Chapter 6
Dexter My brows furrowed at the thought of her bringing up new rules. Were they what she thought to be important right now? Though I wasn't happy with her request, I couldn't help but indulge her knowing that she could be stubborn if she set her mind on something. "What are the rules?" I asked with a bored tone, even though I was actually interested in her rules. She sighed, approaching me slowly. "I don't want anyone to know that we are married, after all, it's a contract marriage. The knowledge should remain between the both of us." "What the hell are you talking about?" I blasted her, but she kept my gaze, looking unfazed. "What's the use of getting married if no one gets to know about it?" She shrugged and folded her arms, her stance obstinate and annoying. Sadly, I'd have to put up with this for two years if we didn't end up killing each other. "You've succeeded in making me do what I don't want, so there should be some compromise at your end, don't you think?" She asked noncommittally. I raked my fingers through my hair and hissed. This wasn't funny at all. She'd still be in danger if people thought that she was still single, but seeing the stubborn tick on her jaw, I knew that it would be pointless to argue. "I agree." I replied with a low displeased tone. She took another stride towards me. "We won't be sleeping on the same bed, you might have to get another bed for yourself or I'll make myself comfortable in any of the free rooms you have." My eyes turned red as she made her second rule. "You can't be serious about that. I'm the one who asked for the marriage so how dare you think that you can make the rules?" She rolled her eyes like her words bore no weight. The aim of our marriage was nothing short of having children, how could I get that done when we wouldn't even have sex? "Stop making these rules." I ordered when I saw the deadpan look on her face. Her formerly nonchalant expression turned into a scowl. "You think I really want to be here as your wife? You came all the way to disrupt my life just because of some debt I know nothing about, yet, I'm expected to be happy?" She hollered, fuming in rage. Somehow her anger got to me as I quickly snaked my arm around her waist and pulled her closer to me. Her eyes gleamed with surprise as she locked her soulful grey orbs with mine. "You won't understand why we have to get married until later," I spoke slowly and gently, hoping that she would understand but she didn't, and even if she did, I couldn't tell. My grip became uncomfortable for her as she struggled out of my hold. "The last rule," Her voice was breathy from her effort in trying to get away from me. "I've always wanted to be a model and your company can help me with that. I don't trust you one bit which means I'm not interested in your money. I know that going elsewhere to work wouldn't be feasible since you won't allow it, but if I'm to be your wife, I have to make a decent living by doing what I like." Seeing that she really wanted this, I nodded in agreement while wondering how she was able to make me agree to her rules even when they weren't convenient for me. "I'm going to make my own rules now." I began, but she didn't allow me to finish as she took advantage of the looseness of my grip and trotted away. Flipping her beautiful chestnut hair that suited her attractive nose to the side, I began to wonder if I made the right choice by allowing her to model in my agency. She had a banging body and an enchanting face that could keep one hooked even on my face. Several men would be interested in her and if they didn't know that she was married, they wouldn't stop coming close. "I'll sign the papers right away, and you'll take me to your agency. I need to get to work." ******* A few hours later, I found myself driving towards the Hemming Agency. It was one of our business lines that dealt with modeling and a very lucrative one too. Since we had a fashion line, it was only normal that I added modelling. to it instead of always searching for models. "Here we are." I killed the engine and relaxed for a bit. She darted her gaze around the place in a strange kind of awe that made me satisfied. I wasn't surprised that she felt this way because I was literally the business muscle of Hemming industries, and I made sure that everything concerning our business was excellent. From the customer care to the sales and marketing team, even the high towering buildings which had intricate and beautiful interior designs spoke of how hard I'd been working through the years after my father died. But why did I suddenly feel so good that she appreciated my efforts? I quickly snapped out of the euphoric feeling and tapped her thigh gently. "We don't slack here, so you'd better stop ogling and get your ass out of the car." I spat and she nodded, doing as I said. She followed me quietly, trying to be brave, but I could see through the corner of my eyes that she wasn't making a good effort at that as her body trembled visibly. Where did her previous boldness disappear to? As we passed through the revolving door with me at the front, everywhere became chaotic as my staff began to run helter-skelter. They weren't expecting me today obviously and maybe they had been slacking off. Mind you, I employed a set of workers who made working the bane of their existence but we had just rounded off the first runway show for the year so they were taking things easy. Emilia, who was our top model, rushed towards me as soon as she sighted me and quickly plunged a kiss on my cheeks. "It's good to see you, boss, you didn't tell me that you were coming." She slurred, fiddling with the collar of my suit. I nearly snorted at her attempt to get cozy with me. She had tried to get back with me severally after we broke up, but I wasn't just interested anymore because I disliked cheats. The only reason she still worked with me was because of her influence in the industry and how good she was. "I don't have to tell you everything, Emilia." I waved her off and led Lorraine to Stefan who was in charge of training the models. He was engrossed in a conversation with one of our models but that didn't stop him from ending it the moment I came over. "Good afternoon, sir." "Good afternoon. This is Lorraine Hills," I nearly bit my tongue while regarding her with her surname. She was supposed to bear my name. "She's going to be our new model so do your best with her." A loud scoff got to my hearing and it irritated me when I realised that it was from Emilia. "A new model? What do you need her for?" I fixed a very serious stare at her. "That's none of your business, I hope you know that? Make sure you don't give her any hard time while she's here or I wouldn't hesitate to cancel my contract with you." I warned, surprised at how scary my tone became because of Lorraine while she held my hand and quietly shushed me. Her touch quickly eased off the tension that was already beginning to pile, but I still had to make myself clear, knowing the kind of person Emilia was. "Do you understand?" She nodded, her eyes blazing with embarrassment, "Yes, Dexter." She flashed a threatening glare at Lorraine, picked her bag from one of the sofas then stalked off.Chapter 7Lorraine "Who's she to you?" I asked as a pang of jealousy rose up my chest. I shouldn't have felt that way, but right now I couldn't ignore the scathing urge to push the woman far away from Dexter because they clearly had a history. He stared at me briefly with his unreadable brown eyes boring into mine. "Why do you sound jealous? Should you be jealous considering the fact that you don't want anyone to know that we are married?" He used one of my wishes against me and I couldn't deny that it hurt a bit. "I just want to know what I'll be up against," I replied with a lackadaisical tone. "She seems like a lot of trouble and she's obviously into you." He was quiet for a while, like he was deciding if it would be appropriate to part with the information. But then, it was my right to know the people he was involved with since I was his wife. "She's my ex." He finally responded. My eyes widened in surprise then I lowered her lashes, apparently processing the information.
Chapter 8Lorraine Waking up to prepare for my first day at the agency filled my body with nervousness and a sizzling excitement. Finally, I'd be doing what I loved after a long time. Rubbing my sleepy eyes with the back of my hands, I realised that it had been a long time since I slept on a bed as comfy and plush as this. Dexter slept in the same room with me, but in a different bed as I'd wanted. I got up, tossing on my black robe as I'd gotten really self conscious because of the overly revealing nightwear that he had forced me to wear. "Good morning," I chirped as I reached for my toothbrush while scanning Dexter's bare chest with the corner of my eyes. God! His body was ripped with thick muscles that flexes with each movement. My fingers itched to touch his smooth skin and feel the sturdiness of chest. Dexter had always been a hottie since high school and I could remember girls sprawling all over the place just to have him notice them. "You are going to be late for work if
Chapter 9Dexter Sitting still in my office with the reminder that Lorraine was in the down floor practicing kept my restlessness burning. I wanted to see her beautiful face even though I had to do it under the pretext of supervision. The feelings were weird because I loathed her and I was supposed to stay several meters away from her but it wasn't working. Hell! I wasn't even comfortable allowing her to commute to the office so I sent one of my men to disguise as a cab driver so that she would be safe. And when he notified me that she was around, I had to rush to my floor to ceiling window which faced the entrance of the building to confirm. Unable to keep the urge away, I got up from my executive chair and headed to their practice room. If I'd known that Emilia would jump on me like a predator, I'd have stayed back and sent for Lorraine to come over. "What the hell are you doing?" I pulled away with a grimace, glaring at her satisfied grin. If not for the strong respect I had
Chapter 10Lorraine "Come join me." Dexter offered as I headed for our bedroom with a plate of cookies in my hands. His offer was gentle yet demanding at the same time. Only someone like Dexter could pull off such a tone with ease. I'd have loved to ignore him and move straight to our room, but what good will it do for the both of us? He was trying to call some temporary truce and it wasn't like I didn't enjoy being with him even if I wasn't supposed to. I sank onto the chair he sat with a grunt. "If you say so." My eyes darted to the bottle of whiskey on the table and the empty two glasses beside it. "Why do you have a bottle?" I questioned, hoping that my voice didn't bear so much concern. He poured some of the content into two glasses and passed one to me. "Let's say I'm a bit frustrated." He grumbled. "What could make the almighty Dexter frustrated?" I asked sarcastically, slightly interested in what he had to say. He doused another glass and relaxed on the back rest. "A wo
Chapter 11 Dexter The drive to one of my favorite bars seemed longer than the time I had to wait for Lorraine to be brought to me. Her crude response to my question yesterday was startling, but maybe she wasn't the angel I thought her to be. As I waltzed in, I saw my friends, yelling at me to come over. A smile stretched on my lips as I headed over to their spot and sank onto the seat they had reserved for me. Liam stretched his hand for a warm handshake. "It's been a long time, buddy. You are filling out so well." He said with a New York accent. "What can I do?" I chuckled and greeted Blake as well who was more focused on his bottle of rum. It's been a while since we met after a few years of being away from each other. I'd drowned myself in work and it wasn't until today that they forced me to come over for a reunion which I eagerly accepted. "How have you boys been?" I teased them with a smirk. Liam shrugged and was about to reply when he caught the sight of a beautiful lady
Chapter 12Dexter"Stop it!" I yelled as I jerked up my feet. "I asked you to leave the room and I'm very serious about it." The intensity of my rejection caused her to stagger backward as she leaned on the wall, her back pressing onto it for support. She sniffed and blinked continuously and when I stared at her eyes, I saw how misty it had become. Yeah, I could be cold and nonchalant but that doesn't mean that I went around hurting everyone's feelings. She sniffed again as she couldn't hold back her tears. "I love you, Dexter," She blurted. I hid my surprise well, my feelings properly hidden with a stoic mask of nonchalance. She should know better than to fall in love with me or did she expect me to grow feelings for her all of a sudden because of how frequently I called her over? "You're not saying anything." She rasped when she noticed how silent I'd become. With a shrug, I approached her fluidly after arranging my pants and tucking my manhood in. "I'm silent because I can't
Chapter 13Lorraine It was a lie—a blatant lie! I felt something so strong that I didn't want to acknowledge. Gosh, I thought those feelings were dead but I guess they had been buried in a dark corner of my heart and all it took was a single kiss to stir it up. I quickly walked away so that he wouldn't notice how I truly felt. He'd use it against me once he found out that I was trying to rile him up. The door of our bedroom flung open as I tucked myself under the duvet with Dexter sighing intermittently. "I saw Blake and Liam today at a bar. It's been a long while since I met them." My throat constricted and a deep feeling of dread, stemming from the memories of the past dropped into the pit of my stomach. "How are they?" I asked, hoping I sounded as nonchalant as I could because they never mattered to me, not after the indelible scars they caused me. Dexter turned around and smiled at me. "They are fine. Did you ask because you actually care or you just want to know?"
Chapter 14Lorraine I refused to acknowledge how much Dexter's worried expression affected me. I thought we both loathed each other? How could my pain make him feel this way? He flashed a reassuring stare at me, "How do you feel?" He didn't even wait for me to respond when he bombarded me with another question. "Is it getting any worse? Don't worry, we'll soon arrive at the hospital." "Thank you." I whispered as I willed myself to refrain from touching my ankle. The pain increased by the minute but I suppressed the yelp that nearly burst out of my lips and thought of how to continue the conversation. "How did you know that I'd sprained my ankle?" "I was about to enter the room to check on the progress of the training when I heard your scream. It really did something to me and I'd have lost my peace if I didn't help out." He responded with a little grudge. A smile formed at the corner of my lips and butterflies fluttered in the pit of my stomach, knowing that he still cared a bi