Secretly Mine

"Are you sure you want to do that?"

Christian's voice was full of shock and disbelief.

"I can just break everything off with them right now. You can stay here with me until everything blows over," he said, squeezing my hands. "Leslie, you can just stay here and make plans for our own wedding. You can make it as glamorous as you want."

I looked up at him. My eyes widened and my heart raced. "Christian?"

"Leslie, I'm serious. I'm going to make you my wife. And the sooner the better. I've doubted many things in my life, but this isn't one of them."

His eyes were full of longing, but in the depths of his swirling, deep blue eyes, I could see hints of nervousness. "Leslie, will you marry me?"

My eyes stung as tears began flowing down my face. I always prevented my thoughts from going there, but having him ask me so directly and full of longing, I had to pinch myself to prove this wasn't a dream.

I nodded my head a few times. "Yes."

My words were quiet like a whisper. I felt like I replied any louder, my emotions would overwhelm me, and I would break down crying.

Just as I was struggling to keep myself together, Christian wrapped his arms around me. I looked up just in time to see the tears rolling down his face as he smiled.

"I promise I'll take care of you for the rest of our lives. You won't have to worry about anything," he continued.

My lips curved into a big smile, and I even let out a small laugh. "You're going to spoil me rotten. What if I become like one of those demanding trophy wives who bleeds your bank dry?"

Christian bent down and placed a kiss on my forehead. "Then I'll just have to work a little harder. Not a problem at all."

We both let out a soft chuckle.

I was enveloped in bliss, but I still felt like this was the best way to do it. "I still want to follow my original plan. The thing my father values most, outside of money, is his reputation. If you were to just back out of the marriage now, rumors would spread that you were unfaithful, and your reputation would suffer."

"I don't care about my reputation," Christian argued back.

"But I do. You've suffered enough going through the motions of gathering the evidence. You shouldn't have to suffer with a worsened reputation," I argued back. "Also, this is a bit of a personal revenge. Let me have this."

Christian didn't speak for a long time, only looked into my eyes. I could see the conflicting emotions battling inside of him. I knew he didn't want to blow this up in respect for me. As a member of the Moresi family, my reputation would take a massive blow after all of this was exposed.

"I don't care about my reputation. As long as I can be with you, I'll be the happiest person in the world," I smiled, reaffirming my decision.

"No one will dare disrespect my wife," he said with a slight scowl. But the next moment, he let out a small sigh, "Very well. We'll do it your way. Just let me know if you change your mind, I'll immediately cut things off with your sister."

I smiled, happy that he agreed. "Okay, then, do you happen to have the dress I was in yesterday? I should get changed."

Pulling my hands away, I tried making my way over to the bed, but Christian's hands didn't let me move far.

"I really don't like the idea of you going back to that house. I don't trust them not to repeat their horrible treatment of you," he said softly.

"I'll be okay. I promise. I've lived there for over twenty years, and I can survive another few days." My brows furrowed slightly, "About Karl..."

"He won't bother you anymore," he quickly said.

I raised my eyebrow, "Did you...."

"No. He's alive, but most likely won't be out of the hospital anytime soon. I've already told Zach to file a report against him for drugging you. I don't think he will have a chance to get out of prison in this lifetime," he said quickly.

Relief washed over me. He was my biggest stressor, and I wasn't sure if he would come around and take his revenge on me in the future.

Christian finally let my hands go, allowing me to get my underwear on. "I'll go get your dress. It was delivered earlier this morning."

---

I was sitting in Christian's car, wearing the evening gown that I wore yesterday. The neckline exposed the many marks Christian left on my body, but I didn't care.

We were slowly approaching the neighborhood where the Moresi mansion was. Christian's hand never left my thigh, but he remained silent for the majority of the trip.

"What are you thinking about?" I finally asked, looking over at him.

"I'm thinking I don't like you going back there. It's going to be chaos after what happened at the auction last night," he replied.

The hand that was on my thigh tightened slightly. "I bought you a phone. I've wanted to give it to you for a while now, and regret that I haven't. Open the glove box."

I reached in front of me and opened the glove box. Inside was a small white box.

"Open it," he said.

I lifted the lid of the box and noticed a small black phone sitting snugly in the center. It was smaller than a typical phone these days, but looked sleek and shiny.

"I've never seen a phone like this before," I said, holding it up closer to me.

"I wanted to give you something small and discreet. It's a special model that can't be easily broken into," he explained. "My number is already programmed in there. Call or text me if you need anything."

My lips curved up into a smile as I slipped the phone into my small clutch purse. "Thank you. I'll call you if anything happens."

"Promise?"

"I promise," I smiled.

A few minutes later, Christian pulled up to the gated entrance of my family's mansion. He was about to pull into the driveway, but I stopped him.

"Drop me off right here. I don't want them to see that it was you who dropped me off," I said, pointing to a spot right in front of the main gate.

Christian stopped the car but looked at me with concern. "Are you sure?"

"Yes. I can walk a few steps. Plus, it will make me look a bit more pitiful, don't you think?"

Christian nodded. "Before I forget, no one knows what happened to Karl. Feel free to use that to your advantage."

I nodded.

Before I could open the door, he pulled me over to him and planted a large kiss on my lips. "I'll miss you so much, Mrs. Vittoria."

My face heated up, "I'll only be away for a few days. The end of the month is approaching, so we won't be away for too long. Plus, I can text you now," I said, flashing him a seductive smile.

His eyes darkened slightly as he looked at me with unrestrained desire. "Yes. Text me."

I giggled and nodded, turning to exit.

"I love you, Leslie."

"I love you too, Christian."