The Tyrant's Wife

Chapter 71 - Why Would I Like Him?

If this was before, Zaria would have taken off in fear that he would erupt and take it out on her. However, after hearing him open up about his feelings, she seemed to have developed slight trust for him and it made her believe that he would not hurt her. She carefully took a seat beside him. "I just didn't want you to be more worried. You already had so much on your plate." Not to mention, she was more used to solving her problems on her own than seeking the help of other people. However, she knew that saying this out aloud would only lead to him being angrier. The matter regarding Jaime was not only her business and it was his too.

"Don't be mad anymore, okay?" Her hand carefully raised to touch his hair.

The man froze when he heard her words. When he felt her fingers on his head, he was certain that he was dreaming. The distance between them had shrunk significantly within the hour, and more than that, she was trying to soothe him so gently. It was a stark contrast from the usual slaps and sarcastic comments.

"I'm still mad at you." He tilted his head to look at her.

"Is there anything I can do to make it up?" She asked, hoping that they would remain as peaceful as they were right now. She didn't want them to go back to being enemies at each other's throats.

"Yes. Kiss me here." He joked and pointed at the corner of his lips. He was certain that she would roll her eyes and ignore his words, so he was taken aback when he felt a warm, soft sensation on his lips.

He looked at her only to find that she had restored her nonchalant expression and was acting like she had not done anything. If it wasn't for her chest that was heaving to prove just how fast her heart was beating, he would have thought that what he felt a moment ago was an illusion.

He brushed the side of her face with his thumb to tuck a strand of her hair behind her ear. "Zaria, look at me." He called for her attention and when her brown eyes met his, he gently kissed her temple. "Nothing is trivial if it involves you. Even if you think it matters as much as a fart, tell me about it, okay?"

She nodded reflexively then wondered what to do if it was a matter that was too personal. He didn't expect her to tell him everything right?

It didn't take long for him to guess what she was thinking. He would be glad if she told him everything, but he didn't want her to find him intrusive. "The point is, nothing regarding you is trivial." She looked more comfortable now, so he asked, "What else are you hiding from me?"

"Nothing. Jaime wanted me to work for him. He said something about wanting to bring you down. I'm not sure whether he was going to have me reveal important information that could lead to the downfall of Preston and Fort Group or if he wanted me to directly murder you. Either way, there might be someone out there he can use in my stead." She speculated as she pulled away from him while trying not to be too obvious about it.

He scratched his chin in thought. "Jaime wouldn't kill me. It wouldn't give him as much satisfaction as making me lose everything and fall below him."

"He is jealous of you," Zaria guessed from his answer, and he nodded.

"But he is a great man too. What's there to be jealous about?" She didn't understand.

"When we were younger, I was more brilliant than he was in everything we did. Our parents would often compare us and scold him for his poor performance in school and talent. But the truth was, he was not bad at anything he did and he just wasn't as good as me."

Zaria sunk into thought. It was hard not to be jealous.

"When I realized what was happening around me, I started holding back to let him stand out more. He is my elder brother, after all." He continued, making Zaria's lips twitch.

She had heard of many cases of siblings being jealous of each other and, even if jealousy was not involved, most of them were still competitive. How could Jaime not treasure his younger brother? "And then what happened?" She queried.

"I later realized that he was taking me for granted. I stopped holding back and continued showing my full potential, putting in more effort than I used to in the past." He concluded, earning a chuckle of approval from Zaria.

This was the first time he was willingly talking about his family. She wished that he could tell her more about his childhood but was afraid to do so when she recalled the first thing on his dislike list.

"Do you have any siblings?" He asked, looking at her curiously.

She shook her head. "It's just me." The topic of her childhood brought back memories she didn't want to think about, so she nudged him. "Can we watch the movie now?" Otherwise, it would be too late by the time they were done.

"Sure." He brought out the popcorn and started preparing to watch. Just before she made herself comfortable, the phone in her hand rang.

He was beside her, so he saw the name that made him cringe. Ryan, that guy again? The last time that man called when they were together, he used work as an excuse to make her hang up the call. However, he couldn't be pushy and could only grit his teeth as she answered the call.

"I'm alright." He heard her say and tried to concentrate on something else.

Zaria was uncomfortable. The last time she talked to Ryan was when Ximena set them up for dinner.

"Where are you? I went to your house, but you were not there." Ryan asked with concern in his voice.

"At my boss's." She forced the words out, suddenly realizing that she would be misunderstood if anyone knew where she was right now. To be exact, it would not entirely be a misunderstanding considering what had transpired between them in the kitchen earlier.

As expected, came Ryan's roar. "Zaria! How can you be so close to that kind of man? What are you doing at his house at such a time and on a Saturday?"

She didn't explain herself as that would only make it seem more suspicious. The man sounded more agitated. "He only wants to lure you! Heaven knows how many women he's been with. Not to mention he is engaged."

"That doesn't necessarily mean he's going to do the same thing to me, and besides, why would it matter?" If this was before, she would have thought that Ryan was merely worried about her. However, she didn't miss the jealousy and anger in his voice now that she had been paying more attention to what he did and said.

When he heard her words, Ryan was on the verge of exploding. "Zaria, how can you be so nonchalant?"

"Don't worry about me, okay? I'm a grown woman, and I know what to do." She hung up to stop the awkward conversation. She knew that the innumerable women that Desmond had bedded in the past did not exist and neither did the engagement truly exist. She ran a hand through her hair and wondered whether Desmond would mind that her friend was speaking such judgemental words about him.

"That's in the past." The man spoke up and it took a while before she understood that he was talking about the women. He took her hand in his to stop her from walking out of the room—even though he knew that she wouldn't. "And it's exaggerated. The engagement is fake."

"I know." He had explained it barely two hours ago but thanks to Ryan's words, he was scared that she would misunderstand and reject him, so he explained anew.

Desmond's long fingers played with hers and she couldn't help but note the displeasure on his face.

"You don't like him?" She asked, noting that the two men had disliked each other for as long as she could remember. It was as though there was an underlying grudge between them even before they met for the first time. There was always tension whenever the two of them were in the same space or even when their names came up in the same conversation.

Desmond nodded in response to her question as his hand tightened around hers. "He likes you. Why would I like him?" Was there any man who would like their romantic rival? Even if there was, that was definitely not him.

Zaria stared at the man beside her in surprise. Even Desmond knew about it? Was she seriously the last person to know about Ryan's feelings for her?