Loving Madeline

Madeline's POV

We are still lying on the bed after our steamy lovemaking, and I can't stop myself from smiling when I realized my husband doze off to sleep. He must be tired. I still want to snuggle on his chest, but I want to see the beauty of the beach at this hour. So, I got up and go to the closet and chose a classy mini dress. And I rummaged through the shoe rack, and I find a pair of white step-in sandals perfect for my outfit. I walked out of our room and go to the kitchen, and I found Lucinda busy preparing for our dinner.

"Hello, Mrs.Divenson." She greeted me politely.

"You can call me Madeline or Maddie, Lucinda." I said.

"No, I can't; even my family has been serving the Divenson clan for a long time now; Clark Divenson won't allow that because he wants us to great his family member properly." She declared, and I am shocked to learn this thing, and it made me realized why Cerila addressed Lily in front of his family with a Miss. 

"I want to help you." I said, and she shook her head, and I wonder if Lucinda knew about Rebecca.

"Just go back to your room, Mrs. Divenson." She said.

"Have you been in the Divenson mansion?" I asked, and she looked at me, and I suddenly felt nervous because I can feel something as she stared into my eyes.

"Yes, for a long time, and only recently, your husband asked my husband and me to look after his properties here in Magnolia." She responded, and I want to ask her more, but I can feel Lucinda doesn't want me to be near her.

"I am sorry for disturbing you, Lucinda," I said, and I can't stop my voice from feeling disappointed.

"Look, I don't want to be fired by your husband's father because even though we are serving Hunter Divenson, we are still under Clark Divenson's order." She said in a firm voice, making me feel more curious why she doesn't want me to talk with her. I already have doubts about Rebecca's death, but I don't have any basis, and I think Lucinda knows something about Clark Divenson's secret.

"Lucinda, I know you are a wife. You have been in love with your husband, and I get that. In my case, my husband bought me from my aunt, Cal told me to go to Divenson and marry the man I don't even know, but when I met my husband, I can't stop my innocent heart from loving him. I fell in love with him before we even get married even though I know deep in his heart he has no feelings for me." I stated, and her face softened.

"And little did I know he was in love with someone else, I was in pain, and it hurts me to find my husband calling another woman's name on his sleep. It was too much for me, and I want to leave him, but I can't because I know he will still find me because he is wealthy and powerful while I am only an orphan and no family I can lean on, I only have a best friend for life who keeps me going all these years." I said, and she looked at me with new light.

"Oh, I am sorry, dear, I didn't know you have a tough life." She said.

"It is okay, and I don't have a choice but to fight. I love Hunter Lucinda, and he told me we were just married on paper. He can never love me, he only made me his wife because Hunter wants me to have his child after I graduate, and I assume you know, Frank, he was one of the drivers of the Divenson family. He was the father I never knew." I said after I let out a soft sigh.

"Why are you telling me all this, Mrs. Divenson?" She asked, and I can tell she has a soft heart underneath her hostile behavior.

"Because I want to know what happened to Rebecca, because she was the woman my husband can't let go, and almost every night he was dreaming about her, and I want my husband to forget about Rebecca, but I don't know how." I declared, and I can see how her face pale.

"I know nothing about her, Mrs. Divenson. I only see her in the Divenson mansion, but we never interact with each other." She said, but I can tell Lucinda was lying.

"That is impossible, Lucinda because her mother worked as a maid in the Divenson mansion." I said, and she averted my gaze and returned her focus on the stove.

"I am sorry, I can't tell you anything." She said.

"Okay, I don't know until when I will allow myself to cherish my husband who doesn't love me." I said and turned my heels away from her.

"He loves you, Mrs. Divenson, and you can tell it by the way he looked at you." She said, and I stopped on my tracts.

"And you are right. Mr. Divenson can't give you his undying devotion because he feels guilty about what happened to Rebecca. I want to help you, Maddie." She said, and I smiled when she called me by my first name, which means she allows me to become her friend.

"You can give me your number, Madeline, and I will call you one of these days." She said and pulled out her phone from her pocket, and she handed it to me, and I smiled as I key in my number.

"Now, you must leave me while I prepare your dinner." She said, and I walked away from the kitchen in haste, and I couldn't wait to meet her again.

I was on the porch fronting the beach when I felt my husband's muscular arms hugged me by the waist, and I closed my eyes and leaned my head on his chiseled chest.

"Why did you leave me on our bed?" He whispered and nibbled my ear that sent electricity in my core.

"I wanted to help Lucinda in the kitchen, but she drove me away, and I don't want to disturb you since you were sleeping peacefully." I replied, and he turned my body to face him, and the moment I see his eyes, I am lost and out of words.

"You don't know how I wanted to have you lying beside me, Maddie." He said and leaned down and captured my lips. And I was gasping when he stopped kissing me.

"Dinner is ready, and we need to eat now because I am starving, and you know why?" He asked, sounding so sexy, and I shook my head.

"Because of you, my sweet wife, have used up all my strength." He said, and I can't stop myself from giggling, and I felt so ecstatic, and I hope this will continue for the rest of our lives.

"Wow! The food is superb." I said after I tasted everything, and my husband smiled at me.

"Yeah, Lucinda is among the best cooks in the Divenson mansion. That is why I asked my dad to pull her out and his husband to take care of my properties, and I always like her and his husband because I know I can trust them because my father trusted his husband almost everything in the Divenson mansion." Hunter said, and we continue to eat our dinner on the roof deck where we can see the shoreline, and we can hear the pounding of the waves as they hit the shore.

Hunter asked me to walk with him on the beach, and we strolled on the coast barefoot. And I still feel glad that we have the beach for ourselves because I can't see anyone, and I can tell only the caretakers will switch on the lights on their verandas. He stopped at the center of the shore and sat on the sand, and he pulled me down and let me sat on his lap, and I found it so sweet that I can't stop the goosebumps that crept all over my skin

"Madeline, I know I need to apologize for the things that I have done to you; I am sorry for hurting you; I promise I will try my best to be a good husband to you from now on. But before that, I need to confess everything, the reason I tried to suppress the feelings I have for you." Hunter said, and I can't stop the pounding of my heart. And he started telling me about Rebecca, the same things Leticia Divenson had told me, and I felt guilty that I already knew about his secret, but I felt so happy that he told me all about her.

"Maddie, I won't blame you if you will hate me." He said after he told me the whole story, I could feel his tears that soaked my back. And I moved my body and sat across from him, and I took his hands and squeezed them.

"How can I hate you when you were only honest with me? I understand how much you love her, and I want you to know I admire your loyalty towards Rebecca that even she has been dead for so many years, you are still in love with her." I said, and I looked at him in his eyes.

"Hunter, it was an accident, and stop blaming yourself, and don't worry, I will be here for you loving you every day." I added.

"Thank you, Madeline, for being so understanding." He said.

"What can I do? You owe me my freedom and everything. I don't have any choice but to stick with you." I said, and his face was saddened.

"Hey, don't say that, okay? I will never marry you if I don't feel anything towards you, I could have married Kaye, but I chose you because you intrigued me. On the first night that we met, I don't need to kiss you, but I did because I can't deny the intense attraction I felt for you, and right now, Madeline Brownwood Divenson, my wife, I can't stop myself anymore, and I want you to know I am falling in love with you.." Hunter said, and he kissed me softly on my lips.