“Welcome to TM hospitals, Miss Arnold. I look forward to working with you, too.” Tony shook her, feeling her hand for as long as he could. It was almost as though they had forgotten about everyone in the room, as they were both lost in each other’s eyes. It wasn’t until Tony realized he had been holding her hand for too long that he pulled away and cleared his throat. He saw the look on the faces of the other nurses and realized that it must have been awkward for them.“Alright then, Miss Arnold. Get familiar with your colleagues and the hospital. I’ll be in my office. Feel free to reach out to me if you need anything.” He said and finally excused himself. Lily couldn’t help but smile as she watched him walk away. “You guys know each other, don’t you?” One of the nurses asked, and as Lily turned to give her an answer, she realized that all eyes were on her.This was an awkward situation, and she hated awkward situations.“I won’t say we know each other. We ran into each other
Louis marched towards her with his nose flared up, and Lily immediately knew what was coming, so she screamed and ran. “What is wrong with you, Louis? What are you doing?” She cried, running away from him. “How dare you cheat on me and come back here? Who is he? Who’s the man!?” He yelled and threw a vase across the room, causing lily to scream. “There’s no man, Louis. I swear. I work at a hospital. I told you about it this morning. I told you I’d be working as a nurse at TM Hospital, and you were okay with it. Why are you suddenly being like this?” She cried. “I don’t believe you. You think I don’t know that you’ve been trying to leave me? You’re using that as an excuse to meet another lover of yours.” He said, and before Lily could run further, he grabbed her neck and slammed her to the wall. “Tell me who he is, or I will kill you.” He threatened, pressing his hand on her throat. Lily coughed and gasped for air, begging him to let her go. “I’ll show you everything.
Unknown Number: [I should have said that first. Forgive me. This is Tony Martinez. I got your number from your employee file] Lily’s breath seized as she read the text. She stared at the text continuously to be sure she wasn’t seeing things. “Why is he texting?” She asked herself and stood up to lock the door so that she could be sure that Louis wouldn’t barge in. Even though he was out, she knew how easy it was for him to run back home and sneak in on her when she least expected it. Lily saved the number and sent a reply. Lily: [Hello, Dr Martinez. Yes, everything is alright.] She stared at her text for a whole minute before she made up her mind and sent the text. A few seconds after her text, he read it and typed again. Dr Martinez: [You left the hospital in haste yesterday. I just wanted to be sure that everything was alright with you.] His reply came in, and Lily’s mouth parted in shock. She remembered bumping into him while running out of the hospital, but she
“So, Miss Arnold. Why did you run home yesterday? I want the real reason, not that lie you made up earlier.” Tony said. Lily’s eyes widened at his question. “W-what are you talking about, Sir?” She stammered and lowered her head. She couldn’t let him see her face as it would immediately give her away. “Don’t be scared, Miss Arnold. I mean no harm. You are my staff, and I am only trying to ensure you’re alright.” Tony assured her when he saw her fidget. “Now, Miss Arnold. What happened yesterday?” He asked again. If it were another staff, Tony wouldn’t have bothered. The affairs of his employees outside the office didn’t concern him, and he had no right to ask, but this was Lily. He couldn’t brush off what he saw, and if anything happened to Lily, he would blame himself. So, he needed to know why she was so disturbed. “I already told you, Sir. I had a call from my mother. I had to rush home and attend to her.” She sighed and hoped he would let her go. But Tony shut his eyes
“Get your fucking hands off her!” Tony growled as he punched Louis in the face. The force from the hit made Louis fall to the ground. Lily screamed, thinking it was an attack from a thug, but when she looked up and saw Tony, she sighed in relief. “Dr Martinez! What are you doing here?” She asked a few seconds later as he helped her stand. “Oh God!” Fear gripped her as she saw Louis standing in front of her with a frown on his face. His eyes went down to where Tony held her, and they widened. “He’s the bastard you’ve been cheating on me with, isn’t he?” Louis asked with red eyes, using the back of his hands to wipe the blood off his injured lip. Lily shook her head and tried to explain, but Tony stepped before her and shielded her from Louis. “How dare you lay your hands on a woman? You’re a fucking coward, do you know that?” Tony was angry. Seeing Lily in that state awoke something he never knew he had in him. “Why don’t you mind your fucking business? She is my gi
“Am I hallucinating, or did my brother really bring a woman home?” Rachael said dramatically as she hurried down the stairs. “Oh my goodness! You are beautiful!” She clapped happily and pulled Lily for a hug. “Stop it, Rachael. You’ll make her uncomfortable.” Tony sighed and tried pulling her hands off Lily, but she shot him a harsh glare and pushed him away. “Hello, I’m Rachael, Tony’s sister. What’s your name?” She asked, smiling from ear to ear. Lily looked at Tony and then back at Rachael before clearing her throat. “I’m Lily. Lily Arnold.” She answered, and Rachael hugged her tightly. “Lovely to meet you, Lily. You have no idea how happy I am to see you.” Rachael confessed, beaming with joy. “Believe me, we can all see, but she’s not that kind of friend, Rachael. Don’t get too excited.” Tony said, and Rachael’s expression saddened. “What are you talking about?” She asked, and Lily smiled apologetically. It mmm “She works at the hospital but will be staying
After their lengthy conversation filled with tears from Lily’s side, Tony showed her to her room, which the maids had already prepared.“Get some rest, Lily. You need it. Come down whenever you feel hungry, and the maids will prepare something for you immediately, okay?” Tony held her arm and stood outside her room. He didn’t want to disturb her any further because he could see the tiredness in her eyes. She had been awake all night because of her shift, and since it was her first time, her body wasn’t used to it. The eye bags around her eyes were becoming prominent, and he could see her struggling to keep her eyes open.“Thank you for today, Dr Martinez. I am grateful for everything you’ve done today.” Lily said truthfully, and Tony slowly pulled her closer and kissed her forehead, taking her by surprise.“Go to bed, Lily. You can thank me when you wake up.” He said, and she chuckled before nodding and walking into the room. Tony helped her shut her door before leaving for his r
“I haven’t slept that good in months. That’s why I slept for so long. It felt unreal to be able to sleep that good.” Lily confessed, smiling from ear to ear.“I’m glad you were able to sleep well, Lily,” Tony said and joined them at the dining table. “Looks like we’ll be having an early dinner.” He joked, and they all laughed. The food soon arrived, and Tony requested his share while Rachael decided to keep hers until later as she had just had lunch an hour ago. “I have to go and pick Daisy up now. I’ll see you when I return, Lily.” Rachael said and excused herself. As soon as she left, Lily turned to Tony.“Isn’t it too late to pick a child up from school?” Lily asked, and Tony chuckled lightly at her question.“Schools are on holiday, Lily. Daisy is at her grandparent’s house. She stays there during the day and returns in the evening.” Tony explained, and Lily’s mouth parted slightly as she nodded.“That makes more sense. I have more questions, but I think It’ll be better
Lily stirred awake, her body feeling lighter than the previous day. She looked around the room and noticed that it was awfully quiet and Tony was nowhere to be found.She was sure he had slept next to her.“He might be downstairs.” She thought as she headed to the bathroom to get freshened up and ready for the day. She knew that there was no point in going to the hospital as Tony had made it abundantly clear the previous day that she would be staying away from the hospital for a while.She agreed with him. She wasn’t ready to relive the previous day.When she was done, she headed downstairs dressed in casual jean shorts and a black t-shirt to match.Entering the dining room, she was met with Rachael who had her utensils in hand but her mind was elsewhere.“Rachael?” Lily called out softly but it fell on deaf ears. She cleared her throat and called again, waving her hands before her face this time around.“Rachael…” This time around, Rachael blinked and looked up.“Oh, Lily.” She calle
Tony looked at Lily and sighed once again. She looked weak and tired. Her clothes had been stained and rumpled thanks to the floor Mehdi left her on.“She needs a bath.” Rachael pointed out as if reading his mind.“Hmm.” Tony nodded. “What do we do then? Wake her up? She looks really tired though.” He said in a calm voice, sounding exhausted himself.“I’ll be gentle with her. She needs a bath to help her sleep properly. If she goes to bed like this she’ll only wake up much later. You know Lily is a clean freak.” Rachael added when she saw that Tony didn’t want to wake Lily up because of how tired she looked.“I don’t know…” He sighed but Rachael touched his arm and smiled assuringly.“Don’t worry, Tony. I’ll be gentle with her and I’ll make she doesn’t hit her head on a“Alright then. I’ll take a shower myself and come back in an hour.” Tony said before leaving the room.Once he was out, Rachael tapped Lily lightly until she stirred in her sleep. Her eyelids fluttered and slowly opene
“We finally meet, Draco. I have been trying to catch you for years.” Rico said with a smirk as he pulled out his police ID and shoved it in Mehdi’s face. Rico was a detective who had been in charge of a few cases that related to the Snakers gang and each time he thought he was finally close to catching them, he was faced with a stumbling block even his superiors advised and warned him against going them. After several failed attempts at getting them, he realized that the problem was their leader. He understood that the gang leader was someone powerful which was why everyone in the police force, including the commander was scared to touch him. He knew if they really wanted to, they would have caught them a long time ago. It annoyed him to see that they were turning a blind eye to the killing and crisis the gang caused daily just because their leader was someone powerful. Just a few months ago, he also found out that they were involved in the massive human trafficking of young
“We are under attack, " the man screamed, and Mehdi’s eyes flew open as shock rippled through him. “What? Under attack? By who?” He asked his attention now on the frightened guard. “I don’t know who they are, boss, but it didn’t look like they belonged to a gang. They looked too sophisticated for that.” He answered. “What about the other men at the gate? How the fuck did they even get in?” Mehdi asked, his mind racing. He wasn’t sure if he was to leave the basement or run to safety. But then again, the basement was hidden so it would be safer to stay in there. “Secure the entrance and make sure I am safe.” He instructed the men in the room, and they nodded before taking off. Lily heard everything they said and understood they were under attack, which meant it could be a perfect time for her to escape. Her only worry was that Mehdi didn’t look like he would be leaving the basement soon and if that happened, no one would know she was in there, so, she decided that the only thin
Tony and the hired men discreetly followed Mehdi’s car until it entered a white mansion that was known to belong to Mehdi. It had been shown countless times on the news so everyone knew it was his. The mansion was as big as a small community with gigantic gates and tall walls. It had a state-of-the-art design and exuded wealth. In the mansion were armed guards stationed both in and out to secure the building as well as surveillance cameras scanning the ground. The mansion was built like a fortress, proof of Mehdi’s wealth and power. Tony surveyed the area, wondering why he was home so early. It was rare to see a man like Mehdi who was always busy actually spend time in his house. To make things worse, he didn’t have a wife and his parents lived in a different city. “Could he be hiding Lily here?” Tony wondered. It would make sense since no one would expect him to keep a hostage in his residence. It would be absurd to think that. But, Tony had a feeling. One of the hired men who
Tony sensed that Louis was being truthful. He knew that if he was indeed responsible for Lily’s kidnap, he wouldn’t deny it.“Fuck!” Tony hissed and punched the wall in front of him.“What the fuck did you do? Where did you keep her that she’d get kidnapped?” Louis asked, raging.Tony looked at the phone in his hand and ended the call. He had no use speaking to Louis if he wasn’t behind the kidnap.Tony looked around, searching for answers when a thought popped in.“If they weren’t sent by Louis but had the gang tattoo on their wrists, that means…..” His eyes widened as the realization dawned on him.“Fucking hell! Mehdi, you son of a bitch!”**After the call with Tony, Louis sat in his room, his mind racing as he struggled to process the news of Lily’s kidnap. He wondered who would have done that. For all he knew, he was the only one threatening her so who could this new person be?If she had been kidnapped, it would mean that she was out of his reach and he was not going to let th
“You?” Lily’s brows furrowed in confusion as she stared at the man standing before her. It was none other than Mehdi King.His gaze was sharp on her and he had a sinister smirk dancing on his lips, the type that made chills run down Lily’s spine. She stared at him in disbelief but her heart shook with fear. She knew what kind of man Mehdi was so she knew that he was not to be messed with.“Did you do this?” She asked with fear in her eyes and Mehdi chuckled, his laughter cold and unbothered.“Do what you exactly?” He asked, feigning ignorance.“Did you bring me here?” She asked and then looked around to see the men behind him. That was when she realized how foolish her question was.Of course, he kidnapped her.“Why have you brought me here?! What do you want from me?” She said in a low but audible tone and Mehdi walked up to her and squatted down to her level.“Come on, Lily. There’s no need to pretend.” He snickered and fear flashed across her face.“What…what are you talking about?
Tony arrived at the restaurant in less than an hour. The whole area was filled with panic but, not a single person was hurt. Tony looked around and realized that the scene looked too clean which meant that the thugs only came to get Lily. “The CCTV footage.” He said to Marcus who immediately nodded and went in search of the manager. Since Tony was well known in Paris, especially in a restaurant that was a few blocks away from his hospital, he was immediately granted access to the CCTV footage. Two minutes later, Marcus came back with the manager, a young French man with dark hair. He looked like he had run miles just to get to the main restaurant as he was sweaty and filled with panic but Tony knew that it was because of what had happened in his restaurant. “Mr Martinez…” He stuttered, shaking fearfully as he wondered why Tony was in his restaurant after such chaos. “The footage, now.” Tony requested. He didn’t have the time to explain to him as every minute he wasted could put Li
Tony glanced at his watch as the meeting with the investors came to a close. He had met most of them at Mehdi’s party and to his surprise, they attended the event just because they knew he'd be there. They had been trying to get in touch with him for a while but, since Tony was not just a businessman but also a doctor, he was always busy. The meeting had gone well and he had successfully acquired over two billion dollars from fifteen of them to add to his company. ‘Looks like attending Mehdi’s party wasn’t so bad after all.’ He thought. “Alright. I guess we can call it a day.” He said and stood up, satisfied with the outcome and they all clapped happily. “Thank you for your time. My assistant will be in touch with you to finalize the paperwork.” He said with a confident smile as he shook their hands. He was the first to leave the conference room as he had a major surgery to perform in thirty minutes so, he needed to get ready. As he exited the building, his thoughts drifted to Li