63__Ice cream

Where were all the handsome men in this neighbourhood?

Amelia scowled around at the fancy café as she waited in the short line. It wasn’t bustling with people, but there were a few guys about. They all looked rich, but none looked as handsome as she’d expected.

Finally at the front of the line, Amelia smiled at the guy at the register. “Can I get one large chocolate ice-cream, please. With all the toppings.”

She would go all out.

“That’ll be fifteen pounds,” he said.

Amelia blinked at him. “Fifteen pounds? For a cup of ice-cream? What in the daylight robbery?”

The cashier blushed. “Uhm, it’s… because you’re a-adding all the top—”

“I mean, still, fifteen pounds sounds like insanity, it’s just a bit of icy cream with sprinkles and the like,” she told him flatly, reaching into her pocket. “Here you go.”

She offered him her card but was gently nudged aside.

“Use this card,” a deep voice said.

Blinking, Amelia looked up.

A grey-eyed Adonis looked down at her with a gentle smile. “Prices are outrageous, aren’t they?” His voice was like velvet. “I agree.”

Adonis was also nudged aside and another card was offered to the cashier.

“The prices are merely affordable,” said a cold voice in a sharp, British accent. “Of course, to the less privileged, they would seem outrageous.”

Amelia and Adonis turned to look at the newcomer and Marc looked back at them with an expressionless face.

Adonis smiled again, mildly stunned at being called less privileged as the multi-millionaire that he was. “It’s alright, I’ve got it. I’ll pay.”

“No, I’ll pay,” Marc said firmly. He thrust his card out at the puzzled cashier, staring threateningly at the man before him.

His card, black and gold, glimmered with luxury besides the other two in a way that Amelia found obnoxious but incredibly powerful.

“I was here first,” Adonis said, sounding slightly petulant. “I’ll pay for it.”

Marc’s eyes narrowed. “It’s only right that I pay. After all, she is *my* wife.”

Adonis’s eyes widened. “Ah.” Flustered, he looked back at Amelia and she was stunned to see his spirits fall. “I see. I’m sorry.”

With a curt nod, he stepped back and away from her.

Smiling, Marc handed the cashier his card and released a content sigh.

Amelia stared flatly at him, lowering her own card. “Happy with yourself, aren’t you?”

He looked at her and his smile dimmed, an accusatory glint sharpening his gaze. “So, you weren’t bluffing about having ice-cream with another man.”

“I rarely tell petty lies, Marc.”

“Yes, you do. You said I was middle. That was a lie, the pettiest and most atrocious one you’ve spat since I’ve met you. I’m definitely the most good-looking man you’ve ever laid eyes on, that you said otherwise is simply blasphemy.”

Her mouth fell open and she scoffed hard with disbelief at his sheer arrogance.

Marc wasn’t bothered, busy retrieving his card and carrying away her ice-cream.

“That’s mine,” she muttered, following him.

Neither one noticed the grey-eyed Adonis’s disappointed gaze following them.

“The size it is, it should be for our whole family.”

He sat at an empty table and she hurried into the chair across him. “Our family? What do you mean ‘our’?”

He raised his brows, preparing to raise his voice. "Why, what else could I mean? Me, you and *our son.”*

Jolting, she looked nervously about, noting that the man who’d offered to pay for her order glanced back to look at them.

“Are you serious, right now?” she whispered, leaning closer. “Lower your voice.”

“Are you ashamed of our family?”

Her eyes narrowed. “You really think you have the right to claim me publicly in any way at all?”

He slid a spoonful into his mouth, savouring the sweetness before he finally leaned just as close as she did. “You might not think so, but our contract certainly gives me the right.”

She scowled. “After bothering my father behind my back, you should have the decency to avoid getting on my nerves.”

“After secretly conspiring with Ethan and then keeping me up all night, you should have the decency to refrain from having ice-cream with another man.”

“When did I keep you up all night?”

“Notice how you never denied conspiring with Ethan?”

She groaned, closing her eyes. With a sigh, she opened her eyes and looked at him. “Call me crazy, but I think I know you well enough now to know that you don’t care about that. You’re not afraid of Ethan even one bit and you don’t think there’s anything he could do that could hurt you. Your real problem, the reason you’re being so pissy, is the keeping you up at night thing. Isn’t it?”

Grumpily staring at her, he silently dug up a spoonful of chocolate and shoved it into his mouth.

He ate his mouthful whilst staring into her eyes and she stared back, patiently waiting. Being with Marc had taught her so much patience, it was basically an innate trait at this point.

Suddenly, he flinched and then jerked, his mouth parting as he cringed.

Her mouth curved and a sudden snort rolled out of her nose as she watched him cringe. “Brain freeze, innit?”

Marc groaned, shutting his eyes. “You knew this would happen, didn’t you?”

She laughed out loud. The way he instantly laid all charges against her was highly amusing. “Yes. That’s why I let you eat it in such huge spoonfuls!”

He glared at her, but the expression made her laugh even more.

“I’m so sorry, but that look on your face with the dark circles under your eyes is hilarious.”

She fell forward, reaching out to clasp his arm as though inviting him to join her in her mirth.

Marc finally swallowed the ice cream and sighed, pushing the glass toward her. “Whose fault is it that I have these dark circles anyway?”

Her laughter died away, leaving a lingering smile as she picked up the spoon. “Blaming me again? Well, what exactly did I do, Mr Aryan? Why exactly would I have done to keep you up all night?”

He tilted his head at her audacity, his green eyes narrowing. Like she didn’t know exactly why, she raised a small bite of ice-cream and slid it into her mouth, blinking innocently at him.

She dug up another spoonful of the icy desert, her coy expression teasing him.

Something stirred in his blood. He slowly released a quiet exhale and leaned in close enough to see the chocolate core of her gold eyes. “I doubt you want me describing my filthy thoughts of you pleasing yourself in bed, Amelia. Not while we’re in public. So, stop playing games with me before I take us both to the bathrooms in the back.”

Her mouth parted at his words, jaw going slack.

He watched her freeze and felt satisfaction hum through his blood. Reaching for her hand, he raised it to his mouth and fed himself the ice-cream she held. Just for the sake of tormenting them both, he let his fingers linger on hers, slowly pulling the spoon out from between his lips.

He had already leaned back and swallowed the ice-cream on his tongue when she finally snapped out of it, looking around like she’d come out of a trance.

Several ladies were clearly looking at them and throwing envious glances in her direction. Adonis had long-ago left and Amelia hadn’t even noticed.

Clearing her throat, she ignored the smugness in Marc’s eyes and put down the ice-cream spoon. “Oh, I… I didn’t realize such thoughts would disturb your sleep.”

“Yes, I’m sure you didn’t.”

He raised one brow at her and she pursed her lips, looking at him. “You know, you’re really sassy sometimes.”

“Bear with it. Just the way I bear with it when you’re being a princess trying to order me around.”

She stared at him, he stared back.

Marc badly wanted to kiss her, he wondered if it showed.

Amelia was wondering the same thing about herself.

“Finish your ice-cream,” he murmured, breaking their eye contact before its intensity devoured him. “We have to get back home, I have work to do.”

She silently reached for the spoon and continued eating the outrageously priced dessert.

********

Linda Harris heard the notification on her phone as she stood behind a tree across the road, looking into the café where they sat.

She’d watched Marc go in just as she’d gotten out of her car and had had to duck out of view. Watching them made it ridiculously difficult to tell whether or not their marriage was fake.

They were all over each other with their eyes alone.

Sighing, she looked at the phone. There were already photos on social media. People were so quick.

Linda had asked to get sent every article about Marc Aryan but hadn’t realized how many she’d be getting. She’d wanted to keep up with them in order to be aware of the public opinion of him and it was nothing short of annoying.

Marc wasn’t a terrible human, but he was bad enough. According to the articles, however, most people thought he was simply this dreamy, billionaire hunk who had had a fairy-tale love story with his soulmate.

Amelia made him look so good, she was beautiful and a doctor, she’d gained him even more public favour.

It was sickening. Especially considering what his family had done to hers. What Marc himself had done to her family. Linda could bet that Amelia was only after Arthur Aryan but, soon, the girl would quickly realize that Marc himself wasn’t innocent.

She would regret every moment she spent with Marc Aryan, undressing him with her eyes.

One little video tape showing the death of Amelia’s mother would make sure of that.