5 years later… “Put the flowers right there.” Alessa directed her oldest, now four-year-old daughter, Melissa. “You put the flowers right next to hers.” She told her youngest son, Ross, almost three years old to do the same. Then she placed the flowers in her hand on the grave as well. “Thank you for looking over me, for looking over us,” she prayed. Urging her kids to do the same. They loosely repeated their mother. Tears were starting to well up in Alessa's eyes. “Sorry, it’s been so long since I’ve been here.” “Don’t cry. It’s okay. He is looking down and smiling at how far you’ve come.” Madison said putting her hands on Alessa’s shoulder. “He is thankful you came into my life,” Alessa said. “You're the reason I have all of this.” She pointed at her two kids. “Kyle had something to do with this.” Madison laughed. “What did I have something to do with it?” Kyle joined the cluster which included Madison, John, and their four kids. Aspen and James. Alessa and their two ki
Several camera flashes blinded Alessa as she looked at Kyle’s bloody knuckles. He was kneeling, exhausted in front of her. On the floor, next to them lay a man, his face also bloody and his eyes closed but hopefully only because he was unconscious. “Kyle Danny. Who is this woman? Where is your fiancee? Why did you hurt this man? How did you two meet?” These were just some of the questions being hurled at them, but they were not looking away from each other.“Kyle, you need to leave. This is all going to blow up. Your fiancée’s going to see all of this.” Alessa finally said, crying, thinking about the pain Kyle must be in. His hands drilling blood. “I don’t care. I don’t care about anything else right now. Answer me.” Kyle demanded but also begged at the same time. “I can’t.” No matter how much Alessa wanted to run away into the sunset with Kyle Danny, she couldn't. She wasn't enough. Their love wasn't enough!“So you're saying no to marrying me?” Kyle’s voice stern and angry.“I—”
About a year ago...“You can’t do one thing right!” The man on the video screamed. “I asked you to do one thing. Book a reservation for 11:30, how can you not get that one task completed?” He bellowed even louder. “I am sorry sir!” The lady in the video begged. “Sorry isn’t going to fix the fact that the investor I was supposed to meet left because I was half an hour late.” His voice got louder. “This video was leaked to the press a few days ago and it has already begun to negatively affect the Camelot stock. Kyle Danny has yet to make a statement on this matter. Though the press is expecting him to make an apology soon.” The man and woman were now in a smaller box on top of the phone screen and a news reporter appeared in the center. “This! This is the guy who is supposed to help PHAT News. I don’t want his bailout.” Alessa said to her best friend Madison as they sipped their coffee at a coffee shop near their New York office. Alessa clicked off her phone, turning off the yelling
“Yes,” Alessa meekly added now. “You can’t do this to two people who love each other.”“I can do whatever I want.” Kyle roughly said as the two brothers moved towards the two best friends.“It wouldn’t be fair. They actually love each other. You're getting married for what? To save face? To distract the world from how cruel you can be?” Alessa was now facing those hazel eyes having a second wind of confidence run through her. However, she couldn’t help but notice how deep, dark, and mesmerizing his eyes were.“Who is this person John? Why is she in my house, criticizing my life?” “She was the person I was telling you about? The other girl. She will also need to move into the mansion. My assistant, Alessa McClaire.” Madison answered for John. “I’ll need to do what?” Alessa exclaimed. Kyle’s face turned into a grin. “Oh, she is the help.”“She is my assistant and roommate. If I move out of the apartment, she won’t have enough money to pay the rent by herself anywhere in the city. If
The dishes were not only piled horizontally but also vertically. If Alessa had to guess, there were over 200 hundred dishes in here. The mansion’s kitchen, which was not small, was half made up of these piles of dishes. According to Mrs.Rafferty, who begrudgingly led Alessa down to the kitchen, the dishes encompassed all the servants and the dinner party guest Kyle hosted tonight. Alessa calculated that this was going to take her at least three hours and it was almost 10:30 PM. Not willing to back down from the challenge, she began scrubbing, applying a generous amount of soap to a pad, and creating copious amounts of little tiny bubbles.She didn’t stop for anything. She didn’t stop when her wrist started hurting, or when the pain traveled up to her shoulder. Not even when her legs screamed out in pain for standing on them too long. Not even when her skin got so pruney that it started peeling. She only stopped when the last dish, a beautiful white and blue China plate, was washed an
Mrs.Rafferty and Alessa walked down into the kitchen but didn’t stop there. From there they continued toward a long dark hallway that barely let two people walk side by side. One side of the hallway was filled with small wooded doors. They didn’t stop till they got to the end of the sad hallway. Here Mrs.Rafferty opened the door to a very small room with an old bed, and a side table, with a miserably low lamp on top of it. On the left of the bed, there was a cupboard much smaller than the one in the room she woke up in. “This is it. I’ll have it clean if you want to wait to move it!” Mrs.Rafferty advised.“No, I am fine. I’ll clean it myself. There isn’t much to clean anyways.” She commented as she waved her hand in front of her face at the dust that constantly flowed in front of her. “Alright then dear. James should be down shortly.” Mrs.Rafferty said before leaving Alessa all alone in this—no other way to describe it—dungeon.Alessa opened some of the drawers in the cupboard to se
“Why do you keep testing my patience?” Kyle curiously asked. His eyes locked into hers, searching for something. “Who are you, that you don’t fear the repercussions you get when you challenge me.” Alessa said nothing. “You already lost your room, a night's sleep, do you want to keep going?” He pulled her in tighter. She swallowed involuntarily. His eyes followed the movement of her neck. He moved closer towards it. With his free hands, he traced her neck with his thumb, going all the way up to stop at her lips. She closed her eyes hoping shutting this sense down would get rid of the goosebumps that erupted all over her body. His thumb circled beneath her lips, and she wished she had time to come up with theories of why he was doing this, but she was too busy enjoying his touch. Why was she? She hated him! Why was her heart always betraying her brain when it came to Kyle Danny? A man she has just met.At this thought, she came to and shoved him away from her. She opened her eyes to
Alessa snoozed the alarm Kyle had put into her room for the third time. This gift was set to ring every five minutes from 5 o'clock. She fought to go back to sleep, but the loud noise of the machine just kept going. Finally, she decided Kyle had won this battle, and slid out of bed, and ran into one of the communal bathrooms down the hallway, only to run into James coming out of the men's side of the bathroom, his top half naked and glistening. His hard work around the mansion was on full display through his hard muscles.“Fancy meeting you here!” He grinned at her. “Can’t talk! Have to get to Camelot before six. I am going to have to catch the bus and it's already 5:15!” Alessa breathlessly said. “I can take you. Go shower. I'll drive you to get you there by 5:50, the latest.” He offered.“But why?”“I have to go into the office anyway. Plus this way I can drive you home. Maybe even have lunch together?” He smirked. Kyle would freak out if James and Alessa walked in together to Ca
5 years later… “Put the flowers right there.” Alessa directed her oldest, now four-year-old daughter, Melissa. “You put the flowers right next to hers.” She told her youngest son, Ross, almost three years old to do the same. Then she placed the flowers in her hand on the grave as well. “Thank you for looking over me, for looking over us,” she prayed. Urging her kids to do the same. They loosely repeated their mother. Tears were starting to well up in Alessa's eyes. “Sorry, it’s been so long since I’ve been here.” “Don’t cry. It’s okay. He is looking down and smiling at how far you’ve come.” Madison said putting her hands on Alessa’s shoulder. “He is thankful you came into my life,” Alessa said. “You're the reason I have all of this.” She pointed at her two kids. “Kyle had something to do with this.” Madison laughed. “What did I have something to do with it?” Kyle joined the cluster which included Madison, John, and their four kids. Aspen and James. Alessa and their two ki
Kyle took her hands as soon as Alessa got to him. “We are all gathered here today to join this okay-ish man and this wonderful lady.” James started. Kyle glared back at him. James cleared his throat. “Ok sorry.” He added. “The couples I hope have written their own vows because this is as far as I’ve got in my speech.” Kyle gave James a look of disbelief but he nodded and Alessa, who wasn’t told they were doing this, blankly stared back. Kyle took out a piece of paper out of his tux pocket and began reading, as Alessa began panicking. “Alessa, from the moment I met you, I knew you were my person.” “Took you long enough to admit it.” James quibbled. Alessa agreed with a small nod and this helped easy her nervousness. Kyle glared back once more at James. Then Kyle continued, “I know the journey here wasn’t a straight line. I am not sure it was ever a curved line. We’ve been to hell and back and somehow back again. It was more than most people see in a lifetime, but today, a
Alessa ran down to the fifth floor, where the elevator was stuck, and met with a cluster of firefighters. “Move. Move. Move.” They all shouted as someone fiddled with a box full of wires next to the elevator. “Kyle!” Alessa said. It looked like the elevator was a room that had fallen ¾ into the ground. You can see the top half of the elevator and Kyle, the second half was hidden underneath the floor. “Hey babe. This is my bride.” Kyle proudly told the firefighters. “Sorry for this mess Miss. We’ll get your groom out shortly.” One of the helmeted men said. Alessa kneeled down so she and Kyle were eye to eye. Kyle rested his chin on the ground and Alessa rested her forehead on his. “I thought something horrible happened!” Cried Alessa. “I am okay. Wish I could just jump out of here but I’ve been advised against it.” Kyle pecked Alessa’s lips. “I did learn a lesson in all of this.” “Yeah? What’s that?” Alessa asked, raising her eyebrows. “My wife is always right. Learned the
It was a week later. Alessa looked perfect as she examined herself in her bathroom full mirror. Her lace white dress hugged her in all the right places and fell in a circular pattern around her legs. Alessa walked out to meet the girls. As soon as she did, Madison handed her her white and pink bouquet. “Thank you!” Alessa smiled at her. The girls—Madison and Aspen—were in the penthouse, in Alessa’s room. The herd of people who usually fix Alessa's hair and makeup had already done their thing and she was now just waiting for Kyle. He of course decided to work today of all days despite Alessa warning against it, saying, “With everything going on, work did fall on the back burner. I’ll just run to work and be ready by the time we have to say our vows.” “I think you should put your hair up. The ceremony is outside, and it’s windy and cloudy today.” Madison warned back on the couch she had been sitting on as Matthew cooed in agreement in her lap. “It looks better curly and out like i
Alessa and Kyle walked all around the venue to ended up by a hidden back door. Kyle led Alessa up a set of stairs until they ended up at a balcony. The same balcony they had their first kiss at. “No one else is allowed up here,” Kyle said as they walked over so they could be under the string lights. “But what about the party? Shouldn’t I mingle? Get introduced as your fiancée?” Alessa asked. “There is time for that. I just wanted us to spend some time together. I haven’t had the chance to see you alone since the night you told me we were having a baby.” Kyle sat Alessa down on one of the many scattered chairs. He took a seat right across from her, still holding onto both her hands and playing with her ring. “Won't hiding out on the roof of your party interfere with your message, what was it? Rebrand and reassure. Camelot, a family business again!” Alessa asked. “Eh, let it. One party isn’t going to change the damage Frank did to Camelot’s reputation.” Kyle shrugged and kissed Al
Madison was back. Alessa was really excited about that but there was just one problem, she and Aspen couldn’t get along. Kyle and John had decided with everything they have all been through the past few years, they wanted to have a party to celebrate, a masquerade ball to be specific. “It will be for my birthday this time. Lord knows we need a celebration.” Kyle had said. Now, Alessa was stuck dress shopping with a very pregnant Madison, who was hormonal, and Aspen who didn’t hold her tongue. Alessa twirled around in all different dresses in front of a large mirror while the girls commented behind her. “I like the white one better. You are going to be a bride eventually after all.” Aspen said as she sat next to Madison on a couch the fitting room held. “She can’t wear white for the ball, it isn't her wedding that day. It’s just a ball. Wear this blue dress. That’s the color you wore last time.” Madison said pointing at the dress Alessa was currently adorning. Alessa gave anothe
Alessa had just finished telling her side of the story to the cop who was kind enough to come to the penthouse to ask her instead of making her go into the police station. She was still in bed. After Kyle carried her into their bed last night, she had slept for close to 17 hours. Kyle had been by her side the whole time. He had just left now when the cop had asked him to. She told him all about Jason threatening her, almost rapping her, about Jackie’s situation and help. She also gave detailed descriptions of how Jason and she got into a fight after he pointed a gun at Jackie. “After sending Cindy away I tried to get the gun out of his hands—I don’t know who pulled the trigger,” Alessa said.“What about Frank? Did he have a gun?” “No, he didn’t.” “Why did you shoot him then?”“Because he kidnapped me.” Alessa matter-in-factly said.“So it was revenge?” The cop asked.“No, it was fear. Fear that he was going to hurt me or Cindy or Jackie.”“A handicapped old man?”“A man who orches
“Come on now Jackie. You are supposed to be on our side. That was the only way we could ensure that little Cindy was safe.” Jason said. “At least for now. Eventually, she could work for me. Say at the age of 15? How does that sound?” Jason laughed. “Wouldn’t you agree Frank?”A few seconds later Frank hobbled into view. “Keep your perversions to yourself.” Frank moaned. “Jackie, go tie up Alessa. I am giving you one more chance.”“Stay away from her and stay away from my daughter.” Jackie gripped the gun harder.“Jason. You like touching the filth. Tie her up.”“My pleasure!” Jason said, moving towards Alessa. Alessa hid Cindy behind her. Jackie fired a shot but missed Jason. “You little bitch.” Jason yelled, turning his attention towards Jackie. “Jackie, Jackie. I need you to relax. You forget, I still have Adam tied up to some really bad stuff. It can put him away in jail for a very long time.” Frank warned.“I don’t care about him. He probably deserves it. He lied to me. Now all
“See this is why you leave things for girls to do. Just so you know James, we find out anything anyone is hiding from us.” Aspen said. Aspen, James, and Kyle were back at The Milton. Aspen had been feverishly researching for Jacqueline Hue on her phone.“What did you find?” Kyle said before James could defend himself. “From your FBI friend, we know she got arrested in Ohio, which is where she had her child, and where, up till now she was living. Till Adam got in trouble and he probably hid her and his child away somewhere.” Aspen hashed out. “We already know this, what else.” “Right, but Jackie—that’s the name her friends and now enemies call her—has an Instagram. Of course, it’s private but the girl world is small. Someone I met on a business trip a few years ago follows her. I reached out to her and she shared some pictures, and guess what I see.” Aspen turned her phone towards the boys. On it was a picture of Jackie. She looked young there, but the picture looked old. In it, sh