Emily lay on her face, taking the whole bed for herself. Even her jaw was killing her to support her face on the pillow for the cut on her forehead. Even a fool knows what is good for him, but Emily. . .she was beyond that. Who rides a bike at that speed after falling from it? Those four paint buckets had weight, but still, she carried them on her back. Could she go to work on Wednesday even? Birds were chirping outside like usual for biscuits. She could hear that, even though the windows were closed and the doors too, she could still smell the burnt bacon, toast, and beans in her kitchen. "Lord, Helen! The pancake batter was in the freezer!" "It's done!" Helen's scream sounded from the other side. "Hold your horses." "Yes! It's done." Her sister hollered. "Don't mind the smell. It's a glitch!" "You heard her." Helen gushed, which made Emily shake her head, snorting. It would be a hell of a job to fix her kitchen, but she could do nothing but accept this silently. At least the gi
"Yes, I am on my way to the post office. The package will be delivered in five days or so. Would that be okay?" Stopping at the side of a busy street in São Paulo, Emily turned to the side of an alley and picked up the call from her lawyer right the moment her phone vibrated in her bag. "Good job! You made our work a lot easier. Do you know that? Oh, by the way, the next hearing is next week. Your presence here is very much needed, Ms. James, even if it is your friend's parents taking her custody. Do you want me to book a ticket for you?" "I still need Grandpa's signature, ma'am." She started walking and tried hard to keep her voice even. "He knows that I am here, but he didn't allow me in his home or even let his butler tell me where they admitted Dad this time." Emily's father raised her since she was little. He was always there for her whenever she needed him. For Emily's happiness, Mr. James could give her the whole world, and he even married a woman at his daughter's wishes.
"So bothersome!" Looking at her reflection in the mirror, Emily fixed the messy pony she tied in between the crown and the nape before coming to the club. The dark shade of makeup and her dark lens hid the softness of her square face. Her strong jaw, above-average height, and tanned skin that caused the humid temperature in Brazil were a plus, and the muscle she gained from my ritual exercise, and having her apartment close to the beach, her swimming regularly helped to bring out the look of a young countryside man she wanted. If the manager of the club she works didn't promise to pay her double, she wouldn't have agreed to come to work early in the morning for the decoration for a birthday event she did in the pool bar with the help of a few of her colleagues. Months ago, seeing the praise she received from their foreign clients for the food, wine, and decor, the boss and the manager never left a chance to take advantage of her using her weakness with extra money. Then again, she ne
Three years later, "You...how dare you do this to me? Did you forget about our agreement? Have you finally lost your mind..." Ugh! Emily groaned inwardly and repeatedly tapped her two fingers on her forehead to ease her pain. She wasn't in her mood today, feeling as if everything was falling apart, even though she didn't have the slightest idea about the reason behind it. No, she had nothing to do with this couple fighting in this mall close to her workplace, where she went to grab a bite, and everything went wrong there. Of course, Emily wouldn't, as she was someone who avoided troublesome stuff that might give her a headache, but could you possibly leave her friend behind who was getting humiliated by an obnoxious man who was looking down on her friend, enraged by how she turned his whole world upside down? "What agreement? Heh, it was the young matriarch of the family you were engaged to hire me to take you down. Well, even if she didn't pay me for it, I would still have done w
"Ah, look who finally shows up today in my cafe!" Liam jeered cheerfully the very moment when Emily stepped into his shop for the first time in a long while. The owner of this cafe, previously called Sweet Bakes, was the only cousin of Helenite, whom Emily cherished the most after her little sister, so they were naturally on good terms as they were family. "Why? Were you not expecting me here again after the opening of the new branch?" Emily asked as she leaned against the counter. "Of course not! You have no reason to travel this far when my old shop is close to your home. Anyway, I am happy you are here, Emy." His smile widened. "Now, what would you like to order? Tell me, and I will have my stuff to take you to the second floor." No one had great expectations, as this branch was far from the local college and schools. But look how every chair was full of people on the first floor! She was sure this would be the case on the second floor too, and that was the case when she went th
Emily felt cold. She had never felt openly being watched by someone ever before. But could she blame the man in the driver's seat glaring at her coldly? Even if she wanted to be mad at him, she couldn't, not after seeing the video recording he showed of last night's incident. Helen, why did you have to do that for me? What good would it do for you to cause a commotion in someone else's lair? Emily couldn't help but groan inwardly, hearing his sharp tone. "Are you not going to say anything regarding this matter, Ms. James?" The atmosphere in the car was thick. She knew she should say something. Or, at least, beg him for mercy, but why did it feel so hard to talk to this man? She had a feeling that no matter what she said, nothing would get through his brain because he was that angry. "I...I can't decide." Emily looked speechless still. Sighing in resignation, she said, "Let's just have it in your way for now, Sir." Emily took a lungful of air from her mouth from outside the windo
There were three types of people Emily feared most, something like her instinct told her to keep her distance from. The people she knew. The people who forced friendship on her. And the people she didn't wish to know. The reason she chose to be an introvert and docile was not to stand out much in the crowd. Her blooming years were ruined, but she had no regrets. She couldn't afford to get involved in unnecessary matters to survive when her parents wouldn't be around for her. It did work out to her advantage, and Emily didn't have many enemies except for her grandfather, yet it was unexpected to get bothered this much by the kind of person she encountered today. She thought she wouldn't have to deal with the person in the third category she was terrified of coming across, but weirdly, she felt it would be easy to peel him layer by layer to get through his mind. Plus, that man felt weirdly familiar. Emily didn't want to see him again, but why was her intuition telling her that when s
He won't take no for an answer. I found it rather funny, recalling how Bash's bodyguard stalked off after handing me that well-laminated card. That comment sounded like his boss owned the entire Sao Paulo, and every citizen here followed his puppy_love rules. Then where did that make my grandfather, the great Emmanuel Iglesias, stand right now? Under a hybrid actor's thumb? Alpha Grandpa would rather die than wait for that day to come into his life. Someone who loved power would never want to sign any contract with a young and inexperienced entrepreneur unless that man had a strong backup whom grandpa could use in his favor. It might sound like I was looking down on that star, but it wasn't the case. I was in dad's office most of the time for mom, so I was aware of things. Bash would have had a chance if it was my dad in the position, but now, he would get played by grandpa, and, in the end, it would only be him to blame for wasting his time here in this city---oh, sorry, I mean i