~Cali~
I see nothing wrong with having an adoptive family. In fact, I am grateful for Olivia and her late husband Dr. Jacob for taking Evan in. If not for them, I don’t think our paths will ever cross.
“W-why did it look as if you don’t even recognize each other? Why is this not public knowledge? I swear I looked you up online, every detail about you. And he’s a Rogers...” I croaked, slumping myself on the stool, feeling my knees buckling. It’s more than that. It’s the wrong question, but do we need formalities? Evan knows what I meant. “You’re a Carter.”
He remained frozen where he stood, that fury trying to resurface from his eyes, fighting to be let out.
I hate seeing this side of him. Ever since I met him as
~Cali~ Through the drive back to Evan’s place, confusing thoughts filled my mind. It was never a question of ‘should’ I tell him or not, but ‘when’. With everything that has happened in the last couple of weeks, this will only add up to the stress that’s building around him. The accident at the Brooklyn site resulted in doubts within and outside the company, this is what I heard from one of our directors. Gossips are going around that Magnus Construction couldn’t handle such a huge project. This bad publicity is already pushing a few clients to pull out their contracts. I caught Evan’s silhouette in the kitchen as I stepped inside the cabin. He’s sitting in the dark, one thing he does when he’s in deep thoughts. I guess talking about tonight is unavoidable. From the stiff form of his shoulder, he knows what happe
~Cali~Evan groaned, hands running through his hair, mumbling something under his breath. When he didn’t speak, I stood up from the couch, calloused fingers clutched my wrist.I looked down, seeing his pleading eyes. “Can’t you trust me?”Here we go again.“Evan, you know I do,” I exhaled, slumping beside him. “But you have to tell me things. This is how everything flew sideways in Barbados. I will not run away and ask questions later, but you have to explain why you and Nate hate each other this much.” I clasped his hands, rubbing my thumb over his bruises. “And this, how did you get this? It’s too early for brawls and your wrist is still healing.”While I am
~Cali~ Evan’s cabin sits in a two hectare property, hidden by profuse verdure from the busy City of New York. It can transport any onlooker from a city to a peaceful paradise, simply Evan’s taste. I’ve still to explore what hides in the forest behind the cabin. I took a mental note to ask Evan for a tour one of these days. In the absence of daylight, the bright silver crescent moon lit up the dusky sky with stars lustrous like gems, giving twilight a new vision. It’s still early for slumber. I came back at nine in the evening only to find no one in the cabin. Disappointment morphed my anxious mind. I was hoping to have the answer when I get back. Since we had that talk this morning, no message or call came from him. Time is what he needed, and I willed myself not to push him too much. I could only associate the f
~Cali~ Sliding out of the car, Evan’s powerful arms hauled me out of the driver’s side as if I weighed like a sack of feathers. From another person’s vantage point, his wrist might look healed and well. Too bad, I know he took with him the bottle of pain relievers that are prescribed for the entire week. “Hey.” I patted his back when he allowed my heels to touch the ground once more. “How are-” His lips swallowed my worried question, turning my words to moans as he slipped his tongue in my mouth, exploring, probing. My response is never a question for me, it’s always instant when it comes to his touch, his kisses. My fingers grasped his neck, raking his hair like we haven’t seen each other in months. “I miss you,” I let
~Evan~ The fresh wisp of Sicilian air sent my skin shivering at one in the morning. With a heavy sigh, I hammered on the heavy wooden door of this creepy palace. “I told you I’ll come to New York,” Klaus greeted us with his warmest growl. If there was any other choice, I would never ask this dimwit for help, much less take a trip to visit this Italian Mafia haunted palace. He’d have me groveling on his feet over a box of pizza. And for a favor of this magnitude, hell only knows what kind of torture I’ll be in for. Since the accident, I swallowed my pride and asked him to look into Nathan’s case. He can dig into someone’s dirt and find out their deep darkest secret. Klaus’s arms bent on his chest at seeing Devin behind me
~Cali~ As the meeting commenced, my phone lit up, grabbing my gaze from Chase - the finance manager - presenting the third-quarter budget allocation for Reed Shipping. A message from Evan popped up, instantly stretching my lips to a grin. From Evan - I love you, Princess. I know he meant what he said. The muscles of my heart stopped beating when he said the magical L-word. Even now, seeing his message is turning my insides all over the place. It’s as if my organs want to explode from happiness. I just want my response to be a bit romantic, probably over dinner, candlelight, that’s why I haven’t said it back yet. The timing is off, but who the hell cares? We are finally getti
~Cali~ Seeing those files left a foul taste in my mouth. I hope I hadn’t taken that Tylenol Rylee gave me. I prefer migraines more than this unsettling feeling in the pit of my stomach. The place is as good as empty, calming, and inviting. However majestically incorporated the natural elements in creating a rustic, yet warm ambiance, I still despise being here. Michael Bublé and Kelly Rowland’s beautiful euphony of How Deep is Your Love filled the thick air around me. How Ironic is it that I’m walking towards the man who’s testing how deep my love is for Evan? I love him so fucking much, more than I’m willing to admit to myself, and this is me acting on that love. On the end of the vast sea of vacant tables, in a s
~Cali~ It’s a wonder how I arrived at Evan’s place without stumbling upon an accident. I should’ve taken a cab or had Felix drive me, but it’s a risk I’m not willing to take. “Hey.” Evan pulled me for a hug as soon as I parked my car. Worry clouds his beautiful face. “Tell me what happened? Is everything okay?” His hands, on instinct, wounded around my waist, supporting me as I perched on shaky legs. I nodded, needing to have him. I stood on the tip of my toes, hands glided on his arms up to the back of his neck. “Kiss me,” I demanded, and as always, he complied with a beam on his lips. Evan bent a little, accommodating our height difference, capturing my lips in a gentle kiss. Each caress, each stroke of his lips against mine is heaven. A safe place where I don’t ha
Aw… and that’s a wrap, lovelies. I hope you enjoyed your ride with Cali and Evan. They’ll be signing off for now, until Klaus comes out. Yep, he’s bound to come out soon. Although the title might drift off from the series of the boys because I already saw a few books with that title, I believe you will know it's his story. ;) If you are looking for another book to read, check out my novel Falling For My Husband. It's already up on my profile. Again, thank you. Please comment and leave a review if this book is worth the ride. I’d love to hear from you. xx See you later, lovelies…
So… I don’t know if anyone would want to know what happens with Nathan… but, I believe his character needs a little peace, although not a total closure but peace between the two brothers… I really feel bad for him throughout this book… *sigh* xx This happened six months after the wedding ~~ ~Evan~ I love my wife. By now it’s clear that I’d do anything for her… just not this... she asked me to come and visit Nathan in prison. He was sentenced to five years’ imprisonment for attempted rape and conspiracy. It was damn easy for him. And now Cali is asking me to do the impossible. There’s no denying that his father had something to do with the trial. He’s a damn powerful man, but
~Evan~ One year later... Bridgetown Barbados. This is where everything began. This place will forever hold a special place in our lives. The soft sand, cold under the soles of my bare feet, sent a smile on my lips as I relished the tickling sensation of the water lapping over my tired skin. The tide is still high and I admired the waves from a distance, huge and powerful, as if they could destroy anything in its path. Magnus Construction is just a distant memory now. I am handling my new company, The Ár mbaile Constructions. I have accepted no penny from my wife but my father-in-law is a different story. Before we flew to Ireland for our wedding, I asked for Cali’s hand from her father. He gave us his blessing in one con
I believe you need pampering, my love ;) enjoy these free chapters.. xx ~~. ~Cali~ Our wedding is an intimate one. I guess it has become a tradition in our family to have weddings away from people’s prying eyes. We flew to Castlebar, where Evan’s mother and sister are residing. I was nervous as hell as the plane landed in Ireland. I don’t know if his mom would like me or not. His sister Aoibhe is the only person I got to talk to over the phone for the details of our wedding and I knew we would be really good sisters. Shawn and Daniel flew three days early to secure every detail regarding the preparation. “Princess?” Evan pressed my hand as we drove to his mom’s place. Our family and friends came with us, but they’ll be s
~Cali~ It took me a moment to calm down. These last few days have been so overwhelming, I can barely keep up with my emotions. Olivia, sitting beside me, is still clasping my hands in her delicate ones. There is something about a mother’s touch. It’s like magic hands that penetrate through my heart that magically squeeze away all my worries, as if the soothing sensation tells me that everything is going to be okay. Ren has that ability to calm me. Now I have another motherly warmth to take refuge into in Olivia’s form. I sipped the chamomile tea that she prepared for me. The warm liquid slipped down my esophagus, soothing my nerves. “H-how are you not mad at me?” I finally found my voice, and gazed into the eyes of the w
~Cali~ Tangled in each other’s arms, we have had no sleep yet, both spent and exhausted. My head rests on Evan’s chest, fingers tracing the patterns of his perfect pectorals while my ears pressed above his heart, its beating gentle and calm. “Why do you want to marry me, Princess?” He asked, fingers threading through my sweat-damp hair. I looked up at him, chin resting above my closed knuckles. He’s as beautiful as ever, even with those worry lines on the side of his eyes and forehead. “I need you.” Evan regarded me as if he’s waiting for another kind of explanation. “If this is about my company, I don’t want it, baby. I do want to be with you - forever, but if you’re doing this because of the case-” With my forefinger o
~Cali~It was three in the morning when Evan returned to bed, his usual routine. He smells of mint and eucalyptus, masking the scent of bourbon. He thought I was asleep, kissing my forehead before wrapping his arms around my waist.“Evan?” I spoke, my voice was hoarse from the emotions I’ve been holding in since I heard his talk with Sander.“Did I wake you?” he leaned on his hand, propping himself up with his elbows digging on our pillow. I turned to face him, his hands instantly coming up to brush my cheek, up and down, soft caress with the back of his hand.His wrist is healed now, he sprained it again when he punched Nate, but he’s nursing a wound that can’t be cured with any kind of over-the-counter medicines.
~Cali~ “Fuck,” Nate stood up, wiping his bleeding lip with the back of his hand, “you will pay for this.” Evan cupped my face, “get in the car, Cali.” He kissed my forehead and Nate continued to mumble threats after threats. “You shouldn’t be here, Evan,” I whispered. My brain is finally working. We broke the deal with Nate, with him being here. His company - everything we worked for will go to waste… because of me. “She’s right. You should’ve stayed away,” Nate butted in. “It’s okay, baby, get in the car, please?” Evan pleaded. I waved my head. “Evan… he will release those files.” Evan sighed, closing his eyes. “I don’t care ab
~Cali~It hurts everywhere, but the pain in my head is the dominant one. A continuous whopping pound kept ringing, hammering my brains out.I shifted in my lying position, hoping for an angle to relieve a little of the throbbing. The jasmine fragrance on the pillow tells me I am in my room even without needing sight. I buried my face deeper into the cushion, wishing the feather feel of the material would grace me with little ease - it didn’t.“Hey.” My eyes forced open in recognition of Evan’s voice.He’s here, sitting on the chair beside my bed, gazing at me with pale honey eyes. “Evan…” I breathe out, forgetting about the headache I was nursing seconds ago. He’s always been a good medicine of mine.