Chapter 3 3

Alexander stood there, frozen in place.

A little voice in the back of his head was telling him to step into that room, to interrupt them, to drag Ava away from the other man, yell at them, and cause a scene to disgrace them both.

But no he would not do that.

He is Alexander Westwood.

He is always in control.

He has never lost his face in front of others.

He is not about to start that now. Not here.

Never.

But this was the woman he was to marry in just a few months, someone who had already started to plan the big day, someone who had started to select dresses, one for the ceremony and one for the reception, maybe a third for the party, who had gone with her friends to test cakes in one of the best bakeries in town.

Who had chosen the largest venue for the large number of guests that were getting their invitations in the next few months?

They already knew that nobody would miss the event of the year, and Ava had mentioned that she was planning to make it the wedding of the decade, causing his father to raise a brow at her but not comment on whatever she planned in her excitement after Alexander had proposed.

This was the woman that slept next to him in bed every night.

Was this the first time?

Had she done this before? Was Charles the only one or were there other men?

He felt disgusted, felt humiliated.

Thoughts were rushing through his head, while he was standing there, paralyzed and silent, not even breathing, while he watched with wide eyes his wife to be having sex with the son, the married and mated son, of his family friends.

Bile rose in his throat the moment he closed the door and turned around, leaning against the door for seconds, collecting his senses and thoughts.

He could not afford to lose control, he could not allow his emotions to get the better of him over his rational mind.

He did not know how long he had been standing there when he pushed himself from the door and grabbed a drink from a waiter that was just passing him, something too sweet and too tangy, but he downed the drink anyway.

Leaving the banquet room, he turned without hesitation to the front desk, where a young woman was doing her job, typing something on a computer, but looked up the moment Xander got to her.

"Good evening, Sir, how can I help you?"

"I need a taxi, as soon as possible," he said.

She nodded.

"Can you give me your name? I will call a taxi, but it will take a while tonight," she explained.

"We have been informed that the waiting time will be at least half an hour tonight."

Alexander sighed and considered for a moment calling his driver, but the man was surely long at home with his mate now and no matter how much he wanted to get away from here, he could not bring himself to be selfish enough to interrupt his employee's well-deserved evening with his family.

"Alexander Westwood," he replied, before turning away.

"I'll wait at the bar."

Finding his way to the bar, Xander sat down in one of the green chairs in front of the bar a moment later, and ordered a beer from the bartender, who offered him a welcoming smile.

"Not your best night?" The bartender asked, trained to make small talk to guests, and usually, he would have ignored this attempt, but today, he gave the other man a nod.

"The worst," he whispered, and took another large gulp of the cold beer that he had been served.

"Business is a mess, family is a mess, and then...yeah...not the best day."

"That sucks," the bartender replied.

"You know, it may sound really cheesy, but after clouds, there's always sunshine."

Xander looked up and raised a brow.

"Or a thunderstorm," he said before he emptied the large beer glass at surprising speed, ordering a second.

"Are you sure you should be drinking this much?"

"Are you sure you want a tip?"

The bartender took a deep breath while serving another pint that Xander paid in cash for and emptied in minutes, his thoughts still circling around the things he had witnessed.

It felt like a lifetime ago, and not just minutes, and the thought that Ava and Charles were maybe still together, doing...that... it made his heart beat painfully in his chest and almost brought tears to his eyes.

But no, weakness was nothing that he ever allowed himself to feel, and he would get through this, he would not let this change a thing about what his life was supposed to be like.

But nothing he had taken for granted just an hour ago was making sense anymore. Instead of plans for a future, there was now nothing but pain. Pain, he was not able to shut out.

Putting the empty glass down with a sigh, he raised his chair and looked shortly around, and found the sign leading to the restroom finally, where he went to empty his bladder in a stall.

After finishing his business there, he went to wash his hands, humming a melody that suddenly was on his mind, thinking about some of the things that he had tried to forget, but then noticed a presence behind him.

He looked up and then froze when he saw another person in the reflection of the mirror.

He frowned a little, not able immediately to place the face he was seeing there, but then he recognized one of the waiters from the party, the one that had offered him the champagne, and later bumped into him.

She was leaning behind him, almost casually, against one of the doors of the stalls, one brow raised.

"Hey," she said, her voice melodic and softer than he expected.

"Tough day?" Alexander nodded.

"You have no idea."

Alexander stared at her reflection again, feeling robbed of his ability to breathe, and gave a nod.

She was pretty, with her honey-colored hair and somewhat pale eyes.

Truly breathtaking.