Unlike the wedding that was limited to close friends and family, the reception hall was full of people. Blair changed her white wedding gown to a floor length red mermaid dress which hugged her hourglass figure with perfection till her thighs, after which it fell to her legs like a waterfall, with spaghetti strap sleeves and V neck. Her hair was free from the bun, her makeup was the same, except her plump lips that were coated red, similar to her dress.
Calvin also changed out of his tuxedo and bow tie to a three piece dark red, velvet suit to match her dress. His hair was gelled and styled upwards which gave him a fatal look. But it wasn't her husband Blair was paying attention to. Her chocolaty eyes were searching for a certain dark eyed, pale skinned person admist of them greeting the guests.
"Congratulations Blair, Mr. Cartier."
There he was. Looking as handsome as ever in his formal suit. She gave him a shy smile, Biting the inside of her cheek. Raiden and Jessica greeted them.
"This is Raiden Kingston, my boss and his sister and my friend Jessica Kingston." Blair introduced.
"Mr. Cartier, congratulations on your wedding. From now on, you are my brother in law. Please look after my best friend here." Jessica said, gesturing both of her hands towards Blair.
Calvin let out a deep chuckle. "Don't worry, Ms. Kingston, I will certainly take very good care of my wife." He assured, giving Blair a sweet smile. She didn't know how to respond so she just smiled back with a nod.
Raiden's eyes went down towards Calvin's hand which rested firmly at Blair's small waist. He clenched his fist and pressed his lips together before quickly moving his gaze back to their faces. But he wasn't quick enough to escape Calvin's observing eyes.
Calvin used his arm to pull Blair a little closer, just to see Raiden's reaction. After watching his shifting face, Calvin smirked inwardly, confirming his suspicions.
'So it's a boss employee love story huh? Cute.'
"Ladies and gentlemen, now I would like to request our new couple to show us a sweet dance." Jackie's voice boomed in the microphone and the hall erupted in claps and cheers.
Calvin kept wearing a smile while they got in position for dancing. One of his hands stayed on her waist while the other intervened their fingers. Her hand felt so small against his. She placed her free hand over his velvet suit as they swayed with the soft, romantic music.
With their proximity, he could easily smell her sweet lavender scent. She stared at his eyes, they looked more gorgeous, closed up. For some reason they didn't feel awkward.
All that time, the smile never left his face.
"Mr. Cartier?" She finally spoke up in a small voice, unable to take it anymore. He hummed in response, staring right back at her.
"No offense but can you stop smiling, it's getting creepy."
Calvin's thoughts stopped for a moment. He just got married and the first thing his wife says to him is that his smile is creepy. Weirdly, he found it funny. He leaned in to whisper in her ears,
"You should smile too, Mrs. Cartier, everyone is watching."
She looked around to see multiple pairs of eyes on them. There were whisperings like 'Oh such a cute couple', 'Their kids would have superior genes', 'Its just another business marriage' and much more.
She looked back at him and stretched her lips into an awkward grin. He nodded his head in approval, still holding that smile. And with that they continued to dance.
Blair shared a dance with all the Cartier men. Albert insisted her to call him 'dad' to which she gladly agreed.
Out of the remaining three Cartier brothers, Denver was the mature and understanding one, Elvis was shy and quite but also witty and sarcastic. Lastly, James was funny and friendly who also had a way with words.
James shared some of Calvin's secrets with her. His exact words were, "Calvin loves eating, it's his hobby. Though he tries to act tough, he actually cried while watching the Titanic. In short, he's like a big teddy bear," he leaned in to whisper in her ear. "even though he looks like Annabelle."
It was the time to leave. They walked towards where their families were standing and greeted everyone. Miguel hugged Blair quietly and let out a few tears.
He took Calvin's hand in his and said, "Please look after my little girl."
"You don't have to worry at all, uncle. Blair is now my responsibility."
She didn't know if he was being genuine or was he just that good at acting but his words made her feel a little flutter in her chest.
She looked at him and smiled greatfully. They made eye contact, he smiled back.
"If he causes any trouble, just tell me okay?" Albert said patting Calvin's back due to which he playfully rolled his eyes.
"I'll keep that in mind, dad."
With everyone's well wishes, they went on their way towards his house. The car ride could be summed up in one word, which is 'awkward'. She kept staring out of the window, same as him. No one said anything.
"I'm Blair." She didn't know what came up to her to suddenly burst out those words.
"I know." He chuckled amusingly.
Of course he would know. That was such a stupid move. She mentally scolded herself. 'I should have just kept quiet ugh!'
"I am Calvin." He said after a while, giving her that creepy grin once again. She really thought he was doing it on purpose to freak her out.
"I know that too."
After that, silence. Pin drop silence. Until Blair spoke again, "your family," she broke the silence. "they are really sweet." She meant it. In a short period of time she had gotten close with them. Being an only child, she never knew the joy of having a big family. She was touched by how they accepted her with open arms.
He nodded and smiled fondly. "They really are. Every month we have family dinners, we have a great time together. You will love it too." He smiled at her. But this time it wasn't creepy or playful. It was a genuine, honey filled smile.
She found it cute how endearingly he talked about his family. Afterall, women love a family man.
The ride continued in silence. But now, it wasn't awkward anymore. Though they kept quiet, it was a comfortable silence. Something that she enjoyed. He had broken the stereotype she held for him.
Maybe, this would not be as bad as she thought.
Calvin's house was gigantic for one person. It was a two floored mansion, with about five rooms and an indoor swimming pool. The decorations, the furniture, the designing, everything screamed money. It was all so modern, almost futuristic. Surprisingly, the house looked very bright. She thought he would be a dark colours type of guy but his house was painted baby blue and white with matching furniture. She loved the place. They were standing in the living room. A was huge, a long blue couch with two small ones at the side and a glass table in between was placed in the centre of the room. The front wall was a collage of framed pictures. Family photos, graduation photos, school pictures and even some random shots were placed precisely on the wall. Kitchen was included in the living room. The stove was electric and sensory, cabinets had well designed sunmica on them, counter was made of pure white marble in a U shape. And at the end of the counter, an expensive table cl
The digital clock on the table said 7:30 when Blair woke up. 'What is this place?' she thought, noticing the unfamiliar surroundings. Memories from the previous day flooded in her mind. She was in her new room, their room. The place next to her was empty meaning Calvin was already up. She changed into her workout clothes, a fitted tank top and black leggings and went towards the rooftop to follow her daily yoga and meditation session. The rooftop was wide and broad, there was a lot of space. She spread her mat and putting on some classical music, she began her routine. Seeing the wide area of rooftop, she thought of something. The place was perfect for gardening. Maybe she could plant some fragrant flowers and a few herbs and vegetables. She trusted her brain to remind her later to talk about this with Calvin. Walking back to their room, she couldn't see him anymore. He wasn't in his study or at the mini gym and not even at the pool. This left only two places, kitche
Blair was crying. While sitting in a puddle of soapy water and surrounded by dirty clothes. The person who claim she could fight voldemort was crying, because of laundry. It had been days since they got married and Blair was having time of life while living with Calvin. He was just so active in household work. She didn't have to lift a finger and not to forget his five star Michelin like food. She felt guilty for not helping around the house so she volenteered to do the grocery shopping but Calvin made her stop after one day because she messed up between scallions and wild reek. Which 'absolutely ruined his special dish' in his words. She didn't understand what the deal was, both were long and green. Since that day she would always accompany him to the market to learn 'the art of grocery shopping'. Again, his words. Now, there was one thing that was bothering her. The pile of dirty clothes that she had gathered. She didn't know how to do laundry. She thought of asking Mary or Tris
"All of you are fucking useless!" Britney screamed pointing at the 3 suit cled men in front of her. She stomped her pumps on the tiled floor in frustration. Frustrated that those three men with wide range of connections weren't able to get her brother out of jail. "We tried our best mam but the case is too strong. The prosecution really made sure not to leave any loop holes. Even bribing the higher ups didn't help." One of the men spoke bowing down his head. She let out a long breath. She was furious. They were one of the most powerful and feared families of the country and suddenly because of a rookie lawyer her brother went to jail and their relevance began to fade? She couldn't accept it. Those higher ups who mooched off their money were now covering like rats, hiding behind the fake masks of honesty and patriotism. 'Of course they would do that, after all they are getting praises without
"This is so tiring." Blair sighed while shifting her weight from one leg to another. Her heels were making her legs ache. Well, they are called killer heels for a reason. "Then you shouldn't have wore six inches of heels." Calvin nagged. Even the sight of those strappy maroon heels looked painful. He looked around searching for a place to sit but everything was occupied. He called over a waiter and asked him to arrange an extra chair. She gave him a greatful smile. His thoughtfulness somehow made her feel special. If only she didn't already love someone else, she would have fallen for him the day they met. "Hey there, hotstuff." A familiar voice made them both tum around. "Did you miss me baby?" Blair smiled wide and squeezed her into a bone crushing hug. She looked pretty as always in her thigh length black bodycon dress. Jessica was the most beautiful women she had ever seen. Wi
"Everydaaaayyyyyy, all I wanna have is fun, fun, fun. Fun anywayyyyy, so just come and join us one by one." "Looks like someone woke up on the right side of the bed today." Calvin's amused voice interrupted Blair's happy singing session. He was enjoying her off tune singing white drinking his glass of milk. She was all ready for her work wearing a lemon yellow blazer and pants with white shirt. Her long hair was pulled back in a sleek ponytail with bangs on her forehead. She wore minimalistic makeup, just some eyeliner and cherry flavoured lip tint. She was making a special milk coffee. "The coffee machine at the firm broke down yesterday." "What a strange reason to be happy but I won't judge." He licked his lips clean of any traces of milk. She prepared an extra cup of coffee and placed it in front of him. Before he could protest, she interveined,
"One bucket of chicken wings, also a plate of white sauce pasta and a large potato garlic cheese bites." Blair looked at the boy in front of her, flabbergasted. He was ordering one after other, eating like he had never seen food in his life. "Slow down Wan, first finish what has been served." It would be a shame if all that food went to waste. Wan tried to say something but only muffled sounds came out. He finally swallowed the food in his mouth and said, "You might not treat me after what I am about to tell you." Wan was her informer. Just a 19 years old kid who was very sneaky and resourceful. He used to be a part of a local gang of thieves but left everything after he started working for her. He had made some loyal friends there, who came out to be very useful for getting information. Blair kept moving her leg in impatience while he sat there eating peacefully. She had asked him to look for Stephanie. It had bee
Blair moaned in pain. Her head was killing her. She looked around to find herself in their room. She couldn't remember anything from the previous night except that she went out drinking with Jessica. After that, everything was blank. As usual, Calvin wasn't in the room. Thinking that he must be at the pool taking laps like he always did every other morning, she began her routine. She searched all over the house but Calvin was nowhere to be found. He didn't pick up his phone nor he left any message about his whereabouts. There was no food in the kitchen and the dishwasher was also empty, meaning he didn't cook. 'He didn't even have breakfast.' A part of her was was getting worried. 'There must be an emergency, that's why he left like that.' She assured herself. ... Loving someone who doesn't love you back, that thing hurts. But you know what hurts more? Loving someone who's already in love wit
"Why is she calling me at this time?" Calvin wondered when he saw Jessica's name flash on the caller ID. Getting a call from her was already unusual, and on top of it, in middle of the day? He assumed it must be something important. Without wasting any more time, he tapped the green icon and placed the phone near his ear."Get inside!" He flinched when her voice blasted from the other side."Jessica? What is going on?" He inquired. He was pretty sure she was not talking to him. Did she call him by mistake? There were some weird noises from the other side. Muffled sounds, grunts, some commotion. His curiosity rose. Instead of questioning her any further, he kept quiet, putting his attention on what was happening on the call."You like to play, don't you?" It was a man's voice. Gruff and stern. However, that voice did not sound familiar to Calvin. And he did not sound like someone civil with Jessica. Before he could assume anything more, another feminine voice spoke."Stop! You want me,
Jessica watched intently as Dr. Hill put some disinfectant on a ball of cotton, held it up with a suture scissor and dabbed it on Stephanie’s chest. Jessica helped by pulling her shirt further, near her shoulder, to give the doctor better access to the wound. Stephanie was still like a statue. Surprisingly, the sting was very minimal, much less than the previous time. She remembered the last time she got her wound cleaned. It burned so much, she felt like someone had inserted a flaming rod inside her. She shook her head, wanting to forget that horrible memory, it was one of the main reason why she did not want to visit the hospital. “Does it hut too much?” Jessica inquired with a whisper, noticing the girl’s stiff expression. “Not at all.” She whispered back, putting the former at ease. Just the thought of getting shot sounded terrifying to her. On top of it, the pain that comes with its treatment, the idea made all hairs on her body stand up. In her eyes, she found incredibly brav
"I am just being paranoid." Raiden stated to himself. He gulped down a glass of water, wishing it will come his restless heart. Jessica had texted him saying that they had reached the hospital. 'They would be home in no time. It is not a big deal.' That's what he was trying to convince himself. However, his instinct told him something was not right. He glanced at his watch. The case would resume in half an hour. He had to get his mind off everything else and go through his points once again. Blair had already immersed herself in revising each and every document before they had to face the jury.For time being, everything was going in their favor. They just had to stay consistent and he would walk out of the courtroom with another victory by his name."Mr. Kingston? You seem distracted." Blair observed her boss's lost behavior. It was unusual of him, not paying attention on his work. "Should I get you a coffee?" She asked. "That is no need for that." He waved his hand to dismiss her
"Do you really like my brother?" It would be a lie if Stephanie said she did not expect it. Jessica was like that, nosy and straightforward. At least in Stephanie's eyes. She reminisced the conversation she had with Raiden that same morning."Dr Hill can't come today, so we have to go to the hospital." He informed, keeping his eyes downcasted. Things had been awkward between them since the day he indirected rejected her. In all honesty, she missed him. His face, his voice, his smile, his shabby cooking which she always ate without any complains. She would feel so overwhelmed by his efforts that his bland food did not bother her. She was happy, just by looking at him. His mere presence bought her unexplainable joy.However, now things were not the same as before. The person who provided her comfort, was acting like a complete stranger. And it was all her fault. She was convinced that it was a huge mistake on her side to confess his her feelings when she knew she would get rejected. 'Bu
We should always obey our elders. They know the best. Elders are never wrong. All these things are embodied in our heads since our childhood. We should never expect them to apologize, even when they are in the wrong. That's what we are taught. But, is it always true? In that room, Blair encountered to completely different type of adults."I am so sorry, my dear." Miguel apologized with regretful eyes as Martha stood in the back, keeping her lips zipped and holding on her usual, 'I am disgusted' expression. "All this time, I only thought about myself. How did I became so selfish? I never tried to understand how you must feel. Family is supposed to have each other's back in difficult times, but I left you alone when you needed my support the most. I'm sorry, Blair." He asked for her forgiveness with downcasted eyes.His heart was full of regret. He softly clutched her palm, showing her a grim smile. "It doesn't matter to me. Even if we don't share the same blood, you are still my li
"I really have no idea." Aaron chuckled when Blair gave him a questioning stare. As per Miguel's wish, her and Calvin visited the Andrews mansion. They found Aaron and Mr Park in the living room. However, the older couple was nowhere to be seen. She wondered what could be the reason behind the invitation."They were fighting again. Dad's health is getting worse." Aaron spoke up, out of the blue. Mister Park nodded his head in agreement."Mr Andrews is looking into divorce lawyers." He revealed. "At first I thought it was not that bad because they were attending marriage counseling. But now, things doesn't look that good.""Dad is planning to get a divorce!? Why didn't you tell me?" Aaron exclaimed, feeling disappointed. If he had known everything from the beginning, he could have tried to solve it."I didn't want to hide it from you, but your father asked me not to involve you. I am sorry." The older man apologized.My parents are considering divorce, for fuc- God's sake! How can I not
"Of course I'm fine. Don't worry too much." All right, reach home safely. Blair placed her phone on the center table and streched out her arms. It was strange. Wan had called her late at night it just to ask if she was safe. There was a wierd tremble in his voice, as if he was scared of something. She had to trust him and wait for him to share whatever that was bothering him.She remembered the talk she had earlier with her uncle. She was overjoyed when she saw his caller ID flashing on her phone screen. She had been constantly texting him in hopes to get a chance to explain herself. He never reply to any of her texts. On top of it, with Byron Chase roaming free, it would just create more problems between them. Therefore, his call made her happy, yet surprised.She laid down on the couch and scratched her scalp. After a long day of work, she wanted to have a good rest, still she was up till late as she was waiting for Calvin. He had informed her beforehand that he was going to be late
"Careful!" Raiden exclaimed when he saw Stephanie trying to sit up straight. He rushed to her side and put a couple of pillows behind her back. She laid on the soft pillows and moaned in pain while holding her chest. He instinctively rubbed her back and squeezed her arm to help her cope with the pain."Are you all right? Do you need something?" He asked, still holding her securely. She gulped and looked at him with shy eyes, just to find him staring back at her with eyes full of concern. They stayed in the same position for about 3 seconds before he pulled back and faked a cough. She dropped her eyes back down at her hands."Here, It's time for a medicines." He held out a few pills in his palm and the glass of water in other hand. She mentally gagged at the site of those bitter medicines, but took them anyways. She silently thanked him, avoiding his eyes at all costs. He heaved a deep sigh and sat next to her."Why did you leave? You were aware of what dangers awaited you and yet you
“Breaking News! Byron Chase, who was convicted for assault and murder of multiple women will be released from the prison, today. What could be the reason behind such sudden action? Netizens believe it’s because of attorney Blair Andrews-Cartier being his biological daughter. Blood is thicker than water. Could that be the reason behind Chase’s bail? Will our general public ever be able to trust the state to provide justice?”Britney turned the TV off and breathed in relief. She leaned back on the couch and crossed her legs in an elegant manner. It was finally happening. After waiting for months, her brother was coming home. She could not contain her happiness. For his welcome, she had cleaned up his room, asked the cook to prepare his favourite dishes and got dressed up in her prettiest outfit.She had not seen him ever since he was arrested. Mainly, because the court order had forbidden it. Now, knowing that he was coming back to her, she could not wait. As per her deal with Raiden, s