The Price of Her Heart

Chapter three

Christine’s POV

The street lights sparkled like diamonds, and the atmosphere was serene. My heart was full as I felt the warmth of Adrian’s hand in mine. We had slipped out of the hall together as soon as the festivity was over, and he had offered to drop me off at my father’s estate.

We walked to his car slowly and carefully, as the rain had left the streets wet and slippery.

When we got to his car, he opened the door for me, his movements exuding poise, elegance and composure.

As we drove on, I watched the city in silence. Glass towers stood tall, their windows reflecting streaks of neon and gold on them, billboards hung in almost every meter and the blinding headlights of other cars hit the window of Adrian’s jeep, making me close my eyes instinctively to prevent the glare from getting into them.

“Did you enjoy the party?” I asked as I turned to look at him.

“I wouldn’t say I enjoyed it but it wasn’t bad either," he said calmly.

“You look beautiful tonight.” He added.

My heart skipped a beat at his words.

“Thank you,” I said, my cheeks heating up slightly.

He looked handsome, too, like he was a demigod that just walked out of a romance fairytale. The first two buttons of his shirt were unbuttoned, a few strands of his lustrous black hair fell on his face and his lips pulled up in a small smile that didn’t reach his pale green eyes.

I smiled back at him and rested my head on the window, watching the rain droplets on the glass surface run down like little ants going after crumb.

“The celebration was quite grand, not like I expected anything less from Alexander.” Adrian drawled.

My father, Alexander Stone, was a popular man whose mere presence commanded respect and attention. He had a huge and condescending figure, which made people cower when he spoke. People often did his bidding without complaining because they were scared of him and wanted to be in his good books.

“You know how extra my father can be. He loves attention, and he’ll do anything to get it.” I responded.

“I’m sure if your mother were here, she would have convinced him to tone down the drama a little bit.”

He was right. My mother was a simple woman; she was nothing like my father. She was calm and soft spoken, and people liked her more than my father because she was down to earth and not condescending like him. But she wasn’t in the country now. She was in Turkey for business, and I missed her terribly because it had been weeks since I last saw her.

Without her, the house felt lonely. It was just my father and me. And being around him when my mother wasn’t here was hard, as I had to deal with the weight of his expectations alone.

That was why I always stayed close to Adrian. With him, I could breathe and freely express myself without having to worry about anything.

“Your father looked proud tonight,” Adrian said at last.

I chuckled. “He always looks proud. It’s his favorite emotion. But don’t let his facial expressions deceive you. He’s never impressed with anyone… not even me.”

His gaze softened, and he put his hand in mine, squeezing it gently. “He should be.”

His words affected me a lot, and they made my thoughts hazy. Peering deeply into his eyes, I tried to understand what lay behind those meticulously guarded walls of his, but he returned his gaze to the busy road.

“Adrian… have you ever thought about what it would be like living a normal life? No expectations, no family names weighing heavily on your shoulders. Just…normal,” I asked.

He said, “I think about it sometimes.”

“Do you ever wish for it to happen?” I asked again.

“No.” He said quickly.

“No? Why?”

“Because it can’t happen.”

He sounded so certain, as though it were some sort of dream that could never come true. I wished for it to happen sometimes, so that I could simply be Christine and not just the daughter of Alexander Stone.

I turned to him again. “Why do you say so?”

“Because the world we live in doesn’t give room for the ordinary.”

I wanted to probe him more, but his silence stopped me. So I dropped the matter, although I had so many burning questions.

After a while, we got to my father’s mansion, and Adrian came out to open the door for me.

“Thank you,” I said in a low voice.

“For what?” He whispered.

“For coming tonight,” I responded.

His lips pulled up in a small smile. “Don’t mention it. I’ll do anything for you, remember?”

I wanted to hug him tightly in appreciation, but before I could, my father’s voice called from the doorway.

“Christine.”

I froze. My father stood there, tall and intimidating, his figure looming over me. He glanced at Adrian before saying,

“You’re late.”

I felt the knots in my stomach tighten and the warmth of Adrian’s presence disappeared like it had never been there.

“Good night, Christine,” Adrian whispered as he planted a kiss on my forehead and got into his car.

I looked at my father, with fear on my face. He stared at me intently before going back inside.

The silence in the house weighed me down. No mother waiting for me in the sitting room with a worried expression on her face, no gentle voice to calm my father down. Her absence created a deep void in not just my heart but even in the mansion.

As I climbed up to my room, I couldn't shake the gnawing feeling at the back of my mind that something was changing. Adrian’s protective armor became thicker and my father’s stern look lingered a little bit too long.

And that the world I always knew was about to crumble before me.