Derek entered the room to see Kathleen already set for bed, she didn't say anything to him when he entered and he wondered what was going through her mind, he quickly took a shower and climbed the king-sized bed, she was lying with her back to him and he laid down, facing the other side so that they were lying back to back. This was the first time he was sleeping at home since their marriage, he knew he had hurt her with his action, but she shouldn't expect anything from him, this marriage was a sham from the beginning and he was starting to think he had made a huge mistake in agreeing to marry her, he wasn't fit to be a husband to someone, he would just end up hurting her, perhaps he should tell her he can't do this anymore, he turned to his side, facing her back, she looked so soft and he fought the urge to run his hands down her smooth skin, he wondered what must have prompted her to flee on her wedding day and getting married to a total stranger for protection, no, she had come
Kathleen ran into the room and locked the door behind her, she leaned on the door to steady her shaky legs tears flooding her eyes, she put her palms on her chest, it felt as if it was about to burst open with the pain, she choked on a sob as she slides on the door as theears came running down her cheeks, how could she be so delusional? She had almost given herself to him just a few hours ago and in the space of a heartbeat, he was in another woman's arms, what was it that that lady said? He thought of her as pitiful and saw her as an obstacle between him and his love, her heart aches as it threatened to burst with emotions, she had naively thought he felt something for her just a moment ago and had allowed herself to be carried away by emotions, she burrowed her head between her knees as she allowed the tears to flow freely, she ignored the sudden pounding on the door for her to open the door, she just wanted to hide."Kathleen, open this door right now" his voice thundered fr
Derek opened his eyes the next morning, he tried to sit up but the exploding pain he felt had him falling back to the bed, he groaned aloud holding his head."That's what you get for drinking too much, the aftereffect is always bad" Kathleen came in carrying a tray, the smell of freshly made coffee filled the room, she helped him up with a hand underneath his head, "here drink this" she gave him the coffee which he drank with relish, " thanks" he handed the cup back to her when he was through, " you could have sent the maid to bring it" he avoided making eye contact with her, he knew he must look a mess right now, he touched his swollen cheek, served him right, he thought as he winced at the pain, she said nothing, she simply removed his hand and placed some ice pack on it, "ouch" he winced again trying to move his face away."Be still, you didn't think of the pain when you involved yourself in a fight, what were you thinking?" Her sharp tone had him sitting still li
"I am throwing a party tomorrow, to officially introduce you to the world as my wife" Derek informed her over dinner and Kathleen almost choked on her meal, a party for her? Does he really wish to introduce her as his wife to the whole world? A party means the press will pick it up and all those his ladies might be present, does it really matter? He would be introducing her but she would not think much about it, She preferred her low-key life, she loves being anonymous, she doesn't want to be dragged into his limelight, Derek was staring at her, " what do you think?" He asked in-between bits, it was the first time he was having dinner at home since their marriage and he must admit, it felt good.Kathleen shrugged, putting down her spoon, " I don't like it" she stated and for a moment he looked confused, he thought she would be happy, every woman wanted to associate with him, why was she always different? " What do you mean by you don't like it?"" I don't want to be dragge
Derek's yell made heads turned towards their direction and Kathleen felt like the ground should open and swallow her to save her from this embarrassment, she felt like running away but before she could put those thoughts into action, Derek grabbed her hand, as if he knew exactly what she had planned to do.Christine didn't waver at his tone, she kept her smile in place and repeated, "congratulations"Derek tone lowered but not less deadly, "I asked what you are doing here" he repeated, Kathleen was also wondering what she was doing here, Christine turned to the guests, "attention everyone, I have something to say" Derek's eyes narrowed on her as he wondered what she was up to, Kathleen tried to remove her hand from his grasp but he just held on tighter, he looked at her briefly, "I won't allow you go anywhere, you'll mark your place in my life publicly, don't worry about her, I'll handle it"Did she hear him right? He wanted her to mark her place in his life? Sh
Derek's yell made heads turned towards their direction and Kathleen felt like the ground should open and swallow her to save her from this embarrassment, she felt like running away but before she could put those thoughts into action, Derek grabbed her hand, as if he knew exactly what she had planned to do.Christine didn't waver at his tone, she kept her smile in place and repeated, "congratulations"Derek tone lowered but not less deadly, "I asked what you are doing here" he repeated, Kathleen was also wondering what she was doing here, Christine turned to the guests, "attention everyone, I have something to say" Derek's eyes narrowed on her as he wondered what she was up to, Kathleen tried to remove her hand from his grasp but he just held on tighter, he looked at her briefly, "I won't allow you go anywhere, you'll mark your place in my life publicly, don't worry about her, I'll handle it"Did she hear him right? He wanted her to mark her place in his life? Sh
Derek came out of the bathroom to see Kathleen standing by the door as if waiting for him to be out, droplets of water ran from his hair to his chest and for a moment she stood there drooling and Derek chuckled, "do you need something wife?" His tone held a double meaning and she looked away blushing."You can't stop me from being friends with Stefan" she finally recalled while she was waiting for him, Derek raised a brow at her, "what's it about him that you're so fired up to become his friend?" His blue eyes drilled hers."Because he's nice and is offering his friendship" she retorted"There are other nice ladies out there to be friends with," he said cooling, drawing out the ladies."So I'm not allowed to make male friends but you are allowed to keep female friends?" She fired at him and he looked at her, "I'm a playboy so it's allowed but you're not a Playgirl so it does not allow".Kathleen brow furrowed, "you take much pride in bearing playboy don't you?"Der
Kathleen was tensed and at the same time, filled with anticipation while waiting for Derek's arrival, it's been almost an hour since he left, she had just sat down for her lunch when the door opened and his frame filled the doorway, her heart skipped a beat at the sight of him and she quickly faced her meal, pretending not to see him, his gaze searched her out and he took a purposeful stride towards her, he didn't say anything but just sat down opposite her and staring, she became nervous under his scrutiny but refused to lift her head, rushing her meal, she stared at him when she could no longer bear his stare and choked at what she saw in his eyes, he was looking at her with open lust, she coughed and he stood up, patting her back, she quickly drank some water as her eyes teared up, "eat slowly, no one is taking the food away from you"The servants rushed in to see what was going on and quickly pretended to avert their gazes when they saw their master's arms around her.
That week was the happiest for Kathleen, Derek spend as much time as possible with her, he always looked forward to coming back home from work, he always couldn't wait to be with her, they went out together to get ice cream, and on one occasion, she had a smear of ice cream on her nose and instead of Derek helping her to clean with his hand, he used his tongue to lick it off amidst the chuckles of passerby and Kathleen's face flamed. He seized every opportunity to touch her.On one of those occasions, they had gone out for a drink, holding each other's hands, they both sat down, the waiter ran towards them immediately to take their order, and they each sip their drinks in comfortable silence, simply enjoying each other's company. "What a coincidence to have met these lovebirds here" someone suddenly spoke from their side and they both turned to see Stefan standing above them, Derek eyes suddenly darkened with displeasure at his unwanted intrusion but Kathleen's gaze brigh