Chapter 6
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It was the early hours of the afternoon. The twins were busy at school and the mansion was clean. The afternoon sun was out, the canvas of the sky brushed with hues of pink, blue and white tint.
Raina McCoy once again; had nothing to do and so her nose was stuck between the pages of a new book – as usual. She hated having nothing to do, sitting at home like a jobless housewife, which –in a way– she was.
Asides baking and cooking, she had always wished to write a book of her own. Stories were seen in different ways by different people. To someone else, it could just be a work of fiction but to Raina, writing was a world. A world which she had to create on her own.
She loved the thrill of naming her characters, making them however she wished. Giving them flaws and perfection. She had never been to college and had to drop out on her last year of highschool, but she was still as educated as a graduate.
Raina flipped to the next page of her book, snuggled into the covers of her soft and comfortable bed. She then jumped in fright as the door was slammed open. Her eyes widened a bit as Roux Addington walked into her room with a trail of unknown young women.
Never had she seen him in a disheveled or unkempt manner. His hair, his outfit, his shoes, they made it seem like the job he had was easy, but everyday he walked through those front doors looking the same way he had when he left, he silently showed everyone his victory. He was victorious in not letting his job swallow him whole.
Raina placed down her book and slowly got to her feet in confusion. Roux Addington was an unpredictable being who did unexpected things like this one, " Mister Addington? Is everything alright? "
The unknown girls frowned a bit at how she addressed him before recollecting themselves. Why their boss' wife called out to him formally was none of their business. They were just there to do their job and get paid.
" Yes it is. These used to be Thea's stylists and they are here for your testing " Roux Addington gestured at the four females and they waved at Raina McCoy who still looked confused.
" Testing? What testing? "
" The news came in while I was at work that we have both been invited for an interview with Hollie Payne in the next " He stared down at the time on the Rolex adorning his wrist, " Four hours "
Roux Addington was not a stranger to getting interview requests, neither was he a stranger to turning them down but this one was important.
Raina's face paled. Interview? They wanted to interview her? She was silently freaking out and her breaths had begun coming out shortly, " I-interview? I- why? W- "
Roux Addington placed his hand on Raina's shoulder to calm her down, his hand onpassing heat to her bare shoulder. This was as a result of the large shirt she wore which fell off one side of her shoulder, " Calm down, Raina. I would have rejected the offer if it was not important "
Her cheeks immediately heated up and Roux instantly withdrew his hand, taking a step backwards before turning to face the girls, " You four can begin "
The girls nodded in unison as they brought out their equipments from their bags rummaging through them. Two of the girls wheeled a large number of dressed mannequins into the room and Raina blushed harder as Roux Addington sat on her bedroom couch.
Did he want to stay there while she tried on different outfits? Raina thought to herself.
" Uh..Mister Addington? " Raina stared down at her fingers shyly as she fiddled with them. He grunted for her to continue, " You're staying h-here? "
Slowly, Roux Addington looked up from his phone and turned it off, slipping it into the pocket of his dress pants, " I am only here to make sure you chose a fitting outfit, Raina "
" We will need you to take the shirt off now, Ma'am " One of the girls — Imogen suggested and Raina squirmed on her spot. She could not take of her shirt while Roux Addington was present in the room.
Seeing her uncomfortable state, Roux shoved his hands into his pockets and got up from the couch, exiting the room without a word and Raina let out a relieved sigh.
" Are you alright, Ma'am? " Another of the girls, Lola Allen questioned and Raina slowly nodded before taking off her shirt begrudgingly, standing before the girls in just a pair of undergarments.
They ignored the state of her body which she was glad about. It was a memory of her past which she did not like to invite. Albeit, those memories laughed and mocked her whenever she stood bare before a mirror, staring at her reflection. That broken teenager, child.
" Any preferences? " — Maria Green, another of the girls asked as she wheeled forward her favorite collection, causing Raina McCoy to shudder at how expensive all the clothes looked.
Roux Addington had already purchased them all, but he needed them to deliver it and then help her dress up in the finest collection. He would be presenting her to the public for the first time, as his new wife.
" Just anything comfortable. Simple but, elegant "
And simple but elegant she was dressed.
•
As soon as Raina McCoy took Roux Addington's awaiting hand and stepped out of the sleek limousine, her eyes were immediately blinded by the flashes of cameras. She had pleaded with Roux Addington earlier, begged to stay back but one look had her snapping her mouth shut.
A group of buffly built guards on black suits surrounded them, guarding the couple from the sea of reporters that waited to claw at them at any moment. Raina shook in her heels as she stared at the crowd yelling questions at them and taking pictures. She had never gotten so much attention before.
" Roux! Over here! Roux! " A reporter yelled at the top of her lungs as she stretched out a recorder. The guards did their jobs at pushing back the hungry sharks; waiting for a piece of information they could write articles on.
Raina let out a whimper as someone clicked another picture of her, the flash blinding her for a moment. She was at the verge of having a panic attack. Her breaths came out short and she tried not to let it show in her appearance.
Roux Addington sensing her discomfort, pulled her closer to himself and let her bury her face into his blazer as they walked further down the red carpet.
" Mr Addington is it true that you divorced Thea Dawson?! "
" Is this your new wife or just a mistress?! "
" Is she carrying your child?! "
" Where is Thea Dawson now?! "
" Mister Addington! A highschool student claimed to be carrying your child. How true is that?! "
" How is your relationship with Charlie Knight now?! "
More and more questions flooded in.
" There is news that Thea Dawson died in a car crash, is that true?! "
" Where did you have your wedding?! "
" Who is the woman in your arms?! "
" Where and how did you two meet?! "
" How true is the news of you being Transgender?! "
" Were you ever in a relationship with Millie Hall?! "
Some of the questions they fired at Roux left Raina McCoy starstrucked. She knew she was not close to Roux Addington and she only knew very little about him but she knew Roux was not transgender in any way. The questions caused her to shudder. These people were beasts.
Luckily, the duo made it into the news station without getting clawed at and the doors were slammed shut behind them. Raina let out a deep exhale and immediately a young man rushed towards them, " Mister Addington, Miss Addington! thank you both for showing up. I am Robert Villin, right this way "
The couple followed the cheerful man backstage where they could hear Hollie Payne doing her usual live introduction before the cameras. Raina held onto the wall as she felt a bit dizzy. She was going live, her face would be shown throughout the world. Those reporters were ready to dig out her past if they had to. She felt exposed.
" Raina! Hey, calm down. It will be alright. It is just an interview and we would not even be there for up to half an hour. Breathe.." Roux rubbed down her back till her breathing steadied.
" Thank you " She said softly and he nodded curtly at her and took her hand in his, once again. All for the gram. Whatever he did today, he had to make their relationship look real. He was pretty sure Thea Addington was watching the news at the time, perched on a hospital bed in a private hospital room.
He had no time to prepare a fake speech about their relationship but it was nothing he could not handle. He was a business man after all. He was good at giving speeches, whether genuine or fabricated.
The duo watched through the television backstage as someone whispered into Hollie's ear before walking away. Her face broke out into a large grin and she clasped her hands together due to the information of their arrival.
Raina's eyes slowly took in the woman. She looked friendly but the loquacious type. Of course, she had to be if she was a journalist. She was perched on a white chair, dressed in a simple red dress that matched her pale skin perfectly. Her lips were painted with a dark red lipstick to match her dress and she looked fierce, lively. Like a fireball.
" Alright, I just got the news that our special guests are here and I cannot wait to welcome them in so join with me as we welcome the hottest billionaire in England, Roux Addington alongside, his beautiful wife, Raina McCoy " Hollie grinned and the few audience present broke into a loud applause.
" Come on " Roux softly tugged Raina towards him and together, they stepped out of the black curtains and walked further down the stage towards the already prepared interview site.
" You both look absolutely cute together, I am jealous. Have a sit! Welcome, welcome.. "
Raina took a sit besides Roux, putting on a small smile as her eyes scanned the small crowd of guests who cheered for them both.
" Hello to you both cuties and welcome to the Skye Show. Roux, I must say I am over the moon that you accepted my invitation to be interviewed " Hollie fanned her face dramatically and Roux gave a low chuckle as his thumb unconsciously rubbed circles on the back of Raina's palm.
" I had to. Yours came first and I was eager to display Raina to the world " Roux smiled at her and placed a kiss on the back of her palm causing the crowd to coo. Raina stayed silent as she tried to hide her surprise. Roux Addington was a totally different person at the time.
All for the gram, she reminded herself.
" Raina McCoy " Hollie tested, " You are as beautiful as your name is. How are you today, Raina? "
" Good, thank you " Raina replied softly, trying to hide the shake in her voice as she blushed.
" Aww, she seems shy. You do not need to be shy, Raina. At least not for me " Hollie winked before picking up a pile of branded cards and turning to face the guests.
" So there has been a load of questions concerning your newest relationship. People want to know how it happened, when and most especially, how Thea Addington took the news. Was she alright with it or did she pull out a gun on you? " Hollie joked and the crowd broke into a short laughter.
" Well, Thea took it better than we expected. We realized that things did not work out between us so we decided to separate " Roux spoke, the words leaving a bitter taste in his tongue.
The world had no clue. They only knew what they were told. They had no clue that everything happening before them was just a big lie, a contract. Roux wanted to keep Thea Addington's illness private, away from the world.
" Well I am quite surprised because Thea Dawson was always so possessive of you " Hollie giggled, " So how did you two love birds meet? "
Raina cast a glance at Roux before looking away. Earlier, he told her that he had everything under control and she would hold his word on that, " Well, we both met at the café where she used to work. We actually met some months ago when I and Thea's relationship began sinking and well, here we are "
" That is so sweet. Reminds me of a cliché romance " Hollie Payne said dreamingly and Raina almost snorted. Her and Roux Addington's story was far from cliché. What would it be titled? ‘ The Lie ’
Or probably, ' The billionaire and the broken '. It sounded like something Raina McCoy would love to write about.
" So you have children with Thea Addington. How did they take Raina's arrival? " Hollie questioned again with a curious smile. The world knew he had children but he kept their life and identity on a low profile, private. For their safety.
" Well Ethan was ecstatic and Emma took a while but eventually, she came around " Roux Addington answered honestly causing Raina to reminisce on the first time she met the twins and also Emma Addington's comment on her outfit.
" That's so sweet, they love her also. I bet you all are one big happy family! " Hollie gushed and the audience laughed. Psych.
" So how much do you love Raina McCoy? " Hollie wiggled her highlighted eyebrows an the crowd cooed. Roux Addington turned to stare at Raina with a smile, feigning love and affection.
" I love her to the moon and back " He placed a kiss on her hand again and she smiled back at him. They had the crowd fooled as they broke into cheers.
" You two are so cute, I'm jealous. Last thing the fans are dying to see. A kiss for the gram? " Hollie smirked at the couple and the guests chanted the words repeatedly, the sounds echoing through the wooden walls.
" KISS! KISS! KISS! KISS! "
Roux Addington froze and stared at the crowd of people in shock before looking back at Hollie who simply shrugged at him, telling him that was what his fans wanted. And he had to give them whatever they wanted to see to make it believable. He had to make it real but he never expected this.
Inhaling shakingly, Roux faked a smile and turning to face Raina who's eyes were wide. Her heart slammed fiercely against her ribcage and it seemed the walls were closing in on her as Roux Addington leaned towards her and cupped her cheek.
Raina shut her eyes, not being able to stare at him as he pressed his lips to hers, giving the fans exactly what they needed.
A kiss for the gram.
•
The events that took place twenty minutes ago were tattooed to Raina's memory as she sat silently in the limousine which rode them back to the Addington mansion. Roux Addington acted like nothing happened as he typed down on his laptop whereas she was a blushing mess, thanking her brown skin for giving away nothing.
Her lips still tingled from the feeling of Roux Addington's lips on hers and she resisted the urge to press onto the plump flesh. Roux looked up from the computer and stared at her, quirking a brow at her weird attitude and causing her to blush even more in embarrassment.
" S-sorry, it's just that earlier. Uh, you s-stole my first kiss.. " She whispered as she fiddled with her fingers. She had never kissed any man before, too busy in trying to survive to indulge in relationships. She did not even know how to kiss a person.
" I can assure you that I did not steal anything, Miss McCoy. That kiss as well as everything there was fake. It never happened " Roux Addington turned back to his laptop screen.
He was right.
It was all just a bunch of fabricated fables, giving hope to the younglings looking for love.