Chapter 62 A visit
RORY POV
I was heading to the kitchen when I heard voices coming from the sitting room.
I slowed my steps.
Alexander was standing in the middle of the room with a woman I didn’t recognize. They were deep in conversation, him in a black round neck and joggers that had absolutely no right making him look more attractive than his usual shirt and tie. His hands shoved in his pockets. His posture relaxed but still commanding. The woman talking to him was tall, but next to him she looked almost petite. She wore a short, tight bodycon dress that hugged every curve, her black hair falling in perfect waves. Her chest was almost touching Alexander’s. She was standing dangerously close to him — too close — gesturing while she talked.
I watched Alexander chuckle at something she said.
That annoyed me more than it should have.
I cleared my throat.
Both their gazes tore to me.
Alexander kept his usual bored expression.
The woman’s mouth fell open. She stared at me like she was seeing something she couldn’t make her brain accept, her eyes moving from my face to my body and back up again, completely stunned.
I walked down the remaining stairs until I was standing in the room with them.
“I didn’t mean to interrupt… I was just—” I started rambling.
“You can stay,” Alexander cut me off calmly. “She’s here to see you.”
"Oh my God," the lady whispered, her voice trembling. "This is more than I thought. I can't believe this..." She looked me up and down, her eyes searching every inch of my face.
"When people told me my brother-in-law's new wife looked just like my sister, I didn't think it would be this much. What's your name again?"
Scarlett. Anastasia's sister. It was crazy, but I didn't see the resemblance at all. She didn't look like me, and she didn't look like Ana.
“Hi,” I said carefully. “My name is Rory.”
I didn’t know what I was expecting- a glare, a cold shoulder-but it definitely wasn’t what happened next.
She crossed the space between us and crushed me in a hug.
I could barely breathe. Her arms locked around me completely. Over her shoulder I caught Alexander’s eyes. They had narrowed. Like someone hugging me was something that personally offended him.
When Scarlett pulled back she was wiping her eyes. I watched her try to compose herself.
“Are you okay?” I asked.
"I'm sorry... I'm just..." She gasped, fanning her face with her hand. "I just can't believe I'm seeing someone who looks so much like her.
It's like seeing Anastasia again, but in a different light. God... this is a miracle."
“I’m so sorry for your loss,” I said gently. “I know it must be hard seeing someone who looks like her.” Also married to her husband. I was absolutely not saying that out loud. “I can go back inside if seeing me is too much.”
Alexander gave me a look that said don’t you dare.
“It’s alright darling,” Scarlett said, smiling through wet eyes. “I’m happy to see you. It’s like seeing Ana all over again I—”
Alexander’s phone rang.
He looked at the screen, picked it up and walked out of the room without a word leaving me alone with Scarlett.
“Glad he left,” she said immediately, rolling her eyes playfully. “He’s such a bore.”
I just smiled.
"Let's sit down," she said and I took a seat next to her.
“How are you though? I’m sorry I didn’t ask — I was just so shocked seeing you. My name is Scarlett."
“I’m fine. Thanks for asking. And I’m sorry if seeing me makes you feel bad. I’ll understand if you don’t want to—”
“Don’t be ridiculous, Rory. I feel good. In fact, we need to hang out. You have no idea how much I already like you. Will you come out with me and some of Ana’s old friends? I’m sure they’d be glad to see you. Maybe it’ll even help heal a part of us that’s still grieving her.”
Her eyes stung with fresh sadness as she said it.
As kind as she sounded, I couldn’t shake the feeling that she was using me as a bandage for her pain. Like I was a convenient prop ,someone who could pass for their lost Ana. Nobody wanted Rory. They wanted the face. They wanted the closest thing to what they were missing.
But if it helped them even a little, I didn’t mind. Maybe one day they’d see me, not just her shadow.
“I don’t mind. Whenever you want,” I said, forcing a smile. Honestly, I could use time away from this house and the unbearable tension with Alexander. I was terrified that if I stayed locked up with him much longer, I’d end up confessing feelings I had no right to have.
“Can we leave now?” she asked suddenly, standing up and twirling around like the idea excited her.
“Now?” I blinked, surprised.
She nodded. “Are you busy? I’m sorry if I’m trespassing.”
“It’s alright. I’ll just have to ask my husband first. If that’s okay with you.”
“Of course. You should. I know Alexander can be… overbearing sometimes.”
She was damn right.
I found him in his study. The door was open. I stepped in.
He raised a brow when he saw me. “What do you want Aurora?”
His voice came out low and husky, sending an unwanted shiver down my spine.
I found the floor suddenly very interesting. I couldn’t look at him directly. Not with the way he was sitting , leaned back, arms crossed, muscles doing things I was not going to think about right now.
“I want to ask if I can go out with Scarlett,” I said.
“You want to go out with her? You’ve barely known her for thirty minutes and now you want to hang out?” He sounded almost amused, but there was an edge to it.
“She misses her sister. She thinks hanging out with me could help.”
Alexander let out a scoff. “You can’t help. You’re not a replacement.”
His words stunned me. For a moment I almost believed him. Then I remembered exactly why I was standing in his house wearing his name.
“But I am to you,” I whispered.
He was silent for a beat, then his voice came out softer than I expected. “That’s different.”
“Can I go?” I asked again, quieter this time.
“I don’t want you to go,” he said, standing up from his chair. He looked even more intimidating as he moved, leaning back against the mahogany table and crossing his arms over his chest. The muscles in his arms flexed, and I hated how badly I wanted to touch him.
“Please, Alexander,” I begged, voice small.
He pushed off the table and walked over to me. His hand came up, fingers gently tucking a strand of hair behind my ear. He leaned in close, his lips brushing my ear as he whispered, “You can go. I’ll just have to miss you for the day… maybe I’ll masturbate thinking about you, the same way you did after the other night, while I watched you on camera."
My face burned crimson. God, he has no filter.
The memory of me locked in the room that night, frantically fingering myself and thinking about him and moaning his name flooded back vividly.
"Thank-thank you," I stuttered, and practically ran out of the room before he could say anything else.