Chapter 56 Didn't You Used to Beg for My Touch?
Arabella saw the dangerous shift in Gabriel's eyes as he leaned down, his expression radiating pure menace. Alarm bells shrieked in her mind!
Sure enough, the next second brought a sharp pain to her neck—he didn't kiss her, but bit down roughly on her throat instead.
"Ah! Gabriel, you're insane! That hurts!" She struggled instinctively, kicking wildly and pounding her fists against him.
But Gabriel's height and weight advantage, combined with his masculine strength, pinned her completely. Her efforts were utterly futile against him.
"Why would I look elsewhere when I have a perfectly good woman right at home? Didn't you used to beg for my touch? What happened—now that you've found someone new, you're suddenly playing the devoted girlfriend?"
He continued his intimate assault on her neck while speaking in menacing tones near her ear, his mind flooded with images of her meeting other men, stoking his rage to new heights.
"I haven't..." Arabella pushed against his shoulders, turning her face away to dodge his advances while struggling to speak. "You're the one who can't keep it in your pants, yet you assume everyone else is like you..."
"Haven't what? I saw it with my own eyes, and you're still denying it?"
"Saw... saw what?" Arabella was completely bewildered. What was he even talking about?
Her recent outings had only involved seeing Sophia. Even then, they'd always met together as couples, and today Lily had been present the entire time.
There was no way he could misunderstand those encounters.
But aside from that, there were no other suspicious meetings. So he was clearly just looking for an excuse to humiliate her, completely disregarding the truth.
"Arabella, if you weren't cheating on me, maybe I'd soften up and actually let you go. But you're so desperate to abandon our two children for some bastard... The more eager you are, the more desperately in love you seem, the less I'm inclined to make things easy for you..."
He delivered this verdict with calculated cruelty while his hands continued their work.
Within moments, the cool air caressed her exposed skin without obstruction, sending waves of tremors through her body.
Arabella opened her mouth to curse at him, only to have her breath stolen by his lips crashing down on hers.
He kissed her with savage intensity, one hand gripping her chin to force her face upward, his kiss deep and merciless.
Arabella was no match for his assault. Within minutes, he had her thoughts scattered and her resistance weakening.
Gabriel felt her surrender and occasionally pulled back to study her dazed, unfocused expression, complex emotions flickering in his dark eyes.
His woman. No one else would ever have her.
A lawyer? Lawyer or not, destroying the man would take mere minutes.
...
After the storm had passed, the vast, luxurious bedroom fell silent once more.
Arabella was still breathing heavily, feeling as though she were floating in clouds, her mind dizzy and surreal.
After catching her breath, she sat up with burning cheeks to clean herself up.
Gabriel sprawled beside her, his powerful, lean chest rising and falling just as dramatically.
His body glistened with sweat, making his sculpted muscles even more enticing. The droplets that had fallen from his forehead onto her face during their passion were evidence of his own intensity.
Neither spoke, leaving the air thick with both intimacy and tension.
Then a phone suddenly rang, shattering the silence.
Gabriel cracked his eyes open and reached for his phone, frowning slightly at the screen.
"Yeah, what is it?"
"Mr. Sterling, Mr. Kingsley is completely wasted, and when we called Mrs. Kingsley, she said he's not her problem anymore. We had no choice but to disturb you this late at night." The voice on the other end was respectful and apologetic, though background noise suggested a crowded, noisy venue.
Gabriel's expression darkened as he sat up. "Is he alone?"
"Yes, sir. If he had friends with him, we wouldn't dare bother you."
Gabriel pulled the phone away to check the time—11,30 PM.
"Alright, I'll be right there."
"Thank you, sir."
After hanging up, Gabriel immediately began getting dressed.
Arabella had been about to go to the bathroom to clean up, but seeing him rise, she deliberately stalled, maintaining her position with her back to him while slowly adjusting her nightgown.
Gabriel watched her silhouette, his expression unreadable. Only when he'd nearly finished buttoning his shirt did he explain quietly, "I have to go out. Get some sleep—don't wait up."
Arabella felt completely numb inside. She didn't even acknowledge his words, maintaining complete silence.
Soon, the bedroom door opened and closed, and the man vanished.
Only then did Arabella get up to wash in the bathroom, her face expressionless, though her eyes held a trace of hurt and loss.
She'd caught that mention of "Mrs. Kingsley" during the phone call—undoubtedly Emily.
What fresh drama had that woman stirred up now in the middle of the night?
He was so sick of the lies that she couldn't even be bothered to care.
How despicable could a man be—to rush off to play hero for his preferred woman the moment after being intimate with his wife?
Gabriel's devotion and betrayal existing simultaneously made her feel increasingly disgusted.
When Gabriel arrived at the private club, Dominic was indeed completely unconscious from drinking.
When roused, Dominic saw Gabriel and raised his glass with a laugh, "Perfect timing! Drink with me tonight... we're not stopping till we pass out!"
Gabriel snatched the glass away irritably, "Aren't you embarrassed? What if reporters spot you and you make headlines again tomorrow?"
Dominic gave a dazed, disheveled laugh and waved dismissively, "Let them! Write whatever they want... I'm about to lose my wife anyway, why should I care about..."
Gabriel had already figured out during the drive over why Dominic was drowning his sorrows in the middle of the night.
Sure enough, it was about their impending divorce.
"Come on, let's go. I've got a wife and kids to get home to." Gabriel tried to pull him up again, clearly impatient.
Dominic turned around and draped both hands over Gabriel's shoulders, his handsome face flushed red and haggard, "You... you've fallen for Arabella, haven't you? I never... heard you worry about her before... Gabriel, you're... you're done for, you've fallen for her... but too bad, she... she wants to divorce you too... We're both... brothers in misery..."
Gabriel's heart jolted at his words, as if a long-buried secret had been discovered, or a puzzle that had tormented him for ages had finally been solved.
He waited silently for his friend to finish rambling before responding with characteristic pride, "You're drunk and talking nonsense. I'll never love anyone again in this lifetime. It's not worth it."
"You're lying to yourself!"
Gabriel didn't want to engage further. He called over club staff, and it took several burly men working together to finally lift the thoroughly intoxicated Dominic.
After considerable effort, Dominic was deposited in the backseat.
Gabriel tipped the staff generously, got into the car, and drove off.
Despite being heavily drunk, Dominic refused to sleep. Instead, he became incredibly talkative, rambling nonstop throughout the journey.
"Gabriel... honestly, what's so... special about Emily? Why are we both... so obsessed with her? I don't get it, really don't get it... If she wants a divorce, fine! I'll divorce her! When the baby's born without a father, let's see how she... manages!"
After a while, he began wailing, "Gabriel... she wants to divorce me... why? She was the one who... said she loved me, insisted on marrying me... and now she's the one who... wants to leave! She takes what she wants... and kicks away what she doesn't? Well, I won't let her! I won't divorce her, absolutely not!"
Gabriel knew Dominic well—knew he became a chatterbox when drunk, and that alcohol was the only thing that made him speak his true feelings.
So after they got in the car, he quietly dialed Emily's number.