Chapter 28 XXVIII.
“Rowan!” The sound of my name rang in my ears as though I were hearing it from a dream. I decided to go back to sleep, thinking that maybe I was imagining it, but the voice came again. “Come on, Rowan, open up.”
Realizing it was Alessandro, I sat up in bed, confused and still a bit hazy from sleep. I picked up my phone from the side table and stared at the screen. It was only 7:14 a.m. What was he doing up so early? We had nothing to do today. Or did he want us to return to California? After all, there was no reason for us to stay here anymore since we had already lost the deal.
I got out of bed and went to open the door. There he stood, smiling at me. He was dressed professionally. I frowned at him while he gave me a once-over.
“Woah, Rowan. I thought casually dressed Rowan was cute, but I think pyjamas Rowan is on another level of cute,” he whispered, smirking teasingly at me.
I looked down at my black pyjamas in embarrassment. “Why are you here, Alessandro? And why are you all dressed up?”
His smile returned. Something in his expression told me he was hiding something. He had that mischievous look on his face that screamed trouble.
“We have somewhere to be, Rowan, and as much as you look good in your pyjamas, I’ll have to ask you to go change.”
Every word that left his mouth only made me more confused. “Where are we going?” I had to ask.
“Come with me if you really want to know.”
I squinted at him. One can never fully trust Alessandro’s antics. He’s always so unpredictable.
Nevertheless, I decided that now was not the right time to argue with him. I should just go along.
“Give me a few minutes to take a bath and get ready.”
“I can wait more than a few minutes for you, Rowan,” he teased, earning a blush from me.
I hurried back into my room and shut the door. I had no idea where he was taking me, but I supposed going out was better than staying in the hotel all day doing nothing.
That would be boring.
Since he refused to tell me where we were going, I had no idea what to expect. But considering the fact that he was dressed professionally, I decided to put on a suit as well.
When I walked out, Alessandro was leaning against the wall, looking down at his phone. He hadn’t noticed me yet, so I took the opportunity to admire him.
Ever since we came on this trip, I noticed that Alessandro had been happier. He smiled more—genuine smiles, not just that signature smirk that never failed to make me nervous.
The times when he used to glare at me with hatred seemed so far away. Now, I could confidently say that we were friends.
A part of me wished to be more than just friends with him, but I knew that would never happen. Leaving Alessandra only to date Alessandro later would be a jerk move on my part. And now, leaving Alessandra wasn’t even an option anymore because I had failed the task Mr. Ricci gave me.
I sighed and pushed aside the depressing feelings threatening to surface. I guess I would just have to bury those emotions and marry Alessandra. How could I convince Alessandro to take over his father’s company when I couldn’t even convince Mr. Francisco to sign a simple deal?
I’m so pathetic.
Alessandro glanced up and smiled that beautiful smile that made my heart pound loudly in my chest. But when he noticed the solemn look on my face, the smile vanished, replaced with concern.
He hurried toward me. “Rowan, are you okay?”
I forced a smile. “Yeah, I’m fine.”
Alessandro sighed and took my hand, clearly not believing me. One thing I’ve also noticed is that he has become very touchy with me. I’m still unsure whether I like it or not.
“I know you still feel bad about the deal, but I assure you, Rowan, everything is going to be fine.”
I want to believe him. I really do. But he doesn’t know what losing that deal did to me. He doesn’t know how broken I feel right now. I’ll have to live the rest of my life pretending to love a girl I obviously do not love.
That’s not fair to Alessandra.
My forced smile remained on my face, trying to reassure him, though I’m not sure it worked. “Let’s just go.” I gently pulled my hand from his and walked ahead of him.
No matter how much I tried not to think about it, I couldn’t help feeling as though my life was becoming more and more depressing.
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“What the hell are we doing here?!” I exclaimed as Alessandro parked his car in the underground parking lot of Mr. Francisco’s company. How did he even know this place?
“I know this is Mr. Francisco’s company. We have business with him.”
I glared at Alessandro, pushing down the panic rising inside me. “We are not here to fight with him, are we?”
Alessandro shot me a mockingly incredulous look. “What do you take me for, Rowan? I came here for peace. You of all people should know that I’m a saint.”
“I find that hard to believe,” I said, raising my brows.
Alessandro smiled softly at me, and that smile distracted me for a moment. “I’m a saint—for today.”
“But why are we here, Alessandro?” I asked in a more serious tone. I needed to know what I was walking into.
“Please just trust me, Rowan. I promise it’s nothing bad.”
His words were so sincere that I couldn’t help believing him. Moreover, it was hard not to believe him when he looked at me like that.
“Fine,” I agreed. “But if it turns out to be something bad, I’ll be very mad at you.” Not much of a threat, but Alessandro seemed perfectly fine with it.
We stepped out of the car and headed into the company building. We walked side by side. The place was busy, and no one attended to us, yet Alessandro seemed to know exactly where he was going. It made me wonder if he had been here before.
He walked as though he owned the place, and no one dared question him. He had definitely been here before.
We reached a door, and Alessandro pushed it open without bothering to knock. Inside was an office. Mr. Francisco stood behind his desk, hurriedly arranging some files.
He glared at Alessandro. “Why are you guys late?! I have a meeting now.” He looked at me, walked around his desk, and handed me a file. “I’ve signed everything. I have to go!”
I took the file from him, confused and uncertain. When I opened it, I saw that he had already signed everything.
Before I could question him, he was already walking out of his office.
I turned to look at Alessandro, who was smiling at me.
What the hell did he do?