Aleena
Two years later, you would think I’d forgotten all about him, the man with the blue eyes who ruined my birthday and left me throbbing, shaking, and humiliated on a chaise.
But trauma has a funny way of settling into your bones.
It doesn’t go away.
It just waits.
And apparently… it waits for the perfect moment to come back and punch you straight in the chest.
I was twenty-three now.
And for some reason, the year came with more chaos than all the others combined.
My mother, Meredith, had lost everything.
A year earlier, her old, sick husband finally died, a man I barely interacted with except for the constant smell of expensive whiskey and hospital disinfectant.
After his death came the real tragedy for my mother: the realization that the man she married for stability had left her with absolutely nothing.
No fortune.
No inheritance.
Not even a dusty old property in her name.
It destroyed her.
Meredith wasn’t just a woman; she was a socialite.
One of those women who floated through life with designer handbags and a social circle that was filled with fake friends.
And those same sophisticated women who used to admire her now laughed behind their champagne glasses and whispered about her bad luck.
She acted like she didn’t care, but I knew she did.
It broke her pride to not be able to wear the latest designs from Chanel or buy the latest bag from goodness knows where.
I came home from my summer vacation expecting to find her sulking around the living room in her satin robe, drinking wine too early in the day, complaining about life’s unfairness as usual.
But instead?
I came home to find her wearing a diamond ring the size of a small planet.
“I’m engaged!” she announced, her voice carrying this spark I hadn’t heard in months.
I blinked.
“To who?”
“Ethan Westwood,” she said proudly, like the name alone should explain everything.
And maybe it should have.
She ranted about how Ethan Westwood, a billionaire and CEO of half the city was the kind of man people wrote articles about.
The kind of man who made headlines without even trying.
All I could think was how this was unexpected
“It’s too soon,” I blurted out, staring at the huge diamond ring.
“Mom… what are you doing?”
Meredith rolled her eyes like I was being dramatic.
“Oh, don’t start.”
“I’m not starting,” I argued.
“I’m just, why are you running straight into another marriage?
You barely had time to breathe.”
“I don’t need to breathe,” she snapped lightly.
“I need stability.”
“Mom…” I stepped closer, “you just got out of a marriage that drained you emotionally and financially.
Don’t you think…..”
“No,” she cut in sharply.
“I don’t think.
I know this is right.” She grabbed my hands, squeezing them with a dramatic sigh.
“Aleena, he’s wonderful, darling.
You’ll love him.
I’ve never been treated like this in my life.”
I didn’t answer.
My silence stretched long enough that she sighed again.
“You’re being difficult.”
“I’m being realistic,” I said.
“Well, too bad,” she said, forcing a cheerful smile.
“Because you must meet him.
I already booked us dinner at Le Château Bleu.”
Le what now?
“Le Château Bleu?
Mom, that place is…..”
“Perfect,” she cut in.
“It’s perfect.
You’ll dress nicely.
We’ll have a beautiful dinner as a family.”
“We’re not a family,” I muttered.
She froze, lips tightening.
“Aleena.”
“I’m sorry,” I said quickly, even though I wasn’t.
“I just think you’re moving too fast.”
“And I think you need to stop overthinking,” she shot back.
Then she pointed at me with her ring hand, the diamond catching the light like a warning beacon.
“You’re going.
End of discussion.”
I groaned.
“Mom, I’m really not feeling well—”
“Oh please,” she waved off, “you look fine.”
“I have schoolwork.”
“It’s summer.”
I tried again.
“I have plans.”
“What plans?”
“…Plans.”
She laughed, actually laughed.
“Nice try.
You’re going.
No more excuses.”
She said it with the finality of a judge delivering a sentence.
That’s exactly how I ended up running horrifically late for a dinner I didn’t even want to attend.
Honestly?
I thought being late would annoy her enough to make her cancel the whole thing.
But then I walked through those towering glass doors annoyed and irritated when I set my eyes on those eyes.
Those blue eyes from that night, the ones that watched me fall apart.The ones I dreamed about and cursed myself for dreaming about.
He sat at the table dressed in a grey suit that looked expensive.
I stared, the mask had covered his face that night two years ago but he was handsome.
Okay, handsome was an understatement.
His dark hair was sleeked back and had sliver strands and his jaw line was sharp.
My brain cells were gone, literally fried.
My entire being was aware of his presence.
He was here as my mother’s fiancé, my to be stepfather.
My stomach plummeted so fast I thought I might collapse right there on the marble floor.
He looked up at me the same moment I recognized him.
My mother smiled brightly when she saw me.
“Aleena!
Finally!
Come meet Ethan.”
I felt sick and lightheaded, coupled with the fact that I was hot all over.
And worst of all… he didn’t look surprised to see me.
His expression didn’t falter.
Did he recognize me?
Had he forgotten about me?
That thought just crashed into me.
He left me behind and had actually forgotten about me and here I was, still stuck in the past, quivering at the sight of him.
He stood, adjusting his cufflinks with calm confidence.
“Hello, Aleena,” he said smoothly.
“It’s good to finally meet you.
Meredith talks a lot about you.”
My heart was beating so loudly I could barely hear my mother’s delighted introduction.
I didn’t know what expression I wore on my face, but Ethan’s eyes locked onto mine with this slow, deliberate focus that traveled through my skin like heat.
“Shall we sit?” he said.
And I knew, right then, that nothing about my life would ever be the same again.