David didn’t know whether to be happy or annoyed at her reaction. Was she angry at him for being there or did she actually feel something for him and couldn’t bear seeing him? He couldn’t let this chance slip away. Now or never, he thought. He grabbed his jacket and practically run outside to find her.
Anna was outside, leaning against the wall, taking deep breaths in an attempt to relax. Thankfully no one was around to see her break down like this. Not that she cared much. She closed her eyes and allowed all those tears she held for so long to spill out and wash away some of her pain.
He approached her and felt guilty for the happiness that bubbled inside him upon seeing her so vulnerable, so exposed, clutching her chest as if her heart would leap out. But then that meant she actually felt something and that was more than enough for him.
He stood in front of her and she hadn’t even noticed. He had to be careful now. I can’t afford a mistake, he thought. No way am I screwing this up!
“Anna” he whispered softly and saw her tense as her eyes flew open. She slowly lifted her head and once their eyes locked it was as if they were the only ones in the whole world.
Their pained expressions when they were both convinced they couldn’t be with each other, softened. He reached out and wiped her tears away with his thumbs but didn’t remove his hands. Instead, he framed Anna’s face and moved his body closer. Her breathing accelerated and her lips parted unconsciously. His eyes followed the movement and contemplated whether kissing her was a good idea.
She saw his indecision and though she wanted this as well, she wouldn’t allow it. She couldn’t. “Please” she whispered “Just leave me alone” she sighed, looking away.
“I can’t” he whispered “I’ve been battling with myself for the past few weeks. All I wanted, all I could think about was you. But I had to give you time.” he sighed “I can’t force you to love me Anna. But I can show you how much I love you. I want you Anna. Only you.” he said sternly, trying to make her understand.
She shook her head stubbornly, still refusing to look at him. “You are married David. It will never work. You know this already.”
“No, no. Listen, I –” he tried again but was cut off. “No. You’re –” he quickly covered her mouth with his hand, just enough to shut her up.
“Damn it woman, you’re stubborn! Will you let me finish for once?” he laughed, somewhat amused with her reactions. He sobered up though and continued.
“When you left me that night, I thought I lost you. And it was like a wake up call. A very cruel one. When I married Jen it wasn’t out of love. Yes, I did love her once. And since we were together for years, it just seemed natural for us to do so.
I soon realized however it was far from natural. It wasn’t the real deal. So I broke it off before it was too late. She didn’t take it quite well, but accepted it nonetheless.
Days later she came by the office and announced I was going to be a father. And just like that the wedding was back on track. Everything went according to plan, everything was right on schedule. The wedding had been moved to an earlier date due to our ‘exciting news’ and that was it.
After that whenever I mentioned her doctor’s appointments she would find a way to sidetrack me or just snapped at me and blame it on the hormones later. I was so stupid.” he whispered the last part.
“I should have suspected something then. Hell, I should have suspected it when she hadn’t called the wedding off from the start. As if she knew it would happen no matter what. We didn’t really get along after that but I had no choice anymore. I would never let my kid grow up alone.
When her fifth month came along and she still wasn’t showing, I got nervous as hell. And grew even more suspicious. I never thought she would do what she did. She didn’t even want us to buy anything for the baby or the nursery. She didn’t want any preparations at all. It would be ‘bad luck’ as she once said.
I called her doctor when she was supposed to have an appointment. I wanted to get the address so I could meet her there. If Jen wouldn’t tell me anything, then her doctor would. I had every right to know how my child was. The OB was surprised that I called. I didn’t get a chance to explain why I had called and ended up giving me more information than she realized. She thought I wanted a second opinion and referred me to a colleague of hers, specialized in fertility treatments.” Anna gasped at that.
By now David was sad and angry as the memories came flooding back. The way he felt when he realized Jen had him fooled. But he was more bitter than anything. He had warmed up in the idea of becoming a father. He hadn’t planned for it but a kid was a blessing to him nonetheless.
All this time Anna was hanging from every word he uttered, wondering how could the man in front of her be so…composed. How could he stay in a loveless marriage? How could he wake up and sleep next to his wife after what she had done? How could he even stand looking at her?
“Yes, she didn’t know about the ‘pregnancy’” he air-quoted the pregnancy part. “When she came home I asked her how it went; ‘Perfect’ was her answer ‘our baby is perfectly healthy’ she said with a smile. She had no shame at all. That’s when I realized how fake she really was.
How could I have fallen for that?! Stupid…That’s what I was…I always trusted her. I always believed everything she told me. I confronted her. Told her I knew the truth. She realized she couldn’t get out of this one and started crying after a while, begging for forgiveness. Said she didn’t know what else to do.
I mean, she was supposed to give birth in less than three months! How can you explain something like that?” he sighed and took a deep breath “You know; if it was a false pregnancy test and she had realized it later or if she had a miscarriage I would have forgiven her. I would have tried…But she deliberately tricked me into marrying her. How could I forgive her? How could I trust her again?”
“Then – Then why didn’t you leave her?” Anna questioned. She always understood that sometimes marriages don’t work out as planned. Sometimes the couple realizes they have made a mistake. They realize they are incompatible. What she couldn’t understand was how can someone throw his or her life away like that? A relationship can’t be a one way street. If they couldn’t work it out, they should get a divorce and start a new life. It would probably be hard at first but they would eventually be happier this way.
David shrugged “We were married. A divorce would only be an easy way out. Maybe we could have worked it out. But…I didn’t feel anything anymore. I didn’t care. I just focused on my work and everything became a routine. She finally accepted it was over and settled for anything she could get.” He cupped her cheek and swallowed hard when she leaned in his hand more.
“And when I saw you, everything changed. My entire world shifted…Just seeing you made my day. I would make any excuse I could to see you, to talk to you, to ‘accidentally’ touch you.” he chuckled “You were my first and last thought when I woke up and went to sleep. My only thought actually. Work wasn’t enough to distract me anymore.
At first, I tried to forget. I was a married man after all. I was always against cheating. I even judged the ones to do something so utterly disgusting. And when I finally couldn’t take it anymore…when I couldn’t follow your stupid rules anymore and told you how I really felt…” his eyes dropped. He remembered the pain he went through when she walked out the door, the pain he still did and it was too much.
She was completely stunned. She was so wrong about him. She had misunderstood everything all along. He wasn’t trying to get in her pants as she originally thought. He actually wanted more from her. But now what? This may have changed the way she sees him but doesn’t change the facts. He is a married man whether they like it or not.
He shook his head as if willing the memories away. Putting everything bad away. “I filed for a divorce the next day. Even if you didn’t believe me, even if I had lost you for good, I had to end it. I would never look at her the same way again. All I could feel for Jen was utter disgust and hate for losing you.” he said, his voice thick with emotion.
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Hey guys! So, I've been meaning to post this earlier, but due to work I haven't been able to type out the entire chapter and it getting really late -too sleepy to write the rest. As a result, I am breaking the chapter in two pieces and posting the first part now and hopefully the second tomorrow.
Please vote, fan and most importantly give me feedback
Souzane
YOU ARE READING
Burning Passion
Short StoryHe pinned her against the wall and kissed her senseless as he fumbled with her clothes, trying to feel more of her perfect body. He kissed her neck, grazing his teeth on her skin and she gasped. His hand caressed the exposed skin on her back and tra...
