Helen's POV "What the hell do you mean by the deal can't hold?" I heard Blake talking into the phone as I stormed into his office. His eyes raised to see me walking up to him and his already angry face hardened. "Hey, I am going to call you back." He said and ended the call. "What the hell are you doing here?" He barked at me. I flinched at the harsh tone of his voice and the courage with which I had stormed into his office evaporated into thin air. "I am talking to you, aren't I? Or are you deaf? Why the hell did you barge into my office that way?" He barked at me again and my body began shaking at this point. "I... I..." The more he walked towards me, the more scared I became and I desperately wanted to get saved from him. "Can't you talk? Oh my God. You repulse me. Just get the hell out of my office now before I do something silly and terrible to you." He warned. I nodded my head shakily and when I arrived at the door, I suddenly froze, recalling the motive and conviction I
Blake's POV I watched her walk out of my office with her back hunched over. The pain in her eyes had almost gotten to me, but I was made of steel and had refused to get affected by her pain. She had brought all of this up on herself and I wasn't going to let myself be blamed for something I had no control over. The moment she was out of my office, I plopped down to my ergonomic chair with a thud and felt a little pain race up my spine. Letting out a deep breath, I looked at my computer and got back to work.Her analysis of me was oddly correct, and I wondered how she was able to figure out that I had a deep-rooted issue with women. I wouldn't agree with her choice of words about me hating women, but it didn't change the fact that I couldn't ever bring myself to trust women. Memories of that fateful day filled my head and no matter how much I tried to forget it, it always came up, strong and dominant in my head, filling me with so much pain. "Enough!" I hissed and faced my compute
Blake's POVI let out a breath as soon as it was time to get off work. For hours, I had sat at my desk, debating how best to navigate clinching this contract with Mr. Michigan without blowing off too much money. My rivals were offering a whole lot, and the only chance of pushing them off was to bid twice higher, and honestly, that wouldn't sit well with my company's board. The board was filled with dishonest envious old men who would do anything to take over my position as CEO. They picked at every action of mine and tried to find faults where there were none. "You will figure this out, Blake. You just have to give yourself some time." I said to myself and grabbed my effects. Helen was waiting for me by the door. Our eyes met as soon as I stepped out and she immediately hid her gaze.Seeing her suddenly resurrected the embarrassment I felt when she successfully fixed my trackpad despite my doubts. She made me look like a fool. Even though I had finally admitted she was no fool, I
Helen's POV We stepped into the gala venue and the breath was almost seized from my lungs.If I thought Dominic's party was magic, then this was certainly heaven itself. The decor, despite being less than Dominic's, was more intentionally done. The theme of the party, however, made me very giddy, and I wondered if our brief encounter with the dogs had motivated him to bring me here.It was a fundraising gala for sick dogs. Beautiful pictures of saved dogs were displayed on several screens and I couldn't help but be taken in by the beautiful work this group was doing. How the hell didn't I know about them? The fact that I was an ardent dog lover was enough reason for me to know who these guys were. But then, it wasn't my fault. With my parents, there was no way in hell I could have a life outside of all the numerous jobs they had laden me with severally. "What the hell are you doing here?" My mom's voice pulled me out of my wonder stare and I craned my neck to see my mom and dad wa
Helen’s POVI stared at all the individuals staring at me, eager to know my story. Honestly, I didn’t want to say a word about it. It had been a grave mistake opening up to Blake, but I had never believed he would want to use me to his advantage. Hell, I didn’t even know that he was listening to my words back then in the car. “Well, where do I start from?” I asked nervously, not knowing how to say my story to all of them. I was nervous and I was hoping that I could find a way to avoid doing this. “Start from the very beginning, dear.” Mr. Michigan took my hand. My gaze connected with his and a strong warmth surged through me, comforting me and telling me I could do this. “Alright. Let us start from the very beginning.” I said, and my memory pulled me back to that day about twenty-five years ago. ****I watched my mom and dad smile all happily at the baby in their hands. Isabella. She was the child they had been praying for. The one they had always wanted. Her presence was the sun
Blake’s POVMy eyes grew wide at Mr. Michigan’s words. I may despise Helen, but there was no way I was offering her to him. What the hell did he mean by his reply? She was my wife and he had to respect that. “Sir, I am sorry, but what do you mean by ‘her’?” I asked, hoping to be certain I wasn’t jumping to any conclusions. “If you want to be a partner on this project, then she must be willing to become the face of this movement. I have seen a lot of dog lovers, but I am yet to see one that tells their story as well as she does. I felt the emotions in every one of her words, and I want this in this movement.” He said. I flashed Helen a gaze wondering how the hell she had become the center of the show. I brought her here and had given her the platform to tell her story, so how could my chance to gain this be resting on her shoulder? “I want her to become the face of this project, but knowing how shy my wife is, I doubt she would want to take that offer. Isn't that right darling?” I
Helen's POV "Oh my God, Helen. I can not believe the Michigan Foundation is making you the face of their brand. How did that become possible?" Dominic asked as soon as he arrived at my desk. There was so much excitement in his voice and from the way everyone had been looking at me since I got into the office today, I was certain that the news had gone out. "It is still a shock to me, but it all happened because I told him my story of why I am a dog person. He fell in love with my story and that is all." I replied to him, excited that something nice was finally happening to me. I had Blake to thank for all of this, and even though his reasons for doing this were very selfish, I was grateful for the chance to finally do something I could be passionate about. "That was beautiful. Blake is going to be over the moon at this news. You do not know for how long he has fought to get a chance to partner with Mr. Michigan and now you have sided with his cause. I hope that now he can see you
Helen's POV My eyes misted and the chill I got from this shocking accusation caused my body to shake. I would never do such a thing to my sister. Yes, I may have been treated as an interior after she was born, but I was never going to hurt her. I loved her so much and I desperately wanted her to come back. I may not be actively involved in her search, but I was constantly praying and hoping that she would come back home soon. "That is a fat lie. Isabella ran away from home on her own accord and will be back when she wants to return home. No insults at my wife would be tolerated." Blake suddenly said, defending me in front of everyone. I raised my head and I stared at him, taking in his handsome facial features. His face was a mixture of anger and arrogance and it did so much to make him look like the best thing after sliced bread. I loved the sight before me and I struggled to take my gaze off him. "Really? But the family reported this as a kidnapping." Another reporter yelled ou
Blake's POV "Wait! Wait! Wait!" Dad's eyes sparkled with shock as he faced me fully, focusing all of his attention on me. "So you mean to tell me that Dominic is accusing me of lying again, Helen? You mean the one person you called your best friend has the nerve to belittle my person?" Dad asked."No, Dad. That isn't what I meant. He didn't accuse you per se. He just mentioned that he had overheard you talking with the accountant to send some funds to Helen's account. He had simply mentioned that to try to rationalize why there was a transfer from the company's account to hers." I said, trying to save Dominic from the wrath of my father's anger.Moreover, at this point, Dominic's words had checked out with Oscar's revelation. I just needed Dad to admit to this, and hopefully, I can find a way to ensure the FCI killed the case, and we could all go back to our normal lives."Oh? And where did he overhear this conversation? How is he certain it was indeed me he saw?" He asked. I let o
Blake's POV "Well, I haven't heard a word about this from my dad, but I will make my findings and get back to you. Thank you for telling me this." I said, after processing his words. He had no reason to lie to me. He was my best friend after all. His accusation against my dad may not be true, but it didn't mean that I wasn't going to check it out. If the accountant had made that transfer to her account, he had better tell me why and who had authorized the transaction. The money was no longer in Helen's account as it had been moved to a crypto wallet long ago. Our company didn't pay money into crypto accounts as they were hard to track and trace. With the amount of funds my company dealt with, it would be very dangerous for us to make such transactions that were hard to trace. "Fine. Do what you have to do, but always remind yourself that Helen is no thief. She is an honest woman and the best you would ever get out there." He said and walked out of my office. He had not left the o
Blake's POV "What's wrong man? You look so stressed out right now." I said to him immediately that he was seated opposite me on the chair. "I am stressed out, but I am more worried about you." He said and fixed his focus on me. I let out a sigh and relaxed against my chair. "It's nothing to worry about. The authorities would thoroughly investigate these allegations against Helen and the company and I am certain the truth would come out soon." I said to him, trying so hard not to think about how badly these allegations were affecting us. A lot of brands and companies we were working with were already reaching out to us, asking sensitive questions. I could hear the distrust in their queries, and if this case wasn't well handled, we could lose a lot of deals, and I wasn't ready for that to happen. My dad and I have worked so hard to bring this company to where it currently is. There was no way in hell I was letting anyone take what belonged to us. "Don't you think the authorities
Blake's POV I woke up the next morning with a splitting headache. My eyes had a hard time adjusting to the light and I feared that something terrible must have happened to me. I looked around and through my foggy haze, I saw that I was in my bedroom. Slowly, memories of last night drifted into my head, and I let out a painful groan. I had gone out and gotten drunk when I knew I was coming home to a house without Helen. The urge to call her and beg her to come back home was so strong and it took everything in me not to fall in for it. Gaining enough momentum, I sat upright, and only then did I notice the body beside me. "Jesus!" I yelled out in shock, wondering who was lying beside me. I didn't remember calling Helen and asking her to come home with me, so who could be lying on my bed right now?My scream startled the person and she jumped awake. My fear immediately morphed into anger as soon as I realized it was Isabella lying beside me. "What the hell are you doing here and on t
Isabella's POV I glared at Blake's housekeeper who had been keeping tabs on me ever since he left. She had voiced out to me several times since he left that I needed to leave the house, but I paid her no heed. This wasn't her home and there was no way a lowly maid like her would try to tell me what to do. The other maids who worked under her had all kept their cool and avoided me, but she was trying to act as though she owned the house and could do whatever she wanted with it. "Ma'am, I do not want to get into any trouble with Mr. Blake Robinson. I am certain you heard his warning before he left. Can you please leave now? My boss can be pretty unpredictable, and he could come back here anytime. I do not want him to get angry on seeing you here. He is currently going through a lot and would appreciate whatever rest or break he can get." She came over to me one more time and asked. If she wasn't so old, I would have said she was trying to score Blake for herself. Well, even if that
Helen's POV I laid on the same small thin mattress I had managed while living with my parents. Despite not sleeping on this old thin mattress for months, my body had quickly acclimatized to it, knowing fully well that it was the only mattress my parents were willing to offer me. I was lucky to have a roof over my head and was currently thinking up plans on how to make a living. My account has been frozen by the orders of the FCI and knowing my family, I was bound to have it really bad surviving. My phone rang for a second and went off, grabbing my attention. I picked it up and found a missed call from the last person I ever expected to call me.My fingers shook as I stared at the words I had used to save his number, My World. He was my world and had made my life worth living, even if it was only for a few months. Well, not until now that he asked me to leave. Staring at my phone's screen, I wondered why he was calling me. What did he want to say? Did he want me back home? I wonde
Blake's POV I sat on my bed, lost in thoughts. The numerous happy memories Helen and I always had in this room flooded my head. All I wanted right now was to be with and rest my head in the cocoon of her hands. I always enjoyed laying in the bosom of her breast, but with the current situation of things, it was impossible. "She is gone, Blake. Get a grip on yourself and get to work." I pulled myself out of the reverie and looked down at the tie in my hand. Helen had always tied my tie whenever I was heading to work. Her absence was a strong blow to me and I was having a hard time adjusting. I finally managed to get the tie on and picked up my office bag. "Have a nice day at work, Mr. Robinson." Felicia waved at me with a pitiful glance. Was Helen's absence this bad on me? God, I needed to get a grip on myself.I pulled the front door open, and the sight that greeted me caused a deep, sour scowl to appear on my face. "Why the hell are you acting as though you have just seen a gho
Isabella's POV A smile was etched on my face as I scrolled through the AI-generated photos of Blake and me in wedding clothes. We were the perfect match. We looked so good together and I wished he could see exactly what I saw."Very soon, Isabella. Very soon, you will be together with the man you love." I motivated myself.I was about to slide to the next batch of photos I had created when my cell phone rang. Of course, it was my mom calling and I scrunched up my nose in disgust. Dad has been using her to pester the living hell out of me and I was super tired of being berated. They wanted me to come back home and I did not. Being at home would be a constant reminder that Helen was living my life and I didn't want that. "What do you want?" I barked into the phone as soon as I answered it. "Can you just stop being so harsh and unkind to your mother? What's with the attitude?" She reprimanded."I am being harsh to you because you are being unkind to me. If you are calling about berat
Helen's POV I wasn't surprised by my mom's words, but I at least expected her to show some empathy to me. I was the reason they still had a roof over their heads. She may hate me, but according to the law, I was her daughter, and she ought to take me in. "Mom, you can't say that. You are my mom. This is my family home, I should be welcome here." I said, hoping to change her mind. "You are my daughter, but it doesn't mean this is your home. You are married now. Your home is wherever your husband is. Why aren't you with your husband?" She asked.My eyes dropped to the floor as I gathered the courage to tell her the truth. "Blake asked me to leave," I confessed. "What?" She screamed and burst out into laughter. "You don't mean that, do you? Oh my God, your dad needs to hear of this." She chortled harder, laughing like the maniac that she was. "Mom, this isn't something to laugh about. Someone is doing something sinister to my reputation and my life. We need to stick together to fin