As I waited for Samantha in the car, my mind drifted back to our previous encounter. Her words still echoed in my mind - "I love you, Carlton. I love you so much." How quaint. How naive. I had made it crystal clear: she was nothing more than a temporary distraction, a plaything to amuse me until I grew bored. But still, she allowed herself to become emotionally attached. I would need to keep her at arm's length until she came to her senses and got rid of whatever she was feeling.As Samantha approached, I pulled out my phone and began scrolling mindlessly, avoiding any conversation about her feelings. That's when I saw the message from Zayden Martin - an invitation to a masquerade ball. I raised an eyebrow, intrigued by the theme. Just then, Samantha slid into the seat beside me, her intoxicating scent filling the air - a mix of floral and spice that made my head spin. Thoughts of bending her over again spiralled in my mind.Henry started the car, and we headed to the penthouse for t
SAMANTHA"Hey, girl." Layla's voice came through the line. "How are you?" She asked.I let out a deep sigh, collapsing onto the bed. "Honestly, I don't even know. And I don't want to talk about it right now.""Okay. You are all over the news, why did that old man leave you so many properties?""I have no idea. Maybe he just liked me.""Mmm-hmm, I think there's more to it. Anyway, you don't need Carlton anymore. You should file for divorce. I don't like how he's playing with your feelings – he's an asshole for that."She was right, I didn't need Carlton anymore, George's inheritance would provide more than enough to cover Sarah's expenses, even if Carlton decided to cut her off financially. But... there was a but, a reason I didn't want a divorce."I will think about it.""Don't think, Samantha. Do what you won't regret. Remember, you won't be alone. I'll always be here for you.""Thanks, Mommy," I said with a smile."Oh, you wish!" We laughed.Jasmine tiptoed in. "Gotta go, we'll tal
CARLTON"...thank you all for coming. Cheers." Zayden raised a toast as he concluded his speech, and everyone took to the dance floor with their partners, moving to the slow, melancholic tune that filled the room. Zayden was celebrating his company's fifth-year success. I could count the number of people in the room. Being the secretive guy he was, he probably only invited those who had seen his face.Next to me, the new Samantha stood, still giving me the cold shoulder after our last blowout about her missing ring. I was hopelessly addicted to her long, luscious hair - it was like the ultimate symbol of her beauty. But even with her new short hair, she still managed to slay the whole 'gorgeous' thing. With her new 'do, I was left with nothing to grab. it was like she'd taken away my favorite toy - her hair.I turned her to face me, but she drifted her gaze elsewhere. I took a moment to admire how stunning she looked tonight. I made the right choice for the dress. There was something
We had to leave the party early because of Samantha's tantrum. I couldn't tell Zayden we were leaving because Samantha was all wet and so was I. Now, she's sitting next to me in the car, ignoring me with her arms crossed. I closed the windows to keep the cold air out and drove through the woods, glancing at her occasionally. She was staring at the dark trees passing by. I didn't want to start another conversation, so I kept quiet and sped up to reach a nearby hotel. But I hit a dead end - some trees blocked the way. I didn't know the area since I always had a driver, and Zayden told me to come alone with Samantha. We were far from his mansion, deep in the woods.I sighed and pulled out my phone, but there was no signal. "Stay here, I'll be back," I said, getting out to find a signal so I could call Henry to come get us or send the helicopter.As I searched for a signal, I heard the car door slam. Samantha stormed out, and I had to chase after her. Again."I told you to stay in the car
I woke up to an unusual noise, like things colliding. I opened my eyes to find the mattress empty. I had given her space last night, sitting in the corner to let her sleep. Now, she was gone. I rushed outside.As I stepped out, I saw Samantha amidst the family, laughing and chatting like she belonged. The younger girl was sitting in front of her, and Samantha was weaving flowers into her hair. The two little boys were playing with sticks, trying to catch a chicken, while the mother was tending to a garden. The guy who had helped us was sitting on a rock, chatting with the girls.I approached them, my footsteps quiet on the grass. Samantha's smile dropped the moment she saw me. She had been smiling and laughing with them like she'd known them forever. Now, her eyes just looked... flat. "Hey," I said, trying to sound casual. She replied with a light "Hey" and went back to weaving hair. I glanced at the family, who were all staring at me. "What's going on here?" I asked. The guy spoke u
Samantha was happy, truly happy, for the first time since I'd met her. I watched as she danced around the lake the kids, playing with water. The sunset was behind her, and she was smiling so much. Mia Sola, mine only... I thought about how I'd never given her reason to smile like that. I'd vowed to never let anyone in again, but Samantha... she'd melted my walls. It wasn't supposed to happen. I promised myself I wouldn't let anyone in again. I wouldn't be vulnerable. So, what happened to that vow? What happened to my control?She was keeping her distance, just like she said she would. I wasn't used to this. I was used to pushing her away, not the other way around.I tried to focus on my phone, on finding a signal, but my gaze kept drifting back to her. She was helping the kids with something, her hands moving deftly as she showed them a trick. Canyon was watching her, a smile on his face, and I felt a pang of...something. Jealousy? No, that couldn't be it.I wasn't sure what I felt,
Henry had arrived, and we were preparing to leave. The family still had no idea I planned to take them along too.Samantha was hugging them, tears in her eyes."Take care." She said."We will." The old lady saidSamantha turned to Canyon."Thanks for everything." She said.Canyon smiled. "Anytime.""Where are the cars?" I asked Henry."A mile away." He replied.I turned to see Samantha walking towards me, her eyes locked on the leaves."Let's be on our way, Mr. Williams." She said."What are you waiting for? Let's go." I said to the family.They looked confused. Canyon stepped forward."I don't understand—" he began.Samantha finally lifted her head, looking confused too. "Okay, let me be clear," I cut in. "I'll cover your family's expenses - new house, finances, education. Whatever you need in return for helping us.""Oh, thank you so much but we'll decline the offer." The old lady said."Why is that?" I asked, raising an eyebrow."We understand you are grateful to us for helping y
"Don't fucking joke with this," I said, more serious than ever. Laura killed Father?"I'm not joking with you, Carlton. I was just as surprised as you are when I found out. I'm telling you, Laura has gone nuts. She's not the Laura we used to know."'I'll do anything to get what I want.' I recalled her saying."Tell me every single thing.""Okay," Jace leaned forward, his hands clasped together. "Laura has been giving your father some kind of slow poison for months. The name was Aconitum. It causes ventricular tach– I don't remember what that hot nurse said.""Are you sure about what you're saying?""Never been too sure my entire life, Carlton." Jace replied."How did you even...?""Just had to use my charm on one of the housekeepers when I noticed they were all getting fired," He explained. "She told me she noticed Laura would always offer to prepare and serve your father tea, and that she'd always bring some small container. She'd tell everyone to leave whenever she wanted to prepar
I received a message from Ethan Russell, George's former lawyer, stating that I should come to Georgia as soon as possible to see what was in the house George left the key for me. I decided to go because I had been procrastinating for no reason, so I discussed it with Carlton and he approved, but he would have some people stay with me until I returned to Florida in case his brother tried anything. Here we are, at the airport, and he was seeing me off."You can still take the private jet, Samantha." He said, giving my arms a gentle squeeze. "No, Carlton, I'm fine taking the plane.""Okay." He turned to the two huge men in suits next to him, his expression stern. "Take care of her, nothing must happen to even a strand of her hair." He said. My eyes went to people murmuring as they walked by. "Look at those people, Carlton." He looked around. "What about them?" "These huge men? Nothing will happen, I can take care of myself. Moreover, your brother has been silent since forever.""And t
I stared out the window, watching for pharmacies so I could buy a new one or something else to use immediately. I hoped it would destroy whatever was building inside me.Carlton's hand gently stroked my thigh. "Don't you think this is too short? You'll catch a cold." He said."This is the only gown I have that isn't spaghetti-strapped or cleavage-revealing," I replied. "If you don't want me to catch a cold, you shouldn't have filled my wardrobe with those."The only reason I owned this short-sleeved, V-neck gown with subtle depth was cause Layla insisted it would look good on me during our shopping spree months ago.Carlton picked up his phone and started typing with one hand while keeping the other on the wheel."If you need anything else after the wardrobe change, let me know." He slipped his phone back into his jacket pocket.I went back to looking for pharmacies, then noticed we were out of the city, heading towards Calypso City, where I spent my childhood before moving to Miami t
SAMANTHAI stretched, moving my hand but then felt something huge and strong behind me. I slowly opened my eyes to find Carlton beside me. Everything that happened last night came flooding back. I had to admit, last night was better than the other nights we had together. I want to hate him, I really want to but... I can't–My heart doesn't want to. I slowly tilted my head up to see if he was awake, his eyes were still shut and he looked gorgeous even in his sleep. My hand trailed down his toned muscles but stopped at his groin, taking a look at his now resting cock which had me trembling last night. Tempted, my hand made its way down like it had a mind of its own, wanting to touch it. What was I doing? I immediately stopped and withdrew myself from him. Suddenly his hand pulled me back into his arms, I looked up at him, but his eyes were still shut."Touch it whenever you want to, it's all yours, do whatever you want to with it." His deep morning voice came. What was he spewing? All
After minutes of Passionate kissing and taking off our clothes in between. I withdrew myself from her, standing beside the bed. I gazed at her, mesmerized by her biting her bottom lip while caressing her nipple.I was so fucking hard but I needed to take things slowly.I walked over to my room's office area, grabbed the half-empty whiskey bottle, and poured a shot into my drinking glass. After taking a sip, I returned to the bed."What are you—?" She sat upright."From this moment on, till I'm done with you, you don't say a word till I give you permission to speak." I said.I knelt on the bed, carefully placing my drinking glass beside me. I yanked Samantha's legs, sliding her down toward me. The whiskey splashed on her body as I poured from the cup.She gasped. "Carlton.""No words." I warned firmly.I pressed myself against her, my lips finding hers once again. I don't think I'll ever get enough of her mouth, she tasted so fucking good. My lips trailed down her neck and then back to
"He's a monster now, Carlton." Jace said. Monster was an understatement. Alex had finally lost it all in the name of money. Just a week ago, we received a recording from the hitman's wife, proving Alex's involvement. She had recorded their conversation, sensing something was off– and I'm grateful she did.We also found out that Larsen and Alex were frequently seeing each other after Father's death, even on the day I was shot. The reason was still unknown, but we have tapes from security cameras that can prove they were working together. Who would have thought Larsen would be involved? Now I know why I never liked that asshole from day one.We didn't find anything linking Laura, and there hasn't been progress on Father's death. We tried convincing the housekeeper Jace met to testify in court, but she refused, saying she has a one-year-old son and doesn't want involvement. We can't force her, so we're looking for alternatives. The other housekeepers just vanished.Jace ordered his peopl
Samantha was using birth control pills, and I was aware of it, but I didn't question her. I was the type of person who fucks raw. I don't do condoms, they're like a barrier, and I hate barriers. So, her using pills during those times we had sex was fine with me. But now, those pills had to go.I took the pills from her purse while she was showering and returned to my room, flushing them down the toilet. I watched as the water swallowed them whole, and a smirk spread across my face. Phase one is done, on to phase two.Today, I lied about finding a clue about who was backing Alex, telling Samantha we'd go confirm it. Little did she know, we had an interesting, long day ahead. In casual attire, I waited impatiently downstairs. Finally, I heard footsteps and looked up to see her, beautiful as always, in formal attire with one side of her hair tucked behind her ear.Her brows furrowed in confusion. "What are you wearing?""My other clothes make me feel stuffy, so I decided to switch it up
We didn't exchange a word during the drive home. All I could think about was how to make her stay. If I brought out another contract, she wouldn't sign it. I needed something to compel her to stay, something that would leave her no choice.Upon arriving home, we saw Canyon and his family outside, looking worried. We stepped out and approached them."What's wrong?" I asked.Their expressions softened as their eyes fell on the towel covering my wound."We wanted to see Mrs. Williams, but suddenly some man came in and started threatening us. He's inside." Canyon said.My brows furrowed. "Some guy?" I walked past them and entered the house.Inside, I saw Alexander seated on the sofa, his legs crossed."Oh, brother, where have you been?" He stood up, smiling."What are you doing here?" I asked."I came to see you. Is something wrong with that?" He moved closer, and I instinctively positioned myself between him and Samantha."You're not welcome here, Alex."He put his hands behind him and s
I slowly opened my eyes, wincing at the sharp pain that shot through my body. I tried to stand, but it was like a weight was holding me down. I groaned, scanning the unfamiliar room. I glanced down at myself, realizing I was shirtless, with a clean towel covering my wound. How did I get here? Memories of collapsing onto Samantha's shoulders flooded back. Where was she?I pushed through the pain, hastily searching the room, clutching the towel to my wound. "Samantha?" I called out.Just as I reached for the door to search for her, she appeared, holding a glass of water. I pulled her into a tight hug, spilling some of the water. But instead of reciprocating, she quickly pulled away, avoiding eye contact."Here's a glass of water," she said, her voice detached, holding out the half-full glass. "They don't have a first aid kit here, so you'll need to go to the hospital or get it dressed at home."Her gaze still avoided mine."Look at me." I growled. She sighed. "I don't want to."I gently
CARLTON"What the fuck was that about, Carlton?" I heard Jace's footsteps move closer to me."I should be asking you that. How did she know I was here?" I put aside the papers in my hand and faced Jace, who had his brows furrowed in anger.He scoffed. "I sent it to her. That's not the issue here. Why are you treating her that way? Do you know what she went through when you weren't around? I don't think you do, because if you saw her, you wouldn't treat her like that."I saw everything while trying to keep an eye out for whoever sent the hitman, hoping they'd slip up. Of course, I knew who it was – I knew it was Alexander – but I didn't want to believe he could go to such extremes, so I needed proof, hence why I faked my death. Aunt Claire and Jace also knew I was alive, making it easier to stay hidden."Mind your business, Jace. Your job is to help me take down Alexander, not meddle in my personal life. You're in no position to lecture me. Now, sit and let's finalize the plan and stop