On the third floor of L.H. Group, Lerisa Jonah stood up from her executive secretary seat as she had finished her office work for the day.She worked as Anthony Gregson's secretary, so she stepped out of her office seat and picked up her black handbag from her desk, ready to go home.Lerisa was a fair-complexioned young lady, 24 years old, wearing a yellow shirt, black pencil skirt, and black shoes. She wondered why she hadn't seen Anthony leave his office.She knew that Anthony usually closed by 5 pm and left the company before 6 pm, which was the company's normal closing hour.Similarly, she made her way toward Anthony's office door to find out what was still delaying her boss, as it was already after 6 pm, and most of the staff had gone home.Approaching Anthony's office door, Lerisa knocked and heard him respond, “Come in.”She pushed Anthony's office door slightly open, stepped into his office, and saw him seated on his executive office chair, staring at a red ring box in his hand
Anthony ignored responding to Mark. He didn't even avert his gaze or bat an eye at Mark Terry for a second when Mark stepped into his office. Anthony's gaze was fixed on Lerisa, whom he was staring at with concern.Lerisa felt embarrassed after seeing Mark apologize to Anthony. Mark exited Anthony's office immediately, shutting the door behind him.Mark already knew that Lerisa had a crush on Anthony, which was why she rejected his love proposal.He shook his head in denial after seeing Anthony holding Lerisa closely by her arms, confirming to him that they were secret lovers pretending to be siblings in front of the other staff.“Lerisa..." Anthony called her name again, making her shudder in his hold and snap out of her trance, as he was still holding her arms closely.Anthony knew Lerisa was not in a relationship, so he wondered what had made her look sad and if someone had broken her heart or was troubling her."What's wrong with you? Don't tell me it's nothing when you look this s
Lerisa walked into the living room of her family mansion and found her mother standing beside the dining room, arranging the chairs.Her elder brother and younger sister weren't around as they were still in school."Good evening, Mom," Lerisa greeted her mother but didn't stop in the living room as she walked toward the corridor that led to all the rooms in the big house.Mrs. Antonia wondered what had happened to her first daughter when she saw how red Lerisa's face looked.She immediately called Lerisa back."Come here, Lerisa! What happened at the office today? Why does your face look so red?"Lerisa stopped and replied, "Nothing, Mom, I'm fine."Mrs. Antonia sighed and dismissed Lerisa."That's alright; hurry up and come join your father and me for dinner.”“Okay, Mom,” Lerisa replied, darting into the corridor as she went to her room to take a bath.She stepped into her room and shut the door. She cried and leaned against the door for support as she moved toward her pink bed to dr
Anthony continued to think about why Lerisa wasn't happy, as he didn't have any siblings and had always seen her as a sister.He sighed and focused on the road, driving home. Soon, he arrived and drove into the garage before getting out of his car and walking up to their mansion.“Good evening, Mom and Dad,” Anthony greeted his parents as he entered the living room and saw them sitting in the dining room.His mother smiled and replied first, “Welcome home, Anthony. How was work today?”“Fine, Mother,” Anthony said, walking toward the stairs to go to his bedroom. However, his mother spoke up, “Wait, Anthony, won't you join us for dinner before heading to your room?”Anthony paused, looked back at his mother, and replied, “Okay, Mom. How's the birthday preparation going? We'll celebrate it here in the event hall tomorrow.”Anthony went to the dining room to join his parents. He pulled out a seat and sat down across from his father. His mother replied, “Fine.”Anthony's phone rang, and he
Lerisa finished dinner with her parents in the dining room. With none of her siblings at home, she stood up, locked the house entrance door, and returned to her bedroom to sleep.She went into her bedroom, picked up her phone, and saw that it was after 10 p.m. She was surprised to see many missed calls from Anthony, so she immediately called him back to find out why he had called.When the call connected, she spoke first: “Hello, Anthony.”Anthony was still in his bedroom, preparing to have dinner with his parents before returning to sleep.He saw his phone ringing, noticed it was Lerisa, and answered.“Hey, Lerisa. I called earlier to check if you got home safely and if you're alright now.”"Yeah, I'm fine now. Thanks for checking," Lerisa replied. She knew Anthony cared for her like an older brother, but she wished he could see her beyond just a sibling bond, as she loved him too.Anthony said, “Okay then. Goodnight. I'll visit you tomorrow morning to check on you again.”"Okay," Ler
Anthony finally looked back at Lerisa's face and said, "I have to go home now, Lerisa. I hope you're truly feeling fine."Anthony drank from the bottled water in his hands again, looking directly at Lerisa. She replied, "Yes, I'm fine. See you later this evening."Lerisa's pretty, fair face turned sad again as she remembered that Anthony would propose to Clara that evening. Anthony and Clara had been dating for three years or more.Anthony noticed the change in Lerisa's mood as her face turned red. He immediately asked, "What's wrong with you again?"Lerisa snapped out of her trance and replied, "Nothing, I'm fine.""Hmm, you keep telling me you're fine when you're not. Tell me the truth, Lerisa. What's bothering you? You can share anything with me. You know I care about you, and I know you don't have many friends aside from me.You don't have a boyfriend, or maybe you do, and I just haven't met him. But that's no reason to look sad," Anthony advised."I don't have a boyfriend, Anthony
Ben chuckled, knowing he had been asking Lerisa out, yet she didn't want to accept him.Lerisa was the first woman who had ever rejected his advances to date her, and he was determined to have her by force, whether she liked him or not. Ben believed that, with time, Lerisa would fall in love with him too.He replied, "Does it matter how I got your number, Lerisa? The truth is that I want to hear your voice. I have been searching for your mobile number and finally got it from somewhere else.""Where?" Lerisa asked, frowning, not wanting to have anything to do with Ben.She knew that Ben was also from a rich family, not the first son, but he owned a hotel and was doing well at his age, despite being the same age as Anthony.Lerisa asked him, "Why are you calling me?""Chill, babe. Why are you sounding so pissed off? Yesterday, I saw that you looked so sad, and that made me truly worried about you. I couldn't sleep well last night, which is why I am calling you now to know how you're fari
Lerisa sighed, knowing she couldn't miss Anthony's birthday party. She had attended every year since his 8th birthday, and now he was an adult.She knew that if she avoided attending Anthony's party, it might seem as though she was jealous or holding a grudge, and her parents would frown upon her.Lerisa focused on the road as she drove out of the street, planning to take another turn before reaching the main road.Just then, she saw a man and a woman kissing in front of a black car parked on the street.Lerisa wondered who the shameless couple was, kissing in public instead of somewhere private.She knew that mostly rich families lived in the estate, as most houses were individually owned and occupied by the owners and their families, rather than tenants.As she drove past the black car, she recognized the woman as Anthony's girlfriend, Clara Harry, kissing a man by the roadside.Lerisa's jaw dropped, and she slowed down for a better view.Initially, she intended to look away from the