After tucking Caleb into bed, Elena stepped out of his room and closed the door gently behind her. However, she paused, frowning when she tried to open her own room’s door and couldn’t.Strange, she remembered not locking it from the outside. In fact, she never locked it from the outside, considering she never really had the keys.What the hell was going on? Was the door stuck?She groaned. It was already past dinner, and after spending the entire evening at the beach, chasing Caleb and trying to ignore Simon and his advances, she was tired as hell. She just wanted to drop onto the bed and sleep for at least a century.But no. Luck wouldn’t have it that way, would it?She scrunched up her face in annoyance and went downstairs to find the caretaker—the only person who might know what to do with the door that refused to let her in. She found Sato, the old lady, in the kitchen as usual, wrapping up everything before heading to her quarters. When Sato noticed Elena, she turned her full at
Betty Adams sat in the waiting room on the hospital’s top floor, juggling business calls as best she could while her boss remained elusive.But that wasn’t her only concern at the moment.Ever since the big boss—Mr. Josh Matthews—had shown signs of consciousness, doctors had been parading in and out of his room as if carrying secrets in their pockets. They wouldn’t talk to anyone but the butler, avoiding eye contact with anyone else in the room.Betty hadn’t realized just how much power the family’s butler held until this very moment. None of the doctors or nurses entered or left Mr. Matthews’ room without first consulting with the butler.But that wasn’t all. There were guards outside the hospital, around the hospital, and inside the hospital—even in the elevators—keeping an eye on everything that moved or occupied space. There was so much security in the entire building that Betty wondered if she would ever be able to go home without raising suspicion.Not that she had anything to hi
Elena woke up with something heavy on her waist.She tried to shift, to turn, to glance over her shoulder, but Simon was so tightly wrapped around her back, she couldn’t move.She sighed. This was exactly what she was afraid of: that she would agree to move into his room, and he would leave no chance to make her life miserable.And why the hell was he suddenly so heavy? Did he sleep with weights in his pockets?God, she knew she was making no sense. But what more could she do?“Simon!” She tried to push him with her elbow, hoping he would get the memo and give her some space.But no. Of course not. Instead of moving away, he snuggled even closer, so much so that he was almost on the edge of cutting off her oxygen supply.“Simon!” She grunted again. “God, wake the hell up. I can’t breathe.”“Don’t you think it’s too early to be dramatic?” he rasped from behind, the words almost a rough whisper against her nape. So hot, so steamy, she almost felt a shiver run up her spine. Not just that.
Elena could have sworn she saw red.How ruthless could this man be? And even at the innocent age of ten? And what the hell was wrong with his father? How could he take a child for a hunt? How careless could he be?There was so much she wanted to say, so much she wanted to let out, but before she could get another word out, Simon rendered her speechless by shoving the door wide open and making her stumble backwards a little.Her eyes widened when she realized what the hell he had done.“You—” but she couldn’t even call him out on his stupid, smug face when he pressed her against the cold-tiled wall and locked her hands over her head.“You lied,” she finally gritted out, hating him for making a fool out of her. She was stupid to think he was telling her the truth, stupid to believe literally anything that came out of his mouth. Why couldn’t she just imprint in her brain that Simon Walsh couldn’t be trusted? That this man—this terribly handsome man with eyes so beautiful he could easily
Josh stood among the tombstones and stared at his wife’s name engraved on a white, shiny plaque.Shelly Matthews.The dates of her birth and death were printed below her name.Such a short life she had lived. She was only 27 when…He swallowed, unable to finish the thought and looked away, as if to distract himself, as if to collect himself, as if to force the weakness out of his system and do what he was there to do.When he felt his eyes wouldn’t betray him and he wouldn’t choke on the sorrow tightening around his chest, he shifted his gaze back to her, making a point to take a deep breath.He opened his mouth to say something, but only air came out.Why? He wasn’t sure. Maybe he had nothing important to say. Or maybe words would never be enough to tell her what he really wanted her to know.But what difference would it make even if he poured his heart out?Nothing. Nothing at all.For a moment, he imagined himself lying next to her, holding her hands, and tracing the lines of her pa
Hey there, fabulous readers!Exciting news – I'm penning my inaugural "Author's Note" for this book. Why now? Well, because I just stumbled upon this sneaky little button in the corner, inviting me to add more notes. I swear, I've been as blind as a bat!But can you really blame me? I'm more like a copy-paste person.But enough about my technological misadventures, let's talk about you guys.Firstly, I owe you a big, bold APOLOGY (yes, all caps!) for my lack of replies to your comments. Blame it on my trashy phone and its trashier touch. Typing on that thing is like wrestling an octopus. But fear not, I do catch glimpses of your lovely comments whenever I can, and they make me grin like a Cheshire cat.Thank you, thank you, thank you for diving into my work with such gusto. Your presence here means the world to me. I've got mad respect for each and every one of you.Secondly, I would like to mention that, yes, I know I have messed up a few details in the book. For example, the color of
“Caleb, be careful!” Elena warned, her heart in her throat as she watched the little boy run ahead. The sea of other shoppers conveniently parted as he made his way to the toy store.Caleb slowed down just enough to glance back at Elena, a mischievous grin on his face. “Auntie Elena, you’re so slow. Are you getting old?”Elena chuckled, trying to keep up with his boundless energy, doing her best not to think about how Simon had done a thorough job of making a mess out of her, making her ache in places she didn’t even know it was possible to feel pain.Her back hurt from being pushed against the hard shower wall, and her legs still shook from the intensity of her multiple orgasms. But, it was the delicious, satisfying feeling of him being inside of her, and the warmth of him spilling himself into her that made everything worth it.A huge part of her knew she wasn’t being rational, that she was doing exactly what she had vowed not to do—fall for his charm. But dear God, how could someone
Betty Adams sat in the front seat of the car and tried her best to keep her gaze on the road. She couldn’t believe her heart was still beating so fast and loud underneath her chest. Why? Because every second spent in the company of Josh Matthews was like standing in front of the burning sun.A part of her was terrified of getting burned, while the other part remained in shock, unable to believe this was actually happening. It wasn’t exactly her fault, though.For almost two long years, she had seen the man play hide and seek with death. If not for the steady beat of his heart, a passerby could easily have declared him dead. The man hardly moved over the span of several months and gave hardly any signs of waking up soon. And now, seeing him not only awake but also walking and talking and brooding in silence, she felt mad anxiety pool deep in her stomach.Even now, as the three of them (including the driver) sat in silence, her shoulders remained stiff and her eyes sharper than ever. It
Hey lovely readers,First of all, I would like to say a huge thank you if you’ve made it to the end. It wasn’t an easy journey, I know, but you stayed, and that means everything to me. :)Secondly, let me get straight to what I said I would be talking about in this note.I know a lot of you (probably all of you) must be wondering what happens with Josh next, and what about Angelina, Betty, Caleb, and the other kids.No worries—the reason I decided not to continue their stories here is that I’ll be exploring that story arc in a new book. It will probably be published soon (I’ll do my best, I promise). I realized that Josh’s story needed its own space because there was so much I wanted to write for him, and that couldn’t happen alongside Simon and Elena, who were obviously nearing their happy ending.But yes, it’s impossible to write about Josh without Elena, so Elena and Simon will be making appearances in the new book as well. Maybe sometimes more than I intend, because God knows I lov
After their little party was over and everyone went back to the guest rooms to rest, Elena laid their sleeping daughter in her crib and tucked her nicely.A pair of warm hands slid around her waist from behind, a kiss landed on her shoulder. “Thank you for today. How long have you been planning all this? And how the hell did you manage to invite Josh? I didn’t take him for a party person. Not these days.” He whispered into her ear, making her skin tingle.“You have to ask me how I got your brother to attend? I have my ways of making people do what I want.” She grinned as she turned in his arms and looped hers around his neck.He grinned as well. “Is that right? Do those ways include threatening? Do I want to know the details?” He said jokingly, knowing how Elena is, and she was very much the kind of person who’d go out of her way to make the things that were important to her, happen.“Oh, I think you don’t really want to know. But, I just had to do it for you.”She gave him a light kis
Simon woke up in the middle of the night, his heart racing.He looked around himself, patting his hand around in search of the person he was hoping to find. But to his dismay, there was no one else on the bed with him.“Elena?” he said out loud, frowning at the darkness.His hand patted the sheets and pillow again, trying to feel for her body, but he found nothing. Where was she? Where did she go?“Elena?”No response.He was starting to worry now. Where was she? He could feel a sense of dread slowly filling up inside him. He needed to find her. He needed to know if she was okay.Suddenly, he heard footsteps coming from outside his room. He quickly got out of bed, put on his sweatpants and a t-shirt and opened the door.There was no one in the hallway. It was eerily quiet.He frowned, he could swear he heard someone walk by just now.“Elena, are you here? Please say something, darling. It’s me.” He said as he walked slowly to the end of the hallway, bare feet.Just when he thought he
Elena stood outside the doors, clutching the bouquet tightly in her hands. She was shaking, and she knew that anyone who could see her right now would notice, including her brother, Josh.“You’re not a very confident bride, are you?” he teased.She rolled her eyes, wanting to punch him but refraining from causing any casualties at her wedding.“I’m just nervous, that’s all.”“Understandable,” he said, taking a deep breath. “Trust me, you’re not the only one.”She looked up at him, unsure of what he meant. “What do you mean?”“Simon probably feels way worse. I mean, did you see him before he went into that room with his friends? He was sweating bullets.”She shook her head. “You’re making that up.”“I’m not, I swear!” He chuckled. “He’s just as scared as you are, if not more. And that’s a sight I never thought I’d see in my life.”She smiled a little. “I guess you’re right. He is pretty intimidating.”“Exactly. So you have nothing to worry about.” He patted her shoulder. “You’ve got thi
Richard whistled, and Danika watched as Greg, standing outside the room, appeared and uncuffed him.“What the fuck?” Danika was shocked. “How did you… How did you do that?” She turned to face Greg. “You… you work for me, not him! Cuff him back to the door, you giant imbecile!”“Sorry, miss,” Greg said in a deep voice, “I don’t think I will. Mr. McDowell here paid me a lot more money than you to change sides.”“What?!”“That’s right.” Richard stood up, rubbing his wrists. “This is over for you, Danika. Let’s just end this before anyone gets hurt.”Shocked and now furious, Danika was not someone who would give up so easily. Her fingers tightened around the scalpel in her hand. She would fight. She would not go down without a fight.“You think you can win, Richard? You think you’re so smart, don’t you? Well, you’re wrong. I’m not going anywhere. If I can’t have Elena, then no one can.”Without warning, she lunged at Elena, swinging the scalpel towards her throat. But before she could eve
“Is everything set up?” the first man who carried the unconscious bride asked.“Yes,” Greg, who stood outside the operating theater, nodded. “The room is ready. All the equipment is working fine. Just leave her inside, and that woman will handle the rest.”“Sounds good to me,” the other man said, wiping the sweat off his forehead.“Yeah, me too. I just want to get this over with as soon as possible. I don’t want to be here for too long. My wife and daughter have been going on and on about this wedding, and if they come to know I was part of it, they’ll never let me hear the end of it,” the first one said.“Don’t worry. You’ll be paid handsomely,” Greg assured, opening the door for them. “I’ll make sure of that. We just need to do our jobs and get out of here. Simple as that.”“Fine,” the two men said in unison.Danika was waiting for them next to the table, a smile on her face. “Ah, there you are. Any trouble?”“No. Everything’s fine.”“Excellent. Place her on the table, please.”They
Danika was so damn ready for the final stage of her revenge.She had planned everything meticulously, and now all her efforts were coming to fruition. She was smiling to herself when the phone rang, and she picked it up, already aware of what she was about to hear.“We got her,” the man with the deep voice said. “On our way now. Will be there in twenty.”“Perfect. See you then.”She hung up, unable to stop the grin from forming on her face. Everything was going according to plan. And it was just getting started.She looked around. She was standing right in the middle of an abandoned hospital, the perfect place to host her little celebration. She couldn’t wait to see the look on Simon’s face once he realized his bride was gone. And this time, for good. He would be devastated, broken, destroyed. The thought alone was enough to make her laugh.“What’s so funny?” Richard asked as he walked into what looked like an operating theatre.“Just imagining Simon’s face once he realizes I’ve taken
Simon was pacing outside the bridal suite, restless and nervous. One of the servers had informed him that Elena wasn’t feeling well, and he had dropped everything he was doing to rush over and see if she was okay, or if they needed to cancel the wedding. Because he totally could. Nothing was more important to him than his soon-to-be wife’s well-being.“Come on, open the fucking door! Let me in. Just once. I swear, I won’t even say a word.”“Not yet, Simon,” came the familiar voice of Diana. “We talked about this. You can’t see the bride before the wedding.”“Fuck that. This is a fucking emergency. She’s not answering the phone. What if something’s wrong?”“Relax. She’s fine. She just needs a few minutes alone. The excitement is getting to her. But she’ll be out soon. Don’t worry.”“Diana, I swear to God, if you don’t open the door right now, I’m breaking it down. I don’t care if I have to chop the entire thing down.”“Go away, Simon. Or I’m going to tell Elena what you did the other da
And while celebrations and laughter were being shared in one part of the world, in another corner, a different kind of gathering was being planned—a more sinister, dark, and twisted celebration.“I knew I’d find you here,” a familiar voice whispered in his ear. Richard glanced over his shoulder, frowning at the face he hadn’t seen in a while. But there was no mistaking it. The woman was actually here, and the first thing he wanted to do upon recognizing her was to wrap his fingers around her throat and squeeze until she stopped breathing.“What do you want?” he growled, turning back to his drink as he sat at the bar of one of the elite clubs.“Why? No welcome? Where are your manners, Richie?”He hated it when she called him that.“What are you doing here, Danika? I thought I made it clear you were not to contact me again.”“And I thought I made it clear that I have no intention of backing off until you realize that we both have the same enemy. Until you agree to work with me.”“You are