 by Natasha Madison.jpg)
Total pages in book: 87
Estimated words: 79670 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 398(@200wpm)___ 319(@250wpm)___ 266(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 79670 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 398(@200wpm)___ 319(@250wpm)___ 266(@300wpm)
Gabriella Stone
Moving to LA was my dream since I was thirteen.
By the time I was twenty, I was sought out by some of the most beautiful people in the world to take their pictures.
No one cared that I came from a hockey dynasty.
Everything was perfect.
Then I met him.
It was supposed to be a one-time thing.
But it ended up being more. So much more.
Until he betrayed me.
Romeo Beckett
Growing up in LA, everyone knew I came from Hollywood royalty.
Following in my father’s legendary footsteps, I learned early on not to fall for the shallow shine of this city.
When I met her, I didn’t know she was what I’d been looking for.
In one night, I ruined everything.
She left without a second thought.
I’ve spent every day since becoming the man she deserves.
She thinks it’s over.
She’s wrong.
It’s time to win her back.
*************FULL BOOK START HERE*************
ONE
GABRIELLA
The soft sound of bells wakes me up from my sleep, my eyes blinking open slowly. My hand creeps out of the big white duvet, grabbing my phone and pressing the snooze button before turning over to lie on my other side. Closing my eyes again, I slip back into a light sleep before the bells ring again. “Ugh,” I mumble, turning off the alarm before throwing the covers off myself. If I don’t get up now, I’ll be snoozing for the next hour, and it’s admin day. I rub my eyes while I shuffle to the bathroom to pee, then walk over and start the shower. I never used to shower in the morning, but I feel like it just starts the day off right. I wrap the white towel around myself before going into my walk-in closet. I slip on a pair of soft pink yoga pants after I put on the white lace thong. Walking over, I pair my outfit with a white crop tank top. I pin my auburn hair on top of my head before walking down the steps toward the kitchen. Instead of turning on the television like everyone in my family, I turn on the music. “Alexa, play ‘These Days,’” I order before she repeats it back to me, and the music starts playing.
I move around the kitchen, grabbing a mug and walking over to the coffee machine. I take a pod and put it in before I press the button on the coffee maker as I walk over to the fridge to grab the milk. Singing the words to the song blasting in the house, I dance back over to the machine as the smell of coffee fills the room. “These days, these days,” I continue singing as I wait for the last drop of coffee to be finished before adding my splash of milk. Scooting over to the drawer to grab a spoon, I place the milk back in the fridge. “Laugh at each other.” I sing the song as I stir my coffee, picking up the mug and taking a sip. “Wonderful.” I smile as I take another sip. There is nothing quite like that first sip of coffee to start your day.
I walk around the island to the stool and sit down, placing the coffee cup right next to my agenda. “Alexa, stop music,” I say out loud, and the music stops right away. I open the laptop next to my phone, making the island my makeshift desk. Even though I have an office right upstairs, I like working downstairs.
I press the little black button on the laptop to power it on while I grab my agenda and flip open to this month’s calendar. One side of the calendar has lines with names written all down the side. I look over the names and the little note I made beside them.
Turning, I move my hand over the little mouse pad in the middle of my computer and click on the mail icon. Grabbing my cup of coffee, I watch the little circle going around as the emails pour in. I wait for the ping to let me know it’s done before scanning down the list. I delete the ones I don’t need and then start reading the ones I kept. I grab my agenda, writing notes in there before replying to the emails. I thought for sure when I left LA, my career would take a hit, but that hasn’t been the case. People don’t care where I’m located as long as I’ll travel to them. So that is what I am doing, and my home base is in Dallas for now.
Once I’ve caught up on all my emails, I grab my phone and start making my calls for this month. The first five calls are standard and basic fashion shoots that will take place at the end of the month. The location is to be determined after they ask me to email them options on where the best place is to do the shoot. I make little notes on the side of the places that come to me.
The next person on the list is someone my aunt begged me to do. I press the number, and the woman answers, “Hello.”
“Hi, Geraldine.” I tap my pen on my agenda. “This is Gabriella.” I wait to see if the woman recognizes the name, but after a couple of seconds, I know she doesn’t. “I got your number from my aunt Allison. I think she knows your daughter.” I try to jog her memory.
“Oh, yes,” she says, her voice going high. “The photographer.”
“That would be me,” I confirm, dropping my pen and picking up my cup of coffee to take a sip. “Sorry it took me so long to get back to you.” I put the cup back. “I was traveling the last couple of weeks.”