A/N: *smiles guiltily* Hello everyone… i know… i haven t updated in a very loooong time, but blame university's examinations for that ;P… i swear that all this biology stuff will drive me crazy one of these days xDxDxD…
anyways… what i really want to say is that I AM OFICIALLY BACK AND READY FOR NEW ADVENTURES ;D!
I want to thank everyone for your support, i m so grateful :) and i do apologise for not responding to your reviews this time, guys… Thaovyphantran, ABC, KanataH, Kuroneko388, forbiddenluv, Sweet. B. Seduction, Phantomforever (twice ;D), MarcoHietala'sAngel, Balack88, MmeButterfly, a super cool reader, 123456, JacobLuver226, romanticfan, Erik's fan (this is the order of the reviews i got for Chapter 7…)
And to answer the questions of your reviews:
No, i m not preparing for A levels, i m already at the 2nd year of my studies at the university :)…
Christine will tell Erik about what the fop did to her in a couple of chapters ;D…
Erik loved Christine once, now he thinks that this belongs to the past, but we ll see what happens in the next chapters ;)…just a note here: he s more confused than what everyone believes ;)…
About the woman at the photograph… let s say we have a long way to go before revealing her identity, and no she isn t the person who s going to take over Christine's job…
*ahem*… back to business now ;)…
SO! here is chapter 8...
Beta: my dear friend Ashes Fan :)!
Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN PotO or the main plot of the story.
HOPE YOU ENJOY IT!
Chapter 8: Newlyweds…
Christine stood by Erik's side in front of the priest, listening to herself mechanically repeating the wedding vows, which, under those circumstances, had no value.
Erik's deep and clear voice though, made those fake vows and promises sound real, she thought. The way he spoke with such certainty was like he truly loved her and he would honour and respect her for the rest of their lives.
Christine turned when the priest announced that the groom could kiss the bride. She raised her face towards Erik's and closed her eyes as his mouth sealed hers in a possessive kiss. Every move of his lips was shouting "You are mine now! In body and soul..." And Christine knew that if he did what he wanted, it would be only a matter of hours before they consummated their marriage.
...
The tickets for their trip to the Daniels' Island were ready and their flight was scheduled around an hour after the wedding. Their luggage was already in Erik's car and as soon as they signed the marriage certificate, he led her there.
Christine found it difficult to think of something to say as they were on their way to the airport. She was only feeling Erik's muscled hand shifting gears so close to her thigh. He had rolled up his sleeves because of the heat, the dark hair on his forearms made her feel a mix of awe and longing to feel his touch on her naked flesh.
There would be endless chances for this to happen during their honeymoon, at the tropical island, she reminded herself, shivering with want. She had checked the weather for the following days and with temperatures over 30°C; she knew that her bikini and sarong would be what she would wear for the greatest part of each day. She didn't dare to think what she would wear during the night. If Erik moved according to his plans, she was sure that she would be naked.
"When was the last time you were at the resort?" Erik's voice interrupted her thoughts.
Christine had to think for a moment "I flew here two or three months ago... but it was only for two days."
Erik said nothing, but Christine wondered if he thought she should visit the place more often in order to check the business closely. The person who Erik had hired to take her place had already found some mistakes among her folders, something that made her feel even more useless in the business field, even though Erik never said a thing. He had just told Marco Barns that lately, with her father's health problems, there was so much stress, and Christine had for one moment dared to hope that he had done it because of her feelings. However, in a more logical moment she had realised that Erik must have once again played the 'concerned fiancé's' role... her feelings never mattered to him.
Also, even though she would never admit it to Erik, since she had stopped going to the office she had felt like a huge weight had been lifted off her shoulders. And her parents weren't worried at all when Erik took over the Company... On the contrary, they had told her how much they trusted him.
"One way or another..." Gladys said with a feline's smile "it will not be long until we hear tiny feet walking and kicking around, I am sure of that. Right, Christine?"
Erik only smiled as he put his hand around Christine's waist "Don't worry, Gladys... We'll work on that very soon."
Christine turned red till the very roots of her hair, but convinced herself to smile. However, in the moment that her parents weren't looking, she gave Erik's arm a hard pinch and looked at him with anger. Erik, on the other hand, only winked at her, something that set her body on fire.
Erik drove the car towards the airport's parking area and within few minutes they checked-in and got in the aeroplane waiting for the take-off.
Christine found the perfect chance then to close her eyes and pretend she was sleeping. But after some time, which didn't seem like more than a few minutes to her, she opened her eyes and found herself leaning against Erik's shoulder. She shifted on her seat and blinked a couple of times.
"I'm sorry... I must have fallen asleep." She said "I hope I didn't wrinkle your shirt."
His smile was gentle "No... It's okay. In fact, I thoroughly enjoyed hearing you snoring." He smirked.
Christine's eyes went wide "I do not snore!"
"How do you know that?" he asked her, raising his visible eyebrow. "You didn't have a lover after your husband's death after all, did you?" he eyed her suspiciously.
Christine frowned "You don't believe me..."
Erik observed her for several moments "You cannot tell me that you weren't aware of the rumours during your marriage."
Christine felt her stomach turning to knots "Wh...What rumours?"
He only continued to stare deep into her eyes "Rumours about the numerous lovers you had."
Christine felt her cheeks burn under his hot gaze "I find the fact that you believe whatever you read at least ironic, since you want me to believe that the woman in the photo from the newspaper isn't your lover, while everything shows that she is."
"So you're telling me that those rumours about you were wrong." his gaze still hard.
Christine wondered if she had to tell him what had really occurred during her marriage. But two things stopped her. One; the fact they were inside an aeroplane with many people around them, and two; her pride.
Erik was the one who had warned her about Raoul, but she had simply ignored him and paid for it dearly later. Consequently, she couldn't have him now mentioning it against her at every chance he found. She had suffered a lot. And for some reason, she would always suffer for that mistake of hers. Her life had already taken a turn that she could have never imagined.
"I'm just telling you that you shouldn't believe everything you read." She stated "There are always two sides to every story."
"I've heard there are three sides" he replied with an enigmatic smile "There's the wife's side, the husband's side and then there's the truth."
Christine was relieved when the air-hostess announced that they were ready to land, so she didn't have to continue this conversation. She pushed her bag under her seat and after fastening her seat-belt she looked at the blue ocean under her window.
There were many other touristic islands next to the Daniels, but to Christine none seemed so beautiful and peaceful. She had dear memories from there as a child. She had passed many magical days with her brother at the beach, building castles on the sand, going on long walks across the private beaches far from the resort.
A wave of nostalgia deluged her as the aeroplane landed. She felt her eyes water and she had to blink repeatedly in order to send the tears away. Nathan loved the island as much as she did; it was too difficult for her to believe that he would never come here and that he would never walk again with her there.
Erik's hand sought hers, which was clenched on her knee, curling his long fingers around hers "Is everything alright?" he asked.
Christine forced a smile "Of course. Just the landing was a little abrupt... that's all."
He squeezed her fingers almost imperceptibly "I miss him too, my sweet. He was a very good friend." He whispered.
Christine felt her throat clench but she finally spoke, voice trembling "You were like a brother to him. I was so jealous of your relationship... It seems so childish now..." she chuckled bitterly.
"You were a child." He replied and freed her hand "And a very spoilt one. I could never be mad at you because of that..."
Christine secretly rubbed her hand, where Erik's fingers had been only moments before, and she wondered if what he had told her was true. After all, wasn't that the reason their marriage took place?
Paying-back...
Punishment...
Revenge...
The last word made her shiver as she imagined what Erik would probably be thinking...
"The revenge is mine..."
A/N: so, how was it (apart from short and boring but trust me it was an important transition so that 'good things' will start taking place in the next chapter ^.^) ? just let me know :)... ALSO! There s a thought of writing (or at least 'try' to write :P) sth medieval, E/C all the way of course, after this story is completed, what do you think?
