DAHLIA His eyes seemed to darken and I saw him swallow. His hands moved from the table and my heart was going crazy. Don’t do this Dahlia. You can’t. When I felt his hand grip my waist, sending strong sparks through me, whilst the other threaded through my hair. I tensed and held his face firmly, refusing to let him close the gap. “We can’t…” I whispered, feeling annoyed with myself. I was the one who told him to kiss me. I saw the flash of emotions swim in his eyes before his face returned to their usual cold emotionless. However, his hands didn’t leave me. “Do you enjoy playing games, Ms El Nazari?” He asked coldly. I bit my lip, letting go of him and not knowing what to do with my hands, instead placed them against my chest. “I was just trying to surprise you… You were angry, so you know... Just trying to distract you.” I replied. Liar. I was an awful liar; I’d be surprised if he fell for it but I had no other option. I wasn’t sure if my emotions w

DAHLIA The afternoon had gone by in a blur. After what happened with Dane, I couldn’t get the moment out of my head. It had, in a way, made me feel better after that note. Somehow his knowing eased what I was feeling, not to mention what he had told me about Amal. It angered me but there wasn’t much to do. I mean, I knew she was with baba for the money... However, to think she wanted him to die hurt me. It was now evening and my plan had worked. I think baba was so used to me not bringing Aria to dinners that he never thought I’d plan this. I did tell Aria who we were going to see at dinner but I also warned her that baba could get quite angry due to his age. She confidently told me she’d manage his anger. We were now both twinning, in matching red velvet skater dresses with rose imprints all over them. Accessorized with black and silver, I’d had our hair curled and pulled back in matching quiffs - with a single fresh red rose in both of our hair. We didn’t m

DANE It was a few days since Dahlia’s office incident. I had stayed back at the office to get some work done after two conference meetings. It was pretty late. I had been out of the office yesterday as I had flown out to another city for a business trip. I really hated work piling up, so here I was pulling extra hours so the precious princess wasn’t burdened. When did I stop calling her spoilt? I wasn’t actually sure. I couldn't get that day out of my head, who was sending her those notes? I felt a little bad for her. She was facing the world alone and still managed to do it whilst acting like she owned the world - but it was affecting her no matter how tough she pretended to be. I sighed. Why was I even thinking about her? I was here for answers, in this position. I frowned, remembering what had happened at the business meeting out of town. I had snagged the contract right from under her ex’s nose, but what had irked me was the way he had acted as if

DANE My entire arm, neck and hip were hurting but I was not going to admit it. It didn’t take away the fact that someone did try to frame me. It was irritating that the cops showed up just when I had Dahlia all flustered. I have got to admit, seeing her breathless at that door really hit me. She didn’t need to come and it was clear from the car keys and phone in her hand, she had come alone. She didn’t even bring her bag and the woman was never without one. Despite the fact it was raining, she hadn't even grabbed a jacket, her silk blouse speckled with raindrops. Something about her entire appearance made my breath catch in my throat and I wasn’t fool enough to deny that I was falling hard. Falling for a woman I’d never thought I’d fall for. I raised an eyebrow at the cops who were now looking at me seriously. It was pretty coincidental that they assumed I was driving dangerously, unless of course they had a tip-off. "Please do continue, I’d also like

DANE Aria’s words took me by surprise, but shockingly, I didn’t seem to mind them. She was a sweet child and surprisingly, we bonded well. Although I have never been one to mix with children, Aria was easy to talk to, not to mention she was rather entertaining. I saw Dahlia tense, her face paling slightly before she busied herself with heating the beans. "Ari darling, don’t be silly." She scolded lightly. I knew Aria’s words had affected her and I wanted to know what was going through her mind. There was more between us, but I still didn’t have the answer to exactly what. I found myself watching her do the little every day things. The way she pouted when annoyed or unhappy - It was a cute change to her usual haughty, confident self. The way she smiled when it came to Aria, the concern in her eyes when she looked at my injuries and the way she talked to and treated her staff. I was beginning to lose solid reasons to stay away from her. I had loved once