Chapter 10 CHAPTER 10
Michael's POV
I had not been to Goldilocks in years. When Rosaleen sent a message that we should meet up in our old hangout place, I knew exactly where that was. She was in a pretty yellow flower dress, the type that made her tanned skin glow and left little to the imagination. Five years had changed her. She didn't look like the boyish Rosaleen I knew growing up.
“I'm so happy you got it right,” she said, hugging me a little too tightly and lingering a moment too long. She smelt heavenly.
I smiled. “We hung around in this place almost everyday. I could never forget it.”
She pushed a tiny parcel at me. “I brought you a gift.”
I looked at the tiny box, wondering what it contained. “I'm sorry, you're all I have. I didn't get anything.”
“You are enough for me,”she said. Her fingers brushed over my shoulder intentionally and she winked at me seductively when I looked at her. It was quite a show.
“You've seen the news?” I asked, watching her breasts rise invitingly under the gown. I had never thought of Rosaleen in a romantic way, but she was proof that a lot could change in five years.
Her face fell. “You couldn't tell me, Michael. I thought we were friends.”
He poured a drink. “I thought you'd never come back, Rosa.”
She stretched her hand across the table and laid it on mine. “Is that why you're marrying her?”
“Evelyn Moon?” I asked. “It has nothing to do with you.”
She sighed. “I've been racking my head for a while, Michael. What do you see in her that makes you think she's your mate?”
There was no reason to let Rosaleen know the truth of the contract between Evelyn and I. So, I'd just tell her the usual life. “The mate bond,” I said, flatly. “You'd know when you finally meet yours.”
She squeezed my hand, soft and rough at the same time. “I don't believe in such, Michael. I believe in true love.”
I raised my brow. That was the exact essence of finding one's mate.
“And common sense,” she added, taking her hand away. “Can't you see it, Michael? They're using you to pull their wretched family out of debt."
“Rosaleen -” My voice was low and rough. It was a warning. She couldn't speak of my fiancé's family that way even though she was right.
“It's true!” She exclaimed. “Closing down Glams for her family to shop? That's too much, Micheal.”
My fork hit the plate and I forced the food down my throat. The problem about Rosa was she didn't understand boundaries or when to stop. She had played the same drama when Jasper was to marry Tamara before she finally left.
“She's using you,” she continued. “And I won't forgive myself if I don't give you a headsup.”
I dropped the fork on the plate and the sound echoed across the room.
She lowered her voice. “She is having an affair with that guy she calls brother. Proof me wrong if I'm right. I see it with my own two eyes.”
I narrowed my eyes and glared at her. “What are you talking about?”
She pushed her phone towards me and I saw the picture on her phone. My jaw tightened and I felt my blood boil.
“When was- “ I rose up. “Forget about it. I'll join you for dinner another day.”
As I walked away, my mind battled with whether what Rosaleen had shown me was true or not. I knew her flair for causing commotion but I needed to be sure.
I sent a text to Evelyn. See me at the house. Now.
She arrived hours later with no apology. It was enough for me to lose my temper.
“What part of the message said you could walk in here anytime you liked?” I snapped.
“What part of the contract says you can micro manage my life,” she snapped back.
I bit my lips. “You should send a message whenever you are running late.” I stood up. “And yes, I micro manage your life.”
She broke down suddenly. “You wicked man,” she cried out. “You have no drop of compassion. I lost my father because I was here for your stupid photo op. Yet you couldn't even be there for his funeral.”
“I sent some flowers and the company mourned him. What do you want from me? To act like I cared about him?”
She flinched. “You are a monster.”
My words were harsh but I was not going to apologise.
“Why am I hearing rumors that you have an affair with your step brother, Xavier Heart?”
She scoffed. “You listen to rumors too?”
“Not unfounded ones,” I continued. “The image of my company is very important to me, and the woman who is known as my mate must be decent.”
She struggled to say anything coherent. “What - how… I don't understand. What is this all about? You called me here on the basis of rumors? Do you know how many such rumors I've heard of you, Alpha Michael?”
I flung the printed photo at her and she picked it up. She looked at it for seconds, in silence. “This is billshit,” she said finally. “It's obviously the work of rumor mongers.” She glared at me. “Why would I have a naked photo of me online? Sent to someone who is not bold enough to come out of his anonymous account.”
“I don't know, Evelyn Moon. You tell me,” I replied, returning to the couch.
“This is bullshit,” she repeated. “And if you knew me, you'd know I have a mole on my buttocks.” She flung the photo away.
“Good,” I said. “Now I have more rules.”
She stopped me. “No. I have my own rules for you, Alpha Michael. Whether you believe it or not, we both benefit from this and you better listen to what I have to say, else I'm walking out of this sham of a thing.”
Her eyes said she was not playing, so I listened.