‘Connie is such a weirdo. I can’t stand her,’ Veronica grumbled after dinner. ‘I hope she doesn’t show up here unannounced like Brayden did.’‘I’m with you,’ Alessia said as she dealt with the dishes.Veronica yawned. ‘You know, I’ve always thought she was up to no good.’‘Veronica—’ Alessia tried to interject.‘Listen, when our dad died, Connie took control of the family finances. She didn’t give me a dime, and I had to bust my ass to pay for my own education. I’ve had it with her, especially these past five years.’Alessia sighed, her heart heavy.She’d had a lot of time to reflect, and she couldn’t deny there was a kernel of truth to Veronica’s words.‘You know, I’ve thought a lot about that night—Connie, Brayden, and the stranger who’s Milo’s father. It feels like a setup, and I think…I think there’s a slight chance Connie might be involved,’ Alessia revealed.‘Yes, you’re finally catching on!’ Veronica exclaimed, slapping her thigh. ‘Brayden was supposed to be your husband, but C
Alessia saw the shock and doubt in his eyes. ‘We don’t want the same things. We were never really right for each other.’Before Brayden could say anything more, she looked past his shoulder. ‘Connie’s here.’Panic washed over Brayden, freezing him in place.Alessia sneered.As Brayden slowly turned around, he scanned the street.Connie was nowhere to be seen.He stood there, stunned, realising he had been played by Alessia.‘You just lied to me,’ Brayden muttered.Alessia folded her arms. ‘Someone who gets terrified at the mere mention of his wife’s name, do you really think he’s capable of filing for divorce? What a joke!’She turned around, but she had barely taken two steps before finding herself abruptly swept off her feet.‘Ah—’ she screamed, her voice filled with terror.‘I’m sorry,’ Brayden said, his grip firm as he carried her towards the car.‘Brayden, you jerk! Put me down!’ Alessia shouted, her hands clawing at him in desperation.But Brayden refused to let go, ignoring her
A minute ago, Logan was just getting out of his car when he spotted Alessia dashing madly down the street.Her hair was a mess, her eyes filled with panic.And as her skirt billowed in the wind, he caught glimpses of her bare legs.He immediately stepped up to intercept her.‘No one is after you,’ Logan reassured her.Alessia checked and double-checked.She was on a different street now, Brayden or his car nowhere to be seen.She breathed out a long sigh, finally allowing herself to relax.Only then did she realise that she had been gripping Logan’s arms tightly, her nails digging into the fabric of his jacket.‘Sorry.’ She hastily released her hold.Frowning, Logan assessed Alessia’s flustered state.In one swift motion, he removed his suit jacket and wrapped it around her waist, tying up the sleeves to secure its position.The jacket still carried his warmth, and Alessia’s pounding heart finally settled.She looked at his downcast eyes as he bent low to tie the jacket around her wai
Alessia cast a nervous glance at Terence in the driver’s seat and whispered, ‘Mr Wilde.’‘Yes?’ Logan leaned closer, the corners of his lips curving up.‘We are in a public place.’‘No, we are not. This is my car, my private domain.’ Logan took a whiff of her shampoo.Not citrusy this time; she must have changed it.This one smelled like coconut, but just as intoxicating.Alessia leaned back as far as she could, regretting her decision to get in the car.She seemed to have jumped out of the frying pan right into the fire.Logan’s breath sprayed against her neck and the curve of her shoulder.And in that moment, Alessia confirmed what she had been thinking earlier—they were different, Brayden and Logan.While the former’s touch could make her bile rise, the latter’s would send her pulse racing and…inexplicably, wanting more.The realisation struck Alessia as absurd.A little embarrassed by what she was thinking, Alessia averted her gaze, willing herself to ignore Logan’s presence, whic
Some small measure of confidence returned.Alessia stared at Logan.‘What are you doing?’ He couldn’t ignore her laser-like focus on his face.‘Waiting to see if your nose is growing longer.’‘What?’ He frowned.‘Like Pinocchio.’‘Pinocchio? You think I’m lying?’Alessia rolled her eyes. ‘I’ll have confirmation soon, when your nose grows to the size of an elephant’s trunk.’Logan chuckled. ‘You know, some say a man’s nose size is proportionate to his s*xual prowess.’He winked at her. ‘Is that why you are so interested in my nose?’Alessia pulled back and made a face. ‘So typical. It’s just like a man to turn everything into s*x. It’s an obsession.’‘You are the one who’s obsessed with my nose.’ Logan countered.‘I’m not!’ Alessia raised her voice.‘Higher pitch in your voice, averted gaze. You are lying.’Alessia snorted derisively. ‘You’d know, since you yourself are such an expert liar.’Logan clicked his tongue. ‘Is that any way to talk to someone who just saved your ass?’He laug
Terence returned and knocked on the window. ‘Sir, I’ve, ah, picked out some outfits of Miss Jansen’s size, but I think she still needs to try them on herself. They’ve got a changing room inside.’Alessia swiftly exited the car, determined to put some distance between herself and Logan.However, just as she was about to leave, she felt his strong arms wrap around her waist, securing the suit jacket back in place.‘Thank you,’ she said.After he tied the jacket, Logan showed no signs of letting her go.‘I need to get into the store now,’ she said. ‘Will you please remove your hands?’Logan glared at her, his displeasure evident. ‘Kicking me to the kerb right after I just helped you out?’‘No.’ Alessia sighed. ‘I just don’t want you to waste any more of your time on me. You run a big company. Surely, your time is valuable—’‘Then stop wasting it by standing around and talking.’ He gave her a prod in the back. ‘Hurry up.’Without waiting for a reply, he grabbed her wrist and pulled her to
‘Miss, it’s unlikely we can obtain a strong DNA sample from this suit jacket for a conclusive test. It would be better if you could provide another sample,’ a staff member from the DNA Diagnostic & Research Laboratory informed her.‘Can’t you find strands of hair from this jacket?’ Alessia refused to give up on her only lead.‘We can, but it won’t be the kind of hair we need,’ the man explained patiently. ‘The shaft of the hair does not contain any nucleated cells and cannot be used for a paternity DNA test.’‘Then what kind do you need?’ Alessia asked quickly.‘Hair that contains the root. At least six to eight of them. You need to store them in a clear plastic bag which must be dry.’Alessia left the hospital with Logan’s jacket and stood on the crowded sidewalk, at a loss for what to do next.Since Lara already gave her the day off, Alessia took a bus home.The next morning, she reported for work at BuzzBeat.As soon as she stepped through the doorway, she sensed an abrupt shift in
Alessia furrowed her brow.What was Jeramy implying?The editor continued, ‘We’ve been hearing things about you lately. You have a, ahem, special relationship with Mr Wilde. You hugged him in front of the office the day before yesterday, and you two were together yesterday. You skipped work to spend time with him, right?’Alessia felt anger surge within her. ‘That’s not true! Mr Wilde and I—’‘Don’t be upset. I’m not blaming you,’ Jeramy cut her off. ‘I’m not saying it’s a bad thing that you and Mr Wilde are…involved.’He smiled and said, ‘What I meant is, it would be a waste not to take advantage of such a powerful connection. And I’m not asking for myself. It’s for the good of the paper.’‘Mr Chavez.’ Alessia took a deep breath to calm herself before continuing. ‘I understand. Maybe I could pass on Mr Wilde’s contact information to my colleagues in Marketing and let them take it from there. After all, they are the experts.’Jeramy raised an eyebrow.He hadn’t expected such an artful