Zared quickly turned off the shower, slipped into his pjs and took his steps towards Lily's room. He tore the door open and saw Lily lying down on the bed peacefully. He went to her and grabbed her up from the bed yanking her. "Look at you sleep shamelessly like this, it's all because of you, all of it! ""What-what are you talking about? " Lily was confused, she didn't know what was happening, wasn't he with his girl a while ago? Why is he so angry all of a sudden? these thoughts ran through Lily's mind. The next moment Lily's cheek met with a tight slap which she never expected right now. She looked up at Zared with red teary eyes and a cherry red cheek. "What are you doing? " Lily asked him in anguish, she wasn't angry, she was disappointed, she was in loss of hope. "This is what you deserve for ruining everything for me, first you ruin my peace and now my life, you must be enjoying it with a popcorn, am I right?! ""What are you talking about Zared? " she cried. "What happe
"I'm not cheating on my wife- how do I explain it to you""There's no explaining to do-""No there is! Riley- Me- I am not in a consensual marriage, this is just a contract, there is nothing between me and her, there never was and there never will be, she's a damn goldigger and I despise her. It's all for the sake of money and nothing else, or else I would've never involved you in my life, I'm not that kind of a person either, please try to understand, you can even talk to her if you want to. I did everything for the sake of my parents and nothing else"Riley was quiet, she believed Zared but didn't want to. She knew he was speaking the truth but she was hesitating. She wanted the happy days back when she used to hang out with him without worrying about any of these things, she sighed and decided to let it go for she believed him and the miserable state he was in right now, but she was curious. "What's her name? ""Lily""Is she pretty? ""Not at all, she's the ugliest, I don't even
"Oh...is that so ?" Zared raised his eyebrows while continuing to smile. Gabriel nodded and took his leave. Riley's brows were knitted together as Zared turned to her. "I had to tell you were my frien-""I understand" she said with her lips pressed together with a slight smile. Both of them had their dinner and soon settled on the couch with blankets and N*****x on. Zared showed Riley to his room and asked her to be there for a few minutes while he settled and decorated the living room with fairy lights and candles laying down the snacks he brought earlier. He turned off the lights and brought Riley downstairs. Lily watched from upstairs, her hands resting on the grill, she watched them sit on the couch, smile at each other and hug each other as they watched the TV. She sighed and went back to her room. 'As long as he is happy' she thought and pressee her lips. Lily was the strongest when it came to hold on to hope and be happy in other's happiness. All she wanted was his love and
Lily came downstairs at the same time Zared was on his way to his room. The staircase was located at the other end of the hallway and Zared's eyes caught her. Zared stopped and stared at her from the distance as Lily avoided making any eye contact. She looked down and proceeded to walk towards another staircase leading to the living room when Zared's words made her stop. "What we're you doing upstairs?"Lily turned and made sure not to look in his eyes. "Nothing""Talking to your lover on the cell phone huh?" he said in an annoyed tone. "My cell phone is not with me""What were you doing then? looking at him? what? is he outside the house? ""I don't have a lover""As if" he scoffed and turned around but then turned to face Lily again. "You didn't even make dinner" he raised his brows. "Not yet" "Look at me when I'm talking to you" he said forwarding his steps. He leaned near her face so that only a few inches were left between them. Lily lifted her eyes to look into his but f
Lily shook her head again."You expect me to believe you?" he chuckled "I wasn't allowed to date anyone, because of dad"Zared nodded slowly in realisation. "No one wanted to date me either" "I understand that part" he said making Lily look down. "Remember what I said, I won't repeat it again" Lily didn't respond as Zared turned and left for upstairs. Both of them made their way to their rooms and lied on their beds. Zared was staring at the ceiling while lying. He recalled what he felt earlier, with Lily. He didn't know what it was but he knew it was wrong, wrong to feel that way because he already had a girlfriend. He thought about Riley, he always felt at ease with Riley, he felt joy and he was calm and happy, but with Lily? Not the same thing. There was something different, he felt the chaos that surrounded him when he was close to her. She made him feel butterflies. His heart beats fastened and his chest heaved, his emotions would be at peak and he would over react. He lik
The day passed by as a rough one for him as well as his employees. He was in extreme rage, rage which he had no control over. Lily was on the terrace, sitting on the swing and swinging while looking up at the sky, playing with strings falling from the neck of her frock. Zared's actions and his face from so close up and his eyes, oh his eyes, specially his eyes, never left her mind. She was still lost in those thoughts, she was now starting to interpret things, things she wasn't sure if but some where wanted to be. She liked it when Zared got mad about her talking about getting a boyfriend, she thought it was wrong though, wrong because he had a girlfriend, he was breaking her heart if he had any feelings towards Lily and Lily felt bad for Riley as well as herself. It was Zared's birthday tomorrow. She got to know when she first fell in love with him and googled him. She saw his birth date, July 23rd and remembered it ever since, she wanted to make it special , she wanted something b
Zared turned and left for Riley's house as Lily was running to her room crying. She fell down midway but got up and started running again. She slammed the door and fell down crying and screaming, she was being mentally tortured, she couldn't take it anymore, it was too much for her. It's not that she didn't like being close to Zared, but it's that he humiliated her every time and never respected her. It was like he stabbed her heart every time, she screamed calling to God and sceeamed while crying. She was too tired, too tired now, she wanted to be happy, to be at ease, she didn't want Zared to treat her like this or anyone to treat her like this, she was just 18, just 18 and too young to be married? too young to understand stuff? too young to know certain things? too young to be mature? but was she not too young to be tortured? not too young to be physically abused? not too young to be called a wh*re? Lily knew no one could answer the questions arising in her mind because no one t
"I'm sorry, love. I'll need to leave early. ""But why? " she looked sad. "Mom wants me to go home before it's 12 o'clock" he said with a sense of apology. "Can't you just say you're home? " she said pleading him. "I would've, but she wants me to face time her with Lily on reaching home. ""Just stay, maybe she won't even remember? ""She remembers everything, she's mad that I was making excuses and she hung up on me, look this is was she texted me." he showed her the text he got from Clarissa. Riley sadly pouted then nodded. "You can leave after a while, she wants you there before 12 right? ""Yeah, right, but that's what she says when she wants me to reach there at 11 and then she can say that it's too late and I should've left when she got mad. I can't let her be upset for long, she's the most important person for me. ""Fine, there is nothing you can do anyways. " she said looking down at her hands and Zared smiled and pulled her into a hug. "I'm sorry, love. I would've stay
"I can forgive you, I guess. People have done worse than this." She admitted. "Did he do anything to you? What did he come for?" Lily's eyes narrowed. "I’ve had...Damian keeping an eye on you ever since he revealed himself to you...." Aaron admitted, "I didn’t want you to be blindsided by him.” For a moment, she didn’t know whether to be angry or grateful. “Why didn’t you tell me?” she asked, her voice quiet. “Because I didn’t want to scare you,” he said honestly. “I wanted to make sure you were safe, but I also wanted to respect your space. I wasn’t sure if hearing it from me would help or just...make things worse.” Her emotions overwhelmed her, and before she could stop herself, tears welled up in her eyes. Aaron, without hesitation, reached across the table and took her hand. “It’s okay,” he said softly. “You’re safe now. That’s all that matters.” For the first time in what felt like forever, Lily let herself break. She leaned across the table, and Aaron
Lily was sitting in her living room, her mind a whirlwind of the confrontation with Zared and Aaron stepping in, having her back-as always. After all that happened, she wondered if her pushing Zared off was selfish of her. While Lily had grown more mature these years, she had also become cold and made sure to keep herself first at any cost-but this Lily...it was the old Lily...who wanted to think that she was wrong for mistreating Zared-maybe her was disturbed, what could have possibly been the reason for him to fake his death-how big the problem must've been? A knock at the door startled her from her thoughts. Frowning, she checked the time-it was late, far too late for visitors. Cautiously, she approached the door and looked through the peephole. It was Zared. Her breath caught, and her hand instinctively tightened on the doorknob. Part of her wanted to ignore him, but the other part-the one still grappling with the guilt of his supposed death-compelled her to open the
Lily sat across from Clara in her cozy apartment after the massive shock she had, the glow of the city lights filtered through the windows. Clara had invited her over for an evening of conversation, sensing something was weighing heavily on her friend. As Lily sipped her tea, her fingers fidgeted with the rim of the cup. “Clara,” she began hesitantly, “something happened yesterday.” Clara raised an eyebrow. “What is it?" Taking a deep breath, Lily placed the cup down and looked Clara in the eye. “Zared is alive.” Clara froze, the mug in her hands suspended mid-air. “What?” “He came to my office. I didn’t recognize him at first, but it was him, Clara. He’s alive, and he... he apologized for everything.” Clara placed her cup down, her expression a mixture of shock and confusion. “Zared? As in Zared Williams?The same man who k*lled himself? How is that even possible?” Lily shook her head, her voice shaky. “I don’t know. He said it was complicated and that he was tryin
Lily sat at her desk in her company, her fingers hovering over her keyboard. The day had been long and draining, but there was still a stack of work to get through. She sighed, rubbing her temples, when a soft knock interrupted her thoughts. “Come in,” she called not lifting her head up. The door opened and closed behind. “Do you need anything, ma'am?” "No, thanks." "Would you like some coffee?" "No, you can go." Lily said, her tone cold as her eyes remained on the screen. “Some tea?" he asked Her brows furrowed but her eyes remained on her paperwork. "I dont need anything, leave before I fire you." There was a pause, but the person in front of her didn’t leave. Instead, he took a step closer. “Are you sure? I can fetch you tea, coffee... water, maybe?” Lily looked up briefly, irritation flickering across her face, though she still didn’t focus on him entirely. “No, thank you. And I think you should go.” But the man didn’t move. “How about I help you
It had been two weeks since the gala, and life had settled back into its usual rhythm for Lily; or at least, that’s what she told herself over the weeks. The days were packed with meetings, client calls, and deadlines, leaving her little time to dwell on anything else. But no matter how busy she was, Aaron’s presence lingered in the back of her mind like a stubborn shadow. She hadn’t expected to see him again so soon, and certainly not like that-standing across a room, looking at her with a mix of longing and regret. Lily shook her head as she sat at her desk, trying to push the memory aside. He doesn’t matter anymore, she reminded herself. You’ve moved on. Your life is yours now. But the truth was harder to face. A part of her was still drawn to him, to the man who had once made her feel like the center of his universe. Later that evening at her apartment, as she stepped into the kitchen, her phone buzzed on the counter. She picked it up to see Clara’s name flashing on
Aaron was already making his way toward her, his steps purposeful but hesitant. “Do you want me to distract him?” Clara asked, noticing. “No,” Lily said, surprising even herself. “I’ll handle it.” When he finally reached her, he stopped just short of invading her space. “Lily,” he said, his voice a mix of relief and uncertainty. “Aaron,” she replied, keeping her tone neutral. Clara took that as her cue to slip away, leaving them alone. “You look...” Aaron trailed off, his gaze softening. “You look beautiful.” “Thank you,” Lily said, her walls firmly in place. There was an awkward silence before Aaron spoke again. “How have you been?” “Busy,” Lily said simply. “You?” "Same. Busy." He said, his eyes boring into her's. Aaron Knight had never been one to doubt himself. His confidence, honed over years of navigating ruthless boardrooms and mastering impossible deals, was unshakable. But now, sitting in his empty penthouse with the city lights stretching endlessly b
The 4 years that followed were a whirlwind of success for Lily. As the founder and CEO of her own fashion brand, she had become a name synonymous with innovation and elegance. Her designs graced international runways, and her name carried weight in the business world. She was confident, composed, and exactly where she wanted to be. It was a crisp evening in the city, and Lily sat in her office overlooking the bustling streets below. She tapped her pen against the edge of her notebook, her mind wandering. A knock at the door broke her thoughts. Clara walked in, looking radiant as ever in a sleek jumpsuit. “Your PR team says you need to approve the final list for the charity gala tomorrow,” she said, placing a folder on Lily’s desk. Lily smirked. “You didn’t need to bring this yourself. What’s the real reason you’re here?” Clara feigned an offended look. “What, I can’t check on my dear friend? Fine, maybe I just needed a break from my office. Paperwork is soul-sucking.”
The penthouse felt lifeless. Every step Aaron took echoed through the empty rooms, each sound reminding him of what he’d lost. He couldn’t stop himself from wandering to Lily’s favorite spots-the kitchen where she used to hum softly while brewing tea, the couch where they would argue about what to watch, her corner of the bedroom where her books were still stacked neatly, her pink and white bedroom-the one she always dreamed about. He stood by the window where Lily once leaned against his chest, watching the city lights together happily. Now, those same lights felt distant and cold. On the coffee table lay a scarf she’d left behind, forgotten in the rush of her departure. Aaron’s hand trembled as he picked it up, the soft fabric bringing back the faintest trace of her perfume. He closed his eyes, clutching it tightly as if it could somehow bring her back. Aaron couldn’t shake the memory of her face when she left, her tear filled eyes, the hurt in her voice as she said goodbye.
The penthouse felt cavernous in her absence. Lily’s steps echoed faintly against the polished floors as she carried a small bag down the hall. She had packed only the essentials-clothes, documents, and her favorite book-a conscious decision not to look back. The thought of leaving the home they'd shared stung, but staying felt like drowning. Her mind replayed the scene in Aaron’s study, the damning photographs and the file with her name etched at the top. Every piece of information about her, laid bare-her family, her childhood, her fears. She’d trusted him, and in return, he had dissected her life like a puzzle to control. As she neared the door, the faint scent of his cologne lingered, and her grip on the bag tightened. This was the only goodbye she could give. Aaron had been out since the incident-a small mercy-but as Lily turned the handle, she heard the elevator hum to life. Her heart plummeted. The doors slid open, and Aaron stepped out, his suit slightly dishevel