🔹Adrien Russell🔹

Dressed in the clothes chosen by my wife, I had been pacing around the living room, talking about a few deals with my assistant, Ryan on the phone. Crystal was still getting ready and I patiently waited as it isn't everyday when she is all dolled up.

"Alright, schedule the meeting with Davis' at 2pm tomorrow and what about the deal with the Oberoi Corporation?" I asked on the phone.

"Sir, they are supposed to land here from India by the day after tomorrow." Ryan replied.

"Okay. Once they are-" My words were stuck in my throat when my eyes fell on Crystal who just walked out of our room. She wore a peach coloured dress that reached her ankles. It was a net draped over a linen cloth that ended on her mid-thigh. I raked my eyes from her head to toe. Hair beautifully styled, nude makeup and minimal accessories. No exaggeration, she looked angelic.

I realized that I had been ogling at her for long enough, when I heard Ryan practically screaming into my ear through the phone. Snapping my head away from her side, I continued my conversation with my assistant.

"Yea, sorry. What was I saying? The deal with Davis, right? About that-" I started blabbering to avoid embarrassment but Ryan interfered.

"Sir, we were talking about Oberois." He reminded me.

"Right! The Oberois. Um.... wh-what about Oberois?" I asked, scratching my forehead.

Fuck this!

Damn you, Crystal!

"You know what, Ryan. Let's talk about it in the office. Goodbye." I hung up before he could reply and shove my hands in my pocket. She looked at me with some sort of expectation in her eyes when I moved closer to her. We were standing close and I once again studied her body. As if my gaze made her feel conscious, she brushed her hands on her dress and leaned on the door to make some space between us.

"You look... breathtaking." I told her. There wasn't any reason for her to feel conscious. She was beautiful in every possible way.

"Thank you." She muttered slowly with a small smile lingering on her lips. Something in me stirred when my eyes fell on Crystal's lips. They were so luscious and shiny that my lips itched to claim them. I have no idea how I managed to control my urges to feel them on my body.

Before I could go far with my very unlikely to happen imaginary scenarios, I snapped back to reality and held my hand out for her. "Stay by my side, the whole time." I wouldn't leave her alone for the world even for a minute. Not after what had happened last time.

As we entered the extraordinarily decorated mansion with a gift, my eyes searched for the birthday girl.

Most of the guests of the party were my acquaintances and few were close friends but everyone was new to Crystal. I held her free hand and gave it a little squeeze and she smiled in return.

"Finally!" Someone said from our left side and we turned to see Sophie standing with her arms crossed over her chest. "The most awaited guests finally decided to show up." She said sarcastically and I gave her an awkward grin.

We walked to her and I hugged her tightly. "Happy Birthday!"

Thank you very much. Now give me my gift." She said as we broke the hug. I chuckled and handed it to her. She kept it aside and hugged Crystal who wished her too.

The entire time, I stood by Crystal's side. As the time passed, more people started coming and the place was quite crowded. I introduced Crystal to a few of mine and Sophie's mutual friends but she seemed to be a little bored.

It was cute seeing her struggle to listen to the other women talking about fashion and trends. My simple wife had no interest in those things. Ask her about novels. She could talk all day.

It was after a while when the music loudened and everyone started dancing. I was about to ask Crystal if she wanted to dance, but before I could, Sophie ran up to me.

"Can I have a dance with the most handsome man present here?" She said dramatically, but cleared her throat when her eyes fell on Crystal. "..if his wife doesn't mind." We laughed.

"I don't." Crystal said with a smile and without wasting a second, Sophie pulled me towards the dance floor. Before I could go farther, I muttered to Crystal, "I am right here."

We swayed together along with the music but my mind was entirely on Crystal who stood awkwardly at a corner. I wanted to leave this stupid dance and stand by her side, but I didn't think it would be nice to upset Sophie on her birthday.

I was still having thoughts about going back to Crystal when a pair of arms circled my neck. I turned my head in the front and saw Sophie dancing while clinging onto me like there's no tomorrow. Her eyes were shut and she was vibing on the heavy music.

I gently tried to push her arms away but instead she pulled herself even closer and I stumbled on my feet. To prevent both of us from falling, I had to hold her waist. Our noses brushed against each other and I resisted the urge to push her away.

"Sophie!" I yelled but she was too busy enjoying herself. To my annoyance, she pressed our bodies together, leaving no space for even the air to pass.

I had enough of it and with a jerk, I pushed her away a little harshly but not harsh enough to make her fall.

"Stop!" I shouted but thankfully nobody heard me due to the loud ass music.

Sophie looked shocked with my reaction but what did she expect when she was practically climbing on me.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" I asked, narrowing my eyes at her.

"What? I was just dancing." She said with a frown.

"You were-" My words were held back when I saw Crystal looking at us. As our eyes met, she looked away, trying to look unbothered. If Sophie had done this to get a reaction out of Crystal, she had a bad one coming.

I rubbed my palm over my face and looked at Sophie. "Find yourself another partner. Excuse me." I said sternly and left the dance floor.

Soon the dance was finished and all the tired souls stood in groups, talking, laughing and drinking. Crystal came next to me and gave me a smile that didn't reach her eyes.

Was it normal to feel good and bad about something at the same time? Because learning that my closeness with another woman bothered Crystal gave me the satisfaction that I couldn't describe, but at the same time, I didn't want her to misunderstand things.

I wanted to talk to her but Sophie again interrupted. "Come on, Crystal. I will show you my house and then I have a few friends I want you to meet." She said and started pulling her along but I stopped them by holding Crystal's wrist.

"Let it be for now, Sophie." I said as they looked at me.

"She came here for the first time, Adrien. Let me show her the house. And my friends want to meet Adrien Russell's wife. What's wrong with that?" Sophie whined, making me sigh. She still had no information about the incident that took place last time.

"But So-" I was about to resist again but Crystal interrupted.

"It's okay. She will be around." She told me with a convincing smile. I no longer knew if I could trust Sophie when it came to Crystal, but what could possibly go wrong with a group of girls who were only interested in fashion magazines. So I nodded and let go of her.

While they were gone, I caught up with a few of Sophie's cousins who I had been acquainted with. Within some time, Sophie and Crystal descended down the stairs after their house-tour and Sophie pulled her to a group of women who cheerfully hugged her.

The music was soft and the women stood a few feet away from us, allowing me to hear their conversation with ease. I had no intention to eavesdrop on them, but what Sophie started blabbering next, made my blood rush backwards.

"You might have heard of those typical stories where the small town girl steals the prince's heart. That's exactly what happened with Adrien and Crystal. She was his damsel in distress."

As Sophie said that, Crystal's expression dropped and she looked extremely uncomfortable.

"How romantic. Cinderella and her Prince Charming." One of the girls commented and they all, excluding Crystal, laughed in return.

I clenched my jaw to control the rage burning inside me. I wanted to shut Sophie right there with my own ways but insulting her, in her house, on her birthday wouldn't be appropriate. I put the glass of my drink aside and walked to the group.

"Tell us about yourself, Crystal. Where are you exactly from? How did you manage to make Adrien Russell fall for you?" The taunt in the woman's tone drove me to the edge.

Without wasting another second, I grabbed Crystal's wrist and pulled her towards me. "Excuse me, ladies. We will take our leave." I said.

"But-" Before Sophie could say a thing I greeted them all a goodbye and we made our way to the exit. The ride back home was silent. Crystal's mood was surely bad, although she tried best to not show it.

"Crys, can I take you somewhere, or would you like to go home?" I asked, trying to lighten up the mood.

"I am tired. Let's go home please." She said, looking at me with a small smile.

"Did you enjoy the party?" I asked. I knew she did not but I wanted her to open up to me. To complain about things to me but instead, she simply nodded.

Maybe it wasn't really a good time to talk so I decided to stay quiet for some time. I deliberately took a longer route to our house, which is a very quiet road since the wind that brushed upon us seemed to comfort Crystal.

But that turned out to be a bad idea when it started raining heavily. And things got even worse when my car stopped in the middle of a dark, stranded road.

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