Lauren walked down the street with a sigh, knowing the guards Malcolm assigned to her wouldn’t let her out of their sight. Two blissful yet boring weeks had passed since their contract marriage. During the first week, she had stayed indoors trying to get closer to Bryan but the little boy’s apathy for the opposite sex had grown so large that it might take a year or more for her to break it.
Suddenly, her eyes caught a handsome boy outfit being displayed in a shop. She gasped and imagined it on Bubby’s body. Perfect! She nearly clapped her hands in glee but quickly remembered she was in public and it would be weird to see a young woman of a high social class dressed in an expensive designer dress and shoes clapping like a boy who won an award. Quickly, she half-ran into the shop, afraid if she wasted a bit more time, someone might end up grabbing it. She smiled and gave the attendant a nod to remove it for her but the minute she touched it, she almost let go
As the car pulled to a halt in front of the Byrne mansion, Lauren patted her chest severally and did a few breathing exercises to calm her almost racing heart. she hadn’t heard from Grace ever since she left this house. She hadn’t stepped a foot into the house too; she couldn’t help but wonder why the sudden distress call. Alighting from the car, she made her way into the house, greeting the butler fondly. It seemed Malcolm had really kept his part of the deal that was why the butler had returned. Walking into the sitting room, she met Grace and her father waiting for her. “Hello, father, Grace.” She greeted.Grace scoffed before her father could reply, “Grace? Really? You ungrateful wench!”Sighing, Lauren sat down on the couch, “You asked for me?” carefully, she removed her mask, perhaps to show Grace that she wasn’t Michelle. “You seem to be living so big now that you forgo
As the car entered the Knight mansion, Lauren removed every trace of sadness from her face, replacing it with a smile. She walked in and went straight to Bryan’s room.She knocked quietly, “Bryan? Can I come in?”There was no reply at the other end.She knocked again, “I’ll take that as a yes. I’m coming in now!”She pushed the door slightly open and walked in. Bryan laid on his big bed, playing a video game on his laptop. “I didn’t ask you to come in.” “You didn’t ask me away either. How was your lesson today?” she asked sitting beside him on the bed. “Boring, as usual.” He grumbled.Lauren smiled. She was making progress. Before, his answer would have been a nod of head or a curt reply. “Boring? You don’t like your teacher?” she acted surprised. “Shhhh!” He shooed, “D
Lauren disengaged from the hug filled with smiles.Bryan tapped her shoulders, “I’m so sorry, your dress’s all wet because of me.”Lauren looked at the big wet circle on the shoulder of her dress and smiled, “It is no big deal. You can cry more if you want to.”He shook his head, his eyes were all puffed and swollen. “I’m sorry.” “Stop saying that, will you?” she scolded. “I have to go now. Will you be fine on your own?”He nodded.She smiled, “You’ll come down for dinner, right?” “Will you cook dinner?”Her eyes widened, “You want me to?”He nodded. Lauren laughed, feeling smug. “Fine. just make sure you come downstairs for dinner, okay?”He nodded and reluctantly, she left for the master bedroom. The briefcase by the bed told her Malcolm was back. The thought of him re
Malcolm didn’t eat breakfast before leaving for work the next day. Lauren chuckled; had she made him that mad? Well, she was glad she, a nobody, could actually affect the almighty Mr. Knight. She came downstairs for breakfast only to see Bryan seated already. “Good morning.” He greeted.She was half-surprised, “Morning Bryan. Hope you slept well.”He nodded and watched as Kate emptied the can of cereals on his plate before adding some milk she had taken from the refrigerator. Lauren opted for the same dish. She never had cereals before. When she has entered the Byrne mansion newly, Grace had forbidden Michelle’s nanny from letting her use it. Her entire breakfast back then was leftover bread from other’s breakfast. “You know, you don’t have to pretend just to get my attention,” Bryan stated scornfully, stirring his bowl without looking up at her.Lauren smiled awkwardly. If s
“Look who we have here!” Joyce exclaimed as the door opened and the butler ushered in her grandson and her son’s new wife. “Grandma!” Bryan exclaimed running straight to his grandmother’s arms. She was his favorite, Lauren could tell right away. “Hello, mother.” Good thing she remembered. She couldn’t afford to suffer a spank.A hand drew her into the hug, “Come here, you.”Just then, Theo, Malcolm’s father came downstairs. “Look who came, Theo. We suddenly had august visitors.” Joyce announced. She turned to Lauren, “I thought you weren’t going to come.” “I’m sorry for not coming earlier, Mother, Father.” She apologized. “At least you came, so I forgive you.” Joyce replied.Theo turned to Lauren and whispered, “Forgive her. She tends to be kind of ta
Soon, the cake was ready and just as the two women walked into the dining with it, Bryan came jumping in with joy. Lauren had never seen him so happy about something before. “Let me guess, you won.” Joyce said giving him a high-five. “That little guy’s one hell of a chess player.” Theo commented, walking in.Lauren grabbed a table knife, “And so, we will grace our victor with the honor of being the first to eat the cake.”Bryan clapped and quickly grabbed the saucer containing a pyramid of chocolate cake. He sliced a handful and put it into his mouth, before closing his eyes to savor the taste. “How’s it?” Joyce asked.He opened his puppy eyes, “Grandma’s chocolate cakes are the best! Can I take some home, please?” “Of course, you can.” Replied Joyce who was grinning like a school boy at her grandson’s praise. La
Lauren strolled down the street with a smile plastered on her face. She could imagine the smile on Mr. Grumpy’s face when he sees her present. She felt so smug like he was standing right in front of her. It was her second time gifting something to the opposite gender. The first had been… Her smile fell as she thought of him. Raymond Spencer. Her first love, and just maybe, her only love. But it had been years now. She wondered if he still thought of her wherever he was. Raymond was a new student at her and Michelle’s high school years ago. he was beautiful that even girls forgot to breathe beside him. The first day he was introduced in their class, girls unashamedly began to hit on him almost immediately including Michelle who had a ‘thing’ for handsome guys. He was as icy as Malcolm; she could still remember. That was what brought trouble to her doorstep. After the introduction, he came to sit right next to her ignoring the seat Michelle ‘cleared’ for him to
Malcolm stood in front of the ceiling to floor glass window that overlooked the city, legs astride and large hands crossed behind him. His aura was so icy nobody dared come close. It had been quite a while since Malcolm was this angry and this time, it was because of Michelle Byrne.Another figure entered the room, stopping meters away from the lonesome figure by the window. “Sir.” The figure spoke in a low voice that could be mistaken for a growl. “Has she been found?” Malcolm asked, unmoving. “I’m sorry sir. Please give us some more time.”Malcolm nodded repeatedly, holding on to his temper on a thinning thread. “Just make sure you find her.” As he spoke, his eyes caught the gold clock hanging low on the wall. It was past 8pm. Four hours since she stopped the car on their way home. When he had been told she and Bryan went to his parent’s, he had quickly left his offi