The Billionaire's Regret

Evelyn James

Damien left his friend fuming. He should have known that Eric would take Harriett’s side. Everyone thought she was a f*****g angel.

Thanks to Eric and his speech, Damien found himself second-guessing his decision. Perhaps he should have investigated further before throwing her out. But then, the picture was too clear. It couldn’t have been made up and he also had a lover. It was time to focus on Evelyn James and possibly wed her.

After thinking of where to go since he didn’t want to go back to the lonely walls of his hotel room, he decided to go to Evelyn’s house. No other person understood him as much as she did. So, he drove to her apartment.

When he got there, he only rang the doorbell once when Evelyn came running to him. It was as though she had been expecting him.

“Damien,” Evelyn said with a smile, her eyes gleaming. She was happy to see him and didn’t even bother hiding it. She knew it was wrong to be in love with a married man but Damien loved her first and if it wasn’t for his persistent father, they would have gotten married.

“Can we talk, if you don’t mind?” Damien revealed and Evelyn quickly led him into the living room.

“Is everything okay?” A frown appeared on her face. “Did Harriett do something?”

“She cheated on me.”

“What?!” Evelyn’s hand clamped on her mouth in shock. Not that she was shocked, she just wanted Damien to think she was.

“With Adrian.. I’m getting a divorce.” Damien said without looking at her. Evelyn’s eyes went wide at his statement and a smirk made its way to her face but it quickly disappeared as soon as Damien raised his face to her.

“A..are you sure?” Evelyn inquired and Damien groaned, lowering his head as he rested it in the palm of his hand. Eric’s speech continuously replayed in his head and he was starting to question himself. His mind was in a mess. A few seconds later, he raised his head and spoke up.

“There’s hard evidence besides, I never wanted to marry her. This is the perfect opportunity to leave.” He said coldly.

Evelyn stretched out her hand to touch him lightly, placing her perfectly manicured nails on his large and veiny hand. “I understand how you feel, Damien. You didn’t have a say in your own life because of your father. You would have been married to the one you love but he chose a cheater for you instead. I’m only happy she’s the one who cheated. Your father won’t be able to blame you.”

She stopped to look into his eyes, her tone changing to a caring one and her eyes softening. “I support your decision, Damien. I always will, as long as it makes you happy.” She added.

This was exactly why Damien enjoyed being around Evelyn. She always took his side regardless of what the situation was and she was a good listener. He met her in England while studying. They belonged to the same study group and shared a lot in common. They attended the same lectures and both lived off campus. Two months after they met, Evelyn coincidentally moved to his neighborhood and they naturally got closer. Damien felt that it was fate that was pulling them together and so, he dated her. When he did, he wasn’t completely sure of his feelings but since she kept asking for clarity on what they were, he agreed to date her.

During that period, he completely forgot about Harriett and how they had been betrothed to each other. However, Damien couldn’t forget about Harriett for long as his father immediately acted, reminding him of his promise to Harriett’s family.

It could never work out with Evelyn, Damien knew this but he still tried his best to change his father’s decision. In the end, his father had his way and Damien got married to Harriett. Damien let out all his frustrations and when he finally felt relieved, he stood up to leave but Evelyn grabbed his arm.

“It’s late, Damien. Spend the night.” She said seductively, batting her fake lashes, and as much as Damien wanted to decline her offer, he found himself nodding his head. He just needed a place to sleep and he wasn’t ready to drive back to his hotel. Evelyn, on the other hand, thought that this was an opportunity to sleep with Damien. To her, he was already hers since he would be divorcing Harriett soon.

Damien led himself to the guest room and Evelyn followed behind. When he got to the door, he turned to her and smiled. “Thank you for letting me stay, Evelyn. You’re a good friend. Goodnight.” He said and before she could reply, he slammed the door shut.

Evelyn gritted her teeth and balled her fists as soon as Damien was out of sight. She was disappointed that Damien didn’t want to spend the night with her or even let her in. She walked towards the door and turned the knob only to find out that it had been locked from the inside.

“It’s alright, Evelyn. Just be patient. Once he processes the divorce, he’ll be completely yours.” She assured herself and went to bed.

Damien tossed and turned on his bed, unable to sleep as Eric’s words kept replaying in his head but whenever he remembered what he saw in the picture, he would only get angry again.

“Damn you, Harriett.”

*

*

Evelyn woke up early the next morning to prepare breakfast for Damien. She planned to make him not miss Harriet even a single bit. She wanted him for herself and she was going to do everything to achieve that.

One hour later, Damien finally opened the door and joined her in the kitchen. “Good morning, Evelyn.” He said and took a seat on the kitchen stool. His hair was wet and his clothes had been changed, telling her that he had used the shower. This made her happy because it felt like they were a couple once again. She always made sure she kept the guest room in good condition for him as well as having fresh male clothes. It was as though she hoped he would always sleep over.

‘Good morning, my love.’ That was what she wanted to say in reply but she had to remind herself that he was still married and she wasn’t going to be a mistress. She deserved to be Mrs Daniels and she was going to wait until that happened.

“Morning, Damien. Come, I prepared your favorite breakfast.” She said with a smile and dropped a plate of French toast and bacon with eggs, just as Damien liked it.

She was already picturing herself as Damien’s wife, living with him and sleeping on the same bed with him. Damien was a principled man, something she hated. Back in England, when they dated, the only form of intimacy they shared was a kiss, cuddles, and hugs. Nothing more!

She was his girlfriend for Christ’s sake! s*x was a normal thing amongst young people but not with Damien she was willing to wait because she knew that sooner or later he would come around. That didn’t mean she stayed celibate because of him. She had other means of satisfying herself until he was ready.

Another thing she hated was his marriage with Harriett. She hated his wife.

Her life was perfect until she came in and stole everything. She had it all figured out.. planned the whole thing. From their first meeting up until the moment when Damien asked her to be his girlfriend. It was all planned. She saw a rich, handsome, and powerful man, it was only right that she’d want him for herself.

Then, she found out that he was already betrothed to Harriett. She was mad and swore to do everything to break their marriage. When she fabricated those pictures to send to Damien, she wasn’t sure it would work out so perfectly but When Damien came to her house and announced that he was going to divorce his wife because of those pictures, she gave herself a pat on the back.

“Way to go, Evelyn. Soon, Damien will be completely yours. Bye-bye, Harriett.”