LUCAS' POV
Immediately the call ended, I sprang to my feet, and left the hotel room. I needed to know if Tray was fine. What could have happened? What could have made him sound so scared?
I took a cab, and made the long journey to Tray. All the way to his house, my heart thrummed in fear. What exactly could have happened? I dialed his number several times, but it was switched off.
"Can you please go faster?" I asked, and the driver nodded, increasing his speed.
When I got to Tray's house, I ran in, pushing the door, which was open, and burst into his living room which was dark.
"Tray!" I called, and suddenly, the light came on, and I was doused in cold liquid.
Screams and applause rose, and more champagne bottles popped in my direction.
Tray came to me, and wrapped me in his arms, laughing. I was still dumbstruck. What was happening? What were they doing?
My employees were everywhere, bringing dishes of food, and cups for drinks.
"It's a party for getting the contract that every businessman is after." Tray said, and I looked around.
"How did you know?" I asked.
"Mrs. Mayer called to inform us that her team will be arriving next week. Then we knew you had gotten the contract, and decided it called for a celebration— a surprising one. You know, I've always been saying I ought to be an actor. It was amazing how I made you rush down here." He said, and I punched him, making the employees laugh.
"It was all his idea." Merry, one of my workers said, and they all nodded vigorously.
"Do you know how scared I was?" I asked Tray, who was trying to get away from me.
"What else was I supposed to do? If I called, Yo. We have a party set up, and have been waiting all morning, you need to come—Tell me, will you come? Of course not, so we had to make it this way." He explained, as he made his way around the large table, and I shook my head.
"When did your acting get so good?" I asked.
"I was trying so hard not to burst into laughter. Jeez." He replied.
As we all ate and drank, I explained LuxNight, and how I came up with the idea.
They all seemed to like the idea, and the other employees were to be informed the next day.
Then I decided to give John a surprise visit, too. He'd like to hear all of a sudden from whatever maid he had that I was in the house. He'd be shocked, as it was totally unexpected.
"I have to go." I said, with a satisfied smile, getting up from my seat. "It was most pleasant— the food, the drinks, the conversations… tell me the expenses, and stuff spent on this party, and I'll pay it all. I'll also compensate you all for waiting all morning for me." I said, and they all clapped and cheered.
"So, you'll be at work tomorrow?" Tray asked, and I turned to him lazily.
"I doubt that." I replied, walking away, before he could say anything else. He began to complain about me being a lazy CEO, but I ignored him, walking quickly out of his door.
I didn't find a cab, so I walked all the way to John's house. It was late already. Too late for any cab to still be on the streets.
Due to the late hour, I decided not to disturb the family, and simply made for the mansion I would be sharing with John.
It was actually my mansion, and not John's because my father had built the five mansions together for each of us to occupy—me and my four older siblings.
John was the oldest among the children, and I had no problems with him moving into the mansion when he was old enough. We had agreed on him moving into the mansion when he got married. He had also asked me to move in. He wanted to stay with me, and also didn't want it to feel like the real owner of the house was somewhere else, while he enjoyed the goodness of the house.
I wondered why he still moved in even though his marriage was called off. Whichever way, I was happy to be staying with him. John and I vibed well together.
In the foyer, I saw maids, who were about to leave their posts.
They looked shocked to see me, and the looks on their faces were of awe. The mansion had no maids before, so I guessed they were new. I had expected there to be maids, but not too much.
"You must be Alpha Lucas." One of them said, although she couldn't meet my gaze, and her cheeks colored up.
"Yes, I am. Kindly inform John that I'm in the foyer." I said, even though I was already moving towards the door leading to the living room. She went before me, running to call John, and it made me a little confused.
Why would she run just because I asked to call John? Did John train them to run whenever they were given an order?
The rest of the maids continued to stare at me in awe, and I wondered if they'd keep staring at me for days in that manner. I wouldn't like to be uncomfortable due to their stares.
When I made it out of the foyer, I saw John coming out, and when his eyes rested on me, he smiled, and looked at the floor, like he was blushing.
Just then, Emily came out behind him, with wet eyes, breathing hard, and looking terrified.
Her shirt looked like it had been ripped apart, and her camisole was stretched.
The arm of her shirt had also been torn, and her shoulder was exposed.
I knew what had happened immediately, without anyone telling me. Her dark eyes met mine, and held a strange look I couldn't understand. Then she turned, and went behind John, walking briskly past the living room, and up the stairs.
John's eyes followed her, with a little of his earlier smile faded. Then he sighed, looked at me, then sighed again.
He had been impulsive, and forceful again. It was an attitude he had to fix. Maybe it was something about being the only son, but he always had to get whatever he wanted, and couldn't understand that it wasn't everything one wanted that one got.
I felt sorry for Emily, the thought of whom hadn't crossed my mind for days.
"Won't you give your little bro a hug?" He asked, and I smiled, walking to the sofa, and sitting.
"Nope. It seems like little bro has been a bad boy lately. He doesn't deserve my hug. What happened? Why are her clothes that way?" I asked, even though I knew the answer.
"We had a fight, and I don't know… Whatever. Let's talk about what a nice surprise this is." He said, turning to me with a grin, and I laughed.
John and I talked through the night, and even though I was tired, I didn't feel sleepy. It was only when Dawn spilled through the curtains, and maids began to move around for their early chores, that I decided it was time to get some sleep.
I went to the room reserved for me, and smiled. It was just the kind of room I liked.
It had a large glass wall that enabled me to oversee the things going on outside, as well as the other two mansions by my side. It was dimly lit with blue lights lining the ceiling, and a chandelier which could switch the lights it offered.
The bed was large, and spread with dark blue sheets, and the curtain was also blue.
On the edges of the bed frame were little golden lights, and the headboard was also littered with the same golden lights.
On the walls were artistic paintings of nature. If there was anything I loved the most on earth. It was nature. They just had a simple beauty that could keep me staring for hours without knowing it.
I'd study every aspect of the picture, and get lost in it, with my head bringing up imaginations.
The desk, and furniture were all made of dark shiny wood, and the shelves contained all kinds of books.
I could see I was going to enjoy being there.
I took a long, comfortable shower in the even cozier bathroom, and spent half an hour scrubbing off all the sweat I had accumulated during the day.
After bathing, I tugged on a white sweatshirt, and red flannel pants, and proceeded to sleep.
When I awoke, there was an irritating sound in my ears. It turned out to be the sound of someone knocking.
I sat up against the headboard, still with my eyes closed, and mumbled the words: "Come in."
The door opened, and a calm voice spoke, "Good Afternoon."
My eyes opened slowly, and I saw Emily standing there in a white shirt, and a fitted gray skirt.
Her hair was packed at her nape, and she was holding some folders.
"What do you want?" I asked, and she dropped the folders on my bedside table.
"Mr. Granger asked me to drop some files with you. He wants you to check them out." She said, looking at me the way a secretary would look at her boss.
Then I folded my legs inward, and looked at her, tilting my head to the side. She looked pale, and if I was right, she was very uncomfortable. Her fingers seemed to hold themselves way too tightly.
Of course, she couldn't help but be reminded of our night together when she was right in front of me. She was actually doing a good job of keeping whatever she felt away from her face.
"What are the files about?" I asked, and she glanced at the files.
"Unfortunately, I'm not aware of what they contain." She replied, and I picked the files, scanning through them.
"I wasn't going to say anything, but I thought I deserved an apology." I said, looking up at her, and for a second, panic fleeted through her eyes.
But thereafter, she was able to plaster a look of total obliviousness on her face, questioning my words with her look.
I laughed, "You're the woman at the bar that night." I said, and even though she kept up that perfectly confused look, her cheeks betrayed her, by slowly turning pink. "The one who said the bartender drugged her. The same woman who went with me to the room, and…"
"I'm afraid I do not know you and have never met you before." I suddenly heard her say, but unfortunately, her cheeks were completely red.
Was she really going to deny what happened, or she didn't recall my face?