*Alex*
After I was finished with my dinner, my father and brother decided to pay me a visit. And to my surprise, my mother was with them. She never goes on business trips. She avoids them like the plague. Which leads me to believe she is up to something.
The entire time they were here, she never once spoke a word to me. However; she did glance at me a few times when she thought I wasn't looking. Well, guess what mom, I was.
It feels so weird staying in a hotel that your father doesn't own. My father has been trying to buy Tyler Resorts for years. And now that old man, Morgan Tyler is ready to retire, he hopes that he gets the first opportunity to buy it; which would be a great addition to our company.
You see, Morgan Tyler doesn't only own a hotel in New York. He owns them in all the best vacation destinations as well. The Bahamas, close to the Jersey shore, Hawaii, and so on. Hence the reason for his company's name, Tyler Resorts. This investment could bring in a fortune for us.
With a sigh, I slip on my jacket and head to the elevator. Everyone is supposed to meet in the lobby before heading to the dining area where the meeting will take place. Usually... meetings like this would be held in a conference room or office. But Mr. Tyler loves to eat while making business deals.
When I reached the lobby, my father, brother, and my mother were standing around, talking amongst each other. My mother doesn't seem too happy with the conversation they are having, but I shrug it off as nothing and plaster a smile on my face.
As I approach, my father is the first to notice me and smiles. "There you are. I thought I was going to have to send out a search party," he jokes.
I laugh, "Trust me if I were to go missing. It would be on purpose."
My mother snorts, earning herself a hard glare from my father. My father sighs and throws his arm over my shoulder and slowly begins walking towards the dining room. "Give her time," he whispers in my ear. "She'll come around one day."
I couldn't help but snort myself. He and I both know it would take a miracle for that to happen. But I'm willing to fight tooth and nail for Fallon. Right now isn't the time to dwell on my personal life and file it away for now.
He led us to a table located in the back of the room where Morgan Tyler and a few others were seated. Mr. Tyler smiles as he stands from his seat and straightens his suit. He extends his hand to my father, "It's good to see you old friend. How have you been?"
My father takes his hand in his and shakes it firmly, "I'm doing well, thank you. How have you been?"
Mr. Tyler chuckles, "As good as a dinosaur could get." He directs his eyes towards my mother. "And who might this beautiful woman be?"
My father laughs and places his hand on my mother's back. "This is my wife, Clare. Clare this is Morgan Tyler."
My mother smiles and extends her hand, and Mr. Tyler shakes it. "It's nice to finally meet you," she says kindly.
"And these are my boys," my father adds. "This is my oldest, Nicolas," he shakes my brother's hand. "And this is my youngest, Alexander."
I take his hand in mine and shake it kindly. He is an older gentleman, in his late 70s, I believe. His skin is wrinkled, making him look a lot older than he really is. And his white hair is slicked neatly to the side. If that's the way men his age style their hair, I hope I'm bald by then.
He introduced us to the rest of the table, his attorney, Monica, and his son, Skyler; which both seemed very welcoming. We all took our seats and took a moment to look over the menu. I ended up ordering mozzarella sticks. Since I have already eaten.
During the duration of the meeting, I tried my best to pay attention but was finding it very hard to focus. My mind kept wandering to Fallon and what she might be doing right now. She's probably sitting in her apartment binge-watching some shows she hasn't seen in a while. I smirk at the memory of her watching, The Walking Dead when we first talked on the phone.
"I will get back to you within a month," Mr. Tyler's voice pulls me from my thoughts. "I'll let you know my decision then."
"Sounds good," my father says.
We all stand and shake hands before they leave the room. "That went better than I expected," my father says, buttoning his jacket. "I think this calls for a celebration!?"
I pull my phone from my pocket and check my messages. A frown makes its way to my face when I don't see anything from Fallon.
"Why the long face," Nick says, nudging my shoulder with his.
I sigh and place my phone back in my pocket. "I haven't heard from her in a while, that's all."
"She knows you are busy. She probably didn't want to disturb you."
He has a point. Fallon is thoughtful like that. I nod and down the rest of my wine. A waitress comes around, fills up our glasses again, and slips her number under my glass. I roll my eyes and crinkle up the napkin, tossing it on my empty plate. I'm not trying to be rude, but I'm not interested.
My eyes land on my mother who has a wicked smirk plastered on her face. "What's the matter," she says. Her smile getting bigger. "I thought waitresses were your type."
"Clare," my father warns.
"What?" She says innocently. "I was just pointing out that she's a waitress too..." she trails off...
I clench my jaw, preventing myself from screaming at her. I'm growing tired of her childishness.
"Clare," my father intervenes. "Now is not the time to start your foolishness."
"Foolishness?" She chuckles darkly. "I'm not the one being foolish here. I'm simply trying to get it through his thick head that, that girl is no good for him."
I hate how she calls her girl. She has a name and she will learn to call her by it.
"And how would you know, Clare?" My father asks. His voice is cold and serious. "You never gave the girl a chance."
"I don't need to give her a chance," she grits. "I can smell her kind of a mile away."
"What exactly is her kind, mother?" This time it was Nick who spoke up. I'm shocked. He never back-talks her.
"I'm not doing this here," she says and stands from her seat. "Let's go, Travis."
My father downs the rest of his drink and stands. If I had to leave with her, I would drink the whole fucking bottle. "I'll see you boys at home," he tells us before escorting my mother out of the room.
"I can't believe her," I mutter more to myself and run my fingers through my hair, messing it up.
"I'm sorry," Nick says, placing his hand on my shoulder.
Shrugging his hand off, I stand and toss a hundred on the table. Normally I wouldn't leave that much, but I'm in no mood to wait for change and walk out of the room, leaving Nick alone.
When I made it back to my room, I wasted no time stripping off my clothes and climbing into bed. I knew there was a reason for her tagging along. Like I said before, she avoids business trips like the plague. She's trying to drive a wedge between, Fallon and me. But all she's doing is pushing me closer to her.
Fallon and I have only been together for a week. We are still in a very fragile state and are still trying to feel each other out. I have to keep my mother at bay for as long as I can. That way she doesn't scare her away.
I roll over on my back and place my hands behind my head. The sound of the rain hitting the window is calming. It's just what I need after the day I had.
I close my eyes and such in a deep breath. Fallon's face popped into my head and that's when I remembered that I was supposed to call her. I spring from my bed and grab my phone from my pants pocket and quickly call her. I sign in frustration when I get her voicemail.
"Hey, beautiful. I-I know it's late and that you're probably sleeping." I glance at the time, 1:30 am. She's definitely sleeping. "But I wanted to say goodnight and that I'll see you soon."
I hang up the phone and plug it in. I fling the covers back and climb back into bed. Once again, I close my eyes and listen to the sound of the rain. It doesn't take me long to fall asleep.
This is sort of a short chapter and I'm sorry. Hope you still enjoyed it. Don't forget to hit that star, comment, and share. And I'll see y'all in the next chapter.