“Woah, why are you coming back? Don’t you dare come close to me!” Aaliyah snarled, afraid he would try what he did again and she might not be able to control this time, and Volkov smirked, walking to her in long strides before he picked her bridal style.
“I forgot you have injuries in your leg. Now what kind of gentleman I would be if I allowed you to walk in this condition,” Volkov looked at her before holding her even closer, and Aaliyah gritted her teeth.
“Seriously? I don’t even have blisters on my foot. Why are you acting like I am pregnant or something?” Aaliyah scoffed, looking at the arrogant man walking ahead without shame in the world before he smirked.
“Will you let me take care of you only when you are pregnant? Well, that can be dealt with,” Volkov said shamelessly, dragging the last sentence, and if his earlier attack on her neck wasn’t that effective, Aaliyah’s face flushed with a mixture of shyness, embarrassment, and anguish.
“You!” Aaliyah growled helplessly, not being able to form any refuting words.
“Yes, Aaliyah. If you wish, it will be me,” Volkov looked down at her, the angle and lighting making him look so heavenly that Aaliyah really wanted to smack her head for finding him handsome even with his shameless act.
Getting caught by Volkov as she was glaring at him, Aaliyah looked away.
It would be better if she just stayed quiet for the rest of the evening. She nodded at herself.
“You can look all you want. It’s yours anyway,” Volkov gently whispered, so soft that Aaliyah contemplated if she heard him right or not.
“Woah? Are you hurt?” Samantha asked, concerned, standing from her seat to check up on Aaliyah, and Katherine looked at Bryce’s group of friends who were so attending to Aaliyah and couldn’t help but praise Mr. Volkov in her heart.
Maybe he can bring Aaliyah out of the shell that she developed around herself years ago to protect herself after that incident. Katherine looked between Aaliyah, who looked like she was about to blow fire from her mouth any second by how red her face was, and then at Volkov, who was just smirking and looking at her as if she was the most precious thing.
Smiling at her thoughts, she pretended to be busy with her wine, not wanting to intrude.
“Is she hurt? What did you do to get her hurt?” Dimitri asked before coughing when he realized the meaning behind his words, and Aaliyah’s face flushed even more.
Seriously? Can these guys just shut up with their meaningful talks? It’s getting too much now, and the worst part is, though she is irritated, her heart is beating fast at the thought of being paired with Mr. Volkov, and she hated herself for it.
“Are you guys done?” Volkov’s eyes turned dark when he saw Aaliyah’s squinted brows before he placed his finger between her brows to even the skin.
“Don’t scowl. You look cute, and I might want to do something you won’t like at the moment,” Volkov whispered in her ears, and remembering his assault on her neck, Aaliyah clenched her legs together, making him smirk.
“You can take your girlfriend home, Bryce. Aaliyah is coming with me,” Samantha looked at Volkov, who looked like he wanted to drop her but didn’t want her to feel too pressured before he picked a call, his brows knitting in a scowl.
“Don’t worry. He won’t come,” Samantha said, and Aaliyah sat in the car and was about to close the door when she noticed that a car stopped in front of Volkov and a girl dressed in a red body-hugging dress threw herself on Mr. Volkov.
“I missed you, D,” The girl’s voice was loud and clear.
Feeling her heart clenching at the site, Aaliyah’s eyes turned a shade darker before she turned to Samantha.
“That’s Zeke -”
“I don’t care,” Aaliyah didn’t let Samantha complete, and the latter only sighed.
It’s not that you don’t care, Aaliyah. You are just beating yourself over it and in denial. Samantha thought before driving to Aaliyah’s home.
Samantha actually wanted to talk to her about Volkov and tell her to be a little patient with him because he is serious about her and one wrong move from her makes all of them pay. However, seeing the dangerous look in Aaliyah’s eyes, she knew not to say anything right now.
~~~~~~
Jealousy was like a green-eyed monster, haunting Aaliyah from the moment she came back from that restaurant.
It’s been two days since she met or heard from him, and to say her mind was going crazy thinking about who that girl was would be an understatement.
“Aaliyah, sweetheart, are you ready to go? Your friends are already here,” Lily shouted while looking up to her room, and soon Aaliyah descended the stairs, making Katherine raise her brows slightly.
“Damn, I knew this was the perfect thing for you,” Katherine rushed to Aaliyah before circling her like an excited kid.
Aaliyah was wearing one of the dresses from her new Nirvana heart collection. It was an off-shoulder red dress with light beige colored feather-like frills at the bottom. She had done her hair in a princess bun with loose strands falling on her half-exposed back and neck.
“You look enchanting,” Lily smiled before clicking a photo.
“This photo is going to your father. Let him know what he is missing at home,” Lily openly mentioned her father since Laura wasn’t at home, and Katherine grinned.
Clicking a photo, Katherine sent the photo to Bryce before captioning -‘My sister is a princess. Is your boss a King for her?’
“What are you doing?” Aaliyah looked at Katherine’s mischievous smile with a suspicious gaze.
“Let me post it on my collection page. This is like getting a free promotion model,” Katherine dodged before they turned Aaliyah to click multiple photos, making her sigh.
“Is Aaliyah not ready yet -?” the rest of the words stuck in Ashton’s mouth as he looked at the beautiful girl in front of him.
After what felt like an eternity but was a few seconds, Ashton came out of his daze when Aaliyah caught him staring, and he shook his head before clearing his mouth.
“Let’s go,” he didn’t dare to say anything else, but Katherine, who saw right through his facade, smiled brightly before looking at Aaliyah.
“Don’t you have any compliments for my sister? Or at least the dress I designed?” Katherine wriggled her brows, and Ashton’s cheeks turned even redder.
“She looks angelic,” Ashton didn’t meet Aaliyah’s eyes, who had a smile on her face, her breathtaking smile taking his heart away instantly.
‘Look, you are not allowed to look this good if you are not dating me! How will I protect you from everyone’s gaze?’ Ashton wanted to shout out loud but keep the words hidden, knowing that it might earn him a good kick in the face even if she was in a dress.
“Let’s go,” Aaliyah said after Katherine and Lily were done with their assault of picture-clicking.
Once inside the car, Aaliyah immediately dropped the smile on her face, her mind thinking about Mr. Volkov.
What must he be doing? It’s a school function. Will he be there too? Will he come with a partner? Who will be his partner? What is real or fake? Was she looking too much into things since she doesn’t know their relationship?
And wait. What the hell is she thinking about him again? Aaliyah scowled, and Ashton looked at her from the rearview mirror.
“Is something troubling you?”
Yes. A handsome jerk is troubling me because he claims to stalk me and is fond of me, and I claim to not like it, but my heart keeps thinking about him. Aaliyah wanted to growl, but she smiled and shook her head.
“It’s nothing. Just when Lily mentioned dad earlier, I missed him,” Aaliyah only told him half the truth, making him sigh.
Placing his hand on top of hers, Ashton massaged her fingers with his thumb.
“Don’t be sad. I am sure your father will come to meet you soon,” Aaliyah nodded at his words before holding his hand in a tight grip, making him smile and his heart content.
Reaching the destination, Ashton got out before helping Aaliyah with her gown, his hands trembling a little when they neared her thighs to pat her dress, making Aaliyah chuckle.
“Ashton, I won’t break,” Aaliyah mused, and Ashton looked up at her, making Aaliyah realize how handsome her friend was himself.
“You know, on a serious note, you look handsome too. Did you ask a fairy tale to make you look like a prince till 12?” Aaliyah grinned, and Ashton rolled his eyes, smiling at her compliment nonetheless.
“Let’s go, my lady,” Ashton bent on his knees, extending his hand for her to take, and Aaliyah wore her mask before placing her hand in his and walking inside.
“Woah, who might this princess be?” Aaliyah gushed when she looked at Momo in a baby pink dress, and the latter smiled shyly.
“David picked this dress for me,” Momo’s grip on David’s hand tightened, which didn’t go unnoticed by Aaliyah and Ashton, who smiled at the revelation.
“Are you guys -”
“Would you like to dance with me, my princess?” David bowed to Momo, cutting off Aaliyah’s sentence before both of them left to dance, and Aaliyah looked at Ashton for any hint, but the latter only shrugged.
“I am going to check the food court,” Aaliyah turned around, but Ashton held her hand to stop her.
“Dance with me,” Ashton looked at her, and Aaliyah observed the look in his eyes that only meant genuine care.
“Salsa, will do?” Aaliyah offered, and Ashton grinned before nodding as they moved to the center region of the dance floor.
“Will you be okay?” Aaliyah grinned through her mask, remembering the last time when Aaliyah assaulted his foot with her heels because of how poorly she danced, and Ashton chuckled before pulling her closer.
“I will be more than just okay, baby girl,” he mimicked a deep voice, making Aaliyah chuckle.
Placing her hand on Ashton’s shoulder, Aaliyah turned around and swirled, ensuring she didn’t hit Ashton’s foot when her gaze followed her friends, who looked like a new couple in love.
As she looked around, her gaze flickered to a particular man standing near the drinks aisle, her heart skipping a beat.
Even though he was wearing a full mask, she would never miss his body language and the vibes he oozed with someone else. She was about to excuse herself from Ashton to take a break when she noticed a lady coming behind him and hooking her hand with his.
Judging from the figure and measurements, she knew it was the same lady from before, and her expression turned sore.
“Ouch,” Ashton hissed, bringing Aaliyah’s attention back to himself, and Aaliyah apologized before looking the other way, the turmoil in her heart making her clench her fists.
Noticing how the dance form was changing to the partner exchange, Aaliyah, who was no longer in the mood to dance, thought it was better to leave the floor now.
Walking towards the dance floor with Zeke hot on his heels, Volkov started dancing with Zeke and had only danced for five minutes before he grabbed Aaliyah’s hand and pulled her towards himself before she could move in the other direction as the partners exchanged.
With his face completely hidden from the mask, it was harder to see who this man was, but Aaliyah, who knew exactly who this guy was, gritted her teeth when her heart skipped a beat again.
“Leave my hand,” Aaliyah hissed, and Volkov froze at the threat and anger in her voice.
Something was wrong with her, and he could feel it through her body language.
But what could it be? Just like Dimitri suggested, he gave her enough space so she didn’t feel pressurized. What could be wrong?
Volkov’s grip on her waist tightened, the action alone arousing Aaliyah a little as her heartbeat raced, and she cursed herself in her mind before turning around to not face him, but what she didn’t expect was for him to pull her closer, making her back hit his chest, and she clenched her fists.
Two-faced jerk! Aaliyah growled before hitting his foot, making him hiss.