Chapter 48 ENGAGEMENT PARTY XIII

            Stretching her muscles as she lay with her back on the bed, El turned to her side. Her eyes lids quivered slowly, as she curled herself on the bed, not wanting to wake up yet. She knew it was time for her to be up and prepare herself for all the other activities that were going to take place today, but the sweet scent of beautiful fresh flowers that clouded her senses made her want to stay in bed and sleep more.

        There was only one person who smelled this way, and that one person was Ethan. His scent had attracted her to him from the first day she had met him. It brought different sensations to her body that she hated, yet she couldn't seem to hate this scent even if she tries to. It was like an intoxication to her brain.

       She pushed herself closer to him, wanting to inhale more of his scent, and as she lifted her hand to wrap it around him to bring him closer to herself, she felt something else that seemed strange in her hand. It was big and long.

      Confused by what that was, she moved her hand around it just to know its size when she suddenly realized what it was, and jerked up from the bed.

      Ethan's eyes were on her as she stood up from the bed, embarrassed. He woke up earlier than usual today and sat on the bed, resting his back on the headboard of the king's bed, because he couldn't sleep. He has a lot on his mind lately, and he always had a clear mind to think critically during the early hours of the day.   

       He sat there long enough till it was dawn, and had watched her roll to him on the bed. He didn't wake her up and wanted to see her next action when he saw her raise her hand to his monster. As if holding it wasn't enough, she had measured it with her hands, going up and down... God!!!

      El bent her head as she stood close to the bed. Her cheeks were already burning red when she thought about what just happened. She couldn't believe she had held Ethan's... No! She shouldn't think about it. This was obviously a mistake, a big one she wouldn't have made if he wasn't sleeping on her bed with her. Her problem now was that she was going to face him somehow, and she didn't know how.

      "Uhm..." She cleared her throat as she lifted her head to look at his eyes which were directed at her face, without flinching.

        She suddenly became speechless as she stared at his face. Was this what being tongue-tied felt like because she had never experienced such in her life? She opened her mouth to say something, but she couldn't form any words.

        Why was she always in this situation with this man? She thought as she bit her lips. She was yet to recover from the embarrassment she caused to herself last night, and now this? 

.

         Last night's incident still hovered in her memory as she tried not to think about it. For the first time in her life, she had been a coward, thanks to this man.

       She had a second thought immediately after she had called out his name last night because she knew what his reaction and words would've been. Whatever he had with Isabella was not of her business. It was stated in the contract not to meddle in his business, but somehow, she had had the urge to break the contract which marveled her.

        She wasn't a person who'll break the rules because of unnecessary things which didn't involve her. Was she by any chance jealous? She had asked herself that question, and the thought that jealousy made her want to question his actions, made her a coward, instead of asking the question.

       "What do you want to talk about, Eleanor?" Ethan asked, staring deep into her hesitant eyes which were once determined.

      "Nothing... Just wanted. To tell you... How. Nice, you look," she stuttered, trying to make a complete sense of the lie.

       Ethan raised his brow as he stared at her embarrassed face. He knew she was lying, but where's the fun if he just stated the obvious immediately? He narrowed his eyes as he walked closer to her.

       El moved backward slowly on the bed until she got to the headboards as she watched Ethan walk through her side of the bed to where she was sitting. She leaned on the bed as his body towered over her.

       "You think I look nice?"

      His deep sexy hoarse voice rang in her ears as his face was extremely close to hers. El's heartbeat raced on hearing those words, and she prayed he shouldn't hear how fast it was beating wildly in her chest.

       How did she end up in a situation like this? She only wanted to confront him about his affairs with Isabella, and now he was on top of her on her bed. She swallowed as she stared at his face which had a grin on it. Whenever he grinned this way, he wanted to do something naughty, and this scared her.

       She wasn't afraid of what he could do to her but was afraid of herself because she knew what his presence did to her, and she doesn't know if she'll be able to resist him.

       "I I I..." She stammered, trying to form a sentence that she couldn't seem to form because her brain went blank from the position they were staying.

      He bent further until his lips were close to her ears. "Cat got your tongue?" He pulled his face away from her ears to look at her face which was already red and he grinned even more. "Are you blushing?" He asked sarcastically, as he pulled away from her, laughing.

        El sat up straight on the bed, as she held her cheeks with both hands, bending her head so Ethan wouldn't look at her flustered face anymore. This man is indeed a jerk. He knew she was lying from the beginning, but wanted to ease her with it. Why does he enjoy taunting her?

        She looked up to see him standing close to the bed with his hands in his pockets, his eyes glued on her face, and she bent her head even more.

.

       Remembering that incident, made her bend her head even more as she stared at the floor, hoping she would vanish into thin air. This man knew how to make her feel embarrassed at certain things he would easily pretend not to notice. It felt like he was always waiting for her to embarrass herself, so he would state the obvious, and make her feel even more embarrassed than she already was.

       She inhaled slowly as she tried to gather her thoughts properly before speaking, so she wouldn't stammer anymore. "I didn't mean you do that, Ethan." She raised her head to look at his calm, yet intimidating face.

       "You know if you want to have s*x with me, you don't have to pull such a childish stunt."

        El raised her brows in confusion, wondering how he could use such words in this situation. This man was really shameless, he had just proven that to her. She's never thought about anything like that, so why would he conclude that she wants to have s*x with him? 

      "Why would I want to have s*x with you, Ethan?"

      "How would I know that, Eleanor?" He paused to look at her disgusted face with a frown. "Who harasses a person in their sleep?"

      "You know what I did was a mistake."

      "Was it?" He asked with a raised brow, and she stared at him confused.

       Wasn't it? She asked herself inwardly as she stared at his face. His question suddenly made her doubt herself about what she did as a mistake. She had had dirty thoughts about his body, once or twice but never had she had any concerning having s*x with him, so why was she suddenly confused by his question?

        "It was, Ethan," she said before walking hurriedly to the bathroom to avoid any more questions from him. As she walked to the bathroom, she could feel his eyes on her but she didn't look his way. All she wanted to do was to get as far away as possible from this man, which she did when she got into the bathroom and locked the door.

        She inhaled deeply as she stared at her still flustered face in the mirror. This cannot continue anymore because if it does, how was she going to survive? Living in the same house with this man was already really hard for her to bear, talk more of living in the same bedroom.

        Was the universe trying to punish her even more? She is trying really hard here to keep her feelings in check, so why was Ethan doing this to her?