Taming My Arrogant Husband
Chapter 81: Because I love you

My forehead creased in confusion when I saw myself in the video. I looked at him, my eyes holding a silent question but he just gave me a sigh and ordered me to look back at the screen. In the video, I entered in a house that seemed familiar, then a woman in a maid's uniform came up to me and we talked for a few seconds before she pointed upstairs.

And my breath caught in my throat when I finally recognized where and when that scene happened. Suddenly, the memories came back to that most terrifying moment of my life. "No, don't do this! Please, Joseph, don't do this."

I felt a hand over my shoulder and I didn't notice the tears that slowly creeped out of me.

How can you leave and forget the past, when it is what chases you and whispers in your ears to go back and fix what happened.

"How did you get this?"

I asked after ending the video as I can no longer continue to watch it and look at myself helplessly screaming, asking for help but nobody seems to hear me.

"Someone sent me that flash drive in the office. There's no card or sender's name written so I don't know who sent that."

I closed my eyes when I heard his answer. I also bit lower lip and took a deep breath, trying to control the sobs that wanted to escape my throat but no matter how I tried, they replace a way to let out. "I-I thought I'm okay..."

"I'm sorry."

I heard him say before I felt his arms wrapped around me from behind. And I don't know what happened because in the next second, I just found myself sobbing in his arms.

"Shhh..." He kissed me on top of my head but it only added the weights inside my chest.

"He tried to rape me! He touched me! He fucking touched me!"

I said through gritted teeth. Goosebumps crept all over my body as I remembered his touch, his disgusting saliva that smelled of tobacco and drugs, the vicious grin on his face as he enjoyed touching my private parts. It made me feel sick that I wanted to vomit but nothing came out of my lips.

"He manipulated everything and everyone around us just to keep what he did."

He spun my chair around and knelt in front of me. Cupping my face, he made me looked at him.

"I will make them pay, sweetheart. I will make those fucking bastards suffer from the pain they caused you."

He said in a very calm way. His voice was low as if he were just talking to a child, but his eyes showed otherwise. They held different emotions that I had never seen before.

He pulled me into a tight hug, rubbing my back while he continuously kiss the top of my head. I don't know, but his touch makes me calm and relaxed inside. It seems that his arms have been made especially for me, to wrap around me, and to make me feel safe and at ease.

Sophia's POV:

"Is zoning out your new hobby?"

I didn't have to turn around to know who the owner of that voice was, because based on his very familiar cologne and the erratic beats of my heart, I know it's him. Daniel Kelley.

But I didn't look at him. I just sighed and continued to watch the sunset from the veranda.

"I saw you from the gate when I parked my car. You seemed lost in your thoughts." He said as I felt him stand next to me.

I just threw him a glance from the corner of my eyes before looking back at the sky which is now the color of mixed orange, yellow and blue. And I couldn't help but heaved another sigh.

Sunrise and sunset. They were like a person's life. Sunrise is when you are born and sunset is when you are near to reach your destination. No matter what you do, there will come a time that you will reach the sunset in your life. It's just that people assigned differently in reaching it. Some people reached it early, some were victims of accidents while others are through illness, like my father.

It's been a week since Daniel bought the company and showed me the CCTV footage from seven years ago, and since then, Dad's condition has worsened as days goes by. "Are you thinking about the case?"

I heard him ask again and this time I turned to him and shook my head.

"I wasn't thinking about it. I was thinking about Dad's health. I don't know how we can live again without him." I sighed and let out a sad smile. "Yes, we left him, but this time is different. Now it is he who will leave us, not only will he leave, but he will be gone forever."

I avoided his gaze when my tears began to flow. And I didn't protest when he took my hand and wiped my tears using his thumb.

"I'm here and I will always be here. I will help you stand and recover from it." He said cupping my cheek.

"I wish I have known before. I wish I hadn't left him alone. It's my fault----"

"No! Don't blame yourself for what happened, it's not your fault."

"But it's true! If I hadn't left him before, if I just had taken all the consequences of what Joseph had done, faced what had happened or let him do what he wanted to do for me, maybe Dad wouldn't get sick, maybe he didn't----"

Yeah... I also didn't have the chance to continue what I was saying when he cupped my cheeks and kissed me. It wasn't something sweet and passionate, not like even the kiss he gave me when I pulled him to the living room one week ago. This one is something forceful, demanding and aggressive that shows his dominant side.

I just closed my eyes and let my tears to flow. He's mad. I know he's mad at me.

And I was right when he broke the kiss and looked at me, clenching his jaws.

"Don't you ever say those words again, Sophia!

I told you to not blame yourself because it's not your fucking fault, damn it!"

My tears stopped automatically and my mouth hung open in shock when he raised his voice.

"If you want me to kill him just to stop you from blaming yourself, then I will fucking kill him! You don't know how hard it is for me to hear your story but I can't do anything because I was not there! But not this time because I will make sure to put him on his place!"

I blinked repeatedly when he started walking towards the garage and left me dumbfounded.

He already reached the pathway to the garage when I found my voice. I immediately followed him and asked him about his action.

"Where are you going?"

"To your ex-fucking-fiance!" He replied shortly and continued to walk.

"Daniel!" But he just ignored me so I grabbed his arm and I stood in front of him, completely blocking his way. "And what are you going to do with him?"

"It's none of your business so step aside and let me go!"

"What the hell? It is my fucking business to know what you are planning to do with him---"

"Why, because he was your ex?"

-'Argh!'- I screamed mentally before shouting at him. "Because you are my husband, forgodsake!"

And that made him stop, shocked, surprised, stunned or whatever you call it, then his lips twisted into an annoying smirk. But his action also made me realized what I said, so I immediately thought of another

reason.

"I mean... my ex-husband! Because you are my ex-husband!"

"Tss!" He snorted. "You already said it, why do you have to take it back?"

"This is not about us, Daniel. This is about my past, my father's health and my future."

He sighed and took a step closer to me, taking both of my hands.

"Will I be included in the future that you were mentioning?" He asked, sadness returned to his hazel-brown-eyes.

"Daniel..." I pulled my hands off from his hold. "I told you, this is not about you and me. This is not about us, because there was never an us. We only pretended to be a couple because of an agreement, and we have different future that's waiting ahead of us."

I gave him a half-hearted smile before returning inside the house. But before I could reach the veranda, I heard his voice behind me.

"Sophia!"

I stopped walking but I didn't turn around.

"If you can't see me in your future, can I at least stay in your present?"

This time, I turned to look at him but I didn't say anything. I stared at his beautiful orbs that silently hoping to hear my answer. But what would I answer him if I, myself didn't know yet how to answer that question.

"Why would you want to stay in my present?" I asked instead.

"Because I love you."

I was stunned in my post for a few seconds, not knowing what to say and my mouth hanging in mid-air.

"I love you, Sophia. I know you wouldn't believe me but I do, I love you. Be my wife, but this time it's for real. No agreement, no deal and no contract."

I took a deep breath and gave him a slight smile. This is my most awaited moment, to hear from his lips that he also feels the same and he loves me too, but I don't know what is happening to me. I should be happy, I should be jumping for excitement and I should be celebrating at this moment...

But no...

It's just that I couldn't feel any of it or I just don't know how to balance what I feel and what should I feel first. He's here standing in front of me, confessing his love, but my father is in his room, with an IV and different types of tubes connected to his weak and now pale body. He's dying in any hour of the day, any minute or in a single batt of an eyelash.

Tears began to flow again. Should I be celebrating?