Exclusively Yours - Episode 21
Subtitle; {Please, Love Me}
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Olivia's POV
I squeezed my eyes shut, trying to ignore the annoying ding ringing repeatedly in my head. I tossed and turned on the bed, hoping the movement would drown out the noise, but it continued ringing persistently.
Ping.
Ping.
Ping.
Ping.
Ping.
Ping.
Frustrated, I rolled onto my stomach and screamed into my pillow, kicking my feet against the bed. I lifted my head to check the time on my digital clock and noticed it was only 2:20 am.
Sitting up, I reached for the source of the incessant noise - my phone. My eyes widened as they met the screen, flooded with countless notifications. I tapped one, my mouth falling open as I read the headline.
~ BREAKING NEWS: RICCARDO TORRENCE HAS A NEW GIRL IN HIS NET.
The article included a picture of Riccardo and me kissing against a sunset backdrop.
My entire body went cold and a shudder ran through me, whether from the sudden chill in the room or from the flashback of the kiss, I couldn't tell. A lump formed in my throat, and anxiety slowly crept in.
I tapped on another notification.
~ HEADLINE NEWS: IS THIS REAL OR ARE WE DREAMING? RICCARDO TORRENCE WITH ANOTHER GIRL!!!!!!
~ NEWS NEWS: RICCARDO TORRENCE'S NEW TOY?
~ BREAKING HEADLINES: WHO IS SHE?!
As I scrolled through article after article, my body grew hot, sweat forming despite the air conditioning. I wet my lips and clicked on one more headline.
~ IS THIS ANOTHER SHORT-TERM HOOK-UP FOR RICCARDO TORRENCE?
I let out a breath before diving into the article. The words seemed to stretch out, but the intensity of my body's heat only grew.
- Yesterday, at exactly 4:30 pm, Riccardo was seen at a downtown convenience store kissing another girl. Who is she? What's their relationship? And the most important question, why does he seem so whipped with her?
I flinched as my ringtone shattered the silence of my room. I sighed and tapped the answer icon.
"Hey, City," I muttered, standing up and walking to the window.
She must have heard and seen the news, but that was no surprise. Felicity always kept up-to-date with both entertainment and world news.
"Hi, babe. Are you seeing what I'm seeing? How are you going to handle your newfound fame?"
I scoffed, rolling my eyes in annoyance as I sat on the windowsill. "I don't know how to answer that question."
She laughed. "So you and Riccardo were on a date yesterday? You didn't tell me!"
"We weren't on a date. We went to see his parents."
"Oh." Felicity drawled teasingly. "How was it? Did they treat you well? If they didn't, I'll go there right now and give them a piece of my mind."
I turned the knob on the window and pushed it open, letting the fresh air brush against my face. I nodded, biting the inside of my mouth. "There's no need for that. His parents were really nice."
"I still can't believe you're dating THE Riccardo Torrence. It's unbelievable."
"Why is it? Riccardo is human and so am I. Why is it so unbelievable?"
"Livvie, don't get me wrong. You know I love you, but you have to admit that your relationship with Riccardo was unexpected and unbelievable. I mean, you're engaged to marry him. This is big!"
I let my eyes drop to my fingers, which met with the glistening band around my ring finger. The diamond sat on the band, shining in the dark room. I flexed my fingers, still trying to get used to the feeling of the ring around it.
"Yes, you could say that. How am I going to go out tomorrow?"
"The same way you always do, with your legs or car. But I don't suggest you go out tomorrow. Riccardo's fans, which are mostly female fans, are cràzy!"
"I know, but that doesn't mean that I should stay locked up at home."
I need to go see Aunt DeeDee even more now that this news is spreading like wildfire. I wanted to tell her and the remaining family members on my terms, but it came out this way. I'm one hundred percent sure that the síck bastàrd, Riccardo, is responsible for it.
"The picture is a good one, though. The paparazzi really captured the moment. It was cute."
I'll kíll that pest.
I will kíll him.
"Yeah, whatever. I don't want this fame, and I'm getting it."
"Well, it's the perk of being Riccardo Torrence's fiancée." My best friend chimed happily. "Let's meet later. Axel has been acting wéird."
He has?
I didn't notice.
We haven't talked in two days, and the last time we did speak was over the phone, and he sounded okay to me.
"You sure?" I tilted my head, confused and worried.
"Yep."
"Alright. We'll see today. Noon?"
"Alright. At his office?"
"Yeah."
"Okay, Ms. Torrence. See you."
Before I could say anything, she hung up. I shook my head, stood up, and exited the room. The room was pitch-black, completely void of light as I strolled over to the kitchen to quench the fire inside of me.
The light from the refrigerator dimmed the room briefly when I opened it to take out a bottle of water, and darkness returned to the surroundings after I closed it. After unscrewing the cap of the water bottle, I gulped down the amount I wanted and rested on the counter, taking my phone from the countertop.
I scrolled through the contacts on my phone and tapped the one I wanted to talk to. A phone rang, echoing through the walls of the dark room.
"W-who is that?" I asked, terrified. My breathing unsteady.
A rush of pañic and anxiéty washed over me, and the thumping of my heart could be heard from miles away. Despite my attempts to turn the flashlight on my phone on, it seemed to be frozen.
"I said, who are you?"
A presence was right in the room with me. I could feel it. I could feel it staring into my soul and feeding on my feàr. I gulped, a shiver running down my spine, and I shuddered. The footsteps of the person slowly, so slowly approached me, and the room became constricting.
Step.
Step.
Step.
Step.
My heart raced fast, and yet I couldn't breathe. The same ringtone broke through the air again, and when the person brought it to their face, I froze, angér seeping into my blood as the light from the phone shone on his face.
"Hi, sunshine." Riccardo's voice came out dark, deep, and rough. "Why are you calling me this early in the morning?"
"What's wrong with you?! Why the héll did you break into my house?!"
"Language." He dared to tell me to watch my tongue after scaring me nearly half to déath.
I didn't bother turning on the lights. I took two or three steps towards him. "You don't get to tell me that. Riccardo, I've already told you that I'll say, do, and wear whatever the héll I want, and you won't do a dàmn thing about it. Get it into your thick skull. Get out the same way you came in. Just get the fúck out of my house and my life!"
In a second, my back slamméd hard against the wall. Pàin ran down my back, and it immediately brought tears to my eyes. His hands held both of my hands above my head on the wall, while the other one stayed on my waist, gripping it tight enough to inflict pàin.
In the dark, Riccardo's figure seemed to tower over me even more. It was like he grew ten inches taller in a minute. His tall, strong body pressed mine against the wall and his dark eyes pierced into mine with so much fúry, so much angér.
I couldn't see any of his facial expressions, but his eyes shone in the dark, and it was more than enough to show me that he didn't like what I said one bit.
A psychopathíc chuckle broke out of his mouth, close to my ear. "First thing you need to know is that I will never leave you alone. Never in this life. You are mine. The second thing you also need to know is that when I say something, you listen and don't be a bràt. You don't get to defy my words, Olivia." His voice was low, so low I could barely hear it. It was maniacàl, making me tremble. "Understood?"
I nodded my head, words refusing to leave my mouth. My air passage was blocked by something, and I was close to suffocating.
"Use your pretty little mouth that you have a knack for running." He demanded, tightening his grip on my wrists. "Do you understand, Olivia?"
"Y-yes," I managed to choke out.
His hand left my waist for a second, and the lights turned on. I looked up, and he was smiling down at me, his dimples and all. I blinked once, twice, thrice to see if my eyes were seeing what they were seeing.
What the héck is happening?
"I must say, you look so ravishing in this night dress," his eyes ran down my body, a dark gleam shining in them. "Red is definitely your color," he remarked, still enjoying letting his eyes linger on my lacy night dress. "You finally let your hair up."
I struggled to get out of his grip, but he scoffed, mocking my attempt. "Let go."
"Say you're mine first."
"I'll never say that."
"Say it."
"No."
Riccardo's index finger trailed gently on my face, then he smirked. "You won't say it?"
"I won't."
"Really?"
"Yes." I tried to jerk my hands out of his grip again but failed.
"Okay, I can wait." Riccardo let go of my wrists, and they fell to my sides. "Very soon, you will say with your delicious little mouth that you love to run."
"In your dreams." I pushed him off my body and took a couple of steps away from him, staring down at my abused wrists.
"It already happened."
"You're a fréak. A freakiñg psychopàth."
He shrugged nonchalantly. "Whatever you say, Sunshine."
"Don't call me that."
"Do you prefer 'good girl'?" He grinned, facepalming himself and hissing dramatically. "Oh, I know the answer to that." An annoying smirk spread out proudly on his stupid face that I wanted to disfiguré with a fork because he doesn't deserve to be that good-looking.
"Why me?" The question was sudden, and he couldn't have expected it.
Riccardo rested against the wall, tucking his hands into his pockets. "I actually don't know that myself. I've spent one month asking myself that question. I kept asking myself why I'm so attracted to you. Was it love at first sight? I don't know. It sounds a little cliche, but when I saw you dancing in that club..." He paused, a small smile on his lips. "You were breathtaking in that little dress you wore. My heart skipped a beat before it started beating faster. I couldn't talk for a minute, literally, and my eyes couldn't leave you as you danced and jumped with Felicity..."
Wait.
"You know Felicity?" I cut him short, sharply.
"Yes. I know every single piece of information about you."
"That sounds creépy."
His laughter breezed through the atmosphere, his dimples adorning his face and his pearly whites grinning at me. I froze, unable to even breathe or blink.
He is beautiful.
His laugh is soothing.
I never thought someone's laugh could be soothing.
"That's what you do to me. You make me màd, in a good way."
"I don't think that's possible. There's only one type of màd, and it isn't good."
His steps toward me were precise, and when he reached me, his hand wrapped around my waist. "If you say so."
"You're clingy. I don't like that."
"You're lying."
What does he mean?
"Excuse me?"
"You like it when I touch you. You like it when I'm close to you. Your eyes don't lié, even if your mouth does."
That's bullshít!
"You don't know me, so don't act like you do."
"I do know you. I've kept an eye on you for three years, and there is nothing I do not know about you."
I straightened up, raising my head defiantly. "What is my middle name?"
He can't know that.
It's impossible. I've never written down my middle name in any official or unofficial document. It was as if it wasn't even my name.
"Renee."
What the...
How does he know that?
I hid my surprise. "When did Felicity and I become friends?"
"Middle school."
"Axel?"
His hold on my waist tightened a little, and his eyes darkened a shade. "Last year of high school." The discomfort was evident from his body, his eyes, and his tone. "Another question?"
"You don't like Axel?"
"I know he is an idíot, and I simply don't have any feelings whatsoever towards idióts."
Hmm.
Something happened between them, and I just have to find out one way or another.
I nodded my head as the idea dropped in. I lifted my hand and wrapped them around his neck. His brows raised as he stared at me, somewhat confused.
"If I let you kiss me again, will you tell me why you and Axel haté each other?"
"Cute try, baby, but I can kiss you whenever I want." He pecked my lips. "See? Up the prize, and maybe I'll tell you."
I cleared my throat, not releasing his neck. My fingers slipped into his hair, and he sighed, his eyes slowly closing. "What do you want?"
Séx?
That can only be the reason why he is after me. Why else would he want to marry me when he doesn't even know me?
"That was a wrong question on your part," Riccardo replied, a hidden tone in his voice.
"Why?"
"I want you to count me the only worthy man to take care of your heart for the rest of eternity. Can I get that?" He tilted his head, patiently waiting for my answer, but it didn't come. "I can wait. I'll wait." He gave me a small smile and kissed me on my forehead.
He doesn't want séx?
He isn't doing this to get me in his bed?
He actually loves me?
But why?!
"How are you so certain that you'll get it?"
"If you want me the way your eyes are telling me, then you can come to love me, and that day will come very soon." His voice sounded so certain, so deep, so rough, and domineering. "I can't wait for that day."
"What if it never comes?"
"It will."
"Okay. Let's wait and see." I shrugged my shoulders, dropping my hands from his shoulders.
He poked the inside of his mouth with his tongue. "Is that a challenge?"
Is it?
Did it sound like one?
I shrugged just one shoulder, a smirk playing on my lips. "Maybe it is."
"I love a challenge."
"So do I."
"Is that so?"
"Yes. In fact, if you can get me to love you before a year runs out, I can also get you to swéar in that same duration."
Riccardo threw his head backward, laughing hysterically, like I just said the biggest joke in the world. "Impossible. I will never swéar."
"Okay."
TBC 📖✍️
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