CHAPTER FOUR: I'M DONE HIDING

KIM

Nathan's cold look sent waves of electricity down my nerves as a bead of sweat slowly made its way over the corner of my eyes and down to my cheek. My breathing becomes shallow, and my mouth becomes dry.

I glanced at Eleanor and noticed the smug look on her face. I bet she's enjoying every bit of this, but I won't make her laugh last.

I took a sharp and steady breath to soothe my raging nerves, but that did not help at all.

One of the maids scurried over with a broom to sweep the shattered glass and mopped the remnant of spilt wine while the other replaced my wine glass and refilled it.

I used the distracted time to calm down and compose myself, and thankfully, Nathan was not pressing for an answer immediately.

I looked at Eleanor's tanned face, my face contorted with rage. At the moment, I wish I could possess Nathan's emotionless and stoic face. But far from that, I don't know how to keep my emotions at bay or should I say I haven't learnt how.

Nathan, who had been looking at me intently, stood up from his seat and placed his napkin on the table. He looked at me, his gaze soft and calm, the opposite look of what he gave me earlier.

“You should clean up, honey,” he said to me before barking orders at Butler Lee, who hurried into the dining hall when the wine glass broke.

“Butler Lee, please, make my wife something else to eat. She hardly had a bite all evening,” he said before signalling to Eleanor, who was already on her feet, to follow him.

I sat rooted still in my seat after Eleanor was out of sight, and I couldn't help but smile sweetly. Nathan has never called me honey or referred to me as his wife. He has never given me that soft and calm look, either.

Could he have done that to show Eleanor that he cared about me? Or did he do that to save my face?

Even though I knew it was nothing but an act, I still couldn't put that stupid shy smile off my face!

“Get a grip, Kim,” I said, slapping myself on both cheeks to get rid of the smile off my face.

“Would you like me to make you something else, Mrs Pearce?” Butler Lee said, looking apologetically.

“I'm okay for now.” I smiled at the apologetically looking old man. I'm not fine because I'm full, but because I couldn't stomach anything for now.

If Nathan had not ended the dinner and left, I don't know what I would have done or how I would have refuted Eleanor and wiped that stupid smug look off her face!

I stood up from my chair, feeling the dinner gown all sticky on me. All I wanted was to peel off that sticky gown and wash off the fruity smell of me.

I walked out of the dining hall less gracefully than I had when I came down earlier. I must confess that Eleanor won tonight. She won because she was able to bring back the memories I wanted to keep at bay and the name I wanted to forget forever.

I opened the door to my room, grabbed my phone from the bedside table, and slowly walked past my walk-in closet into the overly large bathroom.

I stepped out of my gown and underwear and turned on the faucet of the floating tub to make a bubble bath. While the water was running, I picked up my phone and dialled the most recent number—My alter ego.

“Hello,” a sweet and worried voice came from the receiver.

Phoebe Hart is my only best friend and business partner. We have been friends since high school, and we know everything about ourselves.

“Hi,” I replied weakly.

“What is wrong, darling? Do you fight with Nathan again?” she asked, her voice tinged with concern

I smile at her last question. Figures, nothing else can make me sad other than having issues with my husband.

“No, no. Nathan and I didn't fight. We did earlier this evening, but that is not why I'm like this.” I replied, feeling dejected.

“What happened then?”

“Eleanor Duke was here for dinner.”

“wh..what! Eleanor Duke was in your house for dinner!” Phoebe screamed out.

“She works for Nathan, and he asked her to come here so he can sign a very important document”

“what fucking docu—wait, you said Eleanor works at The Pearce? How? When did she start working for him?”

“I did not inquire” I said while turning off the water and getting into the tub

The warm water soothes my tense nerves and I let out a sigh of relief.

“Why didn't you ask? So what did that bitch do to you during dinner? You didn't let her win right? Because I know she's going to try to rile you”

Then I began narrating everything that happened during dinner. How she made comments about Nathan not talking about me and how I referred to her as a mere worker.

“Really,” Phoebe asked, laughing triumphantly from the other end. I don't have to guess to know that she's currently rolling on the floor while laughing at how I belittle Eleanor.

I waited for her to stop laughing before I delivered the same blow Eleanor delivered to me during dinner.

“That is not the highlight of the gist,” I said in a small voice, trying to get her attention. And it worked, she was immediately alert.

“Oh, something else happened?” she asked. Worries were now evident in her voice.

“Jake Smith also works at The Pearce,” I said with a voice filled with fear and panic.

The bathroom was quiet as I waited for Phoebe's reaction to the blow. She didn't respond immediately, and all I could hear was the sound of her breathing, which increased by the seconds before she finally spoke.

“Shit!” That was the only thing she said before she went silent again.

I pulled my knee to my chest unconsciously as a defence as I tried to fight the memories of six years ago from flooding in and taking control of my emotions.

I had promised myself that I would do anything to make those memories remain in the past.

Phoebe's voice came in again and this time more firmly.

“Kim, it's time to fight the past,” she said to me firmly and confidently.

“No, no. I can't do that. Fighting the past means I have to remember what happened Phoebe!” I said, raising my voice a little.

“Listen to me, Kim. If Eleanor was there tonight, it means she had found out you're married to Nathan somehow. And if she knows, then Jake knows something too!”

“Her appearance tonight shows that the two of them are planning something terrible again, something that you and I do not want to find out!” she said.

Everything starts to make sense now. Nathan was a man who knew how to draw the line between personal time and work. I wondered how urgent Eleanor had painted the situation for him to tell her to come.

And besides, when I entered the dining room, Eleanor did not seem surprised to see me as someone who just met her boss' wife.

“Let's talk more about this in the office tomorrow Phoebe,” I said, having concluded to Fight back.

“Okay, dear. Don't think too much about this, just go to bed. Good night darling,” she said before hanging up the receiver.

I step out of the tub and walk to the mirror at the sink. I wiped out the steam on the mirror locking eyes with my reflected hazel eyes and said to myself

“I'm done hiding!”