The car ride was silent. A little too silent for Lily’s liking. She sat on the other end of the backseat and Axel sat on the other end, both of them not daring to look at each other or even breathe too loudly.It was in that moment that Lily wished Kate was riding with them as she had a way of lighting up the mood. But Kate had other things to attend to.Soon, the car was slowing to a stop in front of the tall glass house—her fashion house. She could see her workers and assistant designers filing around, moving fabrics from one place to another, sketching new designs—it warmed her heart to know that even in her absence, her brand wasn’t collapsing.“We’re here,” Axel whispered, his voice cutting through her thoughts.Lily looked at him for a moment too long, then she rolled her eyes before muttering, “I’m not blind.”Sassy—Axel liked it when she was sassy and snappy.Before he could say a word, Lily was out of the car, slamming the door shut. Chuckling, Axel exited the car and followe
By the time Lily and Axel arrived at the estate, Lily was already feeling better—a little calmer. Still she couldn’t shake off the feeling of fear that had settled at the base of her spine. The estate was quiet—the kind of silence that provided peace.There were less people around, because while Axel held Lily’s trembling form in the car, he quickly realized that she was repulsed by the presence of too many people.He realized that what she had gone through had shattered her trust in having too many people around her. So he secretly messaged his people, telling them to make themselves unavailable—present but unavailable until they’re requested for.“Where is everyone?” Lily asked as she moved into the living room.“They’re probably busy with other things,” Axel responded, scratching the back of his head.Lily looked at him once, the corner of her mouth almost twitching into a smile. But she tamed it just as quickly as it came.She sat curled up on the sofa in the living room, knees dr
Axel paced back and forth in his office, anger boiling in his chest—so hot and raw he could barely regulate the inhale and exhale of his breaths.As he paced, his eyes drifted to the pictures scattered across his desk—the ones Lily had received earlier, those ones that sent her through another wave of fear and tears and a nervous breakdown.The thought of how much she cried pulled at the strings of his heart painfully.He couldn’t erase the images of her puffy face as she fell asleep in his arms after minutes of crying from the back of his mind.And he couldn’t steer his mind off the gnawing fear of who could be behind this pain his woman had been enduring for days now.Axel’s thoughts cut short the moment his door creaked open. His footsteps slowed to a stop and he turned to face the door, his nose flaring as the person he had been expecting appeared in his line of vision.Austin.His son.“Dad,” Austin said, his voice skeptical. “You asked to see me?”The corner of Axel’s mouth tipp
“Dad,” Austin breathed a giggle, “why do you want to keep lying to her? Why don’t you go ahead and tell her that it was your son who was behind the attack?”The words were like a punch to Lily’s gut. She froze, her heart stuttering in her chest. “What?” she whispered, her voice thin, fragile.“It was me,” Austin said, his tone drenched in smug satisfaction, his lips curving into a smirk.“Shut your mouth!” Axel growled in warning, stepping toward him, his fists trembling at his sides.Austin didn’t stop. He in fact wanted to taunt Axel further. “I was the one with the mask and the hoodie,” he said, licking the blood from his lip. “The man whose shadow has been taunting you for days. . .”“Shut your fucking mouth, Austin!” Axel roared, his voice shaking the walls, but it only fueled his son’s twisted grin.“And your. . .your supposed man,” Austin sneered, his bloodied face turning toward Lily, “he’s going to let me off the hook for what I did to you because I am his son. You see, Lily,
Axel stood frozen in the hallway, staring at Lily as she strutted down the stairs. He stood frozen until she climbed back up with a jug of water in hand.As she approached her room, he made a move to speak to her, but she shot him a glare as though silently telling him to stay away from her.He stopped short in his tracks. And then he watched as she stepped into her room and once again, slammed the door shut in his face. Her words echoed in his mind, each syllable sharp and cutting like shards of broken glass: “I want him in jail. I want him to confess. And then I want you to take your name away from him.”The air around him felt suffocating, and for the first time in years, Axel didn’t know what to do. He ran a hand down his face, his jaw tightening as he tried to process her ultimatum. A part of him knew she was right. What Austin had done was unforgivable, but how could a father sentence his own son to that kind of fate?Of course he wanted to punish Austin, but he didn’t want to
It was barely a few hours after their conversation that the estate began buzzing with visitors. Sophisticated men and elegant women dressed formally filed into the manor and were led into Axel’s office.And then soon, Austin and Alice arrived. Lily watched the visitors through her window, and she couldn’t help but notice that Alice brought her own formally dressed men and women.Lawyers.She tiptoed out of her room and made her way down the stairs, following the long hallway until she was in front of Axel’s office. She pressed her ear near the door, ready to listen in on their conversation.Inside the office, Axel sat at the head of the table, his fingers clasped tightly together, jaw locked. The tension in the room was thick, almost suffocating. His lawyers sat to his left, their legal pads and laptops open, ready to defend him. And to his right, Alice, Austin and their legal team sat. Alice sat with perfect posture, her face a mask of cold detachment. Beside her, Austin leaned back
“Maybe this. . .me being here is a mistake. Maybe you need time to heal from whatever Alice did to you. Maybe we need some time apart.”The moment Lily said those words, she began making her way out of the office, but Axel wasn’t going to let her play with his feelings anymore. He was tired of the push and pull, he was tired of feeling like a fool.If Lily didn’t love him enough to be straightforward with him, then she needed to say it to him instead of playing mind games on him.Before Lily could get her steps in, Axel’s fingers curled around her forearm, holding her in place. She turned back to face him and the moment their eyes locked, emotions were high.Axel’s grip on Lily’s arm tightened just enough to hold her in place, but not enough to hurt. His jaw was clenched, and the vulnerability in his eyes was quickly overtaken by frustration. “What do you mean by time apart, Lily?” he demanded, his voice hard and unyielding. It was a tone he rarely ever used with her, one that cut st
By the time Lily was out in the driveway, her father’s car was already there to pick her up.A little backtracking here: while Axel and his legal team were busy negotiating terms with Alice’s team, Lily had quietly reached out to her father, asking him to come for her. Now. . .She opened the back door and slid into the backseat. The moment she closed the door behind her, Lily scooted closer to her father and leaned against him. Mr. Daniels’s face contorted with displeasure, his face lined with concern. He wasted no time wrapping his arms around her. His embrace was warm and it felt like. . . a safety net she desperately needed.“Shh, it’s okay,” he murmured, his large hand stroking her back gently. “It’s going to be okay, my princess.”Lily buried her face deeper into her father’s shoulder, her tears soaking into his shirt. “I’m fine, Dad,” she said, even when her voice betrayed her with a tremble. “I just. . .I just need a moment.”Mr. Daniels leaned back slightly, tipping her chi
Lily and Axel continued exploring the facility, moving through hallways filled with laughter and the vibrant energy of children. Axel loosely held her hand as they walked, guiding her from one room to another. Every now and then, they stopped to play with the kids, their conversations filled with giggles and wide-eyed admiration.“I think whatever you told Mia has spread like wildfire,” Lily teased, watching a group of kids blush and whisper as they passed. “They can’t stop staring at us.”Axel smirked, his eyes warm with mischief. “It’s fine if they know, but you? You’ll never find out.”Lily rolled her eyes dramatically, letting out a groan. “You’re so. . .impossible.”Their tour finally led them to the children’s drawing room. They settled at one of the small tables, joining a group of kids who eagerly handed them paintbrushes.As Lily dipped her brush into the vibrant colors, she felt a sense of peace wash over her. She wasn’t thinking about the past, the pain, or even the uncer
The sun was yet to rise when Axel arrived at Lily’s home. Today, he drove himself, in a way to give him and Lily more private time to bond.He was dressed in a casual attire—grey sweatpants and a black T-shirt, then a baseball hat on his head.Without wanting to disturb Lily’s sleep, he sat in his car and waited for hours until the sun began to rise. And to his greatest surprise, he spotted Lily gently jogging back to the manor after her morning run.His mouth pulled apart, pupils dilating as he watched her move so smoothly, sweat trickling down her face, a few strands of her hair matted over her forehead.Beautiful. . .so fucking beautiful.His head voice kept whispering as he opened the car door and stepped out. Lily’s steps slowed to a stop the moment she spotted him getting out of his car and she almost stumbled. Axel was quick to reach her side before she crashed, his firm hands holding her up.“Axel?” Her voice was breathless, partly from her run and partly from the shock of se
Axel weaved the lunch bag’s handle through his fingers, the other hand formed into a fist and steepled underneath his chin, his eyes observing the city light outside the window of his office.It was dark into the night and yet, Axel’s mind was nowhere near ease. “Fuck. . .” He grumbled, fingers diving into his hair, his head dropping low, shaking.He rose to his feet and approached the window, staring at his reflection as though it were a stranger.“You had to mess it up, didn’t you?” He asked himself as he massaged his temples with his fingers.He was unnerved by the thought that he might’ve ruined his chances at repairing his relationship with Lily, that his pride and slightly loose tongue might’ve cost him his last chance at having this love he craved so much.But he shut her out for good reason.All these weeks that turned into a full month of no communication with Lily, he had taken his time to plan out the perfect apology.He wanted to be the one to beg her, he wanted to be the
The next day, Lily found herself walking through the lobby of Axel’s establishment. She had a bouquet of white roses in one hand, and in the other, she carried a small bag containing a lunch box.She was afraid of the outcome of her visit especially as her mind replayed the events of last night. The way Axel sent her out of his house, the way he looked down at her with so much anger and resentment.It terrified her to be here in his workspace, but she was a woman on a mission. She needed to repair the relationship she ruined and nothing was going to stop her.When she arrived at the private floor, she approached the receptionist with a warm smile. “Hi, I’m Lilian Daniels.” She said.And that was all that needed to be said for the receptionist's smile to widen. Everyone knew Lilian Daniels—not just as a fast growing fashion mogul, or even the only daughter of a powerful business man, but as the woman who has Axel George’s heart.“You’re here to see Mr. George?” The receptionist asked.
When Axel walked into his home in the dead of night, the aroma of something delicious—of his favorite meal wafted through his nose. He stopped dead in his tracks, his brows pulling into furrows as he remembered instructing his chef not to make dinner.He began approaching the kitchen but then he stopped at the dinning. The dining is perfectly set up. With soft candles burning, rose petals scattered across the silk cloth covering the dining table, and elegant dinnerwares sprawled out.Do I have a visitor? He wondered.But he didn’t dwell too long in his thought when Lily walked out of the kitchen with a serving spoon.She quickly noticed Axel’s presence and that made her stop in her tracks, a gasp falling free from her throat.Both their eyes locked and they stared intensely for seconds that could pass for hours.In Axel’s heart, he was confused and happy all at once, but he couldn’t bring himself to show her his excitement even if he wanted to and he didn’t know why.“Hey,” Lily final
One month later.Lily paced her room, thumb between her teeth, phone pressed to her ear as she listened to the person speaking on the other end.A business partner—no, a major business partner.“Of course, Mrs. Baldwin, I understand what you mean. You trust me to deliver a good job and be punctual about it too, don’t you?” Lily asked and quieted herself once more until she heard a response.“Good. Now rest your mind. I’ll make sure my team gets to you before the weekend,” Lily assured her, finally removing the phone from her ear and letting her body collapse onto the couch. She groaned, running a hand through her hair in frustration.Kate, who was already sitting beside her the entire time with a bowl of ice cream in hand, chuckled softly. She nudged Lily with her elbow, a proud smile playing on her lips. “Look at you,” Kate said, a teasing lilt in her voice. “Who would’ve thought you could expand your brand this much in such a short amount of time, especially with everything you’ve b
By the time Lily was out in the driveway, her father’s car was already there to pick her up.A little backtracking here: while Axel and his legal team were busy negotiating terms with Alice’s team, Lily had quietly reached out to her father, asking him to come for her. Now. . .She opened the back door and slid into the backseat. The moment she closed the door behind her, Lily scooted closer to her father and leaned against him. Mr. Daniels’s face contorted with displeasure, his face lined with concern. He wasted no time wrapping his arms around her. His embrace was warm and it felt like. . . a safety net she desperately needed.“Shh, it’s okay,” he murmured, his large hand stroking her back gently. “It’s going to be okay, my princess.”Lily buried her face deeper into her father’s shoulder, her tears soaking into his shirt. “I’m fine, Dad,” she said, even when her voice betrayed her with a tremble. “I just. . .I just need a moment.”Mr. Daniels leaned back slightly, tipping her chi
“Maybe this. . .me being here is a mistake. Maybe you need time to heal from whatever Alice did to you. Maybe we need some time apart.”The moment Lily said those words, she began making her way out of the office, but Axel wasn’t going to let her play with his feelings anymore. He was tired of the push and pull, he was tired of feeling like a fool.If Lily didn’t love him enough to be straightforward with him, then she needed to say it to him instead of playing mind games on him.Before Lily could get her steps in, Axel’s fingers curled around her forearm, holding her in place. She turned back to face him and the moment their eyes locked, emotions were high.Axel’s grip on Lily’s arm tightened just enough to hold her in place, but not enough to hurt. His jaw was clenched, and the vulnerability in his eyes was quickly overtaken by frustration. “What do you mean by time apart, Lily?” he demanded, his voice hard and unyielding. It was a tone he rarely ever used with her, one that cut st
It was barely a few hours after their conversation that the estate began buzzing with visitors. Sophisticated men and elegant women dressed formally filed into the manor and were led into Axel’s office.And then soon, Austin and Alice arrived. Lily watched the visitors through her window, and she couldn’t help but notice that Alice brought her own formally dressed men and women.Lawyers.She tiptoed out of her room and made her way down the stairs, following the long hallway until she was in front of Axel’s office. She pressed her ear near the door, ready to listen in on their conversation.Inside the office, Axel sat at the head of the table, his fingers clasped tightly together, jaw locked. The tension in the room was thick, almost suffocating. His lawyers sat to his left, their legal pads and laptops open, ready to defend him. And to his right, Alice, Austin and their legal team sat. Alice sat with perfect posture, her face a mask of cold detachment. Beside her, Austin leaned back