I pick up the photo on Alexander’s nightstand, my heart twisting at the sight of it. We’ve been married for months now, and even though I’m the one he falls asleep with, it feels like Jennifer is still the one he thinks of when he closes his eyes. I think back to the way he used me to make her jealous, the way he held me in his lap on that rooftop bar. It was all a show… for her.
The bedroom door opens suddenly, and I jump, startled. The photo frame slips out of my hands and falls to the floor, the glass shattering into hundreds of pieces. I gasp and bend down to pick up the frame, cutting myself with one of the shards as I do so. I hiss in pain, a drop of blood appearing at the tip of my finger.
“Fuck, Elena,” Alexander says, rushing over.
I look up at him, panic engulfing me. “I’m sorry,” I tell him, my voice shaky. “I shouldn’t have touched it. I’m so sorry. I’ll replace the frame, Alec. The photo… the photo can be saved.”
His gaze drops to the broken frame, and his eyes widen. He sighs and shakes his head, and my heart drops. I feel both ashamed to have gotten caught touching something that’s obviously precious to him, and incredibly hurt that the person in the photo with him isn’t me.
He bends down and lifts me into his arms in one fell swoop, one hand behind my back, and one underneath my knees. I gasp and throw my arm around him. “What are you doing?” I whisper.
Alexander shakes his head. “Clumsy, wifey. You need to be more careful. What if you cut yourself really badly? What if the cuts leave scars?”
He puts me down on his bed and kneels down in front of me, assessing my hands. He brings my finger to his lips, sucking down on it. I’ve never seen him so concerned, so worried.
“I’m fine, Alec. But the photo…”
He smiles at me, his eyes flashing with satisfaction. “Such a good girl, calling me Alec. Feel free to smash everything in our bedroom if it’ll finally make you call me Alec outside of bed.”
He looks at me and I pull my hand to my chest, cradling it, suddenly feeling vulnerable. “Fuck the photo,” he says. “It has no place in our bedroom. I should have removed it the day I married you. I’m sorry, Elena.”
I look at him with wide eyes. This is the first time he’s ever called his bedroom ours, and to get rid of that photo… I doubt he knows how much that means to me. He cups my cheek gently, his eyes blazing with sincerity.
“I’m sorry, Elena,” he repeats.
I shake my head, flustered. “There’s nothing to be sorry about,” I tell him, feeling conflicted. I don’t feel like I even have the right to be angry about the photo. He’s promised me many things, but never love. It’s always been clear to me that that’s been reserved for Jennifer.
“Stay here,” he tells me as he grabs his phone and walks out of the room.
A minute later the housekeepers walk in with cleaning supplies, Alexander right behind them. He oversees their work with a frown on his face. “I don’t want a single shard remaining,” he tells them. “If my wife cuts herself on even the tiniest piece, I’m firing all of you,” he threatens.
I look up at him in surprise. He’s changed since the incident with Marcus and Lucian. When he looks at me now, his eyes are filled with remorse. He’s treating me better, and while I’m enjoying this softer version of him, I wish it wasn’t born out of guilt.
He looks back at the shards on the floor and then walks over, pausing in front of me. “How do you feel?” he asks. “Are you in any pain?”
Alexander glances over and grabs my hands, checking for cuts, and I shake my head. I’ve never seen this side of him. “I’m fine,” I tell him, but he continues to check my arms, before kneeling down in front of me to check my feet.
My eyes widen in shock when Dr. Taylor comes rushing into the bedroom. “Mr. Kennedy,” he says, walking over to us.
“Alec,” I whisper. “Please tell me you did not call Dr. Taylor over because of some tiny cuts.”
He purses his lips and ignores me, turning to the doctor instead. “My wife cut herself,” he says, still on his knees in front of me.
My cheeks are bright red, and I hang my head in shame before gathering the courage to look at Dr. Taylor. “Um, they’re essentially just paper cuts,” I tell him, my voice small.
Alexander shakes his head and holds my finger up for the doctor, who somehow manages to keep his expression perfectly blank. “They’re not just paper cuts,” he says. “She could get infected. There are cuts on her feet too.”
Dr. Taylor nods and kneels down in front of me, a medical kit on the floor beside him. “I see, Mr. Kennedy,” he says, nodding, as though Alexander is right, and my injuries are actually grave.
I look at Alexander wide-eyed. “You can’t just call a doctor over because of some tiny little cuts, Alec!” I whisper-shout.
Dr. Taylor tries his hardest to suppress his smile, but he fails, while Alexander just ignores my reprimands.
Alexander staring at the doctor so hard that even I am nervous. All he’s doing is touching my hand and feet, but the way Alexander is looking at him is so threatening that I feel bad for him.
Dr. Taylor and I both breathe a sigh of relief when he’s done, and Alexander finally relaxes when he packs up his stuff.
He greets us politely before walking out, and Alexander stares at the closed bedroom door. “I don’t like him,” he says. “I don’t like the way he looked at you, the way he touched your feet. He’s too young to be a doctor anyway. I’m requesting another background check on him.”
I bite down on my lip to keep from bursting out laughing. “You don’t like the way he touched my feet?”
He looks at me, dead serious, and nods.
“I mean, yeah, he’s quite handsome, isn’t he?” I say, my tone teasing.
He frowns and grits his teeth. He grabs my chin and turns my face toward his. “You’re mine, Elena. Your body is mine, but make no mistake, your every thought is mine too. Don’t you dare even dream about anyone else.”
I smile at him provocatively. “Oh, yeah? And what will you do if I don’t listen? The way you touched me after you found out I went shopping with Lucian was amazing…”
He looks at me through narrowed eyes and lifts me into his arms, repositioning me on the bed before leaning over me.
“Elena, don’t tempt me. Your injuries won’t stop me.”
I laugh, I can’t help it. “Injuries, huh?” I whisper, my fingers tracing over his face. I pull him closer and kiss him, startling him.
He grins and lowers himself on top of me, kissing me gently, carefully. I whimper underneath him, eager for more. “You do realize that I’m not actually injured, right?”
He holds himself up on his elbows and looks into my eyes. “But you are,” he says. “I don’t want to see you hurting in any way, Elena. I don’t want any harm coming to you—not even something so small as a paper cut.”
I smile at him, my heart twisting painfully. He’s hurting me every single day by withholding the one thing I want from him most. Things have gotten much better between us lately, and he’s never treated me this well before, but it’s not love.
