Valentine's Miracle Read online

  Valentine’s Miracle

  Celia Crown

  Copyright © 2019 by Celia Crown

  All rights reserved.

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, places, characters, and events are from the author's imagination or folklore, legends, and general myths.

  The book or any portion of the book may not be reproduced or used under any circumstances, except with the written permission from the author. Public names, movies, televisions, and locales, or any references are used for atmospheric purposes. Any similarities and resemblances to alive or dead people, events, brands, and locales are all complete coincidences.

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  Editor: Syeda Erum Fatima Naqvi

  Contents

  Valentine’s Miracle

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Epilogue

  Author’s other works!

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  Valentine’s Miracle

  by Celia Crown

  A misunderstanding tore two childhood friends apart.

  A meddling friend had good intentions, but bad execution left them meeting again after seven years.

  He’s angry, hurt, and withdrawn. She’s trying, pretending, and reaching.

  Silas has a job to do, and that’s to protect her. Victoria wants to mend their friendship, and Sebastian just wants his best friends to be together again.

  Valentine’s Day is right around the corner, and Silas wants nothing to do with her. Victoria wishes for a miracle, and with each fall of snowflakes, that hope fades just a bit more.

  With love in the air and people choking on romance, Silas and Victoria fight their own battle.

  “You’re leaving again.”

  Chapter One

  Victoria

  “I smell so fruity,” I mumble to myself, looking down at my pajamas as the blanket slides down from my chest.

  It’s hot and heavy while it still traps most of the heat from my nap. I like sleeping throughout the day; it gives me bursts of energy to get to work while maintaining a level of awareness to understand where the equations had come to a dead-end.

  I work as a mathematician for the government, and they don’t require me to be in an office space to get my creativity flowing. They would give me an assignment, typically a list of equations, in an envelope delivered by an agent, without any background information as to what it does to the bigger picture so I can be safe in my own home.

  I can do work without having to face the danger that someone wants to kidnap me for information which I don’t even know myself. I like it that way; it’s less complicated and offers more freedom to me to wander around my home that the government paid for during the first year that I worked for them.

  It was a contract bonus, and they sold it to me so good that I signed, but I don’t regret it. The house is in a gated community which is known to be frequented by military families as it’s close to the military base.

  People thought it was weird that I live here without having a husband in the military. I don’t really care what they think because I barely go outside, and they better believe that when I do, it’s not to make friends.

  Then rumors started that I did have a husband in the military base, but I was also cheating on him with the man that always comes to my house.

  Sebastian is one of my childhood friends; he’s two years younger than me. Sebastian comes to me because he’s a clingy man who can’t stand talking on the phone because apparently that’s too impersonal for him since we grew up together.

  He also likes to crash in my place because his apartment is always frequented by ants despite having fumigation there several times. Sebastian is a freeloader that eats all my food, but I can only blame myself for having a soft spot for him.

  Silas, on the other hand, is a difficult boy.

  I haven’t seen him or spoken to him in seven years. I was eighteen, ready for college, and he was sixteen, angry, and withdrawn.

  I tried, and I tried to reach out to him, but he never answered.

  Silas and Sebastian are still very close friends, and that’s when I knew that the problem originated from me.

  It was difficult to understand what I had done wrong when he wouldn’t give me the time to explain and nothing I can do reached to him while I was in another state for college.

  Time passed and Sebastian became the only thing that connects Silas and me. I would get updates about Silas through Sebastian’s daily rambling about his day, and from what I can tell, Silas is doing well himself, and I don’t have to worry about him.

  It’s sad on my part that I only know enough about Silas through Sebastian, and I have only seen pictures of him. He’s grown into a fine man. Puberty did him justice as he looks massive in pictures.

  I laugh, shaking my head and running a hand through my hair. “He’s doing fine.”

  Whatever had happened, I wish he would talk to me and let me know what I had done for him to end our friendship in one day.

  Another whiff of fruity scent fills my nose as I drop my feet down on the ground where I find my slippers. They’re warm and fuzzy as they tickle my skin. I should get rid of the smell on me because that bottle of shower gel is new and it’s too sweet for my taste.

  I prefer a scent more towards the natural floral side than smelling like I had just jumped into a fountain of sugar.

  I run a quick shoulder as my alarm suggests that I should really get ready for the event that requires my presence. I would have declined to be there if it wasn’t for Sebastian begging me to be there because he needs another slot for a bodyguard as he’s not enough to protect his charge.

  ‘Charge’ is what the security company calls its clients. Each ‘Charge’ or client is recommended to have two bodyguards given that they cater towards people with more than a few hundred grand to spare on protection as if their Fort Knox home security isn’t enough.

  However, the event I have to go to is the one that Sebastian’s client is going to as well, and they only allow one accompanied guest.

  Oh, the things I do for my friend.

  I even brought a freaking dress for this occasion. A dress that fits a bit too snugly on my body, and it practically shows all the curves that I didn’t want to be shown. It’s a simple black dress that guarantees no prying eyes can see through the material while my feet are stuffed in a pair of heels that I know I will regret at the end of the night.

  The car I called is at my front door when the security guard at the gate gives me a call, and my home security camera catches movements in the front when the driver gets out of the car and waits by the car door.

  I pick up my small purse, searching for my keys and the necessities. I find my keys and a moisturizing lipstick that gives me color because I would be eating at the event. Oh yes, there is also a mint strip to prevent my breath from choking myself, and I need it to charm potential investors in my work.

  I don’t plan on working for the government forever. I want to expand my horizons and work in the private sector. They pay better and with better benefits, and they hardly have their workers do overtime over the weekends and holidays.

  I’m a normal human being. I like to have the holiday spirit without being held back by the demonic grips of work and demanding politicians for results.

  The door closes behind me as I step down from the small steps to lead me to the driver behind the gate that I open with a push of a button on the side bricks that holds th
e gates up. I smile and greet the man who returns the gesture; he guides me to the door, and I slide into the backseat.

  The smell of lemongrass-scented air freshener is pungent, but it’s easy to get used to as the driver gets behind the wheel. The car ride is quiet as Sebastian’s messages are bombarding my phone with urgent questions of whether I have my invitation or if I was there yet.

  I don’t see how Sebastian can be a rising-star and being recommended to rich clients when he’s so impatient. Well, he’s more cautious than impatient if I look at it from another angle.

  Tomato, tomato. Same difference. That man can take an insult and think of it as a compliment. Overall, he and Silas are complicated characters in their own ways.

  As the car stops in front of a tall building, the media becomes frenzied again behind the ropes and two rows of security. The red carpet is under my feet as a hand is held out for me to use. I take it and make sure that my dress didn’t snag at the space between the cushions before I thank the man in a clean suit.

  Again, the flashes start, and it hurts my eyes more than it did in the car when they were taking pictures of the car that I was in. Paparazzi are crazy people, but they make good money by being aggressive.

  I’m not a celebrity, but they’re still interested. Someone screams my name at the top of their lungs, and I look over to the flashing lights, and I silently pray that no one has epilepsy because this would be very bad for them.

  I don’t know who called my name, but I think it’s one of the reporters that wanted a full view of my face in his pictures, so he called as if he knows me.

  Walking up to the steps, I mentally prepare myself for the body of Sebastian when he sees me. He’s an overgrown puppy that can’t calm down for anything. I should wait for whoever is my guest, but Sebastian said to just keep going through a text message.

  The invitation in my hand is in white and gold, a sophisticated message that whispers loudly to those who see it that I’m holding a golden ticket to riches. I sort of am since the couple in front of me is the power-couple of the year in the movie industry.

  I haven’t seen the movie yet, but I heard it has won many awards and people say that their on-screen chemistry can burn through the core of the earth. Critics said that about Quartette, but that movie tanked the production company millions when it was released in theaters.

  “Ah, Miss. Valentina.” The man tips his head in greeting when he looks at my name on the invitation.

  “Are you alone tonight?” he asks, searching over my head to see if there was someone behind me.

  His face pales for a moment when he clears his throat, smiling and putting the invitation down on the table beside him.

  A trickle of shiver breathes on my neck as I furrow my brows at his odd behavior. I want to shrug, but that would not be classy, so I nod my head.

  “She’s with me.”

  My heart nearly leaps out of my throat when a voice, too deep and way too husky, says from behind me. I must have been too startled when I put my hand over my heart to calm the erratic thumps that I feel under my palm.

  I peer behind my shoulder. The man is tall, a bit too tall and my eyes only land on his chest. A classic black suit fits over his broad torso and stretches across wide shoulders before my eyes trail up to chiseled jawline and irate green eyes.

  My breath shudders to a stop when he steps from behind me and ignores my presence when he gets through the security check. He doesn’t look over his shoulder to see if I’m following him while the man beside me clears his throat.

  I break out of my stupor, following the man with black hair.

  “Silas,” I breathe his name.

  It’s been seven years since I have seen him in person. He has changed, from a young, nerdy, and short boy to a tall, threatening, and handsome man.

  I pause for a moment; a silent claw roots me in the middle of the hall as everyone converses with each other. I want to act irrationally and demand him to explain why he had not answered my calls for the last seven years, but I have never been the confrontational one, and it would do more harm than good if I don’t plan this out.

  If he is still the same since the last time I saw him, he’s either still extremely angry, or he still retains that closed off and cold demeanor.

  I look over to other attendees and gather my resolve, pulling up a wall of confidence before setting a smile on my face. When I turn to glance at Silas again, he has his back turned to me, and that adamant strong back is his way of telling me that he doesn’t want to be anywhere near me.

  He hasn’t changed. His body language is still readable to me as I have grown up with him. I have decided then that I should not provoke the pent-up energy locked in his massive body or he’s going to let loose that infamous temper of his. It doesn’t matter how much I want to go up to him and just let the friendship mend by itself, I know Silas enough not to do the foolish act.

  Silas can’t stand looking at me. That message is loud and clear, and I got it with an arrow straight through the heart. Cupid isn’t here with his heart arrows, but it still hurts nonetheless.

  Sebastian glances here and there; his eyes are that of a lost puppy when he’s struggling with himself. He wants to stay with Silas and see what he can do, but he wants to come up to me too. Sebastian has been there for Silas for years since they were children born on the same day and nearly at the same time.

  I shake my head, and I can see a flicker of relief in his eyes. He doesn’t have to choose between us. I know that he will ultimately side with Silas because their friendship runs thicker than family blood.

  They are more of brothers than best friends.

  I can talk to Sebastian later when I get home. The conflicted feeling swirling in my stomach is painful to deal with as I walk just a bit further away for the sake of that strenuous tightness on Silas’ shoulders.

  I have thought of scenarios where I would see Silas again. I imagine a heartfelt reunion where he had forgiven me for something that I still don’t know I did wrong, but I would be willing to apologize and make it up to him. There were dreams where our meeting would be explosive, and those tend to become nightmares rather quickly.

  I just never thought I would be given a cold shoulder. The fury in his eyes is going to burn the forest, but Silas would never let that happen.

  That man is determined, if not stubborn. When someone dictates his actions or a deed is being controlled, Silas will go out of his way to do the exact opposite without any regard to danger.

  I laugh under my breath at the memories that I have of him being a rebellious young boy against everything any authoritative figure says.

  His parents have had a fair share of his rebellious streak, and I would have thought that they did what other parents would do and send him off to boarding school.

  Silas has his qualities, and his parents have different ones. They were patient and kind to him, always willing to research methods to control that simmering anger in him. Doctors say he has too much testosterone, but some would shut that idea down because he would be growing to the size of an elephant.

  His parents and I still stay in contact because they are best friends with my parents, and all three of our parents would gather around on weekends as triple dates with each other.

  I think it’s adorable that they are still able to be in that honeymoon phase after so many years of being old, married couples.

  My future goal is to be like them—age unproblematically to retain their youthfulness.

  I breathe in deeply, lifting my head up and smiling at a group of people speaking to each other. Despite my track record of being lazy and sleeping most of the time, I am a perfectionist when it comes to my job, and that means researching potential bosses or at least charming investors into the government branch where they fund my work.

  Being a mathematician requires a lot of brainwork, and I need to have money so I can retire before I burn all my brain cells.

  With the right incentives and a flattering
tongue, the men in the group were hook, line, sinker down a rabbit hole of three million dollars. It takes a bit of finessing but playing with the pride of men deserves a spot in the Olympics.

  If one backs down from the deal after they have promised, then it would make them look bad in front of their friends.

  Would I say that I’m a bad person for exploiting the vulnerability of fragile masculinity? No, because their ego is just as big as their bank account. They’ll bounce back a week later along with their bank account being filled again from whatever revenue they bring in during work hours.

  I have secured three million dollars from these men; it’s time to move on to the food table where they have delicate little bites.

  Oh, how I wish a juicy burger would manifest itself in front of me.

  I search for the group of three that consists of Silas, Sebastian, and a woman that hangs off of the brown-haired man. Women look at Sebastian with awe and adoration.

  The client on his arm is not an exception. The group is off to the side while the woman is chatting with another man who seems to look like her. Maybe he’s her brother, but my eyes aren’t on him.

  I can’t tear my gaze from the side of Silas’ profile. He has this magnetic effect that compels me to look, and it’s hard to watch him while I’m all the way on the other side. It isn’t long before he turns to me and his eyes change from amicable to a death glare.

  Wow, he’s scary.

  He snaps his head away, and Sebastian notices it. Before Sebastian can ask him what is wrong, the woman on his arm says something to him, and he’s nodding his head.

  I smile at the adorableness. Sebastian looks around and finds me; his hand raises up and waves. It’s safe to say that he’s going to escort her home along with the woman’s friend or brother. He’s too young to be her father or uncle.

  I don’t judge, and I don’t want to make assumptions, so I look away. My eyes fall on Silas again, but his movements are sharp and wound-up tight.