“How are you feeling?” Paige asked Crystal who stared blankly at the ceiling, even though she could see Paige, she couldn’t speak to her, there were a lot of things she wanted to say but it was as though she had been stripped of her strength. “Crystal…” Paige called again, hoping for a response of some sort but Crystal simply blinked back at her, that’s right, what does she except? Crystal had just woken up from her coma, it has been five month since she was unconscious and she woke up about three days ago, it was natural she was still unresponsive. Paige glanced up at Cassandra and shook her head; Cassandra stepped towards the bed eagerly. “Crystal, can you hear me?” She asked reaching for her hands on the bed; Crystal just blinked back, tears welling in her eyes, tears that would later stream out of her eyes. “Why won’t you say anything?”The frustration was evident in Cassie’s voice, she wanted to hurl up her sister and shake her back to reality, a lot of things had happened to
“Why do you keep looking at me like you expect me to do something terrible?” Crystal finally asked breaking the awkward silence, both her sister and Paige sat down on her bed, and they stared at her like she had grown another head, there was a faint smile on her lips, in her way she tried to keep them relaxed but it would seem that she was doing the opposite. “Do you want me to cry then you know that I am fine?”“That’s not it,” Cassandra snapped and her forehead crinkled in a small frown. “You should know that the reason we are here is because we care and worry about you, I don’t trust leaving you on your own either, who knows what stupid thing you would do this time around.”She murmured the last of her statement but the seriousness didn’t leave. “I am not going to do anything,” Crystal interjected with a small playful pout, but neither Paige nor Cassandra was convinced, everything she said or did seemed suspicious to them. “I promise.”“You have to let one of us stay with you for
Kayden got out of his bathroom, with a towel draped around his shoulder, he had been unable to sleep as well, scrolling through the internet looking for hate comments, so he could report the account and watch it get taken down. If none of this had happened, he would probably be done with work now and he would be preparing to sleep, this was the second time he was taking his shower that night because he had been restless. He glanced at the piece of metal that was sitting on the bedstand and the screen reflected the lights to his face, it belonged to Crystal, Paige had given him the phone because she thought it would be best if he kept it instead. He strolls towards the bed running the towel into his wet hair since it is too late to use a blow dryer, he picks up the phone from the small table. His eyes inspected it, it was small and from a brand he had never heard of, she probably got it cheap or second-handed; he didn’t even know phones like this existed. That woman, Crystal even t
“I have no idea what you are talking about,” Jake answered the gentleman dressed exclusively in a well-tailored Armani suit, he had introduced himself as Joe and his colleague was Liam. These strangers had come to pick him up at his part-time job this morning; he had recently gotten the job with the help of his mother; she had put in a good word with the manager of the store; and even though the man had been skeptical about hiring an ex-convict but he awarded him the job because of the close relationship he had with his mother. But now, once again, he was dragged away by private investigating officers, there was no doubt that as soon as he was back, he would be receiving his sack letter… he would be disappointing his mother yet again and the name which was brought up, was one he never wanted to hear of.“Don’t you think you’re keeping me here illegally? I might be a delinquent but I know my rights very well.”“I’m sorry, but you’re not here illegally, as we have explained you a
“I’m sorry, but we are not hiring.” The middle aged man clarified with a small frown on his face, Jake’s eyes narrowed when he noticed the man’s judging stare. “I read it clearly on the notice and it says you’re looking for a store attendant.” Jake argued with him, not that it would do him any good, he didn’t just want to leave like he would usually do, but everyone on this street knows him already. “How come you are not hiring all of a sudden?” It was pointless trying to fight them anyways, so he just left, he knows the reason why he was being turned down, and everyone in the neighborhood must have heard the gravity of his crimes to stigmatize him like that. “How did it go?” His mother asked as soon as Jake came inside the living room, the smell of the familiar, beef stir fry he enjoyed eating as a child wafted into his nose as he walked in, at first he ignored his mother in the room and he went in search of the person cooking his favourite delicacy, he peeped into the kitche
Jake drummed his fingers on the table; as he contemplated his sudden willingness to meet with the stranger who had messaged him last night. He had chosen a location that is away from the scrutinizing eyes of the public, and he was wearing a small disguise, he didn’t want to spend much money so he bought a hat and some pair of glasses to shield his eyes; just as the unknown sender had ordered him to.He scoffed, as he wondered since when he had become so obedient, the waitress approached him for the seventh time, because he had been sitting for more than half an hour and he hadn’t ordered anything. “Have you decided what you want to order, sir?” She asked him politely, her pearl blue eyes feeling him up and he smiled nervously. “Hum… my date is running late, I apologize, just give me some light appetizer.” She nodded at him and strolled back into the distance, trying to set up his order for him. “What’s up with table four?” Her manager asked his silver eyes shooting to Jake in
“I told you not to worry yourself too much about that, Lilah.” Karina yelled as she dragged her friend towards the ice cream vendor across the street. It was a long day at school, the noise, annoying teachers and the crazy boys in her class, everything just everything sets her at the edge…as if her day couldn’t get any worse, Delilah is still melancholic about the photos of the celebrity’s wife that got leaked. “Unless you were the one who posted it, I don’t see a reason why you should still be sad about it.” Karina added when she didn’t get a response from her friend. “This is the reason why I wanted to wait for Lucas.” Delilah grumbled out the words, Lucas, her cousin, would understand why she was worried, she gaped at the ice cream man who was already grinning openly at them, then she glared at Karina. “Is this the reason you dragged me out of school in a hurry?”“Two scoops of chocolate and one Vanilla for me, and for her just make it three scoops of strawberry flavor.” Kari
“Who did you say she met with?” Crystal inquired softly, her blue eyes piercing into Paige’s orbs. “I said Jake Mackenzie, she—” she was barely able to finish her statement when Crystal interrupted her again. “You can’t be so sure; she was meeting Jake.” She whizzed. “She doesn’t even know Jake.” Deborah shook her head, Paige had explained who Jake was to Deborah, and the relationship he had with Crystal. “I knew you were going to be so doubtful,” Paige muttered as she fumbled through her bag, Crystal paled when her eyes combated Jake once again. “So, that’s why I brought pictured proof.” Crystal felt her legs go limp, it was as though she had no bones in them, she was pretty grateful for the support of the sofa.“Calm down.” Paige noticed Crystal’s difficulty in breathing, she was having her usual panic attack, Paige rubbed Crystal’s back soothingly. Petra noticed this, she ran into the kitchen to fetch a glass of water, she wasn’t so sure it would work, but it was much b
Alright! *drops pen* This is a special shoutout to everyone who turned the pages over, this is my first book (the first one I ever took seriously lol) and I'm glad it's not that bad. *hehe* Thank you so much for reading, commenting, venting your concerns, voting, and supporting "My Contract Marriage." Your opinions were appreciated and valued and it was just enough for me to go on as a writer. Y'all are my special babies and I won't forget this beautiful ride. Will it have a sequel? Probably. I hope to write more books in the future, so please stay tuned. My favorite character in the book is Sebastian, hehe, you should see more of him in the sequel (If I ever take my life seriously *hehe*). Thanks once again for supporting this book and staying with me through its rough times. xoxo
“Would it be a surprise if I told you?” He teased, pulling some stubborn strands of her hair away from her face and feeling up the soft skin of her face with his long thin fingers.“Don’t you think this is too much?” She asked, staring in the distance, her feelings overwhelming her. “It’s too much for me.”“I don’t think it’s enough.” He answered, and Crystal looked around once more. “Not enough?” she asked herself internally, what did he mean by it isn’t enough? She pinched the insides of her palms, hoping she would wake up from the unreal dream.“You deserve to have this and more. This is not enough for someone like you.”“But why?” it was still unbelievable. This building was worth millions, yet she couldn’t understand why Kayden thought she was worthy to have something of the sort. “I don’t know how to pay Mrs. Darling back, nor do I know how did I ever deserve to get such a gift?”“You don’t have to pay her back, however, you can also pay her back by doing exceptionally good in
Kayden glanced at Crystal who was staring outside the window with a rather unhappy look on her face, he was concerned because she had not spoken a word to him since the beginning of the ride, and he couldn’t help but feel that she was either angry or sad.“What’s making the birthday girl so sad?” He quizzed with a teasing smile as he controlled the steering wheel professionally, but Crystal didn’t glance back at him as much, which was even more suspicious.“It’s nothing.” She muttered and even after some seconds passed, she was still staring outside, yeah, she was mad at him, but what did he do? He had no clue what he had done wrong. Is she mad he was celebrating her birthday?That didn’t seem to be the case, she was just fine a few seconds ago, what could be the problem? He glanced back at her worriedly. “Did I do something wrong?” He guessed but she didn’t reply to him. “Crystal?”“No, you didn’t,” her response resembled that of a doll with missing batteries and Kayden’s eyebrows
"Are we not going to work?" Crystal asked as she climbed the stairs and headed towards the dining area. She noticed that Kayden, who was usually dressed by this time, was sitting at the dining table in his pajamas, drinking his morning coffee. Crystal glanced at her wristwatch and realized that it was way past their usual resumption time. She quickly opened her calendar app to confirm that today was not a weekend or a public holiday.They were already late, because even though she tried to get him out of bed, he wanted to cuddle a bit more, and she also couldn’t resist his charms.Instead of their usual breakfast foods, Petra and the other maids arranged the table with sweets, scones, and a baked turkey.“What?” she asked curiously. “Is this for Thanksgiving or something?”Crystal sat down on the chair next to Kayden. “Do you not know what day today is?” Petra asked, taking the words right out of Kayden’s mouth.“No, is something going on today?” She asked him curiously, and Kayden c
The sounds of birds chirping filled Crystal’s ears, she turned to the other side of the bed, her hands instinctively reaching for the pillows to block her ears; she turned away again, and this time it was the sunlight that was in her sight, she picked the other pillow to shield her eyes.Suddenly, she was pulled against a sturdy chest, the skin of which was smooth and enticing. She snuggled closer to him, relishing in the comfort from the heat his body radiated.It felt like she was floating on a cloud, she opened one of her eyes to observe his beautiful face, Kayden’s eyes were closed as he slept peacefully, and for a moment she wished time stopped so she could remain like this forever.It was peaceful.“I can’t sleep properly if you keep fiddling about the bed.” He murmured against her ears, smoldering her cheeks with kisses even though he was still half asleep.“I think it's morning though.” She noticed returning the small kisses to him as well, placing her head against his chest a
“I told you I am fine.” Sebastian scolded Lorenza, his mother because she had been complaining about his health ever since she got to the hospital. She cried about thirty minutes before he was able to convince her that he wasn’t going to die.“What do you think I am going to do if you had died?” The door opened and Crystal ambled inside with a tray of food in her hands, for the three days he had been here, Crystal hadn’t left the hospital. “How do you think I will survive?”“Mom, I told you that I wouldn’t die from such a shallow stab wound… It would be laughable.” Sebastian muttered and Crystal scrunched up her nose in disgust, as she neared the bed.“I told you not to speak like that again.” Crystal scolded glaring down at him, he used the same words Kayden used when she was worried about him. “What part of your death would be comical to us?”“I am pretty sure some people would find it funny, especially Kayden.” Sebastian pouted “That’s no way a man should die.” Lorenza rolle
Crystal’s eyes fluttered open when she heard a pained growl that came from Jake, when her eyes opened, he was on the ground, with Sebastian’s heavy boots placed against Jake’s head.“Crystal!” She turned in the other direction, and she saw Kayden heading toward her in fast strides, he pulled her as he got down on one knee and his silver eyes narrowed when he noticed her busted lips and swollen eyes. He reached for her face and caressed her in his palms, she felt fresh tears well up in her eyes, and his frown deepened when he noticed the narrow cut on her neck, it was terrible, even though shallow.Kayden didn’t want to imagine what would have happened to her if they got there any second later, the bastard had a knife to her delicate throat, as though she was a piece of vegetable, why would someone be so evil?“I-I’m sorry,” she whispered and his frown deepened, for what reason is she apologizing? “Kayden…” She reached for him and pulled him into a hug, he noticed that she was tre
Trigger WarningThis chapter contains some violence, please read it at your discretion.Crystal thought to herself, she had to clarify the misunderstanding, probably this anonymous sender was planning to send those gifts to someone else and there must have been a mix-up in the addresses… She wasn’t close with any middle-aged man, so why did he keep sending her letters and gifts? She was only lucky Kayden had moved her out of his office, he would be so worried by now, that’s why she would meet with this old man and tell him to stop. She was able to get out of the company and proceed to the parking lot without being noticed by anyone; at least not anyone close enough to follow her.She stood out in the open, her eyes met by the very bright lights of the underground parking lots, that almost blinded her. She stood there rigidly in one spot for about a minute or two, unsure of what to do or where to go, and there was no one in sight too.The letter didn’t give much details, it simpl
Sunlight creeps into the bedroom from the slightly opened blinds in the room, warming up Crystal’s face, she stirred being disturbed by the light. She felt something heavy on her waist and she glanced up to be met by a pair of silver eyes staring intently at her.“Hic…” she gasped softly when she realized she had been sleeping against Kayden’s chest, she could hear his heart beating in slow steady rhythms, he pulled her closer with a smug satisfaction on his face, his heavy arms on her back.“Good morning,” He murmured his voice still husky with sleep, Crystal flushed red from his seductive bedroom voice, and unable to form words, she nodded at him. “Did you sleep well?”“Y-yes,” she answered with a slight tremble in her voice, it was unbelievable, who would have thought that one day she and Kayden; would be lying down in her bed, naked and tangled underneath the sheets? “How long have you been awake?”“For a while now,” He confessed and he reached to feel the soft skin of her fac