“Bravo!” Avery cheered Derrick with a resounding applause. He threw his head backward with a laugh. “Stop being dramatic, Avery.”“Well, I said you were going to finish the evaluation in less than an hour and look.” She cast her wristwatch at his face. “You finished in 45 minutes.” She went on clapping. “You’re such a genius.”Derrick sat up. “If you keep hailing me like that, I’m going to stand up and twirl like a Princess.”Avery broke into a loud laugh. Derrick couldn’t help but smile after seeing the joy radiating around her. Her mother always made comments of how he brought back color to Avery’s life and while Derrick would always downplay the comment, he could now agree that it was a fact. Ever since he showed up, he had been helping Avery with her studies at the business school and now, her work. Derrick had come to understand that Avery values her work so to get around her, he offered assistance in the grey areas of her project. Also, he had come to realize that not all fo
“Prince charming is here!” Greta cried out the moment Smith descended the staircase with Lisa.Immediately after he opened his eyes that morning, Lisa had craved Smith’s indulgence to keep up with the ideal son-in-law charade until her cousins were out of town.At the table, the Carsons were already seated alongside the cousins who had glammed up as if they were heading out right after breakfast.“Good morning.” Smith greeted no one in particular after pulling out a chair.Lisa pulled out the chair next to him and sat.On the table were various kinds of breakfast options, the typical Carson family type of feast.“So,” Greta continued barely after Smith and Lisa were settled. “How did you guys meet?”Lisa frowned and reached for a mug to mix her coffee. On his part, Smith was staring at her as if he was looking for a signal. A few moments later, she crossed her legs.“We met at a bar.” Smith and Lisa said simultaneously.Joey and Margaret exchanged shocked glances.“It was in a bar on
Lisa stared at their hands and quickly withdrew her hand from Smith’s grip. “Don’t do that again.”Smith swallowed. “Sorry. I’m sorry.,She took a deep breath. “Just because we are playing this whole drama till my cousins leave doesn’t give you the right to come close to me or engage me in any pep talk.”Smith nodded and moved to the end of the car seat. When he was speaking to her about the reasons why her cousins disliked her, he had seen the way her pupils dilated and he thought that for a moment he could connect with her but it was obvious that he was mistaken.Lisa flipped her hair and then crossed her legs. “They’ll be gone by next tomorrow anyway so you’ll go back to taking cabs before you start getting used to this treatment.”“Of course!” Smith replied and turned away.The door to the front seat was pushed open. Mr. Carson sat in front and shortly, the chauffeur joined him.As the car swerved out of the mansion, Lisa engaged her father in talks about the upcoming meeting whil
“Is that Smith?” Nelly blinked repeatedly and quickly turned around as if she was seeking her sister, Greta.It was a few minutes past 1 pm and after getting bored with the cooking sessions Margaret and Greta were having back at home, Nelly decided to drop by the Carson Company. It’s been a year since she visited the company so her curiosity wanted to see whether there had been some changes so that she could report to her father as soon as they got back home.It’s been a minute since Nelly made her way to the top floor where Mr. Carson’s office was located. Neither Lisa nor Mr. Carson knew that she was coming. She had wanted to surprise them, look around the company and maybe pull Lisa for a cup of coffee in town but then, she was seeing Smith mopping the front of Mr. Carson’s office and she couldn’t help but feel confused.“Excuse me?” someone spokeNelly quickly turned around with her left hand on her chest. “You frightened me.” She said to the man standing before her.He smiled. “I
“Lisa!” Mr. Carson tried to interfere but his daughter turned to him with a hostile expression. “There is only on way that Nelly would have known about this.” “And you think that way was by Smith telling her everything? She probably went to the office and saw things herself.” Mr. Carson said and slapped his forehead. “It’s my entire fault. We should have been more careful.”“It’s no one’s fault, dad. Smith is not a child. And so what if Nelly saw him cleaning? He could have made up an excuse and tell her that something got split and he needed to take care of it but instead he went and shoved our secret down her throat. He did this to spite us for all the work we make him do. Such an ungrateful man.”Mr. Carson sighed and shook his head. “You know what; I’ve had enough for today.” He left for his chamber.Lisa clenched her jaw and began to climb the staircase with her nostrils puffing hot air.*****“We are here, sir.” Announced the driver.Smith sat up with a sigh. He pulled out a f
“Come in.” Lisa responded immediately after the door to her chamber was pushed open. Then she began to rant. “I thought you were going to spend the whole night outside. You do owe me and my family an apology for breaching our contract.” When she heard no response, she lifted her head and saw that it was her mother standing before her not Smith as she presumed. Lisa sighed and collapsed by the edge of her bed.Margaret walked up to Lisa and settled beside her. “You look troubled.”“I am angry.” Lisa supplied and flipped her hair.“And you are troubled as well. Look at you. You are still in your office clothes. Its past 10 pm Lisa. You have not even taken a bath. I never knew you were so concerned about that good for nothing husband of yours.” Said Margaret.Lisa sat up and began to unbutton her coat. “I don’t care about him mom. I’m just pissed and I want to vent all my frustration on him before I retire for the day.”Margaret stood up after a sigh. “Well, you should do what you have
“Trust me by the time she finds out who you are, she will be begging you to take her back.” Jackson swore before pulling the car to a halt.“I don’t think so,” Nathan countered. “Lisa is rich. Like super rich. She must be happy now that a pauper like me is out of her life. I just wonder what she will say to her extended family.” Jackson chuckled and began to wind down the reflectors. “I don’t know how rich she is but rust me, you are way richer.”“If you say so.” Nathan replied and began to study his environment. “Why are we in an airport?” he turned to Jackson.“We are taking an aircraft to Rockville.” Jackson replied and stepped out of the car. A young man dressed in a black overall walked up to them. Jackson threw the car keys to the man and began matching toward the hanger where several planes were parked.“Where is Rockville?” Nathan asked as they approached an aircraft with an Alcantara logo.“Rockville is home.” Jackson said and pointed at a particular aircraft. “Let’s go. Th
Lisa was on her way to her father’s office when she spotted Samson stepping out with a cup of coffee. She stopped by the door and looked up at Samson who seemed devastated.“Is there a problem?”Samson sighed. “Looks like fixing your father’s coffee is such a herculean task. This is the second cup of coffee I’ve delivered to him and he is still not satisfied.”“Well, looks like you will be fixing the third.” Lisa said.Samson tilted the mug and shook his head. “He said it was too sweet and it was not as if I added lots of sugar.”Lisa looked around. “Where is Smith? Shouldn’t he be the one doing this?” Immediately after she asked the question, her heart skipped a beat. It then dawned on her that Smith didn’t return home last night. She sighed.“Yeah. Where is Smith? I mean, I should be asking you that question because he lives in your house. Why isn’t he here anyway? It’s past 10 am.” Samson cried out.Lisa cleared her throat loudly and quickly looked away. “I guess he got caught up