Page 111 of Fear of Intimacy

Ordering a glass of wine, I grabbed my phone, hoping to see a text from Trevor saying he was on his way. I tried not to let my heart sink when there was no notification, my last message left on delivered.

He was most likely on his way and hadn’t had time to text me back yet.

After a few minutes of wasting time by the bar, drinking half my wine, I knew it was time to face the crowd again. And my parents. With one last glance at my phone, I put it back in my bag. The bartender sent me a sympathetic smile as I grabbed my drink.

For the next thirty minutes, I bounced around fromperson to person. As soon as I was done talking to someone, another was right there to take their spot.

I shouldn’t have been surprised when every conversation steered toward Trevor and I’s relationship. Although, I doubted half the people in attendance ever saw a hockey game.

I knew our relationship had been the talk of the town these last few weeks. I'd ignored a lot of what was being said about us, but I guessed it was big enough news for everyone here to know. News travels fast in socialite circles.

I politely answered some questions but easily switched the topic to business, which helped get the attention off of me. I long since mastered getting people to talk about themselves, something everyone in this roomlovedto do.

I politely excused myself from the conversation and made my way to the bar, needing a break. The entire time, I felt the weight of eyes on me. I caught a few comments about my dress, which just made me smirk. A lot were from old hags who didn’t appreciate me showing so much skin. Not my fault their pervy husbands couldn’t keep their eyes to themselves.

Having a second to myself, I pulled my phone out yet again. There was still no word from Trevor. He should have been here by now. My stomach twisted at the thought that something happened.

With a knot in my stomach, I sent him another text. I’d wait a little longer before texting Josie to see what was going on. Even if Trevor couldn’t make it, I just wanted to make sure he landed safely.

I had to refrain from biting my lip in worry, not wanting to ruin my lipstick or get it on my teeth. As I was standing there looking at my phone, someone slid up beside me. A quick glance from the corner of my eye had me silently groaning. God, not her.

Of course, it was Alexa Blackwood, daughter of millionaire Patrick Blackwood, who owned the hotel we were currently standing in. As well as thirty others across the world.

“There you are, Tasha. Hiding out by the bar, I see.” Her fake, nasally voice made it hard not to cringe when it hit my ears.

“Just taking care of work things.” I turned to lean my arm against the bar, not bothering to put on a fake smile as I looked over at my ex-best friend. “You do know what a job is, right?”

The glare she sent me had me smirking. She didn’t work a day in her life, her daddy having paid for everything she desired. While others were out working, she was jetting off to different countries doing whatever she pleased.

“Still being a disappointment?” The cruel smile she sent me made my jaw clench.

Back in the day, we were best friends. At one point, we were so close that I would spend almost every day at her house. We told each other everything. At eighteen, I considered her my truest friend. Obviously, that was not the case.

“If I’m not mistaken, didn’t you have a big scandal a year ago and your parents almost cut you off?” I acted like I didn’t see the headlines about her getting caught snorting coke in Italy a year ago. The thunderous look on her face had my lips curling up.

As Alexa glared at me, I looked her over. She wasn’t wearing her usual style. Typically, her dress threatened splitting open with her cleavage. Instead, she was wearing a black gown that was…plain. Interesting. Her parents probably forced her into a simple dress to show off her new good girl act.

Alexa Blackwood was pretty, even with her natural brown hair dyed blonde. Years ago, she got her nose redone,and it was clear she had a bit of lip filler. But she wasn’t ugly by any means, which was a shame since her personality was shit.

“I've heard a lot about your newest boy toy.” She completely ignored my earlier question, switching the topic back to me. I didn’t say a word at her implying Trevor was my boy toy. He was anything but that.

“Where is he? You’ve been telling everyone he’s coming.” She looked around trying to spot him, knowing full well he wasn’t here.

“He’s running late.”

“Mmhmm.” The way she said it had me narrowing my eyes at her. Alexa was a snake and anyone with eyes could see it. She might’ve pretended to be a good girl to get her image back, but she was as vindictive as they came. She was someone who would stab you in the back and not bat an eye.

“Who’s husband are you going to sleep with tonight?” I asked, nonchalantly taking a sip of my wine. The cruel part of me revelled in the way she blanch at my words, head snapping in my direction.

Alexa stared at me as if asking how I knew that little bit of information. Little did she know, I knewa lotmore than I let on. I may not have been active in social circles, but I knew what went on.

“Have a good rest of the night.” I sent her a fake smile that said, “Fuck with me, I dare you.” Letting her freak out on her own, I pushed off the bar and walked away.

Okay, maybe the night wasn’t all that bad.

Ignoring people, I headed for the tables lined on one side of the ballroom. The reason why we were all here. The table was filled with different items to bid on for different charities. This was my favorite part about coming to this event.

Every year, I would go through the charities listed and pick one to donate to. I’d sign the sheet as if to bid for theitem, but I never put enough to win, not wanting to claim the prizes that went along with the bid. Instead, the next day, I would find the charity and donate anonymously every year choosing a different one to donate to.

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