On Sorin's request I wore the dress he just bought me an hour ago.

He literally carried me in his arms inside the store and and each and every employee and customer there stared at us. Some with confusion, some with amusement, some looked at us adorably while some, they looked jealous, the women.

He was the one to pick out the dresses for me and made me try them one by one and if I looked at it for even a second longer, he bought it.

I mean, I don't need that much clothes. I can actually open my own shop with the amount of dresses I have right now.

Having done a nude makeup, I stared at myself in the mirror. I looked...okay. I bet Harlow would have looked absolutely gorgeous in this. Such a beautiful dress wasted on me.

Suddenly I remembered to Google about that word so taking my phone I typed it on Google. Mi amor.

Turned out it was Spanish meaning...

He calls me 'my love'?! I...I...I am his love?

But then I remembered, in the 'Once Upon A Time' series, even Captain Hook used to call a lot many women 'love', and that didn't mean he was actually in love with them.

Hmm. That's what it is. He just calls me that randomly, it doesn't mean anything serious.

Finally I emerged from the bathroom to find Sorin entering the room wearing a fitted navy blue shirts and a pair of light blue jeans. Handsome as always.

I intertwined my fingers in front of me anxiously, his eyes roaming over my body instensely.

When he was done, his eyes collided with mine, his jaw clenched. Do I look that bad?

In long strides, he covers the distance between his and grabbing the back of my neck, lifted my face towards him, meeting my mouth with his halfway.

My heart picked up its speed, my eyes fluttering close, his mouth moving over mine slowly and passionately.

I pressed both my palms against his chest feeling his muscles and kissed him back.

Our lips moved in sync with each other and he slowly traced my lower lip with his tongue, telling me to open my mouth which I did and his tongue slipped inside and encircling my waist with his hand, he pulled me closer.

I didn't fight for dominance, letting him take control which seemed to please him, his tongue brushing the inside of my mouth.

Sensing I was running out of breath, he pulled back and started to place feathery kisses all over my jaw and down to my neck making my knees go weak.

I gripped the collar of his shirt to steady myself and his hold around my waist firmed, his lips continuing their pleasurable torture over my neck.

A breathy moan escaped my lips when he gently nipped at the base of my neck making him stop.

He let out a shaky breath. "We should leave before I keep in you in bed the whole night."

I nodded not trusting my ability to form any words right now.

Groaning, he lifted my chin with his finger and captured my lips for another few seconds and before retreating, he bit my bottom lip earning a whimper from me.

Embarrassed at the sounds I was making I kept my head low.

"You look enchanting right now, Drea." He complimented, whatever doubt I had earlier, they seemed to vanish immediately. "All I want to do is throw you on the bed and worship your body so that the next time you wouldn't dare feel insecure about yourself."

He knows about my insecurities and he doesn't feel annoyed by them.

He bent down to place a kiss on my forehead. "Let's go. Or my mom will kill me if we get a little more late."

And he took my hand in his and intertwined our fingers and walked us to his car.

.
.
.

The dinner was fun filled, his parents, as I remembered them from my last meeting with them, were very sweet towards me. They treated me as if I was their own daughter.

"I wanted a daughter too", his mom, Laura told me later as we sat beside each other on the couch in the living room, just me and her, "but due to some medical conditions I couldn't have a second child but now, I have you."

My heart warmed at her words. "Thank you."

She took my hand and placed it upon hers. "So, if you ever need anything or if you ever want to complain about Sorin also, just tell me, okay?"

I nodded, smiling softly.

She lovingly placed her palm against my cheek and gave me a sad smile. "I know you both were forced into this marriage and we are sorry for that, we had our reasons. And I really hope Sorin is treating you nicely and you both fall in love with each other."

Sorin's face flashed before me, his hugs, his words and his kisses and I blushed. He is treating me more than nicely. "He is good and nice towards me. He...he... got me re-admissioned too and he drops to college everyday and we have breakfast and dinner together too."

Her eyes twinkled with happiness. "That's so good to hear, Drea. I'm really happy for both of you." Then her voice dropped and she asked, "Do you...love him?"

Oh. Should I tell her? Will she go and tell this to Sorin? As far as I know, Sorin has an idea about my feelings.

"I...um...I...do love him." I admitted truthfully. "But please don't tell him this."

"Or course not! I am not telling him, don't worry." She was smiling so wide and I felt happy that that smile was because of me.

"Where's...Sorin though?" I asked.

"Oh, he is with his father in his study."

"Can I...go there...?"

"Sure. It's just upstairs, down the corridor." She gestured me to the stairs.

"Okay." And I got up and walked upstairs.

The study was easy to locate, as she said it was at the end of the corridor, a huge door, larger than the other.

I walked upto it and before I could knock, I heard Sorin's voice from the other side. "I need to know the real reason behind this marriage, dad."

Real reason? Wasn't it because of a business deal?

"You already know, Sorin. It's because of that deal I made, what else?" It was his dad.

"Deal? Is it just about the deal? No. There's some another reason behind it and I want to know it. You didn't let me marry Harlow because you didn't like her even though you knew her since her childhood and then you all of a sudden got me married to a random woman whom you never met. Do you think I would believe that?"

Is Sorin still regretting not marrying Harlow?

"So...is this about Harlow? Are you still seeing her?"

"No." He stated firmly. "I broke up with her for Drea. This isn't about Harlow, this is about Drea. Do you know her personally?"

Just like Sorin, his dad was stubborn too. He just didn't give him the answer he wanted. "Do you not like Drea? You want to divorce her?"

My heart dropped.

"Are you serious?" Sorin slammed his fist on a table, that's what it sounded like. "I am not divorcing her! I am going to spend the rest of my life with her but I want to know the reason first. The real reason."

Then there was silence. No one spoke for another minute.

His dad sighed loudly. "She's Emerson's daughter."

It felt as if someone poured a bucket of freezing water over my head. Emerson? My dad's name... isn't Emerson. I don't know a Emerson.

"He had a daughter?!" Sorin shouted.

"He did."

Why the fuck are they talking in the past tense? What's going on? Who's Emerson? How come I am his daughter? Then who the hell is the man whom I considered my father all these years?

My knees buckled and I fell down on the floor a little too loudly and the door was pulled opened a few seconds later.

Sorin stood above me looking worried. "Drea?"

Tears welled up in my eyes. "W-who's... Emerson?"

He realised that I heard everything and he started to look even more worried.

He bent down and wrapping his arm around my shoulder, made me stand up. Placing a kiss on my forehead, he walked me inside the study.

His father looked surprised to see me as he stood behind his desk.

Sorin made me sit down on a chair opposite to his father, the huge mahogany desk between us. And he sat down beside me and once again placed his arm around my shoulder.

His jaw was clenched and he glared at his father. "I think she deserves the explanation more than me."

"Drea." His father addressed me and with teary eyes I looked at him. "I...am sorry you had to find about it like this."

"Who's Emerson?" I asked once again, a little firmly this time.

He cut a look to his son and then started to speak. "Emerson...he..." He exhaled loudly. "He was my bestfriend. You are his daughter. I knew about you since a long time back. And that's why I proposed that marriage because I wanted to get you out of that hellhole, I wanted to get you somewhere safe." Sorin started to rub gently circles over my shoulder.

That means, that man, he is not my real father. So, is my mother also someone else?

"M-my mother...? Who--"

"That's your real mother only, Drea." He answered.

"Whe-where's... where's my father?"

Sorin's hand tightened around my shoulder and he pulled me a little closer.

His father looked defeated and hung his head gloomily. "He's dead."

That's when agony tore through my heart and tears blurred my vision completely. He's dead. And my mother never told me about it? She never told me that the man she married wasn't my real father.

"Drea?" Sorin whispered softly when I went still.

But my brain wasn't registering anything anymore. And soon darkness engulfed me.

Chapter completion on: 8/5/22
Published on: 14/5/22