SINI don't miss the knowing look on Ryder's face through the rearview mirror as we drive off, I know what he wants to say, he wants to question why I have let her off again but it's all a game. I have set the trap for my little mouse and she is going to fall for it without hesitation."They are having new intakes at the club today, I could have Matteo shift it till -" Ryder informs me making a turn but I barely let him finish his sentence. "No, don't have him shift it. I am back now and should see how things have been during my absence," I say.Ryder nods understanding my response, he makes another turn and turns up the volume of the music on the car stereo while I lean back in my seat, thinking about the club.Before I left town years back, I began a project to build a club, a secret I kept from my father, including my extended family. I wanted something of my own, something that didn't tie me to the family wealth or make me have to eventually rely on my father's money. The club s
MAE I expected his company to be an actual company, not a darn club. I should have figured that out by the name LILITH but I thought it was a brand name. Silly me. The bouncer by the door gave me a tough time refusing to let me in when I told him I was there to see Sin, I was forced to call the number on the card to prove to him that I knew Sin but the line wasn't going. The bouncer soon called Sin when he noticed his business card in my hand. According to him, Sin doesn't hand his business card to random people. It doesn't take long when he tells me to follow him inside. As I step into the club, we walk through the crowd of people drinking and dancing to the top floor, the bouncer looks back at intervals confirming that I am behind his trail. We make a turn and stop in front of a door, he knocks once before opening the door for me to step inside. As I walk into the room, my eyes fall on Sin sitting down on a couch with his bodyguard standing beside him whispering something i
MAE I knew it. The offer was too good to be true, and what would he want me to do for him now? Isn't it enough trouble that I have humbled myself before him begging him to help me? Something we both know I would never have done if not for the situation I am currently in. "What do you want me to do?" I ask knowing whatever he wants won't be good. "If we are going to do this, we have to do this the right way. I can give you anything you want Mae. I know you are sick and tired of your boring life and want something better and I can be that person who changes everything for you," he says taking a sip from his wine glass with a mischievous grin on his lips. "but what are you going to give me if I decide to do that." "I am not asking you to do that, all I want is a loan and I will..." "But you see you will want more than what you are asking for eventually, you are a very ambitious woman." I stare at him wondering what he is trying to ask of me, why do I feel like I know what it is but
MAE As I stare at my signature on the contract, a sense of dread washes over me. What have I gotten myself into? Is the temporary relief from my financial troubles worth sacrificing my dignity and self-respect? But I can't back out now, can I? Sin made sure to remind me of my limited options, and I can't deny that he has the power to help me for now. "I failed to mention, it is a two year contract," he says. I look up at him, frustration and anger threatening to consume me, "I hope you're happy now," I mutter bitterly, my voice laced with defeat. "You got what you wanted." Sin smirks triumphantly, his eyes gleaming with satisfaction. "This is a business arrangement. Keep emotions out of it," he says, his tone filled with a mix of amusement and something else I can't quite decipher. My heart sinks at his words. How can he be so cold about this? Doesn't he realize the impact this will have on my life? But I can't let him see my vulnerability. I force myself to put on a confident fa
MAEI pause for a moment, debating whether or not to tell her the truth. I have always told her everything, I never hide anything from her, but I don't think I can bring myself to tell her everything just yet."Well, Em... I ran into an old friend and took a loan. You remember Sin right? Sin Hayes," I confess, my voice barely above a whisper.Lily's eyes widen even further, a mix of shock and worry spreading across her features. "Sin Hayes? The guy you publicly humiliated and dumped back in high school."I return my phone to my pocket, "Well when you put it that way, it makes me look like a bad person." Lily's concern deepens as she takes in my expression, I can sense she doesn't believe I am being completely honest with her. "So, Sin is back in town?" "Yeah, I was surprised to see him," I let out a sigh, running a hand through my hair trying to keep my emotions in check as the memory of the night we first met came into my head, "We talked at length and I confide in him and then he
MAEI spend the next hours keeping Lily company, we discuss my job and how I am currently still job hunting. She tries to divert the discussion to Sin Hayes but I change the topic and discuss Jason instead and our break up.She soon falls asleep holding my hand, I remain by her side for some minutes just staring at her face grateful that her bills have been sorted and treatment can begin immediately. Checking the time on my wrist watch I decide it's already late and time for me to head home. I wanted to spend the night with Lily, but she reassured me that it was okay and she will be fine. "I love you," I murmur planting a kiss on her forehead before leaving. I step out of the hospital and walk towards the taxi stand. The doctor assured me that with the chemotherapy Lily's condition would improve over time, which is good news. I hail a cab quickly, settling into the back seat I direct the driver to my apartment. As we arrive at my apartment building I pay the cab driver and step ou
MAEThe next morning, I woke up to a loud banging on the door. Groaning, I roll over and check my phone. It is 7:00 AM. Damn you Sin.Scrambling out of bed, I throw on a robe and hurry to the door. When I open it, I find Ryder by the door with his hand in the air about to knock again."Good morning, Miss Winchester," he greets me with a stoic expression. "Mr. Hayes has sent me to escort you to his penthouse."I cross my arm over my chest, "Can I at least freshen up and pack my things?" I ask irritated by how early he showed up. I was expecting him but not so early.Ryder sigh. "Mr. Hayes will attend to your needs, your presence is all that is required.""Fine.""I will also prefer to wait inside while you freshen up, orders from Mr. Hayes," he says like he is not pleased by the idea himself.I hesitate for a moment wondering if Sin thinks I will run away, before reluctantly stepping aside to let Ryder in. He steps in scanning the room before turning to me."You have thirty minutes Mi
SINAfter leaving her room I head to the study room, I have some unfinished paperwork to attend to. As I open the door I find Ryder arranging the files on the table. "Sir," he says standing upright. "I was dropping the file you asked for regarding Miss Winchester's family.""Right," I say going to sit down on my chair, leaning forward I roll my shirt sleeves up to my elbow securing it in place before reaching for the file on the table to go through it briefly. "You know what, just fill me in on the basic details in the file," I asked leaning back into the chair and staring at him. He nods before speaking, "Miss Winchester's family died in a car crash two years ago, her extended families turned up for the burial and ordered Miss Winchester and her sister to leave the family house with nothing."Nothing? How is that possible? I lean forward and open the file to see what he is saying to me."According to them Miss Winchester's father was an adopted child and the wealth he had wasn't h
NOAH"Noah, I know what happened. I remember everything. And I know you saved my life. But that doesn't give you the right to leave me without a word. To break our engagement and walk away. You need to understand, I thought we had something real. Something worth fighting for," she says, her voice cracking with emotion.I nod, feeling a pang of regret. Of course, what we had was real, I sent her 500 million without batting an eye, all I wanted at that moment was her and it still is, but I..."Aria, I know I made a mistake. I owe you an explanation. I just... I don't want you to get hurt because of me, I don't want your parents to..." Aria closes the distance between us placing her hand on my cheeks, I feel the warmth of her hand zapping away the frustration and anger building up inside of me from what had happened that day and how things could have turned out worse."So, what? You are going to be a coward by allowing Melissa to get into your head.""She killed two women I was involved
NOAHI thought falling in love was complicated, no, it's loving them from a distance that is quite complicated, seeing them and being unable to hold them, touch them, or even talk to them.I've been away for two weeks, trying to clear my head and make sense of everything. The investigation, Melissa's arrest, Aria's coma... it's all been too much. I know I shouldn't have left without talking to Aria, but I couldn't bear the thought of hurting her more than I already have. I've been watching her from afar, making sure she's safe and recovering well. But now, as I'm back in town, I know I will need to face her soon. As I step towards my car at the airport, I'm bombarded by reporters. "Noah, how does it feel to be back?" "Noah, what's your response to the allegations?" "Noah, are you dating anyone new?" I ignore them and rush to my car, but one of their questions strikes a nerve in me, "Do you think Melissa will have the new person in your life killed?"I turn to stare at the reporter
ARIA"Where is Noah? Is this a joke because I do not find it funny," it's been one month, one fucking month, and the first thing he decides to do instead of being right here with me, holding my hands and comforting me is to run away and give them some stupid rule over what? "What did I do? If anyone should be keeping any distance, it should be me, his psycho friend tried to kill me," I yell."A lot of Noah's flings have all suffered their fair share, Melissa has been secretly fucking up their life. The moment she finds out they are involved with Noah," Arthur explains. "The investigation found out that two of the girls died, they were able to trace it back to Melissa," he adds.I feel a chill run down my spine as I process this information. Noah's flings? How many girls has he been involved with? Two of them are dead? And all this happened while I was in a coma.My mind is racing with questions, but before I can ask any of them, Arthur drops another bombshell."Melissa had the inten
ARIAThey say a near-death experience is different for everyone, I have read that some people wake up not remembering anything leading to their accident. The last thing I remember is seeing Noah's face before blacking out, but the memories are still sharp in my head.I wake up to the beeping of machines and the antiseptic smell of a hospital, which I hate. I try to sit up, but a sharp pain in my stomach makes me wince. I look down to see my stomach is bandaged, I look around, disoriented, and see my mother sitting in a chair beside my bed, her eyes red and puffy from lack of sleep.She gasps as she sees me awake and trying to sit up, "Aria, my child, you are awake, you are awake" she yells standing on her feet, relief washing over her face.I try to speak, but my voice is hoarse and barely audible. My mother rushes out of the room and I can hear her screaming at the top of her lungs for the doctors to come, she soon comes back in with not only the doctor but my dad and Arthur. "Ari,
NOAH"Can you make a reservation at the Haute Cuisine?" I ask, making a turn into the road leading to the cabin."Is it a business meeting, Sir?" Brian questions. "I can have it set for -""It's a date Brian, not a business meeting," I interrupt him, parking the car right in front of the cabin. For a second the phone goes silent on the other end, Brian probably wondering why I am having a date in an expensive restaurant downtown and canceling my schedule for the day."A d-date?" Brian finally says stuttering. "I mean yes Sir," he says and I am sure he is already scribbling away on his note. He has always had a thing with jotting every single word I say, well it has always been useful for him especially since I love my things done almost to perfection. "A date at Haute Cuisine tonight, what menu are we looking at?" "Do not place an order?" I am not sure what Aria would like, it will be best if she makes the order instead. Anything she orders is fine by me as long as I get to look at h
ARIAMelissa stands in the doorway, a stern expression on her face. "Well, what do we have here?" she says, her voice firm but polite. What the hell is she doing here and how did she get in? Did Noah not close the door? I am sure he wouldn't have made that mistake, to keep the door open."What the hell are you doing here and how did you get in?" I ask, my voice getting loud with each word.Melissa chuckles and walks into the room, her eyes scanning the space as if searching for something. "I have a spare key, what? Did you think you are the only one Noah has brought to this cabin?"Rolling my eyes, I kiss my teeth not answering her question, it doesn't matter who has been here before. Although, I am jealous of the idea of him sharing this space with another woman, but he has made it clear that I am all he needs in his life and that is enough for me. "Anyways," she continues. "I wanted to see Noah, I have been trying to reach him since last night but he wasn't picking up my calls."O
ARIA"This should fit just fine," Noah says handing me one of his T-shirts from the wardrobe, I don't know how he convinced me to spend the night in the cabin, if anything I should be heading home to be alone, and think about the proposal but I want to be here with him. Whenever I am with him, every other thing seems meaningless. Noah had suggested spending the night at his house first, but I was against it, at least for now. His mother would just have us married at sight, if anyone wants us paired together other than Noah, it's her.I put the towel on the hanger and wear the T-shirt over my head, the T-shirt fits like a dress, big and just above my knee. I check my face in the mirror, packing my hair into a ponytail before leaving the bathroom. I am not surprised when I find Noah in his pajamas standing by the door waiting patiently for me to come out. His eyes light up the moment I step out, his eyes falling from my face to his T-shirt on my body. "Noah, you're staring," I say, t
NOAHDammit!I have placed her in a spot, look at her eyes, I can see the desire to say yes, but also the confusion at how soon this is all happening. I knew I should have waited a bit, but I don't think I can.The thought of someone else and not me being her life is going to completely wreck me. I always have this ring, it has been in the family for ages, all I had to do was ask my mother for it. She was stunned when I asked, "Are you sure Noah? I mean I am happy you are finally asking for the ring, but are you sure you want it?" She asked."Aria, you don't have to say anything right now," I say, not wanting to get rejected. Her rejection will hurt more than her silence. "How about you think about it? I don't want to pressure you into anything okay?" I say holding her hand and placing the ring in her hand. "Y-You want me to think about it, while I hold on to the ring?" She stutters. "That's a lot of pressure Noah, and... And this ring looks like a family heirloom."Of course, she d
ARIA"So, what's it with you and this cabin?" I ask as he offers me a glass of wine before joining me on the couch. "Do you bring all your girlfriends here?" "Girlfriend?" He chuckles taking a sip from his wine glass. "I don't do girlfriends Aria, you are the first."First? I don't know if I should believe that or not. "The cabin is just a safe space for me, away from everyone," he continues."Well, the reason I wanted us to meet was because of my parents," I begin, taking a sip from my drink. He raises an eyebrow, " Your parents? Are they fine?""Yeah, they are but my dad suspects foul play, he thinks someone might be on to him and my mum. He said the accident was caused by the brake failure," I explain. "He wants his recovery with that of my mother hidden for now, he hopes this will hopefully lure out whoever is behind it."Noah takes a sip of his drink, nodding his head, "You want me to hide seeing him and your mother?""Yeah, for now of course," I say."You know, you could have