Loving Madeline



Jack's POV

Cecily was waiting for me at the front porch, and I was smiling from ear to ear as I walked towards her.

"It felt like we are having a celebration," she said when she noticed the wine in my hand.

"Of course, it is a beautiful night to celebrate, thanks to you," I responded as we strode inside the house and headed straight to the living room.

"I will get the wine glass," Cecily said, and I nodded my head before I sat down on the sofa.

"So, what can you say?" She asked the moment she got back with two glasses in her right hand and a corkscrew in her left hand, and she handed the wine opener to me and put the glasses on the center table.

"First, I want to thank you for all your help. You are amazing, Cecily." I responded, and she beamed at me.

"I told you I can help you," she softly replied.

"I believed you, but I couldn't stop feeling worried if she would say no." I answered.

"But she didn't, Charlotte Divenson said yes!" She exclaimed while I poured wine into our glasses.

"Yeah, and not only that, she called me a while ago and told me I can move in tomorrow." I excitedly responded, and her smile widened.

"I knew it. It is now all up to you, Jack. I have done my part, and please don't mess this up." My friend declared.

"Of course, I won't mess up. I need to do this. I can't fail. I must prove to Hunter that I am the right person for the job." I replied.

"I could tell she is no longer a job for you, right?" She asked, and I nodded my head.

"I don't know how to do this. I can't stop myself from drowning in her. I swear I don't want to like her, but every time I see Charlotte, I can't help myself but want her." I responded, and she laughed.

"That is good news. I can tell she is crazy about you, too," Cecily responded.

"No, that is not true. she only needed me to work for her, and she doesn't like me at all." I replied.

"That is not true," she mumbled, and I only shook my head, and I didn't say anything.

"Cheers!" Cecily added as she raised her wine glass.

"Cheers to us, and congratulations for a job well done, Cecily." I smiled as I lifted up and clanked my glass with hers.

"Congratulations to us! At least we made her say yes. I felt so happy that I was able to help you." She stated.

"Thank you so much again, Cecily, I don't know what to do without you," I responded.

"Don't mention it; we are both working for Hunter, and your success would be mine, too," she replied.

"Of course," I softly mumbled. I felt sad as I thought of Charlotte; at first, she was just a job for me, but now that I was beginning to know the real her, I wanted to help her, but I signed a contract with her brother.

I didn't want Charlotte to know anything about it since I really wanted to help her as her knight in shining armor, and I didn't want to be just a friend with her. I wanted more.

"So, you are going to leave me?" Cecily asked.

"Yes, but I guess we will be seeing each other every day since you will be working with her," I replied.

"Of course, I like her, Jack. at first, I thought she was wicked, and I felt glad the rumors I heard weren't true." She replied.

"Well, Charlotte regretted the wicked things she had done in the past; she wasn't guilty of some of those rumors, but I believed she had her reasons, and we should give her the benefit of the doubt," I responded.

"You must like her a lot," she mumbled as I poured wine on her empty glass.

"I do, and I couldn't wait to be with her; this is the first time I really wanted to be with someone after her sister-in-law. I loved Maddie, and I will always cherish her in my heart," I responded, and she smiled.

"I am so intrigued to meet this woman, and she captured Hunter Divenson's heart; she must be something." She said.

"Yeah, you will like her, Cecily; she is far different from all the women I have met before. Madeline has an exceptional beauty and charisma I couldn't explain in words." I declared.

"I was happy for her that Hunter fell in love with her too; she was crazy about him; it hurt me to the brim when she told me she was in love with him," I added.

"That was the only time I dreamed of becoming rich like Mr. Divenson. I really want Maddie for myself, but I know I couldn't win. She was madly in love with him. But I liked how Maddie treated me even if she knew I liked her so much, and I became more drawn to her." I continued.

"I thought I would never get over her until I came here to Barcelonia and spent time with Charlotte." I declared.

"You fell in love with Hunter's sister; what a lovely story. Who could have thought Maddie would become your sister-in-law in the future," Cecily said, and I laughed.

"That is something I am not sure about; she is adamant about hiring me. If not because of you, I am sure I will terminate the contract, lower my pride, and ask Hunter to waive the breach of contract," I responded.

"At least we have succeeded, and now, all we have to do is help her. She likes you. If not, she won't hesitate to ask for your help, Jack." Cecily said.

"She doesn't want you to pity her. Charlotte is Divenson by blood, and they are super rich, but she thought she lost her share in the company and was all alone." She added.

"She doesn't have any idea her entire family was waiting for her to come home. She thought they abandoned her. They all love her, especially Hunter. I could see how much he wanted Charlotte to stand alone." She continued.

"He was only doing this to teach her a lesson. I can't blame Hunter, and I had seen how Charlotte tried to ruin Maddie. I was there. She asked me to do a favor for her once, but my loyalty was with Maddie, and that is why I agreed with Hunter and signed that contract." I responded.

"I wanted to see for myself that Charlotte suffers without realizing I would put my heart at risk by falling for her. It was so ironic, and I couldn't believe one day I would fall in love with the same girl I hated back then." I added.

"That is life. Besides, love moves in mysterious ways, and you can't alter destiny." Cecily replied, and I looked at her with wide eyes.

"Do you really think we are destined to be together?" I asked, and she nodded.

"Yes, you looked good together," she responded, and we both fell silent. We emptied the bottle and decided to call it a night.

"Jack," Cecily called my name, and I ceased walking halfway to my room and turned around to face her.

"Yes?" I asked.

"I told Charlotte something stupid, but I could tell it helped," she answered with a mischievous grin on her face.

"What kind of something is that and how did it help?" I asked, confused.

"Well, I just wanted to make sure she likes you, but of course, as expected, she denied her feelings for you," Cecily responded, and I arched my eyebrows as I stared at her.

"I don't know what to say," I mumbled.

"I am a little hurt. I didn't expect you would ask her about that matter," I replied, feeling so low.

"Hey, don't be discouraged. I am sure she likes you because after I told her I like you, she blushed and fell silent." She declared, and my eyes widened in shock.

"You like me?" I asked in disbelief, and she laughed.

"Don't worry, I was only testing her. You are handsome and hot, but I don't have feelings for you, Jack. I like you as a brother. And I like Hunter Divenson type of guy, but too bad he was taken." Cecily replied, and I felt relieved she was only joking.

"I could see the pain she was trying to hide after she recovered from her shock. Don't worry, she likes you, and Charlotte would not call you if she hadn't any feelings for you." Cecily added.

"She planned to ask you to move into the manor next week, but after I told her I like you, she changed her mind." My friend continued, and then she winked before she made her way to her room, laughing while I was grinning like an idiot again, and I was hoping that was really the reason why Charlotte called me.

I left Cecily's house early in the morning, and I felt so excited as I drove to the Divenson manor. I pressed the doorbell multiple times and called her phone countless times before she finally opened the main door looking so sleepy, and she looked damn hot in her nightgown since she had forgotten to put on her robe.

"Good morning!" I greeted her while she glared at me.

"It is still very early, Jack," she complained.

"If you want to start your own business, you should start to discipline yourself; no matter how late you slept last night, you must wake up early the following morning," I responded, and she grimaced at me before she finally opened the door.

"Your room is on the west wing next to my room; since that side is not included, it would be for us and the staff only." Charlotte said.

"I will ask Cecily to stay here if she wants since she is also our partner. She is willing to invest too," Charlotte said as she tried to fix her messy hair with her fingers, but for me, she still looked so lovely and hot, and her face turned crimson, and she averted my gaze when she caught me staring at her lips.