Chapter One

          The serenity and warmth of her apartment was probably the most appealed she's felt all day. The cold windy streets she'd just come up from couldn't have made her day any worse but as the clouds gradually grew darker, she feared it might rain in the course of her half mile walk home. Luckily for her, she got to the apartment just in time before it began to pour. It was always so cold this time of the year and everyone in the city made sure to wear two to three layers of clothing; a shirt, an undershirt and a coat, before stepping out. Theresa Gray's four years of living in Havens City, taught her never to neglect this and she always had an extra layer of clothing on to keep warm since she was always too sensitive to cold.

          The warmth of the apartment was exactly what she needed at the moment. Immediately she stepped in, she threw her bag to the couch and hung her coat on the hat stand. One by one, she took off her clothing as she waltzed into the even warmer and cozy bedroom. Temptation swept her and in that moment, she wanted nothing more than to crawl into the bed, pull the sheets up to her face and sleep to her heart's content which would very much mean the next day.   

         It had been a hectic day at work as everyone at the office was in a rush to head out to the award show being hosted in the city; Writhe of Writers Awards. And seeing that she was the only one not attending, she agreed to assist her colleagues who asked for her help in finishing up some things. Was she going to regret her decision? She hadn't thought of that before saying 'yes' to over eight of her colleagues. They piled papers on her desk. Surprisingly, not as much as she had imagined. After coming back from lunch, it was worse than she imagined. 

         The only time she had agreed to help that much was at her Aunt Clarissa's wedding. It came as a surprise that anyone would want to marry Clarissa as she was quite overbearing. Theresa wrote the invitations, assisted the tailor, shopped for the roses, aided the caterers and what not. She basically did a little of everything. Not out of love or affection for her Aunt or anything of that sort, she was only happy to finally have her off her shoulders.

        "Editor needs this tomorrow, Theresa." 

        "Thank you Theresa", were the words she heard all day. She couldn't count the number of times she had said 'What are friends for?'

         They were just her co-workers. She'd never really considered them friends. They were somewhat vying for the top spots.  Excel in your work, you get a raise or a promotion depending on your qualifications. It was either this or be sacked. She had witnessed many of her colleagues get sacked for minor hitches. Some tendered their resignation letter a week after working in the agency. She'd lost count of the number of people who resigns or get kicked out of the agency within a month.

        It wasn't the only publishing agency in the city, although, it was one of the best. New Times Daily Agency made its name years ago when it published an article response of one former senator: Walter King during the mayoral election in the city. The senator's response to the political 'situation' was delightful and having New Times Daily as the pioneer publishers of that news made the agency quite popular. She had watched the whole thing on the news from her hometown and dreamed of working as a Journalist in the agency.  Unfortunately, when she came to the city, she landed herself a job as a Public Relations Officer. According to the CEO; Barris, she wasn't 'overqualified' to be a Journalist in his agency. She'd accepted the job, hoping to get a promotion when he recognized her talents. And since the last four years, she'd still been hoping.

      She flashed fake smiles and grinned excessively to her colleagues when she assured them she would get their work done. It was a real deal but she wished news of her hard work and generosity would get to Barris and he'd consider that promotion she deserved. She was the last to leave the office and getting home was a real struggle. There were no commercial buses or cabs available to get her back to her apartment. The only bus she managed to board took her half way through her journey before breaking down. So, she had to walk the remaining half. She prayed it wouldn't pour, as the weather changed suddenly and it didn't.

         She heaved a sigh of relief when remembered how tiresome her day had been. Still fighting the temptation not to go into that bed, she walked back into the living in search of her flip flops from where she had dumped it earlier, that morning. They were by the fireplace, neatly placed. He put them there. He knew she would have trouble finding it when she got back and he didn't want her searching endlessly. Her lips curled into a brief smile, her first genuine smile today.

         Next thing, her shoes were in the rack and she quickly slipped the flops into her feet. The award show was already on and she wanted to catch a sneak peek of it at least. She lit the fireplace, took a quick shower and did a few other things before settling in front of the TV with a big bowl of popcorn and ice cream. 

'Robert Johnson receives yet another award for the best Publicist of the year and his agency, the best publishing agency in the city. How do you feel about that Mr. Johnson?'

        Robert Johnson! Who in New Havens City didn't know Robert Johnson? He was quite popular in the media industry. A writer and a publicist. He authored many books and articles for magazines and newspapers which went on to be New Havens best-selling. He began writing as a teenager and aspired to be one of the greatest writers in his time. New Times Daily Agency was exclusively responsible for the publishing of his books in his initial prime and when he took a step further in his career by establishing his own publishing agency, he took over publication of his books. This was a major blowout for New Times Daily as losing Robert meant losing money. They reviewed his contract with the agency which stated that Robert Johnson signed an exclusive six years contract with them to be the sole publisher of all his books and articles written within that period. He did sign a six years contract only to break out of it in the fourth year. He was sued for 'breach of contract', which ordinarily could have gone in their favour. But since it was a dealing with Robert Johnson, it didn't. There were series of inconclusive court hearings which lasted for about four months. It was a rigmarole kind of situation until Robert offered to pay off the remaining two years of the contract within the space of three years. This was conclusive enough for both sides so,  it was agreed upon. In three years, Robert was able to pay them off and he began building on his agency; Havens Cloud. It became a major rival for New Times Daily. It published the books of many writers who received awards every year at the 'Writhe of Writers'. He gave upcoming writers an opportunity to build their career in a city that barely had anyone an opportunity to be successful. He publishes a monthly magazine where he gives a writer the opportunity to write an article for front page. Once Robert recognized talent, he builds on it and it was quite unfortunate he hadn't come across any of Theresa's works.

       In reply to the interviewer, he started, 'It's indeed a pleasure to be able to receive a couple of awards today. I wish to thank everyone who voted. It wouldn't have been possible without you. Thank you New Havens . . .'

        The door knob twisted slowly and the door creaked a little bit. A little too loud for someone trying to sneak in. Theresa immediately jerked up from the couch she'd gotten comfortable in for two seconds and tip-toed to the side of the hat stand. She had suspected it was him but she didn't want to take her chances, considering the recent theft operations around the block.

     The door opened slowly making a much louder creak. "Stupid door," he cussed, entering the apartment quietly. He scanned the living room with his eyes inhaling the scent of her and a burning wood. The TV was on, the bowl of popcorn was on the couch and the large bowl of ice cream was on the table.

       "Why do you always have to come in sneakily?" she asked from behind.

       William's breathe caught as he heard her voice and he held a hand over his chest in relief. The sight of Theresa behind the hat stand made him snigger.  

       "Were you hiding? Behind the hat stand? You know that's the first place I go to whenever I come in." 

        "You didn't even look at the hat stand when you sneaked in now. And, I wasn't hiding from you. I thought it might have been some else. You know the recent theft operation that happened two blocks away? Well, I was being . . ."

        He smiled, barely listening to whatever she was saying. Her dark brown hair was packed into a messy bun with strands of hair coming out everywhere. She wore a baggy sweat pant with his white t-shirt and a wooly cardigan that covered her up to her thighs. Her brown eyes lit in excitement when she noticed he was staring at her and she grinned widely revealing her perfect dentition.

      "Will?" she called, snapping her fingers.

      "Come here," he drew her to him until her breasts were crushed against his chest and wrapped his hands around her waist. "I've missed you," he said planting a tender kiss on her lips. Her cheeks turned red and she kissed him back. After what seemed like forever, he pulled away.

       "I missed you too."

      His eyes darted to the table where the ice cream bowl sat and he stared at her in awe. "Don't tell me you finished all of it."

      She chuckled moving back to the couch. "I haven't even started." 

      He quickly got a spoon from the kitchen and settled beside her on the couch. "So, how was work?" 

     Her face turned into a scowl and she huffed. "Don't get me started on that again. I choose to forget my pains not dwell on them."

      William laughed at her remark, tickling her in the side to get a laugh out of her as well. When he finally turned his attention to the television set, the sight of Robert Johnson made him grimace. "He received another award?" 

      "Two actually," she replied.

       "Good for him," he said sarcastically, stuffing a huge chunk of ice cream in his mouth.

       William and his father weren't exactly 'fans' of Robert Johnson as a couple of years back, a Journalist from his agency wrote a fake review of his father's company and Robert approved of it to be published. He wasn't aware of the article and just approved the publication budget but as soon as he found out, he did everything to retract the article although it was too late. He apologized to William and his father for his lack of proficiency and promised to deal with the journalist responsible for writing the fake review. Since then, his company's sales had never surpassed the previous years. William worked as the Chief Financial Officer in his father's company. They dealt in the making of unisex shoes, sandals, flip-flops, basically all kinds of foot wears. As the only son of his father. 

       He nuzzled her closer to him as they watched what was left of the award show till she slept off. He carried her to bed before taking his shower and joining her.

       In the morning, Theresa was awoken by the buzzing sound of her phone. She hated to be disturbed in her sleep, especially on a Saturday morning. It rang to the last as all the while, she contemplated answering the unknown caller. Reluctantly, she sat up to answer the phone. 

      "Hello?" she said in a hoarse voice rubbing her eyes.

      "Good morning. Am I speaking with Miss Theresa Gray?"

       "Yes."

       "This is Robert Johnson's secretary on the line." Theresa's eyes widened at the mention of Robert Johnson.

       "If you don't mind, Mr. Johnson would like to schedule a meeting with you today around 10am at his place. I'll text you the address," the woman said without pausing for a breath.

       "Uhm . . ." she trailed off thinking of the best reply to such shocking news. She eventually went with, "I'll be there," just before his secretary hung up. 

      A thousand questions hit her like a wave. 

      Why did Robert Johnson want to meet with her?