Anthony's silverstone car pulled over at a bus stop that was not too busy. He turned to Shanon then made a gesture for Shanon to get out of his car.“We can't be seen going to campus together. I hope you don't mind me dropping you off here.”“Right. We have to keep our marriage a secret. Don't worry, I'll walk to campus. I am used to it."Shanon quickly unfastened her seat belt and grabbed her bag which was lying on the passenger seat. She got out of the car without even looking at Anthony. She thought they didn't need to perform any farewell rituals. It would have been too awkward for them after Anthony's outspoken eviction. But, Anthony's voice stopped Shanon, who was just about to close the car door.“I have meetings and some work at the office. Go home yourself by taxi or it's up to you how you want to go home. But I will definitely have dinner at home. So, get dinner ready before eight.”Shanon nodded slowly and slammed the car door hard. She didn't care if Anthony thought she wa
“What was I thinking, huh?”“Y-you heard me say something in front of the mirror?”"What did you just say? I just got a call from Brenda. Mr. Angelo’s class is canceled today because Mr. Angelo is sick. We are free today because Mr. Angelo didn't give us a task. We're going to have fun, Shanon!” Sarah shook her shoulders hard and made Shanon even more nauseous.Shanon then pushed Sarah away and tried to calm her heart, which was beating very fast in her chest cavity.“O-oh, I'm sorry, Shanon. I was just too excited about the great news. Let's go to the cafeteria and get something for your stomach.”"I didn't have breakfast this morning.""You're vomiting because you haven't had breakfast. Come on, I'll take you to the cafeteria."Sarah dragged her out of the bathroom excitedly. Shanon just resigned herself to following Sarah's very fast footsteps. They walked past the basketball court an
"Are you sure you don't want me to accompany you inside?"“Nope. Thank you for worrying about me, but I'm fine. See you tomorrow on campus."Shanon waved gently at Sarah and got out of her car. She walked straight towards the glass door, which opened automatically as she approached. The smell of carbolic acid and sterile objects greeted her. Shanon had to get used to everything about the hospital while Avery was still lying in a coma in her treatment room."Excuse me, I want to pay Avery Wilson's bill.""Okay, wait a minute. I'll print the receipt."She clutched Anthony's black credit card tightly in her hand. That would be her first payment with Anthony's credit card. She would try to be frugal with other expenses and use her savings for personal needs. He wouldn't make Anthony suspicious about his credit card bill, which kept increasing every month."Your card, Ms?"“Here.”The administrative officer d
Shanon propped her chin up in front of her bedroom window boredly. She had been sitting there for hours, playing with her wedding ring. The weekend was a boring day. Especially after she married Anthony. There were no fun things she could do. She had finished doing all her homework on Friday. She had also cleaned the house. And a house that big never really had a very dirty room. She only needed to clean the kitchen after cooking, sweep dry leaves in the yard, mop every three days, mop the bathroom floor, and there was nothing else she could do after she finished all that work.Her eyes accidentally caught Anthony's figure in the backyard. Anthony was walking towards the swimming pool in a bathrobe. It was indeed a suitable time for swimming. Clear skies, warm air, and the weekend.“Perfect.”Shanon propped her chin up while watching Anthony take off his bathrobe and reveal the beautiful view of his athletic body. Tanned skin, broad chest full of mus
Anthony arrived at the bus stop in more than fifteen minutes. Shanon waited for almost thirty minutes under the scorching heat of the sun. Her blouse was soaked with sweat as Anthony's metallic blue car stopped in front of her.“Hurry up and get in the car.”Shanon snorted as the window rolled down. Anthony, with his sunglasses perched on his nose and strong arms wrapped around the steering wheel, looked like a hot model in an automotive magazine. She hated why Anthony had to look that good, when she was so worn and sweaty."You said fifteen minutes," Shanon grumbled as she pulled the strap of the seat belt around her body.“The dean from the health department came to discuss some things.”"I don't mind if you have visitors in your office, but at least say sorry for making me wait too long in the very hot and dusty open air."“It wasn't my fault. It was Garreth Wilson who kept me in my room for too long.”
Shanon knocked on Anthony's study carrying a cup of coffee and several chocolate cupcakes on a tray. She wanted to cheer up Anthony, who was angry with the cake she made. Anthony immediately locked himself in his study since they returned from Jeff's house three hours ago. The lunch didn't end well. Shanon heard Anthony screaming at his grandfather in his grandfather's study. She didn't know what was really going on in Jeff's study. But Anthony immediately grabbed her hand roughly as soon as she ran out of Jeff's office and stuffed her into the car before she could say goodbye to Jeff.During the drive home, Shanon felt intense tension because of Anthony's anger. He was driving at full speed on the busy streets of Boston. The car was moving more than the speed limit. God only knows why Anthony didn't get a ticket from the police. Shanon continued to pray on the way home and clenched her hands in her lap every time the car almost hit the car in front of them. When they managed
“This is shit!”Sarah slammed her bag on the table then sat roughly next to Shanon."How is the result?" Shanon pretended to be busy scrolling on her cellphone even though she already knew what happened to Sarah.“I still got an F and had to write a hundred thousand word paper based on his material. Business strategy in the modern era. Gosh, isn't that cruel? One hundred thousand words! Imagine that, Shanon!”“Yeah, that was cruel. But it was a fair punishment.”“No, that's not fair at all. Why does a man as handsome and sexy as Anthony Bruce have to have such cruelty in him?!”“I warned you to get to class before he came, but you went with Stevan and didn't come back."“I explained to Anthony that I went to class a few minutes after he came into class. I saw him standing by your table.”Suddenly Shanon's heart was pounding very hard. Yesterday, they secretly sto
The craziest thing in Anthony's life was when he couldn't concentrate on teaching because he kept thinking about Shanon's face, who was holding back tears because her cell phone was broken. Anthony didn't know why he should feel sorry to see her lying pathetically on the ground after wrestling with her best friend. He thought it was stupid and childish. But strangely, he couldn't stop thinking about Shanon.After ending his class five minutes early, Anthony dashed to his room and called Ben to buy him a new cell phone.“Just buy any good brand. I don't care about the price.”“What about the color, sir?”Anthony thought about the color of Shanon's phone for a moment, then answered directly and steadily, “White. I want you to put it in my study this afternoon before I come back from campus."“Yes, sir.”As evening came, Anthony sat in his study after having dinner alone without Shanon. He didn't know w
Her marriage was in turmoil. Shanon almost believed her wedding was canceled because Anthony couldn't come to his own wedding. Isn't that crazy? The main character couldn't attend his own wedding!Shanon was stressed about handling all the wedding preparations alone while Anthony was in Singapore to attend a damn conference which he said was very important to him. Anthony delegated all his responsibilities to Shanon and only gave a few short confirmations via telephone every time Shanon called to ask about several things related to their wedding. Anthony then asked Ben to do things that Shanon couldn't do herself because she was pregnant. Anthony promised to arrive in Boston the day before their wedding, and he asked Shanon to calm down.But, the day before their wedding, Anthony didn't show up at the airport at all. Shanon, who had been haunted by worry for weeks, tried to call Anthony to ask for clarity about his return. To her surprise, Anthony gave her some very ba
"Turn right."“No. We still have to walk straight over there.”“But I want to see the baby crib here.”"There is a baby shop that makes the best quality baby cribs there."Shanon folded her arms across her chest. Her eyes narrowed at Anthony.“Well, I keep forgetting the fact that I'm going to marry a man who bathes in a thousand dollar soap. You obviously couldn't possibly buy a baby crib at Ikea.”“Don't be so skeptical about my life, Shanon. I just want the best for my son.”“I know, I know. I'm just not used to your very wow lifestyle."“I don't like you commenting skeptically on my lifestyle. Like it or not, you have to get used to it from now on. You will live under me.”“Oh, really, Anthony. I want equality. What century do you think we live in, huh?”The two of them stood in front of the Ikea entrance and glanced at each other sa
“Deal.”“Nice doing business with you, Mr. Maddock.”Avery held out her hand to shake Tim Maddock's hand. They ended the meeting with satisfied smiles on each of their faces because they managed to reach an agreement on their next project. Tim Maddock then walked away, leaving Avery who still remained in the restaurant to pack up her things.“Avery? What a coincidence, huh?”Avery looked up. She just gathered the documents and put them in the briefcase. Her face lit up when she saw who had just greeted her.“Jordyn. Hey, what are you doing here?”“Umm... Lunch. Actually, it's not really lunch. I only ordered coffee because I was trying to build a good image in front of people I had just met.”“So, do you want to have lunch with me? I haven't eaten anything since just now.”"That is a good idea. You saved me from starvation. Thanks, Ave.”&ldquo
A month after the graduation party, which was full of drama and showers of congratulations from her friends, Shanon still couldn't come out of her euphoria. She welcomed the day with joy and the promise of a better future. Every morning she woke up and realized the fact that she was Anthony's fiancé. Formally. There was no secret. Everyone knew for sure that she belonged to Anthony, and vice versa. Just imagining it, her life became lighter than before. Negative thoughts disappeared in an instant from her brain."Good morning."“Hi, princess. You look really excited.”Shanon kissed her sister's cheek briefly. Avery had been sitting at the dining table since seven o'clock. She was ready in a formal suit, a black bag sat on the empty chair next to her, and she had a cup of coffee on the table.“I'm always excited. What would you like for breakfast?”“You don't need to bother making me breakfast. You prepared me br
I apologize....Shanon turned off her phone before she read the entire message Anthony had just sent her. Just seeing the word at the opening of the message, she could already guess that the message would end badly. Something like, Anthony couldn't be there on her graduation day and couldn't see her throw her cap in the air.“He sucks,” Shanon muttered under her breath.She squeezed her phone before stuffing it into her bag.She and hundreds of students from various departments were gathering in the main hall of the university to celebrate their graduation. Shanon had worn her best dress along with a black robe and academic cap. Avery put on light make-up and put on soft pink lipstick, which made her look even more stunning. Unfortunately, Anthony couldn't come to complete her happiness today. Though she really hoped that Anthony would come to see her go up on stage and make a speech on behalf of the hun
“Cheers.”“Oh man, is this party necessary?”“Of course it is necessary. Let's have a toast.”Shanon lazily clinked her glass with Sarah's. Hers had apple juice, while Sarah's had beer. Her house was very noisy tonight because Sarah and Jordyn threw a party to celebrate her graduation. Shanon officially completed her master's program and graduated with the best grades. They insisted on celebrating with a party because Shanon deserved the best graduation party. An hour ago, they came to her house with three boxes of pizza, several boxes of Thai food and Chinese food. They also ordered fries and burgers. The living room table had turned into a party table with a variety of food that they couldn't possibly finish that night.“I feel like you guys shouldn't throw me a party.”Shanon looked at Anthony with a frown. Anthony had just arrived after Sarah called him to join them. Anthony didn't need to think t
“This is the time.”Shanon released her hug from Sarah. She wiped the tears dripping down her cheeks.“I'm sure you can, Shanon. Show them who you really are.”“Thank you, Sarah. You're my best friend. I wouldn't have been able to get through all of this without you.”“We love you, Shanon.”Shanonh turned to look at Jordyn. She then snuggled into his warm embrace."Wish me luck."Shanon walked into the hall with extremely impressive calm. The campus council and lecturers had gathered in the hall to test her. They were all there, except Anthony. Shanon was sad because she couldn't see Anthony this morning in the hall. But, an hour ago they had spoken on the phone. Anthony regretted that he couldn't be there for her when the campus council chewed her out. Anthony promised to always support her from afar.“Are you ready, Shanon?”“Yes, Mr. Angelo.”
“Jane Heather.”"Who are you?"Jane frowned in annoyance at finding an uninvited guest suddenly entering her room and locking the door, as if she had given her permission to do so."I'll call security to drag you away from here and report your impoliteness to—""Who? Those damn campus councils? They won't hear you. They are busy crushing Anthony and Shanon.”“Where are your manners? Call him Professor Bruce.”"Not anymore. He was no longer a professor since the rusty campus board fired him. They stripped Anthony of all his titles. Now, he is just an ordinary guy. Without any title.”"You must be kidding."“Do I look like I'm kidding now?”Jane studied the woman's face closely and she suddenly snapped her fingers.“I know who you are. You're from the economics department. You're one of Anthony's students. I see you always stick with the other woman."
After disappearing from civilization for two days, Shanon decided it was time for her to face all the problems she had left hanging in limbo.For two whole days she just holed herself up in her room. She removed her cellphone battery and did not want to be exposed to the outside world in any form. Her mind created all kinds of terrible scenarios about her life and future. Avery had tried to persuade her many times to come out of her room, but she ignored her. She used two full days to think. She wanted to blame Anthony for all the problems that happened to her. Before she got involved with Anthony’s life, everything was normal. Her only misfortune was having a very cruel stepmother like Yvone.But, after she got involved with Anthony, things got out of hand. She experienced a series of events that she had never imagined before. Including the problems she was currently facing. She never thought that she would be in danger of failing to get a master's degree just b