Arranged Love – Episode 11

Ma’am.”

I came out of my memories and looked up to see the male flight attendant in front of me. “Do you need anything?” he asked me. Do I need something? I looked at my watch to see that I had day dreamed for a few hours.

“Um..a glass of water with a slice of lemon would be nice,” I told her. He gave me a smile. “Certainly,” he said to me and walked away. Did I really daydreamed that long? I looked over at Adrian who was flirting with the female flight attendant.

My heart felt crushed from the sight.

Listen Vera. He doesn’t love you. He doesn’t have feelings for you. You shouldn’t have feelings for him. I let out a quiet deep sigh and returned my attention to my book and waited for my water.

In my heart, I felt some hope that he had feelings for me. We were going to our honeymoon after all.

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“Mr. Minetti. This is your captain speaking. Please put your seat in an upright position and buckle up. We are in our final descent. We will be landing at Heathrow International Airport shortly. Thank you for flying with us and hope you again on the way back home.”

The flight was very long. I didn’t get any sleep. To be honest, I didn’t like sleeping on the plane but, I was exhausted from being awake for over ten hours. I closed my book and packed everything in my bag.

Looking out of the window, the runway was in view. Almost there . I sat up in my seat and closed my eyes. As the time went by, I counted down in my head. 5-4-3-2-1. Next thing I knew, I felt the plane jerk forward a bit. We had landed on the runway safely.

I looked out of the window to see that the plane was slowing down on the runway. It didn’t take too long for the plane to come to a complete stop at the end of the runway. The plane taxied to a terminal for private jets.

Bing….

The lights for the belts came on. I unbuckled my belt and got up from my seat. I had to say that my legs needed some stretching but, I knew that I shouldn’t in front of the flight attendants. I might embarrass Adrian.

Adrian got his brief case and walked near the exit. I made my way next to him while the flight attendants get our jackets. The male flight attendant got my jacket for me. “Here you are ma’am,” he said to me.

I gave him a small nod and took the jacket. I got the jacket on myself even though he was trying to help me. The flight attendant helped Adrian with his jacket. I walked to the exit to feel the cold breeze of England.

Here I am.

Looking below me, I could see that a car was waiting for us. Adrian gave me a little nudge forwards. I walked down the stairs and to the car. The driver opened the door for me and I slipped inside with ease.

Adrian sat on the other side. Lorenzo sat in the front. Immediately, he took his laptop out of his bag and started to work.

Maybe he wants to get ahead so that we can have time together. The car started to move and drive out of the airport.

“Where to sir?” the driver asked Adrian. “Buckingham Palace,” Adrian told him. I looked out of the window and watched the scenery go by. It was amazing that I was here. London almost reminded me of New York…everyone was busy.

In the main streets of London, there were so many people. I wasn’t too surprised about the traffic too. Some streets were way to difficult to get through. but, the driver managed to get around the traffic very well.

Soon, we were near Buckingham Palace. The building was amazing. The driver parked the car not too far from the palace. Adrian, Lorenzo, and I walked up to the gates. I could see the guards in the front of the doors of the palace.

“Lorenzo, get the camera ready,” Adrian told him. “Yes sir,” Lorenzo said and took the camera out of his bag. Adrian took my hand and walked in front of the gate entrance. “Ready,” Lorenzo said to us. Adrian wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me towards him. I could feel the warms and tingles from his hands on my waist. It was comforting against the cold weather.

What should I do?

Subconsciously, I placed my hands on his chest and rest my head over his heart. I could feel and hear his heart thump against his chest. I wonder what he feels for me? I made sure to smile at the camera.

“1-2-3.”

Click!

Adrian pulled me away from him gently and waited for Lorenzo to show him the camera. The picture came out really nice. I could see that Adrian didn’t smile wide but, it was enough to show that he was happy.

“Okay. Let’s go,” Adrian said. We walked back to the car and told the driver to take us to the hotel.

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Adrian had really spent a lot of money for a hotel. He ended up getting a suite at a luxury hotel in all of London. The suite was located on the highest floors of the hotel and had a great view of the city. Everything inside was top quality. I was happy to see that there were two beds.

I walked over to the window and opened the curtains to see that view. I could see Buckingham Palace and the London Bridge.

Wow .

“Lorenzo. We need to get going. You know that I hate to be late at a meeting,” Adrian told him. I turned to look at Adrian. “What?” Meeting?

Lorenzo gave him a nod. “Of course sir. I’ll get the car ready,” he told him and walked out of the room.

Adrian got his briefcase and looked at me. “You really think that we would come here for our honeymoon? You are so delusional,” he told me. I was speechless. All this time, I had thought that he wanted our marriage to work.

He walked to the for and open it a bit. Before he walked out, he looked at me. “My sole purpose is to do business here. Not to spend time with a poor girl like you,” he told me. His eyes were so cold when he said the words. I could feel tears forming in my eyes. My hands shook from the feeling….of rejection.

“You can have fun here on your own. Remember, don’t bother me when I’m here and anywhere for that matter,” he said and walked out of the room. He closed the door behind himself without looking at me again.

Once I knew that he was gone, I slid down on the floor and let the tears fall. He doesn’t want me. He doesn’t want things to work . He was right about one thing. I wasn’t a rich girl. I was a poor girl. A girl who was unwanted by her family except her grandparents.

I didn’t know how long I was on the floor but, when I was done crying, I could see that it was already night. Slowly, I got up from the floor and looked out the window. I took my glasses off to get a better look.

The city was filled with lights. On the London bridge, I could see that it was filled with cars.

You know what. I will have some fun on my own.

I wasn’t going to let him get me down on my trip here.

“Starting with dinner.”

I got my bag and walked not the bathroom to change into some nice clothes. Since it was cold out, I decided to wear some warm skinny jeans, a white turtle neck sweater and a grey scarf. I made sure to straighten my hair down and wash my face of dried tears.

I applied little make up and looked at myself in the mirror. I looked like a different person without my glasses. “Should I leave my glasses here?” I only wore my glasses because I wanted to look smart and not noticed by anyone. “I’ll just wear it. Protect my eyes from the wind.” I wore my black framed glasses.

.

Out of the bathroom, I got my white trench coat and brown high heeled books that I had packed. I only packed them because I had thought that I had to look a certain way when Adrian was around other people.

Once I was set, I got the hotel key from the nightstand and walked out with my purse.

Here I come London.

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One week later……

I was really enjoying myself in London. Everyday, I would spend most of the time at a particular area of the city. Yesterday, I spent the whole day at Westminster Abby. Westminster Abby was place where the coronation took place as well as the wedding of the royals.

The food was very interesting. i had some fish and chips, english sandwiches, Sunday roast and other known english foods. Of course, I had some healthy foods like salad while I was here. I had some great tea and snacks. The scones were my absolute favorite. They were flaky and buttery. Victorian cakes were good too.

I took many pictures. When I get home, I wanted to make a scrap book of my adventure in London.

I hadn’t seen Adrian since he had left me in the suite. He hadn’t called me to see if I was okay. I figured that he had his own suite somewhere in the hotel or at a different hotel. Lorenzo hadn’t been around as well. Still, I felt hurt from his words a week ago.

Today, I was planning to go to the Tower of London. I knew a lot of history about the tower. Also, I wanted to try Yorkshire pudding somewhere in the area. I dressed very plainly and looked at myself in the mirror. I looked alright.

“I better get going.” I walked out of the suite and got a taxi to the Tower. “Is this your first time here in London ma’am,” the taxi driver asked me. “Yes it is,” I told him. I could see a smile on his face from his rear mirror. “Welcome to London,” he told me. “Thank you.”

Once at the tower, I got out and made my way closer to the building.

Buzz…buzz….

Huh?

I took my phone out and looked to see that it was from Adrian. What does he want? It was the first time that he ever called me. I answered the phone. “Hello?” “Where are you?” He sounded a bit irritated. There was no concern in his voice.

“I’m at the Tower of London,” I told him. “Stay right there. I’ll be there in a few minutes,” he told me and hung up.

Huh?

I didn’t wait too long.

Adrian managed to find me with no problem. Lorenzo was right behind me. I met him halfway. “What are out doing here? I thought that you were in a business meeting,” I told him. I had thought that I wouldn’t see him for the whole trip. Something told me that he wasn’t here for me.

“We need to take more photos so that we can prove that we were on our honeymoon.” Thought so. I gave him a nod. He took my hand and guided me to the tower. Lorenzo followed behind us and took photos.

As we walked through the tower, I looked around in amazement but, I was a bit scared that I would run into a ghost or something. There were stories about the place being haunted by those who were executed in the courtyard of the place.

Occasionally, I stood close to Adrian but, not too close. In my mind, I felt that I couldn’t trust him. In a way, I started to not believe in his words about our commitment in the marriage. But, I was going to try to stay truthful in the marriage even if my happiness suffers.

We spent about an hour walking around and taking photos at various spots. Once outside, Adrian let go of my hand and looked at his watch. “Lets go Lorenzo. We have a meeting in thirty minutes,” he told him. “Yes sir,” Lorenzo said. They walked away from me without a word.

I looked down at my hand. I could still feel him.

He doesn’t want you. Don’t have feelings for him.

I let out a breath and continued my journey in the surrounding area.

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Ring…ring….

I opened my eyes slowly to see that it was still dark outside. On the clock, it said that it was 2:23 am.

Who could be calling right now?

Slowly, I sat up and turned the lights on. When the lamp lit up, I closed my eyes immediately. I let my eyes adjust to the lighting of the room.

I got my phone and answered. “Hello?” I answered sleepily. “Is this Valeria Minetti?” I didn’t recognize the voice. “Yes. This is she,” I answered. “This is Dr. Martin Dwight,” I heard. He was my grandparent’s doctor.

“Oh. Hello. I didn’t recognize your voice,” I told him. I rubbed my eyes. “I’m sorry to have woken you but, I have some …terrible news,” he told me. Terrible news? “What is it?” He got my attention that I was now completely awake.

I heard a sigh on the other side.

“I’m sorry to say but, you grandparents were killed in an accident.”

My mind when blank. I felt the phone slip from my hand.

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