Blackmailing His Runaway Bride by Dance-is-me (carter reed .txt) 📗

Forty Five

 

“Wow." 

 Excited, Isabella rushed to the window side which displayed a beautiful scene of the city ahead.

Without facing Charles, she asked, “It would be nice to watch this view all day, don’t you think?”

Who could have ever thought that such a simple thing would make him see Isabella’s spark again? Charles wondered as he watched the woman stare dreamily at the faraway lights like they were unusually beautiful stars. 

“Do you stare out of this place often?” she asked the man who stood beside a guitar-like shaped artwork, his eyes watching her as she eagerly placed her attention on the view ahead. 

Closing his eyes as he finally saw things coming together, Charles let out a small sound of satisfaction. Things were beginning to seem as they should have always been.

He and his lovely woman were finally alone, away from their troubles. They were finally in his home which he found incomplete for certain reasons.

 A large number of reasons being Isabella and Isabella and Isabella.

Before things went sour for them, years ago, after Isabella visited the not-so-small abode which combined modernity and the Alaskan building vibe- a feature that made it stand out- she never stopped singing how lovely it would be to do simple things with him in the homely place.

The amazing things she said about the house stuck with Charles a bit too much. After the whole leaving him at the altar drama, he refused to step into his house. 

He knew it would hurt more that she was not there with him like they had both imagined. 

But, years later, she was back... 

His London house felt like home again.

"Charles? I asked a question." Charles gave her a small smile and walked toward her, his wrinkled eyes noting how her gentle gaze questioned him. "Charles," she gasped softly as his hands circled her waist. He pulled her into his chest and his heart felt more tumultuous thanks to their proximity.

Prior to having Isabella in his life, he never knew his heart could yearn and hurt as much as it did. 

"Charles?" Isabella's voice carried slight worry.

"Hmm?" He finally responded with a soft groan, his chin finding rest on her nice-smelling hair.

"Can we sit here and eat?"

"We can do even more." With that, his willingness to have her starve for his touch flew out of the window. 

Isabella caught up. Looking up at him, her head leaning into the hardness of his chest, she asked, 

"Really?"

 Charles's hands began to trail her skin. Starting from her fingers, his fingertips jerked her skin awake as he toured the length of her arm. And he didn't stop until he reached the base of her neck.

Then, he wished to touch her some more.

But there was something he needed to do. 

"We should talk first," came his soft tone.

 There were still things that needed to be sorted out. 

"Oh." Isabella left his hold and Charles felt like he lost some kind of comfort. Facing him, she gently asked, "What is it, Charles?"

"Let's sit." After positioning themselves on the wooden floor and facing each other, he started, "As you know, the reason I was looking for a wife to get married to was because of my real father. Though I was glad, running into you was unexpected but it made things easier. I..." He made sure his eyes locked with hers. He needed her to know the things in his mind.

"I had finally found you but I was in a fix. Isabella, it has been easy for me to pretend all these years but you really hurt me."

Isabella's eyes blinked with guilt. 

But since he didn't intend to make her feel that way, Charles cupped her face and made her maintain the eye lock, his hands caressing the sides of her face, his body already shifting closer to her.

Then, he continued, "When you reappeared in my life, I planned to hurt you so bad. Trust me, the evil in my head at that charity event scared me a bit. But then you were in a situation. It was a fix you were struggling with."

"Charles..."

"Shh." He caressed her face even more. "We need to do this." Isabella reluctantly nodded. "When I learnt what was going on with you, my plans to hurt you the way you hurt me flew away, and I just... I just forgot what you did and all I wanted was for you to be the happy Isabella I once knew."

Charles noticed the tears welling in her eyes. His lips twitched as he urged himself to stay firm. "Listen to me, Isabella. I know this might sound crazy but, at this point, I don't remember you hurting me. All I remember is you acting stubborn but eventually letting me help you. All I remember now is your lost smile which is coming back gradually. So..." He moved closer, his legs almost wrapped around her. 

"Now that we are married, I want you to erase any thought that I might still hate you for hurting me. I don't. I can't. I can't hate you. Isabella..." Charles's voice began to wear a crack. His tone started to feel as heavy as his heart and as he rested his chin on her left shoulder, he knew she felt the same way too. "Isabella... I love you. I have always done so. And I will continue to as long as I can."

"Charles..." The words Isabella wished to utter turned into sobs and she quickly buried her head in his chest.

"You have felt so much in the past years," Charles continued, his hands running through her skin to comfort her. "I can't take away the pain. But I am here to try. I am here to show you that the worst days are over. I..."

Isabella moved and within the blink of an eye, her warm lips landed on his, shutting him up. As he accepted her kiss, Charles could have sworn that some drops threatened to fall from his eyes. 

But, he wouldn't have minded. He liked being naked inside out with Isabella.  

Seconds passed and their lips were still together, both of them giving their all to show what and how much they felt.

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