(Karis's pov) I nervously bit my lips not expecting to be caught by Xander. He narrowed his eyes at me and then scoffed as he walked past. A breath of relief left my lips seeing he was not going to say anything about me eavesdropping. "Are you going to sit there all night? We have a flight to catch." Xander mentioned glancing over his shoulders. He didn't even bother to give me a helping hand. I got on my feet and dusted the invincible speck of dust on my butts. "Next time you want to eavesdrop don't stay close to the door." I heard him say before he left through the door. The car was already waiting for us outside; I wondered how long Sam had waited for us to get ready because he had been on standby the entire time. He was already looking tired but he gave me a polite smile when I arrived. Sam opened the door for me to get into the back seat. Xander was already inside, leaning against the headrest. It seems whatever he spoke about with Emma really got on his nerves.
(Karis's pov) I was left speechless after the kiss. My eyes caught sight of the hostess, who was stunned by Xander's actions. "If you don't know how to dress properly don't bother showing in front of me. It seems you don't love your job." Xander said out loud for the hostess to hear. He didn't even bother to glance at her like she was not worth his gaze. The hostess's face went pale. "I am sorry about that." She quickly apologized and then adjusted her clothes immediately. Xander's face was still close to mine. I placed my palm in front of his face to shove him away. He grabbed my hand and it before linking his fingers with mine. "Get your face away from my face," I grunted, not liking how close he was. His warm breath was fanning across my face, leaving a tingling feeling. Xander grinned, then brought my hand to his lips before leaving a kiss on it. "You don't like me looking at other women, so I am giving you all my attention, dear wifey. I am all yours." Xand
(Karis's pov) I was expecting we would be staying at a five-star hotel or something of that sort. It was beyond my expectations Xander planned on staying in a luxurious modern Villa. To maintain one of these must cost around £200000. It couldn't be a rental, considering how proud Xander was. "It's fine since it is my wife," Xander replied then stepped out of the car. He buttoned some of his loose suit buttons before offering his hand to me. I accepted it. There was no need to reject it since we called a truce after he accepted the open marriage agreement. My eyes sparkled seeing the villa I would describe as elegant in Chelsea since it was located in the Chelsea neighbourhood. The average cost of a villa here was around £2.8 million. "Welcome Sir and Madam." A middle-aged woman with a British accent in the London dialect welcomes us. "Hi, Mercy. How have you been?" Xander surprisingly replied to the housekeeper. Mercy smiled at Xander and then replied. "I
(Karis's pov) I instantly melted under his kiss, enjoying the way he dominated me even though, at the back of my mind, I knew that my feelings should be the opposite. It was just hard to resist Xander who was a walking hormone magnet. Everything about him was enough to make any straight girl lose their marbles, not to mention my case was made worse because of the bitter feeling of love that was hidden in my heart. He bit my lower lip, and my mouth opened right, gasping for air. Xander took the opportunity to insert his tongue inside my mouth and domineering found my rebellious tongue to entangle with it. A moan escaped my mouth as my back arched. I wanted him to release my hands so that I could grab his hair while he was assaulting my mouth but it was too much to ask for. When my body was already asking for more, he broke the kiss, and a strand of Silva left our mouth. His eyes were still fierce after the kiss that left me breathless under him. "Don't talk about
(Karis's pov) The first week we spent in the villa was hectic. The entire time I was walking on eggshells, Xander never missed an opportunity to tease me whenever he was around. Luckily, he was out most of the day because of his multiple business meetings. At least during that period, I had some peace of mind. I spent my time mostly indoors and seldom went out for a short stroll because I started working on my designs during the day, which was not progressing much because a certain someone was always plaguing my mind. "Bertha take a deep breath, this is not the end of the world." I was talking calmly to Bertha over a video call. "I don't know what to do. I can't believe it's cancerous." Bertha cried. The test results of the growth in Bertha's intestine finally came out and it was confirmed to be cancerous. This validates my suspicion about what killed Bertha. In my past life, she probably didn't find out until the end stage of the disease, which is in 2 years
(Karis's pov) It seemed like the entire world, except for Skyler, wasn't on my side. My best friend, who I thought would be my girl in times like this, was advising me to give in to Xander the same way my rebellious body didn't know how to behave. "I can't do any of that. I told Xander I would never give in to him." Bertha facepalmed herself. Even though I secretly thought of giving in to Xander for once these would be me defiling my words and betraying myself after all they did to me. "Karis, if I was somewhere in London right now, I would have matched down to that Villa and give you a good beating." Bertha snapped at me. She took a deep breath to contain her rage then continued. "You took a good look at Xander and said that. You will eat back your words when you throw yourself at him." Bertha shook her head, disapproving of my thoughts. "I don't love him anymore. No way will happen." I deadpanned. My bestie released a long sigh, staring at me like a disappointed parent
(Karis's pov) My hazel eyes locked with Xander's grey eyes, and I froze as the realization slowly seeped in, sitting on his waist region. "We just have to head to the bedroom to start or we can still use the sitting room. I am sure no one will dare bother us." Xander continued teasing me. My face went red. "You little pervert," I screamed, rushing to get off him, but my luck this evening was very bad. I tripped again, and this time, my ankle twisted. "Ouch." I cried as my eyes blurred with tears because of the piercing pain in my feet. Xander had already sat up by my side and was laughing. I glared at him as hard as I could because this was all his fault, but my eyes shooting out were adorable and only made me seem cute to him. "You are adorable when you are angry. It makes it tempting to get on your nerves so that you can fiercely glaring at me." Xander chuckled. "You are a sadist and a pervert." I barked at him but Xander only laughed at me. He even
(Karis's pov) I didn't like the bitter feeling in my heart when I saw the message. ' Karis, ignore it; he isn't worth it.' I chanted in my head, but it was easier said than done. It was hard to breathe; I knew that Xander was having an affair, but seeing evidence of it still hit me hard. The door creaked open, and my eyes were drawn to Xander's figure coming into the door. Xander had a slight frown on my face because he sensed the change in my mood. "Did something happen?" He asked me, and as if on cue, the caller, Emma Reynolds, called him. "Nothing, your lover is bothering my peace with her incessant calls." I sneered. Xander sighed as he picked up his phone from the bed. He tilted his phone screen to my sight and blocked her number then put his phone on airplane mode. I rolled my eyes knowing he would unblock her number later. "Does this help improve your mood?" Xander asked tossing his phone on the bed. "It's not like it matters. You might still have to contact her, an
(Karis's pov) Xander snapped once again. I had successfully pushed him to the brink but he had no right to be angry when he was with Emma yesterday. "Karis," Xander said, stretching out his hand for me. His voice was calm, but I could sense a brewing storm. I nervously swallowed, refusing to take his hand; who knows what the hell he planned on doing? Skyler held my hand and pulled me behind to cover me from Xander's piercing gaze, which didn't go well with Xander. His eyes got darker with the room suffocating. "Stop scaring her Xander. It's not like she hasn't told you about the divorce before." Skyler sneered. Benjamin was stunned and looked equally angry, but his anger was not focused towards Skyler. "I was not talking to you but My wife." Xander's voice was seething with anger, prominent in every word sounding like Venom. I peeked my head from behind Skyler to look at Xander's expression. The angrier he looked, the happier he made me. Skyler held my hand pro
(Karis's pov) Xander was busy cooking while I stared blankly at him, lost for words. "Are you cooking for me?" I rubbed my eyes and then asked, because this had to be a dream, why the hell was he cooking for me? "Who else will I cook for aside from my wife? Well, unless we have a mini version of us, which is not a bad idea." Xander replied not taking his eyes off what he was doing. He switched off the cooker to drain the pasta. Then he started making the sauce. I had no idea he could cook, this was the first time. "This won't make me hate you any less." I retorted at him. If he thought cheap tricks like this could win me over he better think again. Xander glanced at me with a very dazzling smile that sparkled in his eyes and showed his dimples. "At least you didn't reject the idea of having children." He chimed, leaving me speechless. I hopped off the counter to head back to my room. No matter what, I was still mad at him, so this little kind act was only infuria
(Karis's pov) I stayed in my room the entire evening avoiding anything that would make me see Emma. It was better to avoid useless fights. I spent my time looking into some of my Father's businesses and particularly mum's investment. It didn't come as a surprise that most of my mother's shops were managed by Emma and Miranda. How was I able to look past this fact in my past life? There was a knocking sound on the door. "Good evening ma'am. May I come in?" It was Deborah. I allowed her to enter the room. Soon the brunette dressed in a maid outfit entered the room. Her hands were clammy, she was nervous for an unknown reason. "Are you alright?" I asked her purely out of concern. She quickly straightened up and then cleared her throat. "Sorry if my behaviour was off. I am here to invite you for dinner. Mr De Marco is expecting you since you have been indoors all day." So he missed his little wife he loves bullying. I scoffed. "Is Emma still around?" I asked strai
(Karis's pov) I thought the madness ended that unfortunate night but I had no idea what was waiting for me online. The next morning the entire X was flooded with images of Skyler and me together. There was this particular one that seemed like we were kissing. Who had taken these pictures I wondered? It kept me on my toes the entire day. Xander was pissed, that was one thing for sure. I didn't even catch a glimpse of him when I got out of bed this morning which was great. It would only remind me of my shamelessness. As he had promised, I was indeed prohibited from leaving the estate without protection, he said, but it seemed more like he was caging me. My hands clenched to the side when I saw Xander's car drive into the estate. I was peeking through the window of my bedroom. Xander got out of the car, and his eyes were drawn to my direction as if he sensed my gaze. I was unsure if he saw me or if he was just glancing at the prison cell where he kept his wife. Xander averte
**** Trigger notice dark scenes ahead**** (Karis's pov) The mansion was dark because it was probably very late in the night; flashes of lights showed around whenever lightning struck the sky. It was very eerie, and I was being trapped by a devil, but yet I felt excited about a very strange reason. Yes, I had lost my nuts at that point. My plans during this second chance were to push Xander to the edge, but seeing how he reacted concerning Skyler, struck terror in me. "This is absurd. You can't force me to stay with you, Xander. Why are you so adamant about tormenting yourself with my presence when you can have Emma or even Benita?" My voice came out sharply at first but broke into a cry. My emotions were a mess as a mixture of terror and excitement ran through my veins. "As much as I love hearing your voice, dear wifey, I love it better when you don't talk. You just love pushing my buttons. Don't you?" He said, wiping my tears away with his thumb; he then reached out to kiss
*** Trigger notice, dark scenes ahead****(Karis's pov) I was shaken to the core; in front of his large frame in the middle of nowhere, I felt so vulnerable. I hated this feeling more than anything in the world, but in front of him, I felt powerless. I was not weak by any means, but I was never given the chance to grow. My second chance was for me to grow and get back at them, but his very existence was my curse that made all my efforts seem useless. Xander was just too powerful, and the worst thing was that my body was drawn to him. I should hate him, but there was a part of me that couldn't hate him. Xander's hand was still on my mouth, stopping me from talking further. He crooked his face on my hair. My hands pressed against his chest to push him away, but he was an immovable wall. The sky rumbled, followed by the bright lighting flash that made Xander look more intimidating. I was trying my best not to fall on my knee. " Why do you keep on lying to yours
****Trigger warning, you can skip this chapter. The scenes might seem dark to some readers****(Karis's pov) Xander became creative with his punishments, but I had no idea why I was being punished. The pit pattern sound of raindrops on the soil echoed throughout the woods. It was dark, and I was lost in the woods. This was an acre of land that had been passed down for generations. I was always scared of this area, so I had never ventured into the woods. Chills and shivers crept up my skin; my entire body was soaked with my clothes clinging to my body. I could not run any deeper into the woods because I had no idea what might be hiding in the eerie place. My heart was beating fast, thudding in my chest with my breath haggard. A twig snapped close to me, and my eyes shot out. He was close. I pressed my body close to the tree trunk hoping he would walk by because running would expose my location. Xander's movements were nibbled and cautious. He was like a
(Karis's pov) The entire ride back home I had this feeling something was off. My mind was plagued by a lot of thought at the moment, making it hard to figure out what the problem was. I packed my car in front of the house and gave the keys to Sam to pack it properly. Immediately, I alighted from the car; a piercing gaze was locked on me, which gave me goosebumps. My eyes glanced up in a particular direction and it caught the sight of a tall figure blended in the darkness dressed in all black. I recognized it to be Xander immediately; he was standing on the balcony that led to our room smoking. The lit cigarette was between his lips while his hand held a glass containing alcohol.' was he waiting for me?' I swallowed hard because fear twisted my stomach for a strange reason it seemed Xander was mad at me. This was the second time, I had seen Xander smoke, he was not a chain smoker and I had a gut feeling he only smokes when he is pissed off. His eyes briefly lo
(Xander's pov) This week has been hectic, all thanks to an annoying fly who I have been trying my best not to snap his neck. Skyler has been trying to poach my partners and future deals. I didn't take him seriously at first because most of those deals didn't affect me much, and I didn't feel the need to fight after a couple of irrelevant people that don't understand the meaning of loyalty. Whenever he poaches one, there is always a replacement ready, but his games have started to get more annoying. I was also occupied with figuring out how the hell my father got poisoned amidst all this chaos. It was hard to pin the blame on anyone because the De Marco name has its fair share of enemies. The board room was in chaos. Most of the shareholders and top managers were quite disturbed about the threat of the Crest conglomerate, but I wasn't bothered. No matter how they fuzz about it, I controlled over 80 per cent of the shares, holding the absolute deciding power, so in the end, e