Chapter 3 Chapter 3
By the time Amelia reached her apartment, she was completely exhausted. All she wanted now was a long shower and a few hours of sleep. Maybe if she slept long enough, everything would feel less overwhelming.
She unlocked the door to her apartment and stepped inside. She barely had time to close the door before a voice startled her.
“Where have you been?”
Her heart nearly leapt into her throat. She turned toward the living room and froze. Her mother sat stiffly on the couch, arms crossed, with an irritated expression.
“Mom!?” Amelia said in shock. “What are you doing here?”
“Gosh, you scared me.” She muttered, clutching her chest. She was beginning to regret giving her a spare key.
Her mother stood up.
“That’s not important. What's important is that I’ve been calling you all morning and you didn’t answer a single one of my calls.” She said
“I—my phone was on silent.” Amelia said quickly. “I didn’t see them.”
“Where were you?”
“I.. was at Tessa’s place. We were out late and I didn’t feel like driving home.” She said, forcing her voice to sound casual.
Her mother’s eyes narrowed slightly. “Well, you could have at least answered your phone.”
“Sorry.” Amelia muttered.
“Ryan called this morning.”
Amelia felt her stomach tighten.
“Oh. What for?”
“He said he wants to cancel the engagement.”
“Well, if he didn’t, I’d have done it myself.” Amelia said flatly.
Her mother’s expression turned sour.
“What did you do?”
Amelia blinked in disbelief.
“What do you mean what did I do?”
“Ryan sounded very upset. So if you did something to offend him, you need to apologize and fix it.”
Amelia stared at her incredulously. “You want me to apologize?”
“Of course.” Her mother said matter-of-factly. “Engagements aren’t something you throw away over small disagreements.”
“Small disagreements?” Amelia repeated slowly. “Mom, Ryan cheated on me.”
Her mother’s expression barely changed.
“So? Men sometimes have their fun.”
Amelia’s mouth fell open.
“But that doesn’t mean he won’t be a good husband.” Her mother continued calmly. “You shouldn’t destroy your future over something like that.”
Amelia stared at her, completely stunned.
“He’s going out with another woman. And I’m supposed to be okay with that?”
Her mother sighed impatiently.
“Amelia, you’re being dramatic. Do you have any idea what people will say if this engagement ends now?”
“Dramatic?” This was the second time she had been called dramatic and she was sick of it.
“So that’s what you care about? What people will say? Not my feelings, not how I’m holding up after our breakup.” She snapped
But her mother didn’t look concerned at all.
“Ryan’s family is well connected. This marriage is important.”
“So you want me to marry a man who cheats on me because it’s… important?”
“You’re only making this more complicated than it is. You need to settle things with Ryan. Apologize and fix the mess you’ve caused.”
“How is it my mess when he’s the one who can’t control his fucking hormones!”
“You will not use that tone with me, young lady.” Her mother said sharply. “Stop being stubborn and think about your future.”
Amelia shook her head. “Leave my house, Mom.”
Her mother’s eyes hardened. “If you ruin this engagement, don’t expect me to support your decision.”
“Leave.”
Her mother grabbed her purse.
“You’ll regret this.” she said coldly and walked out the door.
Amelia stood there for a long moment, staring at the closed door. She pressed her lips together, trying desperately not to cry.
First Ryan. Now her own mother. Neither of them cared about how she felt. To them, she was just part of a convenient arrangement. Her phone rang again with Tessa’s call and she answered immediately.
“Where the hell were you?!” Tessa demanded. “I called you like fifty times!”
“I know, I know. I’m sorry.”
“Did you get kidnapped? Did you pass out? Tell me, what happened?”
She slumped onto a couch. “I might have… done something stupid.”
“What did you do?”
Amelia rubbed her forehead.
“First of all, this is all your fault.”
“My fault?” Tessa scoffed. “How?”
“You left me alone at the bar!”
“He was hot! I couldn’t just let him go.” Tessa defended.
Amelia rolled her eyes. “And how did that work out for you?”
Tessa scoffed. “What a jerk. Turns out he had a girlfriend, he ended up getting dragged out by the ear. At least, I had a good laugh.”
“Hey! Don’t try to change the topic, what did you do?” Tessa asked
“While you were gone, I started talking to someone. We had a few drinks and I might have ended up spending the night with him.”
Tessa gasped loudly. “You WHAT?”
“I slept with him.” Amelia cried out.
“This is insane! Who is he?” Tessa asked
“I have no idea.”
“What do you mean you have no idea? You don’t even know his name?”
“No.”
“You slept with a man whose name you don’t know?”
Amelia buried her face in her hands. “Yes.”
Tessa burst out laughing.
“I cannot believe this.”
“Stop! It’s not funny!”
“It is a little funny.”
Amelia sighed. “This is all your fault.”
“You absolutely cannot blame me for that, but I’m proud of you.”
“Proud?”
“Yes! My best friend finally did something reckless without caring what your mom or Ryan will think.”
Amelia snorted. “Well, that won’t be happening anymore.”
Tessa’s voice softened. “How are you really?”
“I don’t even know. My mom was just here. Apparently, Ryan called off the engagement.”
“And what did she say?” Tessa asked
“She wants me to apologize to Ryan.”
“You’re kidding.”
“She said him cheating isn’t such a big deal. According to her, he was just having fun.
Tessa let out an angry sound. “Fun? Well, I hope she’s this chill with it if she knows you’ve also had your fun.”
“She’ll definitely go crazy.” Amelia chuckled.
“Well forget both of them. You deserve so much better.” Tessa said seriously
“And,,” she added, her voice turning playful again. “Next time you sleep with a mysterious stranger, at least get his name.”
Amelia laughed. “I’ll keep that in mind.”
Across the city, in a glass building towering above the skyline, a man stepped out of a car.
Security guards immediately straightened.
“Good afternoon, sir.”
He gave a brief nod and walked inside without slowing down. Employees nearby whispered as he passed.
He ignored the murmurs as he entered the private elevator. His assistant, Marcus, was already waiting upstairs when the doors opened.
“You’re late, again.” Marcus said, glancing at his tablet.
Adrian adjusted the cuff of his shirt calmly.
“I had something to take care of.”
“Your parents called this morning.” Marcus said. “They’re still pushing for the engagement with Isabella Russo.”
The man’s expression didn’t change.
“They can push all they want.”
“Eventually you’ll have to deal with them.”
“Later.”
Marcus nodded. “Very well.”
Adrian’s mind flashed to a woman laughing in a dim bar. Messy hair. Bright eyes. Bold enough to call him attractive five minutes after meeting him. A faint smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.
He had only gone there because he needed space from everyone, and he knew that was the place no one could find him. But his night has turned out to be more exciting than he expected.
