‘Bang!’ Laurel’s body slammed against the door with a loud impact.
“How dare you! How dare you question me on where I was last night?” Andrew yelled loudly at Laurel who was now on the ground.“I-I’m sorry. Please,” Laurel pleaded in tears, covering her face from any more hits she was going to get from Andrew.Andrew, suddenly aware of his actions, gently lifted Laurel to her feet. Laurel obliged, frightened for her safety.“Don’t make me keep doing this baby. You’re a mere orphan and no other man would take you in if I decide to break up with you.” He said, pulling Laurel into a forceful hug.“I-I’m so sorry. I’d never mention anything about you being home late ever again.” Laurel said as she watched Andrew storm out of the house.She fell, exhaling a sigh of relief as tears streamed down her face. Unsure of what to do, she faced the reality that her wedding was just two weeks away, and she deeply loved Andrew. He had been the only one to propose after learning she was an orphan. She felt stuck, unable to return to her foster parents, especially her evil stepmother and sister. Telling herself she had to endure it, she clung to the hope that Andrew would change, at least that's what she believed.Laurel cleaned her tears and stood up, heading straight to the bathroom. She looked at herself in the mirror and saw her face covered up in bruises. She needed to see Anita to clear up her head, so she took a scarf and tied it around her head, covering her neck. She then added a face cap and nose mask so as not to make any of the bruises visible.“Babe, where are you? Let’s meet up.” Laurel said to Anita over the phone.“Hi, I’m home. Come over,” Anita responded with a sleepy voice.***Laurel rushed over to her friend’s house and explained to her everything that happened, while Anita was furious, listening to everything her friend was saying."Are you a fool or something?" A deep voice suddenly emerged from the background."Who... who's that?" Laurel asked, startled by the familiar voice."It's Rhett; I think he's back," Anita replied, switching on the lights, revealing Rhett standing at the doorway."Oh, your brother.” Laurel sighed in relief."You haven't answered my question. Are you a fool or what? Why do you endure mistreatment from your fiancé? Taking all this in the name of love? Do you lack self-respect or is it shame?" Rhett questioned Laurel, leaving her momentarily speechless."Why do you even care? Why bother about the treatment I receive in my relationship? You're my sister's fiancé, so focus on her and mind your business!" Laurel retorted after a brief pause."Of course, I care because I'm human! Why subject yourself to mistreatment? Give me an answer!" Rhett demanded, looking at Laurel expectantly."I have no other choice. My fiancé is the only one willing to take me in because I'm an orphan. No one else would want to associate with someone like me. You might not understand, being a rich CEO born to your parents, but this is the reality of it.""And how does being an orphan define who you are as a person? Who made you believe all this?" Rhett responded gently, with pity in his eyes."It's not just a belief, it's the truth. And I honestly don't understand why you care. I don't want anything to do with you. You're my step-sister's fiancé, so let's avoid crossing paths again," Laurel declared, grabbing her phone and storming out of the room.“You know you do not have to put up with this, Laurel,” Anita said gently after Laurel."It's okay; he just acted out because he was upset, but he loves me. Talk to you later," Laurel said, slamming the door in frustration.“Who does he think he is?” Laurel murmured to herself, coming out of their house’s entire view and walking across the street.Why does he even care? He's probably just like my cruel sister who treats orphans poorly, so why bother? So annoying! She blurted out to herself, stopping a cab to take her back home.Upon returning home, Laurel was completely puzzled at the sight that greeted her. Clothes belonging to both a man and a woman were littered across the floor, creating a mess everywhere."Did I leave the house in such chaos before I went out? I'm pretty sure I didn't," Laurel thought, contemplating the situation."Could Andrew be back? Although, I doubt it. He doesn't usually return this early," She whispered to herself, voicing her confusion while taking in the chaotic scene.Laurel went into the house fully, picking up all the clothes that had made such a mess. She dumped them all on the sofa and went forward. As she stepped forward, the sounds of moaning became clearer to her ears. She was still unsure of what she had heard and continued moving forward to her and Andrew’s bedroom.Shock overcame her as she witnessed two individuals panting heavily while engaging in an intimate act on her and her fiancé's bed. Just as she was about to scream, the two individuals started talking."Laurel is such a fool, isn't she?" a familiar female voice remarked, causing Laurel to freeze.“Ugh, please don’t ruin the mood by speaking about that worthless woman,” Andrew replied, panting slightly.“Are you seriously going to marry her?” The woman asked."Heaven forbid! It's just for appearances! Besides, she'll be useful to both of us whenever we need each other," Andrew said, smirking and planting a kiss on the woman beside him.“Poor thing. She must believe someone would genuinely love a person like her. Pitiful soul," the woman replied, and they both laughed.Laurel couldn't believe what she just heard. With tears streaming down her face, she felt utterly helpless after listening to their conversation. Not only was Andrew subjecting her to abuse, but he was also cheating. Her life seemed to crumble before her.“Let me take a quick shower and get going before the bastard gets back.” The woman said to Andrew and they laughed heartily.Laurel quickly hid herself behind the curtains and peeped as the woman walked out of the bedroom, heading to the bathroom. She was brought into complete shock when she saw the woman Andrew was having an affair with.With her hand covering her mouth and tears in her eyes, Laurel whispered,“C-Clara— My sister?”Laurel couldn't comprehend the shocking revelation. With her hands covering her mouth, she stumbled outside and began walking, unable to believe what she had just witnessed and heard. The betrayal stung even more because Andrew had chosen to cheat with her step-sister—one whom she hated.She struggled to understand where she had gone wrong. Her love for Andrew had always been genuine, and she had dedicated herself to ensuring his happiness. Recalling the two years they had been together, she thought back to their initial dating days. Despite her reluctance, she agreed to date him to escape her foster family’s home life and eventually developed sincere feelings for him.Now, the realization hit her—what did she expect? After all, it was her stepmother who had introduced them. She shouldn't have let her guard down; they were all up to no good.Lost in deep thoughts, a horning car brought her back to reality. It was night now. She fell and began weeping loudly.“Where do I go now? Where
The crowd erupted in chaos as they watched Rhett walk out of the wedding, hand in hand with Laurel. He took her in his car and zoomed off immediately. Driving swiftly to an unknown location, he made a pit stop for Laurel at a shopping store for Laurel to have a change of clothes. Laurel was anxious about what his response would be, as they continued the journey in silence. Laurel couldn't help but speculate on whether he'd accept or reject her as his bride. Her thoughts were interrupted when Rhett stopped at a grand mansion, almost resembling a palace.“Where are we?” Laurel inquired.“At my house. Step down, Rhett answered, opening the car door for her. Laurel entered the mansion, marveling at its beauty as Rhett invited her to have a seat. Rhett sat beside her, making physical contact. As his gaze met hers, Laurel could feel shivers running down her spine. Taking in his strikingly handsome appearance, attractive muscles and even his sweet scent, she found herself yearning for him.
Laurel was taken aback upon seeing the unexpected person that called out her name. In shock, she struggled to comprehend why this person, whom she never wanted to meet again, was sitting beside her.“Laurel, meet Rhett Simon from the Opulentia Group. He’s the CEO of Opulentia Fashion and is here as a representative of the whole Group,” Shirley intervened, snapping Laurel back to reality.“Oh. Hello,” Laurel greeted, masking her surprise with a fake smile.Facing forward and getting ready for the meeting, memories of her painful past suddenly flooded back. She didn’t want to ever encounter anyone from her history, yet here was Rhett, sitting beside her. She wiped the tears forming in her eyes as she sensed Rhett's gaze on her and deliberated on how to react—whether to feign ignorance or acknowledge their shared history."Isn't he good-looking?" Shirley whispered to Laurel with a giggle.Laurel forced a smile."Remember, he's our main focus today. Convince him to invest in our company. I
Laurel felt a wave of surprise. Why would Rhett be calling her? How did he get her number? How could his voice sound so attractive over the phone? Questions raced through her mind, momentarily making her forget that someone was on the other end of the call.“Laurel?” Rhett said, bringing her back to reality.“How did you get my number?” She blurted out in frustration.“Relax. We can talk about that later. I’d like to see you for a moment,” Rhett answered calmly.“And why would you want to see me at this time of day?” Laurel retorted.“It’s concerning the company where you work. Meet me there in 30 minutes.” Rhett replied, sending her the venue details via text.Laurel scoffed as he ended the call.“It better be something worthwhile,” she said as she grabbed her mask and cap and headed out of her apartment.The day was getting dark and Laurel tried hailing cabs, all to no avail. After waiting for 20 minutes, she decided to walk to the venue since it wasn’t far from her apartment and sh
Rhett’s POVI, Rhett Simon, the CEO of Opulentia Fashion was not your typical CEO. Yes, I am successful and wealthy, but my reputation as cold and ruthless in business dealings was just a small part of the story. Unlike most successful men of my stature— strikingly handsome, and tall— I am not interested in any form of romance. I have always gotten what I wanted, but getting Laurel to accept my proposal just weirdly made me anxious. She was no longer the former woman I knew, she was now bold and outspoken and held her head high.With all my wealth, I could get any woman I wanted at my own will but that lifestyle wasn't my type. I was fixated at my work and you’d never see me around any woman.My past relationship with Laurel’s sister was just an arranged union by our parents, and I had gone along with it for the sake of appeasing my family and maintaining the status quo. I had never truly felt a connection with her, and it had always been clear that our relationship was one of convenie
She placed the papers into the file and handed them back to me, leaning back on her seat with a look of expectation on her face; as if she was waiting for me to say something. But the silence that followed was awkward. So I decided to speak first.“So,” but we said together coincidentally and I let out a slight giggle; I noticed Laurel staring at me in a confused manner so I cleared my throat and put on a serious look.“Oh, you go first,” I said, gesturing for her to speak.“No, you do,” she insisted, also with a serious look on her face.“If you insist,” I replied, “I’ll make a second copy of the contract for you and also send you a soft copy for your records. We'll also need to keep the news of our marriage private until I give Miss Shirley my feedback tomorrow. We don't want to raise any suspicions before the decision on the investment is made. I'll release the news after that's been decided.”“Alright, good. May I speak now?” Laurel asked, her expression still looking serious. It
Laurel’s POVI opened my eyes as I slowly gained consciousness. I could hear Rhett’s voice not too far from me, speaking to the doctor.“Please send it to her properly and make sure she gets better soon,” he said, his tone stern and authoritative.“Yes sir,” the doctor responded, and I could sense the respect in his voice.Rhett turned to look at me and saw that I was now awake. I could see the look of concern written all over his face.“Laurel! Are you okay?” He asked, rushing to my side. “You suddenly fainted on our way here.”“Yes I’m fine,” I replied, managing a small smile.“Luckily, the injuries aren’t too severe. It’s only on your neck where the man tried to strangle you. My Doctor here will take care of you.” Rhett said, his gaze never leaving mine.“I’m glad,” I said, nodding in appreciation. “And thank you too.”“It’s okay,” he said as he stood up, ready to leave. “Rest up, I’ll go get you a few things you’ll need for your stay here.”As he turned to leave, I felt a deep sen
I watched as Rhett performed his magic in the kitchen. The meal was finally ready and we sat down to eat. It tasted really good, I consumed every bite with pleasure as the flavors danced on my tongue.“This tastes so good,” I complimented him as I nodded my head in approval and he smiled.When we finished eating, he insisted on washing the dishes and I sluggishly obliged, withdrawing to the living room to watch TV. When he finished, he came to the living room and took me by the hand.“Follow me,” he said with a serious look on his face.I followed in surprise, curious about where we were heading to.He led me through the mansion, our footsteps echoing on the floors until we reached a door and stopped. He turned to face me, and I looked at him, confused about where we were.He opened the door. “This is your bedroom,” he said, letting go of my hands and walking inside.I halted at the door, my eyes wide open with shock. I didn’t see this particular bedroom when I was previously having m