I press my lips to her throat and suck, deliberately avoiding her lips. I had to maintain some kind of control over this, over us and over myself. She wasn't going to get a kiss today, just plain raw, dirty sex. Yes. That was going to do it.Her breath stutters and her lashes flutter shut as if she’s already lost to me. Her lips part, waiting, wanting.I grip both of her wrists, pinning them above her head. I want to take her hard and fast, rough and raw until she’s screaming my name, her body wrung out, her mind wiped of everything but me. I want to fuck her until there’s nothing left between us but tangled sheets and breathless silence.But I can’t.That’s not what we need right now. I am so messed up when I am with her. I can't think straight.Still, there are a million ways I want to have her.On her knees.Bent over the goddamn kitchen island.Straddling me, her perfect tits bouncing with every movement, until she’s screaming my name like a damn porn star.But not now.This is a
I wake up to find Mina already wide awake, watching me. I don’t know if it’s just me, but something seems to be wrong. I don’t like how she’s looking at me right now. There’s a shift—something different in her, in us—but I can’t quite put my finger on it.I choose to ignore it.I smile at her. And as I do, I can see it aggravates her. The tight smile she had before vanished, replaced by something sharper. She’s angry. Visibly angry.Without a word, she suddenly stands up and starts throwing on her clothes.I sit up in bed, using the sheets to cover half of my body, just watching her. She moves quickly, pulling on her panties, then her pants. By the time she’s fastening her bra, she snaps."Stop smiling at me."I raise an eyebrow. "Why?""Because," she says through clenched teeth, "I don’t like it."I smirk, leaning back against the headboard. "Well, I do. I like looking at you. And I don’t think you can control how I react to you."She exhales sharply as if my words make her even ang
Mina“Wait, wait, wait. Just wait a minute.”Emerson’s voice is sharp, filled with a tension that makes me press my lips together. The mattress shifts as he sits down at the edge of the bed, and I keep my gaze fixed on the floor. I can’t look at him right now.“What did you say?” He asks, too calmlyI can’t believe I said it either. The words tumbled out before I could catch them, but they were out there now, hanging heavy between us. There’s no taking them back.“I don’t think we should be getting married right now.” The words are quieter this time but no less firm. “I really think that we should just stop.”The silence that follows is thick, and suffocating. I can feel the weight of his stare, the building storm in his eyes. He’s mad—he has to be. And I don’t blame him. Everything is so... twisted, so tangled in my head right now.“Mina.”“Yes?”His voice is strained like he’s holding back a million things he wants to say. “Would you look at me, please?”I swallow hard.“I don’t
I can’t help it. The words he said, the look in his eyes, the anguish in his voice—I never want to hear it again. I never want him to feel that way again. Before I can stop myself, I rush toward him.He looks at me, startled, as I come toward him, but he opens his arms, letting me fall into his embrace. His arms close around me, holding me tightly, and I bury my face against his chest. For whatever reason, tears are in my eyes, and I feel the dampness of his tears against my forehead. We cling to each other, sobbing into each other’s shoulders, sharing everything we’ve both been carrying.After what feels like forever, our emotions finally settle. I pull back slightly, just enough to see his face. His eyes are searching mine, full of questions. Is this goodbye? Is this the last time he gets to hold me?I shake my head, tears slipping down my cheeks. “No. No, I’m not leaving you. I can’t leave you.”Relief floods his features, but there’s still uncertainty there.“You might not know
After a silent while, Emerson just looks… tired. Defeated. The weight of the conversation pressed down on him. He exhales slowly, his hands gripping his knees like he's steadying himself.Then, finally, he begins."Mina, I di—""No, Emerson." I cut him off, shaking my head. "I actually think you meant those words. I know you. I know how you act when you say something you don't mean and you mean it." My voice wavers slightly. "I looked at you that night, and I knew—in my heart—that you meant it. So don’t sit here and tell me you didn’t."I see his shoulders tense, but he stays quiet."And sitting there, at that dinner, all I could think was… if this is what you really think of me, what the hell am I even doing here?"Emerson closes his eyes briefly, my words sinking in. "Mina, no," he says softly. "I saw the change in you, but I didn’t know why. I didn’t know if it was because you didn’t want to be there, or because you were mad at Eric, or because of your sister, or even because of T
I open my mouth, but my thoughts are spiralling too fast."This is about the fact that—" I stop myself. "Okay, you’re confusing me right now.""No, don’t filter yourself. Just say it." His voice is steady. "Say it exactly how it is. We’re just talking."I swallow, my pulse hammering. And then—"This is about the fact that you think what Eric did to me is okay."Emerson’s eyes widen slightly, but he doesn’t interrupt."I think…" I take a breath, forcing myself to say the words that have been eating at me. "I think that some of the things you just said to me right now prove that you believe what Eric and Rita did to me is fine. That they deserve to go scot-free."Emerson shakes his head instantly. "No, Mina. That’s not—""Why?" My voice is rising now. "Because he’s your son? Because when I was married to your son, I couldn’t give you grandchildren? Is that why? Because now that he’s with her, he can finally make you a grandfather? Because now your bloodline has a chance to grow?"His f
"No, listen to me," Emmerson says as he squeezes my hand. "I don’t want you to wake up one day, years from now, and realize you had no idea what you were doing. I don’t want you to fall deeper, only to realize that you were still running from something else."His eyes search mine, and I feel my defences cracking."That kind of pain would be unbearable," he says. "For both of us."I can barely breathe."So yes, Mina. I agree with you." He takes a slow breath. "We should postpone the wedding."I am silent.Caught in the web of my own making.Just minutes ago, I thought postponing the wedding—taking time to work on myself—was the right choice. But coming from Emerson, it feels wrong. It sounds wrong.Especially given his reasons.He thinks that I still have feelings for Eric.The only feelings I have for Eric are hurt, hate, and pure revenge.I want him to suffer. I want them both to suffer.To hurt. To be humiliated. To bathe in the consequences of their actions.But in doing so, I real
I want to say yes. I want to believe that no matter what, we would have ended up together. But he doesn't give me the chance."I don't know," he whispers.A lump forms in my throat. "You still regret it, don't you?""Regret what?""The first time we slept together," I say, studying his face. "You regret that night. I always knew you felt guilty about it. That’s why you agreed to marry me, isn’t it? Because you felt guilty. And now, I realize you never forgave yourself for that night."His jaw tightens. He looks away."It’s not like I regret that night," he admits after a long pause. "I just think I could have done better.""But you did," I argue. "That night, I was lost. I felt like my life was over. I acted strong, but inside, I was breaking. And then, you—" I swallow hard, my voice shaking. "You gave me hope. You made me believe there was something to hold onto. That night was special, Emerson. And I will always cherish it. I just wish you would see it the way I do."His eyes search
MinaI woke up today, and the first thing I did was laugh.Today was supposed to be my wedding day.But instead, it was going to be the day I severed ties—with Emerson, with my family, with the life that had been planned for me.Today was the day I set myself free.Sitting in this house all these days, I used the time to grieve. To mourn what I thought I had, what I knew I had lost. I allowed myself to feel everything—anger, sadness, regret—but then I decided.I was moving on.I wasn’t going to let Emerson control me. I wasn’t going to let him dictate my life, tell me what to do, or make decisions for me.Yesterday, I bought a ticket.I was going to Rio.When I first told Emerson about it—during our argument—it had been an impulsive idea, something that slipped out in the heat of the moment. He brushed it off and dismissed it like it was nothing.But it had taken root.The more I sat in this house, the more I realised—I had nothing left here. No friends. No family. Not even the man I
I raise an eyebrow, caught off guard but also amused by his actions. “Who?”“Don’t play dumb,” he snaps. “I want to see Mina. She hasn’t been seen. She hasn’t been heard. She’s not picking up my calls. She and I had a lot of plans. We had an understanding, and she’s not doing her part. Today is supposed to be her wedding. I was supposed to be in her wedding, but zip! Nothing from her. And my mom just tells me there’s no wedding.”He steps closer, his face twisted in anger.“Where is she?” His voice rises. “Did you kill her? Where did you bury her body? Did you kidnap her, where did you lock her in this house?”“Treyson, are you okay?“ I ask him, This little boy must be insane.“Wherever you hid her, whatever you did…. I am going to find out.““ It's too early in the morning to deal with this,” I mutter under my breath.For now, I just want him gone.“Get out of my house,” I say, turning around to go back to the bedroom.But no—he runs in front of me, standing there as if he can block
I know Tomas here under the title of a butler, but in reality, I hired him as security. He started as a bodyguard, but having visible security inside the house made things uncomfortable. So, he took on the role of a butler to keep people at ease.No one expects a butler to be security. No one suspects that he watches over everything—over the house, the estate, the staff.He's the real manager of this place, the one who keeps it all running.And over the years, we’ve formed a kind of friendship.I wouldn’t say I have many real friends, people I can truly talk to, be my true self. But Thomas—he’s different. Sometimes, when I have things weighing on my mind, I talk to him. And over time, he’s proven to be very wise and have very good advice.So, yes. He became family. A friend. Someone I trust.If I were asked to name my closest confidants, Thomas would be one of them.Now, as he steps into the office, his face is grim.He doesn’t need to ask why I called him here.He already knows.And
I wonder if Eric ever really saw it—how happy I had been with Mina.I wonder if he could tell that the fact there is no wedding, whether that means I’m with her or not, is tearing me apart inside.And I wonder if he even cares.Does it matter to him if what Mina and I had was real? Does he care that she made me happy? Or is he only focused on himself, on what he thinks he’s won?The thought lingers, heavy in my chest.But I don’t want to entertain him, so I say, “I’m glad that you’re happy. Can you leave now?”Eric grins wider. “I brought you a gift.” He pushes the box closer to me. “I knew you weren’t going to marry her. I just knew. I was like, my father? To do that to me? Hell no! And I tried to tell people that you wouldn't actually marry her, but they didn’t believe me. Can you believe it? I just knew it. Thanks, Dad.”He stands up, still shaking his head, convinced of his own delusion. “I just knew you were always going to be on my side. I just knew you wouldn’t choose her ov
EmmersonAs Mina left, angrily, not sparing a glance or looking back towards us, I was still down on my knees. But this time, I wasn’t filled with desperation—I was filled with relief.At least she wasn’t leaving.At least I would be sure she was close and taken care of.I knew how her mind worked. When she was angry, she just did things and acted on impulse. I just needed her to cool down and understand what I was saying to her.I was doing all of this for her.Even if it killed me in the end.If we got married now, I would keep asking myself—did she truly have real feelings for me? Or would she always have Eric in her heart?Even though every part of me wanted to ask her to come back, to take her back so everything could return to normal, so I could hold her in my arms again and be with her, I knew this was the right choice for both of us. This would be good for us.And if she did decide that she wanted me, if she chose me in the end, then that would be the best thing to ever happen
"Okay, just calm down. You're getting a little ahead of yourself here." Emmerson says halting my thoughts and dismissing what I said.I stare at Emerson, my blood boiling. "Do you really think so? I'm getting ahead of myself here? Is that what you think now?" I let out a bitter laugh, my voice dripping with sarcasm. "Oh, please, just tell me what's next. Since you're the one in control of everything, why don’t you go ahead and tell me what I feel? What I think? What I should do?" My arms fly up in frustration. "You’re just going to plan my whole life out for me, aren't you? Even though you don’t want me, even though you’re not with me anymore, you still want to control me!" I find myself raising my voice with every word.Before he can respond, there's a knock at the door.Knock, knock.We both freeze, our argument hanging heavy in the air. My breathing is uneven, my chest rising and falling as I glare at Emerson.Knock, knock.And then—Madeline’s voice.“Mina? Emerson?” Another pause
Emerson’s jaw tightens, but he holds his ground. "Yeah, I get it, Mina. You don’t want my money. But you can count it as a loan if that makes you feel better."I shake my head, "It’s not about feeling better, Emerson.""But listen," he presses on. "You want to leave this house and go look for a hotel? How long will that money sustain you? And a motel? Come on, Mina. Then what? You’re going to rent a place? Do you have enough for the deposit and the first month’s rent? You’d probably need a roommate to afford it. Or are you planning to move into some rough neighbourhood just so you don't have to stay here?" He pauses, his voice dipping lower. "Or what? Are you going to go home to Mommy? Move in with your sister?"I snap. "How dare you?" My voice comes out sharp, cutting through.But before I can unleash everything boiling inside me, he cuts me off, "Mina, you’re a smart woman. We both know that. Just think about what I’m saying. You know I’m right."I scoff, shaking my head in disbel
"Mina, I don't want you to leave," Emmerson says,I lift my face, looking at him in surprise. Did I hear that right?"I don't understand," I say, confused. "Are you going back on the words you said to me yesterday?""No," he says quickly. "I really think we need some time apart. Not just you—me too. I need time to think about everything .""So, you were lying yesterday?""What?" he asks, clearly caught off guard."Yesterday, when you told me this was all about me, you were lying." I narrow my eyes at him. "So it’s not just about me. It’s about you too. You don’t know how you feel about me, and now you need to step back and figure it out? So this has been all about you the whole time.""No, no. That’s not what I meant." He exhales sharply, rubbing his temple before looking at me again. "What I meant was, I realized a lot of things about you, about us. And those realizations have nothing to do with how I feel about you. Because what I feel for you—it cannot be challenged. I have no doub
I start walking past him, determined, but he doesn’t move. He just stands there, blocking the doorway.I sigh, frustrated. "What is this? What do you think you're doing?" I ask. "Are you going to stop me? What are you going to do? Hold me here against my will? Keep me hostage in your house?""No, that’s not what I’m doing," he says quickly."Then please," I say through clenched teeth, "get out of the way."He steps aside, but his eyes are pleading, his hands slightly raised in surrender. "Wait."I stop and look at him."Okay, fine," he says. "If you want to leave, fine. You can go. I won't stop you."I scoff. "Emerson, I thought that was obvious. I came here of my own free will. I will leave here of my own free will. I wasn’t asking for your permission.""Just… hear me out. Please."I fold my arms. "Okay, what is it?""You want to leave? Fine. But you don’t have to leave this way. It’s late," he says, glancing at his watch. "It’s the middle of the night—one in the morning. There’s no