The Devil's obsession with the Heiress

"You are attempting to sever something rooted deep within my darkness. It will hurt a little, Ana, but I can handle it. Your husband is not made of glass, and all you need is time to train your magic before we try again," Gavriel said calmly.

"I know you aren’t weak. But just because you can endure the pain doesn’t mean I want to inflict it on you," Aliana retorted.

"It isn’t as if you are actively trying to harm me," Gavriel reasoned. A subtle, teasing curve touched his lips as he added, "I’ll survive."

Aliana shook her head and let out a helpless sigh. Knowing that arguing about this with Gavriel was pointless, she decided to let it go.

Still, since this was something that had never been done before, she wanted the process to go as smoothly as possible.

With that thought, a quiet determination to train herself and become stronger took root in her mind.

Just then, her gaze drifted to the screen in Gavriel’s hand. "Anything interesting happening in the world?"

"Just a minor slip in the market due to some international unrest," Gavriel replied calmly.

"I see..." Aliana murmured before blinking. "Oh, that’s right... have you seen my phone? With everything that happened at dinner at my parents’ house, I didn’t even get a chance to think about it," she said.

Placing his cup down, Gavriel simply held out his palm, and her phone materialised in his hand.

Aliana looked at him in awe before a light chuckle broke from her lips.

"How convenient!" she praised, setting her own cup down before leaning toward him to take her phone, but not before pressing a quick kiss against his cheek. "Thank you, darling!"

She saw his eyes darken the moment the endearment left her lips. Before his hand could reach out to catch her, she quickly pulled back out of reach and settled back into her seat with another playful laugh.

Gavriel narrowed his eyes at her before asking, "Do you really think simply placing some distance between us will stop me?"

"Certainly not," Aliana replied as she unlocked her phone with a smile. "But maybe the threat of sleeping in a separate room would do the job."

Gavriel’s brows instantly pulled together as if rejecting the very thought. "I will never allow that," he stated with absolute finality.

"We’ll see." Aliana simply gave him a sly side-eye before she began scrolling through the countless missed calls and messages on her phone that had accumulated over the span of two days.

There were calls from work, Nigel, Jade, and her parents. Then an unexpected name caught her attention, with multiple missed calls lined up from last night.

Her smile died on her lips, replaced by a confused frown. "Why did he call me?"

"He?" Gavriel caught the pronoun instantly, his gaze sharpening.

Aliana’s mood darkened, and she looked up at him. "Alec Ross, Jade’s father."

Disgust flickered across her face. "Did I mention he actually tried to raise his hand against Jade right after he dumped all that cult revelation on us?"

Gavriel raised an eyebrow. "He did? When did he call you?"

"Last night. There are at least ten missed calls from him."

Before she could say another word, the intercom chimed from the front gate. Moments later, Winston stepped into the living room and bowed politely. "Madam, Mr. Nigel Green has arrived to see you."

"Oh." Aliana blinked in surprise before nodding. "Send him right in, Winston."

"Right away, Madam." As Winston turned to leave, Aliana dialled Alec Ross’s number.

"Let’s see what he wants," she murmured, setting the phone on speaker so Gavriel could listen in.

The call connected, and an angry voice boomed through the speaker. "Aliana, where is Jade?!"

Nigel, who had just crossed the threshold into the room, jumped in place, clutching his hand to his chest as if his heart had nearly burst. His wide eyes darted quickly from Aliana to Gavriel, taking in the scowls on both of their faces before zeroing in on the phone in her hand.

Aliana quietly gestured for Nigel to take a seat as she asked, "Why are you asking me that?"

"Don’t pretend, Aliana! I know you must be hiding her!" Alec accused loudly.

"And why would I need to hide her? She isn’t some fugitive," Aliana retorted, her voice turning icy cold. She glanced at Gavriel, whose expression had darkened, clearly displeased with the way the man was speaking to his wife.

Alec sneered through the speaker, letting out a harsh, mocking laugh. "Listen to me very carefully, Aliana. I know Jade is your friend, but she is my daughter first! I have every right to demand her presence whenever I see fit, and I will not tolerate you or your father sticking your noses where they don’t belong! Stay out of this and send her home. Otherwise, I will send my own men to drag her out of your mansion."

Nigel’s eyes nearly popped out of his sockets at the sheer audacity.

Jade’s father was boldly threatening Aliana, a woman widely known as the she-devil of Astoria whenever anyone dared to provoke her. When Nigel’s gaze flickered toward Gavriel, he swallowed hard. The big boss looked even more terrifying, as if he were currently calculating the most efficient way to erase Alec Ross from existence.

’Mr. Ross, I will light a candle for your soul,’ Nigel thought, squeezing his eyes shut for a second. ’Lord, why do I always walk right into an episode of a high-stakes drama whenever I step into this house? At this rate, I could write a Sunday Times bestseller with the amount of tea I gather here.’

Right then, Winston entered with a cup of tea for Nigel.

But the moment a cold laugh left Aliana’s lips, a sharp shiver shot straight down both his and Nigel’s spines.

Winston had to use both hands to keep the tea from sloshing right over the rim at the sinister edge in her voice.

"Uncle Alec..." Aliana began, each word dripping with ice.

"Out of respect for the fact that I call you uncle and that our families have been close for years, I am going to say this to you exactly once. Jade is my childhood friend and is like a sister to me. My house will always be open to her, which means I will never have to hide her like a criminal, as you claim.

Secondly, she is an adult, not some child you can simply summon whenever you please. She has a right to make her own decisions, and I will back her on every single one of them. And lastly, if you ever threaten to send your men to my home again, understand that neither I nor my husband will take it lightly. We will not hesitate to press charges for trespassing and harassment the second your people try to set foot on our property."

"You-" Alec sputtered, but Aliana cut him off cold.

"Jade will reach out to you when she is ready, not when you demand it. Do not call my line again regarding this matter. You already know I’ve ruined people for far less." With that, she ended the call.

"He is really pushing it!" Aliana spat in anger, making Nigel and Winston flinch while Gavriel remained composed, yet the cold expression remained on his face.

He looked at his fuming wife and asked quietly, "Do you want me to deal with him?"

All three heads turned toward him instantly.

Every single person in the room understood that if Gavriel took matters into his own hands, legal action would be the absolute least of Alec’s worries.

Aliana let out a long breath. "No. Let’s wait and see if he has enough common sense to drop it."

"I can assure you he doesn’t," Gavriel remarked smoothly. "The man is far more corrupt than you realise."

Aliana raised a brow, turning her full attention to her husband. "He is?"

When Gavriel nodded in confirmation, Aliana pursed her lips thoughtfully, staring down at her screen. "Let me try reaching Jade first. I just hope she is alright."

Just then, Nigel chimed in. "I tried calling her a day ago, Boss, and just like you, she wasn’t picking up either."

A wave of concern washed over Aliana, though she forced herself to stay composed.

She reasoned that Jade was likely recovering from the massive shock about her family background and simply needed space.

Silently praying her friend was safe, Aliana tapped Jade’s contact and placed the call on speaker, keeping her thumb ready to turn it off the second Jade greeted her.

While the line rang, Gavriel and Nigel went back to sipping their tea while Winston set some fresh refreshments in front of Nigel.

The phone rang until the very last second, and just as Aliana was about to give up and end the call, the line clicked open.

She straightened instantly, but before she could even utter a word, a man’s deep, lazy voice floated through the speaker. "Hello?"

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