Chapter 14

The next few days pass in the same manner. Anthony doesn't eat breakfast at home again. He leaves early and comes home late. Even later than Sebastian. I eat with Sebastian whenever I'm at home and we continue to share stories about our days. He even opens up about Adeline and I'm glad that he has someone to talk to now. 

When I do see Anthony, he tries his best not to look tired, but I know he is. So here I am, at his office, carrying his lunch in my hand. Lunch that I made myself. Lobster Mac and cheese with mozzarella sticks. Even Julia approved of it. 

I greet Linda who's become my friend by now. I stop by her everyday and chat a little after giving Anthony and Sebastian their breakfasts. 

"Is Anthony up?"

"He never leaves. Don't look for Sebastian though. He's not here. "

I grin at her and take the elevator. It's not really a surprise that Sebastian isn't here. When I step out on the 25th floor, Bertha's sour face greets me. What a way to kill the mood. 

"Mr. Crosswalk is busy. He's told me not to let anyone in."

"Well, that doesn't apply to me." I push past her and knock on his door. 

When I get no answer, I look over at Bertha who smirks at me. What is her problem? 

"Anthony?"

"Come in." Bertha loses her smirk and now it's my turn to smirk at her. 

I press down on the handle and shut the door behind me. 

All his three screens are turned on, there's a bunch of papers in neat stacks in front of his monitors and there are faint dark circles underneath his eyes. 

"I brought lunch." I whisper and hold up the bag. 

He gestures to the couch and I roll my eyes. He's not going to eat it if I put it there. I take a seat opposite to him and start opening the boxes. He still doesn't move to eat them, engrossed in his work and speaking to someone else through his Bluetooth. 

My palms get clammy at what I'm about to do, but I get up and hold a forkful of lobster Mac and cheese near his mouth. He looks at me for a beat before his lips close around the fork and chew the food. His eyes widen before he swallows. I hope that's a good sign. 

I continue feeding him, staring at his lips as they close around the fork. I finish feeding him the salad and mozzarella sticks as well. I hope that means he liked the food.

A few of his strands are wayward, probably from him running his hands through them so often. 

My hand involuntarily finger combs his hair back into place. 

I pack the boxes back into the bag and whisper to him again. 

"I'm going."

He nods and mouths a 'thank you' to me. I smile and leave him to continue his work. 

I ignore Bertha because I'm not in the mood to deal with her right now and get into the elevator. I place a hand over my racing heart. What is Sebastian doing at this time of day? And why does Anthony's tired face bother me so much? Why is it when Sebastian always says something bad about Anthony, I don't like it. Could I be developing a crush on my father in law? I shake my head of the thought. It's wrong. 

I say goodbye to Linda and go to my boutique. 

Harper's face is pinched when I enter. 

"What's wrong babe?"

"Someone's here to see you."

"Okay?" I go inside and see a woman sitting on the white loveseat reading a magazine. 

As soon as she hears the clicking of my heels, she puts the magazine down. 

Adeline Ruthfield. Daughter of Gerald Ruthfield. Their family owns a chain of supermarkets. Her red lips stretch into a grin. It could be innocent enough, but I detect a hint of malice underneath it. 

She stands to her full height, which is several inches taller than mine. 

"You must be Charlotte Daymond. Sebastian's wife." She practically spits out the word wife. 

I don't know why she sees me as a threat, but if it was me in her place...no, scratch that. I would never go after a married man, even if said married man was someone I loved. But, to each their own, so no judgement here. 

"In no real sense of the term. Sebastian is just my husband on paper. He's yours by all means. I'm sure you know I don't stand in the way."

She sniffs. "Good."

"Well, what can I help you with?"

"I want you to plan my wedding."

My brows shoot to my hairline. 

"Okay...when is the wedding?"

"Next month."

"What? Ms. Ruthfield, I'm sure you know it's not possible to plan a wedding in a month."

"You don't have to coordinate each and every detail with me. Everything is in your hands, but I only have one request. Make the wedding dress red. That's it. I don't want to be involved in the actual planning. I don't care how much it costs either."

I nod at her. 

"Would you like to try on some wedding dresses now?"

She nods and I go to our closet and take out five red dresses. They're quite heavy, but I manage and drop them on the seat next to Adeline. 

After an hour, she finally settles on a strapless mermaid style dress with a lace overlay. 

"You look gorgeous." Her blonde hair shines under the overhead lights. 

She flips her hair over her shoulder and looks at me. 

"I know. I would consider that a compliment if you were gorgeous yourself."

Her comment rolls off me. It's irrelevant. 

"So this is the dress?"

"Yes."

I remove the pins I placed into the dress and help her out of it. When I bend to remove the dress, I catch a glimpse of her thighs and find red marks around them. Hickeys. I quickly glance away and catch her smirking in the mirror.

She twisted her leg on purpose for me to see those marks. What is she expecting? For me to feel jealous? Hurt? Sad? All I feel is disrespect.

She hands me her credit card and I ring her up for the dress. 

"I'll take the payment for the wedding planning on the day of the wedding."

She takes the bag in her hands and leaves without another word.

Slim arms wrap around my waist. 

"She's such a bitch. You're the one who's gorgeous, Char. Not her. You're beautiful."

"Don't worry honey, her comment didn't faze me." I kiss her cheek and we both get back to work.