Fated to the Ruthless CEO

“So tell me, did you have fun with your shopping?” Amber was surprised to see Devlin in the penthouse almost the same time she arrived from her shopping.

Amber didn’t really buy that much for herself. She bought two pairs of pants, shirts and dresses. Devlin frowned when he saw her shopping bags.

“I hope you followed what I told Jackson. Get dressed. We are going outside.” Devlin left for his room. Amber was dumbfounded. How could he just order her readily? She has just arrived.

Anyway, the reason why she didn’t buy much was because she bought something for Devlin. She saw this beautifully carved panther made from a black gemstone. It is a bit bigger than the palm of her hand. It is quite heavy. It is the most expensive item she bought from her shopping today. She meant to give it as a gift for him. She doesn’t know why she did it despite his callous treatment towards her.

She noticed that he has huge collections of carved animals displayed all over his place. Some of them are made from hardwood and other precious gemstones. She doesn’t know the rest of what materials they were made off. When she saw the carved panther at the shop, it reminded her of Devlin… powerful, graceful and fearless.

She will just have to wait for the right time to give it to him. She hopes he will like it. She really does not want to have this kind of treatment from Devlin anymore. He can be good if he chose to. She saw that good side in him unless it was just for a show from his side.

Despite their situation right now, she felt that it would be good to try to reach out to him. She is still hoping that their relationship would improve just like before they learned about their wedding. Devlin was nice to her. She felt his sincerity when he told him a few snippets about his life

She hurriedly brought all her shopping bags to her room. She also carefully hid her gift for Devlin at the bottom part of her closet. She smiled to herself.

She needs to change into something for wherever Devlin would take her tonight. He didn’t inform her where they were going. She chose a halter black dress which is knee high. It is the only dress she thinks would go with any occasion. The dress could go for formal or informal wear. She put on her own pearl earrings to go with the dress. She quickly tied her hair into a clean bun. She put some light makeup on. She hopes Devlin would approve of her look.

She looked at herself in the mirror one last time. She was satisfied with what she saw. She took a deep breath and hoped things would go on smoothly between them.

When she got out of her room, she saw Devlin pacing back and forth in the living room, looking impatient. She checked her wristwatch. It didn’t take her that long to get ready.

“What took you so long?” asked Devlin with irritation in his voice.

‘What does she expect?’ Ever since, he accused her of manipulating his grandmother, he thought the worst of her. She needs a lot of patience to go through the night with Devlin.

Together, they went to his car without exchanging any words. She was glad that he put on some music while driving. That would avoid any aggressive conversations from Devlin.

When they arrived at the venue, Devlin spoke to her seriously.

“I want you to conduct yourself well. Don’t put me to shame. And don’t talk too much. Just give your best smile.” His words came like a warning to her. That if she doesn’t do her job well, she would earn his wrath later.

Devlin made a reservation for them at a restaurant in one of the famous hotels in the city.

The moment they sat on their table, she immediately spotted Raven dining in with someone.

Now, she realized that Devlin only brought her outside because of Raven. Then, she remembers the last few days he was nice to her. It was because of Raven. They always ran into her every time they went outside together except for that one moment where he brought her to dinner at a yacht.. He is using her to get Raven’s attention. A slight pain crossed her chest when she finally realized his intention.

“Isn’t that Raven? She looks extremely beautiful tonight.” Amber said sincerely. She wonders though who she is with. They looked so intimately close to each other. No wonder Devlin could not contain the anger in his eyes when he stared at them.

“Just eat your dinner. We didn’t come here for anything else but to spend dinner together.” He looked at her straight to the eye, signaling to keep her thoughts to herself.

‘Liar! Who is he kidding?” Amber thought silently. It is so obvious what he is doing. He can’t even focus on his food. She caught him stealing glances at Raven. Amber ate her food in silence. She was deep in her thoughts.

She can’t believe just how ruthless Devlin is. He is willing to use other people so he can get what he wants. He doesn’t care if he could hurt anyone, especially her. She felt the pain in her throat. She just wanted to cry in silence. ‘What have I gotten myself into? This is worse than I thought.’

Amber didn’t realize that both Raven and her companion came to greet them.

“Look, who do we have here? Devlin, nice to see you. How are you doing?” She heard the deep voice of the man but didn’t pay much attention to him until she raised her head and looked at him. She realized that he has some resemblance to Devlin.

Of course! He is his older brother, the famous lawyer. And now, the boyfriend of his ex-girlfriend.

Devlin only nodded at his brother. He stayed quiet and was not interested in talking to his brother. He glanced at Raven before he took a sip of his wine. Amber did not know what to do or say. She was already warned to remain quiet. It was Raven who broke the awkward silence between the two brothers.

“Hi Amber! I am happy to see you again.” She said nicely and even went to shake hands with her.

“Pleasure to meet you again.” She forced herself to smile since she can still feel the strong tensions between the two men. She did not want to be rude as well.

“Oh my… are those an engagement and wedding ring?!” Raven suddenly said with a loud voice when she noticed the rings on Amber’s left hand.

Amber almost groaned in frustration. She forgot about the rings. Devlin did not tell her to remove them. She did not reply to Raven and put her hand under the table.

Then, Raven stared at Devlin’s left hand and noticed the single wedding ring on his ring finger. She gasped while staring back and forth between Amber and Devlin.

Amber was looking at Devlin waiting for what he had to say. Instead, he was casually cutting his piece of steak and taking his time to chew it. Both Raven and Dalton were just staring at Devlin with a surprised look.

“Hey bro, are you two married? This is a huge surprise!” His brother chuckled.

Amber waited for Devlin to answer. He has never uttered a single word since his brother and Raven approached them.

“Yes. We just got married yesterday.” Devlin casually announced like it was a simple business meeting.

“Wow! That’s a big thing. Congratulations are in order then. Mind if we join you?” It was Dalton who spoke. Raven reluctantly sat down with them. Amber noticed that she looks uneasy to join them. She was staring intensely at Devlin.

“So, how come we were never notified of your marriage? Did mom and dad even know?” Dalton addressed his brother who continued eating his food.

“Well, we married in haste.” Another casual answer from Devlin. Both Dalton and Raven looked at Amber for answers. She looked down on her food and continued eating as well.

“Hon, we should let the newlyweds spend their time together. Let them have their privacy and enjoy their dinner.” Raven tried pulling Dalton so they could immediately leave. However, Dalton had something else in mind.

“Just wait up hon, my little brother here did not even introduce me to his lovely wife.” He smiled at Amber. And from the corner of her eyes, Amber saw Devlin’s grimmed face.

“Mind your own business, Dalton. That’s the reason why I never invited any members of the family.” His chilling voice sounds scary. Amber does not like this side of him. So calm and cold yet dangerous.

“Why wouldn’t I care? Last time I checked, we share the same bloodline. Or is there more to your wedding than…?” He trailed down. He wanted Devlin to provide the answer.

“Look, this is the only time I am telling you to leave. You wouldn’t want to tarnish your image in this kind of place.” Devlin warned his brother.

Both men were intensely looking at each other. Devlin with his cold eyes and Dalton with his angry eyes. It was Dalton who gave up at the end. He turned his attention to Amber.

“I am sorry Mrs. Wesley. I hope I can invite you next time to dinner with our parents. Welcome to the family.” Dalton extended his hand to shake with Amber. She hesitated for a bit but she did not get any reaction from Devlinn so she shook hands with Dalton.

“Anyway, congratulations again. See you tomorrow.” Dalton was referring to the reading of their grandmother’s last will. Amber only nodded. She saw Raven smiling awkwardly at her and quickly glanced at Devlin.

When they left, there was a long silence at their table. Amber could not even chew her food. She saw Devlin had already finished his food and was drinking another glass of wine. She noticed that the waiter just brought a new bottle of wine. She carefully observed him from her peripherals. He is staring blankly at nothing. He must be deep in his thoughts. She does not want to interrupt him or say anything to him. She just continued eating her food. Thankfully, she was able to finish it.

By the time she asked Devlin to go home, he was already too drunk to even walk properly. Unbeknown to her, the second bottle of alcohol that Devlin finished by himself was a strong whiskey. She immediately called Jackson to help her with Devlin. Again, he was as wasted just like before.

She even asked Jackson to help her bring her husband to his room. ‘Husband?’ She could not bring herself to hate Devlin. She saw how much he loves Raven. It must be really painful for him to see the woman he truly loves to be in someone else’s arms now. And worst, it was his estranged brother.

She shook her head. She went to get a bucket with warm water to clean up Devlin. She also removed his clothes and just left him with his boxers.

Instead of getting angry at him for his callous treatment towards her, she feels different. She wants to take care of him. She knows that he is lonely and insecure. She hopes that she could help him heal his wounds. He has deep scars that he just nurtured deep in him.

After carefully cleaning him up, she left a bottle of water and medicine for hang-over on Devlin’s bedside table. She whispered goodnight to him before she left to her own room.

It took her a while to go to sleep. Her mind was occupied with Devlin. If she only met him in a different circumstance, they may have a better relationship right now. They could be real good friends just like what their grandparents had. ‘But that would be impossible!’ They would have never met.

After more than an hour of not being able to sleep, she decided to go to the kitchen and drink some warm milk. Then, she heard some noises in Devlin’s room. Without thought, she immediately ran to his room to check on him. She saw him still on his bed but murmuring something. He must be having some bad dreams. She went closer to his bed and sat down to the side. She could not understand the rest of the words he was saying but he repeatedly said the name of Raven.Belonging © NôvelDram/a.Org.

“Raven…Raven…” he said with agony. She saw tears freely flowing while his eyes were still closed.

“Shush! I am here.” Amber said. That made Devlin calm down in his sleep.

Amber could not understand why she laid down beside Devlin and hugged him. She must be getting insane.