by Kim Black
When I pulled up in front of the restaurant, I felt my stomach turning into knots. Ok Em, just walk in and ask for Adam. You can do this! But as I handed my key to the valet, dressed in his crisp white shirt, dark pleated pants and shiny shoes, I felt the urge to run. As the man drove off with my car, I stood there in front of the restaurant, unable to move. My breath was caught in my throat and my palms began to sweat. What the heck was I thinking? I’m not ready for this! Just as I turned and began to walk away I heard someone call out my name.
“Emily! Where are you going?” I sighed before turning to face him. He was dressed in his black and red Chef uniform, the same one that I still had hanging in the back of my closet and I fought the urge to curse.
“Hey Adam, can we take a walk and talk?” I asked while trying to avoid his gaze. He was still handsome and I hated that he was. Over the past year, I secretly wished he would start balding or suddenly get a bad case of adult acne; something, anything that would hurt his growing ego. To my detriment, that hadn’t been the case. He still had the sexy, boy-next-door look about him.
He caught up to me and we walked in silence at first through the busy Los Angeles streets. He was wearing the same cologne he wore when we were together again; a mixture of fresh fruits, sandalwood and musk. He knew how much that cologne drove me crazy when we were together. Why would he still be wearing it a year later?
I thought back to when we first met. It was my first day at Tajh and I was unbelievably nervous. I had just finished school and my internship at Tajh came immediately. I was thrilled and scared all at the same time and then Adam walked in. He was definitely a charmer. His smile alone sent chills up and down my spine and I fell in love with him that first day; before we had even spoken. Two weeks later, after all of the women in the internship had exhausted all of their options to get his attention, we started dating. He told me it was because I hadn’t tried to get him. Adam definitely loved a challenge. Little did he know; I had figured him out since the first day and had deliberately ignored him. I knew that he would gain interest eventually… and it worked!
Adam cleared his throat which brought me out of my revere. “Last time we spoke…” he said before trailing off and looking me in the eyes. “I didn’t mean to upset you. I know that things can’t be fixed that easy but there’s just so much that you don’t know about the situation.”
I stopped and looked him dead in the face. He seemed sincere again but how could I trust him? Was he sincere when he said that he loved me and then slept around on me? “If that’s the case then spill it Adam, because I would love to know what would cause you to cheat on me? What is it that you can say to me now, a year later that would make a difference?” I demanded.
He looked away and started walking which caused me to trail behind him. “I never cheated on you Emily, I love you. I would have never hurt you,” he began. I watched as he stared at his feet as he walked. His eyebrows frowned. “I know that Diana told you that I did, but I didn’t. You need to ask her for the truth Em. I would tell you myself, but that would cause you more pain and I just can’t do that to you.”
He turned to face me and I stared at him in amazement. What the heck was he talking about? What truth? Adam knew that I hated riddles, and hated when people would beat around the bush.
“Ask her and after you do it will all become clear,” he said just before leaning in and giving me a kiss on the forehead, the scent of his cologne smothering me when he did. He turned away and walked off, leaving me standing there even more confused than before.
After he disappeared, my phone buzzed in my pants pocket. I reached for it and saw that it was a text from Julien.
‘Can you meet me for lunch amour?’
Perfect timing! I thought while shaking my head at what my life had somehow become.
‘I’m sorry but I already made plans… rain check?’
JULIEN
Leaving Emily’s house this morning without having a definitive answer as to what was going on with her ex was all I could think about at work. Was she regretting not being with him? Was she thinking about going back to the Backstreet Boy wanna-be? The more I thought about it, the more annoyed I became. I was so annoyed in fact that Sylvie noticed my behavior.
“Mr. Belmont, are you alright?” Sylvie asked when she brought in my messages from lunch. My mood had plummeted even more during lunch when I texted Emily asking her to meet me and she’d declined, stating that she had other plans. Did those plans involve the blond haired man from her car?
What bothered me the most was that it bothered me at all! Never before had one woman caused me so much grief and while I my mind urged me to walk away from her, I just couldn’t. I definitely couldn’t let her ex have her. No, she was mine!
“I’m fine Sylvie,” I grunted as I looked over my messages, hoping that something would capture my mind long enough to keep me from thinking about Emily or strangling that ex of hers.
Sylvie walked away from my desk and headed for the door before she said, “If you say so boss, but if looks could kill… I sure hope whoever has you upset steers clear of you.”
I continued flipping through the stacks of messages until one caught my eye, Charlette. A groan escaped my throat as I read the message.
‘Darling, please be sure to wear a black tux to the gala tonight. We mustn’t draw any unnecessary attention whilst the media is already suspicious of your little situation. How is dear Emily by the way? I see you like them young dear, I would run a background check if I were you but I trust your judgment.’
I crumpled up the message and threw it on the floor. The meddling woman never passed a chance to grate on my last nerve. I was sick of it. Tonight I would put an end to her interference with my life.
I had completely forgotten about my father’s annual charity gala and couldn’t help but curse at the thought of having to go, with Charlette. With everything going on with Emily, I had fallen completely behind on everything. My father would definitely not be pleased with my distractions. My blowing off work yesterday would surely be the topic of discussion tonight, along with my affair with Emily. I was not looking forward to it, but as the Vice President and the Host’s son, there was no way out of it. I quickly texted Charlette what time I would have the limo pick her up and assured the irritatingly intrusive woman that I would indeed be in a tux. I didn’t mention her comment about Emily, determined that I would handle it face to face tonight.
I buzzed my assistant on the intercom. “Sylvie, I need a black tux delivered to my home by five this evening.”
Sylvie assured me that she would have it done and I turned towards the mountain of paperwork on my desk for the new hotel Belmont International was planning on opening next month downtown, grateful for the potential distraction from Emily, her ex and Charlette.
EMILY
By the time I got home that evening I was exhausted both physically and mentally. Julien hadn’t responded to my message earlier and honestly I was relieved. I had too much going on today to deal with the sexy Frenchmen. I decided that I would call him tomorrow. Tonight my call would be to Diana. After freeing myself from the confines of my chefs’ uniform, I plopped onto my oversized couch. I grabbed the remote and switched the TV on but placed it on mute. I threw the remote to my side lightly and reached over to the wooden coffee table for the phone and started dialing.
I called several times and each time she hadn’t picked up. It was so unlike Diana. Even in her deepest sleep, which really wasn’t deep at all, she always answered. She was the most reliable one of the group. Adam is right, there is definitely more to all of this.
I thought back to Diana’s reaction to my speaking with Adam the day before and the horror on her face when I informed her that I would be speaking to him again. Something was going on and I needed to get to the bottom of it. My brain was fried, so I called Suzie and asked her to come over.
Thirty minutes later, Suzie was at my door with beer and take out. “Open up Roberts!” she yell
ed as she pounded on my door.
With a smile I opened the door. “You’re lucky I love you and you brought food because I’d let you stand there all night for pounding on my door like that,” I jested as I pulled her in and half hugged her.
“Yeah, yeah, yeah,” she said as she entered. I needed some advice and some cheering up and Suzie was good for both. She walked in and placed the beer and food on the counter. She pulled out two beers from the six-pack and opened them. She handed me a beer and we walked over to the couch.
“So… I hear you’re shagging the Frenchman again,” she smirked.
I wasn’t surprised that Diana had told Suzie about this morning. In fact, I was hoping that maybe Suzie knew what made Diana freak out earlier. This situation with Adam and Diana was confusing and I needed to get some answers and it seemed that the two of them weren’t talking.
“Yeah… it’s something like that but that’s the least of my problems… I spoke to Adam,” I informed her, hoping that Diana had in fact told Suzie about my conversation with him. I was wrong.
“What? Adam? The same Adam you were just saying ruined your life!? How in the heck did that happen?” Suzie demanded before taking a swig from her bear; her eyes bulging out as she was waiting for me to explain. I told her everything and by the time I was finished, Suzie sat with her mouth hanging open.
“Do you believe him?”
It was a simple question but for the life of me I couldn’t bring myself to offer up an answer. My heart wanted to believe that Diana had told me the truth that night but something deep inside my gut told me different and that was unnerving. The thought of her betraying me was too much to bear.
“Look Em’ I know how much you loved Adam and maybe something inside of you wants a logical reason to be behind everything that happened between the two of you, but for goodness sakes, the man is a freaking creep! He is obviously trying to screw with your mind and I’m not going to let that no good piece of crap hurt you again!”
“I’m not saying I believe him Suzie but something just isn’t right. You should have seen the look on Diana’s face when I told her I had spoken to him. She was freaking out!” I explained.
She turned and looked at me. Her eyes were determined and her brows frowned, “So what are you saying exactly Em? Your low life ex points the finger at Diana and all of a sudden every twitch she makes causes her to be a suspect in what? What do you think she did exactly?” she demanded, her voice echoing throughout the room.
It was obvious that Suzie was upset but it wasn’t like I wanted to believe that Diana was hiding something. I had made peace with my breakup with Adam and loved Diana like a sister. Surely Suzie could see that I was in a difficult position. I wasn’t going off of what Adam had said alone. I was following my own instincts. No matter how much I wanted to believe Diana, something wasn’t adding up!
“I don’t know what it is but… she’s not telling me something Sue, something just isn’t right. I know its Diana and I want nothing but to believe that Adam is lying but you weren’t there! You didn’t see the way she reacted and begged for me not to speak to Adam again. It was really bad and that can’t just be because he hurt me. There is more to this! Please understand…” I pleaded.
Suzie took a step towards me, which caused me take a step back. It wasn’t that I was afraid of her but… Ok, so maybe I was… just a little afraid. I had seen Suzie beat up quite a few people and I could never take her on. If only she would just hear me out and understand where I was coming from!
“Diana is our friend and if she says she told you everything, then that’s enough for me. Quite frankly, it should be enough for you too! Point blank, period!” she growled right before she took another swing of her beer, slammed it on the counter and bumped into my shoulder as she proceeded to the door.
“Where are you going?” I asked as I fought the urge to rub my shoulder. For a petite, size 4 girl, Suzie sure had a lot of strength.
“Who knows who Adam will point the finger at next…? I don’t want to end up on your chopping block. Call me when you come to your senses!” she said angrily as she opened my front door.
“Suzie! Please don’t do this. Can’t you just please hear me…” The sound of the door slamming caused me to jump slightly. I stood there staring at the wooden white door in complete disbelief that not only was I confused about one friend’s loyalty and trust, I had just pissed off the only friend I had left. Just what I freaking need!
JULIEN
The event was in full swing. Reporters from every news station were lined up outside our biggest hotel in Los Angeles waiting for the loyal celebs who faithfully attended our gala annually to help the charities that we supported. My father, who was praised by millions for his generosity never failed to make each gala better than the last. From the looks of it, he had somehow managed to outdo himself yet again. The man was truly grand in every way and for that; I had spent most of my life looking up to him.
The theme this year was based on Paris since the charity we were supporting would be sending three hundred young, disadvantaged students to Paris on a full scholarship. The grand ballroom was adorned with imported flowers from all over the world. Ivory drapes hung from the ceiling to the ground with an endless supply of candles throughout the space, giving it a warm and inviting feel. Beautiful angels hung from the ceiling with harps in hand. The soft music made you feel as if you were in the city of Paris itself. Each table had its own crystal chandelier. The show stopping piece was of course a golden Eiffel Tower replica. I couldn’t help but chuckle a little when I saw it because if I knew my father, and I knew him well, he had probably tried to have the real tower shipped. The place was without a doubt spectacular.
Charlette was running late as usual. And I had the unpleasant fortune of waiting for the ball and chain outside of the gala amongst the photographers who stood on either side of the red carpet. As I stood there, my thoughts drifted to Emily and her ex. I wasn’t jealous of course but the hurt I saw in her eyes as he walked away stirred something within me - Something that I definitely did not like. Does Emily want to be with him again? I wasn’t sure, but one thing was certain, I would do everything in my power to ensure that never happened.
Forty five minutes later and Charlette had finally decided to grace us with her wonderful presence. I couldn’t help but roll my eyes when she tapped the window for me to open the door for her. Since the photographers were now at full attention, I leaned in and tugged the door open. As she gracefully got out of the car, she smiled for the cameras. I couldn’t help but get annoyed as she swayed her hips purposefully, practically making love to the camera.
“Mrs. Belmont, when can we expect a little one?” one photographer asked as she took hold of my arm, without my offering it to her.
I cringed at the thought of having children with the woman. Not that I was one to even want to children to begin with, but my father’s sole purpose in insisting that I marry has been centered around the idea of having an heir to our empire. Little did he know; I have no plans for children in my future! Children required more than I could ever offer. And it wasn’t like I could ever picture Charlette with children either. She loved herself too much to really ever be able to give a child the kind of love and attention it required.
Emily on the other hand, I could definitely see mothering a child. The thought of her cooing with her children brought a smile to my face but I instantly pushed the thought out of my mind. I didn’t want children! Hopefully Emily didn’t either.
As we made our way inside the ballroom, Charlette clung to me like a cat in heat. Each time I managed to get some distance, she would only wiggle her way closer. She pushed her breasts against my arm which wasn’t too difficult since the skin tight red gown she wore could barely contain them. It wasn’t unusual for us to put on a show for the world, but tonight she was even more flirtatious, which made me groan in disgust.
“Well if it isn’t the lovely couple. How are you Charlette?” I heard my f
ather’s strong voice behind me say. He leaned in and gave Charlette a kiss on both cheeks before extending his hand to me.
“I’m much better now that you’re here. I’ve missed you terribly Jack, we must have lunch sometime and catch up,” Charlette babbled. She was the fakest person I had ever had the unfortunate pleasure of meeting.
What she failed to realize was that my father saw right through her. My father knew just how to handle women like Charlette. He had many mistresses who were just as manipulative and calculating as Charlette. This was all of course before he married my mother. The stories she used to tell me of my father put my affairs to shame. Her love was what changed him. Even after she passed, he never loved another like he loved her.
“It seems you’ve managed to outdo yourself yet again Father. We have a wonderful turn out this year,” I muttered as I grabbed a glass of champagne from the passing waitress, downing its contents completely and then grabbing another.
Charlette pouted when I didn’t extend the glass towards her. I couldn’t help but smile. When I saw the look of disapproval on my father’s face, my smile quickly died.
“Charlette dear, I need to speak to my son. Would you mind terribly if I steal him for a moment?” My father said while he signaled another waitress to come over. When the young woman made her way over, he handed Charlette a glass and then grabbed one for himself.
“Why thank you Jack… It seems some Belmont men do have manners after all. Steal away!” she pouted as she took a pull of champagne and began making her way through the crowd. She added an extra sway to her hips as she walked away. I had no doubt it was for my benefit but it only caused me to roll my eyes. The woman was delusional to say the least.
“I take it that you have called off this affaire?” he demanded.
My father wasn’t a patient man. Lying to him would only further tick him off but I couldn’t exactly tell him the truth either. Instead I avoided the question all together. “I’m a married man, I get it. You don’t have to worry father. My happiness is the furthest thing from my mind.”
