Filed to story: When His Wife Can’t Forgive
The voice in the recording was unmistakable, too clear to be sleep talk. Worse, Caden wasn’t just listening; he was conversing with her.
“I love having sex with you. It makes me feel incredible,” the recording continued.
Alicia’s heart sank as the words kept playing.
Realizing what was happening, a surge of adrenaline coursed through her. She pushed herself up, reaching desperately for the phone, but Caden skillfully moved it out of her reach.
“I love being in your arms. I love the way you fuck me, the way you look at me and kiss me.”
Before the sentence could finish, Alicia’s panic overwhelmed her.
“Caden! Stop it! Turn it off now!” she shouted.
Caden didn’t bother turning it off, but her shout drowned out the last word.
The recording came to an abrupt stop.
Alicia’s face flushed red with embarrassment. She glared at him. “How could you do this to me?”
Caden wore a sly smile. “Did I force you with a knife to your throat to say those things?”
Alicia had no response.
She wanted to argue back but couldn’t find anything to say. Without another word, she closed her eyes and pretended to sleep.
Caden casually toyed with his phone. “Looks like I’ve got more leverage on you now, Alicia.”
Instead of losing her composure, Alicia found an odd sense of calm in her embarrassment.
She gathered herself and countered, “Leverage? If anything, I was just being honest. You are good in bed, aren’t you?”
Caden’s smile widened. “And you just admitted that you’re into me.”
Alicia fell silent. Acknowledging her feelings felt more humiliating than any talk of their physical connection.
She didn’t want to give him the satisfaction of a response.
After they finished eating, the innkeeper arrived to change her bandages. When Alicia removed her clothes, she discovered dark bruises scattered across her body from the fall down the mountainside.
Her shoulder was fractured, and the pain in her back suggested possible spinal injuries.
After Caden left the room, Alicia turned to the innkeeper.
“Was he hurt badly?” Alicia asked.
The innkeeper raised an eyebrow, looking slightly amused. “You mean that man? Isn’t he your boyfriend?”
Alicia looked down, shaking her head. “No, he’s not.”
“Is that so? Then why’d you go through so much trouble to save him? When I found you two, he was on top of you, practically smothering you in the snow. You were barely breathing. How far did you carry him? Your bones are broken, you know.”
Alicia paused, trying to piece together the hazy memory of what happened right before she blacked out.
At the time, nothing else mattered. Her only thought had been to save him. She had acted purely on instinct, but now, looking back, it felt a bit foolish. In a low voice, she whispered, “Please don’t tell him about this.”
Before the innkeeper could respond, the door creaked open, and Caden stepped inside.
He held a clean set of clothes in one hand and glanced between them. “Don’t tell me what?”
Alicia was caught off guard. “It’s nothing.”
Sensing the tension, the innkeeper smiled knowingly and excused herself from the room.
Caden handed Alicia a freshly laundered shirt. “Here, put this on.”
Without a word, she slipped it over her head. Caden had borrowed the clothes from the innkeeper’s husband, who wasn’t around.
The three of them were the only ones in the small, quiet inn.
Alicia gazed out at the pitch-black sky, watching as the snow continued to fall. “Did you manage to get through to the rescue team?”
“I did. They know we’re safe, but the snow has blocked the road. It’ll take about a week for them to reach us.”
Alicia blinked in surprise. “A whole week?”
However, with the injuries they both had, the idea of resting here for that long didn’t seem so bad.
As the night wore on, Caden took a bath, though the effort nearly drained him. When he finally emerged, he went straight to Alicia’s bed and settled in without hesitation.
“You’re staying here?” Alicia asked, feeling tense.
Caden saw no reason to complicate things. “There’s no room anywhere else. Unless you don’t want me here,” he replied.
Alicia placed her hands firmly on his chest, trying to create some space between them. “We shouldn’t share a bed. I’m a woman, you’re a man. It’s better if we sleep apart to avoid any unnecessary situations.”
She didn’t say it outright, but Caden easily understood her hesitation.
Ignoring her protest, he pulled her into his arms. “Have you ever heard of the Moss family from Averibon?”
Alicia, still in pain, could barely respond. Her voice came out muffled as she said, “I have.”
“The Wards and the Mosses go way back. For generations, we’ve been tied together, both through friendship and business. Over twenty years ago, Dorian Moss was at the top of the scientific world, and his daughter, Yolanda, inherited that brilliance. I need her expertise for something important.”
Alicia paused for a moment, suddenly recalling the business card Yolanda had given her.
Caden continued, “Yolanda has nothing to do with me romantically. She’s just working for me. Do you understand that?”
Alicia paused. Caden’s explanation caught her off guard.
“Why are you explaining this to me now?” she asked uncertainly.
Caden didn’t answer right away. Instead, he gently massaged her sore shoulder. Although he had been unconscious and unaware, he had heard Alicia’s panicked calls. She had desperately searched for his injuries and dragged him to safety. It was clear she was determined to save him, no matter the cost. He was aware of it all.
“You wanted to know, right? That’s why I’m telling you,” Caden’s voice was unusually deep and soothing.
Alicia almost believed he truly cared for her. Unable to resist, she looked up at him.
He leaned down and kissed her lips.
It had been a while since their last kiss, and Caden found himself enjoying it more than he expected, craving more. Alicia didn’t resist; she let him proceed as he wished.
Her response seemed to thrill him. He pulled back slightly and said, “About the scarf Yolanda wore the other day-I forgot it was from you. I bought another one to make it right.”
Alicia was startled. She had been upset about this for quite some time. Yet, hearing Caden’s words eased her distress. She silently chastised herself for her lack of resolve.
Caden’s kiss deepened, and he grew more intense. His desire for her was palpable. Alicia, too, felt the heat between them and whispered softly, “I’m injured…”
Caden pulled back slightly, his voice raspy. “We won’t do anything.”
When he asked, “If you weren’t injured, would you be intimate with me?” Alicia didn’t respond.
The distance that once existed between them had long since disappeared. At first, his interest had been purely physical, but it seemed that had changed; his feelings for her had deepened beyond just attraction.
Alicia had once been concerned with labels and had sought love, but her perspective had evolved. Realizing that life was short, she now understood that being with him was what truly mattered.
Too embarrassed to respond directly, she shifted the topic. “Weren’t you in Averibon? How did you get here so quickly?”
Caden didn’t admit that he had arranged a private jet just to save her. Instead of answering, he asked another question. “When you saw me, you must have felt overwhelmed, right? Don’t you think I’m like a knight saving a damsel in distress?”
Alicia playfully replied, “In that situation, I would have thought anyone who appeared was a knight.”
Caden let out a soft chuckle, and Alicia, feeling a surge of warmth, couldn’t help but smile as well.
However, the tender moment quickly faded when Caden’s wandering hand disrupted it. Her loose shirt made it easy for him to be mischievous.
Alicia tried to stop his hand, but she couldn’t.
His touch was expert and playful.
“You’ve only been unconscious for a day. Why do your breasts seem smaller?” Caden frowned. “You should eat more tomorrow.”
Alicia was irritated. Was that his only concern? Did he like her less now that they seemed smaller?
“If you don’t like them, don’t touch them,” Alicia said sharply, slapping his hand away.
Suddenly, she remembered the call Yolanda had answered, and trying to sound casual, she asked, “When you were on your business trip, did you share a room with Yolanda?”
Caden looked at her with a smile.
“What are you trying to find out?”
His playful tone brushed against Alicia’s ears, light as a feather.
It left her feeling restless and uneasy.
Alicia closed her eyes and turned onto her side, fiddling with the blanket. “I understand.”
“Understand what?” Caden asked, gently playing with her hair.
Alicia hesitated, her emotions in turmoil. “Tell me, what kind of room did Yolanda and I share, and how many times did we…” she trailed off, not wanting to finish the sentence.
Caden’s teasing tone grew more persistent, “A honeymoon suite on the top floor, with all the luxuries you can imagine.”