LOGINShare
076: Regret (VI)
Last Updated:
2021-09-28 11:33:17"Is it worth it?"
It was a rather simple question which Ethan asked him, but the depth of his words left Claude shook to his core. He couldn't help but ask himself the same thing.
Was it really worth it? Was any of it really worth it?
It didn't take him long to come up with a concise answer.
No.
It wasn't.
None of it was worth it.
As if reading his thoughts, Ethan gave him a small smile. "I am not going to sit here and defend her actions or words because I know that they must have really hurt you for you to be acting out like this. But at the same time, I can neither defend your actions. She's willing to apologize to you, even if you are not willing to forgive her. But here you are, staying at your penthouse just so you can avoid facing her. What does it say about you?"
Claude let his mind process it all. It wasn't that he didn't think of this before or the same thoughts didn't
Related chapters
The Heartless Bride 077: Repentance (I)
"Excuse me?" Ayla waved her hand in the air to get the attention of the bartender."Yes, Ma'am?" A lanky boy who looked like he was only in late teens walked up to her."Hit me with a drink, just make sure the alcohol content isn't too high." She gave the boy a polite smile as she slid on one of the bar stools."Sure, Ma'am. But you'll have to wait for a little while because we have only opened." The boy gave her an apologetic smile before walking to the back of the bar counter.It gave Ayla enough time to admire her surroundings. Her eyes wandered around as she took her environment in. Despite the fact that the place was nothing more than a club, it had a flair of mystery to it. The light gray walls contrasted with the black furnishing a little too well. Accents of gold marked the edges, bringing out the corners as they glimmered under the dim pale lightings."My, my, my. Look who's here."She was forced to tear her
Last Updated : 2021-09-28The Heartless Bride 078: Repentance (II)
"Hey, you!" A couple of giggles left Ayla's pouted lips as she eyed the handsome hunk of man who was standing before her. His brooding expressions made others wary of him, but was the least bit bothered about it."Aren't you handsome?" She leaned back against the couch as she tilted her neck up to have a better view of him.He was standing tall and proud, unmoving like a mountain as the background faded behind him."I really hope that you somehow recognize me. Otherwise, I don't think that I'll be pleased with my wife calling a random man in a club handsome." Claude shook his head while maintaining his stance. He had his hands shoved inside his pockets to keep them away from lunging at her. He wanted nothing more than to engulf her in a big warm hug and, hopefully, take all of her worries away. But seeing her drunken state, he had to keep his emotions in check. The last thing would be having her all scared and flustered because she was unable to labe
Last Updated : 2021-09-29The Heartless Bride 079: Repentance (III)
A groan left her dry lips as she tried turning over under the covers."This hurts." A couple of 'ouches' later she was finally able to shift on her back. With snail-like slow movements, she pulled the covers down. Crawling her face out, she braced herself for the blinding assault that was to follow soon after."I should have thought of a better way to get his attention." The frown on her forehead only deepened as she recalled the events of last night. The last thing she remembered was being with Claude. Even though they were more of blurry memories, she was sure that Claude was there with her. Her surroundings only proved it further.She was in the master bedroom, in their bed. A smile crept up on her lips as she rubbed around her eyes with hopes to provide them with some relief. It was a good thing that the lights were turned down to the minimum settings."He surely has a weird way of showing how much he cares." She mumbled to herself b
Last Updated : 2021-09-29The Heartless Bride 080: Repentance (IV)
"What happened, love?" He took a step forward in her direction, wanting to run to her. "You are getting me worried here. Please, say something."That was all it took for Ayla to blurt it all out to him."You were not there when I woke, so I thought the worse." A frown made itself evident in between her trimmed brows. "I mean, I was right to do so. Given how much I drank last night, you should have been right next to me when I woke up earlier. But, you were not." She was moving her hands animatedly in the air as she continued to ramble on.At this point, all of her worries flew right out of the window. She didn't pay the rest of the people sitting around the long conference table in their prim and proper attire. Her eyes were solely focused on Claude; him and him alone."When I didn't see you there, everything came rushing back to me. And since my mind has this really bad habit of making the worst out of situations, I started thinking abo
Last Updated : 2021-09-29The Heartless Bride 081: Cuddles and Kisses (I)
Ayla stared up at the screen, taking in all the numbers which kept flashing over it one after the other. She moved her legs slightly under the black coat which was draped over them. Claude had moved it from the back of his chair the minute he realized how her propped up legs were bare and on display. It had already been an hour since.she was pulled to settle down on Claude's lap before a room full of executives. She had tried talking him into letting her leave the conference hall during the coffee break, but the man threatened her in return. "Don't think that I will not kiss you again if you keep arguing with me over this." Since that moment, she had kept her lips clamped shut as she didn't want to give him a single chance. It wasn't because she didn't enjoy their kiss or wasn't looking forward to having another one, but because she didn't want others to have a show of their own to enjoy meanwhile. Her tongue darted out and tra
Last Updated : 2021-09-29The Heartless Bride 082: Cuddles and Kisses (II)
"I felt so lonely…""Oh, baby." Claude did not know what to say to her to make her feel any better. So, he chose to do the only thing which he could think of. "I am so sorry, my love. I didn't mean to make you feel like that.""It's okay. I know. I was the one who was at fault." Ayla shook her head hurriedly. "I shouldn't have said that.""Ayla, love, as much as I agree with you on that, I am at fault here just the same. I should have just told you straightaway who Eleanor was, but my temper got the best of me. It just ticked me off so much that you didn't have an ounce of faith in me… in us. I would never cheat on you. Never." Claude knew better than to just blame her for everything. He was not innocent in the matter either.The whole situation could have been avoided if he would have handled it better. But the truth was, he had no control over his emotions. The foreign emotions she brought forward in him were someth
Last Updated : 2021-09-29The Heartless Bride 083: Cuddles and Kisses (III)
Claude smiled at her, seeing how vexed she looked all because he refused to continue kissing her. He really wanted to, but at the same time he needed to clear a couple of things."Spill it out, Claude." She pressed him. "Or do you want me to go find someone else who will be willing to kiss me without ruining the moment.""Oh, baby…" He smirked down at her before leaning forward. Bringing his lips next to her ear, he pressed them against its outer shell. "I want you to remember one thing clearly, if at any point you don't feel comfortable, ask me to stop right away. I won't push you, neither am I going to mind it. Got it?"Ayla's gaze softened as she looked up at him. Instead of letting things take their own pace, he was putting her comfort above everything else. She was touched by his thoughts alone. "I will keep that in mind." She gave him a small smile, hoping that it would be enough to convey how grateful she was to him."Good.
Last Updated : 2021-09-29The Heartless Bride 084: A Sudden Interruption (I)
"Good noon, Mr. Lawrence." Claude greeted the old man as soon as he stepped inside the room behind Ayla. All the playfulness was gone from his face which was there a couple of seconds ago. In its place were brooding expressions and a calculated smile that never reached his eyes.It was the first time Ayla was actually getting to witness him in his form. The meeting was one thing since all of his attention was on the issue at hand rather than the people around him. Moreover, he barely paid them any attention with her on his lap. But now, all of those factors were taken out of the picture, leaving him bare and exposed to her eyes.She couldn't see him like this. It pained her for some reason."Good afternoon, lad. You can call me grandfather." The old man stood up from the chair and gave the duo a polite smile."Good afternoon, grandfather." Ayla spoke up to break the tension which was lingering in the air. Sparks could be seen flying acro
Last Updated : 2021-09-29
Latest chapter
The Heartless Bride Epilogue
[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 Heartless Bride 191: Desires (II)*
[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 Heartless Bride 190: Desires (I)*
[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 Heartless Bride 189: The Most Precious Thing to Me*
[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
The Heartless Bride 188: The Culprit (II)
"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 Heartless Bride 187: The Culprit (I)*
[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
The Heartless Bride 186: Suspicions (II)
[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
The Heartless Bride 185: Suspicions (I)
"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
The Heartless Bride 184: I was Missing you (II)
"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
