718
Bradford Mansion
Bradford Mansion
Is this really for me? Yet again, the voice inside my head asked. But even though the evidence pointed to it being meant for me, I wasn’t quite satisfied. With a deepening frown on my forehead, I stepped closer. My keen eyes narrowed in concentration as they skimmed the settings in the center of the spacious office, like a detective inspecting the scene of a crime.
Walking past the tables, I immediately stopped in my tracks when my feet stepped onto something hard and sharp. A loud gasp escaped my lips, and I hastily stepped away upon realizing I had stepped on broken shards on the floor.
Upon close inspection, I discovered the shards lying on the floor were parts of an expensive ceramic glass. So, that’s why the plates on the table were missing, I mumbled to myself, shaking my head in disbelief. I doubted the plates landed there accidentally. The way the parts scattered on the floor, like constellations dispersed into the sky, indicated they were thrown across the pristine white floor on purpose.
A disgruntled sigh escaped my lips. With quick footsteps, I exited the office in search of a cleaning trolley. Luckily, I spotted one in the hallway. For a while, I borrowed one of the brooms together with a dustpan, then returned to the CEO’s office to clean the mess on the floor before someone could step on them and cause injuries. When I finished clearing the floor and made sure not a single shard remained, I walked toward the side of the room where a garbage can was located.
I was about to pour the trash inside when I spotted a bouquet of fresh pink and white lilies. Dropping the broom and dustpan on the floor, I picked up the lilies out of the trash can. The lilies were beautiful, it was such a shame that someone so heartless could just throw them in a garbage can.
Cradling the lilies in my arms as though they were an infant, I blew the dust clinging to the petals. “You poor little thing,” I crooned, talking to the flowers as though they had a life of their own. “Whoever did this to you didn’t appreciate how pretty you were. He must be an inconsiderate devil who didn’t see your worth,” I murmured absentmindedly while running my fingertips over the delicate petals.
My fingers came in contact with a heart–shaped tag. Flipping it upside down, I read the note. Happy birthday, Lily. The words were scribbled in a familiar handwriting. Grey wrote this note. The realization hit me like a sharp bolt of lightning.
Feeling that my legs would collapse if I didn’t sit down, I sank into the nearest upholstered chair with the lilies still cradled in my arms. A hundred questions flooded my thoughts, and there were none I could answer at the moment. Why did Grey ask for a divorce and then prepare for my birthday the next day as though nothing had happened? Is he out of his mind? Perhaps bipolar, or maybe suffering from multiple personality disorder?
I really don’t get Grey, I told myself, groaning as I rose from where I was seated. Perhaps I will never understand him, I added with an exasperated sigh, ignoring the painful thud inside my chest. Fighting the urge to pull my hair in exasperation, I took a deep breath to calm my strained nerves. I repeated the inhale and exhale process until my emotions were under control.
The only way to answer the questions flooding my thoughts was to ask Grey himself. Carefully lowering the bouquet of fresh lilies on top of Grey’s mahogany office table, I finally made up my mind. Tonight, I would go to the Bradford Mansion and confront him myself.
It was around seven in the evening when I slung the strap of my backpack over my shoulders and pressed my thumb on the biometrics.
“Going home right away?” Lia asked from behind me, adjusting the strap of her sling bag until she was satisfied with the length before settling it on her right shoulder.
Shaking my head, I stepped aside to give her room after I was done checking out, so she could do the same. I watched her press her thumb on the monitor before I hastily replied, “Yes.”
“Why don’t we go to a bar and have some fun tonight? Tomorrow’s our day off anyway.” Lia’s hopeful eyes landed on me as she waited for my response.
The thought of spending the night partying and the enthusiastic gleam in my best friend’s eyes tempted me to say yes, but after a brief moment of contemplation, I shook my head. “I can’t, Li, I’m so sorry.” I told her, biting the bottom of my lip as I watched her shoulders fall.
With a disappointed look in her eyes, she mumbled, “Why?” Her pink lips pouted like a child whose candy was snatched away from her.
Clearing my throat, I decided to tell her the trut Successfully unlocked! rom her anyway. “I have to slip inside the Greyson Mansion and pick up some of my clothes, i vite
Lia eyed me incredulously. “You can do that tomorrow. It’s your day off, for God’s sake, Lily.” The disappointed look in Lia’s eyes faded suddenly, and a suspicious look took over. “Really? You will sacrifice a moment of fun over a dull trip to your soon–to–be ex–husband’s house?” She shook her head in disbelief. “Tell me the truth, why do you want to see him?”
1/2
Bradford Mansion
I opened my mouth to deny that I wasn’t going to the Greyson Mansion to see Grey, but the determined look in Lia’s eyes told me that she wouldn’t believe any of my alibis. The look of i–know–you-well was plastered on her angelic face as she looked at me
A defeated sigh escaped my lips. Though hesitating a bit, I replied truthfully, “I have to talk to Grey and ask him something”
Lia did not pester me with questions, which I had been expecting her to do. Instead, she dropped the suspicious look on her face and smiled at me. “Okay. Please take care on your way” Checking the time on the wall clock, her dainty fingers smoothed the sleek curls that now tumbled on her shoulders without the ribbon securing them on her nape. “I have to go ahead, Lily” Lia lifted her head and laid a soft kiss on my cheek. It was not really a kiss because only her cheek was touching mine, but I called it a kiss anyway. “A friend’s already waiting for me at our meeting place.”
“Bye bye,” Lia said one last time before skittering to the door. Seconds later, she was gone. Only the scent of her favorite perfume lingered in the air.
Whew! I let out a relieved sigh when she was gone. If she hadn’t been in a hurry, Lia would undoubtedly have bombarded me with a barrage of questions. I was lucky to escape her clutches so easily tonight. But I couldn’t say the situation would be the same tomorrow when Lia sets herself to squeeze the whole truth from me.
Hopefully, Lia would forget the conversation we had tonight, or else I would be damned. With one hand resting on the wall for support, I removed my high–heeled shoes and replaced them with flat sandals. Groaning with relief, I kept my black shoes inside my backpack before hurrying to the door.
The evening chill clung to my skin the moment I stepped outside the hotel using the back door, exclusively used by employees like me. Crossing my arms underneath my breasts to protect myself from the cold, I cursed myself for forgetting to bring a jacket. As if I had one, said a part of my brain, and I almost groaned aloud upon remembering I had left my favorite jacket at the Bradford Mansion.
While waiting for a cab to arrive, I stood on the side of the road, admiring the starry night, perfectly made like an image painted onto a canvas by a painter’s expert fingers. My gaze devoured the sight greedily, marveling at the unrealistic beauty of millions of bright stars scattered across the horizon like precious rubies, emeralds, and diamonds.
At a distance where a fountain stood, lovers wandered freely, either hand in hand or in each other’s arms, savoring the romantic ambiance brought by the silvery moonlight spilling upon them.
The honk of a car pulled my wandering thoughts back. A cab skidded to a stop in front of me. I immediately clambered inside and settled on the leather seat after telling the driver my destination.
As the cab rolled smoothly under the star–studded sky, I thought of the questions I had to ask Grey, but for once, my mind failed me. At the thought of confronting him, my mind went blank. Damn. I cursed under my breath, unable to think of anything to say to him.
My thoughts were cut short when the cab finally skidded to a stop in front of a colossal iron gate painted in silver. After paying the driver, I clambered out of the car before I could change my mind and ask him to drive me home.
