“Hey,” Derek called out to Gemma who was already in her pajamas and ready to go to bed. They had gotten pajamas and some casual clothes when they went shopping the previous day.“I'd like to get some rest,” Gemma mumbled, climbing onto the bed.“What about dinner?” Derek asked Ever since Gemma came up here since they got home in the evening, she hadn't come down. Even when Nora tried to make her leave the room she had lied that she was having a headache and would like to sleep.“I'm not hungry,” Gemma muttered.At her words, Derek instantly climbed onto the bed.“What are you doing?” Gemma was startled by his sudden action.“Hold on,” he said, placing his palm on her forehead.“Your temperature is normal. Are you feeling sick in any way?” he asked “I'm not sick. I'm just not hungry,” Gemma hit his hand off her head.“Are you sure?” He insistently asked.A few seconds passed with Gemma not saying a word and then she finally spoke.“Why do you act like you care about me so much?”“Act
To Derek, Gemma wasn't just a lady he randomly decided to spend his entire life with.The first time he had seen her was when he went gold hunting. As someone with a lot of investments. His company didn't just deal on one product but varieties of products. That day, he had gone to the gold mine to oversee the gold for the jewelry production. Logan was nursing a broken heart back then and couldn't concentrate on any work, so Derek took on the task since he couldn't trust anyone aside from Logan.The path to the mine wasn't exactly that easy to pass. Due to the high cases of robberies in these mines, they are often hidden away from the entire city and the roads to them are made hard to access.Getting out of his car that day,he saw another car parked at a corner. It was an old truck and it made him wonder who it belonged to. Well, he didn't wonder for long. He sighted a dark haired young lady, walking down the muddy and slippery path. She walked even better than him. It was as if it was
Gemma was so engrossed in admiring the lunch bag on her lap that she didn't notice the pair of eyes on her. Looking down at the lunch, she recounted how she had to wake up early each day to make not just her own food, but that of everyone at home. She'd cook and set the table even though they had maids at home and worst, Sylvia always made her pack Elena’s lunch too. She shook her head to get rid of unpleasant memories. Then, looked out the window sighing. Looking at the buildings by the roadside, Gemma felt like something was wrong. Her eyes had been on the road as they drove back to the Ferguson’s mansion yesterday and she never noticed any of these buildings. “Is this like a short cut or something?” She asked aloud with eyes still outside the window. Seconds passed but the driver didn't say a word, making her look away from the window. “This route is unfamiliar,” she uttered, meeting the driver’s eyes in the mirror. Upon seeing his eyes on her, she gasped. “What th
Early that morning, Derek was the first person to wake. Once he saw that Gemma was still asleep, he stared at her resting face for a while, then slipped out of the bed. Not wanting to wake her up, he tiptoed to the closet and picked out his clothes then left the room.He bathed and got ready for work in the guest room and once he was done, he came back to check on his sleeping wife only to find her still sound asleep.“I'm heading for the office, Nora,” he told his sister the moment he got out of the room.“And Gemma?” the latter had asked.“She is still asleep.” “No one should disturb her, let her sleep in if she likes. She is stressed out,” he instructed.Nora gave out a mischievous smile and winked at him.“If only she knows,” Derek thought.“Pascal will drive her to work if she decides to go to work today. I have an urgent meeting at the office, ” with that, he left the house.The truth was that he had just lied about having an important meeting. He just wanted to go away for a w
“You do know Gemma is carrying my child, right?” he laughed.“What!” Derek was shocked.“He is a filthy liar,” Gemma yelled from the side.She has never let Daniel touch her and was saving her first sexual experience for their wedding night. Even before she got her second chance, Daniel had only touched her on their wedding night.“You darned liar!” She yelled!“What? You didn't tell him?” Daniel was insistent.“Do not listen to him, I'm not pregnant,” Gemma yelled.“Bloody liar,” Derek cursed, choosing to listen to his wife “If she isn't pregnant, then what's this?” He flung a paper at Derek.Derek couldn't stop himself from looking. He picked up the paper and looked down on it. It was indeed a pregnancy test result with Gemma’s name on it.He looked up at Gemma. Seeing the look of disappointment on his face, Gemma pulled herself off Logan’s grip and rushed over to him.“Whatever that paper holds is fake,” she said, then took the paper from him.She scoffed on seeing the content of
“You know Derek believes you, right?” Logan asked, pulling up in front of the Brauns company.“I’d like to focus on the task at hand,” Gemma muttered, looking out the window The photoshoot for the launch of the products would happen today, even though no one cared to inform her about it, she knew because she had recalled the exact date.“Thank you for the ride, Logan,” she smiled and got out of the car.“I'll pick you up once you're done,” Logan called after her.“I'll just take a cab,” she waved him off and headed for the gate.Logan didn't say another word and just sat, watching her walk into the company. Knowing the type of family she came from and the recent war she waged against them, he decided to make sure she got to her office safely before leaving. “Derek would have done the same,” he told himself Gemma got to the company's entrance but the moment she tried to walk into the gate, the security approached her.“Sorry, Miss Braun…”“Mrs. Ferguson,” Gemma cut him off. She has
Sylvia was seated next to her husband’s right inside the meeting room, next to her was Elena who was grinning from ear to ear, her eyes and entire focus were on one of the old shareholders, who happened to be the second largest shareholder in the company. The old man returned her energy and kept winking and smiling at her.“Have some dignity, Elena,” Sylvia pinched her thighs on noticing the little exchange.Elena grumbled, rolling her eyes.Clearing her throat, Sylvia brought everyone’s attention to herself.“I called the meeting today because…”“You called the meeting?”“We were assembled by a woman?” The investors murmured loudly not bothering to hide their displeasure.Their utterances were not welcomed by Sylvia.“I am the chairwoman of this company!” she banged her fist on the table.“Only because your husband made it so. He is capable of handling every single affairs of this company alone,” one of the investors boldly challenged her.Sylvia was about to retort, when Max held he
“Let's see what you have, Hughes,” one of the shareholders proposed.Mr. Hughes got up and handed the memory chip to a young guy. Whose job was to stand next to the big screen and wait for when it could be used so he could operate it.The guy took the card from him and headed back towards the big screen. But then, the door was pushed open and James walked in. Before anyone could process his unexpected entrance, he snatched the card from the young guy and threw it into his mouth, chewing it.Sylvia sighed, relieved, on seeing this “What the heck?” Gemma was stunned.“What evidence do you have Mr. Hughes? What darned evidence do you have that you decided to humiliate my mother with a memory card!” James slammed.“You walk in here, when we are halfway done with the meeting and shout at me! You think being the chairman’s heir gives you the right to barge in here and do shit when it pleases you!” Hughes challenged him.“Now that the silly evidence you have is gone. I'd like to see you prov
“Gemma, something happened! Your name is on the news!” A loud banging followed by Esther’s loud voice woke Gemma from sleep the next morning.“What?” She mumbled, her eyes flickering open.“Open the door! Your name is all over the news!” Esther yelled yet again, banging on Gemma's door.“Get away from there,” Gemma could hear the butler hushing the little girl.Not bothering to slip her foot into her house slippers, Gemma got off the bed and pulled the door open.Esther raced in that instant, escaping Samuel who was just about to grab her.“Come see,” she waved at Gemma.Shutting the door, merely acknowledging the butler, Gemma walked over to the bed where Esther was already seated.“Derek's company released a new product with you as the model. Then two hours later, your family company released the same product…you're also the model,” Esther announced.“What?” Gemma was so stunned that she took Esther's phone from her.“What the?” Her eyes nearly wide as saucers.“It has sparked a deb
“Serves you right, Gemma,” Nora flashed Gemma an overly sweet smile just as she reached the hallway.“Since you want to ruin my relationship with my brother, yours won't survive either. This is just karma coming for you,” Nora smiled yet again, bringing Gemma to halt.“What?” Gemma asked, looking at her.“Karma?” She scoffed.“Take a good look at yourself, then look at me. Who does your brother value most? Me or you?” Gemma returned her sweet smile.“You're not dumb, Nora. Think about it….Or maybe you already know the answer,” Gemma laughed, then made to walk away from her, but Nora wasn't letting go.“I'm his sister. It's me first before you, or anyone!” Nora was getting agitated.“Oh, really,” Gemma paused yet again, raised a brow and let out a mocking laugh.“You!” Nora glared at her.“Whatever helps you sleep at night, Nora,” Gemma walked away.“You saw what happened just now? Your relationship with him will be ruined, before you can even think of putting a strain on ours!” Nora de
“We have to find a way to kick Andrea out, without offending Gemma or making Andrea suspicious,” Derek suggested.The duo stayed silent. Each think of the best approach to the matter.“Your step-siblings…Does Gemma have any close relationship or bond with them?” Logan asked.“They just arrived today. Today ia her first time of seeing them, what sort of relationship could they possibly have?” Derek answered, wondering why Logan was suddenly bringing them up.“Well, let's use them,” Logan smiled.“How?”Logan was quick to brief him on his plans, bringing a smile to Derek's face.“Which one of them should we use, the little one? Esther, is her name, I think,” Logan proposed.“No, no. You can't. Not her, Logan,” Derek quickly protested.“What? Why?” Logan who thought they were both on the same page, stared at him confused.“Gemma seems fond of her. We can't use her. Who knows she might end up becoming close to Gemma. I can't ruin her potential relationships. Even the ones that seems insign
“No, I'm not leaving, Derek!” Nora protested the moment Gemma turned around to walk over to Derek.Gemma smiled at her stubbornness but didn't say a word and simply proceeded to sit on the bed, observing them.“We're done with this conversation, Nora!” Derek declared.“We're no way from done, Derek! I don't want those people here, please. Our home have always been perfect with them. Having that man who called himself our father is one thing, having his other kids here is another. Derek, please! You have to throw them out or soon that man will show up with his mistress to live here too!”“You have no say, Nora. This is my home. I built this place. I can decide who stays and who leaves,” Derek declared.Nora's statement made a lot of sense but then he wasn't going to give her the satisfaction of listening to her. The Nora right in front of him was very different from the sister he had known all his life. Unless, she looked back at herself and amend her ways, he won't give in.“This is my
Back home, Gemma and Derek were seated on the bed. Derek was nearly losing his mind, it hasn't been more than three hours since his so called siblings arrived, yet Nora had fought them up to five times. The constant drama was making his head ache. Gemma just sat right next to him, smiling while listening to Nora's exchange with Roselle.When it all got too much, Gemma couldn't stop herself from giggling. Her giggle brought a nearly frustrated Derek's attention to her.“What?” He asked, staring at her and wondering what the heck was making her giggle.“Nothing,” Gemma responded, covering her mouth with her palm.Derek gave her a suspicious look but then looked away.“Get the fools out of here, Derek!” Nora's loud voice sounded right outside the door. Her shouts was followed by a banging sound on the door.“Fuck!” Derek cursed.“I'll get the door,” Gemma smiled, rising from her seat.Walking over to the door, Gemma pulled it open and out there stood Nora with a very disorganised hair and
Dressed in a sweatpants and tee-shirt, Logan got off his car and found his way into Braun Companies. Walking in there, he met the receptionist at the front desk.“I'm here for the CEO. Where is his office?” He asked.At first the woman failed to recognize him as this would be her first time seeing him in anything other than a business suit.“Do you have an appointment with him?” She asked.“Do I need an appointment to see him?” Logan asked back, giving the woman a death stare.“I'll inform him of your presence,” she backed down, picking up the telephone.“Show him to the CEO's office,” she instructed one of the security guards, who quickly bowed at Logan before leading him away.Logan had a grim look on his face as he approached Nathaniel's office.Andrea had tried to persuade him not to confront Nathaniel but he didn't want to hear any of that. He could provide shelter for Andrea if her life was ever in danger because of this. After all, it would be his payment to her for having Gemm
After the incident at the Ferguson’s mansion, Logan couldn't put aside the nagging feeling he kept having. Maybe, James wasn't the one who made an attempt on Gemma's life this time. It could have been Nathaniel. Judging from what Andrea told him, his dad could've been behind the threat.His fist clenched as Andrea's trembling words resonated into his mind. The weight of her revelation made his chest tighten with anger and disbelief. Nathaniel, his own father, was plotting against Gemma, his only daughter! The thought alone was enough to nearly make him lose his mind.He could picture Andrea saying every word of Nathaniel's foolishness.Andrea wiped her tears, her hands shaking. "He said if I didn’t cooperate, he’d ruin me, Gemma, my career...everything. I didn’t know what to do, Logan. I thought I could handle it, but now I realize I’m in over my head."Logan took a deep breath, forcing himself to stay calm. "Start from the beginning," he urged, his voice steady. "What exactly has N
Leaving the bed was like a chore to Gemma. All she wanted was to lay back there and have a well deserved rest. Her life has been on a roller coaster these past few weeks and to top it all, she was going back to work in just two days. She was going to face her crazy father. “Oh, lord,” she could only mumble. She could feel her head begin to ache, making her sigh.“What's wrong?” Derek asked, approaching her.Gemma shook her head.“Nothing, I'm just tired,” she told him.“You know you don't have to go welcome my dad's kids. You can stay back. I'll be back before you know it,” Derek offered and tried to make her lay back down.“It's nothing. I should see them,” she got off the bed, slipping her legs into her flipflops.“Let's go,” she gave Derek a small smile.Derek could only sigh.“How about I carry to downstairs,” he winked at her.Gemma gave him a suspicious glare.“No, I'm good,” she rolled her eyes at him.“If you say so,” Derek shrugged, then winked at her.The couple found their
“Derek, about the guy you took hostage yesterday,” Gemma tried starting up a conversation with Derek.It was already morning but the events of the previous day was still fresh on her mind.Her words made Derek look at her.“You already know James sent him. Why else are you still keeping him here. You can hand him over to the police and get James too,” Gemma complained, staring at him.“We already spoke about this, Gemma. The police won't be able to do a thing…at least not now,” Derek shrugged.“What do you mean?”“You think a guy like this will easily give out James’ name? You're smarter than this, sweetheart…Just let me handle it my own way,” Derek said, gently patting her hair.“But…” Gemma tried to counter.“Just forget it, Gemma. Besides, James shouldn't just be punished. I just don't want him to end up arrested by the police and then he goes to jail and sort…where he might likely get parole or even escape. I want him gone forever. I want him gone from the surface of this earth.”G