Smile and Play The Role

Chapter 2

The five star hotel was a majestic looking structure with the restaurant at the ground floor. 

I peeked through the glass walls to check if I could see where Rowan and his so-called 'old friends' were seated but it was futile. I took a deep breath, steadying myself as I walked in.

The restaurant's atmosphere was warm and inviting, and a good looking waiter even passed a smile to me.

The smell of food was strong in the air, making me remember how hungry I was but had been too frustrated in the past few hours to notice.

There were also dimmed pendant lights hanging above each table, creating a soothing and intimate feeling, but when my eyes rested on Camille sitting so close to Rowan, my blood ran cold.

I couldn't tell what it was they were saying but Rowan's eyes popped in a surprised way, as if Camille was filling him in on an extraordinary adventure she had undertaken.

A pang of sadness coursed through me as I noticed how intrigued he seemed to be with what she was saying because he rarely ever spared time for us to talk. 

There were three other men and one woman seated in the booth. The woman's fingers were interlaced with the man's own beside her and I could tell they were the couple yet to be married. 

Rowan, naturally, stood out among them, effortlessly handsome and composed; his thick black hair, slightly drowsy eyes, straight nose and thin irresistible red lips surrounded by well-groomed beards.

He was the kind who you couldn't help but glance at a second time if they passed by you.

One of the men who looked unhealthily skinny and dressed in a faded black shirt suddenly groped Rowan's shoulder and let out a short laugh.

"Man! I still can't believe we got to see you again! How did you find him, Camille?"

"We just..." Camille shrugged her slender shoulders. "Bumped into each other."

"Ah! I see the hand of fate somewhere there," the second man exclaimed. "We always believed that you two would end up together but I don't know how in the world Duncan beat you to that."

My ears pricked up at the sound of that. Wait, wait, what were they talking about now?

"I'm equally surprised! I remember you two even had a fight over her one time," the yet-to-be-married man said and I let out a gasp.

So whatever it was he had with Camille was more than just her being "an old friend"?

"That's all in the past, you guys," I overheard Rowan say with a dismissive tone. "Duncan and I grew the fuck up and even became close friends. Besides, I don't think now's the right time to talk about him," he gave Camille a sympathetic look and she hung her head low.

"Oh, I'm so sorry, Cami. I'm just too overwhelmed," the chatterbox of a man said. He then turned to Rowan with enthusiasm.

"Well, are you married now?"

My breath caught in my throat. Married? They didn’t know he was married? For three years now?

It was arranged, yes, but it was a marriage after all!

I took the question as my cue to interfere. Taking in a deep breath, I flashed my best smile as I walked in on them.

"I was searching for you two. Hello," I waved a little to the group and they stared back at me with a slightly confused expression.

Rowan spent more time than I deemed necessary to stand from his chair and introduce me.

"Everyone," he announced as he walked to my side and held my arm briefly. "Meet my wife, Maya. I'm sorry I haven't had the chance to introduce her before now—"

Wow, Rowan, so three years isn't enough time to make a five second announcement to your friends? Classic.

"–But I'm happy you've all finally met her."

"Christ, Rowan! Did you keep her a secret because she was so beautiful?" The third man exclaimed and reached out to shake me with a wide smile on his face. He introduced himself as Chris, the groom-to-be, and his wife, Lucille.

"Maybe," Rowan said with a shrug and the group laughed.

After a minute of saying each other's names, exchanging 'nice to meet yous' and congratulating the couple about to be married, I took my seat beside Camille and was slightly embarrassed that Rowan still walked over to Camille's other side instead of sitting beside me.

"You should model for Vogue," Lucille said as she regarded me with admiration. She was radiant with that pre-wedding glow.

I smiled at her genuinely. “Thank you, Lucille, and congratulations on tying the knot with your loved one.”

She and her fiance smiled at each other and held hands. 

"Why didn't you tell any of us, Rowan?" The lanky Mr chatterbox asked.

"Oh, he told me. He sent an invitation," Camille said as she reached out to grab the bottle of Leroy Les Charmes. "I just wasn't available to come for the wedding," she added with a shrug and the others looked at her with surprise.

Okay, give me a break here! What the hell is going on?

Of all his friends, Camille was the only one invited for our wedding? Something churned in my stomach.

"He did?" Chatterbox asked with his jaw almost to the table.

I passed a questioning glance at Rowan who equally shot me a look. I'm sure he could see that I was about to say something.

"Excuse me," he said suddenly, smiling gently and standing. "Love, can you help me for a moment? I think the pin on my collar fell off."

I blinked in surprise. He never called me 'love' in public. It was usually ‘my dear wife' whenever we attended any galas or fundraisers that he felt needed my presence, and so such endearment now sent a cold chill down my spine.

Get it together, Maya.

"Uh, sure," I murmured, following him, my mind spinning.

He led me a few feet away and the moment we were alone and out of earshot, the atmosphere changed. 

The warmth in Rowan’s smile quickly vanished. He stepped closer, his breath brushing my cheek, his fingers sliding down the length of my arm before tightly gripping my wrist. As I breathed in the scent of his cologne, my mind was immediately clouded and a familiar warmth slowly began to spread over my body. 

"What are you doing? I thought we were fixing your collar," I whispered in a shaky voice.

"You never play your role, do you?" he murmured into my ear, his voice a low growl. "If you could manage not to embarrass me out there, that would be helpful, for both of us."

I looked up to meet his eyes.

"I’m sorry, embarrass you? How about explaining why you haven’t told your friends we’ve been married for three years?"

"And for what reason, exactly? I'd rather spare them the boring details of knowing that our marriage was arranged, that you were some doe-eyed girl fresh out of university who caught my grandmother’s eye, and that since you married me you haven't bothered about finding a job!"

"How…how can you say that?" I gulped.

He leaned in, his lips almost grazing my ear, his voice barely a whisper but filled with command. 

With his body so close to mine, invading my senses, I could barely breathe. "I don’t care how you act in private, but out there, you’ll act according to the script. No questions, no drama. Understood?"

When we returned to the table, my pulse was still racing. The group looked at us with amused smiles.

“Gone for quite a while weren’t you, lovely couple?” one of them teased, looking from me to Rowan.

“These wardrobe malfunctions happen once in a while,” Rowan said and his friends agreed with chuckles.

I forced a tight smile and swallowed down a ball of spittle, unable to find my voice.