Bride of Retribution: Aloof Billionaire's Dominant Game

”I absolutely cannot leave you alone, Avery. We must be together. I will never allow something like today to happen again.” Joshua Hughes doesn’t want to tell her what Luis did when she passed out, that guy took advantage of her; if she finds out, she’ll be even more upset.

”Why... why won’t you let me have a moment of peace? I don’t want to live with you,” Avery Jane looked at him, her eyes filled with grief and desolation.

His brother said he finds a new woman every year, for many years now. He’s had countless women, but what about her past? How did they even meet, is it as he said, and she’s heard about a pregnant woman living in the Hughes Family’s old house as his fiancée.

What does this all mean? Does he really have a fiancée? But their marriage certificate is still lying in his secretary’s drawer. Everything seems like layers of fog; she’s chosen to unconditionally trust him, but it turns out it’s not as simple as believing just because she wants to; there are too many doubts, so many she can’t help but be suspicious.

Joshua Hughes’s eyes carry pain, hurting for her and for himself, embracing her as tears like crystalline drops gather in her eyes: ”Avery, perhaps I was truly awful in the past, so I didn’t want to tell you, for fear you’d be unhappy. But since knowing you, I haven’t looked at another woman. Trust me.”

He spoke softly, as if regretting the past, or promising her, maybe even confiding in her, yet more was his emotions, even she couldn’t understand, hidden under his deep exterior.

His large hands tightly grasped her smaller ones; those hands, capable of flipping clouds and covering skies, filled with the thought of conquering women, also gave her unforgettable experiences. But now, she found them somewhat scary; how many things have these hands done that she knew nothing of?

”How many women have you been with?” Avery Jane’s voice was a bit broken, struggling to finish the question.

”Avery, I may have had many women before you, but none since.” Joshua felt her body involuntarily stiffen, hugging her tighter, whispered beside her ear: ”Avery, be fair, how was I supposed to know I’d meet you later?”

His words carried a sense of helplessness; how could he explain the past to her, it’s unspeakable, he could only choose to deceive once more.

He was an exceptionally domineering man, wanting to control everything, yet so gentle like water. Such a man was full of contradictions: self-centered but considerate enough to move her. How should she interact with him?

”You want me to be fair, then should I find many men, just like you have many women, is that fair?” Avery Jane murmured, burying her head in his firm, sexy chest.

”Avery, are you deliberately trying to provoke me?” Joshua Hughes wished he could shake this little woman awake, what was she thinking, finding many men. Just thinking about it drove him mad.

”These things aren’t even meant to be mentioned, Avery.” His eyes flashed, both excited and a bit angry. He could allow any whim she had, but this—absolutely not.

The man’s long fingers lifted her chin, forcing her to meet his gaze; his rough thumb gently caressed her delicate chin, feeling her skin smooth as jade: ”There’s no need to find another man; I am the strongest.”

He lightly bit her ear, whispering beside it. His eyes were deep like the boundless ocean outside, his confident words crashing against her heart like the fiercest waves.

”Joshua Hughes, I can stay here, but I want a room of my own; you cannot refuse. Otherwise, I’ll live downstairs.” Avery Jane’s beautiful face still carried resistant emotions; she couldn’t argue with him due to missing memories, but things clearly weren’t as simple as he made them out to be, like last time she unwittingly walked into the office, though they were entangled, she chose to trust him; but this time was different, they were old acquaintances, according to Luis, back then Joshua even wanted to marry Donna, so what happens when they meet again?

Definitely not as Joshua said, that he almost forgot who Donna was. If she hadn’t gone to his office that day, wouldn’t they have secretly plotted something?

Joshua Hughes wasn’t annoyed listening to her, with a loving hand caressed her long hair, his voice clear as wine: ”No, because I am your husband; we should be together, no reason can separate us.”

How could he let her live alone; she’d just think more and more, causing him even more worry.

”I have my freedom; you can’t control it.” Avery Jane’s eyes full of pain; who was he really, and herself?

Joshua Hughes smiled gently, yet his tone was firm and undeniable: ”Silly, of course, you have your freedom.”

Having spent time with her from the past to now, Joshua realized Avery Jane is someone who responds to gentleness over force; the more you push, the more she resists. He could only use gentleness to bind her when intimidation failed.

Avery Jane pushed him away, her black-and-white eyes staring at him: ”Didn’t you hear what I said? I need to live alone to find some peace. Do you think I’m a fool? Did you think I would dismiss all that I saw the other day and heard today as if it were nothing? There’s more I don’t want to expose, I don’t want to question how much you’ve deceived me.”

He calmly listened to her accusations, gently hearing all she said: ”Avery, you believe everything others say, but what about my words? I’m the closest person to you; do you believe me?” His words were thoughtful, always giving her an intangible sense of security, but can she still trust him today?

”If you want, we can talk long into the night; don’t get upset, let’s change clothes and go outside, I’ll slowly tell you.” Some things must be said, it seems unavoidable, Joshua Hughes stood, picking up the clothes prepared for her, reaching out to help her dress, Avery reflexively flinched, looked at him defensively: ”I can do it myself.” A wounded look quickly flashed across Joshua Hughes’s eyes........

Joshua Hughes grabbed a robe, draped it over himself, and walked out. Turning his back, filled with melancholy and loneliness, his hurt look was like branded iron scorching her heart terribly, tears flowed more furiously, evoking sympathy, but who could tell her what is truly happening, why he seemed to care deeply about her, but outside there were so many things about him she couldn’t accept?

He prepared a white robe for her, she had many white robes. They seemed similar, yet each had its own unique aspects, showing the sheer thoughtfulness of the person who selected them. Avery Jane bit her lip, glanced at the bathroom in the room, walked in, quickly took a hot shower, changed clothes and walked out........

All the lights lit up; golden, red bulbs like tiny celebratory lanterns, for fear of the sea breeze blowing too hard, the deck already had a huge tent set up, Joshua Hughes sat inside, like a mighty emperor from ancient times, reaching out to her, Avery Jane walked over slowly, hesitated, and placed her small hand into his palm.

Pulling her to sit on the large red couch, Joshua Hughes lazily stretched his long legs, the gold and red heavy drapery visible within, strings of silver crystal lights hanging from above, shining beautifully. Without these issues, she’d be happy, would rush to him to kiss his face, but today’s revelations made everything repulsive.

Joshua Hughes sighed softly: ”Avery, in my past, there were many women, but their number is irrelevant to me, I can’t even remember their names. To me, they were all the same, do you understand?”

This man did such things, yet he could say this, but what about her; what did she mean?

Joshua Hughes lightly kissed Avery Jane’s cheek, meeting her surprised eyes, continued speaking.

”The Hughes Family originally came from an ancient noble line, inherited traditions. The eldest son of the Hughes Family could inherit the family business, but before inheriting, he must go through family trials. In the year before I was to inherit the business, I was exiled, forced to abide by the Hughes Family rules, survive and return, to obtain everything. That’s when I went abroad, met Donna. I won’t deny then Donna was young, passionate, I was momentarily captivated by her beauty, and we lived together.....”

Since Luis had already told her much, some things he had to proactively tell Avery Jane; at least this way, there’s still a chance, and it wouldn’t make Avery too doubtful about the authenticity of what he said.