Imogene Scott Damien doesn’t show up for meeting for the next few days and I conclude he’s hurt by my words. It’s a good thing. He needs to fucking understand there’s no place for him in mine and Lily’s life.I don’t let his absence bother me so I make sure to keep my schedule tight. I also hop on occasional video calls with Lily and Breonna every now and then. Then later, I meet Mrs Rita Phineas for a late brunch.“Dessert?” Mrs Phineas ask, raising an eyebrow at me.We just finished having brunch at Junior’s, a well-known tourist trap restaurant that actually has some of the best cheese cakes in the city. “Of course.” I study the dessert menu for an eternity. “I can’t decide between the raspberry swirl, Oreo, or red velvet.”“Get them all,” Mrs Phineas says. I love the way she acts when she’s around me. It’s like she’s my best friend and we’re the same age. “A sampler. We don’t have to finish them.”I slap my menu down on the table. “Speak for yourself. Inever leave desse
Imogene Scott The news article is all I can think about as I drive back home. My throat feels tight and I can’t push down the annoying feeling that keeps tugging down at my heartstrings. Damien is leaving for two years. He’s going to Africa, far away from Lily and I. It’s a good thing, it’s all I’ve ever wanted.My prayers have finally been answered.I get out of my car and walk into the building. For some reason, the walk across the lobby takes forever but I finally walk into the elevator. It dumps me on the seventh floor and I walk to my apartment, pressing the doorbell.Ding!Breonna soon steps out, a wide smile on her lips as she welcomes me. “Good evening, Ms Scott.”She tells me lily is asleep so I go straight to my room. I shred my clothes and step into the bathroom. In the bathroom, I throw my robe on the black granite counter and avoid looking in the mirror.I turn the shower on extra hot, hoping the heat would relieve the chill that has settled on me, and climb under
Imogene Scott The next two days, I stay home working on the campaign ad for Kennaway Fine Art Guide. I already told Keith I would be taking time off from the Tech Con project. I don’t go to the gallery either so I don’t have Breonna coming in to take care of Lily.It’s good that way since I’m trying not to see or think about anything that might remind me of Damien. He’s gone after suddenly coming into my life to cause a little distortion, he left. Good for me.I stretch on the couch as I finally close my laptop. Spending two days straight on working on the ad has been exhausting. But it has kept the bad thoughts away too. My phone buzzes somewhere in the living room and my eyes darts around to find it.Lily is holding it as she sits in a corner of the living room, violently tapping on the screen. I rise to my feet and take it from her. She lets out a loud cry so I immediately replace the phone with a squeaky toy. She starts smiling again.I finally slump on a couch and bring my
Imogene ScottMy hands fly to my mouth. Diane is even more striking in person than in the countless magazine spreads and interviews I’ve seen. Her presence commands the room, even though she’s just walking towards the reception desk. She’s dressed in a chic, tailored black suit, her dark hair slicked back into a low ponytail, and there’s an air of effortless elegance about her that immediately makes me feel both awed and incredibly self-conscious.I’ve admired her work for years. And now, here she is, just a few feet away from me. This is the woman I’m up against. This is the woman whose design could very well outshine mine.Diane spots me as she approaches, and I quickly snap myself out of my daze. She smiles—a small, polite smile—and I realize I’m still staring like a starstruck fan. Get it together, Imogene.“Good morning, Mrs Scott.” Diane says, her voice smooth and composed. “It’s so nice to finally the future chairwoman in person.”I swallow hard. Diane knows me? Oh my God,
Imogene Scott I wake up to the soft chime of my phone’s alarm, the early morning light filtering through the sheer curtains of my bedroom. For a moment, I lie still, trying to gather my thoughts together.It’s another day. Another day to try my best to keep the bad thoughts away. Another day for me to remind myself that everything happens for a reason. It’s been two days. Two days since he’s left.I roll on the bed for a few seconds before I finally get on my feet. I reach for my phone on the nightstand, my fingers brushing against the cool glass screen. As I sit up, I swipe through the notifications, mentally preparing myself for the usual flood of emails and messages. But one subject line catches my eye, making my heart skip a beat. “Thank you for your submission.”My pulse quickens as I open the email. It has to be about the ad campaign project I submitted. I never had any high hopes for it to begin with because Diane Johnson is the best of the best and there’s no way they would
Imogene Scott “She stole it,” I whisper, the words barely audible even to myself. My mind races, a mix of confusion and anger bubbling to the surface. How could she do this? How could she take what’s mine and pass it off as her own? I can’t wrap my head around the fact that she actually stole my work. My heart thumps and my pulse quickens. I glance at Keith, who’s watching the ad with a neutral expression. My hands clench into fists in my lap. I feel a wave of nausea rise in my throat, a sickening realization of the fact that this woman I used to look up to and trusted could actually stab me in the back. As the ad ends and the lights come back up, I can’t move, can’t speak. All I can do is sit there, reeling from the shock of what I’ve just seen. And what to do next. Keith turns to me, clearly expecting some reaction. “What did you think?” I force myself to swallow the lump in my throat. “That’s mine. She stole my work.” I rise to my feet and dint wait for Keith to respo
Dear Readers,On behalf of everyone reading ’He Hurt Me, Now He Wants Me Back’, thank you for reading. I know you have many choices. Boy oh boy, you do have many choices. It’s crazy to think how many choices you have. In fact, some people think there are too many choices. Browsing through the endless books on this site can be like feeling hungry in a supermarket. Despite the beautifully displayed cornucopia, you often leave frustrated and unsatisfied. So once again, thank you for choosing to read ‘He Hurt Me, Now He Wants Me Back’.
Damien Shaw I know what you’re wondering. How did we get here? Please enjoy this expositional explanation.A few days ago, I got the offer for IMU’s expansion, granted that I move to Africa for a year or two. I was entirely against the idea because of Imogene and Lily. I couldn’t turn down the offer either.I took the offer but on the condition that I could appoint anyone to oversee the project in Africa. My cousin, Soren, chose to go to Africa in my place because his fiancée just broke off their engagement. How convenient.But I had to go to Africa for two days to set the whole thing in motion. I put my assistant in charge of the meetings with Keith and Imogene. I also told Breonna not to let Imogene know that I would be coming back.I just wanted to know if she would miss me. Survive without me or at least reach out if I didn’t say goodbye. But it’s like I set a trap for myself because while I was away, all I could think about was Imogene and Lily.I left Africa last night and t
Imogene Scott I pull back from Damien’s embrace. He exhales heavily, brushing his fingers over my cheek before saying, "I need to get back to work. I’ll see you at home tonight."I frown. "You don’t think you should go home first? Shower, change?"He smirks, rubbing his jaw. "It’s already midday, I’ll do everything later tonight."I shake my head, wrapping my arms around him again despite the sweat and stress clinging to his skin. "I want to hug you all day even though you smell so bad.""No, I don’t," he scoffs, tightening his hold on me. "You’re just being mean."I smile against his chest, inhaling deeply before stepping back. "Where are you headed now?" he asks, brushing a stray lock of hair behind my ear."Lily’s school."His expression shifts. "Something wrong?"I open my mouth to say no—because I don’t want to worry him, because I know how he gets—but then I remember: no more secrets. That’s what we promised each other.I press my lips together and nod. "One of Lily’s clas
Damien Shaw I take a deep breath, my fingers tightening around the pen in my hand as I stare at Imogene. The way she’s looking at me—hurt, disappointed—makes something sharp twist in my chest, but I refuse to let it show. I remind myself why I stayed at the office last night, why I drowned myself in work instead of coming home. Because she needs to understand. Because she’s reckless. Because she keeps putting herself in situations that put our family in danger, and she doesn’t seem to grasp that her actions have consequences.But then there’s the guilt too, gnawing at the back of my mind. I didn’t just stay here to punish her—I stayed because I didn’t trust myself not to say something I’d regret. And now, looking at her standing in front of me, holding that ultrasound picture, my resolve wavers.God, I want to take it from her. I want to reach for it, to see them, to feel something other than this exhaustion and frustration. But if I give in too quickly, she’ll think she can get
Imogene Scott The morning air is crisp as I step out of the house, wrapping my coat a little tighter around myself. A light breeze brushes against my skin as I feel the chill settle in my lungs.I climb into my car, my hands gripping the cold steering wheel as I exhale. My mind is full of thoughts, but the one at the forefront is Damien. He didn’t come home last night. I’d stayed up, waiting, hoping the sound of his footsteps would echo through the hallway. But all I got was silence.When I finally called his office, an employee answered and confirmed what I’d already suspected. He had spent the night there, drowning himself in work just to avoid me. That’s how furious he was. My chest tightens as I pull out of the driveway, gripping the steering wheel a little harder.I plan on stopping by his office later, but first, my doctor’s appointment. Then Lily’s school.The hospital is a fifteen-minute drive, but it feels longer. My mind keeps circling back to Damien’s face last night,
Imogene’s pov I watch as Damien storms out of the room, the door slamming shut behind him with a force that rattles the walls. My hands tremble at my sides, my heart hammering against my ribs. I knew he would be upset—I expected anger, frustration—but not this kind of fury. Not the kind that makes his voice shake with disappointment, that makes his eyes burn with something dangerously close to resentment.I sit down heavily on the edge of the bed, exhaling a breath I didn’t realize I was holding. My mind races. How did he find out? Who told him? And why, after everything, does it still hurt that he’s so mad at me? He’s the only person left standing beside me in this storm, and now I feel like I’m losing him too.Subconsciously, I place my hands over my belly. The twins stir inside me, and I close my eyes. I’m due in two months. Two months until my life changes again. Two months until I’m holding them in my arms. But will I even be here for them? Or will I be behind bars, labeled “
Damien Shaw I step into my office, and the shift in the atmosphere is immediate. The air feels charged, thick with something. Eyes flicker toward me, then dart away, as if my presence is suddenly a weight they can’t bear to acknowledge. It’s been like this for days—whispers in the corridors, hushed conversations that stop the moment I step too close.They see me as a man protecting a murderer.I clench my jaw, ignoring the way my employees’ gazes follow me as I make my way to my office. The door clicks shut behind me, and I exhale slowly, my fingers pressing against my temples. The scandal is bleeding into IMU, seeping into the cracks, poisoning the foundation I spent years building. It isn’t just the company’s reputation at stake—investors are losing faith, deals are slipping through the cracks.And worst of all, there’s no solid proof that Imogene is innocent.I sit down, leaning back in my chair, the leather creaking beneath my weight. I need a plan. Something to turn this arou
Imogene Scott I grip the steering wheel, my knuckles whitening as I pull into the parking lot of the police station. My heart is hammering against my ribcage, so loud it nearly drowns out the hum of the engine. A part of me screams to turn back, to go home, to pretend I never got that text. But another part—the logical, rational part—knows that avoiding this will only make me look guilty.I take a deep breath, steadying myself before stepping out of the car. I pull my coat tighter around my body, trying to suppress the shiver crawling up my spine. The station’s glass doors slide open, and I walk in, my heels clicking against the tiled floor. The fluorescent lights overhead are too bright, making my skin prickle.A female officer greets me. “Mrs. Shaw, this way.”My stomach clenches. My voice feels lodged in my throat as I follow her down the hall. She leads me into an interrogation room, and I hesitate before stepping inside. The walls are bare, painted a dull gray, and the sing
Imogene scott The next morning I wake up early to make breakfast for Damien as a thank you for the ice cream yesterday. It’s not like I was able to sleep anyway. I slip into my flip flops and walk out of the room. Damien is still sleeping because it’s still 6:30pm. The scent of scrambled eggs hits me the moment I step off the last stair. I pause. That’s strange. It’s Saturday. Sheila shouldn’t be here this early. I pull my robe tighter around my body, shivering even though the house is warm. I walk into the kitchen to see Sheila standing at the stove, humming softly as she stirs a pan of eggs. There’s already a plate of bacon resting on the counter, and the coffee machine is also gurgling.“Sheila?” I say.She looks over her shoulder, startled. “Oh! Morning, Imogene.” I frown. “What are you doing here so early?” Sheila blinks at me, then lets out a small chuckle like I just told a joke she doesn’t quite get. “You asked me to come early today.” My stomach dips. “I did?”
Damien Shaw I curse under my breath for what feels like the hundredth time today, gripping the steering wheel so tightly my knuckles turn white. My patience is running thin, and I swear I’m two seconds away from throwing my damn phone out the window. It had started early this morning—my private number, the one only family and close friends should have access to, had been blown up by reporters. I have no idea how they got it, but every few minutes, another call comes in, another message, another desperate attempt to dig their claws deeper into the mess surrounding Imogene. I lean back against the headrest and take a deep breath, but it does nothing to ease the tension sitting in my chest. Outside, the estate is quiet now, but hours ago, it had been a different story. Protesters had crowded outside the gates, chanting about justice for Georgia Aiko, waving their signs like they had already convicted Imogene in their heads. I had my men clear them out, but I know it’s not over
Imogene Scott5 days later… “Why were you in the parking lot with Miss Georgia Aiko?” The detective’s voice is sharp, slicing through the thick air of the interrogation room. I don’t respond right away. Not because I don’t want to—but because I’ve already answered this question a dozen times. “I told you,” I say. “I was there to meet someone.” His gaze is unreadable, his fingers tapping impatiently against the file in front of him. The walls are bare except for a clock ticking agonizingly slow. I feel like I’ve been in here for hours. “We checked,” the detective says, leaning forward. “There was no meeting scheduled with any reporter named Simon. We called the number you provided. No answer. So why don’t you start telling us the truth?” “I am telling you the truth,” I say, frustration bubbling under my skin. “Georgia and I were supposed to meet a reporter. He never showed up. Someone hit me on the head, and the next thing I knew, she was—” My voice catches. I take a de