C9

CHAPTER NINE

The Smith's household.

" You think she's okay married to that man?" Asked Karen's mother.

" She is not a child Hannah, she should be doing fine" Bob replied still focused on reading the afternoon papers.

" What if she's having difficulties adjusting to her new environment?" She asked again.

" She has never been one to have problems of habitation." He replied, still not taking his eyes off the papers to even glance at his wife.

" I'm very sure she hates us right now, Karen had always loved her freedom and now she is stuck in a marriage she never wanted." She lamented, worries written all over her face.

" Quit being a storm in a teacup. I believe our daughter is capable of facing the storms. Cut her some slacks, would you?" He said suddenly tossing the papers.

" I was trying to read but you just succeeded in ruining my mood with your whining." He hissed, walking out angrily.

Hannah looked dejected, she was only concerned about her daughter's welfare, she felt she had failed her as a mother. Marrying any of her daughters off without their due consent wasn't her wish, she knew she was being selfish, sacrificing her own daughter to save her own life and she was indeed ashamed.

She loved Bob too much and had been adamant on being with him despite the fact that he was always gambling and putting the lives of both her's and her daughters at risk.

The gambling lords were ruthless and would come for their lives if the payment of the debts had been delayed any further.

Luciano had seem to her like a good man and Louisiana had spoken of how well the media had publicized about his philanthropic works. He was also capable of giving Karen the best life and protection as he was very rich and influential.

And of course his very charming assistant had spoken to her, assuring her that Karen was in good hands. Yet Hannah still couldn't keep calm, her motherly instinct still had a way of keeping her in a state of guilt and constant worry. She just hoped Karen was fine and alright.

If only her daughter would take her calls or reply her messages.

..................................................................

Hilton hotel Paris.

" Excuse me, Mr Luciano." The gorgeous woman said, smiling down at him, from where he was seated on the bar stool.

"Hi, I'm Jane Meyer from spice city magazine. It's nice meeting you here. I've been trying to get an interview with you, but for some reason my request has been abruptly turned down by your assistant on numerous cases." She continued.

Luciano had decided to come down to the hotel's bar to have a drink, as he had been in countless meetings all day and needed to clear his head off of the company's current situation. He was in no mood to give any interview but something struck him about this lady.

She was beautiful with very long legs, one she flaunted off on a pale green mini skirt paired with a white lacey blouse.

She perched on the bar stool beside him, showing more of her long legs.

The temperature has been dropping in degrees by a lot this days and he wondered how cold she must be in this little clothing she wore.

Her hair was tied up in a tight bun, she had a small face one which was coated in heavy makeup, like those high end celebrities on award nights. She was blonde and skinny almost convincing him that she really was a celebrity, one on high maintenance.

" Hi Jane, but I'm sorry I can't give an interview right now." He said eyeing her cautiously.

He had always had a phobia for reporters and would not really want to have anything to do with them.

" Yes, I understand being in the environment we are it's highly unlikely, but I hope you would grant me one before you return to the states." She said smiling at him, then leaning towards him to whisper.

" We could still link up for other businesses too you know?" She said, sliding her card into his hand.

" Call me" she said winking at him, then she left.

Luciano was dumbfounded. What exactly had she meant by that?.

He looked at her card.

**C.E.O of spice city magazine. Jane Meyer.**

But of course she had to be the CEO, there was no way a regular employee would be able to lead such an expensive lifestyle and rock such confidence. She had to be the boss herself.

She was exactly how he liked his women. Rich, powerful and confident. That way, they will be less demanding and able to grasp the situation and move on when the relationship no longer exists and the fire had been piped down. Though his last relationship had proven that even this kind of women could be immature and problematic.

She had mentioned that her request for an interview with him had been turned down so many times by his assistant. There was no reason Amanda would turn down any interview unless it wasn't good publicity for him or he was unavailable at that time. Whatever it might be, Amanda was great at her job, and she must have had a reason for that.

He looked towards the direction she had walked to, but she was no where to be seen. What had she been doing in the hotel. She clearly was not French. He kept her card in the inner pocket of his jacket. For now he needed a proper plan on how to salvage his company. He was going to retire to his room for the night, then have Amanda inform the board of directors that he wants an online meeting with them tomorrow morning to discuss on the way forward.

Not that the company was doing really bad, but he hated losing money, no matter how small. He invested a great deal into starting out this branch in Paris a year ago, and if it was incurring loses early now, the board of directors may lose trust in him. He had insisted on the subcontractors for Paris, because they had more deals coming in from here, now the government policies are just getting in his way. He needed this problem to be gone as soon as possible to retain his confidence of handling the Russian contract when the deal eventually comes to light.