Chapter 12 : Celia 'The Woman in Red'

For the next three days, I avoided Adrian Lancaster.

Not because I wanted to.

Nor because I was angry.

Not because of anything he had done.

I avoided him because I had finally become honest with myself.

And the truth was humiliating.

I was falling in love with my husband.

The realization followed me everywhere.

Into the kitchen, the garden, Eleanor's sitting room and even my dreams

Every glance from him lingered too long.

Every small kindness felt too important.

Every conversation replayed in my head long after it ended.

It was ridiculous.

This marriage had begun with a lie.

A mistake.

A substitution.

Adrian still believed I had stolen my sister's place.

He still looked at me with suspicion sometimes.

Yet my heart had chosen the worst possible moment to betray me.

I hated it.

Absolutely hated it.

"You're organizing that jewelry box upside down."

I blinked.

Across from me, Eleanor looked amused.

I looked down.

She was right.

The earrings I had been sorting were now mixed again.

Wonderful.

"I was distracted."

"You were daydreaming."

"No."

"About Adrian."

Heat immediately rushed into my face.

"Eleanor."

The older woman laughed.

The sound filled the room.

"Oh, sweetheart."

I groaned.

"Please stop."

"Why?"

"Because you're impossible."

"Because I'm right."

I buried my face in my hands.

That only made her laugh harder.

Before she could continue tormenting me, a maid entered the room.

"Mrs. Lancaster?"

I looked up.

"Yes?"

"Mr. Lancaster would like to see you in his office."

My heart immediately betrayed me.

Traitor.

Eleanor noticed.

Of course, she noticed.

Her smile widened.

I suddenly considered running away and starting a new life somewhere far from Greyford.

Unfortunately, that wasn't an option.

Five minutes later, I stood outside Adrian's office.

Trying to gather what little dignity I still possessed.

It wasn't working.

I knocked.

"Come in."

The sound of his voice sent an unpleasant flutter through my stomach.

Wonderful.

Absolutely wonderful.

Taking a breath, I stepped inside.

Adrian sat behind his desk.

The afternoon sunlight poured through the floor-to-ceiling windows behind him.

Making him look even more unfairly attractive than usual.

I immediately looked away.

"Did you need something?"

His gaze lifted.

For a brief moment, our eyes met.

Something warm flickered inside my chest.

I hated that too.

"Sit."

I obeyed.

Mostly because standing felt unsafe.

He pushed a folder across the desk.

"I need your opinion."

I blinked.

"My opinion?"

"Yes."

The answer came so naturally that I almost laughed.

Months ago, Adrian barely acknowledged my existence.

Now he was asking for my opinion on business matters.

Life was strange.

I opened the file.

Within minutes, my brows furrowed.

Then furrowed further.

Then further.

"This proposal is terrible."

Adrian's eyebrow lifted.

"Terrible?"

"Terrible."

I pointed at the first page.

"The shipping costs are unrealistic."

The second page.

"The supplier has a history of late deliveries."

The third.

"This timeline is impossible."

The fourth.

"The projected profit margins are inflated."

Silence.

When I finally looked up, Adrian was staring at me.

Not in the papers.

At me.

"What?"

His mouth twitched.

Almost a smile.

"You found all of that in less than ten minutes."

I shrugged.

"It wasn't difficult."

Something changed in his expression.

Something softer.

Warmer.

"You should have worked for Rowan Textiles."

The words caught me completely off guard.

My fingers froze on the page.

Because once upon a time...

That was all I had wanted.

I remembered standing outside my father's office with carefully prepared reports.

Ideas.

Only to have him dismiss me without reading a single page.

Because I wasn't Sienna.

Because my opinions didn't matter.

Because daughters like me weren't meant to be listened to.

The memory hurt more than I expected.

Adrian noticed immediately.

Of course he did.

"Celia"

The office door burst open.

Both of us looked up.

A woman walked inside.

Beautiful.

Confident. 

The fitted red dress she wore looked like it belonged on the cover of a fashion magazine.

Long dark hair fell over one shoulder.

Diamond earrings sparkled beneath the light.

And she smiled the second she saw Adrian.

Not politely.

Personally.

"Adrian."

My stomach tightened.

The woman crossed the room without hesitation.

Then she leaned down and kissed his cheek.

I froze.

The gesture was casual.

Comfortable.

Natural.

Like she'd done it a thousand times before.

The woman finally noticed me.

"Oh."

Her smile widened.

"I didn't realize you had company."

Company.

Not Mrs. Lancaster.

Company.

Very interesting.

Adrian's expression immediately hardened.

"Vanessa."

The woman laughed.

"What?"

Then she turned toward me.

For the first time, her gaze swept over my face. 

From top to bottom. 

Measuring.

Judging.

The realization made me uncomfortable.

"You must be Mrs. Lancaster."

I stood.

"Yes."

She extended her hand.

"I'm Vanessa Hart."

The name hit immediately.

Vanessa Hart.

The fashion entrepreneur.

The socialite.

The woman every gossip magazine had linked to Adrian before his engagement.

I remembered the headlines, the photographs and interviews. 

Everyone had assumed they would eventually marry.

Apparently, everyone had been wrong.

Vanessa smiled.

"I've heard a lot about you."

Something about her tone felt sharp.

Hidden beneath layers of politeness.

"Have you?"

"Oh yes."

Her smile widened.

"Not all of it is good."

The room fell silent.

My stomach dropped.

Across the desk, Adrian's expression darkened.

"Careful, Vanessa."

The warning surprised me.

Apparently, it surprised Vanessa too.

Her eyebrows lifted.

Interesting.

For a second, nobody spoke.

Then she laughed.

"Relax."

She moved toward Adrian's desk.

Far too naturally.

As if she belonged there.

As if she had every right to occupy his space.

The sight made something unpleasant twist inside my chest.

Vanessa sat on the edge of the desk.

Crossing one elegant leg over the other.

Then she smiled at me again.

"I hope you're taking good care of him."

The words sounded innocent.

They weren't.

And we all knew it. 

Because his jaw immediately tightened.

"Vanessa."

The woman sighed dramatically.

"What?"

"Stop."

The single word hung heavily in the air.

For the first time, genuine surprise flashed across her face.

Then it disappeared.

Interesting.

Very interesting.

Vanessa slowly stood.

She smoothed her dress.

"Fine."

Her smile returned.

But it looked different now.

Sharper.

More calculating.

She walked toward the door.

Then paused.

Looking back over her shoulder.

"Will you both be attending the anniversary gala next week?"

My heart skipped.

The gala.

The same gala Eleanor had mentioned several times already.

The event that every important family in Greyford would attend.

Adrian answered first.

"Yes."

Vanessa's gaze shifted toward me.

And for some reason, it felt like a challenge.

"Wonderful."

Her smile widened.

"I can't wait."

The words should have sounded pleasant.

Instead, they felt like a warning.

Then she left.

The door closed behind her.

Silence filled the office.

Neither Adrian nor I spoke immediately.

I stared at the documents on the desk.

But my thoughts were elsewhere.

Because one realization kept repeating itself.

Over.

And over again.

Vanessa Hart hadn't looked at me like a stranger.

She had looked at me like a competitor.

And somehow...

That frightened me far more than it should have.