"Can we go home already?" Ayla looked up at the man, her lips pursed together as she gave the man a pleading look.
"We can't." Claude replied to her briefly in a whisper before turning his attention back to the people who were waiting to greet him on his way out. A few of them congratulated him for the success of the event, while a couple of others were more focused on getting to know the lady who was clinging to his arm as if her life depended on it.
"Please." She leaned against his side and wrapped her arms around his neck before pressing her lips against his cheeks. "Pretty. Please." She punctuated each word with a soft kiss on his cheek.
"Ayla!" Claude looked down at her, glaring. "Behave." He warned her with a shake of his head but his hand never left her waist, making sure that she didn't move away from him. The last thing he wanted to fret over were her whereabouts given how drunk she was. It was truly a wonder that she was able to wa
No matter how absurd of a demand she had made, Claude couldn't bring himself to say no to his darling wife. Especially not when it was him who gave her the opportunity to ask anything."Here we are." He opened her side of the door and helped her step out of the car as he made sure that she didn't end up tripping on her dress."Thank you." Ayla beamed up at him before sliding her arm into the slight crook of his elbow. "I wasn't sure you'd give into my demands.""I did say anything, didn't I?" Claude chuckled out loud with a shake of his head. His eyes flickered to the other side to take in the serenity of their surroundings.The midnight moon was up in the sky, smiling down at its beholders. Waves came in rushing into the small sandy dunes, creating a peaceful harmony of their own.Claude drew in a deep breath before turning his attention back to the lady who was in his arms."But how do you expect to walk
"So? Can we talk about the matter now?" Claude didn't want to burst her little, happy bubble, but he knew that avoiding the conversation wasn't the way to go about it. He needed her to confide in him."Do we have to?" Ayla turned around to face him but didn't stop. She was now walking backwards, taking small steps. She watched him as Claude slowed down a little to match her pace."Yes, we do." He gave her a firm nod. "You can't expect me to know things when you are not willing to talk to me about them." He shook his head before heaving out a frustrated sigh.Claude knew what he was asking was a little too much of her, but he needed to know all of it to make sure that she was living a good life. He still remembered how he accidentally got to know about the problems she was facing back in her college. If it wasn't for the fact that he decided to follow his gut feeling after Ethan informed him about Ayla's text, he might still be clueless. And to
She gulped a lump down her throat before continuing."It only got worse when she was bedridden. Reporters would find me and start firing questions at me. It was as if my life revolved around escaping from them.""Why didn't you tell your father about it? I am sure he would have done something about it." Claude couldn't stop himself from interrupting her as he hugged her body closer. They were no longer sitting in the same position as earlier. Claude had his legs parted open, bent at the knees while his arms held Ayla securely in place who sat in between."I didn't want to trouble him at first, but I eventually came clean about everything before him. It was getting too much for my eleven year old self. He appointed some bodyguards to ensure that no reporter would come within a mile of me." A loud sigh followed her words."What happened next?" Claude pushed her a little knowing fully
"Claude?" "Yes, wife?" He replied, staring back at her. His honey brown flickered with unsaid emotions as he kept his face devoid of any. "What are you doing here?" Ayla mumbled before retracting her hands back. With a major eye roll, Claude scoffed. "What does it look like? I am waking you up so that we can have our breakfast together before we leave." "But I don't want to wake up." She argued only to have the side of her forehead flicked. "Ouch." A dramatic yelp made its way out of her dry lips as she shook her head only to have her head throbbing because of the slight movements. "You are already up. It's better if you get your pretty arse up and going." The man shook his head, having a hard time dealing with his wife. If drunk Ayla was a pretty handful to take care of, hungover Ayla was no better. He made a mental note to keep her away from all sorts of alcohol the next time they had to attend such an eve
"Ayla?" Claude called out to her as he took in his surroundings."This is not the way to your college campus." It was more a statement than a question. Claude had been driving her to her college for some days now and knew the way better."I know." Ayla shrugged nonchalantly, keeping her eyes focused on the road ahead instead of paying the man any attention."Where are you taking us?" A low frustrated groan left his lips as he shifted in his seat slightly so that he could have a better look at her. "What's going on inside that pretty little head of yours?""I am dropping you off, my dear husband." She glanced in his direction as her lips curled up into a cheeky grin before she went back to focus on the road ahead. "Am I not such a good wife?" She didn't forget to praise herself as she floored the gas."Ayla! Slow down." Claude warned her, not leaving any room for her to argue. "Slow down or I'll make you slow down. You
"Come on, Ayla, you can do it." She mumbled under her breath in a whisper so low that even she had a hard time hearing it.Ayla was currently trying to gather as much courage as she possibly could before making a dash to the entrance of the company. She had promised Claude that she'll be the one picking him up after college hours, and that had brought her to be standing outside the entrance. The car was already parked in the underground parking area, leaving her with nothing to hide inside."Why did I have to do it?" She questioned no one in particular as she recalled their interaction from this morning when she had so abruptly kissed him to wish him goodbye. Since then she had been regretting her actions.What if he was to mind it?What if he didn't want her to pick him up any more?What if he would end up pushing her away?So many questions were eating her brain alive, but there was only one that weighed
Ayla shifted her gaze from the wide dark wood doors to the ceramic platter in her hands. The gears in her mind were working in full throttle, thinking of ways to put the woman behind the closed doors in her place as soon as she could. But she forgot to realize that she wasn't the only one standing out there."Ma'am, why don't you let me take it inside?"It was the same lady who had informed Ayla about Claude's absence when she first arrived at the office. Somehow, she failed to mention that there was a wicked witch inside. When Ayla had confronted her about it, the woman had only apologized claiming that she didn't know."It's fine. Thank you, but I can manage." Ayla gave her a polite smile in return before nodding her chin towards the closed doors. She was silently asking her to push them open so that she could bring the coffees inside."Boss is going to fire me if he finds out." The lady tried to persuade her one last time.
"What do you want, Claude?" Ayla huffed out, crossing her arms across her chest, not wanting to leave any room for argument."An answer, my darling wife." Claude could see a nerve ticking at the side of her forehead as frustration seeped into her bones. But he decided to turn a blind eye to it. "All I want is an answer." He mumbled, leaning down. Bringing his hands to rest on the armrests on either side, he trapped her."What answer?" She snapped at him, her eyes darting around, looking everywhere but at him. The intensity of his gaze left her with nothing but an unwanted warmth digging deeper into her chest."Your actions leave me curious." He cocked his head to his right so that he could have a better look of her face. "You are ready to skin people alive at times, but other times, you go around doing their bidding without even voicing out your discomfort. All for the very same reasons, in the same situations. Why?"He leaned forw
[Three years later…]"Breathe in… breathe out…" Ayla was mumbling to herself as she tried to calm down her jittery nerves.She was standing before a floor length mirror, her eyes focused on her own reflection as her dress glinted under the warm lighting of her new room. Bringing her palms to the front of the dress, she ran them down in attempts to smoothen down the nonexisting creases. She couldn't help the worrying thoughts resonating at the back of her mind, her frown only deepening. But before she could delve down further, a knock at the door brought her out."Is anyone inside?"The voice was so familiar to her that a sigh of relief left her lips unconsciously."It's just me in here." Ayla breathed out as a soft smile tugged at the corners of her lips. She had sent everyone out including the make-up artist and her team once they had
[The following chapter includes mention of R-18 content. Kindly read at your own discretion.] Claude sucked onto the soft spot as his finger moved inside her, earning her moans in return which were not less than a siren's call for him, luring him to continue. He felt her insides tightening around his finger as he moved it relentlessly. He knew that she was close to finding her release and deliberately slowed down his movements. Ayla could feel her orgasm building up, inching closer to the edge. She let out a frustrated groan when Claude slowed down his movements. "D-don't st-op." She managed to say in between her gasps for air. "Oh! I am not planning to, my love, not tonight." Claude murmured against her skin and moved his lips to her cleavage, biting and sucking on her fair, smooth skin. "This might hurt a bit." He said as he inserted
[The following chapter includes mention of R-18 content. Kindly read at your own discretion.] "You don't think that it makes me unworthy of you?" She managed to mutter out as she held Claude's gaze. "You must have hit your brain if that's what's going through your brain." Claude scoffed as he leaned down to capture her lips in a passionate kiss. This time she didn't push him away but responded with the same passion. It wasn't until both of them ran out of their breaths did they pull back. "Do you understand now how much you mean to me?" Claude flicked her forehead as if he was reprimanding a small child. "I do… you mean no less to me." She smiled for the first time today and it was enough for Claude to know that everything was going to be just fine. All she needed was a little time and his love. "I love you." Claude mumbled
[The following chapter includes mention of self harm. Kindly read at your own discretion.] "Ayla?" Claude knocked at the door as he glanced at the clock. "Are you done, love?" He made sure that he was loud enough for his voice to go through the thick door. It had already been an hour. But she hadn't come out yet. Claude was starting to get worried. "Ayla?" He called out her name again only to be met with the same reply—silence. Though he could hear the water running constantly, he wasn't able to hear her voice. "Ayla?" He tried it one more time before making his way to the other side of the room. Claude searched through a drawer and then moved to another one. If only he could remember where he kept it. "Found it." He mumbled under his breath as soon as his eyes landed on a golden key. It was the master key
"Take your hands off her!"Ayla's eyes flickered to the owner of the voice and a long sigh of relief left her trembling lips."Claude…"In between the chaos, Claude could only see her lips moving before her eyes rolled up and she fainted."Ayla!" He didn't waste another second and rushed to her, not paying any attention to the culprit. He would have plenty of time for him later. At the moment, the only thing which mattered to her was the wellbeing of his girl.With hurried steps, Claude walked to where she was and started to untie the ropes which were holding her in place."How the hell are you here? Where are my men?" Gavin kept babbling but even then, Claude paid him no attention. He was so busy sheeting with rage that he didn't bother paying attention to anything else. Not the men, who were dressed in black from head to
[The following chapter includes mention of sexual assault. Kindly read at your own discretion.] "Let me tell you a story, kitten." He pushed himself off the wall, dusting his coat in the process. Gavin walked to the other side of the room to pick a chair and dragged it to the centre of the room. He settled down on it so that he was facing Ayla. "What story?" Despite the fact that she was scared for her life, she didn't show it on her face. She knew that she had to put up a brave front until Claude could reach her. He would realize sooner or later that she was missing. With a smile, Gavin began. "My father and a friend of his started a business together. The kind which was to grow into a big one over time. But the old man got played by his so-called friend. My father spent everything we had or owned on his dream. When our family w
[Three weeks later…]With a jump in her step, Ayla made her way to her favourite store. Things were going great with Claude finally. Everything in her life seemed to be on track. Well, almost everything.Though Claude and her were spending more and more time together with each passing day as if they were in a relationship. They kind of were, but the man never asked her to be his girlfriend despite the fact that's how he had been introducing her to everyone who saw them together.There was one other thing which was bugging her at the back of her mind. Because of peer pressure about them dating—if it could be called that—the two of them inadvertently started using black masks whenever they were in public. Neither of the two wanted to let others throw in their unwanted opinions about their relationship. Though somewhere deep inside her heart, she wanted the whole world to know that Claud
"So…"Ayla dragged it out as she turned around to stare at the man who was still standing by the doors."Mr. D'Souza?""Call me Gavin, please." He still has the same charming smile playing across his face as he walked further into the room"Umm… I am pretty sure I can not do that." Ayla let out a nervous chuckle. There was something ominous about the way he stared back at her. She couldn't put her finger on it, but she was sure that it wasn't only her mind playing with her. Something about him had shifted since the moment they walked in."Oh, please. Claude and I may not be the best of friends, but we are on our way there. It would mean a lot to me if you'd call me without any formalities." He paused before adding after a while. "Only when it's us… three."'What the f*ck!'Ala
"Because it looks like I interrupted something important."Her frown was the only thing which Claude could see but the helplessness which filled her eyes was enough of a giveaway for him. She was feeling guilty for interrupting their meeting. Well, it was more of a tour now. The actual meeting had already been wrapped up a while ago. It was what had Claude believing that her interruption was not going to have any repercussions. Even if there were any, he didn't care."It's fine. Don't worry." Claude rubbed his hand up and down her back to calm her down. Turning his attention to the group, he began. "Apologies for the interruption everyone, but let me introduce you all to my girlfriend." He was smart enough to not announce her name to the team. Though he wondered where Ayla was going with the secrecy."I am sure she must have a name." It was Mr. D'Souza who spoke up. There was a small smile playing acros