“Marie, are you okay?”“Yes.” She responded, wiping the tears off her face with the back of her palm. Clearing her throat, she reached for the glass of water by her side and took a gulp. Why would Sandra return her things in a box like mementos from a bad relationship she wished to forget?“Can I come in?” Steven asked from outside the door. Why was he still here?“Yes.” She answered. She hadn't felt this exhausted in years. “How are you feeling?” Steven asked, hovering at the foot of her bed, with deep furrows in his eyebrows and forehead.“I'm okay.” She said, cradling the box in her hands and looking away as she didn't trust herself not to start crying again. Steven had seen enough for today. She had taken out her illness on him all day and he had been surprisingly patient with her. “You're crying, Marie. You have been, all day.”“I’m fine.” She replied, her tone sounding more gruff than she had intended. Unperturbed, Steven plunked on the bed beside her. Hugging her knees to her
Wiping the sheen of perspiration wetting her eyebrows, Marie willed herself not to turn to look at the man whose jutting hip was now touching hers. Why did every little contact light up a fire inside her? They had met the day before to conclude on the details of their love story and he had taken her shopping, stating that cardigans and pants wouldn't do for the getaway, and she had been embarrassed by the warmth that had spread through her when he touched her.It was a six hour drive from Albany to Kingston, Maine where the retreat center was located. She knew the only reason Steven had opted to make this a car trip was because of her deathly fear of flying. Peering at him from the corner of her eyes, Marie felt a rush of emotions. A hand was draped across the seat, while the other was typing something into his cell. She watched the way his curls bounced against his eyes and had to stifle the urge to lock her fingers in them. How she could be feeling so stimulated by his nearness an
Steven cursed under his breath as he thought about the words he had said to Marie. She didn't deserve those words even though her repulsion at sharing a bed with him had stung. Why had it stung so much?Taking deep breaths to ease the tightening in his chest, Steven dragged the bags that belonged to him and Marie to the center of the room. When he had arrived at her house to pick her up this morning, his eyes had widened in surprise at how beautiful she looked in the sundress she was wearing. Her perfect black hair had fallen to her shoulders and for someone who had been terribly sick two days ago, she had looked and smelled like heaven. Shaking his head to dispel the unwanted thoughts, Steven took his laptop out of his bag. Even with his OOO Email, he was sure that countless Emails had been pouring in since he last checked, such was the life of a CEO of an Advertising agency, especially one as big as Alden Kings Inc.Glancing at his watch, he saw that the time was almost 2PM. Picki
“What is it?” A worried Marie asked, the concern ringing in her voice as she sat up in bed.“We’ve been invited to Karaoke.” Steven replied, his tone deadpan.That was the reason the man was looking like he had swallowed a snake? Because he had to sing in front of people? Not that she had ever heard him since once in the ten years they had known each other. Maybe he was terrified that he wouldn't be able to carry a tune.“Steven, if it's just Karaoke, why do you look like someone's died?“Whose idea is it to make us do all these activities? How exactly is this supposed to trigger or ‘Zing’?” He asked.Marie climbed down from the bed, shaking her head side to side while she came to stand beside him. “Ooh great, we’re number two. Low chance of someone stealing our song.”“Marie, we aren't doing this.”Placing her hands on her hips, Marie turned to glare at him.“Steven, weren’t you giving me a lecture this morning about putting in our best? Are you going to let a little singing stop y
Steven had no idea what Marie was planning as he followed her onto the stage. Grabbing a chair as she went along, she climbed on the stage and motioned for him to sit on it. Confused but trying not to show it, Steven sat on the chair and clutched his mic in his hand. Marie stood in front of him, blocking his view of the rest of the room. Covering his mic with her hand so she couldn't be heard, she leaned down and whispered into his ears,“We’re going to give them a show. Just trust me. Now smile at me like I'm the most beautiful woman in this room.” Steven couldn't see the faces of anyone else but was sure this raven-haired beauty with sparkling green eyes was indeed the most beautiful woman in this room to him.“I can show you the world, shining, shimmering, splendid…” She began singing in a voice so sonorous that Steven's lips parted in surprise.Was this why she had been so excited about Karaoke? The girl could sing! As she sang, she ran her hand over his shoulder, neck and bent o
Marie winced at the pain exploding in her head as her eyes fluttered open. Rubbing her arms, she sat up and looked around her for the annoying device that had forced her to wake up.She could hear the shower running so she assumed he was in there. The thought of being so close to Steven was doing things to her heart. A glance to her left revealed the sofa where Steven King had most likely slept, covered with a blanket and pillows. She felt a tad guilty about having this giant bed to herself while he struggled to fit his long frame into the sofa. But she wasn't ready for all the complications that would arise from them sharing the same bed. Even if she couldn't stop her heart from pining after the man, she could stop herself from doing things she would regret later. The shrill sound of the telephone startled her again. Ugh. Could whoever was calling not have waited till afternoon?Lifting the receiver to her ear, she answered,“Hello, Marie speaking.” The silence on the other end set
If Steven wasn't so angry at Marie, he would have teased her mercilessly at the way she had looked at his bare chest a few minutes ago. He had no idea why his pulse had quickened at the look of awe on her face. But all that was before she opened her mouth and suddenly had opinions about his life. Where did she get off telling me what to do and think about his father? Maybe his father wasn't always available but he was at least in his life, which was more than he could say for the parents that had abandoned her.“You stay out of my personal life, Marie. And I mean it!”“Of course you do. I apologize.” She muttered.“You may want to change that dress and check what else needs to be changed.” He said, as he turned and stormed out of the suite. He had noticed the bright red stain from yesterday and realized that she was on her period after he had fallen on her yesterday. The falling had been unintentional. After she had said what she did about his hair, he had found himself kissing her ag
Why did he have such long legs? The more Marie ran after Steven, whose mocking laughter reverberated through the hallway, the longer his strides seemed to be getting.Stopping to catch her breath, Marie called out,“Wait, Steven. Slow down please, what did I say?”But Steven wasn't slowing down, instead he kept running through the hallway that led to the stairs. Did he have to chase him down the flight of stairs to get the answer?Furious that she had let herself get so drunk last night, she started to run after him again. It wasn't until they reached the bottom of the stairs, and she found herself standing in a room full of people sitting on yoga mats that she realized what he had done. He had led her to the head massage class. With a wicked gleam in his eye, Steven walked back to her and planted his arm firmly around her waist, leading her to the center of the class where the astonished instructor waited.“We are so sorry. Time got away from yours, you know.” He said, casting a k
Eight months later Marie smiled as she felt Steven’s warm breath dance on her face. Moments later, her eyes flickered open and locked with her husband's handsome eyes.“What's this?” She asked, as she sat up and made space for the tray he was holding.“A celebratory breakfast.” He said as Marie answered with a short laugh.“We can't keep celebrating a sentencing that happened four months ago, Steven.” She said as he ignored her and filled her glass with orange juice.“Who says?” Steven asked, as he planted a kiss on her forehead.“Me. I’m saying.”“Noted. Now eat.” He responded as he plunked on the bed beside her and watched her.“What?” She asked as his eyes roved over her.“I can't believe I almost lost you, Marie.”“You mean the way you were going on and refusing to listen to me?” She teased as she tossed a pillow at his head.“I told you I didn't like that woman.”“I know you told me. You’ve told me so almost a thousand times, Steven. But it was Zed that was the real shock to you
Steven’s mind whirled with thoughts as they headed to the hotel where he was staying. The silence in the air was rife with the weight of unspoken words. He glanced at her again and she looked so ashen. Was she okay? Why had she felt the need to come to Japan? How had she survived the flight? Was that why she looked so white? And why was she trembling so badly?He placed his hands upon hers and it was so sweaty.“Stop trembling. You're making me nervous.” He said in a more gruffer tone than he had planned.Her eyes widened for a second before she mouthed a solemn“Sorry.”She retracted her hand from under his and stuffed it in her laps.Huh. So much for wanting to comfort her. They said nothing to each other after that until the car stopped in front of the hotel.Steven rolled his eyes as Marie argued with the front desk attendant who had patiently explained that the hotel was fully booked and there was nothing she could do about it. To listen to Marie, it was like he was going to har
Steven frowned at the clock ticked noon. All his life, he had never had to wait to see anyone, but here he was, waiting on Mr. Kaito, whom he has been unable to see in the last two days.“Mr. King?” A feminine voice called out.“That's me.” He said in a chirpy voice, smiling even though his insides felt queasy. He knew convincing Mr. Kaito of the fact that Alden King Inc. still deserved his business was going to be tough and he wasn't so sure he was prepared for it. Although, in a way, he felt relieved the truth was out. The pretty brunette led him through a series of doors before stopping before a plush office. She tossed him a tight smile then knocked before leaving Steven on his own.Mr. Kaito took his sweet time before answering the door.“Mr. King, what a pleasant surprise.” Mr. Kaito said as he ushered him to a seat. While his face was smiling, Steven could sense the displeasure in his tone.“Thank you for seeing me.”Mr. Kaito took a long look at him, and Steven could feel the
Marie's hand clenched the steering wheel till her knuckles turned white. Sandra had a lot of nerve, seducing Steven and then trying to pin someone else's pregnancy on him. She jumped out of the car, and headed to the front door. She was about to knock when she noticed the door was open. Zed's loud voice filtered to where she stood.“You had just one job, Sandra! Seduce him! Get him to marry you! Don't think I care about that scum in your belly!”“I tried okay! He loves her! And I’m tired of being your little pawn! You always said you could have taken down Steven King without me so why haven't you?”“I've done everything on my part! You haven't done crap except complicate things for me. You couldn't even convince him to have sex with you. And he was drunk!”“And the only thing you’ve succeeded in doing is killing an innocent woman!” Sandra flung back.“Oh? Breathe a word of that to anyone and see what happens!”“Oh, please. What are you gonna do? Kill me too?” Sandra screamed.Marie to
Marie shoved the rest of her mementos and snapped her box shut. If she wanted to get to Lake George by nightfall, she had to hurry.She chuckled ruefully under her breath as she wondered about the rush. It's not like she had a job anymore or anything she needed to get to. Ten years with Steven, ten years of bending backwards, and all it took was one misunderstanding for him to fire her. She had even gone back and tried to explain but his granite heart hadn't moved. This from the man who though married to her, had decided to knock up her best friend.She frowned as her cell phone rang. She fished it out of her pocket, and held it to her ear with her shoulder as she rolled her luggage out.“James, there's nothing more we can do. I tried, James,”She waited as James tried to convince her not to leave town until he had spoken with Steven but to be honest, she was done begging him. For the most part of her adult life, she had fixated her emotions on him. Letting him treat her like his feel
Steven was slightly out of breath when he arrived at the orchard and ran into Rick.“Uncle Stevie! Wow. Aunty Marie was super fast. I only just spoke to her. Are you here to take me to the Planetarium? You’ve promised many times.” He asked expectantly.“You’re right, buddy. I do owe you a trip to the Planetarium. But that's not going to happen today, buddy. I've been…”“Busy. I know. You’ve had important things to do.” Rick said as a forlorn expression rested on his face. Steven sighed as he lowered himself to the boy’s gaze.“Now, Rick. You know how important you are to me, don't you?” Steven asked.Rick shrugged but Steven refused to let him out of his grasp till Rick said“Yeah.”“Well, Uncle Stevie has just had a lot of things happening to him at the same time. I'm almost done wrapping those things up and then we can go to the Planetarium as many times as you want, okay?”“Really truly?” Rick asked, a huge smile forming on his face.“Really, truly.” He confirmed.“Okay.”“That's m
“So you're headed to the house at Lake George?” Alden asked as Marie watched him peel an orange and toss a piece into his mouth. Ahead of them, Rick was glad that he had a no-school day and was allowed to run amok.“Quite a sugar rush, he’s got.” She remarked as Alden sighed.“Tell me about it. Amelia's going to have my head when she returns. One minute I look away and he downs all that stuff.”“So, what did Steven say when you told him the truth?”She sighed and tossed a piece of the tangerine she had just peeled into her mouth.“What I expected. That it didn't change anything. And that he wished me the best in life.”“He’s so obstinate sometimes.”“I told you to trust him more, Alden. If it were me, I would have been upset too. I know you love him, but you’ve got to stop coddling him!”“You don't understand, Marie. The boy is the light of my whole life. He’s everything William is not. And he was so young when he took over. And it infuriated many people.”“But that was over ten years
“Nice of you to stop for a chat and all but I'm very busy.” Steven said as Marie took her seat and folded her legs. It was like seeing a woman he hadn't met before.“I told him this was a waste of time. You don't work for someone for ten years without knowing how conceited and set in their ways they are.” Marie begun“Look, Marie. I don't know why Alden keeps trying. Isn't the work you've done for him in the past ten years impressive enough?” Steven asked.“Sneer at me, all you want. I'm not here because of Alden, I'm here because James asked me to come to talk to you.” She retorted, leaning forward to place her hand on his desk.While he didn't care about what she had to say, he figured the faster he allowed her to talk, the quicker she’d be out of his hair.“I'm listening.” He said, as leaned back in his seat.“First. I'm sorry I didn't disclose that Alden and I have a relationship.”“He was your boss, and…”“He was my guardian.” Marie cut in.Steven let out a sardonic laughter.“Gu
“What do you mean they're citing reputation issues as their reason for pulling out? We've committed to vendors, paid for the spaces for this exhibition and they're just canceling it?”Zed shrugged as Steven paced furiously. He sighed and leaned over his desk as Zed replied.“They also cited budget constraints and explained that it wasn't top priority for the foreseeable future.”“That's a load of bollocks and we both know it, Zed. Find out the real reason they're pulling the plug.”“I thought so too as well and tried to do some findings. My source alleged that top stakeholders were having cold feet due to our recent…err…”“Recent what?” Steven half yelled as he glared at Zed.“Due to your recent PR fiasco.”“What? They're canceling their activation because some reporter did a story on me?”“Well, Sir. You have to respond. You haven't addressed the rumors yet.”Steven thought about his phone call with Smith three days ago. He vehemently refused to believe what Smith was alleging until