Apollo's 11

by Anna Collins

  "This monster never gets tired of giving orders. He is the one who is kidnapping me and he wants me to behave properly, what a joke!" I heard her murmur.

  My lips curled in a half-smile, no matter what she did, she always looked cute and he had this glow of an angel on her face.

  "Uncle had been hospitalized, his car had an accident while he was driving back home" finally I broke the news to her.

  "O-M-G! And you are telling me now? How is he doing now? Is it too serious? Have you lodged a complaint against the culprit?" she spoke without pausing for a second.

  "Relax, take a breath. How fast you can speak!" I exclaimed partly amazed by the speed of her talking and partly by seeing the genuine concern in her eyes that she was having for my uncle. She had only known him for 5-6 days, still so much concern?

  "He is out of danger now, there is a fracture in his leg and I took him home. Yes, I have given all the details to the police" I breathed, answering her questions.

  "Thank God, is Liam doing fine?" she asked.

  "That's the reason, I kidnapped you. Liam has not stopped crying from the time he heard about the accident. And I am not good with managing crying people. He is kind of friendly to you so I guessed you will be able to handle him?" I spoke softly, occasionally moving my eyes from the road to check on her reaction.

  She held her head "has anyone ever told you that you are a psycho?"

  I rolled my eyes at her and she continued...

  "Yes, that's what you are. Instead of groping me and stuffing me in your car if you had calmly explained me about the situation then all your kidnapping skills would have been saved. And I would not have gotten a mini heart attack by thinking about the possible things you could do to me. Robert Hudson, you are impossible," she shook her head; maybe she was frustrated by my behavior towards her.

  "Liam, your dad is fine. Big boys don't cry okay" Liam hugged her when he saw Freya and she was consoling him pretty well.

  "Freya, actually I can't endure the sight of blood, it scares me" Liam confessed. He was a lot comfortable with her than he has ever been to me!

  We passed the hallway and went upstairs to Uncle Joe's room.

  Oh, Freak! Ben Wyatt was sitting right there on uncle's bed. Those two were chatting comfortably. Probably they already knew each other.

  "Guys meet Ben, we were together in high school. And how sweet of him it is to pay me a visit" Uncle smiled.

  "Don't hide it Joe. People, I am here to say sorry. Actually, it was my driver's fault that has led Joe into this painful condition. He bumped into his car. I am here to apologize," he confessed sadly.

  I walked up to them wearing my professional smile "everyone makes mistakes, Mr. Wyatt" when I said these words I could feel Freya's angry eyes on me. She could not blame me, this mistake was different.

  Ben smiled and shook my hands.

  "Freya, where have you been? And why do you look so sad? It was just an accident, I am not dead yet. Don't act like Liam" uncle smiled.

  Freya went near uncle and held his hand, “I am glad you are okay and please don't talk about death. If you do so, then I will start crying like Liam and no one will be able to stop me" she pouted.

  "Publish it in the newspaper that I am a cry baby" Liam protested.

  Everyone laughed.

  I went to the door to attend a call; my eyes were fixed on Freya. She was so comfortable with uncle and Liam.

  "Hudson, you have proved me wrong?" Ben Wyatt said. Whoa! I had no idea when he got beside me.

  "I didn't get you," I tried to force a smile.

  "Pardon me for my thoughts, but I assumed that you are a rich, spoiled playboy. But now when I saw you with your family, I have no way but to gulp down my thoughts. The man, who has the eye to choose such a decent and caring wife like Freya, can never be wrong. I guess your smart and sensible decisions have taken your business to a higher level," he patted on my chest.

  I stopped my jaw from hanging open. Ben had a friendly smile on his face and for the first time ever he was impressed with me. Ben Wyatt, who never liked me, who never believed that I was capable enough to handle his company was actually happy with me. All thanks to a misunderstanding, he thought that Freya was my wife?

  There was no freaking way I could tell him that he got the wrong picture.

  I smiled hesitantly, what else could I do?

  "Sir, do you now find me good enough to hand over your company to me?" my insides were jumping with excitement when I asked this question.

  His face went gloomy "hmm, I don't know yet. I have heard that you are a ruthless and ill-mannered guy so to judge your character I need to see how you treat your wife" He squared his shoulders.

  A Silly piece of ass! If I was not lusting over his company then I would have shown how ruthless and ill-mannered I really was. Did he want to judge me? Who gave him the authority to judge the Robert Hudson?

  Holding back my anger "I don't understand," I uttered.

  "I am sure Joe is recovering just fine. Why don't you take the weekend off and spend it with me and Emily at my farmhouse? I would get to see your bonding then and can also make the decision about selling my shares" he proposed.

  He surely was having doubts about the relationship between me and Freya. Wait...there was no relationship between us, Oh Freak! It was a big problem.

  I was expert in keeping a proud and steady face and Ben would never detect the tension that was running in my veins.

  He took my silence as a yes. "Okay, Hudson will see you guys on Friday night. I will email you the address," he smiled.

  "Freya, make sure you come with him," he yelled at the door. His voice reached Freya who had a clueless expression on her face and smiled hesitantly. Shit! I could say I was officially screwed.

  Chapter Ten

  Freya

  "Why are you looking at me like that?" I furrowed my eyebrows at him.

  It was almost midnight, I had tucked Liam in his bed, he was sleeping like a baby and Uncle Joe had retired sooner, the heavy dosage of painkillers brought him good sleep. And when I was about to leave, Mr. Monster stopped me saying that he wanted to discuss something important with me. I had no interest to spend a further second with him, but he looked kinda worried and I kinda melted down a bit. I was a soft hearted person after all. But that did not mean that I had stopped hating him, he was still my sworn enemy.

  "See, I don't have time to play your favorite I-want-to-kill-you-Freya game. Its 12am if I stay further I will not get any transport back to my home" I whined.

  "Don't leave. I need you to do something for me," he finally spoke.

  "I am not going to do it" I smiled bitchily.

  "You did not even hear what I want you to do" he was shocked.

  "Why listen, when I already know the concluding statement" I blinked.

  He shrugged "It will gain you a lot"

  "Oh please, I have already gained a lot from you" I pouted.

  He raised his eyebrows, "you may get back your job and can also get an apartment of your own" his voice was loud now and it forced me to pay attention.

  "Really, you are going to give me back my job?" I was happy; maybe he had realized his mistake?

  "Yes and a place of your own, so that you don't have to stay in a shared apartment" his tone sounded warm.

  Wait ….Goodness, that too from this monster they never go hand in hand, there must be a catch, a voice in my head warned me.

  "What's the catch?" I asked with a challenge in my voice.

  "Hmm, smart enough. But there is no catch; you will just have to do a task for me. Think of it as a small job for which I will pay you" he winked.

  Now he was scaring me, "what do you want me to do?" asked curiously.

  "Okay, so let me tell you the whole story, sit down," he gestured, I obeyed.

  He told me about Ben Wyatt and how it had become a need for him to conquer Wyatt telecommunications and about the old school thoughts of Mr. Wyatt. About Emily etc.

  But
his last sentence made me jump out of my seat "how could you let him assume that I am your wife? Why didn't you stop him?" my voice was filled with panic.

  "Because I am not a fool, that crude guy only likes me because of you. And I thought that I will get away with this. I had no idea that he will invite us over to judge our relationship compatibility, this is shocking for me as well" he explained.

  I sighed and sat back "and Emily what about her? She might tell her father that you are unmarried"

  "I will take care of the Emily situation. Freya it's not as hard as it appears and it’s a matter of two days. We can do it!" he tried to sound convincing.

  "I hate you and it shows on my face, I can't hide it. And you are talking about days? I can't even stand you for a nanosecond" I shook my head.

  "I am not that bad as you are making me appear with your expression," he said softly.

  "No, you are not bad....actually, you are the worst person in this whole world" I announced.

  His jaw went tight and he punched the couch.

  Looking away from me "is there any way you can make this work?" he asked.

  Well, if I did think with a sane mind, then his proposal was not that bad. All I had to do was to stick around him and maybe deliver some fake laughs and I could actually get my old life back. My job and an apartment of my own, the combo sounded awesome to me.

  "Can you promise that you will be a gentleman and will never try to force yourself on me?" asked, still feeling confused but I was desperate about getting my job back.

  He turned back and did I see regret in his eyes?

  "It's a deal; I will behave nicely with you, promise. Just understand that my dream stands on this arrangement," he sighed.

  "I guess I know how it feels when a dream is shattered" I looked sharply at his eyes, attempting to make him feel guilty for what he did to me.

  Next morning, a knock on the door woke me up from my almost peaceful sleep. I was dreaming of getting back on my job and it was the first night when I had slept without plotting a revenge plan on Robert Hudson. Just because he was giving back my job it did not mean that I would drop my idea of exposing his evil deeds. I just needed a better and effective plan.

  Oh, I almost forgot about the knock, "yes, come in," I answered.

  Two maids came inside caring some hanger of clothes with them. The dresses looked beautiful and expensive.

  "These are for you" Robert's deep voice startled me.

  I looked around only to find him standing at the door.

  "I was just beginning to think that maybe you were not so bad, but you never fail to prove me wrong. You think I am so poor that I can't even afford good clothes? For your information Mr. I-am-Bill-Gates I have many decent dresses. So I don't need your piece of offering" I pouted.

  "You can't think normally, can't you? I am not trying to make you look low. This is part of our play. You need to wear these designer clothes to look like the wife of Robert Hudson" he said.

  Well, I could not argue with that.

  "But how did you get my exact size?" I was really curious to know this answer from him.

  He smiled mischievously, bringing his head close to my face "let's say I have a very good visual memory" Jeez! Was he flirting with me?

  I stepped out of the car wearing a white full sleeved white dress that reached up to my thighs. I also wore a beautiful pearl necklace with that. My black wavy hair was gathered in a nice bun. Well, it was awkward for me to walk hand in hand with Robert. I noticed that we both were in white. He was wearing a white dress shirt and gray suit pants. He looked so hot with that blue Ray Ban glasses. I found myself drooling on his good looks and in spite of knowing that his politeness was a part of the act, it did not fail to turn me on. Focus Freya, I kept reminding myself.

  Mr. Wyatt and his daughter were waiting for us at the dinner table. And I could barely walk in those stilettos that came with the dress, I kept losing my balance and he kept holding me and each time I had to stop myself from getting lost in his intense gazes. He was such a good actor! We had not reached to the dinner table yet, why was he acting now?

  "You said that you will take care of the Emily situation, then why shooting daggers at me with her eyes?" I tugged on Robert's shirt, whispering in his ears.

  Mr. Wyatt and Emily were sitting at the opposite end of the table.

  "You seemed nervous and I did not want to freak you out. Actually, when I called her it turned out she had already gathered information about our marital status. She did not give me a chance to explain anything, she is mad at me," he whispered back in my ears and his deep voice sent a tingling sensation throughout my whole body.

  Oh, we were talking about Emily "then what about the 30% shares that are in her name? If she is mad at you then she is never going to give it to you" I warned.

  "She is crazy for me, after we are done with this pretending thingy I will tell her that all these were a sham" he winked.

  The thought of them being back together pierced a hole in my chest.

  Robert

  "I am so glad you two could make it. Thanks for coming" Ben Wyatt welcomed us happily.

  "It's our pleasure" I replied and Freya nodded with a smile.

  "Freya, are you also interested in the business like your husband?" Wyatt asked.

  "No dad, she is a journalist. Freya I saw your interview with Ryan. The interview where he left the studio in the midway" Emily taunted.

  "What? You actually did that?" Mr. Wyatt asked with a look of shock pasted on his face.

  "It's not like that, actually...." I had no clue how to deal with this. I looked at Freya hoping to get a bit of help from her.

  Freya laughed "it's actually a very funny story," she said.

  Thank God!

  I knew it was a painful story for her.

  "We would love to hear it" Emily squinted her eyes, giving us the look of a hungry tigress.

  "Yes, tell us," Ben Wyatt urged.

  I gestured Freya to help me.

  And she spoke "the interview was our first meeting. I had mistakenly spilled a glass of water on him. And he took the revenge by walking off from a live interview" she sighed.

  Ben Wyatt squirmed "such a selfish act, it's almost inhuman". Damn, he looked angry. I whispered back to Freya "are you here to help me or get me into more trouble?"

  "Don't worry, I will not put you in an embarrassing situation. I am not that bad," she winked.

  "Then you should hate her, how did this reach to marriage?" Ben Wyatt asked.

  "Trust me; I hated him enough to kill him. But then he came to my house and was begging me, asking for my forgiveness. Can you believe this man was holding my feet and was crying tears of blood" Freya said with a fake sadness on her face then turned to me and winked.

  I gritted my teeth, she was so going to regret this. She said she would not embarrass me then what the hell was this?

  "No, no," I tried to speak, but she cut me off.

  "Let me finish our story, baby," she said.

  Baby? I rolled my eyes.

  "Then what happened?" Emily asked.

  "Actually, after doing that to me he was feeling very bad and later he realized that he had fallen in love with me from the very first sight" She paused.

  "How sweet" Ben Wyatt smiled at me, but Emily was still angry.

  "Seeing that he was genuinely sorry I felt pity for him and decided to give him a chance and we were married. The end," she finally stopped.

  "And after marrying him, you fell in love with him, right?" she nodded, blushingly. How cute.

  "What a heart touching love story. I liked it" Ben Wyatt commented and I sighed in relief. The story was not completely a lie, it was partly true.

  "Then Freya, is he keeping you happy after marriage?" asked Emily.

  "I am very happy with him," Freya said and hit my leg with her high heeled shoes.

  I nodded, she smiled.

  "Okay Robert now, tell me about your mom and dad. I heard they died in a
car crash? And you were also there with them? Who saved you, dear?" his questions made my heart bleed. I wanted to avoid remembering all that. I would prefer dying rather than remembering those.

  A storm was building up inside me. I clutched the table cloth to stop myself from getting violent.

  "Sir, let's avoid this topic, please" Freya requested as if she could read my thoughts. I stared her, feeling amazed.

  Chapter Eleven

  Freya

  I looked up at him and saw the sadness, but didn't press him. He was crying from inside and for the moment I could not see him as my enemy, I saw him as a person who was buried in the pain of losing his most valuable thing, his family. A part of me wanted to reach and hug him. His crude and angry face was looking so soft.

  Instead, I simply focused on walking, trying to ignore the thoughts about us spending the night together in the same room. I knew he would be too proud to sleep on the floor so maybe I would let him have the bed it was for one night after all, as Robert had said earlier we would be leaving tomorrow, he would make some excuse.

  Later in the room,

  I was standing on the balcony enjoying some fresh air and thinking about Robert Hudson, just his look of pain had touched my heart, I never knew that a bad person like him could ever react like that, and something told me that he was not as bad as he pretended to be. Soon Robert joined me "you did well," he complemented.

  But I did not listen to him; I was busy in staring at his chest. He was still wearing his shirt, but the top few buttons were left undone. He followed my gaze and smiled naughtily. I turned away, blushing.

  "Freya, you look good in white" his voice came as a whisper.

  When I turned to thank him, he had returned to the room.

  The sky was roaring with thunder and the sound that the wind was making was actually giving me goose bumps.

  Maybe he read my face, "it's just the wind, relax" he smiled.

  I nodded pursing my lips. Then all of a sudden the light went off. And nothing scared me like darkness.