Faux Vows, True Desires

Darlene chuckled, openly typing a message-not to her sister, but to her right- hand man.

The reply came swiftly.

Keith had pulled the plug on his deal with Cipher Detectives and reclaimed his deposit.

Darlene: Keith's there already? Lucy hasn't even picked him up from the airport.

Keith: I always fly private. Who needs a pick-up?

Darlene: ...She's been had by Lucy!

With Keith having canceled his order and taken back his deposit, he would continue to keep tabs on her if she didn't provide an address for him to deliver the money.

After giving it some thought, Darlene decided she'd meet Keith where it all began -the very place she had saved him from an assassination attempt.

What starts in one place, ends there, she thought.

But it had to wait until nightfall to confront Keith.

Keith always stayed at Ascend Estate when he was in Pinehurst. Was she really going to sneak into Ascend Estate tonight?

The Andersons were different from the Blues. Sure, the Blues had a decent security team and a high-tech system, but their ranks were riddled with disunity, making them vulnerable.

The Andersons, on the other hand, were tight-knit, with a state-of-the-art security system. Each Anderson man was skilled, well, except for the youngest he was the black sheep in terms of brawn.

Breaking into Ascend Estate was going to be a mountain of pressure.

"Ring, ring, ring..."

Lucinda's phone chirped to life.

"It's my brother," she said to Darlene. "He must've arrived."

Darlene gave a knowing smile, signaling for her to take the call, while silently praying Keith wouldn't stay at Ascend Estate-it would make her mission that much easier.

She couldn't eavesdrop on Keith's call, so she kept an eye on Lucinda's expressions, listening to her end of the conversation.

"He's heading to Wye County now? Alright, he's going to see Mom. She'll be thrilled."

Darlene's eyes sparkled with opportunity.

Keith had chosen to visit the Moore family first. The Moores lived in the countryside, a place not as tightly guarded as the Anderson stronghold. Perfect for her nocturnal visit.

The only downside was the distance. This back-and-forth travel meant another sleepless night.

She'd have to turn down Lucy's invitation in the afternoon, catch up on some sleep, and then set out for her night-time escapade-oh, not as a burglar, of course, but to collect her dues.

hanging up, Lucinda casually mentioned, "Darlene, my brother's here, but he's gone to see

softly, "Mrs. Bright deserves a visit

Lucinda hummed in agreement.

brother was giving Darlene a chance

wondered when he'd finally

...

a brief rest, Owen was prodded by Cecilia to take a

him his fresh clothes, hanging them on the door handle, knocked, and reminded him, "Your clothes are on the handle. Don't

her fetch

Owen acknowledged her.

to

on the couch,

his beard neatly shaved. The hot shower and clean shave had done

"Cecilia."

He approached her.

the shirt from his hands, ready to help him dress while teasing, "I'm plenty satisfied

The air-con's fairly low in here, don't catch a

shirt, Owen caught her hands, his gaze intense, his voice deep and intoxicating, "Cecilia, I want to

Cecilia: "..."

the café, was he not yet

Cecilia could respond, Owen enveloped her

kiss was simply not

until she was lost in the sensation, to the point where he could claim her

unable to resist his

This emboldened Owen.

she was already lying on

"Cecilia."

asked earnestly,

after all, very respectful of her. Even now, he cared about

take a cold shower to cool off if she truly

moment of eye contact, Cecilia wrapped her arms around his

and kissed him

her

Owen was ecstatic.

dashed

Cecilia sat up, puzzled.

and hadn't resisted

What happened?

her clothes and tidied

door, knocking gently, "Owen,

stayed silent, leaning against the door,