Chapter 114

Adrian

About a week has passed since the networking event that Michael and I attended, the one that I ditched him to go plead my case with Stella. Only one good thing came out of it and that is the fact that Michael connected with a possible investor. The man is legit and has worked in the medical space before, having partnered with insurances in hospitals to develop new technologies that will save more and more lives, so we are very grateful for his interest in our company.

Michael and I sit at the lunch table with the man. The lunch has gone on quite slowly, in my opinion, and Michael has done most of the talking, which I am grateful for. All I have done so far is simply nod and hum in response or have helped Michael elaborate on the future of the company and projects that we plan to launch.

My mind still sits with Stella and the conversation that we had before today. I simply cannot wrap my head around the fact that she thinks that I would actually kill her by signing her heart away to give it to Clara. How could she think that I could do such a thing?

During our contracted marriage, Stella should've gotten to know the person I am. She even had a notebook filled with all of the things I liked and disliked, so wouldn't it make sense for her to understand the type of man that I am?

I look away from the lunch table, staring outside at the country club's green grass. It brings me some comfort, not a lot, but enough to get me through the rest of the lunch. It isn't enough, though, to get away from the memory of Stella's face, the look that she made when I told her that I did not sign the surgery consent form.

She looks so surprised, so broken and shocked. It was as if she was fighting with her inner demons to believe what is the truth, the way her face contorted and twisted as Sebastian pulled her away into the darkness of the parking lot. I can only sit here and hope that she has come to realize that what I told her was nothing but the truth.

The truth is the one thing that the both of us deserve when it comes to our fractured relationship with one another.

The lunch is about to come to its natural end with Michael and the man, whose name is Gregory, come to an agreement to meet again to sign a contract with each other before we officially get to work. Gregory has had some great ideas as well so we are both eager to get him on board with our development team and get started as soon as possible.

I pull out my wallet and place the company credit card onto the table for the waiter to take. We smile at each other and I look past him just for my eyes to land on Clara and her parents entering the county club’s restaurant.

My mind immediately goes blank. My mouth goes dry at the sight of Clara’s casual yet twisted smile as she weaves through the tables. She says hi and waves to people as she passes them by.

She wants to be loved and adored by this high society group so badly. I do not know how I didn't see it before, but now I see her for all that she is: a woman who is so desperate for attention and influence.

Clara's eyes landed on me. I am unsure if she is going to cause a scene or not today. I hope that she doesn't, seeing how Michael and the new investor do not know of my relationship with Clara and all of the problems in trouble that she has caused me in the past year.

Clara sits down at her table. It is not too far from us and I simply cannot wait to get up and leave her vicinity, not wanting to get into any of the drama that she assures you have bring between us.

Michael and Gregory stand, placing their napkins onto the plates in front of them. I quickly follow suit, forcing a fake smile onto my face as Gregory cracks a joke about this lunch being on the company's dollar, and not his, proceeding to state that perhaps they are one in the same. It is a bad joke, but I forced myself to chuckle along for the sake of keeping our new investor happy.

I hang behind at the table, hesitating to move, just in case I need to put out a fire that Claire has lit without me, knowing. When I think the coast is clear, I begin to walk around the circle table, falling behind Michael and Gregory as they head towards the exit of the country clubs restaurant. My comedic timing is always on par for events like this, as I hear movement from behind me, a chair scraping against the wooden floor, and the sound of high heels clicking towards me.

“Adrian!” Clara exclaimed my name loudly, catching the attention of the entire room.

I freeze. Michael and Greg return to look at me, raise the eyebrows on their faces as their eyes flip to Clara, who now stands behind me. I hold up my hand to them and wave it around, quietly chuckling.

“Just an old friend. You two go on, I’ll catch up with you later,” I say. Michael and Gregory simply shrug in response, turning away and exiting the restaurant.

I turned around and looked down at Clara, crossing my arms over my chest. Her perfume is sickeningly, sweet, making me feel nauseous, as she stands right in front of me, a plastic smile on her face.

“What do you need, Clara?” I ask, my voice deadpan.

“I haven't been able to function properly ever since you ended things with me,” Claire speaks through her fake smile, not wanting to cause alarm to the other patrons in the restaurant. Or, maybe, is this her way to keep her reputation intact while mine has already been thrown into the rubble of the destruction of my company not so long ago?

“I'm sorry that you haven't been feeling well after it, but that is not really my problem anymore, is it?” my voice is sharp and my words get straight to the point.

Clara's face twitches. I can see that she is slowly getting annoyed with me and my dismissiveness towards her. She waves me away and her smile only grows. It makes me feel so uneasy to look at.

“Oh, Adrian,” Clara hums. She steps closer to me, closing the distance as she reaches out to fix my white dress shirt. She flattened out the wrinkles, her blue eyes focused on the white fabric before they move back up to me. “It will be your problem if you keep ignoring me.”

“What?” I scoff. “What could you possibly mean by that?”

I watches Clara simply shrugs and tosses her honey blonde hair over her shoulder. She turns on her heel and heads back to her table. Anxiety forms deep within my stomach, making me feel even more easy than I did before.

Clara is up to something. I just do not know what it is, but I know for a fact that I can't trust her no matter what.