Chapter One

The car came to an abrupt stop in the middle of the busy road. A woman in her late twenties blared the horn several times with her fist angrily before stepping out of the car, she whipped her long, glossy chocolate brown hair away from her smooth, round face.

Underneath her thick, long lashes were gorgeous, sparkling warm cognac eyes which emanate an inviting look. She had high cheekbones and lush, full, pink lips. She was an average height lady with a beautiful hourglass figure. The name of this beauteous looking lady is Caroline Martinez.

Groaning, she kicked the flat front tire of her car angrily.

"Why now of all times? I am gonna be late! Ugh!" She screamed as loud car horn sounds and other vehicles passed by.

She had a very important meeting with one of the snobbiest socialite couple in the country. The Laveria nation, a small European nation well known for its beauty and its unique way of fashion.

Caroline Martinez is the finest and the best fashion designer in the entire nation, the fashion industry and beyond, her company was built on a foundation of sleepless nights and restless days but it was all worth it seeing that all the struggles and obstacles she faced not only made her stronger but made her who she was. A strong, firm, independent woman who started with nothing but a needle and a couple of entwined threads, now she has an entire empire full of needles, threads, sewing machines and fabrics of different materials which are worth millions of dollars and all these were obtained because she never gave up. She never forgot who she was, where she came from and who she wanted to be. The Caroline that she is, the woman that she is ever-so-proud of. 

Her phone rang in her hand bringing her back to reality, she looked at the screen and discovered that the caller was her assistant, Jenny.

"Where are you? Mr Andrew and his cliquish wife are getting impatient. They are thinking of going to Macy's for their daughter's birthday gown!" This was the first thing she heard after the annoying incident, Caroline resisted the urge to groan, Jenny sounded a bit on edge from the other end.

"Ugh! I hate Macy's. My car broke down in the middle of the road and I am a little bit far from the company!" She explained.

"What are we going to do now? They are really mad!".

Caroline thought for a while and soon enough an idea popped in "Why don't you handle the meeting Jenny?".

"What!" She exclaimed, the pitch in her voice was a little louder than earlier "Me! I can't do that!" She slowly lowered it, realizing the looks she received from the couple.

Caroline nodded firmly "Yup! You have been my assistant long enough! See, just show them the designs and explain everything to them, by the time you are done I might have found a ride and would be on my way to the company!".

Jenny drew in a long breath, calming her nerves "Okay, I will try my best!".

"Thanks, I believe you will do an amazing job!" Caroline said so confidently. Her words gave Jenny a boost of new found confidence.

Jenny sighed, ending the call, she turned to face the wolves.

"So, where is she?" Mr Andrew's wife spoke, staring at her hand fan, obviously expecting some bad news.

Jenny nervously walked close to them, pushing her glasses on the bridge of her nose. She tightened her grip on the tablet she held.

"She is on her way, she just has a little bit of car issues!" She spoke slowly and calmly trying not to enrage them.

The lady scoffed and turned to her husband "Honey, I told you that we should have gone to Macy's, they are more capable than this...!" She spoke, looking around the office with contempt.

Jenny bit her inner cheek in annoyance on hearing that, trying so hard not to lose her cool. She approached them with steps that exuded authority. She had to show them that they have no right to talk down on this company or her boss.

"Mrs Kaitlyn you seem to forget that CM Designs is a well known fashion label in the country, our designs are known to be the best and we are second to none! If you want to go to Macy's be my guest!" She gestured for the door.

Surprise filled their eyes as they stared at her in dismay. They were astonished and dumbfounded at the way she talked to them. No one has talked to them that way, absolutely no one and here was a commoner talking to them fearlessly, they were completely speechless as she spoke to them with an authority that can lead an entire army.

"But let me remind you that this gala is your daughter's sweet sixteen birthday party and I highly doubt that she would want to wear rags at her own party! So I'd suggest you make a quick and wise decision!" She stopped talking and stared at them awaiting a reply.

The couple exchanged nervous looks, Mr Andrew cleared his throat, shifting uncomfortably on his seat.

"We'd like to see the designs of the dresses you think is best for our daughter!" He said calmly.

Jenny smiled sweetly at them.

"You have made a wise choice!".

She placed the tablet on the table and began display several designs of gorgeous gowns that spoke of confidence and beauty to the couple. They stared at them with awe and admiration as Jenny explained the designs to them.

 * * * *

Caroline sighed as she waved cabs over but none came to her rescue. A random thought came to her, she had a spare tyre at the back of her trunk.

She facepalmed, how could she forget?.

Caroline walked towards the trunk and pushed it open revealing a spare tyre and a toolbox. She pulled up her sleeves and tugged the huge mass of rubber out of the trunk, taking the tool box along with her, closing the trunk, she rolled the tyre to the front of the car and placed the toolbox on the tarred road whilst balancing the tyre against the flat one.

Keeping her hands on her hips, she stared at what was before her clueless.

Okay, how do you change a flat tire again?.

Caroline had not a single clue on what needed to be done, she has never done that in her life.

"But it isn't that hard, right?" She asked no one in particular "first you twist the nuts with something called a wrench right? and then you well... I have no idea!" She raised her hands up in defeat.

She scratched her head a little bit violently that she could give herself a sore. She was so fleeceable when it came to car troubles. She bent down to open the toolbox when a black motorcycle sped from behind her, giving her a fright, the motorcyclist parked right in front of her car.

Caroline stood up, filled with rage and prepared to pour out every single thing bad about her life on the driver, he got down from the motorcycle and removed his helmet, hanging it on one of the brakes.

Caroline's voice hitched as she stared at the attractive, young piece of hunk in front of her. He wore a black leather jacket and strode towards her, gracefully. His golden messy hair was long and luminous under the morning sunlight, it fell to his shoulders, framing a face that could only be described as a masterpiece of masculine beauty. 

 His azure eyes captivated all who dared to meet his gaze. They were like two mirrors reflecting an infinite sky, offering glances into a world of mystery and depth. The subtle flickers of amber and sapphire within them danced like flames, lending an air of enigma to his captivating countenance. Caroline found herself drowning into them. 

 He stood at an impressive height, his aura commanded the attention of those around him. Each perfectly sculpted muscle of his broad physique hinted at strength and power, a testament to his dedication of physical fitness, his skin a golden tan was kissed by the sun's embrace. 

 Caroline gasped at him, stunned! Even Greek gods didn't look this hot! She had to stop herself from falling deep for his chiseled good looks. She noticed that he had a stubble on his chin. He looked rugged, the good type of rugged. She gulped as she drank in every piece of him.

God! He was heavenly.

"Miss, do you need help with that?" He halted a few feet away from her.

Caroline was mute, she inhaled the woodsy and musky scent of his cologne which was intoxicating. Can any man smell this luxurious?. She blinked severally when she realized that he was actually talking to her.

"Uh! Yeah I do need help, I really don't know how to change a flat tire!" She said nervously.

"May I help?" He asked in a gentle way that made her heart do a couple of jumping jacks in her chest.

"Uh! Sure! Thanks!" She felt her cheeks get redder by the minute and took some steps back for him to do his stuff.

He removed his jacket and placed it on the hood of her car. He wore a grey T-shirt, revealing his muscular biceps, Caroline tried so hard not to faint at the heavenly sight.

After a couple of minutes he was done.

"Thank you for your help!" She said sincerely.

"No problem!" He replied smiling at her, she felt a tingling sensation in her stomach, a popular saying of butterflies in someone stomach but that was impossible, she is not one to believe in that. Love is nothing but a distraction that's what she always told herself, she learnt it the hard way.

 'Maybe it is because of how long it has been since she has seen a drop dead gorgeous man, that could be the only explanation to this weird feeling she felt'. Yes, that has to be it!. She nodded firmly to the thought.

He took his jacket and strode towards his motorcycle.

"I hope we will see each other again!" Caroline found herself yelling admist the noise of the moving vehicles.

He stopped, tilting his head towards her and smirked "I doubt that!".

He wore his helmet, got on his motorcycle and drove off, leaving a stunned Caroline.