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19: pain
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2023-12-15 14:19:15Related chapters
The Billionaire's Accidental Bride 20: apology
Robert's head throbbed slightly, and he rubbed it, taking a tired breath. For some reason, he was extremely tired. He considered retiring home earlier than usual, but he considered the work he attended and that he had to attend a meeting in the next hour.He heard a knock on the door; he assumed it was Aria coming to remind him of his meeting. He adjusted his sitting position before he said, "Come in, Aria." He did not know when he called her name because, in his mind, he thought he was just going to say, Come in, and end it there. Anyway, it wasn't a big deal, he thought to himself; he had just grown fond of her.The door opened, revealing someone who wasn't Aria. It was the least person he expected to see. His mouth hung slightly open before he pressed his lips together.He dropped the pen that was held between his fingers, then looked at her sternly. He knew he had to guard himself; if he didn't, he'd fall for her cunning ways. "What are you doing here?"He sashayed towards him, sw
Last Updated : 2023-12-15The Billionaire's Accidental Bride 21: chitchats
Today during lunch break, Aria sat with her hambuger and juice in front of her while she texted Elanne. It's been ten minutes, and there is still no sign of her. Her reply came in almost immediately. Sorry, I'll be skipping lunch today. I had to head for an emergency.Aria knew she'd just have to bear sitting alone and eating today. She took a bite from her hambug and relished the taste. It was sweet; she hadn't had such a thing in a while. She looked around the place; most of the workers were there having fun and eating in cliques. She was just there alone. She couldn't even approach any of the cliques with free seats and ask to sit with them, so she sat alone, hoping that Elanne would be here before lunch break ended.From her side, she saw Robert taking confident strides, and then he collected his tray of food. The room had become a little bit rowdy with greetings, which he responded to with a wave of his hand.He took bold strides in Aria's direction, and just when she thought he
Last Updated : 2023-12-15The Billionaire's Accidental Bride 22: preparation
At night, Aria found it difficult to sleep. She kept on thinking about the special and long awaited event in front of her anxiously. She'd closed her eyes, hoping to fall asleep but her mind wouldn't stop playing different scenarios about how the dinner the next day could unravel. She tried to hope for the best. He had told her the people to expect to see: his father, stepmother and two step brothers. What if one of them didn't like her and they swore to make her marriage to him hell? She thought about how his father would react towards her. She imagined him as a wealthy grumpy old man with grey hairs and beard who peered at her from his glasses and wished the sophisticated Becky was the one standing next to his son. The scattered thoughts that spilled into her were targeted at destroying her sanity yet she couldn't push them away. Helplessly she indulged them…She tried to remember the names of his step brother but nothing was coming to mind. From the way Robert talked about them
Last Updated : 2023-12-16The Billionaire's Accidental Bride 23: memories
For the first few of the ride, they shared a comfortable silence. They'd glance at each other for a minute and then take their eyes off each other. The next time Aria stared at him, she took in his outfit. He was dressed in jeans trouser, button down black and white shortsleeves and leather footwear. Simple outfit, yet he looked breathtaking, Aria thought.The way he focused on the road ahead of him without attempting to make any light conversation startled her. He wasn't usually like this, perhaps he was feeling tense about the dinner as well and silence was the best way he could handle it but she didn't want to be silent. She looked out the window as they drove past buildings, observing the people who walked to and fro. She saw a tall girl that had come from a makeup holding up her phone in a selfie and she wondered Robert knew she couldn't do her makeup herself. She turned to face him. "How'd you even know?"He stared at her briefly. "Uhm?""That I can't even make myself up to sav
Last Updated : 2023-12-16The Billionaire's Accidental Bride 24: memories 2
Roughly five minutes later, she heard a knock at the door, causing her to startle. She quickly dabbed the wet stain on her gown while taking a deep breath. Then Aria proceeded to open the door, her heart thumping hard against her rib cage, mainly because she was unfamiliar with the environment. With shaky heads, she bent the handle of the door.Her eyes darted towards the person in front of her. It was the man from earlier on—the one who had bumped into her—stretching a handkerchief towards her. She opened her mouth to say something, but the words died in her throat as she took in his high cheekbones, which cast a shadow on his stubble. His face held a blank expression.Wordlessly, she grabbed the offer. Even though she had already cleaned herself up, she couldn't find the words to decline. She felt obliged to accept this act of kidness. Once she did so, he turned around, taking calculated steps that exuded confidence back into the club. Involuntarily, she held the handkerchief toward
Last Updated : 2024-01-01The Billionaire's Accidental Bride 25: glam
"Are you okay?" Robert tapped her shoulders, dragging Aria from her train of thoughts."Yeah." She slightly jerked her body, sitting upright and adjusting her mind to the present. "We're here already." Now, she noticed that the car had stopped moving and they must have arrived at their destination. "Mind sharing with me what must have occupied your mind? Cos you definitely weren't on earth anymore." Robert said in a light manner."It's nothing," the lie flew from her lips. "I was just thinking about the dinner.""Now that's something you don't have to worry about that much.""Yeah, we've done our part by rehearsing." Aria shrugged trying to conceal her morbid anxiety.Robert took his free hand off the steering wheel with a small smile playing on his lips. "You say it like we're rehearsing for a movie role.""Aren't we?" "Not exactly, if you'd ask me.""We're pretending to be in love—""With a slight modification of how we got married.""Yeah." Aria's cautious eyes trained around the
Last Updated : 2024-01-02The Billionaire's Accidental Bride 26: the dinner 1
They were on their way to Robert's family house.Although Aria looked gorgeous as ever, her heart was a raging storm because she couldn't help but think and play out the worst scenarios on how the event might go. A bad habit that glued itself to her like a second skin.She looked beautiful, at least that could help them repress any disinterest they had towards her.She scanned through her mind for any amusing memory that could distract her but she couldn't.She looked over to Robert, he looked calm as he trained his eyes on the steering wheel. After he complimented her and she replied, he waited for her to come downstairs and they instinctively started walking towards the door. As he opened the door for her again to step inside the car, she felt something warm spread around the chest mixed with the anxiety of the impending event. Why was he acting like this towards her? Was he beginning to like her or he simply started taking the acting so seriously? No matter what, they were bound
Last Updated : 2024-01-04The Billionaire's Accidental Bride 27: the dinner 2
"Aria, I'm talking to you." Robert's father said, his gaze sliding from Robert to her. She gave a small smile. She was well aware that she had to answer his questions as concisely as possible. According to Robert, he hated beating around the bush—he preferred answers that were straight to the point. "My dad is late, but my mom is aware, and of course she approves of it." Her stomach twisted at the lie she had told; she hadn't even told her mom about Robert. Talk more about their business together. She knew her mother would be disappointed in her, not because, due to her need for money, she went ahead to make this kind of deal with him, but because she deliberately hid it from her because she feared her mother's reaction when she would hear the circumstances under which she meant Robert."I'm sorry about your father's death." He replied, his eyes filled with concern. It was the first time his expression had shifted from a formal, straight look,
Last Updated : 2024-01-05
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The Billionaire's Accidental Bride 146: the end
Aria tried to memorize all she had learnt for her final exams while she texted Robert who was keen on distracting her. She had herself to blame though, she was the one who kept on texting him like she wouldn't see him later when he came home.A: Can you let me study?R: Can you let yourself study? You keep responding to my text when you know you shouldn't.A: that's because I can't help it and I always want to talk to you.R: That sounds cute but I'm going to have to stop responding to you. Meaning I'm not going to reply to your texts if you send another one after this.Robert kept his word. The next messages she said afterwards to him were left unanswered as she brought her mind back to her books so she could study. When she finished studying, she texted him back that she was done and she was heading to the shelter where she now volunteered. The shelter was a safe place for people who suffered abusive relationships and grief who needed other people who could understand them. It also
The Billionaire's Accidental Bride 145: bonding
Aria had been looking forward to this dinner just like her husband. She noticed how happier her husband seemed after his meeting with Harry. Robert didn't give her the details, he just told her they got to discuss at length and they were now on good terms. Aria asked Anna if she wanted to come alone with them but she refused, saying she wanted to watch cartoons at home. Aria sighed and nodded.Now she and Robert were prepared for the dinner. Robert was dressed casually but since hadn't gone out in a while, she took this as an opportunity to scan through her outfits and combine them aesthetically. She finally settled for a short chiffon, a piece of jewelry and silver heels."Now look at how I look like your bodyguard standing beside you," Robert joked while he held her waist from the side and kissed her hair. "You look beautiful my queen." He complimented."So do you so, my love." She blushed. His muscular arm was evident under the shirt he wore and his biceps rippled. Aria imagined ta
The Billionaire's Accidental Bride 144: starting to live
Harry couldn't bear the guilt of what he did and he kept thinking about whether to tell Robert about it or not. They've been getting along just fine and they've recently been texting online and it's been amazing. They mostly spoke about their father's health, work and just random stuff. It felt like they were in a talking stage, they were starting to know each other very well, something they would have done years ago, but it took this long to achieve which wasn't really bad. Lauren and her husband loved this new change and they supported it more by inviting Aria and Robert for dinner. They conveyed the information through Harry and Robert loved the idea and agreed to show up with his wife.Harry's mind kept bugging him, he couldn't act all friendly with Robert when in the past he had previously tried to sabotage his career. Now they were getting along, he didn't want anything to come between this new found friendship. He was going to tell Robert about all of it, he'd soon go back to s
The Billionaire's Accidental Bride 143: change of mind
Anna was getting better and she no longer cried about the death. She was starting to carry on without her life. She now ate, watched cartoons and giggled about funny things like she used to do before she heard about the news. Aria loved the change, it brought a smile to her lips that her sister had successfully escaped the confinement of grief.Aria felt like her life was worth more and she hadn't explored as she should have. She was too carried away with external factors and had forgotten to be the main character of her life. This was what her mother would have wanted for her, now that she was gone, she had the strong urge to pick up her life. Not that she hadn't been living before but he was ready to live as her capacity would allow. She wanted to go to therapy and then go back to school. Therapy first, because she wanted to unpack all that happened to her in the past month, heal and understand better in what direction her life should take. Aria realized she wasn't really okay and s
The Billionaire's Accidental Bride 142: revelation
Harry had already resigned to his fate as soon as his mother told him about everything. He knew that one day, this would happen, now in the moment, he felt nothing at all. He just keenly watched the scene unfold. The only thing that troubled him was that the internal turmoil his mother felt was visible and he felt sorry for her."I said go on," his father said, growing impatient.Matteo stared at Lauren, hoping she would change her mind but he just looked scared without saying a word."Say whatever you have to say, you heard my dad." Harry added, looking at Matteo with disdain. The reaction Matteo got was different from what he expected. He smiled nervously, staring at all of them. Harry knew he was finding it difficult to comprehend with the way no one seemed to be grovelling at his feet not to spill like he expected. His face hardened again, "So your wife here lied to you.""About what?" His father instinctively touched Lauren and his eyes darted between her and Matteo."About a lo
The Billionaire's Accidental Bride 141: relief
As Robert drove them home, he felt a sense of relief that his father didn't have to stay at the hospital for more than a day. Robert hated the hospital, not in the strong sense of aversion kind of way, but he felt like the hospital wasn't really a place a sick person needed to be. He couldn't place a finger on why he thought that but he didn't think a sick person deserved to hear about more people dying and inhaling the weird antiseptic that dominated the air. And most people he knew who stayed in the hospital for months due to one illness or the other didn't make it alive, for example his mom and Aria's mom. So for that reason he was happy that his father didn't have to stay there longer than the day he was brought in.His father coughed and he briefly glanced back. Lauren was sitting next to him, holding his hands which moved to rub his arm.Harry who was near Robert stretched the water he held to his father. "I hope you're okay." He asked.His father nodded and for the rest of thei
The Billionaire's Accidental Bride 140: Sick
"Dad!" Robert kept screaming as his father held his neck almost like he was getting constricted.He continued coughing as Robert tried to offer him the water. His hands become shaky as he contemplated running out to tell Lauren about what was happening to her husband. He blinked his eyes as he watched his father fight for air and then he sprang out of the room to inform Lauren."Lauren, the ambulance! Dad is dying," he said breathlessly. Her eyes widened in horror as she placed a call to the ambulance with shaky hands. "My husband -"Robert zone out, his mind conjuring the worst scenarios. Soon the ambulance arrived and lauren and Bryan accompanied his father while he was wheeled away. He grabbed his carkeys as he made his way to enter his when he saw Harry scratching his hair as walked closer to him."Can i go come along?" Robert watched him stutter before he nodded."Thank you," he said shyly before they both entered the car. They drove in silence before Robert's curiosity got the
The Billionaire's Accidental Bride 139: finally
Robert told him he couldn't continue thinking about his father without making the necessary move therefore he had to go to his house and have the conversation. He didn't even know he loved his father this much. The past months without hearing his voice made him feel like something was missing and he was tired of feeling that way. It was kind of feeling he had to end because it ruined him. Yeah, he didn't care nor think about the consequences or aftermath of the action he was going to take as he drove down there. He had told Bryan to inform him if Dad was at home and the little boy did it as soon as he could because he wanted his big family back. When Bryan told him he was now on talking terms with his mother, Lauren, a big smile spread across his face and he remembered how he wasn't talking to his own father and he knew he had to fix that as well.Robert got to the house bracing himself for the conversation they were going to have.He saw Lauren sitting in the sitting room like the pre
The Billionaire's Accidental Bride 138: reassurance
Anna has been moody since Aria told her about her mother's death. She had to tell her though, she couldn't stall it any longer. She wasn't crying anymore but she barely spoke nor showed excitement about anything as she would have before. Anna took that as a sign, she was grieving silently, which was okay. She had to express herself in whichever way she deem fit. As much as she wished Anna didn't have to feel this way, it was necessary and had to happen. Aria glanced across where Anna was lying on the sofa, covering herself with a duvet as her eyes darted between the TV where her favourite cartoon was flickering and her phone in her hands."You sure you're not hungry?" Aria asked again for the third time.She raised her gaze and shook her head."Why? Food is important." Aria asked, worried. "At this point, I'll have to force you to eat something even if you claim not to be hungry."Anna adjusted her lying posture to a sitting one, putting her foot on the floor. "Trust me, I'll eat when
