Chapter 20: Chapter 20

She looked breathtaking. He could not remove his eyes or blink for that matter as she came to stand in front of him.

He was aware of the fact that she was attractive. The way her eyes always shone and pulled people in them. Her eyes were so dark yet so bright. It was a strange combination that he noticed in her the first time when we she was yards away performing on the stage. Her hair looked different given the fact that he had asked Camila for her makeover. It suited her. It also looked way shorter than the original length of her hair. Nevertheless, she looked gorgeous. He had seen her with and without makeup. But at that moment, she made her blinded by her beauty. He had never seen so much beauty in one person.

“You look…amazing.” He breathed without taking his eyes off her. She looked surprised at the compliment. She did not expect him to give her a compliment. She was standing at a feet’s distance from him, but she again noticed how tall he was. She was wearing heels of four inches, but she could hardly reach his shoulders. He was probably taller than six feet.

“Thank you.” She said a bit shyly, tucking the strand of her hair behind her ear. She was always awkward while receiving compliments—be that anyone she was receiving the compliment from. It was not like Thomas’s compliment made her that way, she thought defensively.

“So, why did you call me here?” He himself wore black dress pants and white button down shirt; his hair slicked back and his sleeves folded back to his elbow showing his strong forearms. He looked handsome—more than usual, if that was even possible. Wait…why was she drooling over him all of a sudden? It was not like her.

And he was Thomas Walker on the other end. She could not have such thoughts about him.

‘He does not look that handsome though.’ Her inner voice said, and she agreed fervently.

“Oh! We are going for dinner. I will explain when we reach there.” He said coming out of the trance she had put him in. He had noticed how she blushed when he complimented her. Everything about her was stirring something unusual in him. He had never felt that way about her except when he saw her person on the stage. But he was drunk at that time! There was no explanation why he was feeling the way he did at that moment.

There was not a moment when his mind would succeed in making him understand how she was the same person who was a stripper and who entertained such a large audience. What she seemed on the stage and how she behaved in real life was polar opposite to each other.

So which one was her real personality?

“Actually, I have to get back to home. My mom must be waiting for me.” She said looking in his eyes. She had thought to herself that she would refuse if he was to make her do more tasks for the day. It had gotten dark already. They spent a long time in the salon. She would not and could not entertain him anymore.

“I will drop you off as soon as we are done with our discussion. I have something urgent to talk about.” He insisted making her let out a sigh.

“Isn’t everything urgent for you?” She thought to herself. First, he wanted to get married the next day they signed the contract. Second, he made her select the wedding dress, do tons of shopping and do a makeover all in one day. He was so pressing, and she was already tired. It was day one. She had no idea how she could put up with him for one whole year!

“How long is it gonna take?” She asked impatiently and looked at him with an exasperated expression.

“Just an hour. Let’s go.” He went around and opened the car door for her. It was a new car. Just how many cars did he own? She thought to herself before taking a seat.

She grabbed her phone and saw a few texts from Aunt Mary asking when she would be home. She was so busy that she did not know about when she received the texts. She quickly left a text for her mom and Mary that she would be home in an hour.

She heaved a deep sigh. It had been a long day.

“Anything wrong?” He turned his head towards her for a second and asked after noticing the tired and deep sigh she released. He did have an idea that she must be tired. She had to do a lot in a day, but he had no choice then to proceed the things quickly.

“No.” She said shortly and gave him a fake smile before turning her head to look out the car window. Instead of being irritated at the way she was behaving, he smirked.

That was feisty, and he liked it for some reason.

Why was he having such weird thoughts? And her scent was driving him crazy. Damn the playboy in him! It had been a month since he last got laid. His hormones were playing tricks on him probably. That could explain why he was feeling that way towards her when till yesterday, he wanted to reverse the things if he could. There was no denying that they both got on each other’s nerves.

They soon reached the restaurant, and he opened the door for her before she could do so herself. She narrowed her eyes and looked at him with a confused expression on her face as they walked side by side, “We are not married, you know. I think these acts should be reserved after we get married.” She said just as he was about to open the restaurant door for her.

He looked at her without giving away how he felt about her stance and gestured for her to enter first. She shook her head but entered with a roll of her eyes. He sighed following her. The eye-roll did not go unnoticed.

The restaurant seemed nice and cozy. They were led to a faraway seat beside the window. It seemed like he had already made reservations. The proactive Thomas Walker!

“What is the urgent thing you wanted to talk about?” She asked as soon as they were seated. She had to get it done with quickly. Her mom would ask her where she was, and she would have nothing to tell her. She had to think of a way. Amelia would be suspicious looking at her hair dye and the dress and the heels. Besides, Camila said that the driver would deliver the bags and her wedding dress after they were done with one last thing. She did not ask what the last thing was thought. She did not ask either.

She was just worried what she would tell her mom.

“Let’s have dinner first. You must be hungry.” He said as the waiter came to take their orders. He did not ignore the fact that the waiter was ogling her and trying to be a little more than friendly when it was her turn to order. Something in him wanted to punch the waiter, but it was not the time and place.

She was not his girlfriend or the wife he was going to marry for love. But she was with him at that moment. The male specie had to at least consider the fact that the girl was with someone else, and they should not flirt. It was basic moral and ethics.

A part of him could not blame the waiter. She did look gorgeous. His eyes were fixated on her again as the waiter finally left them alone. She felt Olivia shift in her seat and avoiding eye-contact.

Maybe, he had been staring for too long. Sometime, he had no control over himself.

Olivia did notice how he was staring at her. She had never seen him look at her like that. What had gotten into him? She could not understand. One thing was sure from the start that he was not attracted to her. She did not want him to be attracted to her either.

She was not in for other purposes. Her only purpose was to add a few more days, weeks, months, and years to her mother’s life. The money he offered for her mom’s surgery mattered to her, not what he felt for her.

The waiter came again and served them their appetizer. It looked delicious. It was chicken salad appetizer. She was familiar with it because of the club dinners she attended sometimes.

She was focused on the dish and when she looked up, she saw Thomas with a clenched fist that was on the table. His expressions looked grim as well.

“What’s wrong?” She asked politely. It was not like he was rarely that grim. In fact, it was the opposite. But he seemed in a good mood before the appetizer was served. She could not understand why he was suddenly pissed.

“Nothing.” He said with a sigh and urged her to go ahead and taste the food before them. She shrugged and did just that. It was so delicious that she could not stop eating.

On the other hand, Thomas kept stealing glances at her and saw how she ate it as if she really enjoyed herself. Her way of eating was contagious. He wanted to enjoy it just as much.

He forgot why he was angry. The asshole waiter was ogling her again—without caring that he was there. If it was not for Olivia and the matter at hand, he would have punched him on the nose.

“You must like the earrings a lot.” He commented as he noticed her silver earrings. Small earrings with tiny stars dangling in the bottom—he had noticed her wearing them every time they met.

She looked at him perplexed at what he meant but soon understood what he was talking about.

“My mom gifted them to me when I was in high school. Yes, I love them.” He nodded at her answer. That explained why she always wore them. A girl who was going to enter into a contracted marriage because of her mother explained how much love she must have for her mom.

Their main dish arrived and Olivia ate it the same way. She had ordered herself some peri-peri chicken, and he went with steak.

She was closing her eyes every now and then while the food touched her taste buds. He was looking at her keenly without her knowing as she was busy with her food. She always enjoyed whatever she ate whether it was a simple soup or some fancy dish. It gave her sense of being grateful that she could eat. After her mom got diagnosed with cancer, she rarely had proper food as greasy and heavy things made her nausea. As much as that hurt her heart, she was even more appreciative of the fact that she could eat and that eating and being healthy were the most important things in life. One should cherish it while it lasts.

They were soon done with the dinner. It was delicious, and she had eaten a lot. She thought to pay for the dinner herself. She did not have a lot of money on her at that moment, but she could not be a free rider however strange the situation was.

She was wiping her mouth when she saw him get up from his seat and stand in front of her. She gave him a questioning look.

He was having some weird expression on his face. It looked like he was debating with himself. But why?

He did not give her a chance to dwell any further as he crouched down and knelt before her. Her eyes went wide as saucers. What the hell was he up to?

“Olivia Anderson, will you marry me?” He proposed after some hesitation while offering her a beautiful diamond ring.