_______________________..."How much?" Natalie asked."Excuse me?" Zach Herbert sat on the chair opposite hers."How much money do you want to keep your mouth shut?" Natalie repeated, her voice firm and unwavering.Zach's eyes narrowed, the smug expression on his face fading into something akin to disbelief. "You think you can just buy my silence?"Natalie leaned forward, her expression steely. "I know your kind, Mr. Herbert. You're a bottom-feeder. You live for scandals and the misfortune of others. I'm willing to pay for your discretion."Zach leaned back, his smugness returning. "Miss, you're playing with fire. You think you know everything, but you're just a pawn in Mia's father's game."Natalie's eyes flashed. "I'm not a pawn. I'm a player, and I know exactly what's going on.""Do you now?" Zach said, his tone mocking. "Tell me, what do you think you know?"Natalie's grip tightened on the chair. "I know enough to realize that you're here for the story, not for the truth."Zach
___________________..."What on earth is going on here?" Susan asked as she and Trisha walked in on the party in Willow's living room that evening.Mathew had joined them in the morning and now all four of them were watching an action movie and Willow was crying over the most ridiculous scenes."It's hormones!" Damien shouted over the explosions on the TV. "I swear she cries at commercials now!"Trisha chuckled, setting down the bag of takeout she had brought. "It's sweet that you guys are here to keep her company. But don't you all have work and school?""I'm the boss," Knox called from the kitchen, where he was setting the table. "I can take a day off when I want to."Mathew looked up from his spot on the couch, his hand resting protectively on Willow's shoulder. "And I'm unemployed," he said with a wink. "So, no work for me.""You are not unemployed, babe. You are self-employed." Susan winked at her boyfriend."That's not what our parents say!" Damien rolled his eyes."Shut up,"
__________________..."Is this necessary?" Knox looked around as Willow pushed him out of the house."Yes," Willow said, locking the door behind her. "You need to get to work and so do I."Knox sighed, his arms folded over his chest. "But what if something happens?""Like what?" Willow rolled her eyes. "Knox, you forget that I am in my first trimester. The baby is not coming anytime soon.""But you had such a scare." Knox pouted. "The doctor did say not to worry about it recurring but I am scared, baby. Am I not allowed to be scared?"Willow looked at him, her heart melting at the concern in his eyes. "You are allowed to be scared, Knox. But you're also allowed to trust me to take care of myself and our baby."He nodded, his expression still tense. "I just don't like the idea of you being here alone.""I will hardly be alone." Willow corrected him. "Ivanna will be there. She took me to the hospital in lightning speed the last time I gave her a scare." She chuckled. Knox narrowed h
___________________...In the evening, Knox found Willow in the bathroom, sitting on the floor leaning against the bathtub."Darling?" Dread filled the pit of his stomach. "What's wrong?" He asked as he crouched down in front of her, checking her temperature."Morning sickness is such a misnomer." She complained.Knox let out a chuckle."It's not funny," Willow groaned."Well, it's a little bit funny," Knox said, his smile gentle. "But I'm sorry you're feeling sick.""It's not just the sickness," Willow admitted. "It's everything. Mia was at the cafe today."Knox's smile faded. "What did she want?""To talk." Willow took a deep breath, trying to fight off the nausea. "She is trying to be brace but she's hurting. She feels like she's lost everything.""But she's not lost everything," Knox said firmly. "She has us. And she'll always have a place in our lives. Right?"Willow nodded, a hint of sadness in her eyes. "But it's not the same, Knox. She's lost you, and that's a big deal.""H
__________________..."Yes!" Willow started awake by the exclamation from her fiance. "What happened?" She asked groggily as she took her phone from the nightstand and checked the time. It was four in the morning. "Honey..." The word was a prayer from his lips. "Honey, everything is going to be okay now?" Knox stood by the window in the dark and by the way his voice quivered as he spoke, his eyes transfixed on his phone, Willow could make out he was crying. He was crying tears of joy. "What happened?" She asked again as she threw the duvet off her frail frame and got off the bed, putting on the light before crossing the bed to his side. He turned around, his eyes glistening with tears of joy. She had never seen the man cry. Maybe a single of joy when he saw the sonogram for the first time but not like this, bawling like a baby. "Knox?" He lunged forward and wrapped his arms around her waist, sweeping her off the floor and twirling her around. "Baby, I am nauseous!" She c
_________________________..."Knox Wright and I were never really engaged. We were forced into pretending to be by my father George Thompson by vile means." Mia spoke into the mic. "I was compelled to keep my silence till now. You all might have heard about my mugging. It isn't true. I was assaulted by my own father." George Thompson threw his phone across the room. It hit the glass window which cracked at the impact."Careful George, you will have to pay for damages to top all the loss you are about to attain!" Knox chuckled, getting up from his chair."Now why don't you escort yourself out or should I call the security?"Knox walked towards George, his steps echoing in the vast office space. He grabbed George by the collar of his expensive suit, his grip tight. George's face was red with rage, but fear had started to creep into his eyes."You're bluffing," George managed to spit out. "You wouldn't dare."Knox's smile grew wider, revealing teeth as sharp as knives. "Dare? Oh, I d
____________________...Knox tapped his shoe impatiently on the wooden floorboard. He was wearing black jeans and a black button-up.He had been waiting downstairs for Willow to get ready and come down for the past ten minutes.The man was so full of nerves that it felt like an eternity to him. And it had not sat well with him that she had not let him stay while she changed."Alright, I'm ready," Willow announced, her voice floating down from the top of the stairs.Knox looked up and his breath caught in his throat.Willow descended the stairs, her hand gliding along the banister, her eyes sparkling with excitement. She wore a flowy white dress with minimal makeup and her hair down. She looked absolutely radiant - her face devoid of any worry or sadness in a long time."You look beautiful," Knox managed to say, his voice cracking slightly. He had never seen her look so happy, and it filled his chest with a warmth that washed away his anxiety.Willow beamed, her cheeks flushing a so
___________________...Willow pressed her lips to her mother's fragile hand and embraced it as she sat next to her."I am so happy Mom," Willow said with a sad smile. "So happy that I am scared it is all not real.""If you think like that, then you will never be happy."Willow jolted and looked up at her mother.But she was peacefully asleep.Willow looked around and saw that it was one of the nurses in charge of her mother."Dorothy." She sighed. "I thought-"Dorothy sighed. "She is never waking up, darling. You need to let her go.""I can't." Willow shook her head looking at her mother. "I have no one."Willow knew that was a lie right now. She had her people now. But her Mom was not so insignificant that she would unplug her as soon as she found her knight in shining armor and rode off to the sunset.She was not a bad daughter.She just wasn't."You have been selfish for the past seven years, kid." Dorothy had always tried to make Willow sign the consent forms. She was a woman w
Thank you so much for finishing this book. It's not my best work. And I am not really proud of it. But I think it helped me grow a bit as an author and for that, I am very grateful to this book. Hope I didn't screw up the ending like I did with When My Husband Regretted. If you want to read a fun read with lots of drama, do check out The Billionaire's Wrong Revenge. Thank you so much again!
__________________..."Where are we going?" Willow's eyes widened when she stepped out into the tarmac. She turned to her husband. "Knox-""We are going on honeymoon, wifey.""What about our children?" She was already stressed. "Jay is still breastfeeding, Knox. We can't go!""There is enough breastmilk to last him two days, wifey." He emphasized the word. "And our family will take care of our children.""But-""Whether we are here in the city or on our honeymoon, I don't plan to share you with anyone, darling. Not even with our sons. So take your pick." He cut her off, winking as he threw his arms around her waist.Willow looked over at the private jet waiting for them, and she knew that she didn't really have a choice. Also, she would be lying if she said she was not excited herself. "Alright, I guess I can spare two days for you." She teased, leaning into his embrace.Once on air and the seatbelts came off, Knox didn't waste any time, his hands immediately finding their way to h
_________________...A FEW MONTHS LATER...."Knox, get out!" Willow glared at her groom, even though she knew there was no use. He was not going to move from there."Knox, how many times do I have to tell you it's bad luck to see the bride before the ceremony?" Melanie hit her son's head with her purse."It's fine." Knox rolled his eyes. "We have been married in my head for years now." He winked at his bride.Willow gave him a flat look before looking down on their three-month-old son latched to her nipple. "Don't fall asleep on me, Jay. I can't feed you in the middle of the ceremony. And your annoying Dadda want it the traditional way so it's going to be long."Knox leaned down and kissed Jayden's forehead. "Take your sweet time, baby. There's no rush.""He has a boob fetish, doesn't he?" Trisha gagged as she walked in along with Susan and Natalie. "He just loves her boobs.""He loves everything about her." Natalie smiled as she set down the wedding bouquet."Especially her boobs
__________________...'Engaged for five whole years. Why the delay even with second child on the way?''Juicy details into Knox Wright and his baby momma's life!''Is the wedding ever going to happen?''Is Knox Wright protecting his wealth from the gold digger?'Willow sniffled as she read the article titles, a bowl of caramelized popcorn on her heavily pregnant belly."Babe, we are back!"She wiped at her tears as soon as she heard Knox's voice."Mommy, we are home!" Came her little Tyler's adorable voice.Willow quickly put aside the phone and bowl, fixing her expression. "In here, my loves!"Knox walked in with a sleepy Tyler in his arms, a tired but happy smile on his face as he made his way to the nursery. "How was your day?" He called to her. "No massage is ever going to fix this backache." Willow sighed. "I need this little guy out! Now!" She poked at her belly as she struggled to get off the couch and follow her boys. She was due any day now but forget labor pain, she rar
______________...Willow smiled at the dumbfounded look on Knox's face."Now let's go. I will talk Nat out of this and you find some way to get her out of this." She said.Knox just continued to stare at her."What?""You are... Are you a fucking angel?" He asked. "Is your heart made of gold?"She rolled her eyes. "Eww, when did you become this cringe?"Knox chuckled, his hand reaching up to wipe away her tears. "Since the day I realized you were the woman who could break down every wall I had built around my heart."She narrowed her eyes at him. "You know, I am not the old Willow who used to swoon at your cheesy lines.""But you still love me," Knox said, his voice softer than she had heard it in a long time."Yeah." She replied without any hesitation. "I do love you."Knox laughed out loud, a laugh so blissful that it melted the last of the ice in her heart as he possessively wrapped his arms around her. "There's me who came here to say my final goodbye before turning myself in f
___________________..."Knox." Willow's voice came out breezy. "Willow." He straightened up and gestured to her apartment door. "Can we talk?" She couldn't bring herself to form words so she simply nodded.Her hand trembled as she unlocked the door and stepped aside to let him in."You are going somewhere?" He asked again as Willow closed the door behind them."Yes, I was planning to." She turned to him, her eyes brimming with unshed tears."Where?" He asked."Home." She said. "I needed to talk to you. But you are already here.""You heard about Natalie." It wasn't a question, but a statement that hung in the air between them.Willow nodded."And how did that make you feel?"It was a difficult question. She knew the answer and she hated herself for that answer."I don't want her to go to jail." Willow finally spoke, deciding that for once, she would not be a coward.She let out a humorless chuckle as she walked over to her couch and plopped down on it, looking up at Knox and gest
_________________...The call came during her lunch break.It was Thursday and she had not heard from Natalie or Knox since Natalie's visit.Willow wanted to call Knox and ask him if he was okay.She still was not sure if she wanted to give him a second chance but from what Natalie told her, Willow understood his stand and she also realized that she could not blame him for it.Natalie was his sister - protecting her had been his responsibility since the day she was born. He was wrong in his way but his intentions were not vile.Yeah, yeah. Keep defending him. How can you forget that he is as much a sinner of your family as Natalie is?Her inner voice was relentless in its criticism of her.Maybe Willow was too forgiving. Maybe she was just dumb and desperate for Knox. Or maybe she had accepted the fact that as she had tried to convince Natalie so many years ago, she was only a kid when it happened and he was just trying to protect her. And what could punishing Natalie achieve now?
___________________...Willow started awake from another erotic dream, her panties drenched and her nipples rock hard.It had been three weeks since their night on the beach and she hadn't heard from Knox since.They had said their final goodbyes, and she had offered to see him off at the airport.But he had declined."I don't want to walk away from you again." He had said.Willow sighed into her hand as she looked at the time. It was eleven in the morning. She was sleeping in on a Sunday because she had nothing better to do.Her phone buzzed on the nightstand. She picked it up to see a text from the guard downstairs.GUARD: NATALIE WRIGHT IS HERE TO SEE YOU!!!!!Willow's heart stopped.Natalie.The woman who was like her own sister to her.The woman who had murdered her family.What did she want?Willow threw on a robe and rushed to the door, her heart racing. She had not seen Natalie since the day she had found out the truth.She had let the guard know that Natalie could come in.
_____________________...Work went excruciatingly slow.Willow's mind was elsewhere, replaying every moment of the night and morning with Knox on a loop. Her body felt like it was still buzzing with the aftershocks of their passion.But she had to focus. She had to get through the day.After a night of sleeplessness, one would expect her to be exhausted after the hectic work day but she was buzzing with life.She messaged Knox.WILLOW: Where are we going?The reply came almost instantly.KNOX: Nowhere fancy. Wear your prettiest casual fit.Willow rolled her eyes at his text but couldn't help the smile that tugged at her lips.She didn't care if it looked like she was trying too hard.She put on a pretty lilac floral dress and white canvas.She tied her sleek short hair half-up and she put on jewelry to match.And she went for minimal makeup, blushing at the thought of it all being ruined anyway by their passion that was to follow dinner.Knox had told her that he would be picking h