Chapter 140: A Day in the Life
Moana
A few days passed by after the networking event. Things felt peaceful in the penthouse, and although I really only stayed in with Ella to stay away from the paparazzi, I didn’t mind. It was relaxing to stay inside and away from the public, and I spent a lot of time drawing and reading with Ella, which was nice after being so busy lately. I just hoped that events such as the networking event were few and far between. Although I enjoyed spending the evening with Edrick and watching the comedy show together that night, I didn’t like the other people that were there and I feared that I would see many of the same people at future events like that.
However, it seemed that my reprieve was brief, because Edrick came to me a few days later and told me about another upcoming event that I would have to attend with him.
“I need you to come to a work event with me tomorrow morning,” Edrick said casually as he stirred his tea on Thursday morning before work.
I felt my shoulders sag as he told me this. I was still tired from the last event, and I didn’t feel up to mingling with more celebrities and businessmen who looked down on me because of my social status.
“Do I have to go?” I asked, a bit sheepishly. “I’m still tired after that first event.”
Edrick sighed. “I know you are. But this event will be different, I promise.”
I raised an eyebrow. “How so?”
The Alpha billionaire shrugged and took a sip of his tea. When he set the teacup down, he picked up his newspaper and opened it with a flick of his wrists while he crossed his legs. I thought that I would never get used to how handsome he looked during mundane moments like this. Even when he was just casually drinking his breakfast tea and reading the paper, he looked incredibly attractive.
“It’s a picnic,” he replied. “Just a little employee appreciation event. It’ll be outside with games and food, and Ella can come, too.”
The way that Edrick described the event was tempting. It did sound nice to spend the day outside, and if Ella could have a chance to play in the park after being cooped up in the penthouse all week, then I would do it for her.
“Will I need to have my hair and makeup professionally done again?”
Edrick chuckled and shook his head. “No. It’s just casual. Wear something nice, of course, but remember that you’ll be outside. Dress comfortably.”
I couldn’t help but let out a small sigh of relief. Now that the pregnancy was progressing, high heels were becoming more and more uncomfortable. My feet were beginning to swell a bit and I found myself feeling more tired in my knees, hips, and back than usual, so comfortable shoes were a necessity at this point.
“Okay,” I finally agreed. “I’ll go.”
Edrick seemed pleased and took another sip of his tea. However, I did secretly wonder if this would be my life from now on as the “wife” of a famous Alpha CEO: event after event with little rest in between.
And somehow, Edrick must have seen the uncomfortable look on my face and glanced up at me over his newspaper with a furrowed brow. “Everything okay?”
I nodded at first, but Edrick kept staring at me, and finally I decided to tell him the truth about how I felt.
“I just don’t know how well I’ll handle so many events from now on,” I replied. “I’m still tired from the first one. Is this what it’s like? One event after the other with hardly any rest in between?”
Edrick was silent for a few moments before he neatly folded his newspaper back up and set it down on the table. He leaned on his elbows then and looked at me with a sigh.
“I promise this is the last one for a while,” he replied. “The end of summer and the holidays are busy, but other than that, it’s not typically like this. Besides, you get used to it quickly, and it doesn’t feel so draining after your first few events; especially once the paparazzi gets bored of our relationship and moves on.”
Edrick’s words were comforting, but a bit depressing at the same time. I didn’t want to admit it, but I really didn’t enjoy these sorts of events. The thought that I would have to learn to simply “get used” to them was a little depressing, as it meant that there was no getting away from them — despite the fact that our public relationship was fake. Not only that, but to have our “relationship”, real or not, be treated as a fad that people would quickly get bored of made me feel sad. I wasn’t a commodity to be sold to the public; I was a person.
But, despite all of this, Edrick reached across the table then and squeezed my hand. I felt my heart skip as his hand touched mine, and when I met his gaze, his eyes were soft and understanding. Maybe things like this wouldn’t be so bad after all when I had him here for support.
Edrick then pulled his hand away just as quickly as he extended it and stood, ending our brief moment of comfort together. I felt my face go red as he stood, and I quickly looked away and hid my hands beneath the table.
“Remember,” he said as he looked at his watch and picked up his suit jacket off of the back of the couch, slinging it over his forearm. “It’s just a Labor Day picnic. It’ll be fun.”
I nodded and watched as Edrick walked out of the dining room. I heard the elevator doors open and close before I let out a small sigh and returned to eating my own breakfast. Maybe it would be fun. It would be fun for Ella, too, especially if there were other children there.
But, even with all of this in mind, I still couldn’t deny the fact that the first event left a bad taste in my mouth. It wasn’t the event itself that was the problem — I actually had a nice time with Edrick and would have gladly done it again — but rather the people. Because of my lower social status, people hated me. And I knew that some of those very same people would likely be at the picnic, where they would also likely ridicule me once again. I didn’t want to put Ella through ridicule, too, since they thought that she was my biological daughter; I could only imagine the sorts of nasty things that people like that would say about a half-blooded little girl. Besides, even if they did know that I was a werewolf, I would still be nothing but a freak for not having my wolf emerge until much later in life, not to mention my low status of growing up in an orphanage. No matter which way I turned, I knew that I would always face the ridicule of wealthy people like that.
And I didn’t want to put Ella or my baby through that same ridicule.
