“Who’s there Alex?” purred Beatrix from behind him and he came to his senses and looked away.
“Shall we leave?” he asked gruffly, turning away and storming out of the apartment without a word. His indifference hurt Eva, and she slowly emerged from the kitchen after the door closed shut after them.
“I’m not going to Phoenix. I’m fine with any other place,” she said, her mood already souring at the interaction. How could Alexander not recognize her at all? Hurt, she picked up her bag and trudged ahead towards the door. The doorbell rang, and Alyssa rushed ahead of her to open it.
“You aren’t going anywhere, Eva,” scolded an upset Alyssa while opening the door. Skylar and Hayley barged inside, looking upset and displeased, arguing amongst themselves.
“You shouldn’t have said that to him,” scolded Skylar.
“I couldn’t top myself. She’s a bitch,” argued Hayley while the other two gaped at them.
“I know, but she is Alex’s fiancee,” pointed out Skylar.
“I don’t care,” said Hayley with a toss of her hair, going straight to the kitchen to grab some water.
“What’s going on? What did you two do now?” asked Alyssa with dread. Skylar looked at her apologetically while Eva waited for her reply. She could feel that her friends had collided with none other than Beatrix on their way here.
“Nothing much. We were about to enter the elevator when Alexander emerged with his bi*ch of a fiancee. Hayley collided with her accidentally and she abused Hayley calling her names when we apologized already. It was an accident and even she was equally at fault for not seeing us enter. Yet she didn’t once apologize to us!” said Skylar. Hayley returned with the bottle and scoffed.
“I lost my temper and asked Alexander how he tolerated the bi*ch. Even if she were the last female on earth, no one would marry her, even for her dad’s riches,” said Hayley. Eva and Alyssa’s jaws dropped to the floor, knowing how brutal Hayley’s words could be if someone instigated her.
“Didn’t he get annoyed? Now he’ll never allow us to go to Phoenix,” wailed Alyssa.
“No, strangely, he just chuckled instead of getting annoyed. Beatrix stomped away towards her car, leaving him stranded. I think I spoiled their date!” chuckled Hayley, while the rest of them gaped at her in shock. “Wait a minute! Why are we going to Phoenix?”
“To celebrate Sienna’s birthday, obviously. Alexander has a membership there, and it’s the only nightclub he’s allowing us to go to. Of course, he’ll be accompanying us,” informed Alyssa, and they all groaned in agony. They wouldn’t have any freedom if he accompanied them.
“Why this torture? I think we should celebrate it at my place,” suggested Skylar.
“Or ours,” suggested Eva. After today’s encounter with Alexander, she wouldn’t want to meet him and his fiancee again. It was too painful!
“No, please. We always go to each other’s places. What’s so special about that? Let’s put our own reasons aside and do this for Sienna’s sake. She has gone through a lot and needs to get Roman out of her system for one day at least,” said Alyssa. They all agreed and worked on the plan. Alyssa handed out dresses for Sienna and Eva, since they didn’t possess clothes suitable for nightclubs.
“This is the first time Sienna and I are going to a nightclub,” said Eva with wide eyes, checking out the deep coffee-colored dress she was supposed to wear. The girls chose a red short dress for Sienna instead and Eva had to agree that she would definitely look extremely good in it.
“Don’t worry so much. I’ll handle Alex. We will enjoy it despite his presence,” said Alyssa, comforting her.
“We’ll go on a weekday as the rush is bearable and the charges would be lesser,” suggested Skylar for Eva’s sake. They all pooled money for the celebration, although Alyssa knew her brother wouldn’t accept a penny and add the expenses to his account. She would offer him!
Sienna joined in after a while, oblivious to the meticulous planning that had been going on. Eva knew Alexander hadn’t gone out on a date as he had planned and would be upstairs in his apartment. Would he come over again? Would she get to talk to him? However, even after dinner, he didn’t pay them a visit, and she decided to go home. Sienna had left an hour earlier, as she had to visit a lawyer regarding her shares in her dad’s business.
“See you at Phoenix on Friday,” she said as she waved at her friends and left the apartment. The elevator arrived, but it was too crowded and she had to wait for the other one to arrive. The elevator stopped in front of her and Eva’s heart picked up pace, seeing Alexander inside, all alone, watching her with the same cold expression as before. Eva walked inside and stood quietly in one corner as the door slid shut and the elevator started its downward journey.
“Why are you here after so many years?” he asked in the same haughty tone. Eva froze at his sarcasm.
“I haven’t come here because of you. So relax,” she replied in the same tone as his.
“I can see how you’ve changed.”
“So have you.”
Her cold, sassy retorts surprised Alexander, and he sulked in silence, not saying a word further. The elevator stopped at the parking area and Eva went out to her car while Alexander watched her, a dark, brooding look on his face. It was difficult to fathom what was going on in his mind and Eva didn’t wish to waste her time even. She started her car and drove away without a backward glance in his direction.
Alexander stood transfixed on the spot, not having expected this from Eva. She used to love him, after all! Shouldn’t she be grief stricken to see him engaged? Or was it all fake? Was she really after him for money and a luxurious life like his dad had accused her of? It couldn’t be true love! If she loved him, she could never have been able to move on.
He climbed into his car and drove over to his best friend, Stefan Henderson’s, house. They both had studied together in the same school, after which Stefan left for Harvard. He managed his dad’s hotel empire along with his brothers, Tristan, Adrian, and Julian. Alexander was close to all of them and if his dad hadn’t pushed him towards Desmond Rotterdam, he would have started some business venture with Stefan.
Eva’s behavior confused him a little, and he needed some liquor in his system to forget her! Alexander hadn’t expected to see her tonight, and her sudden appearance had him disconcerted. He had never felt this way with Beatrix and was just engaged to her for the business. Owning Rotterdams was his dream, and he had worked very hard for the past four years. Today Rotterdams was more successful than it was under Desmond Rotterdam’s control. Yet Alexander wasn’t happy. He was passionate about Rotterdams, but he couldn’t own it until he married Beatrix. He had stalled the wedding for four years, but he couldn’t postpone it any longer. Desmond Rotterdam and his parents were becoming desperate as the days passed by.
With Beatrix never leaving her hateful ways behind, marrying her was far from his mind. She partied and spend the night with random men but denied it when charged. Alexander waited for the opportunity to catch her red-handed, but she was quite cunning with her hook-ups. While Alexander spent all his time promoting, traveling, and working at Rotterdams, Beatrix splurged, threw lavish parties, and went around with the rich and famous of NYC. Alexander failed to understand how his parents could be immune to the stunts she pulled and like her instead. He tried his best to avoid her and drowned himself in his work, to refrain from any physical intimacy with her.
“Why are you working for Rotterdam when you can start your own chain of restaurants?” asked Stefan, as they sat together in Stefan’s bachelor pad with a peg of whiskey.
“I’ve grown very attached to Rotterdams, bro. Actually, dad wants me to help uncle Desmond and I couldn’t decline. I don’t want dad to feel ashamed of me as well. He has pinned all his hopes and aspirations on me,” said Alexander with a sigh, emptying the contents of his glass in one gulp. The liquid burned down his throat, helping him forget about his dismal life. “Everyone doesn’t get what they want!”
“You haven’t even tried to achieve your dreams. Why don’t you talk to uncle Daniel?” suggested Stefan.
“I tried to but dad can’t see my point of view. He thinks this is the best thing that can happen to me.”
“Then the only way is to open his eyes to Beatrix’s true colors,” suggested Stefan.
“You’re right. I’ll fit someone after her and catch her red-handed.” Alexander drove home in a better frame of mind. He was determined to get rid of Beatrix from his life first!