Chapter 6

"You have to be possessive about who you love"

-Sushant Singh Rajput-

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Ana was standing in front of her dressing mirror trying to figure out what she was supposed to wear for the night, among her collections of the finest quality dresses, she still found it difficult to pick what to wear sometimes. She pulled out a few clothes from her hanger and was so focused on the clothes she had not realized that Alexander had entered her room and was standing right outside her closet door. Of course, he did not come in without permission because she had previously told him to check on her since she needed his opinion.

Frustrated, Ana finally picked a long navy blue cocktail dress with some ruffle on the top part which put a soft emphasize on her cleavage. She sprayed an elegant white floral perfume on her dress and picked out a matching navy blue purse with silver metal ware to match her jewelries later. She could not let her chest laid bare without accessories so she decided to put some princess cut pendant diamond necklace around her neck and a marquise cut diamond ring around her finger and a pair of nude pumps to finish her look off.

Once she was done exchanging her clothes, she stepped out of her dressing room to see Alexander sitting on the edge of her bed. He was already fully dressed in his formal suit as well since he would be coming with her to keep a watch.

When Alexander’s eyes met her, he was beyond astonished by her beauty and grace, she looked so refined and well put together, emphasizing every feminine curve she had. Her perfume captivated and intoxicated him. He could not help but feel bewitched each time she was done getting ready like so. Her beautiful face was only painted in thin layer of makeup which enhanced her natural features.

In his eyes, Ana was beautiful and perfect in every way.

Her soft, curious gaze made his heart beat faster, he had tried to maintain a normal expression, yet it was difficult to keep a calm face when every fiber of his being wished to just embrace her. It was an emotion he had wished to bury forever because of his duty, yet as long as he was with her it was impossible to do. At the same time, there was no way he would ever let her out of his watch, for her own safety.

“What do you think, Alexander? Would this be appropriate?”

“Of course, Anya. You look beautiful.” A smile escaped her lips at his compliment, he could not help but feel slightly hurt by the thought of her going on a date with a man who was never meant for her. Alexander knew Anton was no good for her and he had a bad feeling about the man. Yet he needed to maintain his professionalism and made sure that she would have a safe time with him while doing what she had to do.

She entered the car and Alexander took a seat beside her. The ride there was quiet and the whole time Ana kept on staring out of the window, she could see her own reflection and realized that she had kept a worried expression throughout the ride, yet she could not force herself to smile, not when she was that nervous. Though she had wished she never had to go out that night, at least she knew Alexander was with her.

“Anya, would you like me to hold your hands if you are so nervous?” Alexander whispered to her, so softly that the driver could not hear it. She looked at him with slight disbelief but saw sincerity in his eyes, it was genuine, pure without lust. She nodded and he took her hand in his. The warmth from his hand soothed her. She felt a little bit calmer within minutes as they almost arrived to the destination.

The driver opened the door and she stepped out from the car, taking a deep breath she walked inside and found Anton being there already. Usually it was common courtesy for the man to picked the woman up from her house but they had insisted for her to be driven there by a chauffeur and she could tell Anton was not very happy about it simply because he had to wait.

However, once he saw her, his eyes lit up and the waiter immediately came over to pull the chair’s seat for her and asked her what they would like to order. She was looking through the menu and before she could say anything, he asked her what she wanted and she told him she felt like having some salmon, in the end Anton was the one who ordered the meal for both of them.

Once the waiter was out of the way the first thing he did was complimenting her on her appearance. Anton was not someone who would throw careless flattery, he was polite when he had to because his field of business was basically politics. Therefore, some abilities to flatter was needed here and there.

“You don’t have to be as nervous around me, Ana, despite all the rumors you have heard about me I would never go out and harm a beautiful woman like you. Rest assured.” They delivered the wine and she carefully took her first sip. It felt strange to hear him calling her by such a familiar name. He had been placing this formal yet tender stare on her which made her a little bit confused. Both of them were not much of a talker and finding topics of discussion was a bit difficult. What Anton had failed to notice in the beginning was that Ana’s attention was not exactly directed at him.

From the corner of her eyes, Ana saw that Alexander had entered the room a few minutes after she did. Fortunately, Anton’s seat was faced on the opposite direction from the entrance and her face was directly at the entrance. Alexander took a seat near them but with his face facing the opposite side so if they were to get out, Anton couldn’t see his face unless he passed directly at him.

As the dinner unfold, Ana and Anton was getting a little bit more relaxed around each other as they ate and took their wine. The conversation also became much lighter, it mostly pointed at a few events around them and some cases, Ana also learnt a few things about Anton that the public was not aware of, for example it turned out he knew how to play Violin since he was little and used it as a way to escape the world around him for a bit, how he was also a fan of exotic animals, especially exotic cats and had some kept around his house.

“I had no idea you had an interest regarding animals as well. My dear, I think you should definitely visit my place sometimes, I would introduce you to my big cats who I think would love you.” For a brief moment Ana was wondering if the man was inviting her to his house, she was not sure if it was a good idea, yet before she could reply, he had continued.

“Yes, it sounds marvelous, are you free next weekend? I have nothing scheduled and would like you to come over to my place. I hear you are a fan of Dostoevsky and Leo Tolstoy, I have a complete collections of the books on my manor and I’d like to share them with you.” It was not as if Ana had not read the books herself, she knew he was just using it as a way to invite her to his place. Still despite knowing it she found it difficult to refuse his request. There was just something about the way he spoke which made it seems more than just an invitation, no, it was a demand. An order.

In the end, Ana agreed to do it. She never thought she would agree to come over to his house for their second date, of course she knew secretly that Alexander would be there to watch over her, but Anton would not like it if he saw another man with her. Therefore, she would have to figure out a way to bring Alexander without Anton knowing later.

“I am so happy you agree to visit me next weekend, you have no idea how it makes me feel, Ana.” He gently took her hand and kissed it. She did not understand if it was just his way of showing his courtesy but he appeared to enjoy kissing her hand a lot.

“I hope you can be more comfortable with me from now on, after all, we would eventually be wed, once that happens, you will be under my protection. No one will be able to hurt you. No one.” The supposedly comforting words had a slightly dark nuance tone in it. She couldn’t quite put her fingers around it, but she sensed his words had a much deeper meaning than what they appeared to be. Before she could response, he continued,

“Anastasia Orlovskaya. From now on you are mine.”