Chapter 3 Billionaire's Lies

Locked with fury in her eyes, Teresa gripped Benedict's arm tightly with her fingernails digging deep into his skin. He was in the middle of an idle conversation with his friends, and the force of his mother's yank thrust him back into harsh reality. The smile dropped off his face, replaced by irritation. "Turn around now and go back to Sabrina!" Teresa hissed to his face, her voice low but full of a venom that brought him up short. "This is your wedding! You're supposed to be with your wife, not out here screwing like some irresponsible idiot! Do you have any idea how embarrassing this is? How much shame you're bringing to our family?fix this Now!" She snapped her eyes to his with a warning so sharp he felt a jolt of anger-cum-tethers him to the moment. She wasn't letting this slide past. She gave one last withering glare to ensure the point had been wholly impressed, then turned and stormed off, heels clicking impatiently on the marble floor.Benedict clenched his teeth, pinioned and suffocating under the unrelenting grasp of his mother's control. He had not asked for anything of this, certainly not the marriage. His heart was pounding with frustration as he stood there, the weight of her words a cage hanging over him. With a heavy sigh, he shoved his hands into deep pockets and trudged back toward the grand hall where Sabrina sat waiting for him. His steps dragged, as if less of an inclination than any other to continue, each one boiling up into resentful bubbles he could hardly keep from bursting. When he entered, he saw her immediately. Sabrina was sitting alone, her shoulders hunched, tears streaming down her face as she tried to hide her sobs.It irritated him even further. Always crying, he thought with bitterness. It was as if everything in her irritated him: her softness, her vulnerability, and her constant pleading for his affection.Benedict strode toward her, his footsteps echoing in the otherwise silent room. He yanked her hand out, making her raise her eyes up to him. His grip was harsh; his touch in no way gentle. "You're such a drama queen," he spat, his voice sprinkled with savage sarcasm. "You got my mom to stand for you! Can't even stop crying for one second?Sabrina gazed at him with her wet eyes, hurt etched on her face. But Benedict did not feel anything for that. As anger had flared into a fire in his bosom, he was bent upon letting it out. "Actually, I hate you," he went on, as sharp as the blade of a knife with his words. "I never want to be around you. It disgusts me to the bone!Sabrina winced at what he said. Her lip was shaking, and she made a valiant effort to contain her sobs. "B-Benedict, I-""Don't," he cut in, his eyes blazing with wrath. "Don't try to talk your way out of this. You think I didn't notice the way you played my mother? The way you play the victim all of your life?" "I never-" Sabrina started, her voice little more than a whisper, but Benedict's rage blotted it out."You never what?" he sneered, his breath cold as he pulled in close until their faces were only inches apart. "You never tried to snare me? Never engineered tears to make everyone pity you? Spare me. I am sick of it. Sick of you." It was like all he said was a broken vase, and into the million pieces she fell. Sabrina had never in her wildest dreams imagined to ever be the one who could trap him. She wanted all this for nothing: only his love. And yet now the dream took life, it seemed impossible to hold onto. "I love you, Benedict," she whispered softly, her voice laced with tears."Love?" he sneered, casting her hand away from him as if it burned him. "That's not love, Sabrina. It's obsession. And I don't want any part of it."Her chest strained beneath her heaving breaths as his words washed over her cruelly. She tried holding back the tears that fell regardless. There was nothing she could do but to sit there, broken and devastated. "You're pathetic," Benedict whispered, his tone ice-cold, as he looked down at her, offering her no comfort whatsoever. "And nothing in all the crying you do is going to change how I feel. There was a freeze in his gaze as he stood over Sabrina, arms crossed in disdain. She wiped at the tears streaking down her cheeks, trying to compose herself. Her makeup was smeared and streaked; it said more than any words could that she'd been crying. He let out an irritated sigh. "Get yourself together," Benedict snapped, his voice low but dripping with impatience. "Let my mom see you in this condition, and she'll start giving me the side-eye again. I don't need another lecture on how I'm not treating you right either." She winced at the words but nodded soundlessly, half-supporting herself on her legs as she walked to the rest room. Her hands could shake as she reapplied some makeup in front of the mirror, but no amount of trying would help mask that burning sorrow that poured from behind her eyes.As she exited, Benedict was standing right beside the door, expressionless on his face. No word was spoken to her; he simply stood there until she composed herself enough so she could venture out into the world again. Just as she stretched her hand out towards him, the event coordinator popped out and proceeded with a bright gleam on his face to make some sort of announcement. "Ladies and gentlemen, let us welcome the newlyweds on to the dance floor!" echoed the coordinator in a cheerful, bantering tone of voice, without paying the slightest attention to the thick tension in the air. Within this chorus of whispering applause, people looked toward the newlyweds. Sabrina could feel her heart racing. She hated this moment-nearly dreading to once again endure Benedict's icy touch, pretend everything is perfect, and to appear perfectly for the sake of appearances, this perfect bride.Benedict came closer to her. His jaw clenched. He caught her hand, not softly but hard enough to make Sabrina flinch. They moved through to the center of the hall. He leaned in, his warm breath on her ear, hissing out his words for her alone. "Are you happy now?" he sneered, dripping the venom. "You have everything you wanted, didn't you?" Sabrina's lips tremble but never utter a word. She's in a trap, like a bird trapped with a closed cage. The music played very softly as they move to the center of the dance floor. Everyone around them awaits that romantic moment to come.But there was nothing romantic in the touch of Benedict. His fingers were cold and remote as he pulled her into a slow, practiced dance. Every step was laborious, unfeeling.He leaned in again, speaking in a voice little above a whisper but cruel. "You will never have my love. Remember that always," he spat, cutting into her like a knife. "I'll make sure you wish you had never spent a single second on this."While Sabrina's heart bled at his words, she still had her composure to continue following the rhythm of the music. Her legs felt as though they would give way beneath her. Her hands shook so much that she grasped the arms; she knew that every eye in the room was on them.With her eyes brimming with tears she hadn't dared to weep, she lifted her head to his. "I never wanted it this way, Benedict," she whispered tremulously.He said nothing, but his grip around her waist tightened into a very direct indication that they should continue the farce for the sake of their guests.The song continued: soft and sweet, the opposite to what they had been in each other's throats about. As the music built up, Sabrina's heart broke a little more with every step. To everyone watching them, they appeared as the perfect couple. But beneath all this, there was nothing but a breakdown of heart and hostility.With the ending of the song, Benedict quickly came out from under the disguise. He posed for the crowd with a spurious grin on his face. Sabrina, however could hardly hold the tears leaking once more back. "Let's give a round of applause for the happy couple!" cried out the event planner, while everyone in the room gave them their accolades, not realizing the storm between them. The minute the clapping began, Benedict let go of her hand and stepped back as if the very sight of her disgusted him. Without so much as casting a look over his shoulder, he turned and started walking away from Sabrina, leaving her standing alone in the middle of the dance floor-she had no one to respond to amidst the hundreds of people surrounding her.She stood there with the feeling of the crushing weight of the moment. She had dreamed this day for so long, imagining it would be all love and happiness. Now, in reality, it seemed like a nightmare. Every moment dragged on, suffocating her with despair, as if time itself had conspired against her. Her heart ached with the weight of lost hopes, and she wished desperately for it all to be over.