Capítulo 4 Aurora

4

"Are you a romantic, Mr Cainn?" I lift a teasing brow."No," Remo answers with a grumble as he looks at the menu, which I am sure he knows with the way the staff is already familiar with him and the table they ushered us to without questioning.

Remo drops the menu on the table and looks at me. My breath hitches all of sudden. I didn't expect him to give me his full attention so fast.

I fidget in my seat under the intensity of his gaze.

"What are you looking at, handsome? Am I that pretty?" I softly tease as I set my own menu down.

Remo blinks, then looks away.

I look around the restaurant, only to spot the last person I would have expected to be here. Kamari is sitting with Ruel, and he is happily talking to her as she nods at him.

"Ruel?" I purposely address Ruel instead of Kamari. Call me petty, but I want to see if I can just get some sort of reaction out of Remo. It's too early, but who cares?

Yes, that's my new mission. To get him to react with his emotions. I want to see something other than amusement and boredom on his face. My heart pumps in excitement at my new foolish mission just to make my life more eventful than it is right now.

Maybe through this deceit, I want to make it more doable. More tolerable. I want to ignore the fact that it's a marriage that has left me no choice.

I glance at Remo. His eyes narrow on Ruel, who spots me and gets up. Kamari follows behind him. The expression on Remo's face makes me question if I really will be able to live with him.

Ruel is a handsome, lean footballer with black hair and a charming smile. His equally beautiful sinful eyes are nothing like Remo's, though. They hold softness to them. Although Ruel doesn't lose control over his emotions, there are sometimes moments where I believe that Ruel's calm demeanour is just a façade.

"Aurora, how long has it been since we saw each other?" He smiles at me.

I love Ruel and just how much of a good person he is. His fame and the spotlight on him haven't once affect him in a negative way, and he stays true to himself.

I think that's what I admire about him the most.

"Well, you are the one who is busier. I am usually in my office, and you can come at any time. Yet here you are, having a nice dinner with Kamari who seems busy. She might have to get home, I think." I get up and give him a friendly hug along with Kamari, who looks ready to kill me right about now.

"Do you? I can eat at home; it's no problem," he assures her, but Kamari rolls her eyes. Ruel will not want to keep her to himself if she has other things to do. He will feel bad about it.

I hold in a laugh as I watch her calm him down.

"No, she's lying. I'm fine here. Why wouldn't I want to eat in such a nice place? Being your assistant has its benefits," she calmly tells him. He gives her a side eye.

I feel the slight graze of a hand over mine next to me and a shadow looming over me. When I look up, I find Remo looking at both Kamari and Ruel, who are bickering about the most random things ever.

"Kamari, Ruel, this is my fiancée, Remo Cainn," I announce, and they stop.

Their eyes dart next to me, and I use this as an excuse to wrap my arm around Remo's arm and step closer to him. He stiffens, and I note to not touch him again like this, but I can't exactly let go of him now.

Kamari may know about this marriage, but Ruel doesn't, and that is enough of a reason to keep this charade up.

"Remo Cainn." Ruel nods at him with no emotion on his face.

"Didn't think my dear Aurora would find her long-lost Prince Charming so fast."

His words make me stand straighter because it feels as if I'm betraying myself with this marriage.

They remind me that I have let go of one dream to chase another, and I was put in a position where I had to decide for myself if survival was the thing I wanted and not love.

My younger self would be disgusted with me. With the lie I have become when I prided myself on being genuine and true to myself.

"I only want to say that because I love Aurora like a sister. She's been the very rock to help me through my hard times, and as you may already know, her personal matters are hard on her." Ruel's words, despite being a little too honest, make me want to leave this place and never look back.

"So please, take care of her."

Tears fill my eyes at his words. His soft tone melts away the doubts I had about myself; because while I may have not received the love I wanted, I got the love that was snatched from me.

Familial love that I find blooming in Ruel, in Kamari.

Remo definitely didn't need to hear that, though, because he isn't going to last. He will leave me the second this is over, and I will be at the same place I am in right now. This marriage may give me money, fame, and the recognition my father prevented me from getting, but I will still feel hollow at the end of the day, because truly, in my heart, I wanted life to complete me in a way. I know I will only have ever taken a step forward in society's eyes, not in my personal life.

"I'm Kamari Ali, Ruel's manager," Kamari introduces herself as she raises her hand for a handshake. Her beautiful black suit makes her look powerful, and when Remo raises his hand reluctantly, he definitely takes her seriously.

"I got the invitation, Aurora. I will be there, and that hall better be the biggest hall I have ever seen." She playfully points at me, knowing well I talked to her last night about how I feel about this whole sham of a marriage and how at conflict I am with myself.

"Only the best of everything for my wife," Remo says, wrapping an arm around my waist for the first time. I look up at him, my lips parting.

"We will be leaving now. We both need to get sleep for the early start tomorrow. Let's go, Ruel. It was nice to finally meet you, Mr Cainn," Kamari says.

I give her a thankful nod.

"Don't forget to call me tonight!" I call as Kamari and Ruel walk away.

Ruel waves at me without looking back, and Kamari gives me a glare over her shoulder.

As soon as they sit back down at their table, I turn around, only to be stopped by a firm hold on my upper arm. I follow the big strong hand up to see a faint frown on Remo's face.

"Are you ready to order, sir?"

A big sigh of relief leaves past my lips, and I bend forward to address the waiter.

"Yes, I would love to have one small Margherita pizza and a large one for my fiancée here." I motion to Remo, and the waiter nods with a smile and walks away.

"Sit down. I don't want to stay standing up when that is all I have been doing all day." Yanking my arm out of his stronghold, I take a seat and take my phone out so I can try to ignore him. Keyword, try.

Remo places both his hands on the table in front of me and leans down so he is eye-level with me, my eyes snap to his. Those midnight-black eyes watch me. Nervousness makes its way inside me, and suddenly I'm afraid if I can lie just as easily in front of him.

"Is there something I need to know, Aurora?" His voice drips with venom; his words harsh and straight to the point.

"Is someone going to pose a problem for me?" He lifts a brow. He doesn't say it out of jealousy. I can see it in his eyes, in the tick of his jaw and his tight grip on the edge of the table.

He could very much think of Ruel as a threat of some kind and could harm him.

My chest constricts as it stops me from breathing properly. I can see the moment his eyes turn bleak. He is waiting for the correct answer to fall from my lips.

My eyes flick away from him onto the table in front of me. I fight back the rush of emotions building up inside of me that threaten to escape.

"What do you care? I will play my part fine, so don't worry about it, Mr Cainn." There is not a single lie in my answer.

"Sit down and let the waiter go past." I lightly shove at Remo's shoulder.

Remo watches me, his eyes darting around my face. I don't allow a hint of anything other than positive emotions to show.

"We will be going on a honeymoon," Remo announces.

I startle, then look away. Where did that come from?

Remo continues to look at me while the waiter places our food on the table. His lashes create a shadow over his beautiful eyes, and the way he looks at me makes me wish it were all true so I could make him fall in love with me. So I could get this handsome man to be mine.

If only.