His Gold Digger✔️

Chapter 11

MARK'S POV

Breakfast was brought to me in my room, as usual; but I had not yet touched it:  Sleep was still heavy in my gaze and I was too tired to move, I only drank some coffee and lay back to think again.

My shoulders were full of fatigue after a long day at the ball, I stared into the ceiling and remembered the conversation I'd had last night with Lizzy.

At this point, I heard my mother's voice resound in the passageway not far from my door. She seemed to be in a call “Oh yeah, of course. You should come over, how do you see that? … Of course! …I have no problem with that, I will be here at noon … Yes. And goodbye till then.” A few minutes later I could hear her speaking to someone beneath my window and, looking out, it was the gardener.

She had an air of briskness about her. She turned away and came into the house, cackling happily with the gardener over something she had said, and this cheerfulness unnerved me.

It wasn't strange that Lizzy kept recurring in my mind. She had nearly made up for the kiss last night but something had intervened. Intervention in the sense that I should have been stung by regret at this point if I had allowed her to go further. I was very happy though that she could go that length for me even when she'd been played.

There was deafening applause after McGregory had given the ending speech. I stood from where I sat and made for the backstage to meet with friends and well-wishers, not after seeing Gregory himself.

He spoke a lot about Lizzy, continuously congratulating me on making such a good choice. It was rather a corporal compliment, it wasn't intrinsic.

We exchanged hugs with others who'd also come to meet with him. I'd noticed at this point that my mother wasn't there, she surely must have flared up after seeing Lizzy.

Or rather, after seeing the kind of woman who didn't meet up to her expectations. She rather expected to see one from the nobility circles.

One that oozed wealth and one that would add something substantial to the company's purse in any way possible. But it was Lizzy rather. And Lizzy was just the opposite of her expectations.

We saw him out, together with his rock-faced bodyguard who would always gaze belligerently at anyone who came too close.

After asking me to come to see him some other time, he wedged himself into the black Escalade and was in a moment racing towards town.

“Mark!” I caught that voice immediately. It was Susan’s. I turned around and was surprised to see her standing a few feet away from us. She tried to get out her words but ended up saying nothing in the end.

“Hey What are you doing here?” I smiled so I could hide the resentment within me.

“Just wanted to say hi. Nothing much” she spoke in bated breath.

I never wanted to see this woman anymore. We were married, and everything else had ended the very day we had divorced.

Our marriage hit rock-bottom when I discovered she was cheating. I had tolerated her right from the start but that was one thing I couldn't take, not after she had denied me from sleeping with her several times, always giving one reason or the other.

And what was she up to now? It was a bit hard restraining me from telling her that I didn't want to see her anymore.

But as though for courtesy and to remove any impression that I could behave childishly in any way, I let bygones be bygones.

All I did was try to get along with her on the surface but I was simmering with annoyance deep down.

The eye contact she made with Lizzy gave me a misgiving. And surprisingly enough, Lizzy returned her stare.

For a moment, they both seemed to be daggers drawn. It was a very awkward moment. It stretched taut until I intervened. 'Nice meeting with you Susan, hope to see you some other time' I took Lizzy's hand and left, noting the anger that flashed across her face when I took Lizzy's hand.

Was this another of my mother's numerous schemes?I thought as I took Lizzy by her hand and drew her aside.

'What was that look? Do you know who she is? Have you met before?' I asked

'No, it's fine. It's nothing.' her countenance had betrayed her and she could discern, from my unwavering gaze, that I didn't look convinced.

'You are not telling me something, are you?'

'Just forget it! I owe you no obligation Mark! I am not your wife. And for damn sake, don't fucking try to act as if you have anything to do with me' only God knew what degree of damage Susan had caused her to react this way.

I stared at her, too shocked to speak. Never before had I seen her get this angry. I felt sorry for her.

I kept quiet as she stormed out of the room and went outside, sobbing. But I couldn't let her cry on her own. I gently patted her back and surprisingly enough, she rested her head on my chest. But I wasn't quick to give in to the thoughts that she liked me or something. We'd a contract, right?

'Lizzy please, let's not talk this way.'

There was no reply, so I patted her head again. What was wrong with me? Why couldn't I love someone the way one was supposed to and why couldn't they love me the way they were supposed to?

My mother, Susan, and even Lizzy had now, at a point, despised me. Wouldn't it have been better if I went away and left everyone in peace?

She got fine later and asked if we could take a walk around. The fog had rolled in and the air hung damp and cold.

'Lizzy, you know… look, I am so sorry for what happened there. I never exp…'

'I hope you know I didn't mean any of what I said to you there' she whispered. I took her hand and squeezed them in mine.

I squeezed her tender-looking hands and fought back the tears. Tears? Was I going crazy? Was I simply going to join her and shed tears simply because she did? Or because we both carried stigmas of Susan's vile and contemptuous treachery?

Susan surely must have done something that stabbed her deep down. And she may not have known I'd been stabbed as well, even worse!. That I bore the scores of Susan's wickedness with the hope that prospect painted pretty pictures.

We had now entered a beautiful walk by the side of the water.  We sat on a bench, hand-in-hand, with her head on my shoulder, staring across the sea.

We both continued to stare into the void space before us. I reasoned what it would look like to jump. To just jump in and leave the world and the madness it brought with itself.

I turned my head in her direction and somehow mustered the courage to keep looking. It wasn't long before she tilted her head in my direction. McGregory's words re-echoed through the soft wind that sighed in the façade: she's one hell of a beauty!

I couldn't hide the embarrassment and disappointment, when my lips had nearly met hers in a kiss, and she'd reminded me we were in a contract.

I looked at my wristwatch and discovered that I'd been thinking for half an hour. I peered through the blinds once I heard the gravel crunching in the distance.

A car stopped in front of the house and Susan jumped lightly down from it.

What the hell was she doing here?

Author's note:
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