He had now placed the apple back in the fruit bowl—half eaten, which was already making the kitchen look messy. I was going to argue, but I stopped myself, as that was another issue I had to solve; this one first.“You know if you were Jimena, I would ask how much, but you are Anastasia; money never bought you, so how many nights?” He sounded so disgusting; how could he think I would ever let him touch me again? “I'm all you ever wanted, but you must know I'm married now, so it can—”“You disgust me.”“Mhm, stop acting. It's just the two of us. I—”“Don't you dare come close to me!” I raised my voice, still sounding confident, “Listen to me, William…” I cleared my throat, ignoring his shocked expression. “I might not have gone to college, but I sure know more about the competition than you do.”“Is this a joke?” he laughed, “I'm William, you know—”“I did every work that makes you William.”“What?”“Don't act like you don't know what I'm saying. Mr. Grant only complimented you because
WASHINGTON, SEATTLE 2022~HUDSON~I was humming to the lyrics, drying my hair with the towel as I had just come out of the shower when my eyes landed on the lipstick that was on the dresser. Looking at it reminded me of her; I haven't heard from her in hours, and I don't want to lie. I missed her. I missed her presence. It's crazy because she doesn't feel the same, but I trusted time; just like Vivi always says, love takes time.I couldn't wait any longer, so I walked to the dresser and threw the towel on the bed. I picked up the lipstick before I got my phone; now I had an excuse to call her.I don't know why, for some reason, I was nervous. Sure, I was a man; I could handle rejection, but that constant feeling of being rejected weighed me down, the feeling of forcing someone to love you, even just a little.She asked me not to call her, as she said she was busy. I waited for her to at least text me, at least to tell me she had landed, but she didn't, I respected that she was settlin
Juliette knew about Maddison; she knew, and now is not the right time to tell you how she knew.I watched as Julliette closed the door. “I can ask her to leave; I can get security to throw her out.”“No, that will be… That will be rude; just… send her in.” I said, and she looked at me with a brow up, “I'm sure,” I said, as that's what that brow meant.“Alright, I will have Ms. Maddison join you shortly,” she said, and I nodded before I turned to the window and looked out, my finger trailing on my chin.I didn't get a chance to think of anything as I felt someone wrap their hands around my body, hugging me from behind. I quickly turned, removing them from my body.“Have a seat.”“I missed you.”“You know this is inappropriate, right?”“I apologize for that.”“I only have ten minutes,” I said, looking at my wristwatch.“Really, ten minutes for a woman who's carrying your child?” She questioned in a playful tone, which made me clear my throat.I watched as she took a seat across from me.
CALIFORNIA, LOS ANGELES 2022 ~ANASTASIA~I didn't realize that the car had parked already. I was so lost in a conversation with Vivi, forgetting that I was in front of a guard as I laughed freely. When my senses returned, I bid Vivi goodbye and promised her I would call Hudson as soon as I got time; she said he was worried.I also needed to speak to him about Maddison; Vivi telling me she was crying to Mrs. Frost touched me. She was a mother and only wanted the best for her child, even though she was not doing it the right way. The child was innocent, and I had to make sure Hudson would be with her, of course not as she wanted him but as the father of that child. At least she was doing the right thing, trying to involve the child's father, unlike me, who was hiding it from the father.After ending the call with Vivi, I fixed my makeup and made sure I was good to go. This was my first impression, and I wanted to look presentable.“Should I give you a call later, or?”“I wait here.”“U
William seemed shocked; it's like he didn't expect me to agree—maybe he wanted me to refuse and look bad in front of Sebastian; I mean, that's what he always did, so it was no surprise. “Come on, Mr. Rogers, I'm sure you can contribute to the conversation,” I said, a smile on my lips, he hesitated, and I can almost guess he almost changed his mind, but knowing him, he cleared his throat and sat.“Of course I can; what are we talking about?” he said in a challenging tone.“Well, this is Sebastian, Mr. Grant’s personal—”“We have met.” Sebastian cut me off, “Mr. Williams, one of the most successful businessmen in Seattle.” Sebastian, adjusting his glasses, said, God, I didn't realize Sebastian admired William. I mean, everyone else did; I just didn't think Sebastian was one of them—William is one of those men everyone admired; men wanted to be him and women wanted to be with him. Well, little did they know that the William they knew was very different from the William I knew.William se
Okay, I didn't understand what Jimena was doing here, and sure, it caught me by surprise, but I knew Jimena well; I couldn't let her intimidate me, so after hanging my coat, I walked to where she was.“What do you think?” She asked, showing me her toenails, which she was painting red, “William is obsessed with red; I thought to spice it up by adding these stones.” She said, sounding like we were friends, I mean, the man she was trying to impress was my ex-husband, the man she stole from me, so what made her think I would be here giving her tips on what would work? “Come on, don't tell me you're still not over him. Like, how does that even make sense? He never loved you.” She made a pitiful face before blowing on her nails, I guess to dry the polish.I didn't have her time anymore, so I told her they looked really beautiful: “Match them with red lingerie; I'm sure William will like that.” I added walking to the kitchen as I got a bottle of water.“Really?” I heard her voi
I didn't care that William never loved me, but wanting to hurt me so much somehow weighed me down, I knew standing here and crying about it wouldn't change a thing, so taking a deep breath, I put myself together before I used my fingers and touched the skin below my eyes just to make sure I had no tears, even though I didn't feel any. I just couldn't afford to allow William or Jimena to see tears on my face again.After calming down and being sure I had no tears, I made my way toward the door. I didn't care that I would distract them; I just wanted to leave there.When I reached the door, I turned to them and they were silent for a second. It wasn't surprising that they were both looking at me; well, I didn't need to explain myself to them, but I still did.“I’m going to have dinner with Mrs. Grant.”“We don't—”“You should too; arguing causes wrinkles,” I spoke over Jimena as she tried to act smart, and with that, I left, closing the door behind me.Jimena always wanted me to be that
Mrs. Grant turned to me with an expression that clearly said she was sorry, which confused me, as whoever she invited to her table was not my concern.“Thank you. Please, do you have champagne? Marriage can be stressful sometimes.” She asked as she sat down and picked up a glass of water.“How far along are you?” Mrs. Grant asked her, and she, for a moment, looked confused; it’s like she forgot that she was pregnant, and then, as if the words just clicked, she laughed, Mrs. Grant being polite as always, tried to laugh with her, and realizing she answered:“It was a joke; you should have seen your faces.” She said, which made Mrs. Grant nod.“Yes, Jimena can be so funny sometimes; I even wonder why she didn’t register to be a clown instead of a modeler,” I commented.“Yes, she is.” Mrs. Grant agreed before she picked up her glass of juice and sipped on it.“Yeah right, I'm so talented.” Jimena sarcastically said she was giving me those eyes that she always gave me. “Mrs. Grant, did you
~WILLIAM~It's been a month since I returned to Seattle. I've been working mostly from home because I had to spend most of my time with my daughter—I had to help her with her homework since Ana was not in a state to, and the Lancaster family was all a mess now.Gianna was busy helping her husband run the company and house; even their son was mostly assisted by their servants, and I didn't want my daughter to feel neglected again, not now that Ana was barely a mother to her. Hudson even mentioned that sometimes she forgets she is a mother or that she is pregnant.I wanted to be here for Ivy; that's why even at times I had important meetings that needed my presence, and I went with her, and she attended the meeting with me. She literally had a seat in the conference room, and you won't believe she once gave her opinion, which made sales, but I loved her because she knew when to keep quiet. Now I was convinced she was given an adult's brain.While at home I've been chec
~ANASTASIA~It's been days; I don't know if it's been a week, weeks, or a month; it wasn't honestly important.“Oh yes, finally this girl has been fooling them for a long time now,” I excitedly said and stuffed more popcorn into my mouth. “Let's see how she will get out of this one,” I said, and yes, I was talking to myself.I continued watching for a few more minutes before I heard Hudson's voice.“Are you sure you don't want bacon?” He asked for the hundredth time now.“I'm good, but if you will be so kind, I would like five more cupcakes.”“One.”“Thank you, alright, you two have a good day,” I said as Ivy kissed both my cheeks before taking her backpack. Hudson also bid me goodbye by kissing my forehead, then he asked if I needed help washing my hair.“I can do it if you don't want a hairstylist to do it.”“I'm good, but if you're worried about me, get me more snacks on your way back, okay?”“Okay, Dahlia is here, you're safe, and you can
Those imaginations worked as I went forty minutes without cursing or causing an accident.When I reached the city, I drove straight to the ranch, as he owned a ranch here and liked staying there at times when he was grieving or maybe getting away from the First Lady.Of course, security was tight; most of them knew me, but they still had to confirm my presence and search me. After that was cleared, I was led in, and of course, I found him in the stables, feeding horses.“My dear old friend,” he said, then took me in his arms, clapping my back.Now even with this happening, this man was like a father to me, considering I was seventeen when I met him. He is the reason I and my family were still alive and living well; otherwise, we would be in the streets or worse, dead.“Mr. President.”“I was just telling Daisy you were coming to see us, isn't that right, Ana?” He turned to the white horse, and yes, you heard it right. The white horse's name was Ana; he named
I was trying to make sense of everything when Gabriella asked a stupid question. I mean, she knew I knew the president was in Fall City; why the hell did she ask me that stupid question?“Get to the point, Gabriella,” Rowan said knowing I didn't have the patience.“I think what Gabriella is trying to say is that the president is in Fall City, you found Maddison in Fall City, with the footage and the call history, it’s obvious the president is in it,” Matt explained, and again I already figured that out, although his explanation made it make sense.“So the president didn't, or let's say doesn't, want you and Mrs. Frost to be together,” Dahlia added.“Correct, but for him to go to these lengths, creating a whole new identity must be deeper than just wanting you back as his fixer,” Rowan said, making me nod and say that I wanted the reason.“None of us for sure know the reason, only him.” Gabriella answered, and I turned to her and then patted her back, saying she w
“Why are you calling me?” I asked as soon as I picked, as this was the third time—I missed the other two.“He told me you knew.”“Knew what?”“The secret—why… why the hell didn't you tell me, I wanted to marry her?” He sounded drunk, like why would he be drinking this time when he was supposed to be mourning? Yes, I could judge, as when my dad passed, I never sat and cried or maybe went and drank my life out. I immediately matured as I started searching for ways to provide for my family, so instead of drinking, he could be there helping Santiago arrange everything—it was his damn father for God’s sake.“I don't know what you're talking about.”“Of course you do, and I—” I ended the call before walking into my apartment; I didn't have time to deal with drunkards.“Found anything?” I asked as I removed my coat.“Wait till you hear what Rowan found,” Gabriella said as she came toward me and handed me a packet of warm chips and a drink, I took it but placed it on the table as this wasn't
~HUDSON~After Maddison narrated everything to us, how the attorney who represented her offered her a fresh start, she didn't accept it at first, but when he told her that he who was supposed to help her would work against her, that he would make sure she spent the rest of her life locked up even when he knew she was innocent, well, she was left with no choice but to accept the deal.Everything else happened in the blink of an eye after she signed the agreement. Next, she woke up in a hotel room with a new identity—her look was completely changed, including her fingerprints.She told us how she had two phones, one to connect with them and another for her fake normal life.Unfortunately, she didn't know who they were, as she only received instructions through the phone from meeting one of them, who was covered. Then, going forward, her first task was to seduce me. Now, that was the first night I bumped into her in that club, so initially, we were supposed to have a one-night stand if h
Vivi told me how Hudson saved them as their home and properties were almost taken, how Hudson started providing for them, and they were confused at first as he was just seventeen, but they needed the money, so no one questioned him. He saved them, well, until a few years ago when Mom died; she found Hudson in the hospital.He first acted like it was just a coincidence until she showed up unannounced at his apartment, and there she witnessed Hudson watching someone get killed and doing nothing, instead, he was the one giving the order. She confronted him, and that's when he told her it was what he did.Vivi explained how Hudson didn't tell her everything, as she figured it all out by herself by putting one and one together. She spent a week just investigating him until she arrived at a point where Hudson and the man who was a vice president at that time worked together.She found out how he took care of people who didn't want to vote for him, how Hudson even ordered the d
~ANASTASIA~Opening my eyes and realizing it was early morning, I got up and walked straight to the bathroom. I don't know how I got on the bed or if I imagined William was here; it was honestly not important.After the shower, I walked into the closet where I threw on the first pajamas my eyes landed on, ready, and tying my hair into a messy ponytail, I walked out and headed straight for my computer. I searched through the CDs, and when I found Dad's favorite, I inserted it before moving to the music.I kept dancing, repeating the song, until someone opened the door without knocking.“Want to join me?” It was Vivi; she didn't respond. She shook her head and asked if I was okay, which was honestly a weird question. I mean, did I look sick to her? I was here moving my body.“I need to talk to you about your mom.” She said, and I didn't want to listen at first, but she insisted, saying it was important. Wanting to get over it, I sat on the floor after pausing the m
I let the shoes fall to the floor as I tried to defend myself by trying to remove Hudson's hand from my neck, but his grip was tighter, and all my efforts were in vain. I didn't understand why he was still holding onto me when he could just easily move me from his way.Okay, I'm not weak, especially not after how I've spent the last month in a gym, but Hudson, it's like he was trained to do this.I didn't want to beg him to free me as that would be so low of me, so I tried all means, but nothing moved him. It's like he wasn't there anymore, and I swear if it weren't for those breath-hold training sessions, I would be cold by now.Well, I was now losing it, and just as I thought I was going to fall, a voice sounded, which made him free me.It was Vivi.I struggled and coughed, trying to catch my breath, while Vivi came to me and tried to help.“I hate him, but doing this won't solve it. I called him here.”“You also asked him to insult me?”“Of course