AUTHOR’S POV"She's yours," echoed like a royal decree in Blaze's ears all night, and strangely, they brought a sense of joy with them. Who would have thought that Katie would be carrying his child?It was so obvious now that Katie told him, and it was odd that he didn't draw the connection at first; he assumed she might be with someone else, seeking an escape from the drama of the past months. The faint pangs of jealousy eased away the moment she made that statement.His phone rang, interrupting his thoughts. It was his manager, and he hoped nothing was awry at work."Good..." his manager began."Get straight to the point," he interrupted."Well," his manager grunted, clearly displeased that his greetings were cut short. "some clients have been asking to speak with you, and that meeting we rescheduled, they're not happy about it. They've given us today as a request."He realized this small company was pressing him to give them a piece of his mind. "Then tell them if they no longer wa
AUTHOR’S POVZuhra smirked at him. "Yes, you should feel threatened because in case she didn't tell you, you're dealing with competition." She smiled when Blaze furrowed his brows in confusion."Competition?" Blaze asked."Exactly, 'cause I'm not just Tessa's friend, I'm her girlfriend. You can't just come up from nowhere and whisk her away. So, in case you thought you could wash her away with your lies and false charm, you are mistaken."Fury flashed in Blaze's eyes as he took in what she said. Katie wasn't gay, he could remember, so what was this about a girlfriend? But that was not the real problem. Despite the jealousy that clawed its way through his stomach, he maintained calm."What did Tessa tell you?" he asked, wondering if his theory of Katie ratting all about him to her friends was true."I know you're the father of the child she's carrying, and you had the guts to abandon her." Zuhra banged her hand on the table, and from the corner of her eyes, she could see a few people f
KATIE’S POVThe agent did come just as Blaze promised, but I barely knew what to say. I was too lost, wondering what was waiting for me.After standing at my doorway for a few seconds, where I could tell the man was sizing me up, he flashed me a smile. "Are you Katie Stan?" he asked, glasses perched on his nose, a piece of paper in his hand.I blinked at him, shocked. Did he pronounce my maiden name? I had no idea anyone even knew it. It was considerate of him to use that name instead of Katy Griffin, which would only implicate me.That small detail chipped away a little more of my hate towards Blaze. "Please, it's Tessa," I corrected."You're not Katie?" he raised his eyebrows, "but this was the address I was given.""Yes, I am Katie, but I answer to Tessa now. It's my middle name.""I see," the man nodded. "I presume you got a call earlier.""From Blaze Griffin, yes," I said. "An agent was called to take me somewhere. You're the one, right?""Nice of him to prep you up. We're usuall
KATIE’S POVI plopped down on the sofa, loving the feel of the soft cushions beneath me. Bright light flooded in from the open windows, bringing the house alive. "All in a day's work, Katie," I thought to myself, though I shouldn't really be the one pleased since this house wasn't even my idea in the first place. Hell, Blaze even got some people to help me move my things over here. Basically, all I had to do was pack up.That wasn't a difficult job either. I didn't have much, so basically everything was here, and I might have to add a bit more, but for now, it was more than enough for me. I smiled at the shiny tables, already imagining my daughter playing on them. I held onto that image, hoping it would become a reality. Now, if only she would have a father to join me in taking care of her.It always brought a grimace to my face whenever I thought about the story I would tell her about Blaze and me. I definitely couldn't say the truth; things like that were better left in the dark. At
KATIE’S POV"Oh wow," I liked the look of awe I saw on Zuhra's face as she stepped into my new house. She had never worn that expression back at my old apartment. It felt nice to have something to impress her with when usually she was the impressive one."This must have cost a fortune," she exclaimed. I was about to reply when I saw an envelope trapped beneath the door. It looked like the one I had seen the other day, and I still couldn't make any sense of it.I had a feeling it would contain better information, so I softly pushed it under my couch. "Well, it did cost quite a lot," I admitted."Wait, are you working another job you didn't tell me about? You're low-key rich!" she gushed, running her hands along the beautiful wallpaper. "I always used to wish for one of these exact prints.""Two jobs?" I asked incredulously. "I can barely handle one. It was gifted to me.""Oh," Zuhra's face fell a little."What's the problem?" I asked."Oh no, it's nothing. Do I get to know who gave it
KATIE’S POV "Oh my God, is she okay?""Call 911!""No, call the ambulance.""I sure hope someone is chasing after that fucker.""Yes. The boys are up to that..."I caught snippets of conversations around me, and I wished I could make them all just shut up. This would be a perfect time to have that as a surprise superpower.I kept replaying what happened in my head like a sick, broken record. Zuhra pushed me against the wall so fast I was sure she intended to harm me. I still felt a sharp pain between my shoulder blades when I got to the edge of the wall.But that was nothing compared to what happened to her. Out of the blues, barely seconds after she hugged me, a motorbike rammed into her. I winced at the crack I kept hearing in my mind. Whatever she had broken must be really serious. I was sure to have nightmares about this accident tonight."Miss, are you okay?" someone asked, tapping me lightly on my arm. That was the only reason I even knew someone was talking to me, but I couldn
KATIE’S POVI picked up my bag, intending to rush home immediately, but then I thought, I can't just leave here without checking up on Zuhra. I walked up to the nurse at the front desk, wishing I had just asked the doctor before he left."Please, can I see the patient brought in with an ambulance? It's important."The bespectacled lady looked up at me. "I'm sorry, dear, I'm not sure you can. She was unconscious when she was brought in, and we'd like to keep her that way while we initiate the treatment. I'm sure you wouldn't want her awake to bear something that's going to be very painful."I shook my head. The last thing I wanted was to cause Zuhra any more pain than she already was in. It wouldn't be cool to wake her up to speak to her and tell her how sorry I am for putting her in this situation. "It's fine then," I said, "but when can I speak to her?"The nurse shrugged. "Well, I'm sure she'll be much better by tomorrow. She has the whole night to rest. Come by in the late morning,
KATIE’S POVMy eyes immediately fixed on Zuhra's frail body on the hospital bed as soon as I was let in through the door. I came just as the nurse instructed, and the doctor told me I could see her today. "Zuhra," I whispered, wondering if she was asleep.She stirred and lifted a hand in a wave. "Hi, Tessa."I wanted to cry. Her left leg was bandaged, and her right leg rested in a sling. I put her in this position, something I never thought possible. "I'm so sorry about all this," the words choked out of me. "You shouldn't have come in the way...""Are you serious?" Zura asked, the sass in her voice not matching her condition. "Tessa, you're two people in one body, and I was supposed to stand by and let a bike hit you? If it had, then you would have been badly injured, and even worse, you might have lost the baby. There was no way I was letting that happen."I sniffed at the words she spoke, the tone of her voice so empathic that I wondered what I did to deserve someone this kind ar
Axel followed the man who came to take him out of the cell. He wasn't sure how long he spent here, but long enough to be really glad to be out. The smell of soap lingered on his skin, a bit too strong, but he welcomed it. It had been a long time since he used soap."There's your ride," the man said, pointing at the sleek red Camry parked in the parking lot of the station. In front of it stood Katie, arms crossed around her protruding middle.Axel felt a sad smile tug at the corners of his lips. Even in jail, he heard of the marriage between Katie and Blaze when Cicely came to visit.His smile disappeared as he remembered her expression when she spoke. The wistfulness in her eyes... It was obvious that she wished for her wedding, and she couldn't even have it soon.He had long made up his mind to marry her immediately after he got out of jail. He was able to beg her forgiveness, and she must really love him for actually letting all he did go. She assured him she'd wait; that was the onl
Author's pov Axel sat on Cicely's bed after several minutes of pacing the area and waiting for her to show up. Where the hell has she gone? He was considering going out to search for her when the door opened.But it was not Cicely who stepped through; and it was Lily with a painted expression on her face. "Axel," she began.He already knew what she wanted. Now that their plans had flopped, she probably wanted them to come up with a bigger plan."Save it, Lily, we're through." He shook his head in regret. "I was so foolish ever to think that this would actually work.""What do you mean by we're through?" Lily asked. "We're in this together, right?"Axel sighed. "Let it go, Lily. Find a way to get a new life...""A new life?" She looked devastated. "But I'm pregnant... I have nowhere to go, and you can't just leave me alone.""I have to," Axel replied. "I have to make things up with Blaze, and I know I'll be able to do that if I try.""And what about me, Axel?" Lily said, raising her v
Author's pov Blaze grinned as Tristan made his way to the dining room, where he and Katie were seated. It was a miracle how he could track his location with his phone number and then check all the buildings around for them. He never would have asked for a better friend; Tristan had already proven himself in more ways than he could count.Katie looked up from her phone. "Is that the man going to give us updates?" she asked.Blaze nodded. He was surprised Katie wasn't running from him by now. She even let him stay in her house without him asking. It made him wonder if the past few days' events had softened her towards him instead of making her hate him. He tried not to get his hopes up, though; her niceness didn't mean she'd like to end up with him, as he started to hope for. He couldn't help hoping, no matter how ridiculous it sounded.He wanted Katie back in his life despite all that had happened. As far as he was concerned, he was done with Lily. Katie should have been the one fro
KATIE’S POVNo way, I thought, staring at him and searching for any resemblance to Maverick. I could see none, but then again, I could barely see Maverick's face clearly in my mind. It had been so long ago, like another lifetime."You're lying," Blaze accused. With how he looked at Dylan, I was almost glad he was restricted from doing anything to him. Almost, though, in truth, I wished Blaze was free."Am I now?" Dylan said quietly, coming closer to Blaze. "When my mother got pregnant for your father, he left her, all because he saw a richer woman. You see, Maverick was a coward. His only way to survive was to milk off others' profits, and that's really who you're defending," he asked, turning to me.I stared at him, taking each word with a pinch of salt. I didn't want to believe him since he was the reason I was trapped here, and he even tried to kill me at the end of all this.But then, there was no other explanation for the absolute hate in his eyes as he spoke of Maverick. And why
Katie's povI gasped, staring at the limp bodies of Lily and Axel. "Oh my gosh, are they dead?" I exclaimed."Not dead, darling," the woman said. "These are stun guns," she waved the gun in her hand for emphasis."What kind of stun gun allows the victims to talk to?" Lily muttered against the floor. It was a comical sight seeing her lying there helpless when a moment ago she was gloating over us."The type we use, obviously," the woman replied. I squinted at her, unable to bear my curiosity anymore."Who are you?" I was trying to decide if she was a hero or a villain. She teetered on the edge of both, and I wouldn't say I liked that.She turned to me with a sigh and took off her mask. I gasped, eyes widening as I stared into the face of my former savior. The one person who believed me when I said I didn't kill Maverick and who helped me escape.Right on time again to get me out of this situation. "Doris?" I asked."Not just her." The man beside her said, taking off his mask too. I gas
Chapter 133Author's pov Blaze raised an eyebrow. "I'm surprised." The answer was clear: if their places were switched, he would eliminate Axel before he could ruin the big plan."Surprised?" Axel asked. "You didn't think I'd be able to kill you if necessary?""No, I'm surprised we might think the same way," Blaze clarified. He saw the twitch in Axel's jaw, showing that he was irritated by that statement, which made him smile."Not the same way, brother. I'm way ahead of you.""Correct me if I'm wrong, but are both of you arguing about who thinks better right now?" Katie asked, turning to Blaze.Blaze nodded. "I'm trying to make sure there isn't a bigger brain behind this plot of his. Hard to believe it's just you, Axel."And not only that, he was stalling for time. Anything to keep Axel from rounding off his plan soon because if that happened, he would kill both of them so quickly.He wasn't afraid for himself, but Katie concerned him. She was already broken, and having no hope of s
Author's pov Katie gasped, staring at Axel. Of all the people she would have suspected, he wasn't even near her suspect list. Tears blurred her vision as she remembered what he said about her daughter."You beast!" she screamed, lunging forward. Curse these ropes; she would have been able to do something terrible to him. She wanted to hurt him just as he hurt her."How could you? All this while, after how close I was to your family, this is how you treat me? Why?" It was pointless straining to reach him; she slumped against the wall in defeat."I'm sorry about the child. That was not my intention. But it is what it is," Axel began, shrugging as he spoke. He had been shocked to hear."Fuck you, Axel!" Blaze thundered. How could he say he was sorry now? For killing his child, someone he hadn't even met in person.Blaze took a deep breath to calm himself down. The level of anger he was feeling was overwhelming, and the fact that he had no means to channel it out was the worst thing abou
Author's pov No, Katie gasped as Blaze fell to the ground. All that came out, though, was a frantic intake of breath, as she could not speak through the gag she hated so much. After all she had tried to tell Blaze, this stupid piece of cloth prevented her from saying anything.She wished she could rip it off, but her hands were bound, too. They had been since the first day. She glared at the man who knocked Blaze out, wishing she could wipe that smug grin off his face.He turned to her. "Don't look at me that way; he was foolish to come alone."He crouched to her level. "And if he did alert the police, then I'm afraid we'll have to kill you immediately. Either way, our mission will be accomplished."If looks could kill, he would be burned to smithereens by now. First, he wouldn't tell her anything about her child, and now he was threatening to kill her. After keeping her here for days, he did not even have a clue what to do to get him to free her."Just tell me what you want. Why do
Katie's povI blinked, confused. I could have sworn that my eyes were open, but surely, if they were, I would be able to see something. As it was, there was just nothing—pitch-black darkness, the oppressive kind that seemed to close in on you.I shut my eyes again and opened the—same thing. Now I was getting worried. In a rush, it all came back. I was in the car, just discharged from the hospital. There was music, and there was my baby in my arms.A baby that was no longer there since my hands were bound in front of me. I could barely feel my hands, and they were bound so tightly. I shifted, noting that there was a wall behind me, which I was leaning on.My feet were bound, too, most likely with the same material. I hated being tied up. It reminded me of the time when I was sold to the Griffins, a time I never wish to remember anymore.But at the moment, that was the least of my problems. Where was my child? Whoever had taken me couldn't have taken her away, too.It only became hard t