ELEANOR The car drove into the Blackwell’s estate, and I sighed. I hadn’t even gotten married to Theon yet, but I was already tired of the amount of people who were demanding to see me. The Blackwell Estate stood like a fortress in the night. The large, iron gates were intimidating under the moonlight, and the massive Blackwell crest even made it more fearsome. Memories of how I would dream of the day when I finally moved in here with Theon to start our future together haunted me as the car made its way inside the compound and towards the main house. This time was different, I wasn’t here because I loved Theon and wanted to spend the rest of my life looking at him with lovesick eyes. Victoria Blackwell had invited me for dinner. I was so overseeing the Blackwells every single day. It wasn’t even a week yet and I’d already met Reginald and now, Victoria. They were not willing to give me a break. I wasn’t stupid enough to think Victoria invited me out of courtesy so she
ELEANORAfter dinner, the maids cleared the table but the atmosphere was still tense but I didn’t mind. I loved tense places. I thrived better in them.“Theon, there is something I have to discuss with you. It has to do with those new deals” Julian spoke up.“Let’s go to my office then,” Theon answered, getting up.He turned to me “Excuse us” He said and left with Julian. I pondered if I should just go home or wait for him since I didn’t have anything else to do or say to anyone. Victoria had gotten a feel of her opponent and she had been quiet since. I didn’t believe she was done, I just knew she was cooking something in that sly head of hers but maybe it was for later. However, as soon as I heard a door opened and closed in the distance suggesting that Theon and Julian had entered his office, the atmosphere changed again as Victoria cleared her throat.She took her glass of wine and sipped it slowly and I could feel her gaze at the side of my head so I turned to meet her gaze.Ma
AUTHOR’S POVThe next morning, the world woke up to the announcement of the engagement between Elle Davenport and Theon Blackwell. Every major news outlet, social media blogs, and gossip pages had the news on their front page. They were all going into a frenzy. Comments sections were flooded with the same set of questions.Who was Elle Davenport?Where did she come from?How did she appear from nowhere and get engaged to Theon in less than a month?Nobody knew anything about her. Even the influencers who were popular for knowing everything about elites had no idea about her past or where she came from. Victoria Blackwell threw her tablet across the room. The object hit the wall with a loud clash and hit the floor. The screen turned black immediately but it did nothing to soothe the rage she felt. “That snake” she hissed with barely concealed fury “She managed to get her way after all. How dare Theon not listen to me?”Her assistant, Lara stood stiffly with wide eyes and tremblin
ELEANORIf I had my way, I wouldn’t be here but Jeremy called me and said Victoria had instigated some gullible women to bully me whenever they saw me.It was such a childish move considering the kind of person I knew she was. Was her urgency to get me out of the way making her run out of options?Anyway, I told Sophie I was going to come to the small gathering of socialites so I could give the women in her circle the opportunity to play bully. Immediately I entered the room, the conversation halted and instead, murmurs rose as they eyed me while they judged. Like I said earlier, children. I smiled, unbothered by their veiled disdain and envy and walked to the middle of the room where I had Sophie book me a table at the function.The person I had bet my money would be the first to speak approached me and took a seat beside me.Marjorie Sinclair, wife of Nathan Sinclair, a powerful man with an even bigger shipping company but not bigger than the Blackwells.She was dressed to perfec
ELEANOR Today was the wedding. It was my first wedding, but I felt nothing as I stood in front of the mirror. The wedding was everything I had ever dreamt of what my wedding would be. The wedding gown Theon had gotten for me on his insistence was even better than the first one I was supposed to wear five years ago. My eyes were cold as I met them in the mirror. I felt no trace of joy, flutters of excitement or anticipation that I would have if I were Eleanor. Because this wasn’t a fairytale. This was war, and I was about to step onto the battlefield. I reminded myself silently. “At least try to smile. You look like you’re being held hostage,” Jeremy muttered behind me, and I looked through the mirror at him. I wanted to keep Jeremy hidden, but he had insisted on giving me away today. When I told him that Theon was suspicious of my identity, he suggested that showing him as my brother would squash Theon’s suspicions, since Eleanor was an only child. “I can’t. It’s not like it's
ELEANOR The wedding was finally over, and I couldn’t be more relieved. I had spent hours greeting and thanking the guests who had taken time out of their precious busy schedules to attend a wedding they literally salivated over. Currently, my attention was on Victoria as she conversed with the first lady, smiling as though she had won the lottery. “Elle darling, come here and greet the first lady” I blinked twice to check if it was indeed Victoria who was talking to me. Her smile was so wide, it was almost creepy and the pride on her face as she gestured me over had got the be the fakest genuine expression she had seen. I needed her to sign me up for her acting class. All A-list actors and actresses on the big screen must have had the acting coach who taught her as their teacher. I searched for Theon, and he was busy with the president himself, so I had no choice. Sophie had taken Jeremy back home on my orders. I didn’t want him to stay long enough for people to start asking
ELEANOR “Are you ready?” Theon asked, meeting me in the living area of our suite. He hadn’t been happy since my decision to stay alone, but that was his problem. “Yes. Let’s go” Sophie handed me my purse, and we left. Today, Theon was going to formally introduce me to the Board as his wife and a new addition to the Group. If Theon had his way, I wouldn’t have anything to do with the group, but he had no choice. Every Blackwell had to contribute to the success of the empire, and I was no exception. I wouldn't be given any official position since I had my investment firm to run, but I could contribute and make minor decisions during meetings as his wife and a member of the board. Theon sat quietly across from me in the car as we rode to the corporation headquarters. His head was buried in his phone as he typed furiously with a frown on his face. “You have to be careful during the meeting,” he finally said, breaking the silence as he lifted his head to look at me “The board is
ELEANORMy eyes met Sophie who stood by the door with her hands folded across her chest. I jerked my head towards Jeremy who had been silent since he plopped his tiny ass on the couch in my office.“What’s wrong with him?” I mouthed while subtly pointing at him. “I don’t know” She mouthed back and shrugged. Jeremy laid across the couch with his brows furrowed while twirling a pen between his fingers as he stared at the ceiling, lost in his thoughts.“Penny for your thoughts?” I asked and he glanced at me.“What?” He asked, having not heard my previous question.“You’ve been quiet since you came in which is unusual for your loud ass so something’s up. What is it?”He sighed and sat up with a grimace “You are not going to like this”I got serious, closing the opened file on my table and pushing it aside as I gave him my full attention. “Out with it”“Victoria is digging into Eleanor Sterling” “What?” I froze in shock “How deep?”Jeremy shrugged, frustrated “I don’t know but one of th
ELLEI opened my mouth to answer Theon’s questions, but the recording continued playing. My voice rose, from something light to something vicious, scheming, and malicious as the words poured out.“She will never fit in here. Theon hates her because of what she did. All we need to do is push a little bit, and Theon would never let her back in his life.”Gasps rippled through the crowd as the supposed me continued to divulge her malicious intentions. I stood and watched as whispers spread like wildfire, and the guests turned malicious glares towards me.I turned to Theon, watching as his expression shifted from curiosity to disappointment and distrust. The flicker of betrayal wasn’t hard to miss, and I fought to keep my face void of any expression.He turned to me with his jaws clenched, “Is this true? Everything has been your plan all along to make me hate Eleanor? Is that why you wanted her to continue staying in the house?”I straightened and eyed him with mild annoyance. “I have bet
ELLETheon stood beside me, hand around my waist, with his fingers drawing patterns on my exposed back. Recently, I had fallen in love with clothes that hung low. This one was an open back, and Theon’s hands hadn’t left my exposed skin. The way he pulled me closer or squeezed my waist whenever any of the male guests’ eyes lingered was as though he was reminding them that I was his. I lingered by the entrance with Theon, greeting the guests as they arrived. I smiled and nodded my way through countless air kisses and false appreciations for the invitations. I was tired of playing the perfect hostess, and the party had not even started yet. “Should we go in? You’ve been shuffling uncomfortably,” Theon murmured against my ear softly as we greeted another guest. “The workers can take care of the rest.”“We should. I’m sure if I stay here any longer, the guests would be able to tell I don’t want most of them here,” I grinned and took the hand he held out for me to take. “Then why did yo
ELLEI wasn’t exactly sure what I found more unsettling. The fact that Theon had asked me to accompany him somewhere for a brief outing, he wouldn’t tell me about, or the fact that I agreed without a second thought.I tried to pry information from him, but he wouldn’t say a word, and I didn’t find out until we pulled up in front of the most exclusive private jeweller in the country.I should have guessed. He had promised me he would replace the one I gave Eleanor yesterday, but I didn’t think he would do it.“You didn’t have to do this,” I murmured as I turned to face him. “The piece I gave her wasn’t too expensive.”Theon smiled, the first soft smile I had ever seen on him, and got down from the car before extending a hand for me to take. “I know I didn’t, but I want to.”I eyed the hand he held out, but eventually took it. His fingers were warm when they intertwined with mine. The familiar rough feel of his hands in mine felt too familiar for comfort.I exhaled silently, forcing mys
AUTHOR’S POVAmanda Steinberg has had enough.She was fuming, and her rage was so intense that if it were possible, you could see the smoke escaping from her ears. She was done with Elle Davenport, and she needed to get rid of her before she lost her mind. “Miss Eleanor!” Maria called, a pleasant smile on her face as she saw Eleanor enter the Sterling Mansion.She continued, oblivious to the storm on Amanda’s face, “You didn’t tell us you were coming, I would have made your favourite meal for you. Do you want…”“Where is M.. my mother?” she snapped, eyeing Maria, who stumbled back with surprise when she saw the malicious glare Amanda had pinned her with.“She…she is in her study,” Maria stuttered fearfully.Amanda eyed Maria with disgust and stormed towards the study. The other maids ran towards Maria.“Miss Eleanor has changed so much since she came back. She is now vile. She is no longer the darling we knew her as,” One of the maids whispered as she glared at Amanda scornfully
ELLE“Which one do you want to wear today?” Sophie asked as we admired the three sets of jewellery we had laid on the living room table.“I don’t know,” I hummed and placed a finger on my jaw as I pretended to think “Maybe this one? I think it fits well with my dress,” I pointed at the emerald one at the far end.Sophie's eyes twinkled with agreement. “I think so too,” she said as she picked the necklace from the case and brought it to me. “But why did you decide to bring them out here today?”As if on cue, Eleanor’s door opened, and Sophie’s mouth opened in a silent ‘oh’ as understanding dawned on her. Eleanor paused when she saw the necklace I was holding close to my neck. Her eyes glimmered like a starving woman who had just spotted a feast.“Oh…” she said, her voice laced with syrup and hunger. “That necklace is beautiful”, she gasped before she could control herself, and I smirked.“It is,” I held it towards her “Theon got it for me when I said I liked it”Her eyes burned with
AUTHOR’S POVAmanda couldn’t believe this was her life. She had always watched the Blackwells on TV and envied their luxurious life while she hatched her plan to take over Eleanor’s identity.She never would have imagined that she could pull the plan off with the help of Mira, the mother of the very woman whose identity she was using now. That had made her plan so much easier.Amanda didn’t care about Mira's intentions when she decided to help her. All that mattered was that she had her hands on wealth and would never let anyone, not even Mira, take it away from her.“Thank you, Eleanor,” Amanda whispered as she stood at the top of the grand staircase “Please remain dead or whatever. Don’t ever try to come back, or I will be forced to send you back. Permanently”She descended the stairs like a queen surveying her kingdom, her chin lifted high and a victorious smirk on her lips. She was giddy and wanted to scream in excitement, but she needed to control herself.Eleanor had grown up in
ELLE“What do you think will happen?” Soph asked over the phone which was on loudspeaker and sitting on my makeup table.“Really?” I scoff with an eye roll, “We already know that test would show that Theon is the father.”“I know,” she sighed, “But what next?”“I don’t know,” I answered with a shrug," but I bet they would force Theon to take responsibility for the child, which he would.”“She is smart. I got to give her that” Soph commended. “Jer said to give him some time, and then he can get her info for you. I’m still surprised how she managed to get your pregnancy results.”That had been nagging me ever since that night. I had thought of countless possibilities for how she could have known.Was she a stalker who had been watching me before I was disowned after finding out we looked alike? Did she work with my family’s hospital? I took the last one out because the doctor would have told me if someone looked like me in the hospital.I reminded her, “I want him to focus on his exams
THEONI never thought a piece of paper could feel so heavy until this moment. The paternity results sat heavy in my hands, having being handed to me by the doctor a few seconds ago. I had been so confident a few minutes ago that the result would be negative. I wanted it to be but the words ‘positive’ stood out in a mocking font.I read the paper over again, hoping it would change but the same word stared at me, not changing. Eliza was mine.“So, she is yours?” Julian whispered from where he stood beside me. He had offered to come with me when I told him I was coming to get the paternity test results. “According to the test, yes” I sighed.I lifted my gaze towards Mira and Eleanor. Mira had a smirk on her face, not bothering to conceal the smugness radiating off her. She hadn’t stopped telling me I was wasting my time because Eliza was mine. She was so confident and now, she was right. Beside her, Eleanor looked relieved. Her eyes watered as she exhaled shakily and clasped her ha
ELLE“Say what you want to say here,” Theon demanded again.Eleanor glanced at me first, then the guests and back to Theon with fake nervousness in her eyes.“Not here.” She insisted, “I don’t know what you think I want to say to you, but I can guarantee you that it is not something you would want me to say here”Theon raised a brow but gestured towards her “Then lead the way”Theon pulled me gently, but Eleanor stopped when she realised I was coming with them. She eyed me with obvious irritation and turned to Theon.“I meant just you,” she said with barely restrained frustration. “It’s something sensitive”“If Elle is coming, and it’s not up for discussion,” Theon coldly told her, much to my surprise. Since when did my husband fight for me?I knew better than to think he did it out of affection. Something told me Theon was trying to make her jealous.He wanted her to see that he was happier without him. I was delighted to play along while his plans worked magic.Eleanor’s eyes burned