ALENA"Let me buy you something cool. The drug I gave you is very strong. You just have to relax and stop thinking about a lot of stuff. You should be fine soon," Axel said, pulling into the driveway of a food court."Sure. I hope I didn't ruin everything. I really want to have a good time with you.""You didn't ruin anything, Alena. I loved the fact that you were able to trust me and let your emotions out. That's the essence of friendship. Rest assured, we are going to have fun to the fullest," he said, pinching my cheeks playfully."Does Dylan ever stand in for you like this? I mean, you are taking care of me in his absence.""We've known each other since we were kids. We are family friends. He is one of my closest friends, and he has done a lot for me in my life. He would do the same for me.""Does he tell you all of his secrets?" I asked. Why was he oblivious to the fact that we were in an arranged marriage?"Of course not. There are some secrets that I keep from him and some that
DYLAN"Baby, can I come in?" I called out to Gwen as I knocked on our hotel's en suite bathroom door."No!" she screeched, and I heard something fall, probably out of panic."Are you okay, Gwen?" I asked, worried."I'm okay. What I meant actually is you can't come in right now," she told me nervously, and I could tell she was leaning against the door now."It's been close to two hours since you got in there, Gwen. What's going on in there? I'm coming in.""Please no, Dyl. I'm, uh, I'm naked," she announced, making me chuckle."Baby, I know what your naked form looks like, plus we could use that to our advantage." I breathed seductively as a way to convince her to open the door."No Dyl! I'm doing some womanly stuff, and I promise you wouldn't want to know. Give me fifteen minutes, babe, and I promise I'll make it up to you," she coaxed me, and I groaned in annoyance."Ugh. Fine. I won't come in." I groaned, then retreated to our king-sized bed, which was neatly made.I lay on my back
DYLANGwen closed her teary eyes. "I don't want to be dependent on you all the time. I need to make my own money," she replied, and then I let go of her and collapsed onto the bed frustratedly."I offered you a business deal to model for my company's jewelry, and you turned me down in the name of another project you were already on. You turned down reputable brands like Nivea, Avon, Nike, Gucci, and Chanel, just to mention a few, to do this, Gwen?" I asked, and she crouched down and placed her hand on my knee."I accept that I made a mistake, Dyl, but I promise that everything was professional. I didn't cheat on you. We only kissed and he touched my body on professional terms, but we didn't have sex. I would never do that to you.""You know I don't like sharing you with anyone. I’m very loyal and faithful to you, Gwen," I told her, and she took my hand in hers and started kissing it."I'm sorry, baby. I'll quit. I can't lose you, Dylan.""What will my dad say if he finds out?""He won
DYLAN"Are we back in New York three days earlier because of the mistake Gwen made?" Celeste asked me casually, putting aside the magazine she was reading.We had made it to New York almost eight hours after I talked to Alena, and we were currently in a car going to my house.I sat with Celeste while Ezra, Steve, and Gwen were on a three-seater bus behind our seats. I hadn't spoken much to Gwen, despite all her efforts. She looked miserable; she wasn't speaking to anyone, and she wasn't eating either. I had to make a plan."No. Like I said, my dad's coming back tomorrow, and I have to be here. I haven't seen him since the wedding reception. We have a couple of issues to discuss as well," I replied, taking her magazine as I started flipping through its pages."You are pissed about Gwen, right?" she asked."I see you are here to rub salt into my wounds.""Well, I wouldn't exactly say that. I'm here to defend my best friend, to help my employer relax a bit, and to help my brother-in-law
DYLAN"N-nothing. The onions made my eyes water," she replied nervously."You know I'm talking about your weight. Have you been ill? You look smaller than usual," he asked, worriedly lacing his face, but Alena looked totally nervous.It was as if all the questions and being given all the attention were suffocating her."Oh, come on, you suckers. Don't bombard Alena with questions. According to the doctor, aka my brother, of whom I am very proud, our Alena needs some rest and not to be stressed out, so from now on, no questions will be directed to her. Ask me first, and then I'll see if she's fit to answer a psychotic question. Right, Alena?" Sophie babbled gently, squeezing Alena's shoulders."Sure. E-excuse me. I'm going to wash my face," Alena whispered softly before squeezing her way out between Celeste and Gwen, who were blocking the doorway."Axel?" Celeste, Ezra, and Steve all said at the same time, asking for an explanation."Cool down, fellas. I can, and I will explain. Trust
DYLAN"Whoopsie," Sophie breathed out when the silence lengthened, pulling those innocent puppy eyes.I was dumbfounded. For a moment there, I thought it was Gwen. Everything would have been so crazy messed up because of a stupid lack of self-control."Holy cheese, Sophie! Have you heard of this thing called knocking?" I shrieked."Right. You nearly gave me a heart attack," Alena added, turning around to put on her top. So crazy shy."Oh, my God. This is shockingly unbelievable. You are acting like you were caught doing something wrong, yet the two of you are husband and wife," she sighed, folding her arms."Even though. There is this thing called privacy, Sophie. Would you like me walking in on you and your partner being intimate?""You two weren't even having sex. You were just showing your wife how much you missed her, and it was totally adorable and steamy," she giggled, doing things with her feet."You are just impossible, Sophie." I surrendered, putting my hands up."I'm sure th
DYLANShe meant every word she said. She was dead serious. I knew she was very capable. She had nearly run over Crystal before because she threw herself at me. She was very possessive of me. I loved it, but at the same time, I feared her jealousy."You are my only woman, Gwen. No one will ever come between us. You are a good person, Gwen, and I know you will never hurt anyone, so don't say that, okay?" I said, kissing her forehead."Dylan Cameron, it's either you make love to me right now or you let me go. I'm dead serious," she said, brushing her fingers against my lips.I swallowed hard. Irresistible offer, but it felt wrong. Something was stopping me. I had just been with Alena. It would seem as if I had only been using her. I didn't want Alena to feel used. I kissed her neck, willing not to use her."I don't have a condom," I gave an excuse."I'm on the pill," she said, and with those words, we lost our minds.A few seconds later, she was lying on a table, and I was hovering over h
ALENAHappiness is like a butterfly. The more you chase it, the more it eludes you. But if you turn your attention to other things, it comes and sits softly on your shoulder.In the past month of my marriage and, basically, in the past five years of my life, all I ever did was search for happiness.I tried to please my family. I tried to make them love me again and be part of their happiness, but in the process, I only got much more broken and sad.With Dylan, I realized that maybe I was trying too much. I put up with all his mood swings and looked forward to his laughs, jokes, and hellos every day. When he didn't give me any of those, I started him just so he could at least talk to me.I wanted to be happy with him. I wanted him to include me in his happiness and respect me. I realized all the effort was coming from one side.Was it even worth it? Just eleven more months, and we'd be strangers. I had plans to go far away and start afresh all on my own after this one year. What would
ALENA’S EPILOGUE Our black SUV pulled up in Mom's driveway a little late in the afternoon and we all got out of the car. Amelia was snuggled in her daddy's arms, a place I knew was one of her favourites in the whole world and the way he paid enough attention to her and kept her smiling just made their bond stronger.Aidan and Iris were on either of my sides each holding each of my hands tightly as we walked up the driveway to the main entrance. We had all been looking forward to this family gathering for some time now. Spending time together, catching up on each other's lives and just being there for each other was something we all enjoyed. We were a family and meeting up together like this was always a pleasure."Thank you so much, Mommy, for buying me these pretty sparkly shoes and sparkly dress," Iris squealed excitedly, jumping up and down on her feet as we walked, staring admirably at her new outfit. "I feel like a princess," she added, giving me a brilliant smile that revealed
FIVE YEARS LATERDYLAN’S EPILOGUEThey say that you will never truly understand something until it happens to you.I honestly never paid much attention to this saying until realistic things happening in my own life started weighing much on it and opening my eyes to how everything I was once told about this big mystery called life started unfolding before my own eyes and manifesting in my life.Many a time, Dad would tell me about how marriage and fatherhood changed his life greatly for the better and it barely made any meaningful sense to me, but right now in this very moment, bonding with my baby and showering her with unconditional love made it all make perfect sense.There was something inexplicably intoxicating about seeing our precious bundle of joy happy with a radiant smile on her face. That smile had to be the prettiest thing I had ever seen, for it extended deep into my soul and filled me with joy. I couldn't resist smiling back at her with an even brighter smile, placing the
ALENADylan twirled me around, dipping me as he leaned forward closer to me. Staring at the masterpiece of a husband before me, my breathing became shallow and my heart felt heavy in my chest.Dylan pulled me back up into his arms and I rested my head on his chest and let him sway my body as the chorus rolled in. The song twirled like thread around us, the rhythm of our bodies simply passionate and majestic. I was deep in love."Alena, you're the inspiration for this precious song, and I just wanna see your face light up since you put me on. So now I say goodbye to the old me, it's already gone. And I can't wait to get you home, just to let you know, you are...""The love of my life," we whispered together in unison as I joined him in saying some of the lyrics along to the song playing.I was crying. He was way too sweet. I never imagined he'd be able to love me this much and take our relationship to a whole new level.Couples eventually started joining us on the dancefloor. I looked
ALENADylan pulled me towards him gently but firmly by my waist and he placed his lips firmly on mine, cupping my cheek with his hand.His lips were soft, almost silken against my own. Our lips fitted perfectly as if they were meant for each other. Moving against each other, feeling each other.Warmth blossomed in my chest, sparks igniting. This was beautiful and magical, a dream come true. When we pulled away from each other, the crowd was cheering loudly for us, clapping and everything.We both chuckled, holding hands tightly. We turned and faced everyone. Their cheers grew even louder and more enthusiastic.I could see Mom sitting in front with Benjamin, Steve and Celeste. Ezra was in front on the other side with Axel, Sophie and Elizabeth. Everyone else followed behind them. They all looked happy for us.Dylan and I stepped down from the wedding altar and we proceeded down the aisle. Everyone rose and started throwing confetti at us as we walked out. It was perfect.I looked up at
ALENA"Of course, I will. When can we start making the preparations?"Dylan laughed, pinching my nose. "Silly, I mean today. Everything is already set. You just have to get ready and walk down the aisle.""You're kidding right?""I'm dead serious, honey. Everything's the way you wanted it and mostly your choice. I know this isn't our first wedding, but I want us to consider this our actual wedding because the previous wasn't even one. This time around, I'm marrying you willingly with pride."I laughed, failing to believe this. "How? I can't believe this.""Believe it, baby. We're getting married and this time around the proper way. I've been so excited to finally take you as my wife the proper way and give you the joy you deserve. I want to marry you, Alena.""Dylan, how did you even think of this? Just how?" I asked him, blinking away my tears.He wiped away my tears with his hands. "Because I want to see you happy and make your dreams come true. It's called love, honey. You've drown
ALENADylan opened the door of his car on my side and I stepped out, taking his hand which he had extended politely towards me to help me out. I murmured a polite thank you with a smile on my face as he helped out and closed the door once I was standing next to him.We linked arms and he gave me a small peck on my forehead before we started walking down the pathway that led to the dock of a beautiful lake.There were bright heart shaped lanterns hanging on tree branches and rose petals artistically scattered on the pathway we were walking on. Star shaped twinkle lights were wound around branches and lining the pathway. It was breathtakingly beautiful.It was a beautiful sunset and it felt extraordinarily magical with the water in the lake glimmering beneath the beautiful sky, looking calm and inviting.I had no idea if it was the beautiful weather and scene that added the special magical effect or if it was the exceptional man right next to me, holding me like his entire life depended
DYLANI loved it when she played dirty. I loved seeing that side of her that only I knew. I loved this state where she was raw, untamed and fierce sexy."Naughty girl," I chuckled, smacking her butt firmly. She winced, her lips cracking into a wider smile."If I am naughty, what are you?" she purred, pressing her body firmly into mine. She bit her bottom lip tenderly, looking at me with lust filled eyes."Your sexy husband who loves bringing the naughtiness out of you." I smacked Alena's butt one more time, pressing her body into mine at the same time."Ah," she moaned, throwing her head back. She loved it.I took my spoon and scooped some ice cream onto it. I trailed the spoon from her earlobe down to her throat. She shivered, looking at my hand. "Cold," she breathed."I'll set you on fire," I promised and with those words, I smashed my lips onto her neck, earning a loud moan from her.I held her firmly close to me by her butt as I attacked her neck with deep kisses, soft nibbles and
DYLANShe took her wine glass from me and looked up at me, taking a step closer. "Careful what you wish for, Princess. I want to, I can and I will eat you," I said, closing the small gap between us."Is that a promise?" she asked me, running her finger slowly down my torso. I had been working out a lot to get back in shape. All my hard work hadn't gone to waste."It is," I affirmed, brushing my lips against her smooth skin. "And you know I never break my promises."Alena stood on her toes and she pecked my lips. She held both of our glasses, looking deep into my eyes with her bottom lip between her white teeth. I poured the wine and took my glass from her."What are we toasting to?" she asked me."To us. To our lives, love, freedom and everything we ever wanted that we can proudly say we achieved.""Cheers to that," she said, raising her glass."Cheers." We clicked our glasses and washed down the red wine together in one go. We had a second round and we drank the wine in the same mann
DYLAN"No," she mumbled quietly. She was crying."Show me your face. I want to look at you," I spoke softly."Do I have to?" she replied quietly. She sounded cute and in my head, I could see a cute pout on her lips as she said so. That made me smile."Yes. You have to," I murmured, kissing her temples. Alena slowly pulled away from me and she sat up, facing me. She had tears in her eyes and a few had fallen down her cheeks. I wiped them away using my thumbs."And why is my beautiful princess crying when we're supposed to be celebrating?" I asked her, taking both of her warm hands into mine. I planted sweet kisses on both of them and looked up at her. "I don't know," she mumbled, looking at our hands. "Tears of relief if there's anything of that sort I guess.""You don't have to hide your feelings from me, you know. It's okay to cry if you feel like it. We all express joy and relief in different ways.""Does that mean I can bawl my eyes out and you'll still be okay with it?""Hmmm...