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“What is it?” She asked him after finishing half of her plate. “You’re beautiful,” he replied simply. No shame. No hesitation. No joking tone. He was completely serious. She felt her cheeks burn slightly, unable to meet his gaze. “Um…thanks?” He chuckled lightly before placing his hand on top of hers, caressing the skin gently with his thumb. “I mean it,” he whispered huskily, causing goosebumps to run down her spine. “You’re absolutely breathtaking.” She glanced up at him for a brief moment, catching a glimpse of something strange flickering across his eyes, but then, it was gone completely, replaced by his usual charming smile. “Thank you.” She mumbled under her breath, avoiding eye contact with him. “I appreciate your compliment.” “I’ll be honest with you.” He reached out and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear before cupping her cheek tenderly in his palm. “You were gorgeous yesterday in that dress but right now, you look even better.” She arched a brow, not able to help
Richard McDowell stared at the picture the detective had sent him on his number, scowling darkly as he studied it carefully. The image was blurry and taken from a distance, but Richard could still make out the subject clearly enough.Elena, with no one else but Simon Walsh. They were stepping out of his car, him carrying her in his arms and into his house. It was like they were…Anger jolted against frustration in his mind as he clenched his jaw tightly, and barely held himself back from tossing the damn phone across the room.“What the hell?” He growled, dialling instantly for the detective. “When did you take this picture?”“Yesterday,” the man answered calmly, not bothered by the anger in Richard’s voice whatsoever.“Why the fuck didn’t you call me earlier? I could have done something…anything.”“Well, Mr. McDowell, I did send you the text message on this morning.” He paused for a moment before continuing. “And besides, you told me to keep an eye on Elena Matthews. Not interfere wi
Melinda stared at the picture of Cecelia, her daughter on the phone and allowed a tear to squeeze out of her eye, holding back the uncontrollable urge to break down and cry.“Ma’am,” she heard a woman walking through the door of the waiting room, standing in front of her and speaking as gently as possible. She wore a black blazer and matching pants, and her long dark hair was tied back neatly in a ponytail.She looked young, probably in her early thirties or so. Melinda straightened up as she faced her, wiping away her tears quickly. “Is he here?”The woman nodded, smiling cautiously. “Yes. Please, come with me.”Melinda stood up without hesitation, following the woman towards a hallway until they stopped at one of the rooms.She hesitated momentarily before turning towards her again. “Mr Walsh is waiting for you inside.”Melinda thanked her before opening the door and stepping into the room, closing it behind her.It was a large office, decorated elegantly and furnished beautifully.
Detective Cortez stood at the threshold of Cecelia McDowell’s apartment and looked around. The place had to have been one of the most luxurious apartments he had seen before someone decided it needed a little bit of charred makeover and set fire to it.He wondered if the one to set fire was Cecelia herself, or was it someone else trying to destroy something that could tie them to her disappearance. Or well, maybe, murder?Who could tell what happened to that poor woman? Her number had not been traced yet, and neither had they gotten any hits on any of her credit cards.Strange, wasn’t it?From what he had seen and heard about the girl, she didn’t seem like the smartest tool in the box. She was good-looking, sure, but her acting skills were average. Four out of five movies she had done so far had been super flops, and the one that performed better than the others was only because the lead actor was the son of an Academy Award-nominated director, Jeff Frank. The son for whom the father
Elena sat in her office and tried to focus on the piles of documents on her desk.But she couldn’t. Every time she picked up a piece of paper and tried to skim through it, Simon’s words echoed in her ear, as if he was sitting right next to her and not miles away in his own office, doing god knows what.Now that she thought about it, she shouldn’t have said to his proposal. There was no rush to give an answer right away, was there? She could have asked for more time. She could have told him she wasn’t ready. But she didn’t. And now nothing was making sense.It wasn’t as if she was doubting what they had would vanish once commitment came into the picture, but now that she had the time and space to think of him, of her, and then, she realized how little she knew about the man. Except for the fact that he was absolutely hot in bed and that he was a mindblowing kisser, the only personal fact she knew about him came from his surprise visit at the dinner thrown by Pestovs.She knew now that
Elena glared at the door for a long moment, her hands shaking uncontrollably as she tried to calm herself down.She tasted blood on her tongue, and it made her sick.She couldn’t believe Richard had dared to touch her like that, and she swore to god she would kill him if he ever came near her again.Her vision blurred with unshed tears, but she quickly wiped them away with the back of her hand and took a deep breath. No. She wouldn’t break. She wouldn’t cry. She refused to shed any more tears for him. He didn’t deserve it.Grabbing her purse and pushing sunglasses over her eyes, Elena walked out of her office without bothering to look back. She didn’t know where she was going but she needed to get the hell out of this place. She needed to breathe. She needed to clear her head.Betty Adams looked up from her desk when Elena passed by, frowning worriedly. “Ms Matthews? Where are you going?”“Home,” she replied curtly without sparing her a glance. “Tell everyone I’m leaving early today.
Elena let out a sigh as she turned to glance over her shoulder, only to find the other side of the bed empty. Simon was nowhere to be seen. She sat up and looked around the room. Everything seemed different in the dark. She spotted his clothes scattered on the floor, along with her dress and underwear. She could hear noises from outside the room, but she was still a little disoriented to know if the conversation outside was important or not. She slipped out of bed and grabbed her dress from the floor, putting it on. Then she walked towards the door and peeked through the gap. Simon stood near the window with his back facing her, talking to someone on the phone. “I don’t care. Just do it.” Do what? What was he planning? Elena frowned, leaning closer to hear him better. “Call me only when you actually have something to tell. Don’t waste my time otherwise.” He ended the call and slid the phone in his pocket, turning around and stopping when he saw her standing by the door. Elen
Elena wasn’t sure why her life couldn’t be any easier. Why couldn’t she just find happiness without having to deal with all these complications? She sighed heavily, dropping her purse on the couch and kicking off her shoes before collapsing face-first onto the soft cushions. After she left Simon’s place, she asked her driver to take her home. That was the only place where she felt safe, where she could hide from everything and everyone. Here, she didn’t have to think about her problems. Here, she didn’t have to worry about Richard or Simon. But unfortunately, Elena couldn’t escape forever. Because the moment she stepped inside her house, she was reminded of Josh and everything that happened. Her brother was in a coma. She could even hear the beep of machines coming from upstairs. She closed her eyes tightly, burying her face deeper into the pillows. “Why do you have to make me so miserable, Josh? Why?” She mumbled under her breath, wrapping her arms around herself. She wished he wo