Ryder Sitting down in the boardroom filled with hums of low conversations and papers shuffling, my mind was not present.I sat at the head of the long table, staring at my presentation on my laptop but all I could see was Ophelia's tear-streaked face.Her words kept playing in my head, unable to believe some of what she said. She has never raised her voice when speaking to anyone, but today I saw another side of her. And that side stirred up something deep inside me.Damn it.I gripped the edge of the table until my knuckles turned white. This wasn’t supposed to happen. I wasn’t supposed to be affected by her.“Mr. Smith,” someone called, pulling me out of my thoughts.“Yes?” My voice was sharp, and I didn’t miss the slight flinch from the junior associate speaking to me.“We are waiting for your input on the merger strategy,” he said with a slight bow.I nodded curtly, forcing my attention to the screen of my laptop. I wasn't following the meeting but I had the report with me. Skim
Ryder“What were you saying?” I asked.“I called you yesterday but the call wasn't getting through. I hope you don't mind Dave staying here” she said. “You should have told me before bringing a stranger into the house” her brown etched in a frown at what I said.“Dave is not a stranger, and this is my house as much as it is yours; I can entertain anyone I want to,” she said all in one breath, her tone sharp.I raised a brow, studying her and she looked down. “I want to finish up the cooking,” she said dismissively and turned away from me before I could respond.She was behaving differently, like she was on the edge. She was not meeting my eyes, nor was she attempting to make conversation with me like she usually does.At least she isn't in my space. Instead of feeling that relief, I felt something different and it gnawed at Me. Shaking off the thought, I went to my room to freshen up. My eyes were heavy, so I decided to sleep for a few minutes but I eventually slept for hours. I put
OpheliaI wasn't able to sleep throughout the night. The feeling of his lips against mine and the feeling of his hands lingered. My response to him shocked me to the core. I wasn't supposed to show him he affected me. I have shown so much and ended up getting hurt in return by him. Not able to get any sleep, I got up very early to make breakfast. I had told the nanny and the cook not to come till later this morning.Almost done with breakfast, I saw Ryder enter the kitchen from the corner of my eyes. “Good morning,” he said, heading towards the refrigerator.“Good morning” I replied, blocking out my memory of the previous night. I tried not to look at him even when that was the only thing on my mind. When he got what he wanted, he left the kitchen, and I breathed in relief.I wasn't ready to face him after the kiss. Especially after I ran away after apologizing.Dave came down a few minutes after and I set the table then went to wake Ryan up. When I got to his room, he was already
Ophelia“You need to stop this,” I summoned the strength to push past him, grabbing a dishcloth to occupy my shaking hands. “Stop what?” he asked, his tone too casual, too calculated. “This. Whatever game you’re playing.” I turned to face him, forcing my voice to stay steady. “One moment, you’re cold and distant, and the next, you are doing this.” Ryder didn’t move, but his piercing gaze seemed to pin me in place. “Maybe I’m not the only one playing games, Ophelia.” “What’s that supposed to mean?” I demanded, clutching the dishcloth like it was a lifeline. “I am not the one that brought another man into the house without my concept,” he said, his voice sharp. “He is all over you, so now tell me, what game are you playing?” I scoffed in disbelief as he finished talking “He is my friend, just a friend,” I said, emphasizing it. “You know what, think anything you want to think” I turned back to the sink, determined to focus on anything but him. But Ryder didn’t leave. Instea
OpheliaThe next morning, the house buzzed with activities. Dave was a ball of energy, moving around to make sure everything was done and perfect. Fresh flowers were delivered, the guest room was tidied, and the cook prepared a special meal. The Nanny was with Ryan so I had time to help Dave.“Ophelia, is this okay?” Dave asked, holding up a vase filled with white lilies.“They’re beautiful,” I assured him, smiling at his nervousness.“Not as beautiful as her,” he said with a dreamy look, and I couldn’t help but laugh.“You’re hopeless,” I teased.“Hopelessly in love,” he shot back, his grin infectious.As much as I wanted to tease him more, a pang of longing hit me. I shoved it aside and focused on helping him.I asked Ryder if I could use the house to welcome my friend, Lily, and he gave a stiff reply stating I should just not disturb him. Well, that is what I am doing; I am helping Dave secure his girl. He would have planned a trip with her to propose to her but he was scared of h
Ophelia“I love my ring so much, it is beautiful,” Lily said, looking at her finger, admiring it.“It is beautiful. He was scared if you were going to love it” I told her, placing my hand under my head.“I would have loved anyone he picked for me,” she said, sitting down and facing me.“I know you would” I gave her a teasing look. “You love him after all”“Are you alright?” Her voice became serious. “What do you mean?” I asked, confusion taking over my features.“You look different, I don't know. You smile, but your smile isn't reaching your eyes,” he said, looking at my face.“I am ok; I am just trying to adjust to this world,” I told her, not wanting to dwell on my feelings.She didn't believe me but she didn't intrude.“Let's go on a double date” she suggested. “I haven't met your husband yet”"I don't know," I replied, not sure if Ryder would accept to go. "Tell him it is for me," she teased, winky confident in her charm. "I promise not to embarrass you… much." I laughed shor
RyderDamn it. Yes, I am jealous.I hit my hand on my desk and ran my hand through my hair.This is so foreign to me. I have never felt this way towards a woman before—jealousy and possessiveness. Just the thought of that man with Ophelia was messing with my head.Seeing him around her, holding her and smiling at her, makes my blood boil. I hate the way he looks at her, the way he talks to her and makes her smile at his words. “Arghhh” I groaned, hitting the table again. She should only smile at me, not him. Why doesn't she smile when I talk or look at me the way she looks at him?‘Because you don't smile at her’ I heard in my head.‘I smile at her’ I defended myself.‘Oh, you mean the dirty smirk you always give her,’ I heard, making me roll my eyes.‘You are even rolling your eyes like her, such a lovesick boy’ that's it.“Shut up,” I snapped, and the voice moved to the back of my head.I think I am going crazy. I sighed ******I looked at myself in the mirror again and left the r
Ryder "I don't want to move," she whined, continuing to stand still. We were just going to leave the restaurant, and Dave had to take Lily home with much ado; Ophelia was being difficult as well. "Ophelia, we have to go home," I told her, trying to reason with her. "I don't have a home," she gulped and sat back down in her seat. "The house is too cold for me. It is not my home." "But Ryan is there," I said, and her eyes lit up. "I miss him so much, my little champ," she said, hugging herself. Suddenly, she burst out laughing in no time. Nobody was in the restaurant; if there was, it would have been a story in every news media the next morning.“Are you really taking me on a honeymoon?” She asked, looking at me with her brown orbs.I nodded and a frown masked her face. “Nothing will happen there, right? You don't want me, I disgust you”“Ophelia stop this, and let's go,” I said, but she shook her head."Why don't you like me, Ryder?" she explosively asked, her voice going up wi
Ophelia's Pov I opened my eyes to the cold room. I checked beside me but didn't find Ryder with me. The duvet was on me which I didn't do myself.I swung my leg to the floor and stood up from the bed. I headed to the living room, and I saw Mum sleeping on the couch.What is she still doing here? I thought she went home.I walked past her to the kitchen to make myself something to eat. At the sound of moving about and making noise, she woke up and sat straight, rubbing her eyes.When her eyes settled on me, she stood up immediately.“You should go home, Mum. You will have body pain by sleeping on the couch,” I said without giving her a glance.“I am not leaving until you talk to me,” I continued doing what I was doing.“And I don't want to,” I said.“Please, even if it is the last thing you do if I join your father,” I froze before turning to look at her.“Are you threatening me with that now? I have lost Dad, not you, again. Is that how you want to play it? I am angry with you but I
Ophelia's Pov I moved my eyes from the bottles on the table to Mum.“What truth mum?” I asked, curiosity eating me up.“I would like you to listen to the story I am about to tell you,” I said slowly, trying to gain my acceptance and I nodded.“When your father died, it was the darkest time of my life. I couldn't handle a kid all by myself not to talk more of two girls.I tried to handle both of you together, bring you closer, and make sure you are alright, but you withdrew yourself totally. I should have put in more effort but I didn't. I only made sure you were safe because of your illness, but emotionally, I didn't try.Olivia was the only one who I was close to so when the two of you went to university, I didn't monitor her like I did to you. I knew nothing about her love life or health,” she paused before continuing.“Few days for you both to graduate, I stumbled across your book when you wrote about hating a guy Olivia was with. Then I started looking after her and that was when
Ophelia's Pov As the car drove from the station to the house, Olivia's confession didn't leave my head.How? How did it happen? I have always blamed her for everything but I was the villain in her story. She was hurt because of me.As I rested my back on the passenger's seat, my thoughts went back to 20 minutes before I left the station.******“Since when and how long do you have more?”“Since I was in university. I had a breakdown and was rushed to the hospital, tests were conducted and I knew about it. I don't know how long I have but I know it isn't soon.”“Why did you tell Mum or me?” I asked as a tear escaped my eyes and rolled down my cheeks.“It was bad enough I was the black sheep. I didn't want to make Mum worried. It was hard seeing her breakdown during Dad's death and how she struggled. If you don't notice, she still dies and that is why she buried her head in work.”“You should have told someone, we could have helped. Is there any treatment for it or any way you can man
Ophelia's Pov “Why?” I paused trying to brace myself together, “I didn't take dad from you. I never did,”“Really? You didn't?” She moved her chair and fixed her gaze on me. “Who was his perfect princess? Why read day and night to make sure Dad is proud of her? Who goes to meet Dad any chance she gets so he can spend time with her? Who was Dad's favorite?”“Olivia—” I started, but she interrupted me.“You made him distant from me. Then you came sick and all the attention was shifted from both of us to only you. Only Ophelia deserves to rest while I go to school activities. Only Ophelia deserves 24/7 monitoring. I began to fade and I became your shadow. It was all about you,” she screamed with tears flowing down her eyes.She is getting it all wrong, or is she right with what she said?I was suffocated and choked. I blamed my sickness for that and envied Olivia whenever she could go anywhere she liked or do anything she wanted.“I didn't know you felt that way,”“You wouldn't because
Ophelia's PovI sat in the interrogation room waiting for the officers to bring Olivia out.The sound of the door opening reached my ear, and I saw Olivia enter the room.My eyes met mine immediately, and I offered a little smile, which she returned forcefully.“Hi,” I said as she took her seat.“How are you doing?” I asked and she shook her head.“Shitty,” she replied and I nodded, looking down my fingers.“I know. It isn't the best place to be in,”“Are you finding means to get me out?” She asked.“Not yet—,”“Why?” She interrupted me with her voice harsh. I looked into her eyes, and for the first time, I saw something I had not noticed before.Anger.“Olivia, why?” I asked, maintaining eye contact with her. I watch her eyes transition from anger to confusion.“What?”“Why did you do all of these? Why did you hurt your family? Why did you hurt me?” She didn't reply to me; she only held my gaze for a few seconds.“Do what, Ophelia. You and Ryder should find out how to get me out of
Ophelia's Pov Three million dollars.The amount kept ringing in my head. The amount was huge. Why did she take a loan of that amount and what did she use it for?“Got it,” Dave said and gave me his phone.I read through her information, and every line I read got me more confused.I looked up from the phone back to Ryder. “How is this all true?”“There are pictures to prove it; scroll down,” Dave said, and I did as he said.There were a few pictures of her, from old to recent, but a picture caught my eye, and I zoomed in on the picture.The cloth. It looks familiar. I went to the search bar and typed my name. Many articles popped up, but I went to the videos and searched for the video of that day's accident. There was no video of the accident on the web. But I saw it while I was in Brazil.At that moment, Ryder came down and I turned to him immediately.“Ryder, the accident video is not on the web anymore,”“Yes, I took them all down,” he said, sitting down next to me. “Why?” he a
Ophelia's Pov As I watched the video, I felt a strangling knot in my stomach.Paul was on the call with someone as he placed about.“Did you do everything I asked you to?” He asked the person on the other side.“Listen to me. Go to my place and do exactly as I instruct you unless the boy dies,”“Talk to you later, Olivia. I have to feed the boy,”On hearing Olivia's name, the knot in my stomach tightened.I turned to Ryder.“She knew,” I said and he nodded.“That is the only evidence we got that the kidnapping is tied to Olivia,”Wow.“I need time to process this,” I stood up and walked to our room.I lay on the bed and closed my eyes, wishing that what I saw would disappear, but it only got clearer.I knew Olivia was tied to it one way or the other but confirming it now was hurting me more than I thought.After some time, I felt fatigue slowly kicked in and I slept off.******Waking up from the bed, I stood up and went to the bathroom to wash my face before leaving the room.I went
Ophelia's Pov Desmond and Ryder were checking all the CCTV cameras around the side where we found Ryan.They are looking for any connection with Olivia.I was with Ryan as he played with his toys. His little fingers moved busily as he stacked colorful blocks on top of each other. His soft giggles filled the room.I felt my phone vibrate beside me and I removed my eyes from Ryan to my phone.I saw 5 missed calls from Dave. When did he call that I didn't pick up? My brows furrowed. I looked at Ryan to make sure he was alright before calling him back.“Hi,” “Ophelia, are you alright?” He asked directly.“Yes, I am. How is Lily?” I asked.“She is fine. We are married,” the line went silent after that.The words settled in, a strange tightness forming in my chest.“Erm,” I cleared my throat. “That is good; I am happy for both of you,” I said, my voice coming out tighter than I intended.“Ophelia, I—”“It is okay.” I cut in, forcing a small smile even though he couldn’t see it. “You are
Ophelia's Pov A heavy silence fell over the room. The implications of what we had just uncovered were unsettling. Could Olivia have orchestrated Ryan’s kidnapping? Why would she do that if she did?I glanced at Ryder, his jaw tight, his hands clenched into fists. His expression was unreadable, but I could sense the storm brewing beneath the surface. Gina sat stiffly on the couch, her fingers twisting together. “I— I don’t want to believe it,” she whispered. “But if she could do this to Ryan, what else is she capable of doing?” Ryder exhaled sharply, running a hand down his face. “If Olivia did this… If she put our son in danger…” His voice trailed off, but the quiet fury in his tone was unmistakable. “She faked her death and framed me, what else can she not do?” I asked aloud, trying the grasp the realization we just made.A cold shiver ran down my spine. Olivia had always been manipulative, but would she really go that far? To harm an innocent child? Her biological child?