Iris was not in the mood to face any of her past admirers anymore after what happened with Keanu but at least she had a bodyguard now, relaxing at the thought and asked Rhoda, “Is it for business or personal?” If it was personal, then she would find an excuse to not see him. “He said both ma’am,” Rhoda responded promptly, Iris sighed, “Let him in.” As soon as Adam entered the office, Iris’s bodyguard, Jordan entered too and stood by the closed door. Initially, Adam thought he was a staff who needed something and did not mind. “Iris, it’s been a while,” Adam opened his arms for a hug but Iris remained in her seat, unmoved. Disappointment flashed in Adam’s eyes but he gobbled it and sat down in front of her. Before, Iris would have stood and hugged him but Adam understood that Garvin was now in the picture and a lot of things had changed. “Yes Adam, how are you?” Iris asked, Adam forced a smile and said, “I’m fine. I went to your house yesterday but only the twins were there.
“My foster mother.” Iris remembered the story about Garvin’s foster parents. He loved his foster mother a lot before realizing that she was not who he thought she was. “You mean the one who tried to…” “Yes,” Garvin nodded his head and said, his expression turning a little cold. Iris wondered what the woman would still want from him after all she had done, and asked curiously, “What does she want?” Garvin pinched her a little on the cheek, seeing her worried look, and said, “I don’t care.” He smiled and added, “Because of my foster father, I send them enough money for their upkeep quarterly.” Iris was happy that Garvin was still generous to them so if that was the case, did they want more or was there a problem? Her mind was just refusing to be stable. “So why is she calling?” She asked curiously and Garvin sighed. He didn’t want to talk about it before but this woman did not look like she was going to give up until she got some answers. Looking at her admiringly, he reveale
“Chelsea, where are you?” Jake was worried that the food would get cold because she should have arrived five minutes ago. Chelsea stared out of the window but had no idea where she was. Long Island was not a place she was familiar with and asked the driver, “Where are we, sir?” “Almost at home, ma’am,” the driver responded, Chelsea conveyed the same thing, “Your driver tells me that we are almost at your house.” “Alright, see you.” Chelsea could hear a relieved sigh and wondered the reason why he was so worked up when she was not even the one driving and to her amazement, Jake was already waiting at the entrance when the car pulled over. He pulled her into his warm embrace the moment he opened the door for her to step out of the car. “How did it go?” Chelse hesitated in responding to his question but the expectation in his eyes made her helpless. “My dad wants to meet the man in whose house both me and my sister spent the night. Since my mom told him everything I told her
Chelsea blanked out; Jake was scared. He knew he shouldn’t have proposed until they had gotten to know each other better but whatever he felt for her from before had not changed and he so desperately wanted to make her his wife like he never thought about making any other woman. “Chelsea, please say something. Will you marry me or not?” He asked with his heart in his throat. Chelsea was shocked by the whole thing and kept glaring at the diamond ring she was still holding in her hand, not having the courage to wear it, and not having the bravery to return it. “I have to make a call.” Chelsea stepped out of the pool before Jake could say Jack. She wrapped a towel around her torso, picked up her phone, and dialed Iris’s number. Jake was deflated, he pulled out from the water as well, picked up his phone, and dialed Garvin’s number. Garvin and Iris were sleeping when their phones rang at the same time. Seeing the callers, they both shook their heads and answered. “Chelsea?” Iris
“Wait, did you say it was love at first sight?” Chelsea felt strange since she still could not define what she felt for him as love. She knew that she liked him a lot and that was it for now. “Yes, and it’s the truth,” Jake looked into her eyes and said, his honesty was sizzling and Chelsea was a bit guilty, imagining how he had loved her all these years and she never thought about him for once. “What if I don’t love you?” She saw pain flash in his eyes but he blinked and it was gone. Jake was not expecting her to confess her love for him as well since she had been in love with somebody else but it still hurt that she said it plainly. However, if she felt nothing for him, then why would she agree to date him? She was mature enough to know that he was not joking and their relationship required commitment. “You do. You just haven’t realized it.” He saw her hugging herself, paused, and said, “It's getting cold. We either get inside the water or go to the room. I want you to spen
“I already informed you guys that I’m engaged,” Chelsea flaunted her ring, Iris was speechless. The ring was indeed unique but since Gianna was sleeping and only saw the message this morning, she was conflicted. “Don’t you think it’s too soon?” Gianna asked, Chelsea shook her head, “I thought so before but he explained that though we were engaged, we should still begin from scratch so we haven’t been intimate after that accidental one,” Chleasea said and Gianna knew she was trying to avoid the criticism headed her way.Chelsea made it sound as if she had spent ten nights with Jake without intimacy when it has in actuality, been just one, and a first.“It's just a day without intimacy so it's nothing to jubilate about. Are you sure that you are ready for this?” Gianna said and asked.Not even Iris knew about the pain they endured because of being married to assholes. Her voice sounded harsh but Chelsea knew that Gianna cared a lot and was just immense in deep waters of pain.“Let’s
Jake arrived at Garvin’s office a few minutes after Mark got there. Garvin already ordered food which was ready for all, as they made themselves comfortable in Garvin’s office, on the visitors’ sofa. “It's good meeting like this again,” Jake said when Garvin bobbed his head in agreement, rose from his executive swivel chair, and sat in front of them. His question was directed at Jake. “I agree so, Jake, you said you are engaged to a woman who doesn’t love you?” Jake felt a little embarrassed by the way Garvin asked the question, knowing that he was teasing him, and redirected the question to him, “Garvin, tell me first, when are you getting married?” Garvin smiled. If he had his way, he would be married to Iris by now butp her happiness mattered to him. He must have bullied his way through a lot of things but a decision concerning marriage should not be rushed if she says she isn’t ready to tie the knot. Their living together was the only thing that gave him hope, for which r
At the restaurant where Iris was having lunch with her friends, Chelsea hung up the phone and began eating some grilled chicken, faster than she ever had. Iris and Gianna stared weirdly at her and before Iris asked, Chelsea spoke after swallowing the meat in her mouth, “I'm going home, girls and I need the energy so wish me luck.” The two women were shocked by her choice of words but she was too excited to care. “Chelsea, what happened?” Iris asked her with a confused expression since she had not heard the things Jake was saying to Chelsea. “You heard everything I said,” Chelsea pointed out before munching on another bite-size chicken breast she shoved into her mouth. “But not his response,” Iris clarified while Gianna kept staring at her sister like a ghost, wondering what Jake had said to her to make her like this. “Sorry, I should have put it on speaker. So, he said I should create an excuse and take the rest of the day off. You are old enough to understand what that means.”
Garvin had a small smile on his face. Cooper and Gerald might be wise, but Garvin was still more experienced. “Your method would not have been the best.” “I would have sent them to jail,” Gerald said. He hated that Yvette and Nathaniel were walking around freely, so what if they were impoverished? “They would have served a few terms and then be walking free. They would also come back to enjoy their family’s wealth as if nothing happened. It’s the reason why I took this action,” Garvin explained. It made sense to Cooper and Gerald that though their plan would punish those two well, it would have also been for a short term, but Garvin’s method was a long-term one. “Fine, but next time, you should discuss with us first,” Cooper insisted, but Garvin refused and explained, “Ivory is also my daughter.” Thus, he didn’t need anyone’s permission to protect his daughter. The three men all loved Ivory in different ways, and they were ready to avenge her. Since there was no way around Garvin
Ivory may be resilient and resourceful, but this time, she felt the security of being with her family. Gerald was already there for her, but so were her brothers and parents.Nathaniel was not only humiliated but also afraid. With all these powerful men threatening him, he couldn’t find any means of support and was afraid of his father’s deteriorating health.To find a way to get out of this mess, he decided to expose the brain behind it.“It was all Yvette’s idea. She masterminded everything. Please Gerald, I’m very sorry.” Nathaniel looked remorseful, but the damage caused was too much to let go.Ivory had to constantly look over her shoulder because of the enemies she was exposed to.“Why are you blaming me? If I suggested it, did I tell you to go ahead with it?” Yvette was equally trying to find a way to get out of the mess.“So you agree that you suggested it,” Gerald glared at her. She realized she had made a mistake with her words.“Please Gerald, it won’t happen again.”Gerald
Chaos broke out as the guests began to murmur in confusion. Gerald’s expression darkened instantly, but no one else knew what was going on. Ivory didn’t have her hacking tools with her to stop whoever was trying to sabotage her so openly because it was a joyous event. The first name that came to mind was Dean Arlo, but he was being processed for court and wouldn’t dare. Gerald already got the best lawyers to handle his case. The robotic voice continued to speak as images were shown on the screen. “Two years ago, three company servers were destroyed by Ice Panther. Those companies are now closed down with their employees jobless.” The crowd was already feeling pity for the company shown on the screen, but Ivory was boiling with rage. She was trying to figure out who was behind it since it was not hard for her to defend herself. For that reason, she decided to wait a little, hoping to be able to detect the human behind the robot. “A year ago, Ice Panther hacked into a government s
Rosie felt terrible for the hairstylist. She had put in so much effort to put in the extensions and they looked good on Rosie.“I’m sorry, but you have to take everything off,” Rosie said politely, but her voice was stern. The hairstylist did not want to, feeling that if Cooper saw Rosie, he would reconsider.“That will take time. You will be late for your wedding.”“Let it be so, but Cooper’s happiness matters to me. After all, I’m doing all this for him, so what is the essence if he doesn’t like it?” Rosie stood her ground.She would rather be late and appear the way Cooper wanted than to appear on time with a look that would make him upset.Ivory smiled at Rosie’s resolve. She would have done the same for Gerald. It was just as Gerald wanted her to wear that wedding dress, and Ivory couldn’t refuse.“She’s right. You should make the necessary changes. We shall wait for her and everyone else,” Ivory added her voice.The hairstylist sighed frustratedly. “Alright. Please remove the we
Three weeks later, excitement brewed in the air as another joint wedding was announced among the Berets after so many years.A journalist was reporting the news on live TV. “I’m Lola, a reporter from Channel Z. Decades ago, the Parker-Berets and their best friends hosted a mass luxurious wedding.”“The trend is repeating itself as the twins, Cooper and Curtis Parker-Beret, are getting married to the sisters, Rosie and Rosalind. What makes it more interesting is that the last born of the Berets, Ivory, is also getting married to Gerald Scott, the hot CEO of Scotts Automobiles and Cambridge Incorporated.”“I am here to give you every information you need about this mega wedding so stay tuned,” the reporter ended.There was a lot of excitement going on. Curtis’s relationship with Rosalind was well known to the populace so the shocking ones were that of Cooper and Gerald.Most people knew that Gerald was engaged to Yvette, not knowing how he was getting married to Ivory.The news sparked
“Admit it. I won,” Ivory smiled and gave in to sleep. She still had no regrets at all. Gerald smiled and shook his head.His little Pumpkin was growing smarter and smarter by the day, she was even outsmarting him now.It wasn’t long before he fell asleep. The next day, Ivory woke up feeling sore. Her movement woke Gerald.“Pumpkin, are you alright?” He asked worriedly. Pain registered on Ivory’s face. How could something so sweet give her so much pain and ache in the morning?“I feel sore. Is this how you wanted our honeymoon to be? It’s as if I have a knife stuck in there,” Ivory exaggerated the pain.Gerald was worried and said, “Don’t move. I will be right back.” He went out and called his dad on the phone, speaking hastily,“Dad, I had my first time with Ivory and she’s complaining of pain. What should I do?” Gerald could manage two companies flawlessly but with Ivory, he was as helpless as a teenager.His father chuckled at the end of the line. “I see you finally became a man.”G
“Ivory’s cycle falls on our wedding day,” Gerald revealed. The twins understood the weight of the problem as Curtis eagerly suggested,“Dude, you should take your pound of flesh before then.”Gerald chuckled. “I’m still thinking about it but I can’t believe she’s your sister. You are giving me bad advice,” he accused Curtis. He laughed and retorted,“She’s a woman after all. So, what happens to the companies if we all get married on the same day?” He asked.Cooper already had that planned out and asked them, “Isn’t that the reason why we have parents who pioneered the business?”As Gerald and Curtis were nodding their heads in agreement, Cooper added, “That reminds me. We should let them handle our wedding planning too.”“Perfect suggestion,” the three men clicked their wine glasses.That night, Cooper had a serious talk with Rosie. “When you get better, would you like to work in the company? I can train you,” he suggested. Rosie recalled what Ivory told her about Cooper and work.She
Cooper frowned suspiciously, but before he could refuse, Gerald cut in, saying, “I even want to speak to you and Curtis, Cooper.”Cooper glanced at Rosie, and as she smiled, his heart warmed. He said to her, “Excuse me, Rosie, I will be right back.”Rosie chuckled and quickly replied, “Take your time, Cooper, Ivory and Rosalind are here.”Cooper did not like it when other people got his woman’s attention. He was the last to fall in love among the three, and his behavior showed that he was trying to catch up on all the years he lost.“You prefer them better than me?” He asked with a slight jealousy in his tone. Rosie was amazed, smiling and asking him,“Are you jealous?”Cooper pursed his lips but did not immediately respond. “I…I will see you soon,” he said and walked out with the two men.Rosalind was glad that Ivory created this opportunity for them to have a girls' talk. She quickly asked her sister,“Rosie, you look happier and better than I ever saw you. What have you been doing?
"Is it the doctors? It’s not yet time for my routine check," Rosie said, equally at a loss. As the plane lowered, Cooper detected the person in it."No. It’s Gerald. That’s his family jet."The two of them walked towards the jet to meet the person in it. It was just as Cooper said. Gerald was the first to alight, his arm intertwined with that of Ivory.Cooper frowned a little at the intrusion and said, "I didn’t know you were coming."Rosie and Ivory had already hugged each other. "Rosie, you look stunning. What is on this Island that makes you look so good? I want to join you," Ivory said half-jokingly. Rosie blushed and looked at Cooper.She knew that not only her health but appearance had also greatly improved."We decided to surprise you but we have something very important to discuss," Gerald was saying to Cooper when another couple alighted from the jet.Cooper wanted more time with his woman and was not pleased with the intrusion, especially when they had not informed him."I s