~~~Annabelle's POV~~~

"Wake up sleepy head." came a deep and husky voice from somewhere beside me.

Wait! Beside me?

l open my eyes and see brown eyes smiling at me and then l look down to the position we have somehow ended up in.

He is lying down on his side while l am glued to him like a leech or a koala or some animal that is similar. I always thought that if I slept with someone in the same bed that I would be kicking them out and hocking the covers since that seems like something I normally do while I am sleeping alone.

I did not think that I would be one of those people that love to cuddle.

My leg is over his hip, my arms are around his waist and my head was rested just under his chin while he had one arm under my body and the other across my waist, holding me even tighter to his body.

Everything from before l woke up comes back and there is a part of my brain that is happy and content being here in his arms but the other one is thinking that l have cheated on someone that l have given a promise to and that Nate and l are nothing official.

I know that I am not married to Matt for the right reasons and he has done even worse things to me, like put me in a fucking coma but I still took a vow and made some kind of promise and it feels wrong for me to break it, no matter what the circumstances.

All the years of training have gone down the drain and l have become someone l was never intended to be.

I wrap the sheets around my body and try to stand up but Nate is not letting me go.

"I need to go to the bathroom." I murmur and try again but this time his hold is even stronger.

"Do you regret it?" he asks in a hurt tone, and I can understand why since if I woke up to him wanting to get the hell away from me I would not be happy and I would also be very hurt.

I look into his eyes and see love and affection but that does not change the fact that I'm not supposed to be with him and I'm not supposed to be acting like this.

I have very strong feelings for him and I can't just lie to him and tell him that I fully regret it but then I can't be honest and tell him that I partly do because that would hurt him as well.

"I don't regret being with you or doing that but I do hate the circumstance that we are in." I tell him truthfully and I see that he kind of understand where I'm coming from but of course he is still going to be hurt no matter what I say right now.

"I understand but I want you to leave him and be with me. You belong with me." He tells me in a hard and confident tone and it warms me that he is so sure about us and that this time he is willing to fight for us.

"I can't be with anyone other than him. My parents signed a contract with him." I tell him and by the surprised look on his face I guess that I never told him about this part of the deal.

"Do you any idea of how to get around the contract?" he asks with hope in his eyes while I smile sadly at him.

"I've never seen the contract, except when I signed it and that was taken away from me as soon as my signature was on the paper." I say and his eyes widen and then fill with anger and hate.

"Your parents just sold you off to the highest bidder?" he asks in a hard tone and looks at me with disbelief.

"I've never been in control of my life. It's always been what they wanted and what I have to do. The only rebellious things that I have ever done were dance and lose my virginity to a stranger. Otherwise I have had no control over what I eat or what I do or who I talk to or how I talk to them. Being here with you and in Hawaii were the only moments where I actual had a choice in something." I tell him and I expect him to ask me questions or shout at or do something but he just leans forward and kisses me.

The kiss is gentle and it's almost like he is soothing me and trying to drive away my horrid past. I kiss him back and halfway through I taste saltiness and realize that I have started crying at how gentle and caring he is, and how I want to have this life with him so badly but it is impossible for us to be together.

"I don't even want to see you cry about anything. Your face is made for smiling and that is what I'm going to make you do for the rest of your life. I will have my layer look into the contract and try to find a loophole. I can hack into Matt's e-mail and find a copy of the contract or look in the safe at his house. Don't worry I'm going to get you out of this." He tells me when he pulls away and kisses away my tears.

"Why do you even care? You can get any other girl that doesn't have this much baggage and trouble coming with her. My parents are a package with me. If I even end up with you, they are going to want you to pay for my services." I tell him, feeling ashamed that my family is like this.

"Don't refer to yourself as giving services, you are not a prostitute but a woman that is trapped and does not know a way to escape." He tells me sternly after I utter my last sentence.

I fell another wave of tears form in my eyes but I try to hold them back since I have been crying like a little baby and being this indecisive and hormonal is not normal for me.

"I want to go and take a shower." I tell him, trying to change the topic. I'm not comfortable talking about this so openly and I feel embarrassed and ashamed that I am so weak that I cannot find a way out of this on my own.

There are women that have to fight on the front line or are looking after their families by themselves with no help and they manage to prove everyone wrong by raising great children and here I am complaining and crying because I can't be with a man when I am married to wealth and can have whatever I may desire.

Nate stands up from underneath me and carries me bridal style to the bathroom where I finally let go of the sheets and step into the spacious cubicle with him close behind me.

We wash each other and this feels even more intimate than what we did just a couple of hours ago. My feelings for him keep growing and growing and I don't know what I'll do when all of this ends and I have to go back to Matt and once again pretend that I'm the perfect wife with the perfect husband.

We walk back into the bedroom and I walk over to my suitcase and take out purple pair of bra and underwear and put them on, underneath some jeans and a tank top.

The movie credits are still playing in the living room and I smile a little at how romantic the setting he made is.

"I'm cooking this time." He tells me when we make it into the kitchen and he pushes me to sit in one of the chairs.

"Show me your skills then, chef." I say and he just smirks at me but turns around to start cooking.

I watch him cook and let me tell you something, a man cooking you lunch is one of the best sights you will ever see.

The appealing aroma of ramen washes through my senses and my mouth immediately started watering and I was perched on the edge of the chair so I am as close to the smell as possible.

My stomach gave out a loud rumble that even Nate heard and turned around to laugh at my red face.

"It will be done in a minute, sweetheart." He tells me and then turns around once more.

After what feels like an eternity he takes two bowls out of the cupboard and poured the food inside and then handed me the bowl and a pair of chopsticks.

I dived straight into the bowl and I was done eating even before him. He just smiled at me and asked if I wanted some more to which I said later.

We were just about to go outside for a walk when my phone rang in the bedroom upstairs and I looked at Nate and then back up and raced upstairs to see who was calling since only 2 people have this number.

Something must have happened to Rose.

I quickly find my phone and answer the call without even checking the caller ID.

"Hello?" I say a little breathlessly.

"Anna, get the hell away from there! Matt has called your parents and he knows that you're with Nathan. I'm ahead of them so in the next couple of seconds open the door for me." She manages to get out in one breath.

My eyes widen and fear is once more present in the mix of emotions. I hang up the phone and start to pick up all of my belongings that have made it out of the suitcase and back into it and push it under the bed so it's out of sight.

I look up and find Nathan leaning against the doorway looking something between concerned and anxious.

I guess he heard the conversation.

"Where can I hide?" I ask him with panic in my voice and his face transforms into a frown.

"You're not hiding anywhere. You go into the kitchen and I'll deal with them myself." He tells me and then starts to walk downstairs where the door bell has just rung.

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~~~Nathan's POV~~~

I walk down the stairs and hope that the first person that made it here was her friend Rose.

I need to have a long talk with my friend and her parents.

How could the just sell a human being like it's an object you can replace? How could the man that I thought had at least some form of morals, buy his bride and have her trained for her whole life?

I reach the front door and open it to a frantic looking Rose who pushes past me without even saying hello.

"Kitchen." I shout at her retreating back and then prepare to face the people that could potentially ruin my love's life but there is no way in hell that I'll let them.

Just 10 minutes later the doorbell rings again and the chatter that could be previously heard from the girls turns into silence.

I walk to the door once more and open the door to this sophisticated older lady who looks like she could kill me and a man behind her with equal amount of hate in his eyes. Who l was expecting to see is not here and l can't help but laugh at how cowardly he is, sending someone else to do his dirty work like always.

"How can l help you?" l ask as politely as l can, keeping in mind that the people in front of me have caused my girl the most amount of pain throughout her whole life.

"Don't play stupid with me young man!" shouts the man from behind, I'm guessing is her dad. The woman turns to glare at him and hisses something quietly to him.

"I am sorry for my husband's rude behavior but I was wondering if you would let us in so we can discuss something." She says and pushes her hands together so her chest is emphasized and I almost laugh at her and decide that I'm going to mess with them as much as I can.

"Come on in madam." I say in a polite voice but put emphasis on the madam. l move aside and when the mother tries to brush on me l move even more and for a second l see the frown on her face.

We walk to my office since the living room is still in the romantic setting from this morning.

l sit in my chair and motion to the two chairs in front of the desk and watch with amusement that her mother sat with her legs open and then crosses them, attempting to look sexy while her husband looks at her like she holds the world in her hands.

"Can we please get to the point and with all due respect madam can you please act your age and status in front of your husband. Now what are you here for?" I get straight to the point because l am disgusted by these people and the only reason l haven't thrown them out is because they brought the girl l love into this world and that is the only speck of respect they are getting from me.

"OK then if we are going to be frank. I came here to get my daughter back and if I see you anywhere near her, you will find yourself with a big fat lawsuit." she spits and stands up from her chair and starts to make her way out of the room.