Andy hadn't been this nervous since the first trial she had participated in, when she was still in college. Even though, all those years ago, there was also a lot of euphoria and excitement to balance that feeling of cold sweat and upset stomach. At that moment, however, sitting at the furthest and most private table in one of the most expensive restaurants in the city, there was nothing good inside her, other than the almost suffocating tension of knowing that she was about to have to endure Gabriel's presence. for an indefinite number of hours.
What a hell! Could it be that even after 10 years he hadn't met anyone else he liked to torment besides her? What was so fun about making her life a misery, anyway?
Taking a deep breath, she tried to convince herself that, at least, Gabriel had had the decency to fulfill what he had promised. Practically the same momen
As Gabriel expected, Andy did not express any desire to talk to him, remaining silent from the moment they placed the order, when the dishes arrived and until that moment, when the two were about to finish their desserts. However, instead of being tedious or uncomfortable, the almost two hours he had spent with her were nothing short of… Incredible. It was as if there was a part of him that had remained hungry for the last ten years and was now completely satiated by Andrea's presence, whether she gave him the pleasure of talking to him or not.When he looked up, he caught her looking at him again with an expectant expression, but Gabriel wasn't fooled. He knew very well that the only thing she was waiting for was for him to finally finish the food so she could run away from him as quickly as possible.However, first, there was one thing that, no matter
“Wait… When you say Andy… You mean Andrea Vamcap?! Like… That Andrea Vamcap?” Henry McCoy choked slightly on his glass of whiskey, but Gabriel continued to stare absently at the glass on the bar in front of them, not paying much attention to his childhood friend.“Are you really surprised?” Henry's older brother, Nathan, sighed, not doing much more than pouring another shot into the glass in Gabriel's hand, although it was exactly what he needed at that moment “The girl saved his life and after that they didn't even exchange a single word again. I think that’s something that would stick with me, too.”“No need to sweeten the pill, Nathan…” Gabriel grumbled, drinking what was in the glass in one go “You know it’s more than that.”
As much as Andy had tried hard to convince herself otherwise, the truth was that Gabriel Ferrars still had the ability to deeply disturb her. The proof of this was that, even after she had managed to leave that restaurant and breathe fresh air outside, his words and regretful expression had continued to haunt him, returning to his mind again and again, challenging her to trying to understand what he really wanted... Or if he, in fact, was telling the truth about just wanting her forgiveness.At the school she had been transferred to, a few months after what had happened to Gabriel at the lake, Andy had met many other teenagers who were victims of bullying, some even more cruel than what she had experienced, and certainly all of them still suffered from the consequences of that. If any of them were unlucky enough to meet their bully, even years later, they would proba
“So, as I mentioned before, Mr. Ferrars, when I won the Abberley versus Channing case, right after defending Elliott Shelby, the sardine can magnate… Oh, did I mention how I won that trial? That's a very interesting story..." William Carter, Wagner Christopher, or whatever the name of that insufferable old man who was Andy's co-worker was, continued to chatter, so focused on praising his own achievements that he didn't even seem to notice the deadly glare that Gabriel was pitching him at that moment.The last thing he wanted that morning was to leave Andy's office. Everything inside was incredibly like her, plus it was filled with her sweet, fresh scent, making him feel closer to her than he ever could have the day before, when the two of them had lunch together. Furthermore, during the moments when she was quiet while reading the documents she had given him, he had the opportunity to run his
“You really have a lot of energy to burn today, don’t you, Andy?” Emberly, Andy's Muay Thai instructor laughed, after a kick from her sent the training dummy practically flying backwards.“I think I’ve accumulated a lot this past week.” Andy wiped the sweat from her forehead, before walking over to where the doll had fallen “But I promise I won't break anything.”“Of course you won’t.” Emberly laughed, handing her a towel as soon as Andy returned to the middle of the mat “And not just because Mrs. Tate would kill me if I let you destroy the materials she invested millions into building this gym.” she nodded at the clock at the top of the wall “Your time is up.”“It’s been an hour and a half already?” Andy gasp
“Were you drowning?” the moment that sentence left Andy's mouth, she regretted it a little, knowing that this must be a delicate subject for Gabriel... Or, apparently, much more delicate than she could have imagined, as some of the panic returned to his expression as soon as she mentioned that word.“No, I… No, I wasn’t.” he muttered, almost embarrassed, without even looking at her “I was just trying to… Swim.”"What do you mean?" Andy furrowed her eyebrows, confused, but her question was interrupted when the dog suddenly placed itself between the two, extremely excited to be able to dedicate itself to licking both of their faces at the same time.“Hey, Luca…” Gabriel laughed softly, running his hands over the Bernese's neck, who immediately
There was no reason for her to be so nervous. It was just a date in a restaurant that wasn't even that refined. She could get up and leave whenever she wanted, if she felt like it.That's what Andy mentally repeated to herself, as she looked at her own made-up face in the small pocket mirror. She hadn't understood why Harriet had seemed so hesitant about her idea of finally going on a date, but now, sitting in her car and knowing that Malcolm Shepherd was probably already waiting for her, Andy realized that her best friend often knew her better than herself. The date hadn't even started and she had already regretted making that decision on impulse, before even meeting one of the few men whose profile description had looked promising on the app.Maybe she wasn't ready for that yet. Maybe it would be better to just text Malcolm to apologize and then go home&hel
“So, as you can see, Mr. Ferrars, I already have the perfect business plan for my future company. All I can do is find an investor…” Malcolm commented for the millionth time, again not seeming to notice that Gabriel wasn’t paying the slightest attention to his chatter about money and business.“So… Malcolm…” Andy took advantage of a moment when he finally stopped talking to come up for air, determined to try to establish a conversation with him to prove to Gabriel that he couldn't ruin her date “Tell me a little more about your family."“We, Shepherds, are of a noble lineage hidden by time.” he announced, in a tone that reminded Andy a lot of the way the pet shop had talked about Nick's pedigree, before he was adopted “My great-grandmother's aunt was married to an English nobleman and wa