A man stood watching Caleb's possessive hold around Ariana's waist from a distance, his handsome face remained indifferent in the dimly lit corner but his eyes burned with unseen anger.
Charles Cole watched as Caleb's eyes landed on him with an evil smirk across his face but before he could react, Caleb had pulled in Ariana planting a kiss on her lips.
Seeing this, a wave of emotion appeared on Charles Cole's indifferent face. A tight knot formed between his brow.
'How shameless!'
His long legs veered around in the opposite direction wanting to get away from the scene as fast as possible, he had just watched another man kiss his wife.
Although he had said he didn't care about what she did or who she was with severally, his heart still thundered with some undeterminable feeling.
A sweet voice suddenly sounded behind him. "Oh, Char you came. I've been looking for you all morning."
Sarah June took a meaningful glance at his stance and pouted. "Don't tell me you're leaving already?"
Charles Cole turned to face Sarah with an indifferent expression on his face and answered nonchalantly. "Yes, I have business to attend to."
Sarah June noticed how fixated his eyes were on the dance floor behind them and glanced in that direction.
A smug smile playing on her lips. "Isn't that your wife with another man?"
Charles Cole coughed slightly, his eyes trailing back to the stage where the couple were receiving a standing ovation already.
His face darkened and he calmly replied "Wife? You of all people should know there is nothing between me and Ariana."
Sarah's lips twitched into a frown noticing how his eyes were still fixated on Ariana's face and body. "Isn't she so shameless kissing a man in public."
Charles Cole scowled lowly feeling triggered. The more Sarah June shot verbal jabs at Ariana, the more his heart filled with anguish.
Upon observing Charles Cole's sudden silence, she quickly added. "She truly is a disgrace to the Cole's family."
Charles bit back his tongue in anger, he felt inexplicably irritable from her words and Sarah noticed but pretended not to care and shot more of her verbal jabs.
"She is a vile woman, she can't even hide her promiscuous ways for one night."
"Enough, Don't ever talk to Ariana like that." Charles growled furiously, his icy voice sending a cold chill down Sarah's spine.
Sarah June's face turned pale as she flinched back in shock, She glanced at Charles sympathetically, her eyes welled up with tears.
Charles had never reprimanded or raised his voice on her and now he went as far as insulting her because of that scandalous woman.
Charles Cole's face changed seeing tears brimming in her eyes and he regretted his actions, he couldn't tell why but he had felt a strong will to defend Ariana.
Sarah meant so much to him after she saved him years ago. He was unhappy with her attitude and words but he knew better than to let his emotions affect her.
Charles Cole rubbed his temple in frustration and clenched his fist into a rock, muttering under his breath. "I'm sorry."
He didn't even wait for a reply before turning away leaving Sarah standing there in a daze with her mouth hung open like a dead fish.
His long legs stalked to his car and he drove off to find the nearest bar to get drunk to numb the pressing ache in his heart.
**********
Cole Mansion
Ariana sat at the edge of her bed staring seamlessly at the ceiling, her mind revolved around Caleb, she couldn't get the feel of his hand on her waist out of her head.
She could still feel the goosebumps left on her skin from the hoarseness of his voice and hot breath fanning her neck.
They stood so close that his musky scent still wafted on her.
Her eyes went to the tiny yet meaningful ring around her ring finger and her heart ached slightly with guilt.
Even more, she could feel a sense of fear coursing through her, her true identity was a secret, and she couldn't let them find out yet.
Ariana was deep in thought when her phone pinged on the bedside. There was a notification on the screen from an unknown number.
She hesitated but tapped on it, it was a video message showing the silhouette of a woman and a burly man. Underneath the video message were the words written boldly.
-TRUST NOBODY EVEN YOUR MAIDS!
Ariana frowned at the message, she thought it was some dumb message from scammers but clicked anyway.
The silhouette of the burly man and woman came into full view and the woman could be seen clasping onto what looked like a paper bag.
Her face was hidden by her hair and the black scarf wrapped around her neck and face.
The woman glanced left and right then asked."Did you get the details of the operation?"
The burly man replied confidently. "Yes but I do need to hear it from you, The fetus is xed out but Do you want her dead or alive?"
"I want her alive, I want her to suffer if possible make sure she loses her womb along with the God damned bastard."
Ariana shuddered slightly at the venomous disdain in the woman's voice, she was talking about a human's life so plainly.
The burly man stroked his chin, nodding slowly."The money we talked about."
The woman stretched out the brown paper bag to him and another huge-looking man appeared behind him opening the paper bag and checking its contents.
He nodded to the other man who appeared to be the boss and he chuckled lightly, stretching out his hand for a handshake as though it was some reasonable business proposal. "Consider the job done."
The woman accepted his hand in a tight handshake and coldly said. "I'll be expecting."
As the men left her, she turned in the direction of the hidden camera and laughed out loud. "Ariana, you'll regret messing with me, you'll regret everything you've ever done to me."
The video ended with a sadistic grin across the woman's face and Ariana gasped in shock, her breathing heightened and her chest suddenly felt constricted.
Her trembling hands gave way and the phone fell out of her hand with a loud thud, the front screen shattering in the process.
Her heart leaped aggressively in her chest and she took several gulps of breath to control herself. She subconsciously held her stomach, and tears trickled down her face from the corner of her eyes.
The pain she felt was inexplicable, her chest felt suffocated and her heart ached immensely. Ariana had her suspicions that the kidnapping was staged but she couldn't pinpoint who could be so evil.
Her head was spinning and her mouth felt heavy recalling how the men who kidnapped her kept kicking and stomping on her stomach violently.
She remembered begging numerous times, not for her life but that of her daughter's but they showed no mercy.
Only after they saw the blood spread down from her thigh, they finally stopped, throwing her breathless body into a van and dropping her close to the hospital.
They weren't after killing her but were after her daughter's life. Countless questions filled her head,she couldn't believe a woman who had come to grieve her loss with her could possibly arrange for the murder of her child.