A Trade Of Hearts |✔

CHAPTER 59: As Silent As A Graveyard

VANESSA

I crossed my legs and clamped my hands around my knee. "So you knew.", I said, as calmly as my cold, clammy hands could allow.

"I smelled something fishy the moment you wanted to hang out...here. Then your trying to get me drunk and the phone that you so carelessly left at the top, inside your bag...you should have been a little more careful."

"Well, I am not a criminal nor do I have that kind of a thinking...unlike you.", I accused Blake.

"And that is exactly why you should have been more careful. You, my dear, are an amateur.", Blake said, his voice filling the emptiness of the room," Being a CEO is not just about leadership, accountability and all the other sugar-coated terms that you associate this position with. Running a company whose turnover is worth more than the GDP of some countries is about power and to retain that power, you need to be shrewd, cunning and sometimes even vicious. I am not a bad guy, Vanessa. I'm just one of the many powerful people that you will meet when...if you become a CEO."

"It's strange hearing a speech about power from a man who killed someone just because he didn't believe in his own potential. What do you call such people? The only word I can remember is...a coward.",I said resentfully.

"Choose your words wisely. You really don't want me to lose my temper.", he said, cocking me a sickly sweet smile.

He was enjoying this. It was all just a game for him and it made my stomach churn.

He got up from his seat and I sat up straight and stiff. He turned his back towards me and walked to a cabinet at the end of the sitting room. I dared not look away, my eyes were glued to his lean back. I was afraid he would turn back and aim a loaded gun at me.

This was all a very stupid idea. I shouldn't have been so impulsive. I wanted to get over with this before the next year started but here I was, stuck with Blake, because I didn't think things through more thoroughly.

He did turn back but with a big bottle. He walked back to the table and poured the amber liquid in a empty water glass and then passed it to me.

"You really think that I will drink anything you hand me?", I raised an eyebrow.

"I could ask you the same question.", he raised the glass and drank half of it, "Anyways, this is just Bourbon and it's not spiked."

" You lied that you don't drink.", I said, thinking how stupid I was to believe him even after knowing his true colours.

"You lied about a lot more. You know, when we first met, I genuinely liked you. I never wanted you to get dragged into our mess. The beef was between Adrian and me, I didn't want to involve you in this until, you got involved with Adrian. When the poster of you two came out, I was furious. I mean, I overlooked the fact that you two were staying in the same room and that throughout our relationship, you were going to be best friends with the man I hate and this was what I get? No way! My patience snapped and then I used you like many others. Adrian's own habits, like his dad said, are going to be the end of him.", Blake said, rotating the empty glass in his hand,"Anyways, I was curious. Why him, in this whole god damned world?"

"He may have his flaws but he is a man of his words. I trust him and trust matters to me a lot. ", I said.

"He will never settle down. Not for you."