Love Gets The Best Of Me

With her hands grasping the sheets tightly, Rose Lin bent up to see him sprawling over her body.

She groaned as the pain and pleasure mixed together. The she pushed her hips upwards in an effort for his body to agree with hers even more.

"Relax."

A smooth voice came from the top of her head. However, she also noticed his breathing became much heavier than usual.

Rose Lin unconsciously released her tightly curled fingers and the bed sheet around her crumbled back down.

It was no other than Burke Gu, the man who she had been married to for half a year.

She had loved him for twelve years, so she didn't really mind trusting him with this simple act.

Burke Gu gazed deeply at the bewildered Rose Lin under him. Her seducing eyes, shadowed by the lurking darkness around them.

The moment he entered her, he groaned as hundreds of thoughts flashed into his mind.

This was his wife – his actual wife. As groans and moans echoed throughout the room, he just couldn't believe that he was this lucky.

It felt as if a fire was lit up right in his chest as he lived in the moment over Rose's skin.

He leaned over and kissed her sweet and soft lips, and she moaned, pulling his face deeper into hers.

The next morning,

a pile of paper dropped in front of Rose.

She stopped what she was doing, stunned at being shocked out of her reverie. She took the forms doubtfully and scanned the familiar content.

Wasn't this their agreement, the contract they signed before marriage?

"What do you mean?"

she said, trying to steady her already shaking voice.

There was a two year deadline on their marriage. They'd already been married for half a year, yet he found the time to take it out again. Was there something wrong?

"Look at the third clause," he stated.

She narrowed her eyes at the third clause of their agreement.

"On the basis of both sides' wishes, both sides can perform the duty of a couple."

She was dumbfounded, her tongue tied at the predicament.

Trust Burke to label sex in such a formal manner.

Back then, there was only one clause in their obligation, that Rose didn't need to serve Burke in bed. All she needed was to act like his wife in public.

Once he saw the change in her face, he reached out and buttoned his suit sleeve with one hand elegantly. "You don't have to think too much into it. I'm a man, and I have my own needs to fulfill, and you happen to be the solution," he stated.

A flicker of surprise flashed in her face.

Did she hear it right? Did Burke just ask her to have sex with him?

In fact, she never really heard him speak of this topic till the time they both signed the arrangement.

"It's perfectly appropriate with you as we're already married.

Of course, if you're uncomfortable with it, we can always forget about this."

He was a noble man. He didn't really want to force someone into something they didn't want to do.

"Before the contract expires, I'll add payment to whatever amount you want."

And that was the bell that had rang in Rose's ears.

She raised her eyebrows. "And what if Mr. Gu wants to maintain the relationship after two years?"

The corners of her lips inched up as she leaned in closer, wanting to know what was running in his mind.

"Mr. Gu's sure he won't do such a thing," Burke smiled briefly.

She burst into laughter before nodding her head. "Fine."

That was right. She agreed with no hesitation.

Their marriage was nothing but a deal anyway. It wasn't as if they'd bond emotionally during this plight.

Six months ago, the Lin Fmaily was already on the verge of bankruptcy. It was big news given that they were one of the richest and most powerful families in A City. Rose's father, Ray Lin was taken to jail. While her mother, Lillian Liu, committed suicide. It was up to her to rid the huge amount of debt she'd been put in.

It was in these desperate times when Burke offered her such a lucrative contract.

He helped her save her father and family, while she helped him to get what he wanted.

She didn't really know how it would be done, but she'd do it anyway.

He was her one way ticket out of all of this, and she wasn't planning on letting him go now. Besides, she had a crush on this man for twelve years, so this wouldn't hurt her.

Without any hesitation, she signed the contract.

She married into his family and became the legendary Mrs. Gu.

With the help of her husband, Rose was quick to save the few properties left under her family name and assigned them to the people she could trust. Now, all she needed to focus on was freeing her father and being a good wife.

On their wedding night, they slept on two separate bedrooms. Given that Burke expressed clearly that this was a loveless marriage, he wanted Rose to have no expectations for this union.

Grabbing the contract, she sat still.

Bruce couldn't help but be surprised. He married her in case the last clue would be destroyed. Plus, with her good background, his family wouldn't object to it that much.

Moreover, she was an obedient wife.

Yet, the incident last night couldn't help but leave a trace in Bruce's system. He glared at the ceiling. If he found out who drugged him, he would put that person in a place worse than hell.

"Did you apply the medicine?" His tone was strict and authoritarian, making Rose quiver at the sound.

"Yes, I did," she managed to say, flushing.

Yesterday was her first time, and she felt as if she was limping the entire day due to his desires.

Seeing her flush like that, he couldn't help but think of what had happened that night. It was probably because he hadn't been with a woman for so long that he decided to take it all out on her.

He had been celibate all his life, having no more than two women in the past thirty years.

He couldn't help but feel satisfied that she could give him this much pleasure.

After that accident, Burke went home more often. Although it had become a routine, Rose couldn't help but enjoy his presence more in the household.

It felt as if she had finally submitted to him. And at that thought, she couldn't help but think of the irony of it all.

Before she could go too much into it, Rose regained her composure as she continued to prepare her husband's favorite breakfast.

Besides, she knew for a fact that he had another lover.

Although they were married and she had been a very good wife, she couldn't help but lose it when she could smell the fragrance of another woman's perfume on his suit.

"Do you want to explain yourself?" she remembered herself asking.

Bruce, however, could only shrug in reply. "As long as you're my wife, you won't be replaced."

He didn't answer her question, but it was always like this. Back then, she never really thought that she'd be marrying Burke, the man who she loved for the past twelve years. And now that she finally achieved it, she wanted to be a good wife, whether it was from the heart or not.

And, that she was.

She loved him like a dog would love his master, although she could never really understand why.

He was a cold and calculative man, one who was difficult to love.

However, even then, he was still a good husband – gentle and considerate to all her needs.

When she was sick due to high fever, he came home early to take care of her, even lecturing her as if they were an old couple with only a few years to live.

She remembered how she thought she'd been dreaming. It was then when she opened her eyes and gazed at the armchair to see Burke who was scanning through a business magazine. A yellow light shone from the corner of the room, coating the line of his jaw so delicately.

She was reluctant to make a sound, wanting this moment to never end.

"You awake?" His cold voice was mixed with a trace of exhaustion and hoarseness.

She nodded in reply.

He placed down his magazine and walked to her, placing a hand on her forehead before furrowing his eyebrows. "How are you feeling now?"

"I'm fine." Her voice was still hoarse after sleeping for such a long time. Noticing this, Burke quickly poured a glass of warm water and gave it to her.

"Thank you." She avoided his gaze,

afraid that if she took one more look, she'd fall deeper into his eyes.

"Your fever is down. Get a good sleep tonight," he said, tone still cold and indifferent.

Without another word, he sat back down on the armchair and continued to scan over the magazine. As she looked back, Rose couldn't help but smile.

He wasn't as indifferent as she thought it was.

With that thought, she drifted back to sleep.

When she woke up again, the moon had already risen up and the darkness had waved over her once more. Bruce's shadow was seen at the balcony, and from the looks of it, he was talking to someone.

As she was about to call him, Burke was already rushing into the bedroom. He threw a coat in and went right outside hurriedly.

"Where are you going?" she called. After having him here the whole day, she wanted it to be like that till tomorrow.

It took a few seconds for him to register that she had awaken as he looked up, raising his eyebrow. "I've got to go. Get some sleep."

He shut the door as he left.

Rose scrunched up her eyebrows and glanced at the clock beside her.

It was 02:15.

Where did he go at this hour?

That question left so many thoughts in her head only for her to find out that he wanted to visit his lover, Amanda Zhao.

Her nickname was the same as Rose's middle name, Amy.

The first time he called out that name, Rose was still blind of sheer passion. She thought that it was her.

Only to find out that it was actually another woman.

It turned out it was true, that he had a fling with another woman. With that thought, she buried all her emotions down to the bottom of her heart.

Now that he had forgotten all about their past, she felt at lost on what to do.

It was just another embarrassment for her.

Back then, all she wanted was to be married to him. Turned out, she was taking marriage way too seriously.

As much as she wanted to forget it, she still couldn't as she hoped that no matter what happened, she still had a place in his heart.

However, it still didn't go the way she wanted. Under the agreement, Burke had always been a stickler for rules while she continued to desperately chase after him.

As time had passed, she could remember his every habit, taste, and detail, making sure that she would not leave anything behind.

Rose was so tired that she sneered at him. "You've married me, yet you have another woman in your thoughts? Where's your respect?"

Seeing Amanda's beautiful figure beside her man only boiled her temper further.

Burked raised his head and stared at the angry woman in front of him. He placed his newspaper on his lap. "Are you jealous?"

Back then, her pride was nothing when Burke offered her this. However, now, her will was suddenly ignited. She flushed as her soft brows rose just a bit. "I'm just worried that I'll be gossiped on by your coworkers."

It was rare for him to stand this type of temper. He shrugged, pulling her into his arms.

"What–what are you doing?" she yelped.

"It seems I don't show my love enough to you that you're starting to think too much." He leaned and kissed her on the lips, expertly moving his tongue inside her.

At first, she tried to resist only to find herself falling deeper into his arms.

"Okay," he whispered. "I won't touch another woman,

including Amanda Zhao."

"Can you cut off all your contacts with her?"

Rose frowned.

"No, I can't."

Rose could only close her eyes at his proclamation,

wondering if any of this was real.

A part of her didn't care anymore if he had another woman,

or if his concern for her was only a spur of the moment. She really did love him, and there was no point resisting.

11th June was their wedding anniversary, and Rose was restless. She kept looking at the pointers on her watch, wondering why Burke still did not show up when it was already seven in the evening.

She picked up her phone from the table, eyeing the details of Burke's number. It took a few minutes of hesitation and thinking till she finally dialed him up.

"What is it?" There was a sense of tiredness tied into his words when he finally spoke up. He must've had a hard day from work.

Rose froze for a while, trying to register what he was saying.

She couldn't help but hate how he was always like this, so cold to her. Even when it came with making love, it felt as if he was in a business meeting, just making similar transactions.

'Maybe he isn't like that to Amanda.'

A snide voice entered her thoughts, making her grip her phone even further.

"What's wrong?" he repeated. This time, he sounded even more impatient.

Rose covered her phone with both hands, trying to prevent all the turmoil in her head from showing. After a few seconds of calming down, she tried to keep her thoughts in order and emotion out of her voice. "I just wanted to ask when you'll come back."

"I'm in a meeting. I'm not sure when I'll get home, okay?" he answered coldly. However, after a few moments of thinking it over, he paused. "I'll try to be home by nine"

"Alright," she replied softly.

He ended the call first.

As she watched the screen of her mobile phone gradually darken, she couldn't help but feel ridiculous.

Sitting alone in the quiet room, she felt nothing but disappointment overwhelming her heart.

Even after being married for a year, she still didn't know her place. What was she expecting? It was her own wishful thinking that things would make a difference after countless months of being with one another. She might as well get used to living in this big room alone.

Just as a mocking smile reached her lips, her phone rang.

"Hello?"

"Hi, Mrs. Gu. Would you like to get the cake today?"

She remembered that she had ordered from the bakery a week ago.

Rose built such an elaborate plan for them to celebrate their anniversary, yet he didn't even budge.

It seemed she was meant to be alone in this marriage.

"Mrs. Gu?"

Rose tightened her grasp on the phone. "I'll fetch it now. Keep it for me."

She didn't even gave him a chance to respond when she hung up the phone. Rose grabbed her car keys and went out.

She was used to these, handling things on her own.

There was a road that was under construction on the way to the bakery shop downtown. A few vehicles went down the deserted section. Today, even the street lights went on strike.

Driving the car, Rose felt flustered.

The phone screen on the passenger seat lit up. As she was about to check it, she heard a bang and the whole car shook violently as it fell into a huge pit.

"That's not a good sign," she murmured to herself. As she got off the car, she found that the front of her car had sunk deep into the construction pit.

It seemed she couldn't even push it out at this point.

This had been a birthday gift from Burke. He had given her a Ferrari without hesitation, and it'd be a great waste if she damaged it.

With no street lights and no cars in sight, it seemed she'd be waiting for a long time to get some help.

She pushed a strand of hair from her forehead and sighed, dialing up the trailer.

However, the moment she was about to call, her phone died.

She really was helpless this time.

Although there were a few cars that passed by occasionally, they wouldn't be able to see her. Plus, it'd be dangerous to stop them herself with no lights.

Since it was a suburb area, there weren't any houses either. Sitting at the edge of the road, her clothes stuck to her skin as the night wind blew.

She looked around,

finding it difficult to breathe.

It should've been a great wedding anniversary, only for it turned into this howling mess.

The road was quiet at night, except for the occasional passing of cars.

Holding her knees together, she started recounting different ways to deal with this mess.

As she was thinking, she heard a frightening creak behind her.

It was a sound of a fist colliding with flesh.

Her ears perked up as she scrambled back up, trying to find the source of the sound.

As she continued to walk, the sound was growing louder and louder.

She was already shivering from fear.

In a dark alley along the road, someone was lying in a puddle of blood. He had stopped moving as two tall men kept hitting him with sticks.

Rose screamed at the sight, wanting nothing more than to cover her eyes.

With her eyes wide open in surprise, Rose regained her footing. She was wearing high heels, if she did run, there wouldn't be much hope for her yet. Her mind was already raising with calculations as she dug deeper into her handbag, clutching her pepper spray and an alarm. Tina Tao, her friend, had laughed at her back then when she was with those two every day. Who would know that she'd find them useful today.

Noticing her, the two men sneered at Rose before advancing towards her, gripping their blood stained sticks. At that moment, the alarm was pulled off. Then Rose grabbed her pepper spray and sprayed them in different directions as if trying to ward them off.

The alarm had attracted the attention of a car passing by.

Seeing that the tables had turned, the men could only curse in fervor. One of them threw a stick towards her. Unable to dodge it, it hit her right at the back of her head, causing for her to collapse at the immense pain.

Clutching the pepper spray, Rose saw the two jumped to a motorcycle and went away. She leaned against the wall and slid down slowly as if she had lost all her strength in an instant.

She took a glance at the man lying in the blood. She then supported herself to get up and staggered over. The man was seriously injured and his face was covered with blood. Fortunately, he was still conscious. He looked at Rose with his mouth moving as if he was saying something.

However, she couldn't hear him.

"Don't worry. I'll call someone to save you. Hold on," she whispered.

His injuries needed to be treated or else he'd die. She took off her high heels and stumbled into the roadside, waving up her heels in a call for help.

Finally, it attracted some help. The next she knew was that she was also being carried into an ambulance.

Before she could help it, everything went black.