After my lunch with Hugo, I begin to ignore Miles’s calls and texts. Since meeting him the other night, I haven’t always known what to say. I would respond to his messages with simple replies or cute smiley faces. He’s been busy so that’s helped me from divulging too much before I was ready.But now
“Not a bedroom,” I say at once.Miles’s face goes carefully blank.Cynthia raises both of her brows. “Uh, oh. Okay. You guys stay here then. I’ll go read in my bedroom.” Grabbing her wine glass, Cynthia pushes herself up onto her feet and exits the kitchen.The instant she leaves the room, Miles wal
Next morning at work, I feel like a zombie. I slept last night, finally, though it was more a collapse out of necessity than anything restful. I certainly don’t feel rested this morning, dragging my sluggish body through the office doors and to my cubicle.After flopping down into my desk chair, I e
“I… uh…” I begin, somewhat flabbergasted.Paige, who in part, has seemed to witness this exchange, hurries to my defense.“Mrs. George! I would be happy to refill your champagne for you.” Paige reaches for the glass, but Mrs. George pulls it back from her grasp. “Your glass, ma’am. Please.”“I want
The proposition strikes me like a slap to the face. Never in my wildest dreams, in all of my dealings with Mr. George in the past, would I have considered that he would corner me in a women’s restroom and try to blackmail me for sex, yet here we are.“I’m not interested,” I say firmly. “I never will
“That flimsy piece of paper could land you in jail,” I tell her.“There’s no need for that,” Amber says. “I just want to talk.”“What is there to talk about?” I ask. “You’ve won. Miles and I are nothing to each other anymore. Please just leave me alone.”Amber crosses her arms. “This isn’t the end.
I stumble backwards, trip over my own feet, and flop down onto the bed. At least, blessedly, the venetian blinds snapped closed again, hiding away this room from the outside. And the outside from this room.“Mommy…” Iris starts, bottom lip wobbling, tears in her eyes.“It’s okay, honey. It’s okay. I
When I look, I can see why.There is live footage from in front of our house. The house we are in right now. From this vantage point, we can see swarms of reporters and photographers on our lawn. Some are even circling around the house.“Are the doors locked?” I ask.“I’ll check,” Garnar says, turni
“We should watch the rest,” I tell him, though my voice is shaky. “No,” Miles says, more firmly. I breathe a sigh of relief. For my job, I know we have to hear it. But personally, I would like to go the rest of my life without even thinking about Edward Zimmer again. “The numbers are already u
Edward’s response comes in the form of a video message. Crystal set it up on the television on the wall, while Miles and I huddle closer to the screen. Miles holds tightly onto my hand. “Whatever happens. Whatever he says. We will stand against him and we will win,” he says. I believe him. Last
How could I say anything but yes? A thousand times over, yes, yes, yes. I’ve tried so hard since that first night, sleeping with Miles while thinking him a call boy, to not fall in love with him. Yet, as hard as I tried not to, my heart kept pulling me straight back to him. My love for Miles is so
We hold the press conference in front of the headquarters, setting up a podium outside the double doors. The news media organizations have been notified, so they send reporters and cameramen, who have set up around the podium. The release we sent out already told them that the conference would be
Later, I’m going to have to have a meeting and call in all the employees to discuss this. Their care is appreciated, but I need to be able to do my job. For now, though, it seems as if Crystal gets the hint. With a shallow nod, she continues her report. “Mr. Zimmer has been quiet since the inter
Garnar, knowing I was giving a difficult interview tonight, offered to watch the kids. Since they are at Garnar’s house, I expected the house to be empty when I finally returned. Instead, I see Miles’s car parked in my driveway and the additional security staked out around the premises. It’s a rel
Jean was warned about the story, but she still gasped. My eyes went a little wide. We came here to talk about this, but Daphne’s direct wording leaves me speechless. Daphne didn’t come here just to tell a story. She was ready to reveal her truth, once and for all. “Esther and I were victims,” Da
In the Harbinger HQ, in one of the studio sets arranged to look like a fancy living room, Daphne and I sit side by side on a white couch, facing an interviewer, a woman interviewer named Jean, who sits on an arm chair facing us. The setting is intimate, and Jean is a kind, middle-aged woman, who i
“Miles…” Emotion overflows within my heart. There are so many things I want to say, to express – my gratitude, my own affections, explanations about why this has been so difficult for me to accept – yet in the moment, everything gets tangled up in my throat. “Miles…” My tears fall from my chee