The ride from Adeline’s house to their mansion was filled with silence as Anastasia appeared equated as she was looking out of window with sleepy eyes. It had been quite late at night. As they were going home, Damien got a message from his secretary who said, “Boss, someone is trying to a do a back up check on Mrs Callahan. We saw someone trying to follow her today.” Damien was alarmed. He turned to look at Anastasia who was still looking out of the window and replied, “It must be Harold. Keep an eye on what he is upto.” He then called her name softly, “Anastasia?”She turned to face him, blinking away the sleep. “Hmm?”“Someone is trying to run a background check on you,” Damien said. Anastasia’s drowsiness evaporated as his words sank in. “Do you want to allow it?”Anastasia frowned slightly. “Who is it?”“I believe it is your father,” Damien replied.Anastasia nodded thoughtfully. “Can I decide what he finds out?”“Of course,” Damien assured her.“Then I will let you know what he
Later that afternoon as Anastasia was about to leave for the office, a maid approached her and said, “Madam, master didn’t take his lunch box. He doesn’t eat outside food.”Anastasia checked the time. It was around the time Damien usually ate and she was already running late. “Okay, give it to me,” she replied. “I’ll take it to him.”She drove to Damien’s office. Since the car was registered under his name, she had no trouble getting into the parking lot. As she stepped out of the car, she happened to see Regina nearby. Anastasia immediately turned her face away as she was not in the mood to deal with the scheming woman.It wasn’t Anastasia herself that irritated Regina, it was the car she was driving. The car was extremely precious to Damien. He wouldn’t even let Abel or Ronan drive it, yet here was Anastasia who was known for her reckless driving,driving it. Seriously? Regina was fuming with jealousy and anger. For years, she had loved Damien and spent all the time caring for him af
Today, Damien had an important meeting scheduled at the Nyx Nightclub. It was a confidential and slightly dangerous affair as the other party had ties to the Mafia. As they negotiated, the deal wasn’t progressing and the two sides took a break to discuss their terms privately. Damien was seated in another VIP section with his team. While waiting, he happened to spot Regina chatting with a member of the other party.Soon after, the man walked toward Damien with Regina by his side. Taking a seat next to Damien, the man said, “Mr. Callahan, you didn’t mention you brought your fiancée with you. No need to hide such a beautiful lady.”Damien was about to respond but Regina quickly responded, “Thank you, but I will leave you gentlemen to your discussion. I’m here with a friend.”As Regina walked away, Damien noticed the man’s lewd gaze following her. He could tell what the other party was aiming for. These people were known for using underhanded tactics to close deals. They likely thought th
The Spencer family crowded around the Callahan family as Claire arrived with her husband.Claire said, "Matriarch Callahan, you must give us a proper explanation."Matriarch Callahan was Damien's grandmother and the current head of the Callahan family and gave Damien a disappointed look. The Spencer family was not a group they could afford to offend. She said, "My grandson insists it wasn’t intentional. He didn’t know those people would use Regina against him.""But they did," Claire replied. "And it is my daughter who is suffering. She is in the hospital, being treated for the drug they injected into her. Do you realise she could have died, or... I can’t even bear to think about what else she could have gone through." She added, "And on top of that, he refuses to take responsibility for her. The whole media is calling her Damien’s fiancée and he doesn’t even want to acknowledge it. Why did he waste her youth if he was going to show her this kind of disrespect?"Matriarch Callahan sai
"Anna, where are you?" Austin’s voice was filled with concern. "I have been trying to reach you since morning. You are not answering your phone.""I'm sorry," Anna replied weakly, her voice barely above a whisper. "I was sleeping."Austin's frustration seeped through. "The designs… they aren’t working out. The artisans said they are falling apart. They are hard to execute in reality, and they don’t even look the same as in the sketches. The contest is in two days and we still can’t get it right."Anna snapped out of her daze. She had been so caught up in her personal life, especially her relationship struggles, that she had neglected the real reason she came back to New York. How could she have let this happen? A bitter smile crossed her lips as guilt gnawed at her. Her mother had passed away and yet here she was, chasing after love instead of focusing on her purpose.“I will come to the lab, Austin,” Anna said. She realized the gravity of the situation. None of her designs were comple
The comments on the social media post were like this:@ArisUser2BC: The essence of life according to me is achieving the state of eudaimonia, as Aristotle used the term to express “happiness.” And do you know what gives me eudaimonia? *Evil laughing* Being between my girl’s legs. Kidding, it's food and doing nothing that gives me the greatest pleasure of happiness. I think the government should work to provide citizens with free food so they don’t have to work, and we can all live a work-free and happy life.@GodisDead: The essence of life is power. Maximizing power. Nothing else matters when you are powerful.@Peacefulglobalcitizen2024: Love, compassion, world peace, and striving to achieve these should be the essence of life. What will power and the happiness of a single person do if the world is burning, if genocide is happening all around us, if innocent humans are caught in the crossfire set by governments? The essence of life should be walking past the borders of hate, violence,
Behind the stage, all the contestants were getting ready with their models. When Regina arrived, she greeted Arabella, Abel’s sister, who was modeling for her. “Arabella, you look beautiful in the outfit.”Arabella looked at herself in the mirror and felt good. “Yes, you are very talented, Regina.”Regina replied, “Thank you for coming on such short notice. I know your dates were full—”Arabella waved her hand. “Come on, you are my brother’s friend. I can do this for you. He never requests me for anything. As for other shows, today I had nothing planned, but I will be leaving for L.A. tomorrow evening. I have an important shoot. I should be there by now,but my brother came with a sudden request, and I could not say no.”Regina was shocked. “Abel asked you to help me?”Arabella laughed. “Of course! Aren’t you guys friends?”Regina smiled. Well, in their four-person group, she and Abel were always fighting with each other. He was too pro-Anastasia, and she hated him for his stance. She
“For the last contestant of the evening, please welcome to the stage, Anastasia Spencer!”The auditorium went dark as the sound of heels clicking echoed before the spotlight illuminated a striking figure entering the stage. Anastasia was dressed in an elegant white gown and exuded confidence with her walk. Snake-shaped earrings dangled gracefully from her ears as it caught the light as she made her way to the center of the stage."I would like to call my models to the stage," Anastasia announced with a poised smile as her eyes sweeping the room before lingering briefly on her husband in the audience. With a subtle shift, she returned her attention to the judges and continued, "After the presentation, I will provide a brief explanation of each piece my models are wearing. Dear judges, you have detailed descriptions of the designs in the cards placed before you."The show began.The first model appeared on the ramp, adorned in a white and green dress that perfectly complemented the exqui
After Crystal left, Regina turned to Giovanni. “How do you know the Hawthorne family?”Giovanni leaned back, his tone casual and warm. “Crystal’s mother-in-law is the sister of Gideon’s grandmother. The two families are very close. They adore Gideon, so I ended up getting close to them, too.” He paused, then added, “Don’t worry about the patient. The Hawthornes have the best doctors. She will be as good as new.”Meanwhile, Limpy limped toward Claire, his face pale as he delivered the news. “Madam, the place was blasted.”He was so scared of Claire while delivering this news. He would not be shocked if she killed him. Fiona was her ace and now she lost it. She would die with grief and rage. “What do you mean?” Claire’s voice was sharp with confusion. She was not ready to accept the truth. Limpy stuttered, visibly shaken. “There was a fight between two families... our place, along with many others, was blown up. There is nothing left.”Claire’s eyes narrowed as she grabbed Limpy by th
The person kept muttering, “Mum… Mum…” in a frail and broken voice.“Should we kill it?” the man asked, his face twisting in disgust. “This…thing is too revolting to even look at.”Regina’s expression hardened as she shook her head. “No. Take it with us. Make sure there is no trace we were ever here.”“This person…” the man hesitated. “It will be a liability. If anyone finds out—”Regina’s lips curled into a sly smile. “Actually, I’m looking forward to this kind of trouble.”Once they were outside, the person was bundled in layers of cloth to keep her hidden. Regina pulled out her phone and made a call. “Ronan, it’s Regina. I need your help.”A week later...Regina stood in a big bouse, facing the person who had helped her when she needed it the most as her expression full of gratitude. “Thank you so much for everything,” she said softly.The woman smiled warmly. “Come on, Regina. I like you. Of course, I would help.”Regina’s eyes softened. “Even with the risks, you still stepped in.
“Miss!”“We found the location!”Regina stood at the beach, her gaze fixed on the horizon as the words she had been waiting for finally reached her ears. For the past week, she had tasked people with keeping an eye on her mother. Although she was angry with her, it didn’t mean she hated her. Her frustration stemmed from her mother’s constant interference in her life, not from a lack of love.What troubled her even more was the mystery of where her mother was getting those sketches. At first, she suspected her teacher might be helping, but over time, she began to notice inconsistencies. The designs clearly weren’t her teacher’s work. Regina vividly recalled the day her teacher subtly hinted that someone else was behind the designs.The scandal that followed unearthed even more questions. While critics tore her apart for copying, a few respected figures in the industry made a startling observation like her work bore an uncanny resemblance to the designs of the legendary Faye. But how co
Damien sat in a café, checking his watch. He had been waiting for half an hour when the door finally opened. A tall, striking woman walked in and as soon as she saw him, her face lit up. She walked over and hugged him.“How are you, Damien?” she asked with a confident smile. The woman was stunning, strong and intimidating with an air of mystery. She wore a dress with a low back, showing off a large phoenix tattoo. The tattoo gave her an untouchable aura, like she had risen from something difficult, carrying a story only she knew, a story which with hints of sadness.“I’m doing well, Gia,” Damien replied. “And you?”Giovanna laughed lightly as her tone was calm. “What could possibly happen to me?”“Right…” Damien said. Then he asked, “How is Gideon?”The mention of the boy made her expression soften instantly. “Gideon is doing great,” she said, a warm smile appearing on her face.Damien nodded, relieved. He thought back to her past about the struggles she had endured. Ten years ago,
“Did you do something?” Anastasia asked, her eyes narrowing slightly as she observed Abel. She was currently in Damien’s office where she was planning to surprise him after her long day at work. She hadn’t expected to find out he was away for an important meeting and wouldn’t return until the evening. Since she was too tired to head home immediately, she decided to rest in his office and wait for him. But she hadn’t anticipated Abel walking in and looking like he carried the weight of the world on his shoulders. He looked so miserable that she could not ignore him. Abel froze momentarily at her question before attempting to brush it off. “Why would you think I did something?”He tried to appear casual but the misery on his face betrayed him. His usual funny and naighty demeanor was nowhere to be found.Anastasia tilted her head as a playful smile tugging at her lips. “Hmm. Let me think…” she mused dramatically before adding, “Maybe because you reek of guilt. It is written all over y
Damien studied him for a moment before speaking. “I’m going to ask you something, and I need you to be honest with me. Can you do that?” Ronan opened his eyes, hesitant, but eventually nodded. “Do you love Regina? Not as a friend, but as a romantic partner?” Damien’s tone was firm and curious. “What?” Ronan looked startled. “Be honest, Ronan.” Ronan was quick to respond, his voice firm and sincere. “I don’t! I don’t see her that way at all. She is like the sister I never had. A little sister. I love her a lot, but not romantically.” He paused, his voice softening. “But she means the world to me. She has been there for me through everything, good and bad. She is someone I share my heart and soul with. Damien, I don’t love her as a romantic partner, but she is still my soulmate. I know it sounds strange, but it’s the truth.” Damien tilted his head while being intrigued. “If you marry someone in the future, how will you fit Regina into that dynamic?” Ronan met his gaze whi
Damien arrived at an abandoned property on the outskirts of town. The place looked abandoned, the kind of place one would pass without a second glance. He walked up to the door and rang the bell. Once. Twice. Ten times. Finally, the door creaked open, revealing a dishevelled Ronan. “You look like shit,” Damien said, tossing a bottle of whiskey to him. Ronan caught it instinctively and rasped, “What are you doing here?” “Came to find you, asshole,” Damien replied, brushing past him to step inside. Oh, the inside of the house was not as bad as the inside. Someone had made it livable. Ronan, too exhausted to argue, stared at the bottle in his hands. “Are you gonna drink this?” Damien rolled his eyes. “Anna would kill me first before diabetes would kill me, if I did drink it.” Ronan chuckled dryly and asked, “Why are you so scared of your girlfriend?” Damien smirked. “Actually, she is my wife.” Ronan blinked, his momentary exhaustion was replaced by shock. “What… when? How
Mr. Arnello slammed his hand against the table, crashing the decorations to the floor. He was so angry and Delilah, who was used to his anger, did not flinch. “How dare she!” he roared, his fury directed at Anastasia Spencer and her father. The thought of being humiliated and forced to pay five million because of them burned like acid in his chest. “That crippled old man and his brat of a daughter, unbelievable!” “Matt!” Delilah’s voice cut through his tirade. He turned to her, his face twisted with anger. “Did you see what happened today?” “I did,” she said firmly, crossing her arms. “And maybe if you weren’t so biased, you would see the bigger picture too!” Matteo’s jaw clenched. “That little Spencer girl—” he began, his voice was a venomous snarl. “How dare she cause a rift between our families! She—” The shrill ring of the home phone interrupted him. Delilah moved to answer it, her face paled slightly as she listened to the voice on the other end. “Matt,” she said, ha
Back at Damien’s mansionWhen Damien arrived home, the house felt unusually quiet. Neither his wife nor Adeline was there. Mrs. Luna informed him that Anastasia hadn’t returned from the office yet, and Adeline had gone out for work. Left alone, he decided to head to the gym, where he found Caleb practicing the moves he had taught him during their last session.Atleast, someone was home. “Hey, buddy. When did you get here?” Damien asked, his voice warm. He had grown so accustomed to Caleb’s presence in his home that, without realizing it, he had embraced the role of a father figure. Caleb, for his part, already saw Anastasia as a mother. Finally, Caleb was keeping the fences around his heart down and letting these two people come inside. “I came after school,” Caleb replied with a shrug. “I missed you guys.” Damien suppressed a smile and nodded. “Alright, let’s practice some more.” As they worked out, Caleb paused and asked, “When will Anna and Addy be back?” Damien sighed, wi