“A little bit of brightness should brighten up this dark room.” Eva muttered as she drew the thick curtains open. And just as she predicted, the thick curtain was blocking the brightness from entering the room. Although the sun was already setting and it was getting to evening time, but she was still thankful that the little brightness alightend the room.After a few minutes of shamelessly checking out everything in the big room, Eva finally landed herself in the walk-in closet which was packed and filled with men's suits, pants, ties, shoes and wrist watches. “As expected of a tycoon." Eva smirked, she could easily guess each and every piece of clothing and accessories in the walk-in closet were worth a fortune. “That must be where the maids placed my suitcase." She sighted her suitcase in a corner and walked towards it. After she was fine exploring the room, Eva decided to take another shower to wash off the sweats from her body. A few moments later, she was done in the bathroom
“Gosh! I'm full!" Eva exclaimed as she landed heavily on the big soft bed. "Today has really been a long day.” She mumbled under her breath. If there was one thing that she was happy about Damien’s absence today that would be the fact that he wasn't around for them to spend the wedding night together. The thought of herself and Damien trying to do whatever a married couple would do on the wedding night made her blush hard as her mind wandered off to the night they shared together, nine months ago. ‘Don’t forget Eva, it's a marriage contract.’ she heard the little devil whisper in her ear while sitting comfortably on her shoulder.“It's disappointing that he didn't show up at the Civil Affairs Office today, and it's also a good thing that he isn't around because I have no excuse to make up if he wants to touch me. After all, we are now married, according to the paper." Eva remarked, slapping her cheeks to snap out of her thoughts.‘ I'm truly happy and glad that this wedding didn't t
Damien paused for a few minutes when he heard the question. That's right, the reason why he had approached Eva and offered her this marriage contract in the first place was not only because he wanted her to borrow his power and status to get revenge on Mark. The real reason was because he needed an heir due to his grandfather who kept pressuring him to get married and have his own child. He had been ignoring his grandfather's antics about getting married since he wasn't interested in any woman. But after that one night stand he had with Eva, his interest in her increased and each and every time they encountered each other, she always did something that kept wanting him to be close to her. His curiosity about her was what made him offer her the contract at the restaurant, since she was also the first woman he would ever sleep with. However, he hadn't thought much about what to do if Ev1a completed her own side of the contract and gave birth to an heir for him. All he knew was that he
***********Just like that after having breakfast, Eva was escorted back to the bedroom. When the maid bowed and was leaving, Eva suddenly stopped her.“You, what is your name? I can't keep calling you ‘you’ when you have a name and I forgot to ask you yesterday as well." The maid blinked her eyes. She didn't expect that Eva would want to know the name of an insignificant maid like her. ‘I thought she was from a rich household? Is she supposed to ask my name?’ The maid was confused but still decided to reply anyway.“Tasha. You can call me Tasha, Madam." The maid replied.“Okay, thank you for escorting me around, Tasha." Eva smiled at her, making Tasha go into a daze at Eva's smile. Who would have thought that her Madam had such a beautiful smile and she would smile at a maid like her?Eva raised a brow when she saw how Tasha was dazed. “Tasha, are you alright?" She asked, snapping her finger in front of her eyes to bring her back.“Ah, yes, Madam. I'm sorry, I was dazed for a moment
“What is it?" Eva asked with a seriousness like she was about to strike a business deal.“I can't have our Madam doing all that hard work alone, so I will have a few maids assist you, if that is okay with you.” The head chef revealed."Sure, I can live with that." Eva nodded her head and the head chef quickly called three maids over to assist Eva while they cleared a space for her.A few minutes later, Eva was done preparing the cake. “Madam, we can handle the rest from here, we will let you once the cake is ready." One of the maid assisting Eva told her after she placed the cake in the oven.“Alright, thank you for assisting me." Eva didn't bother to argue with the maid, she nodded her head and asked one of the maids to lead her to the living room, since she didn't want to go back to the bedroom. She was really starting to consider taking the tour Tasha had offered her but she couldn't find Tasha anywhere.Eva sat down on the couch and turned on the TV. She scrolled through the chan
“And what made you eat cake all of a sudden?” She added, her voice still serious.Eva raised her brow when she saw how her playful friend turned serious. "I'm at home and this is a celebration cake.” She casually replied, ignoring the boring gaze from Nathalia."Don't fool me, young lady. This is your home, I can tell just by looking at the background behind you? Tell me exactly where you are right now? And besides, what are you celebrating all of a sudden?” Not buying the reply Eva gave her, Nathalia asked her further.“Which one do you want me to answer first? Is it telling you where I am or the reason for my celebration cake?” She asked, instead of answering Nathalia's question. Eva was purposely trying to prolong this because she knew if Nathalia knew where she was, her reaction would be fun and she was preparing to witness her expression.“Anyone, but answer both questions." “Of course, I would. First of all, this is a celebration cake, that I got married without any drama. And
“Wait!" Nathalia yelled. “What are you talking about? Who and where did you hear such things that Damien Cross and I were dating?" Just at the mention of it, Nathalia felt like puking all the food she had eaten out. ‘Just who would date that devil!’ “I overheard one of the maids working here?" Eva casually replied. Of course, she didn't hear anything from anywhere. In fact this was a self made lie that she was telling Nathalia. She wanted Nathalia to be the one to tell her what her relationship with Damien was but knowing how stubborn Nathalia was, she wouldn't tell her the truth if she asked directly." Just which maid would say something like that? Have they lost their god-damned minds and can't realize that I'm Damien's cousin. Why would I date that devil who calls himself my older cousin. Are they all tired of working? I need to call Mr. Lee-” Nathalia stopped talking mid-sentence when she saw Eva who was frowning before now smiling at her. Her eyes widened when she realized that
As a matter of fact she wasn't only feeling nauseous and itchy alone, she couldn't breathe properly anymore. “Is…….is anyone….out there?” Eva managed to call the maids outside for help while gasping and battling for air desperately. However, because her voice isn't loud, none of the maids outside heard her.Seeing that no one could hear her, Eva attempted to stand up from her seat. She couldn't hold on any longer as she was starting to feel dizzy. Just as Eva tried to stand up her hand mistakenly knocked the glass cup of water onto the floor and caused a loud chatter sound.Meanwhile, Tasha who just arrived outside of the dining room waiting for Eva to finish eating before she escorts her back to her room, just like she does. Although,. Eva had told her that she remembered the way to the bedroom, she still came. The real reason she was here was because when she was running some errands, one of her colleagues who was stationed in the kitchen had stopped her and gave her a share of the
The sound of glass shattering echoed through the luxurious hotel suite as Christine hurled a vase across the room. Her chest heaved with rage, her nails digging into her palms as she glared at the headlines flashing on her phone screen. Her latest scheme to ruin Eva’s reputation had backfired, and instead of dragging her sister through the mud, she had only strengthened Eva’s position. Every carefully placed trap had been countered, every lie had been exposed. Christine had never felt so powerless. Sitting on the couch, Tanya crossed her legs and sighed, watching Christine throw another decorative piece to the floor. She had been working with Christine for years now, and while she had always known that Christine despised Eva, it was becoming clear that this wasn’t just about competition anymore. ‘It was an obsession’ she thought. Tanya remained silent as Christine raged, knowing full well that any attempt to calm her down would only make things worse. Instead, she waited for the
— That evening, Eva arrived at the mansion, feeling a strange sense of relief as she stepped inside. After staying in a hotel for so long, returning here felt like coming home—not just because of the place but because of who was waiting for her. She slipped off her heels and sighed, stretching her sore muscles. Just as she was about to call out, a deep, familiar voice came from the living room. “Took you long enough.” She turned and found Damien leaning against the doorway, watching her with that quiet intensity that always made her heart skip a beat. His sleeves were rolled up, his tie loosened, and despite the exhaustion she knew he must have felt from his long day, there was a softness in his gaze reserved only for her. A slow smile spread across her lips. “Miss me?” she teased, walking toward him. Instead of answering, Damien reached out and gently pulled her into his arms. His embrace was warm, steady—like an anchor. Eva let out a soft breath as she melted into his hold, re
—-- Meanwhile, at Cross Enterprise, Damien was already aware of the situation. Sitting in his office, he scanned the online articles, his expression darkening. Christine had dared to attack Eva through the media, hoping to cause irreparable damage. Big mistake. Damien didn’t tolerate anyone trying to harm what was his. Without hesitation, he placed the tablet down and looked at Eric. “Tell the PR team to shut it down,” he ordered. “And make sure every major outlet retracts the story and destroys whatever companies are involved in this scandal.” Eric frowned slightly when he heard his boss. Again he was trying to protect Eva all again. However, he couldn’t voice out his displeasure so he quietly nodded his head. “Yes, sir.” Within an hour, the suspicious articles started disappearing. Gossip blogs that had been flooded with scandalous headlines were suddenly quiet. Comments under posts were being flooded with contradictions. The narrative was crumbling before Christine’s eyes.
For the past few days, Christine had kept a low profile, following Tanya’s advice to wait for the right opportunity. Her previous schemes had failed miserably—each attempt to sabotage Eva had only backfired, making Eva look even more poised and untouchable. But Christine wasn’t the type to accept defeat.If she couldn’t surpass Eva professionally, then she would tear her down personally.Her mother, Laura, had been the one to plant the idea in her mind. "If you can’t win on the battlefield they’ve chosen," Laura had told her, "then change the game. Make them play on your terms."And that was exactly what Christine intended to do. This time, she wouldn’t just aim for petty sabotage—she was going to destroy Eva’s reputation completely.…………Early in the morning, Eva’s phone buzzed non-stop.Gossip sites, entertainment blogs, and even major media outlets were exploding with headlines:"Supermodel Eva Caught in Scandalous Affair with HB Industry CEO!""Is Eva Using Her Influence to Secure
Meanwhile, Eric, who had been silently watching the interaction, let out a small scoff. “So this is what I wasted my time for?” he muttered under his breath.Gwen immediately shot him a glare. “Excuse me?”Eric smirked slightly, shoving his hands into his pockets. “You barged in here like it was urgent, but all you’re doing is dragging her out for a photoshoot?”“Oh, I’m so sorry,” Gwen said mockingly. “I forgot you were Mr.Cross's bodyguard and not his secretary. If it bothers you so much, maybe you should have stayed outside instead of following me in.” she said, though she knew that he was Damien's secretary but still said that to irk him.Eric chuckled darkly.’This crazy human being.’ “Believe me, I wouldn’t be here if someone didn’t insist I help her get past the receptionist.”“I did not beg—” Gwen started before cutting herself off, clenching her fists. “You know what? Forget it. I don’t have time to argue with an overgrown ice cube.”Eva, who had been watching the entire exch
Eva leaned back against the couch, patting her stomach in satisfaction. "I have to say, I really outdid myself picking that restaurant," she mused.Damien, who was already sitting behind his desk, raised a brow. “You outdid yourself? All you did was order the food. I don’t remember you being the one who actually cooked it.”Eva scoffed, sitting up straighter. “Excuse you, do you know how much effort it took to pick the best dishes from that menu?”Damien smirked. “Oh, I’m sure scrolling through a menu and pointing at things was exhausting.”Eva gasped, placing a hand over her chest dramatically. “Wow, Damien. I put all this effort into making sure my husband doesn’t starve, and this is the appreciation I get?”Damien let out a chuckle, the warmth in his gaze betraying his otherwise teasing expression. “Your husband could have easily ordered lunch himself, you know.”Eva narrowed her eyes. “Really? Because from the looks of it, you were buried under so many files that you probably woul
Gwen strode into Cross Enterprise’s grand lobby, her heels clicking sharply against the polished marble floor. She just got back from where she had told Eva she was going and had tried calling Eva multiple times, but as expected, Eva was too busy flirting or whatever she was doing with Damien to answer her phone.Glancing at the time, Gwen muttered under her breath. “If she doesn’t come out now, Victoria’s going to have my head.”With no other choice, she let out an exasperated sigh, and approached the receptionist’s desk.“I’m here to see Mr. Cross,” she said, adjusting the strap of her handbag. “Let me through to the top floor.”The receptionist, a young woman with perfectly styled hair and an unbothered expression, simply smiled. “I’m sorry, miss, but you don’t have an appointment. I can’t let you in.”Gwen blinked, momentarily taken aback. “What?”The receptionist gave her a polite but firm look. “Without an appointment, I can’t let you through. Company policy.”Gwen narrowed her
As Damien led her to the couch, Eva suddenly halted, making him turn with a questioning brow.“You know,” she mused, tilting her head with mock seriousness, “before you interrupted me, I was actually offering a very expensive consultation service.”Damien crossed his arms, amusement twinkling in his dark eyes. “Oh?”Eva nodded, tapping her chin as if in deep thought. “Yes, I used to charge companies millions for my insights. So technically… you owe me.”Damien let out a low chuckle, stepping closer. “Let me get this straight,” he said, his voice rich with teasing authority. “You walked into my office, sat in my chair, went through my documents without permission—and now you’re asking me to pay you?”Eva grinned. “That’s business, Mr. Cross. Nothing is free.”Damien smirked. “And what if I refuse to pay?”Eva pretended to think, then shrugged. “Then I guess I’ll take my brilliant mind elsewhere.”Damien’s eyes darkened slightly, but he played along. “That would be a shame. Tell me, Mrs
Minutes passed, and Eva quickly grew bored.She had been in Damien’s office many times, but she still found herself looking around. It was immaculate and organized, but it lacked anything personal. Nothing in this room screamed Damien—except for the towering stacks of documents and reports on his desk.Her eyes narrowed as she walked over, running her fingers lightly over the ridiculous amount of paperwork.“No wonder he barely has time to eat.” She muttered, shaking her head.The sight of his overwhelming workload triggered a familiar ache in her chest. She remembered her past—being buried in work, managing her father’s company alongside Mark. She had spent countless nights drowning in documents, starving herself to meet deadlines, and yet… no one had cared. Neither her father nor Mark had ever asked if she had eaten.Her fingers clenched slightly against the papers.She had left that life behind, yet here Damien was, doing the same thing to himself.Determined to help him, Eva sat i