42. Damn! Forgive me, Lord, for cursing!

Briella couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at Xander's sudden appearance. What mischief could this rascal be up to now? 'Honey, are you alright?" Xander asked with concern as he approached her, intending to hug her. She subtly avoided him and moved closer to Janice. 'What are you doing here?" she asked him softly. He seemed taken aback by her question, but upon recovering, he quickly smiled and reached for her hand. 'I wanted to surprise you. That's why I'm here. I just didn't expect someone to bother you. Good thing I came because if not, there would be no one to defend you," he explained. She gave him a scrutinizing look and remained silent as a reporter approached, immediately asking Xander for a statement about their announced engagement. He happily obliged, and she caught Braun's mischievous smirk directed at her, to which she nodded in response. She felt Janice's grip on her elbow and turned to look at her. 'Just say a word. I can throw that jerk outside," Janice whispered, referring to Xander. She shook her head and approached Xander. 'I think President Braun wants to meet him. Can't you see the way he smiles?" Janice glanced at Braun and then back at her. She heard Janice's soft laughter and knew her suspicion was correct. 'I guess I'll take you to him. Let's see how they would react to each other. I didn't expect your magazine launch to be this chaotic," Janice apologized to her as she helped her sit back beside President Braun. They no longer paid attention to Xander, who was busy impressing himself upon the reporters. Besides, she didn't care what he said to the media because the more he talked, the more he would discredit himself afterward. 'I'll be back, and I'll make sure that someone's handling Mr. Monde. He needs to pay for harassing and humiliating you," Janice said softly as she escorted her to sit beside Braun. 'You should, or else I will be the one who makes that son of a bitch," Braun said, his voice low but filled with power. She suppressed a smile and refrained from looking at her husband too much lest someone notice them. She let Janice handle the conversation and face Braun; she would reclaim her ground later when they were at home. 'Sure, President Braun. I'll let you know once I've sent him to where he belongs. But for now, can you handle her ex-fiancé—oh, let me rephrase it. Can you handle your jealousy?" Janice chuckled softly before leaving the two of them alone. Did Janice really have to mention that? She complained helplessly in her mind. She glanced discreetly at Braun, who remained silent while staring at his phone. She felt her phone vibrate again and immediately checked, knowing it was from her husband. She wasn't wrong, there was a message from him. From 1015: Tell me, what do you want me to do, wife? Do I need to greet your fake engagement with that jerk? She bit her lip, unable to resist, and faced Braun, not caring if they were caught or not. She just wanted to see his face and what reaction he had. Their eyes met, and she saw that familiar mischievous glint as if telling her he would support whatever she wanted to do. 'Honey..." she turned to her side as she felt Xander's hand on her shoulder. He embraced her and sat beside her. She sighed heavily and faced him. 'Why are you here? I didn't ask you to come," she asked softly, her eyes on the few reporters who were still taking photos of them. 'I just want to make sure that it's true. Why didn't you tell me that you got the contract for Sun Glow Fashion?" he asked, still smiling. 'We need to talk," he added, tightening his grip on her shoulder. 'Get your hands off me, Xander," she ordered. 'And why is that? I am your fiancé and—" 'Remove your hand, or I will remove your hand myself. I'm sure you don't want to ruin what you started here," she said softly but firmly. He subtly removed his hand from her shoulder, and from the corner of her eye, she saw Braun calmly sipping his drink. How long do we have to stay here? I'd like to tell Braun to find a way for us to go home. She sighed and was tempted to text Braun, but before she could, Xander spoke again. 'Did you and President Braun know each other?" he asked her. 'Why do you care?" she raised an eyebrow at him. 'No one gets close to him to think he's sitting next to you. I know there must be a reason," he said, subtly glancing at Braun. She sighed heavily, running out of patience with this man who seemed to see an opportunity to elevate himself again. He wants me to introduce him to Braun. Seriously? 'He's a special guest here, and this is my launch, so that's why he's here," she replied. He cleared his throat loudly, causing Braun to look at them. His face was devoid of emotion, and that imposing aura that everyone avoided was back. 'P-President Braun, I... I ju—" He didn't finish what he was saying because Braun shifted his gaze elsewhere, seemingly hearing something and continuing to drink quietly. She couldn't help but smile, but it quickly disappeared when she felt Xander's tight grip on her hand under the table. 'Do you think that's funny?" he asked her. She gave him a sharp look. 'It hurts, Xander. Let me go." 'You're coming with me. We have a lot to talk about. I did what you wanted me to do. Now you're coming with me, and we'll talk about our marriage," he said. She sighed heavily and calmly faced him. 'I'll decide whatever I want to do starting today, Xander," she said, pulling her hand away forcefully. He let go, slightly surprised and looked at her sharply. 'Now, I want you to leave, and we'll talk tomorrow when I go to the office." She stood up and composed herself, even though her hand felt numb from his tight grip. 'Excuse me, I need to go to the restroom," she excused herself. I hope you're no longer here when I come back." She headed to the restroom, greeted by a few people, to which she responded with polite nods and smiles. As she entered, she winced immediately, her hand still red from Xander's grasp. That bastard! Arrogance has eaten his brain! She washed her hands as if the water could wash away the bacteria from Xander's touch, even wetting her shoulder with water. Once her hands were dry, she left the bathroom. She was about to return to her seat when someone placed a jacket on her, and a familiar scent immediately surrounded her, spraying perfume on her. She smiled even more when he pulled her towards a door. 'Damn that bastard!" he cursed angrily, holding her hand that was still red. 'Does it hurt?" he asked softly, giving her hand a gentle kiss. 'It did earlier, but I think it's healing now," she replied with a smile. 'Let's go, and I don't want you to go back there. I can't stand seeing you hurt by others. They're all going to pay for what they've done to you," he said in a dark tone, carefully pulling her away from that place. 'M-Maybe Janice will look for me," she said to him. 'Let her look. We'll meet that woman again because of her negligence. How could she let flies enter my wife's special day?" he said, quickly guiding her into the elevator. Her eyes widened when she saw someone walking towards them. Braun immediately hid her inside the elevator and faced the three women. 'What a lucky day we get to ride with—" 'Get lost, and I don't want any of you using this elevator. Try the other one," Braun said coldly to them. 'But there is no other elevator—" 'Use the fire exit, use your feet, and if I were you, I'd start walking now." Braun pressed the elevator's close button, and the door closed. **** 'Hello, Luigi," Braun said as he opened the door to their house for them. They left the hotel without anyone noticing, and perhaps she needed to get used to that because she married a powerful man. When he wanted to go without anyone seeing or knowing, he could do it. 'I want you to file a lawsuit against Mr. Monde's company," he heard Braun order Luigi on the other line. The two of them went straight to their room to change. She also wanted to rest for a moment because she felt exhausted after spending hours at the event. 'For what reason? Make one. I want to hear the news about him now!" he said, and then he lowered his phone. She furrowed her brow and looked intently at Braun, who was already taking off his necktie. 'You can't just do that if you don't have any valid reason, President Braun," she said in amazement, approaching to help him remove his necktie. 'I have. It's just that you don't want me to use you as a valid reason. He dared to insult you in front of me!" Braun said with a dark expression. He let him remove his necktie and unbutton his shirt. 'He doesn't know that you're my husband," she said with a smile. 'Do you think if he knew that I'm the wife of the feared man, he would dare approach me?" Braun remained silent and just looked at her. She continued unbuttoning Braun's shirt until his broad and muscular chest was revealed in front of her. She bit her lip because she felt the urge to touch his whole body and savor the strength of his firm physique. 'Then, do you want me to announce that you are mine already?" he asked teasingly. She lifted her gaze and gently caressed Braun's handsome and smooth face. 'Very soon, hubby. Just a little more waiting, and we'll let the whole world know that we belong to each other." Briella's brow furrowed when she saw Braun freeze. She seemed to be struck by something, unmoving and staring at him. 'What's the matter, d-did I say something wrong?" he asked. The beautiful smile slowly appeared on Braun's lips again as he pulled him into an embrace. 'No, you don't. I just realized how much I love you, wife," he said before kissing him on the lips. She responded immediately, unable to suppress a smile as he realized why Braun reacted that way. I called him hubby. Did he like it? She felt thrilled as she remembered its reaction. 'You're smiling while I'm kissing you again," Braun said playfully while peppering his cheeks and jawline with warm kisses. She chuckled softly. 'I just remembered something," she said and wrapped her arms around Braun's neck. Braun kissed her on the forehead and unzipped her dress from behind. He helped her remove her dress, lifting her effortlessly. Braun led her into their bathroom and carefully lowered her into their bathtub. She gasped as she felt the coldness of the water, but she slowly relaxed and closed her eyes. 'Feeling better?" Braun asked. She nodded without bothering to open her eyes; she wanted to relax for a while. With everything that happened today, she needed to calm herself because tomorrow would mark the beginning of a new chapter in her life. The start of the downfall of two people she considered part of her life but had managed to betray and manipulate her. She smiled as she felt Braun climb into the bathtub and settle behind her. She leaned her head against his chest, and Braun wrapped his arms around her body. Braun held her hand and raised it in the air, caressing his index finger, and she felt something being slid onto it. She quickly opened her eyes and saw a ring—an 18-karat white gold round with brilliant twenty-three-cut diamonds on it! She turned to face Braun and saw that he was also wearing a similar ring, but it looked simpler and had no design. 'We're almost a month married, but I forgot to give you your wedding ring," he said with a grin, biting his lip as he looked at her. Damn! Forgive me, Lord, for cursing, but why did he have to bite his lip?! Damn, he's totally and illegally hot! 'Let's put it there first," he said, stroking her index finger. 'When you're ready, we'll move it to its proper place," he added, kissing her finger with the ring. She looked at the ring, which seemed to fit perfectly on her finger as if it were made just for her. This surprise seemed to vanish all her exhaustion. 'Thank you, hubby," she said and snuggled against Braun's chest again. 'I'll make sure not to lose it," she added. Braun took off his ring and showed him the inside, where the first letter of their names and the date of their wedding were engraved. She took off her ring and smiled when she saw that she had one, too. 'Did you have this ring made on purpose?" he asked. 'Yup, I want it to be unique and one of a kind, just like you." He put his ring back on and then returned his ring to his finger. 'When did you have this made?" she asked, still smiling. That smile seemed to never leave her lips. 'The day you went to Baguio," he answered and hugged her tightly. 'Close your eyes. Let's stay like this for a while." She obeyed and closed her eyes. She held his hands and leaned against him. She didn't know how long they stayed in that position because when she opened her eyes, she was lying on the bed wearing Braun's simple clothes. She felt around the bed beside her, but her husband was not there. She slowly sat up and yawned, then she saw the ring Braun gave her and couldn't help but smile again. She didn't think about its value because she might get dizzy, and who knows what else she might think. Her phone rang, and there she saw many messages from Janice, Chelsey, and Xander. She dialed Janice's number, wanting to apologize to her for leaving without saying goodbye. She heard a few rings before she answered the call. 'Hello, Janice? I—" 'Briella!" She moved his phone away from his ear because of her scream. 'Oh my God, I have some good news for you," she said. 'Can you calm down first? Your scream hurts my ears," she said and walked out of their room. 'Sorry, I got excited," she said, giggling. She heard her take a deep breath on the other line. 'Okay, I'm cool," she added. She smiled at her antics. As the days went by, she got to know the girl, and she saw her playfulness, which she could compare to Chelsey's level. 'Okay, what is it?" he asked. 'Haven't you turned on the TV yet? What did your amazing husband do after he kidnapped you from your event?" she asked. Her cheeks warmed at Janice's question because she was obviously teasing her. 'About that, I'm sorry, and I fell asleep," she didn't elaborate on her explanation because she knew she would tease her even more. 'Your name is trending worldwide! Your former fans from all over the world suddenly emerged. I also received emails from the international market that want to get your magazine, and the stocks in malls and other stores where your magazine is displayed are running out. I didn't expect this, Briella!" she said excitedly. 'Well, you need to thank my Manager for that," she said with a smile. 'Who? Oh, Chelsey? How did she do this?" she asked in surprise. She chuckled softly. 'She knows everything when it comes to stuff like this. Let me tell you a secret, but promise me you're not going to tell anyone, not even Chelsey," he said. 'I'm all ears," she said, clearly curious. 'Chelsey is the daughter of the owner of Viacom Corp," he told her.