Hellbound Heart

Elle had been really distressed and scared and angry. But when he had pulled and then held her against him instead of hitting or lashing out at her, everything just melted, so easily. And she almost laughed out in disbelief.

She could not believe how he had made her feel all those awful emotions that threatened to break her into a million pieces, then hold her while telling her that he believes her in the very next moment. He shoved her into a blizzard of his own making and right after that, enfolds her into an extremely warm and cuddly blanket afterwards.

It was unbelievable because Elle had always believed that she would never find comfort from the same person who had given her the discomfort in the first place. Because that was how it had always been for her before this. But here she was, melting away simply because he had said that he believed in her and held her like he was sorry for accusing her.

When he finally pulled away, she almost reached out and held onto him, not wanting to lose that comfortable warmth he provided. But she managed to stop herself and watched him walked away towards the tub.

"Where did you get these petals?" Sebastian's voice echoed in the silence. A single red petal was held between his fingers as he turned to show it to her.

Her eyes slowly moved from the petal to his hard devastating face. "It had been sent as a gift to me."

"By whom?" and his fingers pinched the petal, bruising it in the process.

"Elijah. It had arrived in a box, along with the invitation…" Elle trailed off, finally realizing that this must be the explanation behind the scent clinging onto her that Sebastian had been furious about. She had thought Sebastian's claim that Elijah's scent that was literally all over her was plain ridiculous because there was just no way his scent could have been transferred to her with just that single dance they shared. So, she had thought that he must have been overreacting as a result of his anger. She had never suspected that it was the petals that were the culprit behind this misunderstanding between them.

Her eyes slowly stretched wide while Sebastian flashed her a sardonic smirk as he proceeded to crumple the petal within his palm. Then he turned around, his back facing her once again.

Elle wondered if he had turned his back so he could hide his anger from her. She could see the movements of his taut back muscles, the stiff set in his broad shoulders… he was angry again.

Her heartbeat sped up. She did not want to see that scary rage rampaging in his eyes again when he turned them at her.

Bracing herself, Elle unconsciously held her breath when she saw him turning around. But to her surprise, the rage that she was expecting was not there. She had thought he was going to be angrier because… because this ended up as her fault in the end. It was somewhat her fault, because she had unknowingly bathed with the petals that had apparently held another man's scent. Thus, covering her whole person in his personal aroma. Her husband had asked her to explain the matter, and she had said she did not know… But now, here was the explanation. She should not have used those petals in her bath.

Without saying a word, Sebastian suddenly made a move. Sebastian had gone ahead and drained the water from the tub. And then he patiently picked up the remaining petals that had fallen on the bathroom floor and sent them into the trash. His movement was fluid as always but there was definitely still a hint of anger even as he calmly picked the petals and shoved them in the trash.

Once he was done doing that, he finally looked at her again. His eyes that could be seen through the wet strands of his dark hair looked incredibly breathtaking.

"I'm setting all these shit on fire later." He hissed, raking his hair with his fingers.

Then he moved towards her. He was like an approaching panther but this time, it was not fear that raced within Elle's veins as she waited there, for him to reach her.

Though there were still traces of anger she could recognize from the set of his jaws, something else had taken over the rage in his eyes. The flaming yet sharp and pointed look in his eyes was no longer as hot nor sharp. It had cooled off somewhat and seemed duller.

When he stopped and towered before her, his deep voice rumbled softly. "Don't ever use any petals in your baths again unless I have checked it over first, are we clear? Izabelle?"

Elle blinked at him, hearing his command to her. But she nodded anyway. No matter how ridiculous it might sound, that she had to make him check on the things she put in her bath first, she would not want anything like what occurred tonight, repeating itself. Once was more than enough. His anger was just too potent for her to deal with.

"Yes." She uttered when he reached out and fiddled with her wet dress.

"How about this dress? Who was it that gave it to you?" he asked in a slightly cold tone. "Lucas never mentioned you going out to any store to shop during the last three days."

"You… you had Lucas monitor me?!" Elle's eyes bulged out as her voice came out a little shrilly.

Their eyes held each other's. "Yes. But Lucas would only report to me about your daily itinerary. It was for your safety's sake." Sebastian was quick to explain.

Elle did not bother to pry about it anymore. Though it surprised her that Sebastian had asked for her to be monitored, she was not that surprised about it. Maybe it was because she was already so used to being monitored by her father and Brandon Haze in the past, that it was something that she could wave off after acknowledging it. And as long as it was for safety or the sake of preventing a scandal, she was okay with it.

"So where did you get this dress? Don't tell me it's another gift…" he trailed off, already understanding her answer based on the expression on her face. "From whom, this time?"

"It… it also came in a larger box that was attached to the box of petals, along with Elijah's invitation. I didn't have a choice but to wear it because the invitation came a little late and I had not the time to go look for a dress fitted for the theme of his –"

Her quick explanation was cut off by the sound of fabric being ripped.

Shocked, Elle looked at him with wide eyes. His compelling gaze held hers and he did not let her go as he continued ripping the dress off her. It was not hurting her in the least. He was doing it like he was merely shredding a piece of paper. It was that easy to him. He was doing it with brutal ease and all she could do was stare at his eyes that was refusing to let her look away even for a moment. His savage beauty that moment just had her completely enthralled and totally under his mercy.

When the dress was completely discarded off her body, he lightly pinched her chin and tilted her face up to look at him before whispering out, "Hear me carefully, Izabelle. The next time you put on a dress gifted to you by another man, I will not only tear the dress like this. I will also shred the man daring enough to send it to you, into pieces too. Are we clear on this, Izabelle?"