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143: The Reunion (IV)
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2024-10-29 19:42:56"Things have to stay the same between us. Selene will be leaving soon, but that's not going to change anything else. We have to stay away from one another. I will have some place arranged for you to stay in the meantime…"
"What are you even trying to say, Claude?" No matter how much thought she put into it, her mind failed to comprehend what he was trying to say.
Claude stared back at her as he opened and closed his mouth a couple of times. He didn't know an easier way to put it out, but knew that he had to tell her nothing but the truth. She deserved to know it. Pulling himself away from her, he took a step back. "We have to keep our distance from one another. Our marriage will only be on paper. That's what I am trying to say here." His gaze dropped down to the floor as he avoided looking into her eyes. Claude knew that his resolve would disappear into thin air if he were to witness the hurt.
"Cl
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The Heartless Bride 144: The Reunion (V)
"We can continue with being husband and wife…" "Excuse me?" Ayla scoffed. " So, you want me to continue living at the hotel? Won't that be too much for your name in the market?" "Ayla!" Claude narrowed his eyes down at her, not liking the satire at all. "I would never want you to stay at a hotel. Like never. I only let you do it for the last couple of days because you needed the space." He rolled his eyes, trying to prove a point. "I would arrange for you to stay back at my penthouse. You'll have a housekeeper at your disposal and a couple of staff members too. The good thing is that it's located right in the middle of the city, so you won't be having any issues going back and forth between the hospital and the penthouse. It's closer to the company as well, so people won't be raising questions about the shifting." He continued on with explaining the arrangement. "Won't they be questioning your absence f
The Heartless Bride 145: The New Arrangement (I)
[A week later.]"Good morning, Miss." Ayla was greeted by the housekeeper as soon as she stepped into the open kitchen."Morning, Mrs. Grace." Ayla passed along a wide smile to the old lady who was working her way around the kitchen counter to prepare her some breakfast. "How are you feeling this morning? Is it better?" She perched herself on one of the high kitchen stools and continued with their conversation. "You really don't have to work today, or better, for a couple of days until you have recovered fully. I can easily fix myself some breakfast. You should go home and rest." Ayla tried to persuade the old lady even though she knew that it was a near impossible feat.Mrs. Grace, her new housekeeper, had not been feeling well for two days now but no matter how much Ayla tried to stop her coming to work for her, she wouldn't listen to any of it."Oh, please, Miss." Mrs. Grace shru
The Heartless Bride 146: The New Arrangement (II)
"Morning…"The slight dragging of the stool was enough to break her focus combined with the husky greeting. Ayla turned in her seat and stole a glance at the man who was looking no better than a mess."Morning." She greeted him as she raised her mug closer to her lips to blow off the steam. "What happened to you?" She continued to watch him from the corner of her eyes as the old lady busied herself with serving Claude his breakfast."Work." He kept his replies short."I didn't hear you coming back last night." Even after they had come to a mutual understanding, Ayla found it hard to not care for him. Not after figuring out her newfound feelings for the man who refused to engage into a proper conversation."It was pretty late. You were asleep already." Claude muttered out a reply, not bothering to carry on the conversation once his food was ser
The Heartless Bride 147: The New Arrangement (III)
Later that night…Ayla stepped out of the hospital building as she hurriedly tapped on her phone's screen. She was formatting a text for her driver to come around the building so that she could leave as soon as possible. She glanced at the time displayed on top of the phone's screen and sighed to herself as she realized that she was already running half an hour late. Claude was not going to be happy about this, definitely not. She shook her head to either side before looking up, her eyes searching for the man who was supposed to be out here already. She had left him a text before logging out for the day, yet the man was nowhere to be seen.Her eyes drifted off to a lone figure who was standing by the corner, his attention too focused on his phone's screen as his fingers tapped away. All she could make out in the dark was the man's silhouette which was wrapped by a long winter coat. He reminded her of someone, only if that someon
The Heartless Bride 148: The Scandal (I)
Claude looked up from his phone as he heard the door click. A small smile swept across his face as he eyed the beauty before him. "Well, don't you look lovely." He couldn't stop himself from throwing out a praise as his eyes travelled up and down her frame. Ayla was donning a deep red gown with an A-line silhouette. There was a slit running up on one side, leaving part of her right leg bare. She was barely wearing any accessories, though she didn't need to. Her blood smeared lips were enough to garner anyone's attention. "Thank you. You don't look half bad yourself." Ayla couldn't meet his strong gaze. Her eyes looked everywhere but at him. She knew that it would only end up on a bad note for her if she was to look him in the eye. Moreover, she failed to understand his motives. One moment, he was pushing her away whereas the very next, he was openly flirting with her. "Ouch.
The Heartless Bride 149: The Scandal (II)
"..I want a divorce…"The very second those words came out of Ayla's mouth, the car was brought to a screeching halt by the side of the road."W-what did you just say?" Claude took off his seatbelt and turned around to face her. "You want a divorce?"This time, Ayla looked him in the eye. She didn't want to come off as a coward before him despite the fact that saying it out loud was hurting her just the same. "You heard me right the first time. We have already separated our paths. I don't see any point in keeping the act up." She was only speaking the truth.They have drifted apart so much that she found it hard to believe that their relationship could be salvaged at any point in life."That's not what I was talking about when I said that we couldn't be together." Claude shook his head, frantically. He refused to believe his own ears as every last w
The Heartless Bride 150: The Scandal (III)
"Why don't you let me have one more thing in exchange for a few thousand bucks…," he paused as he leaned in further, bringing his lips next to her ear as he whispered into it. "You."Ayla couldn't believe her ears. It was hard for her to be buying his malicious words but the sinister curl of his lip was enough to convey the truth. Claude meant it. He meant it all."Y-you…" She shook her head frantically as she backed against the car's door. "You don't mean it.""But, I do, wife." The smirk never left his lips. "We never made it past the romance. If we are to divorce, why not consummate our marriage first. It would make it all too real. Don't you think so?" He leaned further in and ran his nose down the side of her face as she tried to pull further away."Stop it, please! Just f*cking stop it, Claude." She begged him to not push it any further in her quivering voice. Tears we
The Heartless Bride 151: Separation
"But I will have you say it back to me one day…"The words she wanted to speak out loud were pushed to the back of her throat as she struggled to come up with the courage. Ayla shook her head before taking a step back against the side of the car."I don't think that I am ever going to be ready to be saying them back to you, Claude. I just don't." She shook her head as she tore her gaze away from his face. She didn't have the heart to witness the conflicting emotions swirling in the depths of his eyes."Take your time, wife." Claude managed to mutter out as he took a step to the side. The cars speeding by were long forgotten as the couple carried on with their conversation."I don't think I can do this any longer either, Claude." Ayla shook her head as she raised it to look back at him. "I can not." Her vision was starting to get blurry with unshed tears forming in the corner
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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
