Wife of the Modern Cupid

"I will not marry that old man, dad!" I said, yelling, trying to convince my father.

We are currently having our dinner. My father is twitching his pasta with the golden fork in his hand.

"We are not discussing this anymore, Valerie. You are going to marry him because that is necessary," dad said in a calm tone.

I throw my stare at my mother who is currently eating her vegetables salad. She just gave me a blank face, meaning she will not be going to help me out of this situation.

"Dad, he's old enough for me. I am still young. I just graduated from my baccalaureate degree. Now, I am going to marry? It's quite funny! No! It's hilarious!"

Dad continually being the coldest man on Earth. He didn't even think that this matter was concerning me and the rest of my life.

"It doesn't matter now, Val. Age is just a number. Maybe he's old enough compared to you. But at the end of the day it's his money that matters."

"You're just making me think that I am not valuable to you, dad," I said, removing the napkin placed on my chest.

"And where do you think you are going, Val? Don't be disrespectful. Everything about this marriage is always concerning you and your future." Dad was quite serious. I stopped lifting my ass and put it down again.

"Dad..."

"Val, I and your mom talked about this. This is really for you. And you will never understand this now. But hopefully, you will understand this in the future."

"How could this be concerning me? It's making my life a total nest of sadness. I don't want to live my marriage with someone I don't love, dad."

My mom cleared her throat.

"Valerie, I and your dad are both getting old. You are young, you should have a lot of possessions and you should live a wealthy life after we leave."

I rolled my eyes. I don't know what to do anymore.

"Mom, if you are doing this because you think that I don't have a plan to work and earn, please, stop. I am reading my application papers and make it ready to be submitted in every company I know. Perhaps, I can enter your company as a financial-"

"You are not going to live a life, working all day. You are destined to marry Eldifonso Suarez."

I closed my eyes. Slowly, I let go of the warm air.

Eldifonso Suarez is rumoured as the top businessman in the whole Asia. He owns airlines, ships, buildings, resorts, restaurants, event centers, and arenas where celebrities are having concerts.

"Dad, I can't. I haven't seen his face."

I am not being judgemental but it is unimaginable to marry a man I haven't seen.

"Like age, physical appearance doesn't matter nowadays."

"Have you seen him? Have you met him?"

"No one does, Val," mom answered.

I covered my face with both of my palms. It's depressing me. I can't handle things like this.

"Then how on Earth did you declare marriage with him? We didn't know if he likes me or someone who is a con will pretend to be Eldifonso Suarez and take me away and kill me."

"You better finish your dinner. You will attend a masquerade ball, right? Mister Suarez is said to be coming in that ball. His assistant sent an email. He said that you should wear this diamond ring," mom said.

This is really unbelievable.

My parents were doing this for a long time. I feel groomed by my own parents. They took care of me for a long time and made the most beautiful lady out of my innocence, and made me marry a man they haven't met themselves.

"No more chit chat, Val. Make it quick. I heard that it is important to have time management if you are going to marry Eldifonso."

My parents left me with no choice.

After dinner I went to my room and fixed myself.

I am wearing a black, silky, and soft long gown. My back was revealed. I took the diamond ring that Eldifonso said I should wear.

Holding tight to my LV wallet and the silver mask, I am walking down the stairs. My parents were waiting for me.

"Oh, lovely. You look like a flower in the midst of the night, Val."

Dad was always praising me. But he was treating me like a good business. Certainly, he was in to this marriage because of money.

If it is only me who decides. I would prefer to look for a man that is my taste, I love, and no money or business involved in our marriage.

"My daughter has grown up to be the most beautiful woman in this country," mom said with her eyes starting to gather tears in their corners.

A sudden smile flashed before their eyes.

"I have to go," I said.

"Be well, Val."

"Enjoy, love," said my mom.

I walked abruptly off outside our mansion.

I don't get my parents. We were wealthy, stable, and fancy. But they were both eager to get more possessions, connections, and widen their names in the field of business.

Maybe, they really can't find contentment in the things that we have. Even though they might lose me all the way, it doesn't matter to them.

The van was waiting for me to enter. I also stumbled because of my high heels.

I sat quietly while the driver drove fast.

When we arrived at the hall. Two men were waiting for me.

The door opened so I stepped out.

"Miss Valerie Wills?"

I showed them the ring I wore and they nodded at me.

We walked in the altar where many masked people were standing, dancing, and chit chatting.

They brought me to the room where everything is red. A few white curtains added taste to the surrounding.

"We will leave you here," said the man on the left.

The other man pulled the chair and he assisted me until my butt kissed the chair.

"Take your seat, Miss Valerie."

I did.

They really left me here alone.

I rolled my eyes for the nth time because until now he was still not around.

The audacity of him controlling others' time and movement while he couldn't submit to his own words.

I got chills when I heard how the door made a sound as it opened. I really wanted to move my head and turned to face the door. But there's a force controlling me, making me steady looking at one corner.

The sound of his steps ruled over the room. I suddenly closed my eyes and I almost lost control of my weight because of his smell.

His aroma was corrupting every corner of this room. It was strong as his posture, not reactant as a warrior, and uncontrollable as the Jordan River.

"It's my pleasure to meet you, Miss Wills," his masculine, cold and husky voice said, trying to swim in the depths of my bones.

My jaw dropped when this man made me feel stiffened. This was unusual for me. Even if it were my parents, they couldn't make me tongue-tied. But this man with a half faced mask. He literally makes me want to be obscured.

He stopped in front of me and took my hand. He kissed it. My soul could feel his lips caressing the back of my hand.

I can't say anything. I just kept staring at him.

"Miss Wills, how are you? Are you ready for tonight?"

When he asked that, I immediately got nervous. It was as if my heart wanted to escape from my chest.

"M-Mister Suarez." Even mentioning his name was like a curse, and I couldn't do it properly.

"Don't be too nervous, Miss Wills. Tonight will be fun," he told me.

And then he only let go of my hand after he kissed it again.

He sat down and immediately the two men entered. One was carrying a food tray and the other was carrying two goblets and a bottle of expensive wine.

There is steak on the plate and pasta as well. My steak was well-done and his was medium rare.

"Leave us," he said to the two men.

When the boys were gone, he looked at me.

"Don't stare at me that way, Miss Wills. I might think that I committed a crime against humanity and against you," he said after he caught me looking at his masked face.

"I apologize," I said.

I looked down at his hands that were busy cutting his steak. He cut it gently.

I don't know why there's a tickling sensation running in my spine when he stabs the sliced steak with his fork. I felt like I was the steak he pierced with a fork.

"Would you like me to slice your steak for you, Miss Wills?"

His voice was deep. I don't know why everytime he speaks I feel like I'm receiving death threats.

"I can manage," I said.

"Surely, you do."

Our eyes met. He has blue grey eyes and his lashes were long. His thick eyebrows also came out. The tip of his nose was moulded into the half mask on his face.

I looked down at his reddened lips. As if they were always wet.

Overall, even though he is wearing a mask I can say that he is really handsome.

His body was lean and athletic.

My parents told me that he was old. But I feel like I am talking to an amazon man who is the same age as mine.

I am afraid that he will see me studying his face again. So I better move my steak.

I was shaking while cutting the steak. I'm not cold, but I feel like I'm constantly shivering.

The silence was deafening.

"Why are we here?" I asked as I turned my gaze around.

I felt like I was on the set of a thriller film. Even the items inside this room are awesomely freaking me. There are chains hanging on the wall. It's also a sofa with a slightly curved design that I think is difficult to sit on.

He said nothing. Even though I hesitated, I continued to speak.

"Why don't we go out and join the people at the party?"

"Miss Wills, we are here to discuss what we will do tomorrow and not to nail ourselves on the dancefloor."

"What?!"

"Yes, Miss Wills. We will now talk about our preparations for our wedding which will be held soon."

My hand tremors got worse.

The wedding hasn't happened yet but I feel like I'm already trapped in a place far from civilization.

"Why did you choose me, Mister Suarez?"

"There is no reason not to choose you, Miss Wills. And why not?"

"You don't know me."

He stopped eating. "You, Miss Wills. Do you know me?"

It was just a simple question but because of that the knife I was holding completely fell on the table.

"T-That's the biggest problem," I said.

"It's better that we don't know each other, Miss Wills. It would be an exciting marriage," he said as if his line had a deep meaning.

Silence reigned between us again. I could barely finish my steak and didn't even touch the pasta.

If earlier I could look him in the eyes, now I can't. It was as if I was stepping on the ground of fire, afraid to step and unable to move.

He took the bottle of wine and I heard the sound of opening it. The cap of the bottle rolled to the floor and I smelled the grape flavor of the wine, but it had a strange boldness.

In a few seconds, he carried the bottle and poured wine to our goblets.

The sound of the pouring wine and its smells dominated inside the room.

In silence, he carried one of the goblets and placed it near my plate.

"One thing it takes to be my wife, Miss Wills. You should love wine more than you love me."

I am intrigued. Even though I was dazzled by his eyes, I still tried to endure and stare at him.

"Sorry," I said.

"The goal of my business is to produce the best wine, Miss Wills. I guess your parents never told you about that."

"I'm sorry," I said awkwardly.

He was right. My parents never told me about his business and about him. They just sent me here to meet this man who was really intriguing and mysterious.

"I'm not sorry sorry, Miss Wills. Gladly, you are yet to be a wife. If you are already, I will punish you until you beg on your knees," he said huskily.

His voice slaughtered the little courage I struggled to build inside of me. I can almost lose my balance.

"Mister Suarez, let's go to the party," I said with a deep fear in my tone.

My mouth suddenly opened when he cupped my trembling hand.

"Calm down, Miss Wills. We won't go to the party either. This is already our party. Just the two of us. We will drink together and dance the rest of the night." He made me hold the goblet.

His index finger went to my chin and he pushed it up. Our faces were facing each other but my eyes with tears forming on each side kept staring at my hand that was shaking from holding the goblet.

"Cheers for our marriage," he said.

He bumped our glasses.

Because of the fear that he might hurt me, I raised my hand. When my lips reached the mouth of the goblet, I gently pushed it so that I could drink.

At the same time as the wine flowed down my throat, my tears fell under my mask. Somehow as the wine wetted my throat I felt a little relaxed.

"That's what I like, Miss Wills. You drink too much. Surely we will not have difficulties in our marriage," he said.

He stood up and came to me.

"May I have this dance?" he asked me with his head down.

I put my hand on his outstretched palm. He stood straight and supported me.

The music suddenly played. It was a romantic classical piece, but for me it was the background music of a horror film.

Dancing with this mysterious man made me feel like I am Psyche. As she was with the man she never saw before, she was loyal and honest to him. Pursuing her love for her unseen husband wasn't easy. But still he managed it.

As for me, I can't even say no to this man. We just met now, but I think he already held tight on my neck.

The sway of our hips on the dance floor became intense. He was a good dancer.

"I wonder how many women you danced with," I commented.

He drew his lips close to my ears and that made me have chills again.

"It was only your hips I hold like this, your hand I take to be mine, and you I want to dance the rest of my life," he said.

I just closed my eyes when his lips landed on my neck. He kissed that part of my body. That sensual kiss delivered the message clearly to my brain-I hate to say this but I like that kiss.

His lips crept up to the back of my ear and his arms gradually tightened around me.

Even though the music was loud, my heart and breath were beating faster as if someone was chasing me.

I moaned because of his soft lips that relentlessly kissed the sensitive part of my body.

"M-Mister Suarez," I muttered softly.

He distanced himself from me. His arms that were wrapped around my body let go. He held my hand and immediately raised our hands to hold each other.

He spins me around.

I just closed my eyes while my heart calmed down due to the strength and speed of the heartbeat.

My feet are getting lost in passing, they can no longer keep up with the rhythm of the instrumental music. My dancing skills suddenly disappeared. It's like my feet are both left.

I regret letting out a low growl earlier. I think he is just playing with me or should I say, this man was teasing me.

He was unreadable. Just like he wears a mask, his true personality is also hidden.

Who are you, Mister Suarez? All people know about him is that he is the richest businessman in the country and even beyond.

The beat of the music was about to end, but before the music stopped completely, he pulled me closer to him. I moved a little while his hand rested on my back.

God, what did my parents do to me?

If only I had known that everything would end up like this, I would not have gone to school.

That's why they are strict with me because of their plan. Every move I make, food I eat and way of speaking are watched by my parents. Now, I understand why they are doing that. This is the reason. They want me to grow up beautiful, smart, sexy and nice because they will set my marriage for this man.

"You're such a good dancer, Miss Wills."

He brought me to our table. And then he let go of my hand when I was already sitting.

The slowness of time sucks. I want the time I spent together with Eldifonso to be over. Because I just feel so conscious when I'm with him.

Admittedly, I like the way he kissed the side of my neck and the back of my ear. But it seems like he did that just to hang me and make me excited for him.

I didn't wait more than an hour for him to give the signal that we were going to part ways tonight. It's brilliant though.

"Miss Wills, I don't want you to be late tomorrow. I will send my men to fetch you and bring you to the venue of our meeting."

"W-What?"

"You are beautiful. But a bit deaf," he said mischievously. "I said that I will have my men pick you up tomorrow. Aren't we going to talk about our marriage? You forget so quickly," he said.

He looked into my eyes, before he looked at the door.

He clapped twice.

After his applause two men entered.

The men stood next to our table.

"Prepare the car for Miss Wills," he said to the two.

"Yes, master," the two responded at the same time.

His men feared him. Even if he orders them to do simple things, they always seem to be confused and afraid of making mistakes.

"But I have a car. My driver is waiting outside," I told him.

"I do not agree that you will go home without my staff to take you."

I couldn't stop rolling my eyes. It's a good thing because he didn't seem to notice.

"Our men are trustworthy," I said.

"I don't care about them. It's my duty to keep you safe until you are home. Look, it's almost midnight," he persisted as he looked at the expensive watch on his wrist.

He stood up and turned his back on me. I studied his features. But I ended up asking myself who he really was. And what is his personality behind his mask and being mysterious?

His phone rang and he immediately answered it.

"Alright, wait there and let Martin pick her up."

I quickly stood up then I lifted my gown a little so I wouldn't step on the end of it.

When the door opened I saw the Martin he was referring to standing on the side. I was about to reach the door when he ran and caught my hand.

My gown was piled on top of the tiles when I turned to him.

His eyes locked on mine.

What is this man's problem?

Why did he stop me?

"Y-Yes?"

He pulled me closer to him. His eyes were talking to me, but I didn't know what he wanted to say.

"Don't you think that you forgot something," he said.

Oh damn! I really don't know what he was trying to say.

I can now smell the aroma of his breath, it smells like steak but it was still good and mesmerizing.

He wet his lips from the bottom before the top. I think I get his words.

Do I really have to do that before leaving him? Am I really going to kiss him? Should I?

"Miss Wills, what now?"

Alright, I'll do it. I also need to get used to kissing him. Maybe it's not bad that I kiss my future husband.

I tiptoed, I asked for support from his arms soI clung tightly on them. When our faces were only a few inches away from each other, I closed my eyes.

Suddenly I could feel how a magical song was played in my head.

Because of the sensation caused by that kiss, my nail was buried in his skin even though there was a cloth between us.

My knees shook as he pulled me closer to him until there was no more space between us.

I can feel the heat of his body while we are kissing each other passionately. His soft lips were caressed on mine gently and it was giving me pleasure.

I let go of heavy sighs in the middle of our kisses. I can't think straight now. My mind was stolen by the heavenly kiss we were sharing.

I don't know if that was enough. But I pulled my own body before where this kissing will lead us to. Perhaps, it's not the right place to surrender my virginity. Definitely, it is not the right time for that. Even though he is my future husband, I still have to give control of everything.

"Are we good now? I guess I don't have anything forgotten." I chased my own breath. "Right, Mister Suarez?" I asked.

His lips curved. He turned his body and got something from the table.

My jaw dropped when I saw him holding my wallet.

"This is what you forgot, Miss Wills."

I was dumbfounded. "Holy shit," I murmured in a low voice before I took my wallet from him.

"Don't be embarrassed, Miss Wills. I liked that kiss," he said with a naughty voice.

"I hate you," I said, cursing his name inside my head.

With embarrassment I felt, I turned my back and walked quickly.

He could have said that I left my wallet.

Why was there a need to be like that?!

Wasn't it easy to say that I forgot my wallet on the table?!