Ava's POV"Are you deaf? I asked you a question." Her voice cut through the air like a sharp blade."I am Mr. Blackwell's assistant, ma'am. His new PA.""His personal assistant?" she asked, disdain dripping from her voice. "You? What the hell have they hired now? Where's Jason?"She folded her arms, her face contorted into a glare."I didn't even like Jason," she muttered under her breath, "but to hire someone better than him, and they go and hire a lousy klutz."Her words made my face turn red, and my hands balled into fists at my sides. I am not a klutz.I took a deep breath, reminding myself where I was. This was Liam's office, not a place to let my emotions run wild. I couldn't afford to speak out of turn, especially not to someone who looked like she could be a potential client or one of his investors. That would be a disaster—not just for the Blackwells, but for me as well. If I wanted to climb the ladder and become someone great one day, I needed to be professional and act wise
Ava's POVThe room fell into stunned silence as I registered her words. What did she mean by that? Did Liam really say something like that? Why?Liam seemed to be in a trance for a few seconds before he shook his head, muttering, "Celeste, stop it."She raised her brow, feigning innocence. "Oh, what are you talking about, Liam? Have I done something wrong? Oh, is it what I said?" She laughed awkwardly. "Don't think too much about it, my dear. Ava, I'm so happy to see you again," she beamed, facing me.The person in front of me was a complete and stark contrast to the person who had just insulted me outside. She was behaving like we were friends or something. Well, Liam did say we were friends growing up, right? Just not anymore!"It's nice to meet you too," I lied, wishing she would leave already so I could spend some time with my husband."It's nice. Liam, how about we go out and eat something? Catch up, you know? It's been a really, really long time," Celeste smiled at Liam.Liam, y
Ava's POVThe moment Liam drove into the Blackwell Mansion, I stepped out of the car, slammed the door as hard as I could, and stormed off towards the large white doors that led into the main wing.I was hurt, angry, and frustrated. Why? Because Liam had agreed for Celeste to live with us. Apparently, she had already spoken to Mom and Dad before coming to the office. In fact, her belongings were already here."Ava! Wait! Baby!" Liam called out, his footsteps echoing behind me. But I only increased my pace, paying him no heed.Funny thing is, I didn’t know why I was mad at him when it clearly wasn’t his fault. His footsteps sounded closer to me, showing that he was catching up. Dang it! I thought. He should just leave me alone. I want to be alone.As his hand held my elbow to turn me around—"Ouch!" I suddenly heard.I stopped in my tracks, my heart thumping wildly as I saw Celeste on the floor, her legs twisted at an awkward angle.Liam wasted no time, leaving me and running over to h
Liam's POVOkay, something is seriously wrong, I thought as I stood in my spot, staring at Ava as she braided Alicia's hair while they sat on the soft grass, facing the green lake, which extended far into the distance.Ava has been behaving weirdly these past few days, like she was avoiding me. My thoughts raced. Could I have done something without knowing? Why would she be avoiding me?It had been a week since Celeste had moved in, and while it had been fun hanging out with her, I couldn't shake off the fact that Ava wasn't herself.Yes, we did spend the night together on the same bed, but it seemed like once we were out of the room, everything changed. I needed to find out if she was really avoiding me or if it was just me being paranoid for nothing.With that thought in mind, I started strolling towards where she sat, humming and talking with Alicia. Mom and Dad were by the barbecue stand, trying to fix it up for the get-together they had planned for the evening. The rest of the fa
Ava's POVCeleste had been getting on my nerves the whole time she was here, and I was just a few more snide remarks away from snapping. And I mean it—do not mess with a heavily pregnant woman like me.Just a few days after her so-called injury, she kept sitting around claiming she was bored and needed company at home. I wasn't mad about Liam skipping work to stay with her—no. I was mad about the fact that I had to stay home as well since he wasn’t going into work that day. For whose sake?I smiled as I thought about the only thing that kept me sane these days—the Hendrix twins, the boys who had been the reason for my happiness back at the dormitory—Carlos and Dominico Hendrix.I met them just a few years after I had left. They had come to the dormitory for school and had stayed longer than they needed to because Dominico—the loud and dumb one—had said, “I’m not leaving my sister in this disgusting place. I’ll stay here and fail classes until she graduates so that we can leave togethe
Ava's POVI bolted as fast as my seven-month pregnant body could carry me, ignoring Liam's panicked voice calling my name. My hands were balled into fists, and I strode like a woman with the purpose of destroying someone who had dared to take what belonged to me.Just as I got to the stairs, which the family had advised me against climbing because of my pregnancy—Celeste's room was on the third floor while Liam's and mine were on the second—Liam’s wrist shot out to grab mine, turning me to face him. I could hear footsteps in the distance—Mum and Dad were rushing in."Baby, please.""Liam, let go of me. I am going to teach that girl a lesson. I have had it with her.""Please, come on, honey. I knew I shouldn’t have told you this," he whispered to himself.I stared at him, dumbfounded, my mouth dropping open. "Oh, so you should have kept it a secret from your wife that you got kissed by your so-called best friend? What the hell, Liam?""Hey, hey, Ava, please," Liam whispered, his voice
Ava's POV"And who is going to bash my son's face into the wall?"I whirled around so fast I nearly lost my balance, causing my phone to fall out of my hand onto the grass below."Oh, shoot!" I cursed, picking it up and heaving a sigh of relief upon seeing it was fine, though the call had disconnected. Then I returned my gaze to the figure who had overheard my friends threatening his son's handsome face.Nathaniel Blackwell stood behind me, his arms crossed against his chest. His face was impassive as he watched me, displaying no emotion."So?" He arched a brow, referring to his earlier question."Uh, Dad, I... it's, uh... I... I, it's not... nothing... you should worry—"He broke out laughing, clutching his stomach while pointing at me.Nathaniel Blackwell was a child. I tell you. How was this man the leader of so many companies?"You should have seen your face. Oh my God, you looked like I held a gun to your head and was going to murder you. God, this is so hilarious. I should have
Liam's POVI left the gym late in the evening. My knuckles were raw from all the punching I had done on the bag, trying to release the pent-up anger in me. But still, it remained, boiling in my veins. No, I wasn't angry at Ava. I was angry at myself for being such a fool. Why did I even have to tell her about Celeste's kiss?"You did the right thing, man," my subconscious said. But you did the wrong thing by telling her not to confront Celeste. You should have allowed her.My mind was torn. A part of me wanted to have allowed Ava to confront Celeste so that there would never be a repetition. But Celeste's family and my parents had always been friends, and I would not want anything to get rocky in their relationship because of a simple mistake, as Celeste had said it."Come on, Liam. Stop being a fool. You know that was no mistake. That girl fucking kissed you."I groaned, shaking my head from side to side to get rid of the annoying stream of thoughts arising from all directions.Going
Ava's POVMy heart raced as I waited for Domenico or Carlos to tell me what was going on. But they just stared at each other as if trying to figure out who should go first."Guys, come on," I groaned. "Just tell me. It can't be that bad, right? Unless you're scared that something will happen to me. Remember, I'm a strong girl. I can take it."Dom scoffed, and I glared at him. Carlos just shook his head at his brother's childishness in serious moments."So, Uncle Nathan, Liam's father, is the reason why everything is going on."My brows creased with confusion. "What do you mean? How is he the reason when he was welcoming you guys? If there was a problem, shouldn't he have been angry like Liam too?""Will you just shut up and listen?" Domenico interrupted me.I rolled my eyes at him but shut up still because it seemed like I was delaying it further."Our dad died when we were barely five. Remember when we told you?""Yes?""Liam's dad stepped in like a father figure to us. He took utmos
Ava's POVIf Liam thought I was going to listen to his stupid order, then he was really dumb and needed to get his brain checked. The minute he was out of the room, I shot up from the bed, wrapped my arms around my chest, and glared at the door as if I were glaring at his head. Then I quickly stood up, put on my flip-flops, and went out of the room.I was walking around the house aimlessly, trying to find where the twins' room could be. Finally, I realized that it would probably be upstairs, where I wasn’t supposed to go, but who cared at this moment?I called one of the maids who was passing by to set the table for dinner and asked her where their room was. She tried telling me that I couldn’t go there because it was upstairs, but I told her I would go, and no one would do anything about it.When we got to one of their rooms, I turned to her and told her to make sure Liam didn’t find out and that she shouldn’t tell him I was here unless he asked. She nodded and left. I took a deep b
Ava's POVThe moment I left Domenico's arms, Carlos' cedar and sandalwood scent hit my nostrils as he engulfed me in his own hug.Tears flowed freely down my face. I couldn't believe it. What are they even doing here?"What are you guys doing here?" I cried out, my voice muffled against his shirt.Domenico responded in a gentle voice, "I told you we were coming immediately after we got finished with our family meeting... well, this is our family."I froze, only now realizing that they were indeed standing in Liam's family home, which means..."Family? Wait, you guys are members of this family?""Yes, Ava. And we didn't know you were here," Carlos answered, stepping backward and placing his hands in his jeans.I stepped away from them and took my time scrutinizing their appearance. Only now seeing the resemblance between them and Mr. Blackwell.The only thing they shared with Liam was the blue eyes that dad also had. I guess they were his nephews then. Which means they were Liam's cou
Liam's POVAt the hospital, the doctor kept glancing at us weirdly. I think he noticed that something was wrong because Ava and I were always holding hands and acting all lovey-dovey. But today, she put her hands in her lap, impassive, while only smiling at the doctor.He didn’t probe, though, because it was none of his business. Couples fight all the time, and he wasn’t a counselor.“Mr. Blackwell, Mrs. Blackwell, you two look quite okay. But why is your face so pale? I think you’ve gone past the stage of morning sickness, or did you by any chance throw up again?”Ava shook her head. “No, Doc. I just didn’t sleep well last night, which is why my eyes are like this.”I felt a pang in my chest, my heart clenching as I realized that it was my fault.The doctor noted something down in his chart. “Okay then, you can lie on the bed now so I can check you.”My heart began racing with anticipation as it always did. Every time I saw my little baby, I got so nervous my palms would sweat. I did
Liam's POVI left the gym late in the evening. My knuckles were raw from all the punching I had done on the bag, trying to release the pent-up anger in me. But still, it remained, boiling in my veins. No, I wasn't angry at Ava. I was angry at myself for being such a fool. Why did I even have to tell her about Celeste's kiss?"You did the right thing, man," my subconscious said. But you did the wrong thing by telling her not to confront Celeste. You should have allowed her.My mind was torn. A part of me wanted to have allowed Ava to confront Celeste so that there would never be a repetition. But Celeste's family and my parents had always been friends, and I would not want anything to get rocky in their relationship because of a simple mistake, as Celeste had said it."Come on, Liam. Stop being a fool. You know that was no mistake. That girl fucking kissed you."I groaned, shaking my head from side to side to get rid of the annoying stream of thoughts arising from all directions.Going
Ava's POV"And who is going to bash my son's face into the wall?"I whirled around so fast I nearly lost my balance, causing my phone to fall out of my hand onto the grass below."Oh, shoot!" I cursed, picking it up and heaving a sigh of relief upon seeing it was fine, though the call had disconnected. Then I returned my gaze to the figure who had overheard my friends threatening his son's handsome face.Nathaniel Blackwell stood behind me, his arms crossed against his chest. His face was impassive as he watched me, displaying no emotion."So?" He arched a brow, referring to his earlier question."Uh, Dad, I... it's, uh... I... I, it's not... nothing... you should worry—"He broke out laughing, clutching his stomach while pointing at me.Nathaniel Blackwell was a child. I tell you. How was this man the leader of so many companies?"You should have seen your face. Oh my God, you looked like I held a gun to your head and was going to murder you. God, this is so hilarious. I should have
Ava's POVI bolted as fast as my seven-month pregnant body could carry me, ignoring Liam's panicked voice calling my name. My hands were balled into fists, and I strode like a woman with the purpose of destroying someone who had dared to take what belonged to me.Just as I got to the stairs, which the family had advised me against climbing because of my pregnancy—Celeste's room was on the third floor while Liam's and mine were on the second—Liam’s wrist shot out to grab mine, turning me to face him. I could hear footsteps in the distance—Mum and Dad were rushing in."Baby, please.""Liam, let go of me. I am going to teach that girl a lesson. I have had it with her.""Please, come on, honey. I knew I shouldn’t have told you this," he whispered to himself.I stared at him, dumbfounded, my mouth dropping open. "Oh, so you should have kept it a secret from your wife that you got kissed by your so-called best friend? What the hell, Liam?""Hey, hey, Ava, please," Liam whispered, his voice
Ava's POVCeleste had been getting on my nerves the whole time she was here, and I was just a few more snide remarks away from snapping. And I mean it—do not mess with a heavily pregnant woman like me.Just a few days after her so-called injury, she kept sitting around claiming she was bored and needed company at home. I wasn't mad about Liam skipping work to stay with her—no. I was mad about the fact that I had to stay home as well since he wasn’t going into work that day. For whose sake?I smiled as I thought about the only thing that kept me sane these days—the Hendrix twins, the boys who had been the reason for my happiness back at the dormitory—Carlos and Dominico Hendrix.I met them just a few years after I had left. They had come to the dormitory for school and had stayed longer than they needed to because Dominico—the loud and dumb one—had said, “I’m not leaving my sister in this disgusting place. I’ll stay here and fail classes until she graduates so that we can leave togethe
Liam's POVOkay, something is seriously wrong, I thought as I stood in my spot, staring at Ava as she braided Alicia's hair while they sat on the soft grass, facing the green lake, which extended far into the distance.Ava has been behaving weirdly these past few days, like she was avoiding me. My thoughts raced. Could I have done something without knowing? Why would she be avoiding me?It had been a week since Celeste had moved in, and while it had been fun hanging out with her, I couldn't shake off the fact that Ava wasn't herself.Yes, we did spend the night together on the same bed, but it seemed like once we were out of the room, everything changed. I needed to find out if she was really avoiding me or if it was just me being paranoid for nothing.With that thought in mind, I started strolling towards where she sat, humming and talking with Alicia. Mom and Dad were by the barbecue stand, trying to fix it up for the get-together they had planned for the evening. The rest of the fa