“Calm down, Noémie,” Ajax’s deep and calm voice came from next to her, his one arm protectively snaking around her small waist as he kept her snuggled to his side. He traced a finger down the curve of her beautiful face, holding her chin and drawing it up so she could face him. “We’re almost there!”Noémie released a long sigh and gave him a nod. She could try to calm down just because he said it, but deep in her heart, she knew she couldn’t. She couldn’t rest until they arrived and she saw it with her own eyes.Her heart wouldn’t stop pounding nervously beneath her chest, and her legs wouldn’t stop trembling. Fear had clutched her heart and hijacked her mind. All she could do was think of the worst, and anything worse was nothing less than a nightmare. Not when it came to their four-year-old daughter. Lovette.She didn’t even know where to start.As soon as they got the call from Sonia Halest, Ajax’s mother, a newfound fear settled on her chest, and the knots in her stomach twisted a
“HAPPY BIRTHDAY!”Noémie gasped and stumbled on her feet when many people present in the hall screamed at the top of their lungs. The balloons blasted while confetti rained all over her. What the--?Still trying to make sense of what the hell was going on, a pair of arms startled her yet brought her back to reality.“A very happy birthday, my beautiful, lovely wife,” Ajax kissed her cheek and felt her lean body press into him.“You knew...” she whispered, putting the pieces together. That’s why he wasn’t worried one bit. It all made sense now. All of it.Instead of admitting or denying, Ajax only smirked—handsomely at that—and led her further into the room.Noémie noticed the decorations. The big banner with her picture and birthday wishes.Sonia Halest welcomed her with a tight, loving hug. “Many, many happy returns of the day, Noémie. May God bless you with all the happiness in the world.”“Thank you, Mom!” Noémie hugged back, her heart slowly calming down, replaced with a warm rush
SERIES: BY THE BILLIONAIREBOOK 2: MISUNDERSTOOD BY THE BILLIONAIREBlurb:Claire is in love with Vincent Halest, and she's not afraid to scream it to the world. She's stubborn, impulsive, and hard-headed. A recipe for pure trouble. Is the Halest family ready for this new storm in the making?——Five years later, the Halest family had done their best to survive the ugly truth that turned their lives upside down. But what happens when someone from Vincent's past returns with a bang? Not ready to take a no for an answer? What happens when her stubbornness opens old wounds and puts a lot more at stake than anyone expected? Secrets, lies, and revenge threaten to tear the Halest family apart.Will love be enough to save them?Author's note:Hey, lovely readers, don't miss the love story of Vincent and Claire. You might not like her at first, but trust me, she'll grow on you before you know it :) Also, please don't forget to vote with gems. It would make my day!!
It was supposed to be the best day of her life, the most memorable one. However, as Claire Berkeley walked down the aisle with her stand-offish father by her side and the twin daughters of her older brother bumbling and giggling ahead of them, she experienced the strongest urge to throw up she had ever had in her life.One might think she was joking or having a nervous bout, but she was not. In the makeup room, her mother told her it was alright to be scared, to feel like every inch of her skin was crawling with insects and slimy snails. Little did her mother know that it wasn’t the stress of a bride before the wedding she was undergoing; it was much more than that—more than she could put into words in such a short amount of time.With her pale fingers tightly curled around the bouquet of orchids and lilies, and her heart thundering inside her chest like a bolt of lightning in the dark sky, Claire was seething from the inside. Her thoughts were a place too hazardous for her own sanity
While Claire’s eyes gazed at the exit with a longing she had never felt, she noticed from the corner of her eye that Lucas raised another eyebrow and pulled his head back.“Excuse me?” He sounded surprised, not quite offended yet. The commotion in the church only grew louder.“I said,” Claire repeated calmly. “I’m fine. Ass—”“I heard you the first time,” Lucas snapped. Finally. “I think everyone did.”Did they? Claire wondered. Then again, it didn’t really matter.Ignoring Lucas and all the angry eyes drilling into her face and head, Claire turned to face the priest. “Can I say something? Please?”The priest could only watch her with a stunned expression as Claire removed her damn high heels, one by one, and motioned to one of the band members in the corner to hand her the mic.Claire pondered what to do with the heels in her hands as one of the singers sprinted over to her and offered her what she had requested.With a shrug, she flung one over her shoulder, drawing a scream from on
“Uncle Vince!”A little girl, not more than five, came scurrying down the stairs the second her excited, bright eyes caught the sight of the black Mercedes pulling up in the driveway.Her dark brown hair flew over her tiny shoulders while Mr. Teddy in her grasp swung back and forth. Her little bunny shoes padded against the majestic red carpet as she crossed the drawing room and rushed through the massive main doors.Vincent had already crouched down on his knees before the little girl launched herself at him.“Who’s the best uncle in the world?” he asked with a huge grin on his handsome face.“Uncle Vince!” the girl chanted in her cute baby voice, as if that was the truest thing in the world.“Who loves Lovette the most?”“Uncle Vince!”“Who gets the best gifts that put mommy, Daddy, and Santa to shame?“Uncle Vince!”“And who gets to throw my little angel up in the air as if she’s flying?”“Uncle—” she didn’t even get to complete the sentence before Vincent tossed her up in the air,
By the time he had made love to every inch of her body, it was already four in the morning.Opening the door of their bedroom with all the care in the world, he found Noémie lying on her stomach. The sheets covered her naked body while her dark brown hair draped her back.Four years ago, after she gave birth to Lovette, Ajax hadn’t waited to propose to her. He had done what he should have done a long time back. And that was to listen to his heart. A round brilliant diamond-cut ring he had gotten for her, hoping she wouldn’t absolutely hate it.She didn’t.Something told him that even if he hadn’t put on a grand gesture and hadn’t showered her with yellow plumeria (her favorite) on the roof of the old Halest Villa, she would have loved him all the same. She would have said yes despite everything and had made him the happiest man in the entire universe. He could still taste her admission on his lips.Ajax locked the door behind him and approached the bed with a thoughtful stride. He too
Heat surged to Noémie’s face, making her cheeks a deep scarlet. “Oh God, no!” She gasped in disbelief while also trying to hide the huge grin dying to claim her plush lips “I think I liked you better when you barely spoke like three words a day.”That was barely the truth. Sure, she had fallen for the same brute that he used to be, but now that he had started to open up and had exposed her to this wilder and a bit darker side of his, she didn’t want him to stop. She loved him for everything he was and more. There was no way she could hate him for anything he did or said. He was the perfect man any woman could ask for. A perfect man who belonged only to her. There hadn’t been a single moment she regretted saying yes to him the day he proposed. Four years with him had been nothing short of a dream.“It’s because you love me now,” he said with a pleased sparkle in his dar
Claire hadn’t expected Vincent to prepare the contract so soon. It took her by surprise when the same delivery men appeared at her grandma’s place the next day and brought her back to the old Halest Villa.According to the giant clock hung in the drawing room, it was exactly 9 o’clock in the morning. The old Halest Villa was dreadfully quieter than the previous day. The maids and guards were the only people she noticed since the moment she walked in and took a seat on the couch, waiting for Vincent to make an appearance.Claire was nervous. Her legs were shaking with anxiousness after every passing second. The conversation she had with Marvin the previous day didn’t make her feel any better either. It made her feel even worse. She knew she shouldn’t be hiding something so important from Vincent—especi
[Nine Months Ago]A man in a white lab coat punched a six-digit code and waited calmly as the heavy metal door groaned and slowly slid open. Behind him, two tall and hefty men stood. One of them carried an unconscious woman in his arms.The door revealed a restless lab, with men in similar lab coats bustling here and there. The pungent scent of chemicals and something acidic hung heavy in the air.As the three men entered the lab, the man in the lab coat paused and lifted a hand to guide the two large men.“Take her to cube number five,” the man said, and without waiting for a response, headed in the opposite direction.The two hefty men followed the order and stationed the unconsci
Marvin pursed his lips, settling back in his seat and crossing his arms over his chest. “Fine. Let’s talk about something else, then.”Just by the shift in his tone, Claire could tell what was coming next.“Would you like to explain that video about your pregnancy?”“Not really.”“Claire!”Claire groaned and held her head in her hands. “Why do you even care?”“You’re doing that to get that Halest boy, aren’t you?”“So what?”“You need to let him go!”“I can’t. You know I…I can’t do that.” How could he even ask her such a thing?“It’s not fair to him, Claire. He doesn’t know—”“He doesn’t have to know.”“Claire!” He leaned forward, his gaze hopeful and brimmed with concern. “Don’t do this. You’re just hurting yourself. And him. It’s not fair…” He reached out and cupped the back of her hand with his. “…to you, too.”Claire yanked her hand away. “Drop the act, Marvin. We both know you don’t give a crap about me.”“I don’t know what I’ve done to make you feel like this.”“Are you serious?
The second the elevator doors of Grandma’s apartment building opened, Claire groaned at the sight of Marvin, her older brother. God, what was he doing here? she thought to herself.After the intense conversation with Vincent, the exact delivery guys dropped her back at the place they picked her up from.“What are you doing here?” she asked exasperatedly as she shuffled out of the elevator while rubbing her temple.At the sight of her, Marvin peeled his back off the wall and stood up straighter. “I’ve been out here for almost an hour,” he grumbled. “Where have you been?” Adjusting the collar of his shirt, he demanded with a deep frown.“First off, that’s not the answer to my question,” she paused in front of him to fix him with an annoyed look. “And second, why are you outside again?”In response to her question, Marvin only sighed deeply in his chest, scratching the back of his neck. “She won’t let me in,” he muttered with a shake of his head, clearly talking about Grandma. “I would h
“Not to me, but to yourself.” Stepping away, he yanked her hands away from his shirt. “You always tell yourself these sweet lies and find comfort in them, Claire. You think you’ve changed, but you’re still the same.” Turning on his heels, he ran a hand through his hair. Frustrated.“Vincent…”“This time you went too far, Claire. Too far. You dragged my family into this. I’m not sure if I can ever forgive you for misleading them with your fucked-up lies.”“Don’t say that, Vince. I did this for you. For us.”“Stop it, Claire!” He snapped, wanting nothing more than to yank his hair out. “Just stop it!”Rushing to him, she hugged him from behind. More tears flowed through her red-rimmed eyes. “I know what I did
Claire knew she had gone too far. She knew what came out of her mouth was bound to fuck everything up. Even more than her situation already was. Vince would hate her. He didn’t have to spell it out for her to know she was only worsening her impression in his eyes.What other choice did she have, though?She was running out of not only time, but also options. Patience was her least remarkable character trait, after all. And when it came to Vincent, her patience grew even thinner. So much time she had already wasted in coming to her senses that now every second she had to stay away from him felt like a stab of the knife straight to her heart.Perhaps that was the reason that when Ajax dismissed her and she was led out of the study by a maid, she wasn’t surprised—or let out even a squeak in protest—when Vincent grabbed her by the arm and dragged her into the closest empty room.
[Six Months Ago]After seeing off her husband at the airport for a two-days business trip, when a woman named Susan Green returned to her apartment, she barely kicked off her shoes and filled herself with a glass of water when a knock on the door arrived.Unsure of who it might be at the lunch hour, she opened the door only to find no one outside.Susan frowned. She was pretty sure she had heard the knock. Not once. Not twice. But thrice. Someone had knocked at the door thrice. Wondering if the kids in the building had once again picked up the bad habit of annoying the random neighbours, she closed the door and locked it.However, just when she hoped to get back to the kitchen counter and grab herself a glass of water, her gaze fell on the yellow manila envelope on the floor. It looked like someone had slipped it inside from under the door
Claire did as she was told. Quietly, she pulled the back of the chair and sat down with her fingers tightly laced with each other.For a long minute, no one said anything. The only sound in the room seemed to be the ticking of the clock. The tension in the room felt tighter and thicker than she had ever experienced. When someone did speak, it came from her left where Sonia Halest sat.“Is it true?” The older woman asked with a frown.Before Claire could clarify what the question was regarding, Vincent beat her to it.“Of course, it’s not!” He snapped, pounding a fist on the desk and glaring at Ajax. “Did you even hear a word I said? It’s all a lie. There’s nothing between us.”“Vince…” Claire tried to say when he spun his head and glared at her.
Claire sighed into her chest and felt her back slump against the door. Her heart ached to see him this mad at her. She wondered what could she possibly do to make things back to normal between them.On second thought, things had never been normal between them. Perhaps that was the reason she felt so clueless and hopeless and helpless. She did not have a single clue what could she say or do to make him love her the way he did once. Had she taken too long to come to her senses? Was it possible that he liked someone else now?Claire hated the idea of Vince being with some other woman. No. That would not do. He only belonged to her. He only loved her. Sure, he was refusing to admit that right now, but she wasn’t planning on giving up on them soon. She would make him hers, no matter what price she had to pay.With that determination in her heart, she sucked in another deep breath