Karen's POV
The rest of the party was a blur. All I was aware of was Devon’s accusation. And then, before I could even stop to breathe, the party was already over, and everyone was leaving. I wanted to call them back, to beg them to stay. Something told me the only reason I had not yet faced the full anger of my powerful fiancé was because his guests were present. What would Devon do when everyone left?
My heart was thudding violently against my chest as he ushered the last one of the guests out, and then, he was dragging me - - into a room I had never been before.
He turned on the lights, something low and smoky, like the kind of lights one would see in a night club, but it was only when my eyes adjusted to the dimly lit room that real fear entered my eyes.
The room was a bedroom - - of some sorts. The bed itself was covered in black sheets, with black pillows. All around the bed, and hanging from the ceiling were various torture equipment - - or bondage toys. Was this Devon’s idea of a punishment? Did my fiancé intend to punish me through the very act of love making.
I shivered violently as I stared into Devon’s cold Grey eyes. “Devon please…” I started to say, but then my words faded away at the fresh anger that entered his eyes at the sound of my voice. This was not the man I had fallen in love with, the man who had once held me tenderly in his arms and told me he loved me. This was an entirely different Devon. This Devon frightened me.
“Please what?” He taunted. “Go on. I’m prepared to hear you out - - ”
“Please it’s my first time.” I completed, even then feeling the embarrassment creep up my cheeks. He must think I am pathetic. He was a billionaire after all, and he must have been with the most exotic of women. He would probably consider me a naïve inexperienced girl. I drew in a breath, and waited for his mockery, but what I got instead was anger.
“Can you for once - - for just once drop the pretense? Don’t you get tired of trying to be someone else all the time?”
“I - - I don’t understand…”
He shook his head in irritation. “At least, we can find out about this - -”
The hands that dragged me towards him were gentle, yet there was a mercilessness in his actions that made me wish he had been rough with me instead. But his kiss was gentle at first, a lovers touch, stroking my own lips, teasing, reminding me of the flame that had once been between us, the love we shared. And then, his lips got more demanding. I whimpered as he sought and gained access into my mouth.
Now he didn’t caress, now he demanded what I was not ready to give, took what he hadn’t even asked for, and I found myself sinking. His arms held me close, and his warmth heated me, so that I was willing to lie to myself, to lie that this man still loved me, to lie that this was the gentle yet fierce passion of love, and to lie to myself that this was how it was supposed to feel at the first time.
A sob tore at my throat even as I have my passion to the man who owned my heart. My body surrendered to his expertise and the sob turned into a moan as he bared my shoulder and pressed a kiss on it.
“That’s right love - - skip the pretense. Tell me what you truly want. Tell me your deepest desires.”
His voice was deep, low, addling my brain so that I could not think anymore. All I wanted was him. I wanted his warm powerful body pressed against mine teaching my body new ways to love - - only this was not love. This was something way darker.
I pressed myself harder against him, and this time, my lips met his demand with answers of my own. When his fingers unzipped my dress, my fingers were at his buttons, impatiently unbuttoning them. And then, he carried me to the bed. I felt his powerful body press against me as I sank lower till my back touched the soft mattress - - the mattress that was covered in all black sheets!
My heart beat raced as fear once again twisted in my gut. Why had Devon brought me here? To punish me? I hit out at him then, blindly, pleading with him to stop. My teeth shattered as my eyes sought his. All I wanted was a little reassurance, that it was going to be okay. I loved Devon enough to choose to trust him, but this was still my first time.
He was watching me. His steel Grey eyes unreadable, making me even more afraid, and yet the way he looked at me started a fire deep down in my belly.
Confused about what I myself wanted, I bit down at my lower lip till I tasted blood. My body wanted me to surrender to the seduction of Devon’s fingers, his kisses, whatever he planned to do with the bondage toys I saw, but my heart - - my heart broke at the way he treated me like I was some random whore he picked up on the streets. I wanted his love first before I could trust him with my body, and I could not really give myself to him, not tonight of all nights that he had just accused me of betraying him.
“I love you Devon.” My eyes met his, bravely, trying to convince him to believe me, but he gave a harsh disbelieving laugh, and his hand pinned me to the bed roughly.
Tears flooded my eyes as his free hand ripped off what was left of my dress. His hand moved over my body, stirring a fire, and yet there was no love in his touch. When his hand impatiently tore off the rest of my covering, I closed my eyes and prepared for what was coming next. My first time was going to be by force.
Devon’s hand stilled for a second, and then, he swore - - a low growl deep within his throat. The hand that pinned my hands above the bed left them, only to drag me up roughly. His expert hands manipulated my nibble body so that I was sitting astride him, then he cut the back of my head, and dragged my lips to his.
His kiss was thorough, leaving me breathless and my lips slightly swollen, then just like that, he was gone, closing the door gently behind him.
KAREN'S POVAfter I was sure Devon had gone, I buried my face in the all black pillow and wept. This was what my life was to become. Devon hated me, and yet he had asked me to marry him. The smart thing for me to do would be to call off our engagement – the smart thing, not the wise thing. Everyone knew that no woman ever broke up with the Grey’s and lived to tell the story. You didn’t walk away from a Grey, you waited until they got tired of you and chose to discard you. The twisted thing about it all was that I was not sure Devon would ever get tired of me. He did not love me of course, and would never love me again, but he still enjoyed keeping me around only so that he could torment me. My life was doomed. The only thing I could do now to be free was to get broken faster, to allow him break my heart to a million pieces, till he get bored with me and chose to let me go. I wondered if he might ever really chose to let me go, he might just decide to keep me there as a post
DEVON'S POVLooking at the now-sleeping Karen, I couldn't be any more disgusted by her continuous pretense. She always acted innocent and put on that pitiful face, yet she was a whore, even worse than my other whores. I put on my clothes and zipped up my trousers; the scene of her making out with Stephan flashed in my mind. She had claimed to be a virgin, yet she couldn't wait to throw herself at my cousin. The urge to destroy that little charade of hers by breaking her was so strong, I had to remind myself that I needed to find out all the people she was working with before I did anything about her betrayal. I looked at her once again before leaving the room. I was called the ruthless billionaire for a reason, and I was going to make her see that side of me that people feared. "All girls are like that," someone said behind me; without looking, I knew it was Stephan. I stifled a snort. Stephen was my least favorite person at the moment, and if I did not think Karen was
KAREN'S POV From the window, I watched him leave, having a feeling that he was looking at me. What had I gotten myself into? My very first time was forcefully taken by another man in front of my fiancé, and he didn't even do anything about it. He despised and blamed me instead. Tears had fallen from my eyes. I walked back to the room and sat in front of the mirror; luckily, Stephan was gone, and I was left alone. I decided that I wanted to see my friend Alice and talk to her. I really needed someone to talk to so badly. The phone connected after a few rings. "Hello, Karen, I saw the news today. How could he do it? How dare he kiss his mistress in public during your engagement?" Alice shouted. "Calm down, Alice. I wanted someone to talk to now. Could you please make it to Gregory restaurant in New Heaven?" I said in a low voice. She paused for a while before replying. "Okay, I will be there in thirty minutes." I beamed, "Thank you." I looked around the messy
KAREN' POV "Ladies, I won't stoop to your level. My personal life is none of your concern, and I won't entertain baseless rumors. Have a good day," I said and grabbed Alice's hand, leaving the hotel. Alice was fuming. "You should have allowed me to give her a piece of my mind, Karen," she said. "You can't stoop to their level, Alice. It will only make you look stupid. You can only ignore such people," I tried to talk sense into her, and it worked. "Ok, fine. Let's go home. Come, I brought my car with me. You don't have to take a cab," she said. "Ok, that will be good too," I said and followed her to her car, a Mini Cooper. "She is a fine girl," I commented. "Thank you," she beamed cheerfully. Inside the car, Alice ignited the engine, and we drove off. "So, Karen, are you still going to live in his house, especially after what happened? I think it will be better if you stay in your own house and only visit him from time to time," she suggested.
DEVON'S POV I laughed coldly. "You amuse me with your pretense, Karen. Fine then, I'll leave you since you are not in the mood. So now tell me, 'What do they need this time around?'" I was very sure that she is planning something, which was why she prepared those dishes. The first betrayal is not enough; now she wants another. I looked at her petite figure that was shaking visibly as she tried to say something. "Devon... I... I didn't do anything. I don't know what you are saying. Why did you believe that I ever betrayed you?" She said between sobs. "I don't even want to look at you now. Just get lost, get out of here." I shouted at her. I made for my room to get my car keys and headed downstairs. "Where are you going?" she asked when she saw me going downstairs. "To go and see one of my women, of course," I replied nonchalantly. "You can't do this, Devon. We are engaged now. You aren't supposed to see other women. That's what you promised me be
KAREN I woke up to my phone ringing. It's morning already, and rays of sunlight have already made their way into my room. It was beautiful. I looked at my phone screen and saw that it was my friend Alice. "Hi Karen, my brother is throwing a party this evening. Are you coming?" she asked. "Sure, I will come if you can come pick me," I replied. "Come on, Karen, you know I will be busy," she complained bitterly. I yawned. "That will be your punishment for waking me up this early," I joked. "Fine, the party is at six, and I need to buy something by three. So, I will come and pick you up by three or four this evening. What do you say?" she asked. "Fine by me," I replied. She hung up while I continued lying on my bed. I had decided that I can't continue staying in Devon's house; after all, we are not yet married. Besides, I don't want to meet his lecherous brother for now. I still couldn't forget what he did to me. It haunts me every single day in my dreams.
DEVON "It's not what you think, Devon," she continued desperately trying to explain. "What does it seem like?" I asked in an angry tone. "You called out the man from the party so you two could have fun. And when you saw me from afar, you started acting like a saint. Don't think I can be deceived by such parlor tricks." I yelled at her. "I am not playing any tricks, Devon. Why is it that you never believe anything I say? Why do you always accuse me of being a whore? You're the one who has been whoring around, picking up different girls every day," she accused, yelling at the top of her voice. "What did you just say? How dare you talk to me like that? It seems like I've been soft on you." Without any further warning, I hadn't intended to hit her, but I did, my hand landing firmly on her cheek. She was the first woman I had ever hit, the first to make me angry enough to do so. Many people inside the house were already attracted and started heading to the poolside.
KARENIt had now been two days since the last incident. After experiencing all this, I had decided to investigate and find out the reason Devon hated me. I was determined to find out no matter what. I had also decided to start with his room, then his study. I began with his room, searching his drawers and every corner, yet I didn't find anything sensitive. To cover up my tracks, I did a small cleanup of the whole room. After that, I carefully went to his study room. There are lots of books here, and whatever documents he was looking for are more likely to be found here. "Hmm, not this, neither this," I kept on flipping through many documents. "Why couldn't I find anything useful to prove my innocence? Perhaps, I should search more thoroughly." I started arranging it carefully while rechecking each file. When I was about to keep the last file, the door opened, and Devon came in. "My little traitor, it's a pity that you are caught red-handed this time around," he sai