HER UNRULY HUSBAND

Chapter 3 - Escape

Tonight I wore a sleek black jumpsuit instead of the usual dresses they used to force on me. The fabric hugged my frame but wasn’t revealing, cinched neatly at the waist with a thin belt. The square neckline was simple, elegant.

I had chosen it because it was easy to move in later and less suffocating than tight dresses. My hair was pulled into a neat bun, a few strands framing my face.

I have already a plan in my mind. After here, escape. That’s it. I should do it!

The program ended after what felt like forever. My father’s words echoed with the same rehearsed promises I had heard all my life. The crowd clapped, the cameras flashed, and I stood beside him like part of the set. My cheeks hurt from the smile I forced to keep.

I don’t know what I should feel. My father was never clean. I can attest to that. But people are still here supporting him. Maybe he wasn’t greedy enough to make others somehow doubt him but this silent defiance that I had towards my father was also because of him being an unworthy politician.

He’s a good manipulative that even to his wife and daughter, he tried not to let it pass.

When the music started and the people shifted to the open reception, I slipped away from the stage. I knew what was coming. If I stayed, my mother would start talking about dinner and families I needed to greet. Always the same.

And the worst thing is the fact that I’ll be meeting here my “future husband”! That thought alone disgusts me. I know Craig cheated on me and that I was so angry with him at the moment that I deserve someone so much better than him is obviously the right thing to find. But being engaged to someone I didn’t know made me shiver down my spine!

What if he’s ugly? Or have crooked teeth? Or bad hygiene!

Fuck! I might die early in that case!

I needed air.

I moved past the security lines, nodding and smiling when people called my name. Hands reached for me, some wanting to shake mine, some wanting photos. I gave them the same polite smile, but inside, I only wanted to disappear.

I need to go out before my father announced my engagement to this f*****g stranger. Being a good daughter here is okay but marriage is a different thing!

The crowd pressed closer, and I quickened my steps. I was halfway through when someone bumped into me. A glass tipped, and red wine splashed across a man’s crisp white shirt.

My breath caught.

“Sorry,” I said quickly, already stepping back, ready to leave before anyone noticed but then the man suddenly grabbed my hand.

The man looked down at the stain, then up at me. His brow lifted, his voice dripping with sarcasm. “Really?”

I froze. His eyes lingered on me in a way that felt different from the others tonight.

“Uhm, I’m in a hurry. I can pay for laundry or something. Name your price,” I said in urgency but he just smirked at me.

“I always wondered if what they say about you is true,” he said, tilting his head slightly. “Prim and proper? I don’t think so.”

My brows furrowed at that.

What the f**k does he need?

I get my wallet from my purse and gave him a thousand dollars.

“That would be enough, right?” I said and tried to put it on his hand but he yanked it and smirked more.

“So this is the way to apologize then? Paying people?”

My brow rose. His tone was mocking, but I refused to give him the satisfaction of rattling me.

“I’m sorry. I’m sorry for your clothes...” I tried to calm down. Breathe in…breathe out.

Be nice, Loriel. That is your role here.

“I can ask for your contact details so I could give you a new set. I’m just really in a hurry right now and I need to go—”

“Are you escaping from something?” He asked but I didn’t answer him.

Instead, I turned, about to walk away, when I heard my father’s voice behind me.

“Oh, you finally met my daughter,” he said, his tone full of pride he never showed me in private. “Mr. Echeveria.”

I froze again. My head snapped back toward the man. Mr. Echeveria.

My eyes widened. f**k! So this was Draco?

His eyes flickered with something I couldn’t place. Interest, amusement, maybe both. My chest tightened, and I realized my father’s plans were already unfolding right in front of me.

And I was dressed for the role, even if I hated it.

Yet standing here in front of Draco Echeveria, with my father smiling.

Draco’s lips curved slightly too, though it wasn’t the polished smile people used in this kind of gathering. It was almost amused, like he had caught me in something.

“So this is your daughter,” he said, his eyes still on me instead of my father. “I should’ve guessed.”

My father chuckled, clapping his hand on Draco’s shoulder.

“She’s been away for some time, but now she’s back to support me.” His gaze slid to me. “You’ll be seeing more of each other.”

I forced a polite smile, the kind my father expected, but my chest was tight. Support. That was the word he always used, as if my life existed only to hold his up.

Draco extended his hand.

“Miss Fernandez.” His tone was smooth, but I could still hear that same sarcasm from before, the trace of a smirk in his voice.

I looked at his hand for a second longer than necessary before finally shaking it. My grip was steady, my voice even.

“Mr. Echeveria. I apologize again for earlier. I hope the stain doesn’t ruin your evening.”

“Nah…” His eyes narrowed faintly, as if measuring me. “I’ve survived worse.”

My brow arched.

“You were escaping from what?” he asked again that made me cold.

I smiled sarcastically at him. “Nothing…”

“I thought it was urgent?” he teased.

/”

I rolled my eyes. If he wont stop, maybe I’ll surely reveal how evil I am in a façade.

He leaned slightly closer, just enough that only I could hear. “I like how you pretend not to care. It almost works.”

I pulled my hand back and gave him the faintest smile, polite on the surface, but cold underneath. “You seem very observant, Mr. Echeveria. I’m sure it will serve you well.”

Before he could reply, my father’s aide called his name. He leaned against me and whispered.

“Good luck in escaping, Loriel…”

He excused himself with a nod and stepped away, already greeting another group.

My heart leaped a thousand times maybe. I clenched my jaw as I stare at Draco Echeveria who’s now laughing with some prominent businessmen.

I didn’t know that my father came back and stayed beside me, still smiling like everything was perfect.

“You see?” he said quietly, as if I should be grateful. “Not so bad, is he?”

I didn’t answer. I only kept my eyes forward, though inside, my thoughts were restless.

Not so bad? No. Worse. Because Draco Echeveria looked at me differently—not like the others, not like the cameras, not like my father. And I wasn’t sure if that made him dangerous…or the only person here who could actually see me.