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And it was only when Aurélien had said the words that Arabella realized she had started to get bored with her life on the island, with nothing to do in the hours that Aurélien was away.
Like she said, perfect – which was why the instances in which Aurélien occasionally displayed his own vulnerable insecurities never failed to make her heart twinge. There was this one instance when he had entered her bedroom while she had been curled up in the settee, browsing a travel magazine, and he had asked from the shadows, “Are you missing the outside world, ma belle?”
“No, I was just…looking for something to read.” A blur went past her as she stammered out her lie, and by the time her words ended, the fire had also gone out. Low-key Superman, Arabella thought. It was what she had come to think of the extraordinary little things he did in the cover of darkness, a way for her to stay sane when she thought of how impossibly fast and strong he could be.
Like now.
One moment Arabella was alone on the settee, another moment they were on the bed, with Aurélien flat on his back and Arabella riding him astride. “Jesus Christ, Aurélien, you’re going to kill me with a heart attack one of these days!”
But Aurélien didn’t even laugh. “Are you regretting the choice you made to stay with me?”
Oh. Understanding too late where he was coming from, she shook her head, saying vehemently, “I love being with you, Aurélien.” And it was true. But when the billionaire still didn’t say a word, she realized with a grimace she should have known better than to hope Aurélien wouldn’t see through her.
He always did…because he loved her.
“I am a little sad at times,” she admitted reluctantly.
“Because of your father?”
“That’s one thing, yes, but…” A wistful note entered her voice as she explained, “I also wish I could go places with you, even just Paris. I mean, I’ve seen a bit of it already with Papa, but I feel like it would be different – more special – if I walked around the city with you.”
“Well…I am a billionaire.”
She rolled her eyes. “You know that’s not what I meant, so stop fishing for compliments.”
“No, truly, I do not know,” Aurélien protested ever-so-innocently. “So humor me, ma belle. Tell me how it would be different.”
Letting out an exaggerated sigh, she said, “Well…I guess it’s because you’re so…French? And you’re so—-”
“Je ne sais quoi?”
Even though she didn’t understand a word he said, she did know when she was being played for a fool, and Arabella glowered down at the billionaire in the darkness. “Low blow, dude. You know I don’t understand a word you’re saying,” she said irritably. “What does it mean anyway?”
And for some reason, this only made the Frenchman chuckle. “I don’t know.”
“What do you mean you don’t know?” she demanded, even more annoyed now.
But this only made the billionaire’s body shake with even more laughter. “Ah, mon coeur, you may bear a strong resemblance to Belle—-”
“Who the hell is Belle?”
“But you’ve adorable similarities to Gaston.”
And because she wasn’t much of a Disney baby, it took Arabella a few more seconds than usual to realize she was being insulted.
“Asshole!” She started pummeling his chest, striking him as hard as she could, but the damn billionaire seemed to be made of stone and it just felt like she was only hurting herself in the process.
“Enough, ma belle.”
“Not until you bleed,” she snarled. “You fucking—-no!”
The telltale ripping sounds told her he was once again getting rid of her clothes.
And then she was naked, and the next moment, he was pulling her down, impaling her in one go. “A better use of your energy, don’t you think?”
“A…a…a…asshole!”
He laughed under her, making her want to retort, but with Aurélien taking hold of her hips so he could drive deeper into her, all Arabella could do was moan anew.
And so it continued, and as the days passed, the more they believed that they could stay in their glass house forever.
But they could not.
Dead Butterflies
After knocking on the door, Nana called out, “May I come in, mademoiselle?” There was a muffled reply, and after a moment’s hesitation, the maid curiously took a peek inside the bedroom.
Oh!
Seeing Ms. Blume’s figure half-hidden under the bed, Nana hurried inside, asking in alarm, “Is something wrong?”
A scuffling sound followed as the other woman crawled out from under the bed.
Arabella grinned up at the maid sheepishly. “Sorry, Nana. I didn’t mean to worry you. There’s just something I want to figure out.”
“And going under the bed is part of it?” Nana asked dubiously.
“In a way.” It was all Arabella was willing to admit. Nana was a darling, but she was also first and foremost under Aurélien Sauvage’s employ, and the entire staff had long proven to be staunchly loyal to its master. If Nana found out that she was searching for the entrance to the mansion’s secret passageways, it would only be a matter of time before their master found out as well.
