Bargain Bride: The Billionaire’s Forced Wife

THE MOMENT EZIO STEPPED inside the car, he pulled down the partition before attacking his wife with neck kisses. He hugged him from the side and his hands traveled from her back up to her nape.

Chiara noticed that her husband became more clingy than before. Well, he is not clingy before that incident because Chiara wouldn’t let him. She remembered how hard she ignored and moved away from his advancements towards her.

She wanted to slap and punch herself for being so close-minded to her husband before. If she didn’t waste their time by bawling her eyes over her ex-boyfriend, she is sure that they would have their own children by now.

She returned the kisses with the same ferocity. It wasn’t deep and rough; it was sweet and romantic. Chiara knew that her husband doesn’t use his full strength at that time, and she knew that his kiss will be deeper once he recovered.

Chiara wanted to make their kiss deeper, but she’s afraid she might exhaust her husband out. He is not fully healed yet, so all she can do and settle with this.

“You have been making my lips as your dessert,” she spoke while grinning at Ezio, his lips glistening with their liquids.

Ezio chuckled and kissed the side of her lips. “It’s my favorite dessert, cara,” he replied as he licked his own lips. “Sweet, delicious, and of course, it came from you.”

A thought comes to Chiara’s mind that she can’t help not to say. “I have another thing that came in me which is also sweet and delicious,” she said and winked to her husband afterwards.

Ezio’s mind lagged for a moment, processing what his wife said. He knew that it is a joke, but his mind might be in a red ping because he really cannot understand it.

Seeing the confused look in her husband’s face, Chiara pouted and and crossed her arms. “You’re so slow. I won’t joke to you anymore.”

“Cara,” Ezio tickled her neck so that she will look at him. “I just came from comatose so I can’t do much mental exercises like that.”

Chiara didn’t buy his excuse, but she didn’t ignore her husband. She gave him time to think about her joke.

“By the way, cara,” he called her as he remembered something he talked with his assistant. “Luigi told me about the reviews on our restaurant. Who is that Sigmund? Why did he do that?”

“He is the uncle of Simone,” she answered and she felt her anger rising upon hearing that old man’s name. “I have a hunch that he is working for Giovanni. I found out that they were business partners.”

Ezio’s body stiffened upon hearing the name of his wife’s ex-boyfriend. He doesn’t know what happened between them while he was unconscious, but Fara told him before that she met Simone while they were out with Chiara. Fara refused to say what happened and told him to just ask Chiara.

But he was afraid. He is worried of what his wife will answer. Before he went unconscious, Chiara still have some feelings for Simone. He can still remember how she cried when Simone got married.

Chiara noticed that her husband became quiet, and she thought something happened. “Tesoro? Are you okay? You became quiet.” The back of her hand touched his forehead to check his temperature.

“Nothing,” he spoke. “Since that Sigmund is Simone’s uncle, I assume he might have talked to you about his case? Did you two talk?”

Chiara, who is ignorant of the jealousy her husband is feeling, just answered naturally. “Actually, I was shocked that he didn’t talk to me about his uncle’s case. But we talked, ” she said. “He barged in the office while Victor was there posing as you. ”

She spat out an insulting laugh as she remembered how think her ex-boyfriend’s face that day. “He even told me that I still love him and that we should get back together,” she imitated Simone’s voice on the last part.

“What do you replied to him?” Ezio asked, looking down while holding his wife’s hand.

“Of course I told him no! Duh!” she exclaimed. “I don’t know why he still believed that I still love him. He must be sick in the head!”

“I have my husband, and I love him!” she added with determination. “I don’t get why he keeps on bothering me instead of focusing on his own wife!”

Hearing Chiara’s response made Ezio feel relieved. His lips couldn’t help but to strecth into a smile. Chiara was speaking a lot of things, but the only thing that Ezio has in mind is how Chiara loves him.

“Why the hell are you smiling?” Chiara asked when she noticed Ezio’s face. “I’m all annoyed here but you look like you’re enjoying it!”

Ezio shook his head hurriedly. “I’m not enjoying you getting angry, cara,” he defended himself.

“Then why are you smiling like an idiot?”

He pursed his lips before answering. “I’m just happy that you already forget about him.”

Chiara’s face softened. She knew what her husband is trying to imply. She reached for him and buried her face in his neck, inhaling his scent.

“I love you, don’t ever forget that,” she whispered in his ear.

MINUTES PASSED AND they arrived in Sophia’s house. It still looked the same as before, aside from those plants in their front yard that were already dying. The flowers that Sophia kept just by the side of her gate is now brown and dried up.

When the guards saw them, they greeted the couple before opening the gate to let them in.

“Madam Sophia is inside, ” one of them spoke while they were walking towards the main door.

The door is widely opened, and they can see Sophia sitting in her usual spot in the couch. She was flipping a book. Sophia was sitting not foo far away from the door, and Chiara can see the blankness and longingness in her eyes.

Chiara knocked on the door thrice. “Sophia?”

The widow looked towards the door and was shocked to see Chiara standing beside it. What made her eyes wider is seeing Ezio behind her friend.

Shame and guilt ran across Sophia’s eyes upon remembering what the authorities told her about her husband’s case. She heard the footsteps going towards her. She wanted to stand up and ran away from them, to save herself from embarrassment, but her feet were glued on the floor.

Chiara sat down beside her friend and touched her hand gently. “I know you’re not feeling well, but we decided to visit you to check how you are coping, ” she spoke.

She felt her husband sat beside her, as she felt the couch moved and saw him from her peripheral vision.

Sophoa was quiet, with her eyes staring at the photo album that has all of their pictures with her husband. It was the bank of their memory from their young days up to this year.

Staring at those pictures reminded her of how happy and contented they are with their life. She remembered how she and Marco lived from day to day, a life filled with love and lacked of worries.

After moments of silence, Sophia spoke. “I’m sorry.”

Chiara was shocked on her friend’s words. “What?” she was stuttering. “Why are you apologizing?”

Sophia looked at the both of them, before her eyes settled on Ezio. “The authorities told me that it was my husband who ordered to shoot you, ” she spoke as her voice cracked. “I’m sorry,” her hands landed on her eyes to hide her tears.

“I didn’t know, ” she sniffed and her eyes getting redder. “But my husband won’t do such thing. I -”

“It’s not him,” Chiara interrupted her words. “I’m sure that Marco was falsely accused.”

Sophia’s cry came to a halt, stunned of what she heard. The police told her that Ezio was heavily injured after that shooting incident that her husband “allegedly” planned. She can’t understand why Chiara wouldn’t believed what the authorities said, even if the gun men pointed her husband.

Then, it was Ezio’s turn to speak. “It wasn’t Marco. I’m sure of that,” he said. “I saw one of the suspects, and I know that he was working for Giovanni.”

While he was recovering, Chiara told him about the statements of the gun men which made Giovanni free from the case. Even without Chiara telling him that Marco was accused, he already knew that the statements are lies.

The one who shot him is the same man who he saw was guarding Giovanni at one event. The face of the man was hidden when he’s guarding, but the lion tattoo on his right cheek is a dead giveaway.

“Then I must clean my husband’s name,” Sophia replied with urgency. “He died, and people think he is a criminal. Cleaning his name is the least thing I could do for him.”

Chiara nodded and caressed Sophia’s back. “We will work on that, but we cannot clean himself if Giovanni and his men are here to put dirt on it.”

Then she added. “His name will only be clean once the real mastermind behind that crime. We must pin Giovanni and reveal the truth.”

“What should I do?” Sophia asked. “I will do anything to avenge my husband. No matter how much it takes.”

Hearing that, Chiara knew that her friend is going to help them willingly, for the sake of her late husband. With that, she told her that plan she has to bring Giovanni down.

It was a detailed plan, but a long one. Good thing that Chiara has a patience longer than that.This text is © NôvelDrama/.Org.