Chapter 4:

When Sia finally woke up from her slumber, it was almost noon the next day.

But she was in no hurry. She had created her best wedding dress till date and that too at the cheapest rate possible. She was happy that she'd been able to meet the demands of the underprivileged couple who will be starting their life together shortly. She sat up slowly and stretched, relieving the tension in her arm muscles. She hadn't trusted anyone else with her designs this time, consider how the wedding season was in full swing and employees are often tempted to sell designs to more prestigious companies who would charge a far higher rate for the gown she'd created, their goal to satisfy their own greed than bring a smile on a woman's face.

Sia had learned that the hard way when the company she had been working for as an intern had stolen her design and the man she'd considered her guru had taken full credit for the work. So she had grit her teeth and waited for her internship to be over, after which she'd said a big 'fuck you' to the offer of working as the man's assistant and started the company of her own. He'd laughed at her then, believing that she wouldn't be able to make it far in the industry, but eight years later, she was steadily climbing the success ladder while her so called 'guru' faced his downfall because of poor declining quality and higher price rates.

Sia got out of bed and went on to take a warm shower. She then dressed in one of her favourite sundresses, a blue knee length dress that had a white belt and three-quarter sleeves, followed by white slippers and pearl earrings. She liked to keep things simple.

When she was done she went downstairs for breakfast. "Good afternoon Sia!" Mrs. Stackhouse welcomed her into the kitchen and placed some bread, ham and cheese for her in a plate along with some freshly made lemon tea. Sia loved the aroma of lemon tea in the morning.

Sia ate her meal and drank her tea in comfortable silence. She wasn't surprised when her mind went back on her encounter with Julian Turner. She'd heard all about his reputation as a bad boy womanizer, but she'd also heard about his unmatched reputation as a bodyguard. She was glad she had appointed him though. He might be a womanizer but he had brains. He figured out in an instant that the attacks were a part of revenge and not someone trying to take over her company. Although the news he'd delivered was unnerving.

There was only one person she could think of who would do such a thing...but surely he wouldn't...would he? She had her doubts but knew must speak to Julian about her past no matter how hard it might be. She'd thought she was finally free of it; after all, it's been ten years. But psychopaths rarely forget their obsessions, no matter how much time had passed.

A sound of shoes on the marble stairs brought her attention back to the present. She looked towards the source of the noise just in time to see him jump of the last few stairs and land gracefully on his feet.

He was wearing blue basketball shorts and a white sleeveless hoodie with orange stripes in it. His light blond, almost white hair was still damp from his shower and his amethyst eyes looked directly at her, the excitement it them barely contained. Straight nose, full lips and a boyish but strikingly handsome face that would make any woman go crazy over him in the future. Leonard Stone was the splitting image of her, except for the eyes and hair. He was still a bit on the leaner side but boys his age usually were. She knew his body would fill out when he got a bit older and once he hits puberty.

"Good morning mom!" he exclaimed happily a he reached the kitchen counter and bend down to kiss his mother's cheeks.

"Morning Leo. Ready for practice?" she asked him, happy to get her mind off of serious things.

"Yup. But I won't have that much time since finals are coming up," Leonard or Leo as his mother called him, answered. "By the way, what are we having for lunch?"

"Now that's cheating, Leo!" Mrs. Stackhouse scolded him. "You know Sunday lunches are always special, but that doesn't mean I'm going to reveal the items before lunch time."

"Marthaaaaaaa!" Leo whined, making both Sia and Martha grin. "That's not fair!"

"Life's not fair, my boy!" Martha sighed dramatically.

"You know I have a nose, right?" Was Leo's comeback.

Leo was in his final year of middle school and soon he'd be in high school. Apart for his studies, Leo was also a great basketball player and despite his young age, he could take on boys older than him. Sia had loved basketball ever since she was a kid and she was happy to see her son share the same passion. In fact, she'd been the one to teach him how to play basketball. She had made sure that even while she was struggling to make her mark in the fashion industry; her son would never feel neglected as she had once felt as a child.

She was about to cut off Martha and Leo's bickering when she heard a car pull up her driveway. She looked at the clock in the kitchen and saw that it was exactly noon. Right on time, she thought as she finished her tea and stood up from the stool.

"Are we expecting someone mom?" Leo asked, peaking out the kitchen window.

Sia looked at Martha and she nodded her head indicating that the guest room was ready.

"Yes hun. We are having a visitor." Sia replied. "You remember I told you about our new bodyguard?"

"Julian Turner?" Leo raised an eyebrow at his mother. He felt a surge of relief when his mother nodded a yes. In truth, he'd been extremely worried after hearing about the incidents that had happened at his mother's office and the burglary attempt.

He hadn't been home that night, had been at his friend's house for a sleepover, but he had felt extremely helpless when he'd seen the stab wound on his mother's arm and felt her pain. And then had come those people who had chased him around town in a van that had tainted black windows and that had attempted to capture him while he rode his bicycle home. He had been extremely lucky that day and had managed to make a narrow escape when he took a diversion through an alleyway. It was a good thing that no one had followed him on foot after that. He hadn't been allowed to go to school after that and although he hadn't admitted it to his mother, he had been very shaken up by the incident.

But today, hearing that there was someone finally here to help protect them, he felt extremely relieved. He also felt a great deal of admiration for the man who was willing to risk his own life to save theirs.

Julian sat in his car for a few more seconds, absorbing in the house in front of him.

The property wasn't huge. It was what he would like to call descent sized, small compared to the other clients houses he's been at, but there was something about the house that intrigued him.

The house was two storied, white in colour with green and lavender highlights. The front wall of a room on the first and ground floors were made of glass. The drapes were drawn so he couldn't see inside, but he was sure the view from those rooms would be wonderful. There was a fountain in front of the house and the road twisted around it and led back out the front gate. It was simple but very...welcoming.

He finally got out of the car and took out the bags he had brought from the passenger seat. He then locked his SUV and headed to the front door.

The door opened before he even reached it and standing in front of him in a blue sundress was none other than Sia Milton. He took in her long, lean legs for the first time and a scorching desire slammed into him so hard and fast that he felt like taking her in his arms and having her right there and then, right on the front porch. The image of her naked and under him, those sexy, long legs wrapped around his butt was too much to bear. But he brought his desire under teeth-gritting control before he could do anything stupid.

"Mr. Turner, you came right on time" Sia managed a smile. Was it possible that the man looked even more handsome than he had yesterday?

"Julia, please and I'm always on time." he replied back politely with a small bow.

"Please do come in. And you can call me Sia if you like" she managed a friendly tone. To be honest, Sia felt extremely nervous. Someone wanted her harm and on top of that, she'll have to tell Julian about her past, one she'd managed to escape from with severe difficulty.

He smiles at that and followed her into the house as Sia began giving him a tour of the house.

The living room was spacious with lush couches and a small glass table in front of them, cream walls and small vases of freshly plucked flowers. There was a long dining room for special occasions which was a bit Victorian styled with a long table in the middle and 12 chairs around it. The room had huge windows with deep violet silk drapes and light violet walls. The kitchen was right next to it, small but spacious. He was introduced to the caretaker of the house, Martha Stackhouse who was a plum old lady with a kind heart. She had coffee ready for them as soon as they entered the kitchen. Then there was the guest room. It had blue and white walls, an en-suit bathroom, closet and a king sized bed. The windows were draped with blue silk with silver designs. There was also a room for Martha and her husband Travis, who was the Gardner. And finally there was Sia's office which was where she worked on her designs.

He was told that the rooms upstairs consisted of Sia and her son's bedrooms and another guestroom. The security guards at the front gate had a room right at the front, next to the gate, outside the main house. There were two guards in total, who hadn't been able to stop the burglar from hurting their employee.

Julian was given the guestroom downstairs where he was left to unpack and Sia returned to the living room. He did his unpacking quickly, since he didn't have that many clothes with him, and moved to the living room, eager to be close to Sia. But there was also something else he was interested in.

It was time to meet Sia's son. Leonard Stone.

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