Loving The Temperamental Adonis
Chapter 232: My love

Chapter 232: My love

Mia hadn’t felt any discomfort for a week now, and she was glad about it because Neil had finally gone back to working at his office. Her days had been less chaotic without nurses running around their house to assist her, and more importantly, she could move around the house and do whatever she wanted without Neil’s constant worry.

Today, since she felt bored at home, she decided to personally cook dinner for Neil tonight. It had been a long time since she had last cooked him a meal. The last time was when they first signed their marriage certificate, and her husband had seemed to enjoy the food more than anything. But then, was there anything in this world Neil didn’t enjoy as long as it came from her? He always seemed overly pleased with anything she gave him or made for him.

Just like the cufflinks and tie she’d gifted him months ago, which he’d worn for a straight two weeks because it was a gift from her. He had refused to wear any other ones, and when she’d pointed it out, he’d said it was because it felt more comfortable and better than all the dozens he had lying in the closet.

There was also another night when she’d placed salmon on his plate. Instead of telling her he was allergic to it and pushing it away, her husband had gone ahead and eaten it like it was the best thing in the world. If they hadn’t been sharing a room, she wouldn’t have known how much it affected him. His face had swollen up, his throat had been blocked, and he couldn’t breathe. Mia had been scared to death when she found him searching through his things for an antidote after her night shower.

She’d rushed up to him and caught him when he was about to fall from lack of breath. Thank goodness the antidote had been in his hand when he collapsed, or she wouldn’t have known what was wrong with him. Mia had never felt so much fear in her entire life. When his breath returned to normal after the antidote, she’d never felt such relief that it almost made her legs go numb. She’d stayed awake all night to monitor him, and when he’d gotten better and explained to her, she’d sworn never to have anything with salmon in her house again.

Remembering that day now, Mia smiled while whisking a bowl of mixed flour. Her heart warmed by the memory that had seemed to terrify her then but made her smile now. Neil could be such a character at times, and the fact that his temper had seemed to improve after their marriage only made her love him more. Not once had he raised his voice at her or let his temper get the best of him when they had an argument. Even when she was going through one of her mood swings and got angry at him for no reason, he’d always calm her down with a gift or his lovely words.

The only time after their marriage Neil had seemed to get angry in her presence was when someone sent her a large gift box two days after signing their marriage contract. He wasn’t angry because the person had sent a gift to her, but because of the contents inside the box that had terrified her and almost caused a sudden miscarriage. Recalling that day now, a shudder ran through her body.

She had woken up feeling good that morning, but the housekeeper brought in a large ribboned gift box. The box looked so harmless that Mia had been curious to know what was inside and who had sent it, as there was no card attached to it or a sender’s name. She eagerly unwrapped the box without waiting for Neil to finish taking his morning shower.

Mia had expected to find a frame of her and Neil or some wedding gift, as she had received many during that time from strangers and close friends. However, what she found inside the box had knocked the breath out of her lungs and made her almost faint, thanks to Neil who rushed to hold her when he noticed her pale face. Inside the cute, harmless box was a large doll with Mia’s picture glued to its face. But that wasn’t the scary part—what terrified her was the blood dripping from the doll’s opened stomach.

The doll had been wearing a dress similar to the one she wore to Neil’s banquet and had been cut open in the stomach with a small note that read, "Enjoy it as much as you want now," stuck to the pool of blood. The blood had looked so real, and after a few investigations, they realized it was animal blood.

Neil had been so angry when they couldn’t find the sender. He scolded Mia after she recovered from the shock and warned her never to accept any more gifts or open any in his absence. He unleashed his anger on his men who couldn’t find out who had sent the box, but he held himself back from letting his anger get the best of him with Mia.

Since then, Neil had become so paranoid and wary that he wouldn’t let Mia leave the house alone for fear that someone was out to get her. However, Mia believed otherwise. She’d taken it as a cruel prank from someone who wanted to install fear in her. Recalling how Neil always checked their cars before going out for anything that might be harmful, Mia smiled faintly.

The housekeeper, tidying nearby, noticed Mia’s faint smile and asked, "Miss Mia, you’re smiling a lot today. Are you that excited to cook dinner yourself?"

Mia chuckled softly. "I’m smiling because of some memories. Don’t mind me. I’m just happy to finally be cooking for my husband after such a long time. Please pass me that towel."

The housekeeper passed her the towel with a smile. Normally, the madam of the house rarely engaged with the staff, and at first, she’d thought Mia would be the same. But that had changed one morning when Mia had asked all the maids to join her at the dining table, saying it was boring to eat alone since Neil had left early for work. Since then, the housekeeper had come to like Mia, who treated her more like an aunt than a helper.

As Mia opened the pot, steam billowed out, and she almost burned herself in the process but the housekeeper rushed to her side. "Miss Mia, please sit down for a while. Let me take over, you’ve been doing everything by yourself the whole time."

"No," Mia said, shaking her head. "I want to do everything with my own hands. You can go do something else, Emily."

Hours later, after they had finished cooking, Mia showered and grabbed her phone to call Neil to check on when he’d be home so she could set the table for them.

****

In the Galverra Enterprise.

Neil was in the middle of an evening meeting when his phone rang. He usually put his phone on airplane mode during meetings, but lately, given his wife’s condition, he’d stopped doing so in case of an emergency call from home. Furthermore, since Mia’s incoming call had a special ringtone, he recognized it was her calling even before he looked at the caller ID.

Without any hesitation, he picked it up immediately, surprising everyone in the room, who had been instructed by him to keep their phones off during meetings. But Neil was the CEO; who would dare tell him what to do?

"Hey, sweetheart," Neil greeted, his voice soft and affectionate as he stood up from his chair and walked towards the glass wall in the conference room to get privacy.

The board members watched in astonishment as their ever-so-cold CEO spoke with an expression and tone they had never seen before. Though they all knew about his marriage and his wife’s pregnancy, as he never failed to mention it at any given opportunity, he’d openly bragged about his wife carrying twins and flaunted it as if they didn’t have families of their own. Whenever he bragged, he did it with a cold, aloof demeanor that made them believe he was just doing it for show. But now, witnessing this firsthand, they saw a different side of him.

"I’m sorry, querida. I have some important things to attend to here at work. I won’t be able to come home early. No, don’t stress yourself by coming here," he said into the phone, then listened for a moment to something she was saying before replying, "I know you are strong enough, but I wouldn’t want to stress you into driving here to have dinner with me."

He listened again, then laughed, a sound so foreign that the board members exchanged amazed looks. "Are the babies kicking you again? Give my love to them, and I love you too. Don’t forget to take your medication after dinner."

Neil seemed reluctant to end the call. "I love you more. Go to bed early, okay? And I’m serious, don’t stress yourself by coming all the way here," he said, knowing how stubborn she could be when she wanted to do something. The closer she got to giving birth, the more worried he became about her leaving the house without him, especially after they’d received that gift box and now that he was starting to ruin Rodrigo Enterprise and bring the man down. The last thing he wanted was for Rodrigo, who had not yet attempted to fight back, to strike by doing something to his wife to get to him.

He had placed many bodyguards around the house to protect Mia from anyone who might want to harm her. Even Owen Sullivan, whose company had gone bankrupt a few months ago and who had done nothing to revive it, might want to get back at Neil in some way for what he had done. Neil didn’t care if they faced him, but harming his wife would be something he wouldn’t be able to take. Never.

He hadn’t let her leave the house alone without him for months after the gift box incident, and he surely wouldn’t let her leave now to come to his office alone. It wasn’t a long distance from their house, but that didn’t mean he’d be at peace until she arrived. His love for her grew with each passing day, and the more he loved her, the more he feared any harm coming to her. This was why he was working late to finalize some deals that would get Rodrigo out of the picture completely, just like Owen Sullivan.

"Mia, I’m serious as hell, don’t leave the house," he warned again when she responded with one of her throaty sounds, which she did when not taking him seriously. She did it again, and he laughed. "You like playing with me, don’t you, my love? If you listen to me, I’ll get you a dozen of those chocolates you love on my way back home."

When he was finally sure she’d listened, he ended the call. And his expression turned back to his usual aloof demeanor as he returned to his seat. He turned to the presenter. "Continue," he ordered, his tone firm.

The board members exchanged glances, still processing the transformation they had witnessed. Their ever-so-cold, controlling CEO had shown a side of himself they never knew existed. They’d never seen him so warm and human before. Mrs. Galverra must mean the world to him, and they couldn’t help but think that whoever dared to cross her, would be courting death.

****

Back at the house, Mia put on her coat and asked the housekeeper to place the food she prepared in the warmer because she planned to take it to Neil’s office. She hadn’t intended to listen to him when he told her not to come. Besides, she wanted a bit of fresh air that only a drive out of the estate could give her; she hadn’t been out in a while. It was only 8:20 P.M. If she could get Zephyr to drive her to Galverra Enterprise, then Neil wouldn’t have to worry about her being alone.

She’d noticed that he’d become more paranoid about her going out without him, as if he feared there was something out to get her. She’d listened to him for too long. She needed to go out a bit; a short drive from the house to his office wouldn’t harm anyone, Mia decided as she walked out to find Zephyr, who she knew was somewhere on the premises, probably lurking in the shadows like some ghost.

She walked outside and called out his name twice. She wasn’t surprised when she suddenly saw his tall silhouette approaching her from behind. But she jumped when he said, "You called, ma’am?" from above her.

Zephyr never failed to scare the soul out of her with his sudden appearances. She thought as she turned to meet his emotionless face. He wore his usual black suit that seemed to blend into the night, his soulless hazel eyes boring down at her patiently.

"Yes, I did. I want you to drive me to Galverra Enterprise. I want to—"

"No," he cut her off before she could finish. "I was ordered by the boss to make sure you stay at home." He informed her with his detached voice and soulless eyes.

"Aren’t I also your boss?" she frowned up at him.

"Yes, you are. But I only answer to Xavier," he replied indifferently.

"Well, I’ve called Xavier, and he gave me permission to bring dinner to his office as long as you drive me there. See," she gestured to the basket one of the maids held containing the food, "I need to take this to him. If you don’t believe me, I can call him and tell him how you refused to listen to me. Do you want that?"

His emotionless hazel eyes finally wavered at the thought of being told on. No matter how cold and aloof the man was, Mia realized, he didn’t want to offend Neil in any way. She watched as he cleared his throat and took the basket from the housemaid, who was looking at him dreamily, but he paid no mind to her and said to Mia, "I will go get the car ready and put this inside." Then he left.

Mia smiled in satisfaction, knowing she’d won. But would she still feel the same way forty minutes from now?