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Chapter 2
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2024-10-29 19:42:56"Is Sophie Parker the chief editor of TVZoom?" Nicholas asked incredulously, looking at Ryan Montana, Ian Brown, and Brad Ford, the owners of RIB Editora, which had placed a major bet on the TVZoom magazine.
"Yes... do you know her?" Ian asked, confused, while Brad and Ryan were by her side, more concerned about her health.
"Um... yeah... I do know her, but we hadn't seen each other in many years," Nicholas replied awkwardly.
"She's waking up," Brad observed.
"Sophie, my dear, are you alright? Maybe it's better to see a doctor," Ryan commented, worried.
"No, no... it's not necessary," she assured, getting up with the help of her bosses and adjusting herself. "It was just a sudden drop in blood pressure," she said, meeting the eyes of the person who was the real cause of her fainting spell, staring at her.
"Are you feeling well enough to work? We can always reschedule the meeting," another man, whom she hadn't met yet, suggested, and she saw Nicholas shoot him a look that perfectly conveyed his disapproval of the comment.
"As I said, it was just a drop in blood pressure," she smiled politely. "I came here for a meeting, and we can start it right now."
"Very well, then," the man smiled as well. "William Golden... but you can call me Will," he extended his hand to the girl, who shook it immediately. "Nice to meet you, Miss Parker. I've heard great things about your work."
"Likewise, Will. Please call me Sophie," she replied formally.
"John Brener," another guy she didn't know, younger than the first one and probably around her age, introduced himself. "A pleasure to meet you."
"Likewise," Sophie replied again, following the protocol. She still didn't exactly know what kind of business RIB had with Will, John, and Nicholas, but there was certainly something, and she was a professional. She knew her employers expected her to behave at least politely, and possibly friendly, in such situations.
"It seems you already know Mr. Pierce?" Ryan chimed in, noticing that Sophie and Nicholas hadn't greeted each other, despite him claiming to know her, and that he had returned to his seat at the head of the table.
"Um... Pierce?" she asked, confused.
"I added my father's surname to my name a few years ago," he explained curtly.
"Your father?" she asked, surprised, but he looked serious, indicating he didn't want to chat about it like two old friends who've just met and are catching up. This wasn't that—it was a business meeting. "Well, that's... great, I presume," she said awkwardly, and he simply nodded in agreement.
"Sophie, we're here because Ryan, Brad, and Ian have signed a contract with Mr. Pierce..." Ryan began, trying to steer the conversation back to business, noticing that the atmosphere between Sophie and Nicholas wasn't great, and pulled out a chair for her. "...to exclusively feature behind-the-scenes content of GHShow's new show on TVZoom."
Sophie wasn't quite sure what Nicholas had to do with GHShow, one of the country's biggest TV networks, and she couldn't dwell on that at the moment. She needed to pay attention to the six men around her who were there to discuss what seemed to be a promising business opportunity for both companies. She took out her iPad from her bag to make notes, as she did in every meeting she attended.
The young woman had stayed in the United States after traveling to her grandmother's sad funeral, specifically to be the chief editor of RIB's new magazine, TVZoom, which focused exclusively on television programs and TV-related celebrities. The invitation had come from RIB's President, Ryan, who had met Sophie in England some time before. She couldn't even consider disappointing one of her greatest idols in journalism.
"Will is the producer of the new show, and John is the director, so they're here to tell us about the program details, so we can plan our coverage, probably on a daily basis," Ian added.
"And Mr. Pierce?" she took the opportunity to ask.
"It's quite clear you've been out of the country for many years..." Brad chuckled at her.
"And not paying much attention to what's been happening around here!" Ryan laughed as well. "Pierce is the major shareholder and president of GHShow, Sophie," he said, and her jaw dropped as Nicholas smiled, satisfied. If he had to deal with that girl he wouldn't wish to have met again, at least it was a good thing that he was on top.
"But I'm not here for that. After all, my role as president has already been fulfilled. We've already signed the contract," he observed.
"That's true. He's here because he conceptualized the program and will also be its star. And maybe only he can answer certain questions that may arise," Will added.
Parker was increasingly surprised and confused, but she chose to let the men talk about the program as planned and only ask something when it was relevant to her role as editor. It didn't matter that the all-powerful Mr. Pierce, the network owner, program ideator, and also the star, was the same person she had met as Nicholas Rosemont when she was thirteen.
"Would you like to talk about the reality show format to Sophie, Nicholas?" John asked, but knowing his friend well, he could tell from the look on his face that he wasn't in the best mood. He decided to go with another option. "Or maybe I should introduce the program myself since I'm better at presenting."
He stood up, starting a PowerPoint presentation on a large TV while everyone watched and a secretary appeared, dimming the lights, and a server offered coffee and water to the attendees.
"Well, the program aims to find a future wife for a bachelor who's tired of his inconvenient single status... despite my attempts to dissuade him, I must say," he joked, but couldn't help noticing that Nicholas wasn't finding anything amusing, which honestly worried him, but there was nothing he could do about it now. "As everyone already knows, the bachelor is Nicholas Rosemont Pierce, and fourteen girls will make up the rest of the cast. The girls will be chosen in the first episode during a cocktail party, where fifty pre-selected women will be present, and he'll be able to talk to them
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Both Nicholas and Sophie were irritated at this point, while the others were smiling at the potential success of the program.He was in a bad mood because of Sophie's sudden presence. Not only was she going to participate in that meeting, but as the chief editor of the publication to which he had promised exclusive access to the show's behind-the-scenes, she would probably be present in his life for the next fourteen weeks.The girl was annoyed by the fact that she would have to provide journalistic coverage for a program she considered extremely sexist, the type that portrays women as objects for men's entertainment. In this program, a millionaire plays at being pampered and competed for, under the false image of romance, constructed from the very start by the show's title: "The Key to the Heart.""I talked informally with Ryan and Ian, Sophie... and we're thinking of providing daily coverage, showing everything that happens in the mansion or even during the dates. There will be twen
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Sophie returned to her office at RIB Editora in the late afternoon after the meeting with her employers and the three men from GHShow. Fortunately, all the employees had been alerted about her arrival by one of RIB's drivers who had brought her back. As the elevator stopped on the floor where her office was located, she dramatically took off her Michael Kors sunglasses and walked determinedly to her personal workspace.It didn't matter that her mind was in a chaotic mess at that moment. On the outside, she maintained the same inscrutable and not-so-friendly expression. Her steps were firm and elegant, and the air of being the master of the world, a persona she had earned at the company since starting her job there.Her assistant was already holding the door open for her to enter, which she did without paying much attention to his presence, except for the fact that she practically tossed her Louis Vuitton bag into the young man's arms, then occupied her wide and comfortable black leath
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"Why is it so difficult to find certain professionals from this magazine when I look for them? Am I asking for too much? I know I'm not... they work here, after all," Sophie huffed. "Patience. If it can't be now, I want a meeting with them tomorrow as soon as I arrive... which means you and the HR department need to modify the work schedules if necessary, so that the four of them are here for the morning shift again.""No problem," Blaine assured."I'm heading home, mon Cher. I should receive the new cover and any missing details for tomorrow's edition via email, okay? And tell the girl... what's her name again?" she pointed towards the wall, in the direction of the second assistant's desk."Rose... Rose Pepper.""Tell Little Pepper to handle my dress carefully," she said, standing up and extending her hand for him to give her her bag, which was hanging on a fancy coat hanger in the corner of the room. "And tell her to also order some work clothes from Dante, on my account... and arra
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Sophie wasn't certain about the supposed haunting, and she was relieved not to encounter it at the party. If Nicholas wasn't present, his absence had nothing to do with Ginni and Josh working for ABC, one of GHShow's major competitors. In fact, he knew both of them personally, as they had made minor appearances in series produced by his network. He had indeed been invited to the party, but he chose not to attend and instead opted to send a nice gift to the birthday girl along with a congratulatory card. He also sent an elegant thank-you telegram to her boyfriend, the host.Nicholas wasn't much of a party person. He preferred spending his evenings in the comfort of his apartment, enjoying home-cooked meals prepared by Mrs. Spencer, drinking beer straight from a long-neck bottle, and reading a good book or watching a movie, accompanied only by his old golden retriever Uno. He only attended events when absolutely necessary due to his role as the president of a major TV network or when hi
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It wasn't worth arguing with Nicholas, and Will knew that. He had known it since the time he had welcomed Nicholas to GHShow and, along with other long-standing professionals of the company, helped him understand and adapt to the job. He knew that Nicholas never put business ahead of friends and family. They had become like a family since then: Will was the father Nicholas never had, and although Emma wasn't old enough, she acted like a mother, always caring, affectionate, and willing to listen and advise. To top it off, little Reese was about to arrive any moment, already forming another strong bond among the three, even before being born.Nicholas remained occupied with work for the rest of the day, as there were numerous issues to resolve before he became both the president and the star of one of the network's attractions. Not far away, a few hours later, Sophie arrived at her own office, which was equally bustling with decisions to be made and activities to be carried out with her
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"Your shoes are everything, diva! Are they new?" Sharon asked Sophie as they walked toward the restaurant."They're Chanel, darling," Parker replied, but not in the snobbish tone she used with most people. Instead, she spoke playfully, a tone she reserved for a select few, like her best friend. "But they're not new. They were my grandmother's. They seem new because my grandfather used to buy her all sorts of things, but she didn't really have many opportunities to wear them.""She must have left behind a lot of things, huh?" the friend commented."Yeah... lots of jewelry, clothes, shoes, bags... fur coats, which weren't politically incorrect back in her time...""Table for two only?" asked the restaurant manager at the entrance of the restaurant they had reached."As always," Sharon laughed."But most of her belongings were left in her will to the social foundations she used to support when she was alive," Sophie continued the conversation as they were led to their table. "She specifi
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"Sophie, I think you're mistaken about the show," Sharon commented when her friend finished working and the two went to the living room to choose a movie to watch. "Nicholas doesn't seem like the type of person who wants or needs to appear... not at all! He's one of the richest men in the United States right now, he's appeared on those lists of the country's sexiest men a few times, he's invited to practically every important event here in Los Angeles... and also in New York... and he politely declines most of them...""Fine. Maybe he doesn't need a show to get attention... and maybe he doesn't even like attention, which I find hard to believe, but okay," she handed a few new DVDs for her friend to choose from. "Still, I bet it's staged. Maybe he's dating some girl that nobody knows and wants to make her famous before the wedding, for example.""I told a friend who works in GHShow's journalism... just now on MSN... that I'm going to do some articles about the show," she handed one of
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Pierce might have had terrible memories of Sophie and preferred that she had never stayed within his sight again, but he had to acknowledge that she was beautiful, she had always been beautiful, and the years had made her even more wonderful. She still had the same large eyes, the same full lips, the same shiny hair, the same petite stature that made her delicate as a woman should be, the same long legs for her height. Moreover, she was more tanned, her legs more toned, her body more curvaceous, her manner more mature.Nicholas had to greet a bunch of people along with John, but he didn't let slip the smile Sophie had at that moment, watching something Will showed her on his phone. It was the same pure and sincere smile of the thirteen-year-old girl he had met when he was sixteen, and that he hadn't seen at all after they reconnected.His smile wasn't forced like all the ones she had managed during the meeting where they had reencountered, but he soon realized that the only thing Will
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The Key To The Heart Epilogue
Impressed, Sophie watched the fireworks light up and color the sky, marking the farewell of one year and celebrating the arrival of another. The year that was ending had been a milestone in her life and would always be remembered, but the new year was welcome and also promised to bring her many joys.While she watched the festivities, with Nicholas behind her, holding onto her waist and his face close to hers, she had some quick memories of the past few months and was still amazed at how much had happened in such a short time.First, she had returned to the United States, then her reunion with Nicholas had happened, the hesitant coming together of the two, the inevitable surrender, misguided judgments, anger trying to overshadow love, the revelation of the truth about the past, and finally, the union of two people who could never be
The Key To The Heart Chapter 63
No sábado seguinte, everything was arranged, and Dante and Blaine insisted that they at least celebrate their union with the two of them, Sharon, John, Will, Emma, Maya, and Tony at a newly opened bar in Santa Monica. So, Nicholas made a reservation at one of the best restaurants on the beach and took Sophie out to dinner before meeting their friends because he still had some surprises in store for her.The two were led to a more private area of the restaurant to avoid being bothered or photographed by paparazzi. They received the wine list from a waiter who then left them alone. After choosing their wine and being served, they were given menus. Without realizing that Nicholas was simply watching her, Sophie opened her menu and spoke absentmindedly."What's this, Nicholas?" She asked, feigning annoyance but smiling after glanc
The Key To The Heart Chapter 62
Nicholas's speech wasn't a declaration of love; after all, he wasn't speaking to Sophie but to the viewers. He didn't want to involve the public in their private affairs, even though he suspected some might be interested. He wanted the final episode to be successful and emotional, but he handled it with the necessary objectivity, hoping most people would understand his decision, even though there was a risk of not being understood.Nicholas knew that if he chose Maya, Sophie would pretend for the media that their relationship had ended and the wedding had been canceled. However, he felt terrible about deceiving people, and he feared Sophie might not understand the ruse, potentially ruining any chance they had of being together.Sophie watched everything silently, standing in the middle of her apartment's TV room. She smiled like a fo
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Tony spent a few seconds processing the information. Maybe he would never have a concrete chance with Maya, even if she didn't marry Nicholas. But perhaps life was crazy and unfair enough that, even though he wasn't worthy of it, he did have a chance. Either way, there was only one way to find out, and that was to go after the girl and open his heart for the first time.He grabbed his car and sped down the road that connected the mansion's location to downtown LA as he had never done before. It was easy to spot the car carrying the girl since it wasn't a busy route, especially at that time of night, and the driver was driving at a moderate speed, with no hurry. Fueled by insane and passionate hope, he honked incessantly, startling both the driver and the girl, and didn't give up until he forced the car to pull over to the side of the road, where he also parked.
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Sophie took her breakfast calmly, stopped by her own home, and went to work, acting as if it were any other day. She left her phone in a drawer, the same phone number Nicholas had since their first meeting, to avoid constantly checking it, hoping for his call. If someone needed to contact her about work, they would call her office. She didn't want to nurture hope even when she received flowers with a card that said, "I love you forever," because that phrase could mean a fond farewell, or it could simply mean he would love her from afar until the end of his days.Nicholas, on the other hand, spent a good part of the day anxious because Sophie wasn't answering his calls. He didn't want to call the magazine's office, as he imagined she might not appreciate interference in her personal life at work, but he couldn't understand why, after the previous night, she might not want to talk to him.
The Key To The Heart Chapter 59
Their lips sought each other and greeted several times until their tongues also had their long-awaited encounter. Nicholas pulled Sophie's body so she was completely on top of him, and while keeping one hand firmly on the nape of her neck, he caressed the part of her back that the dress didn't cover with the other. She lightly ran her nails through his scalp and neck, already wanting to intensify the contact between them.As the initially calm, slow kisses gave way to more eager and rapid ones, and their hands couldn't stay in one place anymore, wandering and exploring their bodies, their breathing became more frantic. Sophie pulled away for a moment, kneeling between Nicholas's legs. She removed her dress, leaving her in just a small pair of panties, while Nicholas, enjoying the sight of her, quickly discarded his shirt.She pushed
The Key To The Heart Chapter 58
"I know I should have trusted you, Nicholas. I know!" Sophie suddenly said, pulling Nicholas out of his musings and making him stop pacing like a madman. "I was stupid, naive, impulsive... and I understand if you never forgive me for the suffering you went through. But I needed... I really NEEDED you to know that I loved you. That I didn't trade you for anything, that I... would never trade you.""Soph..." he approached, getting very close to her and taking her small hands in his. "You were eighteen... and, as you said, you SAW. I think if I saw you in bed with another guy, completely naked, I wouldn't wait for explanations either. And if you tried to explain, denied what I SAW... I probably wouldn't believe you," he wiped her tears away again with his fingers. "I don't even have to forgive you!" he shrugged, and she started crying uncontrollably again, throwing herself into his arms.
The Key To The Heart Chapter 57
"I needed to see you," she interrupted, taking a deep breath and fighting back the lump in her throat. "I need to tell you so many things! I need you to know that..." she couldn't finish the sentence as she broke down into sobs again, and he got up, deciding she needed something to help calm her."Where are you going? Stay here. Stay close to me, Nicholas. Please, stay close to me!" she said, a little more desperate than she would have liked, reacting to the torrent of emotions building up inside her with each passing minute since her brother's revelations."Calm down," he said, sitting back down and wiping her tears away with his thumbs gently. "Calm down, I'm here. I'm not going anywhere," he gave a little smile, and she managed a very timid one in return. "I just think you need something to help you calm down so you can tell me al
The Key To The Heart Chapter 56
Nicholas was in the living room of his apartment, reading the script of an action movie that a director friend had proposed for GHShow to produce. He had convinced John that he didn't need to spend the whole night at the mansion where his TV show was filmed, and now he was enjoying the solitude he was about to lose.There was a part of him that found this good, of course. After all, he had created the show because he wasn't truly satisfied with not having someone to share his life with, to come home to at night, to have conversations with, and to learn about their day and share his own. Another part, however, had doubts about whether it would really be a good idea to have a woman waiting for him, eager to hear about his day and share hers, when that woman wouldn't be the one he truly wanted to tell about all his joys, fears, expectations, successes, and anxieties, and whose routine he would l
