Ava Moreno.
They said he'd come today.
I didn't sleep a bit.
It made me wonder how long Shawn Theodore has been planning this. The quick and sudden proposal while his youngest son was dying, I thought was the weirdest thing. It was not.
How could Ethan arrive in less than 48 hours?
What did Shawn ever say to him that made him book the next flight from Italy to New York? As much as I thought about it, it didn't make any sense to me.
How was he convinced after he left America for 13 years and never looked back. Grandma told me last night he left New York at 19 when his mother died.
Ethan was someone they never talked about. Not at dinner. Not at family gatherings. Not even Leo talked about him, with that half smile of disdain. And even when they did, the animosity they felt towards him could be perceived. Always wanting to avoid the mention of his name at all.
"Come in", I said as I heard a faint knock on my door.
Cassy, my personal assistant stepped in, holding a pile of papers and a laptop.
I watched her as she clumsily dropped the pile of papers and the laptop on the table in my room. I stared on, then sighed as she walked closer to my bed, where I was sitting.
She leaned forward, her hands clasped together and her eyebrows raised. She looked as though she had found something interesting and she couldn't wait to tell me what it was.
"Cassy...", I called out. The look on her face made me anxious.
She began, "Ma'am, you won't believe what I found out..."
"What did you find?", I sat up almost immediately waiting to hear what she had found out about Ethan Theodore.
This was something about me. I always wanted to be prepared for whatever I have in front of me. No matter how little or trivial it was, I'd always want to have a little knowledge, and of course for my own favour.
I'd informed Cassy yesterday to gather every intel she could find about Ethan and report them to me. I didn't care how so unimportant they might be, even if it was little as his middle name, I just wanted to know.
She pouted and then raised the corner of her mouth.I knew what that expression meant. She had done that a lot. Whenever business deals went wrong, she did just that.
"Well, I found nothing. I really found nothing...", she trailed off.
"What did you mean you found nothing? He's human just like us! He isn't a ghost. So I don't quite understand what you mean", I crossed my arms.
"Ma'am, I was just as surprised as you are. It was as though he doesn't exist. I checked each and every database. Nothing was there about him. There was just his name "Ethan Theodore". Nothing else"
"Cassy, do you expect me to believe that nonsense? He's a son of a wealthy and powerful conglomerate? How could nothing exist about him?Not even his height?", I furrowed my brows.
"Nothing", she clapped her hands softly. "Oh", she snapped her fingers gently and brought a paper from the pile she had with her earlier.
She flipped it open and handed it over to me.
"What is this?", I said in disbelief as I read the content of the paper.
"Exactly what I thought. Could the Theodores be lying about the location of Mr Ethan?", She placed her index finger beneath her jaw.
"Grandma most definitely told me he went to Italy. Why is this paper saying otherwise? And how did you get this departure papers?", I enquired
"I had to promise one of my friends at the immigration some thing before he gave this to me. He said no one by the name Ethan Theodore ever left the country 13 years ago and no one by that name exists in Italy, relating to the Theodores. Ms Ava, do you think he might have used another means of transportation? Probably by water?", she tilted her shoulders to the side.
I tightened my lips, "That's plausible but do you really think a son of a wealthy family would do that? And even if he did, it should be on papers. Except he smuggled himself to Italy."
She didn't reply. She just shrugged.
"Maybe when he arrives, he'll leave traces and I will also have enough time to gather some things about him."
I sighed. "It's fine. Just keep checking. Don't stop at all. Whatever you get, whatever info it is, tell me immediately"
"Yes ma'am", she answered, packing and ready to leave.
"You're leaving already? How's the meeting with Adamas Holdings going?", I asked
"I already sent an email to you about it. The director of the construction department said we'd be meeting on Thursday by 9am"
"Get me my laptop from office.I need to work on their proposals today before..."
"Ma'am...", she cut in. "The chairwoman said you should postpone all office related work to Monday"
"Grandma said that?"
Before she could reply, one of the house workers stepped in. She bowed.
"Ms Ava, the chairwoman said to inform you that Mr Theodore will arrive in few minutes..."
"He's coming here? I thought we were supposed to me at their penthouse", I cut in abruptly, almost screaming.
"Yes ma'am. Infact, I think he's almost here. The chairwoman said to tell you to dress nicely and put your best dress on.", She concluded and bowed before stepping out.
I let out a loud laugh, "Stopping me from going to work isn't enough but I should also put my best dress on? Am I meeting the King of England?"
Cassy chuckled silently. "Can I leave ma'am?"
Without answering, I waved my hand and dismissed her.
I stood up and pulled the curtains aside as a black sleek sedan approached the estate. The tires humming over the gravel like a song of doom announcing the presence of an evil entity.
There was a shift in the air. Or maybe I was just nervous. My fingers grew cold. And my heart? Still.
I watched on as the car stopped.
The door opened.
He stepped out.
For a moment, I forgot how to breathe.
Ethan was not what I expected. He wasn't loud, yet his presence made the most dominating sound. Still, he was not flamboyant. There were no signs of curiosity in his eyes. He stayed calm. That terrifying kind of calm that my instinct screamed "danger".
He wore a dark grey suit that were ironed to crisp as if he hid something beneath it, and a black shirt underneath. He only buttoned the shirt halfway, exposing his broad chest. His shoulders looked like they were made that way because they knew they were going exude fear and dominance.
His face, sharp and clean cut jaw. He had a faint scar across his face like someone tried to kill him and failed.
And God, his eyes, cold and void of emotions.
Something is definitely off about him. Something is unsettling about him.
He did not smile. He did not blink. He was just there. He lit a cigarette, obviously not caring about a thing in the world.
I growled as I saw his father, Shawn Theodore, come down from a car next to Ethan's. They didn't come in the same car.
"What is he even doing here?" I thought to myself.
I stared on as he approached Ethan, trying to take the cigarette from him but he was met with a deadly glare.
He then dipped his hand into his coat pocket, bringing out a small perfume, and spraying it on Ethan's body.
I grinned.
"Sunshine, come downstairs", I heard my grandma screaming from the living room.
I rolled my eyes and went out of my room
My grandma curled her lips as she saw me. She shook her head.
"I told you to dress nice", she widened her eyes
"And I told you to stop calling me Sunshine", I gritted my teeth.
"Chairwoman...", Shawn greeted, giving my grandma a brief side hug as they walked in.
"How was the journey, Ethan?Are you happy to be back home after these long years?", She asked, smiling wildly at him. I scoffed.
"New York remains the same. Nothing so intriguing", he answered. His words lacking interest.
His voice was deep, smooth and commanding. Regardless of the slight rasp, you could sense the quiet authority.
"Oh that's quite true. Be my guest", She replied and ushered them in.
My grandma and Shawn went in ahead of us.
I stood, leaning on one of the pillars. Then he walked right past me.
He didn't greet, didn't flinch at my presumed intimidating presence. He just walked in like he owned the place.
In frozen silence, I walked behind him.
"So you're the infamous Ethan?", I said, breaking the silence.
He stopped. I felt my heart pounding. I coughed silently and stood still. Then he turned. He didn't say a word. He just looked me up and down. I couldn't read his thoughts. I rolled my eyes and brushed past him.
I sat in the living room, taking glances at him as my Grandma gave him and Shawn the polite and vague welcome of a matriarch.
"I'll quickly take this call", Shawn said, finally picking the phone which had been vibrating endlessly since they came in. He stepped out.
"Dinner will be ready at seven. I trust you're still not allergic to fried shrimps", she said.
How did she know that?
His lips curled, "I'm immune to it"
My grandma walked into the kitchen. The silence that followed was deafening.
I couldn't take it anymore. "Ethan, what exactly are you doing here?"
He stared at me.
"If anyone should be asking me that...", he tilted his head to the side and continued, "I'm surprised it's you. Don't you want me here the most? Didn't grandma tell you I'm your future husband". He sealed his words with a smirk.
"Want you here? I don't. And I certainly do not think that's a normal thing to say after returning from exile", I said, muttering the word "exile".
He suddenly stood up and walked to where i was sitting. He crouched slowly as he leaned towards me. I could smell his cigarette breath all over my face.
He smiled briefly. "Exile? Is that what you were told?"
I swallowed hard. He was too close to me and it made my skin crawl.
I frowned. "Isn't it?"
He cleared his throat and walked back to where he was sitting.
"Darling, I wasn't sent away. I left" He crossed his legs, looking into my eyes.
"Dinner is ready", my grandma announced.
Ethan. His gaze never left me. I hated that I noticed that. I hated how it made me feel.