" painful arguments. "
"WHAT THE FUCK does this mean, Rainer?"
I yell, chuckling as the blonde man in front of me paces around the room back and forth.
"Just stay still and fucking answer me!" I beg, my voice louder and even more demanding as I approach him. Rainer doesn't respond, his eyes are glued to the two walls he's been walking away and towards for the past few minutes.
I grab him by the shoulders, forcing him to stop and look at me. His gaze avoids mine and I'm infuriated, more if that's even possible because murderous is an understatement.
"Look, Gold, I didn't think she would say that—"
"Is it true, Rainer?" I'm calm, my voice gentle and soft, unlike before when I sounded like I was seconds away from murdering someone.
He scrunches his eyebrows. "What is true?"
"That you love her and are going to leave me." I'm quick to respond.
"What? No. Never, Sunshine. You know I'd never do that to you, it's you that I want." He finally looks at me with his sparkling green eyes.
This may just be the last time I'm going to look him in the eye like this.
"Yeah, I bet you told all of the girls you slept with that too."
His face is robbed of all its emotion, his pupils aren't dilated anymore, and for once, I realize how tired he looks. His eyes droop low and he licks his lips before nibbling on his bottom one.
"Gold." The nickname I once thought so dearly of. The nickname that I cherished and accepted with warmth. It's now the nickname that I dread hearing because I know there's only one person that can say it.
"Don't call me that." I avoid his gaze.
"Aurelia.." Rainer's voice is lower than a whisper, his walls of insincerity vanish and it's all I can hear in his tone.
I bring my hands down, taking them off of his shoulders and resting them at my sides as I turn to leave. I take one step and as expected, his cold touch meets my wrist.
"Please, if you just let me explain.. I can fix this." He begs, inching me closer to him with the tug of his hand. I sigh, taking the step back and I'm met with his full body yet again.
His hair is messy and frizzy, his tougher and meaner build is visible with black compression shirt he wears along with his gray sweatpants. It's very unlike him, and I can't help but think he looks like he's been destroying himself at the gym for the past few days.
My gaze struggles to find focus on his face and when I do, it lands on his parted lips. He breathes deeply, his chest rising and falling before he speaks.
"She lied, Aurelia. And I don't know if you're going to believe me but, this is me trying, okay? So please, hear me out, Aurelia."
He brings a hand up, tucking a loose strand of my ginger hair behind my ear like he always did. Rainer's expression is unreadable as he places the same hand on my cheek, caressing my delicate skin.
But I don't want his touch.
I grab his wrist and pull him off. His gaze follows his dropped hand and he looks back at me with scrunched eyebrows and the slightest hint of sorrow in his eyes.
"I can't lie to you anymore. The reason my parents had expected me to settle down was because I wasn't the best student in college or high school and they wanted what's best for me when I inherited the company."
He inhales sharply and runs a hand over his mouth, biting back the tears that well in his eyes. I should be comforting him, is what naive Aurelia who didn't know a single thing about him would say, though that's not me anymore.
He has lost me.
"I begged Marzanna to not include you. I did. Because I care about you and I know how much it would have hurt you if you had to leave. I tried but she's just.." He lets out a pained chuckle.
"She's just unpredictable. Wanted to get back at me for suddenly leaving her eight years ago, I suppose. I was a horrible man."
I can tell.
From the very start, I should've believed the rumors. I should've turned my back, left his office. I should've declined the contract, said it would ruin our professional relationship, and needless to say, it did.
"So what, huh? I'm guessing you still don't want to settle down, after all you only did this to get rid of your parents nagging but, that didn't work, did it?" I fake a smile. Can he at least humor me?
"No, Aurelia, I've changed."
"I guess all of our time together went to waste. The people you destroyed for me. All those times you were so possessive and acted like you owned me, when you wouldn't even let me reciprocate it. I guess this is why."
It was clear to me he didn't want affection. He wanted sex. Lust. Not love.
After all, love is just lust misspelled. And I guess I was blind to not see and fell for it.
"You're wrong. So wrong, Aurelia, that I can't even begin to think how—"
I chuckle softly.
"What does Uno mean then?"
It's been a question I've had stuck in my head for months. From the moment Saint had walked into our office with that bright smile, charming aura, and that nickname Rainer seemed too pissed about, I knew there was more to it.
On top of that, Isabella's mention of him being a player which had left me wondering the context behind it. 'Oh, I think that's a topic you should ask him yourself.' Now, I am.
He sighs, letting his head hang low before running a hand through his hair. He looks up, shaking his head and looking at me with green eyes threatening to spill tears.
"I fucked a lot of girls back in high school and college. So many to the point that was I badly failing and had to fuck class presidents and the top 1 students to pass. I thought high school was a—"
I snap. "Just get to the point, Rainer! Stop fucking sugarcoating it."
At this point, there's now tears in my eyes despite the fact that I don't know what to feel. He's hesitant, I can see it in his gaze and I don't even need a response to get my answer.
"It means number 1 player, okay? First, a friend of mine called me it and then suddenly, it was my nickname all throughout the years." He yells, making me flinch and I take a step back.
My face burns but this time it's not with affection, it's with fear and pain. Anger. My heart quite literally hurts, enough to the point that it's aching.
"I hate you." I sob, tears falling to my cheeks as I ball my hand up into a fist. "I hate you, Rainer! I hate you, I hate you, I fucking hate you!" I repeat the phrase over and over as I hit him in the chest.
My hands take turns striking at him, his body doesn't budge a single bit despite me putting all of my pent up anger into my punches. I sniffle, not holding back my tears anymore.
"How dare you hide this from me, Rainer? I— I hate you!" I yell, only adding pressure to my punches but then suddenly, he grips my wrist, stopping me from hitting him again.
I breathe heavily, attempting to avoid his gaze, though it's hard when it feels as if his eyes are piercing into my head. I slowly raise my chin, meeting his glare.
Instead of finding a distressed look on his face, I'm surprised to see he's composed himself and is glaring at me. The same glare he used the first time we met.
"Why do you think you have the right to be jealous?" He harshly says, his eyes glaring with anger. He holds my wrist up high before dropping it quickly.
"You're just my secretary anyway."
No, no, no, no.
"Rainer, you can't be serious—"
He raises his eyebrows, chuckling which cuts me off. Rainer smiles and laughs while shaking his head, looking to the side and I'm left dumbfounded.
"Leave, Aurelia."
I sniffle, trying to argue back but it's no use with my sobs and my loss of ability to breathe or speak. I storm off almost immediately, wiping away my tears as I struggle heading to the door with my blurred vision.
Shit.
It's pouring outside and I have no car.
Salem had dropped me off using her car and said she would be busy at work. Meaning, it's either I stay here and sob or suffer in the rain.
I'd do anything to be thousands of miles away from this man and decide on the second option. The harsh rain hits my bare skin, immediately soaking my top and jeans, causing me to groan.
It's wet and cold, exactly why I hate the rain.
I sigh, letting out all of my sobs as my salty tears mix with the downpouring water.
God am I going to get sick.
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