Emily woke up the next morning, her head heavy and her mouth sour. She winced as the bright lights streaming in from the window hit her eyes, she quickly covered her head with a blanket, unwilling to get up. She needed to sleep some more, the bed was so comfortable, yet so different, then she heard a familiar voice calling her name softly"Emily, wake up" she jolted upright and immediately regretted it as a sharp pain sliced through her head and she fell back on the bed immediately, she peeked through the blanket to find Jackson standing before her, with a tray in his hands. He sat next to her on the bed, filling nose with sweet smelling coffee that her mouth watered immediately. "It's way past noon" he said, sitting on the bed next to her"What!" she sat up again but more gently this time "I slept that long?" she asked and he nodded. Then he handed her a cup of coffee "This should wake you up properly" he said and she took it from him, her eyes casted down as she was unable to look
BREAKING NEWS: SECOND SON OF HATTON GROUP JACKSON HATTON GETS ENGAGED TO BILLIONAIREHEIRESS BLAIR LAWRENCEThe headlines were bold and glaring in Jackson's face as he stared at his phone which still kept buzzing constantly in his hands. He looked up at Emily who mirrored his expression, a shocked stare gazing back at him, her brows raised questioningly."What's going on?" she asked, confusion brewing in their midst "You're engaged? How are you engaged?""I don'tknow" he said back "I have no idea what's going on""How can you have no idea what's going on?" Emily sprang up from the bed, she had so many emotions brewing within her and she had no idea which one to address first but in everything she felt betrayed, and it was evident on her face when Jackson grabbed her suddenly."Emily listen to me, I have no idea what's going on you have to trust me""Trust you?" she repeated with a sordid expression "You have to tell me the bloody truth, how the hell are you engaged?"I don'tknow!!" J
Emily stared at the guy who walked into the elevator with tears in her eyes but he seemed more amused than concerned but for some reason she didn't feel embarrassed, she felt too heartbroken to feel embarrassed or even care but the guy kept his eyes on her and she looked back at him because he wouldn't stop staring."What?" she said, getting annoyed that and hoping the elevator would move faster. He looked at her and offered a handkerchief "I mean you're crying""I'm fine" she said back to him "I don't need that""Just take it, I don't like seeing pretty girls cry especially when it’s over a guy" he said and Emily gave him a look"What makes you think it's over a guy?""It's not even twelve pm yet and it clearly looks like you're wearing yesterday's clothes" the guy said and it was then Emily began to feel embarrassed, she took the handkerchief from him and said nothing. The elevator pinged and Emily was more than happy to get off but the doors didn't slide open, it stayed stuck."Wha
Jackson stared at Blair dumbfounded, unable to speak or move as his eyes travelled down her belly that still seemed flat and she rolled her eyes"Of course, I'm not showing yet. I'm just a few weeks gone" she said to him, then she stood up from the table and roamed the large study aimlessly."My father is ruthless and if he finds out I’m pregnant, he's going to send me off far away with no money and probable kill Jesse""Jesse?" Jackson questioned."My boyfriend, the father of my baby and who by the way doesn't know anything yet so he probably hates me now because he moved all the way here for me and I can't even -" her voice broke halfway as tears gathered in a pool at the corner of her eyes and she turned away from him, with Jackson still staring dumbfounded ather."Uh -" he stretched his hands towards her in a bid to console her but he didn't know how to so he retreated until she turned back to face him, her eyes crystal clear."So please, just ride along till I figure what to do b
Jackson’s jaw dropped the moment the crowd parted to reveal Emily kissing the strange guy she came to the party with. His fist balled in anger beside him as he was unable to pull his eyes away when suddenly he heard Blair mutter beside him “That son of a bitch!”He watched her march towards them with confusion etched on his face but suddenly she stopped with a gasp and her hands over her mouth. Ethan was there, ripping Emily out of the guy’s hands and punching him square in the face and the party seemed to go silent for a second. No one moved or said a word, even the chandeliers seemed to stand perfectly still. Then the murmurings began.“Jesse!” he heard Blair scream running towards the strange guy and Jackson stood confused“Jesse?” he questioned himself, that’s Jesse? The strange guy Emily’s kissing is Blair’s Jesse? Jackson rubbed his temples in confusion walking but he stood with his legs unwilling to move, and Blair was holding Jesse and sending death glare in Ethan’s direction,
“Oh my God! Oh my God!” Emily panicked as she watched the blood flow and unsure of what to do while Blair grunted in pain on the floor grabbing her tummy. Emily rushed to her in an attempt to hold her but Blair pushed her away“Get away from me!” she yelled loudly “Call someone, Call 911”Emily looked at her, realizing she had to be the one to call 911, with shaky hands she fished out her phone the same moment Jackson breezed into the room, the spectacle before him suddenly dawning on him and his mouth fell open and like a reflex Jackson rushed towards Blair.“What happened? Are you okay?” he asked instinctively and not sparing Emily a glance. Immediately Blair pointed towards Emily with animosity festering in her eyes“She pushed me!” she said and Emily gasped in shock, she was about to defend herself when Blair cut through immediately.“Call 911, my baby” a protective hand unconsciously went over her stomach shutting Emily up and dividing Jackson’s attention between them.“Emily!”
The breeze was tender and gentle, carrying the scent of salt and the rhythmic melody of crashing waves as Amelia and Anita lounged by the edge of the private infinity pool overlooking the sparkling turquoise sea. The golden sun bathed their skin in warmth, enveloping them in a serene oasis at the exclusive beachfront resort in Cancun. Amelia discreetly glanced at Ethan where he laughed loudly with the bartender who waited on them, a few meters away, a glass of cocktail held firmly in his hands. Her eyes ran over his strong biceps and well sculpted face and her heart skipped a breath. Taking a deep breath, she turned to Anita who was helplessly drunk, her eyes buzzing with excitement but Amelia’s bore one of nervous anticipation.“Anita” she called, taking a large sip from the orange flavoured drink in her hands, she was drunk too and her head buzzed but in the perfect way that she liked it, that kept her steady and afloat.“I’ve been thinking--- tonight might be the night” she looked
“Act aloof, be nonchalant” the words kept ringing in Amelia’s head when Ethan lay limp atop of her breathless while she tried to catch her own breath. The room was quiet and they both stayed still, listening to each other’s heartbeat, but filling the quietness with their heavy breaths.“You okay?” Ethan spoke first, glancing at her and swiping a loose strand of hair out of her face and she nodded at him“Sure” she said but she couldn’t look him in the eye, much more hold his stare but Ethan didn’t say anything after, but the words hung loosely at the tip of her tongue and she couldn’t help it when the words flew out.“So no strings attached yea?”Ethan paused, holding her stare now while her heart pounded loudly beneath her chest.“What?” Ethan asked, there was a certain hurt to his words and look that was unreadable to Amelia because she was new to the post-sex dynamic.“I mean, nothing serious yea?” she said again and Ethan pulled away from her and jumping into his clothes, he looke
Immediately, Emily made her way to Hatton Tech and went straight to Jackson’s face, she barely knocked before she pushed the door open and coming face to face with Jackson and her heart stopped, almost forgetting how much impact he had on her. She saw the look of shock on his face, she didn’t think she’d be seeing him for a while, not after he had brutally ended things with her.“Emily” he called and she walked into his office, straight to his table and she slammed the pen recorder before him, ignoring the rapid pounding of her heart.Jackson looked from the recorder to her fatigued face, confusion clouded his eyes and he hoped for more words from her but Emily didn’t say a word instead she clicked play and fast forwarding the recording to the particular part she wanted him to hear.“Did you plan Jackson’s kidnap and also try to kill my baby?”“Jackson knew – ”At that point, she clicked it shut and looked into his eyes now, the pain doubling in her chest from what she perceived to be
Emily stood outside the door to Ethan’s pent house while she rang the doorbell twice. It was impossible to explain how she felt but a seething anger was very much at the top of the list. She was very sure of how bedraggled she looked, her hair was tied back in a messy ponytail while she still had on the clothes from the previous days, her eyes had dark circles and she was very much tired but there was one thing she understood, Ethan was indeed the enemy and Ethan was the only reason why she would never be happy.Her head raged with thoughts that felt strange to her, evil thoughts that came from the anger that festered within and she needed to let it out, whichever way possible.Soon enough, the door sprung open and she came face to face with indeed Ethan’s handsome face. He was dressed casually in sweat pants and a t shirt, his hair ruffled like he had just rolled out of bed and his eyes roaming her as he took her in.“If you’re here to ask for forgiveness, you’re a few months too lat
Emily’s world was shattered, her eyes were swollen shut from crying all night from Jackson stomping on her heart in the least way that she expected. Her hands went up to necklace dangling freely on her chest and she wanted nothing more than to throw it off as far as possible but she held unto it, remembering Jackson’s words to her No matter what happens between us, you’re always going to have my heart – and truly she always wanted to have his heart.Her frail fingers tightened around the pendant as she felt the tears fall freely from her eyes, the pain radiating all over again. Her mind went over the times they spent together, the way he held her stare and captivating her with his charming eyes. His daring kisses in public – at the red carpet and every single place to let every one know that he was in love with her and she relished in the thoughts while she sat in her mother’s hospital room as the woman laid unconscious on the bed. Emily held unto her mother’s hands, cold and clammy
Later that night, Jackson stood in front of the Hatton family home as he watched Ethan drive into the building. He stood still, his face void of any emotion whatsoever as he waited for Ethan to highlight his car and walk up to him. He could smell the cockiness from where he stood, and the dirty smirk that was plastered on Ethan’s face as he made his way over to Jackson.“Hello brother” he greeted with a simple wave “How about we go inside for a drink?”“I don’t think that’ll be necessary” Jackson responded, his expression hard and stoic which was just a front for the deep sadness that festered within him.“Fine” Ethan shrugged in response “I didn’t plan on staying that long anyways, so what’s it going to be brother?”Jackson remained silent as he fought to say the next words but Ethan was impatient “Which is it going to be?”“You can have Emily, I don’t want her. She’s your wife after all but I’m going to keep my inheritance. Father chose me for a reason and I’m going to respect his d
Billionaire Heir Jackson Hatton accused of sexual assaultThe walls began to cave in and Jackson’s world began to spin as he read the headline repeatedly till the words began to dance before him.“Shit! Shit!” he cursed underneath drawing Anita’s attention to him and she gave him a look“What’s wrong?” she asked but Jackson sprang up immediately and walked out of the emergency room, immediately he called Ethan and he picked on first ring.“Let’s talk” he said into the receiver “Meet me at the house in a few hours” and he ended the call immediately.**Meanwhile Emily still felt shattered while she sat next to her mother who still laid unconscious and had IV’s running through her vein with the automatic beeping of the heart monitor interrupting Emily’s thoughts but she held her mother’s hands tightly until the doctor walked in.“You must be Emily” he said as Emily stood up to shake his hands “Mr. Brown explained – ”“Is she going to be alright” Emily cut in immediately and the somber l
The silence stood awkward between the brothers for a few seconds, neither willing to speak first but Ethan still had that cocky smile plastered on his face while Jackson couldn’t believe his ears.“What are you on about now Ethan?” Jackson broke the silence first, his demeanor was calm but he was seething inside“You heard me brother, I killed the story and now you owe me. So you have two options, give back everything you’ve taken from me, my wife inclusive or you face the consequences and maybe subsequently a judge for sexual assault, it’s your choice really because at the end of the day everything comes back to me”“You’re insane Ethan” Jackson scoffed.“Right” Ethan said “So what’s it going to be?”“I’m not doing either of that, so you can go to hell”Ethan laughed this time but he wasn’t done “Fine, you’re stubborn but I’ll give you a better offer. You pick between your inheritance and my wife”“Get out of my office Ethan, don’t you have better things to do?” Jackson pointed at t
A few days of strained silence with his brothers and the media blowing up about their fallout over their inheritance with Jackson seeing stringent of information about him on the internet that even though didn’t seem true, had some element of truth in them from his past life. He sat in his office at Hatton Tech that morning scrolling through his media feed, he didn’t want to look at it but yet his phone stayed transfixed to his hands. The different girls, the lies with the element of truth in them –Jackson Hatton is an ultimate abuser – Jennifer HenzOne time at the club, he tried to run his hands up my skirt – MiaJackson took me to a hotel one time and he never called me back – LeahHe’s such an asshole, tried to sleep with me and then my best friend – he did though - MerylI would have never pegged Jackson Hatton to be an abuser but it all makes sense – he groped me at the club – Jane.Jackson stared at his phone wide – eyed, his eyes sweeping through every comment on every post w
Ethan stormed out of the room with his eyes wide with rage and anger that his body couldn’t control. He ignored the frantic call of his mother as he stormed outside. The walls closed in and his heart pounded fast, he couldn’t believe his ears; his father had betrayed him, played him the long game and ended up giving everything to Jackson; his favorite son.He tried recalling Mr. Stanwill’s words even though he never wanted to remember those words but they were stuck in his brain, etched on the walls and unwilling to let go.“ – and to Ethan Hatton my first son, I leave you in charge of Hatton Tech and finally to Jackson Hatton, I leave you in charge of all Hatton Enterprises globally”Globally? In charge of all Hatton Enterprises globally?If Ethan calculated properly this meant Jackson was in fact in charge of him. How outrageous? How insulting? He kicked at the ceramic statue angrily, smashing it further with his foot and even more when he realized that it was his father’s favorite
Jackson stood pensive with his eyes on the ground as the casket lowered to the ground, his eyes weren’t clouded like the dark clouds above but his mood felt just as grey. The silent murmurs, the sad faces that looked like they were staring at him, questioning him or worse still judging him. He looked over at Ethan and those red eyes weren’t deceiving anybody, father wasn’t Ethan favorite person. Father wasn’t his favourite person either, but he was in fact was one of his father’s favorite people and yet there was nothing he could do for him at that moment, not while he was being led six feet under. Jackson wasn’t sure how he felt, he wasn’t exactly broken or sad but he knew there was war ahead and when he glanced at Ethan again, they shared a look that mirrored his thoughts exactly.“You okay?” Emily slid up to him while everyone exchanged pleasantries or condolences, he wasn’t exactly familiar with what was going on because he had managed to escape everyone who looked like they wante