Chapter 4
I sat quietly on the garden steps, watching as the maid and the housekeeper tossed each rose into the trash, one after another.
Near noon, Calvert came back.
"Why are you sitting here?" he asked.
I looked up at him.
He looked like he'd just showered, his hair still damp, a soft glow making him look almost unfairly handsome.
There was a hint of a red mark at the base of his neck.
I quickly glanced away and forced a smile. "Just taking in the scenery."
Calvert glanced back, not even noticing the rose garden had vanished.
"Gina hurt her ankle and can't get around easily. I'll be staying over there to take care of her for a few days," he said.
'So this is what he really came home for,' I thought to myself.
"Okay," I replied.
Calvert headed inside, quickly packed up a bunch of clothes, then left.
"There's a cocktail party tonight at the Regency Hotel. I'm throwing it for Gina," he said.
He didn't bother to explain any further.
I knew they'd gotten together yesterday, and now Calvert was about to officially introduce Gina to his social circle.
I thought, 'But I'm still around.'
My heart twisted painfully again.
"Is it necessary for me to go?" I asked.
He frowned again.
I really couldn't stand listening to any more of his crap.
"Alright, I'll go," I said.
He relaxed, his expression finally softening.
"I'll have a driver pick you up," he said.
That was about as thoughtful as he'd ever get with me.
At seven that evening, I was dropped off at the hotel.
Calvert's bodyguard was already waiting for me in the lobby.
"Mrs. Gildon, this way, please. Mr. Gildon prepared some clothes for you," he said.
Deep down, I just knew this was a trap waiting for me.
But when the bodyguard pulled out a tight, clingy waitress outfit, I felt like I could hardly breathe.
Calvert walked over, took the uniform from the bodyguard, and handed it to me.
"It's just to make Gina happy. Don't take it so seriously," he said.
"Is this what you really want?" I asked.
I couldn't believe what I was seeing.
Back then, he'd go off on me for days just for wearing anything above the knee.
This tight little skirt was obviously tailor-made for some old creep's twisted taste.
It was practically a neon sign for a waitress, and he still wanted to shove me into it.
Calvert, almost like he knew I'd say no, said, "Alanna, you destroyed her dream of dancing. You owe her this.
"Just do three things to make her happy, and I swear I'll never let her mess with you again."
A flicker of hope, faint and fragile, sparked inside me.
"So if I go through with these three things, does that mean you'll finally get a divorce with me?" I asked.
But this time, Calvert's expression twisted with anger.
"Alanna, don't push me." he snapped.
That tiny spark of hope was snuffed out in an instant.
The outfit fit me perfectly, like it was made just for me.
As soon as I walked into the banquet hall in my outfit, I instantly caught a few people's attention.
"Damn, those curves are unreal." A rich man with a sleazy grin headed straight for me.
But the moment he saw my face, his voice got stuck in his throat and he couldn't say another word.
He spun on his heel and slunk away, pretending nothing had happened.
After that, more people started turning their heads to look at me.
"Wait, isn't that Mrs. Gildon?" someone whispered, eyebrows raised.
Another murmured, "Haven't you heard that she's already divorced?
"The real Mrs. Gildon is the woman clinging to Mr. Gildon's arm over there now."
Gina was sitting in her wheelchair wearing a couture gown, covered in jewelry worth millions, while Calvert and his buddies were giving her all the attention, like she was some VIP and everyone else didn't matter.
They all glanced my way, eyes filled with smirks and teasing, enjoying the show.
Gina, grinning smugly, rolled her electric wheelchair right up to me, looking pleased as hell.
Gina said, "So, Alanna, how does it feel to play the waitress tonight?
"Six months ago, at this exact venue, you were rocking a couture gown and I was stuck playing the waitress.
"Guess what? Tables have turned.
"Didn't you always act all high and around people like me? Now look at you—get dumped by your man, and you're even more pathetic than I ever was."
Whenever Gina thought back to that party six months ago—her ruining my couture dress by accident, panicking while I barely batted an eye—she'd grit her teeth in pure frustration.
Gina muttered to herself, 'Big deal, just because you've got a bit of cash.
'What have you ever done besides latching onto some guy to climb up?'