Hello Lovelies!
You guys better love me for this, because I was not going to post this chapter without remaining parts, but I figured you all had waited long enough.
Plus I think it'll be better on its own, as its taking a trip into the past, shedding some light on things and how they used to be.
As always, read and review. Feedback is always welcome.

-xoxo, Crys. (09.12.17)

"Picture Perfect"

Chapter 9

Darien had made his way downstairs only to find no sign of his wife - she wasn't in the kitchen, living room, or her study. To his surprise, even though the house seemed empty of her presence, her cell phone was found face-up on the small end table next to her reading chair that she had previously occupied earlier that day. He had only noticed it, because it had chimed once more. Another incoming text message.

'God help the person on the other end of that phone.' he fumed to himself. He was tired of this game already. It wasn't that he felt bad for cheating, because he didn't. He knew what he was doing, and he made the conscious choice to have sex with another woman. It wasn't an accident. It happened because he wanted it to happen. But he would be damned if anyone but himself told his wife that he fucked his secretary. That was his place to tell Serena, if he ever did tell her.

Quietly peering around the corner with those dark blue midnight eyes, Darien made sure Serena wasn't going to sneakily pop into the room to catch him in the act, before he made his way over to her phone and hit the home button. As the screen lit up, he noted that she had two unread text messages. Darien knew that the moment he opened her phone, that the name and/or number would be revealed, but he also knew that he had no way of marking them as unread again. It wouldn't matter anyway thought, right? Considering he would definitely just be deleting the texts and blocking the random number like he had on his own phone, so that they could no longer pester himself or his wife.

Ready to get things over with, Darien pressed the home button to access her home screen, and then tapped on her inbox. One message thread had popped up, and by the looks of it, both text messages were not from that same random number harassing his personal cell phone, but from their good friend, Lita - she was thanking Serena for stopping by the restaurant earlier that evening, hoping to see her again soon. 'So she wasn't alone with Nephrite after all… what a deceitful bitch for trying to put that thought into my head.'

Annoyed, and although breathing a sigh of relief, Darien deleted the thread from Lita. There could be no evidence that he had her phone. There was no way for him to change the messages from read to unread, and he wasn't about to get caught snooping through her phone unwarranted. If she were to see those text messages opened, there would be no denying it. He was the only one in the house, aside from their daughter, and Annabelle knew better than to touch mommy or daddy's phone. He would be caught, and then questioned.

Exasperated, he placed her phone back down where it was, making sure it was exactly as he had found it before he exited her study. Curiosity had gotten the best of him, and instead of making his way back upstairs to his office, he found himself continuing to search for his wife. He knew she wasn't upstairs, and she evidently was not downstairs either. It was now dark outside, but outside was the only other place she could be. So he brought himself to their front door and flicked on the outside lights; nothing. From what he could see, she wasn't out there. To be sure, he quietly opened their front door to peer outside, stepping into the night. She wasn't anywhere in sight. Furrowing his brow, he went back inside and closed the front door behind him, locking it for the night.

Serena hugged her robe tight around her body, as she felt the slight chill of the night air brush against her skin. Alone, and deep in thought, she sat at the edge of a large pier, a ways down from the pool house behind their home, her bare legs dangling off the dock, just above the lake water. Everything was so peaceful and quiet around their home at night. It was serene, placid.

Serena hadn't come out to this spot very often anymore; it held too many good memories with her husband. One memory in particular, that had torn her heart out over and over again. But tonight she had found herself drawn to it, in need of a getaway from her husband. He was being a self-righteous bastard, and she wanted no part of it. She almost wished he hadn't come home at all. She would've preferred to have been interrogated by their six year old daughter as to why her daddy hadn't come home, rather than threatened and abused by the man.

The beautiful blonde took a long, deep breath, preparing for whatever came next, as she let her memories completely take control of her mind. She needed to stop repressing the hurt, the anger, and the guilt that she felt. She was turning a good memory into a bad memory, and that just wasn't fair.

*Flashback*

"You are, by far, the most beautiful woman that I have ever laid eyes on, Serena Shields..." she felt her husbands warm breath tickle her skin as he lovingly murmured into her ear, his arms snaking around her waist from behind her. She let a soft, surprised chuckle escape her lips at the feel of his touch, her breathing quickening in response.

It had been a fairly long day, the couple had just hosted an annual charity gala for the hospital that Darien worked for, and all of his colleagues were in attendance, thanking him for his hospitality and frequently commenting on how utterly stunning their home was. The charity had been a success, and Darien had just said his final goodbyes to the last of the guests exiting their home.

In search of his wife, he walked outside into their backyard; it didn't take long for him to spot her. Now alone, standing at the edge of their pier, Serena had been watching the sun set from what he could tell; that was their thing. Whenever they had the time, if Darien was home from work in time, they would watch the sunset together from the private pier behind their home that Darien had built for his wife, specifically for moments like this. It was a beautiful sight, like something out of a movie.

"And you, Darien Shields," she spoke softly back, turning in his arms to face him, "Are by far, the best man that I could have ever hoped to have married."

Darien smiled, as he leaned in to lay his forehead against hers, both completely forgetting about the sun setting before them. "I don't think you understand how much I love you, Sere…" he breathed, the sweet smell of whiskey present on his breath. "You are literally my everything."

"I understand perfectly what you mean, because I feel the same exact way." she murmured against his lips, teasingly. She could feel his heart quicken against her chest, as she struggled herself to remain composed. "I love you more than words." she managed to say, before she felt his grasp on her tighten, fiery passion burning in his eyes.

"Say it again." he pleaded, almost in a whisper, as his fingers traced the bottom hem of her dress against her thigh.

"I love you, Darien."

And at the sound of her second proclamation of her love for him, Darien gave in, feverishly hoisting her up into his arms, as she wrapped her thighs tightly around his waist and his lips caught hers. He carried her over to a nearby patio set they had occupying one side of their pier, consisting of a large outdoor sectional and some small tables. He managed to sit down carefully, as his wife continued to straddle his hips, leaving a sweet trail of lustful but passionate kisses down her neck, over her breasts, and into her cleavage, as he pulled down her strapless cocktail dress, exposing her milky white skin.

"Make love to me," she begged, as his teasing started a fire in her that she could no longer control. She wanted him so badly. Whimpering, she pressed her lower body against his, feeling the hardness beneath his pants, and slowly but forcefully, started to move against it. He let out a soft moan before complying with her demands, and hiking her dress up above her waist. He was surprised, but also intrigued to see that his wife wasn't wearing any panties.

"I'll do anything you want me to, and then some." he smirked, as he shifted position and laid her on her back, wasting no time before spreading her legs open, giving his head full access to her most sensitive spot. If he was going to make love to his beautiful wife, he was going to do it right, not skipping anything that would give her pleasure.

*End Flashback*

Looking back over her shoulder, to the spot where her would-have-been second born child was conceived, Serena felt something inside of her break all over again. Her heart ached for the unborn child, and slowly broke at the memory of that night with her husband, and love that child had been conceived from. Madly and deeply in love, the two knew exactly what they were doing when they made love that night, underneath the stars. It was no surprise when they found out that Serena was pregnant with their second child. Back then, they were blissfully happy, and could not get enough of each other.

As if like clockwork, she heard something approach from behind.

"What are you doing out here?" she heard the familiar voice ask, causing a thump to form in her throat.

End Chapter 9

All right, I didn't go into detail with the sex scene, because that's not my forte.
I hope none of you found that disappointing!
On the bright side, since this chapter was basically cut in half, chapter 10 will be out in no time.
Feel free to leave any feedback/opinions on where the story is going.

- xoxo, Crys (09.12.17)