"Uh... Cla..." I catch myself trying to call him by his first name, like I have the right, "Mr. Beckett, you are here," I say sadly.
He looks me in the eyes, I prepare to be scolded and screamed at, he gently touches my throbbing hot cheek.
"Clay... that woman doesn't" and the most shocking thing, Hailee seem to be more scared that I am, "I had my men to a background check you should know why she is marrying you, she is…"
"You really disregard my warnings don't you miss Leech?" Clayton says angrily, huh why is Hailee the one in trouble? Like she said they reconciled
"Clay?" I called him confused, why is she on her knees, why is Hailee the one crying?
"You are in trouble yourself Leah, how dare you let her touch your beautiful cheek huh, do you want to attain bruises so close to our wedding day" he gently scolds me, I feel scared, this feels too surreal, I cannot make sense of what is going on.
"That woman is not who she tells you, even your own sister is deceiving you" Hailee said desperately.
"I am not a child to fall for people's trap Miss Leech, I clearly told you not to lay a single hand on my wife and you not only disrespected me, you disrespected her by laying your filthy hands on her."
"Clay… don't call her your wife, please honey, she is not your wife, honey."
"Do not call me that, you really do not know how dire your situation is huh? I am going to bury you and every single thing that you love you are going to serve as example of what happens to people who touches my wife." He angrily said looking down at Hailee the way she looked down on me.
"I will deal with you later, but from now on do not show yourself in front of my wife ever again." He said before tugging my hand to walk with him.
I walked just behind him with my arm on his, so Hailee had been lying about telling him about my filthy background. Ugh common tactic used by jealous girls, but I could have sworn she was telling the truth, because I can swear that between me and her, she is way better.
"Seat down, I will go get a first aid kit for your cheek," Clayton says arriving at a small room
"No need, I... I am okay really; we should go and take Melisa home." I protest embarrassed.
"Seat down Leah, besides Cain is taking care of grandmother." He says before walking away, I look at the hospital bed in confusion before I sit.
He comes back with a first aid kit along with a nurse, "good morning, Mis Huxley," the nurse greets me, "please face the other direction so I can see your wound better."
"You may leave," Clayton says taking off his jacket.
"Sir?" the nurse asks confused, she hasn't even touched my cheek, what do you mean she may leave.
"I will take care of my wife; I will call you back if we need anything." He says folding his sleeves, he had loosened his tie before crouching to look at my swollen cheek.
I closed my eyes waiting for the pain as the cotton hit my cheek, it seemed he asked the nurse to leave to scold me.
"I am sorry," I mutter as he is cleaning my wound.
"You should be,"
"…"
"First you let that James guy bruise your arm now you let Hailee touch your cheeks, which is just reckless Leah" he scolds me, "like I get you might like it when your husband defends you but at least don't get bruises in the process."
The warmth in the arms nursing my bruise and calmness of his voice seem to make me want to laugh. But somehow Clayton looks at me with the most confused look.
"Did I hurt you?" he asked scared, "Oh…" feel my eyes and cheek wet, seems I wanted to cry not laugh.
"Leah?" he called me with the gentlest voice. I pull him in an embrace covering my face with his chest.
It is too warm, the care they give me is too much, my own father couldn't give me this warmth, why is he so hell bent on trusting me, he didn't even give Hailee a chance to explain to tell him of the dirty human I am.
"Leah, I will not know what is bothering you if you don't tell me, I can't read mind you know" he says with his hand on my back for comfort.
"Nothing is bothering me; I am just grateful that's all" I say in between cries.
"There is no need to be grateful we are partners, aren't we? It is our duties to protect each other," he consoles me.
"I can't even fight, nor do I have the money and power you have, I am just a painter who peeked in collage." I recite Hailee's words unconsciously, ugh, it is because she is right that I effortlessly recite them.
"Do not say that about yourself, besides you don't need to know how to fight to protect me, you have your own way of protecting me, trust me."
"Mh… mmh…." I gulp as I continue to wet his expensive suit with my valueless tears, and he comforts me without complaint.
After my crying outburst he had resumed cleaning my wound before putting a band-aid on it. He had talked to the nurse about my wound, and they gave me pain meds before we left the hospital. We got in his car, and he began to drive me back home.
"Have you had breakfast?" he asked me.
"Oh… no, I was going to eat after taking Melisa home, I was too busy taking care of Zoey."
"And you tell me I have an unhealthy eating habit." He says, "what do you want to eat?"
"Anything is fine," I say shyly.
"Bistro Bazaar or Kitchen Sensation?"
"Huh?"
"Which restaurant do you prefer?" he asks, like what? going to a restaurant for breakfast? Rich people, I thought he was going to be like, oh let me take you for a drive through McDonalds, not choose between these two expensive restaurants you cannot afford.
"Um… well Bistro Bazaar is fine." I say sheepishly, yeah since I really do need the food and I am too embarrassed to tell him to change the restaurant I choose randomly. He smiles as he turns to take me to the restaurant.
[Meanwhile, Third POV]
"How dare she? How dare she humiliate me like that? Clayton didn't even give me the time or day; he didn't listen to what I had to say father." Hailee had been throwing a tantrum since she got home.
"Do you think he knows about the hit you put on his grandmother?"
"What? No? there were no traces left, I killed the dumb fool who didn't get the job done." She says angrily, "like what does she have on him, what is she using to threaten him huh."
"Maybe he just really likes her" he said before dodging a vase Hailee had thrown.
"Are you out of your mind, she is a nobody, there is no way he likes a nobody father, he has standards." She says angrily, "ugh, I spent so much time to bury her only to get threatened by my love, Clayton looked so angry by just a simple slap."
"Honey, please let this go, you are going against someone protected by Clayton Beckett, this would ruin us." Her father reasoned.
"Shut up you, I must have Clayton Beckett, he is too great of a man to not be mine." She says creepily, "well, the grandmother seems to not be the problem, that stupid painter is, seem I need to change the target now. How unfortunate for poor old Leah to die like this, but it what she gets for getting on my way."