Elara skidded her motorbike towards the mountain when she noticed a car following her. It wasn’t hard for her to guess who the man behind the wheel was.
And just like she had thought, the man increased the speed of the car, following her to the narrow and steep paths.
It was dangerous, especially at night, and after not riding a bike for four years, Elara’s hands trembled in fear.
But the fear of being caught, interrogated about her activities, and facing Daniel’s wrath was greater. Thus, without thinking twice, she accelerated her bike.
It wasn’t long before the wrong turn she took led her to a dead end.
Elara’s heart skipped a beat, and she twisted the handle sharply, applying sharp brakes to avoid falling into the ditch.
It was going to be a narrow save, and one miscalculated move would end her life.
That was precisely what she thought until the man accelerated his car, then applied the brakes, making a loud screeching sound and turning the car so that her bike would hit it first, acting as a hindrance as she stopped it.
Elara closed her eyes in fear, fearing she would fall, but when she didn’t, and her bike indeed stopped, the tire hitting the car, she breathed heavily before stepping off the bike.
Her legs shook from the adrenaline rush.
She crouched on the ground, covering her ears to control her anxiousness. She didn’t know what she was thinking when she pulled this stunt.
The loud sound of the car’s door opening and then slamming shut made her jerk in her place, and she hugged herself harder.
Daniel walked to the girl in long strides before he grabbed her elbow forcefully and pulled her up.
Elara flinched, ready to get a beating or even a gunshot, but to her surprise, the man hugged her tightly.
Her heart skipped a beat, unable to comprehend what was happening.
Wasn’t the man angry at her because her group damaged their business?
The warm feeling was gone as soon as it arrived, and the man glared at her.
"Have you lost your fucking mind? What was this? Do you even know what would’ve happened if I hadn’t taken this risk?" Daniel raised his voice in anger.
Elara’s eyes brimmed with tears. She didn’t want to cry, but she couldn’t help them.
"Don’t shout at me! If it hadn’t been you chasing me with a gun. I wouldn’t have gotten so scared!" Elara raised her voice too, but the tears that rolled down her cheeks gave away her fear.
The man’s eyes softened immediately, and he realized that maybe he hurt his woman involuntarily.
He turned around to suppress his anger, the anger that he felt at himself for scaring away his woman like this.
Once he calmed down, he turned around to face Elara before he cupped her cheeks.
"I am sorry, my Ifrit. I am so sorry, my love. You are right. It was my fault." Daniel placed his forehead against hers before kissing her tears, the salty taste making him smile for no apparent reason, then berating himself for liking them.
He was surely getting too obsessed with her.
Elara let the man caress her cheeks until her heart calmed down before she looked up, her moist eyes looking like shining ocean water at night.
"Are you not angry with me? I mean... You found out that I am..." Elara asked.
Daniel ruffled his hair, frustrated.
"Why would I be angry at you, my Ifrit? You have no idea how proud I feel when I think of you. You, my love... I just wanted to show you that I am with you in this, and that’s why I sent the troops to help your men. I just didn’t expect it to scare you like this," Daniel said.
Elara relaxed more evidently at his words and took a deep, shaky breath before looking at her fingers that were clenching Daniel’s shirt.
Now that she knew he wasn’t angry, Elara finally realized that she was more worried that he would be furious with her than about what would happen to her.
Her mind and heart were starting to lean towards the man much faster than she had expected, and the thought scared her a little.
"Stupid girl, your revenge is mine. And while I am letting you do it because you want to take it on your own, it doesn’t mean I am not keeping an eye on you. This revenge is more mine than yours. Those people don’t deserve to breathe for what they did to you, and it’s only you because of whom I am controlling myself."
Elara looked up at him.
Daniel pinched her chin between his thumb and index finger before tilting his head, leaning forward, and capturing her lips into a soft kiss.
Elara’s eyes closed involuntarily, her body leaning into his touch as he stepped forward, their chests touching.
He snuck his hand around her waist, pulling her so close that her body hoisted up a little and she stood on his feet.
The position, so intimate, so loving, so blissful, like they were lovers in paradise, made Elara’s heart beat faster.
She moved her lips in sync with his, matching his rhythm, allowing him to suck her bottom lip. Her lips parted a little, allowing him enough entrance to push and invade her mouth like she always belonged to him.
Her fingers tightened on Daniel’s shirt, not because she was nervous, but because she didn’t want her wandering thoughts to affect her hands, which wanted to wander on his chest too. Just like how she wanted his hand to...
Elara pulled away from the kiss when she realized where her thoughts were leading.
She blinked up innocently.
"Don’t restrain yourself around me, ever. I don’t care if you want to kill the president; I am with you in it. It’s us against the world. And if you want, it will be me against the world for us. But it’s going to be us and always us," Daniel said.
"Do you understand?" he asked.
Elara, dazed that a man like him could be so loving, even to forgive her for billions of losses, nodded her head.
"Good," Daniel smirked, making Elara widen her eyes when she realized what she had done.