Trina's POV Thursday morning came faster than I hoped. Today was the day – the third day since Mr. McAllister had given me his unexpected proposal and so he's expecting an answer today. As such, I was a bundle of nerves as I drove to the McAllister mansion that morning. Blissfully unaware of my internal turmoil, my little munchkin happily sang one nursery rhyme after another in the backseat. I stole a glance at her in the rearview mirror as she started dancing to her own tunes, with her golden curls bouncing. Oh how I wish I could be as carefree as her!As we pulled up to the mansion, I took a deep breath, mentally preparing myself for the day ahead. The mansion loomed in front of us, grand and imposing, just like its owner. With Eleanor’s hand in mine, we walked into the grand house, exchanging pleasantries with the familiar staff.Inside, the house was quiet. Mr. McAllister had already left for work, as usual. A part of me was relieved as I wasn't ready to face him yet. I quickly
Trina's POV I stepped into Mr. McAllister's study with my heart pounding with nervousness. However, I schooled my features to appear neutral. With a deep breath, I moved forward, eager to get this done and over with, when suddenly the floor seemed to disappear beneath my feet.Time slowed as I realized my mistake. There were steps– three of them– leading down into the main area of the study but as I was too engrossed in calming myself, I didn't see them until it was too late. My heel caught on the edge, and I felt myself pitching forward with a startled gasp escaping my lips.I closed my eyes, bracing myself for the harsh impact of hitting the floor while my mind was already conjuring up the embarrassing image of me falling ungracefully at the feet of one of the most powerful men in the country.But the harsh meeting with the floor never came. Instead, I felt strong arms wrap around me, accompanied by a masculine scent that was both intoxicating and oddly familiar. Mr. McAllister had
Trina’s POV Taken completely off guard, I blinked because unlike him, I was still disoriented from our unexpected closeness of moments ago. My mind felt foggy, and I found myself nervously tucking a strand of hair behind my ear before stammering a response."I... well, I have a few questions first, if that's alright.” I paused, took a deep breath before going on. “If I agree, how long will this charade last? And who exactly will I be pretending for? You didn't really explain the details last time."Mr. McAllister leaned back in his chair, with his fingers steepled in front of him. His gaze never wavered from mine as he spoke, and I found myself captivated by the intensity in his eyes."Jayden and I will be traveling to my homeland for a few weeks very soon," he explained, his voice calm and measured. "That is when I will need your services. I have family members there, and they are the ones we need to convince that we are married." He paused, his eyes boring into mine. "Happily marri
Jayden McAllister’s POV I kept pacing around in my spacious room with an anxious look on my face. For the umpteenth time now, I checked the time on my limited edition Bugatti smart watch and when I saw that it was a quarter to three, my anxiety grew even more. I quickly pulled out my phone from my jeans pocket and refreshed the email box but to my chagrin, the long-awaited email was still not sent.The previous day after lunch, I had deliberately volunteered to clear the table after having lunch with my father, Trina and Eleanor. When I ensured that nobody was looking my way, I had sneakily wrapped the cutleries we used with paper napkins and pretended to go to the kitchen, only to make a detour to my room.I hid the samples well in the large pockets of my hoodie before leaving the house under the pretext of going for a walk.Even the bodyguards Dad assigned to me didn't bat an eyelid when I told them that I wanted to walk in solitude. And they didn't question me, they never did. Aft
Jayden McAllister's POVEleanor's reaction was nothing short of explosive. She hugged me so tight I could barely breathe as she let out a very loud squeal of delight that made me wince involuntarily. I quickly shushed her, reminding her not to draw attention to us. She clapped a hand over her mouth for a split second as she finally released me from the fierce hug.But Eleanor being Eleanor, she couldn't contain her hyper excitement and it took several minutes and gentle reminders before she finally calmed down enough to speak coherently.Her brow suddenly furrowed as if she just remembered something. She then asked me,"But Jay-jay, if we're twins, and Mom is your mom too, why don't you live with us? Why does Zane Daddy... I mean, Dad, say that your mommy is in heaven?"I sigh, running a hand through my hair. "That's what we need to figure out, Eleanor. Something strange is going on, and I think it's up to us to uncover the truth."Eleanor nods solemnly, her usual playfulness replaced
Trina's POV As my little munchkin and I made our way to the McAllister mansion, I couldn't help but notice her unusually bubbly demeanor. Even though my little firecracker was always full of life, today she seemed to be practically bursting with excitement. I’ve never seen her being this restless and excited over anything. As if she read my mind, she hyper excitedly squealed, “Mommy, hurry! I can't wait to see everyone!"I chuckled, before glancing at her in the rearview mirror and asking, “Calm down, sweetie. We go there every day, remember? Tell me, what's got you so hyper this morning?”She flashed me one of her famous mischievous grins before responding in a fake innocent tone. "Oh, nothing, Mommy. I just have a feeling today's going to be a great day!"Alarm bells instantly rang on my head so I quickly said. “Ella sweetie, remember the promise you made to me when we started going to the McAllister mansion? You wouldn't break it by playing a prank on anyone in the house, would
Trina’s POV Eleanor's eyes widened as big as saucers, and even Jayden looked pleasantly surprised. But before I could process their reactions, Zane quickly added, "As a pretend family." He paused, his gaze sweeping over all of us. "I've made an arrangement with… your mother that will benefit us both. And to make this… venture successful, we will need your maximum cooperation."I watched the children carefully, trying to gauge their reactions. To my surprise, Eleanor and Jayden exchanged another look, this one filled with something I couldn't quite decipher. Was that... a wink from Eleanor to Jayden? Hmm, judging from her hyper excitement from earlier and her actions now, I know my mischievous little munchkin was definitely up to something. But the question is, what? And how on earth had she managed to thaw the usually cold and aloof Jayden like this?"A pretend family vacation?" Eleanor asked, her voice dripping with innocence that I knew was entirely feigned. "That sounds like fun!
Trina's POV Time seemed to slow down as I sensed Zane’s hand a fraction of an inch away from my face. With my heart pounding so hard like never before, I held my breath, waiting for the touch of his fingers on my skin...However, it never came.Instead, I felt a slight movement of air as his hand reached past me. My eyes flew open just in time to see him grab his suit jacket from the hook on the wall behind me."Then you better start practicing about how to act as a caring wife," he said, his voice calm and cool as if nothing had happened. "I'm off to the office."And just like that, he was gone, leaving me pressed against the wall, with my heart still pounding dangerously and my mind reeling.I stood there for a moment, trying to process what had just happened– or rather, what hadn't happened. Had I imagined the tension? The heated look in his eyes? The way his gaze had lingered on my lips?Shaking my head, I pushed myself away from the wall and took a deep breath. This arrangement
Trina’s POV Zane told me he had taken the kids for an outing and so I expected the house to be empty by the time we arrived but the moment Mason and I walked through the front door, I froze in place. There, sitting on my couch with the same warm, gentle smile I remembered from years ago, was Aunt Pamela, Mom's best friend and the woman who had taken care of Mason when I left for Paris. My heart skipped a beat and for a second, I thought I was hallucinating, that maybe the emotional rollercoaster of the past few days was finally breaking me. But when Mason whispered in a shaky voice, “Aunt Pamela?!”, I knew she was real.“Hello, my darlings” Aunt Pamela's voice was still soft, warm, and calm just as I remembered it.I hadn't seen her in over six long years.Tears welled up in my eyes as memories of her kindness flooded back. I instantly threw myself into her arms and hugged her tight.As she hugged me back, she whispered against my hair, “You have no idea how long I've waited for t
Trina's POV Just as I promised Mason I would do when he arrives, I briefed him about the shocking revelation from Dad's lawyer, and just like me, he was absolutely shaken by the news. We may not have grown up loving him but he's the only father we have after all, so we definitely don't want anything to happen to him. As I drove to the small house he had bought and moved in after he moved out of the Ryder mansion which actually belonged to our late Mom, we quickly formulated our plan. And by the time we arrived at the house, Mason's face was still pale from the news, but his jaw was set with determination. We both knew what we were here for. This wasn’t just a visit, it’s rather a mission. A mission to save a man who had been planning to take his own life without anyone noticing.As I parked, I looked at the small, grey house which looked as lifeless as its owner. As I turned off the ignition and started unlatching my seatbelt, Mason let out a long, slow breath beside me before ask
Trina's POV To say that the twins were beyond themselves with joy is the greatest understatement of the year. The moment Zane and I returned from our little romantic weekend rendezvous and told them about our upcoming wedding, their eyes lit up like the brightest stars in the night sky. Our usually indifferent whizz kid surprised me by instantly throwing his fists into the air, exclaiming “Yay!!” in utter delight before throwing his arms around my waist and hugging me tightly while his twin sister let out one of her signature squeals of delight, even though this one seems to be louder than ever. She then started twirling around the living room for what seemed like the hundredth time, announcing to anyone who would listen that “Mommy and Daddy are getting married!” while also listing all the things she wanted to do as the “official flower girl”. Even Jayden was not left behind in that aspect as he immediately settled in front of his laptop, browsing on his role as the ring bearer. Al
Trina's POV As I finally broke our nth kiss this glorious morning, I chuckled radiantly at Zane before whispering, “I can taste myself in your lips.” Zane smirked as he slowly flicked out his tongue and wiped out the remaining drops of my womanly juices that clung to the side of his lips before responding. “Good. You better get used to it because as from now henceforth, that would be the taste of these lips which you would be kissing forever and ever.”I let out a delighted chuckle even as I felt my clit automatically clench at his words. The thought of having those erotic, masterful lips and tongue going down on me and eating me out every single day forever and ever…. Oo la la!As he laid back down beside me and pulled me even tighter against his completely naked body, I sighed in satisfaction and uncontrollable delight. I was still utterly and completely breathless and my heart was still pounding erratically and not just from the intensity of what we had just shared, but from the
Zane's POV Throughout that night, I couldn't sleep. Not even a wink. Even though my gorgeous goddess Trina who is completely sated and spent after our very rapturous and passionate night, now slept peacefully while snuggled in my arms, I just couldn't bring myself to do the same ever since that word came to my mind…. ‘forever’.That one word kept echoing in my head, setting my mind on overdrive, buzzing with different thoughts. I had never considered marriage before in my life. Never thought I would ever need something as binding, as absolute, as forever like marriage is, with anyone at all. Howecer, here I was, unable to imagine a future without my gorgeous goddess by my side. Without Katrina. Without our twins, Jayden and Eleanor. The mere thought of it made me feel an instant overwhelming rush of warmth all through my body… ‘Together forever’ The surprising fact is that the words didn’t scare me like they might have in the past. Infact, in the past if someone had told me that I
Zane's POV However, I waited and waited, but nothing came. I opened my eyes only to find her already standing on her feet with a mischievous smirk on her face. Damn!The mischievous smirk on her face turned into a sultry smile as she reached out to me with her hand, saying in a low, husky tone. “Dance with me?”I should have been disappointed. But how could I be, when she was looking at me like that?I immediately took her hand and eagerly pulled her into my arms, wrapping my arms around her waist while hers looped around my neck. And the moment our bodies joined together for the dance, it felt like coming home. Her softness molded perfectly against my hardness, fitting as if we were made exactly for this. As if we were made for each other.A slow, sultry song played in the background— John Legend's "All of Me," and the lyrics seemed to speak directly to my soul;‘Cause all of meLoves all of youLove your curves and all your edgesAll your perfect imperfections…’As we swayed toge
Zane’s POV For the most part of the funeral service of the late Sarah Caldwell Ryder, I could feel Trina’s eyes on me, watching me, burning into me like fire balls. The service had been a very quiet, dignified and very emotional one especially after the touching eulogies Trina, her brother and her great aunt made. But for me, it wasn't the touching eulogies that made me restless and set me on edge. No. It was those eyes… those mesmerizing doe-like eyes of hers which kept staring at me and boring into me all through the service. They were like laser beams, penetrating into me with a burning effect, setting my entire body on fire and making me hot and flustered… in the middle of a church for that matter.And when I finally dared to meet her eyes at the end of the service after I felt her eyes on me yet again, my breath hitched in my throat because those hypnotic eyes… they weren’t just looking at me. They were seeing me. Seeing me in a way she had never before, as if she was peeling a
Trina’s POV After her proclamation, Aunt Livvy wasted no time at all. The moment both Mason and I nodded our heads in agreement that Mom really deserved the grand funeral she had been cruelly denied, Aunt Livvy immediately sprang into action. She handled everything with a precision that portrayed her years of experience of managing the Caldwell empire and also, her deep love for her niece Sarah Caldwell Ryder. Within hours, she had called the archbishop, contacted every relative and every family friend across the country, arranged for caterers, and ensured that media outlets announced the passing of the Caldwell heiress to the world. The obituary was finalized, and invitations were sent far and wide. What surprised me is that as soon as she made those calls, even those people who had never once shown interest in my mother’s well-being while she was alive now clamored to attend her funeral after hearing that she was the Caldwell heiress!By the time Aunt Livvy finally finished all he
Trina’s POV From the address Aunt Livvy sent to me, I know she lives about an hour and a half drive away from my house. But when I inputted the address on the Google maps and let it direct us, it felt as if the drive to her estate was much longer than the hour and a half that I had estimated. Or perhaps it is because of the daunting task ahead of both Mason and I… of breaking the news of Mom's death to her loving aunt, that I felt so.As I drove, I kept biting my lower lip at intervals, which is a nervous habit I got from none other than Dad himself. Shaking my head as if to get rid of the numerous thoughts buzzing in it, I turned to the side, stealing a glance at Mason who was sitting at the passenger seat beside me. Just like me, he had been silent for a long while now, deep in thoughts. He was staring out of the window and I could see his clenched fists tightly around the large envelope containing the stack of letters we brought with us. I know exactly what he was thinking becaus