Matthew seldom got drunk.
At least, Clarissa had never seen him like this.
Besides, who would dare to force drinks on him anyway?
Having said that, drunk Matthew was a rare sight.
Clarissa was perplexed as to why Ryler and him started to drink as they chatted, and they drank quite a lot too. It’s so weird.
While Julia and the others were cleaning up, Clarissa transfixed her gaze on Matthew who was fast asleep on the sofa. His eyes were closed as his head was slightly tilted to one side. He wore a plain buttoned shirt and long pants for the house party with a few of his buttons undone, exposing his tanned skin underneath. There was not a hint of his usual cold and distant demeanor. His picturesque face was perfectly sculptured as he relaxed his slender legs on the sofa. The man put one hand on the armrest.
He looks so gorgeous, even when he’s resting.
Clarissa heaved a sigh, and chuckled the next moment.
She leaned forward and tapped on his shoulders.
“Matthew, wake up. Let’s go upstairs.”
The man did not respond.
Helpless, she helped him up by supporting his shoulders, attempting to get him upstairs this way.
However, just when she propped him up, Clarissa almost slumped to the floor from his weight. It’s true. Moving a drunk man is like trying to move a mountain. Julia came to her rescue and the two of them steadied one side each as they helped him upstairs.
After entering the bedroom, Clarissa threw the man onto the bed and tried to catch her breath. Meanwhile, Matthew narrowed his eyes as if he had just woken up. But then again, it seemed like he was still asleep.
Noticing the woman at his side, he instinctively reached out to grab her hand and pulled her toward him, making her fall into his embrace.
Matthew had his hands on her back, immobilizing her. Clarissa tried to struggle herself free but to no avail.
“Matthew!”
Clarissa increased her volume as she fumed with fury.
Matthew merely tapped on her back as if he was coaxing a child as he mumbled something.
Clarissa smiled resignedly.
She punched Matthew’s chest gently. However, the man turned around abruptly, pinning her underneath him. He did not open his eyes but he acted unconsciously as he caressed her all over. The man slid one hand into her shirt while his other hand was working to remove her pants. Matthew was mumbling her name all the while.
“Clare, Clare…”
“Stop, Matthew-”
It was a futile attempt trying to get a point across to a drunk man.
Her effort proved to be fruitless in face of his surmounting desire. It seemed effortless for him to pin her down as he immobilized her.
In the end, Matthew had his way with her as he claimed her with his eyes closed.
Clarissa furrowed her brows as she regarded the man on top of her. The man was obviously enjoying himself while all she felt was discomfort. She reached out and grabbed his waist tightly in an attempt to vent her frustration.
However, it seemed like her gesture had only served to excite him as his movements became increasingly fast and furious. Clarissa could only take it passively and only felt better toward the end.
Nevertheless, Clarissa was going to let Matthew have it, sooner or later.
The next day when Matthew was awake, his head was pounding. He finally came to his senses and started to recall what happened the night before.
There were only fuzzy images in his head. Nevertheless, he was well aware of what went down.
He chuckled resignedly, slightly aggravated by himself.
Surprisingly, Clarissa was up earlier than he was. Matthew sat upright and noticed that the crumpled shirt on him.
He mindlessly penetrated her last night without an ounce of consideration for her, not to mention that he fell right back asleep last night after he was done. Of course Clare is going to be mad at me.
Matthew got off the bed and headed for the bathroom. When he was downstairs, he was his usual self – the formidable president, Mr. Tyson again.
Clarissa was leaning against the sofa as she sat in front of the window. Bathing in the warm sunlight, she was working on her laptop.
Her hands paused in its track as she noticed the footsteps. However, she did not turn around. Clarissa merely saved her work and opened the browser instead. She did not intend to pay any heed to Matthew.
Matthew’s thin lips curled into a slight smile. He made his way to Clarissa’s back, and hugged her from behind.
He lowered his head and snuggled against her ears. The man smelled fresh after his shower with the lingering scent of shampoo.
Clarissa feigned disgust with the man as she tilted her body to one side in an attempt to keep her distance from him.
Matthew chuckled. “Clare, why are you mad?”
He acted innocent as if he had no inkling as to why Clarissa was mad at him. Matthew deliberately edged himself close as the woman dodged him every single time. In the end, he steadied her head with both his hands and planted a kiss on her cheeks.
Clarissa glared at Matthew as she wiped her cheeks with her hand.
“Don’t you know why I’m mad?”
She was shooting sharp little daggers at the man with her eyes.
Matthew felt as if the daggers had punctured his heart.
He pressed a hand against his chest and acted like he was in pain. Then, he sat on the floor, right next to where Clarissa was standing, and pretended like he was suffering a heart attack in a childish manner.
“Clare, my heart is in pain.”
The woman rolled her eyes at him. “Matthew, get real. What’s with your childish act!”
He knitted his brows. “Clare, I’m not…”
“Who said you’re old?”
“So, I can be childish, right?”
“You-”
Clarissa was rendered speechless as she glared at him.
Matthew reached out his slender fingers and touched her eyes. The woman managed to dodge his touch and heard him bursting into a laugh.
He clutched her fingers and kissed on it. She tried to struggle herself free but to no avail. His obsidian, deep-set gaze was gauging her.
Clarissa felt her cheeks burning under his scrutinizing gaze. She cast him a sideways glance and averted her gaze as she tried to focus on her laptop.
However, Matthew continued to transfix his gaze on the woman as his burning gaze was laser-focused on her. Clarissa felt her cheeks increasingly hot with each passing moment while the man burst into a fit of laughter.
Clarissa fumed with fury.
“Just go away.”
Even though she sounded frustrated, Matthew still found her adorable.
He moved her laptop away and swooped her into his embrace in a swift motion. He grabbed her chin with one hand and steadied her head, planting a kiss on her lips.
“I think I know why you’re mad, Clare. I remember now.”
Clarissa snorted as her ears blushed on cue.
Matthew smiled and kissed her again.
“Clare, I was drunk. Will you forgive me, please?”
“So that’s how you get when you’re drunk? How many times have you been drunk then? Do you just do it with any woman who just happens to be by your side then?”
Matthew clarified himself right away. “Clare, that was the only time I was drunk.”
“Why should I believe you? And who can prove that you’re not lying?”
“Donnie is always beside me. He can prove that I’ve never been drunk.”
“He’s your subordinate. You can order him to say whatever you want.”
Matthew found it hard to refute her. “So how can I convince you then?”
Clarissa snorted again. There was no point in proving it since it was all in the past. I don’t have the right to keep pursuing this matter anyway.
She knew she was being unreasonable. Clarissa was just letting Matthew have it for his inappropriate behavior last night.
Surely, he knows I’m doing this on purpose, right?
In an attempt to appease her, the man could only shower kisses and hugs on her as he apologized profusely to her.
“Clare, I’m sorry for my behavior last night. But I know that you’re the only person with me in this place. I will not get drunk outside, and I never do. I will only be disarmed around you. You have to believe me that I only behave like that because I just feel safe around you…”
Well, he sounds sincere enough.
She was intoxicated by his kisses and sexy voice.
The woman slumped in his embrace as he kissed her repeatedly.
After some time, the two of them enjoyed breakfast together. They took the opportunity to take a walk at the courtyard since the weather was nice outside. Clarissa had only asked what Ryler and Matthew were talking about last night then.
“What did you guys talk about anyway? And you guys drank so much.”
There was actually nothing much to say.
It was essentially a face-off between two love rivals as they tried to triumph over each other.
It was obvious that Ryler had feelings for Clarissa. Even though he claimed that he was only a big brother to Clarissa, it was still hard for him to stomach his feelings toward her. Meanwhile, Matthew was the winner who eventually won Clarissa’s heart. It was only natural that the love rivals did not look eye to eye.
Since Clarissa treated Ryler like a brother, that essentially made him more senior than Matthew. Nobody was happy with the dynamic of their relationship and the two men could only resort to drinking to vent their frustration at each other.
“Nothing much. He just asked me to take good care of you.”
“Is that all?”
“Yeah.”
Matthew cupped her cheeks and smiled. “Since we’re already engaged, let’s break the news to Grandma. She’s been worried sick about you getting married and having kids.”
Clarissa eyed him and nodded. “I will let her know. But it is not going to be that easy for us to get married though? What do we do about your family?”
Matthew went silent for a moment before saying, “It’s my decision to make. So there’s no need to consider whether they agree to it or not.”
Clarissa furrowed her brows. “It’s impossible to not care about their opinion, Matthew. What if your parents don’t even show up during our wedding? What then?”
“No problem. We can still get married.”
Clarissa parted her lips in an attempt to say something but she bit her tongue in the end as she sighed.
She did not know whether to be happy or sad about him being indifferent about his parents’ presence at their wedding.
However, it seemed like he was only looking out for her.
Clarissa hugged Matthew and sulked in his embrace. “They’re going to be so sad when they find out that you’re indifferent about their presence at the wedding.”
The man merely patted her back as he pecked on her hair. Gently, he said, “Don’t worry, they won’t be sad. At most, they’re just going to be mad at me.”
“It’s not a good thing for them to get mad either.”
“They’ll be alright after some time.”
Clarissa was at a loss for words.
She lifted her head and gave him a puzzled look as she found his words incomprehensible.
Her Grandma was essentially her lifeline as they depended on each other their whole lives. However, it seemed like family ties were a disposable aspect in Matthew’s life, something that he could discard and completely cut out of his life, judging by his impassive manner.
