Horrified was a small word to describe her state. She blushed crimson seeing the man’s eyes trail down her body. A muscle clenched in his jaws and he looked furious. Cara came to her senses and quickly stooped to pick up her towel. She wrapped it securely around her while he watched her angrily. Was this a nightmare? She just wanted the floor to open up and swallow her whole. She was unable to comprehend where the devilishly handsome creature who had been haunting her dreams appeared from! Surely she was hallucinating!
“Is this some kind of a bl*ody joke? What the f*ck are you up to? Put on something, right now,” yelled the furious object of her dreams. His foul mouth jolted her back to reality. He was very much real and his face was just a few inches away from hers. She saw his gaze sweep over her and he seemed to seethe with fury! Cara blushed to the roots of her hair realizing her semi-naked state. This was the most embarrassing moment in all her eighteen years of life and she just couldn’t look him in the eye. Why did such things happen to her only?
“I-I'm s-sorry, s-sir. I h-had n-no idea that y-you would b-be arriving t-today,” she somehow stammered out but the man completely blocked her way, his eyes burning a hole upon her with its intensity. He laughed, a shallow, devilish laugh that taunted her to the core of her heart. It was obvious that he didn’t believe a word she said.
“Nice try! Only I don’t get turned on by such cheap stunts,” he gritted out. Cara’s mouth hung open with surprise at his cruel words. Was he really that mean? Did he really think of her that way?
“It’s not...,” she started but he cut her short with a grunt.
“How dare you use my washroom? The servant facilities are outside, in case you’ve not noticed. Now get out before I have you thrown out,” he gritted out, giving her a look of pure resentment as if she was some dirt on the streets. Cara felt tears prick at her eyes. She went around him towards the bed and picked up her tattered bag with trembling hands. With him still standing there and watching her furiously, her mind went blank. She was really cross with herself for forgetting her position. How could she not think of using the servant’s toilet instead? Her cheeks flamed with embarrassment and keeping her eyes down, she walked back into the washroom to wear her clothes. The angry man stood there like a statue without budging an inch!
Was he the new owner of this place? Cara sighed and all her romantic visions of the man flew out of her mind. She quickly changed into the glitzy dress that she always wore for her performance and opened the door to peer out. Was he still there?
“What the f*ck are you wearing? The towel was more decent than this shit. I have to talk to Freddie now. I thought I wanted the premises cleared before my arrival. I never asked for wh*res to entertain me. Are you that needy that you have to forcefully seduce me?” he gritted out at her in his booming voice that made Cara tremble more with fear.
“You’re mistaken, I ..,” started Cara, as tears pricked at her eyes. He was really a jerk. His words pierced her heart and the tears threatened to fall freely. However, he interrupted her before she could say a word further.
“Get out, now, before I lose my mind and give you what you came here for. You wanted money and I could use your services,” growled the man. Cara lost all her initial wish to fight him and correct him. His last threat made her eyes widen with fear. The man looked lethal and his eyes sparkled with a raw look of lust that he didn’t make any attempt to hide from her. It made Cara fear him. Yes, he looked powerful and heartless. He would definitely do what he threatened.
“I’m not what you are thinking of me to be. I’ve cleaned your place just as Mr. Davenport had asked me to. I had no idea you were arriving today. Sorry for the inconvenience. Goodbye!” said Cara. The man looked a little taken aback at her honest reply. He hadn’t expected her to be able to say anything in her defense. With tears of humiliation streaming down her face, she ran out of the place as fast as her legs could carry her. At the gates, she saw old Ben Duncan, all ready to leave his job at this house.
“Sorry, Cara, Mr. Donnelly came all of a sudden and I couldn’t warn you,” he apologized, seeing her tear-stricken face.
“It’s okay, uncle Ben. As if I’ll ever see him again! I’ve wasted my energy and time cleaning the place for three hours and haven’t even received a single cent,” she sighed. Ben Duncan led her to his old truck.
“I’m sorry about that. Hop in, I’ll drop you off to the station,” he offered. Cara smiled and wiped her tears away. She was grateful to be able to get away from the place as quickly as possible. She climbed into the passenger seat and Ben drove away.
“You shouldn’t take the train wearing that, Cara. That dress is too glitzy and you’ll be harassed by the local goons. Here, wear this jacket over your clothes,” said Ben Duncan, opening his denim jacket and handing it out to her.
“I sing at Kingston Club at 6 every evening, uncle Ben. They have given me this dress for the performance,” said Cara with a sigh. She put on the jacket thankfully. It was too big for her but she didn’t mind.
“Wow, that’s very good indeed! Kingston Club doesn’t give everyone a chance. They’re very picky about their artists. You really must be very good at it,” appreciated Ben Duncan with a smile. Cara cheered up and the rest of the way, she just talked about her music and singing. Her eyes lit up and she was transferred to a different world altogether.
Her mom, Sera Sullivan was a music teacher and had taught her to sing and play several musical instruments since the age of two. However, things started going downhill when her dad, Henry Sullivan was accused of theft and thrown out of his job. He was an accountant at a prestigious and renowned company and the scandal was enough to devastate their future. They had to flee from the media and live an anonymous life here on Long Island ever since, doing small jobs.
“We’ve reached Cara,” said Ben. Cara sighed and turned towards the old man.
“Thank you, Uncle Ben. How will I return this jacket to you? I don’t know where you live,” she said with worry.
“Keep it, dear. If I want it I’ll visit you at Kingston Club someday,” he said with a twinkle in his eyes. Cara smiled at him.
“Sure, I’ll wait for you,” she said, climbing down with a smile on her lips.
“Smile more. It suits you better,” said Uncle Ben, driving off with a wave. Cara took the train and fell asleep on the way out of sheer exhaustion. She woke up with a start and found that she was about to reach Hempstead Village.
Walking towards the club, Cara’s eyes lit up seeing the huge queue for tickets to her show. The more the tickets got sold, the higher would be her pay. Rudolph Sterling always paid her every night after her performance depending upon the sale of tickets to her show. She walked inside and went to join the musicians, getting ready backstage.
“Hey, Cara, you’re five minutes late. Rudy already has inquired after you,” informed Cole who handled the drums.
“Oh, was he angry?” asked Cara with wide eyes.
“Sort of but chill, I’m sure he has forgotten already. DJ Remi is here in his cabin,” winked Carlton, who handled the lead guitar.
Garry, who handled the bass guitar, chuckled knowingly. “Let’s take our positions, guys. Remi won’t hold his attention for long. He’s paying extra attention to Cara these days,” he pointed out.
“Isn’t he too old for Cara?” asked Cole with an eye roll. Cara just ignored their mindless banter as it was an everyday thing and she was sort of used to it.
“Can I please concentrate on my performance guys?” she scolded them. Although she was the only girl in the group, they didn’t even try to overpower her in any way. All the boys were at least six to eight years older than her and went out of their way to help her. Cara was glad to perform with them!
The show started and she poured her heart out into the numbers she performed, strumming the rhythm guitar expertly. The crowd went crazy when she started Selena Gomez’s Feel Me, followed by Celine Dion's My Heart Will Go On. Then she sat down on a high stool in front of the microphone like a true diva, strumming her guitar, singing the song Forever And For Always by Shania Twain. The crowd swayed in their seats, humming along with her. With her eyes closed, and an enchanting smile on her face, she herself had no idea how mesmerizing and innocent she looked. At last, Cara opened her eyes and stood up to end her performance with one of her own compositions, Love Me Like There’s No Tomorrow. It was a song she composed six months back! The crowd cheered and gave her a standing ovation. Cara’s eyes filled up with tears of happiness, being overwhelmed at the response. The curtains started to close and she bowed to the audience for the last time tonight.
Rudolph Sterling walked in and ushered all of them out for the DJ hour to start soon.
As Cara walked over to Rudolph Sterling’s office room, Cole rushed towards her. “Hey, Cara! Someone sent this for you,” he said breathlessly handing her a parcel.
“Me? What is this?” she asked excitedly. Cole shrugged and walked away while Cara excitedly tried to open the parcel. Was it a gift from some music fan? Maybe someone liked her performance tonight and sent her something nice. But when she opened the parcel, her eyes went wide with shock.
There lay in front of her the clothes she had forgotten at the Southampton Beach house in her haste to leave. Her house keys and her ID card issued by the club were also there. She gasped with surprise. Last she remembered, she had placed them in the pocket of her jeans when she left her home in the morning. Who had checked her pockets? There was no one at the house other than the rude man with blue-gray eyes. Did he come here to deliver her stuff? No that seemed unlikely. Why would he? He hated her already. She was nothing but a sl*t in his eyes.An envelope fell from the packet and she picked it up with a frown. Now, what did it contain? Picking it up, she found a small wad of 100 dollar bills wrapped up in paper. She read the words scribbled on the blank wrapping paper.Payment for cleaning services.Her eyes widened
Cara’s eyes blazed with anger hearing his cheap allegations. “Please don’t overwork your non-existent brain. I just came here to return the money. Goodbye,” she said, whirling around and heading towards the door.Cara tried hard to open the main door and walk out but to her dismay, the door didn’t at all budge. Sensing Marcus Donnelly's presence behind her, she tried harder but the door just wouldn’t open.“You’re wasting your energy, Cara. It’s auto-locked and I’m the only one who can open it,” he stated from right behind her. Cara stiffened as she could feel his hot breath at the nape of her neck. She dared not turn around at all. Who did he think he was? How could he throw such baseless allegations at her? Just because she was poor, didn’t she possess any self-respect? Why would sh
“Yes, Mr. Donnelly? Is the food not to your liking?” she asked anxiously, looking at him with fear.“No, why aren’t you eating?” he asked with a frown. Cara shook her head vehemently.“I’ve eaten, sir,” she said as a faint color stained her cheeks. Marcus knew that she was lying. She couldn’t have eaten that early in the morning.“Get a plate,” he ordered but she shook her head stubbornly.“I’m already full,” she said, licking her lips nervously.“Don’t make me feed you. I don’t want you to faint while working for me. Go get a plate or I’ll have you sit here right on my lap and feed you myself,”
Marcus was shocked by her reaction to his advances. No one had rejected him this way and he was totally confused. What went wrong? She wanted this all along, didn’t she? Why else would she come all the way here for the second time? He didn’t believe that anyone could be that naïve and wanted to return free money.Getting up, he walked out of his room, looking for her. He stopped in his tracks when his glance fell upon the open door and the open gate. So she had been able to figure it out, after all! Maybe he had underestimated her capabilities. Picking up the remote control, he pressed the buttons to close the gates and the door, locking them shut. With his cheek still stinging from the intensity of the slap, he went to take a cold shower. He needed it desperately. Later when he went to the kitchen to get himself a bottle of water, his glance fell upon the envelope that Cara might ha
Marcus reached home and slumped to the couch with his head in his hands realizing what a grave mistake he had made. After waiting to punish Cara for days, he couldn’t take it any longer. He went to the Kingston Club and followed her around for the last few days like a crazy stalker. The slap had been too hard to forget and he wanted his revenge but all his evil intentions completely changed when he saw how hardworking she was. He saw her working non-stop at a small cafe and then rush over to Kingston Club to sing. Initially, he had been apprehensive about going inside but last night he had bought a ticket to watch what she did for a living. Shocked was an understatement to what he felt when he saw her perform. It was amazing to see how the audience loved her performance. She didn’t need to dance or do any tricks to get their attention. All she did was sit on a high stool and strum her guitar while singing. Her clear, melodious voice had th
Marcus spoke to his brother and was summoned immediately to his granny, Margaret Donnelly’s house. After his dad, Jonathan Donnelly died last year of a cardiac arrest, his mom, Claudia Donnelly, moved in with his granny. In the early hours of the morning, he reached the beautiful and calm neighborhood and drove in through the gates of his granny’s house. It wasn’t a huge mansion but a big and comfortable house with a huge front yard and an equally sprawling backyard. When their dad was alive they used to play football every time they visited their grandparents. After their grandpa, Joe Donnelly died, eight years ago, their granny lived here all on her own, refusing to move in with any of them. But now with his mom and their trustworthy housekeeper, Maria living there with their granny, the boys were free to pursue their chosen careers. While Lucas lived in a posh apartment in Manhattan's Battery Park with his fiancée Sienna He
Cara stood dumbfounded by Marcus’s presence in the villa. Was he the one getting married? She hadn’t expected to be working at his wedding! He too seemed equally surprised to see her.“We’re finally here,” said Maria, fanning herself with her handkerchief, as she huffed and puffed into the house, carrying a mountain load of stuff. Cara looked down and followed her shyly into the house, too embarrassed to be here amidst Marcus’s family.“She needed work and we needed help, granny. So I brought her along,” said Maria.“Fine, she’s your responsibility, Maria. You have to assign her work,” said granny.“Yes, yes, leave it all to me,” said Maria. Then turning to Cara she pointed to
His sudden apology surprised Cara and she turned her head and looked into his eyes. Did he really mean it? She had no idea why he was apologizing to her. What made him change his mind about her? Suddenly Maria’s warning rang in her head. Was it all a ploy to punish her for hitting him?“I don’t need your apology, Mr. Donnelly. I’ll be thankful if you’ll just stay away from me,” said Cara with a sigh, looking away.“I won’t. Why can’t you accept my apology? I meant it from my heart. I misjudged you and misbehaved with you. I shouldn’t have done that,” he said, running a hand through his already messed up hair.“Okay,” said Cara in a soft voice, yet she didn’t look at him. Marcus felt frustrated at her lack of response. He