"Good evening, I'm Colton. Sorry for showing up at this late hour. I'm here to see Mia."
"So you're the one who has been giving my baby sister a hard time?" Tessie folded her arms with an amused look. She had no idea how he got her address but after all that had happened, she was glad he was here to see Mia. Him showing up tonight meant a lot, giving Tessie more reasons why she should approve him for her sister."
"It's not what you think, Tessie. I didn't know that crazy bitch would go to her and say all sorts of things. I'm going to confront Natasha about it and I promise that such wouldn't repeat itself."
"How's Mia? Is she okay?" He asked, sincerely concerned, which earned a small smile from Tessie.
As if on cue, Mia came to the door entrance to check on her sister because she felt Tessie was taking long.
The moment Mia appeared, Colton forgot about everything that was going on and concentrated on her. Not caring that Tessie was still on her feet, he approached Mia and carefully cupped her face in his hands.
Looking into her beautiful eyes, he saw that she looked quite tired. So was he too.
"W...what are you doing here?" She whispered, trying not to stammer.
"Why didn't you tell me that that psycho came to see you today?"
Mia swallowed painfully, not knowing what to say.
"Look, forget everything she said to you. They are all lies and nothing but mere threats. That shitty lady could hardly protect herself or even do basic things herself. I have no idea who the fuck made her think she could send petty threats your way."
"My parents came to see me today, they are fine with the idea of us being together. They also said they've made Natty's parents understand that I cannot get married to their daughter."
"But she's still obsessed with you," Mia whispered.
"To hell with her and her obsession. I don't give a damn! She tried to pull the same tricks with me when I was still dating my last ex. She's got nothing on you, I promise."
"That being said, you need to be strong for me, Mia. You need to trust me enough to tell me all that's going on. I'm definitely not giving up on you and I want you to fight for me just like how I'll always fight for you."
"Your happiness and protection is my duty so you have nothing to fear. I'll get you a bodyguard if I have to but that will take a while because I'll need to find someone that is trustworthy"
"I need you to never hide anything from me again. I know I promise to let you go if things no longer work out between us but this isn't a valid reason to let go of you. You belong to me, Mia, and please don't pull the prank you pulled this evening again. I was so worried sick about you." He sighed, then rested his forehead against hers.
"I'm sorry. I'm sorry for acting childish and for making you worry," she whispered.
"Are you crying?" Colton removed his forehead from hers and looked into her eyes. She sounded like she was holding back tears and lo and behold her eyes were glossy.
"Hey, I didn't mean to make you cry." He whispered, trying to calm her down. He lightly stroked her cheeks.
"I'm not crying," she sniffed, trying to hold back her tears. She didn't want to embarrass herself before Colton.
"But I see tears in your eyes." He said with concern.
"I feel guilty about everything. I didn't inform you about it and I made a big deal about the whole situation." She responded.
Another reason was also the fact that Colton never fails to talk to her passionately, promising to love and protect her always. He deeply cared for her and that was something she had never experienced with her ex. Plus, she was quite an emotional person.
"It's okay. You have nothing to be sorry for. I should be the one apologizing. I know it's going to take time for you to fit into my world but I promise you that it's not as bad as it seems. You will enjoy being my wife and the love of my life."
"I'm glad you're safe but I need you to cheer up okay?"
Mia nodded. Colton leaned over and placed a long kiss on her forehead.
Pulling away from their little cuddle, they realized Tessie was no longer in sight. Perhaps she thought of giving them their privacy.
"So you're spending the night here? Were you scared that your apartment wasn't safe enough?"
Mia shook her head. "My place is safe as long as I'm indoors. I just felt like going somewhere to clear my head so here I am. I planned to spend the night here though."
"Hailey was kind enough to send me your Sister's address. The plan was to come here to get you and take you home with me."
"You want to spend the night at my place?" He asked her.
"Of course she would, she's not doing anything here anyways." Tessie's voice came through as she approached them.
Mia's eyes widened.
"Are you shy?" She directed at her sister. Mia glared at Tessie upon that question.
"You will be the only one in the guestroom over here. Why not go with your husband-to-be and enjoy some cuddles." She smirked. "It's not as if you both have never spent the night together so I don't know what's the big deal."
"Oh my God, Tess!" Mia groaned at her sister.
Colton laughed softly.
Tessie rolled her eyes at her younger sister. Then she turned her attention to Colton. "We've not officially met but my sister has told me all about you a few hours ago. Just so you know, I will cut off your balls if you make her cry or do anything whatsoever to hurt her. My kid sister has been through so much bullshit so she doesn't need any more drama in her life."
"After how I just saw you two, I do not doubt that you care about her. Please, be good to her. Mia is my life and heaven knows I will kill you if you hurt her. I don't care if you are the son of whatever empire that your parents own."
"You don't have to worry about anything, Tessie. Mia is in great hands."
Tessie nodded slowly. She nudged Mia's arm. "Don't give him a hard time again, hun!"
Mia gave Tessie a tired look.
"Come, let's go get your things. Don't keep this handsome man waiting." Tessie intertwined her hand with Mia's own.
Before they both left for the guest room, Colton looked into Tessie's eyes, silently telling her Thank you for everything. She acknowledged with a small smile and nodded slowly.
........
"Be good, enjoy yourself. I'm no longer worried because he seems like a good guy." Tessie said as they were about to leave the guest room.
"I'll try to enjoy myself," Mia whispered.
"What's wrong?" She placed her hands on Mia's shoulders. "You don't seem too sure of yourself. It's okay if you don't want to go. I'll just go out there and tell Colton that something came up."
"No, it's not that I don't want to go. I'm just nervous about being alone with him."
"You're scared you're going to jump on him because you won't be able to control yourself?"
Mia sighed. "Not exactly. Our first time, we had a purpose of spending the night together but this time around, it's different," she answered.
"Is it? I don't think so. It's the same as being here. You're going to spend the night with him. Just a couple of hours and before you know it, it's morning and you both will have to prepare for work."
"It's your first time in his home and I'm so damn sure he will want to leave a good impression. So, babe, there's nothing to worry about. Just be calm and enjoy yourself."
"I will. Thank you." Mia whispered, pulling her sister into a hug.
Saying their goodbyes to Tessie, Mia and Colton got into the car. Seeing that they still had some more time before it got too late, Colt turned his attention to Mia. "Do you mind if we stop by somewhere before we head home?"
"Where?" She found herself asking.