The girl in the red dress and the man in the dark suit stood on the ballroom floor, friends and family surrounding them, congratulating them. A man with light brown hair moved toward the newly engaged pair and tapped the black-haired man on the shoulder, just enough to get his attention.

"William."

William turned around and looked at his best friend, a man he hadn't seen or heard from in the past few months.

"John...So you're alive, huh?" William observed his best friend with a malicious gleam in his eye. Anna turned to look at the man William called his best friend and sucked in a surprised breath. This man was a looker.

"Hah...I am, and I'm sorry...for everything these past few months, Will. I really am."

William glared at John for a few more seconds before his face split into a huge grin and he pulled the other man roughly to him in a giant bear hug. John smiled and pounded his friend's back.

"William?" Anna said timidly, not wanting to interrupt their 'bro' moment.

Will pulled back from the hug and wrapped on arm around Anna. "Anna, this piece of crap is my best friend, John Montecino. John, this is the love of my life, Anna Williams."

John cracked a smile at her last name and held out a hand. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Miss Williams. I'll enjoy hearing about the past six months I've been gone from you."

Anna froze and glanced at William. Past six months? How do we tell him we've only been together for two?

William took it in stride though. "Hoh, that's a story for another time. Right now, it's time for celebration!"

John cheered and rose up a glass that had magically appeared in his hands. Anna glanced at her cup and rose her glass up as well. William threw an arm around her shoulders and drank from his cup after they had all clinked together.

Charlotte and Charles also came into the circle a few moments later.

"So, John, what do you think of Anna?" Charlotte asked, knocking her hip into John's. He smiled and knocked back. "I haven't gotten to know her long, but I think she's a pretty cute girl."

Anna wrinkled her nose. "Girl? I'm twenty-two years old!"

John pointed a finger at her. "Exactly. Come on, Will, you couldn't get someone older to like you?"

William glared at his friend and replied, "I don't want someone else. I like this one very much, thank you."

"Sorry, sorry! It's just...what happened to Claire? Weren't you really into her for a while?"

Anna gaped and glanced at Will. He only squeezed her shoulder and said, "Yeah, five years ago! And that was before I knew how much of a psychopath she was!"

"Okay. I'm sorry for bringing it up. I'm sure Anna's a nice girl. I just know that nice girls have a lot of secrets that they don't want anybody know. Get me?"

William looked suspiciously at John before nodding his head. "You're being weird. Are you okay? My father didn't give you any weird missions, did he?"

John looked at Anna and said, "It was certainly weird. He even had me attend a child's birthday party a few weeks ago. Cowboys."

Anna froze. She met John's eyes as he stared at her.

A few weeks ago...his party was a few weeks ago...and cowboy themed. H-he...couldn't mean Joey's party, could he?

"A little boy's party? What on earth for?!"

Still staring into Anna's eyes, he said, "Dunno... wanted to make sure a secret stayed hidden. Can't even tell you about it. Sorry, buddy."

Anna let out a relieved sigh and looked away, seeing Daniel watching them out of the corner of her eye. As John said that, he glanced away from the group and nodded at something someone in front of him said.

He's making his lackeys watch over Joey? What for? Didn't know you were capable of being suspicious about a little boy, Daniel.

~

After everyone had stopped celebrating and the ball continued, Anna hung by the back wall, resting her feet from a round of dancing. She was so tired she didn't even notice the person standing in front of her.

"I know who you are."

It was John.

Anna sighed and said, "And who am I?"

"You're an actress that was hired by Daniel to make Willie fall in love with you and marry you. You're also a woman who gave up her son five years ago...when you were eighteen."

She glanced up at him and noticed his cold face. "And? What are you going to do about it? It's not like you can tell Willie. I'm sure Daniel forbade it and swore you to secrecy."

John narrowed his eyes at her. "He did, but don't think you're safe just because I can't tell him. There are other people who know your secret and William's a smart guy, I'm sure if someone gave him clues he'd find out on his own."

Before Anna could say anything back, John walked away.

Anna glared at his retreating form and put her shoes back on. Oh, how she wished she could throw them at his head instead. That'll show him!

A giggle next to her caught her attention.

"Miss Williams is hiding something from William! She's hiding, hiding, hiding something, and I'm going to find out what it is!" Piper sang, twirling past Anna on her small heels. She left too before Anna could say anything.

Damn it! Why can't I get a break? Why?

~

Claire sat on a stool, eyes closed as someone brushed her hair softly, imagining that it was her mother who was doing the brushing. Her mother...who mysteriously died when she was nine, and her long-lost brother was four. She had died in the pool behind her house, drowned, despite being an excellent swimmer.

Claire's injuries had healed rather quickly thanks to the highly expensive doctors and medicines that were assigned and given to her. Oh, all the wonders that money could buy...

Except William. If only it were as easy as buying him...

Claire opened her eyes. She waved off the nurse and stared at herself in the mirror.

Maybe she didn't have to buy William...maybe...she just had to buy Anna.

$10 million dollars should be enough to get her away from William, and, if not, then Claire could always put her shooting expertise to use. It's not like anyone would care if a rat died. It was just another in billions. It would be easy.

Claire smiled, eyes sparkling prettily.

Don't worry, Father. It'll work this time, I swear. And, besides, enough time has passed for it to actually be believable.

Plan A: Offer Anna $10 million to leave William.

Plan B: Britney comes back into the picture, except with actual proof she's pregnant this time.

Plan C: Kill Anna if nothing else works. 8D

Claire tilts her head to the side. Killing Anna would be easier, but there is a reason that's Plan C; it would be too obvious that she had killed her. William would know she had something to do with it.

Picking up her cellphone, Claire calls her assistant. "Nyna, I need you to gather ten million dollars and put it together for me... No, you nosy ass! It's none of your business!...Also, tell Miss Danes to be ready; I might need her soon...And...What?!? Piper Rossi is here? In the building? ..."

Claire turned away from the mirror, clutching her phone in her hand, a look rarely seen on her face: fear.

If Piper Rossi was here...then that means her father is here as well. Brian Rossi was here, the man notorious for killing multiple people and getting away with it.

And two of those people...were Elisa Winters, William's mother, and- Claire was almost positive- her mother. Both had deeply hurt Brian, and both had married other men.

Brian might have been a nobody then, but now...he could easily have more power than Daniel Winters and Senator de Monte combined if he tried. The Royal Family was on his side, thanks to his wife, and his daughter had princes and nobility asking for her hand. The Rossi family could have the Winters family and the de Monte family wiped out with a snap of his fingers if he wanted.

That had to be avoided. So, now...it was time to play nice with a good friend.

Claire put a smile on her face, all traces of any emotion besides happy wiped away.

~~~~~~

Author's Note:

Hi y'all!!! How are you? I'm good, but tired. I've been studying for finals again, much to my dismay. Can you believe that I thought we only had finals once per school year? Yeah, I know! So, imagine my surprise when I heard students and teachers start talking about finals again in May!

Terrible, just terrible!!!

Besides that...how was this chapter? Good? Bad? Okay? Anything?

Fine.

Anyways, please remember to VOTE AND COMMENT!!!

THANK YOU!!!

BYE!!!

© RavenMoon06

-RavenMoon

P.S. please tell me if there were any grammar or punctuation mistakes. Thank you. :)