“I’m not a fan of pretense anymore, Elle. Please step backward, I’m afraid you might be dangerous to me.”Elle gasped, masking her annoyed expression with a smile. “Don’t be that way, sister. It’s only a hug. Besides, we’re still sisters.”Beside them, Caspian acted like he wasn’t aware of his brother’s presence. He simply poured himself a glass of vodka and shared a handshake with Jordan and Elias and they came into sight. He was soon dragged away from Anna’s side and similarly, Ethan was wheeled away in his attempt to form an alliance with the guests, leaving Anna and Elle alone to themselves. Anna folded her hands under her chest and looked away from her sister, not wanting to share a gaze with the one person who knew exactly how to make her life a living hell. If she was being honest, Elle was the only person that could make her cower in fear. She wasn’t to be trusted or underestimated. “What are you playing at now, Elle? Don’t think it’s not evident to me the game you’re playin
Anna wasn’t used to the sneaky act, unlike Elle. She wasn’t used to acting like a goddamn villain but morals be damned if it means that by the end of the day, Elle would be chased out of the Riordan mansion in shame. It was all she wanted and she would achieve it even if it meant becoming a villain in the end. But from what Anna had learned in her past life, if one doesn't become a villain, one should be ready for death. And since she wasn’t ready to die a second time at the hands of the same person, she needed to become a villain. Survival was her priority and she would do anything at the moment to stay alive.Slowly, she made her way out of Caspian’s room, thanking her stars that her heels weren’t so loud to create sounds when she walked. She sneakily walked through the hallway, making sure to avoid the security cameras. And then, she stopped in front of the gift room, her hands holding the handle, and pushed it open to reveal a filled-up gift room with gifts for the guests. Her e
“Sure,” Anna agreed. It wasn’t a bad idea as her legs hurt like hell. She needed to sit back after the adventure back at the gift room. She couldn’t wait for the night’s drama to unfold before her eyes. She needed the feeling of victory for the first time in a while. The feeling was heavenly. Pulling away from Caspian’s side, she took a seat at the table next to them and eventually, they all sat around her, with Caspian beside her. “Might I add that your dress looks heavenly on you?” Rodrigo’s gaze skimmed over her body, his eyes settling on the path of her boobs that spilled out of the dress. “I’ve never seen a more beautiful sight, Anna.”“It’s Mrs. Riordan to you,” Caspian snapped, his hands clutching a knife as plates of juicy steaks were placed before them. “My bad. I wanted to be casual as your wife is really beautiful.” Yet his eyes didn’t pull away from Anna’s chest. He kept ogling her in a way that made her uncomfortable. She stared at Toria who had her head down, staring
“Forgive me, Ma’am. The family’s heirloom is missing!”Grandmother Riordan’s gasp of surprise caused the head servant to push backward and lower her head to the floor, not daring to meet the burning eyes of the old woman who now gazed at her with anger. “What did you just say?” The older woman asked, needing confirmation that her ears were in fact deceiving her and that the heirloom that she’d kept for years safe and secured wasn’t missing. “I deserve to be killed, ma’am. Please end my life for my incompetence.”“If you don’t raise your head and talk to me this instant, I will not only kill you but make sure that you get to hell straight. Don’t dare me.”The woman raised her head with trembling feet, her eyes glistening with unshed tears. It was like a crime to shed tears before the old woman and she tried her very best to hold back her tears. “It was in our possession until a few minutes ago. It suddenly disappeared. We don’t know where it went, ma’am.”Old Mrs. Riordan let out a f
“We found the heirloom. The Riordan family’s heirloom has been found!” A servant rushed into the hall, carrying the heirloom in his hands carefully. He ran to the grandmother’s side and placed the necklace carefully on her waiting palm. She took the jewelry in her hands with glistening eyes and nodded at the servant, she brought the jewelry to her lips and pressed a kiss on it. “It has been found everyone,” she announced. Please return to your position and let’s continue the party. It’s a regret that such a scene unfolded. So forgive us.”But Elle wasn’t satisfied with the arrangement, she pointed at her things on the floor and raised a brow. “And what will happen now that I’ve been humiliated? I deserve an apology.”Her gaze met with Anna’s and with a smirk, she continued. “I need an apology for being suspected.”~FLASHBACK~*Thirty minutes ago*“If she doesn’t ruin my life, she ruins my reputation and if she doesn’t ruin my reputation, she ruins my job. Just like now, she just ruin
~Back To Present~Ethan got hold of Elle’s wrist and he pulled her into him to whisper into her ears. “Shut the fuck up and ask your goddamn things from the floor.”She gritted her teeth. “What do you mean? They humiliated me.”“This is you just signing your own paper to be thrown out of the family. If you want to be safe here, you better take back those words and act like nothing happened. You need to be accepted in this family if you want things to go as planned.”Of course, she wanted things to go as planned. Ethan was right. This was the family that she was dying to join and if she needed to secure a space in their hearts, she needed to pretend like nothing happened and take whatever they threw at her. And so, she did exactly just that. With a smile plastered on her lips, she pulled away from Ethan but not without landing a kiss on his cheek. Slowly, she returned her attention to the crowd, her eyes on the oldest woman who stood on the platform. “Of course, that’s a joke. I didn
“Th…that is just you overthinking. I slipped and…and it was real. I mean, I slipped for real.” Her words were barely coherent and she was finding it hard to make out the words without stuttering. It was his eyes on her again, those burning angry eyes that she tried so hard to avoid. But Caspian didn’t buy her alibi. His hold on her arms tightened and he pulled her closer to him. “So you think I saw nothing?”“Yes, you saw nothing. Plus, I’m not so petty that I’ll stoop so low. That is Elle’s trait, not mine.”“Petty? We both know how petty you can get when you want something, Anna. It’s not something new.”“Me, petty? Unbelievable,” she chuckled in disbelief. “Says someone who forged his report book in middle school. You’re the definition of petty, Caspian Riordan.” And he knew it. Back then, he dropped Sniker whenever they came across each other. She’d only managed him around because he was Elias's best friend. She remembered fighting with Elias every day and asking him what the hel
In the dead of the night, unable to sleep, Anna made her way out of the room that she shared with Caspian. Slowly, she wore a flip-flop and began making her way down the stairs, heading toward the kitchen to grab a can of water. She used her phone as a torch light as the lights were off and once she stepped from the last stair, she looked in the direction of the kitchen and noticed that the light was on. With slow steps so her footsteps were not heard by anyone, she made her way to the kitchen, pushing open the door and her eyes fell on the familiar back that stood before the refrigerator. She let out a sigh and stepped forward, quietly walking to the refrigerator and grabbing a can of water from a glass. “Are you stalking me?” Elle turned abruptly, her forehead morphed into a frown as she stared at Anna from her loose bun to her silk pajamas and then to the cute pink flip-flops that she wore. She cringed. “And what’s with these flip-flops? You’ll never fucking change?”“Excuse me?