Chapter 21

When he was able to fully absorb what she said, Luke cursed. Isabelle had the sudden desire to run out of the room because her husband's face looked murderous. When she thought that he would take hold of her shoulders to shake her, she screamed then turned around to run to the bathroom but he was faster. He grabbed her from behind.
She protested while trying to wriggle free but he tightened his hold.
"What the f*ck did you just say?" he hissed against her left ear.
His warm minty breath made her nipples and her gem react. "P-please Luke let me go, " she begged.
She didn't like her body's reaction to him. She had built a wall around her heart to shut him out but now it was about to collapse because he was very near her and was touching her.
"You are not going to get an annulment from me! Not in this lifetime babe and not even until our next! You belong to me! All of you! Accept that my wife because that's a fact! " he was clenching his teeth his hands started roaming on her body.
She cried no when his right palm touched her breasts. She closed her eyes when he laughed quietly. Her nipples were betraying her which he would feel.
"No? Hmm but your body says yes babe."
He moved some strands of her hair to kiss the side of her neck. When his tongue touched her skin her gem reacted. She had to distract herself quickly. Vivid images of what happened three years ago came back to her imagination. The woman was kissing and straddling him. Luke was now moaning against her skin.She could feel his hardness pressing against her back. Memories of his lovemaking flashed in her mind. The ugly images were replaced by erotic ones. He started to knead her breasts and one of his hands cupped her sex. She moaned a no but he pressed his bulge harder on her back.
"Please don't fight me babe. I have been waiting for you I want you so badly..." he groaned before he turned her to face him.
She moistened her lips as she tried to avoid looking at his face. She was staring at his bare chest which she felt was a wrong move again. She was dying to touch it. He really had the most magnificent body she had ever seen and of course, touched. The betrayal of her body was at its maximum.
He tilted her chin so he could stare into her eyes, "You are so fucking lovely babe.You are lovelier and you are mine. All mine, " he murmured. He seemed to be memorizing her features by the way he was looking at her.
She did her best to normalize her breathing. She was out of breath though she hadn’t done any physical activities. The heat from his body was so arousing. She could feel the heat from his body which was almost bare. She was as good as naked too because what she had on was a very thin garment.
"Will it help you forgive me if I tell you that there hasn't been anyone else after you left me?" he whispered as he gives her butterfly kisses on her cheeks then her lips.
She couldn’t stop her hands from touching his chest. But she didn’t want him to know that she was softening after what he said so she pushed him away from her. It was a desperate move because they both knew that she would not be able to budge him.
"P-Please don’t,” her voice sounded weak as he rubbed himself against her.
"Didn’t you miss me?"
He wanted her badly but he had to put in mind what his mother told him. He could use force to possess her body if he wanted to. But he'd like her to desire him too. That would only happen if she would totally forgive him. When she mentioned about an annulment he felt like someone kicked him so hard and he couldn’t breathe. She would resort to an annulment just to escape him but he won’t let her. He owned every part of her. Whether he liked it or not, he would woo her.
"I missed you a lot babe,” he huskily said. He cupped her face then kissed her on the lips.
It was a kiss than could melt any woman's heart. It was tender. He felt gratified when he noticed that she was responding to him. They kissed like that for a while. But he was a virile man. His kisses became deeper. He was now exploring the sweetness of her mouth with his tongue .He groaned with relief when he felt her tongue moved to battle with his. His wife was not protesting.
Good! He thought.
His moans became louder as Isabelle started to make throaty sounds too. After a few moments, his lips went down.
"Oh God babe..." he groaned while nibbling the side of her neck.
Isabelle couldn’t help herself from responding to him. His kiss changed. His kisses years ago were just lustful but this time it was more passionate. It was as if he had deeper feelings for her. This and what he said made her think that something had changed in him. Now he was kissing her cleavage. She bit her bottom lip to stop herself from releasing a louder moan.
Oh God...I missed him! She admitted to herself though a part of her wanted to stop him.
You just can't accept him in your life again that easily! Think about how much you suffered because of what happened! Okay! Your marriage is legit but remember how he treated you before?! You were like a bird in a cage! Do you really want to experience all those again? Are you stupid enough to want to lose your freedom?
That made her open her eyes. She must let him get her that easily. She was about to tell him to stop when the bell rang so she said a silent thank you. Maybe the odds didn't want her to give herself to him this soon. But Luke didn't seem to hear or he just didn't care. He continued kissing her between the valley of her breasts.
"L-Luke the door…"
He just groaned while nibbling her skin. But whoever was outside, must mean business. The doorbell kept on ringing.
"Y-You have to open the door," she mumbled.
She heard him cursed quietly before finally raising his head from her bosom. She almost giggled when she saw how pissed he looked. Obviously, he was very frustrated. Sexually.
"I am gonna strangle whoever that is!" he threatened before planting a quick kiss on her lips, “Put on your robe babe." he commanded as he got his pants to pull them up his muscled legs before getting the door.
He didn't bother to put on his shirt. She turned to go to the bathroom for her robe. She quickly put it on and checked her reflection in the mirror. She looked flushed. She sighed before deciding to go out again. She frowned slightly when she heard a female’s voice.
Who could that be? She asked herself.
"You didn't tell me that you'll be here! Keeping her for yourself? Really LUKE! You are so selfish!" the female voice accused.
She took a peek. A petite pretty woman was speaking angrily at her husband. She raised a brow. It was her first time to see Luke silent while a woman was reprimanding him. He was rubbing his nape with his right hand and her curiosity became greater. She sighed before deciding to show herself. When the woman saw her, a smile broke her lips.
"Oh hello Isabelle," she greeted her in a genuinely friendly voice and hug her after kissing both her cheeks.
She was a little taller than her so she had to lower her eyes. She smiled too and said a quiet hi. The woman moved a little away from her to look at her before turning to Luke again.
"Okay now I get it. I know why you wanted to have her for yourself,” she said with a roll of her eyes and Luke just sighed.
"Maybe you should tell my wife who you are before she starts overthinking, " he dryly told the woman.
Isabelle glared at him. How dared he say such a thing? She didn’t want the woman to think she was a jealous freak like him. The female turned to her again while laughing lightly.
"Oh I almost forgot! I am sorry Isabelle. But you see, I was annoyed with Luke because he is so secretive! I was in the vicinity and one of his staff mentioned about my brother and his wife being here. If no one said a thing to me there was no way I would know! Well I am Dianne your one and only sister-in-law,” she announced while beaming. “Finally we met!” she added.
"I am glad to finally meet you too," she replied shyly.
“Well I guess this time is just perfect. If I met you three years ago, I would surely miss you since you ran away from my brother,” she jokingly said.
Luke made an ugly sound at the back of his throat while she released a timid smile. She didn’t make a comment again since she didn’t know what to say. Her husband’s face however was something that could also make her laugh lightly. He had a heavy frown and obviously he didn’t like his sister’s joke. She swallowed a giggle. For sure even if he was annoyed he wouldn’t snap at Dianne.
“Did mom know about this? You two kept it a secret from me!”
"Maybe because she knows that I am desperate to have my wife alone after three long f*cking years without her," Luke commented sarcastically.
Her cheeks colored a little with what her blunt husband said. She felt embarrassed especially since it was her first meeting with Dianne. Luke should really control his mouth. Dianne rolled her eyes.
"Ok fine! I will give you alone time Isabelle but be sure to be present later for dinner! It will be my treat! I'll text you the place later. Is an hour enough for you to have Isabelle for yourself? Don’t you dare come late! Be there at exactly 7 PM!" his sister commanded.
Luke brushed his hair with his hand. He thought he and Isabelle could have their alone time. Isabelle couldn’t help grinning. She liked Dianne. She could learn a lot from her husband’s older sister. The way she manipulated her brother was effortless. She hoped she could learn that trick. Her sister-in-law came closer to her to hug her again.
"I am really so happy to see you. Now I know why Luke became how he is now, " she whispered to her.
Isabelle’s brows creased. She didn’t know what Dianne meant by that. She chose to just grin though she was clueless. Her sister-in-law giggled.
"What did you tell my wife now?" Luke asked with furrowed brows.
Dianne rolled her eyes, "Nothing! I'll go ahead! See you both later! Don’t tire yourselves too much. You need your energy for later!” she added before turning to the door. When she was gone, Luke and Isabelle just looked at each other. They didn’t seem to want to tear the gaze.
"Babe..."
"Luke..."
They spoke at the same time.
"You go ahead babe," he said .
He moved closer to her to touch her arms. She didn't want to show any reaction. She didn’t want to talk first either though he suggested she did. He was just staring at her. He seemed to be imprinting her face in his mind. For a Luke Contrero to wait for her comeback meant a lot . She now believed that there was no one else for him which was the same for her. An annulment was out of the question. Her husband could do even the unthinkable if she insisted. They should really have a serious talk to fix everything.
"You were about to say something. Go ahead babe," he urged huskily.
"I have some conditions before I agree to be your wife again."
He stiffened then slowly released her arms. He walked to the bar and got a glass to pour alcohol. He looked tensed when he faced her again.
" I have a feeling that you won’t be cooperative so let’s just forget..." she began to say.
"GET ON WITH IT!" he rasped.
He gulped some of the alcohol then put the glass with a thud on the table. She had him at her mercy and she liked it. She sported a poker-face to hide her true feelings.
" I don't want you cutting in while I say my terms. If you disagree with any of them , you can tell me after I talked. But remember that you can only say no to one. If you say no to two of them or more, the deal is off. And don’t worry, you have the freedom to back out anytime," she said in a neutral tone.
She saw his mouth opened slightly and he gritted his teeth. She was sure that he cursed because Luke Contrero was pissed.
She raised her left brow. "Ready or not?" She had the upper hand so she shouldn’t let his angry face stop her.
Thin-lipped, he just nodded.
***
Luke cursed. Isabelle could sense how hard he was trying to control his rage.
Her conditions: He didn't have a say to her choice of clothing. She was a decent woman and knew how to dress appropriately. He shouldn't ask about her whereabouts all the time unlike before.
He must allow her to hang out with friends. He should stop being too possessive because didn’t have any reason to be. He should avoid smacking any man he got jealous of. His family was respectable and well-known so he must protect his surname. He was lucky that Reed and Carl didn’t file any complaint against him.
"What the f*ck are those conditions? Have you forgotten that I am your husband?" he swore and gulped another shot of whiskey.
"There is one more. Stop drinking alcohol."
He suddenly threw the glass near the door and she gasped. Her eyes narrowed.
"Do you agree or not?!" she asked coldly.
" You said I can choose one which I don't agree with right?"
She nodded. He flexed his neck muscle again then walked into the living room to sit on the couch. His frown disappeared and his face seemed more relaxed. She didn’t trust him a bit she knew he had something up his sleeves.
"All the conditions are okay with me except for the last one. I will beat any bastards who looks at you,” he threatened and she gaped.