Eve turned to look at him, stunned.
The smirk on his face was twisted, more bitter than amused, and she could see the arrogance swimming in his eyes. If this had been in the past, she would have blushed, maybe even nodded with excitement and joy. She would have done everything desperate to please him, to win a crumb of his affection.
But now? Now, the mere thought of his hands on her made her stomach churn.
She didn't speak. Instead, she looked at him, the man who once held her heart, who now felt like a stranger in a well-cut suit soaked in poison.
Then she scoffed under her breath and turned her face away.
Without saying another word, she walked back to the car. Damien stood frozen, his expression faltering for a split second.
He wasn't used to silence. He was used to her begging, her pleading and her compliance. But this? This quiet rejection and dismissal as if he was beneath her, It burned his skin.
His jaw tightened. His eyes followed her with narrowed disdain. And when he finally moved back to the driver's seat, he slammed the door harder than necessary.
"You are my wife," he said coldly once the engine revved back to life. "It is your duty to satisfy me. Or you want me to tell grandpa that the great grandchild he was waiting for would never come because their perfect granddaughter did not want to take the next step even after three years of our marriage."
Eve didn't even blink. She stared straight ahead, her voice icy calm when she finally replied, "I am your wife on paper, Damien. Did you forget you were the one to tell me that your family had forced me on you and you would never love me?"
He glared at her as his knuckles whitened over the steering wheel.
"Who said that I love you now?" he scoffed, "i am only asking for sex not your love!"
"You have many for that," she added, turning her face toward him just enough for him to see the cold smile on her lips, "I am not interested in catching a disease."
His eyes widened slightly in shock. "What?" he snapped with the anger surging in his chest but Eve tilted her head slightly as if challenging him to say otherwise!
"You go with anyone who offers a smile. Have you ever had any of them tested? Or have you used protection everytime?" She leaned back in her seat, voice softening with biting sarcasm. "I am not ready to gamble my health over your lack of self-control, Damien."
The air inside the car thickened with tension. Damien looked like he was ready to murder her. He laughed, but the laughter was so cold that her skin prickled. She could feel his desire to kill and in the next second he straddled her.
"You think you can humiliate me like this?" he growled and he leaned in until his face inches from hers.
"You said it yourself, Damien. I am your wife, not your paid escort. If you can't handle rejection, maybe you are not the man you pretend to be. If you are in need, you can leave and visit them. I will go home by myself." Eve didn't yank her hand back. She looked him straight in the eyes, and for the first time he noticed that she had tongue and strength in her eyes.
His grip tightened, and for a moment she saw something flicker in his eyes with shock and confusion. The woman who once worshipped him now looked at him as if he were beneath her.
"What had gotten into you tonight?" she asked, taking a breath and calming herself. She could not ruin her plans after coming this far. "Are you sure that you want me?"
He looked at her face for a second long before returning to his seat and taking a deep breath.
"You still know how to drive the car?" It took her a moment to understand his intentions but when she did, she nodded with a calm face. The storm had passed.
He nodded and left the car. The doors slammed shut and he was gone. Eve looked at the empty car and then a wry smile appeared on her lips.
She took a deep breath and jumped on the driver seat. She did not look out for him or called him to make sure that he was fine. She just started the car and left from there.
Damien was only standing inches away when the car started. His eyes were so dark as if it had lost all the brightness and full of coldness as he saw the car leaving without a hint of hesitation.
He took out his phone and dialled a number.
"Damien! You finally have time for us. I have called you earlier to inform you that I have sponsored a new girl. And.."
"Zeke! I have a task for you." The man stopped his blabbering at once when he heard the seriousness in his old friend and now boss's voice.
"What is it!"
"Do you know if Eve had made any new friends or spent time somewhere?" Damien asked in a dark voice, making Zeke frown. Everyone in their group knows that Eve did not go anywhere without Damien. For her, her life revolved around him.
Zeke frowned. "Not that I know of," he said slowly. "Eve barely breathes without you giving the go-ahead, Damien. She doesn't go out, doesn't drink, doesn't even answer texts unless it's your family. Why?"
Damien's jaw ticked. His gaze was still on the road where the car had disappeared, but his mind was elsewhere. That look in her eyes, the way she spoke to him with no fear or no need of his approval now. It felt challenging.
"She is hiding something," Damien muttered, more to himself than to Zeke.
Zeke snorted. "What could she possibly hide? She is your shadow. Unless you allow her, she would not even touch a file in the office."
"Zeke," Damien's voice turned deadly calm, "follow her."
"What? You want me to spy on your wife?"