"Your mother raised you better than this."
That was it, the last straw of her patience snapping into two.
"Don't you dare bring my mother into this conversation." She raised her voice a couple of notches. "I get it that you detest me at times, I truly do. And I am fine with it. But you don't get to talk about my mother like that just so you could get the upper hand in a conversation over me."
"That's not what I was trying to say." His tone dropped down to normal as he shifted his eyes to the floor as his gaze became clouded.
"I don't care what you meant by it, grandfather. But you don't get to talk about her. Especially not when you didn't even bother showing up at her funeral." Ayla spoke up, her voice never wavering. She didn't mind it whenever the old man scolded her as if she wasn't good enough, but how could he do this?
"I had my reasons." He spoke up as he looked up to meet her gaze. "I am sorry if it came out wr
"You should hear the rest, my child." Her grandfather spoke in between before letting out a dark chuckle.Now that definitely made everything suspicious."What are you not telling me here, Claude?" She narrowed her eyes at her husband who was looking everywhere but at her."Let's just say the rest of my family isn't really a fan of you." He scratched the back of his head as he looked down on the floor."But, I have never even met them. I highly doubt they even know about me except for my name maybe." She made it a mission to always stay out of any kind of news whether or not it involved her own family."I know that already, love. It's just that they know about your existence." He sighed in frustration."And that's enough of a reason for them to dislike me?" Ayla couldn't believe her ears. Being judgemental was one thing, but disliking someone before they even got to know them was definitely another.It wa
"Do you want me to come and pick you up?"Ayla shook her head instinctively before realizing that Claude couldn't see her reaction. She smiled at her own antics before finally replying to the man."No, it's fine. I can manage." She spoke into the phone's speaker as she made her way down the corridor, her feet moving towards the main gate of the campus."I can send in a driver. I don't want you to go alone." Claude's strained voice came from the other end once again."Claude, I appreciate your concern. But I am only heading to the mall. It's not like I am jumping off a cliff without a parachute. There's nothing to be worried about." She shook her head to herself. As much as it made her happy, knowing how much he cared for her, she couldn't help but become somewhat irritated about it.She got free earlier today than she expected, so she decided to visit the nearby mall. They were supposed to leave for Claude's grandfathe
"Ugh!" Ayla groaned out in frustration as Ayla walked out of another shop without having any luck in finding something that was able to catch her eye.She knew that there was probably nothing that Claude's grandfather lacked, but she had to give him something that spoke volumes. It was a long shot, but she had to try.From what Claude had told her, he was a man of temper and character. She was having a hard time deciding on anything. She was practically just strolling around the mall, going into antique shops one after the other with the hope that she might find something, anything.She checked the time on her phone once again. It had already been an hour and half since she arrived here and still no luck. What ticked her more was how eerily quiet her phone was. There wasn't any new message from him. His last text was a simple okay, that too in response to her text in which she had informed him of her arrival at the mall. She fought the urge to
"Your nuggets… are finished."Ayla followed his gaze and found the empty box but instead of minding it, she gave the old man a wide smile. He made it sound as if they disappeared into thin air and the culprit was nowhere to be found. But in reality, he was the culprit. He practically devoured them whole without even bothering to leave a single nugget behind for her."I should get some more for myself. What do you think?" She raised an eyebrow at him when she saw him chuckling out loud."What?" She deadpanned."I don't think you should get any more of those as much as I would love it. My doctor will kill us both if he finds out." He mused."You were not supposed to be eating those?" Her eyes widened in shock."Why do you think I have this boring bowl of salad before me?" He deadpanned."Makes sense." She shook her head. It was no wonder that he ate all of her food. "But you better avoid fried
"I am so sorry, love." Claude apologized to her the minute he threw his arms around her. He pulled her into his chest, inhaling deeply as he buried his face into her hair. "I didn't plan to make you wait for this long." He continued. "I really didn't.""I know, I know." Ayla spoke up, leaning back a little so that she could have a look at his face. "Don't fret about it. I was just roaming around. Now that you are here, we can actually shop for the gift.""You haven't bought anything yet?" Claude looked behind her only to find her college bag resting on the floor next to a seat."I couldn't find anything that screamed gift worthy for your grandfather." She pursed her lips together as she recalled her senseless strolling around the gift shops. "Though I think I now have an idea about what to get him, it could be worth a shot." She added hurriedly as her thoughts drifted back to the small sticky note which the nugget loving old man had left behind
"How far are we?" A groan followed out of her lips as she stretched her arms in front of her."It will take another hour to reach there." Claude replied to her looking at her from the corner of his eyes. He turned his attention back to his laptop which was resting on his lap. "You can go back to sleep; I'll wake you up once we have reached." He added after a while."No, I am fine now." Ayla shook her head before stealing a glance behind.There was a black jeep with tinted windows following behind closely."Is this really necessary?" She asked the question again only to see Claude giving her a firm nod.It wasn't the first time she had asked Claude about it, but she failed to understand the reason behind the need for security. Claude had only informed her about it just before they were about to leave the mansion. When she tried to pry further, he brushed it off saying that they were only there as a precaution, and that
"Wakey wakey, sleepy head." Ayla muttered next to his way as her hands shook his broad shoulders lightly. There was a small frown resting in between her brows as she made another attempt to shake him up."What?" Claude mumbled with a groan, not bothering to open his eyes."We are here, Claude. I don't think your grandfather will appreciate us being late." Ayla looked out of the window to see a couple of people already waiting for them, their patience running thin as they eyed their guards."Ugh!" Claude groaned out in frustration once again before forcing his eyes open. Ayla was right about him pushing his body's limit."How long has it been?" He mumbled out, stretching out his arms."Five minutes." Ayla replied to him and watched his eyebrows shooting up in shock. Wanting to make him feel better about it, she hurriedly added, "it's alright because your grandfather isn't here yet from what it looks like." She tilted her head back
"Isn't that your work phone, husband?"Blood drained away from Claude's face as he looked up to see Ayla squinting at the rectangular piece of technology flashing in his palms."Umm.. yes." Claude gulped down a mouthful of saliva before running his tongue along his lower lip. He didn't plan to actually work over the holidays, but he definitely had in mind to check on his work. That was one of the reasons he brought along his work phone—in case he was needed. But he forgot to actually put it on silent after his altercation with his beloved wife."Who is it?" Ayla drew in a sharp breath as she shifted her gaze up to see the horrified expression etched on his face. Was she enjoying it? She snickered internally."Ethan." Claude replied to her before clearing his throat. "I will talk to him later and tell him to not disturb us until after we are back." He added in a rather hurried manner, not wanting to soil her mood once again over the
[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