The Royal Contract

He could still hear those words as he drove his car back to his apartment after a busy day at the office. He wondered if Haley would drop by tonight or if she was already there.

She was right to ask him that since he had been avoiding taking her out in a public place since they had been seeing each other. It was true that he did not want to be constantly seen with her but not because of what she thought.

“Is that you, Darling?” Gerald automatically heard her voice as soon as he entered his apartment. Honestly, he had been looking forward to it all day. He hoped she would be at his home, waiting for him.

Was Mike right about his assumptions? Was he falling for her?

No. That was insane.

He never did love. He never will.

.....

But he would admit that he cared for her. That was the best he could give her. And he did not wish to hurt her or for her to get into any harm. It was the only reason he did not want his enemies to associate her with him.

“Yes,” Gerald answered as he walked towards his living room, dropping his bag and coat on the lone chair. Then, he sat on the sofa, propping up his feet on the coffee table and loosening his tie.

It had been a long day at the office. But it was not just the legal cases that occupied his time but also the other things he had been working on under the noses of almost everyone.

“I hope you have not eaten dinner since I made lasagna.” Haley walked out of the kitchen and went straight to him.

First, she stood behind him, letting her fingers crawl on his shoulders, massaging the tightness in his muscles and then working its way to his nape, just below his earlobes.

“Not yet.” He remembered eating at lunch, but since then, he had been busy. But subconsciously, he believed she would be here with a ready meal waiting for him.

Eventually, she moved around the couch, straddling his lap while she continued removing his tie. “Would you like your dinner now or something else?” Moving her fingers, unbuttoning the upper portion of his shirt this time.

He could feel his body responding to the timbre of her voice. His hands automatically circled her waist to wrap around her back. Then, he pulled her closer until their lips locked into place.

He could sense her hands moving along his chest as she continued to remove the remaining buttons of his shirt until she had pushed them off his shoulders, baring his upper body to her touch.

“Let me help you relieve some of the stress in your body.” She whispered into his ears before she slowly and torturously let her lips travel from his ears and neck down to his chest, lingering longer on his pectoral muscles.

He could only bury his fingers in her hair, enjoying the feeling of her lips as they scorched his skin on fire. She was not as experienced as the other women he bedded before, but what she lacked in knowledge, she made up with her naturalness. As if she existed to pleasure him.

He knew that was a selfish thought, but he was a greedy man. He was not a virtuous, ethical, moral man. On the contrary, he was the opposite of everything defined as good.

But why was he thinking of what would be beneficial for her? Why did he wish to keep her safe? It did not make sense to him. Still, he did not want to dwell on these thoughts as he buried them in his mind and concentrated on the swell of his pants.

“You are so beautiful.” He moaned as her fingers slid further down his body, massaging his hardened muscles on the top of his zippered pants.

If other people could see them, they would think they were already a married couple as she performed her wifely duties. And he was the doting husband who could not wait to be home with his wife.

But that was not what this was.

He was not marrying her because he wanted this to be a real marriage. Or he wished to have a family with kids running around. He only wanted a trophy wife that he could show off to the people around him.

“I guess we better eat first because I am starving.” Stopping her from going further in her movements and removing his pants.

But he could feel that his body was protesting. He wanted what Haley was offering, but could he keep doing this? Could he keep pretending that he could give her what she had been dreaming of when he knew too well that it was impossible?

To her, this was real, but for him, it was not.

“Ok!” She answered, but he could tell she was surprised by his response. Under another circumstance, he would have kissed her and had his way with her.

He could see the confusion in her eyes, mixed with a slight disappointment. He could sense that she did not expect his rejection, but she still smiled and pretended that she was ok as she guided him to the kitchen where the table had the lasagna, still hot from the oven.

“That looks great and delicious.” He complimented, pretending that his hunger was the only reason he did not want to have sex. At least, not right away while he figured out what was wrong with him.

However, tonight, he felt different and needed some space from her to think. But he did not want to scare her away by telling her what he felt. Not until he had thought of this through.

He believed he still needed her and her father to pursue his political plans. Without her and her father’s backing, he might not win. But that would surely put a bullseye on her back.

She would be a constant target for his enemies to use against him. Could he afford to lose her if she died under his watch? But why should he care if he got what he wanted from her?

Was he starting to have a conscience? If this was another girl, he should not care about her feelings. Now, he was more conflicted about his emotions. The more he analyzed his situation.

At that moment, he contemplated whether to put a ring or a dot on their relationship.