ROME
“I think that’s enough, man.” Linden looked at the empty bottles of beer and whiskey on the table. I didn’t have to ask how he found me. Zee probably asked his help since I didn’t budge.
I’d been at the Night Stalker since ten and lost track of time. It was probably morning, but who cared? I needed to forget her, to get rid of her out of my life.
“Don’t you ever tell me you know how I feel, Linden?” I pointed at him. I was drunk, and I could barely keep my eyes open. “Because you have no fucking idea what it feels like to be turned down, dumped by the only woman I’ve ever loved, and broken at the same time.”
“I’m not gonna tell you that, bro. And I definitely have no idea what you are going through right now. But that’s why I am here.”
“To do what exactly? To talk about how Storm broke my heart? No thanks.” I tried to stand up, but the room started spinning. “I think I’m drunk.”
Linden caught me in the arms. I wasn’t aware he didn’t come alone. “We got you, bro. We got you.”
“I’m spinning.” Those were the last words that came from me before everything went black.
I woke up and found myself in bed. The sunshine streaked through the window, assaulting my eyes. Not in my bed, though, and definitely not in a hotel room. It looked too feminine with flower wallpaper, an iron bed, and the blanket I was tucked in was pastel pink. Great. I just became Ken for Barbie.
At least I wasn’t dead. Was I?
And I had to suffer heartache another day. Fucking great.
I tried getting up, but my head hammered thousand times worse.
“Wakey wakey, drunkass.” It was Beck Corbin, one of the guys from the firm. He was carrying a glass of water and a bottle of, let me guess, painkillers.
“How did I get in here?”
“Thank our brothers before you destroy your liver.”
I gratefully took the glass from him. “Thanks.” And he gave me two tablets.
I lay back down and stared at the ceiling. “Am I in the ranch?”
“Yeah. Guys downstairs.”
“I don’t wanna see those faces.”
“I get it, bro. You’re hurting.”
“Try agonizing. Only the end of my hair, I don’t feel the pain.”
“I’m sorry you have to go through that.”
“Guys talked too much.” I looked at him briefly.
“When Linden called me, I asked what was wrong. He filled me in. And I was surprised since you and the Princess seemed in a great place.”
“Until I fucking proposed.” I threw the blanket away and got off the bed. I sighed deeply. “I don’t know how to function without her.”
“Sometimes you lose your purpose. I’ve been there, Cenric, Mykel. We all had gone through that excruciating pain and shits in life.”
“Whatever you say. I’m done. I’ve wasted too much time and effort, and for what? I don’t deserve this.”
“Easy.” Beck held my shoulder, gripping it. “You’re barely dealing with pain.”
“What are you talking about? We’re over. Storm left me, and I accepted that we were not getting back together. That’s how easy to process it, Beck. All I have to do is create a Tinder account and get out there.”
He shook his head as if I was losing my shit. Maybe, probably I was losing it. Because honestly, I dealt just right after losing my father. I knew he was gone forever, but this one? I had to see her with another man, smiling, happy as they made babies. And I had no fucking clue how to deal with it.
I loved her so fucking much that I could barely hold my shit together. Or I was still holding on to the possibility that we still had a chance.
“Take a deep breath.”
“Man, I’m not doing that.” I jerked his hand on me. “I’m fine.”
I got out of the door and climbed downstairs. I found my friends in the kitchen. They stopped everything, whatever they were doing. Of course, they were talking about me.
“Hey, Maeve. Thanks for letting us crash in your house.”
“You’re always welcome. How are you feeling?”
I turned to her. “I wish people could stop asking me that. They know I look like shits.”
“I was asking about your head, Rome. Did you take the painkillers Beck gave you?”
I sighed. “I’m sorry. It hasn’t kicked in yet, but I’m fine. Thanks.”
I looked at my friends one by one. “Cats got your tongues?”
They all shrugged before they grabbed their mugs.
“I knew you all were talking about me before I walked in. So go ahead. I’m not stopping you.”
“Just sit the fuck down, Rome.” Beck pulled an empty chair beside me. “Take your breakfast. If you ever drink even a drop of alcohol while you’re in this house, I swear to God I will let you walk home from here.”
I rolled my eyes and took my seat. “Happy?”
“Very.” He put a steaming mug in front of me. “Drink.” Then a plate full of breakfast came next. “Eat.”
I gladly sipped the steaming coffee. When I looked down at the delicious egg on my plate, it brought back some happy memory. “Shit. I’m really losing it.”
“It’s alright. That’s love. That’s the beauty of loving someone- you have no control. Being powerless. That’s what love is.”
I nodded, seemingly understanding why I felt this way. I began stabbing the crispy bacon. The entire meal looked appetizing, or maybe I was just too hungry. It had been days since I had a proper meal, and it was good to have it finally.
I ate in silence, and it tasted so good.
I wiped my face and my nose. I didn’t even know I was eating in tears. And the fucking love that was.
“Just get the fuck out if you’re just gonna stare at me while I’m eating. That’s fucking rude.”
“I’m glad you’re back,” Linden tapped the table before he got up and walked out of the kitchen.
“Sorry, Maeve.”
“It’s okay. Finish your breakfast.”
When everyone started leaving, I called Zee. “Can you stay for a moment?”
“Of course.” He went back to sit.
“Can you call Mom and tell her that I’m okay? She must be worried.”
“I already called your mother earlier. And she wished to talk to you.”
“Can you give me my phone?”
“It’s in the charger. You can use mine.”
I dialed Mom’s number, and she picked up right away.
“Zeeyad, is my son up?”
“Hey, Mom. It’s me.”
“Hey, honey. I’m glad I get ahold of you. Are you okay?”
“I’m fine, Mom. I may stay out of the radar for a while. Just tell everyone I’m on leave. But I’ll be at the board meeting next month. I just wanna sort things out with my life before I go home.”
“Take your time, honey. Keep me posted.”
“I love you, Mom.”
***
It had been two weeks since I last saw Carly. When I thought it was easy to forget someone, I was wrong. She was constantly in my mind, but I tried to distract my attention and put all my effort and time into Sevyn Hunter Global. If my relationship had failed, my company would have made a lot of money. The third half report has a massive fifteen percent profit.
I just bought a new failing company worth only ten million, and I could triple the value in a year.
“Are you sure you wanna do this? You can just send a representative on your behalf?” Sax raised a brow.
“Since when did I back down?”
“This one is different? And you need to shave, man. You look like homeless than a billionaire.”
I scratched my beard and remembered how she told me I could use shears. “I’m not under persona non grata in that country. And it’s not my fault if they want to ban me. I am not the one who broke up our relationship. And I moved on.”
“Really?” Zee asked. His sarcasm was thicker than the smoke in my chimney. “Then why don’t you wanna hear about Princess Carlott if you moved on? And you haven’t touched any dating apps on your phone.”
“I have no time for that shit. I did it once, and I just wasted my time. So I’d rather focus on making myself rich. I love making money, which makes me happy and fulfilled.” I was still in the cleansing period, so I avoided any alcohol or carbonated drinks. I picked up the bottled water and drank it. “You should try that sometimes.”
“What do you think I have been doing for the pasts years?” Zee glared at me. “Dowry is expensive.”
“Glad that you’re thinking of your future. How’s Heera?”
“Better than- never mind.”
I did not miss how Kye and Linden shifted in their seats. “I’m fine. I’m not suicidal if these frequent visits are all about. I’m capable of differentiating between good and evil.”
“Do you still think of her?”
They all groaned except for Sax, who asked the question.
“Yeah. But I’m sure she’s happy. Sometimes I think she’s not ready for a serious relationship. I think she wants to focus on regaining back her confidence and the trust of her people and wants to accomplish something on her own without an order from the palace. Or she’s not over her ex.”
Suddenly they all started talking together that I could barely grasp.
“Okay, stop.” I raised my hand. “What the fuck is going on?”
“When was the last time you talked to her? I mean, tell us honestly?” Linden studied me to see if I would lie to them or not.
“The day my world doomed? The end of my fucking day-day. Why?”
They looked at each other.
“Did Prince Thayer call you?” Zee asked.
“Once.”
“And?”
“I missed his call.”
“And you did not call him back?”
“I kinda forgot.”
Sax snorted. “Intentionally, you mean.”
“Maybe, something like that.” I shrugged it off. “Because I was afraid he would mention something about his sister.”
“Well, Prince Thayer called me,” Linden started. “He was worried about you, and he told me something like the King will strip off the Princess’ title and rank if she won’t fix it and arrange her with a man of the King’s choosing.”
Fuck.
I swallowed hard. “Good for her.”
“Are you fucking kidding me?”
“Yes. I feel sorry for her- for her title and rank, but she chose this. She didn’t want to marry me. I wish her nothing but the best in life.”
“Sometimes, you’re an asshole, a fucking dumb. She went to her father to ask if he threatened you to marry her.”
“I fucking told her nothing happened like that, but she chose to believe herself and her instinct so much that she never believed in me. I guess she never trusted me or our relationship in the first place,” I said through clenched teeth as I glared at them. “She kept on saying that her father got into me, where, in fact, I was glad that the King asked my intention towards his daughter, and I was glad to ask his blessings and from the Queen. Because all I wanted was for us to be together.” I breathed deeply once I was done letting those words out of my chest.
Then Linden just raised the phone and pressed it against his ear. “Hear that, Princess.”
What the fuck?