Chapter 140
Aria’s POV
I froze, my mind racing and my face burning with embarrassment. How could he bring up that mortifying incident at a time like this? But instead of stammering like an idiot, I forced myself to appear composed.
“Isn’t that perfectly normal?” I shot back, lifting my chin slightly. “I mean, men do the same thing, don’t they? Getting excited looking at pictures of beautiful women… you know p>
Aiden moved closer, his voice dropping to barely above a whisper. “I only use yours now p>
“What?” I wasn’t sure I’d heard him correctly.
He straightened up, his expression becoming more guarded. “I said, from now on you should only call me by my name. I am your husband, after all p>
“Alright, I still have work to handle. You should get some sleep p>
Before I could respond, he turned and walked out of the room, leaving me standing there in shock.
The moment the door closed, I leaned against it, my heart pounding wildly in my chest. Had he really said what I thought he said? He only used my photos? And that demand about calling him by his name from now on… did it have deeper meaning? Did he actually have feelings for me?
When I finally came to my senses, I realized I was standing there like an idiot, leaning against the bedroom door.
God, I was actually happy that he only used my photos to masturbate. How ridiculous was that?
I tried to tell myself to calm down, but my heartbeat was still out of control, and my mind kept replaying the way he’d spoken those words to me. This feeling was so strange—even more exciting than after our passionate lovemaking.
My phone kept lighting up with notifications. After staring at it blankly for a while, I finally controlled my spiraling thoughts enough to check my messages.
Lillian: Didn’t you say your husband was on a business trip?
Lillian: Don’t tell me he flew back just to spend Valentine’s Day with you!
Lillian: Why aren’t you replying?
Lillian:…I get it! I won’t gossip, ignore me!
Me: p>
Besides Lillian, Claire had also sent me messages, but with a completely different tone.
Claire: Baby, is this all Aiden got you?
Claire: No offense, but isn’t this a bit… bland?
Now I had calmed down. After all, we were married in name only. His demands of me might not be because of love just male possessiveness.
At this possibility, I felt a bit deflated.
Claire: Well, I guess this makes him barely acceptable! [Come here baby let me take care of you.jpg]
Even though I knew Claire’s feelings for me were purely friendship, seeing that emoji still made me a bit uncomfortable.
Below Claire’s message was one from my father: “Aria, Happy Valentine’s Day p>
Seeing Dad’s message, I quickly replied with well wishes.
As for my social media post, it had exploded beyond description.
Just as I was about to put my phone down to shower, Lillian sent another message: “You and Mr. Carter-are you two going to turn this fake marriage into something real? [eating popcorn.jpg p>
Honestly, I didn’t seem opposed to that idea. But… my relationship with Aiden wasn’t exactly clear. Love was a two-way street. If only I was willing, it didn’t seem very useful.
“You’re overthinking it. He came back to provide content for my social media posts p>
Lillian clearly didn’t understand: “? What do you mean p>
Me: “Exactly what it sounds like p>
This thought cleared my head considerably. All of Aiden’s actions were just to maintain the image of us being a loving couple in public.
Our relationship had been defined from the beginning. Whose fault was this? Obviously mine.
Lillian: Really? If he just wanted you to post photos, he could have sent gifts without coming back. Why travel so far?
Me: I thought the same thing, but he reminded me to post on social media.
If he hadn’t said “Aren’t you going to post?” I might still be dreaming.
Lillian: Ah, that does seem very calculated.
I looked down, my smile fading.
I didn’t want to continue this conversation, but Lillian sent another message: “But
what if Aiden genuinely just wants to show off your relationship p>
Me: “Do you think that’s possible p>
Lillian: “You’re right, probably not p>
Aiden just wasn’t that type of person.
I wallowed in my emotions for a while until exhaustion took over. I finally pulled myself together to wash up.
Fake or not, at least Aiden was pretending with me and not someone else!
The thought was a bit pathetic, but it worked-my mood immediately improved.
It was getting late, and after
shopping with Lillian all day, my legs
were sore After showering and
climbing into bed, I fell asleep
almost instantly.
આવા મા
Perhaps because Aiden had suddenly returned to spend Valentine’s Day with me, I dreamed of him again. This time the Alden my dream didn’t tell me I was. “delusional,” but said he didn’t like my gift and told me not to bother next time.
The alarm kept ringing, jolting me awake.
Summer meant early sunrises. Even though it was only around seven, bright
daylight was already streaming through the windows.
I stared outside for a moment, then suddenly remembered that Aiden was leaving
this morning for a business trip to another city.
This realization made me bolt upright in bed! What kind of wife would I be if I let my husband go on a business trip alone?
I rubbed my face and quickly got out of bed to freshen up.
In my haste, I accidentally slammed my knee into the bed frame. Pain shot straight
to the top of my head.
The pain made me dizzy for a moment.
Fortunately, the sharp pain subsided after a while, but my knee was swollen and every step hurt.
Just like that, I went from being perfectly fine to limping.
I hoped the pain would ease after washing up, but when I came out, my leg still
involuntarily bent with each step.
I wasn’t dramatically limping, but I definitely couldn’t walk normally.
Aiden’s car was already waiting downstairs. If I kept dawdling, he’d leave without me saying goodbye!
Would going out like this be too embarrassing?
Well, he’d already seen me in a wheelchair-compared to that, what was a little
limp?
Even with this self-comfort, I still tried my best to endure the pain and walk normally.
It wasn’t that I couldn’t walk normally—it just hurt a lot to do so.
I gritted my teeth and endured the pain going downstairs. Aiden was already at the
front door.
“Mr. Carter!” I called out instinctively.
Hearing my voice, Aiden turned
around. Unfortunately, that was
exactly when I let go of the stair railing My knee buckled from the pam, and before I could react tumbled to the floor.
Could he pretend he didn’t see me? Could time rewind a bit? Could I just disappear
on the spot?
I gave up and just lay there sprawled on the floor, my face red as a tomato.
“Where are you hurt?” His deep voice came from beside me.
I looked up to meet his dark eyes. “Nowhere,” I said shamefully.
Aiden frowned slightly and reached out to help me up. “Why were you in such a
rush p>
“I… wanted to see you off p>
As I spoke, my eyes suddenly caught sight of his tie, and I widened my eyes in
surprise.
“Is that… the tie I gave you?” I looked up at him excitedly.
“Yes p>
Aiden answered, but still looked concerned. “Are you sure you didn’t hurt yourself p>
Why couldn’t he just let it go?
The focus had shifted and I no longer felt so embarrassed, but when he brought it
up again, my face heated up once more. “Really, I’m fine p>
“Mm.” He glanced at his watch.
Understanding the hint, I said, “You should go, or you’ll miss your flight p>
Aiden looked down at me, his expression softening slightly. “I thought you wanted to
see me off p>