BETROTHED TO THE BILLIONAIRE

Ryan’s POV

She is gulping down the whole content of the wine and looking away to make me think she wasn’t staring at me peeling off the baggy shirt and trouser she gave to me on behalf of her dad.

All of a sudden, I feel like taunting her a little about it. This is definitely not the first time she is seeing me naked, so why is she uncomfortable with it?

Well, maybe it’s because it’s the second time. We have had sex only once and that was the first time she saw my nudity and also the first time I saw the beauty beneath her clothes.

I know this is definitely not the right time for this but I can’t help it. Coming here was the right decision and I feel more than relieved to have gotten help from Mr. Lewis.

“Hey”, she shoots to her feet abruptly as I approach her and she begins to walk to the door, hiding her face from looking down at my naked body.

Laugh erupts from my stomach, not at her action but at the fact that the door is locked and the keys are with me.

There is no escape route.

She turns the doorknob and it won’t budge. Instinctively, she spurns round to face me forgetting about the main reason why she was trying to escape the room. Quickly, she facepalms herself and screams. “Get some clothes on, man!”

I laugh again and approach stealthily like a thief in the dead of the night.

She stretches her left hand towards me to stop me from coming closer but I am bent on taunting her till she finally looks at me without feeling embarrassed.

I am her husband, aren’t I?

“Ryan, don’t come closer, you jerk! Get some clothes on, will you?”

A good way to get her to tell me please, I beam.

“Tell me please and I will cover up”, I say to her with a wide grin on my face. Her discomfort because of my nudity is amusing. I never thought any woman would act like this, especially not my own wife.

She remains silent and I am about to take another step towards her when she blurts out quickly. “Please, Ryan. Be decent.”

“Don’t use such a tone. Use a calm sweet voice on me and I will cover up within a minute”, I add, feeling like someone who just won a jackpot.

Having Valerie tell me please is like winning a jackpot.

“Please, Ryan.”

Finally! I surrender and turn back to go get a towel around my waist when an idea struck me. I remain still and quiet for five seconds before turning back to her.

“You can open your eyes, I’m covered now”, I lie perfectly well because she does not doubt me as she drops her two hands with a sigh of relief.

Her gaze falls on me and her eyes go wide before she let out a shout and turn her back on me. “I’m going to kill you, idiot. You liar.”Upstodatee from Novel(D)ra/m/a.O(r)g

I laugh to my fill before going to grab a towel from the closet. The room we were given is quite comfortable and big. The bed is massive too and I’m glad we are going to have to spend the night together here. We were given a room because they know we are couples and it will sound ridiculous of Valerie to ask for a separate room for herself.

I know how worried she was about her Dad. Sometimes, I envy her for having such a good man as a Father. The way she cares for him and worries about me makes me wonder if she loves her Mother as much as she loves her Father.

She wasn’t herself until I called her Mother and we were told that the surgery was successful.

Valerie was relieved. I could sense it from her expression and her tone and it also made me relieved.

She would be broken if anything happens to him and I don’t think I can ever forgive myself if something happens to him because my Father is responsible.

The camera is the right evidence that we need and it is with Mr. Lewis now. He promised to begin work on it as soon as the day breaks.

It’s late already and Valerie and I had dinner in the room because the whole family had had dinner before we arrived.

“If I open my eyes and you aren’t covered yet, I am going to…”, she trails off as I quickly put on a short. I wanted to take a shower at first but I changed my mind.

I have missed having her around. I missed hearing her bicker words with me. I miss sleeping on the same bed with her and I am too excited tonight to do anything else. I just want to sit beside her and stare at her beautiful face.

She spins around slowly, peeps from the gaps of her hands to see me in a short, then she drops her hands.

She went back to the sofa she was sitting in before I peeled her my clothes and I move closer to her. I slouch next to her, gazing at her beautiful features with a smile slowly creeping to my face.

She pretends not to see me staring and takes the bottle of wine, pouring some into the glass cup before bringing it to her lips.

Her beautiful red lips.

It reminds me of how sweet they are. And I wish to have a taste.

“Why are you gawking?” she demands without sparing me a glance.

“I miss you”, I confess unashamedly. “Stop acting too cold, Valerie. It doesn’t suit you…”

Realizing what I am saying, I pause. I am telling the truth but she might get mad at me for that so I better avoid it. This is what I have decided, avoiding what will lead to arguments between us.

She sighs deeply, her eyes fixated on mine. When she looks down, guilt crosses her expression and she drops the cup. “I’m sorry.”

I raise a brow in question. “For?”

“Everything. I’m sorry for being cold…”

“No, I didn’t mean that…”

“Of course you do. I know how difficult I have been to you, that’s why I am apologizing and you better accept it before I change my mind”, she threatens with a snort.

With a courtesy bow, I say. “I accept the apology, milady.”

She smiles and I laugh. I don’t want to talk about the loud beating of my heart or how aroused I am just by staring at her.

I just want us to talk about us.

I miss us.

“I love you”, I declare loudly, making her glass cup hang halfway from her mouth. She turns slowly to me and I repeat. “I love you, Valerie. I never stopped loving you and I always will.”

She does not say anything.

I continue. “I know we’ve had our own fair share of life’s challenges and I know how much we’ve had to fight each other over a lot of things and I’m sorry. I’m sorry for not believing in you or trusting you. I’m sorry for not understanding the type of woman you are and I’m sorry for not being a good husband to you…”

“I should be the one apologizing, not you, Ryan”, she cuts me off from going further. I am ready to admit it all, I don’t care as long as she forgives me and comes back home. I am ready to do all it takes to make this work.

“I am the one making this so hard and I admit that I am stupid and silly sometimes.”

“No, you are not, darling. I love you nevertheless.”

She gives me a knowing smile and looks away. When she sniffles, I know she is about to cry.

“You are an amazing woman, Val. I’ve never met a woman like this and I guess this is why I never dated until you came along and stole my heart away. You are unique and different and I couldn’t help but fall deeply and madly in love with you. All my life, I have only met women who want something from a man but you are different. I can’t say how much of a wonderful person you are but I want you to know that I am glad to have met you, I am glad to be your husband. Will you please come back home?”

She chuckles and sniffles again. “I won’t be bribed, young man!”

“I am not bribing you”, I announce and grab her without warning. She lets out a yelp as I pin her to the sofa, her back hitting the edge while I am above her.

We watch each other in silence until I summon the courage to take her lips. Tasting her sweet lips again pushes me over the edge because of the unexplainable pleasure I am deriving from the single act.

My heart is now pounding harder with each passing second, probably because I am thinking she will push me away because she is still not ready but she isn’t pushing me away.

When she kisses me back, my heart almost skips a beat.

She loves me.

She still loves me.

My right hand grabs her waist, slowly sneaking its way into her short dress while she lets out a soft moan.

Before I can ride my hand up further, a loud ringing tone jerks me up, stopping me from going further with my fantasy.

I let out a loud groan and rise up to pick the call but she beats me to it and raises a brow at me as she turns the phone screen to me.

Celina.

Why is she calling me at this time?

I want to tell her to ignore the call so we can continue from where we stopped but she suddenly picks up and puts the call on loudspeaker.

Celina is panting. “Ryan, where the hell are you?!”

I roll my eyes. She isn’t my wife, why is she asking me that? How many times do I have to tell her off?

“Your mom is…”

I don’t wait for her to complete her statement before shooting to my feet and grabbing the phone from Valerie, breathing heavily, probably from the kiss or from the news about my mom.

“My mom? What the hell happened?” I question with a tone of authority and seriousness. Valerie stands up and comes next to me.

“She.. she.. was…I.. came to visit and she…” she stammers in tears.

“Why the hell are you stammering? What the hell happened?!” I bark at her angrily.

Celina isn’t one to cry easily or stammer so why the hell is she doing this? The action alone is making my head spin and I can’t wait for her to say whatever it is that is happening.

“She is dead”, she finally blurts out with a sob. “The hospital is in a mess.”

“What?!” It feels like I am hearing the wrong thing and I need to be sure I heard right.

“She is dead, Ryan. She was shot. I saw her cold body…”, she continues to talk as she cries but I am no longer listening to what she is saying.

My heart tightens against my rib cage, a horrible feeling stirs up inside of me and my legs finally betray me.