If there was one thing Alexander hated more than anything, it was tardiness.
Tardiness was the thief of opportunity. Tardiness was the mother of procrastination. Tardiness was one's undoing.
And right that moment, Selena was tardy.
He checked his watch again. 7:45 p.m. She was 45 minutes late.
Alexander had arrived at the Japanese restaurant fifteen minutes before the stipulated time of 7 p.m. It was a serene, elegant place tucked at the center of a quiet street down Madison Avenue. and was ushered to the traditional tatami rooms used for private dining, and he had already met all three businessmen seated.
For someone who spoke fluent Japanese, Selena was not so fluent in their culture.
The men engaged him in light conversations over an exquisite kaiseki cuisine laid out before them. And just as the clock struck at 7:50 p.m., the shoji door slid open, and Selena stepped in.
Alexander's anger faded into nothing when he saw the look on Selena's face. She didn't have the usual mischief dancing on her face, rather, she looked like she had been crying. All conversations in the room stopped, and she murmured her greetings, bowing a little as she took her seat.
"Miss Selena, what's wrong?" Takashi asked.
Selena sniffled and patted the corner of her eyes.
"Jayden died," her lips wobbled as she said it.
"Who's Jayden?" Alexander asked.
"the love of my life" Selena's lips wobbled again, but she didn't cry. "I was just…it happened so suddenly…and I…"
"It's okay, Miss Selena, it's okay," Kenji said, reaching out to her hand and putting it over hers in consolation. Selena gave him a sad smile and nodded.
"But I still came," She sounded brighter, although Alexander thought she was trying to draw the sympathies and attention away from her. "So, I need to talk, I need to laugh, I need to just be happy right now. Okay? Can you all do that for me?"
They all agreed. It wasn't up to an hour of eating and drinking several glasses of rice wine did all the sadness fly out of the window. Selena cracked the most jokes, and most of the conversations were in English, so Alexander could understand them. Because he wasn't drunk, he found them silly, but the men before him laughed so hard some of them farted.
Alexander smiled to himself as he watched them all. He couldn't believe that even in her grief, Selena found a way to be cheerful. How does one lose the love of their life and still attend a meeting?
"Miss Selena, stop, please," Kenji pleaded as he was seized in a fit of laughter. "Please, my blood pressure."
"Oh my," Selena covered her mouth. "Oh no, we should stop."
"We should call it a night," Alexander suggested. He looked at his watch. "It was a pleasure having this dinner with you, gentlemen."
They all stood to leave not so long after. As Alexander was speaking with Yakume on the business and future meetings, from the corner of his eyes, he saw Kenji put a hand on Selena's shoulder and speak to her, and Selena had her head bowed, patting a tissue to her eyes.
When Kenji was done with her, she hugged him. She walked over to Alexander and bade them all goodnight.
Alexander and Selena stepped into the cool night air. She huffed out a breath of air and stared into the distance.
"I have an urgent meeting I need to attend right now" Alexander told her. "can you go home on your own?" He asked her.
"Who has a meeting this late in the night?" She asked instead.
"It's just a casual hangout with friends," Alexander said.
"Oh. Okay then. Have fun."
But he didn't move, and before he could regret his next action, Alexander said, "If you want to come along, you could. I understand you might not want to be alone tonight."
Selena beamed at him. "I'd love to."
They drove for about thirty minutes before ending up at a chill lounge. Alexander walked by Selena's side and opened the door for her. The interior was chic and cozy, with dim lighting and ush seating arrangements featuring comfortable sofas and armchairs. Low tables held plates of assorted appetizers and cocktails, and the soft music playing in the background gave it an intimate feel.
"Alex's here!" Someone yelled.
Robert Kensington, Alex's best friend, walked up to them. He was a short man, but what he lacked in height he made up for in looks and charisma, and he was a man well aware of what kind of power he possessed. He looked over at Selena, then his friend, and back at Selena again before he tore out a wolfish laugh.
"Aren't you supposed to hate her?" Robert asked as he lightly punched his friend. He produced a hand to Selena, which she took.
"Robert Kensington," he kissed the back of her hand.
"I believe I don't need to introduce myself," she smiled.
"I hope we'll be friends before the end of the night," Robert smiled.
"Okay," Alexander pulled his friend away from Selena. "Where are the others? I don't see them."
"Come, they're busy with calls for now," Robert led the way. "I wish I could say they were missing their girlfriends, but they're all on work calls."
"You go ahead, I'll catch up with you," Selena said. "I need to go to the ladies'."
Both men sat in a private corner, away from most eyes. Robert smiled at Alexander, and Alexander raised a questioning brow.
"So, Selena Tequila huh?" Robert asked.
"Don't get ideas into your head," Alexander warned. "She's going through something right now."
"Oh yeah?" Robert leaned back against the cushioned chair. "So what? You're her shoulder to lay on at the end of this night?"
"Shut up Rob."
Robert raised his hands. "I'm not going to judge you. To each their definition of therapy."
"Her boyfriend died," Alexander said.
Robert's smile dropped. "Oh shoot."
"Yeah, I just wanted her to clear her head, so I brought her here," Alexander said. "She was pretty down."
"So," Robert drummed his fingers on the table. "How exactly did you come to find out and end up together tonight?"
"Long story," Alexander watched as Selena walked toward them. She slid in next to him, set her clutch on the table, and picked the menu.
"I had mostly drinks, could use something to hold my belly," she said as she perused the menu.
"I'm sorry about your loss," Robert said.
"Rob," Alexander shot at his friend.
"What loss?" Selena asked.
Robert gave Alexander a side-eye. "Alex here told me about someone dear to you dying."
"Oh," Selena looked at Alex and back at her menu. "Jayden died about two years ago. He was a great poodle."
Alexander sat straight. "What did you just say?"
"Jayden, my poodle, he's the love of my life. Or was," she tapped at the menu. "I'll get fried calamari. Is it any good here?" She asked Robert.
"You came to today's dinner crying," Alexander's anger was in sight.
Selena shrugged. "I overslept, then I had to do my hair and makeup. Then figure out what dress to wear. Before I knew it, I was late, and I knew it would sound rude without a solid excuse, so I used my classical dead Jayden story. He was a cute dog, you'd have loved him."
"Those men comforted you. They stayed with you and consoled you." Alexander was furious now. "And you lied to their faces! Lied to me. Lied to them all."
"Alex," Robert called him, hoping to calm him down.
"What are you yelling at me for? It's not like I told a lie," Selena defended herself. "And I did it for you. So relax and stop all the drama."
"I think we should order…" Robert tried to pitch in.
" I Thought you changed, but of course you are still the same self centered,entitled..." He paused
Tension strung the air. Selena's throat bopped, and her eyes welled. Alexander would not be fooled, she was an actress, and a good one at that.
Selena took her purse and rose to her feet. She began to walk away, but paused and returned to the table.
"I'm sorry," she said. "See? I can say it. I'm sorry, isn't that what you want? Sorry I barged into your life, sorry I said the things I did in the bathroom, sorry I resurrected the story about my dead dog so your meeting would go smoothly without me ruining it with my lateness. Sorry Alex, happy now? Maybe if you take a look into the mirror, you'd think you're admonishing me, but in truth, you're mean, so mean! And I hope Jayden chases you in your dreams tonight and bites your arms off! Or better still, your face!"
That being said, she walked off angrily. Alexander closed his eyes and leaned back. When he opened it, his two other friends, William and Max, were looking at him with curious eyes.
"Was that not Selena Tequila who just left this table?" William asked.
"Yes," Robert said, rising to his feet. "And we're going to find ourselves another table." He shot Alexander a dirty look. "Let's leave Alex here to find his gentlemanly attitude because it seems he lost it somewhere."
William and Max didn't argue, and they followed after Robert. Alexander bit his lower lip. He just knew it wouldn't be too long before he found his gentlemanly attitude and saw Selena Tequila again.