Arranged marriage : Married to an unknown man

Ariana

Sean arrived with Daniel and a doctor.

“Ariana, this is Dr. Colton. Our trusted doctor. Xavier always goes to him if he gets ill,” Sean said while pointing at the doctor. I nodded my head.

“Xavier is in his room?” Sean asked me.

“Yes,” I replied. All of us went to the room.

Sean and Daniel rushed to Xavier who had still been groaning in pain. Daniel touched his arm and Sean pressed the back of his hand on Xavier’s forehead. “Fuck!” They both cursed in unison. Why they curse so much?

Doctor Colton sat beside Xavier to examine him. I stood beside Daniel who was standing beside Sean, the worry was evident on both of their faces.

“Has he taken any medicine?” Doctor asked, looking towards Daniel and Sean. But I was the one who was with him all the time so I answered,

“Yes, I gave him medicine an hour ago. But I think medicine didn’t work for long ’cause he started groaning in pain again.”

Doctor Colton strangely stared at me which made me uncomfortable. I averted my eyes, trying to be comfortable. He knew Xavier on a personal level, he must be wondering who I was and what I was doing in Xavier’s penthouse. Sean and Daniel sensed my uneasiness because they both stepped in front of me, shielding me from the uncomfortable gaze of the doctor.

“What happened to him, doctor?” Daniel asked.

“He has a fever and cold. I think it’s due to the weather.” Doctor replied.

“I think he went into the rain,” I replied. Daniel and Sean looked at me questioningly.

“I saw his wet clothes in the bathroom,” I replied slowly, looking at them. They both nodded their head.

“He always gets a fever whenever he goes in the rain but still he doesn’t learn,” Daniel mumbled.

“I’ll just give him a shot, it will bring down his fever fast.” Doctor Colton took out a syringe from his bag, filled liquid medicine in it, and injected it into Xavier’s upper arm then he took out some medicine from his bag and placed them on the bed.

“Give these medicines to him in the morning when he wakes up. And these medicines are to be given to him three times a day. He’ll recover soon.” Doctor Colton assured.

“What about the pain? He generally feels pain in his body when he has a fever.” Sean asked the doctor.

“He also gets a headache during fever,” Daniel said. Oh! That’s why he was groaning.

“Don’t worry, the shot I gave him will bring down his fever and reduce the pain as well. And the medicine will do the same.” Doctor assured. I sighed in relief.

“And also, give him light food.” Doctor states.

“I shall leave now. If he doesn’t feel well after taking medicine then call me again.” Doctor said.

“Thank you, Doctor, for coming at this hour.” Sean shook his hand.

“Don’t mention, it’s my duty.” Doctor Colton replied as he shook Sean’s hand.

“Come, I’ll walk you out,” Sean said to the doctor. The doctor stared at me before walking out of the room. Sean came up to me before heading out.

“Don’t worry. He’ll be fine. Okay?” Sean said softly, cupping my cheek with his hand. I nodded my head. Then he kissed the side of my head. I closed my eyes to feel his brotherly gesture. It made me feel relaxed a little.

Daniel sat beside Xavier and ran his fingers in Xavier’s hair. Xavier stirred a little. I just looked at him adoringly. Both Sean and Daniel care for him a lot.

“You never listen to anyone. Why you went into the rain when you know you get a fever after that? You always make all of us worried.” Daniel scolded him softly like he was scolding a baby. I don’t know if Xavier heard him or not but I was touched by this action of Daniel. He was scolding him as a big brother. Daniel stood up came towards me.

“Don’t worry he’ll be fine,” Daniel assured me. “He always does that, makes everyone worried about him. He is so stubborn. But don’t worry, Now I scolded him he’ll be a good boy… At least for some time.” His last statement made me smile. He surely knows how to bring a smile to someone’s face.

“I know Princess that you are worried about him. But don’t worry, he’ll be fit as a fiddle in just a day because you are the one who is taking care of him. I trust you with him.” He gave me a brief side hug and kissed the side of my head. Tears welled up in my eyes. This gesture didn’t bring any sensation to my body like Xavier’s kiss did but it did spread warmness in my body. I was experiencing this brotherly affection for the first time. And trust is the big word.

“I’ll just go and talk to the doctor.” I nodded my head and then Daniel also left the room.

I sat beside Xavier and covered him with the duvet till his chin then I pressed my fingers on his forehead to give a massage to reduce his pain. He must be in so much pain. I knew it because I had experienced the worst headache and other physical pain.

He stirred a little which made me stop pressing my fingers on his forehead. My heart sank in the pit of my stomach. He was not comfortable with it. He didn’t want me to give him a massage. He didn’t know what was happening around him but still, he could sense my presence and it was making him uncomfortable. I think I should leave him alone.

With a heavy heart, I tried to get up from the bed but stopped when he shifted towards me and placed his arm on my lap, resisting me from moving. I was surprised by his move.

I didn’t try to move, I couldn’t… because of the shock. He groaned again. I hesitantly lifted my hand and ran my fingers through his hair and surprisingly, he leaned into my touch.

“Mmmm…” He moaned and tightened his grip around my lap. And then it hit me, he stirred because he was trying to get in a comfortable position. Warmness instantly spread in my body. He’s not uncomfortable with me being around him. And that mere thought brought a smile to my lips.

I gave him a massage until he fell asleep then I gently removed his heavy arm from around my lap and stood up. I gave him a last glance before heading out to look for Sean and Daniel. I really forgot about them.

I ran downstairs and found them sleeping on the couch in the living room. Sean was sleeping on the couch with his arm covering his face. Daniel was sleeping on another one-seater couch with his head resting on the backrest of the couch, his hands were folded in front of his chest.

They must be feeling cold. They should have taken any of the spare rooms to sleep. I couldn’t even wake them up because they were sleeping peacefully. I picked up two blankets from the room and covered both of them with them.

Xavier is lucky to have them in his life. They really care for Xavier. They got really worried when they saw him groaning in pain. They came here just in one call regardless of their sleep. What I have learned about the three of them is that they are always there to help each other in any situation, if one of them is in any problem they don’t care about what important work they are doing, they will immediately rush to help each other, leaving their work behind.

They are brothers for life.

And I was happy to have these two in my life as my brothers.

I glanced at the clock that was hanging on the wall. It was already five in the morning. I went into my room, brushed my teeth, showered, and wore loose jeans and a T-shirt. I dried my hair and then put them in a bun.

I went into Xavier’s room to check on him and when I found him sleeping peacefully I went to check on Daniel and Sean. They were also sleeping, curled up on the couch. I decided not to wake them up.

I went into the kitchen to prepare breakfast for them and soup for Xavier. First, I started making pancakes and chocolate sauce then I put the pan on the stove to cook tomato soup for Xavier. I added my special ingredients to make the soup tasty.

“I smell food.” I jumped when I heard a voice. I looked up to see Daniel entering the kitchen while rubbing his eyes.

“You startled me, Daniel.” I was so engrossed in cooking that I didn’t see him coming into the kitchen.

“Sorry. But what can I do? The delicious aroma of food woke me up from sleep and my feet involuntarily walked me here.” He said while rubbing the back of his neck.

“You even walk in sleep when you smell food,” Sean said, entering the kitchen.

I gave my full attention to them. “Okay, tell me why didn’t you two sleep in any of the spare rooms? There are a lot of rooms in this penthouse. You could have taken any of them but you chose to sleep on the couch in cold. I had to cover you with a blanket.” I said.

“I think we both were tired and slept when we sat on the couch to talk. And by the way, thank you for saving both of us from cold.” Daniel smiled.

“Now, go and freshen up so you can have breakfast,” I said as I stirred the soup.

“Yeah. I am starving.” Daniel said and dipped his finger in chocolate sauce.

“No Daniel, it’s-“.

“Fuck. It’s hot.” He licked his finger.

“I was going to say that! And why do you two curse so much?” I glared at them.

“We don’t.” They both said in unison. I gave them a you-really-want-argue-with-me look. They both looked at each other and then looked at me.

“Sorry, we won’t do it again.” They both replied giving me the most innocent look.

I sighed. “Good, now go and freshen up.”Text © 2024 NôvelDrama.Org.

They both left the kitchen and came after freshening up. Both of their hair was wet from showering. They sat on the chair at the dining table.

“Here’s your breakfast.” I placed the breakfast in front of them. I served them coffee too. They both took a bite of pancake.

“Goodness Ariana. It’s so delicious. Simply the best thing to start the day with.” Daniel said while stuffing pancake in his mouth. I smiled. I love feeding people with the food I cook.

“It’s the best pancake I have ever tasted. And the coffee you make, it’s the best in the world.” Sean said as he sipped his coffee.

“Okay, you two finish your breakfast, I’ll go and see Xavier. He must be up.”

“Good luck with that,” Daniel muttered sipping his coffee.

“Huh?” Why good luck.

“Xavier behaves like a kid when he gets sick. So, good luck because you will have to bear with his whining and tantrums.” Sean muttered while sipping his coffee.

I smiled and shook my head. I picked up the tray of food and headed upstairs to his room.

When I entered his room, he was sitting on the bed, his head was pressed against the headboard and his eyes were closed. He looked so weak and fragile. I placed the food tray on the nightstand and touched his forehead which caused him to open his eyes.

“Umm… I was just checking your temp… temperature.” Goodness, why I always get nervous around him? I don’t get nervous while talking to Daniel and Sean.

To my surprise, he lifted his hand and touched my cheek, sending tingles in my body. I looked at him but he was looking at my cheek. Oh! He’s checking the bruise.

“It’s gone… Thank you.” That came out of my mouth in a whisper. His eyes met mine, searching for something. He nodded his head and removed his hand.

“Umm… I brought soup for you.” He scrunched his nose on that.

“I want coffee and a real breakfast. Soup is for sick people. And it doesn’t taste good.” He grumbled.

I wanted to say that you are sick but I decided against it.

“Caffeine has a dehydrating effect and the doctor said you should eat light food till your fever subsides. And I tried to make the soup tasty. It doesn’t taste like any other normal soup for sick people.” I reasoned out.

“I am not sick.” He gazed at the soup and then at me and then he agreed to eat it. I smiled broadly. Thank goodness he agreed.

I placed the tray in front of him. He stared at the soup for long before taking the spoonful of soup. He first brought it close to his nose and sniffed it, he scrunched his nose again. He indeed behaves like a kid when sick. He then put it into his mouth. I had my fingers crossed. Hope he likes it.

Then he started eating it hurriedly. I was watching him in amusement. He didn’t stop until he finished the whole bowl. He liked it.

“You want more soup?” I asked when he drank water after finishing the soup.

“Umm… Ye.. yes.” He replied, not looking at me. He indeed liked it. I felt extremely happy.

I picked up the tray and left the room and headed back to the kitchen. Daniel and Sean had finished eating.

“I think we should leave, it’s time to get back to work. We have to attend the meeting that Xavier was supposed to attend.” Sean said.

“Yes. And thank you for the breakfast, Princess. It was delicious. We’ll come back in the evening to check on him.” Daniel said.

“No need to thank me and call me if you want any help with work and I’ll cook dinner for you two. So make sure not to make any other plans. Okay?” I said, looking at both of them.

“I don’t think it’s a good idea. You must be tired, you haven’t slept since midnight. You just take care of him and yourself, okay? You were also not well yesterday, you had a headache. So you take rest and We’ll take care of office work.” Sean replied. Oh. Xavier gave them this reason.

“No, it’s okay, I am totally fine now. And I’ll be cooking for myself and Xavier, I’ll cook for you two too. It won’t take much time. Or you don’t like the food I made?” I asked sadly. I know they liked the food. I just want them to eat dinner here.

“No… It’s not like that, the food was very tasty.” Daniel said and heaved a sigh. “Okay fine, we’ll stay for dinner. I can’t say no when you are giving me that cute look.” Daniel gave his most famous smile.

“Thank you.” I grinned. Sean shook his head and agreed too. Then they left.

I went to Xavier’s room, taking more soup in the bowl.

“What took you so long?” He frowned.

“I was just seeing off Daniel and Sean,” I said putting the tray in front of him.

“They were still here? I thought they left already.”

“Now they have left,” I replied.

He started eating soup. After he finished, I placed the tray on the nightstand and gave him medicine. He laid back on the bed. I turned around and was about to leave when I felt a tug on my wrist. I turned around to see Xavier was holding my wist. He was looking directly into my eyes.

“Could you please give me the head massage that you gave me before?” He requested in a whisper. I was stunned to know that he knew I was the one who gave him the massage and he wanted me to give it to him again.

He was looking at me with pleading eyes. I couldn’t say no to him. Suddenly, all my nervousness flew in the air, I agreed to him and sat beside him to give him a head massage.