The entire ride to the office, Adira was absent-minded and kept thinking about Jared. She couldn't stop wondering who he was and how he had been able to know something so deep about her.
Could it be possible he got the information from someone close to the family? But who could that person even be? It was disturbing.
She had her gaze pinned to the window until the car rode into the company and pulled to a stop. Her door was immediately opened for her, and she stepped out with Bonnie, who had been in the front seat the whole time.
Heads bowed in respect as she walked past a lot of people, and when she got to the ground floor, one of the receptionists sprang to her feet.
"Good morning, ma'am. The guest you've been expecting is already here. I asked him to wait outside your office," she informed
Adira's eyes beamed. Her guest? That must be Lancelot. She had informed the receptionist
Gently, Adira turned to look at him, and their eyes locked for a few seconds."Yes?" She raised her brows.Surprisingly, Nikolai stood up and began walking towards her. This made Adira a little nervous. What was he trying to do?She doesn't associate so well with Nikolai, so movements like that were bound to get her really nervous.She stood like a frozen statue until he got to where she was and stood behind her. Then, the next thing Adira felt were his hands on her dress. Huh?Her palms became sweaty as she felt him work on her zip, pulling it up. It was obvious it wasn't completely zipped up before. She didn't even notice, and neither did Yvonne.But Nikolai getting it done for her stunned her. She never expected him to show concern, talk more about zipping her dress.When he was done, she lowered her head as he walked back to his cushion."Thank you," she uttered.Nikolai simply nodded and took up his glass of wine, and at that moment, Adira wondered if she was to say more. Perhaps
Adira's heart raced as she entered the lavish party hall with Nikolai, her hands clammy with nervousness. Her mind was still reeling from the words he said to her in the car, and even when she tried to push them away, the weight of his misunderstanding hung heavy over her. Obviously, he thought she was some cheap, weak-hearted lady who was trying to crawl her way back to her married ex. Christ! She couldn't let him stay with such thoughts in his head. She couldn't let him think so low of her. She needed a way to explain things to him. But something else still bothered her - how did he get to know of the date? She'd made sure she went alone and even reserved a private garden. So, how did he find her? Even before they got married, Nikolai knew a lot about her, from her failed marriage to her name and even where she lived. He knew so much about her! Was it possible he had eyes on her? Perhaps he hired a spy to always follow her around? But why would he do that? The sound of glasses
FEW SECONDS BEFORE THE SHOT***Adira was trying so hard to meet up with Nikolai's pace. She was very anxious and wanted to talk to him before he'd get into the car. But it was more like he intentionally didn't want to speak with her as his pace was so quick and difficult to meet."Nikolai!" She finally called, and thankfully, he halted - just beside his opened door.She took that as her cue, heaved a sigh of relief and ran after him. But her anxiety doubled when she was finally standing in front of him.Tho, he wasn't looking at her, his face was so cold, they frightened her and made her feel a little intimidated."I..." She swallowed hard. "I need to talk to you about..."That was the moment the gunshot happened.It was so fast, came from almost nowhere.It echoed round like a thunderclap, shattering the tranquility that had been present just mommsts ago. Time seemed to slow down, and in that fraction of a second, everything around Nikolai blurred into obscurity, his focus honing
Nikolai remained seated and just watched as the doctor approached him, adjusting the stethoscope around his neck. He didn't seem like someone that had been worried sick, but instead, looked like the grumpy emotionless man that he's always been."Mr Nikolai," the doctor called when he stood in front of him. "I applaud you for waiting this whole time. Well, there's goodnews. The surgery was successful and she's out of danger. Although, I must say it was a very lucky escape as the bullet was not far from a delicate place. Anyway, she needs a lot of rest, so she's still asleep for now. And..."Every other thing the doctor said fell on deaf ears, as Nikolai had already gotten the information he needed. At that moment, he lifted his hands to his face and exhaled deeply. That was when it dawned on the doctor that he had actually been very worried."Let me know if you need anything," Nikolai said to the doctor when he was done with his narration."Of course. You can see her now if you want to
For a long time, Nikolai was frozen and kept staring at the shelf before him. Every other thing around him didn't matter, just the shelf before him.Emotion swelled within his chest, catching in his throat and leaving him breathless. He actually had a hint that Adira had been secretly buying clothes for him, but he had no idea they were thisHe extended his hands and grazed his fingers over the soft fabrics. So much quality, so much beauty. They were definitely going to look good on him. He couldn't believe she had been buying so many clothes for him but never had the courage to give them to him. And he wouldn't even blame her. He had been scaring her enough.He imagined how hurt she must be knowing she couldn't see him in those dresses. He blamed himself for trapping her in a loveless marriage, but it was for the best.Taking a deep breath, he stepped away from the shelf and looked around for what he was looking for. He soon found the shelf containing her casual dresses and picked ou
Nikolai made up his mind to go back to the room and see what was going on. He was about to leave the car when he spotted Jared coming out. Finally.He had a smile on his face—a kind of smile that screamed victorious—and that rankled Nikolai. Why would he be looking that way after leaving Adira? She was his wife. No other man should have such a look on his face after leaving her.His eyes followed him as he headed for his car and rode out of the building."Abel," he called out to his guard at the front seat."Sir.""Tell our spy to keep a close eye on Jared from now on. If he's seen meeting with Adira at any time,I need to know.""Yes, sir."****†****†****†****†"Why don't you take his calls?" Mrs. Rowena asked as she decanted some coffee into two mugs.A little of it spilled on the table by the time she was done, and she reached for a napkin to wipe it off."I want to, mom," Jardine said, shaking her head. "But I can't get over the betrayal. You don't know how much it hurts to know La
It's been almost a week. Adira was finally well and ready to be discharged. That morning, she sat on the bed while Bonnie packed up her things. A soft sigh escaped her lips as she thought of all that had happened during her stay in the hospital. Two days ago, Lancelot's mother actually sent her a text. In her words: "I was so worried about you, dear. I hope you're strong and better now. A shameless woman she was. Adira couldn't believe it didn't matter to her that she had caused an issue between Lancelot and Jardine. Of course, she should be aware, but typical Winslet would never care. She was too money-minded and didn't care if the other was hurting. And she must be stupid to think Adira will ever forget all she went through in her hands. It was only the beginning. She was bound to destroy her family. "I'm done, ma'am," Bonnie announced to her, standing with the bags beside her. Adira nodded and was about to leave the bed when a nurse walked in. "Good morning, ma'am. There are a
Vesper perched on a stool at the sleek bar counter, the dim light casting a shadow over his brooding figure. With a half-empty bottle in hand, he took another long sip, loving how the liquid ignited a simmering warmth within him.Although, he wasn't drunk, his once bright orbs now held a reddish tinge. And the lines of his face etched deeper, tracing a map of untold stories and hidden pain.That was all he could do at the moment - drink and drink. The bar had become his sanctuary."Always drinking alone, huh?" He suddenly heard a strange voice and cocked his head to see a lady taking the seat beside him.She was a young pretty lady with the prettiest smile he's seen in a while. But she didn't look familiar in any way.It was Kalina. She's been following him for some days now and decided to show herself to him that evening."Always?" Vesper arched his brows. "How do you know it's always?"She chuckled. "Well, I've seen you a couple of times at this bar. Let's just say... you've been th