Alena Fleur
"When can we start working again?" I asked Elian when we were eating our brunch on the patio of his estate.
"We will get the clearance today, so from tomorrow, but it's Friday. I don't want the opening day to be the last day of the week—"
"So, Monday. Great," I said happily. "I can spend the next three days, warming up your heart."
Elian glared at me and said, "You can forget about that because you are going back to your apartment after this meal."
I gasped dramatically. "How can you kick me out after sleeping with me last night?"
He flashed me a tight-lipped smile and said, "We just slept on the same bed,
Chapter 26: Mission JealousyAlena FleurOn Monday morning, I entered the office with a confident smile.I didn't avoid the private elevator like the plague I had been for a week before the office closed down. I was pleasantly surprised to see Elian and the CFO of our company, Kevin Williams."Good morning, Mr. Storm," I greeted professionally, then gave Kevin a less formal smile and said, "Hello, Kevin."Elian arched an eyebrow at the use of the first name. He knew I didn't call anyone by their first name, except Anya. But it was part of Lance and my plan.When I talked to Lance on Thursday night, he gave this brilliant idea that I just had to flirt with someone else to make Elian realize what h
Chapter 27: TherapyAlena Fleur"Elian, you don't think I sold out our company, do you?" I let out, my voice rising at the accusation."No, of course not. I'm not saying that. I'm just saying your laptop is the only one that wasn't checked—" Elian tried to reason."You're indirectly saying that I copied the data from my laptop—""Will you just listen to me? The data might have been copied from your laptop, but it wasn't you, I'm sure of that."I calmed down a little after he said that. "So you mean to say, someone else copied from my laptop and sold it out?""We can only be sure if you let Jace check your laptop," Elian replied.
Chapter 28: New PlanAlena FleurIt was torture to seat through the whole therapy session as the words "someone who loves her" kept ringing in my head.Although the result of the therapy was pleasant. Just through our first session, I had regained the memories of the start of my second year when I met Elian.In our university's backyard garden, I had been twirling in the first snowfall of the year giddily when I heard someone cursing the snow in disgust—and that was how it all started.When the session was over, there was an excited skip to my steps.Kevin was obviously gone, given that Elian was here now."Alena," Elian called out when we were outsid
Chapter 29: DesiresAlena Fleur"But why would Anya do it?" I realized the answer as soon as I said it. "Of course, she would. She needs money for her mom's treatment."Anya's mother was on life support from a severe car accident a few years ago. Anya was her only daughter and her husband was a useless alcoholic. The poor girl was left to fend for her mother and herself.I almost didn't want to believe that Anya could be backstabbing me.She was the assistant of the previous COO for a whole year. I had been a little afraid that she would hate me since her previous boss was fired because of a huge blunder he made. But after I met Anya, I realized I had nothing to worry about. She has always been so utterly sweet to me. She would give me rando
Chapter 30: Tracing MemoriesAlena FleurThe rest of the week wasn't as eventful as I hoped it would be.Elian and I had an unspoken rule that no romance during work—free and break times were an exception. As much as I felt giddy to see him anytime, it was in our best interest to keep our work and private lives separate.I made sure that spending more time in Elian's cabin didn't catch Anya's eyes. The last thing I needed was for Anya to get on my back actively, knowing that I was involved with Elian.I wasn't afraid of Anya. Not that much, at least. After all, I had been secretly training under the personal trainer Lance sent for me every day after work. I now knew how to use more than three types of guns, how to get out of being capt
Chapter 31: ProtectorElian StormI pushed Alena against her apartment door, kissing her deeply.God, I had missed this so much—her slender arms around my neck, her nimble fingers in my hair, her body pressed against mine, her soft lips on mine. I missed her so much it was crazy.What the hell was I thinking about so much? I loved her more than anyone else. I wanted to be with her. There should have never been any questions or rejections.I had a talk with my brothers who made me understand that there would always be negatives in life and I shouldn’t let that fear of something going wrong to dominate me. Meanwhile, I had let the fear of losing her again take control and pushed her away. All of that was stupid and cowardly.
Chapter 32: TeasingAlena Fleur"Keep it in my room," Elian said to the maid who had just taken my clothes bag from him.I raised an eyebrow and asked suspiciously, "What's that about?""You are staying in my room," he simply said, heading up the stairs that led to his bedroom."Why?""I don't like the idea of you staying in another room while you are at my place.""You do know that we just started dating today?" I asked just in case he messed up the timeline, following close behind him."So? We will just sleep together and cuddle. It's all innocent, Alena," he reasoned.
Chapter 33: VacancyAlena FleurI was sleeping peacefully in Elian's arms until there was a knock on the door.I cracked an eye open to search for the clock in the room until it landed on one. It was only five-thirty in the morning.Who the hell has business with Elian so early in the morning?I tapped Elian on his arms that were wrapped around my bare waist, mumbling, "There's someone at the door. Open it."Elian grumbled something incoherent and rolled over to the side, indicating he didn't want to get up now.Giving him a kick in the shin, I sat up, my brain dysfunctioning. I put on the white shirt I had worn last night and went to get the door.
Prequel- Chapter 15: GoodbyeElian Storm"David, I am willing to surrender myself if you hand over Alena to me safely," the steady but desperate words I uttered over the phone were ones I never imagined doing."You are such a fool, Elian. I never thought you would stoop this low for love. Such a disappointment," came the sneering response of the leader of XS gang, David Garner."I don't have the time for chit-chat, David. Do we have a deal or not?""Alright, you got it. Come to the location I will send you. I know I don't have to say this to you but come alone and unarmed," he warned.I hung up the call without bothering to reply."Elian, I don't have a goo
Prequel- Chapter 14: Last FightElian Storm"What should I say when I first meet them, Lance?" I asked, feeling slightly jittery."For the umpteenth time, Elian, I don't care," Lance replied flatly."Come on, help your brother out here," I whined."How should I know, man? Do you think I have experience with meeting my girlfriend's parents?" Lance retorted."Right, you don't have a girlfriend," I snorted."Who needs a trouble like that?" he said with a bored look."It's not a trouble—""Besides, can you just be a little disappointed that the XS members e
Prequel- Chapter 13: Hidden TruthAlena FleurAs time passed by quickly, the minutes blended into hours, the days slipped through my fingers, and before I realized it, weeks turned into months, and months transformed into years.Finally, it was here.My graduation.It felt as though it was just a few days ago when Elian graduated, but before I knew it, it was already my time to graduate.These past two and a half years we spent with each other was an enchanting experience that filled my heart with lasting memories of joy and love. I never wanted to forget these wonderful times.I was smiling through my university album when my phone rang.
Prequel- Chapter 12: Chance RuinedElian Storm"Fucking hell, just get off already," I muttered under my breath, trying to get rid of the stubborn blood stain on my phone case.It was my favorite one, and yet, in a rush, I made the mistake of picking up Alena's phone while my hands were all bloody. I couldn't ignore it, either, knowing all too well how Alena would scold me."Looks like I will just have to order a new exact one—"Just then, I heard the front door open."Shit. I really shouldn't have given my key to her." But what else could I do? It would be suspicious if I didn't, given that we had been dating for one and a half years now.I threw my
Prequel- Chapter 11: For HimAlena FleurI stayed quiet as Elian vented out his anger.I stayed quiet as he confessed he loved me.I stayed quiet as he walked out on me, shutting the door in my face.I wanted to stop him, but my muscles wouldn't move. I became numb. He had always made me speechless, but never in this way. My chest had never hurt like this before.My legs gave up, and I plopped down on the edge of his bed, tears stinging my eyes."What should I do? Wha–what should I do?" I asked myself, my voice choking up. "What if... what if he never comes back?"I buried my face in my hands, full on sobb
Prequel- Chapter 10: Unleashing The AngerElian StormI was deep in my slumber when I heard shuffling around me. I peeked an eye open to find Alena running around my room in a hurry while getting dressed."Good morning, babe," I mumbled groggily, stretching my arms and rising up from the bed.Alena stopped in the middle of putting on her cardigan and came to give me a hurried kiss. "Good morning, baby. Did you sleep well?""I always sleep well when you are with me," I replied and tried to catch her for another kiss, but she was already on her way to the dressing table to grab her hairbrush."Of course, I'm the most huggable person ever," she praised herself.I smiled looki
Prequel- Chapter 9: First DateAlena Fleur"You are a man of your words, I see," I teased when I opened the door and found Elian sporting a red denim jacket."I had to go buy this," he grumbled, rolling his eyes.I laughed and kissed his cheek. "Baby, it was a joke, though."Yesterday, after my exams were over after one week, we were riding on his motorbike when I told him that he had to wear something red for me since we missed our chance to celebrate Valentine's Day. It was solely for the purpose of teasing him. As expected, he profusely denied it, but in the end, he gave in to my persistence and said that he would wear a red denim jacket or shirt.The more time I spent with him, the more
Prequel- Chapter 8: Midterm CrisisElian StormIt was midnight.Standing on the deck of a yacht, I was watching over the unloading of cargo full of illegal products on the dock. The movements were swift and quiet, though. The only sounds which could be heard was the waves crashing against the dock and the creaking of the wood underneath the footsteps. Although there was a touch of nervousness in the air. None of the men dared to misplace a single item under my watch.In short, I was getting bored. I wanted to see Alena.That reminds me..."Did Braxton agree to shift their business somewhere else?" I asked my consigliere in a low voice. Braxton was the head of the gang that ruled the crime activities
Prequel- Chapter 7: Heart StringsAlena FleurThe moving day finally came. It was the first day of February—the first day I would live alone.The days leading up to here had been torture because I hated packing. But I comforted myself with the dreams of the end result.My roommates had kindly offered me help, but I humbly denied it. I didn't have too many things to bring anyway. I just accepted Tiara and Sara's help. They were the ones I hung around the most during classes—also the ones who teased me the most about Elian."Al, why didn't Elian come?" Sara whined."So that you could tease him? No way in hell," I told her, opening a carton of my books and keeping the books in their place on t