SIA POV
"Who the hell are you?!" I snapped at the stranger who sat, with crossed legs, watching me.
He let out a mirthless laugh, the next second, his face hardened, and his lips were set in a thin line.
Silence filled the room, making me uncomfortable.
I picked up a pillow and flung it at him. His frown deepened and he rolled his eyes as the pillow smacked his face before falling to the floor.
"Are you deaf?" I yelled, as raw panic swept through me. I threw off the covers from my body and my mouth hung open.
I didn't have any clothes on. That only meant one thing, but I forced myself not to think of it.
"No...it can't be true" I muttered under my breath.
He eyed me in silence.
A few moments passed and I jumped out of bed, taking the bedsheets with me as a cover. I was now unable to deal with the heat of his stare, and I edged backwards to the window behind me.
I stood a good distance away from him. At least, It would give me more advantage over him if he ever wanted to lunge forward and grab me.
My mind felt chaotic with different questions.
How did I end up in this stranger's bed? Where was I?
The memories of the previous night were hazy, but I knew I had done something crazy.
"What do you want?" I asked the man again, my voice was barely above a whisper.
"I want to know what happened last night," he said.
I was confused. He was supposed to know what had happened because I didn't have any memory of how I had even found myself in his bed, naked.
"Wha-what do you mean?" I stammered.
He sighed, "We had sex, Sia. You forced yourself on me."
Anger coursed through me. "Forced myself on you? I don't fucking remember how I got in here. You owe me an explanation" I yelled at him.
"Two men brought you in here, and—"
"You took advantage of me!" I lashed out at him, tears streaming down my face.
Nicholas raised his hands, his palms facing me. "I was drunk too, Sia. No one is to blame."
I didn't believe him. Why was he now claiming to be drunk when he clearly remembered how I entered his room. I broke down, and my vision became blurry.
It was now that everything came back to me with a rush.
Nathan had cheated on me, barely an hour after proposing to me. He went further to tell everyone who cared to listen that he didn't even want to be married to me.
While that was the truth, I hadn't expected him to be so blunt about it.
Between sobs, I managed to explain what I could remember about the previous night while he listened.
Then, something he said earlier hit me, "You said that two men brought me to your room. Who were they?"
He shrugged, "They wore uniforms—most likely ushers from the engagement party that held down the hallway"
I cocked an eyebrow, confused. The last thing I recalled was sipping from a bottle of alcohol which my mother had pushed into my hands.
I started to cry again and the man got up, and went to the bathroom.
When he came back, I was on a call with Elise, my best friend.
"Sia, you've lost your position at your father's company," Elise said. "And several other benefits."
I sobbed harder. There was not much to live for again, I reasoned.
Nicholas stood there, his eyes fixed on me, but I couldn't bear to look at him.
"Did they have to do it so fast?" I asked her.
"Your parents have decided to cut you off from the family wealth, Sia. They're furious that you broke up with Nathan and went to the room of another man."
I wanted to protest that I didn't head over to another man's room on my own, rather I was escorted by two unknown men, but I fell silent.
The room started to spin. I staggered over to the bed and sat on it, dropping the phone. My breath hitched as I cried for the next few minutes.
His voice cut through my sobs, "Sia, stop."
I tried to calm down, but the tears wouldn't stop. I raked my fingers through my hair.
"The media is having a field day, Sia," He said, "They're carrying news of our affair, and it's not looking good for either of us."
"I'm always in these unfortunate situations! I can't catch a break! First, Nathan cheats on me, and now this!"
The man didn't make a move to offer any comfort, nor try to soothe my tears away.
He just stood there with a frown on his face. I felt like I was a burden to him, like he couldn't wait to get rid of me.
Minutes passed and I had calmed down. I still found it hard to believe my parents had cut me off. They had always threathened me about it. I quietly got dressed in the bathroom and went back to the bed.
Just then, a knock at the door broke the silence.
Nicholas got up, and opened the door a crack, blocking a view of the room. I held my breath, nervous.
"Hey, man, we're looking for Sia," A male voice said "We brought her here last night. I think we had the wrong room number"
"She's not here. She left last night, after...whatever happened."
From where I stood, I saw the men look at each other, clearly unconvinced. "Dude, we understand that we brought her here, but you aren't the Mr. N we were asked to take her to," the other man said.
"I'm telling you, she's not here. And even if she was, it's none of your business."
The men looked at each other again, then shrugged. "Alright, man. But if we find out you're hiding her...," the first man trailed off, leaving the threat hanging in the air.
The man in the room closed the door, and turned to face me.
He waited a moment for the other men to walk away from the door before he cleared his throat, "I know the perfect solution to clear up this mess"
"Tell me."
"Marry me, Sia Stanton."
Nicholas POV“What do you mean?” Sia shot up from her bed, surprise framing her face as she stared at me disbelievingly.“Exactly what you heard,” I immediately snapped, pressing my back against the door as I stared at her. “Well, except of course you have a better option.” She didn't say anything, rather she nibbled on her lower lips, her hands crossed over her shoulders as she stared into the distance, deep in thought. I found myself staring at how her cherry pink lips suffered brutality as she dug into her teeth, ‘This is torture,’ I thought to myself as I pushed myself off the door. “We don't have all the time in the world, miss Stanton,” I said, cutting through the silence and her thoughts. “Isn't there some other option rather than this… this… this marriage,” she finally completed after a while of trying to find a word that she wouldn't choke on. “Do you really think I want to get married to you? A stranger I barely know?” I said, standing a bit away from, anger framing my
Sia POV. “What have I done?” I whispered again, not able to understand how this video crept online. Things weren't really making sense any longer to me. “D-did you bug this room with cameras?” I choked out, unable to think clearly. He gave me the look that said, ‘What sorta question is that?’, but at that point, I was finding it hard to know what to do or say. “Answer me! Did you bug the room with secret cameras?” I fired again, glaring furiously at him when he wouldn't say anything. “Where did you put it?” “What are you going on about? Why would I want to bug my room?” He reiterated back and dammit if his answer didn't sound plausible enough but I was beyond reasoning. “I don't know. It could've been for any reason. Maybe because… or…” I trailed off not knowing what to say. “Go on, why don't you tell me? Did your list get exhausted even before you started?” he teased, his face still contorted in anger. I don't know where I got the courage from but I hated the way he had th
SIA POV“Brace yourself princess,” Greg said, winking at me through the mirror. “We're here.”A few seconds later, the car pulled over in front of a huge property with high walls and a massive gate which had iron spikes and a heavy looking lock. The top of the wall was sharp barbed wire that seemed to glint.“Where are we?” I asked, feeling a shiver run down my back as I stared at the building.“This is my private mansion,” Nicholas replied, beating Greg to it. “You'll be safe here for now. I'll take you home later… when the heat dies.”“I'm sorry I missed something, what am I staying safe from exactly?” I asked, eyeing him and Greg suspiciously. Nicholas didn't reply to me, rather he alighted from the car and turned around to open the door closest to me. “Get down,” he ordered, taking a step back to give me space to step out. Staring at his rock hard gaze that was quite intimidating. I hesitated for a moment, before stepping out of the car.It was only then that I got a better view
"You can't run from me, Sia!" I yelled at the top of my voice as the two women stormed out, the door slamming behind them with a loud thud. Did Sia hear what I said?Well, I couldn't care less. One thing was sure—I was going to find her later that evening. I had already planted people in strategic locations to keep an eye on her and make sure she didn't something as funny as running away.Also, I needed to find out who had placed those secret cameras at the hotel room, and why they did that. A fleeting thought flashed my mind and I grimaced.What if Sia wasn't who I thought she was? What if she was working with some rival of mine to pull me down? As innocent as she looked, I was sure that there was something more to her. I heard light footsteps behind me and swing around to the direction. One of my staff; Mama Carlotta. She was an aged woman who had once been my nanny at childhood, stood in the doorway, her hands clasped in front of her. Her face was pale, as though she had seen
NICHOLAS POVWhat the hell? I cursed underneath my breath. For a second or two, anger seethed through me, and then, it gave way to irritation.Greg was still looking at me, smiling. " Do you like Sia?" He repeated. I cocked an eyebrow, “Your superpower is to be the most annoying dumbass in my life. How do you even sit in one place and formulate things in your head?” Greg didn't budge, instead he continued, “Come on, Nicholas, admit it. You like her.”“No, I don't." I cut in, "As a matter of fact, Sia is the last woman I would ever like. Period!” I ended, a scowl on my face. “I need you to remind me again. Why are you so worked up about her safety?”" Her safety?" I repeated his words. He threw his hands in the air, "Is it obvious enough?""I'm telling you, Greg, I don't like her," I grunted, placing emphasis on my last words. “Save it, Nicholas. You're worried about her, and before you bring up the topic of your reputation, it's not just about your reputation. You're invested in
SIA POV“That's enough, Elise. Please let go of my wrist now,” I said, pulling my hands away from Elise's grip as I took two steps backward, massaging my wrist. “Sia, what exactly is your problem?” Elise suddenly asked, taking a step forward as she glared at me. My face lit up in surprise because of all the questions, I didn't think she'd settle for that when she knew exactly what my problem was. “You know exactly what my problem is,” I fired back at her. “Do you really have to squeeze my wrist so tightly?”“You're more concerned about your wrist?” Elise asked, wide eyed. “I can't believe this.”“Of course, I am concerned about my wrist,” I exclaimed, still rubbing the sore skin.Elise stared at me quietly for some time, then she scoffed, “How do you always find yourself in unfortunate situations?”I slowly tilted my head slightly, to meet her gaze. "Unfortunate situations?"Elise's eyes locked onto mine, worry hidden in the depths. "Nicholas Winthrop, the billionaire. He has a gir
NICHOLAS POV“Nicholas Winthrop?” An older version of Sia gasped as soon as I walked in, more like barged in though. “What are you doing here?” Sia who was equally as shocked as everyone else managed to choke out. My eyes caught Nathan Sterling, my business rival.He stood a distance with his arms folded across his chest, glaring at me.As much as I'd have loved to savor this moment, I couldn't because I was pissed. I pinned my eyes on Sia and spoke in a low tone. "My love" I started, "Of course, I came here to get you.""Get me?" She shot at me with disbelief. "We agreed that you would have a formal introduction with my family tonight. Didn't we?" I asked, with a smirk. I was aware of the impact of my words on her parents anf Nathan who was still looking at me. I didn't need anyone to tell me that Nathan was the idiot who cheated on her. “What do you mean? This is just past 5,” She retorted, stealing a glance at the fancy wall clock.“Well, I missed you too soon. What can I say
NICHOLAS’ POV."Are you sure about that?" I muttered. "When did Lily do that?"Joe sighed on the phone, "Boss, It's on her Instagram page.""I'll talk to you later." I said, ending the call. My brows furrowed and I felt anger rise gradually in my chest. Everything was becoming so damn overwhelming at this point. First it was Sia, now I had to worry over Lily?Why the heck did she have to add to the ugly situation when she was the main cause?“Shit!” I cursed sharply under my breath.Announcing to the media that she was still my girlfriend just when I had tried to convince the media of the relationship between Sia and I, was an enraging approach.I didn't realize that there was a grown on my face for a long while until I caught Sia staring at me with curiosity.“What's going on?” Greg asked from the driver's seat.“Kindly take us to the fashion store, Greg.” I said to him, ignoring his question.I couldn’t let the news of what Lily had made public online to disrupt my plans for the d