Lonely
2125 Words
Chapter 3
Lonely
“You couldn’t pick a different restaurant?” I whispered under my breath.
“What did you say?” Asked Damien.
“Nothing! Absolutely nothing!” I yelled out, swinging my hands out.
Damien gave me a strange look, but ultimately ignored my actions and continued to walk towards the back of the restaurant.
I hoped he wouldn’t show up here. I couldn’t believe Damien brought me to the same damn restaurant that Theodore Harrington was going to show up at. Of all the places in the world, why here? I guess all these men thought the same way.
I kept my head down, hoping if he was here he wouldn’t spot me. I was a magnet for disaster on a regular basis, but I couldn’t attract anymore at the moment.
Once we were at a table further back and a bit more secluded I felt more comfortable. I was sure Red Harrington wouldn’t be able to spot me back here.
I did a little dance in my seat and Damien look at me like I had lost my mind…again. Damien picked one of the menus and told the waiter to bring us one of the most expensive bottles of wine they had. I was just happy it was a Chardonnay, my favourite.
“So, Gracie, how have you been?” Damien asked as he placed the menu back on the table.
I shrugged my shoulders. “I’m good.”
Damien gave me a look that said he knew there was more to be said.
“What?” I asked.
“Gracie, have you thought about coming back into the family? Your mother misses you.”
I scoffed. “The only thing my mother misses is not being able to control my life anymore. You ask me this every time we see each other, but you know the answer Damien. I can’t go back. Even if I wanted to, its too late. I have to see this through. I have to make sure I get to have the life I choose. I can’t hold on to hope that my parents and siblings will change their mind about it, and I certainly can’t drop it all and go back to Greece. I won’t be a pawn for my father to use, not again.”
“We all miss you, that is true. I know it was difficult for you, but you need to understand that family is important. They are there for you no matter what.” Damien told me.
I shook my head. “Family is important, but when your own father use you as a discardable prop to further his business ambitions then you have to rethink if your meant to be part of that family or not.”
“Gracie, I know what happened was hard. Uncle Alex shouldn’t have tried that but I’m sure he thought he was doing what was best for you.” Damien replied.
I sighed. “Really Damien? You really think my father was thinking about me at all? In that family you have no voice unless you’re a man. Just look at my brothers. Out in the world doing whatever they want but because they are my father’s sons they had the freedom to make their own decisions. I on the other hand made just one decision for myself and was disowned.”
“They miss you.”
“Stop we know that’s not true.”
“Gracie-
“Please Damien. I’m glad we still keep in touch, but I do not want to talk about my family.”
After a moment of silence Damien nodded his head, “As you wish.”
I smiled. I wished I had been Damien’s sister. He had two sisters and a younger brother. Damien’s father, uncle Constantin had given all his children the option to join the family business or pursue other careers, my cousins had joined the family business and married men that they had chosen themselves. A luxury I would never be aloud under my father’s dictatorship.
“Gracie?”
I looked up and saw Damien giving me another look.
“Gracie are you okay? You don’t seem like yourself today? Every time I look at you, you seem lost in thought or look stressed. Is something wrong?” He asked.
“I’ve just been feeling a bit alone lately.” I answered quietly.
Damien gave me a sympathetic look. “How about you come travel with me for a while? Or call Lukas and see if he can come visit you?”
I shook my head. “I have a film shoot going on, so I can’t leave for anywhere until wraps up in two weeks. And I can’t talk to Lukas because he’s probably too busy with his head up our older brothers-
“Don’t finish that sentence Gracie.” Damien warned.
“Ugh.” I leaned against the back of my seat.
“They are your brothers.”
“Who couldn’t stand up for me once. Greyson has barely spoken to me in the last 3 years. He married my best friend and locked her up. I am alone thanks to him.”
“Gracie…” Damien trailed off.
I straightened my shoulders and shook the emotions off. “Anyway, that’s not why we’re here, is it. Let’s talk about something else, shall we?”
He nodded his head. “Whatever you want.”
“Are you dating anyone?” I asked him.
Damien smiled, “No I am not.”
“Like you would tell me even if you were.”
“That’s true.”
I laughed.
“What about you? Anyone I need to do a background check on?”
My mind flashed to last night and Red’s face came into my mind. I tried to clear my head, but it was like he was stuck in my mind. What was going on with me. Was I completely loosing my mind?
“Gracie?”
“Mm?”
“Is there someone I should be looking into?” He asked again.
I shook my head. “No! No one at all.” I said nervously.
“And you would tell me if there was?” He asked with a smirk on his face.
I smiled, “Nope, not in a million years. I know what that would entail. The man would surely run away once you were done with collecting your ‘Background information’. Remember what you guys did to Preston Smythe back in the day?”
“He deserved that pummeling, and he knew it.” Damien said with a shrug.
“I’m sure he did.” I replied rolling my eyes.
Damien smiled at me and then asked, “Do you know what you want?”
I looked at the menu and trying to decide what I wanted to eat. I usually ate whatever I wanted and right now I wanted some cheesy pasta, but that was out of the question. I had to watch what I ate during a movie shoot. I couldn’t afford the extra carbs.
“Umm I will get the salmon salad with the dressing on the side.”
Damien raised an eyebrow at me. Everyone knew I had a love for carbs. “Really?”
I nodded my head.
“You don’t want pasta?”
My lip trembled a little and my mouth watered, but I shook my head. I had another week of shooting left before I had a break and I would eat my carbs then, I promised myself.
After placing our orders Damien turned to me and asked me, “Will you still me what’s bothering you? I know you well enough to know something else is going on.”
I looked up at my cousin. I wondered how he handled everything so well. He took care of his business, his parents and when they allowed his siblings too. He had the weight of the world on his shoulders, but he could take it. Here I was struggling with my feelings. As much as I didn’t want to burden him he was the only person I had to turn to at the moment.
“You know how I said I’ve been feeling lonely?” I asked Damien.
Damien nodded.
“Well apart of that is because I can’t find my friend Jade.”
“Can’t find?”
“Okay first off I need you to promise you will not tell a soul about any of this.” I told Damien pointing my finger at him.
“Okay.” Was his only response.
I hesitated for a minute before continuing. “We’ll one of the only other friends I have State side from boarding school is my friend Jade, but she’s disappeared. I haven’t been able to get in contact with her for a while now. I thought she would surface eventually, not like this is the first time this as happened, but she hasn’t yet and now I’m really worried about her.”
“Jade? Maybe she’s just been busy.” Damien said.
“No Damien. Umm… I shouldn’t be telling you this but I’m a bit desperate right now and need your help finding her. She’s been … in hiding on purpose for a while but she usually reaches out to tell me she’s fine and I meet with her as much as I possibly can. But this time it’s different. I left to go finish a shoot in Europe a few months ago and I saw her before that, but since I’ve been back I haven’t been able to get in touch.”
Damien nodded his head, “Why is she in hiding?”
“I can’t tell you that but trust me she needs to be. It’s for her own safety.” I told him reassuringly as possible.
“So maybe she can’t get in touch with you right now?”
“I don’t know, I have this feeling that it’s more than that. Do you think you could help me out? I just need to know she’s safe. You have contacts in New York, right? Could you just find out if she’s still there and alright?” I asked him.
Damien nodded his head. “Of course. What’s her name?”
“Jade Harrington.”
“Wait, did you just say Harrington?” Damien asked a bit shocked.
“I did.”
“You mean that the Harrington heiress is missing?” He asked.
“She’s not missing D. She’s in hiding.”
“Why would she need to be in hiding?” He asked.
“I told you I can’t tell you the reason!” I exclaimed.
“Gracie!”
“I can’t tell you, I promised her I wouldn’t. If you can’t do it it’s fine, I’ll find her myself.” I told him, a bit angry.
Damien sighed, “I can help find her, but I think it would be better if I knew her reasons for hiding is all.”
“I’m sorry I can’t tell you.”
Our food came out and we waited for the waiter to leave before continuing our conversation.
“Okay, I will find your friend for you, but on one condition.”
I rolled my eyes, “All you businessmen are the same.”
Damien waited until I agreed to continue.
“Fine what is your condition?”
“You will call one of your brothers.”
“But why?” I whined.
“That’s the deal, take it or leave it.”
“Fine I will.”
“Then I will find this heiress friend of yours. How hard could it be.” Damien said picking up his fork and knife.
“More than you think.” I mumbled, picking up my wine glass and taking a big swig of it.
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(Red Harrington)
She was here on a date with another man!
Laughing!
She was here having a good time with someone else.
Then it occurred to me, why did I care? She wasn’t my type to begin with.
Grace Novak wasn’t the type of woman I could associate with myself.
How could I be attracted to a woman who had turned her back on her family to go act of all things. She had run away from home not caring how it looked.
But I couldn’t deny that I needed her. She was the key to finding my sister. I needed to know Jade was okay and once I did; I will make sure Gracie never goes near her again.
I turned around and left the restaurant.
I guess I’ll have to find another way to get her to agree.
- Writer
