.
As Peach and Elijah sat in the backseat of the vehicle with Matt behind the steering wheel, the atmosphere was awkward as the two tried not to look at each other. Even Matt was concerned about how quiet they both were and glanced in the rearview mirror, noticing that Peach's lips were puckered together as if she was deep in thought. With his gaze on the windshield, Elijah's index finger slowly rubbed against his bottom lips, and then finally darted his eyes towards Peach. "A penny for your thoughts," He quietly remarked, his voice low. With her eyes fixed on the file of her grandfather's will, Peach hesitated for a while before deciding to open her mouth and speak, "It's nothing." "It's nothing," Elijah commented as he shifted his gaze to glance at her. She sighed heavily, and stared out the window, her heart sinking, "I don't know what to do... There's a dilemma, and it has my thoughts spinning. And my mind is telling me something, but my heart is screaming at me not to do it."
As Miss Grace stood in front of her daughter's room door, she raised her knuckles to knock, but then hesitated before grabbing the doorknob, and pushing the door open. Quietly, she stepped into the bedroom to see Peach in bed, sleeping soundly, hugging a pillow. A smile graced her lips, and she stared tenderly at her daughter, and after a moment of that, she was about to leave when a file on Peach's desk got her attention. A feeling of hesitation filled her as she approached the desk, and as her hand hovered over the folder, she took a deep breath. Finally, Miss Grace pushed aside her fear of invading Peace's privacy, picked up the file, opened it, and read the contents. Her heart skipped a beat when she got done, and she hastily rushed over to her daughter's bedside and tapped her gently on the back. "Peach, wake up." Miss Grace's voice echoed in Peach's ears softly. Her eyes blinked open slowly as she looked at her mother standing above her, watching her with a concerned l
With a tiny black shopping bag that had a gold handle in his hand, Michael stared at Ryan and Rookie, who stood to watch over him without saying a word."Why are none of you speaking?! Are both of you deaf or stupid? I have already told you guys my name and who I am here to see, so why the hell is the other one of you staying so damn long?" Michael lashed out in a low tone, watching the volume of his voice so Peach can not think of him as someone rude and entitled.With an unamused expression, Ryan looked over at Rookie, clearly pissed, but he didn't want to act before Elijah got there because he wasn't sure how his boss wanted to handle this douche."Who are you guys, Huh?" Michael asked again with more force as if he was hoping they would answer. But the two only seem more aggravated, like the mere sight of him was causing them annoyance and they wanted to be anywhere but with him. Michael huffed at them with an indignant scowl and then he looked Ryan in the eyes, stabbing his f
Looking at Michael squared in his face, Elijah couldn't stop himself from glaring at him with his hard and narrowed eyes and said, "It wouldn't be necessary coming back here... You heard Peach, didn't you? Didn't you pick up the word, 'Never,' in what she said?" His voice was so venomous and it sent chills through Michael's body. But he remained strong even though Elijah wasn't making it easy on him. When they were close enough, Elijah leaned in and lowered his voice, glaring into Michael's eyes and whispering threateningly in his ear, "Showing up in someone's face that doesn't want you to is call harassment, and do you know what happened to people who don't know how to take a hint, huh?" Chills ran through Michael's body, and he felt Elijah's warm breath hit his ears as he spoke, and he could feel goosebumps rising on his skin. 'Why does he have such an aura...?!' Michael thought, feeling frozen and helpless against his intense and dangerous presence, but didn't want to show
The door to Elijah's room opened, and Ryan stopped a distance away from the doorway, after shutting it, staring at Elijah, wearing a white shirt, dark brown pants, and monk strap dress shoes. "Bryan's driver is here to pick you up." Ryan's voice came out hoarse. "Thanks. I am almost done here." Elijah let out, turning back around towards his desk and picking up his watch. A brief silence settled over them for a moment as Elijah fastened his watch on his wrist before Ryan spoke up again. "Thanks, boss," "For what?" Elijah looked up from his watch, meeting Ryan's eyes. A spark of gratitude flashed across Ryan's face when he answered. "For standing up for me," "Ryan, If a man wants people around him that are willing to fight for him, he should also prove to them that he's ready to fight for their life in return," Elijah uttered as he picked up his keys. "You can't get loyalty from others by not showing them you are loyal towards them." To hear his boss's humble words made Matt w
"Peach, honey, you can't stay in your room forever!" Miss Grace said, unable to get over the fact that it was two o'clock, but her daughter was still sleeping. Squeezing her eyes shut, Peach rolled back to look up at the ceiling. If only her mother would leave her be and let her be alone, she wouldn't have to deal with all of this! "Peach," Miss Grace said again, a bit louder than before, "you're not sleeping! I know that!" A frown crossed Peach's face, and finally, she got out of bed and stumbled to her room door, throwing it open, and then sighed softly at her mother who stood by the front door. "What all did you not tell me about last night?" Miss Grace asked sternly as Peach walked back into the room. "Mama, not now," Peach cried, flopping onto her bed and burying her face into her pillow. "We have to do this now, Peach." Miss Grace repeated as she closed the door behind herself, moving closer to her daughter. "Why did Elijah tell Michael that you are already taken, and war
A faint smirk crossed Elijah's face, thinking Peach was joking, as he chuckled lightly. However, seeing her expression, he stopped chuckling and said, "What?!" "I don't think I can go back home and have the same strength that I mustered up today to deny my mother's request... If not now... I don't think..." Peach trailed off, lowering her head. "What did Miss Grace say?" Elijah asked calmly, his eyebrows furrowing slightly. "That you have a gangster tendency, and I need a man that is not as complicated as you," "Wow..." A small laugh escaped Elijah's mouth as he glanced at her, and then he sighed quietly, shaking his head. "I am not marrying you without your mother's concern, Peach" Elijah muttered, his voice low and steady, Tilting her head sideways, Peach gazed at him curiously and said, "Why are you telling me this? I thought it would be something you wanted... that you were waiting for me to tell you." "Yeah, but... we are going to do this the right way," Elijah stated,
With a dead-serious expression on his face, he met Peach's tears eyes as she sniffed softly, making sure her gaze was locked on his, and he reached out and cupped her chin, saying softly, "Do you really hate me?"Slowly, Peach shook her head, lowering her gaze slightly and muttering, "No… I love you. And, it feels a million times harder because I can't hate you... Why did you have to put me through that? I told you to stay in the car!"In silence, Elijah watched her struggle to hold back a sob, his heart breaking as she stared at the floor with puffy eyes and hiccups, her hands clasped together."Why are you so emotional, Peach?" Elijah asked, his brows furrowing deeply as he continued to hold her chin, tilting it upwards so that he could see her face clearly. "Why do you look so fragile like the day your mother got hurt?... I'm just a lowlife loser with a gangster impulse, so why do you feel so vulnerable for me?""Because you messed up my heart, Elijah. It doesn't care about your