Bride on the run

ALEXANDER'S POV

I know I had promised to make things right starting from today. But Mother had other plans for me.

I can't imagine the series of thoughts going on in that head of hers. She looked at me, the pain in her eyes silently pleaded with me to choose to stay back.

"You don't have to go, little angel." I repeated, holding her tiny hands in my big ones.

She jerked back at my touch, almost spilling her coffee to the floor.

A touch of her is enough to set my ever alive hormones spiralling its way down there. I had promised to take care of her, but how would I do that when she didn't want to be near me. She wouldn't even let me in.

"I can't. Mother will …"

I watched her with interest as she stops mid sentence.

What will her mother do? Was she threatened? Did she grow up defending herself from her? Is that the reason she has that wall of protection around her?

It seemed there's more to my little angel than she lets me see. The thought of her mother causing her pain made me want to find the older woman and claw her eyes out till she pays in full for whatever sins she's done to Ashley.

I never had a nice background myself, as I grew up watching Dad treat Mom with disrespect. It was clear from his behavior that he didn't love her. He was only interested in the promise of wealth she would inherit from her Father.

Memories of my past came tugging at the strings of the dark corner of my heart.

I had only been seven and Michael who was eleven at that time was in a boarding house in faraway Los Angeles. I sat in the sitting room watching my favorite show on Disney channel when the double doors of the Master bedroom opened wide revealing the figures inside. One was Dad who looked sweaty as he tried to adjust his leather belt to fit his big waist, and the other one wasn't Mom's. It belonged to a lady I had seen twice during my visit to Dad's office.

What was she doing in here?

As time went by, her visit to my parent's bedroom became frequent that it caused quarrels between Dad and Mom. Mom could have chosen to walk away from the marriage and save herself the emotional abuse, but she loved him so much to do so. Even though it was obvious the pervert had no iota of affection for her.

Michael didn't come home during the holidays either because of Dad's attitude, leaving me alone. Sometimes, I also bore the wrath of Dad's anger as he saw me as a means to get Mom to fulfill his greedy desires.

"You'll be staying with Grandpa from now," Mom had said to me over dinner on my eight birthday and I couldn't have been more excited. "He'll be here to pick you up tomorrow morning after breakfast."

I loved Grandpa Jordan so much and wished he was my Dad instead of the monster who I only considered a sperm donor. When Michael and I were born, Grandpa had named us Jordans. This means we were considered rightful heirs of his and would be next in line to inherit his fortune someday. His generous act had only angered Father the more, and he used Mom as an outlet for his destructive anger.

I felt sad to leave Mom and thought of her all night. Grandpa was a good mentor to me as he wasted no time to groom me to love Jordan Jewelleries, his brain child. I regarded him as my father, that sometimes I find myself wishing Roderick was five feet under and long gone.

It's been long I heard from him though, as Mom had ended things with him immediately after Grandpa died and he had lost whatever rights he had left as a father to either Michael or I. I also didn't want to be a pawn for his dirty acts. Now that I was a man of my own. I won't let him manipulate me anymore.

And neither would I let her be manipulated by her selfish Mother. I would see to that.

************************

ASHLEY'S POV

We would be leaving for France?

No one cared if I wanted to leave or not. His Mother had good intentions of it as a wedding gift, but I felt my opinion should have been asked for.

I watched Alex lost in his thoughts when I had almost slipped information about my childhood with Mother to him, that I wondered what his childhood had looked like.

Now was a good time if I wanted to escape from this. He seemed very distracted by whatever he was thinking of and didn't see me leave the kitchen to my room. I put on the quickest clothing I could find in my room - a jean trouser which sagged as I walked, and a cotton grey polo.

Taking the back door that led into the streets, I made an escape half running as I walked. I wish I'd grabbed a jacket before leaving, but I didn't want to get caught. My feet slapped the earth as I walked on, and the cold penetrated my skin leaving my exposed fingers numb from it's chilly touch.

Will anyone care if I freeze to death?

I laughed dryly as I pictured the way the headlines would announce my death: A NEW BRIDE ON THE RUN FREEZES TO DEATH. That would be perfect enough to give Mother an heart attack.

I pictured her face writhing in pains at her loss. Not like she would give a damn about me. What about Rita? I'm yet to set eyes in her ever since she took off to South Africa to enjoy whatever was left of Dad's wealth with her godforsaken lover.

I'm sure she would be back as soon as she gets wind of my marriage to a Jordan.

Time went by so fast, but I couldn't get any taxi to take me away from here cause the roads were deserted. I paused for a break when I couldn't feel my feet anymore. Somewhere in the distance, I heard the giggle of children as the filled their plastic buckets with snow, ready to make a snowman.

Those kids were loved by someone back home unlike me.

With a thud, I sank into the snow covered wooden chair on the pavement and let out a sigh of exhaustion. My breaths were now white puffs which wafted through the air.

I had barely sat for five minutes when a familiar Maserati pulled up in front of me. I look up and caught a pair of emerald green eyes stare back at me in horror.

Fuck.

Screw him!

"Get in the car. Now." He roared.

I knew better than to disobey him, but I won't give up without a fight.

I scoffed. "And If I don't?"

I heard him curse under his breath as he opened the door and stepped out. Alex took four long strides and closed the gap between us. I was about to make for a run when he bent down, scooped me in his arms and flung me over his left shoulder.

I kicked and screamed in protest, my arms flailing fiercely against back. "Let go of me, you unruly giant."

"A nice vocabulary you've got there, new wife." He said as he dumped me in the backseat of the car.

I buried my head in my hands and cried my eyes out. None of this was fair, and I'm helpless to even do anything to stop it.

Alex doesn't say a word all through the ride. I was left to drown in my unbridled sorrow.

Each street we passed looked unfamiliar as we drove past. We aren't going back home. Instead, he drove to a private airport on the outskirts of the city. An helicopter was already waiting by the time we arrived, engines roaring and ready for take off.

"Are we lea-leaving n-now?" I asked in between sobs, choking on each syllable.

Alex doesn't reply. Instead he nodded to the attendant on the other side and lets him open the door for me. It didn't take long for me to figure out that my failed attempt to run away had forced him to move the flight time to now. Maybe he was scared I'll do it again.

"Will you walk or do you want me to carry you over my shoulder again?"

"Touch me again and I'll fucking claw your balls out." I said, drawing my hands in front of me like a weapon.

" I can't wait for that to happen, little angel." He leaned in so close I could see the pulsating movement of his chest. He smelled of cologne much appealing to my five senses.

I refuse to back down on this, I silently promised myself. I would never give him the satisfaction of making me want him, making me love him. I won't be the obedient bride he wants and I'll never give up till I'm free of him.

Till I'm free of him?

A light bulb came on in my head. Why don't I pretend to be comfortable around him so I can earn his trust? This would make him feel secure that he won't predict my next escape.

And then, I'll be gone as the wind before he realizes it.