[AVA]“It’s a great idea,” I say to him, finally realizing that it’s never the gift that matters, it’s the intention. And Sean loves Aaron; he only wants the best for him.Sean looks so damn relieved, tears twinkling in his eyes.“Oh, thank God!” He chuckles, nervously running a hand through his dar
[MAX]I’m ready to take a break and hand over the counter to Patrick when the rainbow girl walks into the café/diner, and the bell chimes over her head.Her eyes find mine in an instant, and I stop whatever I’m doing for reasons I don’t even want to know.“Hey!” She walks over to me, leans on the co
[AVA]“Nope! Still not picking up his phone,” Sean says, shaking his head, trying his damnedest to keep it together.I can’t blame him. If Brian walked out on me this way, I would freak out like hell. Fuck, I don’t even know what I would do. I would probably have a meltdown or something.Perhaps tha
[AVA] "Can you please turn off the lights?" He spoke with a commanding yet surprisingly gentle voice. His patience, usually evident in his piercing gray eyes, blended with his voice, making him sound incredibly attractive. It ignited a fire within me, sending a shiver down my spine, reaching the tips of my toes and curling them with a newfound desire. Having such intense feelings for someone like him felt forbidden. Not only was he someone I shouldn't be involved with, but he was also at least twenty years older than me. It was wrong to feel anything other than sympathy and sadness for him. It was wrong for me to be here. In a hotel room. As his companion. It was wrong not to tell him the truth. But as I walked into the room, closed the door behind me, and switched off the lights, all the complications of our situation faded away, just like the light that had filled the room before I entered. I noticed him shifting on the bed, and although it took a moment for my eyes to adjust
[AVA] "Seriously, Mom? Can you please stop?" I groaned, feeling exasperated yet again. However, her relentless attempts to tame my unruly frizzy hair made me push her hands away and step back. "What's the matter?" she snapped, trying to keep her voice low but clearly irritated. "I'm just trying to help you. What's wrong with that?" She rolled her eyes and shook her head as if she had reached her limit with my childish behavior. "Tonight is a big opportunity for you. What did you do with the money I gave you to go to the salon and get ready? Don't tell me you wasted it on books or other academic stuff," she huffed. "Didn't I emphasize how important this party is, Ava? Why don't you listen to me anymore?" I let out a frustrated sigh. In simple terms, my mother was trying to set me up with a wealthy guy so that our lives could become a little less miserable, at least temporarily. While I tried to understand her desperation, considering our difficult circumstances, it didn't mean I co
[AVA] Ava?” The guy stood there, utterly shocked, his eyes bulging out as if they might pop right out of his head. Oh, great! This was definitely not part of the plan. At least not so soon. "Is it really you?" he stammered, furrowing his brows and adjusting his rimless spectacles on his nose. "How... what... when... WHAT?" To put it simply: I was in deep trouble. Like, really, really screwed! After leaving the party, I had called a cab and headed to the address given by the client, although it was quite a challenge with my mom still nagging at me. It took about twenty minutes to reach the location and another five minutes to dodge the reception and slip into the (thankfully) empty elevator. But as soon as I opened the door to the designated room, expecting another meaningless encounter, my worst nightmare stood before me in a suit, his cheeks flushed. As if that weren't enough to destroy my self-esteem, it turned out that this nightmare was none other than Sean Edwards, the brot
[AVA] “Don’t you think we’re moving too fast?” I deadpanned, giving a slight eye roll as Sean rushed to open the car door for me. It was only yesterday when I saved his ass from his asshole friends, secretly hoping we wouldn't run into each other anytime soon. We made a deal to keep each other's secrets, a win-win situation. But now, the first thing I see from my tiny room's window is his flashy car pulling up near my awful apartment. I had no clue what he was up to or trying to prove, but I hurried downstairs as fast as I could before my parents or nosy neighbors caught sight of him. I needed to find out what the heck was going on. I was still in my pajamas, wearing a too-small t-shirt that barely contained my assets. But I couldn't care less because Sean showing up at the wrong time in the wrong place put my entire future at risk. If our family business hadn't gone bankrupt and we were still living in our fancy fourteen-bedroom mansion, things would be so different. Nobody cared
[AVA] After Brian left, my parents couldn't stop praising him, but in very different ways. Dad's compliments were more understated and respectful, while mom seemed to have some questionable ideas about using him to get more money so we could survive the upcoming tough times. Whenever they mentioned Brian, it felt like they were on the verge of discovering my secret. During the extended period he stayed with us, which was much longer than his initial visit, my stomach was in knots, wondering if his offer to help me financially was a way of acknowledging what I had done and trying to rescue me from having to resort to sleeping with strangers. Tired of their repetitive conversations and tired of torturing myself with endless speculation, I swiftly left the dinner table and collapsed onto my bed, burying my face in the pillow. I let out a groan, completely exhausted after a difficult day, knowing that I still had to discuss my new relationship status with my parents. I had no clue how
[AVA]“Nope! Still not picking up his phone,” Sean says, shaking his head, trying his damnedest to keep it together.I can’t blame him. If Brian walked out on me this way, I would freak out like hell. Fuck, I don’t even know what I would do. I would probably have a meltdown or something.Perhaps tha
[MAX]I’m ready to take a break and hand over the counter to Patrick when the rainbow girl walks into the café/diner, and the bell chimes over her head.Her eyes find mine in an instant, and I stop whatever I’m doing for reasons I don’t even want to know.“Hey!” She walks over to me, leans on the co
[AVA]“It’s a great idea,” I say to him, finally realizing that it’s never the gift that matters, it’s the intention. And Sean loves Aaron; he only wants the best for him.Sean looks so damn relieved, tears twinkling in his eyes.“Oh, thank God!” He chuckles, nervously running a hand through his dar
I chuckle. “I’d love that, but I’m not sure Aaron would appreciate being put on the spot.”“Don’t worry, I’ll work my magic,” Sean winks and heads toward the kitchen, leaving me alone in the living room.I wander over to the bookcase, running my fingers over the spines of Sean’s collection. He has a
[AVA]“Brian was right, this is a very bad idea,” I mumble to myself as I stand outside the apartment Sean and Aaron share. And yes, let me remind you this is the same apartment where Sean found Aaron furiously making out with his sister.And yes, I should not have thought about that because now the
[AVA]“I’ll miss you,” I say once Brian and I step into the elevator of his penthouse.Kian and Mason are already downstairs, waiting for us. But Brian, being Brian, needed a moment to “make it up” to me for the whole two weeks he would be absent.I’m excited for him. I swear, I am. And yet, when I
[BRIAN]Time for some honesty: I’m terrified of what I’m about to do.Rock/Mountain climbing, I’m not sure if I’m made for such stuff. I mean, sure, I love treks and long walks and boating and camping and driving and all that stuff but climbing a mountain? That sounds a little stretch, even for me.
We pull back and Brian glares at his twin brother, who in turn, winks at us, making sure we know he has only been kidding. “We are heading to the next store. Think you can take your make-out session on the go?”Brian flips him off and Mason laughs, walking away with Kian in tow.Kian looks over his
[AVA]“I can’t believe you agreed to this.”“Trust me, I can’t believe it either.”I chuckle, not able to help myself. I would have loved to see Brian climbing a mountain, but I can’t, and that makes me sad. But maybe I’ll have better luck next time. I just hope Brian will be as willing to take part