Marriage of the Will

By Eternity Rose

E-mail: [email protected]

Rated: PG-13

Author's Notes: A good story is NOTHING without a little conflict, right? Duh! Well, here's the horrible conflict!

Standard Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon.

Chapter 10

"Serena, I won't be around today since I have some business lunches to take care of at the Green Turtle, okay?" Darien said as he helped Serena with the dishes that morning during breakfast.

"The Green Turtle? What the heck is that?" Serena laughed as she tried the spoons and placed them in their proper places.

"A very fancy and expensive restaurant," Darien laughed. He finished up the dishes and smiled at her before leaning over and kissing her gently on the cheek. "I'll see ya tonight, all right?"

"Okay, I'll miss you though," Serena said, smiling as she hugged Darien. It felt so good to hug him without having to worry that he might push her away. He loved her and that meant so much to her. It was such a beautiful feeling inside her heart to know that she was being loved by such a wonderful guy. Not any guy, but Darien Knight. The most wonderful man on Earth.

Darien smiled and breathed in Serena's unique, light scent as he held her. She felt so good in his arms. And she had hugged him. Without even hesitating, she hugged him. He felt so thrilled that someone like Serena loved him. It was such a great feeling. He hugged her back, feeling her soft body against his. Then he released her and kissed her lightly on the lips before leaving the kitchen with another good bye.

Serena stood at the sink, watching Darien go with a soft sigh as a wistful smile touched her light pink lips. Being in love was wonderful.

~*~

"So, how was your birthday dinner?" Raye asked that afternoon while Serena was making sandwiches for lunch.

"It was fine," Serena said, smiling. "I see that it was all planned out?"

"Naturally," Raye said, smirking as she picked up a carrot stick and bit into it. "So, how was it?"

"Fine. Darien told me he doesn't want a divorce. We're going to be official man and wife," Serena said, trying to hide her excitement and seem as natural as possible.

"That's great!" Raye exclaimed as she crunched on the carrot stick.

Serena smiled and nodded. "I'm really happy. I really do love Darien and I was so afraid of losing him."

"Well, that's a bit impossible now since Darien doesn't let anyone he love go," Raye said, smiling as she watched the love and excitement dance in Serena's blue eyes. She looked so happy. Raye was glad that Darien and done what he had done in time. It would have been horrible to have Serena walk around thinking that Darien didn't love her. It was nice to see something so beautiful as love in the eyes of her favorite people.

"Darien's such a wonderful guy, really." Serena smiled and finished wiping the mustard (AN: I hate mustard. But I don't wanna write mayo. I'm strange, I know.) on the white bread and placed it on top of the lettuce, tomato and ham. "There. Here you go."

Raye took the sandwich and took a big bite out of it while pouring herself a cup of orange juice. "What are you going to do today seeing that Darien's making you stay home so you can relax after your birthday."

"I think I'm going spend my day in front of my lap top and get those reports typed out so I don't have to worry about them anymore," Serena said as she took a bite into her own turkey sandwich. She poured some milk into her cup and sipped it.

"I thought you were suppose to rest. Not work," Raye said, frowning. "How can you like work?"

"I don't like it. I just have to get it done," Serena said as she bit into a carrot stick.

"Ugh, your as bad as Darien. I have to go meet Jadeite somewhere. See ya tonight." Raye finished off the sandwich and gulped down the juice before picking up her tennis duffle bag and leaving the house.

Serena washed her hands and the dishes before going back up to her room and pulling out her lap top and plugging it in. She laid on her stomach on top of the comforters of her bed with her lap top in front of her and waited for it to load up.

When it finally load up she connected to the Net and checked her mail. She found there were some papers e-mailed to her and printed them out. Then she logged off and began to work on the reports she had to finish before next week.

After working for a while, Serena got bored. She looked down at her watch and saw that it was 2 o'clock on the afternoon. Darien was probably done with his business lunch already...Maybe she could go down to the Green Turtle and meet him up there. Then they can both go back to the office and work for the rest of the day. It was boring with no one around.

After saving her work on a disk, she shut down her lap top and went to change.

~*~

Darien smiled as he shook hands with the men he was having the lunch with.

"I'm sure I'll read this through thoroughly and get back to you before the end of the week, Mr. Knight," Mr. McKinely said as he slipped the folder of papers into his briefcase.

"Yes, I'm sure you'll like the arrangements that I have suggested. Then we can meet again on Thursday next week?" Darien suggested.

"That would be wonderful," Mr. Baker said, nodding.

"Great. It was nice having lunch with you men. I'm sure we'll make good business partners," Darien said, smiling as he knew deep down inside that he was going to win this deal and everything was going to be set. Serena would be so happy when she learned that the deal was very possible. She was always so happy when a deal was closed or if the stocks went up. The business world was so exciting to her. Darien loved that beautiful innocence about her.

"Well, I have another business meeting in a few hours. We best conclude this lunch, Mr. Knight," Mr. McKinely suggested.

Darien nodded in agreement. He wanted to finish up the work at his office before the day ended and go back home to Serena. They all shook hands once again and left the restaurant.

Beryl watched as Darien Knight walked out of the restaurant. And it was about time. She had been waiting since the men first went in. She had figured out a way to find Darien alone so she could talk to him and persuade him to know that he loved her, not that little blond twit. What was with men and blondes?? It was unbearable to see all handsome men play into the hands of blonds.

Steeling herself, Beryl walked forward and caught Darien's arm before he walked off.

Darien whirled around and stared into Beryl's dark eyes. He growled and ripped his arm out of her desperate hold. "What do you want, Beryl? I thought I told you to leave me alone."

"But Darien, I can't stay away from the man I love," Beryl simpered. She reached out and placed a hand on Darien's firm chest. She shivered at the touch. He was so masculine.

"Go away, Beryl. And stay away from my wife," Darien grounded out angrily. He resisted the urge to hit the woman. He was a dignified man and he wasn't going to hit a woman. No matter how bitchy she was.

"But Darien, she's not woman enough for you!" Beryl exclaimed. "You must know that I'm the one for you."

"I know who's the one for me and it's NOT you, Beryl," Darien said coldly as he shook Beryl off.

Icy, isn't he? Beryl thought angrily. She looked past Darien's shoulder when she caught sight of a blond. Serena Blackwood. And she was smiling as if the world was just peachy. Beryl growled. She wasn't going to let that blond twit have Darien.

Reaching out, Beryl grabbed Darien by the shoulders and kissed him firmly on the lips. Her vise like hold refusing to release him.

Serena stopped walking when she saw Darien and Beryl locked in what looked to be a passionate kiss. The woman had her hands all over Darien and he wasn't doing a thing to push her off! Serena gasped shortly as she felt an incredible pain well up in her throat, making her head ache. She had felt this pain before. She had felt it when her father died. He had left her. Now Darien was leaving her. Why did all the important men in her life leave her? It just didn't seem fair when she found happiness only to have it ripped away from her.

With a broken heart and hot tears in her eyes, Serena turned and ran. She wasn't going to stay and watch her heart get broken over and over. It hurt too much as it was.

Darien got over his disgusted shock and pushed Beryl off roughly. He wiped his mouth in disgust and spat on the ground to rid the disgusting taste he had in his mouth. "Your disgusting, Beryl. Stay away from me and my wife or I'll have the police on you." His eyes were burning with anger and hate as he walked away to his limo.

Beryl stood there, anger coursing through her veins. Causing her pale skin to flame up red. She turned and glared at Darien's limo as it drove away. She had seen the hurt in the blonde's face. She had relished it, enjoyed every single moment as the blonde stood there. Horror written on her face as she realized that her husband had "betrayed" her.

Smiling angrily, Beryl thought of revenge. Hurting the blonde wasn't enough. She had to hurt Darien to get what she wanted. And that was to see that no one would ever get her Darien and Darien would never get any woman. He would stay alone if Beryl couldn't get him. That was a fact she was going to keep a fact.

~*~

Serena slammed the front door behind her and ran up to her room blindly. Half way up the stairs she tripped on a step and fell forward. She cried out as more tears slid down her face and pain consumed her, causing her mind to blank out for a white moment. She had twisted her ankle. She gasped as she struggled to her feet and ran the rest of the way up to her room. She ignored the pain in her ankle until she reached her room and locked the door behind her.

She stumbled over to her bed and collapsed on it. She buried her face in the pillows and sobbed for the pain in her heart and the pain in her ankle.

"I'm so stupid," Serena sobbed as she clutched the pillow tightly. Pain consumed her, making her faint as she screamed out in her emotional and physical pain. Her heart ached, her head ached from crying, her ankle hurt and swelled. She was hurting all over.

Darien never loved me. He just liked the partnership we had. We worked good together. That was it. He didn't want me as a man wanted a lover. He just liked me as a business partner and in order to stay in my good graces give me what I wanted. Marriage, love. But not intimacy. Sure, he kissed me a few times but anyone man can imitate intimacy in a kiss.

How could a handsome, arrogant man like Darien Knight love a simple, plain girl like Serena Blackwood? It just didn't seem possible to her. No, it wasn't. Men like Darien Knight wanted woman were sexy and alluring and had the fire of desire in them. I don't have that. I'm just plain Serena Blackwood. The girl who was too modest. Too sheltered. So naive and green. No man wants a naive girl. He wants an experienced one. A naive girl is too hard to work with, while a more experienced one is simpler, more easy to work with.

Crying hard, Serena shook her head as she rubbed her head against the pillow, hoping to rub away the pain there. She was going to get a head ache. It was already beginning to throb dully.

No man can ever love me, Serena thought with remorse. No man. My father loved me and then he left. The only man in my life left me. And when I got another man, he went to another woman. A woman who was obviously more alluring and experienced than me. All the men in my life leave me, why?? Why do they leave me? Am I so unlovable?

Pounding her fist into the pillow, Serena felt something very familiar with it. Of course, this was what she had done when her father had died. Except this time Amy wasn't going to appear to let her cry on her two piece sweater set.

I'm so alone. No one loves me, Serena thought as she cried herself to sleep.

~*~

Serena woke up a few hours later to someone ringing the doorbell. She sat up and yawned before crying out in pain as the twisted ankle reminded her of what she had done before coming into her room. She sighed and rubbed her stick face. She felt so shaky, vulnerable and empty inside. The dull pain came back to her and she almost burst into tears again.

The door bell continued to ring without stop. Why don't they just go away? Serena thought as she looked down at her twisted ankle, then stood up and limped her way downstairs. She opened the door and swallowed hard when she saw Seiya Louren standing there. He was holding a bouquet of flowers.

Serena wiped her face and put a smile on. "Seiya, it's good to see you. What are you doing here?"

Seiya smiled and handed her the flowers. "To say, Happy Late Birthday. I'm sorry I couldn't come yesterday but I had so many things to do. I hope you like these flowers."

Serena took the flowers and breathed them in. The fragrance was comforting to her. It seemed to fill her up while she felt most empty. She smiled a genuine smile at Seiya. "Thank you, these are beautiful. Would you like to come in?"

"I'd love to," Seiya said and stepped in.

Serena started to walk but her ankle stopped her. She gasped as pain shot up her leg and clouded her thoughts and sight. She was almost going to fall to the ground when Seiya reached out and caught her.

"I'm sorry," Serena murmured as she looked up at him. "My ankle is twisted and I forgot to tend to it."

"A twisted ankle?" Seiya looked down at her feet and saw the swelling limp. "Here, let me carry you to your bedroom and see if we can do something with it."

"Oh, that's nice of you, Seiya," Serena said, smiling slightly. Sadly. She allowed herself to be carried up to her room and laid down her damp sheets. She winced as she felt the cold tear stains against her skin.

"Did I hurt you?" Seiya asked as he got her comfortable.

"No. I'm fine," Serena said as she relaxed against the cold sheets. She adjusted to them and soon they got warm from her body heat. She was surprised at how warm she was even though she felt so cold all over.

"Good. Where's your first aid kit?" Seiya asked as he straightened and looked down at her.

"In the bathroom. It's under the sink," Serena instructed.

Seiya nodded and disappeared into her bathroom.

Serena leaned against her pillows and sighed. Seiya was so nice. But she wished desperately that it was Darien tending to her ankle like he had when he tended her burned hand last year Christmas morning. Remembering that only depressed Serena even more. Darien didn't love her.

"Got it!" Seiya cried triumphantly from the bathroom. He appeared with the little white box with the red cross on the front and sat down beside her. He pulled out some bandages and an ice pack. Picking up her ankle gently he twisted it around, causing Serena to hiss in pain. "This is going to hurt. I'm going to twist it around and massage it before bandaging it up to relax the muscles." (AN: Okay, don't flame me if I wrote this doctoring stuff wrong. I'm still only in...well, I don't pay attention in health class, okay?!)

"All right," Serena said through clenched teeth.

Seiya worked on her ankle for about half an hour, making it warm and relaxing it considerably before wrapping the bandages around it quite firmly. When he was done, her ankle felt better and the pain was very, very mild. She barely felt it.

"Now, can I ask you a question as a thank you for my doctoring skills?" Seiya asked seriously.

"All right," Serena said, nodding.

"Why are you so sad?"

Serena looked away and down at her hands. "I guess it's obvious, huh?"

"You had tear stains on your face when I first saw you. I didn't think it was proper to ask right then. Now, will you answer my question?" Seiya asked.

Serena nodded. Seiya was very nice. She could tell him and now have him judge her.

"Darien doesn't love me," she said softly.

Seiya thought he was going to die from shock. Darien now love this angel?? It was quite obvious at the Walters party that Darien was totally in love Serena. Seiya had been jealous but he knew that they belonged together. They both loved each other so much.

"But Serena, Darien adores you! I saw it at the Walters party," Seiya said.

"No. He doesn't," Serena said, shaking her head. "He doesn't love me. I know he doesn't. No one would love someone like me. I'm too plain, too simple. No one likes someone like that. Would you like someone like that?"

"Serena, your not plain or simple. Your beautiful, kind, sweet and your innocence is something that's very rare at this age. It's very enduring. Trust me, Darien loves you," Seiya said earnestly.

"But..." Serena wanted to tell Seiya about the scene she had seen that afternoon at the Green Turtle but it was just so embarrassing. But he's listening. Let him listen, Serena. It's never every day someone listens to you. "I saw Darien kissing another woman."

Seiya blinked. "What?"

"I went to see him during lunch and he was kissing a woman," Serena said dully.

Seiya shook his head and wondered if he heard right. Darien would never do that. Seiya didn't know Darien very long but he knew that Darien was a very honorable man and would never betray his wife. Something was missing in this story.

"Who was he kissing?" Seiya asked quietly.

"Melissa Beryl. I recognized her hair," Serena whispered.

Beryl. Seiya felt rage burn through his veins. He knew that woman and she was one never to trust. No wonder there was something wrong with the story. It was obvious Beryl was the one who kissed first. Darien probably didn't even want to be kissed!

Seiya placed his hands on Serena's shoulder and looked her straight in the eye. "Darien didn't kiss Beryl, Beryl kissed Darien. The poor man was probably caught off guard and didn't have time to push her away. I bet if you stayed longer you would have seen him push her away and tell her to go to hell."

Serena looked up at Seiya and blinked. "Are you sure, Seiya?" She asked in a small voice.

Seiya laughed at her uncertainty and hugged her close. She squeaked at the sudden show of affection.

"Serena, your so adorable when your like this," Seiya laughed. "Darien is a lucky man. I'm sure he's in love with you. He would never let such a gem walk away from his life. And I'm very sure, Serena. If I was Darien I would never allow you out of my sight."

Serena smiled weakly up at Seiya. "Thank you, Seiya. Your such a big brother."

Seiya smiled and hugged Serena close again. "Good. Now that your happy, why don't you get some rest? You seemed very drained. Obviously from too much crying," he added dryly.

Laughing, Serena hugged Seiya again and kissed him on the cheek. "Your wonderful!"

"Thank you," Seiya said cockily.

Darien was was walking up the stairs after giving up at work because of his annoyance and anger at Beryl and came home early. He had neared Serena's room when he heard talking and decided to check it out. He opened the door and found Serena in Seiya's embrace and both of them were hugging. Immediately jealous hit him.

"What the hell is going on here?" He shouted as he stared at the happy couple. He was already annoyed and hating Beryl for kissing him that afternoon. Now he comes home to see his wife in another man's arms! A man can only take so much!

"Darien," Serena gasped as she pulled out of Seiya's embrace.

"We were just talking, old man," Seiya said nonchalantly as he stood up. He saw that Darien was very angry. Jealously. He wondered if he should stay with Serena just in case anything happened. The girl had already taken so much, he didn't think a yelling from Darien was going to help.

"You can go, Seiya. I need to talk to Darien alone," Serena whispered up to him. She smiled at him and he nodded slowly before leaving the room.

Darien closed the door behind Seiya with a loud slam and whirled to face Serena.

"Darien, what are you doing home--"

"What was that?" Darien demanded.

"We were talking," Serena said, frowning slightly. "Well, actually, Seiya came over with some birthday flowers and we started talking."

"In your bedroom?" Darien asked coldly.

Serena paled even more than she was already white. She matched the color of the white sheets of her bed. "You didn't think--"

"What the hell was I suppose to think?!" Darien shouted. "I come home from a bad day to find my wife in another man's arms! It's not a welcoming sight, I'll tell you!"

Serena felt anger boil inside of her. He was accusing her of cheating when he had done it! Seiya was wrong, if Darien loved her hw would hear her story first before making any rash decisions. "How can you accuse me of such a crime when you were the one who committed it! Seiya was only being a friend to me after I found out about your and Beryl kissing each other outside of the Green Turtle! Do you think that's a pleasant sight for me??"

Darien drew his breath in sharply in horror. She had seen that. He hadn't planned to tell her about it since he knew it would hurt her. Then anger replaced his horror. She had followed him? Spied on him? Didn't she trust him enough not to follow him thinking he might be cheating on her?

"What were you doing outside of the Green Turtle?" Darien demanded. "Spying on me?"

Serena gasped at the stinging accusation. "No! Never would I spy on you!"

"Then what were you doing over there? Meeting Seiya?" Darien knew that was a harsh blow but he was so angry he wasn't thinking clearly. He only saw red.

Serena clenched her fists and picked up a pillow. She heaved it at Darien. It bounced harmlessly off his chest and fell on the carpeted ground. "Leave me! Get out of me room!" She screamed at him. "Get out! I don't want you here! Leave!!"

"Fine!" Darien turned and slammed the door behind him as he left.

Serena screamed as she buried her face in the pillows again and sobbed.

~*~

Darien pulled out a bottle of brandy out of his wine case and poured some into his shot glass. He knocked it back and hissed through his teeth as the hot liquid burned through his system. It was a pleasant feeling after a while and it dulled the pain in his heart and in his head.

He closed his eyes as he played back the argument he had with Serena. Maybe he should have listened to her. Maybe she and Seiya were *only* talking. He sighed and clenched his fists. He always let his anger get away from him. But then what the hell was Louren doing in his wife's room?? Louren had no right to touch, Serena. Serena was his. Not Louren's.

God, Knight, Serena isn't some property. She's a living, breathing human being. You've got to get some control if you want it to work with her.

But after everything that had happened, Darien wondered if it was going to work out. The argument wasn't exactly pleasant. She had thrown a pillow at him. She was angry enough to hit him. It didn't look like it was going to be easy to forgive each other. No, it wasn't going to be easy at all.

Knocking back some more brandy, Darien continued to dwell on his mournful thoughts before falling asleep in the chair in his study.

~*~

The next morning, Darien woke up very, very stiff and his muscles protested to the sudden movement as he stood up. He sighed and began to stretch expertly from the times he had been on track in high school and college. When all his muscles had been relaxed and working he walked up to Serena's room and knocked lightly on the door. He was going to apologize first since he was the one who started the argument.

When there was no reply, Darien turned the knob and walked in. He found the room empty, the bed made and some things missing. There was an envelope on the dresser table. Darien picked it up and ripped out the note:

Darien,

I went back home. We'll still be business partners and I'll e-mail you all my work but I just can't deal with any of this any more. I need some time alone. I need to think.

Serena

Darien closed his eyes and sighed as his hand closed into a fist over the note. He threw it in the trash and fought back the temptation to break something. So, she went back home. Fine. He was going to be glad when the divorce happened. He just couldn't deal with an immature wife anymore!

Stomping out of the room, Darien slammed the bedroom door shut with so much force the whole house was shaking.

~*~

Eeep, I hope everyone likes it... I know, jealousy and all that, it's horrible. I hope I didn't make Darien seem to mean. I know the guy is a good guy and would NEVER hurt Serena too much...Oh boy. It is AU...

E-mail is a wonderful thing, ladies and gentlemen.

Oh, and I'd love to thank Nutty Mona for all her wonderful comments on my story. Your the best, Mona! You really keep me thinking and writing. :)

Ja Ne!

Eternity Rose