A week had passed since Olivia encountered Noah in her apartment, and while they hadn't run into each other in a week now, she had managed to find out why exactly he had come back to taunt her after a whole decade.She hadn't really paid attention to his life after she had left him, but after a couple research, she finally fell upon Noah's problems. His half Brother, Damian Grant, was out to destroy his life. Olivia knew about Damian, the illegitimate son of the Grant family. He had been one of the few people who made life bearable for her while she had still been married to Noah. Since he hadn't been raised and spoiled as a child, Damian was a better human being than Noah, and while he had his own faults as well, he was a lot more tolerable than his half brother. From the article she had read online, she had come to know that Damian had contested Noah's ownership of the family's company. Ten years ago, Damian had been single, but had gotten married three years later, and had a daug
Michael glanced over his phone for the millionth time, expecting Amelia to call anytime soon. He was still going over everything in his head, and the more he thought about it, the more strength drained from his body. He had no idea how to break the news to Amelia or Olivia. But it was necessary he does, he wouldn't be able to cheat on Olivia, he cared for her and genuinely loved her with all his heart. After half an hour of waiting, the long awaited call finally came through, and Michael wasted no second in answering. "Where are you?" He demanded the moment he answered the phone, moving away from places where he could be overheard. "At the airport, you said you'd come pick me up, right? Or should I come straight to your office—""I'm coming to pick you up!" Michael interjected sharply, not letting Amelia finish her words, or the idea of ever visiting him while he was at work. Amelia wasn't the quiet type of girl, she always loved being the center of attention, and Michael was certa
Micheal remained stunned for a good minute, unsure if he was actually staring at the sweet Amelia he used to know. He hadn't seen this part of her, and it had genuinely scared him. "I..I'll drive you home." He managed to squeeze out after a minute of awkward silence between them."No, that's no fun at all. Show me around town, let me get to know your new life." Amelia suggested, a clever scheme to find out the lady who Michael had tried to replace her with. If Michael succumbed to her request, then chances were that she would meet this lady that Michael had fallen in love with. Michael on the hand was quick to catch on to Amelia's plans, and immediately dismissed that idea. "You're exhausted, you should get some rest. We'll save the tour for another day—""I insist! It's my body, I know what's best for me." Amelia interjected sharply. Michael clenched the steering wheel, unsure how to deal with Amelia's stubbornness. He knew what she was up to, and she wasn't doing much to cover he
Olivia paused for a moment, her gaze shifting from Amelia to Michael. She arched a curious brow at him, still unsure if she had heard correctly, or if all this was some sort of prank. Nevertheless, she took Amelia's outstretched hand, a practiced smile playing on her lips as they shook hands. "It's nice to meet you, Amelia. I hope you enjoy your stay here." Olivia said before turning to Michael a second time. She expected something from him, a sign perhaps, or even a shift in his nervousness. However, Michael stood still, his gaze focused on the ground instead of her eyes. She didn't push further, she merely turned towards Amelia who had a snarky smile on her face. "Enjoy your tour." She concluded before walking away from the two of them. She had completely forgotten why she needed Michael in the first place, all she could feel right now was anger and betrayal, but she didn't act on those feelings. She wouldn't act on them until she had heard what Michael had to say. "She's g
Olivia found herself staring blankly at the computer screen, the way she had for nearly the past fifteen minutes. With a shake of her head, she drew herself out of her thoughts and tried to focus on getting some work done. But no matter how she tried, the events that had happened downstairs continued to play out in her mind repeatedly. That other woman, Amelia... The way she had acted with Michael spoke of a very long term relationship. She had introduced herself as his fiance, and the hesitation she had seen on Michael's face had been nearly enough to break her heart. Michael had been something she had never thought she would meet after what she had endured with Noah. Noah had done terrible things to Olivia's mental and physical state. All the times he had treated her like she was worthless, and she had been unable to realize all the signals. But once she had, it had almost been too late. She had lost her child but she had been fortunate to come out with her life. In the years aft
Olivia's eyelids drew back just seconds before the alarm clock beside her bed released a particularly aggravating ring that was guaranteed to wake the dead. Her pale blue eyes flickered around the room for a few moments before the ringing became too much to bear. Placing a firm hand on the device, she turned off the alarm and moved the soft blankets off her body. "Sometimes I wonder why I even still keep that thing around," the woman monologued, her gaze momentarily fixated on the annoying machine. Olivia had always been a light sleeper and an early riser, which meant she did not really need the clock. But she still left the small shoebox sized object sit on the bedside table everyday. Just in case. Olivia went down the stairs and straight to her laptop where she wasted no time in pulling up her emails. There was a notification there for a new one and she pulled it up quickly. It was a message from Damian expressing his personal thanks for the invitation to the city and an affirmat
Olivia inhaled sharply as she stepped through the heavy double glass doors of the restaurant. The cool air of the street felt soothing on her skin, although it did nothing to alleviate the sting of emotion that had coursed through her body just moments earlier. Even though Olivia had come here with her own mind full of suspicions, to actually hear them being confirmed was something else though.No, not confirmed. Damian himself had sounded uncertain when he had told her what he had. But still, it was too much of a coincidence that both of them just happened to have thought of the same possibility. And considering the situation and the man involved, that possibility was already most likely the truth. Olivia took hurried steps towards her car, doing her best not to let her emotions show on her face. In all honestly, she should have known better than to have thought that an irredeemable piece of trash like Noah could possibly have any positive intentions for her. That man was devious an
Sometimes Lisa really detested the things she had to go through just to keep up this stupid farce of a friendship. Her oblivious 'friend' Olivia had gone all the way to drop her off right at her home which was the last place she needed to be. On top of that, Lisa had forced herself to wait for fifteen whole minutes to be certain that Olivia had left the area for sure before leaving her house again. As she slid into the backseat of the cab she had called, Lisa's thoughts went back to the young man she had seen just before they had left the restaurant earlier that morning. The resemblance between him and Noah was far too much to be dismissed. Not that Lisa needed any further confirmation beyond Olivia's reaction at the moment they had run into the young man. She knew that Olivia was normally a pleasant person even to strangers. But the woman had acted so coldly back then that it had to be Damian. That information was something that would surely be of interest to Noah. And that meant s
First it was Michael, then Noah, and now Damian? Olivia had gotten scared, and now she could barely focus on the work in front of her. They had all told her to steer clear of her best friend, yet neither of them had given her enough reason to do that, nor had Lisa done anything bad enough for her to just cut ties with her. It was ridiculous, and the worst part of it all was the fact that she had let it get to her and her head. Now she couldn't sleep or close her eyes without imagining a scene where Lisa betrays her. Letting out a deep sigh, Olivia rose from her desk and proceeded towards the door. She needed a break, a quick one to clear her head from all the nonsense that was swirling round in there. Outside, she took a step towards Michael's office but stopped almost immediately. He hadn't spoken to her since she sent him away, and she doubted he would have the time and patience to tolerate her if she tried to speak on the Lisa matter again. Turning around, she made her way towa
First it was Michael, then Noah, and now Damian? Olivia had gotten scared, and now she could barely focus on the work in front of her. They had all told her to steer clear of her best friend, yet neither of them had given her enough reason to do that, nor had Lisa done anything bad enough for her to just cut ties with her. It was ridiculous, and the worst part of it all was the fact that she had let it get to her and her head. Now she couldn't sleep or close her eyes without imagining a scene where Lisa betrays her. Letting out a deep sigh, Olivia rose from her desk and proceeded towards the door. She needed a break, a quick one to clear her head from all the nonsense that was swirling round in there. Outside, she took a step towards Michael's office but stopped almost immediately. He hadn't spoken to her since she sent him away, and she doubted he would have the time and patience to tolerate her if she tried to speak on the Lisa matter again. Turning around, she made her way toward
Lisa bit her lips hard, this was the worst possible outcome of what she had intended. Getting rejected wasn't the problem, the problem was the fact that she had just revealed her intentions to Damian and had gotten rejected. Even though she doubted Damian and Olivia were on good terms, it didn't negate the fact that Damian could go and spill her plans to someone else."What's wrong?" Amelia inquired sharply after noticing the panic and fear in Lisa's eyes. "He refused." Lisa answered subtly, her voice a direct contrast to the war she was fighting internally now. What if Damian said a word to Olivia? What if Olivia believed him? Worse, what if Damian told Noah?!She bit her lips even harder until they were at the verge of bleeding. "That bastard! He better not say a word about this to anybody." Lisa through gritted teeth and curled fists. "You don't think he'll say a word to anybody, do you?" Amelia inquired, panic surging through her. Her and Michael might have found love once again
Lisa was the last person Damian expected to receive a call from. She knew the lady back when Olivia was married to Noah ten years ago, and he knew that she used to flirt around with his brother despite being Olivia's best friend. They never really interacted with each other, so receiving a call from her had been very surprising."What do you want?" He demanded coldly. As someone who used to be obsessed with Noah back in the days, Damian had already concluded that Lisa was an ally of her brother, probably sent by Noah to distract him or do something that would make him lose."There's no need to get so hostile all of a sudden, Damian. For now, I'm on your side." Lisa replied, but Damian wasn't particularly listening to what she had to say.Damian pinched the bridge of his nose as Lisa’s overly sweet voice grated on his nerves. “Cut with the weird suspense, if you have something to say, get on with it.”Lisa sighed dramatically, and even though Damian couldn't see her face he was more th
Amelia rushed towards Lisa's apartment with an urgency she had never felt before. After what happened last night, she wanted nothing more than to get rid of Olivia. She needed to preserve what she had as much as she could, and at the moment, Olivia was the only person who could potentially ruin everything for her.Without caring to knock, she barged into the house to meet Lisa tangled up in the arms of a man she couldn't quite recognize. The sudden intrusion had the poor man up on his feet and scrambling to get dressed as quickly as he could. Lisa rolled her eyes tiredly before sliding a couple of notes towards the man who hurriedly ran out of the house. "You're living the life, aren't you?" Amelia teased as she locked the door behind the semi naked stranger. "A girl is gonna do what she gotta do." Lisa replied before throwing a coat over her naked body. She poured herself and Amelia two glasses of wine before returning to the living room. "What brings you here? And why did you ha
The last thing Olivia expected in the early mornings of work that day was to find out that her best friend was secretly associated with Amelia. It could mean nothing, but with the suspicions circling Amelia at the moment, Olivia had very high doubts about this completely meaning nothing. No, she didn't think it meant nothing. Amelia and Lisa didn't know each other as far as she was concerned, which meant that Lisa's contact info was saved on Amelia's phone for a reason.Olivia stared at the phone in front of her, unsure of what to make of it. She didn't want to believe that her own best friend was friends with someone who clearly despised her very existence. "Maybe it's just a little coincidence." She argued even though it was clear she was lying to herself. From the call log, Lisa was clearly one of Amelia's frequently contacted numbers. That couldn’t be a coincidence. "You're joking right? You don't seriously believe that, do you?" Michael asked, hoping that Olivia was genuinely p
His words had taken Amelia completely by surprise, but the sex had left her completely flabbergasted. She had questions at first, but after the good time she had just had, she had completely lost the strength to question him. But this had been unexpected, and she was still trying to wrap her head around everything. What happened to Michael? Why did he change all of a sudden?She laid on his chest, drawing imaginary figures on his abdomen while her mind rampaged with thoughts and speculations. "You're not playing me, Michael, are you?" Amelia asked softly, her attention still focused on the imaginary figures she was drawing on his body. She wanted to keep quiet, to enjoy this moment as much as she could. But her mind wouldn't just let her rest, there was no way she would be at peace without asking him that question."And what do I have to gain by playing you, Amy?" Michael returned, his tone equally calm. He threw his arms around her back and gently stroked her scattered hair. "I have
Michael got home to Amelia screaming at someone over the phone. At first, he planned on ignoring her, it was always the best way to avoid more problems. But after a while of listening in on the conversation, he had become intrigued and had decided to pay her some bit of attention."What do you mean it couldn't work out?! Do you know how much I paid for those people to come here? You better be playing a prank on me!" Amelia yelled at whoever she was speaking to on the phone. Michael remained hidden, piecing together every bit of information he could from the little sentences he heard. Could the people she was talking about be the ones he had spotted before? What was their purpose here? And what had Amelia paid them to do? And above all, who was she speaking to on the phone?"Don't give me that! I've done my part like you requested, the rest is up to you! I won't take any more risks because of your incompetence!" Amelia's voice pulled Michael out of his thoughts and back to the convers
Noah's legs remained steady on the acceleration pedal until he began to fear for his own safety. It was crucial that he got things done with Lisa before Olivia was done resting. She seemed to be suspicious of him already, the last thing he wanted was for her to wake up and discover that he was gone. Sure, he had a plethora of excuses he could give her, but after their last conversation he doubted she would believe any of them even if they were true. The normal twenty five minutes ride to Lisa's took only fifteen minutes, and Noah wasted no time in barging through the door. "Noah—" Lisa hadn't finished when Noah restrained her against the wall, his eyes red with fury, while his whole body trembled with rage. "What did I tell you about staying away from Olivia?" Noah thundered, his hands gradually tightening around Lisa's throat. "You're hurting me Noah! Stop!" Was all Lisa could say as she struggled to free herself from Noah's grip. She kicked, scratched and pushed, and although he