Soulisse Mansion (Past)
POV: Lianne Dievin
“But the beauty of this place cannot compare to you, Lianne,” I heard Lord Cain say to my surprise. He was wearing the Regaleria’s general uniform while I, just a simple peasant dress.
I found us standing inside a garden pergola surrounded by heavy shrubbery of different flowers here and there: hydrangeas, pink and white mountain laurels, yellow forsythias, and bushes of long-stemmed roses all blooming beautifully.
It was indeed a magnificent sight, especially when traces of snow could still be seen on the soil and on some leaves. There was the sunset too, as what I could assume, that made the garden look even more breathtaking. It was hands down a perfect place for romance.
Cain closed the space between us and regarded me with warm eyes.
‘Too close,’ my mind stressed out.
He was too close for comfort and it made my heart automatically skip a beat.
“You still owe me a kiss, ” he bluntly confessed.
“Ha!” I gulped. But oh, true! I remembered I had agreed to kiss him in return for teaching me how to ride a horse.
He stared at me and I knew he noticed my cheeks deepened into a red hue just by seeing the corner of his lips form into an appreciative smile.
I didn’t want to lead him into a misunderstanding. I wanted to try and reason. I wanted to tell him that I feel unsure about my promise, but an agreement was an agreement, just unfortunately though, he wanted a kiss from my lips.
“Sshhhh…” He placed a finger on my mouth and then drew my waist closer to him. He began touching my already flushed cheeks and then traced the softness of my lips with his forefinger and thumb. His touch immediately granted me a stirring sensation at the pit of my stomach.
His unwavering gaze, his enticing lips, his warm body pressed up against mine — created havoc in my mind.
‘Oh my God.’
All these years, I only saw him as a brother. I respected him so. I cared for him deeply. But now, as his intimidating gaze was on me, I’m seeing a different side of him that I wished I didn’t see. He was not just a man but a most virile man capable of rousing a desire I am most innocent of.
I wanted to push him back. I wanted to distance myself, but honor-bound to keep my word in return, I decided to just stay the course and be done with it.
He pressed his mouth on mine. It was at first just a breezy touch of our lips, but it soon became deeper and hungrier. He pressed my jaw to open my mouth, and when he elicited that exact response from me, he slid his tongue inside and leisurely moved the fleshy muscle into every corner.
I closed my eyes, and for the first time, I allowed myself to enjoy it.
But that didn’t actually last for the man who took my first kiss came popping out of my head: Ruen.
***
“Don’t do this, I beg of you,” I heard myself plead. I was shifted to another vision wherein Cain was behind me, caressing my bare neck; a wave of distress enveloping me.
The environment now was different. It was a closed room. Shelves of books could be seen in one corner, a sturdy mahogany desk in the center, and a set of furniture a few feet away in my front. This time, he was wearing a chic dashing tuxedo. I was wearing a pink gown given by Lady Faye.
‘Yes of course!’
I remember Lady Faye now! She was one of my confidants like Cain. The two of them became my new family in this wretched mansion called Regaleria that also became my prison. Remembering Lady Faye warmed my heart, but being melancholic this time was just not appropriate, especially now that my vision had shown me a much sensitive scene.
‘Lianne I love you. I need you. I want you… now, ‘ in a commanding tone, Cain said to me. I was again dumbfounded not only by the change of scene but also his apparent unrestrained confession. These visions of mine had become increasingly volatile in the past few days and it was truly rendering me meek and helpless.
‘My desire for you has become intolerable, ‘ he added, this time in a more frenzied manner.
The pungent smell of liquor wafted through my nose just as he seized my lips and reigned dominion over my mouth.
‘Oh my God. He is drunk!’
I tried to push him back even forcefully now and even went as far as to slightly bite his lower lip just to put some sense into him. He pulled back, luckily, but then I saw his eyes blazing with desire which instantaneously rattled my senses.
He seized me once again, and this time, I knew he wasn’t letting go.
Everywhere he touched me I honestly felt corrupted. He didn’t reply to me when I ordered him to stop. Instead, he unzipped the back of my gown and carried me to a nearby furniture where he continued his obtrusion. He laid me against the soft chaise lounge, albeit roughly handled.
“Cain, no—ah!” I once again pleaded, but an unpleasant reaction escaped from my mouth when a mountain of tingling sensation erupted inside me when he mouthed one nipple.
‘No, this is my first time feeling like this. I hardly even heard the maids in the mansion talking about erotic stories of their trysts with their lovers, but now I am experiencing it first-hand with Cain!’
The sensation he was bringing me was new. It was tempting, bewitching, but still, he was pushing himself on me and I didn’t like it.
I angled myself just enough to take a hold of an empty cigar ashtray I saw in a coffee table near us. With one forceful move, two drips of Cain’s blood fell on my cheeks. Yes. I hit his head right at the temple.
He abruptly stopped and stared at me with startled but questioning eyes. I felt sorry for what I did, hurting him like that, but it was paramount at the moment.
***
(Present day)
Ruen was standing at the waiting lobby inside the Fortville Airport. His eyes were fixed beyond the glass panel to a recently landed plane. His hands were hidden inside his Cavalli trench coat, one hand squeezing his cell phone anxiously.
The place was decent enough. Not too big, not too small. It could accommodate eight airbus planes in one downtime. It had a runway that spanned miles apart and it had modern tech controls. The building was an architectural masterpiece. There were high metal beams used for support. Sturdy, neat, and most of all functional. Pretty much a good boast for a small city such as Fortville.
His heart had been beating wildly since he left the Valoria Mansion of Mr. Rafael. Knowing that Cain was in possession of the real necklace didn’t sit on him quite well. And now, he was anxiously waiting for Lianne’s call to inform him that she had arrived.
Actually, he knew that their airbus had arrived. He had made it a point to arrive there before them using his private jet plane so that he could pick her up himself, and lead her to safety.
Looking beyond the viewing section of the waiting area, Ruen saw the passengers of Lianne’s plane descending the stairs one by one, until he caught a glimpse of her friends, Rachel and Alona coming down. He waited for Jen to exit next and expected for his beloved – Lianne – to follow suit but that didn’t happen.
His brows formed into an obvious frown then.
‘Where is she?’ His mind was plagued by this simple, yet profound question.
‘Maybe she opted to exit last?’ his mind reasoned.
He waited for the other passengers to disembark, the entire time he wasn’t even blinking. Five minutes, ten minutes, fourteen minutes until there was really no sign of her.
His pulse quickened then when he realized something was off. He ran towards an escalator connected to the main floor where the converging point between the passengers and their families was located.
Jen immediately saw Ruen approaching them. She waved a ‘hi’, smiling at him before confusion came over her.
“How is it that you are here, Ruen? I thought you are with Lianne in Since?” Jen asked; her voice clear with concern.
Alona and Rachel stood beside her agape of what was happening.
“No. I thought she is with you, ” he clarified, his breathing edgy.
Alona shifted under his perusal, trying to remember what happened before Lianne bade goodbye. “She said she had an emergency to go to. We thought that it was because of you that’s why we let her stay in Since! Are we wrong then?” she stated in a nervous tone.
‘Shit.’
Ruen swore under his breath low enough that they couldn’t hear. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath to calm his rising temper. He didn’t want to look too worried in front of Lianne’s friends. They might freak out.
“Did you see anything weird before you all left?” he asked, this time a bit rough.
They all looked at each other at the same time, exchanging unsure glances that only they could understand.
“We are not sure, Ruen, ” Alona, who seemed calmer than the two, answered. “But Lianne did call someone on her phone before telling us that she will stay. It isn’t weird for us at all, and also we actually thought that it was you whom she called.”
“She looked uncomfortable though. A bit stressed out if you ask me, ” Rachel added. “And come to think of it, it was after a tall, platinum-haired man bumped into her while we were in the waiting area.”
Just hearing Rachel’s description of the man’s appearance, he was already in full attention to it. He knew from Mr. Rafael’s sources that Cain has a hired henchman to do his pretty little dirty works for him. A man with a platinum-colored hair and a burn scar on his right cheek — that’s what the description he once remembered given by Gillard’s spies.
If Cain opted to use some dirty tricks like kidnapping Lianne for example, he’d definitely use this henchman to do just that.
“I see, ” was Ruen’s most calm reply, but deep inside he was already seething in anger.
“I’ll try calling her.” Jen quickly flipped on her phone and dialed Lianne’s number. After an entire cycle of constant ringing, she finally gave up. “Her phone is ringing but she’s not picking up.”
Ruen’s tension even grew worse. Another minute staying with them would be pure agony. He just wanted to run now back to his jet plane and command his private pilot to fly back to Since.
“I’m sure she’s fine. She might have a good reason why she’s not picking up her phone. Anyway Ruen…” Alona knew that tension was already building up on the man in their front. She regarded him with serious eyes and said in a firm tone, “Go. I know you’re itching to fly back to Since.”
Ruen managed a curt nod and answered a polite “thank you” before dashing off as fast as he could.
Seeing this as a romantic gesture, Jen and Rachel sighed dreamily, but to Alona, she frowned.
It was probably seniority and intuition that somehow gave her a good hint as to what was happening. Right from the very start, when they found Lianne inside the VIP off-limits room lying half-naked and unconscious, she knew that two men were after her. She was sure that Ruen was one of them, while the other man, she may not be certain but she greatly suspects it now to be the enigmatic CEO of the Cavill Enterprises.
She looked at Jen who in turn gave her a discreet nod. It was only fleeting, but it was already enough to know that Jen understood the grave situation their best friend was in. Their only lifeline now was to pray and hope that everything would turn out okay in the end.