Dangerously Yours Till Eternity

It sounded like sex in background.

Rough sex.

Pants.

Heavy breathing.

But that was none of Ivy’s business.

“Yoh, Princess! Shouldn’t you be busy with Mr Hand–”

“Chris is missing,” Ivy said quickly, cutting her off over the phone.

Elsa chuckled, going on a long laughter before she finally said, “that is impossible, Ivy.” Then she added, “a whole Sire of a House can’t go “missing”.”

Ivy pushed her hair aside, fighting against the wind that insisted on blowing it to her face over and over again.

“I know what I’m saying. His car is not here, his phone is switched off and he hasn’t even returned any of my calls nor responded to any of my text. The last time I saw him was almost two hours ago.”

Before Elsa had a chance to response to that, a voice behind her put all the problems at bay.

“Ivy?”

She turned around quickly, looking squarely at Chris who looked very fine.

Unscratched, in fact.

“Chris!” She exclaimed. “I’ll cal–”

“I’ll just go back to training now. Bye Princess,” Elsa hung up quickly.

Ivy tucked her phone away.

“Where have you been?” She asked, anger seeping into her voice.

“Getting you this.” He raised a package in the air and she eyed it with disregard.

“It’s a velvet cake, you said you wanted it. It is kind of hard to get around here, and I didn’t know the time has been far spent while I searched for it.”

She sighed. “I was worried about you. I called, severally amd texted and– this has to do with the call you got, right?”

‘Not the velvet cake’ she had implied.

He pushed his hand behind him, rubbing the back of his neck, dropping his other hand slowly.

“Yes. The call had to do with the House but it was nothing serious. I intended to return your calls but my phone is dead so…”

She nodded, not knowing what else to say. She started walking away.

“Let’s just go back to the hotel.”

“I’m sorry.” He turned around, his strides matching hers. “Don’t you want us to go for the ride anymore? You don’t want the velvet cake?”

Shs snatched the package from him.

“Ivyyy,” he drawled, pleading. But her pace increased.

Without warning, he pulled her into a hug, making her stop in her tracks. “I’m sorry, okay. I truly am.” He said sincerely, against her hair. “I didn’t think you’d be worried, considering what I am.”

She rolled her eyes, resting into his embrace, surrendering.

“Don’t do this next time.”

“I won’t, I promise.”

Feeling that the issue had been settled, they pulled away from each other.

“Alright. Let’s check out that ride.”

The sun was already setting by now, and when they got to the roller coaster, there was yet again another queue.

Ivy had hinted at the fact that he should buy it but Chris refused, standing on his morales, as she had expected.

They concluded that they would just come back tomorrow.

Although they already had a planned activity for tomorrow, which was shopping, Chris convinced her that they could fit it in there somewhere.

So they headed to the car and drove off to the hotel.

***

Nothing went as planned the next day.

Chris had decided to stay in, insisting that he had some work to deal with on his laptop, something concerning the House once again. He hadn’t gone into much detail.

He had apologized that things were not going how they had planned, but then he had promised that come tomorrow, they would be back on track with fun.

Ivy had been understanding and she hadn’t make a fuss about it. She had hopped into the ride he had ordered for her, and enjoyed her ride down to the Clothing Store.

There were different Clothing Stores here with the most exquisite dresses that Ivy had ever seen.

She hadn’t done by her shopping alone though, she had done it with Elsa over the phone with a video call.

“How about this?” She asked, holding a black gown to the screen.

“It’s giving ‘classic’. You should try it on.”

And that was how she bought a lot of dresses that filled several trolleys that she might need help with, taking them back to the hotel after they get backed in the packaging bags.

She dug her hand into her bag to pull out her card and pay, but she had pulled out a black card one instead.

That wasn’t for her.

She stared at it quizzically.

Whose was it?

It took her some moments for it to click.

This was the card her Mystery Husband had given her to cover expenses, while she lived within the terms of their contract, for a year.

She tapped her long blue polished nails on the surface, her face drawn into a frown.

Sometimes, she forgot the fact that she was married and everything that came along with it.

She handed the card to the cashier, putting in the pin. It was a good thing she had read the contract, the pin had been there somewhere in those documents, and the first time she had read it, it had stuck.

Maybe because it had to do with money.

While they helped her pack her dresses into the bags, she looked around the clothing store, at the glass walls and how skillfully they had been made.

Then she caught a glimpse of something, rather someone, on the road, through the transparent wall.

Her face lit up with a smile.

That was Chris in his car.

He was waiting at a red light signal.

He must have been done with his work by now. Maybe he was here to do his own shopping too.

Why hadn’t he called her though?

Anyways, she was lucky that he was here.

She might not even have to order a ride after all.

Shs quickly dailed up his number.

She watched him picked up the call, her smile widening.

“I’m taking you are done with the work for the House.”

“No,” his voice seeped lowly throughout the phone’s speaker, “just taking a break.”

Shs nodded in agreement, but his next words sent her into an abyss of confusion.

“I’m just in the kitchen right now, thinking of what to make for the both of us.”

“You are in the kitchen?” She asked slowly, her gaze fixed on his car, watching him tap against the steering wheel leisurely.

“Yes. What would you like to eat when you get back.”

She didn’t response, instead moved closer to the wall, ignoring the cashier that was politely trying to call her attention.

Snap.

She took a picture.

“—with chicken? Ivy, I’ve given three options already. You are not responding. Are you alright?”

“Come up with anything, I’m sure it’s going to taste great.”

She watched the car moved slowly away.

His low chuckle filled her ears, and the rattle of something that sounded like a pan but she was sure that it wasn’t.

“Alright then. I miss you, hurry back to me.”

She nodded, clenching her fist by her side.

“I will.”

Something was wrong.

Very wrong.