CHAPTER 31: YES, WIFE?

"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome aboard this flight to New York City. We’ll be departing shortly. Please ensure your seatbelt is fastened, your seat is in the upright position, and your tray—" The voice of a flight attendant filled the cabin as she began explaining the flight route and safety demonstration.

Business class was comfortable. The wide seat and calm atmosphere made Bianca feel at ease. She leaned back, closed her eyes, and soon fell asleep.

About an hour later, while she was fast asleep, Bianca suddenly felt the plane shake. They were experiencing turbulence. Her eyes snapped open. The unexpected jolt made her stomach drop.

Her face instantly turned pale. "Oh God. Oh God," she muttered in panic.

Adrian noticed her distress and immediately grew concerned. "You okay?" he asked gently.

Bianca didn’t answer. She just shut her eyes tight, silently praying it would end soon.

Adrian watched as she clenched both hands tightly in her lap. Something about the way she looked so scared tugged at his chest. Without thinking, he reached out, gently cupped her chin, and turned her face toward him.

"Hey, it’s gonna be okay. You’re gonna be fine. I’m right here," he said, trying to calm her down.

Bianca nodded slowly. The fear in her chest began to ease, bit by bit.

Adrian glanced away from Bianca and looked around. Panic and fear were written all over the passengers’ faces. Cries, screams, and whispered prayers had been filling the cabin for the past few minutes.

He silently thanked God that his grandfather, father, and Bianca’s family had decided to fly back the next afternoon instead of today.

"This is your captain speaking. We ask all passengers to remain calm and stay seated," came the announcement over the cabin speakers.

Adrian took a deep breath and slowly exhaled. He repeated the process a few times, trying to calm his nerves.

Suddenly, he heard a voice from his right.

"I’m sorry... in case I’ve ever done anything wrong to you."

Adrian frowned. Of all things Bianca could say right now, she chose that?

"I’m sorry too... if I’ve done anything to hurt you," he replied, deciding to go along with her.

"You know, I never imagined I’d end up married to my boss," Bianca said, giving him a small smile as she turned toward him.

"You’re lucky, you know. Marrying your boss? That’s a flex," Adrian teased with a grin.

Bianca blinked, caught off guard. Her eyes lingered on his smile just a little too long.

"I know I’m ridiculously good-looking, but don’t stare too hard," Adrian teased.

Bianca rolled her eyes. "Please. Don’t flatter yourself."

Adrian laughed. "What can I say? Confidence is part of the charm."

Bianca shook her head, smiling. "I didn’t know you could joke like this."

Adrian raised his eyebrows. "Really? Do I look like a robot to you?"

"Not a robot," Bianca said with a laugh. "Robots don’t have emotions. You? You showed plenty—mostly annoyed, angry, and impatient."

Adrian chuckled, shaking his head. "Fair enough."

She grinned, clearly enjoying teasing him. "Thought so."

"Maybe I’m just like this with you," he said, looking at her with a small smile.

Bianca narrowed her eyes playfully. "Oh, lucky me," she replied with dry sarcasm.

Adrian smirked. "Exactly."

"You’re still full of yourself."

"And you like it," he shot back, his eyes gleaming.

Her mouth dropped open for half a second, caught off guard. "I do not!"

"Sure, sure," he said with a smug grin, clearly loving every second of this.

Then, without even realizing it, he leaned a little closer to her, his voice lowering just a bit. "Seriously, I only act like this around you."

Bianca’s heart did an involuntary flip. "Stop it."

"Nope," he said, not even trying to hide the amusement in his voice.

There was warning in her voice. "Adrian."

But Adrian had no intention of backing off. There was something oddly satisfying about teasing her, like it brought out a different side of her he couldn’t get enough of.

"Yes, wife?" he said, teasing.

Bianca immediately froze at the word, completely flustered.

"You..." she said, struggling to find the words.

"Me? What’s wrong with me, wife?" he said, clearly enjoying himself.

"Ughh," Bianca groaned, turning her face away to avoid looking at him. Her cheeks were already burning with embarrassment.

Adrian let out a quiet chuckle. Teasing her had become his new favorite habit.

Bianca, who had finally managed to regain her composure, turned to look at Adrian.

"Thank you," Bianca said softly. She knew exactly what Adrian was trying to do. Distract her from her fear. And it worked.

"Told you you’d be fine. As long as I’m right next to you, you’ll always be fine, Bianca," he said with a smug smile.

"Yeah, yeah..." Bianca smiled back.

The more time she spent with Adrian, the more she realized how different he was from the Adrian Williams she used to know. And without even noticing, she was getting used to having him around.

Eventually, the passengers sighed in relief as the pilot announced that the turbulence had passed and the flight was now stable and safe.

Adrian said gently, "If you’re still tired, go back to sleep. The turbulence is over. And I’m not going anywhere, I’ll be right here."

Bianca nodded and adjusted her position to get comfortable before closing her eyes again.

When he saw Bianca had fallen asleep, Adrian called over a flight attendant and asked for a glass of red wine.

It didn’t take long before she returned with his request.

Adrian gently swirled the wine in his glass, his gaze drifting toward Bianca, whose face was now turned in his direction.

For some reason, the fear and panic in her eyes earlier kept replaying in his mind. And it bothered him more than he wanted to admit.

Adrian let out a soft sigh before downing his glass of red wine in one go.

He handed the empty glass back to the flight attendant, then leaned back in his seat and closed his eyes.

***