AUDREY'S POVMy heart sank into the depths of my stomach as I found Claire lying unconscious on the floor. I couldn't move; I was frozen as I stared at her unconscious body on the floor, and I couldn't bring myself to move closer to her.I didn't want to believe that something was wrong with her. I just wanted her to stand up and tell me that it was all a prank. But after calling her name multiple times with no answer, the tears flowed down my face freely as my entire body shook.“Hey, look at me, Audrey. I'm sure she's fine, let me check on her.” I heard Scott say as he held my shoulders and I glanced at his handsome face before nodding blankly.Scott stepped forward and placed his fingers on her neck to check her pulse and I placed a hand over my mouth to stop myself from sobbing loudly. He suddenly turned to look at me with a smile and a hopeful expression as he turned her around and picked her up.“She still has a pulse and she's still breathing. Let's get her to the hospital firs
AUDREY'S POV I rushed out of Aiden's ward after hearing Scott's words. He wouldn't tell me what had happened to Claire so I had to find out by myself. I rushed downstairs and he was right behind me as we both walked into the doctor's office. “Doctor, how's my friend?” I asked in worry as I sat down on the chair opposite him and he let out a sigh before taking off his glasses. Scott sat next to me and took my hand, almost like he was giving me the silent support that I needed. “Well, your friend was hit badly from behind at the back of her head. She's fine now but there's a little problem…” He said calmly and my heart pounded wildly in my chest as he placed his hands on the table. “Tell me what it is, doctor. As long as she's fine and she's not dying, I'm sure it's not that bad.” I said to him but I didn't know if I was reassuring myself or reassuringly him. “Your friend might end up losing her memory.” He said and it felt like a bomb had been dropped inside me. “With how badly sh
LUCAS' POVIt was already noon, and Audrey still hadn't come to the office. She didn't take a sick leave or a permit from me and it made me annoyed to the core. I thought we had finally bonded after last night's event but it seemed like I was the only one who thought that.Something in me felt uneasy, though, because I knew that she had never been absent from work before. Not even when she was sick. Could it be that her sickness got worse? Why didn't she inform me then?Or could she be in danger?“Lucas!” Isabella suddenly shouted my name as she rushed into the office and I glanced up at her with a frustrated expression.“What is it? Did you have to shout my name so loudly?” I asked in annoyance but she didn't seem to notice my mood as she approached me and handed me her phone.“Look what I found. I've got evidence to prove that Kendall has been stealing from the company. Not just once or twice but multiple times!” She said and I raised a brow in shock as I scrolled through the transa
ISABELLA'S POVThe plan with Scott was going according to how we expected it to and it filled my heart with joy that we were getting rid of the pests in my way. I refused to tell him about Jason though… I liked it when he was caught off guard by the things I did.Audrey wasn't at the office yet and I knew that Jason was doing his job well. While she's distracted, I'll keep drifting them apart until she falls in love with Scott, then let Scott reveal his true colors to her.It'll be so much fun to see her cry after she loses everything and everyone she loves.I glanced down at the office from the top floor and my eyes caught sight of Kendall working behind her desk as usual. She looked like she wasn't going to try to implicate me but I knew better than to believe that. I had to get rid of her before she decided to get rid of me.I immediately took all the combined evidence to Lucas' office with a feigned expression of shock and betrayal. Lucas looked grieved as he asked me to send for
AUDREY'S POVI had my heart in my throat as I rushed over to the ward. Scott was right behind me and I could tell that he was nervous as well. The nurse ushered us in and my heart soared when I saw Claire lying on the bed as she stared at the ceiling.“Claire?” I called out but she didn't reply. Almost like she didn't hear me.“Claire,” I called out again but there was still no response. I walked up to her and gently tapped her shoulder, causing her to turn to look at me as I smiled at her.“How do you feel, Claire? Does it hurt anywhere?” I asked as I sat beside her and placed my hand on her forehead only for her to slap it off in an instant.“Who are you?” She asked in confusion and my heart sank into the lowest depths. The doctor was right… she had lost her memory.“My name is Audrey and I'm your best friend. You got into an accident that's why you don't remember anything now.” I explained as I took her hands in mine and she looked at me with a skeptical expression.“Why should I b
LUCAS' POVI hated the fact that Isabella was trying to force me to take pills that did nothing but mess with my head. It gave me a severe headache that sometimes I ended up forgetting everything that happened the previous day.“I won't take it and you won't force me to, Bella. It hurts my head, why don't you understand that? Do you like it when I'm in pain?” I asked in confusion and she immediately shook her head in response as she dropped the pills back into the drawer.“I thought it actually helped with headaches and stress since it works for me too. I was just worried about you, that's all.” She said with a nervous smile and my brows furrowed in confusion. Why was she trying to make sure I took the pills?She's been acting suspicious ever since she had me fire Kendall and I needed to get to the bottom of everything.“You sure that's all? You can tell me anything.” I said softly, trying to get her to say something but she remained and shook her head in denial.“My stomach suddenly
AUDREY'S POV I was tempted to tell Lucas about everything that had been going on, but wouldn't that mean that he could get into trouble as well? Whoever this stalker was, was trying to hurt everyone close to me so that I'll be left at the losing end. What exactly do they want from me? My mind flashed to how sincere Lucas had been when he reassured me that he would always be there for me. I placed my hand on my face, gently running my finger over the spot where his hands caressed my face. Why won't you remember me, Lucas? What exactly happened five years ago? I returned to my desk as I remembered everything Lucas said earlier. He wasn't the one stalking me but he had found out that Scott kissed me. And it was Isabella who told him about it. Could it be… It was Isabella all this while? But that's impossible, she doesn't know my address, neither is she so smart to use different numbers to stalk me. Those actions were done by a man but how was it connected to Isabella? She definitel
LUCAS' POV I sat up on my chair as I clicked on the first image and it suddenly felt like the world had gone still. Nothing was making sense anymore. How was this even possible? There, in front of me, was a picture of Isabella sitting on Scott's lap, and they were… they were kissing. They were tangled in their arms like lost lovers who finally found each other after years of searching. I clicked on the next image, and it was another picture of them in her room, on the bed with Scott hovering over her. They were… they were naked and it looked like they were both lost in their pleasures. Was this photoshopped? Because this was impossible. How could it be Scott and Isabella? Had she been lying to me all this while? I clicked on the next photo and other photos after that and it was all filled with pictures of Scott and Isabella being intimate with each other. The date at which the pictures were taken was on each photo I viewed and it could only mean one thing… Isabella had been cheat
Meanwhile, doors swing outward into a corridor of burning neon lights that seethe with maddened intensity.Lucas's bodyguard had captured a group of men attempting to break into the boardroom. They had masks over their faces, but there was one man with a red tie in his hand—a detail which I'd seen in Michael's reports the last two years.I felt sick. "Lucas, is that you?" I stuttered into the receiver, speaking the words out loud.I received only mumbling answers over the phone. My tears began recalling Lucas's vow to stay with me, and I vowed to myself only that I would fulfill the vow to the very core of my soul. Soft knocking on the door of the safe room persisted. My throat had been grabbed and I pushed my ear into the door, pushed the door. "Who is that?" I shrieked, trembling.Low murmuring, soft breathing, "Audrey, I'm here. Open it."I was shocked and didn't want to open it for her. The voice was soothing, yet it wasn't anyone special—I didn't know who it was. My phone beeped
Audrey's POVI sat on the railing of our penthouse balcony as the city awakened askew under the wan, uncertain dawn. The sharp morning air did little to placate the storm raging within. Lucas had been so firm last night, so firm that he would shield us. Even now, I could not shake the disquieting fear that Michael's promises were far from over with us. I gripped my phone hard, reliving that anonymous text:"The truth is still hidden. Prepare for what comes next."It resonated within my mind like a curse. I could not help but wonder if it signaled another turn, another betrayal lurking just around the bend.Inside, Lucas walked into the room. His footsteps were measured, every sound sharp in the quiet stillness."They inform us that someone was seen outside the hotel last night—someone with a black hoodie. And now we receive new warnings from the estate."I shivered down my spine. "Do you think Michael's men have come back?"Lucas shifted his head slowly. "I don't know, but we must pre
Audrey's POVI sat quietly in our penthouse as the aftershocks of the boardroom battle slowly faded from my mind. The adrenaline high was gone, but my heart thudded angrily against the walls of my chest. The phrases Lucas uttered during the meeting still lingered in my mind, every sentence a mix of pain and protest. I could not shake the threat of Michael as well as the uncertain future that lay in wait for me.I gazed out the window at city lights burning below like false promises. The silence was heavy with my own hope and fear. I didn't know if our love, hard-won, could even shield us from the forces of darkness on the horizon.Lucas entered the room quietly. He sat with me on the old creaky sofa, his hand extended for mine. I felt his heat, comfortable and strong, and all was right in the world for that moment. But that moment was like glass.Audrey, he started, his voice barely above a whisper, "I couldn't help but wonder what Michael had said. I think he's got other ideas for us
Audrey's POVThe sun was up in the sky, but its light was miles away from me. My heartpounding as I remained there in the quiet of our bedroom, still warm from last night on my body. Lucas slept beside me, his even breathing a reminder of how much I longed for peace. But as I looked at him, doubt consumed me. I stood up quietly, not to disturb him, and moved towards the window. The ocean sparkled below me, endless and merciless. I looked around warily—someone was there. Within seconds, my world was turned right-side up. Lucas stood before me to take another step, his eyes taut with urgency. "Audrey, we must leave—now!" he commanded, his voice firm and gentle simultaneously.Guards let out low commands of warning as security cameras tracked our every step. I could sense a tempest building—a tempest that would tear all we'd built apart.In the car outside, Lucas's grip on my hand was tight, knuckles white. "Something has happened," he breathed rapidly. "The board… they're having an eme
Audrey's POVThe soft roll of the ocean was ringing in my head as I sat with Lucas on scorched sand. Blazing kisses and blazing vows had set the night ablaze, but now there was some unhappiness within me that churned a storm within, thudding my heart with an arrhythmic beat.Lucas had his arm across my shoulders and looked up at the moon that hovered above a sea that withdrew from it."Sometimes I think we can really leave it all behind," I told myself more than anything else. A tug in the heart—a mixture of hope and fear—warned me the peace was only temporary.I barely got the next word out before my cell phone rang in my hand. I answered it in hope. On the screen, a new message from an unknown number:"You can hide in love, but secrets always come to the surface."My gut roiled over, and I looked up as Lucas's eyes began filling with fear. "What did it say?" he snarled, his voice harsh but uncertain.I wrapped my hand around the paper into a fist, breathing nearly silently. "It says
Audrey’s POVSea salt surrounded me as I walked along the beach of the private island, my feet sunk in the warm golden sand. Blue waves caressed softly, like the kiss of a lover. Everything was so calm, so like a dream—a false guarantee of the next storm. Lucas? Not even close to being calm. He was a couple of feet off, looking at me with that infuriatingly smug grin, his top half-shirt open, the golden sheen of the setting sun on his chiseled chest. He had something concealed behind his back."What are you hiding?”"So impatient. Aren't surprises supposed to be fun?I folded my arms. "Not if you're the one who does the surprising." Lucas flashed a smile and moved in on me, gradual and deliberate, the type of pace that got my heart skipping a beat faster. "You hurt me, Audrey. Suppose I told you it was a gift? Something that I specifically picked out just for you?"My gaze flew down to his hands, but he quickly moved to fold them behind his back again. "Lucas," I cautioned."Oh, you c
Audrey's POVLucas didn't move. Because he knew. I stepped forward carefully. "Yes, I do." I took another step forward. "What do you want, Isabella?" She laughed. I breathed in. She was furious, out-of-rhythm. One misstep, and this would end in blood.Lucas stepped forward with me. "Isabella, listen— She shoved the gun into Lucas. Her face twisted in rage. "Say it." He looked at her. "I never loved you." A scream was torn from her body. "You liar." And she turned on me. I had no chance to defend myself before she fired. Bang. Lucas caught me before I hit the ground. "Audrey!" His voice frantic, his hands on my wound.Isabella smiled. "See? Now we're even." And then, before anyone could stand up and take her— She put the gun to her head. Lucas strained. "No—" Bang. Her body crumpled to the ground. Silence. The world ended. I felt the thudding of my own heartbeat, racing. Lucas was trembling, with me in his arms. Then there were voices. Guards rushing in. Somebody called for an ambula
Audrey's POVIt was to be a calm night.But calm was something we still needed to learn.Lucas had me wrapped around him, hugging me, as we lay on the bed, his arm wrapped around my waist to stop me from squirming. His body heat was not intended to soothe me, but the grip in my chest would not ease up. Something was amiss.I was in bed, staring up at the ceiling with my mind elsewhere. I couldn't sleep with her face in front of me, her own face contorted in anger. We might have been physically out of the room or not, but we weren't finished with her section yet.And desperate people, if there was one thing that I had learned so far, weren't to be underestimated. Lucas rolled onto his side next to me, his gentle kiss following the line of my shoulder."I cannot sleep. My mind will not rest."His eyes grew softer. "Tell me." I hesitated. "What if she comes back? What if she has something much worse planned?"Lucas drew in a breath, pushing back my hair with his fingers. "She won't hurt
Audrey's POV I trembled in fear as Lucas's words hit me. "Isabella." I knew she would never let us be. That woman was never bad, but now? Now, she had crossed a line that I wasn't sure she could ever turn back from. I grasped the sheets, struggling for breath. "She was scheming with him? The hoodie guy?" Lucas brushed his hand through his hair, his teeth clenched. "Security cameras filmed her entering the hotel with me. They were careful, but not careful enough." Anger and fear fought for dominance within me. Isabella had already done as much as she was capable of ruining me—to accuse me, shame me, try to destroy me. Now she's involved with my son. That was unacceptable. Lucas's eyes grew darker as if he could see directly into my mind. Not you, not Aiden.” His fists tensed in my arms. "You won't have to.". Lucas Kent was done playing games. I shut the TV down quietly. Aiden had padded into the doorway, in pajamas, and scrubbed at his eyes. "Mommy?" I scooped him up and hel