Elaine's POVZade questioned, blocking their view of me. I was still shaking, my body remembered all that she did to me even though it had been a long time. I didn't expect to meet her once again in a place like this, why did she come back? Because of Zade? Erika Windsor, a woman who almost killed me in the past, just because she wanted Zade. She stood up, her eyes lighting up the moment she saw Zade but her gaze quickly shifted to the masked figure behind him, me. I took a step back again, grateful for the mask that concealed my identity but somehow, I still felt so exposed under Erika's gaze. “Zade.” She purred, pushing a strand of her perfectly styled hair behind her ear, “I'm just here to catch up with some old friends, there's no need to get so defensive.” She said sweetly, but her voice was so grating to the ears. It had a tone of saccharin sweetness and left a bitter after taste. Zade's jaw clenched, his presence was cold and unyielding, “Old friends?” He repeated, his voi
Elaine's POV“Let's get on with it.”Zade muttered. “What about your little friend here, is she also interested in joining this game? It'll be fun if more girls join.” Chris, one of the men sitting around the table asked, his gaze settling on me with a smirk. I froze, a jolt of unease shooting through me. I hadn’t come here to play games, especially not ones like these, I knew all too well how bad things could get. And with Erika in the room, everything felt like a trap waiting to spring. “No,” I said quietly, shaking my head, “I’m just here to…” “What’s the matter?” Erika interrupted, her voice dripping with mock sweetness, “Afraid? Or maybe you just don’t have what it takes to hang out with us?” She chuckled, the sound of her laugh was grating against my nerves like nails scratching on a chalkboard, “You really are a weakling, aren’t you?” “Erika.” Zade's voice cut in, low in warning. I stiffened, her words hitting a sore spot, my initial instinct was to ignore her, to keep my com
Elaine's POV I stared at her, my expression was blank and the sudden silence in the room felt oppressive, no one spoke nor dared to move, their attention was focused entirely on the both of us. Erika's face was contorted by rage, her usual smug demeanour shattered. “You… You bitch!” She screeched, the corners of her eyes going red, “Can you hear her?! Can you all hear her? She's insulting me, she's fucking insulting me!” “Insulting?” Zade cut in, leaning back on his seat, “I didn't hear any insults, what I heard was facts. She was speaking as a matter of factly. You are not as intimidating as you think you are, Erika, she dares because she can.” Zade's vouce was firm, the authority in his voice cutting off any words of protest that was about to come. “Excuse me but I won't be playing this game anymore, as long as she's here. Zade, I'll be outside waiting in the car, when you're done, please meet me there. And don't get too drunk, I can't have you fainting on me in the car, you'r
Elaine's POV I instantly pulled back, shocked at what happened. Zade's eyes were wide, staring at me. He looked like he had seen a ghost. “Elaine…” He whispered huskily, his deep voice going even lower. I felt a thrill rush down my spine, and a tingle in my stomach. My hands were clenched at my sides, trembling. I wanted to kiss him again, to feel his lips on mine one more time. I could not tear my gaze away from his lips, Zade always held this sort of power over me, a magnetic force that attracted me to him from the moment we met up until we dated. I thought it was over, but as it turns out, it was still very much there. He shifted slightly, and I realised that I had been staring too long. I tore my gaze away and looked everywhere else but him, silence stretched between us, making it all awkward. I knew I should say something to make it less awkward but I didn't know what, how could I even say anything when my entire body was still screaming for Zade's touch. I was trying to do e
Zade's POV The moment I parked at the house, Elaine jumped down from the car and ran into the sitting room. Within minutes, I couldn't find her anymore and her door was locked. I couldn't help but chuckle at the way she scurried away. She was so bold back there in the car and now, she was running away like a rabbit? I shook my head, another snicker sneaking past my lips. But… I clenched my fists. Was I too hasty in doing what I did? I glanced back at Elaine's door, my jaw clenching, a part of me wanted to go after her, to demand we finish what we started but another part, the more rational part of me that had disappointed me in the car, told me to back off. To give her space, after everything she had been through, I couldn't push her too hard or too fast, I was even thankful that she didn't kick me in the balls for kissing her. A memory of that came to me and I chuckled again. But damn it, that kiss… it had been everything I remembered and more. She tasted like fire and sweetne
Zade's POVI said, and Erika's eyes widened, her lips trembling as she tried to move back. It wasn't possible since she was strapped to the chair. I stepped closer, a sinister smirk on my face. “Z… Zade? What… What are you talking about? You came here to save me, didn't you? You're just trying to scare me.” Sweat dripped down her brows and dropped to her clothes. I chuckled, the sound echoing in the warehouse. “Save you?” I repeated softly, leaning down until my face was only inches from hers, and I let my hand trail lightly over the back of her chair, a slow, deliberate movement that made her shiver in fear, “Did you really think I would ever waste my time saving you?” Erika’s breath hitched as she shrank back as much as her body could allow, “Zade, I…” “Shut up.” I cut her off sharply. The coldness in my voice made her eyes widen, the tears she’d been holding back spilling over her cheeks, “Do you know what the sight of you does to me? The disgust it makes me feel? After every
Elaine's POV “This is stupid, really stupid.” I muttered, staring at my reflection in the mirror. I was all dressed and primped up, looking like I was going to a party rather than to work. Although it wasn't as much as the receptionist's dressing at the capital, I still thought that this was over the top. I groaned, going to sit back on the bed, what had happened the night before was messing me up. I raised my hands to touch my lips, somehow, I was still feeling the soft feel of his lips on mine, I still remember it vividly. Zade was still a very good kisser, even more than before. If I could just get him to kiss me again… I trailed off. What the heck am I thinking?! “Ugh! I'm tired!” I buried my face into my pillow, groaning into it. “If you're tired, you can stay at home.” I suddenly heard Zade's voice and I turned my head towards the door and there he was, leaning against the door frame. I rolled my eyes. “And you would allow me to stay at home?” I questioned. “Anything f
Elaine's POV “True.” He said with a slight nod, “But then I wouldn’t get to see you all flustered like this, would I?” He winked, and I felt my heart stutter again. He knew exactly what he was doing, pushing me just enough to get a reaction. What was his plan actually? I took a deep breath, willing myself to remain calm, “Fine, I’ll get the package. But I’m not doing this because you asked nicely. I’m doing it because I want to get out of this place and get some fresh air.” “Of course.” He nodded again, that infuriating smirk never leaving his face, “You know, Elaine, sometimes I think you like running errands for me.” “Please, don’t flatter yourself.” I scoffed, grabbing my bag from the chair and slinging it over my shoulder, “I just want to finish this quickly so I can get back to my actual job. So who's the person I'm taking the package from?” Zade handed me a picture and I stared at it, along with an address and a phone number. The address was at a high end restaurant, V
Elaine's Pov "Different headlines. Different stories. Different talks. All in all, we got what we aimed for, right?" I glanced at Elijah who nodded. We were lounging on the patio of our mansion which by the way was renovated to a bigger mansion and then council's part of the building was destroyed
Elaine's Pov "Different headlines. Different stories. Different talks. All in all, we got what we aimed for, right?" I glanced at Elijah who nodded. We were lounging on the patio of our mansion which by the way was renovated to a bigger mansion and then council's part of the building was destroyed
Her once-loyal allies were turning away, slinking toward the exits like rats fleeing a sinking ship. Cowards. She had built them from scratch. She had given them everything, made them who they were. And now, in the face of a little adversity, they were abandoning her? No. No. NO!Her hand shot out
Author's Pov Gasps rang through the entire place as the recording played. Vivienne stared in shock, the corner of her eyes going red."Turn it off! Turn it off!" She shrieked. But no one moved to do so, either they didn't want to or they were frozen in shock. Vivienne growled under her breath and r
"Oh, so you admit it’s your love life!" Jared teased, grinning widely. "Jared!" Elijah snapped, though the tips of his ears turned red again. Zade, who had been quietly observing the lively exchange, finally spoke up, "We need to stay sharp. The council will try to salvage whatever they can at t
Author's Pov The council room was quiet, none of the elders speaking. Each were deep in their thoughts. News had began to circulate, news that they weren't able to control and it didn't help that no matter what they did, they were not able to find something they could use on the Delacroix family, i
Elaine's Pov “Pregnant?” I blinked, staring at him as if he’d just spoken in a foreign language, "W… What?" "You’re about eight weeks along.” He continued gently, his eyes twinkling, "And everything looks healthy. Congratulations." For a moment, I couldn’t speak. I couldn’t even breathe. I tu
Elaine's Pov"So... Have you set a date for your wedding with Zade yet?" My mother asked while wiggling her eyebrows. "We haven't actually. With all the stuff that's going on, we haven't been able to see each other as much as we used to. And it doesn't help that he's always at the company, I barely
Authors Pov "There's nothing?! You've checked and there is really nothing?!" Vivienne questioned, her eyes wide, "But how is that possible? There should be at least something that we can use to..." Vivienne frowned."How about fabricatng evidence against them? If we are able to do that just to thro