Author's Notes and Disclaimer: Before starting this story, let me remind everyone that this is purely a work of fiction. Resemblance to anyone or anything dead or alive is purely co-incidental. Purely for entertainment purposes only. The names of the places mentioned in the story are again used as part of fictional reality. The description of towns or states has nothing to do with reality. Only the names are borrowed. Trigger Warning for cheating, infidelity and obsessive behavior. If you happen to be triggered by the description of these scenes you're fairly warned in advance. Adult language and content. No hate please. Peace and Love. Special Mention and Thanks to my wonderful editor, Jessica Jones for being so patient and lovely with me, this woudn't be possible without her guidance. I wish you all enjoy reading this as much as I did writing this.
Brooke stood in front of the mirror as she looked at herself in her wedding gown. It was a silk gown, with an open boatneck and short sleeves. The gown was embroidered with small beautiful flowers studded with stones. Complementing the gown, she wore her mother’s diamond necklace with long earrings. Her tiara was a traditional one, gifted to her by her mother-in-law. Brooke admired herself in the mirror for a while. She couldn't believe that she was about to get married to the man of her dreams. Greg Wilson, the owner of Baxter Auto Pvt. Ltd., the biggest factory in her town.
“You look great, sister mine,” Meredith Johnson ,her sister, gushed from behind her. “Greg is the luckiest man alive to have landed you as his partner.”
“Shut it, Maddy,” Brooke muttered, fixing her hair once again.
“Oh please, you know Greg worships the very land you walk on. He’s a goner.”
“Ugh...you’re exaggerating. Besides, we haven’t even…” Brooke blushed as she thought about it.
“Oh sweet lord, please tell me you’ve had sex,” Meredith exclaimed, and Brooke blushed a deep shade of red. She never knew what to say to her sister’s very outward observations. Maddy never knew when to shut up.
“Of course I’ve had sex…” Brooke glared at her sister, offended at the accusation, even though she had never gone for full-on penetrative sex, yet. Well, don’t blame her, she was waiting for her one and only; her special someone. And apparently, that one and only was Greg Wilson. Tonight, the dry spell was going to end.
“But…” Meredith prompted, waving her hand in a gesture so as to encourage Brooke to continue.
“I’ve never … you know,” Brooke replied, making an awkward gesture by hand to imply she was still untouched in many ways.
“Holy Shit!” Meredith exclaimed.
“Hey, I was waiting for…”
“Your True Mate.” Meredith completed his sentence, still pretty much stunned by her sister’s revelation. She knew her sister was a hopeless romantic and a stubborn bitch, but she didn’t know she held the idea of “Mates for life” so seriously. It was kind of cute though. “Man...I have to commend Greg’s patience.”
“Maddy..” Brooke gritted out, questioning her sanity as to why she was having this conversation with her sister.
“Three years, Brooke. For three years you’ve held back and the man never complained. To top it off, he asked you to marry him. Wow. “
“Hey, it’s not like I’ve never done anything. We have been...intimate.”
“Intimate...wow, you really sound like a fourteen-year-old teenage girl. “
“Ugh...why do you always harass me? Why can’t it be Neil helping me?” Brooke whined.
“Oh, cool it with the whining. Don’t worry. When he gets a serious girlfriend I’ll have the same talk with him, too,” Meredith answered gleefully and headed off towards the hall.
Greg and Brooke had grown up together in Twin Peaks, but the romance had only blossomed after Brooke came back to town as an experienced architect. Brooke had garnered her degree from New York University and then worked with good, solid firms in New York. Brooke was passionate about her work and because of her dedication, she quickly climbed the ladder, her firm offering her an associate position in a matter of only two years. It was a great achievement. But Brooke had declined the offer, instead opting for going back to her roots and setting up shop there. She wanted to base her business back at home. She was never fond of the busy city life. She rather loved the tranquility and peace back in Twin Peaks.
She had met Greg when Wilson’s had hired Brooke to draw up the plans for building a factory outlet on the land they’d newly purchased. Brooke being a passionate architect had worked hard at giving the best plans for their approval. Greg’s father was slowly detaching himself from the company, leaving the reins in Greg’s hands. As a result, Greg oversaw everything with regards to the work being done for the factory outlet. Their professional relationship slowly turned into a personal one. It was Greg who was drawn to Brooke, and the blue-eyed blonde had asked her for a date on the very first day. But Brooke had politely declined. She was an ethical woman. Never date your boss or your co-worker was her mantra. Greg never gave up though. He kept wooing her by sending her flowers, chocolates, perfumes, and scented candles. Everyday she entered her office there was something new awaiting her. Brooke’s heart melted at the way Greg was trying to impress her. She held out though, because he was still her boss and she didn’t want to mess anything up. Greg was a great guy, humble, loyal and sweet. With each passing day, Brooke’s resolve started melting. Eventually, when the project was complete, Greg had left an imprint on Brooke and had suitably impressed her. The man was a gentleman, a good son, a humble businessman, and a perfect partner. He indulged Brooke’s every wish. Brooke had finally agreed to go on a date and they never looked back. Two years down the road, Greg had proposed and Brooke agreed. They had decided to get married at the “Central Hall'' at Wilson Estate in Twin Peaks.
Twin Peaks was a small town in Texas that was always lively and cheerful. The foundations of the town were laid by the Harrison family, originally from Dalhart, who were practically royalty in 1940. It was their winter vacation place. The family used to travel here during the winters when it became too cold in Dalhart. They owned acres of land which were inherited by future generations and given on lease to the ranchers for farming. Eventually during the fifties, because of the family feud, the Harrison’s split, and half of their property was seized by the government while the other half was inherited by Robert Harrison, the stepson of the then head of the family, Morris Harrison, who took the charge of the properties and sold the acres of farm fields to the locals. Ever since the split, the Harrison’s never returned. Then the government took over the administration and slowly the town was modernized. The town still retained the old look.
The structure of most of the houses was old English style, with big arches. Even the architecture of the ranches was influenced by the Vintage English style with cottage like look to the buildings. The town had a museum and a huge library that housed the oldest of manuscripts. While it wasn’t as developed in the olden days, after the late 70’s there was a drastic change.
Today, the town was home to one big factory, big ranches and two wineries. The people were good-natured, and most of the townsfolk had a good source of livelihood. The town retained its cowboy culture, with its regular rodeo events and weekly horseback riding events. The ranch owners were few but solidly rooted, generations of families inheriting the business. Some people had their own businesses like small grocery stores, packaging hubs or auto repair shops, while some worked for the big factory, Baxter Auto Co. Ltd., that manufactured automobile parts. The plant was located on the outskirts of the town and was set up with the advent of industrialization that was welcomed by the government. The Wilsons were well off, and a kind-hearted family. They had lent money to the people who wished to start their own business, and even invested in some. It explained why Wilson held influence over the decisions of the townsfolk. People looked up to the Wilsons with a deep sense of admiration. After all, had the Wilsons not set up their factory in the town, Twin Peaks would have been deserted by now. And Brooke felt lucky that she was soon going to be a part of such a great family.
Brooke was pacing the small room, killing time before she had to show up at the altar.
“Hey, Brooke, let's get going,” Neil, her big brother, said, as he dragged Brooke by her arm. He wasn't quite the patient one.
“Wait...I gotta…”
“Brooke, it’s okay to be nervous. Remember, the guy loves you. You love him. He’s not going anywhere.” Neil reminded her.
“I know, but,” Brooke looked thoughtful as she chewed on his lower lip. “I gotta fix my gown..” She dashed from there towards the private restroom that was to the left of the hall. All day she had felt restless like something was missing or something was falling apart. She couldn’t exactly explain what was going on in her mind but she was uneasy. She didn’t know why but there was a twisted feeling in her gut that something was going to go wrong. She couldn't put a finger on it. Just as she was about to open the door, she heard voices from inside. Brooke leaned in and carefully listened.
Someone was grunting and...moaning?
A confused Brooke listeed attentively to recheck if what she heard was true or not.
Brooke was confused. Why would someone moan while they were in restroom? She was about to knock on the door when she heard someone yelling from inside. Afraid that something might have happened, she hastily opened the door and was shocked to her core. One of Greg’s assistants, Ariana Hawkins, was naked and was kissing her fiance, while the said fiance was buried deep inside the woman. Greg had Ariana perched atop the counter in between the basin and the wall. Brooke couldn’t believe her eyes. She stood frozen on the spot. She blinked and shook her head trying to deny whatever was happening in front of her. But no matter how much she tried, the scene remained the same. She wasn’t dreaming then, it dawned on her, no matter how much she wanted. Her heart stuttered and her breathing was erratic. This was reality. Her boyfriend of three years, Greg Wilson, to whom she was about to get married, was having sex with his assistant, Aria
Brooke spent the whole week wallowing in misery. She felt dejected. She had no motivation to work or do anything except to eat, drink, and sleep. She had switched off her phone, not caring about anything else going on in the world. She was sure her friends and family must have tried calling her, but she was in no mood to be interactive. Her parents had visited her immediately after the debacle. But she just yelled at them, begging them to leave her alone. Even her childhood friends Beth Gordon and Steve Mannings had attempted to visit her, pounding on the door for more than ten minutes, but Brooke had plainly ignored them, opting to pull the sheets over her head and closing her eyes.“Come on, open the damn door, Brooke.” Beth shouted from outside. She was worried about her best friend. She tried knocking again but no one opened the door.
The next day Brooke got up early and went about her morning routine. She went for a jog, which was a bit awkward as everyone at the park seemed to be giving her looks and talking about her in hushed tones. She gathered it was bound to happen after the whole 'wedding gone wrong' debacle. She didn’t pay too much attention to the gossip-mongering and focused on herself. When she came back home, she headed for a shower. She had eggs, toast, and fruit for breakfast. The first thing she decided to do was call her friends and family. She called Beth and Steve first, starting with an apology for not opening up the door that day and for being rude. They both forgave him quickly, but Beth threatened him that if Brooke ever did that again, she’d barge in by breaking down the door and kicking her ass. They talked for a while and made a plan to meet up at the cafe sometime soon. Next up, she called his family, assuring her mother that everything was ok
Brooke still gets sad and pissy. The people in town talked behind her back, and she was on the verge of almost closing her firm. Her entire life, all Brooke ever wanted was to start a firm of her own, be successful, have a husband who loved her, and a house with a backyard where their kids could play and grow in a loving environment. In other words, a perfect apple pie life. For the past few years, she was sure she was about to achieve her dream by marrying Greg, but to her horror, she’d been living in a fantasy. A fantasy that came crashing down right in front of her own eyes when her ex-fiance had cheated on her. In front of her! At their wedding!As if that was not enough, Brooke’s asshole of an ex had the nerve to spread rumors around the town that Brooke was too vanilla in bed, making that the reason why Greg had to turn to his secretary to satisfy his needs. Moreover,
Alaina, the barista and their mutual friend approached them after a few minutes and shook herhead at Steve's antics, “Hey, asshole,” she remarked, looking at Steve. It was their usual banter. Steve hitting on her and Alaina turning him down every time they visited. Brooke was always amused at how persistent Steve was. He always flirted with her despite her humiliating him all the time. Brooke couldn’t fault her friend though. Alaina was beautiful and smart and any guy would be lucky to have her. “Going with the usual, boys?”“Yes, sugar. Except, Brooke here would like some cherry pie for herself to cheer her up,” Steve replied, turning into a lovesick fool, gazing lovingly at Alaina.“Is that right? Everything okay, Brooke?” Alaina asked gently, turning towards her. Sh
Nathan Reginald Bradford was known as a ruthless businessman. This was partly because when it came to business deals, he was indeed ruthless, but also because he had worked hard to achieve the kind of success that he’d reached. Nathan had inherited the brewery business from his father, but it wasn’t as prominently known at the time. Nathan was a straight A, Harvard Business Graduate, with a goal to make his mark in the business world. He had strived and taken enormous efforts to make Short Stack Brewing Co. Ltd. a household name. Today he had breweries located around the world and had invested in many small breweries, trying to support them. Plus, his looks came in handy at times when a deal was being finalized.Nathan grew up in a loving household in Sacramento, California. The Pada
Nathan hailed from a family of cowboy ranchers. They were natives of Dallas where his family owned acres of land and looked after the ranch and bred horses. The breed they nurtured at the ranch was best known for equestrian sports in Texas back then. When the world war came, the economy took a massive hit and everything shut down and the Bradfords were forced to leave Dallas. They’d never sold the ranch though, always planning on going back to their roots at right time once everything was settled. However, the right time never came and when Nathan’s father needed the money he took a decision to sell off their ancestral ranch. Whatever money was made out of the deal was invested in starting Short Stack Brewing Co. Pvt. Ltd. Nathan always heard a lot about Texan culture from his grandfather and he always was fascinated with the stories of cowboys and their morales. It was his wish to at least once see the land he belonged to. Before his deat
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