‘Miss Hicks rocks!’ The crowd cheered.Alessia was still reeling, unsure whether to laugh or cry.Wilda’s gesture had touched her deeply.She hadn’t expected this from the chief editor. ‘Thank you, Miss Hicks.’Wilda nodded at her before addressing the crowd. ‘I’ve always stressed the importance of truth in our reporting. We all know Kevan was harassing Alessia when he asked her to interview at the private clubhouse. We’ll learn from this.’She raised her voice. ‘From now on, no one does interviews alone. There must be at least two people. No more harassment on my watch.’The chief editor instantly earned everyone’s respect.The room buzzed with approval.‘Please, quiet down,’ she said, silencing the room.Wilda turned her attention to Karen. ‘Mrs Webster, you don’t need to seek revenge on my staff. Take it up with me. This is my newspaper, my decisions.’‘Are you trying to bully me?’ Karen fumed.Wilda raised an eyebrow. ‘Accuse me of bullying when you’re the one causing trouble in m
Logan’s anger gave way to concern.He held Alessia tightly, despite the unpleasant smell. ‘You could’ve been hurt.’The sound of running water filled the room as the bathtub filled.Alessia glanced at the tub. ‘Let me go. I’ll take a shower. Please get some clothes for me.’Logan didn’t release her or reply, simply holding her tighter.‘My clothes will get dirty if you keep holding me,’ Alessia reminded him.‘I don’t mind getting dirty.’Alessia pursed her lips. ‘Please prepare some clothes for me now. Mine are ruined.’Logan conceded, ‘Fine.’As Alessia turned around, Logan hugged her from behind. ‘Alessia.’‘Yes?’ She waited for him to speak, but he remained silent.‘What’s wrong?’ she prompted.Logan eventually confessed, ‘You make me feel helpless.’After his admission, he let go of her and left the room.Alessia was left in a daze for a while before regaining her composure.He blamed himself for her mistreatment, even though it wasn’t his fault.Alessia sighed, turning off the ta
Logan’s hands encircled Alessia’s waist, no further ado required.‘Alessia,’ he uttered, voice soft as velvet, ‘I tried to bury these feelings, but I can’t hold back any longer, especially when I see you like this.’Alessia found herself held tightly in his grasp, immobilised and a touch flustered.Her heart raced.‘You don’t need to restrain yourself,’ she purred, granting him permission.Logan didn’t waste a moment, encountering no resistance from her.She smelled nice, intoxicating, and familiar.She smelled like him.A refreshing minty scent, the aroma he’d grown accustomed to, tantalised his senses.His eyes bore into her with profound affection.‘About what happened today, I blame myself for not protecting you better,’ Logan confessed in a hushed tone.Alessia gently shook her head. ‘It’s not your fault.’‘I know,’ he admitted, his self-blame persistent. ‘But I can’t help it.’She met his gaze, whispering, ‘Logan, I don’t want to talk about this right now.’Those words tugged at
By the end, Alessia was utterly spent, unable to move.Eventually, they both grew hungry and changed into fresh clothes before heading downstairs.A table laden with covered dishes awaited them.Georg materialised with a warm smile, saying, ‘Sir, Miss Jansen, your meal is ready. Please enjoy it while it’s still hot.’‘Thank you,’ Alessia replied, feeling a bit embarrassed.The butler lifted the lid of her bowl and added, ‘This is for you, Miss. It’s quite nourishing for women.’Alessia nearly choked on her saliva, stunned by the audacity of the remark.Alessia couldn’t believe her ears; the butler’s audacity left her speechless.Logan, on the other hand, raised the lid of the bowl in front of him with a bored expression.‘Tonic soup, for me?’ he questioned, his tone as frosty as an Arctic wind.The butler, ever respectful, replied, ‘Well, sir, it may not be necessary, but it could boost your energy levels and nutrition intake.’Logan’s brow furrowed, and he dismissed the butler with a
Upon reaching the third floor, Logan opened a door, revealing a room roughly one hundred square feet in size with a large screen and three sets of sofa beds in front of it.It didn’t exactly resemble a traditional movie theatre.Logan swept an arm over the space. ‘What do you think? Cleaner than a cinema, right?’Alessia nodded. ‘Yes, much cleaner.’However, despite the cleanliness, it lacked the ambience of a real cinema—the excited chatter of the audience, and the mouth-watering scent of caramel popcorn.Still, she didn’t want to express her true feelings and make things awkward.Alessia explored the room and spotted a few DVDs.Picking one up, she noticed it was a cartoon.Curiosity got the better of her as she asked, ‘Cartoons? Do you enjoy watching them?’Logan tensed slightly.These DVDs belonged to Arlie.Normally, Logan lived here alone, and Arlie stayed with Logan’s grandfather Albert but visited occasionally.Without taking the DVDs from her, he suggested, ‘Let’s choose a di
Alessia, clearly flustered by the situation, stated, ‘You’re being unreasonable.’Logan, with a mischievous glint in his eyes, retorted, ‘So what? I really want to watch it with you anyway. I’ve never had anyone to watch this with before, but now that you’re here, we can enjoy it together.’Alessia was left momentarily speechless, her mind racing to comprehend his audacity.Logan, however, wasn’t done, and he continued in a blunt tone, ‘We’ve already been intimate, so why be a hypocrite now? Just take a look.’Her frustration growing, Alessia clenched her teeth and begrudgingly agreed, ‘Fine, I’ll watch it, what’s the big deal anyway? It’s just an erotic movie, right?’As she looked at the screen, her anger simmered.This man was pushing her buttons.Alessia considered herself rather conservative, finding it hard to fathom how the actors could perform such explicit scenes on camera.In the silence of the theatre, the protagonists’ heavy breathing echoed through the room.Alessia was c
Alessia, however, didn’t let Sofie’s slap land.She caught Sofie’s hand swiftly and snapped, ‘I’m not the shameless one here. In fact, it seems like you’re the one shamelessly trying to chase after him. I was invited here by him.’‘You!’ Sofie struggled to break free from Alessia’s grip, her voice rising in anger. ‘You’re just a gold-digging b*tch! Do you even know who I am?’‘Why should I know who you are? What does it have to do with me?’ Alessia shot back.‘His grandfather favours me. Grandpa Albert wants me to be his granddaughter-in-law. So, let me warn you, stay away from Logan. Albert made it clear that I’m the only one for Logan!’ Sofie proclaimed, her pride evident.Alessia couldn’t bear this woman’s arrogance.She sighed, ‘Oh, so Logan’s grandfather likes you. Well, why don’t you marry his grandfather then, since he’s so fond of you?’Sofie was furious and made another attempt to slap Alessia.Alessia, with a frown, said coolly, ‘I don’t know who you are, but what’s with the
Logan beckoned, ‘Get me another belt from the dressing room.’Alessia shook her head with a hint of defiance. ‘No.’With a sly smile, Logan tried a different approach. ‘Either you fetch me that belt, sweetheart, or we can pick up right where we left off, right here in this very room.’Alessia’s eyes widened in shock. ‘I’ll get it now!’She hurried upstairs to the dressing room, where she discovered an assortment of thirty belts, each from a different luxury brand.‘Is he running a belt boutique in here or what?’ she muttered to herself.Selecting one at random, she swiftly returned downstairs.As she descended, she couldn’t help but overhear Logan on the phone, his tone dripping with irritation. ‘I’ll set the dogs on her if you ever ask Sofie to come to my house again.’The voice on the other end, belonging to Logan’s grandfather, protested vehemently. ‘How dare you! Why don’t you enlighten me about the kind of woman your girlfriend is?’Logan shot back, his voice dripping with disdai