YVONNEI grabbed onto him, not wanting to let him go. I want to be in his arms."No, please..." I begged him to stay.My whole body is aching for his touch. For the safety that his warm embrace offered, but this may not be the right time to be clingy. He still had to deal with that man. I should try to understand.I bit my lip when he turned his back on me. It pained me to watch him walk away.I held the sheet wrapped around me like it was my lifeline. I was still naked underneath, but it was thick enough to protect me against the cold.I was right, we were on a ship in the middle of the dark sea. I couldn't be more thankful that Vlad found me when he did. It could have been worse.But wait...My eyes roamed around to look for Jade but I couldn't see her anywhere. Oh my god. Did they torture her too?"Where's Jade?" I croaked, asking no one in particular. "She was there with me!" I panicked but the men around quickly calmed me down."Don't worry. They already found her," one of the me
VLADIMIRI gently tucked her in. I wanted to stay beside her but I had to make some calls. I need to get to the bottom of this. I called Blaze to tell him what to do."Make sure the hospital is heavily guarded. I want men stationed outside her hospital room and around the vicinity," I told him.I will drop her off at the hospital as soon as we land. At first, I thought of just sending our doctor to the penthouse. That would be safer, but she needs to be checked thoroughly. I want to be sure she's alright."Okay, I will make some arrangements," he replied.An ambulance was waiting for us at the airport when we landed."What's happening?" Yvonne confusedly asked when she saw paramedics approaching."You need to be checked," I told her."Why? I'm okay now," she frowned. "I just wanted to go home and rest.""I know," I sighed. "Trust me, that's what I want too. But we need to make sure you're okay. You don't need to stay here for long, after the tests, you can go home."I can still see def
YVONNE"We need to run some tests, as per Mr. Lewis' order. He wanted a general check-up to be done to make sure that you're okay. First, we need to get your blood sample...." the doctor explained while a nurse checked my vitals. Her voice sounded distant to my ears.A bitter taste filled my mouth as exhaustion started to defeat my whole body."I need to check your wounds," I heard her say, to which I only groaned in response.The nurse helped me take off my clothes. Cold seeped through my skin. I turned to look away, avoiding to see the pity in their eyes as my wounds came into view."Nurse..." I heard the doctor call, but I didn't bother to look at what they were doing.They made me sit on the bed as they simultaneously cleaned my wounds. I bit my lip to stop myself from whimpering in pain. Some of the cuts made by the thin leather whip were so deep that they needed to be stitched.After making sure that my back had no injuries, they made me lay down on the bed. A lone tear rolled f
YVONNEMy body temperature seemed to drop by numerous degrees. I suddenly find it hard to breathe.Why? Why now? I mean, I knew it was coming when I saw that blind item on the internet, but..."I'm so sorry..." Dave muttered. Silence filled the room as my mind spiraled down into a deep abyss of destruction. What a perfect timing! I just got kidnapped and tortured for goodness' sake!As if that wasn't enough, I have to wake up to this?! I wanted to scream to ease the tension inside my chest.Is it the reason why Vlad hasn't come to visit me? Has he seen it already?Of course, he did!"I want to go home," I said with conviction when I finally found my tongue. Dave looked at me with confusion."But..," he tried to disagree."Please," I cut him off. "I just want to get out of here." I was on the verge of lashing out. My breaths were shallow and rapid.I feel like a ticking bomb that might explode any minute now. I heard him sigh."I'll see what I can do," he said before going out of the
VLADIMIR"What the fuck do you mean?" I grumbled in a low but threatening voice.Blaze looked pale. For the first time, I've seen fear in his eyes."Raoul escaped," he repeated.Fuck. I clenched my fists, trying so hard to keep my shit together, but it was too late. I lost it. Before I could control myself, my fist had already landed on Blaze's jaw."How the hell did this happen?!" I growled, my voice echoing around us.The man was fucking chained to the walls! There's no way he could escape without anyone helping him!"Who helped him?" I hissed through gritted teeth."We're already checking the CCTV foota-"I grabbed him by the collar, cutting off whatever bullshit he would spew."Vladimir, calm down," he muttered."Are you the one sabotaging me, huh?!" I asked him accusingly."What?!" he frowned. He tried to push my hands away from him but I didn't let him go."Vlad, you know I can't do that!" he snapped while looking straight into my eyes. "I was gone! Didn't you ask me to trace wh
YVONNEMy heart immediately sank when I woke up alone. I really thought Vlad had come home and slept beside me."Where is he?" I asked myself while staring at the empty space beside me.It didn't look like someone slept on it last night. I must have been dreaming when I thought that he was here. I sighed as I felt my heart twitch painfully.I forced myself to get out of bed after checking the time. It's still early in the morning. He must still be here! I walked out and hurried to his bedroom. Damn, I miss him so much, I feel like I will die if I don't see him soon. I slammed the door open only to be greeted with silence. His bed was made.Didn't he come home last night?"Vlad?" I gently called, even though, deep down inside me, I knew he wasn't there.With a heavy weight on my heart, I got out and tried to look for him all over the unit. But my hope died a little every time I didn't see him in each room I checked. Why am I even wasting my time?He's not here.I heaved out a long sigh
YVONNE"What the hell are you doing?" I muttered bitterly while watching her spout nonsense helplessly."Yes, the rumors are true," she confidently said with her head held high. "She's nothing but a gold-digging slut!"My hand trembled. I wanted to yell at her. Where did she get the audacity to say all these things? Why is she doing this?Why do I have to ask? Of course, she's doing it for money. Honestly, I shouldn't be surprised anymore. She sold me, her flesh and blood, for a few thousand bucks. What's stopping her from giving an interview in exchange for cash?"She's an ungrateful bitch who forgot about her own mother! Me!" she cried. "I raised her-"The sound was cut off when someone suddenly grabbed the phone from my hand."What are you doing?" I heard Cora exclaim. "You should be resting!" she gently scolded me.I didn't say anything. I still haven't recovered from what I've seen."Hey, don't worry," she said as she gently squeezed my hand. "I'm sure Vladimir will take care of
YVONNE I love you... The realization hit me like a bullet train. Damn it! The euphoric feeling from the mind-blowing orgasm he gave me quickly dissipated into the air.You're so stupid, Yvonne! I bit my tongue as I cursed myself internally. I almost said it out loud at the height of my emotions. I am still gasping for air while he gently rolled off me.He put his arm under my head, then pulled me closer. I looked at him. His eyes were closed while catching his breath. There were beads of sweat on his forehead due to the strenuous activity we just finished. He must be running for the hills now if he heard me say those words.I wouldn't blame him if that happened. Even I find it ridiculous! I wanted to laugh even though I didn't find it funny. But do I mean it? Do I really love him? I thought while staring at him.Love. It sounded foreign. I didn't know it was part of my dictionary until now. I don't think I ever felt it. Nobody ever loved me. I never loved anyone either. Love was
VLADIMIRI wished she could have stayed in bed with me a little longer, but I knew she had things to do—and so did I."I'm gonna drive you there," I told her as I got out of her bed.I don't understand how I was able to sleep soundly there. Perhaps it was my exhaustion or maybe it was just her. She has the ability to calm all the raging demons inside me."Uhm, okay," she hesitantly stated. "Coffee?""You don't need to bother. We can grab some breakfast before we go to the shelter," I said."Oh," she nodded before hurrying into a door which I assume was the bathroom.I looked around her tiny unit. I don't know why she's putting up with this when she can get a better place. I made sure she was paid enough to live comfortably. That was the only thing I could think of when she refused to accept anything from me.We dropped by a cafe to have our breakfast before I drove her to the shelter."I'll pick you up later," I told her when I stopped the car."Uhh," she played with her fingers on he
YVONNEI stared at my phone's screen. I sighed and put it down only to pick it up again. I scrolled randomly before finally tossing it away. I don't know why I seem to be waiting for it to ring or something.Oh, who am I kidding?!Of course, I was waiting for him to call or at least send a message! I chewed on my bottom lip, replaying our last conversation in my head. What if that was just a dream? Damn it!What did he even mean when he asked me for some time? What am I supposed to do? Should I just stay here and wait until he comes back? It's okay, right? I should give him that. But...Damn. The waiting game is giving me so much anxiety!What if he suddenly changes his mind when he talks to Riva? What if she makes him realize that he was just confused? What if it was just lust he was feeling for me? Ugh!I groaned while covering my face with a pillow. I'm alone in my unit again, overthinking! This would be the death of me!I don't know what else to do. I tried my best to keep myself
VLADIMIRNo. This can't be right.I glanced at Blaze who was looking at me apologetically."I know it's hard to believe, but everything points to her," he said.I harshly wiped my face with my palm. It's unbelievable. I can't imagine how she was able to orchestrate something like this.Well, the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. I thought bitterly.I squeezed my eyes shut before looking at the files Blaze had given me when I arrived. I scanned them again, making sure I wasn't seeing things. I gritted my teeth while reading.They were complete with bank transactions, emails, and phone calls. I don't know how he got all of this but it doesn't matter now, does it?Everything was traced back to Riva. Riva!My seemingly innocent wife. Her sweet smile flashed at the back of my mind. How could she do this to me? I never once suspected her. Even now, with everything my men found against her, I still find it hard to believe.How could she do this to me?How? Why? Some of the bank transactio
YVONNEMy head is reeling. I stood behind the closed door, replaying everything that happened inside my head. To say I was dumbfounded is an understatement.I'm in love with you.I can still hear his husky voice and feel his warm breath fanning against the sensitive skin on my neck. Speechless after he said those words, I didn't even try to look at him, even though I could feel his glances while driving back to my unit.I don't know how to process it. It seemed unrealistic. Did he really say those words? Was I dreaming?I pinched my arm so hard to prove that I am awake. I groaned when pain hit me.Shit. It was real!"Aah!" I screamed so loud that I must have woken up the entire building!Damn it! I jumped into the daybed and pushed my face against a pillow, trying to muffle my screams against it.I'm losing my mind!How can he be in love with me? I can't believe this. He must be playing with me! But why would he lie about it?I rolled to my back and stared at the ceiling as if his fac
VLADIMIR"I promise I'll make it right."Her whole body became rigid in my arms when I held her. I know this sounds like an empty promise, but I meant it."I..." I took a deep breath. I turned her around to look at her. I wanted to see her face. I wanted her to see how genuine my feelings were."I'm in love with you," I told her while staring deep into her eyes. Her lips parted in shock. I had the strongest urge to ravish those lips, but this wasn't the time for that."Do you understand?" I asked when she didn't even blink.I cupped her face, pressing my forehead against her. I can hear her ragged breaths as if she was on the verge of a panic attack."I love you," I whispered. "But I need to make things right this time. I need to... end things with Riva so we can start on a clean slate."She remained dumbfounded. She was just staring at me as if I'd grown another head."Yvonne," I gently called her name. "Did you hear me?"She only nodded but still didn't say anything. I guess it was
YVONNE"Leave," even I was surprised at how my voice turned out full of conviction. I stared at the darkness in front of us.We were still in the middle of the road when he suddenly stopped the car.He chuckled humorlessly, probably from my audacity to give him an order like that. But I don't care anymore. I just need to do what I have to protect my heart from further breaking into pieces. Because if not me, nobody will."Stop playing with me," I said."I don't know what kind of game you are playing right now," I told him, my voice dripping with raw emotions. I didn't even try to hide how I really felt.I am confused and devastated. His mere presence is enough to fuck me in the head. Every time I see him around, it gives me a glimpse of hope. I don't want to. God knows I don't want to, but my stupid heart couldn't help but assume.Assume that he was here for me. Assume that he missed me. The more I see him, the more I expect him to talk to me and tell me he wants me back.It was pathe
VLADIMIR What was I thinking? I thought, staring at her as she obviously checked out everything in the room except me. How could I become so impulsive around her? I shouldn't have dragged her here in the pretense that I wanted to talk. I just wanted to be with her for a little longer and that's the only thing I could come up with when it seemed like she couldn't wait to get away from me. "What do we need to talk about?" she asked impatiently. I badly wanted to pull her closer, to wrap her in my arms and inhale her intoxicating scent to calm my shit down. But I stopped myself. As much as I wanted to confess to her, I wanted to settle everything first. I wanted to do it right this time. I should end things with Riva, before even thinking of taking her back. I owe it to both of them. What should I tell her though? My mind was blank. Fuck it. "What?" she muttered while looking at me with a puzzled expression on her face. It felt like I was saved by the bell when I heard a knock
YVONNEI chose a semi-formal emerald green dress. I took it from the rack and held it in front of me, imagining how I would look if I wore it."It suits you."I gasped audibly when I heard his voice behind me. I turned to look just to find him standing at the closet's entrance. I gulped when I caught his gaze lingering on my body.My cheeks heated up profusely. I can feel the temperature around us suddenly rising. I couldn't help but glance at the air conditioning unit in the room. It's turned off. It's definitely the reason why it's getting hotter here.I'm sure it had nothing to do with Vladimir leaning languidly against the doorframe, looking so damn... Fine..."Uhm, thanks," I murmured, fighting the urge to bite my lip. "I'll take this for the opening ceremony. I hope you won't mind."He looked around the closet. I noticed his jaw ticked when he must have realized that everything was still there."I don't care," he looked back at me. This time, he stared into my eyes intently. "Yo
YVONNE The silence that greeted me in the apartment was deafening. I suddenly wished I let Selene come with me again. I sighed as I plopped myself into the daybed. I stared at the ceiling as if it was interesting. I felt so exhausted after another day of pretending I was fine. I'm not. I even think I am on the brink of insanity. I'm barely holding on by a thread so as not to fall on the other side. I don't know what I want anymore. I want him gone when he's around, but my heart screams for him when he's not. Damn it. If that's not insane, then I don't know what else is! "Ugh!" I groaned loudly. I should seriously stop thinking about him! I harshly get out of bed to find something else to do to occupy my mind. I winced when I realized there was no food left. I was quite hungry because I had not eaten anything while in the shelter. I sighed. I had no choice but to go out. I can also drop by the store to buy some stocks. I just gathered my hair up into a messy bun, then grabbed