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Terakhir Diperbarui:
2024-12-23 23:23:39
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His Sworn Enemy; His Deepest Desire Forty-One
As much as I wanted to keep my mind pinned on Adrian, I found that as soon as I got home, all thoughts of Adrian vanished from my mind. My father was waiting for me at the door, a grim look on his face.“William,” he said, “I didn’t think you would be back, but it is a good thing that you’re here. Come in.”My first instinct was to draw back, but I was tired. What with the encounter with Tristan and then running into Ellie and Mavis, I was just a lot of things, and ready for a conversation was not one of them.“I’m exhausted, dad. Today’s been a long day,” I said sincerely. “Can we do this some other time?”“I’m afraid not,” my father said as he walked ahead of me, leading the way into our massive hall. The lights were already on and I thought I could hear whispers of conversation from the door that led into the drawing room where we often received guests. I smelt trouble even before my father pulled the door open.Seated there in an almost-perfect circle were members of my family. My
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2024-12-24His Sworn Enemy; His Deepest Desire Forty-Two
I didn’t know when they left. I could not say for sure what had come over me, only that as soon as I had hurled those hurtful words at my father, I knew that I was never going to be able to take them back again, and I had seen Gran cry…I had made Gran cry.“Shit,” I whispered under my breath and ran my hands through my hair.The house felt eerily silent, the absence of noise so absolute, so final… I had finally gotten them to see that I was not the person that they had been thinking I was. If there had been any doubt about it before, now they knew… I was monster, but I was not worthy to be called William Bracknell.I ran my hands through my hair again, my head lowered even as I sat on the edge of the bed. I stared at the floor with wide eyes that saw nothing.I was vaguely aware of my ringing phone, but I could not bring myself to even move, talk more of engaging in another conversation. I blew out an exhale and stayed this way, my eyes and head eventually becoming too heavy and succ
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2024-12-25His Sworn Enemy; His Deepest Desire Forty-Three
For the longest time after I woke up, I simply lay there on the bed staring at the ceiling and wondering just what I was doing.My father had not kicked me out of the house. He had not taken away my Bracknell name. He had not pulled me out of his inheritance, and yet… I knew that I was simply not welcome anymore at the Bracknell house, couldn’t bear with pride, the Bracknell name. And it hurt, because I had devoted myself to proving true and worthy of my father’s love and affection, and everything that I had earned through sheer will and hardwork.I sighed and blinked up at the ceiling.How different it was from my room back home.I had not been able to sleep since I had moved into Adrian’s place. I knew that Tristan would question what was wrong with me if I told him. I was questioning myself too, but what had been done had already been done, and I didn’t want to spend too much time thinking about what could have been, either.Everything was progressing way too fast, and it was all g
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2024-12-26His Sworn Enemy; His Deepest Desire Forty-Four
I stared out of the window, watching the cityscape whizz by as we moved in Adrian’s vehicle because I did not want to look at him and give him the opportunity to begin to make small talk.Adrian was driving with his head pinned straight ahead, but on more than a few occasions, he had turned around to look at me, offer a very sincere smile and then look back again, trying to catch glimpses of me until I had warned him to stay on the road.I didn’t want to give him any ideas. Anyone at work who heard that I was living with Adrian would get the wrong idea, and the wrong idea was the last thing that I wanted to give anyone. The news about Tristan was barely dying down, the report seemingly carried on by a new surging wave, except this time, the publication was less derogatory.Tristan had said that he would take care of the publicity and he had somehow managed to do that, changing the publications on so many levels that only a fool would attempt to run any smear piece on the story.At the
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2024-12-27His Sworn Enemy; His Deepest Desire Forty-Five
There was a certain thrill, I admitted, to being with Tristan Richmond, even if he hadn’t officially asked me out yet.I was typing away in my corner of the office, my ears blocked by the earbuds I used to blast classical music into my brain when a message popped up on my phone, interrupting the music.My eyes slid down to the message; it was from Tristan, short and edgy as hell.STAY BACK AFTER WORK.I read the message and smiled to myself. Like hell I was going to stay back after work. Even though my cock tingled deliciously at the thought of another romp with him, I didn’t want this to become our routine, fucking in the office like people with no sanity or ethics.CAN’T. GOT PLANS.I typed back. I had barely put the phone down when another message buzzed in.WHAT PLANS?CAN’T TELL YOU. BOY STUFF.I HAVE PLANS TOO, WILLIAM BRACKNELL. THEY INVOLVE YOU KNEELING, AND THEN BENT OVER MY DESK.I grinned and chuckled low in my throat, then typed back, I KNEW IT! YOU DO WANT TO FUCK ME.I i
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2024-12-28His Sworn Enemy; His Deepest Desire Forty-Six
I screeched in front of the house and waited until Adrian was out of the car before I slammed the door and cursed under my breath.Of all the things!I had objected to Adrian’s idea of us going out in the first place, but being taken to that place… like I was just some person without worth or self-value.I stormed up the stairs leading to his room without waiting to check if he was coming up after me or not. I was with the keys to the car, so I wasn’t really worried about Adrian driving off, especially now that he was under the influence.I jammed the keys to the house in and turned aggressively, almost snapping the key in the lock as I blew into the room with all the grace of a hurricane.I went straight up to the bathroom upstairs and turned on the shower. I peeled my coat from my body. It had gotten sticky warm inside the club. I don’t know who told them that was an aesthetic that they should try to live up to.The idea of a sweaty sticky man just panting all over me as he tried to
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2024-12-29His Sworn Enemy; His Deepest Desire Forty-Seven
Rage boiled through me like a volcano about to erupt.“Who made this delivery?” I asked again. “Did you get a good look at what they looked like? Or maybe you got a name? Somewhere they signed?”The receptionist looked at me, the bored look on her face mixing with new disgust. I could tell that she did not like the person that was standing in front of her. I hated to be that person either, but when it came to matters that concerned Caleb, I seemed to lose my mind these days.“I’ll tell you now just in case this ever happens in the future.” She said slowly, drawing out her words. “I’m a receptionist. Not a delivery person.”“That doesn’t make any sense. You should know who sent this,” I said hotly. “Are you just lazy at your job or are you doing this personally to spite me?”“I’d wager both, but you don’t pay my checks, Mr. Bracknell. And it’s too early for you to be making a racket.”“I’m not making a racket!” I nearly bellowed if not for Adrian who held me and pulled me away, smiling
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2024-12-30His Sworn Enemy; His Deepest Desire Forty -Eight
I stilled, watching Tristan’s.His eyes bored into mine, his expression flat but intense. I decided that the better course of action was not to try to play the fool. If he was asking, then he probably already knew.“There’s nothing going on between Adrian and I.”Tristan’s gaze was direct, unsmiling. “Did I not tell you that you belong to me, William?”“And I’m telling you that there’s nothing going on between us.”“You have been spotted not once now, entering at the same time that Adrian arrives, coming in the same car… is there something that I’m missing?”I folded my arms and took a defensive pose. “Are you stalking me?”“I’m stating clearly where my interests lie, William,” said Tristan as he moved closer to me. “The question now is where your interests lie.”He was right in front of me, his impossible height bearing down on me with an inhuman grace. The air that he exuded simply be existing…I stepped back. “You already know what I want, Tristan. If I was looking for a fling or I
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2024-12-31
Bab terbaru
His Sworn Enemy; His Deepest Desire EPILOGUE
My breath misted out in front of me as I moved, booted heels clopping against the cold interlocked streets of Paris. It was beautiful this time of year, and impossibly cold, too. I shivered slightly against the cold wind that blew again, hugging my tan trench coat around myself even tighter.I thought I heard someone—something familiar, and turned around, my breaths exhaling into the air with a cold imprecise clarity that frosted the air just in front of me. A picturesque view met my eyes.Pale-faced, fast-speaking French people who moved about, twisting and bowing their heads, nodding in conversation, shivering in the cold and folding their arms and stuffing them in their armpits, others cuddling and pretending they were in some cinematic effect, the tall hazy outline of the Eiffel tower in the background and the occasional honk of a car.I exhaled again and brought my gloved hands to my lips.“They don’t talk about how cold it is in Paris,” a voice said behind
His Sworn Enemy; His Deepest Desire Eighty-Five
I had thought so many times about what it would be like to meet my father again—to confront him about his homophobia and how many things I wanted to say. I had thought about apologizing, for my insensitive remarks and how I had hurt both him and Gran, and I had thought more recently about how he had been the person that Caleb had called… he had been the one to save me.My words choked in my throat, saliva and a thousand unsaid things bulging.“Dad—”“Shh,” he shook his head and stepped back. He motioned for me to come inside. I was shivering. I couldn’t tell if Tristan was right behind me or if I was walking alone. I just knew that I had to follow my father right now, and in we went, past the grand foyer and the waiting room, and then we were in the expansive hall where everyone was standing around in, their eyes swiveling to fix on me the minute I stepped in.Once again, I felt my throat clam up with emotion and the one thing I wanted to do was sink into the floor.There, the person
His Sworn Enemy; His Deepest Desire Eighty-Four
My head felt like a miniature sun was going off in it, imploding, exploding… way too loud and bright. All I could think of was the sound of meat crunching down a staircase and the sharp, clean break of bone… the strong metal scent of blood, and Tristan’s voice drilling into my ears as he crushed my bones in a hug.“You’re going to be alright, William. It’s alright. You’re going to be alright…”My eyes couldn’t leave the sight on the floor, Caleb on the floor, head bashed in terribly and bleeding, a woman that looked familiar to me, in cuffs, crying, “Caleb! Caleb, no!”Adam stepped into view, cutting off my vision.“Tristan,” he rushed to slip an arm under his boss. “You’re hurt?”“I’m fine,” Tristan brushed him away. He was still trying to keep me straight and hold me up. “William’s hurt bad. Can you get paramedic? Damn it, Adam, I’m fine. I’ll survive. It’s just a shoulder wound. Get the medics.”I zoned everything out. The million swarming cop cars and the cacophony of their wailin
His Sworn Enemy; His Deepest Desire Eighty-Three
My body felt like I’d been run over by a train. Everything hurt, and when I tried to grimace, the pain was worse.“Arggh,” I groaned in an attempt to stifle the pain. My face was instantly lit up by a scarring network of white-hot firing pain all over. Slowly, I brought my hand to my face. My nose was horribly disfigured and blood had crusted all over, making crunching noises as I tried to move my mouth.I spat something to the white floor, turning it a bloody mess. It seemed so surreal. I was here in this contained place with all of the white lights and sterile looking white floors, and everything bathed in white, and I was the one thing that was broken and bleeding.I touched a loose tooth in my mouth with my tongue. Caleb hadn’t even bothered to administer any anesthetics. No pain-killers, no meds, nothing.I looked up and there he was, staring bloodily at me. At the very least, I had done some serious damage to his face, too. His eye was still bruised and when he cocked a crooked
His Sworn Enemy; His Deepest Desire Eighty-Two
TRISTAN“What’s going to happen now?” Eric asked, his eyes puffy. He’d been rubbing his eyes with the heels of his palms and groaning into his palms until a few seconds ago. He looked utterly disheveled. How a man could become so reduced in a manner of moments, simply because the one he loved had been taken away…I understood it. But I didn’t want to allow myself to go down that path. All I could do right now was see how I could get to William. And Caleb. FAST.I couldn’t say that I knew much of my brother—I’d abandoned almost every single thing that tied me so that I could focus on running the company. Losing my father had not been easy—but if there was one thing I knew about Caleb, it was that he needed help. He was much too unstable to left alone by himself for too long.I was sad, and broken, but I was angry and that was good. Right now, I channeled that anger into a small stream that had me flexing my wrist in small movements. I was not going to lose focus of what needed to be d
His Sworn Enemy; His Deepest Desire Eighty-One
TRISTAN“Damnit.”I echoed, not for the umpteenth time that day. My thoughts were fixed solely on William. I still could not believe what had happened. All I could remember was the look on his face and how confused he had looked about everything, and the anger that I felt.To think that he’d taken that picture of me…I groaned and rubbed my hands over my face again. I could still feel the weight of Adelstein’s hand on my shoulder, patting me as he led me away from William.“It’s alright, my boy.” He’d said. “You did the right thing.”But it didn’t feel like the right thing at all. Not when I knew that William was being carted away to the police station where I knew that he would definitely spend some time sitting in that cell before bail could be made. If nothing else happened to him, then he would forever bear the guilt on his face, just how I betrayed him.No, I reprimanded myself. It had to be done.I was the CEO of Terra corporations. I was the man who made all of the difficult an
His Sworn Enemy; His Deepest Desire Eighty
“You look good—” Caleb said one day as he watched me eat. “—Better.”I frowned at him. At this point in time, I figured that I had been locked up here for at least five days. There was still no way for me to tell the time, and the white bulb was always turned on here, even when I slept. But I had been eating whatever Caleb brought, devouring it ravenously, and after some time, he no longer hit me. Only stopped and watched me eat.He was doing it right now.I said nothing. Ignoring him was the only way I could keep out the madness from encroaching and devouring my mind. So I ate in silence.“That’s chicken biryani and some lamb curry,” he pointed out rather stupidly. I already knew what I was eating. Did he think I lived at the bottom of a well? I just wasn’t especially fond of Indian cuisine because they were rather spicy. Now, seeing as I had no choice, I ate every single morsel of the well-seasoned food, taking my time and hoping that he would leave me alone.
His Sworn Enemy; His Deepest Desire Seventy-Nine
I didn’t know how much time had passed but I was tired and sitting at the foot of the bed by the time that Caleb came back to the small white room.“Wakey wakey,” he said as he poked his head up from the opening in the floor. He looked at me and frowned. Then he sighed and came fully into the room. The door shut behind him with an almost metallic sound.“William, you poor baby.” He made to touch me, but I shoved his hands away, breathing fire from my flaring nostrils. He looked at me with something akin to pity, then looked at the tray still on the bed, the untouched bowl of soup there.“You’re not doing either of us any favors by not eating, William.”I continued staring at him.“You have to eat something sometime. You think I want to be looking at you all stick-thin and undesirable? You’ve got to eat something. At the very least. Maybe you don’t want soup. Maybe you can tell me what you want to eat.”He drew closer, eyes shining, “If I remember correctly, you’ve never said no to a f
His Sworn Enemy; His Deepest Desire Seventy-Eight
I tumbled through unconsciousness.It was so different from sleeping. This time, it felt more real, more potent, more… I don’t know what else I could have used to describe it except for the fact that it felt like swimming in a black and oily soup.I couldn’t make heads or tails of where I was or where I was moving.Caleb had hit me. Or something had. I don’t know. But I could remember the distinct feeling of something hard making contact with the back of my head. It was a miracle I was alive—I knew I was alive because twice, I had floated in and out of consciousness, and the two times, I could barely open my eyes, but noise filtered into my hearing.I felt my body moving. Breath rushed into my lungs and the pain had bloomed at the back of my head each time I woke, burning red behind my eyes.I closed my eyes again, finally summoning enough strength to scrunch my eyes open. Blearily, I tried to look around and almost lost consciousness again from the pain that flooded my senses.“Fuuuc
