****
Grace suddenly woke up from yet another terrifying dream, sweating and crying at the same time. Looking around the room, she felt a sense of terror, realizing her parents, who were supposed to be there with her, weren't. She did the only thing she could think of—she tried calling for them, but there was no response. She continued screaming until nurses rushed through the door, followed by her father’s secretary, Mrs. Hail.
"Where are my parents?" Grace asked, not wanting to contemplate anything negative. Her eyes darted between Mrs. Hail and the sad expression on her face. Fearful and still unwilling to accept the harsh reality, Grace pleaded, "Please, Mrs. Hail, my parents, they are okay, right? They are just sleeping in one of the hospital beds like I am, getting treated, right? Please tell me," she implored, tears streaming down her face.
All she wanted was to see her mom and dad smiling at her again. Even if she never went to university, it would be okay as long as they were alive.
However, Mrs. Hail refused to provide any information, keeping a somber gaze fixed on Grace. Unable to accept the unspoken truth in those sad eyes, Grace raised her voice and said, "TELL ME; WHERE ARE MY PARENTS?" Just as she prepared to confront Mrs. Hail further, the doctor entered the room.
"She’s right; as the only child of Mr. and Mrs. Bush, she has every right to know about her parents' situation," the doctor asserted, shifting his gaze from Mrs. Hail to Grace. "We are sorry for keeping this from you all this while, Miss Grace, about your parents' situation."
"Wait!" Mrs. Hail interrupted the doctor, then turned to Grace, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder. "I am sorry for not saying anything. I wanted to make it easy for you, but maybe I was wrong. Brace yourself, Grace, for what the doctor is about to tell you will not be easy to bear, okay?"
Grace looked at her calmly and said, "Okay."
Grace was calm, perhaps because she already had a sense of what they were going to tell her.
However, her hopefulness was shattered when the doctor revealed the harsh reality. After the accident, they were brought in by strangers who witnessed the incident. The truck driver responsible had his arms decapitated due to the impact of the metal pole. Efforts were made to contact family members, leading Mrs. Hail to learn about the accident.
"Okay, but what about my parents? What happened to them?" Grace urgently questioned them, her anxiety growing as they still hadn't disclosed the information she needed the most.
"About your parents..." the doctor began, and Grace looked into his eyes, holding her breath. "Your mother is still alive; she is a strong woman."
"Okay," Grace sighed in relief, but then anxiously asked, "my father; how is he doing?" A heavy silence filled the room, with the doctor now mirroring Mrs. Hail's earlier reluctance. "Doctor, my father, how is he doing?"
"Your father…."
Grace learned that her father, after being brought to the hospital, experienced a painful death. The metal pole in his chest couldn't be removed, and he kept asking for Grace and her mother, pleading with the doctor to save them. Her mother, in shock, went into a coma, and the doctor couldn't predict when or if she would wake up. Grace, miraculously, emerged with only a scratch, saved by her father, who jumped in to protect her.
The trauma and pain inflicted on an eighteen-year-old who lost her entire family in a single day were unimaginable. Grace cried until there were no tears left to shed. She fainted, woke up, and cried again upon seeing her mother's state, but nothing could bring her father back or revive her barely alive mother. She cursed and wished for God to turn back time to let her die instead of her father, but such wishes went unanswered.
Adding to her misery, none of her relatives or uncles visited the hospital, showing no concern for her until the lawyer revealed her father's will.
According to the will, whoever took care of Grace on his behalf would inherit his wealth, but only when she came of age to manage the inheritance and the company left in her name. Out of necessity, Grace entrusted everything to Mrs. Hail until she was old enough and knowledgeable enough to handle it herself. Despite her relatives' displeasure, the will protected her decisions.
After that, a series of traumatic events unfolded, worsening Grace's suffering. She couldn't recall details of her university experience or graduation, finding no joy in her accomplishments. She went to university because it was necessary, a step toward understanding her father's business, even though Mrs. Hail was managing it for the time being.
Present.Grace reflected on her life. "Yeah, that’s the story of my life, crazy right?” She knew that in order to take over her father's business, she needed all the knowledge and experience she could get. That's why she applied to a big publishing firm in New York City, only to end up in her current undesirable position.Focused on becoming someone worthy of her father’s establishment, she didn’t have time for joy, parties, or dating. At twenty-six, she was still a virgin, a fact she attributed to her lack of time and strength for love. Despite her fears about family and loss, she wondered if there was a man out there for her, someone who could provide perfect love, and a perfect home, just like her parents.“Oh! There you are,” Edna said suddenly, appearing out of nowhere.“Jesus! Edna,” Grace said, shocked. “Do you have to sneak up on me like that? I almost had a heart attack.”"Really, that’s new.” Edna replied nonchalantly.“What? What did you say?”"Nothing; what could I say?”"
The D day arrived, and thank God, Mrs. Hail had brought the documents Grace requested earlier; she even added some cash. They arrived at the airport and went straight to board. With one last look at her hometown, Grace boarded the plane. Finding it difficult to believe that she was going to New York while the others were sleeping, Grace was deep in thought. Before she knew it, they arrived, and, OMG, New York was exactly as she had imagined—breathtaking. And while the others were busy taking pictures, she was crying tears of joy, tears of achieving her dreams. It was a first step, but she was happy. Without wasting much time, they went to the hotel, and Mr. Bert told them to rest up; by tomorrow morning, they would have to present themselves, and it seemed like the new boss would be present too. After the lecture, he left so they could sleep. Because she was so tired, Grace slept off without checking around, which was what she had planned to do once she arrived. When she opened h
At the O.S. Publishing Headquarters The President's Office Noah Creed sat down with his cold coffee, ready to pounce on Bastad, daring to disturb his quiet time. Luckily, no one dared come in. He felt upset after dealing with his mother, who always left him feeling terrible—that vicious, hungry money serpent. Like forcing him to get married and produce offspring wasn’t enough. Now he is being forced to marry into the Keyes family of models; their last child, Jesse something, Keyes, who, by the way, is not even up to twenty, given the circumstances, will be old enough to be his daughter. He already has a lot on his plate to deal with; being transferred here without his consent was already a big problem for him. He wants no more painful trouble but his mother will not let him be. Engaging the young model was the only thing he could do to keep her at bay. "Oh, damn! My head hurts again." That familiar pain hit him. Since he was a kid, he had these terrible headaches, like someone ba
***If only it would rain. Not that there was a chance in hell it would, Noah admitted to himself as he scanned the three heavy clocks in his room. It's 6:00 a.m., the start of a new day. The sky has not even cleared yet he is this tired.Just when he gathered enough strength to stand up, the crazy yet, at 50, drop-dead gorgeous mother of his, Mrs. Vera Creed, yanked his heavy golden metal door open.With a pissed look on her face, she probably found out about the change he had made to his arranged marriage with the upcoming model Jesse Keyes. Pretending not to notice it, he said, "Mother, isn't it too early to look pissed; you will destroy your makeup?" he said, smirking as he went toward the bathroom. He could hear his mother groaning angrily."Don't piss me off, Noah," she said."Mom, you're already pissed; I don't need to do anything," Noah replied, turning to her."Why did you ask the Keyes to hold off the wedding date? Did you not hear me when I said…""Mother, I did, loud and c
**** "London at last," Grace muttered; they had barely made it to the airport on time, thanks to Diana, who overslept. "Alright, ladies, come this way," Secretary James said, addressing them. "Instead of the hotel, we will be using one of Mr. Creed’s villas; after all, it's going to be a three-week trip; so please behave yourselves and remember the rewards and promotions you will get after this business trip; it will depend on how well you perform. Do I make myself clear?" "Yes, sir," they all chorused. Before dark, they arrived at the villa, and oh, what a villa! It was huge, with a grand fountain in the middle of the field and a swimming pool at the side of it—one they were told not to enter, by the way. Each of them was given a room, and Grace found herself close to the master bedroom. "Okay, here we are; take your time, rest, and prepare what needs to be prepared by morning; the real work starts," Mr. James said and left. Diana turned to Grace and said, "Is it just me or did
***Grace stormed angrily into the large dining hall, slamming the box onto the table with a loud thud. "Who the hell does he think he is? He's just my boss and nothing else—the nerve of that bastard."Observing her fury, Diana cautiously approached, continuing to distribute the contents of the box to the others. "What happened? You look mad.""Oh, I am beyond mad and furious. I could kill someone right now." She spat."Ah, do you mind holding that thought? We only have like half an hour to get the dining hall ready, after which you can kill anyone you want. What do you say?" Diana said, grinning, likely suppressing her curiosity."Fine, but I'll take two heads." Grace replied with a faded smile."Sure, I can't wait to see who." They hurriedly continued with their work.Meanwhile,Inside the master bedroom, Noah was fuming. "How dare she speak to me like that? I am Noah Creed. Nobody talks to me like that; nobody." He muttered angrily, throwing the suit on the bed.Yet, he couldn't he
** Grace found a perfect place behind the main bedroom to take a breather. With a chair, a bottle of wine, and some delicious dessert; she sat down. What a magnificent, well-built balcony. Appreciating the view, Grace muttered, “It must be nice to be rich,” “You think so?” Noah emerged from the side of his room, which, by the way, was closer to the balcony. As he watched her jump, almost knocking down the table, he chuckled and held onto it. "Wow... calms down; I'm not going to eat you. Well, not like this." He said, almost to himself. Grace cursed with a low voice as she felt her heart racing. It hadn't even been a day since that stupid incident, and now he thought sneaking up on her was okay. Forgetting that this place was close to the main bedroom, she asked in a not-so-respectful way, "Why are you here, sir? This is my place of tranquility, boss or no boss; I'm not leaving." Noah stared at the lady with pink lips. "What do you mean? This is my room's balcony," he replied. "W
Grace placed the last file in the cabinet, returning to her seat with a heavy sigh. The past few months have taken a toll on both her mind and body.Despite returning from Paris, she'd hoped for a break since they had been working tirelessly. However, there was no such thing as soon as she came in; that round breast frog had a lot of work on the ground for her, so the workload remained overwhelming, leaving her and even Dian, her colleague, stressed out. Dian had been in tears the night before.Since the incident with Noah, Grace has done everything to avoid him. A week ago, though, he asked her to stay after closing.She expected a meaningful conversation with him, but it turned out he only wanted her body; seeing how he was in a hurry, he put it in her. Who would believe her first time was going to be in an office? It’s a good thing she came to her senses when she did, or only God knows what would have happened.Why her? Grace wondered. Yes, Noah was handsome, with a great figure, a