CHAPTER TWO

Everything was a blur after that. He almost did not register the kiss Wade gave him at the ceremony. He looked at him shocked after, but Wade only caressed the apple of his cheeks gently before averting his gaze. His expression doesn’t give away anything he felt. His scent too, it remains neutral. He wonders how the man can remain calm.

 They posed for the cameras, accepted tons of congratulatory messages from different businessmen present before they finally managed to get in the car that would take them to the reception.

His scent remained anxious the entire ride, the driver giving them curious looks nonstop that Wade even lowly growled at him in irritation.

The reception is a noisy affair. Different businessmen and family friends approached them, giving their congratulations once again. Klyde lost track of time as he quietly downed glasses after glasses of wine continuously. Wade was talking to a business partner, he introduced him earlier, before he noticed the drunk state of his husband. 

Wade’s arms circled his waist making him tense up. Even in his drunken state, he feels his hot breath fanning on his left cheek. His scent smells amazing to Klyde right now. The combination of rain water and coffee lulling him into a sleepier state.

“You should control yourself. You don’t want your face to appear wasted on tabloids tomorrow. Right Mr. Taylor? Or do you prefer Mr. Curtis now, huh?”

He wonders how they look to the media right now. With how close Wade is holding him, he’s sure they look like the perfect couple they all think they are. 

Klyde shook his head in attempt to wake himself up but he is really too drunk. He heard Wade’s displeased hum under his breath, his hold on his waist tightening for a fraction before he slowly let go. He took the glass of champagne from Klyde’s hand, carefully placed it on their table.

“That’s enough.”

Wade signaled for a waiter and asked for a glass of water. When it arrived, he placed it in front of Klyde who carefully sipped on it for the rest of the night.

Wade faced him again after a while.

“Let’s go.”

He looked at him, startled. Go where?

“Where?” he asked. 

“To my house, obviously,” Wade replied, his signature passive expression present on his face.

“Why?”

“You want them to see us leave separately?”

Right. They should leave together if they want this to be believable. He thinks they would be living together too. He hopes all this effort would pay off.

Klyde slowly stood up, unsteady on his feet because of how drunk he is. Wade placed a gentle but firm hand on the small of his back, steadying him.

“Careful.”

They slowly walked out of the reception after Wade gave instructions to his subordinates. They arrived at the parking lot where a luxurious car was waiting for them. There are no other people there but them so he assumes Wade will drive them home. Home, such a big word. He wonders if he could really call it that.

Wade opened the passenger seat for him, assisting him to carefully seat and fasten his seatbelt before closing the door and rounding in front to get to the driver’s seat. The whole ride was quiet. Wade did not bother to start a conversation too which Klyde is thankful for. He doesn’t think he can handle even a small conversation for now. His head is already throbbing, a beginning of a headache already brewing at the back of his head. He quietly looked out the window, watching cars and traffic lights outside.

The car slowed down to a complete halt after a while. They’re inside a dark parking lot. He did not even notice that they arrived already.

Wade’s house is more of a penthouse. He owns the whole building, and there is no one else living there but him. They rode the elevator taking them to the highest floor where his apartment is. The elevator chimed, signaling that they already reached the floor. It opened to a long hallway with a large door at the end. Wade entered the passcode before they both entered. It’s spacious as a lot of penthouses are. Wade’s scent, a mixture of rainwater and coffee permeating in the air but the place does not look very much lived in. It even looks like the apartments seen in magazines. There is no hint of him except for his scent.

“You don’t have your things here yet,” Wade started, he’s standing at the bottom of the stairs of what he assumes will take them to the rooms upstairs. “There are unused toiletries available in the guest room upstairs. I’ll just give you a pair of my pajamas to sleep on for now. I have some unused underwear too. You can get your things from your place tomorrow.”

Klyde doesn’t like the idea of wearing an alpha’s clothes. He doesn’t like the idea of an alpha’s scent clinging onto him, but he doesn’t really have a choice now. He is the one who needs help after all.

Wade climbed the stairs first, leaving him alone in the living room. He sat down on the plush couch. He wonders how the apartment smells of the alpha but the couch doesn’t. He guesses he is like the typical businessmen he’s met before. The kind who sleeps at work and barely goes home.

He threw his head back at the headrest and exhaled. He is really doing this. A whole day has already passed, he already had a literal wedding but everything still feels surreal to him. He stared at the ceiling for God knows how long, vision swimming, before he decided to check out the guest room he’ll be staying in from now on.

He slowly stood up, groaning. He slowly made his way to the stairs. He almost laughed when he reached it. Filthy rich bastards, even the stairs have a carpet. He shook his head and made his way up. 

There are only two rooms available upstairs, he finds out. The other obviously the master’s bedroom occupied by Wade, and the other at the far end of the hall, the guest room. He walked straight to it. He opened the door and entered. The room is nothing special, really. It is spacious like the rest of the place, with a queens-sized bed in the middle. A nightstand with a lamp. There’s a big cabinet on the left, the kind with big mirror doors, and a door to the right which he assumes is the bathroom en suite.

He made his way to the bathroom and true to Wade’s words, there is an available set of toiletries, even a towel prepared. He slowly shed his clothing and stood under the warm pour of water in the shower. He took his time, eager to clean the grime and dirt of today. If possible, he hopes even the reality would be washed away with every drop of water grazing his skin too. But he knows he is hoping for the impossible. He worked mechanically. Cleaning his body on muscle memory. He doesn’t know how long he took inside the shower but when he finally went out, his skin is red from scrubbing and a pair of night clothes and underwear are already laid out on the bed. Wade must have left it for him while he was in the shower.

He picked it up and swallowed the bile rising in his throat at the potent smell of alpha coming from it. He let out a shuddering exhale as he worked to dress. He did not bother drying his hair, he just laid on the bed and curled up under the covers. Tears started pouring from his eyes. He closed them, desperately hoping that everything that happened today was just a dream and he will wake up in his own apartment tomorrow like nothing happened.