Cheating With The Billionaire

Chapter 13: Possessive, Part 1 (Bella)

Amabella's POV

Men are annoying.

Kaden Matthews is especially annoying. I don't understand why he felt the need to go above and beyond in making me his girl, finally confessing the truth about why he got together with my mother, only to then turn around and ignore me for days.

When he isn't holed up in his office or screaming at people over the phone, he walks around the house looking a mix of pissed off and stressed. Him and my mother. I don't know what's going on between them because neither will tell me a damn thing.

I'm starting to feel like I did when I first moved in here, like they're hiding something from me. Again. And the most frustrating part? I told Kaden to his face that I didn't want there to be any more secrets between us. The fact that he's blatantly keeping something from me hurts almost as much as him ignoring my existence does.

"I don't have to put up with his s**t," I mutter to my reflection in the mirror while carefully applying some liquid mascara.

Sulking around this big stupid mansion and being forced to deal with people who refuse to treat me like an adult has gotten old. I need a break. I need to go out and have fun, even if I have to do it alone.

"Perfect." I give myself a smile while doing a little spin in front of the mirror. "This look absolutely screams single and looking for d**k. I love it."

The strapless dress is everything; short, tight, and bound to set Kaden off. My makeup is minimal, my lips are the same shade of red as my dress, and my hair is voluminous, the dark brown tresses standing out with the red against my pale skin. I grab my clutch off the dresser and then exit my room to go downstairs. I pause at the last step, eavesdropping on my mother and Kaden from the kitchen.

"I can't keep playing this charade with her," Mom whispers to Kaden. "It's killing me to pretend like nothing is wrong. Yes, I thought it'd be best to keep her in the dark but now I'm not so sure. Maybe we should just tell her what happened—"

"No," Kaden snaps. "We can't tell her about your salon. Why put that stress on her when it's not hers to carry? You said you wanted to leave her out of this, so that's what we're going to do."

"I just hate having to lie about something else," Mom replies in a defeated tone. "How much longer until you get answers about who's responsible for vandalizing my salon?"

What the f**k! Someone attacked one of her salons?

"Investigations take time." Kaden sighs. "When I get answers, you'll be the first to hear them. In the meantime, Tony and his team will continue to keep watch over both salons, just in case this bastard decides to come back and—"

"Great! You're both here." I strut into the kitchen and interrupt the not-so-secret conversation they were having. I learned all that I needed to know and didn't want to hear anymore. "Just wanted to let you both know that I'll be staying out late tonight. If you need me for anything, text me."

My mother gives me a weak nod, compliments my dress, and then rushes out of the kitchen before presumably breaking down and telling me about what had happened to her salon.

Kaden, on the other hand, simply stares at me.

"Your silence speaks volumes," I say with no emotion, not even cracking a smile. "You either really like my outfit, or you really f*****g hate it."

"I really f*****g hate it."

"Oh. I'm so sorry to hear that."

"Where the hell do you think you're going dressed like this?" Kaden has a cold look in his eyes as he touches me, assessing the material of the skimpy dress. "Are you doing this to me on purpose?"

"Doing what to you on purpose?" I play stupid, swatting his hands off me. "What else does a woman wear to the club, Kaden? Because I definitely wasn't walking out of here in jeans and a f*****g t-shirt."

"Goddamn it, Bella..." He looks up at the ceiling, inhaling, then exhaling slowly. My pulse accelerates when our eyes meet again, his looking darker than before. "I see through this little game that you're trying to play with me, and I'll be damned if you step foot out of this house wearing this dress."

I laugh. "What gives you the right to act possessive after ignoring me all week? I don't need your permission to go out and party, Kaden. Nor do I need your approval to go out in this dress. Maybe I'd have asked you to come with me if only you hadn't been acting like such a d**k lately."

Striking someone with your words can hurt them twice as bad compared to striking them physically.

Kaden is the first to break eye contact.

"You're right. I've been an asshole," he speaks softer this time. "There is something that's happened recently... it involves your mother and her salon. We wanted to keep you out of it because it isn't safe to—"

"That's your answer for everything." I shake my head in disappointment. "You lie to keep me safe. You hold secrets to keep me safe. You ignore me to keep me safe. This isn't how a relationship is meant to work, Kaden. You're meant to confide in your partner no matter the issue. If you truly respect me and care for me as you claim to, then you'd have told me what's been bothering you days ago. I shouldn't have to do theatrics to get you to open up to me."

"Bella, listen..."

The sound of the doorbell ringing puts an end to our conversation.

As I go to answer the door, Kaden follows closely behind me. Standing on the other side is my Uber driver Harold, but Kaden doesn't know that. I quickly tell the man that I'll be out in a second, not giving him the chance to speak and expose himself. I shut the door after he turns away.

So what if I'm being petty? Kaden started this s**t. I'm merely finishing it.

"I'm not going out to hookup with anyone, so stop looking like you want to punch a hole through the door." I reach for Kaden's face, push up on my heels and kiss him gently. "Do you trust me?"

He answers with a growl, then pins me against the front door. One hand grips my waist and the other the back of my neck. I moan when his hand travels up and into my hair, tugging. He forces me to tilt my head back and expose my neck. I clutch his shirt for support, feeling unsteady as he marks me, sucking and licking and kissing, even biting me.

I'm wet and panting by the time he's done with me. It drives me crazy knowing how dangerously close we are to being caught, my clueless mother resting just upstairs. But Kaden doesn't care. He doesn't give a s**t and honestly, neither do I.

"While you're out there partying and having a good ol' time..." He keeps his eyes on mine as he lowers his hands down my body, roughly grabbing my ass and pressing his erection against me. "Don't forget who it is that you belong to."

"K-Kaden, I—"

"Enjoy your night out." He's off me with a quickness, turning around to walk upstairs.