Emily’s POVThere was no doubt that Harry had purposefully asked this question. He and Fred were friends, and besides, my ex-husband and my breakup had been splashed across the tabloids. He clearly wanted to embarrass me. The moment he leaves here, I bet the first person he is going to call is Fred and replay exactly what has happened here today. Despite him hinting that he knew who I was, I played it cool, using an alias. “Nice to meet you. Just call me Emma,” came my words in a quick attempt to hide my identity. Harry had caught me off guard. “Oh, is that what you go by these days? Emma? Isn’t your name Emily?” Harry teased, “Don’t look so nervous, Emma, I won’t tell Fred — maybe. Say, how would you feel about a drink? Both our nerves are shot from this flooding nonsense. Let’s get the matter cleared up, and then I buy you a drink to say thank you.” No thanks were needed; it was our warehouse that had flooded, not our client’s. But Harry was a smooth operator and was just using
Emily’s POVHarry’s confident stare began to irritate me and left me wondering if Fred knew any “normal people.” His flirtations were very obvious now, but I suspected Harry was only doing so to tease me and didn’t really mean it. After all, he had never shown any special feelings toward me on the few occasions we had met. But Fred had always been around, and they were friends. “Harry, I know you don’t know me very well, but there is one thing you should know … I’m not someone you can play with,” warning him. I wasn’t going to let him have it that easy. “I’m serious, Em,” Harry shot back, “and can I call you that?” “Give me a reason to trust you,” crossing my arms and looking at him, completely ignoring the last half of his sentence. “If I had to give you a reason, hmm, for one, I think you are very special,” he complimented. What a flimsy reason, rolling my eyes at him. Harry cheekily grabbed at his heart, as if my eye roll agonized him. Acting coolly, the conversation contin
Emily’s POVWhile Fred was in the hospital in Wexschire, there had been a terrorist attack, and the hospital was caught in the crossfire. This was also the same day that Fred woke up.It all happened so quickly; the bomb outside, the screams and shrills from patients, doctors and injured visitors. Only just waking up, Fred barely had time to adapt to the light, let alone the sounds. I had been attending his bedside at the time of the explosion. As soon as the first bang rang through the ward, Fred flung himself over me, protecting me under his body, the infusion pump’s cords dangling off his arms. Suddenly, the ward caught fire, and my body kicked into work mode. After all, he was my patient, and he was the one lying in the hospital bed. It was my duty to save him. Discharging him from the drip attached to his arm, I did the best that I could and managed to pull us both out of the inflamed room, coughing and sputtering as I dragged us out of there. Fred’s eyes had been temporaril
Fred’s POV“Ah-choo!” Nancy’s sneeze abruptly interrupted my thoughts about my trip to the hospital with Emily. It had been strange accompanying her, and something neither of us was used to for quite some time. Looking over at Nancy lying on the bed, today began to feel more terrible by the minute. Rushing back from St. August’s to my villa, I found Nancy standing in the pouring rain. As much as Henry had pleaded with her to come inside, she refused, telling him she’d wait outside until I returned home. It was in these instances that I slowly began to realize how Nancy was starting to manipulate me, softening my heart for her gain. It felt a little self-abusive to tell you the honest truth. But she succeeded, and I succumbed. If it weren’t for Nancy and my love for her, I would never have let things with David slide so easily. One of her recent requests was to help him out financially. It was a pretty big task, but Nancy had a way of getting what she wanted out of me. All I could
Emily’s POVFred proposed divorce. I knew this day would come sooner or later. But I never expected it to happen today, nor did I expect him to be so resolute with his decision. He left divorce papers with his signature on the table, the black ink glaring back at me. The whole thing was difficult for me to wrap my head around. I loved Fred with all my heart! If it were up to me, we would still be together. I didn’t want the separation and … I had married for love. Fred was annoyed by my hesitation, his frustration apparent like an angry child who can’t get his own way. “What did he expect?” I thought but didn’t dare to say out loud. Did he think I’d be okay with this whole situation, smile, and agree? “But, Fred, I…” I began, trying to explain how I really felt, the words trembling out of my mouth. “You knew the deal, Emily,” he interrupted, “we both agreed from the start that our marriage would only last two years,” Fred shot back, a hint of embarrassment as the words left his
Emily’s POVAfter reading Nancy’s text, I was determined to make a difference. Some things needed to change in my life. I won’t let anyone or any man cause me this kind of heartache again.The car pulled up to the massive Stewart family estate. Approaching the glass villa doors of the main house, a row of servants and maids were waiting outside, individually bowing as we arrived. “Welcome home, Miss Stewart,” the head butler said, turning the oversized gold doorknob. Only my brothers had known about my marriage to Fred. “Dad has postponed an important meeting with one of his big-time French clients,” Leon consoled. I smiled, appreciating the sweet gesture from my father. “We all know he’d rather lose a big-time deal and be here for your birthday instead,” Richard chimed in. “He canceled his flight on the private plane just for you, Em.” It didn’t surprise me; I was a daddy’s girl through and through. With two older brothers, it wasn’t hard to understand why. If only Fred could ha
Emily’s POVThe cheerful mood suddenly turned very sour, instantly leaving a bad taste in my mouth. Making out the silhouette of Fred’s BMW even in the dark, there was the sound of his familiar car remote clicking. He marched angrily towards us standing at the entrance. Why was he here? But I suddenly remembered that his grandfather stayed in the same area. Maybe he’s visiting him? But it was not my circus, not my monkeys anymore. Richard’s face was NOT pleased to see Fred either. He quickly stepped in front of me, guarding me from Fred. Out of my two brothers, he was definitely the one with a more forcefully protective nature.I gently patted his arm, signaling to him that I was okay. “Thanks, Rich, but I’ve got this one,” I said to him softly but appreciating the gesture all the same. Why was Fred angry? We were already divorced, right? I then glimpsed sight of Nancy’s shadow hanging behind Fred. Looking closer, her dainty face was painted red with rage and jealousy. Jealousy
Emily’s POVLeon wanted to ask me something — probably about what the hell that was all about — but I wasn’t in the mood and shot him a look which meant don’t ask. Driving to the hotel, I was extremely nervous. Not just because of what had happened, but more so because I was going to see my father very soon. It had been a long time since our last face-to-face meeting…You see, much to the horror of my parents, and especially my father, I had left home all those years ago in search of a normal life. It wasn’t that I didn’t appreciate the childhood I’d been fortunate enough to have. And it wasn’t because I didn’t enjoy the finer things. But I had longed for something more, something to achieve on my own. The last conversation between my father and I often played on my mind. “Emily, my dear daughter. You’re now no longer a girl, and I’ve always envisioned you joining the company one day…” My father had shared with me. Although I was the youngest, and a woman, the family always teased
Fred’s POV“Ah-choo!” Nancy’s sneeze abruptly interrupted my thoughts about my trip to the hospital with Emily. It had been strange accompanying her, and something neither of us was used to for quite some time. Looking over at Nancy lying on the bed, today began to feel more terrible by the minute. Rushing back from St. August’s to my villa, I found Nancy standing in the pouring rain. As much as Henry had pleaded with her to come inside, she refused, telling him she’d wait outside until I returned home. It was in these instances that I slowly began to realize how Nancy was starting to manipulate me, softening my heart for her gain. It felt a little self-abusive to tell you the honest truth. But she succeeded, and I succumbed. If it weren’t for Nancy and my love for her, I would never have let things with David slide so easily. One of her recent requests was to help him out financially. It was a pretty big task, but Nancy had a way of getting what she wanted out of me. All I could
Emily’s POVWhile Fred was in the hospital in Wexschire, there had been a terrorist attack, and the hospital was caught in the crossfire. This was also the same day that Fred woke up.It all happened so quickly; the bomb outside, the screams and shrills from patients, doctors and injured visitors. Only just waking up, Fred barely had time to adapt to the light, let alone the sounds. I had been attending his bedside at the time of the explosion. As soon as the first bang rang through the ward, Fred flung himself over me, protecting me under his body, the infusion pump’s cords dangling off his arms. Suddenly, the ward caught fire, and my body kicked into work mode. After all, he was my patient, and he was the one lying in the hospital bed. It was my duty to save him. Discharging him from the drip attached to his arm, I did the best that I could and managed to pull us both out of the inflamed room, coughing and sputtering as I dragged us out of there. Fred’s eyes had been temporaril
Emily’s POVHarry’s confident stare began to irritate me and left me wondering if Fred knew any “normal people.” His flirtations were very obvious now, but I suspected Harry was only doing so to tease me and didn’t really mean it. After all, he had never shown any special feelings toward me on the few occasions we had met. But Fred had always been around, and they were friends. “Harry, I know you don’t know me very well, but there is one thing you should know … I’m not someone you can play with,” warning him. I wasn’t going to let him have it that easy. “I’m serious, Em,” Harry shot back, “and can I call you that?” “Give me a reason to trust you,” crossing my arms and looking at him, completely ignoring the last half of his sentence. “If I had to give you a reason, hmm, for one, I think you are very special,” he complimented. What a flimsy reason, rolling my eyes at him. Harry cheekily grabbed at his heart, as if my eye roll agonized him. Acting coolly, the conversation contin
Emily’s POVThere was no doubt that Harry had purposefully asked this question. He and Fred were friends, and besides, my ex-husband and my breakup had been splashed across the tabloids. He clearly wanted to embarrass me. The moment he leaves here, I bet the first person he is going to call is Fred and replay exactly what has happened here today. Despite him hinting that he knew who I was, I played it cool, using an alias. “Nice to meet you. Just call me Emma,” came my words in a quick attempt to hide my identity. Harry had caught me off guard. “Oh, is that what you go by these days? Emma? Isn’t your name Emily?” Harry teased, “Don’t look so nervous, Emma, I won’t tell Fred — maybe. Say, how would you feel about a drink? Both our nerves are shot from this flooding nonsense. Let’s get the matter cleared up, and then I buy you a drink to say thank you.” No thanks were needed; it was our warehouse that had flooded, not our client’s. But Harry was a smooth operator and was just using
Emily’s POVCursing myself for being so careless, I grabbed the keyring from Fred, hoping he had been too distracted to notice my Louis Vuitton. But this could be the opportunity I was looking for. Instead of explaining the truth, I went along with the charade Fred had created. If he continued to believe that Richard and I were an item, maybe he’d stay out of my life. My next words were deliberate. “Well, despite what you think, and what may or may not be the truth, I’m willing to wait for Richard,” my comeback hitting him like a ton of bricks. Fred had no right to blame me. After all, my love for him had been acquitted, and for many years. But that didn’t change the consequences of the past weeks. All he could do was stand there stunned. Breaking the silence, Fred continued, “But why would you want to be with a man who loves someone else?” That’s rich coming from you, Fred. “Em, please, I beg of you, resign from this job. I’ll even introduce you to a new one, one that’s better
Emily’s POVIt should have been a simple matter, but nothing was ever that easy with Fred. Not accepting the fact that I didn’t want him to drive me home, he persisted further. “But, Em, I insist. Or is it because you just can’t wait to get rid of me that you’re in such a hurry to leave me?” He continued. Giving him a wary glance, I didn’t answer his accusations. Fred’s unreasonable worries were becoming too much. Plus, I hadn’t been feeling well all day, and now, I was more than ready to get home and finally get into some comfortable clothing. It was never my intention to stay here until this late … All evening, the dizzying sensation I felt in the morning had gotten increasingly worse, but I had tried my best to act normal around Fred’s grandfather. ‘Never show your opponent your weaknesses.’ My father’s words rang through me; another one of his advisals he had shared with me. By now, the dizziness was too hard to ignore. Dinner was the first chance I had gotten to eat a prope
Emily’s POVFred’s sudden irritation from the news of my “marriage” was unexpected. Once our divorce proceedings were complete, we would have nothing more to do with each other. That day couldn’t come sooner… Who I wanted to be with was my business and my business alone. I’m so done with all this drama, albeit I had added slightly more fuel to the fire with my last message to Fred. After about the tenth attempt, the phone calls finally stopped and my phone was silent. Opening the drawer, I retrieved my mobile. The next moment, the phone began to ring again. This time, it wasn’t Fred calling. Hopefully, he had given up. A random number flashed on the screen. Maybe it’s a client. I better answer it just in case. Swiping open the call, Fred’s voice chimed down the line. He was using an unknown number; it wasn’t from his office or home either. Without letting him say anything more than the first hello, I got straight to the point. “If this is about Richard’s cheating, Fred, there
Emily’s POVFred’s out-of-the-blue meeting left me confused. Did he suspect something? To completely dispel his suspicion, I informed Sheila that I wouldn’t be the one attending the meeting with Mr. Walker today. Instead, I would let someone else meet Fred in the conference room in half an hour, pretending to be me. Fred wasn’t an easy man to fool, and luckily, Richard’s girlfriend, Sophie, happened to visit him that afternoon. She had brought him lunch and they were still in his office. I had seen her when she first arrived and their laughter still echoed down the hallway from Richard’s office. I really liked Sophie and hoped their relationship would last, unlike my marriage to Fred. “Knock, knock,” I said, peaking my head around the corner of Richard’s office, “I hope I’m not interrupting.” “Ah, Em, it’s so good to see you! I was going to pop into your office on my way out, which should have been an hour ago. But your brother just won’t let me go!” Sophie smiled. “Well, Sophie
Fred’s POVNancy relentlessly called me asking me for help following the trouble ensuing David and his company.David’s behavior at the bar disgusted me, but what surprised me most from that day was the change in Emily…She had been so brave protecting that waitress even though she didn’t know her; I had never seen that side of her before…Nancy was still staying at her parent’s place, and after our fifth phone call that morning, I hoped I had finally put her mind at ease. But this whole thing with David did make things a little more intense. It was nearing one o’clock when an email came through from John. It was titled ‘Urgent: David.’ I opened it immediately, unearthing its contents like a curious treasure hunter. John had come across some valuable information. Over the last 24 hours, David’s company had been all over the news. Turns out the ones behind the public scrutiny were the Stewart family. But why would they get their hands involved in dirty business? David’s company was an