Chapter 39: Chapter 39

If you could change one thing about how your parents raised you, what would it be?

<Isabelle>

"Kuya Nick, you're so scary now. You're scaring me," I said while crying as he returned to his office.

His secretary ran away as soon as she saw me. Did my makeup get messed up, that's why she got scared and ran. I was crying, after all.

Nick's demeanour was dark, and he had been pacing back and forth. He tightly held his cell phone, trying to call someone, but it seemed the call couldn't go through.

He chased after his secretary, but when he came back, he looked furious.

"Fuck! Heidi, why did you answer the call for so long?!" he snapped at his phone conversation. Was he talking to Ate Heidi on the other line?

"Azaria ran away! Shit! She's not fucking answering my calls!" He was angry, and I cowered in fear. I wish Kuya Lanvin Charles was here. He attended a week-long meeting in another country.

"Are you with my wife?"

"Fuck!" He clenched his fist, his veins bulging on his hand. His long sleeves were folded up to his elbows, making the veins more visible. He leaned against his table in frustration.

Kuya Nick is so scary right now. I want to ask why he's angry, but I'm afraid I might become the target of his anger, so I'd rather not say anything and just report him to our mom.

"Look for my wife. If you don't find her within the hour, you're dead, Heidi."

He's throwing fire at Ate Heidi.

He angrily hung up the call. He seemed about to throw his mini iPhone, but then he glanced at it for a few seconds and just dropped it on his table. He wiped his face with his hand.

I was begging him earlier. I was crying because I'm not the crush of my crush. I kneeled in front of him, hoping he would have mercy on me and start to like me back.

"K-kuya N-nick," I called out to him, my voice trembling.

My tears fell even more when he gave me a cold look.

"From this day on, Isabelle, don't go near me. Don't fucking touch me! Distance the fuck yourself. I don't give a shit if we're cousins," he threatened me with a menacing look.

What did I do? I remained silent and cried because I was scared of him. Did I do something wrong? I called my driver to pick me up because I was terrified of Kuya Nick. I was trembling in fear.

I flinched when he punched the table.

Security guards entered his office.

"Sir, we didn't see Ma'am leave," they reported to him.

"Close all the exits! Don't come back here if you didn't find her! If I don't see my wife within an hour, you're all fucking fired!" He said mercilessly.

"Yes, sir!" they said while trembling in fear. They quickly left, their faces showing their fear.

"Manang, is my wife home?"

I glanced at him when he started talking to someone again.

"Can you call the mansion for me? Ask the maid if Azaria is there," he requested. He spoke calmly to the household staff, but I knew he wasn't calm.

I sat silently here and prayed. I'll cry later when I'm home. Even my tears were afraid of Kuya Nick.

I looked at him, noticing how tightly he held his cell phone.

"Damn it!" He cursed after the call.

I decided to leave and wait at the exit instead.

“Damn it! Where’s my wife?!”

"What?! You are her friend. My wife was supposed to call you Heidi! If something happens to my child and my wife, I'll fucking revoke your license. Don't try me, Heidi!"

I tightly closed my eyes and left his office without making a sound.

Huhu, poor Ate Heidi.

I was already at the door when it opened, and his secretary greeted me.

"Sir, here's the copy of the CCTV. According to the management, Ma'am didn't leave the company premises," his secretary reported.

"Look for her all over the company!" He roared.

I couldn't bear it anymore, and I quickly left the office. I felt like I was in hell, and Satan was my companion.

I had never seen Kuya Nick that angry before.

As I passed by another department, I saw employees rushing and looking busy.

"No one is allowed to go home until you're all done. Everyone is required to take overtime today!"

I walked past them, still trembling in fear.

"Ma'am, you're not allowed to leave," one of the security guards blocked my way.

"Why am I not allowed? I'm the cousin of the CEO!"

"Ma'am, I apologize, but it's strictly prohibited for anyone to leave, as instructed by the boss," he said apologetically.

"Ma'am, I'm sorry. We're just doing our job," his colleague added.

There was nothing I could do but sit on the sofa and wait.

"Tangina! I don't want to embarrass myself, girl. Huhu," I overheard the woman say as she carried some folders.

"Don't worry too much, Acla. There are rumours that the meeting might be postponed because Sir's wife is missing."

I no longer paid attention to their conversation.

~~

<Azaria>

I am here in Pangasinan, sitting by the sea, and it's already night when I arrived. I wanted to take a breath and find some peace amidst the chaos in my life. I turned off my iPhone to shut out everything.

I want to reflect and think about what's happening in my life. Being a bad person must have brought bad karma, and maybe this is my karma for scamming people, though I have admitted my mistake and learned from it. It's much better to do good things because they last, rather than engaging in bad deeds that make life miserable. I realize that I am starting to be affected by what's happening in my life. Nikolai made me the person I am today; I wasn't like this before. I used to be able to endure everything alone, but his presence made me feel like I can surrender all my sorrows and problems to him. He spoiled me by taking care of all my issues.

I thought he loved me. Why is he cheating on me? I would have understood if he had told me that he was in a relationship before he met me, but why did he have to hide it from me? I would have accepted it. I promise I would have let him be with the person he loves. I didn't force him to marry me. I don't want to admit that I'm so jealous.

Damn it! Why am I crying? But it hurts so much. I didn't realize I wouldn't be able to handle him being with someone else.

Maybe I should just walk into the sea and disappear, so this pain can go away. I want to voice out my feelings, but I'm used to having no one to talk to, no one who will listen to me. I've learned that I am entitled to my sorrows and problems. Why didn't anyone tell me that being in love could be this painful? I've endured so much in the past, but this pain of love seems unbearable.

"What the fuck! Azaria, are you trying to kill yourself? Huh!"

Someone forcefully pulled me, and I was met with Nikolai's angry eyes. His jaw was clenched, his hair in disarray due to the wind, and his eyes looked tired. His corporate attire was in disarray as well.

I wanted to hug him, but I held myself back.

"Let go of me," I said firmly while crying in front of him.

"Why did you run away? Huh! What if something happened to you? I was fucking looking for you for almost five hours!" He said in anger, "And you fucking drove here from Makati City. Azaria?! Are you even thinking?" His eyes were searching and he held onto my arm tightly.

"How did you find me? Why am I even surprised by your connection and power? You can do all things possible with your money."

"Let go of me. I'm hurting!" I struggled. He loosened his grip on my arm, but he still didn't let go. I saw guilt in his eyes.

"Let go of me. Go to your woman!" I cried out to him. His forehead furrowed.

"I don't have a woman!"

"You're lying!" I shouted at his face, "Why didn't you tell me that you were in a relationship before we got married?! I would have accepted it! And what about what I saw in your office, huh? Why was she on her knees? Maybe you're looking for someone else because I know nothing about such things—"

He crushed his lips onto mine. Our kiss lasted for a while, and he held me tightly by the waist. After the kiss, he was smiling. Earlier, he was angry.

"I was right. You're jealous. Don't cry," he said softly as he wiped my tears.

"You saw it in the wrong perspective. Isabelle is my cousin, and I'm not in a relationship with anyone. She was begging me to arrange a marriage for the man she loves," he explained as he wiped my face. I didn't believe what he was saying.

"If you don't want to believe me, you can ask my cousin Charles. Isabelle wasn't able to attend our wedding because she was in Spain," he said gently.

"Don't you trust me, wife, huh?" He asked softly.

"Why did she say you're her boyfriend?!"

He smiled again and kissed me. I'm getting cold here because of the strong wind.

He shrugged, "I'll tell her to stop telling everyone that I'm her boyfriend. She's like family to us; she's sweet. Don't worry, I've already talked to her about our boundaries. I like it when you're jealous. But please don't run away, you're giving me a heart attack," he said emotionally.

He noticed that I was trembling in fear, so he gave me his coat and draped it over me.

"Let's go to the car, I'll find a hotel for us to stay," he said, holding my hand as we walked.

"I was just jealous for no reason. I thought they were up to something indecent."

"If you're thinking about something, can you tell me? I don't know what you're thinking, wife. Aren't my assurances enough?" he asked as he got into the car. He opened the door for me and took my hand, kissing it gently.

"If something is bothering you, tell me. And I won't have any other woman. You're my everything, why the hell would I cheat? Fuck!"

"Why didn't you tell me that you have a female cousin? And there are so many women around you! First, there's Camille, and then your sister who has an unpleasant attitude. And now you have this cousin Isabelle!"

He was smiling, seemingly enjoying my actions.

"Hey, relax, baby. I'm avoiding them, can't you notice that? I'm only yours. I know my limits. Even though you're cute when you're jealous. But damn! Can't you tell me when you're jealous of someone? I'll avoid them, okay? And I'm not talking to anyone, not even my cousin or my sister - I'm avoiding them. I know my limits, baby. Don't you trust me, huh?"

He gently placed his hand on the back of my head and pulled me close to rest my head on his shoulder. I felt him kiss my forehead.

"I'm not jealous," I said, feigning indifference.

He chuckled sexily.

"I know," he replied as he got into the car.

"Maybe another girl's best friend will approach you again," I said, pouting.

"I don't have a girl best friend. Why would I need one when I have the best wife?"

I hid my face in his shoulder and playfully bit him there.

"Baby, let's take a picture."

I blinked, wondering if I heard him right.

"C'mon, let's take a picture. I want your face on my feed," he said sweetly. He took out his mini iPhone and we took a selfie together. He even took a picture of our hands and posted it on his story. I exchanged phones with him, and surprisingly, he didn't complain even though mine was pink. I guess he was teasing me about it.

We checked into a hotel with a view of the beach.

"Wife, I'll ask my driver to buy us clothes. What do you want to wear?" he asked while I was looking at the waves on the beach. I felt him approaching me. He pulled me closer to him and kissed me on the lips. He then positioned himself behind me and hugged me from there.

"I want my clothes at the house. I want a purple pyjama. And I want to have a set of swimsuits for tomorrow. Also, don't forget my skincare products. I want to wear a shirt and pants. Remind your driver to get the purple one, huh? Tell Maria, she knows the clothes I'm talking about. And don't forget to ask Maria to send the cucumber bath soap and my lotion with glitters," I gave him a long list of things I wanted.

“Why purple baby? I thought your favourite colour is pink?”

I pouted in response to his question.

"It's because your cousin keeps copying me. She always wears pink too. I don't want us to have the same favourite colour," I explained.

"Let's go to bed and play with my hair," he said, pulling me towards him.

We went to bed, lying side by side, and he rested his head on my chest while I played with his hair. We were still waiting for our clothes to arrive, and the food Nikolai ordered hadn't arrived yet.

"Wife, hug me too," he demanded. I rolled my eyes playfully. How could I hug him when he was already hugging me so tightly? But he seemed so comfortable in my arms.

"You haven't initiated a kiss since morning," he complained.

"You've had plenty of kisses already," I protested.

Even without looking at him, I could tell he was pouting.

"But I want you to always kiss me," he said. He liked it when I surprised him with sudden kisses and enjoyed it when I was affectionate towards him.

"I kissed you this morning, remember when you bought me Starbucks?"

"You kissed me on the cheeks. I want it on my lips," he groaned. He was always so demanding.

"You're being so dramatic!" I retorted.

"Okay, then don't kiss me. No more hugs, kisses, and me," he said, suddenly turning away from me. He was being dramatic again. I kissed him all over his face. I didn't want to argue with him when he was acting like this. I hugged him from behind, but he didn't respond.

"Hubby, let's hug and kiss again," I coaxed him. I kissed him on the lips for a long time. Because he was weak for my affection, he adjusted our position. He was lightly on top of me and kissed me.

"How about let's make a baby right here?" he said with a hoarse voice. He kissed me again. What a kiss monster.