ASHLEYWhile I looked right ahead of me, gazing at the desolate tarred roads, my eyes wouldn't stop shifting towards the tall trees that filled up the woods on each side of the empty road. The eeriness had fear creeping into me.There was no car in sight. The speed at which I was driving, slowly reduced, when I began approaching the only house I could make out in sight. The urge to furrow my brows was irresistible. Who the hell lives on the outskirts of town where there are no other houses in view? Isn't he scared of being attacked in the middle of the night, or worse getting eaten by a wild animal?The creepiness that oozed out of these surroundings made my stomach churn with nerves. I clamped my teeth down on my bottom lip, nearly drawing blood from the soft flesh. My palms gripped the edge of the steering wheel, so tightly that I feared if my stronghold lingered a little too much, I might be detaching the steering wheel from its housing.I puffed out a hot breath, pulling over an
ASHLEYA seemingly unending ache throbbed heavily at the side of my head as the gate to the villa was pulled open. I sniffed, driving towards the parking lot where I pulled over in the available space. I felt so exhausted. My limbs were so tired. My eyes hurt so badly. I couldn't even bring myself to cry anymore if I wanted to. All it brought was an unending amount of pain. It felt as though shards of glass were pricking my eyes and I found it so hard to close it because doing that only worsened the ache.My head dropped limply on the steering wheel and the engine went off. I exhaled, detaching my head from the wheel to retrieve my keys from the ignition. And then, I got out of the car.My legs wobbled heavily when they connected with the surface of the ground, but I didn't allow that to deter me. I willed myself to move forward.Stepping into the house, every wave of tiredness that consumed me dissipated into thin air. It completely vanished, replaced with a sense of eeriness and ut
ASHLEY"Were you this wet for him?"That question pulled me down from my peak. An alarm went off in my brain, resounding loudly in my ears, threatening to split my eardrums into two. It felt as though I was drenched in a bucket of ice. Every ounce of pleasure that surged through my veins ceased, replaced by an overwhelming desire to bury myself beneath the ground.My mind went blank. It underwent a shutdown that rid my body of the very organ that pumps blood to every part of my body. My body, which felt as though it had been engulfed in flames earlier, throbbing with pleasure, went stiff in his arms."Were you this wet for him?" Arden repeated his question, snapping me back to reality. His voice was dangerously calm, yet it had an edge to it, spiking my anxiety and causing it to skyrocket into a thousand folds.My words hung at the tip of my tongue but I had no idea how to convey them. The truth waved itself in my face like a dollar bill, knocking my breath right out of me.He knows.
JAXONI tap the tip of the burning cigarette against the ashtray after taking a few drags from it. I toyed with it against the edge of the tray but the sudden wave of anger that washed over me didn't give me a chance to relish in the satisfaction I got from it, because I was already picking up the tray and throwing it against the wall.The small object made a crashing sound against the floor, adding to the list of the destroyed objects littered across the dark room, whose source of light was the rays of moonlight that filtered directly into the room, through the windows. It cast a dim glow on the disorganised space of my study. I walked away from the desk, squeezing my eyes shut and then, I dragged in a breath, puffing it out slowly. It felt as if a surge of volcano erupted within me and I was struggling to keep it at bay.Knowing every nook and cranny of my study gave me the upper hand, coupled with the moonlight's reflection in the room. I strode to the bar, crushing every broken b
ASHLEYThe wave of tiredness that washed over me got stronger with each passing second, heightening my distress. Staring out through the window of the conference room was something I loved to do.But right now, all it did was spike my anxiety further than it was. It ought to serve as a distraction, but it had me drifting in and out of my thoughts. The scenery, the atmosphere, none of it seemed appealing.In a way, it was getting on my nerves.Reverting my forlorn gaze to my employees, I arched my brow at them rudely. They were all staring at me like I had grown two heads and it was very irritating. At some point, I began thinking I had dirt on my face, judging by their bewildered expression.My frown deepened when my eyes flitted to Aurelia, who was standing by the projector, sporting a blank face."What?" I barked harshly and I wasn't even sorry for it. I didn't like how they were staring at me like I was an Alien that dropped from the sky."We are sorry, Mrs. Gray." They apologised,
JAXON"So, you mean to–" I chuckled, raking my fingers through my hair in frustration. I chuckled again. And again. And again. I was infuriated, but at the same time, I found the whole situation amusing. My workers knew the kind of person they worked with, yet they found new ways to aggravate me. It was as if they derived some sort of sick pleasure from watching me dish out punishments to them.He shifted on his feet, looking down at his feet. His composure was beginning to falter. His trembling gave him away.The air in the boardroom grew hotter by the second. It was thick with deafening silence, the temperature fluctuating now and then. With the tension that accompanied the loud silence, I was so sure I would hear a pin drop. They sat in their seats like statues, unable to utter a word. No one wanted to be the scapegoat, but with the way my anger was escalating, one of them was bound to go back home without his body intact."You mean to tell me that our sales have gotten this bad
ASHLEYThis was the most numb I have felt in days and strangely…I liked it. It wasn't so bad. Compared to the rollercoaster of emotions I have been tossed into these past few days.There was so much quietness, compared to the loudness in my head. It felt like I was hanging in a delicate balance. Stuck in oblivion, even, where my conscious mind and unconscious mind were struggling with a breach.As peaceful as it felt, it made me feel so empty and I was struggling to snap back to my consciousness, but it was like I was being held back by an invisible force. It soon occurred to me that I was the one holding myself back.And that was because somewhere between the numbness that enveloped me, there was a part of me like a fireball, struggling to resurface, and somehow, I was convinced that I knew what awaited me if I woke up and that was the reason I was holding back.But then, the numbness and the darkness slowly began clearing off. I struggled to hold onto it but it slowly slipped out of
JAXON"Arden--Arden...""I think someone's following me.""Please, pick your call!"Her voice echoed in my head, incessantly. It was pointless trying to shut it out because it only emerged stronger than before. It haunted me. It destroyed me. It shattered me. It consumed me.The fear and distress that oozed off those words crushed my soul. It didn't help the guilt that overwhelmed me. If I hadn't been such an asshole. Such a stubborn prick, I would have been able to save her from him. From Micah. That bastard. He's going to wish he had never laid his hands on her when I find him. The fucking coward couldn't come directly for me. He just had to get to me through the woman I love.The thought of what she must be going through in his hands aggravated my punches. It got more aggressive and I wouldn't stop ramming it against the punching bag that was swinging backwards, due to the weight of my hard punches.It never got the chance to stay back in balance before I sent it flying backwards