Stepping out of the shower, I strode towards the mirror, and slowly wiped the fog off to see my reflection. I admit, seeing myself with my natural blonde hair, made me realize how much I missed it. It felt good having it back. I felt like I was myself again. I had been hiding behind Alexandra Kensington for a while now, and I felt like I was starting to lose who I was.
The reason why I decided to have my blonde hair back was that, I was planning to reveal myself to Amelia. She already knew who I was, yet she hadn't told Cliff about my identity, because if she did, her husband had already buried me six feet under. If she really cared about me, then I had to take advantage of it, but if she didn't, then two could play the game.
As I adjusted the white silk robe I was wearing, I suddenly heard faint knocks on the door in the living room. Sighing, I went out of the bathroom, and walked through the living room, heading to the door. Expecting Becca, I calmly looked through the peephole only to see the woman I had been trying to avoid for days. This was her third time coming here just this week, and I admit, her persistence was admiring, but same as the other days, coming here would be for naught as I had no plan of seeing her.
The knocking had turned into pounding as she kept calling my name without answer.
"Come on Alex, I know you're in there, open the door!" she demanded, making me close my eyes in annoyance. "Alex, please! I need to talk to you." Hearing her sounding desperate and miserable caused my resolved to slowly disintegrate. She let out a disheartened sigh, "Alex, talk to me...and I promise, I'll leave you alone for good..." she added weakly, and with a disappointed sigh, I unlocked the door, and swung it open. As soon as I came into full view, her mouth slowly hung opened as she carefully took in my appearance.
"Okay, let's talk Lauren," I started.
"Alex, your...hair, and you're...in a robe," she said, mumbling the last statement awkwardly as her gaze quickly averted from my chest, making me frown at her reaction.
"Um, come in, and we'll talk after I changed," I said, stepping aside to let her in, and adjusted my robe to fully cover my chest. She reluctantly walked in, heading towards the sofa, and slowly sat down. Giving her a faint nod, I headed to my bedroom to put on some clothes. I hated to say it, but seeing her now in my living room, made me realize how I missed her. I had been caught up in avoiding her for days, that I had forgotten how comforting her presence was.
Opening my closet, I slipped on a white tee and a black shorts, and blow-dried my hair quickly then after. As soon as I was done, I combed my hair with just my fingers, before going out of the room, and walked to where Lauren was sitting.
I took a seat on the single sofa, and looked at her sternly, "So, what are we gonna talk about?" I asked, not wanting to beat around the bush, but she didn't answer eventually, instead she just stared at me, frowning. "Is there...something on my face?" I queried confusedly.
"Did you...dye your hair Alex?"
I shook my head, "No. I'm naturally a blonde," I admitted.
She slowly nodded, "Oh, well...you look...great..."
I gulped the lump on my throat, and nodded faintly, "Thanks. So...what do we need to talk about?" I asked, trying to shift her attention from me. I still wasn't used to hearing compliments from her as it would eventually make me uncomfortable.
Hearing my question, her soft expression had immediately turned serious as she opened her bag, and took something inside. I watched her curiously, until she held some pictures, and laid them on the center table. With a raised brow, I took a picture where Ethan was posing for the camera while his three bodyguards were behind him, and carefully examined it, eventually seeing his familiar face as one of the three guards. I looked at the other photos as well, and spotted the same person, with Ethan.
"What am I looking at?" I asked, feigning ignorance.
"Notice that guy?" she questioned, pointing to the familiar face I knew on the picture I was holding.
"Yeah?"
"That is Eric Knowles..." As soon as the name escaped her mouth, I glanced at her, suddenly curious as to how she found out about Eric.
"Who?"
"He was Knowles' son. He used to work for Ethan, but he suddenly disappeared without a trace--"
"Wait...How did you get all of these?" I probed.
She sighed, "I remember that night Knowles saying Ethan had killed his son, and I wondered what if...Ethan knew this Eric guy. So, with the help of Tina, I searched for every personnel that had worked for Ethan...and found this guy..."
I suddenly threw the picture I was holding to the table, and glared at her, realizing what she did, "What are you doing Lauren? I told you not to do this--"
"What? Snoop around?" she retorted, "Alex...all I want is for you to tell me something, just a little bit of what's going on...Don't keep me in the dark Alex, because I know that there is something going on here, and I wanna know what it is."
"Why don't you mind your own business Lauren? What's going on is none of your concern...You better stay out of it, before you get hurt."
She shook her head, "No, Alex. I know what's going on between you and Knowles, does concern me. So, either you tell me something, or I'll continue my investigation, and trust me...I always find something," she said, glaring back at me. Just looking at how determined she was right now was really frustrating, knowing there was no convincing her to back down.
I hated to admit it, but she was right. Either I gave her something, or let her investigate on her own, and right now...giving her something was more ideal than letting her snoop around, which was more dangerous.
"Fine. You wanna know something?...Then I'll show you something," I said, before standing up, and walked towards my bedroom, seething in anger. What I was about to do right now would be a huge risk to everything, but it wasn't like I had that much choice. Showing her would give me a slim chance to convince her to stop her madness.
Grabbing my phone on the bedside table, I eventually stepped out of the room, and headed to the living room. I took a seat on the same sofa, and looked at her anxiously.
"Why are you looking at me like that Alex?"
"I'm gonna show you something...horrible Lauren, and promise me, you'll do as I say after this."
"W-What is it?" she asked apprehensively.
"Just promise me Lauren, please...for your safety," I pleaded, and thankfully, she slowly nodded.
"Okay Alex, I promise," she replied, and letting out a huge breath, I unlocked my phone and looked for the video of Ethan killing Eric. As soon as I found it, I reluctantly handed it to her, and slumped my back to the backrest of the sofa, and then gazed on the carpeted floor.
"Oh my God," I heard her mumbled, but I didn't look at her as I knew how she would react. After a moment, she gasped the same time I heard the faint sound of the gunshot. "Ethan...h-he shot him..." she stammered, and looking up, she immediately let go of my phone as it clunked on the center table.
"Now you know why I didn't want you to get involved," I said, noticing her slightly trembling hands.
"Knowles was telling the truth. Ethan killed his son," she confirmed, making me nod, "I can't believe it," she added, averting her gaze, "I was engaged to a murderer...I was about to marry a killer Alex," she mumbled shakily, a tear had eventually rolled down to her cheek.
"Lauren," I called as I touched her arm, bringing her attention back to me, "You didn't know the kind of person he is..."
"You knew...long before that night Knowles had stabbed you, didn't you?" she asked, wiping the tear off her cheek.
I nodded, "Yes, but I only figured out that Eric was Knowles' son, when Knowles mentioned his name that night...That's the reason why I wanted him to escape."
"And now, you're planning something with him...Are you planning to help him avenge his son's death Alex?" she asked, making me purse my lips, feeling reluctant to tell her the truth.
After a moment, I took a deep breath and looked at her seriously, "I have given you something Lauren, now I need you to promise me something...Promise me that you'll stop what you're doing, and don't tell anyone about the video...at least not yet."
She frowned, "But...shouldn't we report this to the police?...Ethan murdered a man, Alex. He should be put behind bars."
"Aren't you curious why Ethan killed Eric?" I asked quietly.
"It doesn't matter to me, he just killed a man Alex!"
"What if Eric was a criminal?"
"Why? Did he do something horrible that's worth killing him?" she questioned exasperatedly, and I didn't answer her right away, thinking she was right. Even if Eric did commit a crime, he didn't deserve to die like that, when he just stole some money to help Knowles.
"Ethan is a powerful man Lauren...the Coldwells are...Do you think he couldn't get away if we handed this evidence to the authorities?" I said, causing her determined expression to falter.
She sighed, "Did Knowles see the video?"
I nodded, "Yes."
"You two are planning something..." she mumbled, "Are you two going to do something illegal?...And why would you help him in the first place, Alex? Did Ethan do something to you too? Or the other Coldwells?"
"Lauren, stop asking me questions! I already gave you something, all you have to do now, is to do what I told you, just as you promised."
"No, I...I don't think I can," she said slowly.
"You promised, Lauren," I mumbled frustratingly, and shook my head in defeat, "I just don't want you to get hurt okay?..."
She looked at me with a soft expression. "Why?"
"Because...I care about you, okay?...Is that enough?" I admitted, but she didn't answer, and just stared at me for a while, before standing up, and suddenly hovered in front of me. She slowly leaned down, and I instinctively leaned back, until my back hit the backrest. Staring back at her two beautiful blue orbs, my heart had started pounding against my chest as I saw something flashed in her eyes.
"Laur--" Before I could finish uttering her name, she suddenly closed the gap between us, capturing my lips with hers, causing my mind to instantly go haywire. I was confused and shocked at the same time that I didn't know how to react to the kiss, it totally caught me off guard, I couldn't move. I couldn't believe she was doing this right now, my former boss, the woman I had been trying to avoid. But at the second her lips moved slowly, the shock and confusion I was feeling instantly vanished, suddenly realizing how good her lips felt against mine. I then started responding to her kiss as she brought her hands up, and cupped my cheeks. She then slowly hovered above me, her hair was now hanging to each side as we deepened the kiss.
But it didn't last long when my phone suddenly started ringing, causing us to eventually broke apart. She eventually fixed her hair, while I straightened my clothes, unable to look at her.
"Um, I should probably get that," I said, and she nodded without looking at me. Picking up my phone, I looked at the caller ID, and saw Mike's number on the screen, but I decided not to answer it, and instead, I turned to Lauren, who I just realized was standing a bit close to me. Noticing our close proximity, she immediately bent down, grabbing her bag, and walked around the sofa, putting a safe distance between us.
"I should probably get going," she briskly said, glancing at me.
"Yeah, um, the pictures..."
"You can keep them, um...yeah, that's it...I have to go Alex," she said hastily, and without waiting for my response, she eventually turned her back on me, and strode towards the door. Opening it, she slipped herself out without looking back, closing the door behind her, leaving me at a loss for words.
What just happened?
Pensively touching my lower lip, my mind replayed the kiss we shared moments ago, wondering why she unexpectedly initiated it. Was it just a spur of the moment? Or did she really mean it, kissing me? God, I already had a lot of things to think about, and what just happened had added to the burden. And what frustrated me the most was that, I couldn't help myself but to ponder over it.
Forcing myself to forget what happened, I eventually remembered the call from Mike earlier, and without a moment to waste, I unlocked my phone, and called him back.
After two rings, Mike had finally answered the call.
"Boss, are we still on tonight?" he instantly asked.
"Yes, Mike."
"Nice," he mumbled eagerly, "Oh, by the way, about Knowles..." he trailed off, making me frown.
"What about him?"
"He's itching to see the young Coldwell, keeps on pestering me."
"Tell him to be patient. He will get to see Ethan...soon."
"Okay, boss, I'll tell him that," he answered, and I ended the call. I then turned to the center table, and picked up the same picture I held earlier, plastering a sadistic smirk while eyeing his feature.
"Soon Ethan...soon..."
*
Looking at my reflection on the elevator's mirror, I slowly tugged my tight dress lower to show a bit of my cleavage, and fixed my hair. As soon as I was done, I waited for the lift to reach to the floor where Ethan's office was at. Smiling inwardly, I forced to contain my excitement, thinking about how he would react on what he was about to see, as tonight would be the night he would know how careless he was committing the crime.
As the door slid open, I eventually stepped out, and instantly saw his secretary who just looked up from her phone. As if remembering who I was, she eventually glared at me, and stood up, rounding her desk to meet me halfway.
"Look who just showed up. I almost didn't recognize you," she said, flickering her gaze to my hair.
"Yeah?...You know, I almost didn't recognize you too...You've gotten older," I said, smiling, causing her to scowl.
"What are you doing here?" she asked spitefully.
"Obviously, I'm not here to see you. Is Ethan inside?"
"He's busy..."
"Well, that didn't stop me before," I said, before walking past her heading to Ethan's office.
"Hey!" she called, following me as I heard the clacking of her heels behind, but I didn't stop until I reached the door to Ethan's office, and eventually opened it. I calmly slipped inside, causing Ethan to look up from the documents he was reading, plastering a surprised expression.
"I tried to stop her Ethan," his sex doll spoke behind me, making me roll my eyes at the familiarity of the situation.
So, now they're on a first-name basis.
"It's fine Alice, you may leave now."
"Okay, I'll be right outside," she said, and momentarily felt her intense gaze at the back of my head, before hearing the ticktock of her heels as she headed towards the door.
After hearing the door closed, I then turned towards Ethan who just stood up, and rounded his table, tugging his tie as he loosened its hold around his neck. He sat at the edge of his table with his hands on his pants' pocket, and looked at me seriously.
"You dyed your hair," he spoke, after a moment of staring.
"No," I simply answered, and he just gave me a nod.
"What are you doing here Alex?"
I took a deep breath, "I just want to apologize..."
"For what?"
"For defending Lauren that night of your engagement party...I knew what she did was wrong, but I didn't have much of a choice. She was my boss, and I was...afraid of getting fired that time if I didn't do something," I lied, forcing a distraught expression, "I didn't get to apologize when I came to your parents' house, so now I'm doing it...I'm sorry Ethan," I added, feeling my eyes gleamed with fake tears.
After carefully staring at me for a moment, he then strode towards me, and unexpectedly engulfed me in a hug, catching me by surprise.
"I miss you...and I forgive you Alex," he whispered, and I frowned in confusion, trying not to flinch at what he said. He then pulled away, and looked at me, curling his lips into a smile, "You look great," he added, tucking a strand of my hair behind my ear.
If I wasn't pretending right now, I would have already slapped him.
"Um, thanks Ethan..."
"So...have you convinced Lauren?" he suddenly asked, eventually reminding me about that time I had lunch with them. After carefully considering my options, I agreed to help them convince Lauren, not that I was actually gonna do it, I just had to make them believe I was on their side.
I shook my head, "She's difficult to persuade Ethan. I thought she would easily give in since we're friends, but..."
He clicked his tongue, "Why am I not surprised? Of course she wouldn't just say yes, after going through all that trouble to humiliate me...I wonder if we're going easy on her--"
"Don't say that Ethan..." I immediately interrupted him, knowing where the conversation would go, "I'll convince her...I know I can convince her, just give me a bit of time--"
"Which I can't afford Alex...If we couldn't persuade her, then we're doing the wrong approach here."
"What do you mean?" I questioned, although I already knew what he meant by it, but before he could say something, the door suddenly flew open, and came in Alice.
"A small package has been delivered for you Ethan," she said as she strode in our direction, stopping next to me. She handed the small paper to Ethan, before throwing a deadly glare on my way.
"There's no sender...Who sent this?" Ethan asked as he examined the paper.
"I don't know. That postman, Mike, said there's really no return address or whatsoever."
"That's weird. Okay Alice, you can leave us," he calmly dismissed her, and unexpectedly she obeyed without saying something as she silently strode to the door, and made her way out. Ethan, on the other hand, had tore the package, and shoved his hand inside, taking out a flash drive.
Eyeing the small thing, he eventually frowned, before turning his back on me, and walked to his desk.
"What do you think the content is?" I asked.
He shook his head, "I have no idea," he answered as he inserted the drive to his laptop, "Don't you want to see?"
"No, it's okay, I don't want to pry." As he pressed something on the keyboard, he propped his elbows on the table, and clasped his hands, resting his chin on them, as he focused on the screen. It didn't take long before his demeanor had changed, and the calm expression he had eventually turned to a complete shock.
"Is something wrong Ethan?" I asked curiously as he shifted uncomfortably on his seat.
"I-I need to see...where is the guy?" he stammered, and immediately closed his laptop, before he hastily stood up, and frantically headed to the door.
"Ethan, what's wrong?" I asked in panic.
"I need to see the guy who delivered the package," he briskly answered, before swinging the door open, and went out.
"Ethan!" I called, and stopped as I watched the door closed behind him. Hearing his faint shouts outside the office, I slowly composed myself, and smiled, feeling triumphant as I witnessed his reaction. I couldn't imagine what he was feeling right now, after seeing the murder video he starred in. But it was entertaining though, to watch him lost his composure, I would have wished for a popcorn if I had known he would react that way.
Poor Ethan...