The Tyrant's Wife

Chapter 209 - Are You Still Pining For That Asshole?

"Are you still moping and pining for that asshole?" Zaria asked as soon as she returned to her room.

Ximena sat up with a smile. "I thought you wouldn't come back. Didn't Desmond go to the banquet?"

"He did, but I couldn't leave you alone." She kicked off her heels.

"You didn't have to worry about me. I'm alright. You should have more fun." Ximena urged.

Zaria turned to glare at her. "You are not going to change the subject..

Ximena let out a sigh. "There is hardly anything for me to pine. How long have we known each other?"

She shrugged off her feelings. She knew it was insane to even think of having feelings for Liam at this stage. They were not trying to advance their relationship into anything. It was just a dying momentary spark.

" I believe in love at first sight, actually." Zaria sighed.

Ximena refrained from telling her that she didn't fall in love with Desmond at first sight. She realized immediately after thinking it that it had zero similarities to her situation. "What about that female companion anyway?"

Zaria raised an eyebrow when she realized what her friend was asking. "How do you even know that it's a female?"

Ximena rolled her eyes. "It's obvious. If a man asked another man to ditch his date and be his companion to a banquet, he will be told to fuck off."

"Yeah, that's true." She giggled. "It was his grandmother."

"Holy crap!" Ximena's lips formed a smile. "You met his grandmother? What is she like? Wait. If she made Desmond leave you to your mom and accompany her instead, what does that say about her? Is she one of those?"

Zaria burst out laughing. Ximena was talking about aristocratic women who couldn't wait to force their sons and grandsons to leave their girlfriends and offering money would always be at the tip of their tongues.

"No. Isabella is kind." She smiled just thinking about it. She was nothing like what one would imagine of the matriarch of the Fort family.

"That saves me from having to disrespect an elderly woman by kicking her butt." Ximena laughed.

"Would you like something to drink?" Zaria suggested through her laugh, and didn't wait for her friend's response before she dashed to the cellar downstairs and returned with tequila, like and shot glasses.

"You are going for the kill!" Ximena jumped to her feet and helped her carry the tray.

Zaria's phone buzzed. She made sure Ximena had caught a grip on the tray and dashed to the couch where she had flung her clutch. She opened it and took her phone out. Crap. She had forgotten to tell Desmond that she was home.

"Are you home?" He asked when she answered the call.

"Yes. I forgot to tell you. Are you home?"

"I just arrived." He replied after a heartbeat. Her instinct told her he was not home but she decided to give him the benefit of the doubt. Maybe he had something else to do but didn't want her to worry so he lied about being home.

"What are you doing?" He asked.

"I was just about to drink with Xim. Wanna join us?" She joked.

"Don't drink too much." He warned and she scoffed.

"I'm not driving. I'll get going. See you soon, I love you." She blew a kiss into the phone.

"I love you too."

She glanced at the screen of her phone when the call ended. Something felt off. What was it?

____

"Are you asking for my life? No. The right question should be, why are you trying to kill me?" Skeleton whined.

They were at Desmond's mansion. The latter had called him out of the blue and summoned him over without an explanation.

"Aren't you going to give me something to drink, at least? I came all the way here for you." He complained.

Desmond ignored his whiny antics. He paced the living room and came to an abrupt stop. "Nathaniel Su is following me." He let out a breath and resumed pacing.

Skeleton looked at him with a frown. "Why would he?"

Desmond glared at him. "I don't know. If I had a f*cking clue, why the hell would I call you?"

"Okay." Skeleton disappeared into the kitchen without a word and returned a while later with a cup of coffee, making himself at home.

"Let me get this straight. How long has he been following you?" He asked as he settled onto a couch, as far from the pacing Desmond as possible.

"This should be the first time. I didn't notice him before." He ran a hand through his hair. "But I'm not certain whether it is me that he is following. My mother was there at the banquet. So was Lucy and Zaria."

Skeleton didn't know whether or not to be relieved. "Lucy is his daughter. There's nothing to worry about if he is stalking her."

"There is. Because Zaria is Lucy and Theodore's daughter and he has targeted Theodore before. Zaria is not safe."

Skeleton assessed the facts and shrugged when he couldn't exactly comprehend it. "I'll find out what he is planning. Have you warned her about it?" He found the answer without waiting for Desmond to open his mouth. He wouldn't want his girlfriend to be worried.

"Fate is crazy, isn't it?" He chuckled. When Desmond looked over, he took a sip of his coffee. Thirty million people in Olphire and you just happened to fall in love with Nathaniel Su's granddaughter, whose mother was a close friend of your dad's but it was a disguise so she would dole out vengeance on him. I mean, what are the odds?"

Desmond's shoulders slumped.

It did sound fishy. If he didn't meet Zaria under different circumstances, he would have suspected her of having an ulterior motive.

_____

AN

Hello darlings, I'm sorry for not updating for a while. I had taken a much needed rest but I'm back now. Thanks for your patience!