TWO WEEKS LATER
“Prepare dinner, do the laundry and clean the house!” These were Daniel Winters’ daily orders every time they came back to the penthouse after an exhausting day from work.
Why on earth did she think that Daniel Winters was prince charming anyway? For the past two weeks, he had been anything but charming. In fact, Daniel was insufferably mean to her, often working her to the bones without giving her any rest whatsoever. The only time she got to sit down and rest her aching feet was when she breastfed little Timmy in the nursing room, but apart from that, she had become his errand girl; making coffee, printing papers, delivering files, ordering lunch and even dusting his office!
“Oh, and wash the bathroom too,” Daniel said as soon as she came out from the maid’s room after having bathed little Timmy.
Jane blinked. “But..I just washed your bathroom last night,” she answered, frowning. She was ex
“Jane! JANE!” Daniel called from the kitchen. It was a quarter past eight in the morning and she was nowhere in sight. Usually, the island table would be filled with a chockfull of her breakfast creations by now. His stomach rumbled like thunder and he frowned, not happy with the absence of the happy meal. With hard lines set across his face, he tightened the knot of his silken dark green robe and marched to the dimmed corridor which housed Jane and Timmy’s room at the very end. A few raps on the door later and Daniel’s annoyance turned into budding anxiety. Strange, why wasn’t she answering? He could hear Timmy’s gurgles coming from within the room. He rapped his knuckles against the bedroom door again, and this time, his forehead creased with worried lines. A sense of foreboding crept upon him and he called out, “Jane? You there?” There was no answer. Daniel pressed his ear against the door. There was breathing, it was ragged and faint and Daniel’s own brea
It was dark and the moon was up by the time Jane opened her eyes. The soft moonbeam streamed into the bedroom via the glass window and a dimly lit table lamp at the side table helped further brighten the otherwise darkened room. Her head was still spinning. The ceiling above looked like it was orbiting on an endless merry go round and Jane had to close her eyes briefly to stop herself from getting nauseated again. But at least the buzzing in her ear was gone, that was a good sign. The absence of the buzzing in her ear meant only one thing, that the vertigo would soon fade away. And she hoped it would be pretty soon. She would have to be careful though, one wrong move and the buzzing might just come back with a vengeance. Slowly and with great difficulty, Jane turned her head towards the side table only to let out the tiniest gasp. Daniel! Fast asleep in a leather armchair next to her bed was Adonis in the flesh. He was shirtless and deep in s
“Put me down this instant!” Jane yelled, hitting Daniel’s chest, kicking her legs and struggling to get out of his arms. “Or I swear I’ll –“ DING DONG! The penthouse’s doorbell bell rang, and Jane froze in surprise. “Ahh, they’re here,” Daniel chirped. Who’s here? Jane shot him a look of bewilderment, her arms still in the air ready to strike him. Daniel took the opportunity to swing her in the direction of his private elevator and with one biometric scan of his eye, the elevator door slid open to reveal two women. “Good morning Mr and Mrs Winters,” the women called out and bowed their heads in unison. They were both wearing a black and white ensemble of a domestic maid’s uniform, complete with hair pulled neatly into a bun. The older woman sported streaks of white hair while the other was much younger, with a healthy sheen of shiny black hair and a striking pair of purple contact lenses. “The nanny and the maid.
Jane’s first kiss was neither earth shattering nor was it one that set her on fire with passionate moans and wild thrusting of tongues. It was none of that. Instead, Jane’s first kiss was like the waking up of one’s soul on a fine spring morning allowing her to taste and feel every colour of the rainbow in their own sensual way. It was like catching a smile in a bottle complete with its softness and its sweetness. It was like everything had faded away and nothing else existed except the two of them. It was a kiss that Jane would remember for the rest of her life.Over the course of the next few days, Jane found herself in a free fall into the budding flowers of love. It was stunning as it was scary and Daniel affected her in a way no one ever did before.He would head off to work during the day while Jane stayed back with the maids and little Timmy while she recuperated. And in the evenings…oh the evenings..Jane looked forward to them the most.
*Kindly note that this chapter contains explicit sexual content. Please read at your own discretion. Alternatively, you can skip to the next chapter for ‘the morning after’ * There was a flash of uncertainty mixed with a tinge of fear. He saw it in her soft hazel eyes but Daniel could no longer contain himself. She was like a Christmas present that he had but did not own, a prized possession that he could only admire from afar but never touch. But tonight, Daniel decided to give in to the desire that had been screaming from within him since the day he first laid his eyes on Jane. Tonight, he would make her his. Oh yeah, me Tarzan, you Jane. Pinning both her hands onto the soft cottony bed, he leaned forward and pressed his mouth against hers, feeling her lips quiver before he gently nibbled and bit at them. They were wet and moist, just the way he liked it. Jane squirmed, pushing her feet against the bed cover and tried to turn her hea
“Welcome back Mrs Winters!” Pepper shouted in delight the moment Daniel and Jane stepped through the office elevator the next morning. As usual, Daniel shot Pepper a scowl before he placed a protective hand on Jane’s waist, ushering her and baby Timmy to head to his office. But to his surprise, Jane ignored his prompting and stepped aside to hug an absolutely delighted Pepper. “It’s good to see you, Pepper,” she said with a smile. Timmy, caught between two women’s bosom gurgled in delight. The boy had a taste for fine things. Scowl as he might, Daniel was secretly very happy today. Even more so the night before when he watched Jane drift off to sleep in his arms. She was his, she was truly his! And he intended to keep it that way. Now if only he could just find the time to tell Jane of his intent to make the contract an indefinite one. One that would ensure the two of them became lawful wedded husband and wife for the rest of eternity. Perhaps he would tell her of hi
Marie, Jane’s stepmother had been summoned to the meeting. In she stepped into the meeting room looking very much like fish out of water. Her eyes bulged as she took in the foreign faces in the room and Marie swallowed a lump in her throat when all eyes fell on her. Even that weird looking pup with pink ears was staring at her. It was Marie’s first time ever in a board meeting and boy did everyone look intimidating! Especially that son in law of hers.She peered at Daniel Winters as she tiptoed past his towering figure, careful not to make a sound. A phone call earlier that morning had her rushing to Winters Architecture with a promise of getting a limited edition Hermes bag if she would ‘just sit in the meeting’ and to answer ‘yes’ to everything she was asked of. And boy was she going to say ‘yes’ to everything. A yes to a brand new bag, a yes to some extra cash and a yes to whatever goodies they threw her way. Oh yes, she was
“Marie! Why did you come here?” Jane demanded the moment she dragged her stepmother into the elevator. She could not believe that Marie had the nerve to step into Winters Architecture, especially not after all that drama about severing their family ties a month ago. Marie almost ruined everything for Daniel!Fuming, she pressed the ‘L’ button on the floor indicator repeatedly to bring them down to the lobby. Anything to get the woman out of the way. She could not afford to have Marie rushing back into the meeting room to cause any more damage than she already did.Her stepmother inspected her wrist and feigned a hurt look before pouting her lips. “Oh, Jane…I came because I was worried about you. You can’t imagine the surprise I got this morning when Portia called. She told me that your marriage is a sham. Of course, I did not believe it, but as your mother…”Jane shot a look at Marie and her stepmother clea
Daniel Winter’s heart was a vortex of confusion and complex emotions. There was fear, sorrow, grief and anger all coming together at once and in many respects, it was like a roller coaster ride through a darkened tunnel. The mourning and grieving were great, and the fear of living a life without Jane was very pronounced. Then there was pain…so much pain that it felt as if his heart had been pierced with a poisoned sword a hundred times over. Through his tears, Daniel gently lowered Jane onto the ground and shifted his gaze at the man, to the enemy who had preyed on Jane and took everything that he loved from him. “You….YOU!” Daniel roared and leapt into the air, lashing out at Logan with a hammerlike claw. He landed a blow, smashing the side of Logan’s head and brought a string of stars to the man’s vision. Logan tumbled backwards and hit the apartment’s wall with such an incredible force he collapsed to the floor. “YOU BASTARD!” Daniel climbed on top of Loga
Daniel slipped Jane’s phone into his pocket. It was then he noticed an odd odour that smelt like a cross between burnt plastic and flowers at the same time. The smell was extremely nauseating and giddy.Quickly he made his way out the apartment and into the corridor and was trying to locate Jane while warding off a strange scent when suddenly, the blast of a gun shot louder than the rolling thunder rang through the darkened halls.The sound was deafening, and instinctively, Daniel brought both hands to his ears. His eyes widened in both surprise and fear. What the heck was that? And the first persons that came to his mind were both Jane and little Timmy.“Jane! Timmy!’ he shouted, whirling around trying to identify the source from which the blast had come from. Behind him, the door next to Jane's unit opened and an old lady with frizzy permed hair and extremely thick glasses popped her head out.“What the fuck is that? Is it Word W
MOMENTS BEFORE THE ROAR OF THE THUNDER…The gods must have heard Jane’s cry for mercy that day, for right before Logan could pop the button of her jacket, his very own phone began to ring to what else? Bobby McFerrin's ‘Don’t worry, be Happy’ tune of course.“Hey, Milo! Yeah man, I was just about to call you. I’ve got the money.” He rubbed at his nose again and scratched the base of his throat as if it irritated him. “So you’d better give me my nose candy soon. I’m running low on my stock.”Jane’s eyes widened.He’s on crack cocaine! No wonder he smelt so strange! The man’s a junkie!“Yeah…I got me a big fish,” Logan continued and chuckled. He got up from his crouching position, seemingly having lost his interest in the pursuit of physical pleasures and walked out of the room, leaving Jane lying on the stone-cold floo
Daniel blinked as he stared at the phone and took a few deep breaths. If that Philip Summers or Logan or whatever his bloody name was dared to harm even one strand of Jane’s hair, he would personally wring the guy’s neck himself. But what consumed Daniel was not anger, rather it was a gutwrenching fear. It latched upon him the moment he heard Jane’s muffled screams through the phone. God, please let her and Timmy be okay. The taxi driver peered at Daniel through the rearview mirror and cleared his throat. “Sir…are we still heading towards Mangrove Apartment? Shouldn’t we get you to the hospital instead? Your hand’s kinda mangled.” Daniel looked at his bloodied fist. Blood dripped onto the upholstery and his mind started to play tricks on him. It was his fault, if only he hadn’t pushed her away, if only he had kept her safe! What if the bastard bled her like how his hand bled? Stop thinking nonsense! He groaned and sh
Jane opened her eyes to darkness, pitch black darkness and the first thought that crossed her mind was her child.“Mmph! MMMPH!!!!!”Both her hands and ankles were bound to the back of some wooden chair with what felt like cable ties and she was gagged with a piece of damp smelly cloth in dire need of a good wash. It was pointless to struggle, but she did so anyway, cutting her own skin in the process.Where was Timmy? Was he alright? The thought of her child consumed her every thought as she continued in her relentless struggle to free herself. As she did, her eyes began to adjust to the darkness, allowing her to see the outline of the room and the furniture around her. A long desk filled with trays, plastic bottles and silhouettes of strange-looking machinery took form as her irises familiarized themselves with the darkness.The darkroom! I’m in his apartment!Jane rocked the chair left to right in an attempt to topple
Daniel stepped out of his office building just as the clock struck nine and stepped into his car only to realize that his cousin, Wayne had hijacked the driver’s seat.“What? Did your new business venture go bust? Are you driving for a living now?” Daniel could not help but shoot sarcasm at the man behind the wheel. Wayne turned around, resting his elbow on the armrest and sighed. He looked tired too with dark rings behind his glasses. Not that Daniel fared any better, they both looked like pandas right now. Sexy hot pandas with six-packs.Wayne cleared his throat. “I came to apologize.”Daniel leaned against the backseat, crossing his arms. “Oh wow, confession of the century. I’m impressed.”Another sigh came from the front and Wayne revved the engine. Frowning, Daniel asked, “Where are we going?”“To Jane’s apartment.”“The heck we are.”&ldquo
Everything fell into place. The apartment, the darkroom, the photos… Jane stared at Logan as he continued smiling with a look that made him seem like he wanted to eat her alive. If sadism had a face, then Logan Summers would be the perfect poster boy for it. “Hello Logan,” Jane greeted him back in a steady voice but deep inside, she wanted to kick herself for not recognizing him. How could she have missed those icy blue eyes? They were the same as Timmy’s! Her heart hammered in her chest and she held her child tighter. “Come, come. The food is turning cold. We must eat them while they are still warm. Logan, I made you your favourite pie.” Jane’s eyes flew from Mrs Woolworths to Logan as he shut the door behind him with a kick of his leg. The old woman was obviously unaware of her nephew’s hideous crimes and started to usher them both to her tiny dining table by the window. Jane took in a deep shaky breath and forced a smile at the older woman. “Mrs Wo
Jane buttoned up her coat and was just about to carry little Timmy from his cot when the doorbell rang. Her eyes fell on the door and her eyebrows knitted together. Surely it wasn’t Wayne Winters? She did not want to see his face ever again.But her feet had a mind of their own and soon, Jane found herself standing in front of her own door and peering through the peephole. It was the old lady from next door. With a huge exhalation of pent up breath, she quickly unbolted her door.“Hello Mrs Woolworths,” Jane greeted the ageing widow. They had spoken a few times before and Jane had found the old lady warm and friendly. Mrs Woolworths looked up from her extremely bent posture and flashed Jane a toothy grin through her thick-rimmed glasses. Years of osteoporosis and arthritis had shrivelled her like a withering plant but her megawatt smile brought a much needed warmth to Jane’s heart and she welcomed the old lady into her humble abode.&ldqu
Daniel threw his phone at the wall, smashing his latest gadget against the plagues and flooded his office with an explosion of expletives. “Calm down Mr Winters. Anger won’t serve to help you in any way,” came the voice of a woman in her late forties. She leaned back against her seat and crossed her arms, tilting her head towards the plagues that thudded to the floor. With a sigh, Daniel slumped back into his swivel chair and slammed his fists against the table. The woman rolled her eyes and shook her head. “Mr Winters, I did not come here to see you throw a tantrum.” She tapped at his desk with a large brown envelope. “And I believe you should have listened to your wife on the phone. She sounded desperate.” Daniel felt a stab of anger. “Mind your own business.” “You were the one who sought for my aid Mr Winters, not the other way around. I helped you answer the phone and am merely relaying my observation to you. Anyways, I’ve brought the info