Daniel Garcia kept his women for only three months. During this period, they had to be at his beck and call and they were not allowed to find him in his company or make a ruckus there. After their break-up in three months, they were not allowed to pester him.
Outside, there were rumors that said his personality was cold and dull, but women who wanted to have sex with him were like an unruly crowd on a wild goose chase.
That was because he had money and power. Moreover, he gave loads of money to women who dated him. After three months, they would even receive a significant sum of money for their breakup.
After their session, Daniel did not loiter around and left. After he left, the room was still filled with an enchanting atmosphere of people making love to each other.
Arabella took the check from the nightstand and looked at the numbers on it. Her lips curled up into a self-deprecating smile. Five hundred thousand. Her first time…
Just now, they did it a total of three times. Because John did not need it, she gave her most precious thing to a stranger.
Whether it was family background or looks, this man would not lose to John, so she would not lose out either, right?
Yet why was her heart in pain? The type of pain where she felt indignant after being abandoned by others.
A cool liquid slowly flowed down from her eyes, and she tried her best to bite down on her lips, preventing herself from crying.
The Rivera residence had been passed down for several generations. It was a retro-style house that looked like a castle. Green and slimy ivy climbed on the walls of the red house and looked very eye-catching under the sunlight.
The sycamore tree in the residence was tall and straight while the flower garden was stylish and beautiful. The water fountain was like a heavenly girl scattering flowers. During midsummer, it was cool and comforting to have a slow walk under the shade of trees.
Arabella Rivera made someone move a deck chair on the grass patch beside the flower garden. She lay on the deck chair and silently read her book. A cup of coffee was placed on the transparent glass table beside her, and the scene gave off a sense of leisure during a peaceful time.
Mrs. Walter rushed forward. “Miss Arabella, Master Samson and the others have come back.”
“I got it,” she replied and closed the book in her hands. She collected herself and walked to the living room.
An old man over 60 years of age sat on the sofa while holding an exquisitely-carved walking stick. On his thumb was an amber ring, and his white hair was neatly combed.
A pair of travel-worn husband and wife sat beside him. The man was wearing a suit and leather shoes while the woman was wearing a dark purple dress and had a beige shawl over her neck. She looked graceful and extravagant.
She changed her shoes at the entrance and walked into the living room. “Grandpa, Dad, Mom.”
Benjamin Rivera gave a slight nod. Compared to Benjamin’s coldness, her mother Helena was emotional as she pulled her and touched her thin face while her eyes were brimming with tears. “Arabella, you lost weight.”
Her mouth was slightly open, and she wanted to talk, but a cold scoff rang in the silent living room.
She looked toward that direction. Master Samson looked at her with a mighty gaze. “You still remember how to come back!”
She gently pursed her lips and kept quiet.
In the whole Rivera family, Master Samson had always disliked her. Because when Helena was pregnant with her, the doctor had accidentally identified her child as a son. Master Samson was happy to the core, yet instead a daughter was born.
Moreover, when Helena gave birth to her, she suffered severe bleeding and could not bear a child again. Hence, the Rivera family’s only male heir stopped at Benjamin.
The Rivera family had a large family business and needed someone to inherit it. Master Samson had intended for him to keep a mistress who’d bear a son for him before bringing the son back to the Rivera family and using money to make the woman leave Andalas.
Benjamin and Helena were classmates in high school and were engaged when they were in university. After they were married, they still had a wonderful relationship.
Towards Master Samson’s suggestion, Benjamin was disagreeable. Because of this matter, the two of them argued frequently and Master Samson had even ended up in the hospital due to his anger.
XXX
The Rivera Family’s Banquet
Due to this reason, between her two daughters, Benjamin loved Serenity a little more and was only lukewarm towards Arabella. In addition, Arabella’s father didn’t like her, so she was sent to live with her grandmother. She returned home only when she was 13 after her grandmother died.
Arabella stood stiffly while Helena tried to speak up for her. “Dad, your 80th birthday is in half a month. Arabella came specifically to wish you a long life,” she said, giving her a meaningful look.
Arabella pretended not to notice and continued to stand quietly. If not for Helena’s repeated cajoling, she wouldn’t have bothered to return for an insignificant birthday celebration.
In this whole family, only Helena and Serenity treated her well… but ever since Serenity and John got married, there had been a gap between the two.
To be fair, though, this gap was something only she perceived.
Serenity treated her the way she always did, reminding her to take care when she was sick and being concerned over her eating habits.
She had a barrier in her heart that she couldn’t overcome, so she intentionally stayed away from Serenity… The two of them weren’t as close as they used to be.
Benjamin didn’t want the whole household to be uneasy because of her return, so he followed Helena’s instructions and said, “Dad, Arabella called me a few days ago to ask what gifts you’d like. She spared a lot of thought in picking out a gift for you.”
If not for Benjamin’s reminder, Arabella would have forgotten to prepare a gift, but luckily, there had still been half a month, which had been enough time for her to prepare something for him.
Upon hearing Benjamin’s words, the Rivera family head stopped himself from getting angry, but he still had a long face.
Even so, Arabella didn’t care because, in her memories, he had always looked at her with that unpleasant face.
The only time she got along with him was when she was 16, having been accepted into a good high school with the best grades in school while Serenity had had to rely on family connections to enter the school.
The phone in the living room rang, and Helena was the closest to the phone so she picked it up.
After listening for a moment, she smiled and replied, “Alright, understood.”
She put down the phone and turned to Master Samson. “Dad, Serenity and John knew you were coming today, so they booked a hotel room for you to rest and clean up.”
Master Samson’s face softened. “Serenity’s so considerate.”
Not long after, Serenity and John arrived at the Rivera family house and brought everyone along to the hotel.
Serenity, her makeup enhancing her features, took Master Samson’s arm and sat down as soon as she entered.
“Grandpa, I’ve missed you. Are you doing alright in Auckland?”
Master Samson was much closer to her, and his stony face carried a hint of a smile. “Everything is going great. Why didn’t you bring Eva?”
Serenity smiled. “We’re going to go out soon, so it’s not convenient to bring her along.”
In the evening, they went to the hotel and were led to a private room by the attendants.
Serenity sat next to Master Samson, often making him laugh at the dining table with her stories and jokes.
Master Samson talked about the customs in Auckland and the scenery, drawing the interest of everyone at the table.
The atmosphere was filled with joy. Only Arabella sat quietly and out of place in this family banquet.
She was bored out of her mind, as if she was a stranger at this table, and found an excuse to leave the private room.
XXX
The moment she opened the private room door, someone also came out of the opposite room. Their eyes met and they were slightly stunned. Out of politeness, she was about to greet him. The words “President Garcia” almost left her mouth, but she stopped.Daniel glanced at her coldly and walked past her like she was a stranger without even pausing.Watching his tall and upright figure, she rubbed her nose. As he was walking towards the bathroom, she decided not to head in that direction.She walked along the corridor and played with her phone in a safe corner. Seeing as quite some time had passed, she put away her cell phone and walked back towards the private room.Just as she was about to reach it, she saw John leaning against the wall in the corridor.He was wearing a V-neck t-shirt and casual brown pants today.Just as it had always been, he wore simple clothes and yet always managed to look good.There was a cigarette between his fingers. The smoke around it and the faint light refle
John Grant stared at her and seemed to have something to say as his lips moved, but he did not make a sound in the end. Her eyes glanced past him while she walked out of the living room with light steps. Her high heels made gentle sounds with the floor.After she got in the car, Mr. Geoffrey asked her for the location she was heading to, and she told him the name of a shopping mall near the hotel.After they had reached the shopping mall, she opened the door to alight from the car. Before she closed the door, she said, “Geoffrey, you can go back first. It might take a long time.”“It’s okay, I can wait for you in the car.” Mr. Geoffrey expressed that he was very patient.Mr. Geoffrey’s dedication to his work made her feel troubled. After all, she could not possibly strut into the hotel with him watching her, right?She contemplated for a while and could only enter the shopping mall. She asked the receptionist for directions to the backdoor, and after she went out of the shopping mall,
Arabella raised her head and looked at the skyscraper, which looked so tall that it seemed like it could touch the clouds. The beautiful sun overflowed with the colors of the rainbow.She pushed the glass door and entered. The receptionist was on the phone, so she waited for a while.After the receptionist put down the phone, she smiled and said, “Hi, I am Arabella Rivera. I have an appointment with the chief editor, Ms. Lewis.”The receptionist smiled politely and led her to the guest room before pouring a glass of water for her. “Please wait for a while, Ms. Arabella.”After a short while, a woman in her thirties pushed the door open and entered the room. She took great care of her skin, which made her look younger than her actual age. She was also very fashionable and walked with style.“Ms. Arabella, sorry to keep you waiting.”Arabella stood up and extended her hand out. “Nice to meet you, Ms. Lewis.”Ms. Lewis shook hands with her and sat on the opposite chair while giving her a
Arabella did not even look at him and smiled as she walked past Faye to stand behind him before placing one arm over his shoulders and intimately adjusting his collar for him.“When you have time, let’s go and have coffee to reminisce about the past.” With that, she smiled and left.Calvin lowered his eyelashes as he prepared his speech in his heart to explain to Faye. Yet, when he raised his head up, he saw that his new lover’s face was filled with tears and that her eyes were slightly red. Despite the tears, she looked very attractive.He was flustered. “Faye, I…” “Calvin, we are done. Don’t look me up ever again.” Faye stood up, took her bag, and left while crying.As he watched his new lover leave as she cried, Calvin wanted to curse before he took out his phone and called John, feeling upset.Once the call was through, he shouted, “Arabella ruined my date!”John stood before the glass window in his office and s
“Arabella, I heard that you are working for a magazine agency?”In contrast to her outfit, Arabella wore a plain pair of ear studs.Thus, Serenity took it down and replaced it with a pair of royal blue crystal earrings from the makeup box.She looked at her unfamiliar appearance in the mirror and was startled. “Anyways, I will be bored staying at home.”She had never styled herself up so properly with a high-end custom-made dress, exquisite necklace, and costly earrings.As she looked at herself in the mirror, she had the realization that she was the young missy of the Rivera family.“Then you should have entered our own company.” Serenity did not agree with her working in the magazine agency. “You will suffer grievances during work. In our own company, with me and Dad around, nobody will dare to bully you.”Although Serenity married John, she did not work in Grant Group with him. Instead, she remained in the Rivera family’s company and was the manager of the design department.It was
Mrs. Abbot’s eyes had a hint of shock as she sized her up with a curious and surprised gaze.Could it be that she was ignorant?She had not heard that the Rivera family had another daughter.Mrs. Cook’s arm gently nudged Mrs. Abbot before Mrs. Abbot realized that she had lost her composure. She dryly laughed. “Ms. Arabella is really pretty. Are you still pursuing your education?”Arabella’s skin was tender and fair while her face was exquisite and small with a pair of clear black eyes. To those who did not know better, she looked like a university student who had yet to step into society.Serenity laughed. “Arabella has already graduated. She has been overseas for the past few years and only came back half a month ago so you may not have seen her.”After hearing her words, Mrs. Cook and Mrs. Abbot understood, and their mouths were filled with compliments for Arabella.Arabella’s face kept on a smile, and wait for them to stop talking before she said, “Thank you.”Serenity was prepared
She did not speak for a long while, and Daniel lowered his head to look at her. Upon noticing that she was not paying attention to him, he slightly furrowed his eyebrows. “What’s wrong?”She gave him a faint smile with her eyes shining. “I was just thinking about how everyone brought a date along, and yet, you didn’t.”“Aren’t you here with me?” Although he said it in a teasing tone, his black eyes looked very still and calm while his voice was filled with indifference.She curled her lips up and remained silent.She obviously did not think that the reason he did not bring a date along was due to her presence.Would someone like Daniel care about how a woman felt?Besides, they were like friends with benefits where they only took what they needed from each other.As the music was going to end soon, Daniel pushed her forward before pulling her back again.Her dress gently swayed as though it was a butterfly flapping its wings. Her delicate waist leaned backward with his hand supporting
Outside the guest room number 6088, a woman wearing a rose-colored strapless gown stood with a look of nervousness.She took a deep breath and knocked on the room door.After she knocked two times, no one responded. She was a little dejected but was indignant too.She continued to knock for the third time and the room door was pulled open from inside.The man who opened the door did not see clearly who was standing outside the door and said with a cold tone, “Don’t you have the room card?”Linda was frightened by his displeased voice, but as she thought about her purpose for coming here, she calmed herself down.The man had just come out from the bathroom, and a towel was wrapped around him while his hair was dripping with water.Her face immediately flushed red as she stuttered, “President… President Garcia, I’m Linda. I am here to…”When he heard the unfamiliar woman’s voice, Daniel stopped his footsteps to the inner room and turned back to look at the person outside the door before
“Yeah, it was quite entertaining,” said Jack, stretching out his hand, with two 500 bank notes that Daniel had earned with ten minutes of work.He had to walk up to Jack to pull them out of his hand, which was the pinnacle of this experience. “Did you pull up here just for this?” he groaned and pushed the money into his pocket.“No, I still want my car washed,” said Jack, putting his hands into his pockets, on both sides of the bulge in his pants. He smelled of arousal, and all of a sudden, handsome Daniel could tell.“Sure, why not. Why not watch how badly I did, huh?” Daniel walked back to the buckets, trying to ignore the burning shame. “‘Look at me, I used to be the school loser and now I’ve got a Jag’,” he muttered and dipped the large sponge in the soapy water.Jack sighed. “You must really hate it, don’t you?”Daniel’s pulse sped up, and he could feel the vein bulging out on his neck. Even the orgasm he’d just had couldn’t soothe his nerves when Jack rubbed his success into Dan
Jack Ramirez POV “Daniel Garcia, am I right? The basketball star?”Daniel gave him a crooked smile. Daniel Garcia, the basketball star. That did sound nice. Too bad it wasn’t school anymore, and you couldn’t live off being a mediocre basketball player. He’d been good in school, just not good enough for a scholarship.But Daniel had to focus on the problem at hand. He couldn’t link those tantalizing eyes to a name at all. “Yeah, long time ago,” he said and held out his hand to the guy, hoping the driver would save him from his misery and introduce himself. He didn’t even take the hand Daniel Garcia offered.“Do you know who I am?” he asked with a small smile.Daniel crooked his head to the side and rubbed his hand against his sweaty stomach as if he’d never held it out. This was getting truly annoying. “Not really, no.” He shrugged, trying to keep his cool even though goosebumps of shame were crawling up his back. A motherfucker he was supposed to know from school pulled up in a sport
Daniel Garcia POVThe heat made Daniel Garcia boil in his uniform, so even though his boss had told him not to, he pushed the top of his coveralls down to his hips. Daniel was pretty sure the old pig was just jealous that his employee looked so much hotter than him. Not to mention both Manny’s wife and their daughter, Kiara Ramos, were making eyes at Daniel Garcia, which couldn’t be going down all that well with the guy. Manny Ramos probably only kept Daniel on because he couldn’t find anyone else who’d do the job for the slave wages he was willing to offer and live in the ancient motel by the gas station as well.Daniel carried a crate of beer into the small convenience store where Manny Ramos sat behind the counter, sweating, farting, watching TV, and fanning himself with a newspaper. Without a word, Daniel made his way toward the fridge to stack it full of beer. When he left home three years ago, he never thought he’d end up working at a shabby gas station in a deserted place, in a
Xander Reyes POVXander looked at this Daniel, so gorgeous, pretty, hard, and needy. It was one of the easiest assignments he’d ever had. His bright hazel eyes were heavy with lust, and then sooty black lashes swept Daniel's face as he shut his eyes tight. Xander didn’t kiss on jobs like this, ever, nor did any of his clients ever get to know his real name. But right now, seeing Daniel’s lips parted in a moan, his name repeated over and over, it was all he could do not to bite down on Daniel’s plump lower lip and then lick his way into that appealing open mouth. Groaning, he pulled himself back, he needed to get his head back in the game, and he wasn’t going to expose his vulnerability like that. He focused back on what he was doing, turning Daniel into a pile of sobbing need in his arms. "Want to suck me?" Xander asked, low and insistent. "Want me to force you to your knees, and make you suck me until I come all over your skin, rub it in… make you beg for me?"Xander felt Daniel push
Daniel Garcia Past LifeDaniel Garcia lived his own life far from his brother after they separated from their parents. He tried so damn hard to be a good straight husband. The life he chose meant so much to him. He experienced the ultimate sin which made him aware of the remnants of his past. Together with his brother, he approached the only sparkling desire that he thought to be the answer to his dream. Daniel wanted a family of his own, but, fate was unkind to him.It may have been the alcohol or the high of knowing tomorrow he’d be closer to changing his life, but tonight, worse the wear for the beers he had downed in quick succession on an empty stomach, meant that for once, he wanted to be himself. So he stood here, in a gay bar on what the cab driver said was the wrong side of town. The bar had shadowed corners and the smell of sex in the air—he watched.He watched the man at the bar; saw him leaning back, veiled eyes scanning the heaving late-night crowd. He stood in sinfully
Arabella put her cutlery down too and indifferently said, “He just doesn’t want to see me. So no matter how much you cook, you won’t persuade him otherwise.”‘Didn’t you say that you didn’t want to see me? Why did you come back then?’She remembered every single word he said yesterday which lingered like thorns in her heart.Daniel’s expression turned colder when he heard her words. He walked away to pick up the car keys on the coffee table and grabbed his coat at the entrance.He must have used too much force because the hanger shook twice and almost fell to the ground.Daniel walked out and not long after, the sound of a car engine came from outside.Mrs. Winstead walked to the living room and saw Daniel driving away. She returned to the dining room with a gloomy expression. “Young Madam…”After Daniel left, Arabella lost her appetite so she stood up and walked towards the stairs.Mrs. Winstead looked on and sighed heavily. When Young Master had not been coming back over the past fe
He got up and walked towards the stairs. She followed closely behind him and the two headed up to the second floor one after another. When they reached the bedroom door, Daniel did not stop, continuing to walk towards the study room.Arabella grabbed his sleeve again and Daniel stopped in his tracks. He turned around to look at her expressionlessly.“What are you angry about?” She looked up and met his dark eyes.He looked back at her innocent eyes and the words that he wanted to ask became stuck in his throat. “Nothing,” said he calmly.“How can it be ‘nothing’? You haven’t been home for half a month.” Afraid he would shake her off, she tightened her grip on his sleeve which started to wrinkle.“It was a business trip,” said he curtly.“What about before the business trip? Furthermore, Caleb told me that it has been a few days since you returned from your business trip.”Well, the part about Caleb telling her so was a lie. But she felt no guilt implicating Daniel’s assistant since Ca
Arabella had been waiting in the parking lot of Zephyr Group since 4 p.m.Afraid that she would be seen by her colleagues, she chose to hide in an inconspicuous corner while keeping her eyes on Daniel’s car.One hour, two hours, three hours passed, but Daniel still did not appear.The sky gradually darkened and the lights in the parking lot were a little dim, making the place gloomy and cold.She wrapped her coat tightly around her body and crouched as if to curl herself into a ball. Since she stayed in that position for quite some time, her legs started to feel a little numb. She decided to stand and walk a few steps to return blood flow to her legs. After stretching for a while, she resumed her crouched position.With the night approaching, the cold in the dim parking lot grew heavier – Arabella started to shiver. She wanted to go home in a huff, but she was also unwilling to do so without having confronted Daniel.What right did he have to treat her like this?Even if he was angry,
When it was the day of the pregnancy checkup, Daniel had not returned from the business trip. She was already expecting to go to the hospital alone only to find someone else in the living room when she came downstairs.“Why are you here?” She looked at Francesca in surprise.“Young Madam, President Garcia asked me to accompany you to the hospital,” said Francesca gently.It seemed that he still remembered the date. Arabella nodded. “Let’s go.”Mrs. Winstead noticed how thin the clothes Arabella was wearing so the former handed the latter a red coat on the hanger at the entrance.How could Arabella refuse Mrs. Winstead’s kind intentions? The former took off her jacket and put on the coat. Then, Arabella grabbed her bag and left the living room with Francesca following behind her.Because Francesca had made an appointment in advance, they went straight to the hospital for the checkup. After a series of examinations, the doctor said, “The child is very healthy. It’s just that you must ha