"Hey," Elara heard a whisper in her ears, and she moaned subconsciously, not liking the disturbance.
The man sitting on the edge of her bed felt his lips twitch before he leaned to kiss her cheeks, loving the way she smelled and looked so beautiful and serene while sleeping.
He stopped midway, enough to coo in her ears softly.
"I know I shouldn’t have disturbed you so late. But I just couldn’t help myself," Daniel said. He was about to place his lips on the corner of her mouth when she turned her head slightly, making his lips brush against her lips.
"If you knew you were disturbing me, why did you come?" Elara whispered against his lips, and the man pulled back to look at her.
"You were awake," he stated, earning a smile from her.
"Mm, from the moment you jumped on my balcony. I still don’t understand why you wouldn’t use the door." Elara said before she supported her head on her hand, her gaze mischievous.
"Where are you coming from? You smell like disinfectants," she said.
Daniel cupped her cheeks, his eyes holding an uncontrollable obsession when he looked at her with so much love and affection.
"You know I can do anything for you, and while I can end all your tormentors in a single night, you like torturing them. I am with you, right?" He asked.
Elara found his question a little odd, but didn’t say anything and just nodded.
"I had dinner with my grandfather tonight. He suggested that, rather than wasting my time in the entertainment industry, I should join the army. What do you think?" Elara asked.
Daniel removed his shoes and got into the bed before pulling her into his arms as he hugged her.
"What do you think?" he asked.
Elara pursed her lips, showing the inside of her cheeks thoughtfully.
"I think I can go to the army if you are my boss. We can pretend to be good soldiers on the field during the day and good fighters in bed during the night," Elara talked as if this was the best plan in the world.
Daniel looked at her before shaking his head.
He had been living without her just fine, but after meeting her, he didn’t think he could live without her anymore. She was the sanity he needed in his life to stop him from going rampant.
"How is your work coming along?" Daniel said after a drawn-out pause.
"Work?" She asked, unsure.
"Nocturnal Hunters," he mentioned.
Elara made an ’o’ with her lips before shrugging.
"We are trying to get the recognition from the authorities. After all, this might impact my career as a star later. For that, I have already started working on my public image with —"
"Green Dream," Daniel said, and Elara turned to look at him with an angry look.
"Hey, how come you always know everything about what I do? Are you spying on me?" She asked.
The man didn’t answer her and just smiled, leaning back on the headboard and closing his eyes as his lips lifted upwards.
Elara didn’t need an answer herself. She had known his man spies on her now and then, or how would he know what happened at that signing event when she got a little close to Andrew and he got angry?
She sighed, enjoying the warmth and comfort his embrace provided. After a hectic day, it was something worth appreciating.
With nothing particular in mind, she looked up at him with arched brows.
"How come you never told me about your life? Your parents, siblings, cousins, any relationships, or anything that I can get familiar with and feel a bit close to you," Elara said.
"What do you want to know?" Daniel asked, signaling he never intended to hide anything from her; he just didn’t know it was worth mentioning.
When Elara didn’t say anything, as if contemplating what to ask, the man opened his mouth.
"My mom and dad died in a cruel accident eight years ago. It was what pulled me out of the military and got me into this mafia world. I had to do everything to avenge their death. I had always been closer to my grandfather in my family, but he was diagnosed with terminal cancer, and he also left me a few years ago. Siblings? I have a brother," Daniel said.
"You do?" Elara asked.
Daniel nodded.
"We don’t get along. He has his separate gang and everything. I would rather you know nothing about him. We don’t have the same mother," Daniel said.
Elara pursed her lips when she heard it. Daniel’s life sounded more or less like a tragedy, and she felt her heart ache for him.
"Mason is kind of my distant cousin. I have a couple more, but none are worth mentioning. I usually stay with my gang. Apart from the house you visited last time, which I got control of, I have four more villas, all at different locations," Daniel said with furrowed brows as if trying to remember details about himself.
Elara shook her head at his behavior.
"And what about girlfriends?" Elara asked to ease up on the environment.
Daniel bobbed his head up and down.
"Mmm, I had one," he said.
As soon as Elara heard that, she turned to look into his eyes, her heart clenching painfully for some unknown reason. She knew she was a hypocrite for feeling bad when she was married until a day ago, but she just couldn’t help herself.
"You do?" She asked.
Daniel looked down at her, his eyes boring into hers before he hummed.
"Now she is sitting right in my lap," Daniel said, and Elara visibly relaxed when she realized he was talking about her.
She rolled her eyes before slapping his hand, and the man chuckled at her actions.
"Don’t worry, my love. I never had and would never have any other girl in my life apart from you, that is, until our daughters come into the picture," Daniel said.
"Daughters?" Elara asked, hinting at how he said it in plural.
"Mmm...I want my house full of kids, our token of love," Daniel said.
Elara scoffed.
"Who do you think I am? Baby-making machine?" She asked, and the man chuckled.
"We can always adopt more kids. I will never force you to do anything you don’t want to," Daniel said before he leaned in to kiss her, and the girl melted in his arms.