Adrian opened his eyes slightly, but everything seemed foggy; all he could hear were distant, inaudible words; he felt his body being moved on a flat surface as usual and lost consciousness again.He was lost in his subconscious mind and kept screaming loudly, but nobody seemed to hear him, or did they decide to ignore him? Rissa's voice would have given him hope and courage, but unfortunately, he couldn't hear it.All he heard were deafening beeping from the machines that surrounded him, utterly annoying and frustrating. The priceless hug Rissa had given him before he lost consciousness was worth the risk he took to get Peter back to his parents alive.The moment he drove off after giving Rissa his word to ensure the boy's safety. He had called on his private military mercenary organization and four of their agents were dispatched to aid him.Adrian knew their opponents were no joke, so he offered to use himself as bait, which he did successfully, following the kidnapper's coded inst
Rissa watched with tears in her eyes as Adrian was surrounded by the top doctors in the hospital. Finally regaining consciousness after three days had made him look so pale.She rushed over to hug him, but one of the doctors stopped her on the way, making his recovery the major priority. Rissa couldn't contain her heart; she felt like she was going to suffocate at any moment.Looking down through the gigantic windows of the VIP room from the seventh floor, her eyes could pick some people hooded together, clutching tightly their cameras, ready to announce Adrian's death or recovery.Rissa walked out feeling torn and overwhelmed as she was; she couldn't bear to face Adrian in that condition. She moved out and was about to take her first step on the stairs when she heard Bianca's unmistakable shout at one of the doctors blocking her way.Rissa had to resist the urge to go back into the room and walk down the stairs. With each step came flashbacks, the good days and the bad. Everything s
Rissa took small steps closer as she was at a loss for words. Adrian gave her an encouraging nod, which signifies his agreement to the interview alongside Liam Hickson.“I must say, Mr Grey, Mr Hickson, I am honoured to be granted this opportunity”, the interviewer said pleasantly.A wide smile rewarded his word and Rissa sat down close to Adrian. Her eyes kept travelling in between the two powerful men she found herself around.“Mr Kentucky, I hope the filming hasn't commenced yet”, Liam said enthusiastically pointing towards the camera.“Of course not, Mr Hickson; I need to give you all the time you need to get ready”.“Great”.Liam lowered his voice and faced Rissa whose confused expression lightened up at Adrian's reassuring smile.“We need to clean the mess we caused, Rissa; I do not want you to be in a difficult position, and so does Mr Grey. Rissa fell in line as realization dawned on her: the controversy on the internet was not only dangerous to her but also to Caleb and thei
“Let me start from here, Amber Wilson, I am willing to give myself to you completely”.Liam opened the small package and brought out a tiny necklace with an emerald green pendant. He turned around Amber's back and gently fastened it on her neck. With one look into her eyes, his heart melted.The intensity of the color matches her eyes giving it a stunning glow.“It looks beautiful on you”“Green has always been one of my strengths; although everything looks good on me, I have got a great body, remember?” Amber said playfully, and they both laughed.One good thing about their relationship has always been the fact that Amber's natural sauciness had never irked Liam; he had only avoided her in the past because of the women in his life, Rissa and Diane.Diane's eye settled on Liam's handsome face and the facade of a smile he had on to deceive the camera. She paused the interview rerun and focused solely on him. He had proudly announced having a girlfriend. She shook her head as realizatio
Rissa's hand gently massaged Adrian and he reciprocated with a heartwarming smile. It had only been a few hours since he regained consciousness, and too many overwhelming emotions had formed in his heart.Diane Donaldson‘s shameful arrest that was circulating all over the internet added to the list. She had really been an unrepentant criminal. Just when he started seeing a good side to her, she had ruined it all with her impulsiveness.Bianca walked in with a tray of fruits. Her face lightened up instantly as her eye made contact with Rissa, and she gave her a reassuring smile. After the heated argument they had before the interview, she thought Rissa would despise her afterwards, but relying on her flooded her heart when she didn't.Everyone knows Bianca Grey’s terrible temper, she assumed Rissa must have thought.“Crybaby, have some fruit, you need more vitamins now”.“Thank you, Bianca”. Rissa said and collected it from her, she diced it into smaller pieces and started feeding it t
Rissa reached into the bag and adjusted the brown jacket to fit in properly before zipping it shut. She had insisted on packing up Adrian's luggage, resisting the bodyguard’s helping hand. Two weeks of watching him recover from his near-death had left her with a form of clinginess to him.They were finally leaving the hospital premises discreetly, but Adrian's countenance suggested he wasn't happy which was really strange.“Is anything the problem babe?”“Not really, I am just baffled that the other party has been quiet for some time”.Rissa understood perfectly well, they were dealing with powerful opponents who wouldn't take defeat for an answer. Sydney was a mere weapon to them, if she had died, she could easily be replaced.Sensing his uneasiness, Rissa dropped the bag she was packing and wrapped herself around him gently, loose enough not to touch his wound. They both stood there for some seconds comforting each other in peaceful silence.“Let us look out for unmistakable foul pl
“Everything looks unusually quiet”, Rissa said tapping her feet as she was feeling uneasiness from the pit of her stomach.Adrian moved close to her and wrapped his arms around her curvy hips seductively, he lifted her chubby cheeks to face himself and looked into her eyes.It has been a month since his discharge from the hospital and his horny feeling has almost been blown out of proportion. Rissa had denied him intimacy on the ground that he wasn't healed enough yet. He was more than thrilled to return to her that day after his checkup to share the news of his full recovery and hopefully make love to her.To make matters worse, he had returned to meet Rissa dressed the part as the short dress she had on had accentuated her shape and barely left anything to the imagination. He knew the feeling had been mutual but Rissa was always more logical than he was in that regard.“Can we not think about that for a second?” he whispered into her ears seductively, and she smiled inwardly.Sensin
With another glance at the mirror, Diane felt proud of herself; a few times she visited an exquisite spa, her skin was glowing and radiant once again. The makeup artist had done a flawless job which made her look beyond perfect.It was her day, she kept reminding herself despite knowing her birthday party was a mere facade. It was a gathering of murderers hiding behind the mask of the law.“Miss Donaldson, the party is about to commence”, Her personal assistant reported to her.“Thank you Bridgette”, she responded enthusiastically. The fair-skinned petite girl bowed slightly and left.Being a puppet ain't all that bad, unlike Sydney, who tried to play the princess; Diane knew her place better and was ready to stick to it. She definitely owes them her life for getting out of her crime unscratched.Strangely enough, her victim committed suicide out of guilt for framing her in the first place. His suicide note was detailed enough to include that piece of information.Diane stood up abrup
The door opened with a loud thud and Adrian jumped up abruptly, his heart thumping loudly that he could barely manage to stand up straight. Rissa rushed towards them, and they all gathered around the surgeon, who threw a casual look at Rissa's exquisite shimmering flowing white gown.“The surgery was successful”Just one word and jubilation filled the air; Bianca and the baby boy had made it, and to their relief, Caleb hugged his cousin Gracia, who was still so overwhelmed that she had gotten a little brother at her teenage age. Bianca’s husband broke down in tears and Adrian had to console him.Adrian held Rissa's hand, and they exited the hospital; now that the baby had been born, they could enjoy the later part of their wedding party in merriment. Once they returned to the venue, Rissa rushed back to her changing room, where her designer was waiting patiently; Adrian had booked her for the whole day’s worth, so she had no problem with their little charade.“Let us skip the second l
The cool breeze blew in Rissa's face, and she felt bliss formed in her heart; for the second time in her lifetime, she heard the priest announce her arrival.“Here comes the bride”All heads turned in her direction, and thousands of eyes followed her gentle stride; from the pleasant look on their faces, her designer had done a flawless job. The stress that came with fitting her bulging stomach into the elegant dress she chose was a really hilarious moment for Camela. Rissa had vowed that her pregnancy wasn't going to stop her from slaying to her wedding.Abraham got up, Stella gave him a reassuring nod and he made for Rissa's side. She gave him a soft smile as the feeling of safety engulfed her; he had been nothing short of a wonderful father figure since she met him, and she wasn't willing to trade him for anyone, even if her real father were to show up, which was very unlikely. Walking her down the aisle, Abraham had truly earned it.Rissa's eyes met Adrian's, he looked at her so dr
Rosa kept shooting daggers at Adrian, but he didn't care; all that mattered was getting them deported out of Los Angeles. The police officers ushered them into the van. Bryan was silent, which bothered Adrian a little, but he overlooked it.Mrs Denver didn't show up; she had invited them, Bryan and Rosa, over only to hand them over to Adrian, who was hellbent on putting them behind bars or getting them deported. Unfortunately, Bryan had no other recorded crime aside from illegal entry, but Rosa could spend a few years behind bars for abetting Diane's crimes.Rosa was being dragged forcibly by a policeman when she screamed out; he released her arm as black blood was seeping out; Adrian remembered their last encounter, the bullet wound, and explained to the officers; they allowed her to undress the wound, to their surprise, it was rotting away.Adrian closed his eyes, disgusted by the pungent smell coming out of them; they decided to take her to the hospital while Bryan was to go into d
“I believe you are holding our family's treasure, Mr. Hickson.”Mrs Denver's loud voice cut through the air, the amusement behind her voice, a loud sound of victory. Liam contemplated calling off her charade but he decided to be civil about it.“I thought you said she wasn't your husband’s illegitimate daughter?” he questioned with a slightly raised brow.“I lied, but now that the three of them are dead and I don't have to take sleeping pills to force myself to sleep, I need to rub it in my husband's face by burying her ashes beside his”.Liam paused for a few seconds savouring the bitterness behind her words. She wasn't totally wrong. Diane’s bad blood was inherited from her callous father, Mr Denver, and they didn't really deserve any mercy. He looked down at the ceramic he was holding and stretched it forward to her.He had achieved his aim already, so having her ashes taken away by her family wasn't a big deal. His mind drifted off to the day he got their divorce papers signed, th
*Diane's Dream*Clara tried holding Diane's hand, but she pushed her hands away; the pain in her eyes, the unspoken resentment, she wondered how she even recognized her, but none of it seemed to matter; she just wanted to get out of her sight.“I am sorry my child”Diane turned around and gave her a disdainful look as if it mattered at all; all she wanted was to return to Rissa's ward and infuse the poisonous substance into her bloodstream. She looked around herself, everywhere looked so bright and deserted.She walked on, ignoring the helpless lady standing by her side pleading for her forgiveness; her life had been made miserable all thanks to her mother's reckless choice of man.“Diane, I never abandoned you, it is just….”“Save it to yourself, woman; I do not think I want to hear your excuses; I just want to get the hell out of here.”To her surprise, the woman did as she said, within a split second she disappeared, replaced by an all too familiar face, Mr Smith. Diane felt fear
“Adrian, am I pregnant?” Rissa wanted to scream but she held it in. An awkward silence ensued in the room; Adrian looked away instantly, avoiding Rissa's piercing gaze. Liam took it as a clue to leave, his bombshell seemed to have caused a shift in the atmosphere of the room.“I will check up on you later,” Liam said and winked playfully at Caleb, who smiled warmly in return. He walked out of the room with Adrian by his side. The moment they were out of sight, he apologized profusely to Adrian for spilling the beans. He had unintentionally eavesdropped on Adrian and the doctor's conversation earlier, which made him realize she was pregnant at a very early stage.“It is fine; congratulations to you, too. I guess Mrs. Hickson must be overwhelmed.”“She is, our daughter Bella is barely eight months old and……wait! Why are we talking about this?” Liam said bewildered.“Beats me too; we aren't friends after all,” Adrian responded, and awkwardly, they both laughed heartily.Adrian and Liam
Bryan paced endlessly, agitated by the silence around him. She had promised to reach out to him when the coast was clear but apparently something unfortunate had happened. He ruffled his lustrous hair as frustration welled up in him. Rosa wasn't the type to ghost him indefinitely.He thought inwardly about taking the offer discreetly. Mrs. Denver had reached out to him without Rosa's knowledge; she had warned him of her two-faced plot, and he was caught between calling it a bluff or actually naming her a traitor.Diane and Rosa have their pictures and videos circulating the internet. He was certain they were together but had she changed her mind and taken Diane's side again? He didn't want to talk about it.A knock sounded at the door, and he opened it immediately; he staggered backward, startled; he had expected a hotel attendant, but to his amazement, two prominent men in Los Angeles had paid him a visit.“Can we come in?”Bryan’s eyes widened, and he stared intently into Adrian Gre
Chapter One Hundred and Ninety-ThreeWhen It Seems to Be OverLiam couldn't help but feel impressed by Adrian Grey again. He had always surpassed his expectations in every way possible. The news of his family's safe return had raised a lot of jubilations that made even Liam happy.When the news of Rissa and Caleb's kidnap was aired, fear gripped him; he couldn't take his eyes off his family for days. He felt bad for Adrian, but he felt worse because it was Rissa. Bella crawled up to him enthusiastically flaunting her rattle in his face.Liam picked her up and wrapped his arm around her, she was growing up way too fast that it gave him unexplainable joy. Amber entered the room looking dejected and Liam got worried. He walked up to her and inquired what the problem was, her response shocked him to the bone marrow.“You mean we are having another baby?” He questioned wide-eyed.Amber responded with a short nod and busted into tears. Liam left the room immediately to drop Bella with her n
“Shall we play a game, Adrian?” Her devilish wink sent shivers down his spine; he looked down at Caleb, who seemed to be fidgeting too; he exchanged knowing looks with him, assuring him of having the situation under control.“The rules are simple: just nod your response, no talking, you talk, he dies! non-negotiable”.Adrian closed his eyes and nodded in affirmation, Diane sat up on the chair and faced him while still on his knees. Adrian could feel his knees hurting, but he didn't care at all; all that mattered to him was getting his family out of the hellhole.“Did Mr Smith offer you a deal?”Adrian nodded affirmatively, and Diane cursed inwardly; she suspected that sly bastard was up to something; she should have thrown him to the fishes when she had the chance.Her phone rang, and she looked over at it; she exchanged stiff glances with Rosa, who got the message clearly. Rosa came close to her and held Caleb by the shoulder while Diane left to pick up her discreet call.Rosa star