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
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
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 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
ELEANOR The soft rustling of silk and lace filled the air as I twirled softly for the second time to admire the wedding dress I had on in front of the mirror. The dress clung to me in all the right places, accentuating my slender frame before cascading to the floor. I was currently in the private show room of Bridal Dreams, a shop owned by the renowned Lisabelle Jones, the most sought-after bridal dress designer in the country and this was my fourth fitting so far. My wedding was going to be happening in less than a week and I couldn’t wait. Every move I made was filled with nerves as though something would go wrong but it’s so close now and I couldn’t wait any more. It still felt like a dream even though I knew it wasn’t. I was finally going to be the bride I always dreamed of. I turned to my best friend, Isla who was sitting on the couch behind me. “So, what do you think?” I asked, my voice edged with excitement and nervousness. Isla Crawford, my best friend since childho
ELEANOR It was time for the engagement dinner, and we were currently in the grand dining hall of the Blackwell’s estate. The place was a show of luxury. Every piece looked like it cost millions of dollars, and it made me go back to my discussion with Isla. I guess I could consider myself lucky. I was sitting beside Theon, my fingers curled tightly around my glass as I forced a smile on my face while pretending that Theon’s cold behaviour wasn’t getting to me. He had been distant ever since I walked through the door and while this cold demeanor was nothing new, I had expected him to be a bit warmer since the night was for us. I know some people would say Theon didn’t love me since he wasn’t very vocal about his feelings, but I had learnt to read the unspoken language of his subtle gestures. His love for me was present in the way his hand rested on the back of my chair anytime I sat close to him or how he always positioned himself between me and anything that would cause me the s
ELEANOR The world tilted beneath my feet, and I held on to the chair, so I didn’t fall from the sway that rocked me. The whispers around me grew but none of it mattered. At that moment, I didn’t care about the whispers, the horrified and disgusted expressions, the accusing eyes. None of them mattered. The only thing that mattered was him. “Theon, please” I choked out, forcing my legs to move as I ran after him. Theon didn’t stop. He didn’t even glance back when my leg made contact with a chair, and I winced out in pain. I managed to grab his sleeve, desperate for him to listen to me first. “Theon, listen to me. At least let me explain” I voiced desperately “These emails, the photos, they are fake. I don’t know who did this and why, but I swear to you, I would never betray you” My world stilled as he stopped. I waited for him patiently but desperately as he turned to me but the man who turned to me wasn’t the same one, I had planned to marry. “Theon” I whispered, my voic
ELEANOR The beeping of the hospital monitors was the only thing keeping me company in the quiet room. I sat beside my father’s bed, my hand gripping his tightly as I prayed to whatever was up there to save my father. And maybe my relationship. Dad was still unconscious, and I couldn’t help but blame myself. I caused this. Everyone else thought the same as well. The doctor had said he fainted because his blood pressure was high so we needed to make sure he avoided anything that would stress him out. Mom had not looked at me since. She stayed at the other end of the bed and had not stopped crying as well. I knew she blamed me. I could see it in her body’s telltale signs that she blamed me. “Aiden” Mom suddenly called out and I looked up to see that Dad had indeed woken up. His eyes fluttered open and he looked around the room first to see where he was. A shaky breath of relief escaped my lips and my eyes watered from the relief, but my relief was short-lived when I saw the emotio
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