Chapter 4 Temptress In Red.

With a few hours spent at the boutique and salon, Ivory looked like a totally different person.

Her hair, once dull, was now a flaming red with golden streaks running through the ends. Her nails were freshly done and so were her feet. The outfit, a red skin-fitting dress, complimented her figure and was enough to catch the eye of anyone walking past.

She looked the best she had done in years and as she looked at her reflection in the mirror, she couldn't help but feel stupid.

So many years, she had wasted on Gadreel, hoping and praying her mightiest that he would some day come to love her.

A dream which was far from reality and a reality, she was going to accept today, for the better.

"Well, what do you think?" Emma, who had been standing behind her, asked.

"I feel," Ivory started, then turned to her friend and finished with a genuine smile. "Like me."

Emma smiled as well. "Great," She paused. "Now, are you ready to go party, have fun and finally celebrate you being free of that asshole after these long years?”

Ivory thought about it, the idea of partying didn't sound appealing at all, but at the same time, she did want to stay home and mop about her miserable life after the amount of money she had just spent.

She glanced at her open purse, seeing the receipts that ran into tens and thousands of pounds, all of which had been accumulated by she and Emma.

A small smile curved her lips.

At first, she had felt hesitant about spending the money, but then, after realizing that if she didn't, Gadreel was bound to spend it on trash like Evangeline who hadn't sacrificed nearly half of what she had, she decided why not indulge herself.

It was safe to say, she had made the right decision, something she saw herself doing a lot of, going forward.

"Alright," she finally said, feeling her confident boost ever so slightly. "Let's go have fun."

Emma's smile stretched wider. "That's the spirit," She took her friend's hand and together, they walked out of the boutique.

"I know just the club," She announced with a smirk as they headed for the car. "They have the finest men and best booze.”

“Men?” Ivory questioned as they settled into the car.

Turning on the engine, Emma nodded. “Yes, Men. This party wouldn’t be an actual party without those God crafted specimen being around! And besides, you’ve been around that bastard for far too long, I’m sure you need a taste of fresh face,” She paused and smiled, the type of smile that told Ivory she was up to no good.

“Or perhaps more than one new face. Eight, nine?”

“Emma,” Ivory tried to dissuade her, but it was clear, from the look on her face that her mind her already been made up.

“Ten it is!” She exclaimed and then turned to Ivory and smiled. “Trust me, after tonight, you'll be thanking me, Ivy. Now, let's go party!"

Ivory hesitated, but seeing as there was no reason for her to do so, she quickly cheered up. Or rather, she forced herself to do so.

"Alright, let’s to party." She said, her tone much happier than it had been in the past few hours.

~•~

At Opal Heights; A club mainly for the elites of society,

Gadreel sat in one of the VIP rooms, dressed in a plain black shirt with two of the top buttons undone and his sleeves rolled up, and an amber drink in hand.

His gaze, which had been set on his phone since he walked into the club, remained focused on it. The sound of music thumping, the cheers, the screams, none of it registered in his mind.

Beside him, his good friend, Asher Thorne, still looked a bit surprised after hearing what's Gadreel had told him.

"For real?" He asked. "Ivory asked for a divorce?"

The question was like a reminder and Gadreel's hold on his phone tightened and his eyes darkened.

When he didn't respond, Asher laughed. "Wow, she actually did."

Beside him, another of Gadreel's friend joked. "That's impossible, mark my words," He looked around the table, making sure he had the attention of everyone present. "That woman has always been by Gadreel's side, even when he was a vegetable. She won't just leave him. I'll bet a million quid that this is just some foolish act for attention and she'll return home before the night is over."

Laughter echoed around the table. The sound somehow seemed to irritate Gadreel, causing a frown to mar the handsome features of his face ever so slightly.

"I'm with Daniel on this one!" Another of his friend agreed. "That bitch, we all know how much of a whore she is for Gadreel's attention. She'd never abandon him."

"Come on Mickey, don't underestimate a woman." Another joked. "If she can be a whore for Reel's attention, what's stopping her from doing the same to another man?"

More laughter.

This time around, along with the words they had spoken, it seemed to get to Gadreel more than the previous one had, drilling into his brain like a drill and flipping the switch of his irritation.

“Once a bitch, always a bitch. She should watch Our Eva and try to be more like her. Maybe then Reel would actually consider fucking her.” Another joked and that was all it took for Gadreel to finally snap.

"If you're going to keep running that mouth of yours, why not just leave, and spare us the displeasure of hearing you?"

His words were enough to cause the table to go silent. All eyes, even Asher's, were on him.

"Reel," Asher tried to reason, but his attempt failed when Gadreel glared at him.

It was clear, from the surface alone that Gadreel was pissed and being the wiser, Asher knew it was best to not test him.

So, without another word, he settled down and so did the other elites in the room.

With a more quiet headspace, Gadreel could think better. He turned on the screen of his phone and frowned at the time.

It was nearly midnight, yet Ivory hadn't called, nor sent any text messages.

He was still waiting on Ezekiel. He had yet to report back with any results, and the longer the night went, the more he felt himself getting riled up.

It was unlike him to feel so, but seeing as Ivory was acting childish and trying her very best- and might he point out, successfully doing so- getting on his nerves, he couldn’t help but feel so.

And at this point, he was just about fed up with waiting, thinking, getting riled up by her damn trick, by everything. He had allowed it run for quite too long, now, it was time to put an end to it.

Without hesitation, he went to his call list and dialed Ivory’s number, anticipating the words he would say. However, the words that graced his ears, left him speechless.

"Your number has been blocked. Please try again later."

Blocked…

Had Ivory really fucking blocked his number?!

Calm on the outside, but raging on the inside, he dialed the number again.

"Your number has been-"

Gadreel cut the line, clenched his jaw, and slammed his phone against the table. That caught the attention of the others in the room and they looked at him.

Asher, not wanting the atmosphere to go south, opened his mouth to speak, but immediately, he was silenced by the sound of loud whispers and mutters.

"Whoa, who is she?"

"Damn, she's really hot!"

"She's a beauty!"

"Is she famous? Her beauty can rival that of a celebrity."

The guys, as well as the girls in the room, seemed to have their attention stolen by a beautiful sight, but this didn't apply for Gadreel.

It was safe to say, at that very moment, his soon to be ex wife, was tormenting his mind in a way he didn't like.

The same couldn't be said for Asher who shamelessly whistled.

"Talk about a temptress!" He said and furiously tapped Gadreel on the shoulder. "Hey, how about something to take your mind off things, you know, like a good pick for the night. How about that beauty, over there. She seems a good pick."

Asher continued to point at the woman who had stolen everyone's attention and Gadreel was beginning to lose his patience.

But before he could give his friend a piece of his mind, his eyes landed on a familiar figure, one that had him frozen for a split second.

If he hadn't lived with her for five years, if he hadn't seen her everyday, he would have believed it was just his imagination, but the red hair and the fiery orange eyes were undeniable, and they were attached to none other than, Ivory.

His wife!

She looked, unlike the pathetic state he had last seen her, and he couldn't deny the fact that she was gorgeous, almost a sight for sore eyes.

If Gadreel hadn’t been in a sane state of mind, he would have said her beauty was enough to rival that off…

He shook the thought away before it could cross his mind. Evangeline could not be compared to anyone, not even

He's thought’s were interrupted by the sound of his phone singing. It was a message from Ezekiel, short and simple as always.

[Sir, I’ve located the Madam. She’s at Opal Heights and…]

Gadreel could tell from the way the text delayed that Ezekiel was hesitant about something.

[I checked your card records, Sir. She’s been using it since morning and just a little while ago, she used it at Opal Heights to order 10 male bachelors.]

If looks could kill, both Ivory and Gadreel’s phone would have been dead by now.

10 male bachelors. How dare she do something so shameless when she still bore the name of his wife?

She needed to be taught a lesson!

With that thought in mind, Gadreel stood up, not caring if he had caught the attention of his friends, or even Asher, and began his way down.

The crowd of people was a bit troublesome, but he had a mission and he wouldn't be stopped. As he drew closer, his eyes zeroed in on the redhead, the one with her back facing him.

He could hear her giggles from a distance, and could see the way the men around her, the ones which she had shamelessly ordered with his card, his money, laughed, and flocked closer to her like flies drawn to red apple, clearly enraptured by her.

It was disgusting.

With a scowl on his face, Gadreel stepped closer, his presence looming and threatening. The crowd seemed to shrink away the very moment they noticed him, creating a path for him to pass.

And at once, he approached Ivory and grabbed her wrist.

The action caught her off guard.

She turned around, about to tell off the person rude enough to take her by the wrist, but the words died in her throat the moment she saw it was Gadreel.

Her soon to be ex husband!