I Dare You To Touch Her Again

I Dare You To Touch Her Again
She gasped the moment she heard her name echo through the hallway.

“I have to go… Someone’s looking for me!” she whispered in a panicked tone, her voice tight with urgency.

But he wasn’t moved by the tension. With maddening calm, Aaron leaned in, nuzzling the shell of her ear before placing a gentle kiss over her earlobe.

“Aaron, please…” she murmured, scolding him softly as she rushed to slip her dress back on, flustered and breathless.

He sighed, long and drawn out before pressing a deep, lingering kiss to her forehead. With great reluctance, he finally let her go.

Alina hurried out of the study, heart pounding like war drums in her chest. She dashed down the corridor toward the party hall, fumbling to fix her hair and force her heartbeat into a more normal rhythm. Just as she was about to slip through the glass doors, a familiar figure appeared from the shadows of the veranda. It's Emma, casually sipping wine.

Alina nearly jumped out of her skin.
“Aye!... Emma!”

Clutching her chest, she tried to steady her breath, but the shock had already spiked her nerves. She attempted to mask her shaken expression, but Emma's knowing smile made it very clear, she hadn’t succeeded.

“Sis-in-law?” Emma asked in her usual bright tone. “Where did you suddenly disappear to? Mom’s been searching for you everywhere.”

The question lodged itself in Alina’s throat.

“I… I was—actually…”

Oh, damn it, Alina. You're dead meat today.

She silently cursed herself, panicking at how badly she was stammering over something as simple as an excuse.

Emma tilted her head slightly, her amused smile deepening as she stepped closer.
“No need to explain,” she said, her voice soft and calm.

Alina blinked in confusion. Her lips parted to deny, to clarify anything. “I… I wasn’t—”

“I know,” Emma interrupted, eyes gleaming with a mysterious twinkle. “I know everything.”

Alina’s clutch trembled in her hand.

Everything?

What's that actually supposed to mean----

“I knew about you and Big B!”

Her heart stumbled. Her breath caught. She froze, as if her body had turned to stone. Emma’s statement hit her like a blow, knocking the ground from beneath her feet.

In the blink of an eye, her mind raced through every worst-case scenario that could unfold if the truth came out tonight. The number one fear? Her mother-in-law throwing her out in front of the entire Knight family.

Just as the panic began to drown her, Emma leaned in, her voice dropping to a whisper.

“But don’t worry,” she said, brushing past Alina like it was all no big deal. “I’m not your enemy.”

Those words. That tone. It deflated the balloon of fear swelling in Alina’s chest. She exhaled sharply, the breath she hadn’t even realized she was holding finally escaping her lips.

She looked at Emma, eyes still wide with disbelief. Was she dreaming this?

Emma saw the uncertainty in her eyes. She gently reached out, clasping Alina’s trembling hand in hers, offering a smile so genuine it tugged at Alina’s heart.

“Your doubt is fair,” Emma began softly. “I should be angry. I should scream at you for going behind my second brother’s back… with my elder brother. I should’ve told everyone. But…”

She paused, squeezing Alina’s hand as her voice grew more thoughtful.

“Something in me always knew, you’re not that kind of woman. I’ve known you for years. This… sneaking around… it’s not who you are. Unless… unless Lucas forced you into something. And my Big B… Aaron… he’s done a lot of crazy things in the past, but going after his brother’s wife? That’s not him either. He’s reckless, yes. But not a home-wrecker.”

Alina stared at her, speechless. Her chest ached with unspoken truths, and yet, Emma was gently piecing the puzzle together herself.

“If he’s doing this,” Emma continued, “then there must be a damn good reason. And I won’t ask what it is. That’s between you two.”

Alina felt the tightness in her chest slowly begin to lift. Her eyes stung with unshed tears. Emma’s calm, her compassion, her incredible maturity, it caught her off guard.

“And Big B?” Emma chuckled lightly. “I’ve never seen him like this. The way he looks at you, the way he… changes around you. He thinks I’m too dumb to notice, but I’ve been watching since day one. Truth is… he's the dumb one.”

She giggled, remembering how Aaron had roped her into his plans time and again. just to spend time with Alina. She’d played along, observing everything, waiting to confirm her suspicions. And today, seeing Alina’s wedding ring lying carelessly on Aaron’s bedroom table had sealed it all. She didn’t need another clue.

And strangely… she wasn’t upset. She was happy for them.

“I don’t know what this relationship is right now… what stage it’s at,” Emma said sincerely. “But Alina, please. Get out of your current marriage as soon as you can. You don’t deserve to be in that mess. And more than that, I don’t want you or my brother caught up in some scandal.”

Her expression grew serious as she added, “There are too many money-hungry aunties out there who’d kill to make my Big B their son-in-law. If they find out about you two, they won’t give you a moment of peace.”

A tear slipped from the corner of Alina’s eye, then another. Before she knew it, she was pulling Emma into a tight hug, overwhelmed by emotion.

Emma hugged her back without hesitation. At that moment, Alina didn’t just feel seen. she felt understood. It was as if, beyond Aaron, she had finally found someone who truly had her back.

Someone who felt like… a real sister.

After a long moment, they pulled apart, their eyes still glistening with emotion. They exchanged soft smiles and walked away together, disappearing into the party.

The night hadn’t turned out to be the disaster Alina feared.

At least… not yet.

….

On the Balcony

Lucas stood on the balcony, the night air heavy with tension as he puffed on a cigarette, the embers glowing in sync with the firestorm brewing inside his head. Rage clawed at his chest, burning like acid. Ever since the incident with Alina, he hadn’t felt right. hadn’t felt in control.

He was slipping. He could feel her slipping out of the leash. Her newfound defiance made him feel weak. Smaller.

“You think you can escape me, Alina?” he muttered under his breath, his eyes glowing with venom. “No. You’re mine. You’ll always be my puppet.”

His voice was laced with a twisted promise.

He flung the cigarette onto the marble floor, grinding it beneath his shoe. He sucked in a shaky breath, trying to steady himself. He needed to calm down, get a grip. He could still solve this mess. He could still pull the strings, the way he always had.

But then, A familiar scent curled into his nostrils.

Cigar smoke.

His chest tightened out of the sudden change of atmosphere.

His heartbeat accelerated as the realization struck like a thunderclap. Slowly, almost unwillingly, he turned around.

And there he was.

Aaron Knights.

Leaning against the far wall of the balcony like a shadow waiting to strike, a cigar burning between his fingers, his eyes dark and unreadable. His towering presence radiated danger. He didn’t speak. He didn’t need to.

His silence alone was deafening.

“Aaron, you—”

CRACK!

The punch came like a hammer. Lucas’s head snapped sideways, his body slamming into the railing before he hit the ground. Pain exploded across his cheek.

He hadn’t expected that.

Before he could recover, another brutal punch slammed into his gut, knocking the wind out of him.

“I should’ve done this long ago,” Aaron growled, his voice barely human.

He grabbed Lucas by the collar, dragging him up with a strength fuelled by fury. Blood spilled from Lucas’s mouth, but Aaron didn’t flinch. He slammed him against the stone pillar, shaking the balcony with the force.

“You had the audacity to lay a finger on her?” Aaron’s voice was deadly calm now, the kind that whispered just before a storm destroyed everything in its path.

No one could hear his screaming as the whole mansion was charmed by their mother's favorite orchestra band performance.

He tightened his grip around Lucas’s throat. His grip screams the rage he had on him.

Lucas choked, his hands clawing at Aaron’s arms, gasping for air. His eyes bulged, terror overtaking him as he realized this wasn’t just a warning. This was a reckoning.

“Pray to your god,” Aaron snarled, “because I swear, tonight might be your last.”

Lucas’s vision blurred. The world spun. The taste of iron filled his mouth.

And then,

A scream.

A woman’s scream sliced through the cold air like a blade.

Guests rushed out from the glittering halls of the Knight mansion, startled by the cry. Among them was Alina, flanked by her in-laws, her heels clicking hastily against the floor as she pushed through the crowd.

But the sight that greeted them stopped everyone in their tracks.

Lucas lay motionless on the marble floor, a thick pool of blood spreading beneath his head. His fingers twitched, and his mouth opened as if trying to form words, but nothing came.

Only a broken gasp.

“Lucaasss!” his mother screamed, her voice tearing through the stunned silence.

He blinked once. Then darkness swallowed him whole.