Lianne
“I really need a nap.” I muttered to myself, climbing into my car.
I'd just finished a photoshoot and boy was I exhausted. Modeling might look like putting on pretty clothes and striking a pose but it was much more tiring than that.
Standing in mainly high heels for six hours with just one break really takes a toll on a girl. All I wanted was to get food, go home, eat, take a bubble bath and fall asleep. Hopefully I don't crash on the way first.
I stopped at a restaurant to get a my dinner before I continued the drive home. As I pulled out of the parking lot and onto the road, I couldn't help but notice a black car tailing me.
I wasn't exactly sure it was, the person inside could just be going my way. It was reasonable enough so I kept going without any fear.
I seemed to be right as the car took a turn onto another street but soon enough, it was right behind me again. The fatigue I previously felt flew out the window the moment I concluded on the fact that I was being followed and the person probably didn't have good intentions.
The turn to my house was coming up but I went the other way. It was intentional. In the event that the individual in that car was ready to kill me, it wouldn't be wise to drive straight to my house or stop anywhere that wasn't crowded.
I glanced through my rear view mirror in an attempt to see the person inside but it was futile. The windshield was tinted and most likely the other windows would be too.
I kept the car steady, going through the most crowded of places, being stalked all the way. I ended up at a shopping center as my car was running out of gas.
There were a lot of people, aka witnesses, present. I took advantage of the safety in numbers term and even called a friend over to shop.
Frida and I met at a photoshoot. She has her own photography business and was one of the shooters. We bonded after bitching on some of the male models who thought they were everything.
We had a lot in common and soon enough, she, Rhetta and I became very close. She was the more outgoing one, who didn't hesitate to walk up to a guy to flirt or play matchmaker with me.
I did appreciate her efforts but some of the guys she's sent my way were absolute shit or just not my type.
I waited for her in my car, where I ate my food. I stopped eating at the sound of tapping on my window which was just her trying to get my attention.
I had to pack my wonderful meal up and get out of the car. Glancing around as I wiped my lips, I checked for the black car and sure enough it was parked just a few meters away. It was the classic minivan used in movies with, no doubt, the classic hitman inside. I planned to stay in the shopping center as long as it took for it to leave, even if it meant till nightfall.
“Damn girl, if I didn't know you personally, I wouldn't guess you were a model with the way you eat.” Frida commented once she was sure I could hear her. “You have to tell me how the hell you stay so slim.”
Now she wasn't plus size but she was definitely curvier than I was but I towered over her with a good seven inches as I was five foot seven and she was exactly five.
She had dark hair, skin and eyes and a wonderful taste in clothes. Just like me, she wasn't married. She was engaged, however, and her past boyfriends were a lot more decent than mine.
“Good genes, my friend, good genes.” Was all I said, patting her on the back.
She sighed out a laugh and locked our arms together, letting me lead her into the first store. It was fun hanging out with my friend, we went about doing one of our favorite things, shopping, and talked about her wedding plans.
“Keaton and I finally decided where to go for our honeymoon. There was a lot of debate but we're going to Australia.” She beamed.
“Hm, home of everything dangerous and/or deadly.” I joked, sticking a piece of popcorn in my mouth as we walked.
“That's why I'm going there, I need to be with my people.” She retorted with a hair flick.
“I thought he wanted to go to Rome and you two were arguing over it. What changed?”
She shrugged. “He came to his senses and gave me what I want.”
“Really?” It was a surprise because the Keaton I knew was just as stubborn as his fiancée.
“Yeah. Well, I would've done the same if the argument went on much longer, I didn't want us to have a row over such a small matter. Plus, it's not really the destination that matters, it's us, there would be no honeymoon without us. But I'm still pretty glad he came around.”
My heart dropped a little hearing her statements. It wasn't like I wasn't happy for her, I was, Frida deserved all the love her soon-to-be husband gave her and more. In fact, I slightly envied her.
I wanted a man who would put aside his desires for mine, who'd be with me not because there was something other than my companionship to be gained, respect my wishes and most of all, be faithful. So many have promised me this and one by one, those promises were broken.
I felt hopeless. Why couldn't I find a guy like Callum, Rhetta's husband, who'd try any food she suggests no matter how strange? Why didn't I have a Keaton who cancelled a business trip all because his fiancée called him in tears looking for some comfort?
It wasn't fair.
Then again, I had plenty going on in my life at the moment; my career, recent breakup, not to mention helping Dad save his company by getting Oliver to partner with him. I needed to concentrate on the last one a bit more.
Conclusively, I don't think I'd have the time to start a new relationship or the emotional strength so I was going to stay single for a while and hope I found my own dream man after. It wasn't the worst idea.
“I can't wait to go.” She continued. “We could go scuba diving...”
“And get killed by something in the water.” I added jovially.
“...and have fun on beaches..”
“Only to be killed by something on land.”
“...or maybe take a walk through the rainforest.”
“Enjoy getting bit by a snake and/or spider.”
She pursed her lips and narrowed her eyes at me. “Okay Debbie stop being such a downer, we're going to have fun and don't mention any of those things to Keaton.”
I laughed not really saying a yes or no. We went on for a little while longer before she brought up the wedding again, specifically who I was bringing.
“Come on Lianne! You need to bring a date, you don't want to look like a loner.” She argued when I said I didn't have to have one.
“I won't look like a loner. Plus I'll be too busy being your maid of honor.” I reasoned.
“I could set you up with someone.” She suggested and before I could even think about refusing, she was already rambling. “I have the perfect guy for you, he's single and really good looking. In fact, if I wasn't completely in love with Keaton, I'd be all over him.”
I tuned her out while she kept talking about how I'd be a perfect fit for him. She asked me a couple of questions to which I just gave generic answers like 'yeah', 'sure', 'awesome'. My attention was solely on the racks of clothes in front of us as I pulled some out to try on.
She left for a few minutes and I welcomed the silence. I love her but she can be quite annoying especially when she gets an idea in her head.
“So it's settled then, the both of you will go on a date next Saturday.” She stated on her return.
In my surprise, my voice raised when I asked for what she meant. It was embarrassing and we had to duck into a corner for a while.
“When did you plan this date?” I said the word with annoyance.
“Just now, you seemed completely into it.” She answered. “Even when I asked if hawaiian food was okay you said 'awesome'.”
“I wasn't listening!” I admitted.
“Well, how was I supposed to know?” She shrugged unapologetically. “This is just a lesson, next time listen to your friends.”
I narrowed my eyes at her. “I am not going on that date, cancel.“
She shook her head. “Nope. Keaton already called the guy and he's excited to meet you. And it's not because of you're a Lianne Mathis, we didn't tell him.”
“You planned this before, didn't you?”
“Not gonna lie, I did, just needed you to agree and you did.”
“I did not agree.” I argued.
“He'll see you Saturday, 7pm sharp.”
I mumbled under my breath. “No he won't.”
*********
Saturday came and I did go to the hawaiian restaurant. It was a little way from my house and I took a taxi. I figured standing the guy up wouldn't be the best thing to do so I got into a nice red dress, did my makeup and dragged myself out of the house.
The place was bustling with people watching the performers dance. I felt a little out of place in a form fitting dress, black clutch and heels. Most of the patrons were families, friends or couples clearly not on a first date.
It was just a place to be comfortable and I was in a fucking dress, not the comfy kind either.
The night was already off to a bad start.
Not only was I uncomfortable, my supposed date was late, by a whole hour. I usually wasn't stickler for time but I actually kept to it today.
Frida said 7pm and I was there two minutes after. What was I to think of a guy that could be this late?
It was about nine thirty when he arrived completely calm like he hadn't kept me waiting for over an hour. I had already ordered, eaten and relaxed a bit watching the performers.
“Hi, I'm Kyle, sorry I'm late.” The blonde guy said, taking his seat.
“I'm the lady you kept waiting for over an hour.” I glowered.
He winced, offering an apologetic smile. “Sorry.”
I stared at him for a minute before looking back at the fire dancers on stage.
“So are you going to tell me your name?” His voice distracted me.
“Lianne.”
His eyebrows creased in a mix of surprise and distaste. “Oh.”
“And what does that mean?”
“Nothing, it's just not what I expected.”
“Oh, and what did you expect?”
“Something, I don't know…” He trailed off for a moment, tilting his head to the side as he thought. “can I say younger? Come one, your parents didn't find something better? Well, you don't exactly look the youngest too.”
It was at that moment, when he basically called me old, I decided to throw whatever semblance of niceness I had left and show this dude my bad side. “Oh really? I expected a good looking guy with manners but you don't hear me complaining.”
Truth was, he was easy on the eyes. If you rated his blond hair, light blue eyes and sharp jaw on a scale of one to ten, he'd be a solid seven. His attitude though, was a three.
His eyebrows furrowed in anger. “Excuse me?”
“And you are excused.” I sneered, getting off my seat. “Now, before this date gets any worse, I'm going to leave. Hope you enjoy sitting by yourself like I have.”
The cheering of the crowd drowned out the sound of my heels clicking on the floor as I stormed out of the restaurant. I couldn't believe his audacity. First he's late, gives no excuse to why, then insults me and my parents.
And he's supposed to be my date on Frida's wedding day?
Hell no.
“Not in this lifetime.” I muttered, walking along the sidewalk.
I really regretted not bringing my car because there were no taxis on the way and I'd be walking for two hours if I tried. It was cold even and hugging myself only helped for a few minutes.
I kept going a little while longer in hopes that I'd see one. It must've been thirty minutes when I couldn't ignore the pain in my feet from waking in heels and I sat on a bench.
There still weren't any taxis or nearby Ubers. I decided to call some friends for help. I tried Rhetta first, forgetting that it a was Saturday night, the time she and her husband deemed to be couple's night.
Her phone was off and I did not want to call Frida or my family so I just sat there till my legs were rested enough before continuing the journey.
It was miserable walking all alone in the night, not to mention scary too. I felt like someone was going to jump at me. I was angry, frustrated and tired, I had to hold on from bursting into tears a couple times.
My saving grace finally came when I heard a familiar voice call my name right after the sound of a car stopping.
“Oliver?” I called, recognizing the voice.
He stepped into the light of a street lamp, letting the light illuminate his concerned expression. A few meters separated us but I quickly closed the gap, wanting to take an opportunity to get a ride home.
“Are you okay? What are you doing out here so late?” He questioned worriedly while I took a few breaths to calm my heart.
“Thank God you're here.” I expressed with a sigh.
“Why are you here?” He spoke so tenderly, a shiver went down my spine.
Or maybe that was the cold, it was hard to tell.
“It's a long story. Can you please help me get h-home?” My lip quivered as I blinked back the tears of relief willing to spill.
“Of course.” He opened the car door. “Get in, I'll drive you.”
I slid into the seat of the Mercedes Benz, sighing at the warmth from the air conditioner.
“Want me to turn it up?” Oliver offered kindly and I nodded.
He did after getting into his own seat. “Okay, so where do I go?”
“I thought you were a good stalker, you should know.” I teased with a smirk.
He chortled. “Not as good as you. Plus, I'd prefer you tell me so when I pop in, you won't have reason to call the police.”
“Sure.” I dragged the word out playfully, expressing my disbelief.
The next forty-five minutes were filled with me directing him to my house and nearly falling asleep on multiple occasions. He tapped me each time but it worked less and less as the seconds went by.
“Want to tell me where you were coming from?” He asked in an effort to keep me awake.
I rubbed my eyes and hummed, not really interested in talking about the terrible date. “It's a whole thing really, very long boring story.”
“I'd like to hear this long boring story.” He persisted.
“I don't want to talk about it tonight please.”
“How about we meet up tomorrow, my grandmother's cafe, and you can tell me? My treat.”
I blew a breath from my nose. “Okay.”
Free croissants for me tomorrow. I celebrated in my head.
The car stopped in front of my house and before I could open the car door, Oliver had. The car was computerized and with a tap of the screen he controlled the doors.
He walked me to the doorstep, telling me a swift goodbye before I got in. I stood by the window and watched his car leave.
Thankfully, I had eaten at the restaurant before that prick came so I wasn't hungry. I just took a long, hot shower, got into my comfiest pj's and curled into bed.
Author's Note:
Hi everyone, surprised to see me update this book? This just means that my break is over and I am back to updating regularly.
As you might have noticed, I have changed the name and cover of this book. It's still the same, I just think Lianne's Revenge fit better. What do you think?
I was sort of going through a rough patch in my mental health before but I'm doing much better now. Plus I lost my phone, I've gotten a new one now though.
Thank you so much for being so patient and sticking by me, it truly means a lot.
Without further ado, the questions:
1. Did you miss me? I know you did, just admit it.
2. Did you like the chapter?
3. What do you think of the car that was following Lianne?
4. What do you think of the guy she was set up with? Is he a prick or did she just judge him too harshly?
5. Any ideas or questions of your own?
Follow me to stay up to date on any announcements I make on my message board. Thanks for reading and don't forget to vote and comment ❤️🌺❤️🌺❤️🌺. Next chapter at 30 votes.
-E