Her Premarital Ex (The Alexanders Book 3)

by Tina Martin

  “Running away again,” his voice said, echoing off the water behind her.

  Gabrielle’s heart raced when she heard him swaying about, moving closer behind her. She inhaled a thick smell of chlorine and his cologne then wished she would’ve stayed put in her room.

  She turned to meet his gaze and said, “I’m not running.”

  “Then can we talk for a minute?”

  “And just what do you want to talk about?”

  “Us.”

  “Us?” she asked, lifting a brow. “Perhaps you’ve been inhaling too much of this chlorine, Dilvan, because there is no us.”

  He smirked. “I never knew you to have a sense of humor. I like it.”

  “Goodbye, Dilvan,” she said, continuing for the steps.

  “I think there is an us,” he said, slowly walking her way as she was exiting the pool. “I miss you.”

  “Why are you telling me this, Dilvan?”

  He walked even closer, coming chest-to-chest with her.

  Gabrielle’s breathing increased as she stared at him. She remembered a few times, when they were together, thinking about how much more their relationship would be if Dilvan wasn’t so mean to her – if he actually took the time to love her. But he didn’t know how to love.

  “Do you still love me?” he asked.

  “Still...that implies that I used to love you.”

  “You did. You know it and I know it. Do you still love me?”

  With firm, bold eyes, Gabrielle said, “I love my husband.”

  Dilvan’s eyes flashed heat. Her words cut him deep, but deciding not to let her defeat him, he stroked the side of her face with his wet index finger. “Well, I still love you.”

  “You never loved me, Dilvan.”

  “I did, and I still do.”

  “No you—”

  “Don’t tell me what I feel,” he said in a raised tone.

  “And there you go yelling again. How do you expect me to be civil with you when you haven’t made any attempts to change? You’re the same Dilvan that choked me...who threw me to the floor,” she said, tears welling up in her eyes.

  “That’s what I’m trying to tell you, Gabrielle. I’m not that same man. I have changed,” he said inching closer to her face.

  “Well, since you said you’ve changed, I need you to back up a little. You’re invading my personal space.”

  “Okay.” He took a couple of steps backwards. “Is this far enough?”

  “Yes, now listen. There will never be an us anymore. When we were together, I tried to love you, Dilvan. I did, I’ll admit that. Do you know how it feels to love someone so much and not have that love returned?”

  “I know that all too well, Gabrielle.”

  Gabrielle frowned. “We can never be civil if you insist on behaving this way. I’m a married woman and I love Tyson.”

  Dilvan snarled. “You barely knew the man when y’all got married.”

  “I know him more than I knew you when we went into our arrangement. But that’s irrelevant. I love my husband and you need to get that through your arrogant head.”

  Gabrielle walked up the pool stairs and onto the floor.

  “Okay, okay. I get it,” Dilvan said.

  Gabrielle threw a white towel around herself and said, “You get it?”

  “Yeah. I don’t like it, but I get it. Now, let’s shake on it,” he suggested, extending his hand to her. She reluctantly reached for his hand, feeling him clutch his firm hand around hers. When he gently squeezed, she looked at him, locked eyes with him but refused to smile as he was doing. She wondered if he could feel the nervousness running through her fingers when their hands touched. Deciding she’d had enough, she pulled her hand away from him.

  “I have to go to bed.”

  “Me too.” He followed her out of the pool. “See you tomorrow.”

  Gabrielle hadn’t responded. She simply walked away as fast as she could.

  Dilvan smiled. Maybe there was hope for him yet. Or maybe he should forget about trying to win her back and focus on trying to be her friend. Baby steps.

  Chapter 14

  ~ * ~

  “Jeez, Gabrielle. Where have you been?” Tyson asked. He’d been patiently waiting for a phone call from her and was getting worried when she hadn’t called. He was so worried, he called Padma, who in turn called Lalita only for Lalita to notify her that Gabrielle wasn’t in the room. When Padma told Tyson, he was ready to fly there himself to find her.

  “I’m sorry. I just saw your missed calls. I went for a swim.”

  “Okay,” he said, blowing a sigh of relief. “When I called Padma and found out you weren’t in your room, I was all set to come there.”

  “Tyson, you don’t have to worry about me so much.”

  “You’re kidding me, right? You’re my wife. Of course I have to worry about you. Now tell me...is everything okay?”

  “Yes,” Gabrielle responded, stepping out onto the balcony so she didn’t disturb Lalita. She stared off into the city. Seemed that no one was sleeping tonight. Chicago was alive. Cars lined the streets. From her prime balcony location, she could hear music, see partygoers, couples, tall buildings and billboards.

  “Bri, you there?”

  “Yes, I’m here...um, Tyson, I have to tell you something.”

  “Okay.”

  “And don’t freak out about it.”

  “Okay. What’s up?”

  “Dilvan showed up and I had no idea he was going to be here and neither did Padma,” she said, pacing the balcony.

  “Why do you sound so panicky, Bri? Is he bothering you?”

  A looked of confusion washed over her face. “No, he’s not bothering me. I just don’t want you to be upset that he’s here.”

  “I’m not.”

  “You’re not?”

  “No. I knew he was there. Heshan told me.”

  Gabrielle blew a sigh of relief.

  “I’m glad you told me, though.”

  “So you’re not upset?”

  “No, I’m not. I’m not worried about Dilvan, but, if he bothers you, let me know.”

  “Okay.” Gabrielle decided not to mention her swimming pool run-in with Dilvan. There was no use in alarming Tyson unnecessarily.

  “You miss me,” he asked.

  “Of course I do. I can’t wait to be in your arms again.”

  “Likewise, baby.”

  “Are you all packed up and ready to go to Atlanta?”

  “Yep.”

  “What time are you leaving?”

  “Um...probably around six tomorrow morning.”

  “You’ll be on the road while I’m going into the seminar, so I’ll call you before it starts.”

  “Okay, my love. At any rate, let me get off the phone so you can get some sleep.”

  “All right. I love you.”

  “Love you too, angel.”

  “Goodnight.”

  “Goodnight.”

  Gabrielle walked back into the room, closing the sliding glass balcony door behind her. She’d quietly eased into bed so as not to disturb Lalita and laid there staring up at the ceiling.

  She thought about Dilvan briefly, wondering if he had really changed or if it was all lies. And she felt a wave of confusion cloud her rest as she could still feel his hand squeezing hers. What was it exactly? She was in love with Tyson, happy with Tyson, but there was something in Dilvan’s touch that made her uncomfortable. A married woman in love shouldn’t feel a spark or anything else from a man who wasn’t her husband, right?

  Chapter 15

  ~ * ~

  Tyson was halfway to Atlanta when Gabrielle had called. She told him to drive safely and that she was just about to join the expo. He promised her that he’d call around lunch.

  Once Tyson arrived at the restaurant, he sat there in the parking lot for a minute and reminisced on all the hard work it took to start this place. He had no idea his hard work would pay off in such a big way, and now he was a millionaire with r
estaurants around the country.

  He smiled and got out of the car, heading for the restaurant. He had a short meeting with the contractors today to discuss plans for redoing the kitchen. They were slated to bring in state-of-the-art ovens, grills and countertop space as well as other equipment. If the upgrade proved to be effective, he would roll them out to all his restaurant locations nationwide.

  * * *

  At lunch, Tyson met with the manager of the restaurant, Patrick Goodwin at a restaurant that Patrick had recommended. Patrick had been running the place for him since he decided to move to North Carolina. Patrick was good at it, kept things in order and connected well with the Atlanta crowd.

  “So I’ve already met with the contractors this morning,” Tyson told Patrick. “I’ve made it crystal clear that this reno should take no more than three days to complete. We need to be reopening for business by Wednesday.”

  Patrick nodded. “That sounds good.”

  “Yeah, enjoy your break while you can,” Tyson quipped.

  “I will, bruh. You can believe that.”

  Tyson took a bite of the tuna melt he’d ordered then washed it down with a drink of water. “So it’s been pretty busy, I see, from the numbers coming in.”

  “Man...it’s been crazy busy.” Patrick wiped his mouth with a napkin.

  “Yeah. Atlanta is the busiest. Los Angeles is coming in at a close second.”

  “That’s crazy, man.”

  “Yep.” Tyson took a sip of water and glanced around the place.

  “Ay, guess who came by last week asking about you?”

  A frown appeared in Tyson’s forehead. “Who?”

  “Desiree.”

  Tyson’s frown deepened. Why was Desiree seeking him out? She had some nerve after what she did to him – cheating on him with his best friend, then spreading rumors that he’d had something to do with Dennis’ death.

  “Don’t know why she’s asking about me, but I’m glad I wasn’t here. I hate losing my temper.”

  “She asked how you were...seemed disappointed when I told her you’d gotten married.”

  “Disappointed?”

  “Yeah. She was faking like she was happy for you, but I could tell she was upset.”

  “Yeah...well, I don’t have five words to say to her, so I hope she goes back up North and live happily ever after.”

  Patrick grinned. “Hey, why’d you guys break up, anyway?”

  “She was cheating on me with my best friend and I found out about it.”

  “Ouch.”

  “She tried to justify the reason she did it by telling people that I was controlling, but yet, when we were together, she freely traveled back and forth to Chicago for weeks at a time...but I’m controlling.”

  “That’s so typical...trying to pin the blame on you for her actions.”

  Tyson nodded. “You know what, though...”

  “What’s that?”

  “I’m glad she did what she did. I’m so happy she cheated on me.”

  Patrick frowned. “Say what?”

  Tyson grinned. “Let me explain it to you, man. You know how people say things happen for a reason.”

  Patrick nodded.

  “Well, if Desiree hadn’t cheated on me, I would probably be married to her and miserable. Instead, we broke up, I concentrated on my restaurants, then, to get away from all the ATL drama she kicked up, I relocated to North Carolina where my aunt introduced me to the woman I was supposed to be with from the start. My soulmate.”

  “Gabrielle.”

  “Yep. Gabrielle. She’s all the woman I’ll ever need for the rest of my life and beyond.”

  “Crazy how things work themselves out.”

  “Yes it is.”

  “Meant to tell you the reception was beautiful, man,” Patrick said. “Ain’t nothing like black love and Gabrielle is a sweetheart.”

  “Yes she is. That’s why I love her. She’s certainly made me a better man. She’s the type of woman that makes me want to be a better man.”

  “I hear that. That’s what I’m looking for.”

  “Keep looking, brother. She’s out there, and when you find her, trust me, you’ll know.”

  “Yeah...that’s what everyone tells me.”

  Chapter 16

  ~ * ~

  “This day flew by really, really fast,” Lalita said, finishing a cup of green tea.

  The women were sitting at a table in The Blue Room again, chatting after they’d enjoyed dinner.

  “Sure did,” Padma said. “Did you ladies enjoy yourselves?”

  “Yep,” Gabrielle answered. “Very informational. I got enough notes to write a book.”

  Padma grinned.

  “The food service industry seems very complex,” Gabrielle continued. “Requires a lot of hard work and dedication.”

  “Yes ma’am it does as I’m sure your husband can attest to,” Padma said.

  Gabrielle nodded. “He works very hard to keep his restaurants profitable.”

  “Yes, he does.”

  “So are we going sightseeing since this is our last night here?” Lalita asked.

  “Not me,” Gabrielle said. “I’m pooped. I need some sleep...think I’ll call my hubby and relax for a bit.”

  “All right,” Padma said. “Lalita and I will walk around for a while, then.”

  “Okay. Have fun guys,” Gabrielle said, getting up from the table.

  Padma and Lalita headed out, too.

  Gabrielle browsed around the first floor of the hotel before deciding to go up to her room. She made her way back to the pool, noticing a few people swimming tonight. She walked towards the water, sat down, took off her sandals and after pulling her dress up a little so as not to get it wet, she immersed her feet in the water.

  Ah, how relaxing.

  She closed her eyes and thought of Tyson. She would call him as soon as she was in her room. She was ready to be home with him, to be cuddled with him in bed and hear his voice; his sweet whispers while they held each other. A chill shimmied up her spine thinking about it, and an anticipatory smile came to her face.

  She looked towards the door and saw Dilvan approaching with a tray of wine and two glasses.

  Ugh. Not again. The smile quickly disappeared from her face and she looked away from him, staring at her feet in the water instead.

  “Thought I’d find you in here,” he said.

  Gabrielle hadn’t said a word. She was too busy trying to ignore him because something about his presence didn’t feel right. It didn’t feel right yesterday and it didn’t feel right today.

  “Dilvan, what do you want?”

  “Just thought that since we made some progress yesterday, we should celebrate.”

  We made some progress because I shook your hand? “No thank you,” Gabrielle replied.

  “Oh, come on,” he said, handing her a glass. “Here....just a few sips.”

  She rolled her eyes and reluctantly took the glass from his grasp. She took a sip and asked, “What kind of wine is this?”

  “Red Moscato. It’s sweet, like you. You like it?”

  “Yeah. Pretty good,” she replied, ignoring his compliment and enjoying the wine instead.

  “Good,” he said, glad to hear her say she liked it because that meant she hadn’t noticed he’d altered it a bit. If she drank only half of the wine in her glass, it would be enough to render her unconscious for hours. Dilvan couldn’t believe he’d stoop so low but it was the only way to get close to her, as close as he wanted to be.

  “Where’s my Mother and Lalita?” he asked as if he hadn’t known. He’d watched them at dinner and saw Lalita head out the front entrance of the restaurant with his mother.

  “Um,” Gabrielle said blinking twice. All of a sudden her vision was blurry. “Um...uh...they...um...they went sightseeing.” She sloshed the wine around in her glass and took another sip.

  “You didn’t want to go with them?”

  “No,” she said, placing her hand on h
er forehead, trying to steady herself because she felt dizzy all of a sudden. “I’m going to call...to call...um...call Tyson and go to bed. I feel so sleepy all of a sudden.”

  Gabrielle attempted to stand, but was so dizzy, she couldn’t catch her balance. And why was the room spinning?

  “Gabrielle, are you okay?” Dilvan asked.

  “Yeah. I’m...I’m fine,” she slurred, then rested her head on his shoulder.

  “Let’s get you to your room, sweetie,” he said, standing. Leaving the wine bottles and glasses by the pool, he helped Gabrielle to her feet, holding her up by using his right arm as a brace around her, and holding her small handbag in his left hand.

  He took the elevator to the eleventh floor, removed her keycard from her purse and unlocked the door while trying to hold her up at the same time. Having seen the green entry light flash, he turned the knob, pushed the door open and carried her to one of the queen beds, laying her unconscious body there. Then he went back to the door, secured the latch just in case Lalita came back earlier than he expected her to.