Mend My Heart

Chapter 20

Theodore’s P.O.V

I thought that the week I spent away from Maya would do me some good but it did the complete opposite.

I had been a fool to think that not having her in my sphere of influence would help me forget all about her and that magical kiss we shared but every waking moment that passed, all I could think about was her. She had become like a broken record in my thoughts and even haunted my dreams at night.

No matter how many women I hooked up with during that time, I still wished it was her that I was with instead of this caked-up porcelain dolls. How had I let her get under my skin like this that I had resorted to running away from my own home and children just to be away from her? Maybe I need to see a shrink because this was getting out of control.

I wasn’t too far away from London, just some kilometres away in Manchester. I had a building there which I’d sometimes escape to when I felt the pressure of the cooperate world weighing in on me. But this time around, I’d lied to everyone I know that there was a crisis there that I needed to personally attend to but in reality, I just needed a sabbatical from a woman I wasn’t even entangled with romantically.

Would I want to pursue something with her? Yes; but the fear of getting myself into another commitment was holding me back. Could I actually risk falling in love again when my heart hadn’t properly healed from the last relationship I was in? No, I couldn’t do that. It wouldn’t be wise or healthy for Maya to be involved with a man who was merely a shell of his former self. And to think at some point in my life I’d actually believed love could always defy the odds.

Oh, how more wrong could I have been?

Kicking my cowardice to the curb, I packed my stuff up and had my crew prepare for our flight back to London. We touched down around nine PM, and I arrived home about half an hour later. When I got there, it was quiet and dark; a clear indication that everybody was fast asleep. I entered the house stealthily and made my way upstairs to Brianna and Aiden’s room. Their small forms were caught deeply in dream land, their soft breaths filling the air. 

I really am such a lousy father. I don’t remember when was the last time I’d spent the day with them. I really need to make up for lost time before the consequences come to bite me in the arse. I know how important it is to have a father figure, because I had never felt the joy of having one. The least I could do is be there when they needed me. Kissing their foreheads, I went over to the door and shut it gently behind me. 

After a quick shower, I changed into some pyjama bottoms minus the shirt. I should have just gotten under the covers but I felt the insatiable urge to see Maya. It was totally unreasonable but I’d missed her infectious smile and peachy scent. I made my way back downstairs and stalked the halls as quietly as possible since my mother also slept on this side of the house. If she caught me doing this, I think I’d die of mortification.

Opening the door, my eyes were met with darkness. I was trying so hard to be unheard as I tiptoed over to her bed but I couldn’t figure out her form anywhere on the bed. I flicked the light on and was met with an empty room. Panic rose within in me? Where had she gone? Had she left whilst I was gone?

An ill filling settled in my stomach and I rushed to her closet to check if her clothes were still in there; and they were. So, if her stuff is still here, then where had she gone? I switched the light back off and exited the room. In my puzzlement, I stalked over to the kitchen to grab myself a drink. I was becoming a mad man. The level of desperation I had reached was absurd. Was it still regarded as normal to care so much about someone who was just another employee to me?

I’d been sitting in the kitchen for about an hour and a half when I heard the sound of a motorcycle pulling up in my driveway. Curiously, I moved over to the window to check where the noise was coming from and caught site of Maya climbing off the back of it. The other person on the bike seemed to be one of my drivers, Leslie.

I felt my heart constrict at their amicable interaction. She was even smiling at him and when he kissed her cheek; I swear all I could see was red. I heard the front door open and footsteps making their way towards the kitchen. I remained stationary where I stood and I watched her form enter the room. She placed her shoes on the floor and opened the fridge to grab a bottle of water. Before she could shut the door, I slammed it shut in wrath.

“Where have you been?” I asked forebodingly and she froze transitorily before turning around to face me with a mix between fear and disbelief emanating from her eyes. 

She gulped audibly and was about to open her mouth when I cut her off immediately. “Don’t you dare lie to me,” I warned her before she could even utter a word. She closed her eyes for a second before opening them up, an expressionless look having come over her face.

She opened the cap of the lid and took a leisure sip before wiping her full lips and smiling provocatively at me. “Sir, if you already know then why should I tell you?” she asked conceitedly, causing a muscle to tick on my forehead. I really had no right to get mad at her for doing this but I was bloody livid! How could she go out with another man? 

Maya slipped from in front of me and was about to walk away when I grabbed her arm and pulled her flush against my bare chest. Her warm hands landed on my pectorals, making my skin ripple pleasurably. “You won’t walk away from me until you explain to me why you went out with him and why he kissed you on your cheek?” I seethed lowly. The image of his lips on her cheek replayed in my mind succinctly and made my blood pulsate in ire.

She threw her head back in laughter. “Mr Duke, if I didn’t know any better, I’d say you were jealous,” she accused in a playful tone. She leaned forward and examined my face closely. “Are you?”

I scoffed. Of course, I’m jealous! Why else would I be freaking out about this, Maya? “Of course not. Don’t get things twisted. I have a code of conduct that I expect my employees to follow. None of my workers are allowed to fraternize romantically,” I told her matter-of-factly, even though I’d just invented that line there and then. Gosh, when had I become such a methodical liar?

The next moment, I felt her glide her hands down my chest all the way to my abs and back up to rest around my neck. An electric spark ignited in me and my mind blurred at her seductive action. She had no idea what she did to me and how much she threatened my sanity. If she kept this up, I might just do what I’d been wanting to do for a while now. She made me feel vulnerable and empowered at the same time; how did she do it?

“Then that is indeed a shame,” she pouted cutely but with a mordant lilt in her tone. Her face inclined a couple of centimetres more until her lips were hovering over mine. Why the hell hadn’t she kissed me already? “I guess nothing can happen between us as well, right?” she murmured, her brown eyes boring into mine. She placed a chaste kiss on the corner of my lips before completely retracting from me. A satisfied smile was gracing her lips, whilst my face looked at her in utter confusion.

“Good night, sir,” she called at me with a giggle, before winking and evaporating from my sight.

I have never been more confused in my life. Not only had she managed to stimulate my hormonal senses, she had played me like a fiddle. And the worst part is, that was probably the sexiest thing I’d ever witnessed in my life! Also, thanks to her, I was in dire need of a cold shower to calm down my stirred-up anatomy. Damn you, Maya Knight, I cursed her in my mind that had been turned to goop by her touch. 

I am so going to get her back for this.

_________________________

Here is the long awaited 20th Chapter. I sincerely hope it was worth the wait since Monday.

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~Deetronite ❤️