Chapter 20
It was nearly 10 p.m. when Aubrey finally got home. She’d ordered some take-out Chinese and she wolfed down the meal quickly before going to her bathroom for a long, hot bath. Feeling relaxed, she settled down in bed and scrolled through social media to check out the latest entertainment news and celebrity gossip. By 11:45 p.m. she was ready to drift into a peaceful sleep when her phone rang. It was an unfamiliar number, but even before she answered the call, Aubrey already knew that it was Barry.
“Hey, you!” he said enthusiastically when she picked up the call. “I wasn’t sure you would answer my phone call.”
“I told you not to call me at midnight,” she said coolly.
“It’s not midnight yet,” he said cheerfully. “I was hoping you’d still be awake, and I guess I’m lucky, right?”
Aubrey sighed. “Is there a particular reason why you called?”
“Yes. I wanted to ask if you would like to have breakfast with me tomorrow, say around 9 a.m. at The Roast.”
“I’m not a breakfast person,” she lied. Perhaps most ladies would be flattered to have a man pursuing them like this, but to Aubrey, it came off as if Barry was pestering her. He was coming on to her too strongly and it was pissing her off big time. They weren’t in high school anymore and she no longer had a crush on him. And the fact that he thought he could just waltz into her life after disappearing for more than two decades, and expecting her to fall at his feet, was simply insulting.
“How about lunch then?” He persisted.
Aubrey rubbed the bridge of her nose with her fingers and counted to ten to calm her temper.
“Hello, are you still there?” Barry asked when she didn’t speak.
“Listen, Barry. I don’t think there’s a subtle way to say this, so I’m just going to be straight with you—I don’t want to go out with you to have breakfast, lunch, or dinner. I have a whole lot going on in my life right now and I don’t want to be distracted. My business thrives on timeliness and right now, we seem to be struggling with that. So, at moment, I need one hundred percent focus if I’m to deliver my new collection on schedule. Do you understand?”
He sighed. “Sure, I understand. I just thought that we could…” he trailed off.
“I’m sorry, Barry. Let’s not waste each other’s time, ok? You’re a good guy, but the timing isn’t right for me right now.”
“Yeah, ok,” he said in a somber voice.
“Ok then. Bye.”
She heaved a sigh of relief after she hung up. That was quick and painless, she thought, proud of herself. Now, I can get back to my life as usual.
Or so she thought. When she got to her office the next morning, there was a giant bouquet of red roses and a box of Swiss chocolate waiting for her at the front desk.
“What’s the occasion?” She asked Marion, her receptionist.
“It was delivered a few minutes ago for you,” Marion said, beaming.
“For me?” Aubrey was surprised.
“Sure,” Marion replied a little too cheerfully.
Aubrey checked the card attached to the roses, and her raised eyebrows lowered dangerously in a frown when she read the content:
I didn’t mean to annoy you last night.
I’m sorry, Barry.
“Ugh!” She groaned out loud. “What a drama queen!”
“Is it from your boyfriend?” Marion asked hopefully.
“Don’t be ridiculous, Marion. I don’t have a boyfriend,” Aubrey snapped at her.
“Oh.” Marion didn’t bother to hide her disappointment.
“You know what, you can have them all. Including the chocolate,” Aubrey said dismissively and marched into her office. She heard Marion squeal joyfully behind her, and her frown deepened.
If that psycho thought he could play mind games with her, then he would be sorely disappointed because she was not interested in playing at all. She made up her mind not to call him or respond to his phone calls anymore because he was obviously thriving on the attention she had given to him before, but no more. She would no longer entertain his aggressive flirting and theatrics. It was now time for her to become the Ice Princess she was known to be and freeze him out of her life. Permanently.