Liam's POV
It was funny and crazy that she thought I cared about her little outburst the previous night. She had called me broke in many ways, but jokes on her—her family's wealth came second to mine. It has always been that way, and it'll always be that way.
When I had asked for her phone, I honestly didn't want to take a look at the picture Philip had sent. I had wanted to warn him, but then I realized she would think the worst of me, so I didn't press the matter further. But when she lashed out at me continuously, I tried so hard not to hold her by the neck and strangle her till she lost her little life.
As I walked away from the temptation, I couldn't help but wonder why she'd choose to make someone like Philip her fiancé, who has done nothing but insult her.
Once inside my room, I made sure to shut the door tight, and then I called up Posh immediately.
"Yes, boss?" he responded.
"I want to know everything about Philip, the guy who harassed Aliya at the restaurant yesterday morning. Also, I need you to find him tonight. Take one of the female servants along. When you find him, there's a nude of Aliya on his phone; make sure only she gets to see it and delete everything. Then give him a good beating," I instructed, my voice stern but quiet so Aliya couldn't hear me.
I gave him more and more instructions, then I ended the call. She had refused my help, but I gave it to her anyway. No one else had the right to torment Aliya aside from me. I should be the only person who made her eyes show a hint of fear.
Since Philip had decided to walk through a path that doesn't belong to him, I took it upon myself to direct him where he could move freely without touching what belonged to me. So generous of me right?
The night had come and gone with me convincing myself I was doing it for my revenge, but was it really?
Now, we've gotten married, and I'm going through her stupid list made of dumb rules while she goes through her phone. I know for a fact what she saw that made her stare at me the way she did.
"Did you do this?" she asked, raising a brow and pointing her phone in my direction so I could take a look at a picture I had already seen.
I smirked, and I could see confusion flickering in her eyes. "No, I didn't." I squinted, pretending to look closely at the phone she was holding up. "Poor guy. He looks like he got into some deep shit."
Aliya put her phone away, inhaling before moving closer to me. "Nick, please tell me the truth. You were the only person I told about Philip's attempt to expose my pictures. All of a sudden, I woke up this morning, and he had deleted the picture, sending me an apology. Then this message comes in from an unknown number calling me Little Dove." She folded her arms, staring straight into my soul, trying to crack me, but I didn't flinch.
"Little Dove? That's a beautiful name. Seems like you've got a new admirer," I teased, walking past her and into the living room. As I moved, I looked over my shoulder and was satisfied to see the angry and confused look on her face.
"This isn't funny, Nick. What did you do?" she snapped, walking towards me while I took a seat on the couch and turned on the TV. Funny enough, 365 Days was on. A smug grin appeared on my face, and when she followed my gaze, she bit her lower lip gently.
"You clearly didn't read the 15th rule on that document," she sneered as she stood in front of the television, arms folded on her chest, making her breasts pop out the more she pressed on them. "The 15th rule says: no porn in my house. You can watch this in your room, not here."
"This is not pornography, Aliya. It's a great movie. I know you've watched it a hundred times; don't pretend," I chuckled, and she rolled her eyes. "Please move. Massimo is about to fuck her by the vast window."
My words made her body tense up as she rushed towards me, trying to get the remote out of my hold. "Give me that, Nick," she demanded, struggling to take it out of my grip. Aliya was close to me, so close that I could inhale her sweet scent. She wore a Victoria Secret body mist, mixed with some Coco Chanel. At least I just discovered what I'll get for my wife when we argue.
My thoughts made me chuckle as I wrapped my free right hand around her waist, pulling her to my body. She came down crashing on my body, and our faces were inches away from touching. Those hazel eyes—they shone with so much innocence as I stared into them, but a Van Alen can never be innocent to me.
The world suddenly stopped as we stared into each other's eyes. All I could hear were the moans from the movie I had turned on. What made it worse was her big boobs that seemed to show themselves to me at the wrong time, and if not for the tight-fitting pants I had on, she would have noticed the bulge that struggled to break free.
"You seem to be enjoying rubbing your tits in my face, Little Dove," I taunted, breaking the silence. Her face flushed red as she hastily stood back on her feet, unable to look at me again. Was the mouthy princess shy?
"Don't ever call me that," she snapped.
Spoke too soon, I guess.
"I'll ask one last time, Nick. Did you do this? And did you send me this message?" she inquired.
"And I'll tell you one last time, Aliya, I didn't have anything to do with that. Also, no, I didn't send you that message. Besides, that isn't even my phone number, and I was with you when that text came in. How could I have sent it?"
Of course, it was all me. The little nickname I gave her fitted her perfectly. I was her secret admirer—or maybe her worst nightmare—and I'll make sure only I could hurt and make her happy if I decide to.
"I don't believe you, Nick, but you know what? Maybe you're telling the truth. How could you have hurt someone like Philip, right? He had connections that I gave him, of course. Then who could this be?" she murmured as she paced the room.
"I know you said it's none of my concern, but why did you date a guy like Philip, and what happened between you two?" I queried, making her stop in her tracks. Although I had asked Posh to dig into Philip, I still had this urge to ask Aliya about it because it was one of the strangest things I've ever seen when it came to this love of a thing.
"I don't want to talk about Philip. It's written on that paper—the 20th rule. We've not been married for a day, and you've already broken two of my rules. Remember, your pay is at stake." She continued yapping about rules, and honestly, I was tired of listening.
"Since we can't have a decent conversation, I'd be heading out. I have to meet up with some friends," I informed her, standing to my feet.
"Where are you going?" she questioned, raising a brow. "Remember, I can't have you fooling around. My grandpa's lawyer has eyes on me, and if he notices this marriage is a fake, I can't pay off my dad's debts."
"I'm not stupid, Aliya," I retorted, brushing past her and heading for the front door. "Besides, rule number 33: the whereabouts of one person doesn't concern another as long as it doesn't jeopardize the plan, remember?" I chuckled and exited the house, leaving a frown on her face.
I hadn't been at my place for a day now, and stepping through the gates gave me a fleeting sense of relief. Even in the dark, the property exuded power—my power. I had used a cab again and almost threw up this time around. It wasn't easy pretending to be broke when you don't know the first thing about lacking money.
As I approached the front doors, Posh rushed towards me, his steps deliberate. "Boss, welcome," he greeted, holding the door open for me as he filled me in on all the assignments I handed him earlier, but his tone has some shakiness to it— almost as if there was something he wasn't saying.
"Boss, your sister is here," he finally confessed, hesitating as he watched my expression harden. "She insisted on talking to you, and I couldn't keep her out." Posh's last statement made the hairs on my neck stand up and my blood boil.
"What was she doing here? Doesn't she know how dangerous it was to be seen with me?" I shouted as my feet carried me fast to the sitting room before Posh could respond.
"Hi, brother. It's nice to see you, even though you don't look happy to see me," she giggled as I made my way toward her.
"What are you doing here, Brooke?"