Life was full of surprises. Zander thought.There were good surprises, like finding out Elvie’s pussy tasted like honeydew and was tighter than his fist. There were also bad surprises, like finding Kristal standing inside his apartment, his spare keys dangling from her fingers in triumph, completely naked.Again.He dropped his suitcase and cracked his neck, walking straight to the bar. Luckily, they’d broken things off before he’d had the chance to become a full-blown alcoholic. Kristal certainly looked better behind the mist of hard liquor.“Are you officially a nudist? I haven’t seen you with clothes on in a while,” Zander pondered, unbuttoning the first two buttons of his shirt.“You’re funny,” she hissed in what he assumed was meant to be a seductive way.“And you’re naked. For a rich girl, you could surely use a new wardrobe. How did you get my keys?”Part of him wanted to know, and the other dreaded killing the person who’d given them to her—not that there was a long list to ch
Guilt nibbled at Elvie’s gut as Joey exclaimed how happy he was for her. For them and for Zander.Of course, she’d sugarcoated the situation to the point that it looked like a churro.Instead of telling him she was now blissfully happy and screwing her heartless husband, she painted a picture in soft pinks and vivid baby blues in which Zander and she had fallen desperately in love and decided to be together. To which she wondered if, by telling that to his brother, he would ever admit his involvement with Zander’s parents' accident and ask forgiveness, or would he deny it? Not that she didn't doubt Zander; she had all doubts and a fear that maybe Joey was involved with or without his knowledge.Joey swallowed the entire thing and asked for seconds. He came clean about the experimental treatment and said he loved Zander like a brother. Like. A. Brother. And he was willing to change and be grateful for the second chance God had given him. Could she believe him?Maybe.But she knew to b
The next few days were a blur. Things somehow got both better and worse.Better, because people had very little time to duck their heads down and whisper about them.News about their marriage, Kristal's involvement, and their fake divorce echoed the four walls of the Stanton building.Zander was running around the office, screaming his lungs out at them. They were severely short-staffed, and every calamity in the world had decided to land at their feet.Worse, because ever since the new ads started rolling, Zander was in and out of meetings on the sixth floor, and every time he came back, he punched a wall to its untimely death. They were four holes in, with their ratings slipping each passing second and their competitors openly discussing their current situation as a network dying a slow, painful, and very public death.Zander had not been kidding.Matheo wanted to kill SBC before he left; he had all the shareholders under him, everyone except Zander, and now that Zander was no longe
Her legs were up before she knew it, carrying her to the exit. No explanation. No apologies. Elvie felt his grave steps thumping in her hollow chest as he followed her out. It was raining outside—the kind of dirty, humid rain to break the pulses of summer heat. It reminded her of the day they’d met at the university, of the carnal desperation that ate at her back then, and of the fact that she was still alone.Elvie felt his hand on my shoulder as he swivelled her around sharply. He jerked her into his arms.I didn’t want him to let go.I didn’t want him to keep me there, either. She thought.“I wish I’d never met you.” My fists pounded his chest, and he took it. Maybe because he knew he deserved it. His mouth pressed against my cheek felt like a rusty, hot blade. The world felt like it was ending, even though I knew it couldn’t be.The vane of his breath sliced through my ear. “I wish that, too.”That night, the sex was different.Slow, intense, and angry. Every thrust was a punishme
On the way to work, Gerald told her in her earbuds that they’re spending the treasure that love cannot afford, and Elvie nodded, not only to the rhythm but to the sentiment. Her shoes were blood red, and she’d spent the ride dying their laces black with a Sharpie.She walked into the office, not knowing what to expect. The professional side was going to be evidently extra depressing. But last night, Zander and she showcased their hearts like they were on a window display when they touched—crawling into each other’s mouths and seeping into each other’s souls. Then she’d left, without a message or a phone call. It was not her most mature moment, but she was sure he needed time to think too.Elvie walked the hallway, ignoring the judgy looks and raised eyebrows people tried to pin her with. One of the secretaries passed her and winced. She didn’t say anything, but one look at her face told Elvie she was in for an unpleasant surprise. What the hell was wrong with these people? Why on eart
Elvie was about to round the corner and turn onto the street when a limo pulled up at the curb and the passenger door flung open. Her eyes widened, and she stopped in an instant. Her brother was no Liam Neeson, and if she was going to get kidnapped, she very much doubted she could be saved. She turned around to look at the person getting out of the vehicle. It was Kristal, dressed to impress in what looked like a cocktail gown. She seemed to be alone.“Can I help you?” Elvie cocked her head. She wanted to be strong, but she was tired, hungry, and annoyed. And pissed at herself—so pissed that she’d let herself get carried away with a man like Zander Stanton. She usually made smart choices. She was a salad girl, and he was a deep-fried chocolate lava cake.“Me? No, though I’m sure you’ll do it at some point once you get fired, divorced, and have to become a waitress to support your slutty ways.” She walked towards her on her high heels. The limo driver looked the other way, like he coul
Kristal had been a no-show during those terrible days, but he still remembered the flowers and pastry the family had sent every morning, her mother checking in on him, and her grandmother calling him three times a day to make sure he ate, showered, and breathed. Bella turned around, reaching for the door handle. Zander kept his face blasé. “Good luck explaining it to everyone, sir. Because let me tell you something—the moment Elvie walked into the room and into your life again, she changed you. It wasn’t profound. It was even more gradual, but it was there. In the way you started smiling, the way you softened towards your employees—just a little—and started doing the right thing by yourself and Kristal. But standing here?” She shook her head. “I think that man just bailed on us, and it saddens me because I was looking forward to working with and befriending the new Zander.” Fuck! Bella closed the door behind her, and he looked to the glass wall, catching Elvie unpacking her lunch a
Her heart was that of a lonely hunter.Yes and everything hurts.Elvie had always thought she was doomed by not being able to fall in love, but once she did fall, she wished she hadn’t. Now it hurt when she breathed, when she walked the hallways at work, and each time in between, when she caught sight of the person with a sharp suit and even sharper tongue moving past her, firing orders at Bella or bantering with the rest of the newsroom staff.A few weeks had passed. Four weeks after he’d shown up at her doorstep with flowers and chocolate, Zander had invited everyone into the conference room and announced that he’d given up his position and would only be staying for another month.After he made that announcement, he’d shot her a look, searching her face. Whatever he found there made him ask her to stay after the meeting was over so they could talk about it.She’d wanted to badly, but she knew nothing had changed. Though he often talked to Thea and visited her when he wasn't busy, he