and moved closer to the door. "Let me check." I peeked out and thankfully, the corridor was empty. Those creeps were gone. "All clear." I informed her and she stood up with relief on her face. Pushing the towel away, she kept it on the table and walked towards me. "Thank you for helping me." She said as she stood by the door. I passed her a gentle smile and replied. "You're Welcome." Before she could step out, she had to stop at my question. "Where is your room?" "In the next wing." She answered and I gave a nod. "Let me walk you there." I insisted. I was worried that those goons might still be in search of her somewhere around here. She agreed and locked the door after coming out. We slowly walked towards the other wing, careful to not make any noise as she led the way. Right when we were about to turn towards the wing of her room, she jumped back making her back bump into my front. I held her arms to prevent her from falling but she pushed us both back hiding behind the wall. I frowned when I saw terror on her face. "They are there. Standing next to my room." She whispered almost inaudibly. I peeked through the wall and saw three men waiting by a door. When I moved back, a mild smell of peaches hit my nostrils making me realize our proximity. She was trapped between my arms and the wall, with me standing too close. Her fragrance was divine. I hardly held back the urge to lean closer and take in her smell. Her cheeks and nose held a light shade of red and her frizzy hair made her look ravishing. My eyes travelled up to hers and all I saw was fear. Her pupils moved everywhere and her mind was too occupied to notice anything else. That made me snap out of my thoughts. This is not the time, Idiot! I scolded myself. "Are they armed?" I asked, coming back to my senses. "I-I saw one of them with a d-dagger earlier." She stuttered looking up into my eyes. "It isn't safe to stay around. Come on." Without another thought, I held her arm and pulled her back towards my room. I entered the room card and got in. I locked the door and when I turned around, I felt some sort of uneasiness in my heart as I saw her. She sat on the bed with her elbows resting on her thighs and her face ducked in her palms. Her shoulders shook lightly as I heard soft sobs leave her mouth. I sat next to her and thought of ways to comfort her but couldn't come up with any. Her cries stopped very soon and she wiped her tears away. I passed her the water bottle kept on the bedside and she gulped down a few sips. "I won't let them harm you. You'll be safe as long as you are with me." Those words left my mouth with strong determination as I held her hand that was on the edge of the bed. I don't know why but I wanted to protect her with all my might and I didn't have to give a second thought about it. She looked at me with a mixture of emotions filled in her eyes. I saw her beautiful eyes dwell up with tears but she blinked them away looking at the other side. "Thank you so much and sorry for being such a bother." Her voice cracked a little. I gave her an assuring smile. The very next thing I thought could be of help was calling the management and informing about the goons. And so I did it. The manager recognized me very well and did not waste time in taking action and promised to deal with the situation of the goons ASAP. "Achhu!" I snapped my head at the source of that delicate sneeze. I ordered two cups of hot coffee to my room and assessed her. Her clothes were still wet and that could just add on to the cold. "You should get changed." She looked at me and said, "I will, once I go to my room." I nodded at her and waited for the update from the management. My eyes couldn't leave her face. I studied every single expression of hers. With a frown, she started checking her pockets and as if realization hit her, her eyes widened and she snapped her head towards me. I raised my eyebrows for her to tell me what was wrong. "I think I forgot my room card inside the room." She said, panicking. I sighed and gave her a stern look. She bit her lip looking down at the floor and looked like was about to start crying any moment. "Woman, you are a magnet to troubles." Stating that, I called the manager again and asked him to arrange for the master card. He said he could get that done but it would take another half an hour. Left with no other option, I agreed to him and he got back to work. Her cold was getting worse every passing minute as she sneezed non-stop. Her skin turned pale and no matter how much I increased the temperature of the heater, she was far from comfortable. Even the coffee was of no help. "You really need to get out of those clothes. You don't want to fall ill before your friend's wedding, do you?" I suggested. "All my belongings are in my room. What will I change into?" She whined, rubbing her palms together. Her teeth chattered as she spoke. I looked around the room and opened the closet to find two pairs of bathrobes. Although unsure, I asked her, "There is a bathrobe here. You can use them for the time being. If you'd like." She hesitated for a while but since that was the best and the only option to escape from the cold, she agreed and made her way to the bathroom. Minutes later she came out wearing it, with her clothes in hand. The bathrobe ended a few inches below her knee and as much as I tried not to, my eyes landed on her silk like smooth skin. Suddenly there was an awkward silence in the room and none of us tried to break it. I got myself engaged in my phone while she sat on the edge of the bed, shaking her legs and fiddling with her fingers. After a good fifteen minutes of thick tension, the door of my room was knocked and the manager informed us that everything was back in place. They had kicked out the goons, brought the master card and had unlocked her room. Thanking him, we made our way to her room. "Thank you and sorry once again. I have caused a lot of trouble to you." She smiled guiltily as we reached her door. I returned the smile and replied. "I am glad I could be of help." She was about to go in but turned around to look at me. "Can I know the name of my savior?" "Adrien. Adrien Russell." I didn't realize that we hadn't even known each other's names all this while. "Crystal Hayes." She raised her hand for me to shake and I took it gladly with a smile. After saying our 'good nights' and ''good byes', he went back to her room and so did I. On my way, I saw a glimpse of the same group of girls I had seen down in the lobby but I was too exhausted to pay any attention. It was almost twenty minutes past three when I plopped down on the bed and sleep immediately engulfed me.🔹️🔹️Crystal Hayes🔹️🔹️Ugh!Why can't one day of my life go on without troubles? All I had planned for today was to go to my bride-to-be friend and spend the night chit chatting with her. Something I haven't done in ages. But if nothing else, mother earth decided to spoil my day by pouring heavy rain and thunder.For the sake of my safety, I decided to halt my travel and stay in a lodge that fell on my way for the night. The journey from Brooklyn to Manhattan wasn't long, but definitely tiring. I was already dripping wet because when the rainfall had started, I was out on the street waiting for the taxi.I came inside the lodge room and stretched a little. I took a pair of dry clothes from my bag and was about to change when I heard a knock on the door. Sighing, I threw the clothes on the bed and unlocked the door, only to see the most unexpected people.There stood my loan sharks, Philips's men with a sly smirk on their ugly faces. "Did you really think that you could run away wit
🔹️🔹️Crystal Hayes🔹️🔹️"Perfect." I grinned largely, looking at Hannah through the mirror as I just finished setting her veil. She gave a shy smile and turned around and I enveloped in a warm hug. I was proud to see her become a grown-up, responsible woman. We pulled away as a knock was heard on the door and her parents entered the room. A gasp left Mrs. Johnson's mouth and both their eyes teared up looking at their daughter."You look lovely." Mrs. Johnson hugged Hannah and let the tears flow down her eyes unlike Mr. Johnson who held them back."Mom! You guys are going to make me cry. Racheal will kill me if I mess up my make-up." Hannah said and we all chuckled."My little princess is all grown up now." Mr. Johnson said as the mother-daughter pulled away."Dad, I will always be a princess." Hannah smiled and hugged him. Mrs. Johnson joined them too and I looked at the family with admiration.How I miss my parents at events like this.The door of the room yanked open and Racheal a
🔹️🔹️Adrien Russell🔹️🔹️Ever heard of the phrase, 'No good deed goes unpunished'?It is used when an act of kindness backfires on the person who offers them. I never really thought about it until today."Explain this, young man!" Dad put the open magazine on the coffee table. His voice was low and gritted as if he was trying to stay calm."Dad, this isn't what it looks like." I tried to convince him by telling the entire story of last night. "Believe me Dad, all I was trying to do was help her.""Adrien. Son, I am really proud of you for being generous and saving that girl. But you see, you have stained your reputation right before you could start your career. Such rumors affect the business." He tried to explain.I knew he was right. Being named as a 'player' right before I could take over the business could literally be a source to put me down in front of the world."The articles and pictures will be down in an hour or two but people will not forget this anytime soon. You will ha
🔹️🔹️Crystal Hayes🔹️🔹️Two days ago, when I came back to Brooklyn, my life was back to how it had been.The same mess.I took up the responsibility of organizing a big event and with the advance that I was paid, I gave Philip a little more money so that he could stay out of my sight for a few days. But I very well knew he wouldn't let me be peacefully. He called me every single day to remind me if I don't pay the rest of the money soon, my soul will be sent to heaven.I was in the office when I was called by the receptionist saying that I had a visitor. Wondering who it could be, I went to the waiting room to see a young man I had never seen before."Hello." I greeted him."Hello Mam. You are Ms. Crystal Hayes, right?" He asked and when I nodded, he sighed in relief.He introduced himself as Ryan and said he had something very important to discuss. I led him to my desk hoping for a new project that had come to me."Ms. Hayes, I am the secretary of Mr. Raymond Russell. The owner of
🔹️🔹️Adrien Russell🔹️🔹️I was pissed as I left Dad's office. Where did the idea of marriage come from? How the hell could Dad conclude on my behalf that I would marry a stranger. Frustrated, I drove to that one person who I could talk to at the moment."Hello, Ms. Stuart." I smiled at the elderly woman who opened the door for me when I rang the bell."Hello, Adrien. Come in." She cheered and I passed her a smile. "It's been a long time. Ms. Stuart, Sophie's cook tapped my shoulder."Yes. I've been a little busy." I replied."Hmm. I understand. Have a seat, I will call Sophie." Just as she said that, Sophie came running down the stairs with a huge smile."Hey, Adrien!" She hugged me tightly and I returned it."Hey, Soph." We sat on the couch and Ms. Stuart returned to the kitchen, leaving us alone."So.. how did you suddenly think of seeing me after ghosting for five days?" She taunted me playfully and I let out a chuckle."You know about the controversy, I have been trying to avoid
🔹️🔹️Crystal Hayes🔹️🔹️I sat peacefully on a table with four chairs in the restaurant we planned to meet in. A small cozy place where Mr. Russell would have less fear of being spotted. I was there a bit earlier than I had to be. The morning was fresh and the cloudy weather and cold breeze had me shivering. While I waited for the two men, I felt the need to go to the restroom. When I came back and was about to sit back on the table, a red-haired girl, who clearly didn't pay attention to her steps, bumped into me and emptied an entire glass of orange juice over my shirt."Hey! Watch where you are going, bitch!" She screeched, looking at me.Wow. The audacity."Mind your language, lady. You sure it's me who should be watching my step?" I retorted back, glaring at her.Instead of commenting back, she studied my face for a second. And as if some sort of realization hit her, her eyes widened and she scoffed, looking at me from head to toe."Wow! If this isn't the gold digger, the ultimat
🔹️🔹️Crystal Hayes🔹️🔹️"Ha-Hannah. Hey." I gave a small forced smile but in return she glared at me with her arms crossed over her chest."You had gone for your honeymoon, right?" I asked, trying to sound casual."Yes. We were supposed to come back tomorrow but when I saw the news headlines, I couldn't get myself to stay there any longer." She let me come in and as I did, I saw her parents, Megan and Ethan sitting on the couch, looking in my direction. "Would you like to explain yourself?" Hannah asked while everyone's attention was on me. I wanted to tell everyone the truth but then I remembered the contract."I-" Before I could start, Hannah squealed loudly and started jumping like a freak."Oh My God! You are engaged to Adrien Russell!! I can't believe this. Why would you hide such a thing from me? You didn't even utter a word when the news came out initially. Oh my god, Crys. I am so happy for you."I looked at her like she had grown two heads while she kept hitting my arm an
🔹️🔹️Crystal Hayes🔹️🔹️D-Day.Excitement, joy, the feeling of butterflies in my stomach, the rapid heartbeat... were what I fantasized to feel at my wedding.But I felt none.I stood in front of a long mirror, running a hand through the heavy white dress. The sweetheart net gown paired with a small diamond pendant made me look more beautiful than ever. My wavy hair was left open, letting it fall over my shoulders and a net veil pinned in them. Everything looked perfect until one thing ruined it. My hollow, emotionless eyes.The stylists and the make-up artists were done with their work and had left me alone in the room while I waited for my que to go out. Saying I was nervous is probably an understatement. The count of the guests attending the wedding were in the hundreds. Adrien had informed me that there would be reporters and journalists too. I wasn't really ready to face all of this, but I had no choice.Sitting on the couch in the dressing room, I kept scrolling through my pho
A/N: Hi, guys. Thanks for coming this far. I hope you enjoyed the ride. If you're interested in reading more of my works, please do well to vote and comment. I'd love to hear from every one of you. Xoxo.It took me about twenty minutes to finally reach his place. However, I started gawking at the absolute mansion as soon as my eyes fell on it. The entire ride here was pin drop silent because Skye was dozing off and only his light snores filled in the otherwise quiet car.It took me another few minutes to let his security guard know that I wasn't a danger. It was then they let me in. His mansion's lights were off and I took it as a sign that he lives alone. I was thankful though that the lamps were lit on the main driveway.After inquiring with one of the guards, he pointed me to the backside of the house. I followed his instructions and there was a different stone driveway that led behind his huge house. There were pretty flowers and shrubs adorning on both sides. Before I knew it, I
When Skye consumed one too many drinks the moment my friends called me out on the dance floor, meaning when I wasn't noticing, he got a little too much tipsy. Somehow he had found himself on the dance floor and toward me. My friends were shocked beyond imagination to not only see him coming toward us but also when they saw the kind, professional and dapper man not like that anymore. He was wobbling on his two legs with his hair sticking out in all directions and a drunk smile plastered on his face. Even then, he still managed to look handsome and his boyish persona was coming out. Just like it did in the park. Like he was free and I couldn't help but wonder what really has been bothering him. What's so hard to show and so easy to live behind a facade? Soon enough, Skye stood directly in front of me and I saw Shivaay scramming everyone away from us. He's a sweetheart for not telling anyone about my secret feelings for Skye. I blinked my eyes at Skye because he was giving me an inno
All the blood drained from her face and she stepped back, looking ready to dart off in some direction. I tried so hard to not burst out laughing and blow up my cover. Skye, on the other hand, had a conspiratorial smile playing on his lips so I just raised an eyebrow at him.I am saving you here, buddy. Oh, and now he decides to cut out his indifferent act. Respect, I thought sarcastically."I-I... Are - are y-you arresting... me?" She stammered, pointing her manicured finger toward herself."Oh, yes." I nodded my head grimly and changed my stance to that of an inspector."O-on what charges?" She gulped and I really wanted to laugh at her so bad while patting her shoulders. God, was she so gullible."Shouldn't you be knowing that?" I glared sternly and Skye covered up his laugh with a cough. But the girl didn't pay any heed to him.It was almost as if a switch went over in her demeanor because there was a hard glint in her gaze and I almost had the urge to flee the scene when she spoke
"Can we make a pit stop before the club to change outta these clothes? It's too work-ey work-ey," Chelsea remarked, scrunching her nose and pointing her fingers toward her professional attire.We were all gathered in the parking garage of the ZAE Inc. building. "Who even cares about the outfit? I just wanna get wasted. This week was hella busty. I swear I can still smell unagreed disappointment oozing out of Ms. Maxwell's posture," Shivaay grumbled grouchily.Ms. Maxwell has been whooping everyone a lot as the whole campaign was almost ready before finally executing it. That woman must have invented something that surpassed even the term - perfection."You mean shark," Keith corrected with a scoff."Hey, hey," I interjected, trying to calm down their dark faces. "I know that we've all had a hard week but... we could make our weekend better, right?" I spoke in a consoling manner."Yeah.""Right. You're right.""Mm-hmm."All of them echoed in unison. "So, c'mon. Chop chop." I clapped my
It was like a bucket of ice cold water was thrown on him. A realization hit me and I smirked slightly because I knew the reason for his hostility. Someone's scared and I might just have the leverage.I started drumming my fingers on the table and it seemed to have brought them out of their concentrated reactions."H-hi... Em-Emika. I mean, Emika... yes," Chelsea stammered, sighing and waving at her comically."Emika, hey!" Keith exclaimed kindly but there was a tinge of wariness in his voice.I expected Shivaay to utter his response but he just stared at his lunch quietly, not even daring to look up. I swear he needed a thwank on that stubborn head of his. I nudged him with my elbow harshly and he glared at me. I pointed toward Emika with my eyes, scowling and he exhaled a deep breath."Hello Emika," he grumbled and stressed onto her name and went back to gobbling down his food. She smiled which he didn't seem to notice but like usual she was chill."Why aren't you saying anything?" C
I was going through the worst overweening emotions. Out of all, anger, annoyance and hurt were bubbling over on the verge of me having a breakdown.All the events of yesterday swirled through my mind until I reached my workplace. Once I got into my character which my work station gave me, I forgot all about what I had witnessed across the bridge.I could have been and felt the same the whole day if it weren't for Skye Williams himself. It was an hour or so before noon when I made my way to the coffee room. However, as I exited, I saw him walking toward Ms. Maxwell's office.My face broke out into a greeting smile when I passed him but he didn't even give me a second glance. He looked right through me and yet acted as if he didn't recognize me. A foreign impassive look was indented on his face and my heart skipped a beat. It was the worst feeling ever.That's when everything came back rushing to me. The silhouette of a tall woman. Is that why he's giving me the cold shoulder? Pretendin
After finishing our brunch and talking for some time, Skye's attention was pulled away by the obnoxious hollers coming from the football court park. He turned sideways, now facing the court with a vying anticipation for one of the two teams. His hands twitched as if he wanted to change the strategy or something while his lips were pressed tightly against his teeth. Knowing that he's busy and I couldn't retain his attention to look at me even if I wanted to, I went back to reading my book. I couldn't tell how much time had passed but I was startled when I heard another round of cheers and one clearly louder than the others. My wide eyes went toward Skye who was incessantly throwing his fists in the air with the biggest grin I've ever seen him sporting. Sure he smiled, laughed and chuckled but this huge smile lit up his entire face. There was not a single ounce of diffidence in his posture but rather a complete contrast to that right now. I couldn't help the awe in my own eyes. Whe
At last it was the weekend that actually felt like one. Ever since the campaign was bustling full fledged, half the department was working on Sundays as well. Nobody including me really minded it but I didn't know that I needed a break so badly until today. Until I finally got it. 'Welcome to New York' was blasting in my headphones as I cycled on the streets of New York. A befitting song as I cruised around with a small smile on my face. Wanting to spend my day alone, I decided to go cycling around the neighborhood, read a book and have a nice picnic in a less crowded park, which is ironic in this city even on Sundays. After an hour of music, freedom and cycling, I made my pit stop in a park. Leaning my bike against an oak tree and taking out my brunch packet along with a small blanket from my bike's basket, I breathed in the fresh air. Once I was done placing everything, I sat down on the blanket and tightened my jacket around me. The cold and chilly air of October made me shiver
The moment he drove away in his car, I laid down on the ground with my hands underneath my head. The ground was clean and spotless because it's cleaned daily for the shooting reasons. Even now, it had been swept neat by the cleaners after the wrapping up took place.As I was gazing at the almost empty sky, I felt a shadow looming over me. I tilted my head to the left to see Skye standing above me with a confused face."What are you still doing here?" His question wasn't rude but rather curious.I quickly sat up, dusting my arms and stomach. "Uh... nothing, just taking a breather, that's all," I answered.He sat down beside me, coiling his arms around his knees. I was shocked to say the least. I hadn't expected him to tag along in my 'lonesome party' to put it simply. "I hope you don't mind me sitting here but this does seem like fun. Like an actual breather," he muttered with a strained laugh."Nope, don't mind at all." When I looked at him I could tell that exhaustion was taking a to