• • •After Kevin finished a few remaining paper works and delivered them to John, both Rose and Kevin descended from Kevin's home office to the hall area. Rose had invited a special guest to dinner today, Susan, a very close friend of hers from high school. She could have invited her at any time of the day but she intentionally chose the dinner time on the weekend where every family member would be present. But that was exactly what Rose hoped for. Susan, currently pursuing a master's in clinical psychology at Stanford, is always praised for her brilliance in the field. Rose was desperate to do something with Kate's deceit that's why she sought help from her friend, Susan. Rose involved herself in a small chatter with Susan before the dinner, and then at the dining table, Rose strategically seated Susan next to Kate, hoping her keen insight would expose Kate's true nature before it was too late. The others in the family will see the truth through Susan's professional eye or
ROSALIA'S POV:I was jolted awake due to the repeated and persistent blare of my alarm clock. Disoriented and with sleepy eyes, I took a glance at the alarm clock: It was 7 am. The early hour is definitely not my favourite time of the day. I don't really like to miss the chance of sleeping in unless I have to go to work. Yes, I am definitely a sleepyhead!Cursing the necessities of the early hours under my breath, I dragged myself out of bed. In an attempt to tap the alarm off my sleepy gaze fell upon the family photo kept on the bedside table. "I miss you, mommy," I whispered, a familiar ache tightening my heart. It's only me and my younger sister now. Our father abandoned us a long time ago leaving behind a childhood which is never a pleasant one to remember, A childhood marred by constant arguments between my parents. The relentless arguments took a toll on my mental health and made me feel unloved and desperate for some affection.My younger sister, Emilia, was my solace. Trying
: ROSALIA'S POV :"Have you seen my mom?" the little boy asked as he grabbed the file it fell on the ground. It was for my distraction that the documents were scattered on the floor."Come here, Aaron," That man I just saw outside beckoned while coming nearer to grab the child's hand. He did not give me any chance to talk to that little boy. I noticed the employees on the ground floor started to bow down a little to him in an attempt to show respect. Who is he? I was a little curious. He did not even spare a glance back at them. Soon he lifted the little boy in his arms and entered the lift.I saw Jacob coming in my direction. He started helping me to pick up the documents. He is my only good friend in this office. I never had many friends since I was a nerd in school. Jacob is always very helpful."Why are you so clumsy Rose," Jacob said as he handed me the documents he had picked.Honestly, I don't even know myself. "Thank you, Jacob," curiosity got the best of me so I asked," Who
KEVIN'S POVI called my right-hand man John to clear my day's schedule and also asked my Personal Assistant to hand me over the resume of Rosalia Brown.I left Aaron with Kate and went into my office. I have my personal office in every building of Knight Corporation, a personal space to think and plan. I felt the pool to stay in here, a bit longer driven by the desire to meet Rosalia, her eyes and voice already consumed my mind, I needed to do something about that. At lunchtime, I saw her eating lunch with an asshole. I think he is the same guy that helped her to pick up the documents this morning. Isn't he a little too interested in my kitten !?I felt the need to hear her angelic voice one more time so I asked my pa to call her in my office.ROSALIA'S POVI was having lunch with Jacob since he is the only friend I have in the office I always have lunch with him."I didn't know Miss Kate has a son. He is very cute" Jacob said"Yes, he is! " I chirped. I love children. They are very
ROSALIA'S POV I was lying on my bed and trying to distract myself by diving into a novel. But I could not just forget about what happened earlier. Mr. Knight was formidable, but his voice lingered in my mind, impossible to forget. "I expect you to look pretty on that day" Why he would say that? Why does that even matter? I could not deny the fact that he was very handsome and intimidating in a way. I've never felt that nervous in anyone's presence like him. His personality was somehow different. My thoughts were completely occupied by him that night. I couldn't read the novel anymore as sleep took over me. NEXT DAY AT WORK... Miss Kate called me into her office. I knocked on the door and she instructed me to come in. "Miss Brown, I found out that Kevin called you to his office yesterday" "Yes, mam", I replied. "I'd like to know what he discussed with you," She curiously questioned. Even though I didn't realize why she was asking me that, I told her that Mr Knight wanted to
"Well, This includes accompanying me to certain places I want you to go and fulfilling my sexual desires. You will have to be available for me 24×7. Other terms and conditions will be instructed to you soon. And you'll be provided with all the luxuries You can't even think of." What! He wants me to become his prostitute! "I am not that type of girl, sir. I think you got the wrong idea. I'll never do something like that for money." "That doesn't matter, baby. An offer from Kevin Knight can easily change anyone's mind. You should be thankful that I have chosen you. So, I suggest you reconsider it," he proudly shot those words back to me. "What! No.. never! How can you even say something like that? Just because you are rich and powerful that doesn't mean you can trade anything! And take advantage of my misery. I've been through much worse but never used my body for money. I'll never accept your deal. Never. And you are asking me to be thankful. Thankful, my foot! You are just so
'I'm the truth you can never escape' :ROSALIA'S POV: I was lying on my bed scattered and unable to process the things that happened earlier. I was crying so hard that I didn't notice Kristen sitting beside me on the bed. She started gently stroking my hair. "Why didn't you tell me, Rose, what happened in my absence" she sounded very concerned. "It all happened within a day. I just met him twice. I had no clue this was coming. I was about to tell you but I didn't want to spoil your date" I told her everything that happened earlier this. Her jaw dropped after listening to my words. "I was so shocked when I saw him, Rose. He is a very dangerous person. We have to do something. You have to escape the town." "How can I just run away? I don't have enough money or a place to stay. besides his man is outside our apartment," my voice cracked. "You can stay at my house in the upstate. I'll inform my parents. when things cool down you can come back" "But how will I escape f
After some time a huge mansion came into my view. The guards immediately opened the huge front gate. The car stopped in front of the main entrance of the mansion or I should say Palace. Even the exquisite beauty of the place failed to comfort me in that situation. I saw Mr Knight getting out of the car as the man who got me out of the bus earlier opened the door for him. He quickly came to my side and pulled me out of the car by my wrist. "Bring her to the basement, John," he ordered without even looking at him. John nodded to his order and he walked away from us. What are they going to do to me? Lock me up in the basement! Beat me up for trying to run away from him! These thoughts were enough to make me shiver again and again. Soon, John started dragging me towards the backside of the huge mansion. "Where are you taking me? Please help me get out of here" "Please I'm begging you," I requested in vain. John didn't even utter a word to me. And kept dragging me to
• • •After Kevin finished a few remaining paper works and delivered them to John, both Rose and Kevin descended from Kevin's home office to the hall area. Rose had invited a special guest to dinner today, Susan, a very close friend of hers from high school. She could have invited her at any time of the day but she intentionally chose the dinner time on the weekend where every family member would be present. But that was exactly what Rose hoped for. Susan, currently pursuing a master's in clinical psychology at Stanford, is always praised for her brilliance in the field. Rose was desperate to do something with Kate's deceit that's why she sought help from her friend, Susan. Rose involved herself in a small chatter with Susan before the dinner, and then at the dining table, Rose strategically seated Susan next to Kate, hoping her keen insight would expose Kate's true nature before it was too late. The others in the family will see the truth through Susan's professional eye or
"See, even the lady can suggest better alternatives than you guys," utter annoyance was evident on Kevin's face as he slammed the last file onto the table, he was running short on his temper but did not shout those words like he usually does, thanks to the quieting presence of his wife, Rosalia. Today’s conference was supposed to focus on innovative strategies for generating new business ideas. But presentation after presentation had failed to spark even a flicker of intrigue, whereas Rose suggested, why don't they try on ethical diamond jewellery? They could focus on sourcing conflict-free diamonds and using eco-friendly materials for the designs and even create custom high-end pieces that tell a story about the origin of each diamond, making every piece unique and special. People would love knowing that their beautiful jewellery also supports good causes and the environment. Even though that's out the Knight's current priority deals but what Rose suggested was commendable, consi
•It was concerning, the image on the mirror showing the little baby bump was genuinely concerning for Rose. From what she knew, she was not supposed to have a baby bump just at the beginning of her second trimester. While pulling up the side chains of her dress, Rose was studying her body. She was getting ready for her first ever ultrasound scheduled by the doctor. "Don't worry, maybe you are going to have twins," Agatha said softly reading the worry written all over Rose's face. "Yes. It's quite likely. The second pregnancy in this family is always twins," Maria added from nearby while her hands were busy collecting the breakfast plates. That was not incorrect. Kate and Daniel are also twins. Does that mean I am also having twins! Rose was so scared and confused, not having an idea how to feel. The thought of twins was overwhelming. Rose just wished for a moment of clarity, a sign that everything will be okay. Rosalia felt anxious all the way to the hospital while Kevin br
Rose was not as paranoid as she had been before. She was resting against the bedframe leisurely reading a magazine after having dinner while Kevin entered the room post workout. For the past few days, Rose gave it a thought about how she should put the issue of Kate in front of Kevin. If not directly still somehow she wanted to convince him of something being wrong. But when Kevin emerged out of the bathroom, his trousers were hanging loosely around his waist revealing the chiselled perfection of his lower abs. He casually rubbed his wet hair with the towel letting the droplets of water trace the sharp lines of his jaw and the sculpted muscles of his chest. The seductive scent of his cologne mixed with the freshness of his shower created an intoxicating aroma that braced the air around Rose. As he walked past the bed, Rose could not help but stare, her eyes devouring the view, her mouth opened and closed like a little goldfish out of the water. Lately, her every emotion fe
She felt like the closest I would ever get to salvation Yet I wanted to pull her into the depths of my darkness ~~~~~~~~~~~~ Kevin was raging through his bones, rage coursing through his veins settling every muscle on fire. Kevin's irate presence filled their room with palpable menace. Rosalia all worried and pale could read his anger weighing down her heavy heart. The sight of abortion pills hidden in Rosalia's medicine box ignited a storm of frustration inside him, a mix of betrayal and helplessness that he could not contain and swept everything within his reach off the surface in an attempt to pacify his anger. Rose, her eyes were filled with trepidation yet fixed on him. Beneath all her fear, there lay a deep, twisted dependence and an unspoken yearning for assurance and safety. Despite everything, Kevin was the only person who cared about her pregnancy more than herself and that seemed to be closing in on her. Exhausted and desperate, Rose felt her legs move before he
⚘ Miliani's heart filled with delight. In the past days when she was in the Romanos shelter, she used to fear being eighteen. She knew something horrible was going to happen to her whenever she would turn eighteen. From what the other maids told her about that surrogacy and stuff, she was fortified to her core. But now she is in a different place far away from those evil minded people, life is really unpredictable, she appraised. She drifted off into her own thoughts when one of Emilia's friends accidentally spilled some mocktail on her dress staining the white cloth in deep blue. She mouthed a 'sorry' before casually passing by. Miliani quickly reached for the stairs, it was her only decent outfit, she urgently needed to clean it up. Just as she reached for the doorknob, a firm hand grabbed her wrist and pulled her back, slamming her lithe body against the hard wall. Daniel's icy blue eyes bore into her terrified ones, there was no one except for them in the passage. "W
. Rosalia never wanted to try something so daring. Rose gave it a thousand thoughts at least. After that fateful night, she discussed everything with Miliani and demanded to know about the explanations behind her intuitions. The only person bearing the reason for harming Rose is no other than Kate. Daniel is like the shadow of Kevin, even if the shadow faltered Daniel never would. That much Rose knew. But stating Kevin would bring no help, she was certain. If Kevin digs into this matter, a bunch of random maids would pay the price of their lives nothing else, he would never suspect his sister. Rose desperately hoped her suspicions were wrong, though she feared they weren't. Rose never wanted to think of Kate harbouring such malice towards her. In between these thoughts, Rose somehow despised herself for becoming like this, being drawn into these webs of deceit and immorality. Her heart skipped a beat as she brought the uncapped poison bottle near the plate but she kept her face
⚘ ' Mili ' that was what written in cursive on the small wrapped up box which a maid delivered to Miliani this morning. ' If you don't come downstairs wearing it, I'll come upstairs for you - D ' If this small note was not attached to it, Miliani would have returned it already. Even though she could not understand why Daniel would want to give her something, her fear of him was so profound that she dared not to defy him. Miliani clutched the small roll paper in her hand while entering her room with the box on her other hand. Emilia had already begun preparing herself for the evening ahead. Emilia batted her eyes with utter annoyance towards Miliani. If letting Miliani stay inside her bedroom was not enough, Miliani even managed to get on her elder sister Rose's good side, on top of that Emilia came to know that their birthday also coincided on the same fucking day. She had enough reasons already to hate this unwanted girl but crashing her special day was something totall
• It was past midnight when Rose's sweet tooth ached for no reason, unabling her to sleep peacefully. Even though Kevin instructed her to ask him first if she needs anything at anytime still surrendering to the toll of this pregnancy, Rose quietly tiptoed out of her room. Stepping down to the first floor, she observed a dim light coming from the side of the aisle. She had noticed the same thing the previous night as well. As curiosity piqued, she followed the source only to find Miliani reading a book under a study lamp, sitting outside of her and Emilia's room. Not expecting someone to intrude here at this time, Miliani looked up at Rose in unease. "You can use the desk inside your room" Rose suggested. Their room is quite large for two people, there is no need to be seated like that on the floor that is too late in the night. "I did not want to disturb her sleep," Mili answered with a slight smile referring to Emilia. Emilia prefers to sleep in the dark not even allowing