Struggle all you want

"What's the deal with the lawyer? Why didn't he tell me about the safe deposit box? How could you track me down so fast after the plane crash? I think I should start asking the right questions, because trusting you is a fatal mistake! Where do you have a finger in the pie?!"

"Don't misunderstand me. I have my reasons."

"Was this all a setup? From the very beginning?!"

"Why are you so stubborn? Of course, and you knew it all along."

"No! I didn't know. I didn't know how far you'd go."

"So what! Then I bribed the lawyer to show me the will before anyone else. It was necessary."

Deep in her heart, the deception burned like a hellishly hot fire. "Anything else?"

"I don't think we should discuss this now." Alexandre rubbed his forehead. He didn't understand why she was making such a fuss. He should be angry. But somehow the tables had turned. What about the safe deposit box?

Her cheeks were slightly flushed. There were glistening tears in the corner of her eye. He looked at her in silence for a moment. He didn't want her to look so pale and fragile. "Fabien has hidden you too well all these years." He laughed bitterly at the memory. The despair of two years ago. How he had searched for her for two years. But his brother had hidden her like a precious treasure. He'd done everything! He had chased every little rumor. But she remained as if swallowed by the ground. "I wanted to marry you two years ago This was my plan all along."

"Why! Why did you want to marry me?"

"I have my reasons."

"Which?!" She grinded with her molars.

"It is not important. I' ll take care of you. Like a good husband. Isn't that enough for you?"

"No." She wiped his words aside with a trembling gesture.

"There was no other way. I need you." He looked at her, really looked at her. The stab in his heart ached. "After Fabien's death..." His voice sounded husky. He didn't want to talk about it anymore. It would come to no conclusion. "Struggle all you want, you won't leave me." He would keep her by his side. He wouldn't let her leave. He would never! Because he'd been planning all this for so long. To the final reckoning. He wouldn't move an inch away from his plan.

In pride, she lifted her chin. "Go to Hell!"

"And leave you here all alone?" It amused him. Her grace and pride. Even in these situations she tried to stand up against him, although she knew she had no chance. She was at his mercy.

"You have no power over me!" She screamed with tears in her eyes. How cute!

"You sure about that?" He leaned forward, wanted to reach for her hand. Which she pulled away in fright.

"Stay away from me! Her voice quivered.

Shocked by her reaction, he stared at her. Watching her properly for the first time. She was trembling all over. Her face looked very thin. She looked like she would collapse at any moment. Yet she held her hands in front of her, defending.

Watching her was sobering. What had he done! In all his anger he had missed something important. He could read it in her face.

"Lil..." He cleared his throat. " I'm not mad at you. But when you were nowhere to be found..." He licked his dry lips. "I was worried. After what happened with that..." His heart rate went up at that memory. He was just a bundle of nerves. Out of worry, fear, anger and relief.

He pressed his fingers against his temple and tried to deal with the situation rationally.

"Can we just put this behind us?" His relief became something he understood even less. She remained silent, with every fiber of her being. Her big blue eyes just stared at him, seemed to stare a hole through him. Like she was searching for something.

"You're angry with me, I know. But trust me on this. I married you for selfish reasons. But I promise you, you'll never lack anything." He wondered how he could calm her down again. How he could fix everything.

She shook her head, still without making a sound. Staying alert. Her silence haunted him. That unsettling. He was used to making women cry. But Lily?

She wasn't crying. She was silent.

And that burdened him more than a thousand tears could ever do.

He reached out for her. Instinctively, she moved back. Panic flares up in her eyes. He immediately lowered his hand again. Staring at her. She was terrified. Of him. Every fiber of her body seemed to avoid him. He finally realized that. Her anxiety surfaced. He had no idea why. He wished she was just angry. That she'd just cry...

Then he would give her that moment and offer her aftercare. He would comfort her.

Fuck! What every this was. It overwhelmed him.