Blossom in Winter (Blossom in Winter #1)(8)

“I’d like to show you something,” he whispers, taking me by the hand. “It’s a surprise.”

I feel light-headed, flying like a butterfly. I love surprises! We walk in silence back to the house and finally reach the door of a guest bedroom.

“You’ve got to close your eyes first,” he instructs.

I do so.

He opens the door and escorts me inside. “Okay, now you can open them.”

The entire room is lit with candles, rose petals have been scattered everywhere, and a bossa nova soundtrack is crooning in the background.

“Oh, James,” I gasp, my heart pounding so loud and hard. “It’s wonderful!” I kiss him again.

As we head to the bed, he continues kissing me and helps me lie down. With our excitement growing with every breath, he starts to unbutton his shirt, and I find myself helping him to strip it off. He knows I won’t do more than cuddles and kisses, but even so, it’s still a big milestone for me.





Emma Hasenfratz





I’ve just gotten a phone call I don’t like at all. It’s from my security. Alert code “intrusion” has been activated. My mind’s going wild, and I’m feeling fucking betrayed. Why can’t everyone simply follow the rules of this party? I’m currently winning the tequila contest against Fred and have managed to drink over ten shots. A record so far! But I’ve got to excuse myself and leave the terrace with a fake smile. I run inside the house, flying through the corridors but keeping quiet so not to be heard. I’m glad to see two of my security guards already there waiting for me, hidden near the wall of the guest bedroom. When they see me arriving, they nod at each other as a signal.

“Don’t move! Drop the phone now,” screams one of them, pulling his gun out.

Jerk Number One, aka Kevin, drops his iPhone in shock and puts his hands in the air. I grab it from the floor and find exactly what I expected.

Enraged, I step right into the bedroom, turning on the lights. “Sorry to bother you, babygirl, but James is a fucking asshole!”

Jerk Number Two, James, is already shirtless on top of my bestie, devouring her mouth, their faces sweaty, her hair messy. They stop immediately at the sound of my voice.

She pushes him aside instantly. “Emma! What do you mean?”

I lift the iPhone and play the video for both of them.

Petra gasps and covers her mouth in disgust. The video is five minutes long, explicitly showing everything they’ve done so far.

“How did you get this?”

One of the security guards brings Kevin inside.

“Unfortunately, I believe Kevin, James, and Fred are in this together,” I reply.

“We’ve already apprehended Fred, Ms. Hasenfratz. One of our guards has him. Carol and Laura are also on their way to take care of Ms. Van Gatt.”

“Perfect, thank you. Take James to the basement and tie him to a chair.”

“Yes, Miss,” replies the security guard, moving toward him.

“Don’t touch me! Emma, I can explain,” shouts James as he’s led by force out of the bedroom. “Please, Emma! Please!”

“Emma, what are you gonna do?” asks Petra.

“Ah! Here you are, Fred.” I cross my arms at the sight of Jerk Number Three. Brought in by another guard, his hands are already tied behind his back. “So, I believe you are the mastermind behind this little operation, aren’t you? But the real question is why? Let me guess… Jealousy? Money? Revenge?” But Fred remains mute, his stare absent and cold. Kevin too. I have to scare them. “Your little friend James is already tied down to a chair in my basement. He’ll be bleeding very soon…” The duo starts to tremble but don’t say a word. Jeez! I’m getting fucking impatient with their little game. “Aright, folks, if you don’t tell me the truth, I swear I’ll make sure your bodies get flogged like Jesus Christ on the cross!”

Fred keeps quiet, but Kevin starts to crack. “Please, Emma, don’t beat me. It was all Fred’s idea. He wanted to blackmail you and the Van Gatt for money… Please don’t hurt me. I swear that’s the truth,” he finally fesses up.

“For how much?” I ask, intrigued.

Kevin swallows hard, looking down. “Three hundred thousand dollars,” he mumbles.

Babygirl remains sitting on the bed, her face frozen. I can see her blue eyes watering and her little heart wounded by what she just heard. Oh boy. It really hurts me to see her like this.

“Wow. So you thought humiliating my bestie during her very first romantic encounter would be worth making a few bucks, huh?” I nod thoughtfully. “Very well. Take them all to the fucking basement!”

“Please, Emma,” interrupts Fred. “Kevin told the truth. You already have the phone. I promise there are no other copies of the video. Please don’t hurt us. We’ll disappear from your lives and do no harm.”

I finally sight my girls stepping into the room. “Ah, Laura, Carol, please take Petra back to the party. She has been absent for too long. I don’t want rumors to spread.” Then I look back at my security guards. “Get these two jerks out of here.”





“So you really thought you could blackmail us, huh? You fucking bastard!”

James has been tied down to a chair, shirtless, and already bears some red-and-blue bruises from where I’ve been hitting him with my baseball bat. I never allow my temper to come out, but this time, and with the help of tequila shots, I snapped and I’ve got an uncontrollable urge to make an example of him and his squad. Heck, he’s crying, sobbing, begging me to stop. But no one can hear him. The basement is too far from the party.