Aurora let out a sigh of relief.
She was glad she decided to open up to him and felt a weight lift off her shoulders. This was the first time in a long period where she felt completely at ease. She was content knowing she was a step closer in healing.
A comfortable silence engulfed the two as they cuddled.
"I don't know why you act all grumpy and mean on the outside, when you're just a giant cuddly bear on the inside," murmured Aurora as she absentmindedly traced circles on his bicep. She tangled her legs with his and his arm pulled her even closer to him, if possible.
"I'm not mean and grumpy," he grumbled.
She looked up at him with a teasing smile. "That's not what people at the office say."
"Yeah? And how would you know that?"
"I have my sources." And by sources, she meant Maddie, who had witnessed first hand Xavier's grumpiness. Also, Lucas was pretty reliable as he seemingly couldn't withhold information from his girlfriend.
Xavier rolled his eyes playfully. "I guess to others I'm just a cold monster."
"You're not a cold monster," denied Aurora, reaching up to flick his nose. "People just have a hard time understanding."
Xavier sighed, well aware of how people viewed him. "I guess when I was younger, it was hard for me to trust people. Even now, there are only a select few whom I can trust completely. And as I got older, it became easy to figure out who only wanted to become close to me because of my money and fame. I've had so many people backstab me and misuse my trust for their own selfish reasons."
She could practically hear the hurt coming from his voice. She couldn't even imagine being in his position, where he had to constantly watch out for those who would manipulate their way into his trust.
"You must be exhausted," she whispered, scooting up to meet his eyes. Now that they were face to face, she saw the vulnerability in his eyes that had often hidden behind his stone cold face.
"It gets tiring," He replied with a sad smile. "But I grew up knowing I would become the heir to my dad's empire, so I knew what to expect. I'm just glad my parents raised us all to be pretty decent people. My mama would raise hell if we were just a bunch of spoiled brats."
Aurora could tell how much Xavier cared for his family, especially his mother. "Your mom sounds like an amazing woman."
"She is," A soft smile graced his face as he thought of his mother. "She had to raise 6 of us— 3 boys and 3 girls. After Madison was born, she decided it was best to prevent the public from knowing my younger siblings' names. It was a way to protect them from public eye, especially after seeing first hand what Damien, Steph, and I went through.
"Then, we just Elijah and Megan hidden from the public as well, which is probably better for them anyways. Being in the public eye takes a huge toll on your mentality. I wouldn't want them to grow up like how I did—not with the publics's eyes constantly on you and the most ridiculous rumors being made about you. I don't really care about what people say about me most of the time. I mean, I don't even bother to clear up the rumors because that way, people stayed afraid of me and wouldn't try to even mess with me."
Aurora reached forward to cup his face, caressing his cheek softly. She felt like she knew more about the world Xavier came from and compared to reality, it wasn't always glamorous like how the media usually depicted.
"I'm sorry you had to feel that way," she murmured.
"Why are you apologizing?" He placed his hand on hers, feeling the warmth radiate from her hand. "You're one of the few people who actually see right through me."
She gave him a small smile as he continued to stare right at her. "That's because you made it easy for me."
"You may be right. I mean, how could I resist such a cute, beautiful, and don't forget, clumsy woman," he added, rather cheekily. "Did I already mention beautiful?"
"You're such a dork," Aurora chuckled, softly pinching his cheek. "Who knew you could be such a sweet talker?"
"I told you already— you see right through me."
"I guess I do," She patted his cheek softly. "But I know that despite all those devious people that seem to want to use you for their own selfish reasons, there are still many people, including me, who truly care about you."
"Well, I sure hope you do care about me, love," he muttered, leaning close to place a kiss on her lips before pulling away. "I'm extremely lucky to have a loving and caring family. And even though I only have Liam and Lucas as my closest friends, I know they will never betray my trust. Those two assholes are the loyalist motherfuckers, though I will never admit it to their faces."
She let out a small giggle, using the opportunity to tease him.
"I'll be sure to let them know."
"Please don't. They'll never let me live through it," groaned Xavier, already in pain thinking about the gloating torture he was about to receive from his boneheaded best friends.
"Takes a lot of bravery to admit to what you just said," shrugged Aurora, nonchalantly. He playfully poked her side, knowing she was sensitive, which caused her to awkwardly spasm in his arms.
After a moment of silence, his expression went from lighthearted to seriousness. "I think you're the brave one here."
"Me? Brave?" She looked at him with appall. "I'm the one who didn't even have the guts to respond to you this whole week."
"Ah, yes," His eyes lit up as he remembered what Maddie had said. "Your little paragraphs."
Of course he knew—why wasn't she surprised?
"That bitch," Groaning, she covered her face with her hands, trying to shield away the embarrassment she was feeling. There was only one culprit. "I always knew she had loose lips."
Chuckling, he gently pried her hands away from her face. He grinned as her face was now red from embarrassment. "Let me see them."
"No."
"Please?"
Seeing the look on his face made her sigh. "Fine."
She turned in his arms rather ungracefully and reached behind her to grab her phone. Swiping it open, she clicked on the Notes app and hesitantly handed it to Xavier. There was a glint in his eyes that made her want to snatch her phone back.
And to her exact horror, he began to read it out loud.
"Xavier, I just want to-"
He was cut off by her hand, which quickly went to cover his mouth. He bursted into laughter as her hand remained covering his mouth, preventing him from speaking out loud.
"Don't read it out loud!" She all but shrieked, causing him to laugh harder.
"Alright, alright I won't read it out loud," he mumbled against her mouth. She looked at him suspiciously before she hesitantly let go. She rolled her eyes as he gave her a shit eating grin, kissing her palm and holding it in his.
She watched, still completely embarrassed, as he slowly read in his head.
"Can you send these to me?" He asked teasingly when he was done. She slapped his arm, a pout decorating her face as she glared at him. "What? You're cute, love."
"Whatever," she mumbled as he handed the phone back to her. She reached back once more, placing her phone back onto the nightstand.
She rolled her eyes as she settled back down again. "You're the cute one here."
"This again?" Muttered Xavier in exasperation, causing her to giggle at his dismay.
Soon after, she slowly began to feel sleepy. She felt warm and the way his arm wrapped around her, made her feel safe and protected, almost like he could she her away from the world.
"I should really thank Maddie for being there for you when I couldn't," he whispered as she began to drift away. "I'm sorry for not being there to protect you."
"We haven't even met, you silly," she stifled a yawn as she replied sleepily.
If only she knew.
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The sunlight shined bright into her room, as she let out a small groan. Rays of brightness reflected through the window and onto several objects, decorating her room with crystal- like patterns.
She felt soft featherlike touches on her face as she began to stir. Aurora blinked a few times in an attempt to wake up. Opening her eyes, she slowly adjusted to the bright light and lopsidedly smiled.
Kneeling down before her was Xavier, who appeared in a brand new suit— his hair freshly styled. He had a gentle expression on his face as his fingers stilled.
"Hi."
"Good morning, love," he chuckled at her simple greeting. "Did I wake you?"
Bringing the covers up, she shook her head. "The sun."
Of course, she had forgotten to close the curtains last night.
"Did you sleep well?" He asked, looking at her warmly.
Aurora nodded lethargically, sleep still clouding her brain. "This was probably the best sleep I've gotten all week. I didn't even have to take Ambien."
"That's good," He swiped a strand of hair away from her face. "Although, we should probably discuss why you need Ambien to go to sleep."
Damn it, she was caught. She had forgotten she had yet to mention that she sometimes relied on Ambien to sleep.
She gave him a sheepish smile as he continued to look at her with a raised eyebrow.
"Did you go home?" She asked, hoping to smoothly change the subject.
She felt curious as to when he had taken the time to get ready. He looked as if he had gotten ready for the day, yet she swore she didn't see him bring any new clothing.
"I fell asleep right after you, but I got up at 6 to head home for a quick shower before I came back," As soon as he mentioned the time he had gotten up, Aurora scrunched her face. "What?"
"You're a morning person," There was a bit of a questioning tone in her voice that made him tilt his head in confusion.
"What's wrong with morning people?"
"Nothing!" She squeaked, ducking her head into the covers. Xavier shook his head, pulling the covers off of her head.
"It's time to get up, love," He kept his hand on the covers, preventing her from ducking back under them.
She let out a loud groan, turning her body away from Xavier, so she could hide into her pillow.
"Come on, sweetheart," he urged again. Gently, he turned her back around to face him, making her grumble and groan in distain. She kept her head shoved down onto her pillow, blocking out the light. She hated mornings and all she wanted to do was lay in bed all day long. "I got you breakfast."
At the mention of food, she turned her head slightly to face him, brushing away the hair on her face. "Breakfast?"
He nodded, gently caressing her cheek. He enjoyed seeing her grumpiness in the morning and it was evident she was not a morning person at all. On the other hand, he enjoyed waking up early. Usually, he would be up by 5am, pushing in a quick workout before getting ready for work.
Having gotten up at 6, he had actually slept in this morning. He felt content with holding Aurora in his arms a bit longer as she continued to sleep.
After a quick debate in her head, she finally decided to get up with a yawn. As soon as she stood up, the cold air hit her, causing her to shiver. Immediately, she wanted to hop right back into her bed and bury herself in the warm covers. But she mentally stopped herself because her stomach was desperately calling for food.
"That's my girl," he muttered as he wrapped his arms around her in a warm embrace. Because of his height, she had to tip toe as she wrapped her arms around his neck, seeking the warmth from his body. Leaning down, Xavier attempted to place a kiss on her lips, but before he could, she quickly moved away, causing him to peck her cheek instead.
She gave him a cheeky grin as she quickly darted to the bathroom.
"Morning breath."
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Happy Friday loves! I hope you all had an amazing week so far^^ Once again, I would really like to thank you for reading and supporting my story! There is still more to come, so I hope yall are prepared. I hope you enjoyed this chapter and please let me know what you think! Have an amazing weekend and stay safe~
Sending lots of love to each and every one of you <3