Though the noise was more frightening than playful, Alexis chuckled quietly. "There's no need to say sorry. It was merely an incident. Just let's go about our day." Haven agreed, but he couldn't help but notice that their relationship had become more intimate as a result of the circumstance. Alexis straightened her towel as they made their way over to the couch, trying to gather herself.Haven, in the meantime, tried to focus on getting back to his work, though his thoughts were still preoccupied with the unexpected closeness they had shared.Haven gestured, though the situation brought about a new level of intimacy between them. Alexis once again adjusted her towel, trying to gain more composure as they got to the sofa. Meanwhile, he tried to get back and focus to workAs they got into their daily ritual, there was a noticeable tension in the room. As Alexis occupied herself with a notebook and a cup of coffee, Haven picked up his papers. Even if they had been close before, the occu
After everything, the mornings mishap had became more than just an unintentional incident, it was a stand out moment in their adventures together, a reminder that the feeling for each other can grow beyond limits even in the most unseen situations.A voice came out of the living room, echoing everywhere. “Haven, where are you?” She shouted.“I’m right here, there is no need to shout and disturb everyone, Alexis.” He said Haven's voice looked calm and collected.Alexis turned to face him, “Oh, there you are. Do you mind explaining why you cancelled dinner plans, without informing me first?” Her voice spitting out rage.Haven looked up, his eyes not giving emotions. “I sent a text message about two hours ago. It’s not my fault that you don’t check your phone often.”"A text message?" Alexis scoffed, fumbling in her purse to retrieve her phone. "That's how you communicate with your wife now? Just a text, what happens oti dropping a call?”As she opened her phone and started scrolling thr
Haven pushed aside his plate, his face contemplating on his reply. “it’s not intentional, Alexis. I’ve always been like this. Emotions, defenseless, are just my weak point.”"But why?" Alexis pressed, leaning forward slightly. "What are you so afraid of? What’s the issue?"Haven’s face fell, his hands on his face. And for a whole, Alexis was already thinking he had no reply to everything she said. But just right about the time he said. “My line of work has shown me that allowing emotions to rule them, has led to getting hurt and I don’t want to be that person.”Alexis felt a pang in her chest. Slowly, cautiously, she moved closer to him on the couch. "Haven, look at me," she said gently."Feeling things, being open, it doesn't make you weak," she said softly. "It makes you human. And yes, sometimes it hurts. But it can also be beautiful. Exhilarating."Haven's lips twitched in a wry smile. "Like your outbursts of passion?"Alexis chuckled, shaking her head. "Okay, maybe I'm not the be
"Haven!" Alexis exclaimed, half-laughing, half-protesting. "Put me down, you caveman!""As you wish," Haven replied, unceremoniously dropping her onto the bed. Alexis bounced on the mattress, her red hair fanning out around her like a fiery halo.Alexis sat up in bed, beside her was an empty space. Haven had already left for work. Even though their relationship wasn’t born out of romantic love, it was at least solid. Even though there were moments Alexis had doubts.Pushing off the negative thoughts, Alexis headed to the loo and carried out her morning ritual, feeling both anxious and eager for the day. As she adjusted her pencil skirt and white top, she spoke to herself in the mirror. "Alexis, you can handle this; there are just some job interviews left. No pressure.”As I walked towards the towering office building, She was trembling and needed a moment to regain. Herself before going into the building and approaching the receptionist."Despite being nervous, Alexis said, "Good morn
"Hey, Alexis!" Cecile 's cheerful voice came through the speaker. "How did the job hunt go?"With a sigh, Alexis headed up the stairs to the house. "To be honest, not very good. Two rejections out of two interviews.I feel like I'm doing something wrong, but I'm not sure what. It's getting tiring and I feel like I can't accomplish anything flawlessly anymore." "Oh, sweetie," Cecile said with a sympathetic tone in her voice. "I'm devastated to learn about it. Recall that today is only a single day. Any organisation would be fortunate to have you because you are intelligent and skilled.Maybe these just weren't the right fit, keep trying, you would definitely find that missing piece of the puzzle employment."Alexis smiled despite herself. "Thanks, Cecile . I know you're right, it's just I really wanted to find something to keep myself busy, you know? To have a purpose outside of this arranged marriage."Speaking of arranged marriages. How are things with Haven, by the way?” On the oppos
Cassandra followed Haven to his office. She tried to arrange the papers on his desk. The scent of her perfume shifted towards Haven making him a little bit uncomfortable. He kept readjusting his seat, trying to distract his mind which was already fixed on Cassandra at that moment."Is there anything else you need, Mr. Haven?" Cassandra asked, her voice low and sounding like someone on a mission.Haven cleared his throat. "No, that will be all for now, thank you."Cassandra didn't move. Instead, she perched on the edge of his desk, crossing her legs deliberately. "Are you sure? I'd be happy to stay late and help you relax." Her fingers trailed along the edge of his desk, inching closer to his hand.Haven's discomfort grew. He valued Cassandra as an employee, but her recent behavior had become increasingly inappropriate. "Cassandra," he said firmly, "I appreciate your offer, but it's unnecessary. Please, go home and enjoy your evening."As she turned to leave the office, she intentional
"No, of course not," Haven said, frustration creeping into his voice. "She's been flirting with me, yes. But I've never encouraged it, I’ve always stopped her. I swear."Alexis laughed bitterly. "Oh, you've never encouraged it? Is that why she was sitting on your desk, Haven?"Haven's shoulders slumped. "I... I don't know what to say, Alexis. I've been under a lot of pressure at work, and things have been difficult between us lately. But I swear, I've never cheated on you."Alexis's eyes filled with tears. "Maybe not physically, Haven. But emotionally? It seems like you checked out of our marriage a long time ago."He tried reaching out to her after her words hit differently as they felt like a physical blow on his skin. But Alexis resisted, shaking her head in disagreement."Don't," she said, her voice barely above a whisper. "I can't... I can't do this right now. I need some time to think."Sweetheart, please," he said softly. "Let me explain what happened."Alexis whirled to face h
Frowning, Haven turned to Cassandra. "Have you seen Alexis? I need to find my wife.”She nodded. "I saw her heading towards the elevators a few minutes ago, sir. She seemed to be in a hurry."Haven knew Alexis won’t just come into the office if not she had a good and solid reason. The fact that she came to look for him because he was late at work was a testament of how solid their relationship was, which was about to go into ruins because of a moment of weakness.Haven ran towards the elevators, his mind focused to set things right. While he waited for one to arrive, he quickly tried to recompose and rehearse what he would say to Alexis. At this point he couldn't just go and meet her unprepared. How will he begin? How could he still savage the relationship? How could he explain his actions?The elevator dinged and the door slowly opened. To his surprise, here was Alexis, looking dejected. Their eyes met and time froze with no one saying anything to each other."Alexis," Haven said, st
Haven considered her for a minute, clearly not persuaded, but he didn’t thrust it. He walked over to her and put a hand on her shoulder, pressing tenderly. “You’ve been working yourself out of late. Come on, let’s get to bed. You should get a few rest.” She gestured, thankful for the pardon to elude the uneasy contemplations whirling in her mind. “Yeah, you’re right. Let me just wrap up here.” Haven kissed her on the chin and headed back upstairs. Alexis observed him go, the warmth of his touch waiting on her skin, but the fear still chewing at her inner parts. She rapidly wrapped up folding the clothing, her hands moving mechanically as her mind began to race. When she was done, she turned off the lights on the ground floor and made her way to the room. Haven was as of now in bed, flipping through the channels on the TV with a sight of boredom on his face. Alexis slipped into the bathroom, sprinkling cold water on her face, trusting it would wash away the unease that clung to her
Alexis was in the centre of folding the final stack of clothing when her phone buzzed on the countertop. She’d had a long day, filled with errands, chores. It was about 11 p.m. She rubbed her chin, feeling the fatigue throb that continuously appeared to crawl up when she was overtired. But the sight of her phone vibrating once more drew her thoughts back to it. She picked up the phone, anticipating it to be one of her friends, likely Trina or Melissa, sending late-night messages about something unimportant. The screen showed an obscure number. A cold shudder ran down her spine, but she dismissed it, considering it could be a robocall. Still, something made her falter. After a minute, she swiped to reply to the call and lifted the phone to her ear. “Hello?”There was a delay, and for a minute, she thought the call might have been a mistake. But at that point, she listened to it, a swoon, nearly subtle breath on the other end of the line. The hairs on the back of her neck stood up. Sh
Alexis took a deep breath, choosing her words carefully. “I’m saying I miss us. I miss what we used to have. The time we went through together, the little things we did to get each other feel loved. Of late, it feels like we’ve been more centred on stuff, like this car, than on each other.” Haven Stood there, the gravity of her words gradually sinking in. He had thought the car would bring them closer, but presently he saw it in an unexpected way. He realised that while he had been working hard to deliver, he had lost sight of what truly mattered. “I just needed to make you happy,” Haven said, his voice gentler now. Alexis ventured closer to him, putting a hand on his arm. “I know you did, and I love you for it. But what I truly need, Haven , is you. I need us to be together, truly together. I want us to work on our relationship, to build a cheerful home, not just a decent house with pleasant things.” Haven't Felt a lump in his throat. “I’ve been so focused on the wrong things, hav
And she hated it. Abhorred that he had moved on, that he had found somebody else. Abhorred that she now did not have a hold on him. As she wiped her tears absent, Vanessa promised to herself that she would find a way to make him pay for dismissing her. She wasn’t done with him however. Not by a long shot. But deep down, a part of her knew that she had lost him. Which hurt more than she would ever admit.Haven could barely contain his fervour as he drove the new car off the dealership parcel. The sun glimmered off the smooth dark paint of the luxurious car, and the engine murmured with a smoothness that came from top-tier craftsmanship. He could as of now see the look on his wife’s face when he pulled into the garage. Alexis had continuously specified how much she loved this specific show, how she appreciated the way it mixed style with control. Haven had worked additional time for months to astonish her with it. He knew she deserved it. She worked hard, a bit like him, and if there wa
Vanessa took a step closer, her voice dropping to a tempting murmur. “You can’t let me know you don’t miss what we had. The energy, the connection… the way we fit together.” He knew what she was doing, playing on his feelings, attempting to make him keep in mind the great times and disregard the terrible. But he wasn’t that man any longer. He had learned from their wrongs, from the harmful cycle they had been caught in for distant as well as long. Haven’s eyes solidified. “Vanessa, you should leave.” She overlooked him once more, taking another step forward, her hand coming out to touch his arm. He jumped, walking back once more until his back was against the wall. Vanessa saw the faltering in his eyes and moved in for the slaughter. “Come on, haven” she whispered, inclining so near that her lips brushed against his ear. “Just one more time. You know you need to.” For a minute, Haven was quiet, the thoughts of their time together flooding his mind. He recollected the way they had
Her intellect was a tornado of emotions—anger, fear, perplexity, and a profound, chewing pity that she couldn’t appear to shake. She needed to accept haven, needed to believe him like she continuously had. But something was distinctive this time. There was a separation between them, a sense that he was holding something back, and it panicked her. As she stood there, misplaced in her considerations, she listened to the swoon sound of his voice on the ground floor, and she knew he was on the phone. Portion of her needed to walk down there and request answers, to force him to tell her everything he was stowing away. But another portion of her was as well depleted to battle any longer. She just needed this bad dream to be over. But how might it be, when she didn’t indeed know what the bad dream was? Alexis squeezed a hand to her chest, feeling the quick crash of her heart beneath her palm. She took a deep breath, trying to consistent herself, but the unease waited, a dim cloud that refuse
Alexis’s eyes relaxed for a brief minute, but then the hardness returned. “Then let me know what’s truly going on,” she demanded, her voice trembling somewhat. “Don’t just stand there and let me know to trust you. Trust is earned, Haven. And right now, I feel like you’re asking me to believe a stranger.” Her words cut profound, and Haven felt the sting of them like a physical blow. He needed to tell her everything, to lay it all out within the open, but he knew that wasn’t possible—not however. There were as well numerous factors, as well many unknowns. And until he had all the answers, he couldn’t hazard dragging Alexis' encouragement into the mess that had landed at their doorstep. But how could he make her get it without losing her? “I’m going to settle this,” he said, his voice firm, in spite of the fact that saying it with enough conviction would make it genuine. “I promise you, Alexis, I’ll get to the bottom of this. I’ll discover the truth, and when I do, I’ll tell you everyth
“I know,” he said, his voice thick with feeling. “But I don’t need to select between you and do what’s right.” “And what approximately what’s right for me?” Alexis inquired discreetly. “Don’t I deserve that?” Haven closed his eyes, the weight of the circumstance squeezing down on him. He knew that no matter what he said, it wouldn’t be sufficient to recuperate the fracture that was developing between them. “You do,” he at last said, his voice scarcely over a whisper. “You deserve more than I’m giving you right presently. But I need you to believe me. I need you to accept that I’m doing this since I care around you—because I care around us.” Alexis looked at him, her expression a blend of adore and distress. “I don’t know if I can believe you right now, Haven. Not when it comes to her.” His heart sank at her words, but he didn’t contend. He couldn’t. “I understand,” he said, standing up and venturing back to allow her space. “I just trust that one day, you can.” She didn’t respond,
“Not at fault?” Alexis’s voice was presently bound with outrage, and she pushed her chair back suddenly, standing up. She began pacing the kitchen, her developments jerky and disturbed. “You’re defending her, Haven. You’re protecting the lady who has tried to come between us time and time once more. And you’re doing it over me, your wife.” Haven stood as well, his hands spread out in a signal of pacification. “Alexis, it’s not like that. I’m not choosing her over you. I just need to get the truth of what’s going on.” “The truth?” Alexis halted pacing, turning to face him, her eyes blasting. “The truth is that she’s controlling you, like she continuously does. And you’re falling for it. Again.” Haven felt a surge of dissatisfaction. “It’s not like that, Alexis. I’m not falling for anything. I’m just attempting to be reasonable. Vanessa—she’s been through a lot. We have a history, yes, but that doesn't mean I’m dazed by what’s happening now. I just need to make sure we’re not making