Chapter Ten
Liza’s POV
Eventually, I got bored with everything. There were times I’d take a stroll around the mansion as though I didn’t care about a thing. The constant staring at the ceiling made me feel like my life lacked purpose, not to mention how I looked blankly at the television screen. I tried to watch some shows, but I couldn’t pay attention. I remember Love Island used to be a hell of a show; now it looked like a chaotic piece of reality TV. Moments weaved seconds, minutes, days, and weeks into a perfect knot, to the point where I didn’t notice the time passing like a stranger on the roadside. All I did was sit and play along with my loneliness.
Roman still kept his distance. I feared, at some point, that my presence began to fade out in his head. He ignored me most of the time, yet I stayed resilient in my longing. I don’t know why I thought of him much. I found myself yearning for his voice and silly wit. I longed to take my time to watch the way he looked at me. His green eyes set my mind at ease. I missed his reaction each time I did things contrary to the way he intended. I don't know what made me miss him, but I did. His decision to distance himself from me made me slightly desperate. His silence towards me, on the other hand, was romantic but disturbing. Roman hadn’t said a thing about marriage in the previous weeks, which made me panic. Little by little, I despised being pushed out into nothing. I was left to wonder what his true intentions were towards me. I needed to find out.
At this moment, I sat in the lounge alone. I felt a little moisture in the air, although my lips were dry. I heard the sound of footsteps, so I turned towards the door and saw Isabella walk quickly towards me. Her entrance was a storm of expensive perfume dancing around her silk gown. I stood up to receive her, and her arms flung wide open to embrace me.
“I miss you, my dear,” she said while she pressed my body tight to hers.
“I miss you too, Bella.”
“I would have come earlier, but I had to stay back and do some work with Mikhail. I’m sorry.”
“It’s fine. I understand.” I replied and rubbed her hands in a subtle massage. I was slightly overwhelmed by her presence, and the joy I thought I had lost began to encompass me.
“Hey, Liza,” I opened my eyes to see who spoke. Immediately, I broke the embrace with Isabella and hugged Emilia. I hadn’t noticed the moment she walked in. I must have been carried away by Isabella’s hug. My ladies were here, and in this moment, that was all that mattered. The bad energy was gone, and life took on a different meaning. I was happy.
“How have you been, my love?” Emilia asked, her hair smelled of vanilla, exploding with a touch of cinnamon.
“I guess I’m fine now,” I said.
“Don’t worry, we’re here to make you feel better,” Isabella said. I could tell how happy they both were to see me, as though I’d been missing for years. The flicker in their eyes was hopeful, their smile seemed a bit pitying yet loving, and it filled my heart with so much emotion. I felt the tears cloud my eyes, and I tried my best to hold them back.
“So…What’s new?” Emilia asked the second we all sat on the sofa.
“Nothing,” I answered. “It’s all the same here.”
“Is Roman hard on you?” Isabella asked.
“No,” I shook my head, negating her thought. If I were to judge, I’d say that Roman was a sweetheart trapped in a mysterious body that I needed to unravel. Life with Roman so far has been confusing. And to answer her question in all honesty, I continued, “Quite the contrary. We live together under the same roof as engaged lovers, but really, we’re fuckingstrangers. It’s crazy. And whenever I notice how he doesn’t smile when our eyes collide, it makes me wonder what his thoughts towards me are. I mean, I get the collateral part, you guys know. But, sometimes, I just…wonder…what’s really going on between us. The man wouldn’t just…talk.”
“Hmm…men,” Emilia said. “They’re all full of themselves sometimes. I think space is what he thinks he needs for the moment.”
“You think?”
“Yeah. Viktor acts that way sometimes.”
Isabella added, “Baby girl, just relax. You have nothing to worry about. Everything is going to work out. It’s almost like a phase every man goes through. They keep their distance for a while, and we miss them. They almost never notice how much we miss them, but they come running back to us the second they miss us. And I’ll tell you again, you bagged the calmest brother.”
“And that’s the best part,” Emilia said, and my heart jumped with gladness. The accuracy with which she described the whole situation made it seem brighter. “I hope you haven’t been a hard ass to him, though?”
“I’m not a badass,” I answered, chuckling mischievously. “Or am I? Isabella?”
“Uh, you’re asking me?” she joked, pursing her lips in mock innocence as Emilia and I burst into laughter. “I know you’re a darling.”
“Speaking of bad people,” Emilia coughed out after she sipped a tiny portion of her tea. “Please tell me you’ve heard about the latest couples in town.”
At this point, I kept my eyes narrowed at both of them. Isabella’s smile exposed her knowledge of the information, and I sat there being the only one confused.
“You mean Erik and Yolanda’s marriage?” Isabella replied with enthusiasm that meant she had lots of commentsabout it. If it wasn’t about the wedding, then it was about the person, and I was down to hear it all. I hadn’t fully immersed myself in their wedding, though I’d seen a headline or two. And although I felt I had bigger things to worry about than some wedding, it kind of piqued my interest.
“No, I don’t think I’ve heard anything much about the wedding,” I said.
“At least, tell me you know Yolanda,” Isabella uttered. Her eyes were steady on mine.
“What about her?”
