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“Fine,” Alina slumped onto the bed. “One night,” she put up a finger, “… and then we find Dereck.”
Taylor clapped her hands and jumped off the bed. “I’m going to get ready.” Before Alina could say another word, Taylor was out of the room.
Alina dug through her luggage and found the perfect outfit for the night. It was a fitted black dress with lace embellishment covering her shoulders. From the front, there was nothing extraordinary about it, but the open back ordained with dangling beads contradicted that original thought. Alina paired this with a black pump with a golden heel and a simple, small handbag. Her hair was forced into a low ponytail, with strands dangling at the front. The last thing she did was put on a pair of gold teardrop earrings that were the perfect complement to her natural makeup.
When the women arrived at the restaurant, the men were already seated. Taylor strutted across the room in a red mint sweetheart neckline bodycon dress and heels one would normally expect to see only in fashion shows. Logan rose the moment she approached, thrusting his chest out to expose his neck. Alina followed her friend, her approach not as grand.
“I’m really glad you guys made it,” Adam said, looking dashing in a navy-blue blazer. “You’re going to enjoy this place. It’s five stars, you know.”
The restaurant certainly looked like five stars, with its leather seating and authentic silverware. The chandelier looked as if it had been crafted from bits of diamond and accented with gold.
“It certainly does look nice.” Taylor scanned the room with her eyes wide.
“Wait till you taste the food,” Logan said.
The server came over then and filled all their glasses with champagne as the group engaged in conversation. At first, Alina was withdrawn, but the men were entertaining, and soon she found herself wailing at their antics.
“Excuse me for a while,” Adam said. “But if someone doesn’t go get our friend, he’s going to stay in the back the entire night. I’ve never met a more determined workaholic.”
The atmosphere didn’t die with Adam’s departure. Logan continued to enthrall the ladies. Alina was laughing so hard that Logan placed his hand on her back, gently massaging the area to console her. That was when Adam returned. “Hey, ladies, let me introduce you to the big man on campus. The heir to all of this, Dereck.”
Alina was still in bliss so it took her a while to put her focus on the newest attendee, but when she did her eyes almost bulged out of her head and she suddenly went into a coughing fit, which incited Logan to caress her even more.
Logan and Adam’s friend was actually her Dereck.
He stood there now, watching her with a flaring nose, his hand folded into a fist. Alina tried to brush Logan’s hand away, but the damage had already been done. She could tell from Dereck’s rigid posture that he was more than furious with the situation.
* * *
“Dereck.”Alina’s voice was hoarse. “This isn’t what it looks like,” she stuttered. Dereck swallowed hard and kept his lips pressed together as Alina continued to stumble on her words. “We met these guys on our way up here and Taylor…” Alina turned to draw attention to her friend. “Taylor wanted to… but I didn’t….” Alina’s voice dropped the more she spoke. None of that was making sense to her and she could imagine how it sounded to Dereck.
Still, Dereck remained composed. Only the twitching of his jaw indicated he was far from comfortable. He had only broken up with this woman a little over a week and here she was spooning with other guys, his cousin’s hand all over her. A lot of thoughts went through his mind, but the main one was centered on if she even cared for him.
Though he had cut all ties with Alina, Dereck still thought of her. She still plagued his dreams, and he longed to wrap her in his arms again. His nights were lonely and being without the woman he loved was torture, but as he watched her now, fraternizing as if she hadn’t recently broken his heart, Dereck believed he made the right decision.
“Do you two know each other?” Adam asked, looking back and forth between the two.
Alina started to answer first, but Dereck cut her off. “We dated for some time, nothing serious.”
His words hit Alina like a bolt. She loved him, she still did, and he was claiming what they had together was just casually dating. It was obvious that he said it to hurt her and though it did; she brushed it aside, showing a pleasant face.
“Dereck, can we talk… privately?” Alina pleaded with her eyes for Dereck to give her a chance to explain herself, but she wasn’t that lucky.
Dereck looked at her, his eyes emanating rage as his lips cursed her with the words. “We have nothing to say to each other.”
“Dereck, please. Just give me a chance to explain,” Alina stretched out her hand to him, but Dereck pulled away.
“Don’t beg Alina. It makes you look even more pathetic.” Then Dereck turned to the others around the table. “I hope you enjoy your meal, but if you will excuse me, I must take my departure.” With that, Dereck turned and walked away from the table, leaving Alina stunned.
“Are you just going to sit there and let him leave?” Alina snapped at the sound of Taylor’s voice and immediately jumped into action, sprinting through the patrons enjoying their meals.
Alina burst through the main doors of the restaurant just in time to see Dereck jump in his car and drive off in a haste.
“No,” she screamed out as her shoulder slumped and her face paled. Alina had followed Dereck to Connecticut in hopes of a reconciliation with him, but instead, she had made things so much worse. Her heart sank, and she clenched her stomach as it suddenly felt nauseated.
“Are you okay?” Taylor came to stand at her side. “You didn’t just let him leave, did you?”
Alina turned her head to her friend, the tightness in her chest converting to a heat that flushed throughout her body. “I didn’t do anything,” she spat out with flared nose. “He couldn’t leave here fast enough after what he just saw.” Alina passed her fingers through her hair. “I knew I shouldn’t have gone out tonight. I knew I shouldn’t have listened to you, but no…” she dragged out the word while shaking her head. “Taylor always gets what Taylor wants.”
