MARCUS“Babe, who was that?”I set the phone down and leaned back in my seat, savouring the fact that Olivia was probably crying in her miserable little apartment. As Emily walked into the room, I didn’t even move as she came and sat on my desk. I normally hated anyone doing that, but I gave her the benefit of the doubt. “That… was my lovely wife,” I said with a slight chuckle. “She wants to know why I’m doing this to her.”“Really?” Emily asked with a smirk as she crossed one leg over another. “And what did you tell her?”“Wouldn’t you like to know,” I chuckled as I kissed her open knee. She was wearing a tight black dress with a slit that ran all the way up to her thigh, and the exposed skin was causing a shiver to crawl down my spine. “Marcus,” she chuckled, pushing me away as she giggled. We both knew it was just pretend, and she wanted me to take things further. But I enjoyed teasing her, and I enjoyed dragging things out slowly until she couldn’t take it anymore. “Don’t worry
It had been over three weeks since the news of my divorce became public, and my entire social life went out of the window. Ciara had advised me to stay out of the papers, and the only thing I could do was to hide in my apartment and binge watch ‘Friends’ and ‘Lost’. It was frustrating, but I trusted her advice. In the meantime, I began to plan out my future. I couldn’t stay in New York anymore once the divorce was finalised. I couldn’t stay in the city when there was a risk of running into Marcus at every turn. Besides, I needed some space, and the further away I got from my past, the easier it would be to start rebuilding my life all over again. I had dusted off my CV already, something I hadn’t even glanced at in several years. It was funny how easily I threw away my life, believing that Marcus and I would be together for the rest of our lives. I never even imagined that my life would be over if we ever separated. But now, I was starting from scratch once again. And now, there was
The first thing we had to do was make sure that everything we did was legal. David absolutely refused to do anything that would break the law in any way, so Brenda and I had to find loopholes in what we were trying to do. The first step was making sure that Emily hadn't taken my name off the lease of the apartment. Thankfully, I knew she was way too lazy to ever consider doing that. And when I checked and found that I was still technically a resident of the building, I was allowed to access the cameras. Then I had to get in touch with a tech genius that David happened to know. His name was Weasel, and David knew him from a case he worked a few years ago and he helped him crack it. When he told me this, I expected a thin, scrawny kid with a baseball cap and a large hoodie to show up at my door. But the guy who showed up was large and burly, with thick, coarse hair on his arms and a wild, untamed beard that completely covered his neck. He smelled of booze and cigarettes, and he carrie
"I can't believe you did something like this," Ciara snapped. "How could you have been so reckless?"She was stomping around the kitchen, her bottom lip trembling so much that it seemed like she was going to burst at any moment. I wished Brenda hadn't left, so I wouldn't be the only one on the receiving end of her anger. "It's not what you think," I said, looking up at her."Not what I think?" she shrieked. "Were you or were you not about to leak a sensitive footage Marcus and Emily to the press?""I would rather not answer that.""Do you not realise how terrible that would be for you?" she asked. “Once that footage gets out, Marcus will know it came from you. And if he can establish that you were the one who leaked it, do you not realise that you would be charged for committing a felony?”“But David said…”“Fuck David!” she snapped. “I fully intend to have a word with him after this. You’re my client, Olivia, not his. Do you understand that?”I was trying so hard not to cry, and I s
I’d never been to the courthouse before. Even when Marcus told me that he was going to meet someone there during our date night, I remained in the car and didn’t even bother to step out. The courthouse was a great stone structure, with tall columns that looked like they belonged in a coliseum than anything else. There were a few Latin sentences written overhead, but I barely paid attention to them as I walked into the building. “Remember, we’re only here for preliminary hearings,” Ciara said as we walked in together. “You don’t pay attention to anyone or anything. You do exactly what I tell you, and we’ll be out of here in no time.”I smiled weakly at her, even though my heart was hammering in my chest. I thought I would be ready for this, but the fear that was snaking through my veins was starting to make me nervous. I knew I would see Marcus today, and that thought alone was enough to make me want to turn around and flee from the building. I hadn’t seen him since that day when he
MARCUSThere's just something so satisfying about putting a woman in her place. It's the most therapeutic thing you could possibly do, and it's so refreshing to know that where she might have thought she had the upper hand on you, it was never even a competition. Some women just deserved to be reminded of their place in life every once in a while, and it was such a beautiful thing to witness I should know; I'd done it over a million times already. I thought I was ready to see Olivia again. Even after everything, the only time I ever saw her was on the news when she tried to get into a supermarket and was hounded by paparazzi or angry New Yorkers who thought she was a cheating, gold-digging hoe. To be honest, a part of me felt bad for her. After all, this was the woman I'd loved for the better half of a decade now, and the woman who I'd convinced myself at one point that I was going to spend the rest of my life with. I truly believed that she was the one, and for a while things were
“Please tell me this is a joke.”Ciara looked like she wanted to murder someone. We were sitting in her office, and she was pacing the length of the room, her heels clacking on the tiles and filling the silence between us. I couldn’t bring myself to look up at her, or even say anything worthwhile. I just sat there and stared at my toes, a dull ringing sound in my ear. “Olivia, look at me,” she said, coming to stand in front of me. “Do you or do you not remember signing that document?”“I don’t remember signing anything,” I replied. “It has to be fake.”She placed the papers in front of me, and asked in a calm voice that sounded like she was holding back a storm, “Is this not your signature?”“It is,” I replied tersely. “Is that not your handwriting for the date?”“It is.”“But you don’t remember signing anything like this?”“No, I do not,” I replied. “If it was three days before the wedding, then I will definitely remember signing if I did.”And then, suddenly, it hit me like a ton
I barely paid attention to what anyone was saying in the room. Everyone seemed to be talking at the same time, and all I could hear was the sound of my own heart beating slowly. I kept my eyes fixed on the papers in front of me, and I couldn't even see the words properly. All I could think about was the visit from Marcus's mother, and the offer she'd made me. If I had just taken the money then, I wouldn't have faced any trouble. But now..."A million dollars is more than enough," Marcus's lawyer's voice cut through the noise. "My client is being more than reasonable.""Your client is worth fifty billion dollars," Ciara argued. "A million dollars is like a drop in the ocean for him.""And that's all she'll be getting from us," he said. "The offer does not change. Take it or leave it. We have no problem going to trial on this. But the fact that you asked for a settlement means you understand the situation is not in your favour. Just take the money and let's get this over with."One mil
“Toothbrush?”“Check.”“Makeup kit?”“Check.”“Fishing gear?”“Check.”“Sexy lingerie?”“Check.”“Secret gift that will definitely make you the best girlfriend ever?”“Check,” I said, waving the package in front of Rachel. We were standing by the door, waiting for Ethan to pick me up so we could head to the cabin together. Storm clouds were gathered in the sky, and it was clearly going to rain soon. I was looking forward to sleeping during the drive, because I was fully exhausted. I’d stayed up all night planning an itinerary for us, as well as checking the town below the mountain to see if there were any fun activities we could do so we wouldn’t get bored. But apart from a local book club and a flea market, there was nothing else to see or do. And that was exactly what I wanted. Having Ethan all to myself was like an early Christmas gift. Finally, I wouldn’t have to deal with that awful feeling every time he had to leave, and I felt like my world was going to implode without him. I
ETHANI know I’m an asshole. Liv doesn’t deserve this. I know it as well as I know the back of my hand. But I can’t stop myself sometimes. It’s not like I’m trying to sound like a jealous piece of shit. And it’s not like I don’t trust her. I do. I trust her with my life. I know that I would move heaven and earth for her. But every time I hear that fucking Nathaniel Holloway’s name, I just feel like punching someone Why couldn’t she see him for what he was? It was obvious that he was trying to get under my skin, and he was doing it specifically by targeting her because he knew that was the perfect way to get to me. It was just like him to try something as underhanded as this. The Holloways were like a thorn in my side. They’d always been there, lingering in the shadows and causing a mess wherever they went. I still hadn’t forgotten about the Wrexham incident seventeen years ago, which was the first thing that made our father’s illness known. Everyone told me it didn’t mean anything,
I rushed into the office, thinking there was an emergency. Nate hadn’t answered my calls, and I thought something had gone seriously wrong. Even though I didn’t want to leave Ethan, he told me that he understood that I had to leave, and he even walked me to the cab. I was panicking by then, thinking the deal was about to be called off. So imagine my surprise when I walked into the conference room and find Nate sitting at the table casually, feet up on the table like he owned the fucking building, and a few faces I recognized from the party last night sitting with him and laughing at something he’d said. What the actual fuck?Nate lifted his head and noticed that I was standing right there, and a grin spread across his face as he said, “Oh, hi, Livia. Fancy meeting you here.” “What’s going on?” I asked. “Your text made it sound like something urgent was going on.”“Sorry about that,” he said. “I just needed to make sure you would get here on time. We need this deal finalized today,
Alright. I’m just going to say it. There’s nothing on earth that beats the feeling of waking up in the morning after being thoroughly dicked down the previous night. Ethan and I had gone four more rounds after the first time, and by the time I slept off, I was completely exhausted. I actually woke up with a smile on my face. And as my eyes fluttered open and I found Ethan staring back at me with a smile, my grin widened as I inched towards him and let him wrap his arm over me. “Good morning,” I whispered. “Hi Cupcake,” he replied, kissing me on the nose. “You look so pretty today.”“Don’t start,” I said, rolling my eyes. We were both completely naked under the covers, and I could feel his erection poking against my stomach. I immediately started to blush, and he must have known I was feeling awkward because he actually flicked it a few times, causing me to roll away from him. “Oh no, you don’t,” he chuckled, pulling me back and wrapping his arms around me. Where do you think you
Never in my entire life have I ever done anything as quickly as I did with finalizing the Holloway deal. To be completely honest, I was barely paying attention to anything that was said at the table. All I cared about was the yes, and once they signed the papers we'd come along with, everything was set. And now I could devote my complete attention to the hottest man I'd ever met. I was a mess as I hurried over to the elevator, barely paying attention to Rachel and Blake as they said they wanted to hang out a bit longer. When Nathaniel Holloway tried to run after me, I ducked behind a large man wearing a turban and rushed to Ethan's side. He was already standing in front of the elevator, and when he turned to face me, a shiver ran down my spine. He looked so handsome with three buttons undone, his bare chest looking so inviting. A shadow hung over his eyes, making him look so sexy that my brain couldn't properly function. I was so turned on at that moment that a part of me wanted hi
ETHANI hate parties. There might have been a time when I didn’t feel so negative towards them. But I’d come to realize that a party was just an excuse for terrible things to happen. A party was not a simple social gathering where people would exchange opinions and laugh at ridiculous jokes. Instead, they were opportunities to gossip, to spread rumours and lies and any form of scandalous information that you might want to spread. That was the simple gist of it. Something about the Holloway party only amplified this. From the moment we walked in, I knew I was going to have a miserable evening. And sure enough, as I stood there and watched Nathaniel Holloway drag my girlfriend away, I knew what sort of evening it was going to be. Thankfully, there was an open bar. I decided to have a drink, so I would sit there like a recluse and just watch him blatantly flirt with my girlfriend while rubbing it in my nose. I smiled politely at a few faces I recognized, and we talked for a little wh
The Holloway penthouse was at the very top of the Crawford building, which overlooked most of the Upper East Side. From the moment the building came into view, I could tell that we were in for a spectacle. But when Ethan narrowed his eyes at the building, I leaned over and placed a hand on his lap. "Are you okay?" I asked. He shrugged nonchalantly, but it was obvious that something was pissing him off. I sensed there was some sort of history between the Reynards and the Holloways, but I wasn't to ask him about it right now. Rachel and Blake were in the back seat, and I didn’t want to make a scene after the discussion we’d had earlier. He was having a rough day, and it was my job to make him feel better. “What happened to the old geezer?” Blake called from the backseat. “I haven’t heard anything about him in ages.”“He likes to keep a low profile,” I said. “Ever since Nate took over the business, he’s more of a silent partner now. He only checks in every once in a while when there’s
ETHANSometimes, you just know you're going to have a very awful day. From the moment you wake up, you can feel that this is just not going to be your day. That's exactly how I felt earlier this morning when I rolled out of bed. The first thing was when I realized my phone hadn't charged throughout the night. I must have forgotten to plug it in. I groaned and slapped it on the charger, and when I headed for the bathroom, I slipped just as I was about to walk in and slammed my shoulder against the wall. That was just the preface. On my way down, the elevator got stuck and I had to wait for someone to fix it. After that, I came downstairs to find that someone had keyed my car for absolutely no reason. At that point, I wanted to scream. I was ready to just go back up and call it a day already. But then I saw Liv's reply to my 'good morning' message, and it brought a smile to my face. For just a little while, I forgot about the shitty day I was having. Just texting her brightened my da
Here’s a secret about me: I don’t really know how to act as a girlfriend. I’ve never really been in a serious relationship that was progressing gradually. Throughout high school, I always kept my head down and never bothered with boys or anything like that. It was always just me and Emily against the world. And after passing through high school and college still being single, I’d immediately gotten into a relationship with Marcus. Come to think about it, that wasn’t really a relationship. It was a one-sided strategy where he basically love-bombed me until I had no other choice but to succumb to his wishes. And yeah, I did fall for him at the time, which was stupid on my part. But I learned my lesson, and I would never do that again. With Ethan, however, I found myself constantly worrying if I was doing the right thing. Even three weeks after we officially started dating, I still felt like I was slipping up constantly. He had this habit of sending me cute messages in the morning so I