Chapter 36 #2
“Well, it was late, and I knew I would see you soon anyway.”
“Hmm.” She sips her wine and gets off my lap as if annoyed, she kicks off her high heels, sits down on the couch opposite and curls her legs up underneath her.
“How was your day?” I ask.
“Annoying.” Her eyes hold mine.
“How so?”
“I don’t want so much security anymore.”
“What?” I frown. “It’s nonnegotiable, you know that.”
“I had six men out the front of my store today.” She widens her eyes. “Six.”
“And your point is?”
“It’s overkill. Enough is enough.”
“You will be having security. End of story.”
“Don’t end of story me,” she snaps. “I have a say in my life too, you know.”
I sip my wine and slosh it around in my mouth, annoyed by her tone.
“I am well aware of that, but you have guards for a very good reason.”
“Such as?”
“Such as.” How do I say that my gut is telling me something is off? I try to word it right so as not to scare her. “Dangerous people are everywhere, Alora.”
“You’re being overdramatic.” She rolls her eyes.
“What’s with the fucking attitude,” I snap. “Cut it out. I don’t like it.”
“You know what I don’t like?” she fires back. “I’m under guard and can’t even fucking sneeze without your men watching what I do, and yet you can go missing all afternoon and that’s okay.”
“I was at a work lunch,” I spit.
“Really?”
“Where else would I fucking be?”
“Who knows.” She widens her eyes at me in a silent dare.
She’s looking for a fight.
“I don’t know what fucking mood you’re in tonight but snap out of it.” I get up and walk to the stairs. “I’m going to have a quick sauna before dinner. Are you coming?”
“Nope.” She sips her wine. “I’m very comfortable.”
“Really?” I snap. “You’re looking kind of pissy to me.”
Her eyes flicker red.
“Maybe you should come and take some of that anger out on my dick?”
“With a pair of scissors?” she mutters dryly.
I chuckle as I make my way to the gym, strip off to my briefs and walk into the sauna.
I lean my head back against the back wall as the infrared lights glow red, it’s steamy and hot and I feel myself begin to relax.
ALORA
I sit on the couch scrolling through my phone. I am in a pissy mood tonight. Hormonal as fuck but damn it, he’s annoying.
A text bounces in, the name Thomas Stone lights up the screen.
Thomas Stone
You okay?
Huh? I reply.
Me
Yeah, why wouldn’t I be?
I see dots as he types back and then they stop. I wait again as they start to bounce and then they stop again. What is he writing, a fucking novel? Too impatient to wait, I dial his number.
“Hi.” He answers first ring.
“Why are you asking if I’m okay?” I snap.
“Umm.” He hesitates.
“What?”
“I know this is probably all bullshit or old footage or whatever, but I just wanted to check on you, that’s all.”
“What is?” I snap.
“You haven’t seen it?”
“Seen what?”
“I’m going to send you a link.”
“Fine.” I roll my eyes and sip my wine, honestly, all men are annoying tonight. He sends me a link to a story on TMZ, the celebrity gossip page. The heading reads:
Busted…
A leopard never changes its spots.
“Huh?” I read on.
Edward Prescott was caught red-handed last week entertaining one of his past love interests, Isadora Auclair, on his yacht
“The fuck?” I murmur.
I look through the images, it’s daytime and Edward is shirtless and cuddling Isadora on the below deck near the gym.
Marcel his guard is standing to the side as if watching on.
This is the woman who was trying to approach me in Monaco that day. I narrow my eyes as I zoom in on the photo. She’s wearing a tight dress and her hair and makeup are done. Her hand is resting on Edward’s bare chest and she has super-long red nails. There’s no denying that she’s hot as fuck.
Jealousy runs through me as I scroll through the pictures.
“It would be old footage for sure,” Thomas replies. “Where even are they?”
“On this yacht,” I fume. “He told me he never saw her through the day, that it was a nighttime-only thing.”
“So you know who this person is?” he asks.
“Yeah, it’s one of his old fuck buddies. Her name is Isadora.”
“It could be doctored, probably is actually.”
“Hmm.” I keep scrolling through the photos, there are ones of her getting onto the yacht as security stands around and then ones of her leaving. I scroll back to the top and then I see it. Angelo is one of the guards on the gangplank as she boards.
“Fuck,” I whisper.
“What?”
“The guard in the photo.”
“What about him?”
“He only started two weeks ago.”
“What?”
Fury begins to pump through me. “I’ve got to go.”
“It’s probably doctored, don’t believe it—” I hang up on him mid-sentence and storm to the sauna and tear open the door. Edward is lying on his back with his eyes closed.
“What the fuck is this?” I hold my phone out.
“What?” He lifts his head, half asleep.
“Why does this say that Isadora was on this yacht last week?”
“What?” He sits up suddenly. “Show me.” He snatches the phone off me and looks at the photos. “Calm down.” He stands and something about the way he says calm down confirms my worst fear.
“Was Isadora on this yacht last week?”
“It’s not how it—”
“Was she on this fucking yacht last week or not?” I scream as I lose all control.
“She came to me for help,” he stammers as he wraps a towel around his waist.
“Obviously.” I growl as I look at the photo of him shirtless and holding her in his arms. “I know what she needed help with.” I storm from the sauna.
“Get back here.” He scrambles to pick up his clothes.
“Go fuck yourself.” I grab my handbag and he runs after me and grabs me from behind, he throws my bag on the floor and holds me, my arms down by my sides.
“She thinks someone is trying to kill her and she came to me for help,” he stammers. “I swear to you that’s all it was.”
“When was this?”
“Last week.”
I fight out of his grip. “So she was here last week, in my home. In your fucking arms while you are undressed and you didn’t mention it once?” I shriek. “Not. Once.”
“Because I knew this is how you’d react.” He tries to throw it back on me. “That’s why I didn’t tell you.”
“Ha.” I pick up my bag from the floor. “You gaslighting prick.”
“Where are you going?”
“Home.”
“This is your home,” he growls.
The waiters appear with a tray of our dinner.
“No. My home doesn’t have booty calls come to it,” I scream. “You fucking sleazebag.”
Their eyes widen and they freeze on the spot, they glance at each other, scared for their lives.
I march down the stairs.
“Alora,” he yells. “Get back here.”
“Go fuck yourself.” Adrenaline is surging through my veins and I can hardly see through the rage. I stumble out the front door and across the gangplank.
“Stop her,” Edward yells from the balcony above.
“Miss Sorenson.” Marcel runs along beside me as I march up the boardwalk. “Come back inside.” He grabs my arm.
I rip it out of his grip. “Touch me again and I’m calling the fucking police.”
“I must insist.” He grabs my arm again and I completely lose control and turn and rip it from his grip.
“Leave me alone,” I cry.
Edward comes running up the boardwalk. “Alora,” he says sternly. “Calm down.”
I trusted you.
His silhouette blurs.
“Come inside so we can talk about it.”
“I want to go home.”
“This is your home.”
I angrily wipe the tears from my eyes. “Marcel, can you take me to my place please?”
His eyes flick between Edward and me.
“I’ll drive you home myself,” Edward replies.
“I don’t want you to drive me anywhere.” My nostrils flare as I try to hold it together.
I can feel my world collapsing around me.
I trusted you.
“Come inside and talk for ten minutes and if you still want to go home then I’ll let you go.”
“You’ll let me go?” I screw up my face as my anger resurfaces. “Can you hear how fucked up that is?”
His eyes hold mine.
“You don’t get to tell me what I do.” I turn my back and start walking.
“Alora,” he growls.
I turn like the devil himself and am now well aware that we have an audience, every yacht’s staff is now out on deck listening. “What?” I fume as I fight to keep my voice down.
“I want you to come inside,” he says softly. “Leave us, Marcel.”
“Yes, sir.”
Marcel disappears up the boardwalk and he comes to me. “You said you wouldn’t leave when the chips are down. You promised,” he says softly.
“Yeah, well.” My eyes well with tears. “You promised to be faithful.”
“I was, I swear to you. Come inside and we can talk about it.”
“I just want to go home,” I whisper.
His face falls. “Doe, don’t cry,” he whispers as he takes me into his arms. “I swear on my life I didn’t touch her.” I pull out of his grip and step back from him. “I love you, there’s no way I would risk that,” he whispers as he reaches for me again. “Come inside.”
I look back to the yacht to see all of the staff there waiting and watching. I’m officially the town fucking idiot. What do they see when I’m not here?
“I just want to go home tonight,” I say.
“We need to talk about this.”
“Tomorrow.”
His eyes search mine. “I want to come with you.”
“No.”
“Why not?”
“Because I don’t want you to,” I snap, annoyed.
“Nothing can be sorted when we’re apart.”
“I need some distance, Edward.”
“Don’t say that.”
I know he’s not going to let me go unless I’m civil.
“It’s fine. I just want to go home and calm down and have the night to myself and we can go out for lunch tomorrow.”
“I don’t want to be apart from you.”
“It’s one night.”
His eyes search mine. “Is it one night?”
I cross my arms, unsure how to reply.
“Alora, I promise you. I didn’t touch her. She came to me for help. I was working out downstairs and that’s why my shirt was off. She turned up crying and scared because someone had just tried to run her over and I hugged her.”
My eyes hold his. Is he lying?
“She was here for fifteen minutes tops. That’s why I bumped up your security, because I was scared they would come for you too.”
Oh…. Kind of makes sense, I guess.
I feel a little better, but still unsure. I glance back to the yacht and the staff are all still watching.
I hate that we have no privacy.
“Okay.”
“Okay?” he whispers.
“I still want to spend the night alone at my house, I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“I don’t want you there alone.”
“Stop this control bullshit, Edward. I can’t stand it, let me go home and I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“Do you promise?” He takes me into his arms and kisses my temple as he holds me close.
“Yes.”
“What time?”
“I have the day off, so come over around lunchtime.”
“Why do we have to be apart tonight, you can ignore me all you like from the same bed.”
“Oh my god. Seriously, Edward,” I snap as I lose the last of my patience. “We have no future if you can’t respect my boundaries. I am not a prisoner here. I am allowed to think for myself.”
“Fine,” he snaps. “The boys will drive you home and stay out the front. You call them if you need them.”
I don’t want them there but I know that if I don’t agree there’s no way in hell he’ll let me go. He raises his arm for the boys.
“Fine.” I pull out of his arms. “See you tomorrow.”
“I love you.”
My eyes hold his.
Do you?
“Do you love me?” he asks.
“Not tonight.” I sigh.
“Will you love me tomorrow?”
“I’ll think about it.”
He gives me a lopsided smile.
“Take Alora back to her place, please, and stay with her overnight.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Goodbye,” I murmur.
He kisses my face. “Good night, I love you,” he says in front of everyone.
I roll my eyes and trudge to the car; he opens the door and I climb into the back seat.
“See you tomorrow.” He forces a smile.
“Yep.” The car pulls away and I sit and stare out the window into the darkness.
FORTY MINUTES LATER.
“Thank you,” I tell the boys as I get out of the car.
“We’ll be here if you need anything.”
“I don’t need anything, you can go.” I sigh as I trudge up to the front and go inside. I close the door and flick the deadlock on.
What a nightmare of a day.
I walk into the kitchen and flick the kettle on.
I’m dead tired, confused and a little heartbroken. I mean, I know I perhaps should have at least talked about it, but I’m honestly too mad to be around Edward right now. Rummaging through my purse, I dig out my phone and see the missed calls, I’m not calling him back tonight.
I wasn’t lying, I really do need some time alone tonight. I want to sit with this information for a while without him influencing the way I feel.
Something hard and cold comes to my temple as I am grabbed around the neck from behind.
“Move a muscle and I’ll blow your fucking head off.”