Bound to the Enemy

CHAPTER FIVE- BEHIND HIS WALLS

Eli

I spent the entire night convincing myself I had made the right decision.

Ariana is now my wife.

I didn't like the way she got under my skin when she was at Marcus's house, the way she looked at me with her icy blue eyes deepening with vulnerability. I couldn't bear Marcus maltreating her, so I came up with a solution; I hope I didn't make a mistake.

I lean into my chair in my study. I have a meeting in thirty minutes, but I'm not mentally prepared for it because my head is filled with someone.

A light knock breaks my thoughts, and before I can reply, the person pushes the door open. I prepare to shout at one of my staff when Ariana walks in.

Typical Ariana, I bite back a smile.

“How can I help you, Mrs Coleman?” I call her that to get under her skin.

“Even you too?” She scrunches her nose, "Please call me Ariana.” She sighs and sits on my desk casually.

She's definitely making herself comfortable already; of course, it's Ariana: outspoken, social, and enough energy for both of us. I almost soften up, then I snap my walls back in place mentally.

“Can you get off my desk?” It comes out harsher than I intended.

She gets up immediately and glares at me.

“I have a meeting soon,” I inform her.

“I need to go shopping,” she announces, ignoring what I just said.

“You have clothes”

“Thank you for that, by the way,” she smiles. “I still need more things though.”

“You came to take permission?” I ask, raising an eyebrow.

“No”

“Then why are you telling me?”

“Because you're my husband,” she replies mockingly.

I contemplate indulging her, then I change my mind.

“Take security.”

“I don't need security,” she argues.

“Yes, you do. Rio will be your personal bodyguard and driver.”

“I can't drive too? I wanted to take your Porsche on a spin.”

“You can use any car except that one, I say, narrowing my eyes.”

She sighs in frustration, and something in her eyes tells me she's going to disobey that order.

“Fine. Can I take Selena and Ava with me?” Her eyes brighten in excitement.

“Whatever you want.” I slide my card to her. “Knock yourself out.”

“Thank you!” she squeals and picks it up, then sprints out the door.

I decide to work from home and take my meeting in my study. Later on, I try to get back to work, but my eyes keep going to my phone.

My phone buzzes; it's a message from Rio.

"Mrs Coleman has arrived safely at Hudson Yards; I picked up her friends on the way."

"Stay with her," I type back, then I hesitate and delete it.

"Keep your distance, don't interfere unless necessary."

I toss my phone on the desk. This is ridiculous. She's shopping, not entering a war zone.

I fix my eyes back on my laptop and immerse myself in work.

By the time I'm done with work, it's three pm, I head downstairs to grab a cold drink and eat something.

The sweet aroma of grilled chicken and roasted vegetables reaches me as I get to the kitchen; my stomach grumbles in response. Mabel is by the stove cooking. I open the pot to peek inside, and she hits my hands playfully.

“When it's ready, I'll serve you,” she says with a bit of sternness in her voice.

“Yes, ma'am”, I reply with a toothy grin.

I've known her for a long time; she worked for my family and practically raised me alongside my parents. After Mom's death, the other staff left, but she never left my side. Always checking up on me and cooking my meals, and when I decided to move out of the family house and stay here, she followed.

I open the fridge and grab my go-to bottle of sparkling water with lime, then I sit down and check my phone. There's no update from Rio; why are they taking so long?

Mabel brings my lunch, and I wolf it down.

“Thank you, the meal was delicious,” I say as she takes the dishes away.

“You're welcome,” she smiles. “Now do you want to tell me how you got married to Ariana all of a sudden?”

Shit. I didn't think about what I'd tell her. I couldn't tell her the truth.

“It just happened,” I shrug. She narrows her eyes and gives me the look Mom gives when she wants me to spill a secret.

“So you love her?”

The front door opens, disrupting our conversation. I sigh in relief as Rio walks in with Ariana and her friends.

Their hands are filled with bags.

I walk up to Ariana; she looks exhausted but happy.

“You really did knock yourself out, huh?”

“Clearly," she replies with a smile.

Selena and Ava come from behind her.

“Congratulations, Eli. You guys didn't invite us to the wedding. We gave Ariana an earful already.”

“We apologize”, I reply. They look at me like they're expecting me to say more. When I don't, they go to Ariana and hug her and promise they'll come over to hang out again.

Ariana walks up to me as they leave, still clutching her bags.

“You didn't have to be so dismissive. They're our friends from uni,” she says, shaking her head.

“Your friends, you mean”

She sighs and walks towards the stairs, then turns around.

“Do you want to see what I got?” she asks, fluttering her lashes.

“Nope,” I reply and her face drops. I walk past her to get back to my study, and I hear her mutter ‘asshole’.

I stay holed up in my study for the rest of the day, and later in the evening, my dinner is brought up to me by one of the staff.

I finally leave the study around eleven pm and head downstairs to grab a glass of water when I see a figure sitting on the island.

The only light is the one from the fridge; I look closely and realize it's Ariana. She's munching on something and scrolling through her phone, so she doesn't even notice I've come close. “Mrs Coleman”, I whisper in her ear, and she yelps as she turns around and almost falls off the chair.

I steady her and notice she's wearing only a little short with a white top that’s outlining her n*****s. She catches me staring and clears her throat.

“Uhm, sorry,” I say as I move away quickly to the fridge.

“I thought you'd never leave your study”

“Why are you up?” I ask as I sit across her with my water.

“Couldn't sleep. You?”

“Same”

“You want some?” She pushes her bowl of strawberries dipped in chocolate towards me.

“Nope, I don't eat past 10pm,” I answer, pushing it back to her.

“Suit yourself”

I continue watching her eat, the way her tongue swipes on her lips slowly, like she's savoring the moment.

My breath hitches, and I swallow. Then I notice a smear of chocolate on her cheek, and I brush it away with my thumb mindlessly.

She looks up in shock, then her eyes twinkle in mischievousness; she picks up another chocolate and smears it on her lips, her eyes never leaving mine. “You wanna help me with this one?” she asks with a husky voice.