Chapter 3
1010 Words
SALVATORE'S POV
I heard about Kristen's plans of returning to New York City and it hasn't been the best news so far. Maybe it was the wrong timing to do a one-night stand but who cares? If rumors are right, then she'd already be somewhere in New York.
I drove from my mansion to the hotel where I was holding a meeting with the top executives. Everything had been going on smoothly until my mum decided to make a mess of everything. As if calling often and on wasn't enough for her, she barged into my office in the middle of a crucial meeting.
"I'm sorry I showed up this way, son, but you've been rejecting my calls." She interrupted, making all eyes move from her to me. In no time, they were already starting to murmur and all she did was to keep demanding answers.
"Excuse me." I apologized on her behalf, "You may return to your various duty posts." I dismissed everyone and waited for them to leave before unleashing my anger.
"What in the world were you thinking, mum?!" I yelled immediately as I locked the door behind me.
"I arranged for you to meet her today and you didn't even get to leave a text at least. You and I know how difficult it has been for her to have a spare time –"
"If she cared as much, she'd have made one herself!"
She ignored me and went ahead to sit on one of the leather chairs, adjusting comfortably to it as if nothing had happened.
"She does." She turned to me, staring into my eyes. "She does."
"Isn't the contract marriage not enough? You're starting to make me hate an entire life out of this girl. The way you always drag her into everything is starting to make me sick… do you even know that Kristen is back?!" I breathed out in anger.
For a minute, I thought I had her calm but of course, she was my mother.
"That's the more reason why you need to act fast. I've spoken with her and she'll be coming here in thirty minutes." She smiled.
"I just hope you'll get off my nerve when the contract is signed."
"It won't just be a contract, Salvatore. You'll see. She's such a sweet girl."
"Not even Kristen stood a chance but since I love the sound of the new challenge, we'll see about that," I told her before heading out.
I left her in my office and went to round up the meeting with my executives. On returning, she was looking very different from how I left her… She was pale.
"What's wrong?" I asked in concern.
"What is this?" She sounded as though she had been in tears before handing me her phone.
Jacob! I made sure that there were no cameras around in the room so how did the clip of last night get out?
"Do you know him?" I asked in the pretense of not knowing what she was talking about.
"Doesn't he look familiar to you?" She stood from her seat and took her phone just to zoom in on the photos
"It's blurred, mum. Just forget it." I sighed in an attempt to divert her attention from it.
"Look, Salvatore. Take a look." She scrolled up, revealing Kristen's reply to the photo. 'Salvatore, you're a cheat!' It read making me wonder how she even got them in the first place.
"They ain't real, mum. This is all Kristen's doing and no one else. Have you heard from this girl you always talked about?" I asked, finally getting her to let the topic about the clip go.
"Ohh, that reminds me. I'll give her a call now." She quickly took her phone from my hands.
Only heaven knew who this would be that'd even make her let such an issue die off easily.
"She's not picking up." She complained. "This is unlike her… maybe something is wrong." She ranted.
"What? She couldn't make it or what?" I asked not so surprised.
"It's not like she said so but Ivy is never someone to miss an appointment or show up late." She spoke with so much confidence.
"Ivy?" I repeated in the realization that I never knew what her name was. She was just so fond of calling her daughter that I never bothered to ask for her name.
"That's her name."
"Since you're so confident in her morals, how about we wait a little longer for her to show up? It'll be an advantage to me since it'll serve as some kind of test and you can also tell me more about her in the process too." I shrugged playing with the customized pen between my fingers.
"Sounds interesting." She placed both hands on the table, gesturing for me to take a sit in front of her.
"Do you want something or –"
"We'll have something together when she gets here." She interrupted me.
I took a deep breath in defeat and sat before her.
"How did you even meet this girl?" I asked with a different form of curiosity this time.
"She visited the same orphanage that I did that day," she began tapping her well-polished nails continuously on the wooden desk in between us, "She had this aura that was so irresistible. I watched her closely throughout my stay there. She seemed to notice my awkward stares, so she came to greet me. We talked for a little while only for the heart attack to start. To cut the long story short, she saw to it that I saw a doctor and she stayed until I was discharged, even though it wasn't so easy for her. I watched her ditch every appointment she had at that time to save me."
I sat there dumbfounded but not because of what she said, rather because of the message I got from Jacob.
'Transfer the sum in forty-eight hours or you can forget about your sweet reputation, Mr Salvatore Astor.' Jacob's text read
- Writer
