Owned By My Ex-Fiancé’s Uncle

04: Strained Relationships

SERENE’S POV

"What the hell is happening here?" Aiden angrily asked me while still holding onto me, which prompted Aiden to quickly pull me away from his uncle.

"It was an acci—"

"No, it was my fault," I interjected quickly, cutting off what he was about to say. "I was looking for you because I suddenly needed to use the washroom. I was about to ask you, but I didn't expect the floor to be a bit wet, so I slipped. Thankfully, he caught me." Aiden's uncle looked at me in surprise, but I couldn't confront Aiden just yet. I didn't know why, but I was scared. I was scared of what I might discover.

I was away for two years, and I didn't expect to come back to this. If what I was thinking was true, was it my fault?

"Let's go, Sere—"

"Anyway, nice meeting you! I'm Stefan," he interrupted Aiden and smiled while looking at me, revealing his handsome features.

"I am Se—"

"My gosh! Are you Serene?" We all turned to the woman who had just spoken. "I had a feeling it was you. In fact, I've been looking at you for a while and wanted to come over." She greeted me with a smile and planted a kiss on my cheek. "I'm Stefanie Sanders, Stefan's mother."

"Will you please excuse us?" Aiden said, his tone clearly expressing his irritation.

"Wait, can I talk to Serene for a while?" Stefan's mom quickly interjected. "I've been waiting for you for a long time, and I had no idea you were back already. The last I heard, you were in Paris studying."

"Oh, it's because I still have a lot of things to take care of, so I haven't announced that I'm back yet. I hope you can understand," I said shyly.

"Can you please let us eat first?" Aiden rudely said, and I couldn't stand him doing that.

"Mom, let them be, okay?" Stefan quickly intervened with his mother.

"Thank you, Uncle," Aiden sarcastically said before he led me back to our table.

"What's your problem, Aiden? Why do you have to be so rude when talking to them?" I couldn't help but confront him when we were seated.

"Like I told you earlier, Serene, I want nothing to do with that family!" He still said angrily.

"You know, Aiden, it seems like the problem isn't with them but with you."

"What? You know nothing about what their family has done to us, especially to me," he suddenly raised his voice again.

"Don't shout at me when it's just the two of us here." I was losing my patience. "You need to be honest with me. Who were you talking to earlier, and why did you distance yourself?" I couldn't stop asking him due to my frustration, and that's when he turned pale.

I became even more confused when he quickly grabbed the glass in front of him and took a sip.

"As I said, that was my boss, and we were having a confidential conversation that no one else should hear," he said quickly while tapping the table twice with his fingers, which meant he was lying to me.

I knew him very well; we'd been in a relationship for years, and I knew he had a habit of tapping his fingers when he was lying.

"No one else? Are you still seeing me as someone else, Aiden, especially when we're about to get married?" I couldn't help but express my frustration to him.

"You know, Serene, you're being overly sensitive! Did I ever interfere with the decisions you make at your boutique? You never heard a word from me about it. Why, all of a sudden, do you want me to report everything to you now that you've returned from Paris?" He said with irritation and then stood up and walked away from me.

I wanted to cry, but I knew I couldn't press him further because I had no proof that he was talking to someone else earlier. We would only end up arguing more if I pushed it now. I didn't understand why, but in the end, I was the one who came off as the bad person here.

Before, whenever I felt like this, he would quickly notice and do everything to resolve the issue. That's why our relationship lasted so long. He used to be the sweetest guy I knew, but since I came back, he has changed so much. It's like he's not the same Aiden I knew before.

An hour passed, and I thought Aiden would come back for me, so I patiently waited at that table. I tried calling his cellphone, but it just gave me a busy tone, so I decided to stand up and approach his mom.

"Hello, Mom! Have you seen Aiden?" I greeted her politely.

"What? Weren't the two of you together?" She asked in surprise.

"I did notice Aiden leaving the venue a while ago. It's been about half an hour," one of his aunts replied.

"Alright, thank you! I'll check outside; maybe he just took a cigarette break." I said my goodbyes to them and walked out of the venue.

Once I was outside the venue, I immediately looked for his car, but it was nowhere to be found.

What? He left me at this event without even saying goodbye.

I tried to contact him again, but his phone was out of coverage.

I couldn't understand what was happening. Why did Aiden's attitude suddenly change when he used to stick by my side and not leave until we resolved our issues?

"Why are you walking alone here?" That gentle voice stopped me in my tracks. It was Stefan.

"Hey!" I greeted him. "I don't know how to address you because you're Aiden's uncle, but our ages don't seem that far apart," I said, feeling a bit awkward.

"If you and Aiden are the same age, I am ten years older than you," he laughed.

"Seriously?" I asked in disbelief, as Aiden had mentioned this before. "It's just that you don't look like you're 37." He chuckled at my comment.

"Well, maybe because, as a doctor, I need to stay physically fit. That's why, I think," he replied before looking around. "Why are you alone here? Where's Aiden?"

"Oh, well, there was a sudden emergency, so he had to leave in a hurry. I'm about to leave too, as there's nothing for me to do here," I said, because I didn't want to reveal that Aiden and I had a problem. We were here to announce and invite his relatives to our upcoming wedding, but it seemed like we wouldn't be able to do that now.

"Is that so? If you want, I can give you a ride. I'm leaving too."

"No, it's okay, I don't want to trouble you," I declined, and he was about to speak again when my cellphone, which I was still holding due to my repeated attempts to reach Aiden, suddenly rang. I quickly checked it out. "Wait, I'll just answer this call," I said before turning slightly away from him. "Hey, Kristine, what's up?"

"Yo, Serene!" she started, and from the tone of her voice, I could tell she was probably drinking again.

"If you called me to join you, sorry, I can't right now. You know I'm busy."

"No! I need you to come here! Aiden was there with another woman, and they were passionately kissing each other, bítch!" She yelled, and my ears rang from the expletive.

"Where are you?" I asked and quickly started looking for a taxi to take me there.

"Serene!" I heard Stefan call out to me, but I couldn't afford to look back.

"I'm here at Pub Paradise! Hurry, or you might miss them."

"Do you recognize the woman?" I couldn't help but ask, and honestly, my heart felt like it was about to explode. I was on the verge of a breakdown. I never expected that my earlier suspicions would suddenly have concrete grounds.

"No, I couldn't get close because she might escape. She's far from my spot, and her back is turned to me, but she looks familiar. She might have been a classmate of ours. I can't quite recall, and her face is somewhat obscured. But wait, I tried taking a picture, although it's a bit dark here, so it might not be very helpful. I'll do my best to get a better angle," she said before the call cut off.

My whole body was trembling, and I couldn't understand why. I really wanted to cry.