The king…and his queen…?“I guess you really like playing me for a fool,” I mumbled before pressing my lips into a thin line.I was sure that I should have been angry at him for humiliating me but surprisingly, that wasn’t how I felt. Once again, it felt like I had very little or absolutely no control about what was happening around me and I was just being sucked in by the strong current with no means of escape. Maybe I was just waiting for it to suck me under for good.“How so?” he asked as he stared directly at me.“How is this supposed to be a fair game if you know which card is which? You’ve just been tricking me and playing me for a fool,” I replied accusingly.“Not at all. I just wanted you to know that nothing is what it seems. Nothing is fair and everything is being manipulated someway or another,” he explained casually.“You mean that nothing is fair and that everything is manipulated in your world, right?” I snapped as I glared at him.“I guess you might be right but that do
She was unskilled at all the games that she played but she would either pout playfully or laugh louder every time that she finished a game even though it was her loss.After practically stomping out of the casino after losing her bet against me, I thought that she might have changed her mind after all. In the end, I ended up paying for her debt at the casino as per the rules while thinking that that would be her first and last time there. I was honestly convinced that it was better for her that things turned out the way that they did.Once again, I soon found out that I was wrong.“Bradon, are you going to work now?” Dahlia asked as she stepped out from behind a pillar where she had been unsuccessfully hiding.It was early the morning after our trip to the casino. Usually, Dahlia wouldn’t wake up this early and that made me realize that she must have gotten up extra early to catch me before I headed out for work. Just thinking about all the work that I had to sort out in Anthony’s pla
I could feel her breasts pressing up against me as I entwined my tongue greedily with hers. It had been too long since I last kissed her like this and if she was going to play games of her own with me, then I wouldn’t hesitate to play some games of my own as well.“People…are watching…” she panted in between our passionate kisses.Her lips had turned a beautiful pink color by that time, and I enjoyed seeing the reddish pink color that had spread to her cheeks. I knew immediately that she was referring to the various bodyguards stationed in the room; however, I also knew that they knew better than to boldly watch me kiss my woman.“Do you mind? I thought you would like something like this,” I replied teasingly before I captured her chin with between my fingers.“Mhmm…” she moaned into our kiss when I kissed her again.My tongue immediately entered her mouth. The way she moved her tongue against mine as her body slowly softened in my arms told me that I had managed to slip through her d
**Dahlia’s point of view**Updating Diana’s social media accounts turned out to be more challenging than I initially thought. The pressure from my father was still on and now on top of that, there was pressure from all of her fans as well. Since posting content related to my days gambling at the casino wasn’t really a great option, I was limited to posting selfies of myself from the mansion, the gardens, or during our car rides instead. I worked hard to hold off on posting a couple photo of Bradon and myself while hoping that the eager audiences would be satisfied with seeing me looking happy and well.It turned out that I couldn’t keep Diana’s fans waiting for much longer. Each day comments demanding to see photos of Diana and Anthony together piled up and whenever my phone vibrated, I dreaded that it might be a call of complaint from my father. Although I knew that this was going to happen, I still found myself hesitating to post a couple photo. I gave myself the excuse that getting
“She told me that she was going to try on some clothes,” Zain replied.I quickly realized that I was no longer interested in what had already happened. What was more important was finding where she had disappeared to.“Did she run away, or did someone take her?” I asked although I had a pretty good guess.“I don’t think anyone could have kidnapped her,” Zain replied solemnly.“How long has she gone missing?” I asked.“I’m not sure. Less than half an hour ago…” Zain replied.“Find her. Use all means necessary and make sure that no one finds out about this. Don’t come back until you do,” I commanded before hanging up.Suddenly, the view of the city from outside the window looked grim although the sky was clear and blue, and the sun was shining brightly. I should have known that something was off when Dahlia suddenly asked to go out shopping. Even though I told her that I wasn’t free and that meant that she wasn’t allowed to go, she had negotiated until I felt like we were going to have
My eyes narrowed as I stared straight ahead when I realized that the one that Dahlia was really here to see wasn’t me but the real Anthony whom she thought was supposed to be working here.Why is she risky so much just to come and see him?I had no idea what she was thinking or why she so desperately wanted to see my brother, but I was sure that I was about to find out.…**Dahlia’s point of view**“He will see you now,” the woman at the lobby of the office building told me.She smiled politely before gesturing to me to follow her. I thanked her while hoping that nothing would disturb my meeting with Anthony. It had been some time since I manage to slip out and get away from Zain and his men. The trick of telling the shop assistant to help me get away for a while because I wanted to surprise my husband worked all too well. The innocent shop assistant led me to the staff exit that was joined to the changing room and from there it wasn’t difficult to navigate my way out of the shopping
I felt a frown crease between my brows as I began struggling to understand my own feelings and what it was that I wanted.Do I want him to keep me away from Bradon? Is that it?Does Anthony even know that his brother had taken his place at his wedding?At first, I wanted to get Anthony to help me get out of my house-arrest but now that I could come out of the mansion, I wasn’t sure what it was that I wanted. My conflicted feelings and hesitation led to an awkward silence that seemed to stretch for far too long.“Things have been quite complicated for me. As you probably know, I took my sister’s place at her wedding and…your brother took your place,” I said as I felt my throat suddenly turn dry.“I see. You’re living with Bradon right now, aren’t you?” he asked casually.“Yes, I am…” I replied truthfully.“How is it? Living with my brother…” he asked.For a moment, I thought that he might be worried about me, but I didn’t dare to let that feeling blossom into hope in the fear that I mi
My vison became blurring as I stared at Anthony’s face. I suddenly realized that my tears were responsible for blurring my vision and that if I blinked, they would freely roll down my face. I didn’t want to have an emotional breakdown like this, but I figured that it might not be entirely bad. Anthony deserves to see me suffering and miserable. If my tears could sway him just a little, then it might just be worth it.I lifted my fingers up to dab at my eyes as I heard Anthony let out a soft sigh. I knew that he wouldn’t leave me crying like that without doing anything because he was just too nice of a person. I felt slightly rotten inside for using this against him, but it wasn’t like my tears were completely insincere either. Anthony stood up and came to sit next to me on the sofa.“I guess it must have been very painful for you to live with my brother…” he said as he patted my back comfortingly.“He’s…quite difficult…” I murmured in reply.The hand that had been gently stroking my b
Just thinking that the fool right in front of me dared to say he was in love with my sister, while he couldn't even tell the two of us apart, made my blood boil. It took a lot of effort to repress the urge to reach out and strangle his neck right then and there. I reminded myself that I had a part to play and quite an audience to impress."No... this can't be..." Mr. Malton whispered hoarsely from a distance, stepping even further away from me. I stood up from the table, grabbed his arm, and pulled him back to my side as I glared up into his face."It's actually quite simple to fool you. All I had to do was dress up in my sister's clothes whenever I met you and talk a little more sweetly..." I said, letting out a hysterical laugh. I could still feel everyone's eyes on us as the attention in the room escalated even more than before.Mr. Malton was speechless as he tried to pull his arm away from my grip, but I wasn't about to let him get away so easily."Well, now I guess the secret is
I had no idea how Diana managed to keep the girls silent up until that point so that the news wouldn't spread; however, I knew that it wouldn't be too long before everyone in school knew about this illicit affair. We would be extremely lucky if this news did not spread beyond the school walls. Despite the gravity of the situation, Mr. Malton was already ready to make his retreat."What if they don't believe us? I feel so scared. I don't want to be alone, and I don't want you to leave me," I said pleadingly just to see his reaction."You know that I would never do that. It would just be temporary until everything blows over. I promise that I will never leave you. How could I possibly leave you? I love you so much," he declared his love for me boldly.The more dramatic things became, the more I felt that his act of adoration was completely fake. No matter how many times he claimed to be in love with my sister, it seemed like he couldn't even tell us apart. I wondered what kind of face h
"Leya, you need to help me find a way out of this. Diana simply cannot make this kind of mistake," my sister told me slowly and clearly as she stared directly into my eyes."You're right. You can't afford to make these kinds of mistakes," I agreed solemnly."No one else must find out about this. We have to do something before word gets out because word is definitely going to get out,," my sister stated calmly, and I could tell that she had returned to her calm and collected self."Can't we tell them that they simply misunderstood and that it's not true?" I asked, daring to harbor a little bit of hope."They probably won't believe what we tell them, but they might believe what we show them," Diana replied, and I could tell her mind was made up.Without using any more words, it seemed like an understanding had formed between us, and once again, it felt like it was us against the entire world....**The Next Day**As I pushed open the back door to the building that was supposed to be off
The moment that thought entered my mind, I quickly killed it and pushed it out of my mind as if extinguishing a small flame before it would spread and engulf everything. I told myself that it wouldn’t have to come to that and that we could find another way to figure things out.“Does it matter? Why does it have to matter?” Diana asked, and her tone was cold.My sister’s response quickly snapped me out of my thoughts and back to reality. I narrowed my eyes at her as my irritation started to take over.“It does matter! Have you completely lost your mind? He’s our teacher,” I reminded her as I started to truly lose my head over what my sister had confessed to me.Had I known that the person she had been dating was one of our teachers, I would have definitely stopped her. That was probably the reason why Diana decided to keep it a secret, even from me. In reality, I had my own doubts about whether or not I could have persuaded my sister not to pursue her taboo relationship with Mr. Malton
"I guess he is not someone in this school," I said as I ran my mind through potential candidates who could be my sister's true love."It's a secret," Diana repeated again before pressing her index finger teasingly against her lips."Are you really not going to tell me?" I asked."Honestly, you have no idea just how much I am dying to tell you who he is. But you see, I did promise him to keep it a secret between us... at least for now," Diana said before flashing me a regretful smile."I don't think I will end up liking this guy. He's telling you to keep secrets from me," I replied teasingly."I'll make sure that you're the first one to find out," Diana promised me with a beaming smile."I guess that it's good enough for me that you're happy," I told her honestly."Thank you, Leya. I love you so much. You're probably the only one who truly cares about my happiness," my sister said before pulling me into her embrace.Back then, when I held my sister in my arms and hugged her back tightl
“Shall we?” Bradon asked as he offered me his arm invitingly.“Thank you,” I replied as I smoothly slipped my arm into his.Appearing in front of the public as Diana, with Bradon as my escort as he flawlessly acted out the role of Anthony, drew quite a lot of attention to us. I could tell that Bradon felt restless, even under his calm and collected exterior, and that was probably because he couldn’t wait for this engagement announcement to come to an end. Even though he should have been reassured now that Diana was taking my place at the ceremony, it seemed that nothing could make Bradon completely feel at ease given the situation.“I sincerely hope that they keep it short,” Bradon whispered right into my ear before planting a soft kiss against my temple.I was sure we looked like the perfect loving couple, and perhaps that wasn’t so far from the truth. For the life of me, I had no idea how Diana managed to convince Desmond to let her take my place at the engagement ceremony, but I wa
"So, are you going to get on your hands and knees to beg? How much longer will you keep me waiting?" I asked while pointing my index finger at the empty floor right in front of my feet.If looks could kill, I would have died an extremely painful death, stabbed by the millions of daggers flying out of my father's eyes from the way he was glaring at me. Even when I was clearly his only route of escape from the impending hell that was awaiting him, it was clear that my father felt nothing but hatred for me. I returned his stare with one of my own as I continued pointing to the floor where I wanted them to get on their hands and knees."I'm still waiting. Oh, but if you're not willing, then I'll make sure that some men will escort you out," I said before grinning at them. I could tell that my father was hesitating, and that meant that he was truly considering abandoning whatever pride he had left to get down on his hands and knees to beg for help from his long-abandoned daughter.Time mov
“Dahlia, dear! Please help your dear father!” The head of the Alnault family desperately pleaded for my help. I squinted my eyes at his face as I took in the evident panic and helplessness displayed on his features. I wasn't sure what I was hoping for when I wanted to see him, but his reaction surely surpassed even my wildest expectations. Gone were all of his confidence and arrogance. Perhaps, for the first time in his life, this man was feeling truly hopeless and helpless. “Dahlia! You have to help get us out of this. You need to help our family!”my mother's high-pitched voice begged openly for my help.I glanced in her direction. I wasn't at all surprised to feel absolutely no pity for her. The only question that went through my mind was why these two people were still standing on their feet rather than kneeling in front of me on their knees. My biological father continued begging while giving me countless reasons why I should help him out. However, most of his words were lost to
It was true that I had ample opportunities to tell Bradon about it, but it was also true that bringing it up would ruin the romantic and joyful mood between us and whatever we were in the middle of doing. Bradon came home early and in time for dinner every day, as if it was a change in habit. We spent time together just like regular couples—staying at home, watching movies, taking a dip in the pool, walking together in the garden, and doing many other things just to enjoy each other's company. It felt like we were making up for all the lost time.…**Around a week later**Diana's brewing plan kept me on edge. The secret preparation for the royal engagement announcement was in full swing. As for me, I spent a lot of time mentally preparing myself for what was to come. Each peaceful day that went by felt like the perfect calm before a raging storm. One day, I woke up to find Bradon sitting on the side of the bed, his eyes on me as if he was waiting patiently for me to wake up from my sl