\[Denali’s POV\]
I stare in the direction that Rosco disappeared while feeling something in me slowly shift, but despite that, I don’t move; after all, I didn’t have the right to. After a moment longer, I get up and head into the bathroom, which still holds Rosco’s scent, take a quick shower, then change into my night clothes.
Once I’m washed and comfortable, I get into bed and try to sleep, only to find that it evades me until finally the sun begins to rise. And despite the whole night passing, Rosco never returned.
When the emotions that I’m feeling begin to become too much, I get up, change into some workout clothes, and make my way out of the hotel and onto the street. Looking around, I make sure that Rosco isn’t hiding somewhere in an attempt to try to stay away from me despite knowing I was being ridiculous.
“Bastard,” I growl, beginning to jog.
With each step, my mind clears a little more, but in the end, Rosco’s hurt expression and the worry I feel over his not coming back consume me.
It was frustrating to know that I had already gotten used to him being beside me, even when we were only acquainted for a week. But I couldn’t deny that there was chemistry n us, but I didn’t know if it was from my need to have someone on my side or if it was something else.
Sighing, I come to a halt and stare out at the city around me. Italy was supposed to be the ity of love, but here I was a damn mess who didn’t even want to broach the topic of love after being shit on too many times.
“He’s right,” I huff, wiping some sweat from my skin. “Dammit, he’s right.”
My hesitance when it came to Rosco had nothing to do with my dislike of him and everything to do with fear. I was a fucking chicken, afraid of getting hurt again, and in the process, I was pushing away someone who seemed to be genuinely interested in me.
Alexander seemed to be that too. The small voice in the back of my head points out, causing a pang of pain to shoot through me.
“Right,” I whisper, turning and beginning to make my way back to the hotel. “Alexander was the same, and I ended up burned.”
Was I really willing to put myself in that position again?
When I arrive at my destination, I find that a woman with a kind face and sparkling golden eyes is waiting for me.
“Miss,” she beams, seeming to relax a bit. “I was beginning to worry about you.”
“Uh…” I begin, taking in her sharp suit and brown librarian bun. “Who are you?”
“I’m Michelle,” she explains. “The master hired me to prepare you for tonight’s grand opening.”
“Oh.”
So, despite staying away all night and being majorly pissed at me, Rosco still managed to find someone to help doll me up for the night’s event. But did I really want to go, knowing that things would be awkward?
“Miss?”
Snapping out of my head, I give Michelle a smile and simply nod. If I decided to try to skip out on the grand opening, then it would only bring trouble to the woman in front of me since she didn’t accomplish her job.
“Sorry,” I say, giving a small smile. “Please do what you need.”
For the rest of the day, I silently allow Michelle to do my hair and makeup. Once that is finished, she helps me into my ball gown, which is gold and skin tight to the point where I look like a damn trophy and can barely move.
“You’re perfect,” Michelle beams, stepping back and taking me in. “Now for the finishing touches.”
“Finishing?” I repeat, raising a brow. “But I’m…”
“No look is complete without accessories,” she explains, grabbing a black velvet box I didn’t notice on the dresser. “The master picked these out specially for you.”
As she speaks, she pulls the box open so that I can see the delicate gold necklace with a teardrop diamond hanging from it. On either side of the necklace are diamond earrings and then a single ring with a blue gemstone sitting in the middle of it that match my eyes perfectly.
“He picked these out for me." I whisper, feeling my heart constrict painfully. “He really is too much.”
“Doesn’t it just prove that he cares?” Michelle counters, beginning to help me put the jewelry on. “He even went to such lengths to find the perfect shade of blue to match your eyes.”
“I guess,” I respond, feeling a knot form in my throat.
“Now,” Michelle says, stepping back. “Let’s get you to that grand opening so you can be the envy of the evening.”
Twenty minutes later, I climb out of the car I’m riding in and let my eyes scan the area, which is filled with reporters waiting to get the scoop on all the celebrities attending the resort's grand opening.
Luckily, as I pass, they don’t pay much attention to me, but the minute I step inside the building, all eyes come to rest on me. Trying to keep my expression straight, I move forward until I reach the banquet hall, and only when I’m sure the gawking is over do I finally let myself deflate.
Stepping inside, I take in the room around me until I find the one person that I’m looking for, but he isn’t alone. Instead, he is standing with Harold and Nadia while the old man talks adamantly and the woman clings to him like a parasite. However, that isn’t the thing that makes my heart hurt. No, I was finding that this was normal for her, but his allowing her to do it while looking ill at ease wasn’t.
Swallowing, I begin to move, but stop as a waiter walks up to me and offers a drink. Giving a slight smile, I take it and then continue to move forward until Rosco’s eyes come to rest on me.
For a moment, I feel like a deer caught in headlights as our gazes lock, and all I’m met with is a painful coldness that I had never seen before.
He hates me. I whisper inwardly. And I can’t blame him.
As we continue to stare each other down, Nadia’s gaze travels toward me, and when understanding begins to color her features, she presses herself against Rosco and trails a hand along his broad chest. To my dissatisfaction, he doesn’t stop her and even pulls her closer against him with the hand I didn’t realize was on her hip.
Instantly, a wave of jealousy rolls through me so strongly that it takes my breath away and startles me.
No. This couldn’t be right; why in the world would I be jealous of Rosco and Nadia? I had already told him the night before that he could go find someone else to help him create an heir, so why was this even bugging me?
Because you’re full of shit. The small voice in the back of my head laughs at me. You let yourself believe in such a short amount of time that you were the one he wanted, and in the end, you pushed too hard and had to deal with the consequences.