Semua Bab Bound by Desire : Bab 11 - Bab 20

Elena's POVI check my reflection in the hallway mirror one more time, smoothing down my blouse with shaking hands. Julian is with the estate nanny playing in the garden.. I told her I had an appointment in town, didn't mention what kind.The drive to the coffee shop feels longer than it should. Every red light makes my anxiety spike higher.Victoria Chen said she had information about my marriage, about why Alexander really married me, about things I was never told. I need these answers, I need to understand what I've been living in for four years.I arrive fifteen minutes early, park down the street, walk slowly toward the small café she specified. It's quiet inside, just a few people on laptops, soft jazz playing from overhead speakers. I order a coffee I know I won't drink, find a table by the window where I can watch the door.Two o'clock comes and goes, no Victoria…I check my phone obsessively, refresh my messages, nothing, by two fifteen I'm texting the number she called

Elena's POVThree days pass in Connecticut with no word from Alexander except cold silence. I've stopped calling, stopped begging, what's the point when he won't even acknowledge his son's tears.Julian and I are having breakfast when my phone rings, Marcus's name lights up the screen."Hey," I answer."How are you this morning?""We're okay, just having pancakes.""Listen, I know this might be overstepping but I was thinking, you've been alone there for days, would it be okay if I came to visit? Brought Julian something to cheer him up?"My first instinct is to say no but then I remember Alexander won't even answer when I call."Actually that would be really nice, Julian could use the company.""Great, I'll be there around noon."At noon exactly a car pulls up, Marcus steps out carrying a gift bag.Julian runs to greet him before I can get down the steps."Marcus, you came!""Of course I did buddy," Marcus crouches down. "I brought you something."He pulls out a bright red toy tru

Elena's pov I stare at my phone, my thumb hovering over Alexander's name, and something inside me just breaks.…. not the dramatic kind of breaking where you cry and scream, but the quiet kind where you realize you've been begging someone to love you and they just won't.I lock my phone and set it face down on the kitchen counter, two weeks of calling him first, texting him first, apologizing for things I'm not even sure I did wrong.….and for what, for silence, for one-word responses, for the cold shoulder that feels more like a knife in my back."Mama, look," Julian says, rolling his toy truck across the marble floor, and I force a smile because he doesn't deserve to see me falling apart."That's wonderful, baby," I say, kneeling down to watch him play, and maybe this is enough, maybe Julian and I can just be enough for each other.My phone buzzes and I expect Alexander's name, but it's Marcus, he's been calling every other day since we got here, just checking in, making sure I'm o

Elena's POVMarcus arrives exactly one hour later.I hear the knock and my stomach does this nervous flip, Julian races to the door before I can stop him."Marcus," Julian squeals, wrapping his little arms around Marcus's legs."Hey buddy," Marcus crouches down, ruffling Julian's hair. "I brought dinner, and I might have something else for you too."He pulls out a toy dinosaur from behind his back, not just any dinosaur but a T-Rex with movable joints and realistic details. Julian's eyes go so wide I think they might fall out of his head."Wow," Julian breathes, taking it carefully like it's made of glass, "thank you Marcus, this is the best.""You remembered he likes dinosaurs," I say, surprised because I only mentioned it once during lunch last week.Marcus looks up at me, still kneeling on the floor."I pay attention, Elena."Something warm spreads through my chest at those words, when was the last time Alexander paid attention to anything I said…When was the last time he rememb

Elena's POVThree days at the Plaza and Marcus has visited every single day, always bringing something for Julian.Today he calls with a different kind of invitation."Come to my place for dinner," his voice is warm through the phone. "I want to cook for you and Julian, real food, not hotel room service.""Marcus, I don't know," I say, watching Julian play with his dinosaurs."Is that appropriate?""It's just dinner, Elena," he says gently, "friends having dinner, nothing more, unless you want it to be more."My heart does this flip at those last words. "What does that mean?""It means I care about you," Marcus says, "and I think you care about me too, but we can talk about that later, right now I just want to feed you both a home cooked meal."I know I should say no but I'm so tired of living by Alexander's rules. "Okay, what time?"Marcus's house is forty minutes outside the city, smaller than any of Alexander's properties but so much warmer.There are actual photos on the walls,