Chapter 72 Strong feelings
Veronica's POV:
Theo and I reached two days earlier than necessary for the global expo that was happening in New York. He'd said it was to give us time to prepare... to make sure everything was perfect before the big day.
But as I stood in my hotel room... my separate hotel room... I couldn't help but wonder if there was another reason.
Why didn't he book a room for both of us?! Weren't we supposed to be seeing each other, according to the contract?
Or maybe he changed his mind after my date with Max. Perhaps he didn't really want me anymore...
The thought lodged itself in my chest like a thorn.
Why else would he book separate rooms?
If he actually felt something for me, wouldn't he have at least suggested sharing a suite?! Or at least gotten connecting rooms?
But he didn't even bother asking me. He'd paid for the rooms with his flashy card without even turning to look at me.
I wondered what he was about to do with the contract that he created and signed. Even the paper records were with him...
I let out a sigh. "And I thought that Max was the unpredictable one... Theo was even more surprising..."
With a confused mind, I pulled my clothes from my suitcase mechanically, hanging them in the hotel closet with more force than necessary.
We were going to be here for the next week... the expo itself lasted three days, but Theo had scheduled meetings before and after with networking opportunities, and potential investor dinners.
I didn't know how I was going to survive a whole week in New York with Theo being distant.
"I would be bored to death this way..."
I grabbed my tablet and collapsed onto the bed, pulling up the presentation slides I'd been obsessing over for days.
My eyes scanned the familiar content... our app's features, the market analysis, the competitive advantages, the projected growth metrics slides... but I couldn't focus.
Looking at these were a pain even on normal days... But now that the date was getting closer, anxiety was twisting in my stomach like a living thing.
It wasn't that I had stage fright exactly. I'd given presentations before, spoken in front of people, even done some public speaking in college.
But this was different. This was a global expo. Industry leaders from around the world would be there. Tech investors, media outlets, tech influencers with millions of followers would be hearing me out.
"What if I embarrass myself?!"
Our app was going to be viewed globally. And any mistake I made in my speech, any stumble or fumble or moment of awkwardness, would be captured on video and shared across the internet.
I would become a global joke, more like a global meme to the world.
The thought terrified me more than I wanted to admit.
I forced myself to read through the slides again, mouthing the words I'd rehearsed a hundred times.
But my mind kept wandering back to Theo, to the separate rooms we were in, and to the question of whether he actually cared about me or if this whole thing had been some elaborate charity project.
Then I heard it.
A noise from the next room. A soft woman's voice, a very sweet voice which came out muffled but unmistakably there.
Oh my God! Theo was in the room next to me.
I froze, my tablet was forgotten in my lap.
The voice only got loud enough to hear now... though it was too sweet to make out the actual words, but definitely feminine. And worse, the tone sounded intimate too, like she was comforting him?! What the actual hell?
Did he have a girl in his room?
My heart started pounding, a sick feeling spreading through my chest at the realization sank into me.
I got up from the bed mechanically, like I was watching myself from outside my body.
My feet carried me to the door that was outside into the hallway, stopping directly in front of Theo's room.
I paused before knocking, my fist raised, but doubt suddenly flooding through my mind.
Was this the right thing to do?
Even if Theo had some woman in there, was it right to invade his privacy like that?
We weren't exclusive. The contract explicitly said we were both free to pursue other interests as long as it became exclusive. So he wasn't doing anything wrong at all.
And I had slept with his brother just yesterday, for which I still felt guilty. Wasn't I being hypocritical at this point?
But something had gotten into me. I didn't know why I felt such possessiveness for Theo...
I wasn't ready to give him up yet. I still felt strong feelings for him.
I didn't want to give him up to some random girl in a New York hotel room. Not before I'd figured out things with him.
I knocked on the door hard this time that people walking in the hallway turned to look at me... oddly.
For a moment, nothing happened. Then I heard his movement, his footsteps approaching, and the door swung open.
Theo stood there, shirtless with just boxers on, his usually neat hair completely tousled like someone had been running their fingers through it.
His pretty green eyes were slightly unfocused, his cheeks flushed red, and his lips looked suspiciously swollen. He did look good.
However, every suspicion I'd had was confirmed in that instant. He really was sleeping with a girl.
"Theo..." I almost said. "How could you do this to me?"
He blinked at me, confusion crossing his features. "Veronica? What—"
"Don't," I cut him off, my hand raised to stop whatever excuse he was about to give. "Don't try to explain. I heard her. I heard the girl in your room. Just tell me who she is? We landed here just 3 hours ago, and have you already found someone to accompany you in bed?"
He looked blankly at me as I went on.
"I thought that we would talk and sort it out if we were to breakup or move on from each other. But you just didn't even care about me!"