Hola, queridas amigos. Todavia estas aquii? Haha, hope my Spanish wasn't that bad. I'm still learning. Anyways, all I'm trying to ask is, are you guys still here? This place feels awfully quiet without your comments hating on these annoying characters. *author cries pitifully in broken Spanish.* Okay, enough goofiness. Thank you for reading!
Luisa’s words smashed into Kris like a huge ball of ice. For several seconds, he stood frozen, his mind reeling, unable to fully process the accusation that had just been hurled at him.When he finally regained his senses, his widened eyes shifted from Luisa to Thalassa.“What is she... what is she talking about, Thalassa?”Thalassa didn’t respond. She just stared back at him with the same coldness in her eyes. It was Luisa who broke the silence.“Don’t even try to deny it, Kris. Carmen told us everything. She told us how you sought her out and offered her a million dollars to sneak into the company after hours and destroy all our hard work.”“Carmen?” Kris’s voice rose in disbelief. “Who the hell is Carmen? I’ve never met any of your models, and I certainly would never ask anyone to do such a thing. What’s wrong with you?”He turned his pleading eyes back to Thalassa. “Las... Thalassa, please tell me you don’t believe anything whoever this Carmen is, said to you. You don’t, right?”H
The guard grabbed Kris, ready to drag him out, but Kris shrugged him off.“I know my way out,” he muttered.With that, he made his way out of the backstage area and entered the main hall. Murmurs of accusation still filled the room, all directed at his mother, who looked increasingly frustrated.As he looked at her, suspicion twisted in Kris’s gut. He remembered his mother vehemently telling him that she didn’t want Thalassa anywhere near their lives.Had she become so obsessed with keeping Thalassa out of his life that she would orchestrate this to make Thalassa hate him even more, ensuring she would never forgive him?His chest tightened as he approached her. “Mum, you and I need to talk,” he said firmly.Linda looked at him, her eyes widening in alarm. “Kris, why do you have that expression on your face? You can’t possibly believe—”She tried to continue, but Kris wasn’t listening. He led the way, giving her no choice but to follow him. The rest of the family trailed behind, and al
“Another bottle,” Kris muttered, his voice barely audible over the din of the bar.“Right away, sir,” the bartender replied, nodding briskly.A few seconds later, a chilled, uncapped bottle of beer slid across the counter to Kris. He picked it up and took a long gulp, drinking as much as he could until the fizz burned his throat and forced him to stop.“I knew I’d find you here,” a familiar voice said from behind him as he set the bottle down. “I almost gave up looking when I didn’t see you in the VIP booth,” Alden admitted as he slid onto the stool next to Kris.Noticing the bottle in front of Kris, relief rolled through Alden, glad that it wasn’t whiskey or scotch. He signaled to the bartender. “I’ll have a bottle too.”Kris lifted his beer again, taking another swig, causing Alden to cringe sympathetically at the thought of how it was going to burn down Kris’s throat. But he knew his best friend needed this.“I already heard about what happened at the awards show,” Alden said, as
Kris’s hand quivered, his breath coming out shakily as anger rushed through him. He hadn’t considered Karen as a possible culprit since she had nothing to do with the fashion world, but what Alden was saying made a lot of sense.He immediately jumped off his stool and grabbed his bottle. Bringing it to his lips, he chugged the remaining beer, his grip tightening around the bottle as he wished it was Karen’s neck so that he could strangle the hell put of it.“Where are you going?” Alden asked, holding him back as Kris was about to storm off.“Do you really need to ask?” Kris sneered.“Touché.” Alden nodded. “You’re going to confront Karen. Fine, but give me the keys. I’ll drive. You’re drunk.”Kris glared at him. “I’m not drunk.”As much as he’d wanted to drink himself into a stupor, he knew he needed a clear head to think, which was why he’d opted for beer instead of whiskey.The bartender, who had obviously been listening to their conversation, chimed in. “He’s right, Alden. He only
“I meant everything I said on that stage. This award isn’t just for me; it’s for all of us because we’re a team. Without all of you, this wouldn’t have been possible,” Thalassa said to the gathering of her employees at TT Fashion House the following morning.“And as I mentioned, prepare for a percentage increase in your various salaries because you deserve it,” Luisa added, standing beside Thalassa and heightening the excitement of everyone present.“Thank you, Luisa and Lassa. You two are the best bosses ever!” one of the women said, receiving echoes of agreement from the rest.“Please don’t let what Carmen did get to you. None of us would ever do something like that to you,” another employee assured.Thalassa’s smile faltered slightly. “I hope so.”She knew better than to be naive and assume none of them would betray her. She hadn’t expected Carmen’s betrayal, but all it had taken was a bribe, and Carmen had turned against her.“Thank you, everyone,” Thalassa said, bringing the smal
“I’m fucking going crazy, Alden. I need to see her,” Kris gritted out, pacing his office.Last night, after leaving the Miller Mansion, he had wanted to go straight to Thalassa to reaffirm his innocence. But Alden had dissuaded him from it, telling him that he needed to wait for some time for Thalassa to reflect on everything so that they could have a calm conversation about it later.And today, Alden was saying the same thing.“How long is it going to take?” Kris muttered, his frustration bubbling over. “Surely, she’s had enough time to reflect and will be willing to listen to reason by now.” With a decisive nod, he added, “I’m going to see her. I can’t wait any longer.”Just as he was about to leave his office, a knock sounded at the door. Kris opened it to find Millie standing there.“You’re late,” he saud, a barbed edge to his voice.“Sorry,” Millie replied, stepping inside. “I had to go see Thalassa after hearing about what happened.”Kris’s ears perked up as he closed the door b
Walking back to his desk, Kris picked up his phone, which he'd nearly forgotten in his earlier haste to see Thalassa. “Who are you calling?” Alden asked as Kris began tapping rapidly on it. Kris didn’t respond, dialing a number and bringing the phone to his ear. He drummed his fingers impatiently on the desk as he waited for Smoke to answer. When the man finally picked up, Kris hissed, “I told you I wanted the report on Clark Morgan immediately, but it’s been five days already.” Smoke cleared his throat on the other end. “Forgive me, Mr. Miller, but my contacts overseas had a hard time searching for information on Morgan.” Kris’s nostrils flared. “So you don’t have anything yet?” “No,” Smoke clarified. “I do have something. I’m just trying to explain that—” “What are you waiting for, then? For me to roll out the red carpet before you come and give me the information?” “No, sir. I’m just on my way to your office now. I’ll be there in a few minutes.” “Make it quick,” Kris said,
“Lassa, the orders we’ve been receiving and the deadlines outweigh our capacity. There’s a lot of pressure right now because we need to deliver them all on time if we want to ensure customer satisfaction,” the man in front of her informed her.He was in charge of production across all the sewing factories of TT Fashion, which were spread across the entire country, with some on other continents.Thalassa bit her lip thoughtfully as she looked at the stats showing the ratio of orders to production capacity. She finally looked up at the man.“Andrew, talk to the procurement team. I need more factories set up—enough to meet the demand. Also, instruct the managers of all the factories to offer the workers as much incentive as possible. Increase each seamstress’s salary by 10%.”Andrew blinked in surprise. “But the seamstresses are already getting above-average pay for their work.”“It doesn’t matter,” Thalassa said flatly.Andrew cleared his throat. “If you don’t mind me making a suggestio
"I don't want anything more than a fling with Gendry either!"Maya seemed taken aback by Tessa's tone, but she didn't let that deter her. "Even after the truth that came out yesterday about what really happened at prom?"Tessa's face scrunched. "What does that have to do with anything, Maya?""I mean, if your brother hadn't played those tricks, you and Gendry would've dated, and who knows what could've come out of it?""Oh, please, Maya." Tessa nearly rolled her eyes in exasperation.As far as she knew, none of their classmates who had been couples—even the most popular ones—had gotten into anything serious after high school.Maya and Jace were no exception because they'd barely known each other back in school. They'd only met and fallen in love years after they'd graduated.Had Tessa and Gendry dated, it probably would've ended just like the rest of the couples in the school"What if Gendry wants more?" Maya asked, cutting into Tessa's thoughts.Tessa's heart raced inside her chest,
“When were you going to tell me about you and Gendry?”Tessa stiffened at Maya's unexpected question. She wracked her brain, trying to remember if it had been mentioned during their heated confrontation with Alex, but no such memory surfaced. So how did Maya find out?Her only conclusion was that Gendry had probably told Jace about it, even though they'd agreed not to say anything to their friends yet.“No, Gendry didn't tell Jace anything,” Maya said as if she could read Tessa's mind. When Tessa looked at her with a blank expression, she burst out laughing. “Girl, I'm not sure what you and Gendry were trying to do, but if you were trying to keep your affair a secret, you didn’t do a very good job.”Tessa shrugged, averting her gaze. “I don't know what you're talking about.”Maya gave her an amused look as if silently saying, Are we really going to play this game?“Okay, let's see,” Maya began. “I noticed immediately when something changed between you two. For the past three days, you
By the time they got to the villa, Tessa knew sleep wasn’t going to be kind to her, and she was right.In the middle of the night, she lay in bed, staring into the darkness, tracing the faint outlines of the ceiling designs while her mind raced with thoughts.Needless to say, after the confrontation outside, no one had been in the mood to return to the dinner venue and continue talking. So, they’d all agreed to head back.On the way to the rehearsal, Tessa had ridden with Maya and Jace’s parents while Jace, Gendry, and Jace’s cousin had taken another car. They returned to the villa the same way. Tessa and Gendry hadn’t exchanged a single glance. If he had been looking at her, she hadn’t noticed because she’d been too busy avoiding his gaze.They didn’t speak a word, either. It was the strangest feeling. On one hand, Tessa felt like they had so much to say to each other. But on the other hand, what was the point?It wasn’t like they could change the past. And even if they could… then
“What do you have to say for yourself, young man?” Kris demanded when Gendry remained silent for several seconds. “Did you say those things about my daughter?”Regret flashed across Gendry’s face as he nodded. “Yes.”Kris’s jaw clenched. “So you really did mean to make a fool of my daughter after all.”“No!” Gendry’s response was immediate, his voice sharp. “That was never my intention.”“Then why did my daughter hear you saying those things about her?”Gendry hesitated. “Because I..." He swallowed hard, as if he found it hard to admit his next words. “Because I felt humiliated. I was hurt that Tessa thought so little of me after I’d gone out of my way to show her how much I liked her.”Blowing out a heavy breath, he ran a hand over his face, then dragged it through his hair. “Yes, I know what I did was wrong, but back then, I thought that if we arrived separately, people would ask questions. I thought she would tell them she sent me away for being a lowlife, and I’d become the laughi
Tension crackled in the air like an overcharged high-voltage wire waiting to snap as Tessa waited for her brother to say something.Her brother, who was most certainly not capable of doing what Gendry had accused him of.When seconds passed and he still hadn’t spoken, her heart began to sink. She shifted her stance, positioning herself so she could look him straight in the eyes.“What is he saying, Alex?” she repeated, her voice laced with urgency. “Tell me he’s wrong. He’s wrong, isn’t he? You didn’t say any of those things to him. He’s lying, right?”The longer Alex kept his silence, the more her heart plummeted, and the faster her patience wore thin. Finally, the wire snapped.“Alex!” she bit out, smacking him hard on the chest. “Answer me, damn it!”Her voice rang out louder than she intended, the sharp sound echoing back at her like a taunt. She searched her brother’s face, but his expression remained frustratingly impassive.Just seconds later, the dining hall doors swung open,
Stiffening , Gendry let out a sigh. The last thing he wanted to do was to deal with this control freak.He turned his head to glance at Alex for a second before looking away again, keeping his gaze fixed on the sky. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he muttered, shoving his hands into his pockets.Alex stepped closer, standing beside him, his posture rigid. “Whatever game you’re playing this time, it won’t work,” he said, his voice low but firm. “Stay away from my sister.”A mirthless chuckle escaped Gendry. He turned his head slightly, just enough to glance at Alex. “Isn’t Tessa old enough to decide the people she wants around her?”“Yes, she’s old enough,” Alex admitted. “But that doesn’t mean I’ll stop protecting her.”Gendry clenched his jaw, his temper flaring. Protect her? From who exactly?“From what, Alex?” he bit out, finally turning to face him fully. “From me? Because you still think I’m not good enough for her?”Alex met his glare without hesitation. “Yes,” he sai
The next day, Gendry adjusted the cuffs of his shirt as he stood at the edge of the altar behind Jace, watching the wedding rehearsal unfold. Maya and Jace were standing in front of the altar, holding hands while the priest explained how things would go tomorrow. Jace wore a simple button-down and slacks, while Maya was in a flowy sundress.Since this was just the rehearsal only family and those who had important roles to play in the ceremony were present. That included him and Tessa, Tessa's family, Jace's parents and aunt, and one of Maya's cousins.Gendry wasn't looking at any of them. His eyes were drawn to the maid of honor. Standing on Maya's side, Tessa was quite a sight. Her hair fell in soft waves, the light fabric of her dress clinging to her just enough to taunt him with the memory of last night. God, last night.He clenched his jaw, shifting his weight as flashes of her moans, the way her body had writhed against his, consumed him for the hundredth time that day. And y
Tessa was lying flat on her back, staring at the ceiling, her fingers clenched in the sheets. It had been two hours since she told Kevin she wanted to go to bed early, and yet here she was; wide awake, tossing and turning, unable to shut off her mind.She hated that her thoughts kept circling back to the conversation with Gendry in the car. His accusations about her thinking other people just weren’t good enough. His claim that he had firsthand experience of it years ago.What the hell had he meant by that?She should be angry. His words were baseless and unfair. And yet, instead of dwelling on that, all she could think about was everything he’d done to her body this time yesterday. And again this afternoon.A frustrated groan left her lips as a familiar ache coiled between her thighs. Damn him. Damn him and his expert tongue, his manipulative fingers, his very potent d–God, she couldn’t even finish the thought without feeling heat creep up her neck. How had she turned into this pers
The tension broke when Kevin suddenly appeared beside Tessa, a broad smile on his face as he looked at her parents. Gendry and Alex finally released their handshake, and Gendry stepped back, returning to his previous spot.After a few seconds, Kevin glanced at Tessa and arched a brow, silently prompting her for a formal introduction.Tessa cleared her throat. "Uh, Mum, Dad, this is Kevin Balthazar. Kevin is..."She trailed off, and Gendry unknowingly held his breath, waiting for what she was going to say."...a very good friend," she finally completed.Kevin beamed. "I'm very honored to meet you, Mr. and Mrs. Miller. Tessa has told me a lot about you." He stretched out his hand eagerly.Both Kris and Thalassa shook his hand, looking slightly amused by his enthusiasm. Then Kevin turned his attention to Alexander."I'm a huge fan of yours, Alex." His eyes widened. "I can call you that, right?"Alex smiled and nodded. "Of course. My sister's friends are my friends."Gendry snorted. Why d