apter 9 Chapter 9 Harper : 78 55 vouchers The palm of my hand landed hard on Tiffany's cheek before I could stop myself. I was ready to take anything she threw at me, except bring my sister into that. "Don't ever talk about Anna again!" I warned her, my voice low but sharp. Grayson stepped forward, raising his voice at me. "How dare you lay your hand on my wife?" He looked at me like I was the most ruthless human being he had ever known and I parted my lips to speak, but it took me a few seconds to get the words out. "She's the one who crossed the line," I snapped, staring right into his eyes. "You heard everything she said to me." "I heard it," he admitted, his tone still filled with rage. "That doesn't mean you get to..." He trailed off when Tiffany sniffled like she was in tears. He turned to face her so he could check on her and my heart shattered into a million pieces as he treated her like his queen and I was just the girl who didn't matter to him. "It's okay, baby." His voice was gentle as he spoke to her but when he turned to face me, that rage was back. "Look what you did to her." Tiffany's cheek was red, but not as red as I would have loved it to be. I caught her smirk while tears rolled down her cheeks and it made me scoff. "Is this funny to you?" Grayson towered over me as his chest rose and fell with heavy breaths. I had never seen him like that. "It hurts so bad," Tiffany said from behind him. He clenched his jaw and I could see his forehead veins popping out. "If you ever lay your hand on my wife again..." I waited, wondering how he would hurt me next with his words, but the moment was interrupted when Maddox showed up from behind me and now had a shirt on. "Everything okay?" he asked. Tiffany rushed to him before he could even get too close. "Look what she did to my face!" "What did you do?" His voice was nonchalant. "Seriously? How could you ask me that? Why weren't you at the wedding reception? Why didn't you pick up our calls? How dare you decline mom's call? Why the fuck is this loser here with you?" 7:21 Tue , Sep 16 Chapter 9 78 55 vouchers "Relax. That's too many questions at once." He began to head back in the direction he had just come from. "No! You know what?" Tiffany's annoying voice faded as she followed behind him until they turned at the corner. When I was left alone with Grayson, he took one last look at me from head to toe, then made his way down. the stairs, only to pace with clenched fists. He even wiped his forehead and exhaled loudly. I had never seen him so furious. I replayed his reaction to how I slapped Tiffany and it made me want to get away so I wouldn't see his face. Just as I was about to head back to the master bedroom so I could be alone, he spoke loudly. "That's it? You're just going to walk away?" I didn't even turn to face him, but could hear him quickly coming up the steps. He towered over me again, still furious but his voice was a bit gentle. "I would've never expected something like this from you. Sleeping with Maddox of all people? This isn't you." I smiled painfully. "You don't know this version of me." He gritted his teeth. "You've always known that he's a playboy and that hasn't changed. He has a different girl in his bed each week and was fucking Kate two days ago. I just don't want to see you get hurt." I chuckled in disbelief, pressing my lips together. He didn't want to see me get hurt, yet he hurt me the most for years. "You know what? That's it." He looked at the robe with disgust. "Get out of that thing and put on your clothes. I'm taking you home, right now." "No." "No?" He narrowed his eyes. "I'm still hanging out here and Maddox will drop me off later." He sighed with frustration. "Did you hear anything I just said to you?" "I heard every word, but I'm staying here until I feel like going home." He balled his hand into a fist, as if seconds away from punching the wall. "He's only going to break your heart." "Trust me, I'll be just fine." His gaze softened and just for a second, I was certain I saw some regret in his eyes . 7:21 Tue , Sep 16 Chapter 9 "Harp-" "No." I looked away, telling myself I must have been imagining things. I felt so stupid for even entertaining the idea that tears threatened to run down my cheeks. 78 E55 vouchers "Enjoy your honeymoon," I said, getting away from him with long strides. I didn't even look back. He wasn't going to see me like that. I rested my back against the headboard of the same massive bed Maddox and I had spent the night together, still stuck on Grayson's reaction after what I did to Tiffany. Each time I thought about what she said, I imagined myself adding another slap. I heard the engine outside and hoped that the two of them were leaving. I didn't even bother to get up and check from the window. A few minutes later, the bedroom door creaked open and I looked over, Maddox casually walking in like I hadn't slapped his sister. He joined me on the bed and sat real close. "That phone call from the Dubai office was more serious than I thought and I need to leave today. I'll be gone for two weeks." Though I never knew how close he was to Tiffany, I expected him to first ask me why I slapped her or something, but he was quite unpredictable. "No one has ever been able to slap some sense into my sister, at least you got far enough with that slap." I shook my head with a light chuckle. "Was that supposed to be funny?" He shrugged, then smirked as he dropped his gaze to my legs. "You're still wearing my robe and nothing underneath." I looked down at myself and realized that too. I gasped when he placed his hand on my knee, slowly moving it toward my inner thigh. He wrapped his other hand on the side of my neck just so he could whisper in my car. "I told you I wasn't done with you and I've been thinking about fucking you in that gym since I left to answer the phone, but you know what?" I held my breath, trying not to spread my legs right away. "I'm taking you home right now. We can always go for round two some other time." He pulled his hands away and even widened the distance between us. 7:21 Tue, Sep 16 Chapter 9 : 77 55 vouchers I still had my lips parted but this time, in surprise. The guy who wanted to fuck me like he owned me was taking me home and putting his desires aside? He got off the bed and opened his wardrobe to give me a pair of his clothes. I caught them and knew I wouldn't fit as they were a bit too big, but they were still better than the red dress. It wasn't the same after what he did to me last night. I changed my clothes, came out to the front yard and he was ready to go . He didn't touch me or even come real close. He acted like he wasn't glued to my naked body during the night. The ride to my place was silent in the beginning as I continued to wonder why he had decided to take me home. He even played some music to fill the silence. I barely looked in his direction the entire time, keeping my gaze out the window as I replayed everything I had been through in the past twenty four hours. It went from heart break, hot sex and fury. We pulled up to my spacious driveway and I spotted my car, which made me look at him with raised eyebrows. He had made sure that it was brought home. He must have taken my car keys from my purse while I was asleep. I was mad about it, but glad my car was home. He acted so nonchalant about it and didn't even mention it, scrolling on his phone for a few seconds before getting out to open the door for me. As soon as I stepped out, he stood in my way. "Well, look at that," he said, staring down at his phone. "Grayson wants to see me before he leaves. Any guesses about what he wants? " I shrugged, not even wanting to hear his name. "Disappointed you didn't get more of me?" He teased me, coming closer. "It's not that." I lowered my gaze with a sigh. "I heard everything Tiffany said. Had it just been about Grayson, we'd be in that gym right now." I looked up, pleasantly surprised. Suddenly, he pulled me closer by the waist and my breath hitched. He was once again holding me like he wanted to own me. "What are you doing?" I asked quietly. My hands rested awkwardly on his chest and it wasn't even to push him away. His gaze dropped to my lips and he leaned in, not even to kiss me, just to hover near them. He gently traced his thumb along my jaw, as if reminding me how he grabbed it when I was in bed with him. Brushing his knuckles against my cheek, he said, "I should get going now, but you better keep one thing in mind." Title: A Boyfriend on Loan, A Real Love on Way Author: CrushReels Genre: Romance, Modern Status: ongoing In "A Boyfriend on Loan, A Real Love on Way" by CrushReels, Felix Lloyd finds himself in a predicament as he seeks to pacify his family's marriage expectations by renting a girlfriend for the holiday season. 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