Procuring two wine glasses from the car, he poured Niamh one and handed it to her. “Drink with me.”
His baritone voice sounded bossy, but there was a tinge of indescribable fondness in his eyes.
Niamh took the glass and downed it easily.
Almost everything she never used to know, she knew now.
Drinking was not an issue.
A smidge of admiration swam in Kendrick’s eyes as he stared at Niamh.
The sunset glow behind Niamh was gorgeous, tinting her fair skin with a soft red flush. It heightened the beauty of this woman’s features.
“An ‘82 Lafite. You’re not holding back at all, Mr. Waldburg.” Niamh swirled the cup elegantly, the red liquid refracting the soft rays of the remaining sun rays. “Would you indulge me now? What’s gotten you so angry?” she asked with a small smile before furrowing her eyebrows at her train of thought.
“I went to the station to give my testimony yesterday. They told me that the kidnapping had been investigated and that Nevaeh is the actual culprit behind it. So I’m guessing that you already know about it and that’s why you’re hurt and upset?”
Hearing Niamh’s words, Kendrick raised his glass to down the wine in it.
Another sea breeze blew, chasing off the last remaining hues of sunset. The sky darkened within the span of a moment.
The street lights blinked alive, and Kendrick’s deep gaze bore into Niamh’s eyes.
“Do you plan to press charges?” he suddenly asked.
Niamh frowned. “What do you mean?”
“I wish to convince you not to press charges.”
Niamh found herself surprised by the absurdity of his reply.
‘Even now, Kendrick, why must you defend this heartless and evil woman?’
Niamh tugged her lips into a carefree smile. “Nevaeh must still mean tremendously to you, Mr. Waldburg. But if you could, I’d like you to give me a reason. What gives you the drive to protect and defend such an immoral woman?”
Niamh smirked, irony apparent in her eyes.
‘How can you still say such a thing, Kendrick Waldburg?
‘Be it the person I used to be or the person I am now, what did I do to deserve Nevaeh’s bullying?
‘Is everything she does just correct in your eyes?’
Niamh’s fingers tightened around the stem of the glass while Kendrick remained deep in thought. After a while, he raised his deep gaze to stare at her.
“I owe it to her,” he replied.
Niamh frowned in confusion. “What do you owe her?”
Staring at Niamh’s clear and sparkling orbs, Kendrick’s gaze trailed to stare at the horizon across the sea before them.
“I couldn’t fulfill what I promised her. So I thought perhaps I could make it up to her in another way.”
Niamh scoffed lowly at his reply.
‘You can’t fulfill the promise you made to Nevaeh, so instead, you’re now trying to make it up to her?
‘But Kendrick, since when have you fulfilled any of the promises you made me? And since when did you make up for those you could not keep?
‘You disregarded me when I told you how we met when we were young and trampled over the promise you made.’
“I’m sorry, I’m afraid I cannot do that.” Niamh smiled lightly, her eyes staring straight ahead. “Everyone must face the consequences of their actions.”
“Didn’t you say you want to thank me for saving you the other day? You can thank me by not pressing charges,” Kendrick replied in a heartbeat. Niamh’s eyes widened in shock as a cold and ironic scoff laid at the tip of her tongue. Her eyes settled on the rather attractive features in front of her.
‘Oh, Eveline Montgomery.
‘This is the man you fell and yearned for the past dozen years? This very man who cannot even tell right from wrong?’
“Very well then. I shall grant your wish.” Niamh placed the glass down, her tone heavy with mockery. “You must love Nevaeh Delgado a great deal to go to such lengths for her. So stop beating around the bush and get married already. The two of you surely are a ‘match made in heaven’!”
She made sure that her tone when she said ‘match made in heaven’ was dripped with irony.
Niamh turned around coolly after and made her way to leave, only to have Kendrick pull her back by her wrist.
“I won’t let your sacrifice be for naught.” His deep voice drifted warmly by her ear. “Anything you ask for in the future, Vera, I’ll do it with no questions asked.”
“You’re really going all out for Nevaeh.” A mocking smile graced Niamh’s features. “Remember the words you just said. It’ll be too late when you regret them in the future.”
Regret.
This very word again.
Kendrick felt his heart jolt as he stared at the alluring features in front of him, his gaze meaningful.
He refused to do anything that he would regret in the future.
The night grew and the bottle was finished, mostly by Kendrick.
As far as Niamh was concerned, he had called her out to get drunk over Nevaeh.
What was so good about Nevaeh that gave Kendrick the need to have and protect her?
Sure, he had said that he would void their engagement. Yet everything Kendrick said and done since then was still for Nevaeh.
Niamh found it ridiculous.
If this was how true love looked like, then true love was preposterous.
Lifting her wrist to look at her watch, Niamh realized that it was getting late. Her phone rang from inside the car, but as she opened the door, Kendrick suddenly pushed her inside.
Niamh frowned in displeasure, her tone grumbling. “Kendrick. What are you…”
She paused suddenly as she was met with Kendrick’s deep eyes mere inches away just as she turned around. The influence of alcohol was potent in them. He was most certainly drunk.
The distance between them was almost non-existent, and she found herself unable to escape as he pressed her between himself and the car.
“You fancy me, don’t you?” His seductive tone drifted into her ear with warmth. “I can feel it.”
His tone was decisive, and confidence was the only thing in his peach blossom eyes that had glazed over.
Niamh found herself slightly at a loss with how close they were and the words he was saying.
“You’re drunk,” Niamh responded calmly, though doubt was flashing in her eyes.
Was he actually drunk, or was he just pretending?
“It’s nice being drunk. At least then I get to see her…” He smiled, the ‘her’ spoken so quietly that she almost missed it.
The night wind blew past them, ruffling the wisps of his bangs. His eyes were gentle, tinted with fondness and adoration under the hazy colors of the night that Niamh had never seen before.
He stared at her, then closed their distance even more. The scent of wine tickled her face with every breath of his.
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.
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