- - - - - ALTERNATE ENDING - - - - - ~ Caspian ~ “Daddy, daddy!” Caspian opened his eyes to see Grace looking straight at him. Her little hands that were the size of ravioli were resting on his face. She was tapping him lightly, wanting to wake him up. “Mmhm,” Caspian groaned and turned around. He was teasing Grace on purpose. “Daddy, wake up!” she protested. Taking after his daddy, Grace was a persistent girl. She climbed up the bed and climbed on top of Caspian’s body. He was laughing to himself as Grace struggled and got on top of him. “Daddy!” she exclaimed happily as she sat on Caspian’s chest. “Hey, good morning, you,” Caspian chuckled and opened his eyes in defeat. “Good morning, daddy,” Grace was laughing triumphantly and hugging his neck. “Did mommy send you to wake me up?” “Uh-huh,” she giggled. She had her mom’s smile and that made Caspian smile. “Where is she?” he asked. Grace pointed to the floor, meaning downstairs. “Alright, let’s go get her,” Caspian got
- - - - - THREE YEARS LATER - - - - - ~ Killian ~ “Alright baby, it’s your first day, are you excited?” “Yes!” Grace squealed in excitement. She was wearing her favorite dress and her hair tied up in a ponytail. She also got her pink backpack and Princess lunchbox with her. Today was her first day in kindergarten. Audrey and Killian were dropping her off in front of the school. Some other kids were crying because they didn’t want their parents to leave them with a bunch of adult strangers, but not Gracie. She was fearless, like her mother. “We’ll be back in a few hours to pick you up,” Killian said and kissed the top of Grace’s head. “Listen to your teachers, be nice to your friends, and have fun,” Audrey added. “Yes, I will!” Grace exclaimed and waved her hands. “Bye, mommy. Bye, daddy!” “Bye, baby. We’ll see you again soon,” Audrey and Killian waved back as Grace raced to the doors. Her teachers were greeting her and she greeted them back politely. “I can’t believe she’s i
~ Audrey ~A kiss was always Audrey’s kryptonite.Like any other girl in the world, Audrey Huntington loved kissing her boyfriend’s soft lips in the warm New York 4 o’clock light. They were sitting on a bench at Washington Square Park, which was only a stone’s throw away from their college campus.It was a bright warm day in late May, and it would have been a romantic afternoon except Audrey’s phone alarm kept ringing incessantly in her hand. She peered at it lazily tapped the snooze button again.“Ash, you know I have to go," she sighed.“Just one more kiss,” Ashton was more persistent than her alarm clock. He closed the distance again and murmured to her lips.“You said that three kisses ago,” Audrey laughed and tried to pull away.“Mm-hmm,” Ashton held her tight, refusing to let her go. He kissed her again, savoring her plump pink lips, and running his hand on her long brown hair.Audrey summoned her strength and broke the kiss. Her bright hazel eyes gazed up at her boyfriend longi
~ Audrey ~“Can you believe it? He’s basically auctioning me off like a horse!”Audrey stomped her feet, making her way out of her walk-in closet. As soon as she stepped into the room, her two best friends, Mikey and Olivia, gasped in awe. “But still, a very pretty horse, wearing Oscar de la Renta!” Mikey exclaimed, he sashayed his way over to her and examined the dress further. He nodded approvingly at the way the silver dress hugged her slender curves, hollering, “Damn girl, you’re gonna be selling out like hotcakes,”“Mikey, you’re not helping!” she hissed and slapped Mikey’s painted nails away from her ass.“Mikey’s got a point, though. You look great in that dress,” Olivia shrugged. “And your dad’s not auctioning you off, Aud. Look on the bright side, he just wants you to pick a guy that he trusts,”“If by trust you mean having a trust fund, then sure,” Audrey rolled her eyes.Olivia and Mikey were Audrey’s two and only friends. They met in kindergarten and they were inseparable
~ Audrey ~Audrey shuddered at the touch. Was that electricity she just felt?Caspian noticed that her breath had hitched, and he looked up at her with hooded eyes. She immediately felt intimidated, so she pulled her hand away briskly. Yes, intimidated, but also… excited?“I’m sorry we’re late to the party,” Killian coughed to ease the tension, “We just arrived from Shanghai, we had some business to attend to,”“Stop talking about business, already. We’re at a party, you’re gonna bore the pretty girl to death,” Caspian groaned jokingly.“Cas,” Killian scolded.“What? It’s true,”Killian shook his head and sighed. He turned his attention back to Audrey and said, “Please forgive my older brother, he’s known to be a little bit... crass,”Caspian scoffed mockingly and said, “Please forgive my little brother, he’s an ass,”The two brothers exchanged a look like they wanted to punch each other in the face. Somehow, Audrey found the situation amusing. These two grown men were bickering in fr
~ Audrey ~ “I can’t believe I’m ditching my own party, my dad’s gonna flip if he finds out…” Audrey looked from side to side, making sure that no one was following them. “Let’s just make sure that he won’t,” the brothers replied simply. It was Audrey’s home, but Caspian was leading the charge. The three of them scaled up the stairs and jumped out of a window, climbing up to the roof of the building via the fire exit. It was a hard maneuver with heels and a dress, but the brothers lent each of their hands and Audrey took them. The next thing she knew, she was standing on the rooftop of her townhouse. “I knew it. These old townhouses always have a nice rooftop,” Caspian walked around and inspected the edges. They were about four stories up from the ground. “Wow, I’ve lived here for years and I’ve never even been up here,” Audrey took note of the bright full moon above them and the skyline of New York City in front of them. “How long have you lived here?” Killian asked. “Since I
~ Audrey ~Audrey had never done something so daring before in her life. With the help of the brothers, she managed to get into her room and changed into her jeans and t-shirt, before sneaking out through the back door.Maybe it was the champagne in her blood talking, but she had never felt more alive. With Caspian and Killian by her side, she felt fearless, like she could jump out of windows and rob a bank if necessary.The next thing she knew, the three of them got into the Vanderbilt’s black limo and the car took them across the city. Blood was pumping in her veins and her heart was racing faster than Paul Walker in the Fast and Furious movies.In the back of the limo, Audrey was sitting in the middle, Caspian was to her right and Killian was to her left. She was smiling and giggling the entire way, imagining the look on her dad’s face as his plan to marry her off crumbled into pieces.After a solid twenty minute drive, the car pulled up in front of a townhouse with some Greek symb
~ Audrey ~- - - - - ONE WEEK LATER - - - - -“Happy birthday, Audrey!”Mikey and Olivia sang along with the waiters at Nobu as they brought out a box of cupcakes with candles on top. Audrey was absolutely embarrassed, being the center of attention while having dinner at Nobu, but her friends only wanted to celebrate her. She hunched away as a waiter placed the box in front of her. Her whole face blushed bright pink and she smiled brightly at the cute dozen cupcakes.“Make a wish!” Olivia beamed.Audrey closed her eyes and smiled. Seconds later, she opened her eyes and blew the candles out. Everyone cheered and clapped and she thanked the waiters for singing and bringing the cupcakes out.“Ooh, I know that smile. That’s the I’m gettin’ lucky tonight smile,”