Kyle drove the car carefully, but I remained restless. Checking stock developments or reading reports from the various hotel branches or my construction team no longer held my attention. I repeatedly looked at my watch and the road ahead of us.Arriving at Richard's office building, my heartbeat grew wilder. I saw no sign of anyone else I recognized, including Heather. Seeing my lawyer's car coming, I sighed in relief. It was good that he arrived on time, even though this meeting was spontaneous.Richard's secretary greeted us. After giving us our IDs, she invited us to follow her. We entered the elevator and patiently waited until we reached our destination floor. I tried to maintain a calm demeanor while waiting."Welcome, Blaze. It's good to see you again," Richard greeted me kindly. He extended his hand, so I shook it."Thank you for your invitation, Richard. What honor is it for you to invite me to lunch so suddenly?" I asked. I noticed his condition. "Are you all right? You look
[Heather] I was so mad I failed to get a clue about his past. Times had changed. People loved to share every single thing about their lives, but I couldn't find a hint of his privacy. How could someone hide his past so well no one recognized him? Stupid Silas! How much longer would it take him to complete his mission? I was reckless, too. Why did I give him a month? I should have limited it to one week because six months was very long. The incident at the restaurant couldn't get out of my head either. I couldn't sleep. Finally, I decided to come to the shop to keep myself busy. I didn't want to do the paperwork because Faye didn't come to work on weekends. She'd get angry if I fiddled with her desk. "Where is this bouquet going?" I asked, noticing one flower that hadn't been delivered. "Cabot Hotel, ma'am. The courier will come immediately after delivering the flowers. The bouquet won't be late getting to the customer," the cashier replied. Cabot Hotel? "Let me deliver it." I hel
He didn't refuse to eat, so I knew he was hungry. I forced him to swallow the medicine and then let him rest. To help bring down his fever, I compressed his forehead. I raised the room temperature and added a blanket to make him sweat.That night, I kept him hydrated and checked his temperature regularly. I could only breathe a sigh of relief when his fever dropped. Seeing him sleeping so peacefully, I couldn't believe he was such a cold person. What had happened to make him so numb?His demeanor before and after marrying me was so much different. He was so warm, affectionate, and had a high zest for life when he approached me. After we got married, he turned indifferent to me. But I thought he was just tired of working.Noise after noise disturbed my sleep, but I blocked it by pulling the blanket over my head. I felt like I was just closing my eyes. I didn't want to wake up until I didn't feel sleepy anymore. I slept at dawn, so—Oh, no! I quickly opened my eyes and pulled down the b
I stared intently at the woman who spoke. Her actions were starting to attract the attention of the people around us, though I came as quietly as possible and didn't rebuke anyone so that no one would recognize me. I drank a glass of water to honor the host, who had provided a modest meal to the guests. I intended to leave after finishing it without provoking any drama. Why did she come and deliberately make a scene? The two women who were being reprimanded gave her a displeased look. Instead of replying to the person, they looked cynically at me. Realizing they were the center of attention, they ignored the interrupter's words and moved away from the serving table. "Where are you going? You are honorable women. Apologize to my sister," Darcy said, startling me. "What did you say?" protested one of the women. "Sisters arguing is normal. That doesn't mean I'm going to stand still and hear you insult her," she said again. "Quick, apologize to Heather!" I gulped down my drink and pu
"Would you believe me if I told you I wanted you?" he asked. His eyes looked at me seriously. Blue orbs that mesmerized anyone who looked at them. "Would you believe I didn't come home during our marriage to avoid the turmoil I felt whenever you were around?" "Liar," I whispered, disbelieving. He took my right hand on his left cheek, then guided it to his left chest. "Would you believe me if I told you my heart always beats this wildly when I'm around you? I don't feel love for you, Heather. Don't get me wrong. No one has been able to revive my dead heart. "Yet I wasn't lying when I said I wanted you. I can't stop imagining what the skin on your body feels like. You're the only woman I want after all this time." My heart was beating fast at his confession. He didn't love me, but his body wanted me. His heart pounded in sync with mine, tapping the smooth surface of my hand on his chest as if to confirm he was telling the truth. I couldn't believe a man as handsome as him would want
I read the report on the tablet screen. The problem Faye was referring to made no sense. The flowers came from another state, still within the same country. Why should it be held in quarantine at all? It wasn't a shipment from overseas."Please send me all the data on the remaining stock in the warehouse. We need to re-sort all the flowers so that no orders are interrupted. Then, contact other florists to see if they are experiencing the same problem. Report the results to me immediately.""Do you think there was a change in the regulations that the local government didn't tell us about?" asked Faye worriedly."We can only conclude that after we hear from the other florists," I replied."Okay. I'll call them now." She walked out of my room, heading for her office.I prevented Charity from picking me up at the shop for our appointment. She wouldn't be comfortable with that crowd of reporters. Surprisingly, the bureau's location was in a shopping mall. I asked the information desk where
[Blaze]I knew people I avoided would come to mourn at the house. Having Kyle by my side helped to prevent them from approaching me all at once. The first person to arrive was Willow."Poor guy. I met him at church last Sunday, and he was very healthy. Who would have guessed that two days later, he breathed his last?" she said in a sad voice. "You see his two children? They don't look sad."I remained silent, not responding to her words. The line in front of me continued, albeit very slowly. I couldn't wait for my turn to leave this place. I tried to calm down with the woman who wouldn't stop talking next to me.When my turn came, I looked at his peaceful face. I couldn't believe I was so lucky. My business with Richard was finished before he left. If it was even one day late, I'd have to deal with his children. I was sure they would demand a high price, capitalizing on my interest."You've never attended an event like this before," Cullen said as I picked up a glass of drink on the s
[Heather] "I'm hungry. Let's have lunch first," Charity suggested while looking at the row of restaurants on the side of the road. "Don't you have an appointment this afternoon?" I asked, not taking offense to her deliberately diverting the conversation. I knew she must have a reason for doing so. "No, I don't. That's why I can accompany you," she replied. She gestured to enter the parking lot of a restaurant to his driver. A waiter greeted us and escorted us to an empty table. After taking our order, he left our table. "It's nice to eat with you again," she cheerfully exclaimed. I smiled at that. "I know you did this on purpose." I looked around us. "Are you worried about someone overhearing, or is there bad news?" "Not both. I trust my driver and bodyguard. They may hear our conversation. The thing is, my friends can't give me any news yet. They need to confirm something so they don't appear to be slandering people," she murmured. I nodded in understanding. Even the police ha