Chapter 69

~ARLO FRANTZ~

If I needed to wait, then I would.

What is three years to a man who has set his eyes upon a woman who captivated his interest?

I remember the scent of the grass as I told Kerri that memory of mine. The laughter that filled my head, the moonlight from above, the villa… all of which were replaced by tall wooden shelves and the faint smell of old books.

I’m back in the library.

Across from me sat the girl whom I craved for years, the girl who punched me in the face and forced me to chase her around.

The girl who pulled me out of that dark place I thought would be inescapable.

The only difference now is, she’s not fifteen anymore. And with age, she also lost that fiery spark I yearned for all thanks to her trashy ex-husband who dimmed her light.

But no matter what, I’ll make sure to set her ablaze once more.

And looking at her now, maybe she’s slowly coming back to me.

Kerri listened intently to my story with her arms crossed over her chest, clearly drowning in confusion because she didn’t remember anything I told her.

The dim golden light from the window across from us lightly brushed Kerri’s features, and for a quick moment I thought I caught a glimpse of the girl from the field laid over the woman in front of me.

Their images overlay on one another, and I can’t help but fall in love again.

I smiled, taking her hand to hold it close to my chest. “And that, my darling, is how I met my future wife.”

It seemed like everything I said came crashing at her all at once, since she finally showed an expression. She dropped her jaw and widened her eyes, playfully yanking her hand away from mine.

“Wait what?!” she pointed at my face accusingly, to which I just grinned back in response. “So you’re telling me, you have been obsessed with me since I was underage?!”

I winced slightly at the word. Yes, it was true, but I am a man with principles.

I waited, even when every day that passed felt like I was being tortured by this indescribable feeling.

“The word ‘obsessed’ seems to be an exaggeration, darling.” I frowned. “My parents would haunt me if they find out I laid a finger on a minor,” I stood up, brushed my trousers and straightened my tie, while Kerri remained seated on the floor, in disbelief.

“But… when I turned 18… you weren’t-” She was trying to connect the dots inside her mind that were probably jumbled with chaos, so I answered it for her despite it hammering in my chest.

“You were engaged to Liam.” I spoke with a heavy tone, refusing to meet her eyes. “And two years later, you married him.”

Another memory clawed its way to my head. That day I decided that the waiting was finally over. The day I finally returned to Kerri, in that small town, but instead I saw her beside another man. I couldn’t possibly do anything at that time when I saw how happy she looked.

Even now, the memory tasted bitter that my brows were instinctively furrowed.

“Arlo,” Kerri called.

Perhaps she noticed my darkened expression, the shift in my tone, and the calm composure slowly slipping away from my well-practiced facade, that she had to stand up and hold my hand to calm me down.

She leaned against my back, preventing me from storming out of the library.

“Are you still mad about that?” she asked softly, testing the waters.

I glanced over my shoulder to see her burying her face on my back.

Indeed, I was beyond mad when I realized she had forgotten about me, the moments we spent together, and our promise, and most especially when I found out she chose a good-for-nothing man like Liam.

“Mad?” I uttered. I watched another man snatch her away from me.

For years, while waiting for Kerri, I continued building my empire, powerful enough to seize over the entire markets, dismantle rivals and manipulate systems. I wanted to become a man worthy of her.

Everything I wanted was all served to me… yet the one thing I wanted the most belonged to someone else.

It made me huff in anger, but I saw Kerri wince, and it brought me back to reality.

What’s the point of dwelling in the past when I already have her with me?

She’s right here, with me, clinging to my hand as if scared that I would disappear.

I have her sealed under a contract, a deal.

She will never escape me.

“Hey,” she called again after noticing that my gaze was distant.

Kerri walked forward so we were facing each other. She flashed a reassuring smile.

“Were you jealous?” she teased.

My mouth froze in an ‘O’ shape, letting out a humorless laugh.

Before I could respond with my defense, Kerri’s laughter filled my head, in the same tone and melody as the one I heard years ago.

She sounded free and filled with resolve that I just stood there, pathetically.

Then comes a blow in the chest with just her words, “It worked out in the end, didn’t it?”

I blinked, in a daze as I stared at her beautiful face.

“I’m your wife now,”

Her words were simple, but it knocked out all the air in my chest.

The anger in my chest quieted down, just for a moment until a familiar feeling rose back, and I intend to address this now.

“Yes,” I spoke slowly, “You are… my wife.”

She smiled.

“For now,” I added and watched as her smile vanished, replaced with confusion.

“What do you mean ‘for now’?”

“You might still run away from me once our deal is over. Once I gave you the shining spotlight you desperately want. Once you finally achieved your revenge against your ex-husband, you will leave me. That’s our contract.”

Kerri groaned, rolling her eyes in response to my statements.

“Seriously? You haven’t realized it now?”

My expression didn’t change, I wanted her to say it out loud.

“My life is so intertwined with you that even if I run away, I know I won’t be apart from you, Arlo.”

I know. I made sure of that.

Every time she closes her eyes, she’ll see me. Her memories of me will torment her wherever she goes that she’ll have no choice but to come back to my side.

“Look,” she gently held my hand and pulled it closer to her face, she positioned it in a way where I was cupping her cheeks with my palm. Her warmth radiating to my skin. “I won’t run,”

I didn’t realize it til now, but I had been holding my breath. I felt ‘fear’ for the first time again, that I would end up alone after everything I had done to have her.

The tension in my shoulders eased.

“Good,” my lips curled upward.

And since my hand was already on her face, I tipped her chin upward, and I lowered my head down to go in for a kiss, but she swiftly turned away.

“You don’t want it?” I raised a brow, smirking as she fumbled, trying to hide her blushing cheeks.

“N-no! There are people outside,” she said, but I could see through her.

I was wired to know her.

I could pick up her footsteps even from afar, I could hear her soft voice from a distance, and I even developed a knack of immediately understanding the meaning behind her vague answers when she was taught never to burden anyone.

It was as though I developed a sixth sense for Kerri.

“Oh, really?” I continued, towering over her while she had to tip her head back just to keep looking at my eyes. “You are the type of person who has a lot of emotions but is told never to show them,”

It looked like I struck a chord in her heartstring with her widened eyes. I was absolutely correct. I know her family, and I know her ex-husband. She had been around too many people who told her she didn’t matter that even now, even when she was burning to rip out my clothes, she wouldn’t say it.

“What does that have to do with anything?”

“Because…” I stopped, tilted my head to the side and smirked. “I can see that you want to kiss me, darling.”

She let out another offended gasp, putting her hand over her chest.

However, her face says otherwise. Bright red.

Her back was finally pressed against a bookshelf from stepping back too many times trying to put a space between us, but I just kept moving closer to her.

“It’s important that you tell me your feelings, darling. I hope to understand you better.” I tucked her hair behind her ear. She blushed furiously. “So, tell me now. Do you want to kiss me?”

She squealed softly, like a tiny mouse that was captured in my palm.

“Hmm? Yes or no?” I teased as I inched forward, giving her no space to escape.

“Ermm…” she fiddled with her fingers, furiously averting eye contact while I just watched her with a smile.

Then finally comes her quiet answer, “Y-yes… I want to kiss you.”