Ximena was on cloud nine. Now that she was married to the man she loved, what more could she ask for? The moment the priest pronounced them as husband and wife, all the anxiety and nervousness immediately lifted off her shoulders as Adriano kissed her passionately. He looked so handsome in his tailored suit, and now he was all hers. Or so she wanted to believe.

No sooner than they had walked away from the alter did a woman with red hair come up to them. And there was no problem in particular about that but she didn’t miss the way Adriano stiffened beside her. She smiled brightly at both of them, but her eyes lingered a little longer on Adriano and that did not sit too well with Ximena. When she got a closer look at the woman, she immediately noticed that she was indeed very beautiful; and it made her feel slightly insecure.

But why? It’s not like she knew who this woman was…

“I’m sorry, do I know you?” she asked her, trying to hide her piqued curiosity in her tone.

The woman, after batting her eyelashes at Adriano, directed her vision towards, lips tilted up in a close to derisive smile and extended her hand. “Oh, my bad. I haven’t had a proper introduction. I’m Amanda O’Brien. I’m Adriano’s-,” she didn’t get to finish her sentence as Adriano abruptly went forward and stood between her and Ximena. His jaw was clenched and eyes glaring at her with green rage.

“She’s someone I used to know. Could I have a word, Amanda?” he said in a terse voice and didn’t wait for a response to drag her to the side, leaving his wife utterly baffled by his unexpected shift in attitude. Something was definitely up, and Ximena decided she didn’t like it. Before she could dwell on the matter for long many other people, her family and friends came to give their congratulatory remarks and sometime in the middle of all the exchanges, Adriano came back to her side and held her close to him by the waist.

Almost like he was afraid of losing her.

The whole group was directed towards the lush garden where the reception was being held. It was decorated lavishly, with tables and a dance floor. After a few drinks, some fine cuisine and exchanged laughs it was time for the couple’s first dance as newlyweds. It wasn’t long before they went into the floor and began to dance to their wedding song; Hero by Enrique Iglesias. It was a very slow and sweet song, so their moves matched the tempo. They were finally alone and now she could bombard him with her questions.

Maintaining eye contact, she kept her hands around his neck. “So, who was that woman?” she finally inquired and his eyes averted hers. He spun and brought her back to him, only this time her back was against his chest. His touch was sending delicious shivers all the way down her spine but she wouldn’t let that distract. She would get some answers.

“She’s just an old friend. We ended off on the wrong foot and I was just shocked she showed up here. I didn’t even invite her,” he admitted but she couldn’t quite tell if he was telling the truth or not because his tone was unreadable.

They continued to sway to the music in that position. “So, who invited her?” she further prodded, wondering how she had gotten an invite. The guest list was pretty short and exclusive so not just anyone was invited.

Spinning her back around, he closed his eyes and placed his forehead on hers. “Yo no se (I don’t know). Baby, let’s not ruin this special moment talking about unimportant matters, si? Can I just enjoy having you in my arms,” he whispered and her heart soared, making her forget all about the ordeal.

“Okay,” she squeaked shyly and a couple of moments later the song ended, and everybody clapped for them. Then it was the father daughter dance up next, whilst her mother Dolores danced with her new husband.

Honestly, Ximena had always been quite terrified of her dad. Emilio Dos Ramos has always been a no-nonsense man, respected and feared by many. He couldn’t be described as a very affectionate man, much less father but Ximena had no doubt in her mind that he loved his family. Even though he’d had this absurd deal with Adriano’s father, she couldn’t bring herself to hate him. At the end of the day, he was still her father and she loved him very much. It was because of him she’d met the man she’d now grown to love gradually.

“I know you don’t agree with any of this,” he began as they danced to the new song playing. “And I know you must hate me for all of this-,”

“I don’t hate you, papa,” she told him softly, resting her chin on his shoulder. “I could never hate you. Sure, I don’t agree with this contract but if it’s what you want then I’ll go with it. All I ever wanted to do was make you proud of me.”

Emilio remained quiet for some seconds before he pulled away from his daughter, looking at her through his blue orbs that we identical to hers. His face mirrored both shock and concern. “What made you think I wasn’t proud of you?”

Ximena looked away, her vision beginning to blur slightly with tears. All of a sudden, she was feeling emotional but her relationship with her dad was fragile. “Because you have never said it…” she voiced under her breath. Before she could register what was going on, she was pulled firmly into an almost bone crushing embrace by her father. Shock pulsated through her. It had been literally years since she last hugged her father.

“I’m sorry for making you feel that way,” he began, his voice laced with regret. “I couldn’t be prouder of you and what you’ve achieved over the years, hija. Any father would want such a hardworking and talented daughter. I cannot imagine leaving my company in better hands,” he added and the tears finally flowed from her eyes. Good thing she was wearing smudge proof make up. With all her might she hugged him back, her heart feeling like it would leap out of her chest.

“I love you, dad,” she whispered after a few seconds.

“I love you too, my dearest Ximena.”

***

Everything was going very well, until she had decided to show up. Adriano was completely gob smacked to see Amanda at his wedding. For starters, he hadn’t even invited her! How the hell had she even got in? Something was definitely amiss. As of late, she had been showing in all the wrong places like she was on some sort of a mission.

Grabbing her by the elbow, he dragged her away to a secluded area which was surely out of hearing range. Making sure the coast was clear, Adriano turned to her with balled fists at his side and daggers targeting her that it was a miracle that she didn’t end up six feet under.

“What the actual fuck are you doing here?” he fired lividly. Ordinarily, Adriano was a very respectful and decent guy so he never swore but at the moment, he was very pissed so his manners flew straight out the window.

She gave him a saccharine smile. “Why so hostile, my love?” she asked, batting her eyelashes seductively.

His jaw ticked. “You better ask my question before I have your culo (ass) thrown out of here for gatecrashing my wedding,” he countered menacingly, which resulted in her smile widening.

Amanda stepped forward and held him by the lapels. “Oh, come on Adri. I know you’re infatuated with this girl but surely you don’t love her. That’s because you love me. You need me just as much as I need you so stop pretending,” she voiced softly, looking him straight in the eye.

He clasped her hands and threw them off his frame. “I don’t love you, and I never have. And for the record, that girl as you say is more special to me than you think! I have eyes for her, and her alone so just leave me be. If you ever come near me, or her, you’ll regret it,” he warned menacingly but his biting tone didn’t even make her flinch. “You and I were never to be together.”

Releasing from his tight grip, a scowl overtook her facial features and she pointed her finger at him. “Watch yourself. I can very well march in there and tell them that this is all nothing but a contract!” she spat but almost immediately realized the mistake she had just made.

Adriano’s eyes widened slightly. “What do you mean by that?” he echoed, heart beat spiking a bit. Had he heard correctly? How did she know about the contract?

She took a step back, shaking her head vehemently. “Nothing, forget what I said,” with that she turned and shimmied away as fast as her four-inch stilettos could carry her. From the corner, Santiago emerged and spoke, startling Adriano in the process.

“What was that about?” he said, pretending as though he hadn’t heard anything.

Adriano punched his shoulder, to which he responded by clutching it in pain. “You scared the crap out of me, idiota! And pertaining to your question, your guess is as good as mine. She said something about a contract, more specifically the contract. Could it be possible that she knows?” he asked his friend, worriedly.

Santiago shrugged. “I don’t know man, but I am sure that she is demented. How did she even get in? Who invited her?”

“I don’t know either but something fishy is going on. I feel like somebody is up to something but I just can’t put my finger on it.”

Slinging his arm over his friend’s shoulder, Santiago began to lead him back to the others and his new wife. “We will worry about that later. You just focus on keeping your new wife content. I still can’t believe out of the both of us, you got married first. And to such a smoking hot chick for that matter…” he trailed off and Adriano glared at him. He held up his hands in mock surrender. “What? Dude, you’re not the only one who’s noticed it.”

“Keep your eyes off my wife,” he seethed through gritted teeth. Wow, they hadn’t even been married for one hour and he was already being possessive of her.

Santiago gave him a knowing smirk. “Somebody’s got you wrapped tightly around their little finger. You’re well on your way to being totally whipped.” He received another punch. “Son of a-, that one really hurt man! What the hell is your problem, you bastard!” he yelled after Adriano who had already moved way ahead of him.

Without turning back, he gave him the bird and continued back to his wife.

___________________________

Hey guys. How are y'all doing? Here is an update. Hope you enjoy it and please excuse typos.

~Deetronite